From two expert scholars comes a comprehensive study of the dating of the Hebrew Bible The age of the Hebrew Bible is a topic that has sparked controversy and debate in recent years. The scarcity of clear evidence allows for the possibility of many views, though these are often clouded by theological and political biases. This impressive, broad‑ranging book synthesizes recent linguistic, textual, and historical research to clarify the history of biblical literature, from its oldest texts and literary layers to its youngest. In clear, concise language, the authors provide a comprehensive overview that cuts across scholarly specialties to create a new standard for the historical study of the Bible. This much‑needed work paves the path forward to dating the Hebrew Bible and understanding crucial aspects of its historical and contemporary significance.

How Old Is the Hebrew Bible?: A Linguistic, Textual, and Historical Study (The Anchor Yale Bible Reference Library)

Religion & Spirituality

Joosten, Jan

Hendel, Ronald

Christian Books & Bibles

Yale University Press

For over one hundred years International Critical Commentaries have had a  special place amongst works on the Bible. They have sought to bring  together all the relevant aids to exegesis - linguistic, textual,  archaeological, historical, literary and theological - to help the  reader understand the meaning of the books of the Old and New  Testaments. The new commentaries continue this tradition. New evidence  now available, as well as new methods of study, will be incorporated in  the confidant expectation that there will be an even greater need for  such commentaries in the twenty-first century than there has been in the  past. The authors, of the highest international standing, make no  attempt to secure a uniform theological or critical approach to the  biblical text: contributors have been invited for their scholarly  distinction, not for their adherence to any one school of thought.Jan  Joosten, Professor of Old Testament Exegesis at Marc Bloch University,  Strasbourg, adds to this prestigious serious a masterful exegetical and  critical commentary on Proverbs.

Proverbs 1-9 (International Critical Commentary)

T&T Clark

The Syriac Bible is a fascinating field to which too little serious research has been devoted. In the present volume, Jan Joosten gathers a number of pilot studies, published in various journals and collected volumes, shedding light on the Syriac 'Old Testament', on the Syriac New Testament, and on the relationship between them. Although some of the studies are technical, their implications range widely. Notably, a number of studies advance the claim that the Old Syriac and Peshitta gospels preserve echoes of an Aramaic gospel tradition that bypassed the Greek gospels and gives independent access to the earliest, oral, traditions on the life and teaching of Jesus.

Language and Textual History of the Syriac Bible (Texts and Studies)

Gorgias Press

This work proposes a reconstruction of the thought world underlying the Holiness Code (Leviticus 17-26). It focuses on the notions of people and land, which are central to the way the law is presented in this corpus. Important themes treated include the sons of Israel, the resident alien, the call to holiness, the camp in the desert and the land as the property of the Lord. The conceptual universe of the Holiness Code is entirely dominated by the notion of the presence of the Lord in his sanctuary, in the midst of his people. It is this presence which requires the Israelites to observe holiness and confers upon the land its particular status. The priestly conception of the relationship between God, people and land finds interesting parallels in the ideology of holy places evidenced in writings from the Ancient Near East.

People and Land in the Holiness Code: An Exegetical Study of the Ideational Framework of the Law in Leviticus 17-26 (SUPPLEMENTS TO VETUS TESTAMENTUM)

Brill Academic Pub

The verbal system of Biblical Hebrew has been a daunting challenge for Hebraists, Bible scholars, and comparative Semitists. Already in ancient versions we see translators struggling with it. Good understanding of the verbal system is of vital importance not only for grammarians, but also for exegetes. In the past one and half a century or so some significant advances have been made, thanks to the discovery of new texts in Hebrew and cognate Semitic languages and developments in general linguistics, even the discovery of totally new languages such as Ugaritic and Eblaite. Not a few scholars have made use of these new data and applied new linguistic perspectives in order to elucidate the Hebrew verbal system as a whole and various aspects of the system. Joosten is one such. With his profound expertise in Biblical Hebrew, the Jewish Bible, Classical Syriac and the Septuagint he presents here an impressive synthesis of the modern studies of the Hebrew verbal system. It goes far beyond a mere critical survey of the past and present studies, but Joosten has conducted his own research on the subject over the past two decades or so. This book is focused on the classical prose of Genesis up to Kings, though more than cursory attention has been paid to later texts and poetic texts. The analysis and presentation of data is commendably lucid, backed up with plentiful examples. The author's use of technical terms, some not part of the common parlance of Bible scholars, is user-friendly and not off-putting. Joosten is modestly aware himself that he has not said the last word, but has broadened our horizon. We have here an essential reading not only for Hebraists and Semitists, but also for anyone seriously interested in the Jewish Bible.

The Verbal System of Biblical Hebrew: A New Synthesis Elaborated on the Basis of Classical Prose (Jerusalem Biblical Studies)

Reference

Words, Language & Grammar

Simor ltd.