Book of Judges
Published on 20. December 2012
504 pages
978-1-4674-3639-7 (ISBN)
Description
Eminently readable, exegetically thorough, and written in an emotionally warm style that flows from his keen sensitivity to the text, Barry Webb's commentary on Judges is just what is needed to properly engage a dynamic, narrative work like the book of Judges. It discusses not only unique features of the stories themselves but also such issues as the violent nature of Judges, how women are portrayed in it, and how it relates to the Christian gospel of the New Testament.Webb concentrates throughout on what the biblical text itself throws into prominence, giving space to background issues only when they cast significant light on the foreground. For those who want more, the footnotes and bibliography provide helpful guidance. The end result is a welcome resource for interpreting one of the most challenging books in the Old Testament.
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Barry G. Webb
Book of Judges
Book
12/2012
William B Eerdmans Publishing Co
€55.00
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Person
Barry G. Webb is senior research fellow emeritus in OldTestament at Moore Theological College, Sydney, Australia,where he taught for thirty-three years. Among his otherpublished works are The Book of the Judges: AnIntegrated Reading and Five Festal Garments:Christian Reflections on the Song of Songs, Ruth,Lamentations, Ecclesiastes and Esther.
Content
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication
- Contents
- General Editor's Preface
- Author's Preface
- Principal Abbreviations
- Introduction
- I. Judges as an Israelite Classic
- A. An Ancient Book
- B. A Conceptual Unit?
- II. The Period of the Judges in Israel's History
- A. Dating the Period of the Judges
- B. Canaan in the Period of the Judges
- C. Israel's Internal Affairs in the Judges Period
- D. The Judges Period in the History Wars of Critical Study
- III. The History of the Book's Formation
- IV. Its Shape and Content
- V. Recent Scholarly Study of Judges
- VI. Its Contribution to Old Testament Theology
- VII. Judges as Christian Scripture
- A. Judges in New Testament Perspective
- B. Women in Judges
- C. Judges and Violence
- VIII. The Text
- IX. The Translation
- A. General Characteristics
- B. The Divine Name
- C. The Problem of the Large Numbers
- X. Select Bibliography
- Text and Commentary
- I. Introduction (1:1-3:6)
- A. After Joshua: Military Decline (1:1-2:5)
- 1. The Israelites Inquire of Yahweh (1:1-2)
- 2. The Successes and Failures of the Southern Tribes (1:3-21)
- a. The Battle for Jerusalem (1:3-8)
- b. Battles in the Southern Hills, the Negeb, and the Shephelah (1:9-17)
- c. The Judah Appendix (1:18-21)
- 3. The Successes and Failures of the Northern Tribes (1:22-36)
- a. The Victory at Bethel (1:22-26)
- Excursus 1: Judges 1:22-26 in the Light of the Jacob/Bethel Traditions
- Excursus 2: Judges 1:22-26 and the Taking of Jericho in Joshua 2 and 6
- b. The Subsequent Deterioration in the Fortunes of the Northern Tribes (1:27-35)
- c. The Amorite Appendix (1:36)
- 4. Israel Accused of Disobedience (2:1-5)
- Excursus 3: Bethel as a Sanctuary in Joshua
- B. After Joshua: A Religious Decline (2:6-3:6)
- 1. From Joshua to Another Generation (2:6-10)
- 2. The Downward Spiral (2:11-19)
- 3. The Outcome (2:20-3:6)
- a. Yahweh's Verdict (2:20-22 + 23)
- b. Appendix: The Remaining Nations (3:1-6)
- Excursus 4: The Lists of Nations in 3:3 and 3:5 and the Arrival of the Philistines
- Summary: 1:1-3:6 as the Introduction to the Book
- II. Careers of the Judges (3:7-16:31)
- A. Othniel (3:7-11)
- B. Ehud (3:12-30)
- C. Shamgar (3:31)
- D. Deborah and Barak (4:1-5:31)
- 1. The Story (4:1-24)
- a. The Prologue (4:1-3)
- b. The Liberation of Israel and the Undoing of Sisera (4:4-24)
- (1) Links with the Ehud and Shamgar Episodes
- (2) The Surprising Jael
- (3) Irony and the Reader
- (4) Conclusions
- 2. The Song (5:1-31)
- a. The Structure of the Song
- b. The Thematic Development of the Song
- c. Conclusions
- E. Gideon and Abimelech (6:1-9:57)
- 1. The Career of Gideon (6:1-8:28)
- a. Yet Again-Apostasy, Oppression, and a Cry for Help (6:1-6)
- b. Israel's Cry Rebuffed by a Prophet (6:7-10)
- c. Gideon's Career, Part I: The Expulsion of the Midianites from Israelite Territory West of the Jordan (6:11-8:3)
- (1) The Commissioning of Gideon as the Chosen Deliverer (6:11-24)
- (2) Gideon Challenges and Defeats Baal (6:25-32)
- (3) Gideon Emerges as a Man of War (6:33-35)
- (4) Gideon Uses a Fleece to Seek Reassurance from Yahweh (6:36-40)
- (5) Yahweh Reduces Gideon's Fighting Force to Three Hundred (7:1-8)
- (6) Yahweh Reassures Gideon by Means of a Dream (7:9-15)
- (7) Gideon and His Three Hundred Rout the Midianites (7:16-25)
- (8) Gideon Appeases the Midianites (8:1-3)
- d. Gideon's Career, Part 2: His Pursuit of the Midianites in Transjordan and Its Consequences (8:4-28)
- (1) Gideon's Pursuit, Capture, and Execution of Zebah and Zalmunna (8:4-21)
- Excursus 5: Gideon's Pursuit of Zebah and Zalmunna and the Duty of the go?el haddam ("redeemer/avenger of blood")
- (2) The Offer of Kingship and the End of Gideon's Career (8:22-28)
- Summary: The Shape and Development of the Gideon Narrative in Perspective
- 2. Transition: from Gideon to Abimelech (8:29-35)
- 3. Abimelech's Disastrous Experiment with Kingship (9:1-57)
- a. Abimelech Becomes King in Shechem (9:1-6)
- b. Jotham's Fable and Its Application (9:7-21)
- c. The Battle for Shechem (9:22-41)
- d. Abimelech's Downfall (9:42-57)
- Summary Reflections on 6:1-9:57 as a Whole
- F. Tola and Jair (10:1-5)
- G. Jephthah (10:6-12:7)
- 1. Episode 1: Israel and Yahweh (10:6-16)
- 2. Episode 2: The Gileadites and Jephthah (10:17-11:11)
- 3. Episode 3: Jephthah and the King of Ammon (11:12-28)
- 4. Episode 4: Jephthah and His Daughter (11:29-40)
- a. The Making of the Vow (11:29-33)
- b. The Keeping of the Vow (11:34-40)
- Excursus 6: Should Jephthah Have Broken His Vow?
- 5. Episode 5: Jephthah and the Ephraimites (12:1-7)
- Summary: The Themes of the Jephthah Narrative
- H. Ibzan, Elon, and Abdon (12:8-15)
- I. Samson (13:1-16:31)
- 1. Introduction-The Birth of Samson and the Shape of Things to Come (13:1-25)
- 2. Samson's Career, Part 1: From Timnah to Ramath-lehi (14:1-15:20)
- a. Samson's Marriage (14:1-20)
- b. Growing Conflict with the Philistines (15:1-8)
- c. Climax 1: Confrontation and Victory at Lehi (15:9-19)
- d. Epilogue (15:20)
- 3. Samson's Career, Part 2: From Gaza to Gaza (16:1-31)
- a. Samson and the Prostitute (16:1-3)
- b. Samson and Delilah (16:4-22)
- c. Samson Fulfills His Destiny (16:23-30)
- d. Epilogue (16:31)
- Summary Reflections on 13:1-16:31
- III. Epilogue (17:1-21:25)
- A. Religious Chaos: Micah and the Danites (17:1-18:31)
- 1. The Establishment of Micah's Shrine (17:1-5)
- 2. Break: The First Occurrence of the Refrain (17:6)
- 3. The Appointment of a Levite as Micah's Priest (17:7-13)
- 4. Break: The Second Occurrence of the Refrain (18:1a)
- 5. The Migration of the Danites and the Transference of Micah's Idol to the Shrine at Dan (18:1b-31)
- a. The Selection and Commissioning of the Spies (18:1b-2)
- b. The Spies Inquire of Micah's Levite (18:3-6)
- c. The Spies Discover and Appraise Laish (18:7)
- d. The Spies Report Back (18:8-10)
- e. The Danites Begin Their Migration (18:11-12)
- f. They Acquire Micah's Priest and Idols (18:13-21)
- g. Micah's Fruitless Pursuit (18:22-26)
- h. The Danites Complete Their Migration (18:27-31)
- Summary Reflections on 17:1-18:1
- Excursus 7: The Migration of the Danites as an Anti-Conquest Narrative
- B. Moral Chaos: The Outrage at Gibeah and Its Consequences (19:1-21:25)
- 1. Transition: No King in Israel (19:1a)
- 2. Episode 1: The Outrage at Gibeah (19:1b-28)
- a. Part 1: Five Days (and Four Nights) in Bethlehem (19:1b-10a)
- (1) Scene 1: Journeying and Arriving (19:1b-3)
- (2) Scene 2: Staying (19:4-8)
- (3) Scene 3: Leaving (19:9-10a)
- b. Part 2: One Night in Gibeah (19:10b-28)
- (1) Scene 1: Journeying (19:10b-14)
- (2) Scene 2: Arriving (19:15-21)
- (3) Scene 3: Staying (19:22-25)
- (4) Scene 4: Leaving (19:26-28)
- 3. Episode 2: Preparations for War (19:29-20:11)
- 4. Episode 3: The War Itself (20:12-48)
- a. Attempt at Negotiation (20:12-17)
- b. Inquiry of Yahweh (20:18)
- c. Defeat (20:19-22)
- d. Inquiry of Yahweh (20:23)
- e. Defeat (20:24-25)
- f. Inquiry of Yahweh (20:26-28)
- g. Victory (20:29-48)
- 5. Episode 4: Postwar Reconstruction (21:1-25)
- a. The Problem (21:1-4)
- b. An Apparent Solution (21:5-12)
- c. A Further Problem (21:13-18)
- d. The Final Outcome (21:19-24)
- e. Epilogue: No King in Israel (21:25)
- Summary Reflections on 19:1-21:25
- Chapters 17-21 as the Conclusion to the Book
- Notes
- Authors
- Subjects
- Scripture References
