Reading Romans Backwards: A Gospel of Peace in the Midst of Empire PDF
Preview Reading Romans Backwards: A Gospel of Peace in the Midst of Empire
“Scot McKnight brings Romans to life in ways unmatched by traditional commentaries or textbooks. With eyes focused on the letter’^ first audience and later interpreters in peripheral vision, McKnight responds to todays readers’ questions with the questions that Paul sought to answer for the believers in Rome. New connections and fresh resonances etmerge from this well-conceived and well-written approach to Romans.” —Mark Reasoner, Assistant Professor of Theology, Ma rian University “When you are axle-deep in mud, backward is the only way forw ard. McKnight lifts, spins, and energetically pushes in a new direction. Hang on tight. The church and academy are careening down an adventurous nevvpath.” —Matthew W. Bates, Associate Professor of Theology, Qu incy University * “Christians typically read Romans forwards but too often stop at chapter 8 or 11, thinking they have the good stuff—the abstract theology that informs our traditional debates. In Reading Romans Backwards, McKnight reminds us that Paul’s final chapters are the crescendo of his letter, not an afterthought. He calls us to reckon with Romans as lived theology, pastoral counsel for cultivating unified communities of God’s peace.” —Timothy Gombis, Professor of New Testament, Grand Rapids Theological Seminary “To read Romans backwards with Scot McKnight is to experience the epis tle as a pastoral intervention directed toward believing comrnunities under stress. Read backwards, Paul’s great insights concerning justification, grace, and faithfulness reveal themselves not as doctrines received from the sky but as Paul’s active work as a missionary theologian. Accessible to students and pastors, this book will provoke scholars to examine our assumptions about Romans as well.” Greg Carey, Professor of New Testament, Lancaster Theological Seminary “Reading Romans Backwards sheds fascinating light on Paul’s famous letter. Starting our reading with Romans 12-16 means the whole of Romans can be seen as a pastoral letter addressed to Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians in Rome, speaking about privilege and power, and replacing both with the peace of Christ at the heart of the empire. Working back wards creates a whole new set of connections and unwraps Romans as lived theology of the grace of God.” —Paul Trebilco, Professor of New Testament Studies, University of Otago "Most scholars consider Romans the jewel of Pauline theology but McKnight has recovered Romans as a pastoral letter that communicates a lived theology to a divided Christian community in Rome. By focusing on clues about the socio-historical context found especially in the last few chapters of Romans, McKnight offers a compelling reading of the letter as a whole. He brings the text to life in such a way that the reader can imagine what it was like to be in the room when Romans was first read aloud.” —Nijay K. Gupta, Associate Professor of New Testament, Portland Seminary Reading Romans Backwards A G P ospel of eace M E in the idst of mpire Scot McICnight BAYLOR UNIVERSITY PRESS © 2019 by Baylor University Press Waco, Texas 76798 All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication maybe reproduced; stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission in writing of Baylor University Press. Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Cover and Interior Design by Savanah N. Landerholm Cover Art from Fresco depicting banquet scene (fresco), Roman (4th century AD) / Cimitero dei SS. Marcellino e Pietro, Rome, Italy / De Agostini Picture Library / Bridgeman Images. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: McKnight, Scot, author. Title: Reading Romans backwards : a gospel of peace in the midst of empire I Scot McKnight. Description: Waco, Texas : Baylor University Press, [2019] | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2018058127 | ISBN 9781481308779 (hardcover: alk. paper) | ISBN 9781481310529 (web pdf) | ISBN 9781481310512 (kindle) | ISBN 9781481308793 (epub) Subjects: LCSH: Bible. Romans-Criticism, interpretation, etc. Classification: LCC BS2665.52 .M39 2019 | DDC 227/.1066-dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018058127 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper with a minimum of thirty percent post-consumer-waste recycled content. F J T or immy and om CONTENTS Preface IX • » • Introduction: Lived Theology Xlll I A Community Needing Peace Romans 12-16 §1 Phoebe—The Face ofRomans 3 §2 The Greetings and the House Churches of Rome 7 §3 Strong and Weak 15 §4 Zealotry 25 §5 Christoformity—Paul’s Vision for a Lived Theology of Peace 27 §6 Christoformity Is Embodied God Orientation 29 §7 Christoformity Is Embodied Body-of-Christ Orientation 35 §8 Christoformity Is Public Orientation 45 §9 Know the Time Is Now 51 II A Narrative Leading to Peace Romans 9-11 §10 Where We’ve Been, Where We Are, Where We’re Headed 57 §11 To the Weak 67 §12 To the Strong 81 • • Vll
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