Paul in the Greco-Roman World: A Handbook

Within the flurry of scholarship on Paul in recent years, an area of significant interest has been the study of Paul within his particular context, the Greco-Roman world. This landmark handbook, written by distinguished Pauline scholars, is the first and only single volume to offer lucid and insightful examinations of Paul and his world. Each chapter explores a particular social convention, literary or rhetorical topos, social practice, or cultural mores of the world in which Paul and his audiences were at home. In addition, the sections use carefully chosen examples to demonstrate how particular features of Greco-Roman culture shed light on Paul’s letters and on his readers’ possible perception of them. Contributors to the volume include Efram Agosto, Will Deming, David E. Fredrickson, Peter Lampe, L. Michael White, Stanley K. Stowers, Edgar Krentz, John T. Fitzgerald, Robert Jewett, James C. Walters, Troels Engberg-Pederson, Christopher Forbes, Duane F. Watson, Rollin A. Ramsaran, J. Albert Harrill, David L. Balch, Ronald F. Hock, O. Larry Yarbrough, Clarence E. Glad, J. Paul Sampley, and Benjamin Fiore.J. Paul Sampley is Professor Emeritus of New Testament and Christian Origins at Boston University and is the author of Pauline Parallels.