This third installment of The First Urban Churches edited by James R. Harrison and L. L. Welborn focuses on the urban context of Christian churches in first-century Ephesus. Building on the methodologies introduced in the first volume, contributors illustrate how an investigation of inscriptions, papyri, archaeological remains, coins, and iconography helps readers understand properly the challenges, threats, and opportunities that the early Ephesian believers faced in that city. The essays demonstrate decisively the difference that such an approach makes in grappling with the meaning and context of the New Testament writings, particularly Ephesians, Acts, and Revelation.
