Discerning the "Word of the Lord"

Michael W. Pahl took his Ph.D. in Theology from the University of Birmingham, U.K., and has taught New Testament studies in Canada and the U.K.

Chapter One: Introduction: The Problem of the ?? ???? ??????
1.1. The Nature of the Problem
1.2. The Significance of The Problem
1.3. The Scope and Method of This Study

Chapter Two: Solutions to the Problem of the ?? ???? ??????
2.1. Introduction
2.2. The History of Interpretation of ?? ???? ??????
2.3. The ?? ???? ??????as Mediated Jesus Tradition
2.4. The ?? ???? ?????? as Direct Prophetic Revelation
2.5. Evaluating the Conventional Solutions
2.6. Conclusion

Chapter Three: An Epistemological Analysis (1): Prophetic Revelation and Jesus Tradition
3.1. Introduction
3.2. Paul and Early Christian Prophecy
3.3. Paul and the Jesus Tradition
3.4. Conclusion

Chapter Four: An Epistemological Analysis (2): Scripture and the Christ Events
4.1. Introduction
4.2. Paul and Scripture
4.3. Paul and the Christ Events
4.4. The Relationship among these Epistemic Authorities
4.5. Conclusion

Chapter Five: A Linguistic Analysis: Paul's Language of Divine Utterance
5.1. Introduction
5.2. Basic Lexical and Grammatical Matters
5.3. Language of Divine Utterance in Early Jewish Literature
5.4. Language of Divine Utterance in Early Christian Literature
5.5. An Exploration of "Word" as "Gospel"
5.6. Conclusion

Chapter Six: A Contextual Analysis: 1 Thessalonians 4:15 in Context
6.1. Introduction
6.2. Historical Context: The Thessalonian Situation and Paul's Response
6.3. Literary Context: The Structure of the Passage within the Letter
6.4. Conclusion

Chapter Seven: Conclusion: A Fresh Solution to the Problem of the ?? ???? ??????
7.1. A General Summary of the Book
7.2. A Final Assessment of the Options
7.3. Some Closing Reflections