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| *=New to this Edition | |
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| Each chapter opens with a "What to Expect" section and closes with Suggestions for Further Reading and Key Terms.Boxes | |
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| Preface to the Third Edition | |
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| Preface to the Second Edition | |
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| Preface to the First Edition | |
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| Acknowledgments | |
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| Notes on Suggestions for Further Reading | |
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| Credits | |
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| Master Time Line | |
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| Introduction: What is the New Testament? | |
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| The New Testament: Some Basic Information | |
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| Other Early Christian Writings | |
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| The Development of the Christian Canon | |
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| Implications for Our Study | |
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| The New Testament: One Other Set of Problems | |
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| At a Glance: The New Testament Canon | |
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| Excursus: Some Additional Reflections: The Historian and the Believer | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| The Environment of Early Christian Traditions: The Greco-Roman World | |
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| The Problem of Beginnings | |
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| One Remarkable Life | |
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| The Environment of the New Testament: Religions in the Greco-Roman World | |
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| At a Glance: The World of Early Christianity | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| The Environment of Early Christian Traditions: The World of Ancient Judaism | |
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| Monotheism: The Belief in One True God | |
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| The Covenant: Israel's Pact with Its God | |
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| The Law: Israel's Convenantal Obligations | |
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| Temple and Synagogue: Israel's Places of Worship | |
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| Forms of Early Judaism | |
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| Political Crises in Palestine and Their Ramifications | |
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| The Formation of Jewish Sects | |
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| The Jewish Context for the Traditions About Jesus | |
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| At a Glance: The World of Early Judaism | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| The Traditions of Jesus in Their Greco-Roman Context | |
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| Oral Traditions Behind the Gospel | |
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| The Gospels as Biographies of Jesus | |
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| At a Glance: The Traditions of Jesus | |
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| Some Additional Reflections: The Authors of the Gospels | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| Jesus, the Suffering Son of God: The Gospel According to Mark | |
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| The Synoptic Problem | |
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| Mark, Our Earliest Gospel | |
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| The Beginning of the Gospel: Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God Who Fulfills Scripture | |
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| Jesus the Authoritative Son of God | |
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| Jesus the Opposed Son of God | |
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| Jesus the Misunderstood Son of God | |
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| Jesus the Acknowledged Son of God | |
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| Jesus the Suffering Son of God | |
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| Jesus the Crucified Son of God | |
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| Jesus the Vindicated Son of God | |
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| Conclusion: Mark and His Readers | |
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| At a Glance: The Gospel of Mark* Take a Stand | |
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| Jesus, the Jewish Messiah: The Gospel According to Matthew | |
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| A Redactional Approach to Matthew | |
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| The Importance of Beginnings: Jesus the Jewish Messiah in Fulfillment of the Jewish Scriptures | |
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| The Portrayal of Jesus in Matthew: The Sermon on the Mount as a Springboard | |
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| Jesus Rejected by the Jewish Leaders | |
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| Matthew and His Readers | |
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| At a Glance: Matthew | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| Jesus, the Rejected Prophet: The Gospel According to Luke | |
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| A Comparative Overview of the Gospel | |
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| The Preface to Luke's Gospel | |
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| Luke's Birth Narrative in Comparative Perspective | |
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| From Jew to Gentile: Luke's Portrayal of Jesus the Rejected Prophet | |
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| Luke's Distinctive Emphases throughout His Gospel | |
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| Conclusion: Luke in Comparative Perspective | |
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| At a Glance: The Gospel of Luke* Take a Stand | |
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| Jesus, the Man Sent From Heaven: The Gospel According to John | |
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| The Gospel of John from a Literary-Historical Perspective | |
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| The Gospel of John from a Redactional Perspective | |
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| The Gospel of John from a Thematic Perspective | |
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| The Gospel of John from a Comparative Perspective | |
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| The Author of the Fourth Gospel | |
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| At a Glance: The Gospel of John | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| The Historical Jesus | |
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| Problems with Sources | |
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| Using Our Sources | |
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| Jewish Apocalypticism | |
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| Jesus in His Apocalyptic Context | |
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| The Beginning and End as Keys to the Middle | |
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| The Apocalyptic Deeds of Jesus | |
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| The Apocalyptic Teachings of Jesus | |
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| The Apocalyptic Death of Jesus | |
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| At a Glance: Jesus the Apocalyptic Prophet* Take a Stand | |
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| From Jesus to the Gospels | |
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| The Beginning of Christianity | |
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| Jesus' Resurrection from an Apocalyptic Perspective | |
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| Jesus' Death, According to the Scriptures | |
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| The Emergence of Different Understandings of Jesus | |
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| At a Glance: From Jesus to the Gospels* Take a Stand | |
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| Luke's Second Volume: The Book of Acts | |
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| The Genre of Acts and Its Significance | |
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| The Thematic Approach to Acts | |
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| From Gospel to Acts: The Opening Transition | |
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| Themes in the Speeches of Acts | |
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| At a Glance: The Book of Acts | |
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| Conclusion: The Author and His Themes in Context | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| Paul the Apostle: The Man and His Mission | |
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| The Study of Paul: Methodological Difficulties | |
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| The Life of Paul | |
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| At a Glance: Paul and His Mission | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| Paul and His Apostolic Mission: I Thessalonians as a Test Case | |
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| The Founding of the Church in Thessalonica | |
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| The Beginnings of the Thessalonian Church: A Socio-Historical Perspective | |
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| The Church at Thessalonica after Paul's Departure | |
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| Conclusion: Paul the Apostle | |
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| At a Glance: I Thessalonians | |
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| Take a Stand | |
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| Paul and the Crises of His Churches: The Corinthian Correspondence | |
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| Corinthians | |
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| At a Glance: 1 Corinthians | |
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| Corinthians | |
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| At a Glance: 2 Corinthians* Take a Stand | |
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| Paul and the Crises of His Churches: Galatians, Philippianchuns, and Philemon | |
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| Galatians | |
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| At a Glance: Galatians | |
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| Philippians | |
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| At a Glance: Philippians | |
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| Philemon | |
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| At a Glance: Philemon* Take a Stand | |
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| The Gospel According to Paul: The Letter to the Romans | |
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| The Occasion and Purpose of the Letter | |
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| The Theme of the Epistle | |
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| Pauline Models for Salvation | |
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| The Flow of Paul's Argument | |
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| Conclusion: Paul and the Romans | |
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| At a Glance: Romans* Take a Stand | |
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| In the Wake of the Apostle: The Deutero-Pauline and Pastoral Epistles | |
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| Pseudonymity in the Ancient World | |
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| The Deutero-Pauline Epistles | |
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| At a Glance: The Deutero-Pauline Epistles | |
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| The Pastoral Epistles | |
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| The Historical Situation and Authorship of the Pastoral Epistles | |
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| At a Glance: The Pastoral Epistles* Take a Stand | |
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| From Paul's Female Colleagues to the Pastor's Intimidated Women: The Oppression of Women in Early Christianity | |
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| Women in Paul's Churches | |
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| Women Associated with Jesus | |
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| Paul's Understanding of Women in the Church | |
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| Women in the Aftermath of Paul | |
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| Ancient Ideologies of Gender | |
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| Gender Ideology and the Pauline Churches | |
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| At a Glance: Women in Early Christianity* Take a Stand | |
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| Christian Conflicts with Jews and Pagans: Hebrews and 1 Peter | |
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| Christians and Jews | |
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| Early Christian Self-Definition | |
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| Continuity and Superiority: The Epistle to the Hebrews | |
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| At a Glance: Hebrews | |
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| Christians and Pagans | |
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| Christians in a Hostile World: The Letter of 1 Peter | |
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| At a Glance: 1 Peter* Take a Stand | |
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| Christian Conflicts with Christians: James, 2 Peter, Jude, and the Johannine Epistles | |
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| Christian Conflicts with Christians | |
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| The Epistle of James | |
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| Jude | |
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| Peter | |
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| The Johannine Epistles | |
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| Understanding the Johannine Epistles | |
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| Reflections on the Contextual Method for Understanding the Johannine Epistles | |
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| Conflicts within the Early Christian Communities | |
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| At a Glance: Christian Internal Conflicts* Take a Stand | |
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| Christians and the Cosmos: The Book of Revelation | |
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| The Content and Structure of the Book of Revelation | |
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| The Book of Revelation from a Historical Perspective | |
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| Apocalyptic Worldviews and Apocalypse Genre | |
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| The Revelation of John in Historical Context | |
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| At a Glance: The Book of Revelation* Take a Stand | |
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| Glossary of Terms | |
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| Index | |
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| Photo Essays | |