Reading Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes has brought me a richer and deeper understanding of 1 Corinthians. The author Kenneth E. Bailey explains the style of writing Paul has used. Understanding Paul's literary style (parallelism and chiasm or ring composition) has helped me gain a deeper meaning of the scriptures.

Bailey has been immersed in the Middle Eastern culture by living and teaching there most of his life. He brings that perspective in a way which, for me, shines new light on how radical some of the teachings of Jesus and the apostles' writings were at that time. Bailey comments, "Some women were preaching—and other women were not listening to them! But the reader would not catch this connection between cameo 1 and cameo 7 without awareness of the structure of the overall essay that began in chapter 11 and concluded at the end of chapter 14."

He also compares earlier Arabic and Syriac translations to give clearer meaning to passages in 1 Corinthians. He wrote, "How did Middle Eastern Christians understand this text? Their translations provide an important key to the answers to that question."

This book is readable for the average lay person, but it is definitely not light reading. If you are interested in a deeper Bible study of 1 Corinthians, I would definitely recommend Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in 1 Corinthians.