"A wonderful book--nuanced, lively, vastly erudite. . . . Klepper has given us a look at Nicholas of Lyra that will become a classic study of this most important figure."--E. Ann Matter, University of Pennsylvania In the year 1309, Nicholas of Lyra, an important Franciscan Bible commentator, put forth a question at the University of Paris, asking whether it was possible to prove the advent of Christ from scriptures received by the Jews. This question reflects the challenges he faced as a Christian exegete determined to value Jewish literature during an era of increasing hostility toward Jews...