| Charts and Lists | p. 16 |
| Foreword | p. 17 |
| Preface | p. 19 |
| The Current Cultural Crisis: Rebuilding the Foundation | p. 25 |
| The Current Confusion over Marriage and the Family | |
| The Lack of Biblical, Integrative Literature on Marriage and the Family | |
| The Contribution of This Book: Biblical and Integrative | |
| Leaving and Cleaving: Marriage in the Old Testament | p. 31 |
| Rooted in Creation (Genesis 1-3) | |
| Created in God's Image to Rule the Earth for God | |
| The Man's Ultimate Responsibility for the Marriage and the Wife's Role as His "Suitable Helper" | |
| The Fall of Humanity and Its Consequences | |
| Summary | |
| Developments in the History of Israel (Pentateuch, Historical and Prophetic Books) | |
| Marital Roles in Ancient Israel | |
| The Role and Responsibilities of Husbands Toward Their Wives | |
| The Role and Responsibilities of Wives Toward Their Husbands | |
| Violations of Various Components of God's Ideal for Marriage in Ancient Israel | |
| Polygamy | |
| Divorce | |
| Adultery | |
| Homosexuality | |
| Sterility | |
| Dilution of Gender Distinctions | |
| Summary of Developments in the History of Israel | |
| Glimpses of the Ideal (Wisdom Literature) | |
| The Excellent Wife (Proverbs 31) | |
| The Beauty of Sex in Marriage (The Song of Solomon) | |
| Insights from Old Testament Marriages | |
| Adam and Eve | |
| Abraham and Sarah | |
| Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Rachel | |
| Samson and Delilah | |
| Ruth and Boaz | |
| Hannah and Elkanah | |
| David and His Wives | |
| Solomon's Foreign Wives | |
| Ahab and Jezebel | |
| Esther and Ahasuerus | |
| Summary | |
| Conclusion | |
| No Longer Two, but One: Marriage in the New Testament | p. 61 |
| No Longer Two, but One: Jesus' High View of Marriage | |
| Submission and Sensitivity: Peter's Message to Husbands and Wives (1 Pet. 3:1-7) | |
| All Things Under One Head: Paul's Vision for Marriage | |
| Fulfilling One's Marital Obligations (1 Cor. 7:2-5) | |
| Marriage an Honorable State (1 Tim. 2:15; 4:1-4) | |
| The Roles of Husband and Wife (Eph. 5:21-33) | |
| Summary and Application | |
| Insights from New Testament Marriages | |
| The Gospels | |
| The Book of Acts | |
| Ananias and Sapphira | |
| Aquila and Priscilla | |
| The Rest of the New Testament and Conclusion | |
| Conclusion | |
| The Nature of Marriage: Sacrament, Contract, or Covenant? | p. 81 |
| Marriage as a Sacrament | |
| Marriage as a Contract | |
| Marriage as a Covenant | |
| Conclusion | |
| The Ties that Bind: Family in the Old Testament | p. 93 |
| The Ancient Israelite Conception of Family | |
| The Role and Responsibilities of Fathers | |
| The Role and Responsibilities of Mothers Procreation | |
| The Role and Responsibilities of Children | |
| The Importance of Teaching Children About God | |
| Passing on the Message (Pentateuch, Historical Books, and Psalms) | |
| Train up a Child (The Book of Proverbs) | |
| Insights from Old Testament Family Relationships | |
| Conclusion | |
| The Christian Family: Family in the New Testament | p. 109 |
| The Example and Teaching of Jesus | |
| First-century Palestine and Jesus' Example | |
| Jesus' Teaching on the Family and Discipleship | |
| Children in the Ministry of Jesus | |
| Paul's Teaching on the Role of Fathers, Mothers, and Children | |
| The Ancient Household and "Household Codes" | |
| Children in Paul's Teaching | |
| Fathers and the Importance of Fatherhood in Paul's Teaching | |
| Mothers and the Importance of Motherhood in Paul's Teaching | |
| The Importance of Older Women Mentoring Younger Women | |
| Older Women | |
| Younger Women | |
| Insights from New Testament Family Relationships | |
| Implications | |
| Conclusion | |
| To Have or Not to Have Children: Special Issues Related to the Family (Part 1) | p. 129 |
| Childlessness and Modern Medical Ethics | |
| Abortion | |
| Contraception (by Mark Liederbach) | |
| The Question of the Legitimacy of Contraception in General | |
| Morally Permissible and Impermissible Forms of Contraception | |
| Acceptable Forms of Birth Control | |
| Unacceptable Forms of Birth Control | |
| Methods Requiring Special Mention and Extra Care | |
| Artificial Reproductive Technologies (by Mark Liederbach) | |
| The Challenge of Infertility | |
| Description of Methods | |
| Principles of Evaluation | |
| Adoption | |
| Conclusion | |
| Requiring the Wisdom of Solomon: Special Issues Related to the Family (Part 2) | p. 153 |
| Parenting in Today's World | |
| Which Method? | |
| Single Parenting | |
| Physical Discipline | |
| Cultivating Masculinity and Femininity | |
| Principles of Parental Discipline | |
| Conclusion | |
| Marriage and the Family and Spiritual Warfare | |
| A Struggle from the Beginning | |
| A Battle for the Mind | |
| The Devil's Toolbox: Sexual Temptation, Anger, and Insensitivity | |
| How to Fight the Battle: Three Important Lessons | |
| Implications | |
| Family ways | |
| Conclusion | |
| Undivided Devotion to the Lord: The Divine Gift of Singleness | p. 173 |
| Singleness in the Old Testament | |
| Singleness in the New Testament | |
| Singleness in the Early Church | |
| Summary | |
| Issues Related to Singleness | |
| Singleness and Ministry | |
| Cohabitation and Premarital Sex | |
| Courtship and Dating | |
| Biblical Teaching on Singleness Addressed to Particular Groups | |
| Young Men | |
| Young Women | |
| Widows or Widowers | |
| Single Parents | |
| Divorcees | |
| Practical Implications | |
| Conclusion | |
| Abandoning Natural Relations: The Biblical Verdict on Homosexuality | p. 201 |
| Homosexuality and the Integrated Nature of Marriage and the Family | |
| Homosexuality in the Old Testament | |
| Sodom and Gomorrah | |
| The Levitical Holiness Code | |
| Homosexuality in the New Testament | |
| The Letter to the Romans | |
| First Corinthians | |
| First Timothy | |
| Conclusion | |
| The Biblical Verdict on Homosexuality | |
| Practical Implications | |
| Separating What God Has Joined Together: Divorce and Remarriage | p. 227 |
| The Old Testament Background | |
| Jesus' Teaching on Divorce | |
| Restoring God's Original Design for Marriage | |
| The Disciples' Reaction | |
| The "Exception Clause": "Except for Porneia" | |
| The "Divorce and Remarriage for Adultery or Sexual Immorality" View | |
| Jesus vs. Hillel and Shammai | |
| Why the Exception? | |
| Arguments Advanced Against the "Divorce and Remarriage for Adultery or Sexual Immorality" View Response | |
| More Restrictive Views: Divorce Only in Case of Breaking the Betrothal, Incest, Etc. | |
| Arguments advanced against the "betrothal" view Response | |
| Summary | |
| Paul's Teaching on Divorce | |
| The Corinthian Context: Divorce for Desertion by Unbelieving Spouse | |
| Jesus' and Paul's Teachings on Remarriage | |
| Survey of Relevant Passages | |
| The Current Discussion | |
| Summary | |
| Conclusion | |
| Pastoral Implications | |
| Parting Principles | |
| Faithful Husbands: Qualifications for Church Leadership | p. 259 |
| The Requirement of Marital Faithfulness | |
| The Meaning of the Phrase Mias Gynaikas Andra | |
| Implications | |
| Church Officers and the Issue of Divorce | |
| Requirements Pertaining to Church Leaders' Children | |
| Singleness and Church Leadership | |
| Conclusion | |
| Uniting All Things in Him: Concluding Synthesis | p. 271 |
| Summary of Findings | |
| Conclusion | |
| For Further Study: Helpful Resources | p. 277 |
| Personal and Group Study Guide | p. 301 |
| Answers to Discussion Questions | p. 331 |
| Notes | p. 353 |
| Author Index | p. 417 |
| Subject Index | p. 427 |
| Scripture Index | p. 431 |
| Extrabiblical References Index | p. 447 |
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