Concise Table of Contents
1
Considering Historical Settings
The Bible and Cross-Cultural Communication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
2
Life in Bible Times
“Toto, I have a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore!” . . . . . . . . . . 16
3
Geography and History of the Holy Land
The Significance of Rainfall and Rock Piles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40
4
The Scriptures of Different Faith Traditions
Why Is Your Bible Different from Mine? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
5
Production and Transmission of Biblical Manuscripts
Hand Copying Every Word . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
6
Short Stories in the Hebrew Bible
Reading the Bible as Literature . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
7
Wisdom Literature
God Gave You a Brain, So Use It! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .128
8
Psalms: Israel’s Songbook
Ecstatic Praise, Cries of Protest, Calls for Vengeance . . . . . . . . . . 154
9
Primeval History: Genesis 1–11
Creation and Flood Stories in the Ancient Near East . . . . . . . . . .173
10
Foundational Stories:
Genesis 12–Exodus 19: Ancestral Narratives and the Exodus . . 195
11
Israelite Laws
The Distinguishing Focus of Judaism . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .211
12
Hebrew Historiography
History in the Interest of Theology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .236
13
The Prophets of Ancient Israel
Social Reformers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .258
14
The Gospels
Four Portraits of Jesus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .283
15
Jesus’ Parabolic Speech Forms
Turning Expectations Upside Down . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .319
16
Acts of the Apostles
Expansion and Conflict in the Early Church . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344
17
Ancient Letter Writing & New Testament Epistles
And you thought Snail Mail was slow! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360
18
The Apocalypse
Navigating the Symbolism of Revelation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381
Appendix A
Development of the Christian Bible:
What Is the Canon?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 411
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