The Story of Christ in the Ethics of Paul: An Analysis of the Function of the Hymnic Material in the Pauline Corpus

In this book Fowl examines the role played by three poetic texts, Phil. 2.6-11, Col. 1.15-20, and 1Tim. 3.16 in the arguments of their epistles. Rather than functioning as criteria of christological orthodoxy, these poetic narrations of Christ's person and work are used by Paul to support various ethical positions. For Paul and the Christians he addresses, these stories of Christ are exemplars for the life and practice of the church.