Philo and Paul among the Sophists

In this highly acclaimed work, Bruce Winter gathers for the first time all the available evidence on the first-century sophistic movement from two major centers of learning in the East. Together with the writings of the contemporary Hellenistic Jews, Philo and Paul, he discusses all the protagonists and antagonists of this movement in Alexandria and Corinth. This study provides important insights into the problems that this elitist movement created for Diaspora Jews in Alexandria and for Christians in Corinth. It also traces the origins of the Second Sophistic to the reign of Nero. Substantially revised and including a new foreword by G. W. Bowersock, this volume is also supported by a web site -- www.sophists.info -- featuring additional archaeological evidence and photographs.

Dr Winter gathers all available evidence on the first-century sophistic movement from two major centres of learning in the East. Together with the writings of Philo and Paul, this provides the first discussion of all the protagonists and antagonists of this movement in Alexandria and Corinth. While both these contemporary Hellenistic Jews responded to the movement on the basis of the Old Testament, Philo was also indebted to Plato for his assessment and Paul filtered important Old Testament texts through the message of the crucified Messiah. This study provides important insights into the problems this elitist movement created for Diaspora Jews in Alexandria, and for Christians in Corinth. It also fills a crucial gap in our understanding of the rise of the Second Sophistic.