The Paul Quest - by Ben Witherington (Paperback)

About the Book

Book Synopsis

Ben Witherington III examines the various profiles of the historical Paul that have been newly discovered, revealing how a reacquaintance with the classical Roman world has filled in even more details of Paul's life and work.

Review Quotes

"Ben Witherington offers us an academically robust, illuminating, comprehensive yet admirably lucid portrait of Paul in the social, cultural and religious setting(s) of the eastern Mediterranean. A 'must' for all students of Paul."

"The past three decades witnessed a major series of incisive developments in Pauline studies-the man, his mission, his motivation and his message. Students and scholars alike can easily get lost in the plethora of contributions to this field: commentaries, monographs, essays and other studies. With remarkable breadth of learning and a vigorously lucid style, Ben Witherington III explores this complex terrain, maps out the landscape of an enormous field, and provides insight and direction to anyone interested in coming to a better understanding of Paul and the topography of his world and letters. Witherington deserves both congratulations and thanks for this fresh survey and fascinating guidebook."

"This book is a welcome addition to Pauline literature that attempts to accurately discover the apostle's identity, and contributes to the scholarly understanding Paul's world. Ben Witherington convincingly presented the apostle Paul as an ancient Mediterranean person whose identiy needs to be reconstructed very differently from ours. The different aspects of Paul's identity were carefully argues and help modern readers get a sense of what type of person Paul was."

"This discussion of Paul, his environment and Pauline scholarship bears the hallmarks of a flourishing textbook for undergraduate teaching in the years to come. It is comprehensive in scope, readable, full of historical insights and fair in its treatment of differing views."

About the Author

Ben Witherington III (PhD, University of Durham) is Jean R. Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary. A prominent evangelical scholar, he is also on the doctoral faculty at St. Andrews University in Scotland.Witherington has written over forty books, including The Jesus Quest and The Paul Quest, both of which were selected as top biblical studies works by Christianity Today. His other works include The Indelible Image, Women and the Genesis of Christianity, The Gospel Code, A Week in the Life of Corinth and commentaries on the entire New Testament. He also writes for many church and scholarly publications and is a frequent contributor to Patheos and Beliefnet.Witherington is an elected member of the prestigious Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, a society dedicated to New Testament studies. He is a John Wesley Fellow for Life, a research fellow at Cambridge University and a member of numerous professional organizations, including the Society of Biblical Literature, Society for the Study of the New Testament and the Institute for Biblical Research. He previously taught at institutions like Ashland Theological Seminary, Vanderbilt University, Duke Divinity School and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.An ordained pastor in the United Methodist Church and a popular lecturer, Witherington has presented seminars for churches, colleges and biblical meetings around the world. He has led numerous study tours through the lands of the Bible and is known for bringing the text to life through incisive historical and cultural analysis. Along with many interviews on radio and television networks across the country, Witherington has been seen in programs such as 60 Minutes, 20/20, Dateline and the Peter Jennings ABC special Jesus and Paul--The Word and the Witness.