Overview

This volume is part of the "Understanding the New Testament" series. This series provides useful, brief studies on the books of the New Testament. The studies are aimed specifically at helping laypeople, including Bible study teachers, grasp the essentials of the text of each book by providing helpful comments on the book as a whole and by helping them understand each unit of Scripture in the book. The comments aim at answering the questions laypeople tend to ask and providing the information that laypeople tend to need and want. The studies are intended for use in individual or group study. The emphasis is on interpreting each unit of Scripture in its context in the surrounding Scripture, in the book as a whole, and in first-century culture. The information and understandings in this book and the others in this series come from a lifetime of studying the Bible. Over the course of my ministry, I have helped to plan and produce hundreds if not thousands of Bible studies for laypeople, written and published dozens of Bible studies, led numerous Bible study classes, taught college Bible courses, and preached many sermons. Through the years, I have observed a strong desire on the part of ordinary folks to understand the Scriptures better. This book is intended to provide basic assistance in doing that.