logo
Jesus, Paul and the End of the World, By Ben Witherington III

Jesus, Paul and the End of the World

by Ben Witherington III

Jesus, Paul and the End of the World
paperback
$35.00
  • Length: 306 pages
  • Dimensions: 6 × 9 in
  • Published: April 13, 1992
  • Imprint: IVP Academic
  • Item Code: 1759
  • ISBN: 9780830817597

*affiliate partner

More than eighty years ago Albert Schweitzer posed a question of enduring debate for New Testament scholarship. Did Jesus--and later Paul--believe that the apocalyptic kingdom of God was about to appear, bringing an end to this world? Indeed, what were the eschatological teachings of Jesus and Paul? Is there any appreciable continuity between the two?

Ben Witherington takes a hard look at the Gospel texts and makes a thorough and critical assessment of Paul's eschatology. For each topic examined--the language of imminence, the dominion of God, the community of Christ, the Israel of God, the day of the Lord and the resurrection of the dead--he compares and contrasts Jesus and Paul. The result is an important contribution to our understanding of New Testament eschatology.

With the second millennium drawing to a close and world events sparking the speculations of popular religious imaginations, Witherington provides a timely and sober re-examination of a topic too long neglected by serious scholarship.

CONTENTS

Introduction

Part One: The Language of Imminence
1. Paul, Jesus and the Language of Imminence
2. Between Daybreak and Day: The Pauline Evidence
3. Dawn?s First Light: The Evidence from Jesus? Teaching
4. The Origin of an Orientation

Part Two: The Dominion of God
5. The Reign of the Regent: Paul and the Basileia tou Theou
6. The Realm of Possibilities: Jesus and the Basileia tou Theou
7. Conclusions

Part Three: The Community of Christ
8. Introduction
9. Paul and the Body of Christ
10. Jesus and the Foundation Stones
11. Conclusions

Part Four: Paul, Jesus and the Israel of God
12. Introduction
13. Paul and the Plight of His People
14. Jesus and the Jews? Just Due
15. Conclusions

Part Five: The Day of the Lord
16. Introduction
17. Perusing the Parousia: The Pauline Evidence
18. Future Shock: Jesus on the Coming Son of Man
19. Conclusions

Part Six: The Resurrection of the Dead
20. Introduction
21. Body Language: Paul and the Resurrection
22. Before and Afterlife: Jesus and the Resurrection
23. Conclusions

Part Seven: Jesus, Paul and the End of the World
24. The Eschatological Schema
25. The Future of a Future in a Modern World

Appendix: Old Testament Prophecy

Notes

Bibliography

Index

More

ABOUT Ben Witherington III

Ben Witherington III

Ben Witherington III (PhD, University of Durham) is a prominent evangelical scholar and Jean R. Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary. Witherington has written over forty books, including The Jesus Quest and The Paul Quest, both of which were selected as top biblical studies works by Christianity Today. His other works include The Indelible Image, Women and the Genesis of Christianity, The Gospel Code, A Week in the Life of Corinth, and commentaries on the entire New Testament. He also writes for many church and scholarly publications and is a frequent contributor to Patheos and Beliefnet.

Witherington is an elected member of the prestigious Studiorum Novi Testamenti Societas, a society dedicated to New Testament studies. He is a John Wesley Fellow for Life, a research fellow at Cambridge University, and a member of numerous professional organizations, including the Society of Biblical Literature, Society for the Study of the New Testament, and the Institute for Biblical Research. He previously taught at institutions like Ashland Theological Seminary, Vanderbilt University, Duke Divinity School, and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.

An ordained pastor in the United Methodist Church and a popular lecturer, Witherington has presented seminars for churches, colleges, and biblical meetings around the world. He has led numerous study tours through the lands of the Bible and is known for bringing the text to life through incisive historical and cultural analysis. Along with many interviews on radio and television networks across the country, Witherington has been seen in programs such as 60 Minutes, 20/20, Dateline, and the Peter Jennings ABC special Jesus and Paul—The Word and the Witness.

Read Witherington's Patheos blog The Bible and Culture.

Related Titles