Timothy

While most Christians might accurately identify Timothy as an associate of the apostle Paul, they probably conjure up images of Timothy and his relationship with Paul in twenty-first-century terms. In Timothy: Paul's Closest Associate, Bruce J. Malina ventures off the path of modern biography, with its interest in psychological development and introspection, toward a more likely description of Timothy. Malina draws us out of our individualistic worldview and into the first-century Mediterranean world, where introspection was unheard of and collectivism prevailed. Here alone, within a network of friends and associates, can we discover the real Timothy. Moreover, Malina's fascinating explanation of social-scientific group development over generations, while perhaps challenging readers to rethink traditional biblical interpretation, provides readers with fresh and plausible insights about Timothy. These insights lead to a greater appreciation not only for Timothy but, more important, for the gospel of God that Paul enjoined on him to proclaim: the God of Israel raised Jesus from the dead, making him Lord and Messiah.

Bruce J. Malina, STD, (1933-2017), was a professor of New Testament and Early Christianity at Creighton University in Omaha. He was the author of numerous works, including The New Testament World: Insights from Cultural Anthropology (Atlanta: John Knox, 1981; rev. ed., 1993; Louisville: Westminster/Knox, 3rd rev. ed., 2001); with John J. Pilch, Social Science Commentary on the Letters of Paul (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2006); and with John J. Pilch, Social Science Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2008).