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Crucifixion: In the Ancient World and the Folly of the Message of the Cross is unavailable, but you can change that!

In a comprehensive and detailed survey on its remarkably widespread employment in the Roman Empire, Dr. Hengel examines the way in which “the most vile death of the cross” was regarded in the Greek-speaking world and particularly in Roman-occupied Palestine. His conclusions bring out more starkly than ever the offensiveness of the Christian message: Jesus not only died an unspeakably cruel...

In 1 Corinthians 1:18 Paul says that in the eyes of ‘those who are perishing’, the ‘word of the cross’ is ‘folly’. He goes on to emphasize the point further in v. 23 by saying that the crucified Christ is a ‘stumbling-block’ for the Jews and ‘folly’ for the Gentiles. The Greek word μωρία which he uses here does not denote either a purely intellectual defect nor a lack of transcendental wisdom. Something more is involved. Justin puts us on the right track
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