Reading Law
The Rhetorical Shaping of the Pentateuch
1st Edition
Published on 1. June 1999
192 pages
978-0-567-19333-9 (ISBN)
Description
Watts here argues that conventions of oral rhetoric were adapted to shape the literary form and contents of the Pentateuch. The large-scale structure-stories introducing lists of laws that conclude with divine sanctions-reproduces a common ancient strategy for persuasion. The laws' use of direct address, historical motivations and frequent repetitions serve rhetorical ends, and even the legal contradictions seem designed to appeal to competing constituencies. The instructional speeches of God and Moses reinforce the persuasive appeal by characterizing God as a just ruler and Moses as a faithful scribe. The Pentateuch was designed to persuade Persian-period Judaeans that this Torah should define their identity as Israel.
More details
Series
Edition
1. Auflage
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
ISBN-13
978-0-567-19333-9 (9780567193339)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
06/1999
Sheffield Academic Press
€56.90
Shipment within 3-4 weeks
Person
James Watts is Associate Professor of Religion at Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York, USA. Paul House is Professor of Old Testament Interpretation at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky.
Content
- Intro
- Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter 1 READING
- 1. Public Readings
- 2. The Possibility of Law Readings
- 3. The Probability of Law Readings
- 4. Writing Law for Public Reading
- Chapter 2 RHETORIC
- 1. Rhetoric in Biblical Studies
- 2. The Rhetoric of Story, List and Divine Sanction
- 3. Pentateuchal Rhetoric
- Chapter 3 INSTRUCTION
- 1. Address
- 2. Motivation
- 3. Repetition
- 4. Variation
- 5. Narration
- Chapter 4 COMMANDMENT
- 1. YHWH as Law-Giver
- 2. Moses as Law-Speaker
- 3. Command and Audience
- Chapter 5 LAW
- 1. Law and Religion
- 2. The Composition of the Pentateuch
- 3. The Extent and Genre of the Pentateuch
- 4. The Meaning of Torah
- Postscript on Rhetorical Ethics
- Bibliography
- Index of References
- Index of Authors
- A
- B
- C
- D
- E
- F
- G
- H
- I
- J
- K
- L
- M
- N
- O
- P
- R
- S
- T
- V
- W
- Index of Selected Topics
- A
- B
- C
- D
- E
- F
- G
- H
- I
- J
- K
- L
- M
- N
- O
- P
- Q
- R
- S
- T
- W
