In this study, Andrew J. Niggemann provides a comprehensive account of Martin Luther's Hebrew translation in his academic mid-career. Apart from the Psalms, no book of the Hebrew Bible has yet been examined in any comprehensive manner in terms of Luther's Hebrew translation. Andrew J. Niggemann furthers the scholarly understanding of Luther's Hebrew by examining his Minor Prophets translation, one of the final pieces of his first complete translation of the Hebrew Bible. As part of the analysis, he investigates the relationship between philology and theology in his Hebrew translation, focusing specifically on one of the themes that dominated his interpretation of the Prophets: his concept of Anfechtung. He thus shows that by mid-career, the impact of Hebrew on Luther's Bible translation was immense and very diverse, more so than has been appreciated. He expands the frame of reference with which scholars can understand Luther's Hebrew. He provides detailed analyses of many examples of his Hebrew translation which have never before been discussed or examined in any depth, and hundreds of examples of his methodological handling of Hebrew translation issues. He also includes one of the most exhaustive analyses to date of three key philological challenges that confronted Luther in translating the Bible: Hebrew figures of speech, the Hebrew trope of repetition, and Hebrew transliteration. Likewise included as an appendix is a substantial body of refined data from Luther's Hebrew translation, which further illuminates the examples in this study, and facilitates additional analysis for future research. The PhD dissertation this book is based on was awarded the Coventry Prize for the PhD dissertation in Theology with the highest mark and recommendation, University of Cambridge, St. Edmund's College in 2018.

Building on the foundation of the popular volumes The Bible from Scratch: The Old Testament for Beginners and The New Testament for Beginners, Donald Griggs and Paul Walaskay offer a new study on the book of Acts.

In seven chapters, Griggs and Walaskay tell the story of this popular New Testament book, with its stories of the works of Jesus' disciples after his death, resurrection, and ascension. A leader's guide and participant section are included, making this volume an excellent resource for group or individual study.

Meredith G. Kline is famous in the Reformed community for his teaching and writings in biblical and covenant theology. Many of Kline's former students, as well as many pastors and laypeople in the Reformed community, consider his work to have had a transformative effect on their faith and thinking. His teaching and writings (he wrote seven books and more than seventy articles) were filled with fresh, insightful interpretations. Meredith Kline's posthumously published Genesis: A New Commentary which distills his mature views on the book of Genesis and, indeed, on Scripture as a whole-will appeal greatly to those who already admire his work, and make his thinking accessible to a broader audience.

The Church of the first century faced remarkable challenges: the deaths of the apostles and a new generation of Church leaders, a rapid influx of believers and converts, interactions with numerous cultures and often hostile nations. The pastoral letters the First and Second Letters to Timothy and the Letter to Titus contain necessary instructions for carrying out the pastoral or ministerial office of the Church. In this volume of his study, Fr. William A. Anderson also includes the Letter to the Hebrews, which served a similar teaching function in the first century, helping to bridge the gap between the old and new covenants. With these guides, Christian communities ensured the centrality of Jesus in the midst of change.

It would be difficult to overestimate the importance of the Bible in the medieval world. For the Anglo-Saxons, literary culture emerged from sustained and intensive biblical study. Further, at least to judge from the Old English texts which survive, the Old Testament was the primary influence, both in terms of content and modes of interpretation. Though the Old Testament was only partially translated into Old English, recent studies have shown how completely interconnected Anglo-Latin and Old English literary traditions are.Old English Literature and the Old Testament considers the importance of the Old Testament from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, from comparative to intertextual and historical. Though the essays focus on individual works, authors, or trends, including the Interrogationes Sigewulfi, Genesis A, and Daniel, each ultimately speaks to the vernacular corpus as a whole, suggesting approaches and methodologies for further study.

This major work explores the message and meaning of Ezekiel, one of the longest and most difficult of the prophetic books. An introduction explains what is involved in reading a prophetic book, and how the book of Ezekiel was put together and structured. It looks at the form of speech used and discusses Ezekiel's author and those who transmitted, edited, and enlarged upon what he had to say. The destruction of Jerusalem is a primary concern, and attention is focused on the political and social situation of the time in order to provide a clear understanding of the political and religious crisis facing the prophet's contemporaries.

Since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, scholars have traced out the rich and complex traditions of biblical interpretation in Second Temple Judaism. Little attention has been given to date to Psalm 80, however. Andrew Streett demonstrates that the Psalm, which combines the story of Israel as a vine ravaged by others with hope for a "son" of God, a "son of man" who will restore the people's fortunes, became a rich trove for eschatological hope.This study traces interpretations of the Psalm, from the addition of verse 16b to its placement in the Psalter, its role as a source for Daniel 7, its interpretation in the Septuagint, and its use in the Dead Sea Scrolls (1QH XVI), the Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum, 2 Baruch, and later the Targum of the Psalms and Leviticus Rabbah. Further, Streett argues that the Psalm was an important biblical text through which early Christians understood the Christ event.

For decades, the prophetic book of Joel has been the focus of scrutiny that belies its brevity. It captures readers with its vivid descriptions of locusts and military invasion and the distress that they cause. It then reveals the concern of YHWH for the covenant community as it systematically reverses the crises that it announces. The book of Joel also offers a window into the rhetorical function of "the day of YHWH" as it uses the phrase to announce both judgment and restoration. Reflecting the creativity of the Old Testament prophetic spirit, the book then guides its readers from utter anguish to the hope of restoration, rooted in the presence of YHWH. From the Depths of Despair to the Promise of Presence delves into Joel's rhetoric and explores the ways in which it seeks to persuade its audience to adopt its perspective in order to respond to a time of crisis. Barker evaluates the state of the discussion surrounding Joel's composition and relationship to the Book of the Twelve. He develops a model of rhetorical criticism that builds on the foundations of previous approaches and proposes modifications that address the specific challenges posed by the book of Joel. He then puts this model into practice and demonstrates that the book of Joel moves from scenes of devastation to promises of restoration in articulating the necessity of calling and relying on YHWH in all circumstances. He explores the persuasive potential of Joel by focusing on its rhetorical structures and strategy. He examines the way the book of Joel engages its audience and guides the people to realize that they must turn to YHWH so that YHWH will turn and bring restoration. From the Depths of Despair to the Promise of Presence invites the reader to enter into the world of Joel. It calls the reader to experience the ways in which the book of Joel intertwines threats of destruction and the hope of renewal in order to reveal the character of YHWH.

The Church has rendered God safe. His wrath is a matter relegated to days of antiquity. It seems rare that we connect the brevity and frailty of this existence with His overflowing anger at sin. Unfortunately, having dispensed with His wrath we've also diminished His holiness and His majesty, and made the cross less necessary. This study invites the reader to take a second look at God and His wrath-and His Christ-through the eyes of Moses. Suitable for individuals or groups.

The story of Abraham and Isaac is a story of near universal importance. Sitting near the core of three of the world's great religious traditions, this nineteen verse story opens a world of interpretive possibilities, raising questions of family, loyalty, faith, and choices that are common to all.This collection of essays takes up the question of how our interpretation of this pivotal text has changed over time, and how, even in unlikely intellectual places, the story influences our thought.It begins by exploring various readings of Abraham and the Akedah story throughout the traditional lenses of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. From there, it moves into modern and postmodern readings, including how such varied thinkers as Kant and Kierkegaard, Kafka and Derrida have enaged the text.The book demonstrates the diversity of interpretations, and the dramatic impact of the story on the western intellectual tradition.

This volume discusses the Hebrew term 'eres' which is prominently used in Creation and Land theologies in the Bible. Uemura examines whether the term signifies the 'earth' or the 'Land' and traces the historical development of its uses in relation to these two meanings. He offers a survey of all of the occurrences of this term, categorizes them, and discusses the problematic instances in all of the surviving Hebrew and Aramaic texts. Uemura's examination begins with an analysis of the terms under discussion literally and stylistically in order to discern the semantic field of each term, as well as to determine its stylistic idiomatic uses. He discusses the uses of these two terms in ancient non-Jewish circumstances using materials taken from Phoenician, New Punic, Moabite and Aramaic inscriptions, as well as from an Aramaic papyri from Egypt and Nabataean papyri from Nahal Hever. The aim of this study is to show a cultural background of uses of these terms and Uemura sheds light on the biblical worldview in the Graeco-Roman period.

This volume contains 20 articles by leading scholars on the king and Messiah, mostly in the Old Testament, but also in the ancient Near East and post-biblical Judaism and New Testament. This volume is a major contribution to the study of kingship and messianism in the Old Testament in particular, but also in the ancient Near East more generally, and in post-biblical Judaism and the New Testament. It contains contributions by 20 scholars originally presented to the Oxford Old Testament Seminar. Part I, on the ancient Near East, has contributions by John Baines and W.G. Lambert. Part II, on the Old Testament, has essays by John Day, Gary Knoppers, Alison Salvesen, Carol Smith, Katharine Dell, Deborah Rooke, S.E. Gillingham, H.G.M. Williamson, J.G. McConville, Knut Heim, Paul Joyce, Rex Mason, John Barton and David Reimer. Part III, on post-biblical Judaism and the New Testament, is by William Horbury, George Brooke, Philip Alexander and Christopher Rowland. This noteworthy volume has many fresh insights and is essential reading for all concerned with kingship and messianism.

The prophets Ezekiel and Daniel dealt with a people living in captivity and persecution under foreign kings. Though they mainly addressed the current issues of their era, their warnings could predict future destruction or offer peace and redemption after a period of affliction. These messages were rarely welcome, and at times they came from unwilling messengers. But in the face of confusion and suffering, paired with God's insistence, they speak with courage and give hope and truth to nations and generations.