Letters and Homilies for Hellenized Christians Collection (3 vols.)

In this socio-rhetorical analytical commentary, Dr. Ben Witherington takes fresh look at the pastoral epistles and Johannine correspondence and provides an analysis of the documents in their socio-religious context discussing their provenance, character, and importance. Dr. Witherington focuses on the unique insights that arise through the social-rhetorical analysis. Throughout, he makes the case for Luke as Paul’s amanuensis for these letters, as well as a strenuous argument against New Testament pseudepigrapha.

Letters and Homilies for Hellenized Christians, Volume 2 is the third of three volumes extending Ben Witherington's innovative socio-rhetorical analysis of New Testament books to the latter-Pauline and non-Pauline corpora. By dividing the volumes according to the socioreligious contexts for which they were written, Witherington sheds fresh light on the documents, their provenance, character and importance.

Throughout, Witherington shows his thorough knowledge of recent literature on these texts and focuses his attention on the unique insights brought about through socio-rhetorical analysis that either reinforces or corrects those gleaned from other approaches.

In this commentary on Hebrews, James and Jude, Ben Witherington applies his socio-rhetorical method to elucidate these letters within their primarily Jewish context, probing the social setting of the readers and the rhetorical strategies of the authors of the letters. Witherington examines the rhetorical and social sciences from a historical viewpoint and seeks to avoid most of the dangers of anachronism by limiting his "rhetorical commentary" to early Jewish rhetoric and Greco-Roman rhetoric which existed during the time. This book also features "Bridging the Horizon" sections to help readers assess the contemporary relevance of these ancient texts, and "Closer Look" sections that explore contemporary issues in more detail.