Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ - Softcover

Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1880) by Lew Wallace is one of the most popular and beloved 19th century American novels. This faithful New Testament tale combines the events of the life of Jesus with grand historical spectacle in the exciting story of Judah of the House of Hur, a man who finds extraordinary redemption for himself and his family. In the time of Christ, Jewish prince Judah Ben-Hur is sent to the Roman galleys for an accidental "assassination attempt" on the Roman governor. The book chronicles his attempts to free himself and locate his mother and sister; along the way he has various encounters with biblical characters, including Jesus himself. Ben-Hur is full of rich historical detail, and the works and miracles that Christ does, and their effects on the characters, give the book a significant emotional weight. Beyond that, Wallace's characters love to sit around and discuss theology in detail, and there's quite a bit of solid Christology to be found here. The novel Ben-Hur is a powerful, moving story—a classic of faith, fortitude, and inspiration.

Lewis "Lew" Wallace (1827 – 1905) was an American lawyer, governor, Union general in the American Civil War, politician and author, best remembered for his historical novel Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ. Wallace was born in Brookville, Indiana, to David and Esther French Test Wallace. His father served as lieutenant governor and Indiana Governor; his stepmother, Zerelda Gray Sanders Wallace, was a prominent in temperance and suffrage.Wallace served in the Mexican War in 1846 as a first lieutenant with the 1st Indiana Infantry regiment. He was admitted to the bar in 1849. In 1851 he was elected prosecuting attorney of the First Congressional District. At the start of the Civil War, Wallace was appointed state adjutant general and helped raise troops in Indiana. On April 25, 1861, he was appointed Colonel of the 11th Indiana Infantry. After brief service in western Virginia, he was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers on September 3 and given the command of a brigade. Wallace also held a number of important political posts during the 1870s and 1880s. He served as governor of New Mexico Territory from 1878 to 1881, and as U.S. Minister to the Ottoman Empire from 1881 to 1885. As governor, he offered amnesty to many men involved in the Lincoln County War; in the process he met with Billy the Kid (Henry McCarty). On 17 March 1879, the pair arranged that Kid would act as an informant and testify against others involved in the Lincoln County War, and, in return, Kid would be "scot free with a pardon in his]pocket for all [his] misdeeds." But the Kid returned to his outlaw ways and Governor Wallace withdrew his offer. While serving as governor, Wallace completed the novel that made him famous: Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ (1880). It grew to be the best-selling American novel of the 19th century. The book has never been out of print and has been filmed four times.