Study Guide for The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction

by K. C. Hanson

This Study Guide has been designed to help you read The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction more effectively. The Study Materials provide additional resources for each of the twelve chapters. TEXTBOOK

• The complete text: easily searchable • Biblical passages: accessed by clicking on the asterisks adjacent to the citation (e.g.,

Gen 1:1*) • Libronix features: highlighting, notetaking, and bookmarking.

STUDY MATERIALS • Questions for Review and Discussion: These may be used to review the key issues in the chapter and for class discussion. • Online Articles: Several journals and numerous individual scholars have posted the full-text of their articles on the web; keep in mind that some of these may change URLs or even be deleted by the authors over time. • Additional Bibliography: These are not exhaustive, but suggestive, with key articles and books published since the original appearance of Gottwald’s volume. • Online Photos and Ancient Documents: These are URL addresses to photos of ancient art and artifacts, as well as the text of ancient documents, on the websites of museums, universities, organizations, and individual scholars. Again, keep in mind that some of these URLS may no longer be available. • List of Commentaries: I have provided an updated list of commentaries to supplement the list in the textbook. My new list includes several one-volume Bible commentaries. The bibliographies, online articles, and commentary list will also assist you when starting a research paper.

Chapter 1 Angles of Vision on the Hebrew Bible

→ Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 1

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. What do the following terms mean: Israelite, Israeli, Judean, Jew, and Hebrew? 2. “Tanak” is an acronym for what three terms? What do those terms mean? Who are the primary users of this term? 3. What happened during the Renaissance and the Enlightenment that changed the course of biblical studies? 4. What sort of difficulties does the Hebrew Bible present concerning authorship of its books? Are the difficulties the same with each book? 5. How does Gottwald understand the complementarity of literary criticism and social scientific criticism? 6. What varieties of social-scientific criticism does Gottwald identify? Which of these interests you most? Why? 7. What issue does Gottwald raise regarding the understanding of “religion” in antiquity and the modern world? How does your answer to this question affect your reading and relationship to the biblical literature?

ONLINE ARTICLES

Anderson, Bernhard W. “Biblical Theology and Sociological Interpretation.” Theology Today 42 (1985) 292–306. http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/oct1985/v42-3-article2.htm Gottwald, Norman K. “Social Matrix and Canonical Shape.” Theology Today 42 (1985) 307–21. http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/oct1985/v42-3-article3.htm Gottwald, Norman K. “Sociological Criticism of the Old Testament.” Christian Century (April 21, 1982) 474ff. http://www.religion-online.org/cgi-bin/relsearchd.dll/showarticle?item_id=1308 Hanson, Paul D. “The Responsibility of Biblical Theology to Communities of Faith.” Theology Today 37 (1980) 39–50. http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/apr1980/v37-1-article3.htm Knight, Douglas A. “Old Testament Ethics.” Christian Century 20 (1982) 55ff. http://www.religion-online.org/cgi-bin/relsearchd.dll/showarticle?item_id=1276 Outler, Albert C. “Toward a Postliberal Hermeneutics.” Theology Today 42 (1985) 281–91. http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/oct1985/v42-3-article1.htm Seitz, Christopher R. “The Changing Face of Old Testament Study.” Christian Century (Oct. 21, 1992) 932–35. http://www.religion-online.org/cgi-bin/relsearchd.dll/showarticle?item_id=23 Utzschneider, Helmut. “Text–Reader–Author: Towards a Theory of Exegesis—Some European Viewpoints.” Journal of Hebrew Studies 1 (1996) http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article1.htm

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY 1. Reference Works Coggins, R. J. and H. L. Houlden, editors. A Dictionary of Biblical Interpretation. Philadelphia: Trinity, 1990. Coogin, Michael D., editor. The Oxford History of the Biblical World. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1998. Freedman, David Noel, editor. Anchor Bible Dictionary. 6 vols. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Hayes, John H., editor. Dictionary of Biblical Interpretation. 2 vols. Nashville: Abingdon, 1999. Kee, Howard Clark, et al., editors. The Cambridge Companion to the Bible. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1997. Knight, Douglas A., and Gene M. Tucker, editors. The Hebrew Bible and Its Modern Interpreters. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985. Metzger, Bruce M., and Michael D. Coogan, editors. The Oxford Companion to the Bible. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1993. 2. Exegesis Barton, John. Reading the Old Testament: Method in Biblical Study. Rev. ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1996. Danker, Frederick W. Multi-Purpose Tools for Bible Study. Rev. ed. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993. 3. Social Science Criticism Carter, Charles E., and Carol L. Meyers, editors. Community, Identity, and Ideology: Social Science Approaches to the Hebrew Bible. Sources for Biblical and Theological Study 6. Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 1996. Clements, R. E. The World of Ancient Israel: Sociological, Anthropological, and Political Perspectives. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1989. Eilberg-Schwartz, Howard. The Savage in Judaism: An Anthropology of Israelite Religion and Ancient Judaism. Bloomington: Indiana Univ. Press, 1990. Flanagan, James W. David’s Social Drama: A Hologram of Israel’s Early Iron Age. Social World of Biblical Antiquity 7. Sheffield: Almond, 1988. Gottwald, Norman K. The Politics of Ancient Israel. Library of Ancient Israel. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2001. –––––, editor. Social Scientific Criticism of the Hebrew Bible and Its Social World: The Israelite Monarchy. Semeia 37 (1986). Grabbe, Lester L. Priest, Prophets, Diviners, Sages: A Socio-Historical Study of Religious Specialists in Ancient Israel. Valley Forge: Trinity, 1995. Matthews, Victor H., and Don C. Benjamin, editors. Honor and Shame in the World of the Bible. Semeia 68 (1996). Matthews, Victor H., and Don C. Benjamin. Social World of Ancient Israel 1250–587 BCE. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1993. McNutt, Paula M. Reconstructing the Society of Ancient Israel. Library of Ancient Israel. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1999. Overholt, Thomas. Cultural Anthropology and the Old Testament. Guides to Biblical Scholarship. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1996.

4. Literary Criticism Alter, Robert. The Art of Biblical Poetry. New York: Basic, 1990. Alter, Robert. The World of Biblical Literature. New York: Basic, 1992. Amit, Yairah. Reading Biblical Narratives: Literary Criticism and the Hebrew Bible. Translated by Yael Lotan. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2001. Bar-Efrat, Shimeon. Narrative Art in the Bible. Translated by D. Shefer-Vanson. Sheffield: Almond. Berlin, Adele. The Poetics and Interpretation of Biblical Narrative. Bible and Literature Series. Sheffield: Almond, 1983. Brenner, Athalya. The Intercourse of Knowledge: On Gendering Desire and ‘Sexuality’ in the Hebrew Bible. Biblical Interpretation Series 26. Leiden: Brill, 1997. Exum, J. Cheryl. Tragedy and Biblical Narrative: Arrows of the Almighty. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1992. Fokkelman, Jan. Reading Biblical Narrative: An Introductory Guide. Translated by I. Smit. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1999. Gunn, David M., and Danna Nolan Fewell. Narrative in the Hebrew Bible. Oxford Bible Series. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 1993. Sternberg, Meir. The Poetics of Biblical Narrative: Ideological Literature and the Drama of Reading. Indiana Studies in Biblical Literature. Bloomington: Indiana Univ. Press, 1985. Trible, Phyllis. Rhetorical Criticism: Context, Method, and the Book of Jonah. Guides to Biblical Scholarship. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1994. Walsh, Jerome T. Style and Structure in Biblical Hebrew Narrative. Collegeville: Liturgical, 2001. Whedbee, J. William. The Bible and the Comic Vision. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002. 5. Feminist Criticism Bach, Alice, editor. The Pleasure of Her Text: Feminist Readings of Biblical and Historical Texts. Philadelphia: Trinity, 1990. –––––, editor. Women in the Hebrew Bible: A Reader. London: Routledge, 1999. Bal, Mieke. Lethal Love: Feminist Literary Readings of Biblical Love Stories. Indiana Studies in Biblical Literature. Bloomington: Indiana Univ. Press, 1987. Bird, Phyllis A. Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities: Women and Gender in Ancient Israel. Overtures to Biblical Theology. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1997. Laffey, Alice L. An Introduction to the Old Testament: A Feminist Perspective. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1988. Meyers, Carol L. Discovering Eve: Ancient Israelite Women in Context. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1988. Newsom, Carol A., and Sharon H. Ringe, editors. Women’s Bible Commentary. Expanded edition. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1998. Trible, Phyllis. God and the Rhetoric of Sexuality. Overtures to Biblical Theology. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1978. –––––. Texts of Terror: Literary-Feminist Readings of Biblical Narratives. Overtures to Biblical Theology. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1984. Weems, Renita J. Battered Love: Marriage, Sex, and Violence in the Hebrew Prophets. Overtures to Biblical Theology. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1995.

Chapter 2

The World of the Hebrew Bible → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 2

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION

1. What does Gottwald mean by “the dawn of history”? 2. What are the four main longitudinal zones in Palestine? Identify at least one characteristic of each. 3. What are the climate and geological features of Palestine that made it difficult for farming? How would these affect patterns of settlement—that is, where people chose or were compelled to live? 4. Depending on how many students are in the class, have each person in the group take one of the ancient text groups from Chart 3.1 (p. 56) and present a short summary for the whole group. In addition, clarify what the significance of these ancient documents might be for studying the Bible. 5. What reasons does Gottwald identify for the shortage of archaeological information on sites related to ancient Israel? What are some of the implications of this? 6. What is the difference between migration and nomadism? What narratives in the Hebrew Bible does this question impact directly? Why? 7. Look over Chart 2.1 (pp. 36–37) carefully. What were some of the most important empires in the ancient Near East? Identify them on Map 0.1 (pp. xvi-xvii). Where do ancient Israel and Judah fit into this history?

ONLINE ARTICLES

McDermott, John J. “Bibliography on the History of Early Israel” http://www.loras.edu/~REL/mcdermot/earlyisbib.htm Zevit, Ziony. “Three Debates about Bible and Archaeology.” Biblica 83 (2002) 1–27. http://www.bsw.org/project/biblica/bibl83/Comm01m.html

ONLINE ANCIENT DOCUMENTS, MAPS, AND PHOTOS

Ancient Near Eastern Documents: Mesopotamian Documents (K. C. Hanson) http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/meso/meso.html Ancient Near Eastern Documents: West Semitic Documents (K. C. Hanson) http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/westsem.html Highlights of the Palestine Collection of the Oriental Institute, Chicago http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/HIGH/OI_Museum_Palestine.html Maps of the Ancient Near East (Oriental Institute, Chicago) http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/INFO/MAP/SITE/ANE_Site_Maps.html West Semitic Research Project (University of Southern California) http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/wsrp/educational_site/ancient_texts/

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Archaeology and Geography Dever, William G. Recent Archaeological Discoveries and Biblical Research. Seattle: Univ. of Washington Press, 1990.

–––––. What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It? Archaeology and the Bible. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001. Fritz, Volkmar. An Introduction to Biblical Archaeology. JSOT Supplement Series 172. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1994. Mazar, Amihai. Archaeology of the Land of the Bible, 10,000—586 B.C.E. Anchor Bible Reference Library. New York: Doubleday, 1990. Meyers, Eric M., editor. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Archaeology in the Near East. New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 1997. Negev, Avraham, and Shimon Gibson, editors. The Archaeological Encyclopedia of the Holy Land. Rev. ed. New York: Continuum, 2001. Orser, Charles E., editor. Encyclopedia of Historical Archaeology. London: Routledge, 2001. Stern, Ephraim. Archaeology of the Land of the Bible. Vol. 2: The Assyrian, Babylonian, and Persian periods, 732–332 BCE. Anchor Bible Reference Library. New York: Doubleday, 2001. 2. History & Culture Ahlström, Gösta. The History of Ancient Palestine. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1993. Bright, John. A History of Israel. 4th ed. With an Introduction and Appendix by William P. Brown. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2001. Halpern, Baruch. The First Historians: The Hebrew Bible and History. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1988. Lemche, Nels Peter. Early Israel: Anthropological and Historical Studies on the Israelite Society Before the Monarchy. Leiden: Brill, 1985. Miller, J. Maxwell, and John H. Hayes. A History of Ancient Israel and Judah. Philadelphia: Westminster, 1986. Sasson, Jack M., editor. Civilizations of the Ancient Near East. New York: Scribners, 1995. 3. Ancient Document Collections in Translation Matthews, Victor H., and Don C. Benjamin. Old Testament Parallels: Laws and Stories from the Ancient Near East. Rev. ed. New York: Paulist, 1997. Dalley, Stephanie. Myths from Mesopotamia: Creation, the Flood, Gilgamesh, and Others. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 1989. Hallo, William W., editor. The Context of Scripture. 2 vols. Leiden: Brill, 1997, 2000. Michalowski, Piotr. Letters from Mesopotamia. SBL Writings from the Ancient World Series. Atlanta: Scholars, 1993. Moran, William L. The Amarna Letters. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins Univ. Press, 1992. Murnane, William J. Texts from the Amarna Period in Egypt. SBL Writings from the Ancient World Series. Atlanta: Scholars, 1995. Parker, Simon B., editor. Ugaritic Narrative Poetry. SBL Writings from the Ancient World Series. Atlanta: Scholars, 1997. Porten, Bezalel, and others. The Elephantine Papyri in English: Three Millennia of Cross-Cultural Continuity and Change. Leiden: Brill, 1996. Roth, Martha T. Law Collections from Mesopotamia and Asia Minor. SBL Writings from the Ancient World Series. Atlanta: Scholars, 1995. Smelik, Klaas D. Writings from Ancient Israel: A Handbook of Historical and Religious Documents. Translated by G. I. Davies. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1991.

Chapter 3 The Literary History of the Hebrew Bible

→ Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 3

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. What are the two original languages of the Hebrew Bible? How are they related to each other? 2. What are the differences between the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha? How do they each relate to the Hebrew Bible? 3. What are some of the organizational differences between the Jewish canon and the Christian canons? Between the Roman Catholic and Protestant canons? 4. What are the two Talmuds? What are their differences in content? 5. What stages of the Hebrew Bible’s literary history does Gottwald identify? Approximately how long of a process was this? What are the implications of this for the modern interpretation of the Bible? 6. What were some of the oral forms that came to make up the Hebrew Bible? 7. What two processes does Gottwald identify in tracing the formation of biblical literature? 8. What are some of the difficulties Gottwald identifies for establishing a definitive list of genres in the Hebrew Bible? How does recognizing genres help us read the biblical text? 9. Examine Web Chart A carefully. What are the most hypothetical parts of the chart? What questions would you ask Gottwald about his visual presentation of this history? 10. Which books of the Hebrew Bible were controversial according to some ancient rabbis? Why? What decisions about these would you have made? Why? 11. What was the earliest form used for the ancient biblical book? In what era did the codex form begin to be used? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each form? 12. What is the Masoretic Text (MT)? How does that relate to the Septuagint (LXX)? 13. What version was used as the basis of English translations prior to the Renaissance? What significance does this have for the reading of the Bible?

ONLINE ARTICLES Ballard, Peter. “The Septuagint.” http://members.ozemail.com.au/~pballard/lxx.html Bratcher, Robert G. “Translating for the Reader.” Theology Today 47 (1990) 290–98. http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/oct1990/v47-3-article6.htm Davies, Philip R. “Loose Canons: Reflections on the Formation of the Hebrew Bible.” Journal of Hebrew Studies 1 (1996–97). http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article5.htm Fontaine, Carol L. “The NRSV and the NEB: A Feminist Critique.” Theology Today 47 (1990) 273–80. http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/oct1990/v47-3-article4.htm Gottwald, Norman K. “Social Matrix and Canonical Shape.” Theology Today 42 (1985) 307–21. http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/oct1985/v42-3-article3.htm Redington, Norman H. “The Septuagint” (The Ecole Initiative; Norman H. Redington) http://cedar.evansville.edu/~ecoleweb/glossary/LXX.html Sundberg, Albert C. Jr. “‘The Old Testament of the Early Church’ Revisited.” In Festschrift in Honor of Charles Speel, edited by T. J. Sienkewicz and J. E. Betts. Monmouth, Ill.: Monmouth College, 1997. http://department.monm.edu/classics/Speel_Festschrift/sundbergJr.htm

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

Beckwith, Roger. The Old Testament Canon of the New Testament Church and Its Background in Early Judaism. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1985. McDonald, Lee M. The Formation of the Christian Biblical Canon. Rev. ed. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1995. Oehler, Annemarie. Studying the Old Testament from Tradition to Canon. Translated by D. Cairns. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1985. Sander, James A. “Canon: Old Testament.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 1.837–52. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Tov, Emanuel. Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. 2nd rev. ed. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2001.

Chapter 4 Traditions about the Fathers and Mothers of Israel

→ Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 4

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. What does Gottwald mean when he says: “Israel’s first ‘literature’ was ‘low literature’” (p. 85)? What is the basis for his description? Do you agree? 2. How do you respond to Gottwald’s conclusions about the intent, locus, and thematic sequence of Israel’s tradition about the period before the monarchy? 3. Which of the major tradition complexes (JEDP) does Gottwald identify as comprising the largest part of Genesis 12–50? How does that affect the overall composition of this section of Genesis? Choose one of the other complexes; how would this section look different if it were dominant? 4. Which genre does Gottwald identify as the most common in Genesis 12–50? How does that affect our reading of those materials? 5. How does the Joseph material differ from the rest of Genesis? How does that affect our reading of it? How does it affect your interest in it? 6. Of the key patriarchs treated in Genesis (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph), which is the one consistently subordinated to someone else’s story? What might account for this? 7. Choose one of the female characters in the Genesis narratives. Analyze how she is depicted: How is she described? How does she speak? With whom does she interact? How does she exert influence with other characters? 8. What are the literary means that biblical authors use to represent character? Identify one example of each from your own reading of the biblical text. 9. What sorts of difficulties result from attempting to correlate historical and archaeological sources with a chronology based on biblical passages? What are some of the implications of this? 10. What chronological problems are posed by the appearance of the Philistines, Ur of the Chaldeans, and Elam in the early traditions of Israel? What literary and historical factors discussed by Gottwald would account for these problems? 11. What is “transhumant pastoralism”? Why is it an important model for reading Genesis 12–50?

ONLINE ARTICLES Edgerton, W. Dow. “The Binding of Isaac.” Theology Today 44 (1987) 207–21. http://theologytoday.ptsem.edu/jul1987/v44-2-symposium6.htm Huddleston, John R. “Unveiling the Versions: The Tactics of Tamar in Genesis 38:15.” Journal of Hebrew Studies 3: article 7 (2001). http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article_19.htm

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Boase, Elizabeth. “Life in the Shadows: The Role and Function of Isaac in Genesis—Synchronic and Diachronic Readings.” Vetus Testamentum 51 (2001) 312–35. Boehm, Omri. “The Binding of Isaac: An Inner-Biblical Polemic on the Question of ‘Disobeying’ a Manifestly Illegal Order.” Vetus Testamentum 52 (2002) 1–12. Brett, Mark. Genesis: Procreation and the Politics of Identity. London: Routledge, 2000.

Gunkel, Hermann. Water for a Thirsty Land: Israelite Literature and Religion. Edited by K. C. Hanson. Fortress Classics in Biblical Studies. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2001. “The Jacob Traditions,” 42–67. “The Hagar Traditions,” 68–84. Hackett, Jo Ann. “Rehabilitating Hagar: Fragments of an Epic Pattern.” In Gender and Difference in Ancient Israel, edited by P. L. Day, 12–27. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1989. Hendel, Ronald S. The Epic of the Patriarch: The Jacob Cycle and the Narrative Traditions of Canaan and Israel. Harvard Semitic Monographs 42. Atlanta: Scholars, 1987. –––––. Genesis: Book of.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 2.933–41. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Jeansonne, Sharon Pace. The Women of Genesis: From Sarah to Potiphar’s Wife. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1990. Knight, Douglas A. “The Pentateuch.” In The Hebrew Bible and Its Modern Interpreters. Edited by D. A. Knight and G. M. Tucker, 263–96. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985. Millard, A. R. “Abraham.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 1.35–41. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Scullion, John J. “Genesis: The Narrative Of.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 2.941–62. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Walters, Stanley D. “Jacob Narrative.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 3.599–608. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Weems, Renita. “A Mistress, a Maid, and No Mercy.” In Just a Sister Away: A Womanist Vision of Women’s Relationships in the Bible, 1–21. San Diego: LauraMedia, 1988. Whedbee, J. William. “Domestic Comedy in the Household of Faith (Genesis 12–50).” In The Bible and the Comic Vision, 64–126. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002.

Chapter 5

Traditions about Moses: Exodus, Covenant, and Lawgiving → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: ABrief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 5

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION

1. Which of the Pentateuchal sources is dominant in Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers? How does this affect its theological focus? 2. Which century does Gottwald think best fits the time of the Exodus? How do Exodus 15:14–15; Numbers 32:10; and 1 Kings 6:1 relate to the difficulties in dating the Exodus? 3. How does Gottwald interpret the relationship between the monotheism of Pharaoh Akhenaton and early Israel’s monotheism? 4. What is the “Kenite Hypothesis”? What biblical passages are used to support it? Do you find it tenable? Why or why not? 5. What roles and functions does Moses play/have in the Pentateuch? Is one of them dominant? Which of them seems dominant? Which seems the most surprising to you? 6. Gottwald identifies two distinct stories about the Exodus—the possibility of two exoduses of two groups. What are those stories? What are the implications of weaving those stories together? 7. What is the importance of the suzerainty treaty form for understanding the Israelite covenant? What are its basic formal elements (see TABLE 5.1)? 8. Compare and contrast the decalogues (lists of 10) and dodecalogues (lists of 12) in Exodus 20:1–17; 34:11–26; Leviticus 18:6–18; 20:2–16; Deuteronomy 5:6–21; 27:15–26; Psalm 24:2–5. What are the most important conclusions you draw for this comparison? 9. List the key interpretations of the meaning of the divine name Yahweh. Which of these do you think is the strongest interpretation? Why? 10. What traditions connect the Moses traditions with later Israelite traditions? Why would that be important?

ONLINE ARTICLES Ausloos, Hans. “Exod 23, 20–33 and the ‘War of Yahweh’.” Biblica 80 (1999) 555–63. http://www.bsw.org/project/biblica/bibl80/Ani15.htm Carmichael, Calum M. “The Sabbatical/Jubilee Cycle and the Seven-Year Famine in Egypt.” Biblica 80 (1999) 224–39. http://www.bsw.org/project/biblica/bibl80/Comm08.htm Hanson, K. C. “Blood and Purity in Leviticus and Revelation.” Listening: Journal of Religion and Culture 28:215–30. http://www.kchanson.com/ARTICLES/blood.html de Roo, Jacqueline C. R. “Was the Goat for Azazel Destined for the Wrath of God?” Biblica 81 (2000) 233–42. http://www.bsw.org/project/biblica/bibl81/Ani06m.html

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Brueggemann, Walter. The Covenanted Self: Explorations in Law and Covenant. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1999. Carmichael, Calum M. Law and Narrative in the Bible: The Evidence of the Deuteronomic Laws and the Decalogue. Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell Univ. Press, 1985. Crüsemann, Frank. The Torah: Theology and Social History of Old Testament Law. Translated by A. W. Mahnke. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1996. Greengus, Samuel. “Law: Biblical and ANE Law.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 4.242–52. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Humphreys, Colin. “The Numbers from the Exodus: A Further Appraisal.” Vetus Testamentum 50 (2000) 323–28. Knight, Douglas A. “The Pentateuch.” In The Hebrew Bible and Its Modern Interpreters. Edited by D. A. Knight and G. M. Tucker, 263–96. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1985. Laffey, Alice. The Pentateuch: A Liberation-Critical Reading. A Liberation-Critical Reading of the Old Testament. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1998. Marshall, Jay W. Israel and the Book of the Covenant: An Anthropological Approach to Biblical Law. SBL Dissertation Series 140. Atlanta: Scholars, 1993. North, Robert. “Perspective of the Exodus Author(s).” Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 113 (2001) 481–504. Patrick, Dale. Old Testament Law. Atlanta: John Knox, 1985. Sarna, Nahum M. “Exodus, Book of.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 2.689–700. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Whedbee, J. William. “Liberation and Laughter: Exodus and Esther.” In The Bible and the Comic Vision, 129–90. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002.

Chapter 6

Traditions about Intertribal Israel’s Rise to Power in Canaan → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 6

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION

1. What is the importance of the phrase “to this day” in Joshua 1–12? 2. What are the dominant types of “inventories” found in Joshua 13–24? Identify an example of each. 3. What is distinctive about the annals found in Joshua 13–24 over against those in 1–12? What might account for this? 4. What is the importance of Joshua 23 within the Deuteronomistic History (DH)? 5. What is the problem with identifying the leaders in the Book of Judges as “judges”? What is most characteristic about their leadership? 6. What are the three models that have been proposed to account for Israel’s coming to control Canaan? Create a comparative chart that shows the basic approach for each as well as the basic problems inherent in each. 7. What do ancient sources tell us about the ‘apiru? Are there problems in relating them to the Hebrews? 8. What are the three dominant hypotheses about Israel’s tribal social organization? Create a comparative chart that shows the basic approach for each as well as the basic problems inherent in each. 9. What does Gottwald mean by “retribalization”?

ONLINE ARTICLES Bauer, Uwe F. W. “A Metaphorical Etiology in Judges 18:12.” Journal of Hebrew Studies 3: article 5 (2001). http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article_17.htm Craig, Kenneth M. Jr. “Bargaining in Tov (Judges 11, 4–11): The Many Directions of So-called Direct Speech.” Biblica 79 (1998) 76–85. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71791&a=Ani03.htm

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Boling, Robert G. “Joshua, Book of.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 3:1002–15. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. –––––. “Judges, Book of.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 3:1107–17. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Campbell, Antony F., and Mark A. O’Brien. Unfolding the Deuteronomistic History: Origins, Upgrades, Present Text. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000. Coote, Robert B. Early Israel: A New Horizon. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1990. Dever, William. “Israel, History of (Archaeology and the Israelite Conquest).” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 3:545–58. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Halpern, Baruch. “Settlement in Canaan.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 5:1120–43. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992.

Finkelstein, Israel. “Ethnicity and Origin of the Iron I Settlers in the Highlands of Canaan: Can the Real Israel Stand Up?” Biblical Archaeologist 59 (1996) 198–212. Lemche, Niels Peter. Prelude to Israel’s Past: Background and Beginnings of Israelite History and Identity. Translated by E. F. Maniscalco. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1998. Levinson, Bernard. “The Reconceptualization of Kingship in Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomistic History’s Transformation of Torah.” Vetus Testamentum 51 (2001) 511–34. Master, Daniel. “State Formation Theory and the Kingdom of Israel.” Journal of Near Eastern Studies 60 (2001) 117–32. Mayes, Andrew. “Deuteronomistic Royal Ideology in Judges 17–21.” Biblical Interpretation 9 (2001) 241–58. McDermott, John J. What Are They Saying About the Formation of Israel? New York: Paulist, 1998. Stager, Lawrence E. “The Archaeology of the Family in Ancient Israel.” Bulletin of the American Schools of Archaeology 206 (1985) 1–35.

Chapter 7

Traditions about the United Kingdom → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: ABrief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 7

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. What is the importance of the Apology of Hattusilis III in relation to the David traditions as a literary analogy? 2. What is the importance of the use of the Hebrew term nagid for Saul rather than melek? 3. What is “land tenure” and how is it related to the changes during the Israelite monarchy? 4. What does Gottwald identify as the key characteristics of the Yahwist (J)? 5. Who are the characters Ziusudra, Athrahasis, and Utnapishtim? What is their relationship to the characters in Genesis 6–11? What do you make of these parallels? 6. What is a “royal grant”? What is its importance for the David traditions? 7. In Israel’s royal ideology, what was the relationship of the king to Yahweh?

ONLINE ARTICLES Clines, David J. A. “The Theology of the Flood Narrative.” In On the Way to the Postmodern: Old Testament Essays 1967–1998. JSOT Supplement Series 292. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998, vol. 2, 508–23. http://www.shef.ac.uk/uni/academic/A-C/biblst/DJACcurrres/Postmodern2/Flood.html Hanson, K. C. “When the King Crosses the Line: Royal Deviance in Levantine Ideologies.” Biblical Theology Bulletin 26 (1996) 11–25. http://www.kchanson.com/ARTICLES/king.html

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Brueggemann, Walter. David’s Truth in Israel’s Imagination and Memory. 2nd ed. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002. Campbell, Antony F. Of Prophets and Kings: A Late Ninth-Century Document (1 Samuel 1-2 Kings 10). CBQ Monograph Series 17. Washington, D.C.: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 1986. Campbell, Antony F., and Mark A. O’Brien. Unfolding the Deuteronomistic History: Origins, Upgrades, Present Text. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000. Chaney, Marvin L. “Systemic Study of the Israelite Monarchy.” Semeia 37 (1986) 53–76. Flanagan, James W. David’s Social Drama: A Hologram of Israel’s Early Iron Age. Social World of Biblical Antiquity 7. Sheffield: Almond, 1988. Halpern, Baruch. David’s Secret Demons: Messiah, Murderer, Traitor, King. The Bible in Its World. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001. McCarter, P. Kyle Jr. “The Historical David.” Interpretation 40 (1986) 117–29. McKenzie, Steven L. King David: A Biography. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 2000. Meyers, Carol. “David as Temple Builder.” In Ancient Israelite Religion: Essays in Honor of Frank Moore Cross. Edited by P. D. Miller, Jr., et al., 357–76. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1987.

Noll, K. L. The Faces of David. JSOT Supplement Series 247. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1997. Roberts, J. J. M. “In Defense of the Monarchy: The Contribution of Israelite Kingship to Biblical Theology.” In Ancient Israelite Religion: Essays in Honor of Frank Moore Cross. Edited by P. D. Miller, Jr., et al., 377–96. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1987. Rudman, S. “The Commissioning Stories of Saul and David as Theological Allegory.” Vetus Testamentum 50 (2000) 519–30. Schniedewind, William M. “The Problem with Kings: Recent Study of the Deuteronomistic History.” Religious Studies Review 22 (1996) 22–27. Whedbee, J. William. “The Comedy of Creation (Genesis 1–11).” In The Bible and the Comic Vision, 19–63. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002. Whitelam, Keith W. “Israelite Kingship. The Royal Ideology and Its Opponents.” In The World of Ancient Israel: Sociological, Anthropological and Political Perspectives. Edited by R. E. Clements, 119–39. Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1989.

Chapter 8

Traditions about the Northern Kingdom → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 8

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. In the Book of Kings, what sorts of roles do the prophets play? Identify some examples. 2. How does Gottwald see as the relationship between the narratives about the prophets in the Book of Kings and the material in the prophetic books? 3. What are the most important events in the Jeroboam I traditions? 4. What innovations did Omri make in the Israelite kingdom?

ONLINE ARTICLES Linville, James R. “Visions and Voices: Amos 7–9.” Biblica 80 (1999) 22–42. http://www.bsw.org/project/biblica/bibl80/Comm01.htm Sweeney, Marvin A. “A Form-Critical Rereading of Hosea.” Journal of Hebrew Studies 2 (1998–99). http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article7.htm

ONLINE ANCIENT DOCUMENTS AND PHOTOS Assyrian Charioteers (7th century B.C.E.)—Mary Ann Andrade http://jade.ccccd.edu/Andrade/WorldLitI2332/Meso/warriors.jpg Assyrian Soldiers (8th century B.C.E.)—Oriental Institute http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/HIGH/OIM_A27854–6_72dpi.html Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III (9th century B.C.E.; Assyrian)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/meso/obelisk.html Eagle-headed Deity (9th century B.C.E.; Assyrian)—Detroit Institute of Art http://www.dia.org/collections/ancient/mesopotamia/47.181.html Gezer Calendar (10th century B.C.E.; Israelite)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/gezer.html Mesha Stele (9th century B.C.E.; Moabite)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/mesha.html Tiglath-Pileser Receiving Homage (8th century B.C.E.; Assyrian)—Detroit Institute of Art http://www.dia.org/collections/ancient/mesopotamia/50.32.html Winged Spirit Pollinating Date Palm (9th century B.C.E. Assyrian)—Alice Ritari http://www.kchanson.com/PHOTOS/wingedspirit.html

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Ben Zvi, Ehud and Michael H. Floyd, editors. Writings and Speech in Israelite and Ancient Near Eastern Prophecy. SBL Symposium Series 10. Atlanta: Scholars, 2000. Blenkinsopp, Joseph. A History of Prophecy in Israel. Rev. ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1996. Campbell, Antony F., and Mark A. O’Brien. Unfolding the Deuteronomistic History: Origins, Upgrades, Present Text. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000. Chaney, Marvin L. “Bitter Bounty: The Dynamics of Political Economy Critiqued by the Eighth-Century Prophets.” In Reformed Faith and Economics, edited by Robert L. Stivers, 15–30. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1989. Dempsey, Carol J. The Prophets: A Liberation-Critical Reading. Minneapolis: Fortress, 2000. Gordon, Robert P., editor. The Place Is Too Small for Us: The Israelite Prophets in Recent Scholarship. SBTS 5. Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1995. Gunkel, Hermann. “The Prophets: Oral and Written.” In Water for a Thirsty Land: Israelite Literature and Religion, edited by K. C. Hanson, 85–133. FCBS. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2001. Nissinen, Martti, editor. Prophecy in Its Ancient Near Eastern Context: Mesopotamian, Biblical and Arabian Perspectives. SBL Symposium Series 13. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2000. Overholt, Thomas W. Channels of Prophecy: The Social Dynamics of Prophetic Activity. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1989. Paas, Stefan. “Seeing and Singing: Visions and Hymns in the Book of Amos.” Vetus Testamentum 52 (2002) 253–74. Schniedewind, William M., and Daniel Sivan. “The Dialect of the Elisha-Elijah Narratives: A Case Study in Northern Hebrew.” Jewish Quarterly Review 137 (1997) 303–37.

Chapter 9

Traditions about the Southern Kingdom → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 9

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. As Gottwald points out, the text of Isaiah 36–39 is taken almost verbatim from 2 Kings 18–20. What clues can you find that indicate that it was the Book of Isaiah borrowing from the Book of Kings and not vice versa? What are the implications of this borrowing? 2. Gottwald characterizes Manasseh as a loyal vassal of the Assyrian empire. What would have been required of such a vassal? What are the implications of this for understanding the narratives about Manasseh in the Book of Kings? 3. What makes king Josiah such an important character for the history of Judah and the history of the biblical text? 4. Which chapters of the Book of Micah does Gottwald think we can confidently attribute to the prophet Micah in eighth-century Judah? How would that change your reading of the other chapters? 5. What are the significances of 732, 722, and 701 BCE in the histories of Israel and Judah? 6. What were the names of Isaiah’s sons? What do these names mean? What is their significance in Isaiah’s proclamation? 7. What are the major sections of the Book of Isaiah Gottwald identifies? What can you determine from the organization of these sections? 8. What is the relationship of the Book of Deuteronomy to the Deuteronomistic History (DH)? 9. What is the significance of the Levites in the Book of Deuteronomy? How is that different from the traditions in Exodus–Numbers? 10. What are some of the common characteristics shared by Nahum, Zephaniah, and Habakkuk? 11. How would you characterize Jeremiah’s evaluation of the Jerusalem temple-cult and the monarch of Judah? What results did his proclamations concerning these things bring about? 12. Who was Baruch and what was his importance in Jeremiah’s life and the composition of the Book of Jeremiah?

ONLINE ARTICLES Goldberg, J. “Two Assyrian Campaigns against Hezekiah and Later Eighth-Century Biblical Chronology.” Biblica 80 (1999) 360–90. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71801&a=Comm10.htm Halpern, Baruch. “The Baal (and the Asherah?) in Seventh-Century Judah.” http://home.earthlink.net/~zimriel/Baal/baal1.html Knoppers, Gary N. “Great among his brothers,’ but Who Is He? Heterogeneity in the Composition of Judah.” Journal of Hebrew Studies 3: article 4 (2000). http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article_16.htm Na’aman, Nadav. “New Light on Hezekiah’s Second Prophetic Story (2 Kgs 19, 9b–35).” Biblica 81 (2000) 393–402. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71811&a=Ani12.html Rudman, Dominic. “A Note on Zephaniah.” Biblica 80 (1999) 109–12. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71801&a=Ani02.htm

Watts, James W. “Psalmody in Prophecy: Habakkuk 3 in Context.” In Forming Prophetic Literature: Essays on Isaiah and the Twelve in Honor of John D. W. Watts, ed. J.W. Watts and P.R. House, 209–23. JSOT Supplement Series 235. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1986. http://web.syr.edu/~jwwatts/Hab3.htm Watts, James W. “Text and Redaction in Jeremiah’s Oracles Against the Nations.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 54 (1992) 432–47. http://web.syr.edu/~jwwatts/Jer-oafn.htm

ONLINE ANCIENT DOCUMENTS AND PHOTOS Assyrian Conquest of Lachish—University of Lethbridge http://home.uleth.ca/geo/htmjoel/link.htm Byt Yhwh Inscription (9th–7th century B.C.E.)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/bytyhwh.html Dragon of Marduk (7th century B.C.E.; Neo-Babylonian)—Detroit Institute of Art http://www.dia.org/collections/ancient/mesopotamia/31.25.html Ekron Inscription (7th century B.C.E.)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/ekron.html Ishtar Gate (6th century B.C.E.; Neo-Babylonian)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/PHOTOS/ishtargate.html Lion Figure from Ishtar Gate (6th century B.C.E.; Neo-Babylonian)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/PHOTOS/gatedetail1.html Nabopolassar Cylinder (7th century B.C.E.; Neo-Babylonian)—Carlos Museum http://carlos.emory.edu/COLLECTION/NEAREAST/neareast01.html Sennacherib Prism (c. 689 B.C.E.; Neo-Babylonian)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/meso/sennprism1.html Siloam Inscription (late 8th century B.C.E.; Jerusalem)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/siloam.html Tel Dan Inscription (9th–8th century B.C.E.; Galilee)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/teldan.html Uzziah’s funerary inscription (Judahite)—Israel Museum http://2002.imj.org.il/archaeology/uzziah.htm Widow’s Petition Ostracon (9th–7th century B.C.E.; Israelite)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/petition.html Yavneh-Yam Inscription (7th century B.C.E.; Judahite)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/yavneh.html

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Campbell, Antony F., and Mark A. O’Brien. Unfolding the Deuteronomistic History: Origins, Upgrades, Present Text. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000. Chaney, Marvin L. “Bitter Bounty: The Dynamics of Political Economy Critiqued by the Eighth-Century Prophets.” In Reformed Faith and Economics, edited by Robert L. Stivers, 15–30. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1989. –––––. “Whose Sour Grapes? The Addressees of Isaiah 5:1–7 in the Light of Political Economy.” Semeia 87 (1999) 105–22.

Dempsey, Carol J. The Prophets: A Liberation-Critical Reading. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2000. Diamond, A. R. Pete, Kathleen M. O’Connor, and Louis Stuhlman, editors. Troubling Jeremiah. JSOT Supplement Series 260. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1999. Mowinckel, Sigmund. The Spirit and the Word: Prophecy and Tradition in Ancient Israel. Edited by K. C. Hanson. Fortress Classics in Biblical Studies. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002. Schniedewind, William M. “History and Interpretation: The Religion of Ahab and Manasseh in the Book of Kings.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 55 (1993) 640–61. –––––. “The Source Citations of Manasseh: King Manasseh in History and Homily.” Vetus Testamentum 91 (1991) 450–61. Stansell, Gary. Micah and Isaiah: A Form and Tradition Historical Comparison. SBLDS 85. Atlanta: Scholars, 1988.

Chapter 10

Sociohistoric Horizons of Colonial Israel → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 10

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. What are the various uses of the Hebrew word yehudim? What brought about the shifts of usage? 2. What does the term “diaspora” mean with reference to ancient Judahites? How does this relate to the “double track” history Gottwald discusses? 3. What do we know about deported Judahite officials? 4. What are some of the problems in dating the origins of the synagogue? 5. Who was Cyrus? What conditions, actions, and events brought him to power? 6. Write one short paragraph about the importance of each of the following: Sheshbazzar, Zerubbabel, Joshua, Nehemiah, and Ezra. Compare and contrast their roles and contributions to Judahite public life. 7. What do the Elephantine Papyri contribute to our understanding of Judahites after the exile (see the translations hyperlinked below)? 8. What was the importance of Alexander the Great in shaping Judahite society? What is “Hellenism”? 9. What roles did the Ptolemies in Egypt and the Seleucids in Syria play in Judah’s life during this period? 10. How would you describe the importance of the Hasmoneans? What was their most significant contribution to Judahite life?

ONLINE ARTICLES Eskenazi, Tamara Cohn. “Nehemiah 9–10: Structure and Significance.” Journal of Hebrew Studies 3: article 9 (2001). http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article_21.htm

ONLINE ANCIENT DOCUMENTS AND PHOTOS Cyrus Cylinder (6th century B.C.E.; Persian)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/meso/cyrus.html Lachish Letter #3 (6th century B.C.E.; Judahite)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/lachish3.html Passover Letter from Elephantine (c. 419 B.C.E.) —K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/passover.html Persepolis and Ancient Iran (Persia; 999 photos)—Oriental Institute http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/MUS/PA/IRAN/PAAI/PAAI.html Petition to Authorize Elephantine Temple Reconstruction (c. 407 B.C.E.)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/templeauth.html Quit Claim after Divorce from Elephantine (c. 440 B.C.E.)—K. C. Hanson http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/quitclaim.html

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Barstad, Hans M. The Myth of the Empty Land: A Study in the History and Archaeology of Judah during the “Exilic” Period. Symbolae Osloenses 28. Oslo: Scandinavian Univ. Press, 1996. Bedford, Peter. “Diaspora: Homeland Relations in Ezra–Nehemiah.” Vetus Testamentum 52 (2002) 147–65. Berquist, Jon L. Judaism in Persia’s Shadow: A Social and Historical Approach. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1995. Brueggemann, Walter. The Land: Place as Gift, Promise, and Challenge in Biblical Faith. 2nd ed. Overtures to Biblical Theology. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002. Harrison, Robert. “Hellenization in Syria-Palestine: The Case of Judea in the Third Century.” Biblical Archaeologist 57 (1994) 98ff. Hoglund, Kenneth G. Achaemenid Imperial Administration in Syria-Palestine and the Missions of Ezra and Nehemiah. SBL Dissertation Series 125. Atlanta: Scholars, 1992. Janzen, David. “The ‘Mission’ of Ezra and the Persian-Period Temple Community.” Journal of Biblical Literature 119 (2000) 619–43. Klein, Ralph W. “Ezra-Nehemiah, Books of.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary, 2:731–42. Edited by D. N. Freedman. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Littman, Robert J. “Athens, Persia and the Book of Ezra.” Transactions of the American Philological Association 125 (1995) 251–59. Ma, John. “Seleukids and Speech-Acts: Performative Utterances, Legitimacy and Negotiation in the World of the Maccabees.” Scripta Classica Israelica 19 (2000) 71–112. Redditt, Paul L. “Nehemiah’s First Mission and the Date of Zechariah 9–14.” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 56 (1994) 664ff. Smith-Christopher, Daniel L. A Biblical Theology of Exile. Overtures to Biblical Theology. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002. Watts, James W., editor. Persia and Torah: The Theory of Imperial Authorization of the Pentateuch. SBL Symposium Series 17. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2001.

Chapter 11

Traditions of Colonial Israel: Completing the Law and Prophets → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 11

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. What specific group does Gottwald identify with the writing of P and the shaping of the Pentateuch? What were the consequences of this for the other related groups? 2. How does Gottwald understand the relationship of the DH to the prophetic books? What does this explain? 3. What factors were at work in organizing the sequence of the prophetic books? 4. What “broad conventions” does Gottwald see at work in the internal organization of prophetic books? 5. What role does covenant play in the composition of P? How does that affect the interpretation of the whole Pentateuch? How might the Pentateuch look if J had been the final editor of the Pentateuch? 6. What are the key distinctions (“cuts”) that P makes in the narratives about the first humans, Noah, Abraham, and Moses and the Israelites? 7. Why does Gottwald characterize the Deuteronomists as shaping a “debt system” and the priestly groups as having a “pollution system”? How are these distinctive views? What happened when they are placed together in the Pentateuch? 8. What questions have been raised about the unity of the Book of Ezekiel? 9. What is the importance of symbolic prophetic actions in the Book of Ezekiel? Which one is the strangest to you? 10. What is meant by the term “Servant Songs”? What questions do these passages raise? 11. What are some of the basic forms found in Deutero-Isaiah? How do these create a distinct feeling over against Trito-Isaiah? How would you characterize Deutero-Isaiah’s theology? 12. Why does Gottwald group Trito-Isaiah, Malachi, Obadiah, and Joel under the heading “Prophets of Conflicted Restoration”? What do they share in common? How do they differ?

Chapter 12

Traditions of Colonial Israel: The Writings → Related readings in The Hebrew Bible: A Brief Socio-Literary Introduction, Chapter 12

QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION 1. What books are included in the label “Chronicler’s History (CH)”? What problems does Gottwald identify with grouping them together? 2. What can we say about the intention of CH? 3. Why does Gottwald refer to the “redactional disorder” in the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah? 4. Into how many “books” is the Book of Psalms organized? What might account for this number? 5. What role do Psalms 1 and 2 play in the organization of the Book of Psalms? Why might they have given their current placement? 6. List the main genre groupings in the Psalms. Write one paragraph describing the overarching intention of each. 7. What are some of the smaller collections within the Book of Psalms? What does this tell us about the history of these works? 8. What are some of the larger issues that Gottwald identifies as uniting the biblical “short stories”? 9. What three social settings (sociohistoric horizons) does Gottwald discuss for biblical wisdom? How were these related to each other? Which is dominant in the biblical wisdom books? 10. How does the Book of Job relate to the larger grouping of biblical wisdom books? What would explain its inclusion in the Bible? 11. In what sense does “apocalyptic” refer to a literary genre? In what sense a mind-set? 12. What does the Latin phrase vaticinia ex eventu mean? How does it relate to apocalyptic literature? 13. Which biblical book is the most obvious example of apocalyptic literature? What are some of the apocalyptic books that were not included in the Hebrew canon of scripture? What are some of the reasons they might not have been included?

ON-LINE RESOURCES Gardner, Anne E. “Daniel 7, 2–14: Another Look at Its Mythic Pattern.” Biblica 82 (2001) 244–52. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71821&a=Ani05.html Hurowitz, Victor A. “Nursling, Advisor, Architect? Nwm‘ and the Role of Wisdom in Proverbs 8, 22–31.” Biblica 80 (1999) 391–400. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71801&a=Ani09.htm Mitchell, Christine. “Transformations in Meaning: Solomon’s Accession in Chronicles.” Journal of Hebrew Studies 4: article 3 (2002). http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/JHS/Articles/article_25.htm Murray, Donald F. “Under Yhwh’s Veto: David as Shedder of Blood in Chronicles.” Biblica 82 (2001) 457–76. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71821&a=Comm12.html

Robinson, Bernard P. “Form and Meaning in Psalm 131.” Biblica 79 (1998) 180–97. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71791&a=Comm04.htm Sasson, Victor. “The Literary and Theological Function of Job’s Wife in the Book of Job.” Biblica 79 (1998) 86–90. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71791&a=Ani04.htm Tucker, W. Dennis Jr. “Psalm 95: Text, Context, and Intertext.” 81 (2000) 533–41. http://www.bsw.org/?l=71811&a=Ani19.html Watts, James W. “‘This Song’: Conspicuous Poetry in Hebrew Prose.” In Verse in Ancient Near Eastern Prose, ed. J. C. de Moor and W. G. E. Watson, 345–58. AOAT 42. Kevelaer: Butzon & Bercker; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener, 1993. http://web.syr.edu/~jwwatts/ThisSong.htm

ADDITIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHY Graham, M. Patrick, and Steven L. McKenzie, editors. Chronicles as Author: Studies in Text and Texture. JSOT Supplements 263. Sheffield: JSOT, 1999. Graham, M. Patrick, Kenneth G. Hoglund, and Steven L. McKenzie, editors. Chronicles as Historian. JSOT Supplements 238. Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1997. Klein, Ralph W. “Chronicles, Book of 1–2.” In Anchor Bible Dictionary 1:991–1002. New York: Doubleday, 1992. Whedbee, J. William. The Bible and the Comic Vision. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2002. “Liberation and Laughter: Exodus and Esther,” 129–90. “Jonah as Joke,” 191–220. “The Comedy of Job,” 221–62. “Paradox and Parody in the Song of Solomon,” 263–77.

Commentaries

1985–2002 Note: Since most commentary titles are simply the title of the biblical book, I follow Gottwald’s original citation form for most commentaries in series: author, series, and date. I have spelled out the titles of commentaries that are not in a series. Commentaries that cover multiple biblical books (e.g., Michael H. Floyd, Minor Prophets, Part 2, FOTL 22, 1999) are listed under each book they treat.

ABBREVIATIONS AB Anchor Bible AOTC Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries BerO Berit Olam CC Continental Commentaries FOTL Forms of the Old Testament Literature Hermeneia Hermeneia: A Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible IBC Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching ICC International Critical Commentary ITC International Theological Commentary JPSBC Jewish Publication Society Bible Commentary JPSTC Jewish Publication Society Torah Commentary NCBC New Century Bible Commentary NIB New Interpreter’s Bible NICOT New International Commentary on the Old Testament OTL Old Testament Library SB Schocken Bible SHBC Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary WBC Word Biblical Commentary

ONE-VOLUME BIBLE COMMENTARIES Barton, John, and John Muddiman, editors. The Oxford Bible Commentary. Oxford: Oxford

Univ. Press, 2001. Brown, Raymond E., Joseph A. Fitzmyer, and Roland E. Murphy, editors. The New Jerome

Biblical Commentary. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1990. Farmer, William R., editor. The International Bible Commentary: A Catholic and Ecumenical

Commentary for the Twenty-first Century. Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical, 1998. Mays, James L., editor. The HarperCollins Bible Commentary. Rev. ed. San Francisco:

HarperSanFrancisco, 2000. Newsom, Carol A., and Sharon H. Ringe, editors. Women’s Bible Commentary. Expanded

edition. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1998.

GENESIS Alter, Robert. Genesis: Translation and Commentary. 1996. Brueggemann, Walter. NIB 1. 1994. Cotter, David W. BerO. 2003. Fox, Everett. SB 1. 1995. Hamilton, Victor P. 2 vols. NICOT. 1990, 1995. Janzen, J. Gerald. ITC. 1993. Sarna, Nahum M. JPSTC. 1989. Wenham, Gordon G. 2 vols. WBC 1, 2. 1987, 1994 Westermann, Claus. 3 vols. CC. 1984, 1985, 1986.

EXODUS

Coats, George W. FOTL 2A. 1999. Durham, John I. WBC 3. 1987. Fox, Everett. SB 1. 1995. Fretheim, Terence E. IBC. 1991. Kaiser, Walter C. Jr. NIB 1. 1994. Propp, William H. C. AB 2. 1999. Sarna, Nahum M. JPSTC. 1991.

LEVITICUS

Fox, Everett. SB 1. 1995. Fretheim, Terence E. NIB 1. 1994. Gerstenberger, Erhard S. OTL. 1996. Hartley, John E. WBC 4. 1992. Levine, Baruch A. JPSTC. 1989. Milgrom, Jacob. 3 vols. AB 3, 3A, 3B. 1991, 2000, 2001. Sherwood, Steven K. BerO. 2001.

NUMBERS

Ashley, Timothy R. NICOT. 1993. Budd, Philip J. WBC 5. 1984. Dozeman, Thomas B. NIB 2. 1998. Fox, Everett. SB 1. 1995. Levine, Baruch A. 2 vols. AB 4, 4A. 1993, 2000. Milgrom, Jacob. JPSTC. 1990. Sakenfeld, Katherine Doob. ITC. 1995. Sherwood, Steven K. BerO. 2001.

DEUTERONOMY

Brueggemann, Walter. AOTC. 2001. Christiansen, Duane L. WBC 6A. 1991. Clements, Ronald E. NIB 2. 1998. Fox, Everett. SB 1. 1995. Miller, Patrick D. IBC. 1990. Sherwood, Steven K. BerO. 2001.

Tigay, Jeffrey H. JPSTC. 1996. Weinfeld, Moshe. AB 5. 1991.

JOSHUA

Butler, Trent C. WBC 7. 1983. Coote, Robert B. NIB 2. 1998. Hawk, L. Daniel. BerO. 2000. Nelson, Richard D. OTL. 1997.

JUDGES

Olson, Dennis T. NIB 2. 1998. Schneider, Tammi J. BerO. 2000.

RUTH

Bush, Frederic W. WBC 9. 1996. Farmer, Kathleen A. Robertson. NIB 2. 1998. Hubbard, Robert L. Jr. NICOT. 1988. Linafelt, Tod. BerO. 1999. Nielsen, Kirsten. OTL. 1997.

SAMUEL

Alter, Robert. The David Story: A Translation with Commentary on 1 and 2 Samuel. 1999. Anderson, A. A. WBC 11. 1989. Birch, Bruce C. NIB 2. 1998. Brueggemann, Walter. IBC. 1990. Cartledge, Tony W. SHBC. 2001. Fox, Everett. Give Us A King! Samuel, Saul, and David: A New Translation of Samuel I and II.

1999. Jobling, David. BerO. 1998. Klein, Ralph W. WBC 10. 1983.

KINGS

Brueggemann, Walter. SHBC. 2000. Cogan, Mordechai. AB 10. 2001. Cogan, Mordechai, and Hayim Tadmor. AB 11. 1988. Cohn, Roger L. BerO. 2000. De Vries, Simon J. WBC 12. 1985. Hobbs, T. R. WBC 13. 1985 Long, Burke O. FOTL 10. 1991. Nelson, Richard D. IBC. 1987. Seow, Choon-Leong. NIB 3. 1999. Walsh, Jerome T. BerO. 1996.

CHRONICLES

Allen, Leslie C. NIB 3. 1999. Braun, Roddy. WBC 14. 1986.

De Vries, Samuel J. FOTL 11. 1989. Dillard, Raymond B. WBC 15. 1987. Japhet, Sara. OTL. 1993.

EZRA–NEHEMIAH

Blenkinsopp, Joseph. OTL. 1988. Davies, Gordon F. BerO.1999. Klein, Ralph W. NIB 3. 1999. Throntveit, Mark A. IBC. 1992. Williamson, H. G. M. WBC 16. 1985.

ESTHER

Beal, Timothy K. BerO. 1999 Berlin, Adele. JPSBC. 2001 Bush, Frederic W. WBC 9. 1996. Crawford, Sidnie White. NIB 3. 1999. Levenson, Jon D. OTL. 1997.

JOB

Clines, D. J. A. WBC 17. 1989 Habel, Norman C. OTL. 1985. Hartley, John E. NICOT. 1988. Newsom, Carol A. NIB 4. 1996.

PSALMS

Allen, Leslie C. WBC 21. 1983. Craigie, Peter C. WBC 19. 1983. Gerstenberger, Erhard S. 2 vols. FOTL 14, 15. 1988, 2001. Kraus, Hans-Joachim. 2 vols. CC. 1988, 1989. McCann, Clinton. NIB 4. 1996. Schaefer, Konrad. BerO. 2001 Tate, Marvin E. WBC 20. 1990.

PROVERBS

Clifford, Richard J. AOTC. 2002. Clifford, Richard J. OTL. 1999. Fox, Michael V. AB 18A. 2000. Murphy, Roland E. WBC 22. 1998. Ecclesiastes (Qoheleth) Brown, William P. IBC. 2000. Crenshaw, James L. OTL. 1987. Longman, Tremper III. NICOT. 1998. Fox, Michael V. A Time to Tear Down and a Time to Build Up: A Rereading of Ecclesiastes.

1999. Krüger, Thomas. Hermeneia. 2003. Lohfink, Norbert. CC. 2002.

Murphy, Roland E. WBC 23A. 1992. Seow, C. L. AB 18C. 1997. Towner, W. Sibley. NIB 5. 1997. Whybray, R. N. NCBC. 1989.

SONG OF SONGS

Bergant, Dianne. BerO. 2001. Keel, Othmar. CC. 1994. Longman, Tremper III. NICOT. 2001. Murphy, Roland E. Hermeneia. 1990.

ISAIAH 1–66

Childs, Brevard S. OTL. 2001. Watts, John D. W. 2 vols. WBC 24, 25. 1985, 1987.

ISAIAH 1–39

Blenkinsopp, Joseph. AB 19. 2000. Oswalt, John N. NICOT. 1986. Sweeney, Marvin A. FOTL 16. 1996. Tucker, Gene M. NIB 6. 2001. Wildberger, Hans. CC. 3 vols. 1991, 1997, 2002.

ISAIAH 40–66

Baltzer, Klaus. Hermeneia. 2001. Blenkinsopp, Joseph. AB 19A. 2002. Oswalt, John N. NICOT. 1998. Seitz, Christopher R. NIB 6. 2001

JEREMIAH

Brueggemann, Walter. 2 vols. ITC. 1988, 1991. Carroll, Robert P. OTL. 1986. Craigie, Peter C et al. WBC 26. 1991. Fretheim, Terence E. SHBC. 2002. Holladay, William L. 2 vols. Hermeneia. 1986, 1989. Keown, Gerald L. et al. WBC 27. 1995. Lundbom, Jack R. AB 21A. 1999. McKane, William. 2 vols. ICC. 1986, 1996. Miller, Patrick D. NIB 6. 2001.

LAMENTATIONS

Bergant, Dianne. AOTC. 2002. Berlin, Adele. OTL. 2002. Gerstenberger, Erhard S. FOTL 15. 2001. O’Connor, Kathleen M. NIB 6. 2001.

EZEKIEL

Allen, Leslie C. WBC 29. 1990. Blenkinsopp, Joseph. IBC. 1990. Block, Daniel Isaac. 2 vols. NICOT. 1997. Brownlee, William H. WBC 28. 1986. Darr, Katheryn Pfisterer. NIB 6. 2001 Hals, Ronald M. FOTL 19. 1989.

DANIEL

Collins, John J. FOTL 20. 1984. Collins, John J. Hermeneia. 1993. Goldingay, John E. WBC 30. 1989. Gowan, Donald E. AOTC. 2001. Smith Christopher, Daniel L. NIB. 1996. Towner, W. Sibley. IBC. 1984.

HOSEA

Stuart, Douglas. WBC 31. 1987. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000.

JOEL

Barton, John. OTL. 2001. Crenshaw, James L. AB 24C. 1995. Stuart, Douglas. WBC 31. 1987. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000.

AMOS

Andersen, Francis I., and David Noel Freedman. AB 24A. 1989. Jeremias, Jörg. OTL. 1998. Paul, Shalom M. Hermeneia. 1991. Stuart, Douglas. WBC 31. 1987. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000.

OBADIAH

Barton, John. OTL. 2001. Raabe, Paul R. AB 24D. 1996. Stuart, Douglas. WBC 31. 1987. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000. Wolff, Hans Walter. CC. 1986.

JONAH

Limburg, James. OTL. 1993. Sasson, Jack M. AB 24B. 1990. Simon, Uriel. JPSBC. 1999. Stuart, Douglas. WBC 31. 1987.

Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000. Wolff, Hans Walter. CC. 1986.

MICAH

Andersen, Francis I., and David Noel Freedman. AB 24E. 2000. Ben Zvi, Ehud. FOTL 21B. 2000. Smith, Ralph L. WBC 32. 1984. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000. Wolff, Hans Walter. CC. 1990.

NAHUM

Floyd, Michael H. FOTL 22. 2000. Roberts, J. J. M. OTL. 1991. Robertson, O. Palmer. NICOT. 1990. Smith, Ralph L. WBC 32. 1984. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000.

HABAKKUK

Andersen, Francis I. AB 25. 2001. Floyd, Michael H. FOTL 22. 2000. Roberts, J. J. M. OTL. 1991. Robertson, O. Palmer. NICOT. 1990. Smith, Ralph L. WBC 32. 1984. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000.

ZEPHANIAH

Berlin, Adele. AB 25A. 1994. Floyd, Michael H. FOTL 22. 2000. Roberts, J. J. M. OTL. 1991. Robertson, O. Palmer. NICOT. 1990. Smith, Ralph L. WBC 32. 1984. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000. Sweeney, Marvin A. Hermeneia. 2003.

HAGGAI

Floyd, Michael H. FOTL 22. 2000. Peterson, David L. OTL. 1984. Smith, Ralph L. WBC 32. 1984. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000. Verhoef, Pieter A. NICOT. 1987. Wolff, Hans Walter. CC. 1988.

ZECHARIAH

Floyd, Michael H. FOTL 22. 2000. Meyers, Carol L., and Eric M. Meyers. AB 25C. 1993. Peterson, David L. OTL. 1984, 1995.

Smith, Ralph L. WBC 32. 1984. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000.

MALACHI

Floyd, Michael H. FOTL 22. 2000. Hill, Andrew E. AB 25D. 1998. Peterson, David L. OTL. 1995. Smith, Ralph L. WBC 32. 1984. Sweeney, Marvin. BerO. 2000. Verhoef, Pieter A. NICOT. 1987.