A friend suggested that I read this book because it dealt with the problem of how to regard the New Testament as a book one reads. We respect it, but we have to read it as we read any other book. Hence, the title. I have not sat down to read or study the New Testament in almost thirty years because it came with too much baggage: respect for authority, accept but do not evaluate, revere but do not question. What Beeching does is to apply all the modes of contemporay critical reading plus exceptional knowledge of biblical analysis to make one feel comfortable with this important book. I was fascinated to be invited to see the places where things do not fit together, where things do not work out, to discover that certain passages were addressed to political situations in the first century and have to be read that way. I also appreciated his sensitivity to the historical consequences of the New Testament's treatment of Jews. The result is that I am now re-reading the New Testament and am feeling free study it as I study other books. I wish that I had been taught to read it this way years ago. By approaching it as Beeching suggests, I can appreciate it better. Beeching has enriched my life, and I am grateful to him for doing so.

If you have enough technical background into biblical criticism, this book is a treasure trove because Wire looks behind the text to see what the women in Corinth were up to--regardless of Paul's judgement of their activities. Unfortunately, the general reader will quickly become lost.

"Elijah" is a decently written book that covers the life of Elijah. The main purpose of the book seems to be bringing present life-lessons from the prophe's life. This book is not a history book, instead it reviews what Elijah experienced, considers how he responded to those experiences, and then relates these responses to present struggles that the modern reader might have. The book is good for what it is meant to be.

Stendhal is well-known to New Testament students for his provocative article on 'The Apostle Paul and the Introspective Conscience of the West' (1963) and here at last is his book-length reflection on Paul's letter to the Romans, where he works out that article at greater length and tied to the text.

It is succinct (around 80 pages of text) and written with a superb lightness of touch. This is 'the big picture' of Paul at his most excited, guiding the perplexed reader through the tangled maze of the argument with humour and yet a serious concern to grasp the same vision of God which motivated Paul.

If there is a complaint, it is perhaps that Stendahl makes such short work of the intricacies of Romans that one wonders if he is perhaps a little more straightforward than Paul himself. Never the less, he nuances well known positions with clarity (notably rejecting simplistic ideas of '2 covenants' sometimes attributed to him) and he reminds us of just why we ever bothered with the New Testament in the first place.

Highly recommended.

Witherington is a noted NT scholar and prolific writer. In this volume he seeks to answer the hypothesis if Jesus and Paul believe that the apocalyptic kingdom was to appear very soon.

He is conservative in his approach and conclusions, and exhaustive in his consideration of others' conclusions as well.

I agree that Paul walked a tightrope between realized and unrealized eschatology, or the now but not yet tension. He considers the important topic of the kingdom of God, one of Jesus' favorite sermon topics.

He correctly concludes that the intermediate state (what is going on with the departed between the Ascension and Return of Christ) is silent in Scripture.

He is afterall a academic exegete, so he is careful with his conclusions, and meticulous in his exegesis. He turns to no hyper millenial speculation.

Only serious NT students and those interested in eschatology will enjoy this study. Not a place to begin.

Those of you who want a Pauline theology book that goes straight to the meaning of Paul's writings without dogmatic interpretations of the text should read this book. Beker does an excellent job laying out Paul's theological convictions in an easy to read and scholarly manner. Beker's thesis is that Paul's theological center is the apocalyptic triumph of God through Christ. He develops his thesis with an interesting proposal on Pauline hermeneutics--the coherent center working alongside contingent particularities. Though Beker may not get much support from the more orthodox and traditionalist crowds regarding methodology, one cannot but respect Beker's attempt to stay true to Paul's writings. Though some of Beker's views may turn-off conservative Christians (he denies Pauline authorship to Ephesians), he generally presents a view that sticks to the mainline Christian tradition. Overall, a good book to read on Pauline theology. I would balance this book out with a more evangelical and conservative Pauline theology book like F. F. Bruce's "Paul, Apostle of the Heart Set Free" or Thomas Schreiner's "Paul, Apostle of God's Glory in Christ".

Boyd's book was an interesting book. I enjoyed his insight on the life of Paul. I did find one problem with his book. Towards the end, he starts using his imagination to fill in the blanks on Paul's life. He added an extra mission trip which the Bible does not include. Other than that I enjoyed the Book. I would recommend this book to any person that is interested in a detailed book on the life of Paul.

This short book is a good introductory critique on the New Perspective view of Paul (Sanders, Dunn, Stendahl, et al). The book is short and uncomplicated so that the average layperson can understand what the New Perspective teaches and what the criticisms are against it. Stuhlmacher is a German moderate evangelical and generally holds to the traditional Protestant understanding of justification. However, I do have some reservations on some of Stuhlmacher's views. On page 62, he states that the "distinction between 'imputed' righteousness...and 'effective' righteousness...cannot be maintained by Paul. Both belong together for the apostle." Thus, Stuhlmacher is blurring (I assume unintentionally) the line between Trent and traditional Protestantism on justification. Also, he takes the "re-creational" view of justification (p. 73). However, he does maintain that the Final Judgment for Christians "will determine not their salvation or damnation but only their position in the kingdom of God and of his Christ" (p. 69). Thus, he separates himself from those who promote a nomistic "Gospel" that is being preached popularly within "evangelical" circles today. Finally, Donald Hagner's contributory essay (chapter 4) is a must read. Hagner examines the New Perspective and sees whether it has Biblical foundations (which it does not). Overall, a good book critiquing a movement that has influenced a significant section of Christianity today.

This is an excellent book to fill out the background within which Saul of Tarsus - St. Paul - is to be understood. The authors are classical historians who have put a great deal of work into documenting the world of the 1st Century A.D., as it applies to Paul and the rise of early Christianity. The bibliography is thorough and up-to-date, and there is real depth in the information. I found it easy and exciting to read (though I may not be a typical reader!). The major sections - The Geography of Paul's World, Travelling the World, The Native Cultures, Hellenisation in the Near East, Roman Rule in the Near East, The Life of the Polis, and The Individual's Self-Identification - are all good to excellent. The final section on "Paul's Cities", though full of good detail, is inevitably a little "bitsy", and hence a slightly weak ending to the book. Why only four stars? And why "Two and a half of the three worlds of Paul"? Two things would have really helped complete the book. The most important thing is that the book deals excellently with the Roman and Greek "worlds" of Paul, but falls down on the Jewish world. It's good on political and social history, but weak on the history of ideas side. Some treatment of Judaism as a religion in the period, particularly as a background to Paul's ideas, would really have helped. Likewise, it would have helped to deal with some of the cross-disciplinary research that looks at Paul from an anthropological point of view. But that would be icing on the cake of what is already a good book. If you're seriously interested in St. Paul, this is one to get.

When one criticizes this book it is no doubt because they don't understand that many Christian children are being fed disinformation in school, on tv and in movies. The book clearly explains (and proves) that dinosaurs did indeed exist after the flood and were not unknown to the writers of the Bible. It is not a book per se about evolution, but works well as a companion to the subject. Once we realize that dinosaurs are not as old as we're often told, the theory of macro-evolution is shown to be just that--- a theory, with no secure basis in factual history. I have owned a copy of this book since 1989 and frequently use it as a teaching aid, its bountiful illustrations rivet children's attention. But it is also useful for teens and adults who question the historic accuracy of the Sacred Scriptures.

Children of all ages love dinosaurs. They are fascinated by them and will soak up anything dealing with those creature of old. A question that usually arises when discussing dinosaurs with children is, "what happened to the dinosaurs?" This book answers that question in the most logical and plausible way. The book is quite informative not just for kids, but for adults as well. It explains how dinosaurs fit into the Biblical creation, exposes flaws in many popular scientific theories, and illumines the validity of a Judeo/Christian world view in science. Yet, the book is quite simple to read and understand and does not become bogged down in superfluous scientific jargon. An excellent read.

I found this book to be very useful in explaining dinosaurs to my childern in a way that is consistant with my Biblical beliefs. It answered my own questions and I recommend it to anyone of any age. It is a great tool for reinforcing what we know to be truth.