This volume examines the formation, final form, themes, and interpretation of the Book of Leviticus. Contributors include well-known experts on Leviticus: Baruch Levine, Jacob Milgrom, Graeme Auld, Andreas Ruwe, and James Watts address Leviticus in its compositional and literary context; Alfred Marx, Mary Douglas, Walter Houston, and Adrian Schenker treat issues of cult and sacrifice; and Rene Peter-Contesse, Lester Grabbe, and Calum Carmichael discuss Leviticus on the priesthood. A groundbreaking section on Leviticus in translation and interpretation includes essays by Sarianna Metso and...

This volume offers a critical examination of recent theories concerning the growth of biblical literature in the light of the oldest textual witnesses (the Qumran biblical scrolls and the Septuagint). On the basis of a fresh examination of a selection of passages in the book of Joshua, it is shown that these witnesses do not reflect a stage in the literary formation of the book prior to the standardised (Masoretic) text, but a reinterpretation and reformulation of its contents. The study presents a new literary-critical solution to the intricate problems of Joshua 8 and a detailed exegesis of...

The present book deals with the so-called "pre-classical" prophecy in the Northern Kingdom of Israel. It becomes evident that the introduction of kingship in the early period of prophecy marks the beginning of a consideration of social situations. The prophet is placed over the king and stylized as the actual saviour figure. This development is examined along with the extensive prophetic traditions of Samuel, Elijah and Elisha. The texts are first analyzed from a diachronic standpoint to determine pre-deuteronomistic text components. These texts are then linked to their historical context and...

The essays that comprise this volume in honor of Adrian Schenker address a variety of issues and topics in the field of textual criticism and the textual history of the Hebrew Bible. Except for the Book of Kings, the contributors are editors of individual Biblical books for the new Biblia Hebraica Quinta. The topics of the essays range from assessments of the overall textual situation for a particular book to investigations of translation technique to studies of particularities in the Leningrad Codex and its Masorah. Most books of the Hebrew Scriptures are treated in one of the...

This volume represents an inductive, literary/rhetorical analysis of the book of Judges in which possible rhetorical links connecting the book's three major sections are examined in detail to show that the book may have been a unified composition rather than a composite work as many assume.

Beginning with the historical origins of the jubilee in ancient Israel, this book traces the reinterpretation of the jubilee through the Old Testament, Second Temple literature, and Qumran documents, demonstrating a tendency toward eschatological re-readings with the passage of time.