This collection of nineteen representative essays is a Festschrift written by former colleagues and students in honor of Prof. Dr. Robert Jewett (1933–2020) and his legacy. Our hope is that future generations of Bible readers will find this textbook on biblical interpretation helpful for navigating through the strong winds of exegetical, theological, and hermeneutical methods. Jewett’s expansive research interests have inspired each author in this tribute volume, each of whom has witnessed to the ways that helmsman Jewett has navigated through the often-choppy ocean waters of biblical interpretation—as well as the complex, changing world of religion, sacred texts, films and popular culture, psychology and sociology, politics and Pauline studies.

This collection of nineteen representative essays is a Festschrift written by former colleagues and students in honor of Prof. Dr. Robert Jewett (1933-2020) and his legacy. Our hope is that future generations of Bible readers will find this textbook on biblical interpretation helpful for navigating through the strong winds of exegetical, theological, and hermeneutical methods. Jewett's expansive research interests have inspired each author in this tribute volume, each of whom has witnessed to the ways that helmsman Jewett has navigated through the often-choppy ocean waters of biblical interpretation--as well as the complex, changing world of religion, sacred texts, films and popular culture, psychology and sociology, politics and Pauline studies. Contributors Kathy Ehrensperger Brigitte Kahl Aliou C. Niang Aida Besancon Spencer Lallene Rector T. Christopher Hoklotubbe Najeeb T. Haddad Robert K. Johnston Frank Hughes Goh Menghun Hii Kong-hock Lim Kar Yong Keith Burton Sheila McGinn Douglas Campbell Ellen Jewett William S. Campbell Troy W. Martin Zakali Shohe Christopher Deacy A. Andrew Das Frederick Mawusi Amevenku

Biblical criticism faces increasing hostility on two fronts: from biblical conservatives, who claim it is inherently positivistic and religiously skeptical, and from postmodernists, who see it as driven by the falsities of objectivity and neutrality. In this magisterial overview of the key factors and developments in biblical studies, John Barton demonstrates that these evaluations of biblical criticism fail to do justice to the work that has been done by critical scholars over many generations. Traditional biblical criticism has had as its central concern a semantic interest: a desire to establish the "plain sense" of the biblical text, which in itself requires sensitivity to many literary aspects of texts. Therefore, he argues, biblical criticism already includes many of the methodological approaches now being recommended as alternatives to it and, further, the agenda of biblical studies is far less fragmented than often thought.

This book examines the theology and ethics of land use, especially the practices of modern industrialized agriculture, in light of critical biblical exegesis. Nine interrelated essays explore the biblical writers' pervasive concern for the care of arable land against the background of the geography, social structures, and religious thought of ancient Israel. This approach consistently brings out neglected aspects of texts, both poetry and prose, that are central to Jewish and Christian traditions. Rather than seeking solutions from the past, Davis creates a conversation between ancient texts and contemporary agrarian writers; thus she provides a fresh perspective from which to view the destructive practices and assumptions that now dominate the global food economy. The biblical exegesis is wide-ranging and sophisticated; the language is literate and accessible to a broad audience.

The Bible was written within collectivist cultures, and it's easy for Westerners to misinterpret—or miss—important elements. Combining the expertise of a biblical scholar and a missionary practitioner, this essential guidebook explores the deep social structures of the ancient Mediterranean, stripping away individualist assumptions and helping us read the Bible better.

The burgeoning use of modern literary theory and cultural criticism in recent biblical studies has led to stimulating--but often bewildering--new readings of the Bible. This book, argued from a perspective shaped by postmodernism, is at once an accessible guide to and an engagement with various methods, theories, and critical practices transforming biblical scholarship today. Written by a collective of cutting-edge scholars--with each page the work of multiple hands--The Postmodern Bible deliberately breaks with the individualist model of authorship that has traditionally dominated scholarship in the humanities and is itself an illustration of the postmodern transformation of biblical studies for which it argues. The book introduces, illustrates, and critiques seven prominent strategies of reading. Several of these interpretive strategies--rhetorical criticism, structuralism and narratology, reader-response criticism, and feminist criticism--have been instrumental in the transformation of biblical studies up to now. Many--feminist and womanist criticism, ideological criticism, poststructuralism, and psychoanalytic criticism--hold promise for the continued transformation of these studies in the future. Focusing on readings from both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, this volume illuminates the current multidisciplinary debates emerging from postmodernism by exposing the still highly contested epistemological, political, and ethical positions in the field of biblical studies.

Historically, religious scriptures are defined as holy texts that are considered to be beyond the abilities of the layperson to interpret. Their content is most frequently analyzed by clerics who do not question the underlying political or social implications of the text, but use the writing to convey messages to their congregations about how to live a holy existence. In Western society, moreover, what counts as scripture is generally confined to the Judeo-Christian Bible, leaving the voices of minorities, as well as the holy texts of faiths from Africa and Asia, for example, unheard. In this innovative collection of essays that aims to turn the traditional bible-study definition of scriptures on its head, Vincent L. Wimbush leads an in-depth look at the social, cultural, and racial meanings invested in these texts. Contributors hail from a wide array of academic fields and geographic locations and include such noted academics as Susan Harding, Elisabeth Shüssler Fiorenza, and William L. Andrews. Purposefully transgressing disciplinary boundaries, this ambitious book opens the door to different interpretations and critical orientations, and in doing so, allows an ultimately humanist definition of scriptures to emerge.