An Introduction to the Old Testament: Exploring Text, Approaches & Issues

Editor/Author Goldingay, John
Publication Year: 2015
Publisher: InterVarsity Press

Single-User Purchase Price: $40.00
Unlimited-User Purchase Price: $60.00
ISBN: 978-0-8308-4090-8
Category: Religion & Theology - Christianity
Image Count: 14
Book Status: Available
Table of Contents

More workbook than handbook, this introduction to the Old Testament is rooted in decades of tried and proven teaching. Goldingay displays a robust confidence in the truthfulness of Scripture combined with a refreshing trust in the reader's ability to grapple responsibly with the Old Testament.

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Table of Contents

  • Preface
  • Web Resources
  • Part One: Introduction
  • 101 Approaching the Old Testament
  • 102 The Old Testament as Scripture
  • 103 Reading the Old Testament as the Word of God in Its Own Right
  • 104 The Books in the Old Testament
  • 105 How Did Old Testament Books Get Written?
  • 106 Old Testament Story and Old Testament History
  • 107 A Timeline for the Old Testament
  • 108 Fact and Truth in the Old Testament
  • 109 When the Old Testament Is Parable Not History
  • 110 Reading the Old Testament Premodernly, Modernly and Postmodernly
  • 111 The Geography of Canaan
  • 112 The Geography of the Middle East
  • 113 How Did the Old Testament Come to Be the Old Testament?
  • 114 How Old and How Reliable Is the Old Testament Text?
  • 115 Old Testament Translations and the Name of God in Translations
  • 116 Israelites, Hebrews, Jews; Israel, Judah, Ephraim
  • 117 New Testament Lenses for Looking at the Old Testament
  • 118 The Apocrypha or Second Canon
  • 119 Web Resources
  • Part Two: The Torah
  • 201 The Torah: The Five Books
  • 202 The Torah: Not Really Five Books
  • 203 The Torah: The Questions It Might Raise and Answer for Israel
  • 204 The Torah: Looking at It Historically
  • 205 The Torah: Expectations at the Edge of the Promised Land
  • 206 Reading Genesis 1–11: The Story of the Beginning
  • 207 Genesis 1 and Other Middle Eastern Creation Stories
  • 208 Genesis 1–4: Possible Historical Contexts
  • 209 Genesis 1–4: Patriarchalism as a Contemporary Context
  • 210 Genesis 1–11 and History: Views on a Spectrum
  • 211 Genesis 1–11 as Parabolic History
  • 212 Reading Genesis 12–50: God's Promises to Israel's Ancestors
  • 213 Genesis 12–50: How Genesis Portrays Marriage
  • 214 Genesis 12–50: How Genesis Portrays Family
  • 215 Genesis 12–50: How Historical Is It?
  • 216 Genesis 12–50: Looking for Clues Regarding How It Came into Existence
  • 217 Genesis 12–50: Where the Clues Take Us—JEDP in Outline
  • 218 Reading Exodus 1–18
  • 219 Exodus 1–18 and How We Learn from It
  • 220 Exodus 1–18: Did the Exodus Happen? Some Opinions
  • 221 Exodus 1–18: The Implications, the People
  • 222 Exodus 19—Leviticus—Numbers 10: Israel at Sinai
  • 223 Reading Exodus 19–40 and Leviticus
  • 224 Exodus 19–40 and Leviticus: Yahweh in the Midst—Speaking
  • 225 Exodus 19–40 and Leviticus: Two or Three or Five Types of “Law”
  • 226 Exodus 19–40 and Leviticus: Six Reasons for Having “Law”
  • 227 Exodus 19–40 and Leviticus: Five More Reasons for Having “Law”
  • 228 Exodus 25–40: How to Build a Sanctuary
  • 229 Leviticus 1–15: How to Worship, and How to Keep Pure
  • 230 Leviticus 11–15: How to Keep Pure
  • 231 Reading Numbers: Israel's Journey to the Land of Promise
  • 232 Numbers 11–25: How Not to Get to the Promised Land
  • 233 Numbers: Four Reasons Why Israel Fought Wars
  • 234 Numbers: Five More Reasons Why Israel Fought Wars
  • 235 Reading Deuteronomy
  • 236 Deuteronomy's Emphases
  • 237 Deuteronomy's Both/And's
  • 238 Deuteronomy: Who Wrote It?
  • 239 Exodus Through Deuteronomy: Looking Back
  • 240 Exodus Through Deuteronomy: Reviewing the Different Versions of Its Teaching
  • 241 Exodus Through Deuteronomy: The Way It Has Unfolded
  • 242 Exodus Through Deuteronomy: Why Does It Say the Things It Does?
  • 243 Exodus Through Deuteronomy: Two Approaches to Interpreting the Torah for Today
  • 244 Exodus Through Deuteronomy: Two More Approaches to Interpreting the Torah for Today
  • 245 Web Resources
  • Part Three: The Prophets
  • 301 The Prophets: Who and What Are They?
  • 302 Joshua Through Kings: Two More Ways of Seeing the Books
  • 303 Joshua Through Kings: An Outline of the Books and of the History
  • 304 Joshua Through Kings: Approaches to the Stories
  • 305 Joshua Through Kings: What to Look for in the Stories
  • 306 Joshua: An Outline of the Book
  • 307 Joshua: The Book's Origin
  • 308 Reading Joshua
  • 309 Joshua: The Book's Spirituality
  • 310 Joshua: The Book's Ethics
  • 311 Joshua: The History
  • 312 Joshua: Models for How Israel Came to Be Israel in Canaan
  • 313 Judges: An Outline of the Book and Its Origins
  • 314 Reading Judges
  • 315 Judges: Its Significance
  • 316 Judges: The Archaeology of the Period
  • 317 First and Second Samuel: Outline and Origin
  • 318 Reading 1 Samuel: Hannah, Eli, Samuel, Saul
  • 319 First Samuel (and Elsewhere): Attitudes Toward Monarchy
  • 320 Reading 1-2 Samuel
  • 321 First and Second Samuel (and Elsewhere): Who Was David?
  • 322 First and Second Samuel: Again, Who Was David?
  • 323 First and Second Kings: Outline, Origin, Aim, Resources
  • 324 Reading 1-2 Kings
  • 325 First and Second Kings: Prophets and Their God
  • 326 The Prophets and the History of Ephraim and Judah
  • 327 First and Second Kings: The Books’ Message
  • 328 The Baals: Canaanite Theology and Canaanite Religion
  • 329 The Latter Prophets
  • 330 Isaiah: The Scroll with a Message from Israel's Holy One
  • 331 Isaiah 1–12: Why It Comes in the Order It Does
  • 332 Reading Isaiah 1–12
  • 333 Isaiah 13–27: Yahweh's Intentions for the Nations
  • 334 Reading Isaiah 13–27
  • 335 Isaiah 28–39
  • 336 Isaiah 31 as Poetry
  • 337 Reading Isaiah 28–39; and How to Think About the Nations
  • 338 Reading Micah
  • 339 Reading Joel
  • 340 Reading Hosea
  • 341 Reading Amos and Obadiah
  • 342 Amos: How Amos Believes Things Should Be or Should Have Been
  • 343 Reading Jonah
  • 344 Jeremiah: The History and the Book
  • 345 Reading Jeremiah
  • 346 Jeremiah: Social Justice (aka Faithful Judgment)
  • 347 Jeremiah: Sin and Hope
  • 348 Jeremiah: What Makes a False Prophet?
  • 349 Jeremiah and the Superpower
  • 350 Reading Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah
  • 351 Reading Ezekiel
  • 352 Ezekiel: Like Other Prophets, Only More So
  • 353 Ezekiel: What Do His Promises Refer To? Promise and Fulfillment
  • 354 Isaiah 40–55: The Context and the Approach to Communication
  • 355 Isaiah 40–55: The Message and the People That It Addresses
  • 356 Reading Isaiah 40–55: Who Is This Prophet, Who Is This Servant?
  • 357 Reading Isaiah 56–66
  • 358 Isaiah: The Three (or Four) Voices in the Book
  • 359 The Unity of the Book of Isaiah
  • 360 Reading Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi
  • 361 Prophecy: What Is a Prophet—Then and Now?
  • 362 Prophecy: What Does the Fulfillment of Prophecy Mean?
  • 363 Web Resources
  • Part Four: The Writings
  • 401 The Writings: What Are They?
  • 402 Ezra–Nehemiah
  • 403 Reading Ezra–Nehemiah
  • 404 Reading 1–2 Chronicles
  • 405 Chronicles: A Narrative Contextual Theology of Music in Worship
  • 406 Reading Esther
  • 407 Esther: Its Significance in the Context of Scripture as a Whole
  • 408 Reading Ruth
  • 409 Ruth: What Kind of Story?
  • 410 Psalms: One Hundred and Fifty Examples of How to Talk to God
  • 411 Reading Psalms of Praise: How to Worship Together
  • 412 Psalms of Praise: Psalm 95 and Psalm 100 as Examples of How to Worship
  • 413 Psalms in Israel's Worship
  • 414 The Psalm Introductions and Their Link with Worship
  • 415 Psalms of David or David-Psalms?
  • 416 Psalms of Prayer: How to Pray for Ourselves
  • 417 Reading Psalms of Prayer
  • 418 Psalms of Prayer: How to Keep Hoping and How to Keep Praying
  • 419 Psalms as Intercession: How to Pray for Other People
  • 420 Psalms as Intercession: How to Pray for the Government
  • 421 Psalms as Imprecation: How to Pray Against Other People
  • 422 Reading Thanksgiving Psalms: How to Give Your Testimony
  • 423 Psalms of Protest and Thanksgiving for an Individual, a Leader, a Community
  • 424 Psalms: How the Prayer-Testimony Process Gets Short-Circuited
  • 425 Psalms: The Interrelationship of Praise and Prayer
  • 426 Reading Psalms of Confession: How to Say You're Sorry
  • 427 Reading Lamentations
  • 428 Wisdom in the Old Testament: How to Learn from Life
  • 429 Reading Proverbs
  • 430 Proverbs 1–9: How to Stay Faithful
  • 431 Reading Song of Songs
  • 432 Reading Job
  • 433 Job: Two Possible Insights
  • 434 Job: Four More Possible Insights
  • 435 Reading Ecclesiastes
  • 436 Ecclesiastes: Its Characteristic Slant
  • 437 Daniel: Narrative, Worship and Wisdom
  • 438 Reading Daniel
  • 439 Daniel 11 as a Starting Point
  • 440 Daniel 7 and the Empires
  • 441 Daniel: Two-Stage Origin, Binary Theology
  • 442 Web Resources
  • Part Five: Looking Back over the Whole
  • 501 Looking Back over the Old Testament: The Narrative
  • 502 Looking Back over the Old Testament: Instruction and Prophecy
  • 503 Looking Back over the Old Testament: Wisdom and Psalmody
  • 504 The Conversation Within the Canon: A Complex Reality
  • 505 The Conversation Within the Canon: Different Emphases
  • 506 The Relationship of the Old Testament and the New Testament
  • 507 Web Resources
  • 508 Bibliography
  • Name Index
  • Subject Index
  • Scripture Index
  • Praise for An Introduction to the Old Testament
  • About the Author