Max J. Lee

Dead to Sin, Alive to God in Christ

Biblical Studies & Commentaries

“Klyne Snodgrass and Stephen Chester challenge the church to teach and preach a message at the heart of the Christian confession of faith: dying to self as the pathway to life. With exegetical detail, deep theological reflection, and an acute sense of the text's reception history, they present Romans 6:1–7:6 as the gospel. They tackle key themes in Pauline theology, including the ruinous effects of sin and death, Christ's decisive victory over these cosmic powers, salvation as the transfer from the sphere of sin to the lordship of Jesus, baptism as the rescripting of human identity, and the obedience of faith as the road to true freedom. Provocative questions—such as why what we do with our bodies matters to God—are addressed and answered. This book is a whirlwind that stirs up issues of identity and faith that cannot be ignored. Bravo for reminding us that the gospel is just as life-changing today as it was in the time of Paul!”

New Testament Ethics

Biblical Studies & Commentaries

“New Testament Ethics highlights the contributions of Richard Hays to describing the moral logic of biblical authors, moving beyond historical criticism to a literary and theological interpretation of Scripture, wrestling with the role of human experience in ecclesial discernment, and tackling the hot-button issues of his day, especially sexuality. Yet this volume does more than engage the work and theological impact of Hays’s The Moral Vision of the New Testament; it fills gaps in his work by examining a broader array of biblical texts and ethical concerns. It suggests a reconsideration of love and adds justification as a focal image for Christian practice. It addresses wealth and possessions, sex and celibacy, loneliness as a global health crisis, ethnic conflict, environmentalism, and other issues of our time. It critically and fairly evaluates Hays’s ‘change of mind’ in The Widening of God’s Mercy regarding homosexuality. I recommend reading New Testament Ethics in tandem with The Moral Vision of the New Testament for any serious study of the hermeneutical enterprise and its ethical implications for the life and witness of the church.”

Rediscovering the Wisdom of the Corinthians

Biblical Studies & Commentaries

“Timothy Brookins’s Rediscovering the Wisdom of the Corinthians is an amazing achievement! It is historical-critical scholarship at its best and will undoubtedly revive current debates on the identity of the wisdom group at Corinth for years to come. Here Brookins makes the persuasive case not only that the source of Corinthian wisdom and the habitus of the Corithian wise find their philosophical roots in Stoicism, but also that in their interactions with Paul’s gospel the wise have ‘subordinated’ major Stoic tenets to their Christ-faith. The reader will find invaluable Brookins’s history of research on the origins of Corinthian wisdom; his rigorous methodological approach; his epitomes of Stoic teachings on reason, virtue, the material universe, human nature, and πνεῦμα as the ‘stuff’ which holds it altogether; and most of all his larger discussions on the philosophical Paul. Every scholar who does research on the Corinthian letter correspondence must engage with Brookins’s fine and brilliant work.”

The Bible and Borders

Theology

“Carroll is the rare scholar who not only interprets biblical texts in their ancient cultural contexts with profound exegetical insight but also applies them with prophetic vision to today’s world. I was already using his Christians at the Border in the classroom. It remains a pioneering book that explores the ethical terrain concerning what the Bible teaches us about welcoming the immigrant as a Christian imperative and integral part of the church’s ministry. This sequel builds stronger roads for the church to sojourn together. It makes the connections between the biblical texts and a theology of God’s concern for the poor, the widow, the orphan, and the immigrant clearer, and with that clarity he issues a powerful challenge to practice hospitality and justice that only the most hardened soul could ignore. Read this book, but only if you are willing for God to change you. It can only be read as a prophetic call to action!”

The New Testament in Antiquity, 2nd Edition

Biblical Studies & Commentaries

“What a welcome update to an already cutting-edge introduction to the New Testament! The strength of the first edition was its ability to make connections: connecting today’s reader to the ancient Mediterranean world of the New Testament and connecting the best of academic research with the life and ministry of the church. This second revised edition maintains the connections of the first and improves upon them. It does not disappoint. Burge and Green have done a phenomenal job of connecting seminary students, undergraduates, pastors, and church leaders to the historically contingent and relevant message of the first-century authors so that modern interpreters can preach, teach, and apply that same message in our current contexts. It’s an ideal textbook in many ways. I’m pleased to give The New Testament in Antiquity my highest recommendation. Well done!”

The New Testament in Color

Biblical Studies & Commentaries

“The New Testament in Color is a book I long hoped would eventually be written and is in many ways overdue. The editors have done a superb job of gathering scholars from diverse ethnic backgrounds who interpret the biblical text adeptly using the familiar critical tools of exegesis, and who also demonstrate how reading from their particular social location provides theological insight germane to all of God's people. They show how the New Testament addresses a range of issues important to today's readers, including topics of restorative justice, immigration and hospitality, racial bias and violence, the priority of families and ecclesial communities, and so much more. Not to be missed are the excellent introductory essays, which trace the ethnic histories of peoples of color and their practice of reading the Bible with a hermeneutic of trust. Exegetically precise, theologically orthodox, and prophetically challenging, this book—in a word—preaches!”

Voice and Mood

Biblical Studies & Commentaries

“It's difficult to write a grammar that both is accessible for students in the classroom and makes a genuine advancement in the linguistic study of biblical Greek. Mathewson nevertheless has written a superb textbook on Greek voice and mood that accomplishes these tasks.”