This course presents critical and introductory issues in the scholarship of the epistles and the book of Revelation. The issues will be such topics as: date, background, and authorship; special issues (e.g. church discipline, miraculous healing, ethics of slavery, etc.); new perspective on Paul; and the nature and proper interpretation of apocalyptic literature. This class will be divided into three sections. First, we will survey the life of Paul and the background of second-temple Judaism during the first century. Second, we will examine the Epistles and particular exegetical issues inherent in proper reading of the letters. Third, we will conclude by examining the book of Revelation and eschatology as it is worked out in several modern systems.