Includes bibliographical references (p. 319-353) and indexes.

Front Matter -- Introduction -- “Let everything be done decently and in order (εὐσχημόνως καὶ κατὰ τάξιν)” (1Cor 14.40). Unity, Order and Problems of Diversity -- “Let everything be done decently and in order (εὐσχημόνως καὶ κατὰ τάξιν)” (1Cor 14.40). Unity, Order and Problems of Diversity -- Order within: Passions, Divine and Human -- Order within: Passions, Divine and Human -- Order in Composition: “καθεξῆς σοι γράψαι” (Luke 1.3) -- Order in Thought: Ambiguity, Ancient Semantics, and Faith -- “All things to All People”, τοῖς πᾶσιν πάντα (1Cor 9.22). (Dis)order in Thought: Free-range Reflections to Engage Dio of Prusa’s and Paul’s Implied Audiences -- Legislation as Social Engineering in the New Testament World -- “What, then, of the Law?”, “ΤΙ ΟΥΝ Ο ΝΟΜΟΣ;” Gal 3.19. Appraisals of Law in Paul and Other New Testament Writers, and in the Wider Graeco-Roman World -- Justification as Acquittal? A Critical Examination of Judicial Parlance in Paul’s World -- Disorderly Court Procedure: Pliny’s Prosecutions of Christians -- The Baptist’s New Order -- Dissident Jesus -- Disorderly Paul -- Bibliography -- Indexes.

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Articulate first century Mediterranean society, Jewish and Christian included, expressly favoured harmonious order in society, in individuals, in communication, and in thought. Its common basis was the patriarchal family, the rule of law, rational self-control, and rational thought. Yet there was also resistance to oppressive and unjust order in all spheres; and while law could be held educative, yet there were substantial first century critiques of law, not just Paul’s, and awareness that judicial procedures could be chaotic and biassed. Strands of such dissidence appear in Jesus and in Paul, with significant relevance for any understanding of the early Christian movement(s) and contemporary Judaism(s) in Graeco-Roman context, but also with important implications for any practical reflections and application.