This French work presents an exegetic and theological interpretation of Qoheleth's speech on riches (Ecclesiastes 5:9-6:6). The detailed exegetic analysis distinguishes the existential meaning from the anthropological and theological meaning, and develops a rhetorical figure of wisdom which is characterised by two aspects - either the denial of God or the reference to God. Using a parallel to the Book of Job, the intertextuality of the discourse of wisdom becomes clear. To the extent that the critical literary and the hermeneutic approach foregrounds the text in its final form, it points directly to the internal tension of the text, which is marked by contrasts, and questions the conditions of the process of composition. This approach also provides a new access to Qoheleth's provocative thinking.

Good and evil, clean and unclean, rich and poor, self and other. The nature and function of such binary oppositions have long intrigued scholars in such fields as philosophy, linguistics, classics, and anthropology. From the opening chapters of Genesis, in which God separates day from night, and Adam and Eve partake of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, dyadic pairs proliferate throughout the Hebrew Bible. In this groundbreaking work melding critical exegesis and contemporary theory, Saul M. Olyan considers the prevalence of polarities in biblical discourse and expounds their significance for the social and religious institutions of ancient Israel. Extant biblical narrative and legal texts reveal a set of socially constructed and culturally privileged binary oppositions, Olyan argues, which instigate and perpetuate hierarchical social relations in ritual settings such as the sanctuary.

Focusing on four binary pairs--holy/common, Israelite/alien, clean/unclean, and whole/blemished--Olyan shows how these privileged oppositions were used to restrict access to cultic spaces, such as the temple or the Passover table. These ritual sites, therefore, became the primary contexts for creating and recreating unequal social relations. Olyan also uncovers a pattern of challenge to the established hierarchies by nonprivileged groups. Converging with contemporary issues of power, marginalization, and privileging, Olyan's painstaking yet lucid study abounds with implications for anthropology, classics, critical theory, and feminist studies.

Wow your friends with the most unbelievable, the most outrageous, and the littlest-known facts about the Bible

Ever feel like you don't know much about people, places, and other hard facts of the Bible? Well, help is here, dear friend. T.J. McTavish, knower of many things, is back with A Biblical Miscellany-and it includes everything you need to know to stump even your local religious scholar.

A Biblical Miscellany covers such topics as: Famous (and not so famous) shepherds The "Cursing" Psalms-What use are they? Infamous infidelities Least Popular biblical names

Using both wit and candor, McTavish informs as well as entertains, leading you down a path of enlightenment-or at least of trivial revelation-and doling out tidbits on the Bible along the way.

street life is a funny, thought-provoking, God-revealing look at the real issues of 21st-century lives. If it's on the street, it's in here - everything from chewing gum to mobile phones, traffic lights to trees, sex shops to scaffolding. All the things around us and all the ways in which we can use those sights to explore the Kingdom of God. Based on the bestselling approach of the street bible, street life takes things one step further, generating discussion, engagement, and resolve; offering wisdom from across the ages and ideas for action today; and, most of all, pointing readers back to the real thing - the Bible with a capital 'B'. Ideal for individual Bible study, youth groups, and house groups, street life is about going deeper than just reading the stories and actually creating a different lifestyle. It's about making the words count.

The study examines the thesis widely held in religious studies and theology that in the ancient world there was a close link between the possession of citizenship and the chance - and also the obligation - to engage in cult. There is a critical discussion of different versions of this thesis. The study presents, translates and interprets epigraphic and literary sources on cultic practice and religious law from the Hellenistic Age from Greek poleis, Rome and Judaism.

In today's world it's easy to wander away from God. Hectic schedules and the quest for success often mean that time with God gets neglected. But if you slow down long enough to listen, the minor prophets can have a major impact on the quality of your life. These twelve studies in Jonah, Joel and Amos, written by Doug and Doris Haugen, will help you focus on your number one priority--to seek the Lord and live This revised LifeGuide Bible Study features additional questions for starting group discussions and for meeting God in personal reflection, together with expanded leader's notes and a "Now or Later" section in each study.

In this study the author is concerned with how human life is understood in the biblical book of Qoheleth (the Preacher). In Qoheleth, insight into one's own mortality leads to a new evaluation of happiness in life. Both the various areas of human life (for example work and rest, poverty and wealth, youth and old age) and the relationship of human beings to God are developed by Qoheleth between the poles of "death" and "happiness in life."

These six studies, edited by Cindy Bunch, will introduce you to the circumstances surrounding the birth of Jesus, remind you of God's faithfulness and power to fulfill his promises, and draw you more deeply into the love that brought Christ to earth.

"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love." John 15:9 Before Jesus left this world he gave specific encouragement and instructions to his disciples on what to expect and how to live after he had gone. These words still apply to his disciples today. In Abiding in Christ, trusted guides J. I. Packer and Carolyn Nystrom lead you through a study of Jesus' farewell to his disciples in John 14--17 to help you discover what it means to abide in Christ during the time between Christ's departure and his second coming. This LifeGuide Bible Study in IVP Connect's revised format features questions for starting group discussions and for meeting God in personal reflection, as well as a "Now or Later" section following each session to help you act on what you learn.

The author here presents a contribution to the Gospel literature of the New Testament. In his analysis of Luke 8-21 as an integral part of Luke-Acts, he deals with this section in a literary-critical and traditio-historical way. Ever since Schleiermacher the hypothesis of a "travel narrative" or a corresponding "central section" (the term employed in the English-speaking world) beginning in "Luke" 9:51 and covering about ten chapters, has been dominant in research of the "Third Gospel". The author shows that this hypothesis is "un-Lukan". This in turn makes a new access to the total Lukan project possible. One part of the analysis of the text, for example, is a comparison with the narrative techniques of bios literature in classical sources.

What does it mean to "seek first the kingdom of God" in our relationships, values, ambitions, finances and commitments? Jesus' answer to these questions amazed those who first heard the Sermon on the Mount. In this study guide, you'll dig deep into his startling and challenging message--the greatest sermon ever preached. This LifeGuide Bible Study features questions for starting group discussions and for meeting God in personal reflection. Leader's notes are included with information on study preparation, leading the study and small group components as well as helps for specific Bible passages covered in the study. Presented in a convenient workbook format and featuring the inductive Bible study approach, LifeGuides are thoroughly field-tested prior to publication; they're proven and popular guides for digging into Scripture on your own or with a small group.

Joseph faced hard times--more than once. He was sold into slavery by his brothers. He spent years imprisoned because of a false accusation. And yet Joseph was able to live in forgiveness and hope, and God did great things in his life every step of the way. Paul Borthwick invites you to explore Joseph's story as a way toward discovering how God's dreams might be fulfilled in and through you. This LifeGuide Bible Study features questions for starting group discussions and for meeting God in personal reflection, together with leader's notes and a "Now or Later" section in each study.

In this study Douglas Connelly looks at various metaphors for how we grow more spiritually mature in Christ, including running a race, carrying a cross, constructing a building, fighting a battle and more. This LifeGuide Bible Study in IVP Connect's revised format features questions for starting group discussions and for meeting God in personal reflection, as well as a "Now or Later" section following each session to help you act on what you learn.

More than 80 years after its initial publication, Halley’s Bible Handbook remains a bestseller in its various editions, with millions of copies sold worldwide. This world-renowned Bible handbook has been consistently updated and revised to accurately provide even greater clarity, insight, and usefulness.

Halley’s Bible Handbook makes the Bible’s wisdom and message accessible to people from all walks of life. Whether they’ve read the Bible many times or never before, readers will find insights that give them a firm grasp of God’s Word and an appreciation for the cultural, religious, and geographic settings in which the story of the Bible unfolds. Written for both mind and heart, this completely revised, updated, and expanded 25th edition retains Dr. Halley's highly personal style.

It features:

• All-new maps, photographs, and illustrations
• Contemporary design
• Practical Bible reading programs
• Helpful tips for Bible study
• Fascinating archaeological information
• Easy-to-understand sections on how we got the Bible and on church history
• Improved indexes

In Slaves, Women & Homosexuals William J. Webb tackles some of the most complex and controversial issues that have challenged the Christian church--and still do. He leads you through the maze of interpretation that has historically surrounded understanding of slaves, women and homosexuals, and he evaluates various approaches to these and other biblical-ethical teachings. Throughout, Webb attempts to "work out the hermeneutics involved in distinguishing that which is merely cultural in Scripture from that which is timeless" (Craig A. Evans). By the conclusion, Webb has introduced and developed a "redemptive hermeneutic" that can be applied to many issues that cause similar dilemmas. Darrel L. Bock writes in the foreword to Webb's work, "His goal is not only to discuss how these groups are to be seen in light of Scriptures but to make a case for a specific hermeneutical approach to reading these texts. . . . This book not only advances a discussion of the topics, but it also takes a markedly new direction toward establishing common ground where possible, potentially breaking down certain walls of hostility within the evangelical community."

"The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible "delivers Stanley's cherished values to benefit every Christian in their life's pursuits.

With almost 200,000 in print, "The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible "communicates the life principles Dr. Stanley has gleaned from the Word through his years of Bible teaching and pastoral ministry. The result is a Bible overflowing with practical articles, notes, and sidebars that help readers understand what the Bible has to say about life's most important questions.

Features include:

• 30 "Life Principles" articles highlight essential teachings.
• "What the Bible Says About . . . "bring scriptural insight.
• "Answers to Life's Questions "equip you to face daily challenges.

Part of the "Signature Series" line of Thomas Nelson Bibles

The New King James Version--More than 60 million copies sold in 30 years

Eat This Book challenges us to read the Scriptures on their own terms, as God?'s revelation, and to live them as we read them. With warmth and wisdom Peterson offers greatly needed, down-to-earth counsel on spiritual reading. In these pages he draws readers into a fascinating conversation on the nature of language, the ancient practice of lectio divina, and the role of Scripture translations; included here is the inside story behind Peterson?'s own popular Bible translation, The Message.

When we strip away what is superficial, cultural or traditional, what is the essence of true Christianity? What qualities and beliefs characterize a living--and life-changing--faith? The three letters of John help to answer these questions. 1, 2 and 3 John focus on the most important aspects of Christian life. As Ron Blankley leads you through the lessons of these letters, you'll discover what really matters--now and for eternity. Now available in IVP's revised LifeGuide Bible Study format, John's Letters features questions for starting group discussions and for personal reflection, as well as a new "Now or Later" section following each session.

How can you become a woman of God? Leading you through a series of studies drawn from Old and New Testament passages, Bunch offers Scripture as the best guide to help you develop the traits of a godly woman. She includes sessions on how to be strong, trustworthy, wise, resourceful, forgiving, beautiful, content, confident--and how to claim God's grace when you fall short. This LifeGuide Bible Study in IVP's revised format features questions for starting group discussions and for meeting God in personal reflection, as well as a new "Now or Later" section following each session to help you act on what you learn.

Do you long to experience God's presence in your life? In this study guide Stephen D. Eyre leads you to explore the story told in Deuteronomy--the story of God's people seeking after him. As you trace their journey, experiencing their forward progress, their detours and their obstacles, you, too, will learn to follow God more closely. This revised LifeGuide Bible Study features additional questions for starting group discussions and for meeting God in personal reflection, together with expanded leader's notes and a "Now or Later" section in each study.

Contained in the Lord's Prayer is a complete picture of our life with God. Covering topics ranging from our view of God to our most intimate human relationship to how we treat the world around us and the people in it, the Lord's Prayer is a trustworthy guide for spiritual formation and a compact handbook for holiness. In Living the Lord's Prayer, Father Albert Haase follows the lines of this greatest of all prayers, showing how the ideas have been understood by great people of faith in the past and revealing how they are useful for our spiritual formation today. With Haase's counsel plus the wisdom of this great cloud of witnesses that includes Francis of Assisi, Martin Luther, Therese of Lisieux and others, you'll discover how God can use this prayer to shape your very soul. Including true stories and reflection questions for individual consideration or discussion with a spiritual director or small group, Living the Lord's Prayer will teach you to live--rather than simply say--the Lord's Prayer, and thereby to walk in the way of a true disciple.

The ESV Study Bible, Large Print includes nearly all the features of the award-winning ESV Study Bible in highly readable, large-print type. A new typesetting allows for increased readability while maintaining the same trim size of the original. All of the original's extensive articles, 20,000 study notes, 240 maps and illustrations, charts, timelines, and book introductions are included in a two-color interior. Those looking for the ESV Study Bible in a readable and reasonably sized format will enjoy this large print edition. Size: 6.5" x 9.25" 11-point type 3,008 pages Black letter text Double-column, paragraph format Cross-references Concordance Book introductions 20,000 study notes 240 two-color maps and illustrations Charts and timelines Free access to the ESV Online Study Bible