Christ the ideal king
Subtitle: cultural context, rhetorical strategy, and the power of divine monarchy in Ephesians
By: Julien Smith
Series: Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament. 2. Reihe -- 313; Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament -- 313.
Publisher: Mohr Siebeck
Published: 2011
Place of publication: Tübingen
Language: eng
Number of pages: 316
ISBN-13: 9783161509742
Copyright date: 2011
Subjects: Criticism, interpretation; Religious aspects; Kings and rulers; Bible
Description: A central rhetorical strategy of Ephesians involves the portrayal of Christ as an ideal king who reunites a fractured cosmos and humanity through his reign. In this comprehensive study, Julien Smith shows how this literary characterization unifies the letter's major themes: reconciling humanity with God, uniting Jew and gentile, establishing ecclesiastical harmony, and defeating hostile powers arrayed against the church. The author grounds his analysis in a thorough account of the kingly ideal's powerful contemporary cultural resonance, which was rooted in the widespread yearning within both Greco-Roman and Jewish thought for a golden age inaugurated by a divinely ordained monarch. For Ephesians' author and audience, only Christ the ideal king has power to form identity and transform behavior.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references.