Wipf & Stock Old Testament Studies Collection (9 vols.)

by Elmer A. Martens; Ronald Ernest Clements; Jack R. Lundbom; Leslie C. Allen

and

4 more

Publishers:

Wipf and Stock; Cascade Books

, 2012–2018

Overview

The Wipf & Stock Old Testament Studies Collection will equip you to interpret the Hebrew Bible effectively with both reverence and scholarly precision. These volumes of Old Testament exegesis and its importance to Christian ministry and spirituality deliver the thorough and compelling work the world has come to expect from these respected Old Testament scholars. From Genesis to Jeremiah and Daniel, these nine volumes provide thoughtful guidance and theological reflection on important texts of the Old Testament.

Key Features

• Includes insights on a wide variety of topics central to Old Testament studies
• Contributions from respected scholars
• Provides a number of volumes examining exegesis, hermeneutics, and Old Testament theology

Product Details

• Title: Wipf & Stock Old Testament Studies Collection
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Volumes: 9
• Pages: 2,520
• Resource Type: Monographs
• Topic: Old Testament

A Theological Approach to the Old Testament: Major Themes and New Testament Connections

• Author: Leslie Tonkin Allen
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2014
• Pages: 218

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The Old Testament has two great themes: creation and covenant. They embrace subthemes: wisdom in the case of creation; Israel's religion and the Davidic covenant under the general umbrella of covenant; and internationalism, which mostly develops the theme of covenant and partly the theme of creation. These topics cluster around a common center: Yahweh, the God of the Old Testament. This God is portrayed in different roles, which have attached to them role expectations for both Yahweh and those with whom he assumes relationship. Through contextual exegesis of key texts, we come to understand these roles and associated themes.

While the Old Testament has its own distinctive contributions to make to divine revelation, much of its material is reused in the New Testament to explain and validate the New Testament message. By concentrating on the Old Testament, we learn to appreciate the enormous debt the New Testament owes to the Old in clarifying New Testament theological and moral perspectives.

This marvelous book grew out of a course of lectures expounding a 'Biblical Theology of the Old Testament for Pastors.' Who better than my colleague, Leslie Allen, to write on this subject? He loves the Old Testament and he has a pastor's heart (every Friday he puts his Hebrew Bible down and visits our local hospital as a chaplain). No danger that this volume will either sell the reader short on the inherent significance of the Old Testament or sell the reader short on its significance in the context of Christian faith. And it does indeed fulfill both of those expectations.

—John Goldingay, Fuller Seminary, Pasadena, CA

Leslie C. Allen is Senior Professor of Old Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. His most recent books are A Liturgy of Grief: A Pastoral Commentary on Lamentations (2011), Jeremiah (Old Testament Library, 2008), Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther (New International Biblical Commentary, 2003), and Psalms 101-150 (Word Biblical Commentary, 2002).

Ezekiel's Hope: A Commentary on Ezekiel 38-48

• Author: Jacob Milgrom and Daniel I. Block
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2012
• Pages: 338

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Jacob Milgrom was a man of deep faith and deep learning. As teacher and scholar he is best known for his work on ancient Israel's religion, especially its cultic expression in tabernacle and temple. His command of this subject is evident in his massive, three-volume commentary on Leviticus (Anchor Bible Commentary) and his commentary on Numbers (JPS Torah Commentary). This provides perfect background for one who seeks to instruct us on the final chapters of Ezekiel. In this volume Milgrom guides us engagingly through Ezekiel's oracle against Gog (chs. 38-39) and his final vision of Israel's physical and spiritual restoration (chs. 40-48).

Regrettably Professor Milgrom did not live to see his work on Ezekiel appear in print. Given his influence on biblical scholarship far beyond his native Jewish world, it is fitting that this final form of this project be cast as an interfaith dialogue with Daniel Block, who has himself written a major two-volume commentary on Ezekiel (NICOT). This volume offers a window into how one Jewish scholar engaged with the work of a Christian scholar. It invites readers to listen in on their conversation, in the course of which they will also hear the voices of medieval Jewish rabbis, particularly R. Eliezer of Beaugency and R. Joseph Kara. While Block and Milgrom are free to disagree in their reading of particular texts, readers will find this dialogue illuminating for their own understanding of the last chapters of Ezekiel.

According to rabbinic tradition, rabbi Hananiah ben Hezekiah burned three hundred barrels of oil in his lamp before being able to harmonize the laws of Moses with those given in Ezekiel. In a similar way, Jacob Milgrom's lifetime of scholarly study of the Pentateuch ideally equipped him to write a commentary on Ezekiel 38-48. This volume will be an indispensable reference point for all future work on the prophet.

—Iain Duguid, Professor of Old Testament, Grove City College

Jacob Milgrom (1923-2010), an esteemed rabbi in Conservative Judaism, was Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at University of California, Berkeley. He was the author of many books, most notably The JPS Torah Commentary: Numbers (1966) and the three-volume Anchor Bible Commentary of Leviticus (1991-2001).

Genesis as Torah: Reading Narrative as Legal Instruction

• Author: Brian Neil Peterson
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2018
• Pages: 196

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Should Genesis rightly be identified as law—that is, as torah or legal instruction for Israel? Peterson argues in the affirmative, concluding that Genesis serves a greater function than merely offering a prehistory or backstory for the people of Israel. As the introductory book to the Torah, Genesis must first and foremost be read as legal instruction for Israel. And how exactly is that instruction presented? Peterson posits that many of the Genesis accounts serve as case law. The Genesis narratives depict what a number of key laws in the pentateuchal law codes look like in practice. When Genesis is read through this lens, the rhetorical strategy of the biblical author(s) becomes clear and the purpose for including specific narratives takes on new meaning.

In this creative and insightful study Brian Peterson demonstrates that Genesis is far more than an account of Israel’s prehistory. It is fundamentally torah, in which the narratives illustrate at a practical level key laws that follow in the Pentateuch. This is a fascinating read that will enhance understanding of the purpose of Genesis and proclamation of its theological significance

—Robert B. Chisholm, Jr., Chair and Senior Professor of Old Testament Studies, Dallas Theological Seminary

Brian Neil Peterson is associate professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee. His most recent books are Ezekiel in Context (2012), The Authors of the Deuteronomistic History (2014), John’s Use of Ezekiel (2015), What Was the Sin of Sodom? (2016), and Voice, Word, and Spirit (coauthor, 2017).

God and Temple: The Idea of the Divine Presence in Ancient Israel

• Author: Ronald Ernest Clements
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2016
• Pages: 176

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The temple of Jerusalem became the center in ancient Israel of a whole group of concepts concerning the divine presence. It was regarded as the very dwelling place of God, the earthly throne of the heavenly King. In order to understand the origin of this belief, Dr. Clements examines the Canaanite notions of divine dwelling-places, and the early ideas of God's presence in Israel. The origins of the Israelite temple in Jerusalem are then considered, and the nature of its rites and symbolism. Particular attention is given to the relationship between the temple of the Davidic monarchy and its significance for the political history of the Israelite nation.

The destruction of the temple in 586 BC severely challenged the traditional views about its meaning and led ultimately to great changes in the Jewish understanding of the divine presence. Jerusalem, and the religious ideas surrounding it, became increasingly part of an eschatological hope. Dr. Clements shows how this was important for the early Christian church, which rejected the Jerusalem temple, and which asserted that the divine presence had been revealed to man in Jesus Christ and was experienced in the church through the Holy Spirit.

R. E. Clements is Samuel Davidson Professor of Old Testament Studies at King's College, London. His many books include Old Testament Prophecy, Studies in the Book of Isaiah, and Wisdom for a Changing World.

God's Design: A Focus on Old Testament Theology

• Author: Elmer Martens
• Edition: 4th
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2015
• Pages: 384

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How does one summarize the thirty-nine books of the Old Testament? How might one determine the message of the Old Testament with others? This book attempts an answer to these questions. The answer is taken from a single Scripture passage, Exodus 5:22-6:8, which is here considered a theological "Table of Contents" for the Old Testament. In addition to such topics as Deliverance, Community, and Experiencing God, the book has an extended discussion on "Land," a subject which deals with a wide range of interests but which only rarely receives attention in books on biblical theology. The current edition features reflections and a set of discussion questions following each of the seventeen chapters--a boon for university and seminary teachers and students, and of large help for church study groups.

Taking his cues from a key biblical text (Exodus 5:22-6:8), in God's Design, Elmer Martens has seized upon basic threads of biblical theology and woven them into a magnificent tapestry of divine grace and redemption encompassing the entire Bible. Through his careful exegesis of individual texts, judicious synthesis of fundamental theological concepts, and an engaging literary style, readers learn how the motifs of salvation, covenant, divine revelation, and land all play together in God's grand design of creation and redemption. Martens' presentation is neither overly technical nor esoteric; on the contrary, he often pauses to guide us in relating biblical theology to life. I am delighted that through the republication of this volume another generation of readers of Scripture will have ready access to his brilliant work.

—Daniel I. Block, Gunther H. Knoedler Professor of Old Testament, Wheaton College

Elmer A. Martens is President Emeritus and Professor Emeritus of Old Testament at Fresno Pacific University Biblical Seminary (formerly Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary). In addition to Bible commentaries (e.g, Jeremiah), three of his many articles appear in his Festschrift edited by former student Jon Isaak, The Old Testament in the Life of God's People (2009). An active church member, he has taught internationally in twelve countries.

Jeremiah among the Prophets

• Author: Jack R. Lundbom
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2012
• Pages: 166

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This book seeks to place before beginning students and general readers a representative discussion of material contained in the biblical book of Jeremiah. It is written for those who may never look into a Jeremiah commentary or read a scholarly work on one who arguably stands as the greatest of ancient Israel's prophets. My hope is that these twenty essays can be read with profit by beginning students, adults in Bible study classes, and people anywhere who simply want an introduction to Jeremiah and the book bearing his name. Hopefully this will generate interest, not only in Jeremiah, but in all the Hebrew prophets, who are without parallel in the ancient world, and who define the office of prophet up to the present day.

Jack Lundbom has long since established himself as a foremost interpreter of Jeremiah, capable of a rich flow of technical erudition. . . . He is a reliable interpreter who invites the reader into the key issues and claims of the text. This book is a chapter-by-chapter exposition with a conclusion that reflects on the scribal formation of the book of Jeremiah. Lundbom shows the reader the compelling ways in which this ancient tradition merits our continuing attention.

—Walter Brueggemann, Columbia Theological Seminary

Jack R. Lundbom is currently Distinguished Visiting Scholar at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Evanston, Illinois. He is author of Jeremiah: A Study in Ancient Hebrew Rhetoric (1975; 1997), a three-volume Jeremiah in the Anchor Bible Commentary series (1999; 2004), and a Deuteronomy commentary (2012).

Studies in Levitcal Terminology: The Encroacher and the Levite the Term 'Aboda

• Author: Jacob Milgrom
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2016
• Pages: 120

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Studies in Levitcal Terminology represents a detailed and technical studies of Hebrew expressions in the book of Leviticus. Designed to be the first of a several studies in language in the Priestly source of the Bible. This monograph focuses, specifically upon the language used to describe the sacred in contrast with the common.

Jacob Milgrom (1923-2010), an esteemed rabbi in Conservative Judaism, was Professor Emeritus of Near Eastern Studies at University of California, Berkeley. He was the author of many books, most notably The JPS Torah Commentary: Numbers (1966) and the three-volume Anchor Bible Commentary of Leviticus (1991-2001).

The Book of Daniel: Second Edition

• Author: Andre LaCocque
• Edition: 2nd
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2018
• Pages: 392

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This is the second edition of a 1979 commentary on the book of Daniel. The commentary is completely revised, and the introduction in particular is here much extended and addresses fundamental questions regarding the book of Daniel and the apocalyptic movement it inaugurates (with 1 Enoch). Daniel is an indispensable trove and reference about issues like the apocalyptic vision of world’s periodized history, the notion of Son of Man, messianism without a messiah, the belief in resurrection, the kingdom of God, the centrifugal spread of divine revelation, and the positive role of the Jewish diaspora. This edition is meant for scholars, college and university researchers, and students of the Bible (of the Old Testament and New Testament) in general.

LaCocque brings to this book his vast knowledge of biblical and related texts and, in this second edition, integrates added insights gleaned from a lifetime of study and experience, along with his wisdom and good judgement. Scholars, pastors, and theological students are sure to devour this book with enthusiasm and joy.

—Doreen McFarlane, St. Paul Evangelical Lutheran Church, Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada

André LaCocque is emeritus professor of Hebrew Scripture and Director of the Center of Jewish-Christian Studies at the Chicago Theological Seminary. He is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including the Cascade Books trilogy on the Yahwist: The Trial of Innocence (2006), Onslaught against Innocence (2008) and The Captivity of Innocence (2009). Other volumes include Thinking Biblically (1998, with Paul Ricoeur) and Jesus the Central Jew (2015).

The Triumph of Grace: Literary and Theological Studies in Deuteronomy and Deuteronomic Themes

• Author: Daniel I. Block
• Publisher: Wipf & Stock
• Publication Date: 2017
• Pages: 530

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The Apostle Paul’s negative statements about the law have deafened the ears of many to the grace that Moses proclaims in Deuteronomy. Most Christians have a dim view of this book, which they consider to be primarily a book of laws. However, when we read or hear it read orally without prejudice, we discover that rather than casting Moses as a legislator, he appears as Israel’s first pastor, whose congregation has gathered before him to hear him preach his final sermons. Accordingly, Deuteronomy represents prophetic preaching at its finest, as Moses seeks to inspire the people of God to a life of faith and godliness in response to God’s repeated demonstrations of grace. Deuteronomy is a dead book for many, because we have not recognized this gospel; we have heard only law. The essays in this collection arise from a larger project driven by a passion to recover for Christians the life-giving message of the Hebrew Scriptures in general, and to open their ears to God’s amazing grace in Deuteronomy in particular. The wide-ranging “meditations” in this volume do not all focus equally on the topic of God’s grace, but this theme undergirds them all.

The most profound and comprehensive collection of Daniel Block’s articles to date, [reflecting] exemplary scholarship marked by sound methodological inquiry, passionate engagement with the text, and a refreshing tone of humility.

—Rebekah L. Josberger, Associate Professor of Hebrew and Old Testament, Multnomah Biblical Seminary

Daniel I. Block is Gunther H. Knoedler Professor Emeritus of Old Testament at Wheaton College, Wheaton, Illinois.