From the various biblical explanations of suffering, this volume chooses to focus on one: suffering sometimes possesses an educational value. It explores the differing versions of this view in Paul, James, 1 Peter, Hebrews, and Luke-Acts, and sets these Christian perspectives against the backdrop of similar explanations in Jewish and Greco-Roman cultures.
Charles H. Talbert (PhD, Vanderbilt University) is Distinguished Professor of Religion at Baylor University. A former editor of the Society of Biblical Literature Dissertation Series, he is the author or editor of more than two dozen books.