The World That Shaped the New Testament, Revised Edition

By Calvin J. Roetzel

Book Overview

In this book, Calvin Roetzel explores the social, political, religious, and intellectual environment of the New Testament writers. Roetzel maps the major features of the first-century landscape so that the student may be able to view the whole, and through the whole gain new perspective on and insight into each part. Now updated with the most current scholarship and with revisions taking into account archeological findings, this is the best available introduction to the subject. Expanded materials include discussion of the social structure of Roman society, political dimensions of Pharisaism, Hellenistic religious expression, the Jewish Diaspora, the influence of the Septuagint on the Gospel writers and Paul, and women in antiquity. Pictures are integrated into the text at relevant points, the end of each chapter contains suggestions for further reading, and there is also a current and comprehensive bibliography of topics and authors.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0664224156
• ISBN13: 9780664224158
• Release Date: November 2002
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 6.0" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

helpful background study for understanding the new testament

In order to have a better grasp of the new testament, one of the many things needed is to have some understanding of the culture around the new testament times. This introductory work does a pretty level headed job of touching on quite a few of these issues. Deals with: Political setting, forms of religious/philosophical expression and thought, institutions and scripture interpretation at the time. The aim of this book is not to explain the new testament, but to give one a sense of these types of issues at the time of the new testament period, thus setting the new testament in it's wider cultural context. Good place to begin exploring background material for the new testament. Another good one for beginning new testament background studies is: Exploring The New Testament World by Albert A. Bell Jr.