John Granger Cook traces the use of the penalty by the Romans until its probable abolition by Constantine. Rabbinic and legal sources are not neglected. The material contributes to the understanding of the crucifixion of Jesus and has implications for the theologies of the cross in the New Testament. Images and photographs are included in this volume. '[Cook] has offered the guild of classicists and New Testament scholars much more: an immensely detailed depiction of crucifixion in the ancient world replete with insightful commentary and illuminating images that will likely become the standard in the field for generations to come.' Charles L. Quarles in Review of Biblical Literature, http://www.bookreviews.org (04/2015) 'This is a major and substantial work that will be a valuable resource for many years to come. Cook [...] provides a thorough and deeply documented study of the practice and meaning of crucifixion as a form of capital punishment in the ancient Mediterranean world.' Donald Senior in The Bible Today 2014, p. 375-376 'This volume, with its encyclopedic scope, is the most thorough treatment of the subject yet produced. Cook has done a lifetime's work here and he deserves our appreciation for assembling such a complex, thorough, and useful work.' Jim West on http://zwingliusredivivus.wordpress.com/2014/10/03/crucifixion-in-the-mediterranean-world/

Born 1955; 1976 BA, Davidson College; 1979 M.Div., Union Theological Seminary (VA); 1985 PhD, Emory University; currently Professor of Religion at LaGrange College.