Beginning with the Gospels, interpretations of the life of Jesus have flourished for nearly two millennia, yet a clear and coherent picture of Jesus as a man has remained elusive. In Rabbi Jesus, the noted biblical scholar Bruce Chilton places Jesus within the context of his times to present a fresh, historically accurate, and revolutionary examination of the man who founded Christianity.Drawing on recent archaeological findings and new translations and interpretations of ...

Until his death in 4 BCE, Herod the Great's monarchy included territories that once made up the kingdoms of Judah and Israel. Although he ruled over a rich, strategically crucial land, his royal title did not derive from heredity. His family came from the people of Idumea, ancient antagonists of the Israelites.Yet Herod did not rule as an outsider, but from a family committed to Judaism going back to his grandfather and father. They had served the priestly dynasty of the Maccabees ...

After 2,000 years of flawed history, here at last is a magnificent new biography of Mary Magdalene that draws her out of the shadows of history and restores her to her rightful place of importance in Christianity.Throughout history, Mary Magdalene has been both revered and reviled, a woman who has taken on many forms—witch, whore, the incarnation of the eternal feminine, the devoted companion (and perhaps even the wife) of Jesus. In this brilliant new biography, Bruce Chilton, a re...

Christianity: The Basics is a compelling introduction to both the central pillars of the Christian faith and the rich and varied history of this most global of global religions. This book traces the development of Christianity through an exploration of some of the key beliefs, practices and emotions which have been recurrent symbols through the centuries:Christ, the kingdom of heaven and sinBaptism, Eucharist and prayerJoy, divine union and self d...

"When they arrived at the place which God had indicated to him, Abraham built an altar there, and arranged the wood. Then he bound his son and put him on the altar on top of the wood. Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to kill his son..." --The Book of GenesisThe story of Abraham's acceptance of God's command to sacrifice his son Isaac is one of the most disturbing of all biblical stories. Isaac is spared only at the last moment, when an angel stops Abraham's hand. T...

Bruce Chilton and Jacob Neusner study the points of comparisons and contrast between formative Christianity and Judaism. By identifying three categories of authority in each of the two religious worlds, they show how they have both worked in compelling or failing to get someone to do a given action. The arguments are introduced by a general discussion of the founding figures of the two religions, Moses and Jesus, and how their inherent authority distilled itself through the structure of th...

Until his death in 4 BCE, Herod the Great's monarchy included territories that once made up the kingdoms of Judah and Israel. Although he ruled over a rich, strategically crucial land, his royal title did not derive from heredity. His family came from the people of Idumea, ancient antagonists of the Israelites.Yet Herod did not rule as an outsider, but from a family committed to Judaism going back to his grandfather and father. They had served the priestly dynasty of the Maccabees ...

The life story of the Judean queen Berenice, descendant of Herod the Great, who became a player on the stage of Roman conquest and politicsBerenice (born ca. 28) was the most notorious Jewish woman in the Roman Empire of her time. Multiple marriages, rumors of incestuous relations with her brother (Agrippa II of the Herodian dynasty), and her scandalous liaison with Titus, the Roman general and emperor-to-be, guaranteed Berenice’s celebrity.This reputatio...

Jewish and Christian Doctrines presents a concise and lucid introduction to the foundations of Judaism and Christianity. The authors explore key documents ofJudaism and Christianity to elucidate and illuminate the doctrinal issues which the documents raise and to examine the similarities and differences between the two faiths.

John's Revelation has led to countless diverse and divergent interpretations. Readers' cryptic notions of violent end-time scenarios, strict prophetic truths, and encouragement for the faithful have undeniably colored the book's reception through the centuries. In Visions of the Apocalypse, Bruce Chilton maps the ways in which the text has been read through the centuries and introduces these main interpretations of Revelation, such as Papias' millenarian kingdom, Augustine's vertical ascen...

Aramaic, one of the great international languages of antiquity, left an indelible mark on the New Testament. Jesus and his first followers knew it because for centuries Aramaic had been a primary means of communication in the Middle East, and it remained current long after their time. Usage of Aramaic within Jesus’ movement, initially with or without recourse to other languages, helped provide the fledgling community with a cultural as well as linguistic identity. Precise examples of the w...

Death does not speak the final word. Resurrection does. Christianity stands or falls with this central confession: God raised Jesus from the dead.Bruce Chilton investigates the Easter event of Jesus in Resurrection Logic. He undertakes his close reading of the New Testament texts without privileging the exact nature of the resurrection, but rather begins by situating his study of the resurrection in the context of Sumerian, Egyptian, Greek, and Syrian conceptions of the af...