Biblical archaeologist Michael Murphy embarks on a quest to uncover one of the Bible's most significant artifacts, a search that forces him to match wits with the evil Talon, a mysterious opponent with dire plans for all humankind.

Tim LaHaye, creator of the Left Behind® series, blends suspense and Biblical prophecy in a new series of thrillers with a chilling relevance to the events of our time. Here are ancient secrets never before revealed, dire warnings, and a man who must rise to face the greatest evil of all.… Michael Murphy is a hero for our troubled times. He’s an archaeologist and a scholar of Biblical prophecy. He’s also a man of action hunting ancient artifacts at the risk of his life. And this time he’s onto a find that will send him toward a confrontation with an evil of unimaginable power. For Murphy has unlocked secrets that were never meant to be revealed–secrets challenging everything Murphy’s ever believed…and jeopardizing everyone he’s ever loved. But that’s not all that’s at stake. For what Murphy has discovered is that the countdown to the end-time of all humankind has already begun. It’s later than anyone thinks. And if Murphy fails–we all fail.

The brand-new bestselling series from the authors of the phenomenal multi-million-selling Left Behind books. Now in paperback! Here is the first in the Biblically inspired series, The Jesus Chronicles, which brings to life the story of Jesus, told in the voices of those who knew and loved him best—the Gospel writers John, Mark, Matthew, and Luke. In this volume, readers will discover John's story, a thrilling account of the life of the man who came to fulfill the prophecies of the Old Testament and to save all of humankind—and the disciple who was the last eyewitness to Jesus' glory. Readers will experience firsthand the creation of the Gospel of John as well as the Book of Revelation-Scripture that still has profound meaning for the world 2,000 years later.

For the past twenty years, evangelical prophecy novels have been a powerful presence on American bestseller lists. Emerging from a growing conservative culture industry, the genre dramatizes events that many believers expect to occur at the end of the age - the rapture of the saved, the rise of the Antichrist, and the fearful tribulation faced by those who are "left behind." Seeking the forces that drove the unexpected success of the Left Behind novels, Crawford Gribben traces the gradual development of the prophecy fiction genre from its eclectic roots among early twentieth-century fundamentalists. The first rapture novels came onto the scene at the high water mark of Protestant America. From there, the genre would both witness the defeat of conservative Protestantism and participate in its eventual reconstruction and return, providing for the renaissance of the evangelical imagination that would culminate in the Left Behind novels. Yet, as Gribben shows, the rapture genre, while vividly expressing some prototypically American themes, also serves to greatly complicate the idea of American modernity-assaulting some of its most cherished tenets. Gribben concludes with a look at "post-Left Behind" rapture fiction, noting some works that were written specifically to counter the claims of the best-selling series. Along the way, he gives attention not just to literary fictions, but to rapture films and apocalyptic themes in Christian music. Writing the Rapture is an indispensable guide to this flourishing yet little understood body of literature.

Babylon under Western Eyes examines the mythic legacy of ancient Babylon, the Near Eastern city which has served western culture as a metaphor for power, luxury, and exotic magnificence for more than two thousand years. Sifting through the many references to Babylon in biblical, classical, medieval, and modern texts, Andrew Scheil uses Babylon’s remarkable literary ubiquity as the foundation for a thorough analysis of the dynamics of adaptation and allusion in western literature. Touching on everything from Old English poetry to the contemporary apocalyptic fiction of the “Left Behind” series, Scheil outlines how medieval Christian society and its cultural successors have adopted Babylon as a political metaphor, a degenerate archetype, and a place associated with the sublime. Combining remarkable erudition with a clear and accessible style, Babylon under Western Eyes is the first comprehensive examination of Babylon’s significance within the pantheon of western literature and a testimonial to the continuing influence of biblical, classical, and medieval paradigms in modern culture.

In the fourth novel in the Babylon Rising series, biblical archaeologist Michael Murphy stumbles upon clues to an ancient evil as he follows a trail to the long-lost temple of Dagon, the deadly Philistine deity that is half-human and half-fish.

Conservative evangelicalism has transformed American politics, disseminating a sometimes fearful message not just through conventional channels, but through subcultures and alternate modes of communication. Within this world is a "Religion of Fear," a critical impulse that dramatizes cultural and political conflicts and issues in frightening ways that serve to contrast "orthodox" behaviors and beliefs with those linked to darkness, fear, and demonology. Jason Bivins offers close examinations of several popular evangelical cultural creations including the Left Behind novels, church-sponsored Halloween "Hell Houses," sensational comic books, especially those disseminated by Jack Chick, and anti-rock and -rap rhetoric and censorship. Bivins depicts these fascinating and often troubling phenomena in vivid (sometimes lurid) detail and shows how they seek to shape evangelical cultural identity. As the "Religion of Fear" has developed since the 1960s, Bivins sees its message moving from a place of relative marginality to one of prominence. What does it say about American public life that such ideas of fearful religion and violent politics have become normalized? Addressing this question, Bivins establishes links and resonances between the cultural politics of evangelical pop, the activism of the New Christian Right, and the political exhaustion facing American democracy. Religion of Fear is a significant contribution to our understanding of the new shapes of political religion in the United States, of American evangelicalism, of the relation of religion and the media, and the link between religious pop culture and politics.

A biographical encyclopedia of American and British Christian-themed writers from World War II to the present, covering acclaimed literary works and popular evangelical fiction. Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Fiction: From C.S. Lewis to Left Behind spans the entire breadth of Christian-themed British and American writing from World War II to the present—well-known and less familiar authors, acclaimed literary novels, and popular writing in a variety of genres (mysteries, thrillers, romances), works that explore matters of faith, works that challenge orthodoxy and church practices, and works wholly written by and for devout evangelicals. Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Fiction offers 90 alphabetically organized entries covering the field's most important writers. Each entry includes a brief biography, religious and educational background, a survey of major works and themes, and a summary of critical response, as well as a bibliography of major works and criticism. By examining evocative, sometimes overlooked Christian elements in modern fiction, and by exploring the depth and scope of popular evangelical fiction, Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Fiction offers the richest, most complete portrait of the role of faith in modern English writing ever published.

Right-wing evangelical Christianity has come to dominate American political and social life in recent years, dividing the country and sparking cultural and moral battles. High politics and low tactics frame a fierce debate which goes much further back in the country's history than the accession of George W. Bush in 2001. It's a battle that sears America's soul and affects the world. In this book Stephen Bates explains why what happens in the Bible Belt matters to us and how there are those who hope to export the battle to Britain. American fundamentalist religion has the potential to impact on crucial and acutely dangerous areas of the world. Its priorities are often arcane and sometimes weird. But it is already affecting American government policy at home and abroad: not least in Israel and the Middle East. How is religion affecting the current presidential elections and where will America's battle for its soul take the world next?