Robert Lewis examines Paul's use of the phrase "Spirit of Adoption" in Romans 8:12-17 against the background of its Roman Imperial context in order to shed light on interpretation of Paul's Letter to the Romans. Whereas other scholars have explored what Paul may have meant when he uses the term "adoption" Lewis instead explores the reasons behind Paul's coupling of it with the term "spirit."

Having examined theories for a possible Jewish antecedent for Paul's use of this phrase, and found them less than persuasive, Lewis unlocks the data within the term's Roman Imperial context that...