Originally presented as the author's thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Chicago, 1998.

Winner of the Canadian Society of Biblical Studies 2015 F. W. Beare Award Did Paul have formal training in Greco-Roman rhetoric, or did he learn what he knew of persuasion informally, as social practice? Pauline scholars recognize the importance of this question both for determining Paul’s social status and for conceptualizing the nature of his letters, but they have been unable to reach a consensus. Using 2 Corinthians 10–13 as a test case, Ryan Schellenberg undertakes a set of comparisons with non-Western speakers—most compellingly, the Seneca orator Red Jacket—to demonstrate that the rhetorical strategies Paul employs in this text are also attested in speakers known to have had no formal training in Greco-Roman rhetoric. Since there are no specific indicators of formal training in the way Paul uses these strategies, their appearance in his letters does not constitute evidence that Paul received formal rhetorical education.

Leading biblical scholar Thomas Schreiner provides an easy-to-navigate resource for studying and understanding the Acts of the Apostles and the Pauline Letters. This accessibly written volume summarizes the content of each major section of the biblical text to help readers quickly grasp the sense of particular passages. This is the first volume in the Handbooks on the New Testament series, which is modeled after Baker Academic's successful Old Testament handbook series. Series volumes are neither introductions nor commentaries, as they focus primarily on the content of the biblical books without getting bogged down in historical-critical questions or detailed verse-by-verse exegesis. The series will contain three volumes that span the entirety of the New Testament, with future volumes covering the Gospels and Hebrews through Revelation. Written with classroom utility and pastoral application in mind, these books will appeal to students, pastors, and laypeople alike.

"Ivar Vegge argues that Paul, in line with ancient moral philosophers, letter-writers, and rhetoricians, used idealized praise in 2 Cor 1-9, and particularly in 2 Cor 7:5-16, and blame or threats, especially in 2 Cor 10-13, to promote reconciliation between the Corinthians and Paul as apostle."--BOOK JACKET.

Investigates the centrality of suffering to Paul's argument in 2 Corinthians.

Until recently, many scholars have read Paul’s use of the word Christos as more of a proper name (“Jesus Christ”) than a title, Jesus the Messiah. One result, Joshua W. Jipp argues, is that important aspects of Paul’s thinking about Jesus’ messiahship have gone unrecognized. Jipp argues that kingship discourse is an important source for Paul’s christological language: Paul uses royal language to present Christ as the good king. Jipp surveys Greco-Roman and Jewish depictions of the ideal king and argues for the influence of these traditions on several aspects of Paul’s thought: king and law (Galatians 5–6; Romans 13–15; 1 Corinthians 9); hymning to the king (Colossians 1:15-20); the just and faithful king; the royal roots of Paul’s language of participation “in Christ”; and the enthroned king (Romans 1:3-4; 1 Corinthians 15:20-28). Jipp finds that Paul’s use of royal tropes is indeed significant. Christos is a royal honorific within Paul’s letters, and Paul is another witness to ancient discussions of monarchy and ideal kingship. In the process, Jipp offers new and noteworthy solutions to outstanding questions concerning Christ and the law, the pistis Christou debate, and Paul’s participatory language.

David J. Rudolph raises new questions about Paul's view of the Torah and Jewish identity in this post-supersessionist interpretation of 1 Corinthians 9:19-23. Paul's principle of accommodation is considered in light of the diversity of Second Temple Judaism and Jesus' example and rule of accommodation.