Designed for students undertaking their first systematic study of the Hebrew Bible, this text has two goals: to acquaint readers with the content and major themes of the biblical documents, and to introduce them to issues in biblical scholarship. Pedagogically rich and reader-friendly, this text was designed for conventional introductory courses using historical-critical methodology, and will also be useful in courses studying the Bible as literature, or as a reference text in the study of ancient religion.
Part I: The Hebrew Bible: An Overview
1. The Hebrew Bible: A Composite Portrait of God and the Divine-Human Relationship
2. The Process of Formation: The Transmission, Canonization, and Translation of the Biblical Text
Part II: The Biblical World: Culture and Religion
3. The Ancient Near East: The Environment that Produced the Bible
4. The God of Israel: An Evolving Portrait
Part III: The Torah
5. Who Wrote the "Books of Moses"?
6. The Five Books of Torah (Divine Instruction)
7. In the Beginning: The Book of Genesis
8. Freedom and Responsibility: The Book of Exodus
9. Regulating the Divine-Human Bond: The Books of Leviticus and Numbers
10. A Mosaic Legacy: The Book of Deuteronomy
Part IV: The Prophets (Nevi'im) I
11. Introduction to the Deuteronomistic History
12. The Origins of Israel: The Book of Joshua
13. YHWH and Baal: The Book of Judges
14. The Birth of the Monarchy: The Books of 1 and 2 Samuel
15. Parallel Stories of Israel and Judah: The Books of 1 and 2 Kings
Part V: The Prophets (Nevi'im) II
16. The Nature and Function of Israelite Prophecy
17. Prophets to the Northern Kingdom: The Books of Amos and Hosea
18. The Assyrian Crisis: Isaiah of Jerusalem, Micah, Zephaniah, and Nahum
19. The Babylonian Threat: The Books of Habakkuk, Jeremiah, and Obadiah
20. Prophets in Exile: Ezekiel and Second Isaiah
21. After the Exile: Israel's Last Prophets: Haggai, Zechariah, Third Isaiah, Joel, Malachi, and Jonah
Part VI: The Writings (Kethuvim)
22. Introduction to the Writings: Reevaluating Israel's Life with God
23. The Postexilic Readjustment: The Books of Ezra and Nehemiah
24. Hebrew Poetry and The Book of Psalms
25. Israel's Wisdom Writers: Seeking God in Cosmos and Society: Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes
26. Four Books of the Megillot (Festival Scrolls): Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, and Esther
27. Reinterpreting Israel's History: 1 and 2 Chronicles
28. Keeping Torah in a Hostile World: The Diaspora, the Maccabean Revolt, Apocalyptism, and the Visions of Daniel
Part VII: Additions to the Hebrew Bible: The Deuterocanonical Books
29. Introduction to the Apocrypha
30. The Pseudepigrapha: Noncanonical Writings of the Late Biblical Period
31. The Wars Against Rome and the Destruction of the Jewish State
Glossary
Bibliography