This book offers a new explanation of the development of the first three Gospels based on a careful examination of both patristic testimony to the "Hebrew Gospel" and internal evidence in the canonical Gospels themselves. James Edward breaks new ground and challenges assumptions that have long been held in the New Testament guild but actually lack solid evidence.

An investigation into the social and political history of the Synoptic texts from their roots through to the writing of the Gospels.

The argument of this interesting monograph is that hostility to wealth exists independently of socio-economic circumstances as a fundamental religious-ethical tenet consistently expressed in the Synoptic Gospels. Part one offers a critique of the view that economic conditions determined the origin and/or extant form of the relevant texts. Part two considers the ideological background of the Synoptic teaching by tracing the development of the tradition from the earliest written sources to the New Testament era. Five stages locate expressions of hostility to wealth in logical and general chronological sequence. The tradition is shown to have developed primarily among aristocratic, established groups. Part three examines the relevant Synoptic texts. Several important passages in Mark establish the existence of the tradition of hostility to wealth and its primary significance as a way of expressing trust in God. This significance distinguishes the tradition from economic resentment and from sympathy for the economically poor. Matthew shows continuity with Mark, while Luke evinces a fuller expression of the tradition.

The publication of the King James version of the Bible, translated between 1603 and 1611, coincided with an extraordinary flowering of English literature and is universally acknowledged as the greatest influence on English-language literature in history. Now, world-class literary writers introduce the book of the King James Bible in a series of beautifully designed, small-format volumes. The introducers' passionate, provocative, and personal engagements with the spirituality and the language of the text make the Bible come alive as a stunning work of literature and remind us of its overwhelming contemporary relevance.

The Synoptic Gospels contain traditions about Jesus which differ in some respects from Gospel to Gospel and, it is presumed, from the very earliest Christian traditions. Scholars often seek to establish the earliest form of each tradition and the methods and criteria they use are of the greatest importance. Dr Sanders here provides a reassessment of this whole problem. His study deals directly with the question of determining the reliability of the Synoptic Gospels.

Young focuses on the historical development and theological significance of parables in the Jewish and Christian traditions, examining parallels between the rabbinic and Gospel parables.