Establishing the relevance of Old Testament ethics to contemporary life is, as Barton concedes, an uphill task. For many Christians today - let alone those with no religious commitment - to find some way of accommodating them into a coherent moral system by which to live in the 21st century seems at best implausible and at worst ridiculous or even immoral. However, Barton is convinced that in many areas of ethical enquiry the Old Testament has much...