The Holy Land; Fishers of Men: The Way of the Apostles, photographs by Gordon N. Converse, text by Robert J. Bull and B. Cobbey Crisler. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall Inc. $14.95.

As a sequel to "Come to See the Place: The Holy Land Jesus Knew," this new book tracing he itinerary and careers of the apostles is sure to be as popularly acclaimed. The dramatic and compelling full-page photographs are the dominant element. The brief text on each facing page is complemented by a pertinent biblical passage and an explanation of the historical and archaeological significance of the site of artifact pictured.

If thre can be said to be a deficiency, is is the brevity of the text, which allows for no in-depth treatment. As a result, biblical scholars will find several points open to differing views.

For example, many scholars would not agree that the Philip who converted the Ethiopian on the Gaza roadway was the apostle, as indicated in the introduction, rather than the other Philip called the deacon, although the point is open to dispute; or that Paul "apparently quotes a line from the Greeks sage Epimenides" instead o Zeno, the founder of the Stoic school, in the familiar passage, "For in him we live, and move, and have our being" (Acts 17:28).

However, such points seem insignificant in a volume of this scope, when set alongside the beauty and symmetry, of the whole work. For the text is full of insightful and helpful nuggets that add to our undertanding of the world of the apostles. And the book is unquestionably a masterpiece for its black-and-white photographs, which somehow manage to transport us back to another time and place in a way full-color reproductions could not -- altogether a delightful experience.