Digital Logos Edition
In this three-volume collection, the Old Testament laws are examined through a literary, theological, and historical lens, providing a contextual interpretation of the book of Deuteronomy. Although commonly regarded as a book of laws and history, the authors, experts in their fields, assert that it also a book of grace and reveals much of God’s character. Much attention is paid to the time and place of the writings, as well as linguistic and literary qualities of the book. Deuteronomy is also compared to the other books of the Old Testament, giving context and depth to the study. Understanding key components of covenant and law will give further meaning to the rest of the Scripture, and this academic set will aid scholars, professors and anyone wishing to learn more about the roles of law, grace, God’s anger, and the history of this Old Testament book.
Each digital volume in the Studies on Deuteronomy (3 vols.) includes helpful notes, cross-references, indexes, detailed table of contents, and bibliographies to guide study and research.
A study of the growth of Joshua and Judges illustrates how the theme of divine anger has been used differently, according to different historical and social settings. In the deuteronomistic texts the main reason for God's anger is idolatry, which symbolizes a totally negative attitude to everything that God has done or given to the Israelites. This theology of anger is deeply bound to experiences of national catastrophes or threats of crises, and reflects the theological enigma of the exile. A century later, post-deuteronomistic theology gives a wholly different view: the anger of God becomes an instrument of the power struggles between the Israelite parties, or is used for protecting existing leadership.
Kari Latvus is Senior Lecturer in Contextual Theology and Biblical Studies at the Diaconia Polytechnic, Järvenpää, Finland.
This book focuses on the relation between the law of the Old Testament and the nature of God and of grace. Asserting that the laws are a result of theology, and not the other way around, McConville acknowledges Deuteronomy as a book of history and documentation of law, but also believes it gives great insight into the character of God. He begins his study with an introduction to the general theology of Deuteronomy. McConville then concentrates on several specific areas:
McConville examines the text from historical, linguistic, literary, and theological standpoints. He includes notes, a bibliography, and indexes.
James Gordon McConville is Professor of Old Testament Theology at University of Gloucestershire.
The book is a literary and theological study of the themes of time and place, which aims to set the so-called “centralization–law” of Deuteronomy 12–26 in the broad context of the book. The authors show that time and place are pervasive themes of Deuteronomy, a crucial part of its articulation of its understanding of history, religion and ethics. The heart of the thesis is that the foundational encounter between God and Israel at Horeb is paradigmatic for all subsequent encounters. For this reason, no one time or place can have final or absolute significance. The thesis thus calls into question the received view that the altar-law of Deuteronomy 12–26 is a “centralization–law” associated with Josiah's reform. The refusal to identify the “place” is no mere device against anachronism, but a consistent element in Deuteronomy's theology of history.
The connection between Deuteronomy and Josiah's reform has long been an important tenet of Old Testament criticism. The debate about the interpretation of Deuteronomy, however, has never been finally settled. The present study looks in a new way at the so-called “centralization–law” of Deuteronomy which has been the most important factor in the traditional critical view of the book. It sets the law in the context of a broadly based study of the theology of the book, and comes to conclusions which call the connection with Josiah's reform into question. A broadly based study of the themes of time and place in Deuteronomy, calling into question accepted ideas about the purpose and setting of the book.
James Gordon McConville is Professor of Old Testament Theology at University of Gloucestershire.
J.G. Millar is Assistant Minister, Hamilton Road Presbyterian Church, Bangor, Northern Ireland.
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