Paul addresses his readers as God's Temple in his Letters to the Corinthians, which are among the earliest documents of Christianity. This volume provides a synthesis of the historical and exegetical dimensions to Paul's cultic imagery. Previous theories (spiritualisation, substitution, comparative religions approach) cannot stand in view of the analysis of the broader historical context as well as reconsideration of Paul's theological perspective. This historical interpretation integrates relevant Qumran texts published since the 1990's, insights about the early Jesus-movement's Jewish origins, and canonical as well as extra-canonical Gospels in the discussion about cultic imagery. «Paul and God's Temple» sheds new light on Paul's relation to contemporary Judaism and temple-theological traditions, while putting Paul's cultic imagery in a rhetorical-critical and reader-oriented perspective.

Paul addresses his readers as God's Temple in his Letters to the Corinthians, which are among the earliest documents of Christianity. This volume provides a synthesis of the historical and exegetical dimensions to Paul's cultic imagery. Previous theories (spiritualisation, substitution, comparative religions approach) cannot stand in view of the analysis of the broader historical context as well as reconsideration of Paul's theological perspective. This historical interpretation integrates relevant Qumran texts published since the 1990's, insights about the early Jesus-movement's Jewish origins, and canonical as well as extra-canonical Gospels in the discussion about cultic imagery. «Paul and God's Temple» sheds new light on Paul's relation to contemporary Judaism and temple-theological traditions, while putting Paul's cultic imagery in a rhetorical-critical and reader-oriented perspective.