This is a new and ground-breaking study of the nature and origins of the earliest material in the book of Proverbs, drawing on evidence from Israel and neighboring countries in the ancient Near East. This literature has been widely believed to have originated as pedagogical material, designed for the education of future administrators in the royal bureaucracy from the time of Solomon. That belief has played an important part not only in the interpretation of the texts, but in reconstructions of Israelite society and history. In this book, Weeks challenges this belief, arguing that it is largely founded on assumptions which are now widely discredited, and he sets out to re-evaluate the evidence in the light of more recent research. Weeks's illuminating conclusions will have important implications for the future study of this material, and for our understanding of ancient Israel's society and history.

Early Israelite Wisdom (Oxford Theological Monographs)

Literature & Fiction

Weeks, Stuart

History & Criticism

Oxford University Press

This is a new and ground-breaking study of the nature and origins of the earliest material in the book of Proverbs, drawing on evidence from Israel and neighboring countries in the ancient Near East. This literature has been widely believed to have originated as pedagogical material, designed for the education of future administrators in the royal bureaucracy from the time of Solomon. That belief has played an important part not only in the interpretation of the texts, but in reconstructions of Israelite society and history. In this book, Weeks challenges this belief, arguing that it is largely founded on assumptions which are now widely discredited, and he sets out to re-evaluate the evidence in the light of more recent research. Weeks's illuminating conclusions will have important implications for the future study of this material, and for our understanding of ancient Israel's society and history.

Early Israelite Wisdom (Oxford Theology and Religion Monographs)

History

Middle East

A detailed examination of Proverbs 1-9, an early Jewish poetic work. Stuart Weeks incorporates studies of literature from ancient Egypt and from the Dead Sea scrolls, but his focus is on the background and use of certain key images in the text. Proverbs 1-9 belongs to an important class of biblical literature (wisdom literature), and is less well known as a whole than the related books of Job and Ecclesiastes, partly because it has been viewed until recently as a dull and muddled school-book. However, parts of it have been profoundly influential on the development of both Judaism and Christianity, and occupy a key role in modern feminist theology. Weeks demonstrates that those parts belong to a much broader and more intricate set of ideas than older scholarship allowed.

Instruction and Imagery in Proverbs 1-9

Reference

Words, Language & Grammar

This new volume in the ICC on Ecclesiastes 1-5 brings together all the relevant aids to exegesis - linguistic, textual, archaeological, historical, literary and theological - to enable the scholar to have a complete knowledge and understanding of this Old Testament book. Stuart Weeks incorporates new evidence available in the field, surveys the wealth of secondary literature and provides an extensive introduction to Ecclesiastes as a whole.

Ecclesiastes 1-5: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary (International Critical Commentary)

Religion & Spirituality

Christian Books & Bibles

T&T Clark

Stuart Weeks provides a much needed introduction to wisdom literature. &gt;

An Introduction to the Study of Wisdom Literature (T&T Clark Approaches to Biblical Studies)

In contrast to much of the other literature in the Hebrew Bible, the wisdom books – Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes – have little interest in Israel's national history and worship, but focus instead on the needs of each individual, struggling to survive and prosper in a world that can be dangerous and confusing. This introduction to the study of Wisdom Literature is geared to questions of method and approach. The introduction and first chapter examine the basic questions central to the literature. Subsequent chapters outline the content, characteristics, and thought of each book, and discuss the problems involved in approaching and interpreting them. Examination of the biblical wisdom books is followed by a survey and discussion of other Jewish literature with a claim to be called 'wisdom literature', including psalms, and works from the apocrypha and from Qumran. The final chapters turn to more general issues of thought, place, and definition, concluding that wisdom literature must be understood not in terms of a shared origin, theology, or ideology, but as a type of literary discourse.

By emphasising observation and empiricism as a key influence on human behaviour, this work excludes any consideration of tradition or revelation. Scholars often view the apparent scepticism of Ecclesiastes in terms of a reaction against the more confident assertions found in works like Proverbs , and the book does indeed seem to deny the possibility of humans shaping their future or changing their fate through informed action. What appears to concern the work's protagonist, whose monologue occupies most of its length, is not any scepticism about God's activity or consistency rather the problems that arise from a human inability to discern divine action or purpose. This study will seek to understand both the roots and the implications of this empiricism, comparing the monologue with other biblical and ancient literature, and suggesting that, although it has points of contact with other texts, its scepticism is largely distinctive and, unlikely to represent some broader tradition. For that reason and others, the work as a whole is unlikely to be a satire, as is sometimes suggested, but it may be inviting critical reflection on the outlook and limitations of its protagonist. Over the last 30 years this pioneering series has established an unrivaled reputation for cutting-edge international scholarship in Biblical Studies and has attracted leading authors and editors in the field. The series takes many original and creative approaches to its subjects, including innovative work from historical and theological perspectives, social-scientific and literary theory, and more recent developments in cultural studies and reception history.

Ecclesiastes and Scepticism (The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies, 541)

Scholars often view the apparent scepticism of Ecclesiastes in terms of a reaction against the more confident assertions found in works like Proverbs, and the book does indeed seem to deny the possibility of humans shaping their future or changing their fate through informed action. What appears to concern the work's protagonist, whose monologue occupies most of its length, is not any scepticism about God's activity or consistency, but rather the problems that arise from a human inability to discern divine action or purpose. This study seeks to understand both the roots and the implications of this empiricism, comparing the monologue with other biblical and ancient literature, and suggesting that, although it has points of contact with other texts, its scepticism is largely distinctive, and unlikely to represent some broader tradition.

Ecclesiastes 5-12: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary (International Critical Commentary)

This volume completes Stuart Weeks' commentary on the book of Ecclesiastes, also known as Qoheleth. Weeks draws together all the relevant tools for understanding this complex wisdom book in the Old Testament. As is the hallmark of the ICC no stone is left unturned as Weeks considers the full range of linguistic, textual, archaeological, literary and theological interpretations of the text. Week incorporates recent interpretation alongside the history of research to examine the text of Ecclesiastes 6-12 in the closest possible, offering a reading of what may have be the original writer's linguistic and theological intent. The volume is a companion to Weeks' previous commentary on chapters 1-5 of Ecclesiastes, which also contains his exhaustive bibliography of works relevant to the study of the text.

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Weeks, Stuart. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Weeks, Stuart

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Weeks, Stuart. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Early Israelite Wisdom (Oxford Theological Monographs)

Early Israelite Wisdom (Oxford Theology and Religion Monographs)

Instruction and Imagery in Proverbs 1-9

Ecclesiastes 1-5: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary (International Critical Commentary)

An Introduction to the Study of Wisdom Literature (T&T Clark Approaches to Biblical Studies)

An Introduction to the Study of Wisdom Literature (T&T Clark Approaches to Biblical Studies)

Ecclesiastes and Scepticism (The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies, 541)

Ecclesiastes and Scepticism (The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies, 541)

Ecclesiastes 5-12: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary (International Critical Commentary)

Ecclesiastes 5-12: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary (International Critical Commentary)