The Old Testament World

by Davies, Philip R.

• ISBN13: 9780664230258
• ISBN10: 0664230253
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-12-30
• Publisher: Westminster John Knox Pr

Summary

Written by two leading Old Testament scholars and widely used throughout the world, Philip Davies and John Rogerson'sThe Old Testament Worlddescribes the historical, social, and cultural setting in which the Old Testament was written and examines the major genres of literature that it contains. Ideally suited for college-level introductory classes, it illuminates the literature of the Old Testament by showing how it was shaped by the events, social structures, and religious and intellectual ideas of the ancient civilizations and cultures in which it was produced.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Part I THE SETTING
Geography and Ecology of Ancient Palestine	3	(21)
The Land	4	(7)
Climate and Vegetation	11	(3)
Population and Agriculture in 1200 BCE	14	(1)
Land and Land Use 1200 to 587 BCE	15	(4)
Land and Land Use 587 to 63 BCE	19	(2)
Borders and Boundaries	21	(1)
The Theological Significance of the Land	22	(2)
Social Organisation	24	(15)
Blood Ties	24	(2)
Conflicting Loyalties	26	(3)
The Function of Genealogies	29	(3)
Social Groupings	32	(7)
The Peoples of the Old Testament World	39	(26)
Peoples within the Borders of Israel and Judah	41	(3)
Peoples on the Borders of Palestine	44	(7)
Occupying Empires	51	(14)
Part II THE HISTORY AND RELIGION OF ISRAEL
Until the Time of Solomon	65	(8)
Solomon	66	(1)
David	67	(2)
The Period of the Judges	69	(1)
`Conquest' and Exodus	70	(1)
The Patriarchs	71	(2)
From the Death of Solomon to the Babylonian Deportations	73	(13)
The Revolt of Jeroboam	74	(1)
The Rise of Omri	75	(1)
The Dynasty of Omri	75	(1)
The Reign of Ahab	76	(1)
Internal and External Conflicts	77	(1)
The End of the House of Omri	78	(1)
Kings of Judah	79	(2)
Assyrian Aggression	81	(1)
The Invasion	82	(4)
Judah Under the Persians and Ptolemies and the Judeans in Babylonia	86	(10)
Judah	87	(1)
Resettlement in Judah	88	(1)
Ezra and Nehemiah's Commissions	89	(3)
Elephantine	92	(1)
The Establishment of the Religious Community in Jerusalem	93	(1)
Alexander and the Ptolemies	94	(2)
From the Maccabees to Herod the Great	96	(15)
The `Hellenistic Crisis' (175 to 140 BCE)	96	(6)
The Hasmonean Dynasty	102	(3)
Herod the Great	105	(6)
Part III LITERATURE AND LIFE
Creation and Origin Stories	111	(13)
Sumerian and Akkadian Texts	112	(1)
The Problem of Sources	113	(1)
The Meaning of `Myth'	114	(1)
Genesis 1:1--2:4a	115	(2)
Genesis 2:4b--25	117	(1)
Genesis 3	118	(1)
Genesis 4	119	(1)
Genesis 5	120	(1)
Genesis 6--9	120	(2)
Genesis 11:1--19	122	(1)
Conclusions	123	(1)
Narratives	124	(13)
`Factual' Versus `Fictional' Narratives	124	(2)
Simple and Complex Narratives	126	(1)
Complex Narratives	127	(4)
Simple Narratives	131	(6)
Legal Texts	137	(14)
Administration of Justice	138	(2)
The Book of the Covenant	140	(3)
Leviticus 17--26	143	(2)
Deuteronomy	145	(3)
The Decalogue (Ten Commandments)	148	(3)
Sacrifices and Psalms	151	(15)
Sacrifices	151	(1)
Sacrifice on the Old Testament	152	(3)
The World-View of Leviticus 1--16	155	(3)
The Psalms	158	(6)
Conclusion	164	(2)
Prophetic Literature	166	(18)
What is `Prophecy'?	166	(1)
Prophecy as a Social Institution	167	(1)
Prophets in the Ancient Near East	167	(1)
Prophets in Ancient Israel	168	(1)
`Prophecy' in the Old Testament	169	(5)
Individual Prophets and Prophetic Books	174	(10)
Wisdom Literature	184	(14)
What is `Wisdom'?	184	(1)
Types of Wisdom Literature	185	(2)
The `Wise'	187	(1)
The Book of Proverbs	188	(3)
The Book of Job	191	(1)
Qoheleth	192	(2)
Wisdom Psalms	194	(1)
Ben Sira	194	(2)
The Wisdom of Solomon	196	(2)
Apocalyptic Literature	198	(11)
The Meaning of `Apocalyptic'	198	(1)
Apocalyptic Technique	199	(1)
Divination	200	(2)
Jewish Apocalypses	202	(7)
Beyond the Old Testament	209	(16)
`Judaism'	209	(1)
Early Judaism	210	(2)
Outward Characteristics of Early Judaism	212	(2)
Times and Seasons	214	(1)
The Holy Place: Temple and Priesthood	215	(1)
Scripture, Law, and Scribes	216	(2)
The Identity of `Israel' in Early Judaism	218	(4)
Messianism	222	(3)
Part IV THE FORMATION OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
Oral Tradition and Collections Prior to the Deportations	225	(7)
A Variety of Oral Traditions	227	(3)
Written Forms of the Old Testament	230	(2)
The Formation of the Scriptural Canon	232	(14)
What are Canons?	233	(1)
The `Primary History'	234	(3)
The `Prophetic' Collections	237	(4)
Writings	241	(1)
The Canon	242	(1)
Text and Versions	243	(3)
Index	246