On the Face of the Deep
- World Religions
- History & Biography
- Publisher: Baker Academic (Baker Publishing Group)
- Published: 2026
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Publisher's Description
The Old Testament tells a story primarily written to, by, and about people of the land―the promised land and its neighboring territories. Those at home on the sea were almost always portrayed as enemies by those authors. But with the New Testament comes a startling shift of focus: The disciples take their message to the ends of the earth via the Mediterranean Sea. In On the Face of the Deep, Linford Stutzman highlights the importance of sea stories in Scripture. A biblical scholar as well as an expert sailor, Stutzman rereads these passages with insights from history, marine archaeology, ancient texts, and the cultural and physical environment of the Mediterranean itself. His study reveals geographical and cultural details that enhance our appreciation of the drama and significance of the Bible's sea stories.
Endorsements (8)
“Although it is often unstated, the sea looms large in the minds and cultural worlds of the biblical authors. In this gem of a book, readers are trained to see the waterborne contexts and peoples of the Bible in new and illuminating ways. With Stutzman—a seasoned sailor-scholar—as guide, readers learn to engage Scripture and the life of faith from the perspective of the sea and those who traveled it. The promise of transformative ways of seeing and being in the world await those who undertake the voyage.”
“On the Face of the Deep offers readers a compelling nautical journey through the Scriptures that is rich with historical background, biblical insights, and personal reflections. Drawing on long years of firsthand experience plying the Mediterranean in the aptly named vessel SailingActs, Stutzman here traces the biblical story of the people of God from Genesis to Revelation as they move from their land-based origins to engage, in an increasingly vital fashion, with 'the sea and its people.' We owe Stutzman a debt of gratitude for his patient and passionate work at researching and demonstrating the significance of the sea as a crucial historical, theological, and missiological motif throughout the Scriptures.”
“In this volume, Stutzman challenges Bible readers to make a paradigm shift: to read the text from the perspective of the sea rather than the land. With a broad sweep he surveys Jewish and Greco-Roman history to show how the sea played a prominent role in these ancient societies, their traditions, and their texts. He rightly points to how Jesus, the apostles, and the early believers shifted their ministries to the sea. In the first century AD, the largest cities were all ports, so to reach those cities with the gospel, ships and sailors had to become part of the New Testament story. Stutzman sprinkles the text with personal anecdotes related to his two decades of sailing the Mediterranean with his wife, Janet, sharing insider knowledge especially related to the sea journeys of Paul. All aboard for a great read!”
“Linford Stutzman invites us to take a seaward view of Scripture—a gaze long overdue in biblical studies. In doing so, he challenges the traditional view that the biblical writers saw the sea as only a metaphor for chaos and evil, balancing it with a New Testament awareness that the Mediterranean coastlands were home to a vast number of seaward people receptive to the message of the gospel. In the process, he examines the challenges and tensions that arose, first in Judaism and then in the early Christian movement, out of the dynamic encounter of seafarers with the land-based populations of Judea and Galilee. In the end, the sea is transformed from a metaphor for chaos, impurity, and danger into a metaphor for the unstable and perilous yet promising life through which we all sail. Stutzman's observations spring from texts, geography, archaeology, and his own years of experience sailing the sea routes of the apostle Paul on the Great Sea, the Mediterranean. This is a delightful read—personal, engaging, and as fresh as the deep-sea breezes that beckon us outward.”
“Reading this beautifully written book helped me appreciate even more all the stories behind many of the fascinating places we visited while sailing our own sailboat around the Eastern Mediterranean over the past three years. Loved it!”
“In this volume, Linford Stutzman has made a valuable contribution to an understanding of travel on the seas during the biblical eras. Stutzman has rightly highlighted the importance of maritime trade and travel in ancient cultures. He provides excellent descriptions of sailors, sailing vessels, ports, and the economic importance of trade on the waterways. The dangers and difficulties of travel and trade on the seas are set in the context of the potential financial benefits or losses incurred by the merchants and owners of the vessels. The book is interspersed with interesting personal anecdotes from the author's twenty years of sailing along the coasts of Greece, Turkey, and Israel.”
“With one hand on the Bible and the other on the helm of a boat, Stutzman takes the reader on intriguing tours of the Sea of Galilee and the Mediterranean through the lens of Scripture. A New Testament scholar and a seasoned sailor, the author gives rare and rich perspectives on reading the New Testament with Jesus and his disciples on small fishing vessels and with Paul on his international journeys. An enjoyable read that will give the student of the Bible new and fresh vistas into familiar stories.”
“What an incredibly written and researched insight into the sea and its people in Scripture! I am amazed at the way this book opens wide some of the stories we know so well through this unique lens. It has helped add so much color and richness to some of the black-and-white texts. As a passionate sailor and lover of the Word, I so look forward to digesting this in small chunks over and over again. Through Linford's lived experience and meticulous academic study, this is a unique work for all those who love the sea!”
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