Bolin analyses biblical and extra-biblical traditions and motifs in the book of Jonah, and argues that the book's portrayal of the relationship between God and humanity, much like those of Job and Ecclesiastes, emphasizes an absolute divine sovereignty beyond human notions of mercy, justice, or forgiveness. God is understood as free to forgive, yet he still punishes, and is unfettered by the constraints imposed by attributes of benevolence. The only proper human response to God is fear at his power and acknowledgment of him as the source of welfare and woe.

This critically acclaimed series provides fresh and authoritative treatments of important aspects of Old Testament study through commentaries and general surveys. The authors are scholars of international standing.

Nelson addresses the textual problems critical to a full understanding of Joshua and offers historical, literary, and theological insights in this balanced commentary.

These essays are written in honour of John D.W. Watts, formerly Professor of Old Testament at Southern Baptist Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky and Old Testament editor of the Word Biblical Commentary, well known for his contributions, especially to scholarship on the prophetic books. Accordingly, the essays here address the literary, redactional and canonical questions posed by the Hebrew Bible's prophetic literature. The prophetic books have defied easy classification according to genre or facile explanation of their historical development. With a special focus on the books of Isaiah and of the Twelve Prophets, the nature and formation of prophecy as literature is probed from a variety of methodological standpoints, including textual criticism, synchronic literary analysis, tradition history and redaction criticism.>

Matthew - the visit of the Magi, the Sermon on the Mount, the Great Commission: these are only a few of the well-known passages that draw readers specifically to Matthew's gospel. Yet it begins with a forbidding list of unknown names and apparently irrelevant 'begettings'. In fact, the early church may have placed Matthew first in the New Testament because it more fully than any other Gospel provides a Christian perspective on the relation between the church and the Jews, an issue that is still important today. R. T. France tackles this and other key issues in the Gospel with clarity, reliability and relevance.This classic commentary has been completely retypeset and presented in a fresh, vibrant new large paperback format, with new global branding.

(Per)mutations of Qohelet explores the question, Who is Qohelet? Rather than peering behind or through the text to answer this question in terms of authorship, Koosed analyzes the identity that is created through the words on the page. The text is not a transparent medium connecting reader with author; instead, it is an opaque body - it has weight, substance, skin. Koosed begins with an analysis of the ways in which words construct identities and the reasons why words can affect us so profoundly, relying primarily on the work of Judith Butler and Elaine Scarry. She then explores autobiography and how the genre of autobiography - as reconfigured by Roland Barthes and Jacques Derrida - relates to Qohelet. These two chapters then set the framework for what follows: an analysis of the various bodily organs and sensations contained within the book of Qohelet. The body is embedded in the text through the naming of body parts (eye, hand, heart). And this same body is encoded in form, structure, and syntax, so that the text becomes a body with organs, systems, and even a life of its own. The book is a body and the book speaks of bodies. It speaks of the body's organs and senses; it concerns itself with the pleasures and pains of the body, the gendered body, the dying body. Finally, the ritual body is highlighted in the final passage of this enigmatic book.

This book investigates Paul's effort to combat factionalism by his use of the Greco-Roman rhetoric of 'the common advantage' to overcome socio-ethical problems caused by the improper exercise of 'private advantage' in Corinth. Chang examines 'the common advantage', first, as a fundamental principle that defined human and societal relationships in the Greco-Roman world. He explores how the neglect and misunderstanding of this principle lay at the root of relational and societal breakdowns. The book further examines Paul's use of the term and demonstrates that, when properly understood and appropriated, the principle of 'the common advantage' is pivotal to keeping societies and relationships dynamic and healthy. Conversely, when common advantage is not functioning and, concomitantly, private advantage is wrongly emphasized at its expense, relational, societal and ecclesiastical breakdowns occur. The book culminates in demonstrating that, for Paul, 'the common advantage' carries missional and salvific implications that override and subvert socio-ethnic boundaries. In this way, otherwise hostile social groups will realize a healthy symbiosis.

In this original work, Stone studies the structure and social presuppositions of several narratives from the Deuteronomistic History in which sexual activity plays a significant role. Both narratological and anthropological tools are utilized in the textual analysis. Stone interestingly notes the link between sexual activity, gender and prestige structures; the emphasis on male contest and female chastity discussed by anthropologists of honour and shame; and the role of the exchange of women in relations between men. In each story, sexual practice is primarily related to male struggles for honour and power.>

"I know dogs in my life the way I know people and cats and trees and landscapes. Dogs help me shape my thoughts, feelings, and prayer life. Dogs have taught me attributes I feel in myself when reflecting and praying. "Dogs have shown me the spirit of being loyal, glad, overwhelmed, protective, committed, vigilant, patient, kind, energetic, discerning, forgiving. Unfolding these attributes of dog life opens my own spiritual being. My relationship with dog mirrors my relationship with God." In Dog Psalms the reader can use a dog's attributes to speak to God.

This critically acclaimed series provides fresh and authoritative treatments of important aspects of Old Testament study through commentaries and general surveys. The authors are scholars of international standing.

'We are the Beloved. We are intimately loved long before our parents, teachers, spouses, children and friends loved or wounded us. That's the truth of our lives. That's the truth I want you to claim for yourself. That's the truth spoken by the voice that says, "You are my Beloved."' - Henri Nouwen, Life of the Beloved Henri Nouwen, priest, professor and writer, devoted much of his later ministry to emphasising the singular concept of our identity as the Beloved of God. In an interview, he said that he believed the central moment in Jesus' public ministry to be his baptism in the Jordan, when Jesus heard the affirmation, 'You are my beloved son on whom my favour rests.' 'That is the core experience of Jesus,' Nouwen writes. 'He is reminded in a deep, deep way of who he is ... I think his whole life is continually claiming that identity in the midst of everything.' You Are Beloved is a daily devotional created from the very best of Nouwen's writings, paired with daily Scripture readings, that reveals our identity as children of God, and which encourages us to live out that truth in our daily lives. Nouwen is at once refreshingly accessible, unafraid to wrestle with challenging questions, and above all an encouraging and sympathetic voice along the way.

"Cats help me pray," says Herbert Brokering. This collection of whimsical, insightful psalms, or prayers, is based on Brokering's observations of cats he has known through his life - farm cats, house cats, alley cats. Each psalm expresses an observation about a cat's nature, written in the "voice" of the cat, followed by a prayer in which the human spirit speaks of its cat-like nature to God. Cat Psalms is for those who wish to pray more deeply, with more imagination and understanding, and offers fresh ways to see ourselves and new ways to pray.

Christianson uses a variety of methods from art criticism to Todorov''s actantial model to sketch a compr ehensive picture of some hitherto neglected narrative elemen ts in Qoheleth''s text. '

The collection of essays contains nineteen contributions that aim at locating the Song of Songs in its ancient context as well as addressing problems of interpretation and the reception of this biblical book in later literature. In contrast to previous studies this work devotes considerable attention to parallels from the Greek world without neglecting the Ancient Near East or Egypt. Several contributions deal with the use of the Song in Byzantine, Medieval, German Romantic and modern Greek Literature. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of the collection new perspectives and avenues of approach are opened.

This latest volume in the Readings series offers a helpful guide to the shortest, and arguably the most personal, as well as enigmatic, of Paul's letters. It surveys the range of interpretations put forward over the years, and identifies the strengths and weaknesses in the traditional reading of Philemon as addressing the estrangement that has arisen between Paul's friend Philemon and his runaway slave Onesimus. Recent alternatives to this reading are assessed, with particular attention to the light they shed on Paul's own attitude to slavery and his understanding of reconciliation. Historically, the Letter to Philemon has been the focus of much debate between abolitionists and pro-slavery advocates, and the use made of the Letter in the 18th and 19th centuries is here uniquely chronicled. In addition, the story of Onesimus and Philemon, as traditionally conceived, had a great appeal to writers of historical fiction, and a number of examples of that genre are summarized. The book also highlights the way in which Philemon has featured in filmic treatments of Paul's life, including a new and fascinating film in Arabic entitled The Runaway (2006). The volume offers an excellent introduction, not only to the main historical and critical issues raised by Philemon, but also to the rich legacy that the Letter has created for subsequent generations of readers who remain fascinated by the subtlety of its depiction of human relationships.

Weariness. Wonder. Joy. Longing. Anger. These are the feelings of the Psalms: honest expressions of pain and joy penned by real people in the midst of real life circumstances. Though they were written centuries ago, the Psalms still resonate deeply with us today, giving voice to our thoughts and longings: "Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD." (Psalm 130:1) "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble." (Psalm 46:1) "As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God." (Psalm 84:2) In Learning to Pray Through the Psalms, James W. Sire teaches us to take our appreciation for this rich book of Scripture a step further. Choosing ten specific psalms, Sire offers background information that helps us read each one with deeper insight and then lays out a meditative, step-by-step approach to using the psalmists' words as a guide for our own personal conversation with God. A group study is also included in each chapter, along with a guide for praying through the psalm in community. The Lord loves when his people pray. And his Word is a powerful tool for framing honest, intimate prayers. Sire's innovative approach will enrich our minds and our souls as we read more perceptively and pray with all of our emotions.

This exciting new study of the prophet Jeremiah attributes to him a pivotal significance in the historical period of Josiah's reign. He was, so Leuchter argues, one of the central agents of Josiah's propaganda machine and was intimately involved with the king's political agenda. Jeremiah, himself originally a member of the scribal school that composed the Deuteronomistic literature, encouraged the Shilonites of Anathoth to become active in Josiah's programme in the North following the waning of Assyrian power. Dismayed by the Shilonites' rejection of him and Josiah, and by the king's death at Megiddo, Jeremiah came to a radically new understanding of the divine purpose, encapsulated in the famous Temple sermon of Jeremiah 7 and evidenced in the prophet's debates with the political establishment in Jerusalem in the years that followed.

The Asaph psalms (50, 73-83) are a unity. They often call God 'Elohim' and 'El', and the people 'Joseph', as Amos does; they appeal to Israelite history, the exodus and the covenant; they are written in the face of military catastrophe. In this suggestive and brilliant work, Goulder argues that they were composed in Bethel in the 720s for use as the psalmody for the autumn festival. This gives us vital new evidence for the history of the Pentateuch: there was at Bethel a historical tradition from at least the time of the oppression in Egypt to the Solomonic Empire; the Asaphites took this tradition to Jerusalem and their descendants were the Deuteronomists.>

Slater presents a study of the three major christological images of Revelation and their meanings for the original audience. Employing both historical criticism and elements of sociology of knowledge, Christ and Community explores the social functions of 'one like a son of man', the Lamb, and the Divine Warrior, identifying both similarities and dissimilarities. The study argues, on the one hand, that the religious laxity found in Revelation 2-3 reflects attempts by some Christians to accommodate to provincial social pressures, while, on the other hand, Revelation 4-19 reflect the low status of Christians in the cities of Asia Minor.

Hosea and the Hosean tradition play an important role in the internal Israelite dispute about the nature of God and his relation to the world and Israel. Hosea refers to traditions of the past in which the interdependence between Yahweh and Israel, and in particular Yahweh's care for his people, are recurrent themes. The prophet can presuppose that certain portions of these traditions, both "historical" and "theological", are known to his audience, but it is his claim that what is not known to Israel is the demand that is inherent in Yahweh's past dealings with his people, the demand for exclusive worship of Yahweh. In his "historical" retrospections, Hosea enphasizes time after time that Israel has been chosen, not for a life of passive retreat, but to serve Israel's God alone. This he proclaims as the true knowledge of God.

The phrase 'works of the law' occurs only in the Dead Sea Scrolls and in Paul, but it has a different connotation in each corpus. At Qumran, the 'works of the law' are deeds of obedience to God's law, and are ultimately inspired by God. They function as a means of atonement, whether for the individual who performs them or for the sins of others. For Paul, on the other hand, the 'works of the law' are quintessentially the works of Abraham. Though they are indeed good deeds, Abraham himself was a sinful man, and so his deeds could not make atonement for himself or for others. In fact, Paul is reacting against the idea of Abraham as a redeemer figure that was held by some of his contemporaries. The phrase 'works of the law' thus takes on a negative coloration in Paul, as a deceptively false means of salvation. Against Qumran, Paul's position is that justification must be effected 'apart from works of the law', and thus by Jesus Christ. Abraham is no 'second Adam', as some were thinking, and his good deeds, epitomized in his sacrifice of Isaac, had no atoning value. This closely reasoned study makes an important contribution to the study of New Testament theology; it undertakes to settle some long-standing debates about Paul's soteriology by proposing an alternative both to traditional interpretation of Paul and to the 'New Perspective on Paul'.