Gordon McConville - Böcker

The Historical Books of the Old Testament (the Histories) are: Joshua, Judges, 1 and 2 Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings, Ruth, Esther, Ezra, Nehemiah, and 1 and 2 Chronicles.This book is an introduction to the Histories intended for first- or second-year students at theological college or university. It is meant to be read in conjunction with the biblical text.The book includes maps; tables of key facts, chronologies and events; and numerous inset panels. These provide brief treatments of particular topics, suggest questions for thought and discussion, or introduce the reader to issues that require deeper research and reflection.

This is the fourth title in a major series of text books for students. Subjects covered include, for every prophet, a discussion of the date, who the prophet spoke to, how the critics have interpreted it, how it relates to history and to other prophets, its structure and outline. Each chapter includes exercises and essay topics at levels 1 and 2 to fully involve the students. 'Gordon McConville has written a highly readable introduction to the Hebrew prophets that locates them in their ancient historical setting, opens up the prophetic texts in the light of the most recent scholarship, and brings out their relevance for modern living. It fulfils superbly its aim of making the prophets accessible to the student reader' Professor Robert P. Gordon, University of Cambridge.

The book of Deuteronomy is one of the great theological documents of the Bible. The main lines of its thought can be traced not only in the book itself, but throughout the Old Testament, especially in the historical books from Joshua to 2 Kings--hence the term "Deuteronomic theology." In this book, the first in a series on Studies in the Old Testament Biblical Theology, McConville surveys and evaluates both older and more recent scholarly approaches to Deuteronomic theology. He shows how Israel persistently failed to keep God's covenant by rejecting him and relying on themselves instead. For that reason, God consistently brought his judgment on them, but that was not his final word to them. They survived as a nation only because of God's overpowering grace; there is grace in history in the end.

In this outstanding commentary, Gordon McConville offers a theological interpretation of the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy in the context of the biblical canon. He gives due attention to historical issues where these bear on what can be known about the settings in which the text emerged. His dominant method is one that approaches Deuteronomy as a finished work.Dr McConville argues that in the context of the ancient world, Deuteronomy should be understood as the radical blueprint for the life of a people, at the same time both spiritual and political, and profoundly different from every other social, political and religious programme. The book incorporates the tension between an open-ended vision of a perfectly ordered society under God, and practical provisions for dealing with the frailty and imperfections of real people. Hence, it is capable of informing our thinking about the organisation of societies while maintaining a vision of the kingdom of God.

The writings of the prophets make up over a quarter of the Old Testament. But perhaps no other portion of the Old Testament is more misunderstood by readers today.For some, prophecy conjures up knotted enigmas, opaque oracles and terrifying visions of the future. For others it raises expectations of a plotted-out future to be reconstructed from disparate texts. And yet the prophets have imprinted the language of faith and imagination with some of its most sublime visions of the future - nations streaming to Zion, a lion lying with a lamb, and endlessly fruiting trees on the banks of a flowing river.We might view the prophets as stage directors for Israel's unfolding drama of redemption. Drawing inspiration from past acts in that drama and invoking fresh words from its divine author, these prophets speak a language of sinewed poetry, their words and images arresting the ear and detonating in the mind. For when Yahweh roars from Zion and thunders from Jerusalem, the pastures of the shepherds dry up, the crest of Carmel withers, and the prophetic word buffets those selling the needy for a pair of sandals.The Dictionary of the Old Testament: Prophets is the only reference book of its kind. Not only does it focus exclusively on the prophetic books; it also plumbs their imagery of mountains and wilderness, flora and fauna, temple and Zion. It maps and guides us through topics such as covenant and law, exile and deliverance, forgiveness and repentance, and the Day of the Lord. Here the nature of prophecy is searched out in its social, historical, literary and psychological dimensions as well as its synchronic spread of textual links and associations. And the formation of the prophetic books into their canonical collection, including the Book of the Twelve, is explored and weighed for its significance. Then too, contemporary approaches such as canonical criticism, conversation analysis, editorial/redaction criticism, feminist interpretation, literary approaches and rhetorical criticism are summed up and assayed. Even the afterlife of these great texts is explored in articles on the history of interpretation as well as on their impact in the New Testament.