John M G Barclay

'There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.' (Galatians 3.28) The revolutionary writings of St Paul have had an incalculable impact on Western history, and continue to influence directly the two billion Christians living today. Written by a world authority, this brief history begins by assessing what we know about Paul's life and letters, and his impact on the Roman world of the first century. It concludes by highlighting the key elements of Paul's thought and considering their consequences as they have played out over two millennia.

Was Paul silent on the injustices of the Roman Empire? Or have his letters just been misread? The inclusion of anti-imperial rhetoric in Paul's writings has come under scrutiny in recent years. Pressing questions about just how much Paul critiques Rome in his letters and how publicly critical he could have afforded to be have led to high-profile debates--most notably between N. T. Wright and John M. G. Barclay. Having entered the conversation in 2015 with his book Hidden Criticism?, Christoph Heilig contributes further insight and new research in The Apostle and the Empire, reevaluating the case for Paul hiding his criticism of Rome in the subtext of his letters. Heilig argues that scholars have previously overlooked passages that openly denounce the empire--for instance, the "triumphal procession" in 2 Corinthians, which Heilig discusses in detail by drawing on a variety of archaeological data. Furthermore, Heilig takes on larger issues of theory and methodology in biblical studies, raising significant questions about how interpreters can move beyond outdated methods of reading the New Testament toward more robust understandings of the ways ancient texts convey meaning. His groundbreaking work is a must-read for Pauline scholars and for anyone interested in how one of Christianity's most important teachers communicated his unease with the global superpower of his day.

A collection of exegetical, historical, and theological essays on Paul's letters, including reception history and comparative readings in conversation with other texts.This collection of Jonathan Linebaugh's most important work on Paul explores the merciful surprise at the heart of Paul's gospel: a grace that, while strange and weak in worldly terms, is nothing less than the power of God, full of comfort and promise. Through twelve essays--two of them new--Linebaugh contextualizes and interprets key Pauline passages, does comparative readings of Paul in conversation with early Jewish texts, and enters into dialogue with Reformation theologians such as Martin Luther and Thomas Cranmer. Thorough and multifaceted, Linebaugh's work is at once exegetical, historical, and theological in scope. Accordingly, The Word of the Cross is a rigorous scholarly enterprise that takes seriously Paul's claim that the good news of Jesus Christ, despite appearing scandalous and foolish, in fact contradicts and overcomes the conditions of the possible through the power of God.

Concise yet comprehensive, manageable and affordable, T&T Clark Study Guides are an invaluable resource for students, preachers and Bible study leaders. Each book in the series gives the reader a thorough introduction to a particular book of the Bible or the Apocrypha and includes: * An introduction to the contents of the particular biblical book * A balanced survey of the important critical issues * Attention to literary, historical, sociological, and theological perspectives * Suggestions about critical appropriation of the text by the contemporary reader * Reference to other standard works through annotated bibliographies. All the books in the series, formerly published by Sheffield Academic Press, are by leading biblical scholars and the authors have drawn on their scholarly expertise as well as their experience as teachers of university and college students.

This book for the first time assembles and analyzes the evidence about the Jewish communities outside Judea: in Egypt (the longest section, for the evidence is quite plentiful), Syria, Cyrenaica, the province of Asia (in modern Turkey) and Rome.

Is social enterprise yet another example of the expansion of the market into all areas of life and society, in this case the marketization of poverty? Or does it offer genuine hope as part of a solution to some of the challenges facing contemporary society, and as an example of an economy of mutuality? Framing this question theologically, does it offer the potential of ""faithful economic practice""? The Promise of Social Enterprise makes the case that how we answer this depends on the language we use to describe--and perform--social enterprise. Arguing for the need to move beyond the narrow and reductionistic logic of mainstream economics, the economic nature of the language of gift and mutuality is explored. Drawing on the theological framework of Pope Benedict XVI and the work of John Barclay on Paul's understanding of the social implications of the Christ-gift, this book considers the contribution that a theology of gift, with its incongruity and mutuality, makes to the theory and practice of social enterprise.

Is social enterprise yet another example of the expansion of the market into all areas of life and society, in this case the marketization of poverty? Or does it offer genuine hope as part of a solution to some of the challenges facing contemporary society, and as an example of an economy of mutuality? Framing this question theologically, does it offer the potential of faithful economic practice? The Promise of Social Enterprise makes the case that how we answer this depends on the language we use to describe--and perform--social enterprise. Arguing for the need to move beyond the narrow and reductionistic logic of mainstream economics, the economic nature of the language of gift and mutuality is explored. Drawing on the theological framework of Pope Benedict XVI and the work of John Barclay on Paul's understanding of the social implications of the Christ-gift, this book considers the contribution that a theology of gift, with its incongruity and mutuality, makes to the theory and practice of social enterprise.

The Apocalyptic Paul is rapidly becoming one of the most influential contemporary approaches to the apostle's letters, and one which has generated its share of controversy. Critiques of the movement have come from all sides: Pauline specialists, scholars of Jewish and Christian apocalyptic literature, and systematic theologians have all raised critical questions. Meanwhile, many have found it a hard conversation to enter, not least because of the contested nature of its key terms and convictions. Non-specialists can find it difficult to sift through these arguments and to become familiar with the history of this movement, its most important contemporary voices, and its key claims. In the first part of this book, New Testament scholar Jamie Davies offers a retrospective introduction to the conversation, charting its development from the turn of the twentieth century to the present, surveying the contemporary situation. In the second part, Davies explores a more prospective account of the challenges and questions that are likely to energize discussion in the future, before offering some contributions to the apocalyptic reading of Paul through an interdisciplinary conversation between the fields of New Testament scholarship, Second Temple Jewish apocalypticism, and Christian systematic theology.

Paul and the Gift transformed the landscape of Pauline studies upon its publication in 2015. In it, John Barclay led readers through a recontextualized analysis of grace and interrogated Paul's original meaning in declaring it a "free gift" from God, revealing grace as a multifaceted concept that is socially radical and unconditioned--even if not unconditional. Paul and the Power of Grace offers all of the most significant contributions from Paul and the Gift in a package several hundred pages shorter and more accessible. Additionally, Barclay adds further analysis of the theme of gift and grace in Paul's other letters--besides just Romans and Galatians--and explores contemporary implications for this new view of grace.

Paul's passionate Letter to the Galatians has occasioned various perspectives (old, new, radical new, apocalyptic, etc.) for explaining Paul's defense of the ""truth of the gospel"" in it. This book makes an audacious claim that the allegorical passage of 4:21-5:1 is the best vantage point for configuring Paul's theological vision and logic in the letter. Offering a fresh approach for understanding Paul's allegorical practice, it demonstrates how both the Abraham narrative and the book of Isaiah function as a formative matrix for Paul's theology. With an in-depth analysis of these scriptural texts, Paul's two identifications for believers in Christ--belonging to the ""Jerusalem above"" and being ""children of promise"" in the pattern of Isaac--receive new clarity and precision. The investigative journey in this book discusses key concepts and texts from Galatians, and addresses questions concerning the shape of Paul's retelling of Israel's story in relation to Jews and Gentiles. The result is a well-grounded interpretation of Paul's conception of the gospel that made him new and continues to bring about new creation in our world.

Paul's passionate Letter to the Galatians has occasioned various perspectives (old, new, radical new, apocalyptic, etc.) for explaining Paul's defense of the ""truth of the gospel"" in it. This book makes an audacious claim that the allegorical passage of 4:21-5:1 is the best vantage point for configuring Paul's theological vision and logic in the letter. Offering a fresh approach for understanding Paul's allegorical practice, it demonstrates how both the Abraham narrative and the book of Isaiah function as a formative matrix for Paul's theology. With an in-depth analysis of these scriptural texts, Paul's two identifications for believers in Christ--belonging to the ""Jerusalem above"" and being ""children of promise"" in the pattern of Isaac--receive new clarity and precision. The investigative journey in this book discusses key concepts and texts from Galatians, and addresses questions concerning the shape of Paul's retelling of Israel's story in relation to Jews and Gentiles. The result is a well-grounded interpretation of Paul's conception of the gospel that made him new and continues to bring about new creation in our world.

Biblical Foundations Award Finalist What forces shaped the intellectual world of the apostle Paul? How familiar was he with the great philosophers of his age, and to what extent was he influenced by them? When he quoted Greco-Roman sources, what was his aim? Pauline scholars wrestle with such questions in journal articles and technical monographs, but now Paul and the Giants of Philosophy brings the conversation into the college classroom and the church. Each essay addresses Paul's interaction with Greco-Roman philosophical thinking on a particular topic, such as faith, slavery, gift-giving, and the afterlife. And each chapter includes discussion questions and reading lists to help readers engage the material further. Dodson and Briones have gathered contributors with diverse views from various traditions who are united in the desire to make Paul's engagement with ancient philosophy accessible to many readers.

In this volume David Horrell focuses on themes of community, ethics, and ecology in Paul, moving from the concrete social circumstances in which the earliest Christian communities gathered to the appropriation of Paul's writings in relation to modern ethical challenges. Often questioning established consensus positions, Horrell opens up new perspectives and engages with ongoing debates both in Pauline studies and in contemporary ethics.After covering historical questions about the setting of the Paul-ine communities, The Making of Christian Morality analyzes Paul-ine ethics through a detailed study of particular passages. In the third and final section Horrell brings Pauline thought to bear on contemporary issues and challenges, using the environmen-tal crisis as a case study to demonstrate how Paul's ethics can be appropriated fruitfully in a world so different from Paul's own.

In this book esteemed Pauline scholar John Barclay presents a strikingly fresh reading of grace in Paul's theology, studying it in view of ancient notions of "gift" and shining new light on Paul's relationship to Second Temple Judaism. Paul and the Gift centres on divine gift-giving, which for Paul, Barclay says, is focused and fulfilled in the gift of Christ. He offers a new appraisal of Paul's theology of the Christ-event as gift as it comes to expression in Galatians and Romans, and he presents a nuanced and detailed discussion of the history of reception of Paul. This exegetically responsible, theologically informed, hermeneutically useful book shows that a respectful, though not uncritical, reading of Paul contains resources that remain important for Christians today.

Seminal essays from a leading New Testament scholar For the past twenty years, John Barclay has researched and written on the social history of early Christianity and the life of Jews in the Mediterranean Diaspora. In this collection of nineteen noteworthy essays, he examines points of comparison between the early churches and the Diaspora synagogues in the urban Roman world of the first century. With an eye to such matters as food, family, money, circumcision, Spirit, age, and death, Barclay examines key Pauline texts, the writings of Josephus, and other sources, investigating the construction of early Christian identity and comparing the experience of Paul's churches with that of Diaspora Jewish communities scattered throughout the Roman Empire.

This volume contains a fresh English translation of Josephus’ apologetic treatise Against Apion, based on the new textual research conducted by the Münster Josephus project. It also provides the first English commentary on this treatise, with comprehensive treatment of the historical, literary, and rhetorical features of Josephus’ most engaging literary product. Against Apion contains the most important evidence for hostility to Judeans in antiquity, as Josephus responds to both Egyptian and Hellenistic slurs on the Judean people, their origins and character. Josephus’ robust defense of his people, with his striking account of the Judean constitution (“theocracy”), also constitutes the finest example of Judean apologetics from antiquity. The commentary will provide a richly-documented resource for the many readers of this treatise – those who study and teach early Judaism, early Christianity, and the cultural politics of antiquity. It also offers the first “postcolonial” reading of Josephus, in his attempt to present his Judean tradition under the cultural hegemony of the Greek intellectual tradition and the political power of Rome.

The first book to provide a comprehensive survey of the history of the Jews in the Mediterranean Diaspora in the Hellenistic and early Roman period. Uniquely, it combines a study of all the important Jewish communities with a thorough examination of the Diaspora literature as a whole.An important reference for all scholars and students with an interest in Second Temple Judaism, Hellenistic Judaism and early Christianity