This study traces the emergence of the concept of the body as a sanctuary from its biblical roots to its expressions in late Second Temple Judaism. Harrington's hypothesis is that the destruction of the first Jerusalem temple was a catalyst for a new reality vis-à-vis the temple and the emergence of increased emphasis on the holiness of the people along with concomitant standards of purity in a certain stream of Judaism. The study brings into relief elements of this attitude from exilic texts, e.g. Ezekiel, to Ezra-Nehemiah, the Dead Sea Scrolls and other Second Temple Jewish texts, including early Jesus and Pauline traditions. The goal is to provide a history of the concept of the body-cum-temple metaphor which comes to its fullest expression in the letters of Paul to the Corinthians. The concept of the body as a sanctuary as it comes to fruition in late second temple Judaism must be understood within the conceptual world of Jewish holiness of the time. The metaphor of the temple provides a frame of reference but only a close analysis of the concepts of holiness, purity, and impurity and the dynamics between them can provide depth and distinction. Of particular importance, critical to proper understanding of the temple metaphor, are the notions of the elect, holy status of Israel and its possible desecration by wrongful sexual relations, the loss of the temple and the ripple effect of creating at least temporary substitutes for processes of the cult, the widespread concern in Second Temple Judaism for ritual purity in support of greater holiness, and a desire among Jews for the residence and agency of the spirit of holiness.

The concern for purity was the cornerstone of the religious culture of ancient Judaism. Purity and Identity in Ancient Judaism explores how this concern shaped the worldview of Jews during the Second Temple period as well as their daily practices and social relations. It examines how different groups offered competing visions and methods for living a life of purity, which embodied a promise for personal and cosmic salvation and at the same time determined the degree of sectarian separation. Purity and Identity in Ancient Judaism offers a comprehensive description of the world of purity among the Jews of the Second Temple period in general and within the tradition of the Pharisees in particular. Yair Furstenberg explores the language of purity that provided Jews in antiquity a powerful tool for organizing legal, social, and ideological boundaries, and its study is therefore pertinent for understanding the powers that shaped the varieties of Second Temple Judaism and their later offshoots: Early Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism. Purity and Identity in Ancient Judaism offers new methods for carefully integrating the New Testament, Qumran literature, and early rabbinic sources into a comprehensive history of purity laws from the world of the Second Temple and the Pharisees to the later rabbinic movement, allowing the reader to trace the emergence of new religious sensibilities within changing social and cultic circumstances.

These essays address the connection between purity in early Judaism and the synagogue, Jesus' observance of purity laws, and women's relationships with purity in the first century.

The concern for purity was the cornerstone of the religious culture of ancient Judaism. Purity and Identity in Ancient Judaism explores how this concern shaped the worldview of Jews during the Second Temple period as well as their daily practices and social relations. It examines how different groups offered competing visions and methods for living a life of purity, which embodied a promise for personal and cosmic salvation and at the same time determined the degree of sectarian separation. Purity and Identity in Ancient Judaism offers a comprehensive description of the world of purity among the Jews of the Second Temple period in general and within the tradition of the Pharisees in particular. Yair Furstenberg explores the language of purity that provided Jews in antiquity a powerful tool for organizing legal, social, and ideological boundaries, and its study is therefore pertinent for understanding the powers that shaped the varieties of Second Temple Judaism and their later offshoots: Early Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism. Purity and Identity in Ancient Judaism offers new methods for carefully integrating the New Testament, Qumran literature, and early rabbinic sources into a comprehensive history of purity laws from the world of the Second Temple and the Pharisees to the later rabbinic movement, allowing the reader to trace the emergence of new religious sensibilities within changing social and cultic circumstances.

Jonathan Klawans shows how the link between moral impurity and physical defilement, as understood by the ancient Hebrews, can be followed through to St Paul and the Christian era when the need for ritual purity was finally rejected.

Paul's view of the church as the temple and his concern about its purity in 1-2 Corinthians has traditionally been interpreted from the perspective of a Jewish background. However, Yulin Liu reveals that the pagans were very aware of temple purity when visiting some temples in the Greco-Roman world, and the purification concerns of three pagan temples in Corinth are documented in his work. The author affirms that the Gentile believers among the Corinthian community were able to grasp Paul's message because of it. Also, Liu investigates Paul's use of temple purity to address the necessity of unity, holiness and faithfulness of the Corinthian Christians in an eschatological sense. The separation of God's people from profane matters actually points to a new exodus and a progressive consummation of the construction of the eschatological temple-community.

At the heart of Paul’s Corinthian correspondence is a historical puzzle. How did the relative calm of 1 Corinthians deteriorate into the chaos of 2 Corinthians, and what role did the so-called Jewish “super-apostles” play in that conflict? This book proposes a new solution: it was Paul, not his rivals, who shot the first volley in the Corinthian conflict. Paul’s claims of unique authority—for instance, as the architect atop whose foundation all others must build (1 Cor 3:10) and the Corinthians’ father while others are mere pedagogues (4:15)—would relegate other leaders to lesser positions. His contention that accepting financial support put an obstacle before the gospel (9:12) would jeopardize the livelihood of apostles who relied on such support. Finally, Paul’s claim that he becomes “lawless to the lawless” (9:21) or that “circumcision is nothing” (7:19) could throw into question Paul’s own Jewishness (cf. 2 Cor 11:22). By reading the Corinthian correspondence against the grain—imagining how Paul’s letter might have backfired for an audience who did not yet take him as scripture—this book explores how misunderstandings and misinterpretations can fracture church communities and cause a ripple effect of conflict and accusation.