Kirjahaku

The Gospel of Luke is a book about Jesus, claiming to provide assurance concerning what its reader has been taught about Jesus. But how does it do that? This book provides an answer to that question by helping readers understand Luke as a gospel story in its historical context and with appreciation for the author's literary artistry and theological perspectives. Part one explores background information and literary features of Luke such as its author and first readers, genre, plot and character development, the role of programmatic passages, and interpreting the large number of parables included by Luke. Part two focuses on themes that run throughout the Gospel: Jesus's mission, salvation, discipleship, the kingdom of God, resurrection, and ascension. The discussion of these features and themes will provide readers of Luke's Gospel with a grasp of its overarching framework so that they are able to comprehend Luke's unique presentation of Jesus's life and read the Gospel with increased confidence for themselves.

The Gospel of Luke is a book about Jesus, claiming to provide assurance concerning what its reader has been taught about Jesus. But how does it do that? This book provides an answer to that question by helping readers understand Luke as a gospel story in its historical context and with appreciation for the author's literary artistry and theological perspectives. Part one explores background information and literary features of Luke such as its author and first readers, genre, plot and character development, the role of programmatic passages, and interpreting the large number of parables included by Luke. Part two focuses on themes that run throughout the Gospel: Jesus's mission, salvation, discipleship, the kingdom of God, resurrection, and ascension. The discussion of these features and themes will provide readers of Luke's Gospel with a grasp of its overarching framework so that they are able to comprehend Luke's unique presentation of Jesus's life and read the Gospel with increased confidence for themselves.

Frank Dicken offers a new perspective on the three rulers who appear in Luke-Acts with the name "Herod," contending that in light of their similar narrative depictions they may be construed as a composite character, i.e., a single character in the narrative. Viewing the Lukan Herods alongside other composite characters in Jewish and early Christian literature, the author then compares and contrasts the portrayal of the Herods in Luke-Acts with what is known about the Herods historically. Thereby he highlights two unique features - the title "King of Judaea" at Luke 1:5 and the name "Herod" for Agrippa I in Acts 12 - that result in construing the Herods as a composite. A reading of Luke-Acts focusing on each passage in which composite "Herod" appears demonstrates that understanding "Herod" as a single character is possible. Finally, Frank Dicken examines the characterization of composite "Herod" as an antagonist who embodies satanic opposition toward the spread of the gospel in the Lukan narrative.