Synopsis: How did a first-generation Jewish messianic movement develop the momentum to become a dominant religious force in the Western world? The essays here first investigate the roots of God's mission and the mission of his people in the Old Testament and Second Temple Judaism, specifically in the Psalms, Isaiah, and Daniel. The contributions then discuss the mission of Jesus, and how it continued into the mission of the Twelve, other Jewish believers (in the Gospels, General Epistles, and Revelation), and finally into Paul's ministry to the Gentiles documented in the book of Acts and his epistles. These essays reach backward into the background of what was to become the Christian mission and forward through the New Testament to the continuing Christian mission and missions today. Endorsements: "For too long now biblical scholarship and missiology have been progressing in splendid isolation with little reference to each other.
This sparkling collection of essays not only demonstrates the interdependence of these disciplines but also takes seriously the Hebrew Scriptures and Second Temple Judaism as fertile soil in which the seeds for Christian mission were sown, came to flower in the New Testament, and continue to bear fruit in the ongoing global mission of the church at the beginning of the twenty-first century." --Trevor J. Burke author of Adopted into God's Family: Exploring a Pauline Metaphor "Biblical scholars and missiologists have much to learn from each other. This work, with contributions from notable scholars, offers some fresh biblical insights for thinking about Christian mission." --Craig Keener author of Romans: A New Covenant Commentary (Cascade 2009) "We have needed a work that presents the development of Mission from Israel to the early church. These essays, written by leading scholars in both fields, admirably accomplish that goal. Here is a work that covers the field, presents missional roots as well as strategy, is very readable, and would serve as a fine textbook both for courses and personal study. I highly recommend this book."
--Grant Osborne author of The Hermeneutical Spiral: A Comprehensive Introduction to Biblical Interpretation Author Biography: Stanley E. Porter is President, Dean, and Professor of New Testament, at McMaster Divinity College. He has published extensively in the area of New Testament and Greek language and linguistics, including New Testament Greek Papyri and Parchments (with Wendy Porter, 2008). Cynthia Long Westfall is Assistant Professor of New Testament at McMaster Divinity College. She is the author of A Discourse Analysis of Hebrews (2006).