NSBT Adopted into God's Family: Exploring A Pauline Metaphor

Out of Print - Publisher considering reprint Nov 2019

'... you received the Spirit of adoption' (Romans 8:15)

The relationship between God and his people is understood in various ways 
by the biblical writers, and it is arguably the apostle Paul who uses the 
richest vocabulary.

Unique to Paul's writings is the term huiothesia, the process or act of 
being `adopted as son(s)'. It occurs five times in three of his letters, 
where it functions as a key theological metaphor.

Trevor Burke argues that huiothesia has been misunderstood, misrepresented, 
or neglected through scholarly preoccupation with its cultural background. 
He redresses the balance in this comprehensive study, which discusses 
metaphor theory; explores the background to huiothesia; considers the roles 
of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit; examines the moral implications of 
adoption, and its relationship with honour; and concludes with the 
consequences for Christian believers as they live in the tension between 
the `now' and the `not yet' of their adoption into God's new family. 

240 pages.