The Hebrew Bible


Book Description

Along with an overview of the Hebrew Bible, including introductions to each book, Gottwald provides social analysis of ancient Israel and how these books fit into that society. His acute treatment of literary genres, social conflicts, and contemporary scholarship makes this an indispensable textbook and reference work.The volume contains many charts, study questions, and other aids, now enhanced by the new CD-ROM, which contains copious aids: complete, searchable text of the book glossary hyperlinked to the text of the book NRSV hyperlinks student assignments and discussion questions a wealth of internet links notetaking, bookmarking, and highlighting capabilities




Ideology, Class, and the Hebrew Bible


Book Description

This brief volume brings together three of Norman Gottwald's classic essays that address issues of social class and ideology as they pertain to the interpretation of the biblical documents. The small format makes them useful for classroom and small-group use, providing definitions, theoretical concerns, and applications to specific texts. The author has been a leader in the social-scientific analysis of the Bible for almost fifty years. Contents Social Class as an Analytic and Hermeneutical Category in Biblical Studies Social Class and Ideology in Isaiah 40-55: An Eagletonian Reading Ideology and Ideologies in Israelite Prophecy




The Hebrew Bible as Literature: A Very Short Introduction


Book Description

The Hebrew Bible, or Christian Old Testament, contains some of the finest literature that we have. This biblical literature has a place not only in the synagogue or the church but also among the classics of world literature. The stories of Jacob and David, for instance, present the earliest surviving examples of literary characters whose development the reader follows over the length of a lifetime. Elsewhere, as in the books of Esther or Ruth, readers find a snapshot of a particular, fraught moment that will define the character. The Hebrew Bible also provides quite a few high points of lyric poetry, from the praise and lament of the Psalms to the double entendres in the love of poetry of the Song of Songs. In short, the Bible can be celebrated not only as religious literature but, quite simply, as literature. This book offers a thorough and lively introduction to the Bible's two primary literary modes, narrative and poetry, foregrounding the nuances of plot, character, metaphor, structure and design, and intertextual allusions. Tod Linafelt thus gives readers the tools to fully experience and appreciate the Old Testament's literary achievement. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.




A Light to the Nations


Book Description

A Light to the Nations is a singularly well-organized survey of ancient Israel in its historical continuity, with special attention to the literature of the Old Testament viewed through the lens of historical-critical method. The book interweaves literary, historical and theological approaches, combining the best features of other scholarly texts that are strong in only one of these points of view. Thus it is not just an exegesis of the biblical books, nor simply a history of Israel, nor purely a theological study, but a synthesis of the interests and values of all three. Throughout, connections between the faith of Israel and that of the later synagogue and church are stressed. An immensely useful section on Canon and Text gives the student a knowledge of the Old Testament's ancestry that is foundational to studying the biblical text. The book is richly supplied with maps, illustrations, a glossary, recommended further reading, and translations of eleven chief ancient Near Eastern texts related to the Bible.




Social Justice and the Hebrew Bible, Volume Two


Book Description

CONTENTS PART 1: THE ORIGINS OF ANCIENT ISRAEL Early Israel as an Anti-Imperial Community The Origins of Israel as a Textual Models for Envisioning Early Israel Triumphalist versus Anti-Triumphalist Versions of Early Israel: A Response to Articles by Lemche and Dever Historical Description versus Historical Representation and Symbol The Interplay of Religion and Ethnicity in Ancient Israel Proto-Globalization and Proto-Secularization in Ancient Israel Revisiting the Tribes of Yahweh after Twenty-five Years PART 2: THE POLITICS OF ANCIENT ISRAEL Religion and Politics: Early Israel and Judaism The Puzzling Politics of Ancient Israel The Role of Biblical Politics in Contextual Theologies PART 3: REVIEW AND REFLECTIONS Forward to Jeremy Young, The Violence of God and the War on Terror Reflections on R. S. Sugirtharajah's Asian Biblical Hermeneutics and Postcolonialism. Contesting the Interpretations and The Bible and the Third Way: Precolonial, Colonial and Postcolonial Encounters Review of Stephen L. Cook, The Social Roots of Biblical Yahwism Review of Marty E. Stevens, Temples, Tithes, and Taxes: The Temple and the Economic Life of Ancient Israel Review of Philip R. Davies, The Origins of Biblical Israel Panel Presentation on Joshua A. Berman, Created Equal: How the Bible Broke with Ancient Political Thought




Introduction to the Hebrew Bible


Book Description

John J. Collins’ Introduction to the Hebrew Bible is one of the most reliable and widely adopted critical textbooks at undergraduate and graduate levels alike, and for good reason. Enriched by decades of classroom teaching, it is aimed explicitly at motivated students regardless of their previous exposure to the Bible or faith commitments. Collins proceeds through the canon of the Old Testament and the Apocrypha, judiciously presenting the current state of historical, archaeological, and literary understanding of the biblical text, and engaging the student in questions of significance and interpretation for the contemporary world. The second edition has been revised where more recent scholarship indicates it, and is now presented in a refreshing new format.




Social Justice and the Hebrew Bible, Volume Three


Book Description

PART 1: EXAMINING TEXTS 1. Social Drama in the Psalms of Individual Lament 2. Kingship in the Book of Psalms 3. Abusing the Bible: The Case of Deuteronomy 15 4. Do not Fear What They Fear: A Post-9/11 Reflection(Isaiah 8:11-15) 5. The Expropriated and the Expropriators in Nehemiah 5 6. How Do Extrabiblical Sociopolitical Data Illuminate Obscure Biblical Texts? The Case of Ecclesiastes 5:8-9 [Heb. 5:7-8] 7. On the Alleged Wisdom of Kings: An Application of Adorno's Immanent Criticism to Ecclesiastes PART 2: ENGAGING PRACTICES 8. Framing Biblical Interpretation at New York Theological Seminary: A Student Self Inventory on Biblical Hermeneutics 9. Theological Education as a Theory-Praxis Loop: Situating the Book of Joshua in a Cultural, Social Ethical, and Theological Matrix 10. The Bible as Nurturer of Passive and Active Worldviews 11. Biblical Scholarship in Public Discourse 12. On Framing Elections: The Stories We Tell Ourselves 13. Values and Economic Structures




Introduction to the Hebrew Bible, Third Edition - The Deuteronomistic History


Book Description

John J. Collins's Introduction to the Hebrew Bible is one of the most popular introductory textbooks in colleges and seminary classrooms. Enriched by decades of classroom teaching, it is aimed explicitly at motivated students, regardless of their previous exposure to the Bible or faith commitments. The third edition is presented in a new and engaging format with new maps and images. An index has been added to the volume for the first time. In order to enhance classroom use, Collins's major text has now been divided into four volumes, one for each major part of the Hebrew Bible. This volume focuses on the Deuteronomistic History. Here, Collins explores the books of Joshua through 2 Kings, the main account of Israel's history. The volume also contains the introduction to Collins's major text and is now available with even more student-friendly features, including charts, maps, photographs, chapter summaries, and bibliographies for further reading. Collins presents the current state of historical, archaeological, and literary understandings of the biblical text and engages the student in questions of significance and interpretation for the contemporary world.




The Social Visions of the Hebrew Bible


Book Description

J. David Pleins presents a sociological study of the Hebrew Bible, seeking to uncover its social vision by examining biblical statements about social ethics. He does this within the framework provided by Israel's social institutions, the social locations of its actors, and the historical struggles for power and survival that are reflected in the transmission of the texts.




Tribes of Yahweh


Book Description

A twentieth-anniversary reprint of the landmark book that launched the current explosion of social-scientific studies in the biblical field. It sets forth a cultural-material methodology for reconstructing the origins of ancient Israel and offers the hypothesis that Israel emerged as an indigenous social revolutionary peasant movement. In a new preface, written for this edition, Gottwald takes account of the 'sea change' in biblical studies since 1979 as he reviews the impact of his work on church and academy, assesses its merits and limitations, indicates his present thinking on the subject, and points toward future directions in the social-critical study of ancient Israel and the Hebrew Bible.