The Hebrew Bible Today by Steven L. McKenzie

The Hebrew Bible Today Reviews

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  slaveofone

  A collection of introductory essays by different authors, discussing critical issues, past to present, in the historical, literary, and theological study of the component parts of the Hebrew Bible. Each section varies in over-all quality of assessment. Van Seters' essay on the Pentateuch (which receives vastly more space than any other in the entire work) is helpful in its depth of engagement, wise in its abandonment of the failed assumption of an Elohist, and helpful in its move to a new kind of Supplementary Hypothesis without redactors, but is still stuck in the engulfing mire of the Source Critics from the past century. Slogging through his essay allows little progress. Marvin Sweeney's discussion of the Latter Prophets is brilliant and inspiring, paving the way to perspectives that unveil and reveal almost like a scholastic prophet. (I was awe-stricken by Sweeney's genius, diachronic breakdown of Isaiah 8:16-9:6.) Some treatments of biblical books excel above others in the same sections. Kirsten Nielsen's treatments of Song of Songs and Esther are engaging, but her Ruth is bland and her Daniel somewhat exiling. John Hayes' treatment of Psalms is done very well, but his Lamentations is slightly lamentable. Kathleen Farmer's look at the Wisdom books is very readable, but she fails to impact the reader with the extent of Job and Qoheleth's truly blasphemous and confounding natures. Graeme Auld's Former Prophets, David Peterson's Twelve, and M. Graham's Chronicler's History (including Ezra-Nehemiah) are a consistently good backbone for the book.