This volume of the New Documents Illustrating Early Christianity series introduces scholars and students to the historical, political, civic, religious, cultural, and social context of Ephesian inscriptional evidence. Each of the twenty-five entries includes the original inscription, translation, and a commentary that sheds light on early Christianity.

Ancient Literature for New Testament Studies is a multivolume series that seeks to introduce key ancient texts that form the cultural, historical, and literary context for the study of the New Testament.

Each volume will feature introductory essays to the corpus, followed by articles on the relevant texts. Each article will address introductory matters, provenance, summary of content, interpretive issues, key passages for New Testament studies and their significance.

Neither too technical to be used by students nor too thin on interpretive information to be useful for serious study of the New Testament, this series provides a much-needed resource for understanding the New Testament in its first-century Jewish and Greco-Roman context. Produced by an international team of leading experts in each corpus, Ancient Literature for New Testament Studies stands to become the standard resource for both scholars and students. Volumes include:

1. Apocrypha and the Septuagint
2. Old Testament Pseudepigrapha
3. The Dead Sea Scrolls
4. The Apostolic Fathers
5. Philo and Josephus
6. Greco-Roman Literature
7. Targums and Early Rabbinic Literature
8. Gnostic Literature
9. New Testament Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha

This volume of the New Documents Illustrating Early Christianity series introduces scholars and students to the historical, political, civic, religious, cultural, and social context of Ephesian inscriptional evidence. Each of the twenty-five entries includes the original inscription, translation, and a commentary that sheds light on early Christianity.

Volume 6 of The First Urban Churches reexamines preconceived understandings of the early church within Rome and the port city of Ostia. James R. Harrison introduces the material and documentary evidence of both cities. Seven additional essays examine a range of topics, including the Ostian Synagogue, the Letter to the Romans, and 1 Clement. The volume closes with an evaluation of the archaeological and ecclesiological arguments of Peter Lampe's From Paul to Valentinus, followed by Lampe's response.

This fourth installment of The First Urban Churches, edited by James R. Harrison and L. L. Welborn, focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Roman Philippi. The international team of New Testament and classical scholars present essays that use inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography to examine the rivalries, imperial context, and ecclesial setting of the Philippian church.

The First Urban Churches 7 includes essays focused on the development of early Christianity from the mid-first century through the sixth century CE in the ancient Macedonian city of Thessalonica. An international group of contributors trace the emergence of Thessalonica's house churches through a close study of the archaeological remains, inscriptions, coins, iconography, and Paul's two letters to the Thessalonians. After a detailed introduction to the city, topics discussed include the Roman emperor's divine honors, his propaganda as revealed in Thessalonian coins and inscriptions, Thessalonian family bonds, Paul's apostolic self-image, the role of music at Thessalonica and in early Christianity, and Paul's response to the Thessalonian Jewish community.

Volume two of The First Urban Churches focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Roman Corinth. An investigation of the material evidence of Corinth helps readers today understand properly the challenges, threats, and opportunities that the early Corinthian believers faced in the city. The authors in this collection of essays focus on the inscriptions, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography of ancient Corinth in order to reconstruct the past and its social, religious and political significance. The essays demonstrate decisively the difference that such an approach makes in grappling with the meaning and context of the Corinthian epistles in the New Testament.

Paul's Language of Grace in Its Graeco-Roman Context was originally published by Mohr Siebeck in 2003 and is now reprinted by Wipf and Stock with a new introduction by its author, James R. Harrison. The book was the first major investigation of charis ('grace', 'favor') in its social, political, and religious context since G. P. Wetter's pioneering 1913 monograph on the topic. Focusing on the evidence of the inscriptions, papyri, philosophers, and Greek Jewish literature, Harrison examined the operations of the eastern Mediterranean benefaction system, probing the dynamic of reciprocity between the beneficiary and benefactor, whether human or divine. Before Paul's converts were first exposed to the gospel, they would have held a variety of beliefs regarding the beneficence of the gods. The apostle, therefore, needed to tailor his language of grace as much to the theological and social concerns of the Mediterranean city-states in his missionary outreach as to the variegated traditions of first-century Judaism. In terms of human grace, although Paul endorses the reciprocity system, he redefines its rationale in light of the gospel of grace and transforms its social expression in his house churches. The explosion of 'grace' language that occurs in 2 Corinthians 8-9 regarding the Jerusalem collection is unusual in its frequency in comparison to the honorific inscriptions, underscoring the apostle's distinctive approach to giving. Regarding divine beneficence, Paul accommodates his gospel to contemporary benefaction idiom. But he retains a distinctiveness of viewpoint regarding divine charis: it is non-cultic; it is mediated through a dishonored and impoverished Benefactor; it overturns the do ut des expectation ('I give so that you may give') regarding divine blessing in antiquity. Harrison's book still remains the authoritative coverage of the Graeco-Roman context of charis.

Paul's Language of Grace in Its Graeco-Roman Context was originally published by Mohr Siebeck in 2003 and is now reprinted by Wipf and Stock with a new introduction by its author, James R. Harrison. The book was the first major investigation of charis ('grace', 'favor') in its social, political, and religious context since G. P. Wetter's pioneering 1913 monograph on the topic. Focusing on the evidence of the inscriptions, papyri, philosophers, and Greek Jewish literature, Harrison examined the operations of the eastern Mediterranean benefaction system, probing the dynamic of reciprocity between the beneficiary and benefactor, whether human or divine. Before Paul's converts were first exposed to the gospel, they would have held a variety of beliefs regarding the beneficence of the gods. The apostle, therefore, needed to tailor his language of grace as much to the theological and social concerns of the Mediterranean city-states in his missionary outreach as to the variegated traditions of first-century Judaism. In terms of human grace, although Paul endorses the reciprocity system, he redefines its rationale in light of the gospel of grace and transforms its social expression in his house churches. The explosion of 'grace' language that occurs in 2 Corinthians 8-9 regarding the Jerusalem collection is unusual in its frequency in comparison to the honorific inscriptions, underscoring the apostle's distinctive approach to giving. Regarding divine beneficence, Paul accommodates his gospel to contemporary benefaction idiom. But he retains a distinctiveness of viewpoint regarding divine charis: it is non-cultic; it is mediated through a dishonored and impoverished Benefactor; it overturns the do ut des expectation ('I give so that you may give') regarding divine blessing in antiquity. Harrison's book still remains the authoritative coverage of the Graeco-Roman context of charis.

This third installment of The First Urban Churches edited by James R. Harrison and L. L. Welborn focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Ephesus. Building on the methodologies introduced in the first volume, contributors illustrate how an investigation of inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography helps readers understand properly the challenges, threats, and opportunities that the early Ephesian believers faced in that city. The essays demonstrate decisively the difference that such an approach makes in grappling with the meaning and context of the New Testament writings, particularly Ephesians, Acts, and Revelation.

This third installment of The First Urban Churches edited by James R. Harrison and L. L. Welborn focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Ephesus. Building on the methodologies introduced in the first volume, contributors illustrate how an investigation of inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography helps readers understand properly the challenges, threats, and opportunities that the early Ephesian believers faced in that city. The essays demonstrate decisively the difference that such an approach makes in grappling with the meaning and context of the New Testament writings, particularly Ephesians, Acts, and Revelation.

This fourth installment of The First Urban Churches, edited by James R. Harrison and L. L. Welborn, focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Roman Philippi. The international team of New Testament and classical scholars present essays that use inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography to examine the rivalries, imperial context, and ecclesial setting of the Philippian church.

The First Urban Churches 7 includes essays focused on the development of early Christianity from the mid-first century through the sixth century CE in the ancient Macedonian city of Thessalonica. An international group of contributors trace the emergence of Thessalonica's house churches through a close study of the archaeological remains, inscriptions, coins, iconography, and Paul's two letters to the Thessalonians. After a detailed introduction to the city, topics discussed include the Roman emperor's divine honors, his propaganda as revealed in Thessalonian coins and inscriptions, Thessalonian family bonds, Paul's apostolic self-image, the role of music at Thessalonica and in early Christianity, and Paul's response to the Thessalonian Jewish community.

This collection of essays examines the urban context of early Christian churches in the first-century Roman world. A city-by-city investigation of the early churches in the New Testament clarifies the challenges, threats, and opportunities that urban living provided for early Christians. Scholars focus on the ancient urban evidence of the inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography and discuss what is a responsible use of these differing types of evidence in reconstructing the past. The book outlines what constitutes a proper methodological use of such evidence in establishing a nuanced and informed portrait of urban life in antiquity. Readers will come away with a better understanding of how scholars assemble an accurate picture of the cities in which the first Christians flourished.

This collection of essays examines the urban context of early Christian churches in the first-century Roman world. A city-by-city investigation of the early churches in the New Testament clarifies the challenges, threats, and opportunities that urban living provided for early Christians. Scholars focus on the ancient urban evidence of the inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography and discuss what is a responsible use of these differing types of evidence in reconstructing the past. The book outlines what constitutes a proper methodological use of such evidence in establishing a nuanced and informed portrait of urban life in antiquity. Readers will come away with a better understanding of how scholars assemble an accurate picture of the cities in which the first Christians flourished.

Volume two of The First Urban Churches focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Roman Corinth. An investigation of the material evidence of Corinth helps readers today understand properly the challenges, threats, and opportunities that the early Corinthian believers faced in the city. The authors in this collection of essays focus on the inscriptions, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography of ancient Corinth in order to reconstruct the past and its social, religious and political significance. The essays demonstrate decisively the difference that such an approach makes in grappling with the meaning and context of the Corinthian epistles in the New Testament.

This fifth installment of The First Urban Churches focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Roman Colossae, Hierapolis, and Laodicea. Building on the methodologies introduced in the first volume, contributors illustrate how an investigation of inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography help readers to understand properly the challenges, threats, and opportunities that the early Christ-believers faced in the cities of the Lycus Valley.

This fifth installment of The First Urban Churches focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Roman Colossae, Hierapolis, and Laodicea. Building on the methodologies introduced in the first volume, contributors illustrate how an investigation of inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography help readers to understand properly the challenges, threats, and opportunities that the early Christ-believers faced in the cities of the Lycus Valley.

Volume 6 of The First Urban Churches reexamines preconceived understandings of the early church within Rome and the port city of Ostia. James R. Harrison introduces the material and documentary evidence of both cities. Seven additional essays examine a range of topics, including the Ostian Synagogue, the Letter to the Romans, and 1 Clement. The volume closes with an evaluation of the archaeological and ecclesiological arguments of Peter Lampe's From Paul to Valentinus, followed by Lampe's response.