A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament The Hebrew Bible in Its Context

includes index and biblioraphy

Part one Introductory 1 What is theold testament .....3 Box 1.1 Chapter and verse .....4 The jewish canon .....4 Box 1.2 The dead sea scrolls .....6 The christian canons .....7 The study of the bible .....8 Box 1.3 The canons of the hebrew bible/ old testament .....9 A look back and ahead .....12 2 The promised land: Geography, history, and importance ......14 Geography .....14 History .....21 Box 2.1 Timeline .....23 Importance .....26 A look back and ahead ....27 Part two Cosmic origins 3 Creations genesis 1-3 ....31 The book of genesis .....31 Genesis 1 and the sabbath .....31 Box 3.1 Genesis and science ....33 Box 3.2 The sabbath in jewish and christian tradition ....34 Box 3.3 Myth and the bible .....37 The second account of creation (gen2.4b-3.24) .....38 Box 3.4 God and the lord (God) .....38 Box 3.5 The garden of eden.....39 Box 3.6 Adam and eve in jewish and christian tradition ....42 A look back and ahead ....44 4 The formation of the pentateuch and the primeval historal Genesis 4-11 ....46 The traditional view .....46 The development of modern interpretation .....47 A summary of the documentary hypothesis .....48 The formation of the p[entateuch .....90 Challenges to the documentary hypothesis .....50 Other strategies for interpreting the pentateuch .....51 Primeval history .....52 J (The yahwist source) .....52 Box 4.1 Cain and abel ....53 Box 4.2 Noah`s drunkenness ....54 Box 4.3 The sons of god .....54 Box 4.4 The tower of babel .....55 Box 4.5 The table of nations .....56 P (The priestly source) .....58 The flood ....59 Box 4.6 The documentary hypothesis at work .....59 A look back and ahead .....61 Part three national origins 5 The ancestors of israel Genesis 12-50 ....65 The nature of the narratives ....65 Box 5.1 Abram and abraham, sarai and sarah .....66 Source critcism ....66 Form criticism .....68 Box 5.2 The binding of issac ....69 Box 5.3 Circumcision .....70 Ancient near eastern parallels ....72 Box 5.4 The ugaritic texts ....72 6 Escape from egypt Egypt Exodus 1-15 .....81 7 From egypt to sinal exodus 16-20 and 24 ......97 8 Law, ritual, and holiness exodus 20.22-23.33 and 25-40 and leviticus ......109 9 In the widerness Numbers .....133 10 The end of the journey to the promised land deuteronomy ......147 11 Joshua and the conquest of the land of canaan Joshua ....161 12 The emergence of israel in the land of canaan judges .......176 Part four kings and prophts 13 The establishment of the monarchy 1 Samuel 195 14 The reign of david 2 Samuel and i kings 1-2 .....209 15 The regin of solomon 1 kings 1-11 and psalm 89 .....221` 16 The divided kingdoms of israel and judah from the late tenth to the early eighth centuries bce 1 kings 12-2 kings 14 With an introduction to prophecy .....235 17 The northern kingdon of israel in the eighth century bce 2 kings 14-17. Amos and hosea .....253 18 The kingdom of judah in the eighth and early seventh centuries bce 2 kings 15-20,2 Chronicles 29-32,Isaiah 1-39, and Micah ......270 19 Judah in the seventh and early sixth centuries bce : The end of assyrian domination and the fall of jerusalem 2 kings 21-25,2 Chronicles 33-36, Zephaniah, nahum, Habakkuk and jeremiah .....290 Part five exile and return 20 After the fall: Judeans in judah and babylon lamentations, psalm 137, obadish and Ezekiel .....315 21 Return from exile ezra1-2 and isaish 34-35 and 40-55 ......331 Part six Reconstruction, consolidation, and challenge 22 The restoration: Judah in the late sixth and fifth centuries bce ezra 3-10, Nehemiah, haggai, zechariah, isaiah .....24-27 23 Retelling the story of david 1-2 Chronicles and psalmns ....367 24 The wisdom of the sages: Preservation and challenge proverbs, job ecclesiastes, and the song of solomon with an introduction to wisdom literature .....383 25 Heroes in foreign lands : Postexilic literature and disporic identity ruth, jonah, esther and danel .....406