The book of Joshua, with its memorable images of the crossing of the River Jordan and the miraculous conquest of the city of Jericho, plays an important part in the Old Testament's narrative and theology of God's promise and gift of the land of Canaan to Israel.
The life and times of an enduring work of Jewish spiritualityThe Babylonian Talmud, a postbiblical Jewish text that is part scripture and part commentary, is an unlikely bestseller.
Reading the Book of Psalms in its original context is the crucial prerequisite for reading its citation and use in later interpretation, including the New Testament writings, argues Ben Witherington III.
The canonical documents of Rabbinic Judaism impose upon most of their components fixed patterns of rhetoric, recurrent logic of coherent discourse, and a well-defined topic or program, for example, a commentary on a biblical book or on a legal topic.
Becoming a Mensch is a "e;user's guide"e; to becoming a better person, taking readers through a process of personal growth by means of modern-day vignettes that draw upon the Talmud's ancient wisdom.
Despite the fact that scholars of the post-Talmudic era have been of great importance to the continued interpretation of religious texts for more than a millennium, they are typically not given as much attention as their Talmudic-era predecessors.
Samuel stands out in many important biblical texts as the figure who facilitated ancient Israel's transition from a tribal league to a monarchic state.
This book moves beyond the debate on 'wisdom literature', ongoing in biblical studies, to demonstrate the productivity of 'wisdom' as a literary category.
For many people, skeptics and believers alike, the Old Testament is rife with controversial passages and events that make both belief and sharing our beliefs with others difficult.
Queering the Text: Biblical, Medieval, and Modern Jewish Stories grapples with traditional midrashim, plays with homoerotic love poems from medieval Spain, and envisions alternate versions of the present.
Moving from cosmology to creativity to criminology, the Torah explores the breadth of human existence: ethics and ritual, narratives of Patriarchs and Matriarchs, history and a philosophy of history--all of these drive the first five books of Hebrew Scripture.
Dieser aggadische mittelalterliche Midrasch, der in homiletischer Interpretation Verse aus Genesis und Exodus behandelt, war bisher nur in einer der beiden Erstdruckvarianten bekannt.
This collection of essays and thoughts covers such areas as basic Christian thought, which includes traditional family morality and a great concern for alleviating poverty and promoting social justice, political thought comparing the need for a system which includes both socialist and capitalist elements, and the need for values in our society, which has come to emphasize money, power, and greed as philosophical goals and values, though they are not.
This concise commentary on the Prophets, excerpted from the Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, engages readers in the work of biblical interpretation.
The focus of this book is on early Jewish interpretations of the ambiguous relationship between God and 'the angel of the Lord/God' in texts like Genesis 16, 22 and 31.
This book invites readers to reconsider what they think they know about the opening chapters of the Book of Genesis, from the creation of the world, through the Garden of Eden, Cain and Abel, the Flood, and the Tower of Babel, to the introduction of Abraham.
In separate multi-volume works, the project has presented form-analytical English translations of the Mishnah, Tosefta, Yerushalmi, and Bavli, outlined the Yerushalmi and the Bavli and compared these outlines.
Although seldom studied by biblical scholars as a discrete phenomenon, ritual violence is mentioned frequently in biblical texts, and includes ritual actions such as disfigurement of corpses, destruction or scattering of bones removed from a tomb, stoning and other forms of public execution, cursing, forced depilation, the legally-sanctioned imposition of physical defects on living persons, coerced potion-drinking, sacrificial burning of animals and humans, forced stripping and exposure of the genitalia, and mass eradication of populations.
This book provides a comprehensive study on the proclamation of Holy Scriptures as an enacted celebration, as well as its function as a performance within sacralized theatrical spaces.
Written BY Preachers and Teachers FOR Preachers and TeachersCombining fresh insights with readable exposition and relatable examples, The Preacher's Commentary will help you minister to others and see their lives transformed through the power of God's Word.
Maps and Meaning is rooted in the authors’ experience as clergy and chaplains and is relevant to those looking for a fresh perspective on biblical narratives related to the role of the priest, patients, soldiers, and others who spend time “outside the camp.
Southwestern Journal of Theology 2024 Book Award (Honorable Mention, Biblical Studies)This book surveys the current landscape of Old Testament studies, offering readers a concise guide to contemporary academic discussions.
In this timely and highly readable volume, Old Testament scholar William Holladay introduces the reader to the several ways in which Isaiah speaks, from ancient Jewish readings of the text, to Handel's lyrical use of it in his oratorio, Messiah, to the Christian community who has heard it foretelling the life and death of Jesus Christ.
