Pure Kingdom: Jesus' Vision of God (Studying the Historical Jesus) [Paperback]

Mr. Bruce Chilton (Author)

Book Description

Series: Studying the Historical Jesus | Publication Date: July 1, 1996

A coherent picture of Jesus' teaching on the kingdom that deals with relevant critical scholarship in an accessible way. Fresh and comprehensive, it brings readers up to date in the current debate about the historical Jesus.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

At the end of the 20th century, the number of books published exploring the life and work of Jesus has grown dramatically as scholars have embarked on a quest to discover the history of the shadowy figure lying behind the Gospels. Out of this search, Jesus has emerged variously as a Cynic philosopher, a Greek sage and an magical wonder worker. While many of these portraits of Jesus have been drawn using the brushes of anthropology and sociology, Chilton's study, the first volume in a new series called Studying the Historical Jesus, focuses on the Gospel texts themselves to uncover the central message of Jesus' life and teachings. Chilton first provides a panoramic survey of historical Jesus scholarship from Johannes Weiss to the Jesus Seminar, and he proceeds to dismantle what he perceives to be the faulty methods of much contemporary Jesus scholarship. Having cleared the way for his own arguments, Chilton combines historical and textual criticism with close exegetical readings of several Gospel narratives to argue that Jesus' words and deeds point to his identity as the one declaring and introducing the Kingdom of God.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

The first volume in the new Studying the Historical Jesus series, under the editorial direction of Chilton and Craig Evans, is a lively contribution to an academic controversy that generates passionate interest well beyond the boundaries of the academic audience. Chilton begins with a concise and accessible overview of historical Jesus research from Johannes Weiss through Marcus Borg and the Jesus Seminar, then turns to a careful argument against what he takes to be the tendency of recent North American discussion associated with the Jesus Seminar to locate Jesus' teaching in a world more Hellenistic than Jewish. Chilton proposes a "map" of the kingdom of God derived from the Book of Psalms, which he believes would have been the primary source for Jesus' understanding of the kingdom; examines the Gospel accounts for evidence of Jesus' theology of and activity for the kingdom; and, finally, turns to the transformation of Jesus' preaching in the context of early Christianity. The result is an interesting and accessible contribution to a controversy that, for a significant body of readers, is more than academic. Steve Schroeder

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Product Details

• Paperback: 188 pages
• Publisher: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. (July 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0802841872
• ISBN-13: 978-0802841872
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,160,207 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars wonderful, September 21, 2007

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This review is from: Pure Kingdom: Jesus' Vision of God (Studying the Historical Jesus) (Paperback)

what a marvelous book. chilton does tremendous research and is very passionate in his writing. extremely well written and enjoyable. i read 'rabbi jesus' also and that was excellent. i highly reccomend this book to anyone who wants to explore the beauty of jesus and his teachings.