Overview

What does a person do when his life has just taken a complete U-turn? This was the question Paul faced after his conversion on Damascus Road. In the end, he decided to go to Petran Arabia, where he stayed for more than two years. In this exercise in reconstructing what Paul's time in Petra would have been like, Ben Witherington recreates the scene of various interesting possible episodes in Paul's life, about which the New Testament says little, filling in the gaps of ""the hidden years."" Who would he have met in Petra? Would he have practiced his leather working trade? Might he have gotten married? What did he do to raise the ire of King Aretas IV, and cause him to be chased all the way back to Damascus and out again? Why did he wait so long to go up to Jerusalem and visit with Peter? This and much more is addressed in this fast-paced novella, with sidebars explaining the context of the events in the story.

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9781532698224

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Reviews

"""Ben Witherington gives us an imaginative and informed journey into Paul's 'hidden' years and into one of the most colorful yet unfamiliar sites in the orbit of biblical history--Petra--while Jason Myers takes advantage of every opportunity to take us deeper into the realities of the New Testament world. This novel is particularly valuable for the windows it opens into travel, the everyday life of craftspeople, the vicissitudes of family life, and the dangerous realities of scapegoating in the first-century Roman Empire."" --David A. deSilva, author of Day of Atonement: A Novel of the Maccabean Revolt and A Week in the Life of Ephesus ""Ben Witherington III unleashes his vivid imagination once again to recreate what might have happened during Paul's 'hidden years.' Romance and intrigue await the reader who dares venture into the colorful Nabatean city of Petra. The closer look sections by Jason Myers supplement the storyline by providing fascinating insights into daily life in Paul's day. So climb aboard your virtual camel and begin the trek!"" --Mark Wilson, Asia Minor Research Center, Antalya, Turkey"

Ben Witherington gives us an imaginative and informed journey into Paul's 'hidden' years and into one of the most colorful yet unfamiliar sites in the orbit of biblical history--Petra--while Jason Myers takes advantage of every opportunity to take us deeper into the realities of the New Testament world. This novel is particularly valuable for the windows it opens into travel, the everyday life of craftspeople, the vicissitudes of family life, and the dangerous realities of scapegoating in the first-century Roman Empire. --David A. deSilva, author of Day of Atonement: A Novel of the Maccabean Revolt and A Week in the Life of Ephesus Ben Witherington III unleashes his vivid imagination once again to recreate what might have happened during Paul's 'hidden years.' Romance and intrigue await the reader who dares venture into the colorful Nabatean city of Petra. The closer look sections by Jason Myers supplement the storyline by providing fascinating insights into daily life in Paul's day. So climb aboard your virtual camel and begin the trek! --Mark Wilson, Asia Minor Research Center, Antalya, Turkey

Author Information

Ben Witherington is Amos Professor of New Testament for Doctoral Studies at Asbury Theological Seminary and on the doctoral faculty at St. Andrews University in Scotland. He is now considered one of the top evangelical scholars in the world, and is an elected member of the prestigious SNTS, a society dedicated to New Testament studies. Witherington has written over fifty books, including The Jesus Quest and The Paul Quest, both of which were selected as top biblical studies works by Christianity Today. He also writes for many church and scholarly publications, and is a frequent contributor to the Patheos website. Jason A. Myers is Associate Professor of Biblical Studies at Greensboro College and lecturer in New Testament at Westminster Theological Centre (UK). He has taught extensively around the world in India, Nigeria, Estonia, Turkey, Italy, and England. Jason is active in both the academy and the church. He lives with his wife Lisa and their son Augustine Matthew, in Greensboro, North Carolina.

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