Where Is Boasting?: Early Jewish Soteriology and Paul’s Response in Romans 1-5

Simon J Gathercole
ISBN: 9780802839916 Category:

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JUDAICA Jewish Religion Judaism

This important work challenges the validity of the -New Perspective- on Paul and Judaism. Working with new data fom Jewish literature and a fresh reading of Romans 1-5, Simon Gathercole produces a far-reaching criticism of the current approach to Paul and points a new way forward.
Building on a detailed examination of the past generation of scholarship on Paul and early Judaism, Gathercole’s work follows two paths. First, he shows that while early Judaism was not truly oriented around legalistic works-righteousness, it did consider obedience to the Law to be an important criterion at the final judgment. On the basis of this reconstruction of Jewish thought and a rereading of Romans 1-5, Gathercole advances his main argument — that Paul did indeed combat a Jewish perspective that saw obedience to the Law both as possible and as a criterion for vindication at the final judgment. Paul’s reply is that obedience to the Law is not a criterion for the final judgment because human nature makes obedience to the Law impossible. His doctrine of justification can therefore be properly viewed in its Jewish context, yet anthropological issues also take centre stage.

pp. 324 #010924
Journal of Biblical Literature
“Gathercole has offered a stimulating study that makes an important contribution to an ongoing debate that may perhaps, with the aid of commendable efforts like his own, enter into new and more fruitful stages of discussion.”Evangelical Quarterly
“The volume is important for our understanding of the theology of early Judaism, for Pauline exegesis and theology and for New Testament theology in general. . . . Well written and persuasive.”

Bibliotheca Sacra
“Lucid, evenhanded, and helpful for any student of Jewish and Pauline soteriology.”

Peter Stuhlmacher
“Simon Gathercole’s new book is well worth reading. A solid piece of work, it enriches Pauline scholarship in at least three ways. First, the book offers the first monographic investigation of Paul’s use of kauchēsis/kauchasthai (‘boasting’) in Romans 1-5 in more than three decades, thereby filling a real gap in the research of the opening chapters of Romans. Second, by taking issue in a fair-minded way with the chief representatives of the ‘New Perspective’ on Paul (E. P. Sanders, James D. G. Dunn, and N. T. Wright), Gathercole demonstrates that already before the rabbis, a long succession of early Jewish authors advocated a soteriology resting on two principles — the principle of election and redemption on the one hand, and the principle of recognizing righteous deeds according to the measure of the law on the other. Paul takes critical issue with this view. Finally, Gathercole’s book stimulates one to rethink, on the basis of the original texts, the anthropological bases of the Pauline and early Jewish expectations of salvation and the question of the assurance of salvation.”

Additional Information

AuthorSimon J Gathercole
Number of pages324
PublisherWm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
Year Published2002
Binding Type

Softcover

Book Condition

Fine

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