Light from the Ancient East uses nonbilical, nonliterary Greek and Latin ancient texts to shed light on the social, cultural and religious setting in which the NT was written. The work is intended for the general reader or non-specialist; Greek and Latin texts have been translated and technical discussions reserved for the footnotes.
Adolf Deissmann's work with papyri revolutionized NT lexicography and helped to establish the idea that the NT was written neither in classical Greek nor "Holy Ghost Greek" but rather was composed in the popular or common (κοινή) Greek of the first century AD. His work is quoted today in all of the top-rate lexicons (nearly 1,000 times in BDAG and TDNT alone) and his name is often mentioned in the same breath as James H. Moulton, George Milligan, A. T. Robertson, and Frederick W. Danker.
The electronic edition allows the user to quickly see whether Deissmann takes up a particular passage or word. It also includes the 60+ plates of the papyri, monuments, and ostraca that Deissmann discusses.
All in all, Light from the Ancient East is an excellent supplement not only for information about some infrequently-used New Testament words, but also a treasure-trove of information regarding the culture and social practices of the time.
