The Ongoing Reconciliation: Paul’s Divine–Human Reconciliation through the Lens of Reciprocal Exchange Restricted; Files Only
Lee, Gilha (Summer 2025)
Abstract
This dissertation examines Paul’s theology of divine–human reconciliation (2 Cor 5:11–21; Rom 5:1–11) through the lens of reciprocal exchange. Challenging traditional interpretations that limit reconciliation to a singular, unilateral act of God’s initiative, the study argues that Paul presents reconciliation as a multi-layered, ongoing, and relational dynamic in which human participation plays a constitutive role. Drawing on Greco-Roman frameworks—especially ancient theories of value-based exchange, Roman patronage, and the civic ideal of homonoia—the study contends that Paul frames reconciliation as an asymmetrical yet reciprocal process grounded in mutual obligation, active human response, and shared purpose. By redefining reconciliation as a participatory and transformative process, the study offers a theological framework that addresses how reconciliation is possible between parties of unequal power dynamics, not through strategic advantage or calculated compromise, but through self-giving love that enables reciprocal response within asymmetrical relationships.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1. Introduction .................... 1
Chapter 2. Charting the Terrain of Paul’s Divine–Human Reconciliation .................... 4
2.1. Contours of the Scholarly Landscape ..........5
2.1.1. Scholarship on the Theological/Doctrinal Significance of Pauline Reconciliation .......... 6
2.1.1.1. Reconciliation as Righteousness (Rudolf Bultmann) .......... 7
2.1.1.2. Reconciliation Subordinated to Justification (Ernst Käsemann) .......... 9
2.1.1.3. Reconciliation within Atonement (Vincent Taylor) .......... 11
2.1.1.4. Reconciliation as Atonement (Joseph A. Fitzmyer) .......... 12
2.1.2. Scholarship on the Origin of Paul’s Divine–Human Reconciliation .......... 13
2.1.2.1. Pre-Pauline Christian Materials (Ernst Käsemann and R. P. Martin) .......... 14
2.1.2.2. Hellenistic Jewish Milieu (Otfried Hofius and Leonhard Goppelt) .......... 17
2.1.2.3. Paul’s Damascus Road Experience (Seyoon Kim) .......... 20
2.1.2.4. Greco-Roman Socio-Political Context (Joseph A. Fitzmyer, Cilliers Breytenbach, and Corneliu Constantineanu) .......... 22
2.2. Setting the Compass: Methodological Framework and Scope of the Study .......... 25
2.2.1. Methodological Framework .......... 25
2.2.2. Scope of the Study .......... 30
Chapter 3. The Economy of Value: Exchange and Worth in Greco-Roman Society .................... 33
3.1. Economic Exchange and Ethics of Value .......... 34
3.1.1. Principles of Value Equivalence .......... 35
3.1.2. Moral Expectations and Communal Responsibility in Economic Exchange .......... 41
3.1.3. Currency and the Logic of Ongoing Exchange .......... 45
3.1.4. ἀρραβών as a Present Token of Future Exchange .......... 49
3.2. Value-Based Exchange and Reasoned Assessment of Worth in Antiquity .......... 53
3.2.1. The Presupposition of Value Assessment in Exchange .......... 53
3.2.2. The Logic of Value Discernment in Exchange .......... 56
3.2.3. Necessity and Value Adjustment in Exchange .......... 59
3.3. Exchanging Life in Antiquity .......... 61
3.3.1. Life as a Negotiable Good: Philosophical Foundations .......... 62
3.3.2. Exchanging Life for the Worthy Ends .......... 64
3.3.2.1. Preservation of the Community .......... 65
3.3.2.2. Moral Virtues and Public Recognition .......... 68
3.3.2.3. Reconciliation with the Divine .......... 70
3.4. Concluding Remarks .......... 70
Chapter 4. Reciprocal Exchange between Unequals: Roman Patronage .................... 76
4.1. The Nature of Asymmetry in Patronage .......... 79
4.2. Reciprocal Contributions in Asymmetrical Exchange .......... 85
4.2.1. The Centrality of Reciprocity in Roman Social Life .......... 86
4.2.2. Patrons’ Contributions in Reciprocal Exchange .......... 89
4.2.2.1. Material and Economic Assistance .......... 89
4.2.2.2. Legal Protection and Advocacy .......... 97
4.2.2.3. Political Support and Representation .......... 100
4.2.2.4. Social Integration and Mobility .......... 101
4.2.3. Clients’ Contributions in Reciprocal Exchange .......... 104
4.2.3.1. Legal and Labor Obligations of Freedpersons (Obsequium and Operae) .......... 104
4.2.3.2. Economic Contributions and Inheritance Practices .......... 108
4.2.3.3. Political Support .......... 111
4.2.3.4. Honor and Public Recognition .......... 118
4.3. The Tension of Reciprocity and the Bond of Fides .......... 127
4.3.1. The Ambiguity of Voluntariness and Obligation .......... 128
4.3.2. Fides as a Bond Sustaining Asymmetrical Reciprocal Relationships .......... 139
4.4. Concluding Remarks .......... 143
Chapter 5. Concord through Reciprocal Exchange: Homonoia in the Greco-Roman World .................... 148
5.1. Homonoia as a Civic Mode of Friendship .......... 152
5.1.1. Beyond Agreement: Purposive Choice (προαίρεσις) in Homonoia .......... 153
5.1.2. Homonoia and the Extended Self ..........155
5.1.3. Reciprocity in Homonoia ..........156
5.2. Visualizing Homonoia: Coinage as a Medium of Sustaining Homonoia .......... 158
5.2.1. Enduring Circulation of Coins and the Temporal Reach of Homonoia .......... 160
5.2.2. Repeated Mintage and Renewal of Inter-City Homonoia .......... 164
5.3. Mediators of Homonoia: Imperial and Provincial Authority in Reconciliation .......... 168
5.4. Concluding Remarks .......... 174
Chapter 6. Pauline Reconciliation Reconfigured: Reconciliation as Reciprocal Exchange .................... 179
6.1. Reconstructing the Structure of Reciprocity in Paul’s Divine–Human Reconciliation .......... 182
6.1.1. Value beyond Equivalence: Reciprocity within Divine Human Asymmetry .......... 183
6.1.1.1. From Equivalence to Purpose: Reframing Value in Conditions of Crisis and Restoration .......... 184
6.1.1.2. Purpose-Based Reciprocity in an Asymmetric Relationship .......... 188
6.1.2. Temporal Expansion and the Ongoing Process of Reciprocal Reconciliation .......... 190
6.1.2.1. Reconciliation as Ongoing Process .......... 191
6.1.2.2. The Reconciled as Living Currency .......... 196
6.1.3. The Reconciled Identity and the Dynamics of Reciprocity .......... 205
6.1.3.1. Reconciliation and the Reconstitution of Identity .......... 205
6.1.3.2. Reconciled Identity as Participatory Agency in Divine Purpose .......... 209
6.2. Enacting the Reconciled Relationship: Trust, Hope, and the Spirit of Commitment .......... 216
6.2.1. Tension in Reciprocal Exchange and Bond of πίστις .......... 216
6.2.2. The Foundation of Hope: Exchanging Life for the Unworthy .......... 222
6.2.3. The Spirit as Downpayment: Divine Commitment to the Ongoing Work of Reconciliation .......... 225
6.3. Concluding Remarks .......... 230
Chapter 7. Conclusion .................... 232
Bibliography ............................................................................................................................................. 237
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