Reading Romans In Context Summary

The book, Reading Romans in Context: Paul and Second Temple Judaism, is edited by Ben C. Blackwell, John K. Goodrich, and Jason Maston. All three attended the University of Durham, have a PhD, are authors of other works, and are all assistant professors, two at Houston Baptist University and Goodrich is at Moody Bible Institute. There are twenty articles written by nineteen different authors, two are written by Jonathan A. Linebaugh, fifteen of these having obtained their PhD at the University of Durham the remaining four having obtained theirs PhD from different universities. The editors state in the preface this book came from their time at Durham University. Their intention in this work is clearly stated: “Fascinated by what our peers

The editors certainly strive to share their passion for this method of understanding Scripture which seems to have been essentially lost to time. The student, formal or layman, is given clear examples of the various writings the editors feel are relevant to the various sections of

The writings of Paul and others from the same period in history demonstrate the break from tradition Paul was preaching. Today many of the things Paul taught are so widely accepted in society they seem normal. The idea they were ever controversial is disconnected from daily life. The Western world was founded on much of principles found in Paul’s teachings, they have become commonplace to us today. I have heard, as I am sure many have, how radical Christianity was in its inception. We have a certain preconditioned acceptance of Christianity today and little to compare it with, the exception being the more radical extremes of some religions today. These essays provide, as the title implies, a proper reference to first century Christianity and the world in which it was instituted by Christ Himself. I have read many other books which give insight to the original context of Scripture. Some give history, some cite research, others explain daily life, while some give Scriptural references to indicate where the extrabiblical writing is either quoted or quotes Scripture. Works such as the following from my personal collection: Halley’s Bible Handbook, Zondervan Publishing, 1965; The Book of Enoch translated by R.H. Charles with his translation notes published in 1912 and republished by Artisan Publishers in 2009; The Lost Books of the Bible, the 1979 reprint by Bell Publishers of the 1926 edition by World Publishers; The New Open Bible