I'm currently working my way through "The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah", I love it, it is a great informitive book! If you have the chance then read it, it's LONG, but well worth it ! It's by Alfred Eidershiem an Itialian born Jew that converted to Christianity, at the time he lived he was the foremost authority on Jewish life during the times of Jesus. This book has a a few refrences to his other works, but is completly indepentandt. His reserch is astounding. It is quickly becoming one of my favorites. He goes into great detail about the terrain of the country and it really gives you a mental picture of what it must have been like druring the times of Jesus.
_________________David
Edersheim's work is unbeatable and is freely available in pdf and other formats from several places on the Web. the philologos.org (no relation!) has them listed in a convenient page. Edersheim Works
_________________Ron Bailey