Sinning in the Hebrew Bible
How the Worst Stories Speak for Its Truth
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- 249,00 kr
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- 249,00 kr
Publisher Description
Stories of rape, murder, adultery, and conquest raise crucial issues in the Hebrew Bible, and their interpretation helps societies form their religious and moral beliefs. From the sacrifice of Isaac to the adultery of David, narratives of sin engender vivid analysis and debate, powering the myths that form the basis of the religious covenant, or the relationship between a people and their God.
Rereading these stories in their different forms and varying contexts, Alan F. Segal demonstrates the significance of sinning throughout history and today. Drawing on literary and historical theory, as well as research in the social sciences, he explores the motivation for creating sin stories, their prevalence in the Hebrew Bible, and their possible meaning to Israelite readers and listeners. After introducing the basics of his approach and outlining several hermeneutical concepts, Segal conducts seven linked studies of specific narratives, using character and text to clarify problematic terms such as "myth," "typology," and "orality." Following the reappearance and reinterpretation of these narratives in later compositions, he proves their lasting power in the mythology of Israel and the encapsulation of universal, perennially relevant themes. Segal ultimately positions the Hebrew Bible as a foundational moral text and a history book, offering uncommon insights into the dating of biblical events and the intentions of biblical authors.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Subtitle notwithstanding, this book by the late Barnard College professor of religion and Jewish Studies embraces the difficulties of determining the origins and even sense of some of the Bible's most unpleasant texts. In his own words, "If you think that you are 100 percent right about what the Bible says, then you are not working in the world of scholarship." Segal (Rebecca's Children: Judaism and Christianity in the Roman World) champions an attitude of disinterest applied to the process of investigation. The result is a book rich in information for intelligent nonspecialists, written in an accessible style that doesn't scrimp on complicated or challenging matters. There is little new for the world of biblical scholarship, but Segal uses new ways to show general readers how complex is the Bible's history of development. His comparison of select and related passages, aiming to demonstrate how ancestral narratives proved meaningful to an Israelite audience responsible for yet later biblical texts, results in a lucid treatment of the issues.
