The Biblical World, Volume 1

548 Pages·2004·7.31 MB·English

by  John Barton

THE BIBLICAL WORLD
The Biblical World is a comprehensive guide to the contents, historical setting and social
context of the Bible. It presents the fruits of years of specialist study in accessible form,
and is essential reading for anyone who reads the Bible and would like to know more
about how and why it came to be.
Volume I begins with an overview of the full range of Biblical material (Old
Testament, Apocrypha and New Testament), before going on to more detailed discussion
of the major genres of biblical literature—from myth and prophecy to poetry and
proverbs. The contributors also consider the ways in which the texts have been
transmitted, the significance of parallel and related versions, and past interpretations of
the Bible.
Explorations of the historical background are complemented by the findings of
archaeology, and discussion of matters such as language, law, administration, social life
and the arts offers a fuller understanding of the social and cultural setting of ancient Israel
and the early Christian churches. Major figures in the Bible—including Abraham, Jesus
and Paul—are studied in detail, as are its central religious concepts, such as salvation and
purity. Volume II concludes with a survey of how the Bible is studied and seen today.
Written by an international collection of acknowledged experts, this monumental work
will be an invaluable resource for students, academics and clergy, and for all to whom the
Bible is important as a religious or cultural document.
John Barton is Oriel and Laing Professor of the Interpretation of Holy Scripture,
University of Oxford, and Fellow of Oriel College, Oxford. He is the author of numerous
books and articles on biblical texts, and is also the editor of The Cambridge Companion
to Biblical Interpretation (1998) and (with John Muddiman) of The Oxford Bible
Commentary (2001).

THE BIBLICAL WORLD
Volume I
Edited by
John Barton

LONDON AND NEW YORK
Every attempt has been made to obtain permission to reproduce copyright material. If any proper
acknowledgement has not been made, we would invite copyright holders to inform us of the
oversight.
First published 2002 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada by Routledge 270 Madison Avenue, New York,
NY 10016
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2006.
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thousands of eBooks please go to http://www.ebookstore.tandf.co.uk/.
First published in paperback 2004
© 2002 John Barton selection and editorial matter; individual chapters, the
contributors
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or
by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission
in writing from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from
the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
ISBN 0-203-30949-9 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN 0-415-34954-0 (Print Edition) (2 vol. set)
ISBN 0-415-35090-5 (Print Edition) (Vol. 1)
CONTENTS

List of illustrations ix
List of contributors xiv
Preface xxi

John Barton
List of abbreviations xxii

Introduction 1

John Barton

Volume I

PART I: THE BIBLE

1 The Old Testament/Hebrew Bible 5

Rex Mason
2 The Apocrypha 16

Adele Reinhartz
3 The New Testament 29

Christopher Tuckett

PART II: GENRES

4 Near Eastern myths and legends 42

Stephanie Dalley
5 Historiography in the Old Testament 67

A.D.H.Mayes
6 Prophecy 89

Graeme Auld
7 Wisdom 108

Katharine Dell
8 Apocalypticism 130

Christopher Rowland
9 The Jewish novel 149

Lawrence M.Wills
10 The Gospels 162

John Muddiman
11 Letters in the New Testament and in the Greco-Roman world 187

Harry Gamble

PART III: DOCUMENTS

12 Text and versions: the Old Testament 205

Carmel McCarthy
13 Text and versions: the New Testament 227

David Parker
14 The Dead Sea Scrolls 248

George J.Brooke
15 Hebrew inscriptions 267

Graham Davies
16 The Cairo Genizah 284

Stefan C.Reif
17 The gnostic gospels 302

Alastair H.B.Logan
18 Early Jewish biblical interpretation 319

Alison Salvesen
19 Early Christian biblical interpretation 329

Mark Edwards

PART IV: HISTORY

20 Biblical archaeology 341

Felicity J.Cobbing
21 Palestine during the Bronze Age 359

J.Maxwell Miller
22 Palestine during the Iron Age 386

Keith W.Whitelam
23 The age of the exile 411

Joseph Blenkinsopp
24 Israel under Persia and Greece 435

Lester L.Grabbe
25 Judaea under Roman rule, 63 BCE–135 CE 452

Sarah Pearce
26 Israel’s neighbours 485

Bustenay Oded
Volume II

PART V: INSTITUTIONS

27 The Hebrew and Aramaic languages 3

John Huehnergard and Jo Ann Hackett
28 The Greek language 25

John Muddiman
29 Warfare 33

Thomas M.Bolin
30 The arts: architecture, music, poetry, psalmody 53

Susan Gillingham
31 Law and administration in the New Testament world 75

J.Duncan M.Derrett
32 Religion in pre-exilic Israel 90

Rainer Albertz
33 Religion in Israel during and after the exile 101

Rainer Albertz
34 Judaism at the turn of the era 125

Jarl Fossum
35 The first churches: social life 137

Justin J.Meggitt
36 The first churches: religious practice 157

Justin J.Meggitt

PART VI: BIBLICAL FIGURES

37 Israel’s ancestors: the patriarchs and matriarchs 175

George W.Ramsey
38 Moses 194

John Van Seters
39 David and Solomon 208

Gwilym H.Jones
40 Jesus 223

Robert Morgan
41 Paul 258

David G.Horrell
PART VII: RELIGIOUS IDEAS

42 Salvation in Jewish thought 287

Dan Cohn-Sherbok
43 Salvation in Christian thought 317

Andrew Chester
44 Interpretations of the identity and role of Jesus 332

Catrin H.Williams
45 Death and afterlife 357

John J.Collins
46 Purity 378

Gordon Wenham

PART VIII: THE BIBLE TODAY

47 Jewish Bible translation 397

Leonard J.Greenspoon
48 Christian Bible translation 413

Henry Wansbrough
49 Modern biblical interpretation 427

William R.Telford

Index of biblical references 451
Index of modern authors 495
Subject index 507
ILLUSTRATIONS

1.1 Books of the Hebrew and Greek Bibles in their canonical 12

order
2.1 A miniature from the Bible of Patricius Leo in Rome 20
2.2 Judith and her Maidservant 21
2.3 Susanna and the Elders 22
4.1 Apsu, the ocean of fresh water 46
4.2 The Legend of Etana shown on a cylinder seal 47
4.3 Scorpion-man from Tell Halaf in Syria 52
4.4 Winged, human-headed bull from Assyrian palace of 53

Assurnasirpal II
4.5 Seven-headed dragon, shown on a cylinder seal 53
4.6 Ninurta attacking Anzu 55
4.7 Frieze from the great temple at Palmyra 55
4.8 Humbaba, divine guardian of the Pine Forest 57
4.9 Ivory carving from Samaria showing Horus on a lotus flower 63
7.1 Solomon dictates the Proverbs 110
7.2 Statue of Sophia at Ephesus 112
7.3 Job visited by his wife 115
7.4 Statue of Job from outside Yad Vashem 117