Pauline Christology: An Exegetical-Theological Study

by Gordon Fee

Publisher:

Hendrickson

, 2007

Overview

In Pauline Christology, author Gordon Fee provides a detailed analysis of the letters of Paul (including those whose authorship is questioned) individually, exploring the Christology of each, and then attempts a synthesis of the exegetical work into a biblical Christology of Paul.

The author’s synthesis covers the following themes: Christ’s roles as divine Savior and as preexistent and incarnate Savior; Jesus as the Second Adam, the Jewish Messiah, and Son of God; and Christ as the Messiah and exalted Lord. Fee also explores the relationship between Christ and the Spirit, and considers the person and role of the Spirit in Paul’s thought. Appendixes cover the theme of Christ and Personified Wisdom, as well as Paul’s use of Kurios (Lord) in citations and echoes of the Septuagint.

The Logos Bible Software edition of this volume is designed to encourage and stimulate your study and understanding of Scripture. Biblical passages link directly to your English translations and original-language texts, and important theological concepts link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. In addition, you can perform powerful searches by topic and find what other authors, scholars, and theologians have to say about the Word of God.

Key Features

• Provides a detailed analysis of every verse written by Paul that talks about Christology
• Presents an extremely thorough work of exegesis
• Includes an appendix that overviews Christ and personified wisdom throughout the Bible

Contents

• Part I: Analysis
  • Christology in the Thessalonian Correspondence
  • Christology in 1 Corinthians
  • Christology in 2 Corinthians
  • Christology in Galatians
  • Christology in Romans
  • Christology in Colossians (and Philemon)
  • Christology in Ephesians
  • Christology in Philippians
  • Christology in the Pastoral Epistles
• Part II: Synthesis
  • Christ, the Divine Savior
  • Jesus as Second Adam
  • Jesus: Jewish Messiah and Son of God
  • Jesus: Jewish Messiah and Exalted Lord
  • Christ and the Spirit: Paul as a Proto-Trinitarian

Praise for the Print Edition

Gordon Fee . . . is one of the foremost Evangelical scholars in North America. He brings his great erudition and theological insight to bear on the topic of Paul’s Christology, which strangely, as Fee points out, has not been the subject of many explicit book-length studies. This work, encyclopedic in its length and format, goes a long way toward making up for such neglect. . . . The exegetical groundwork of the first section is followed by a second half of the volume that weaves the conclusions from these studies into a synthesis under various titles . . . or categories of interpretation. . . . There is no doubt that this substantial study will be a reference point for some time to come.

—The Bible Today

This is a monumental book—in some respects, even a watershed book—in both size and significance.

—Catholic Biblical Quarterly

Fee’s book is the most thorough and compelling account of Paul’s Christology to date and is nothing short of a great achievement. It is sure to remain the standard in the field for some time to come.

—Review of Biblical Literature

Pauline Christology is a very welcome addition to Pauline studies, filling a gap in the scholarly literature. It is essential reading for New Testament scholars, and of course, especially for those who know and love Paul.

—Journal of the Evangelical Society

This is a conservative yet innovative work. It is conservative inasmuch as it rejects any attempt to minimize the centrality of preexistence and incarnation in Pauline Christology. It is innovative in its understanding of the role that the Septuagint and its Kyrios title play in Pauline Christology. Fee’s work is the most complete and thorough presentation of Pauline Christology presently available.

—Theological Studies Book Reviews

Fee is a master writer, exegete, and commentator—three ingredients of his scholarship that come to the fore in this book. . . . Readers who have some acquaintance with Greek language and grammar will best be able to follow Fee’s arguments. Fee does, however, provide an English translation and grammatical structure, which parallels the Greek text being discussed. So general readers can excavate the essence of Fee’s main points. . . . The major benefit for readers is the strong emphasis on the supremacy of Christ. Fee powerfully conveys Paul’s Christocentric worldview.

—Bibliotheca Sacra

Product Details

• Title: Pauline Christology: An Exegetical-Theological Study
• Author: Gordon D. Fee
• Publisher: Baker Academic
• Publication Date: 2007
• Pages: 744

About Gordon D. Fee

Gordon D. Fee is an emeritus professor at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is the author of several books, including the popular How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, as well as many commentaries.

Contents

Top Highlights

“First, Paul refers to the Greek Bible in a variety of ways. In some instances he ‘cites’ texts that are verbally identical to the text of the Septuagint known to us. In other cases he ‘cites’ with a degree of freedom, while in still others he echoes the language of the Septuagint with enough precision to give one confidence that it is the ultimate source of his own language.” (Pages 20–21)

“What can be known and said about God is embedded in the story in such a way that God’s person can never be abstracted out of the story. Whatever else, God is always ‘the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob.’” (Page 8)

“At the end of the exegetical process it became clear to me that even though the cumulative evidence tells the story in full, there are, by anyone’s reckoning, three key texts that put forward most of the issues: 1 Cor 8:6; Col 1:15–17; Phil 2:6–11. Here I isolate the primary christological data that emerge in these three passages, which are spelled out or assumed in all the rest of the data. In the section that follows this one I address the issue that surfaces in full measure in the earliest of the letters: Paul’s application to Christ of the κύριος = Adonai = Yahweh of the Septuagint and whether Paul did indeed find this in the Greek Bible he knew.” (Page 16)

“One can be sure that when these Greek texts with the Tetragrammaton were read in synagogue, the reader did not actually say ‘Yahweh.’ Something else would have been substituted for the name, and the evidence of Paul, whether from written or oral sources, is that κύριος was used in its place.” (Page 22)

Product Details

• Title: Pauline Christology: An Exegetical-Theological Study
• Author: Gordon Fee
• Publisher: Hendrickson
• Print Publication Date: 2007
• Logos Release Date: 2013
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Paul, the Apostle, Saint; Jesus Christ › History of doctrines; Bible. N.T. Epistles of Paul › Theology
• ISBNs: 9781441252791, 9781598560350, 9780801049545, 1441252797, 1598560352, 0801049547
• Resource ID: LLS:PAULCHRSTLGYFEE
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-30T02:09:04Z

About Gordon Fee

Gordon D. Fee (1934–2022) was a leading expert in pneumatology and textual criticism of the New Testament. He was an ordained minister of the Assemblies of God and served as professor emeritus of New Testament studies at Regent College in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Fee earned degrees from Seattle Pacific University and University of Southern California. He was also awarded an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Northwest University. Before teaching at Regent College, Fee taught at Wheaton College, Vanguard University of Southern California, and Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. Fee was a member of the Committee on Bible Translation that translated the New International Version and its revision, the Today’s New International Version.

In addition to Fee’s many highly respected commentaries in series like the Understanding the Bible Commentary Series: New Testament and The New International Commentary on the New Testament (NICNT), he is also the author of How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth, God’s Empowering Presence: The Holy Spirit in the Letters of Paul, Pauline Christology: An Exegetical-Theological Study, and To What End Exegesis?