Paul's Letters from Prison: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon in the Revised Standard Version (New Clarendon Bible)

Paul's Letters from Prison: Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon in the Revised Standard Version (New Clarendon Bible) by Caird, George B.. paperback edition. ISBN: 9780198369202.

The letters Paul wrote to the Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon, have one feature in common that distinguishes them from the other letters he wrote: in them, Paul calls himself a prisoner. This thought-provoking study examines closely the metaphorical and literal meaning of Pauls "bonds and chains". Through analysis of the letters themselves, Caird considers whether Paul was actually behind bars when he wrote them (and if so, in which prison or prisons), whether he may have been referring to himself figuratively as a "prisoner of Jesus Christ," and whether he was the actual author of all four letters. In assessing these issues, Caird outlines each letters intended audience, vocabulary, style, historical setting, literary references, and theology.