Camery-Hoggatt understands the complex interaction between readers and biblical texts, and he has accomplished an astounding feat for biblical preachers. He has taken apart the Swiss watch of biblical interpretation, showing all the gears, levers, and flywheels and patiently explaining how each one operates. Then, even more amazingly, he has put the whole thing back together again and made it work, producing fascinating examples of the text-to-sermon process. --Thomas G. Long Francis Landey Patton Professor of Preaching and Worship, Princeton Theological Seminary . . . This is an important resource for those concerned with the negotiation of meaning in biblical texts in the service of the people of God. --Joel B. Green Associate Professor of Theology, Boston COllege . . . this study demonstrates that a reader-response approach has significant implications for both exegesis and exposition. Indeed, it helps link these two moments in the pastor's overall homiletical endeavor . . . --W. Randolph Tate Associate Professor of Theology, Evangel College . . . ought to be required reading in every seminary homiletics class. Every church board would be well served by seeing that their pastor has a copy . . . --Charles Hedrick Professor of Religious Studies and Distinguished Scholar, Southwest Missouri State University Jerry Camery-Hoggatt is Professor of New Testament and Narrative Theology at Vanguard University in Costa Mesa, California. He is the author of 'Irony in Mark's Gospel', 'Grapevine: The Spirituality of Gossip', and several popular stories.