"A seismic shift in Pauline scholarship, these essays show how construing Romans's interlocutor as a Gentile richly refigures what Christ meant for the world's peoples. The detailed investigations of the focused topic yield a powerfully argued case."
The So-Called Jew in Paul’s Letter to the Romans
Decades ago, Werner G. Kümmel described the historical problem of Romans as its "double character": concerned with issues of Torah and the destiny of Israel, the letter is explicitly addressed not to Jews but to Gentiles. At stake in the numerous answers given to that question is nothing less than the purpose of Paul's most important letter. In The So-Called Jew in Paul's Letter to the Romans, nine Pauline scholars focus their attention on the rhetoric of diatribe and characterization in the opening chapters of the letter, asking what Paul means by the "so-called Jew" in Romans 2 and where else in the letter's argumentation that figure appears or is implied. Each component of Paul's argument is closely examined with particular attention to the theological problems that arise in each.
- Publisher Fortress Press
- Format Hardcover
- ISBN 9781506401980
- eBook ISBN 9781506401997
- Dimensions 6 x 9
- Pages 234
- Publication Date August 1, 2016
Contents
1. Paul’s Interlocutor in Romans: The Problem of Identification—Runar M. Thorsteinsson, Matthew Thiessen, and Rafael Rodríguez
2. The Non-Jewish Interlocutor in Rom. 2:17 and the Salvation of the Nations: Contextualizing Rom. 1:18–32—Magnus Zetterholm
3. Paul’s So-Called Jew and Lawless Lawkeeping—Matthew Thiessen
4. Paul’s Gentile Interlocutor in Romans 3:1–20—Joshua D. Garroway
5. Romans 5–8 in Light of Paul’s Dialogue with a Gentile Who "Calls Himself a Jew"—Rafael Rodríguez
6. The Self-Styled Jew of Romans 2 and the Actual Jews of Romans 9–11—Matthew V. Novenson
7. Romans 2 within the Broader Context of Gentile Judaizing in Early Christianity—Michele Murray
8. What Are the Implications of the Ethnic Identity of Paul's Interlocutor? Continuing the Conversation—Joshua W. Jipp
Samples
Endorsements
Stanley K. Stowers | Brown University
"In The So-Called Jew in Paul’s Letter to the Romans, the reader will find a collection of thought-provoking essays by a group of international Pauline scholars addressing a frequently neglected question, which nevertheless has far-reaching interpretive implications: Does Paul’s 'Jew' in Romans 2:17 in reality refer to non-Jews who imitate Jewish ways of being and keep Torah? Engaging Runar Thorsteinsson's 2003 thesis claiming that this is indeed the case, this volume presents a number of approaches to this issue, all of which shed critical light not only on Romans 2:17 but on the consequences of such a reading for our understanding of Romans as a whole. A must-read not only for students and scholars of Romans, but also for those interested in the relationship between Jews and gentiles in Pauline theology more generally."
Anders Runesson | University of Oslo