The Bible in Context (First Edition)

The Bible in Context is an anthology of 142 important political and religious writings from the ancient Mediterranean and Near East. These works provide historical, political, cultural and religious context for the writings in the Bible, and help students better understand the time and the world that produced the biblical texts.

The carefully selected readings represent literary genres that complement those in the Bible. The Bible in Context features cuneiform, hieroglyphic and Hebrew parallels to the Old Testament, including creation stories, laws, poetry, prophecy, wisdom and political documents. Also included are texts related to the New Testament and early Christian history, including numerous Greek and Latin texts representing ancient Mediterranean religions, messianic and apocalyptic beliefs, hymns, miracle stories and even ancient letters. The book is richly illustrated with images of relevant material remains from the period.

Featuring thoughtful, sensitive new translations of original works, The Bible in Context is ideal for undergraduate and graduate courses emphasizing the academic study of religion. It can be used in classes on the Bible itself, and in classes on early Western civilization, as well as Greek and Roman history, myth and religion.

Paul Mirecki earned his Th.D. in Christian origins at Harvard University (1986), where he also studied the Dead Sea Scrolls and the archaeology of ancient Greece. His research and teaching focus on religion in the ancient Near East and the Mediterranean. He has edited Greek and Coptic papyrus manuscripts in museums in Chicago, Berlin, London and Oxford, and has done extensive on-site studies of archaeological sites throughout Greece, with a focus on Samothrace Island. He is co-author (with C. Hedrick) of The Gospel of the Savior: A New Ancient Gospel, and has published extensively on ancient ritual and early Coptic Christianity.