Thomas Schirmacher argues that from the biblical teaching that man is the head of woman (1 Cr 11:3) the Corinthians had drawn the false conclusion that in prayer a woman must be veiled and a man is forbidden to be veiled, and that the wife exists for the husband but not the husband for the wife. Paul, however, rejects these conclusions and shows in 11:10-16 why the veiling of women did not belong to God's commandments binding upon all the Christian communities. Schirmacher presents an alternative exposition, discusses quotations and irony in 1 Corinthians, and deals with other New Testament texts about women's clothing and prayer and about the subordination of wives.

Schirrmacher argues that the Corinthians drew false conclusions about womens clothing and prayer, and the subordination of wives. He presents his alternative exposition in detail. (Christian)

Leading Patristic and New Testament scholars closely examine Tertullian's readings of Paul.

This commentary applies an exegetical method informed by both sociological insight and rhetorical analysis to the study of I and 2 Corinthians. The study also analyzes the two letters of Paul in terms of Greco-Roman rhetoric and ancient social conditions and customs to shed fresh light on the context and content of the message.

The reception of Paul in the first century is a highly debated issue. Daniel Marguerat defends the position of a threefold reception of Paul in parallel ways: documentary, biographical and doctoral. Marguerat advocates that the value of the phenomena of reception be appreciated, in particular the figure of Paul in Acts. It should not systematically be compared to the apostle's writings, even though this image evolves from a Lukan reinterpretation. The essays concern the literary and theological construction of the book of Acts, focusing on the figure of Paul: his rapport with the Torah, the Socratic model, the Lukan character construction, the resurrection as central theme in Acts, the significance of meals. They also treat themes of Pauline theology: Paul the mystic, the justification by faith, imitating Paul as father and mother of the community, and the woman's veil in Corinth.

In this interdisciplinary study Paul's enigmatic rhetoric in 2 Corinthians is analysed and explained using dramatism, a modern critical theory developed by Kenneth Burke. Three portions of 2 Corinthians are isolated and examined as fitting responses to dintinct stages in Paul's changing relationship to the Corinthian Christians. In the Letter of Initial Response (2.14-7.4), Paul responds to the beginning of the conflict with an argument defined by the opposition between 'agency' and 'agent' conceptions of ministry. In the Letter of Attack (chs. 10-13), Paul replies to the apex of the crisis by playing the role of the foolish agent in order to gain a hearing and drive the Corinthians out of their orientation. In the Letter of Reconciliation (1.3-2.13 + 7.5-16), Paul rehearses the symbolic purification which has occurred in this conflict.