Power and Magic: The Concept of Power in Ephesians

Rating:
Summary: A Portrait of the Ephesians' Spiritual Battle
Review: Excellent book. There are a lot of flaky books out there on spiritual warfare, and this is not one of them. Arnold presents a framework for understanding spiritual power from a biblical perspective. He uncovers the intense interest in spiritual things prevalent in the first century. Magic and the worship of the goddess Artemis (or Diana)were central to life in Asia Minor in biblical times (just check out the book of Acts!). These practices were connected to demonic power, says Arnold. The apostle Paul writes the book of Ephesians into this milieu in order to equip the believers to "stand firm" in the power of God against the dark influences. Arnold does an excellent job of unpacking this message in a scholarly fashion.