Modern scholarship on the parables has long been preoccupied with asking what Jesus himself said and what he intended to accomplish with his parables. Ruben Zimmermann moves beyond that agenda to explore the dynamics of parabolic speech in all its rich complexity. Introductory chapters address the history of research and distinguish historical from literary and reader-oriented approaches, then set out a postmodern hermeneutic that analyzes narrative elements and context, maps the sociohistorical background, explores stock metaphors and symbols, and opens up contemporary horizons of interpretation. Subsequent chapters then focus on one parable from early Christian sources (Q, Mark, Matthew, Luke, John, and the Gospel of Thomas) to explore how parables function in each literary context. Over all reigns the principle that the meaning or theological "message" of a parable cannot be extracted from the parabolic form; thus the parables continue to invite hearers' and readers' involvement to the present day.

Who do we meet in the stories Jesus told? In The Parables of Jesus the Galilean: Stories of a Social Prophet, a selection of the parables of Jesus is read using a social-scientific approach. The interest of the author is not the parables in their literary contexts, but rather the parables as Jesus told them in a first-century Jewish Galilean sociopolitical, religious, and economic setting. Therefore, this volume is part of the material turn in parable research and offers a reading of the parables that pays special attention to Mediterranean anthropology by stressing key first-century Mediterranean values. Where applicable, available papyri that may be relevant in understanding the parables of Jesus from a fresh perspective are used to assemble solid ancient comparanda for the practices and social realities that the parables presuppose. The picture of Jesus that emerges from these readings is that of a social prophet. The parables of Jesus, as symbols of social transformation, envisioned a transformed and alternative world. This world, for Jesus, was the kingdom of God.

The parables of Jesus Christ are among His best-known and most-loved teachings. After centuries of study, what is yet to be discovered in these lessons from the Lord? For those who search these scriptural accounts seeking personal applications, new discoveries always await. View the parables with fresh eyes in The Parables of Jesus, a unique textual and visual presentation of the familiar narratives woven and interwoven by the Master. Each story is included here in its entirety, alongside in-depth studies of the setting, context, language, and culture in which that parable was originally situated and shared. Above all, each parable is positioned within God the Father's great plan of salvation. Knowing that encompassing doctrine is the key to finding the Savior's love in these treasured instructions, both individually and interactively. To inspire deeper insights and personal connections with the parables, the words of Christ are depicted in an original series of striking paintings by Latter-day Saint artist Jorge Cocco Santángelo. With imagery and inspiring artistic commentary that transcends the ordinary, this visually stunning uniting of word and art paves the way for personal and family applications of the parables as never before.

The renowned biblical scholar, author of The Misunderstood Jew, and general editor for The Jewish Annotated New Testament interweaves history and spiritual analysis to explore Jesus’ most popular teaching parables, exposing their misinterpretations and making them lively and relevant for modern readers. Jesus was a skilled storyteller and perceptive teacher who used parables from everyday life to effectively convey his message and meaning. Life in first-century Palestine was very different from our world today, and many traditional interpretations of Jesus’ stories ignore this disparity and have often allowed anti-Semitism and misogyny to color their perspectives. In this wise, entertaining, and educational book, Amy-Jill Levine offers a fresh, timely reinterpretation of Jesus’ narratives. In Short Stories by Jesus, she analyzes these “problems with parables,” taking readers back in time to understand how their original Jewish audience understood them. Levine reveals the parables’ connections to first-century economic and agricultural life, social customs and morality, Jewish scriptures and Roman culture. With this revitalized understanding, she interprets these moving stories for the contemporary reader, showing how the parables are not just about Jesus, but are also about us—and when read rightly, still challenge and provoke us two thousand years later.

Relates the parables that Jesus taught to His, followers. Full-color illustrations.

Jesus often spoke about the "kingdom of God." But what is the kingdom of God? For his friends who listened to him, it was a big mystery. To help them understand, Jesus told them stories, called parables. Three of those stories are in this book -- Publisher.

The contributors to this book pursue three important lines of inquiry into parable study, in order to illustrate how these lessons have been received throughout the millennia. The contributors consider not only the historical and material world of the parables' composition, and focusing on the social, political, economic, and material reality of that world, but also seek to connect how the parables may have been seen and heard in ancient contexts with how they have been, and continue to be, seen and heard. Intentionally allowing for a “bounded openness” of approach and interpretation, these essays explore numerous contexts, encounters and responses. Examining topics ranging from ancient harvest imagery and dependency relations to contemporary experience with the narratives and lessons of the parables, this volume seeks to link those very real ancient contexts with our own varied modern contexts.

This Super-Sized Book of Bible Puzzles is a giant, humongous book packed with exciting projects for your Sunday School class! Each fully-reproducible puzzle includes a Bible lesson and memory verse. For ages 5-10. 256 pages. Features over 220 mind-bending puzzles, twisting mazes, and Bible activities! Enjoy teaching your kids to have tons of fun learning about God's Word with this gigantic book jam-packed with intense Bible puzzles and crazy mazes! The Super-Sized Book of Bible Puzzles lets kids stretch their minds while they solve clever puzzles about the Bible. This perforated and fully-reproducible book is filled with a variety of exciting mind-benders: Word Searches Crossword puzzles Mazes Word Scrambles Connect-the-dot pages, and much more! Includes Hours of Bible Learning for Your Sunday School Kids with Fun Puzzles! Guide your children through Sunday school lessons for key books in the Bible, all disguised as fun puzzles, Bible games and church activities! Take your kids through: Lesson plans about popular Bible stories Jesus's birth, Jonah and the Whale, Noah's Ark, and some of the parables of Jesus Important biblical themes repentance, obedience, evangelism, faith, loyalty, and so much more 4 Key Features of the Super-Sized Book of Bible Puzzles by Rainbow Publishers 1. Age-Appropriate Exciting puzzles and activities to engage your students in important Bible lessons. Includes fun, kid-friendly Bible topics to get even the toughest kids thinking! 2. Quick Prep and Easy on the Wallet! Spend less time and money prepping your Bible lesson when you easily remove and copy these perforated fully-reproducible Bible puzzles that your kids can't wait to get their playful hands on! With just the push of a button on your copier, you'll be teaching and entertaining your children in no time! 3. Packed with More than 220 Sunday School Activities and Bible Puzzles! More than 220 puzzles, lessons, and activities that teach meaningful Bible stories in just a matter of moments! 4. Features Memory Verses and Bible Stories Introduce important Bible lessons and stories to your kids with fun puzzles! They won't believe they're learning at the same time! Whether you use them for kids church or in your home, you will be reinforcing Scripture and stories from the Bible and creatively making a permanent impression on hearts of your children. Preview Super-Sized Book of Bible Puzzles

Few New Testament topics have been discussed as often and as intensely as Q, the hypothesized second major source alongside the gospel of Mark for the gospels of Matthew and Luke, and the parables. And yet, no monograph to date has been devoted to considering the parables in Q. In addition to filling this gap in New Testament scholarship, Dieter T. Roth addresses the need to move scholarship on both Q and the parables forward along methodological and interpretive lines. Roth considers Q not as a text behind Matthew and Luke that needs to be reconstructed but rather as an intertext between Matthew and Luke that offered plots, characters, and images in parables that were taken up by Matthew and Luke and utilized in their own respective texts. In addition, Roth draws on recent parables research in his examination of the 27 parables in Q (two spoken by John the Baptist, one by the Centurion, and 24 by Jesus) in order to consider their purpose and function in this early Christian text.

The Power of Parables documents the surprising ways in which Jewish and Christian parables bridge religion with daily life. This 2019 conference volume rediscovers the original power of parables to shock and affect their audience, which has since been reduced by centuries of preaching and repetition. Not only do parables enhance the perspective on Scripture or the kingdom of heaven, they also change the sensory regime of the audience in perceiving the outer world. The theological differences in their applications appear secondary in view of their powerful rhetoric and suggest a shared genre.