The Blood of Abel: The Violent Plot in the Hebrew Bible

by McEntire, Mark Harold

• ISBN13: 9780865546295
• ISBN10: 0865546290
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-02-01
• Publisher: Mercer Univ Pr

Summary

Violence in the Bible has received a tremendous amount of attention in recent years. What has been lacking in many such studies is the kind of sustained exegesis of biblical texts that allows the Bible itself to set the agenda. This book begins with biblical texts and stays with them long enough to hear what they have to say, rather than using a collection of texts to support an argument. Part 1 traces the biblical story of Israel, focusing on tests at the turning points of the narrative. Violence enters the human community in the story of Cain and Abel. The thread of violence then runs through the entire biblical narrative. It appears prominently in texts where the status of Israel changes from free persons to slaves, to wanderers, to land-owning tribes, to citizens of a monarchy, to citizens of two monarchies, to exiles.

The interpretations of these passages expose their violent nature and then ask what they tell us about human violence. They reveal that violence is an inevitable part of human existence, which defies attempts to control it. They illustrate

Table of Contents

Introduction: Violence in the Bible	p. 1
The Narrative Framework of the Biblical Story	p. 15
Violence Enters the Human Community Genesis 4:1-16	p. 17
Conflict among Brothers Leads to Captivity	p. 31
God's People Oppressed by Violence Exodus 1:8-22	p. 35
Conflict between God and Pharaoh	p. 47
God's People Liberated by Violence Exodus 11:1-12:39	p. 49
Conflict in the Wilderness	p. 61
God's People Acquire Land by Violence Joshua 6:1-27	p. 64
Tribes in Conflict	p. 75
God's People Become a Nation Because of Violence 1 Samuel 4:1-22	p. 77
Conflict over the Throne	p. 89
God's People Divided by Violence 1 Kings 12:1-20	p. 92
Conflict with Other Nations	p. 103
God's People Destroyed by Violence 2 Chronicles 36:15-21	p. 104
From Beginning to End	p. 115
The Prophetic Response to the Biblical Story	p. 127
The Compassion of God Hosea 11:1-11	p. 129
The Restoration of God's People Ezekiel 37:1-14	p. 141
Peace on Earth Isaiah 11:1-9	p. 150
Conclusions	p. 160
Bibliography	p. 165
Indexes	p. 175
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