A leading introduction to the Hebrew Bible I n t r o d u c tI o n t o t h e J ohn J. Collins’s Introduction to the Hebrew Bible is one of the most reliable and widely adopted critical textbooks at undergraduate and graduate levels alike, and for good reason. Enriched by decades of classroom teaching, it is hebrew aimed explicitly at motivated students, regardless of their previous exposure to the Bible or faith commitments. The third edition is presented in a new and engaging format with new maps and images. An index has been added to the collins volume for the first time. Praise for Introduction to the Hebrew Bible “At last! This is the introduction to the Hebrew Bible I have been looking for: a balanced and richly informative bIble introduction that covers essential critical and comparative perspectives and sets up pertinent interpretive issues, leaving the instructor free to work with the class in any number of directions. Using Collins’s textbook is like team-teaching with a master teacher. His tone is welcoming but often wry, accessible yet authoritative. This is a textbook written by h someone who not only knows his students but who genuinely likes them—and likes to challenge them. Collins does not I take refuge in an antiquarian approach to the Hebrew Bible but repeatedly identifies the complex ethical issues raised n by the text and by the responsibilities involved in interpreting the text.” e t Carol Newsom, Candler School of Theology r b o “John Collins’s introduction is a timely and welcome contribution, one based on his own extensive research and on his r d many years of teaching the subject. The reader will find not only a careful presentation of the biblical material but also a judicious assessment of scholarship on it. This book will be a valuable tool for classroom use, and the bibliographies u e Th iR D eD iTi o n appended to each chapter will help the student who wishes to pursue a topic in greater detail.” c James C. VanderKam, emeritus, University of Notre Dame w t i “Drawing on years of teaching in seminary and university, and of addressing Christian and Jewish popular audiences, o Collins has produced a clear, concise, and up-to-date introduction to the Old Testament, including the deuterocanoni- n cal books. Wisely following the canonical order of books (slightly adapted), he describes each book’s contents, critical B issues, and religious meaning. Collins situates each biblical book squarely in its historical setting and deals honestly with t the problems as well as the bounty of the Bible. A special bonus is his masterful coverage of the often-slighted Second i o Temple literature. Its seriousness, detail, and sophistication set this textbook apart and make it an excellent resource for b college and seminary courses, and for pastors and educated laity.” t l h Richard J. Clifford, SJ, emeritus, Boston College School of Theology and Ministry e e John J. collins is Holmes Professor of Old Testament Criticism and Interpretation at Yale Divinity School and author of many works, including, from Fortress Press, Encounters with Biblical Theology (2005), Does the Bible Justify Violence? (2004), and Daniel (Hermeneia, 1994). thIrd edition RElIgIOn / OlD TESTAmEnT John J. collins Introduction to the Hebrew Bible (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 1 08/01/2018 16:59 (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 2 08/01/2018 16:59 Introduction to the Hebrew Bible AND DEUTERO-CANONICAL BOOKS THIRD EDITION JOHN J. COLLINS Fortress Press Minneapolis (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 3 08/01/2018 16:59 INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE, THIRD EDITION Copyright © 2018 Fortress Press. All Rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical articles or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner with prior permission from the publisher. Email [email protected] or write to Permissions, Fortress Press, PO Box 1209, Minneapolis, MN 55440-1209. Cover image: Wikipedia CC-BY-SA-4.0 / Lachish Relief, British Museum. Photograph by Mike Peel (www.mikepeel.net). Cover design: Alisha Lofgren Interior design: Tim Dowley and Associates ISBN: 978-1-5064-4598-4 eBook ISBN: 978-1-5064-4605-9 The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences—Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI Z329.48-1984. Manufactured in U.S.A. (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 4 08/01/2018 16:59 Contents Maps .........................................................................................................................................................vii Illustrations ...............................................................................................................................................ix Preface .....................................................................................................................................................xiii Preface to the Second Edition ..............................................................................................................xv Preface to the Third Edition ...............................................................................................................xvi Abbreviations ........................................................................................................................................xvii Introduction: What Are the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament? ...................................................1 PART ONE: THE TORAH/PENTATEUCH 1 The Near Eastern Context .....................................................................................................25 2 The Nature of the Pentateuchal Narrative .........................................................................53 3 The Primeval History ..............................................................................................................71 4 The Patriarchs ............................................................................................................................85 5 The Exodus from Egypt .......................................................................................................107 6 The Revelation at Sinai.........................................................................................................125 7 The Priestly Theology: Exodus 25–40, Leviticus, and Numbers ...............................143 8 Deuteronomy ..........................................................................................................................163 PART TWO: THE DEUTERONOMISTIC HISTORY 9 The Book of Joshua ..............................................................................................................191 10 Judges ........................................................................................................................................215 11 First Samuel .............................................................................................................................231 12 Second Samuel ........................................................................................................................245 13 1 Kings 1–11: Solomon and the Divided Monarchy .....................................................261 14 1 Kings 12–2 Kings 25: Tales of Prophets and the End of the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah .................................................................................................................281 v (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 5 08/01/2018 16:59 PART THREE: PROPHECY 15 Amos and Hosea ....................................................................................................................313 16 Isaiah, Micah, Nahum, and Zephaniah .............................................................................335 17 The Babylonian Era: Habakkuk, Jeremiah, and Lamentations ....................................361 18 The Exilic Period: Ezekiel and Obadiah ..........................................................................383 19 The Additions to the Book of Isaiah ................................................................................405 20 Postexilic Prophecy: Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Joel ..................................................427 PART FOUR: THE WRITINGS 21 Ezra and Nehemiah ...............................................................................................................459 22 The Books of Chronicles .....................................................................................................477 23 The Psalms and Song of Songs ..........................................................................................495 24 Proverbs ....................................................................................................................................521 25 Job and Qoheleth ...................................................................................................................539 26 The Hebrew Short Story: Ruth, Esther, Tobit, Judith ...................................................561 27 Daniel, 1–2 Maccabees .........................................................................................................579 28 The Deuterocanonical Wisdom Books: Ben Sira, Wisdom of Solomon, Baruch .............................................................................................607 29 From Tradition to Canon .....................................................................................................627 Glossary .................................................................................................................................................634 Index ......................................................................................................................................................641 Picture acknowledgments ..................................................................................................................646 vi INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 6 08/01/2018 16:59 Maps The Fertile Crescent ..............................................................................................................................14 Some Major Archaeological Sites in Anatolia and the Middle East ...........................................30 The World of the Patriarchs ................................................................................................................87 The Landscape of the Book of Exodus .........................................................................................112 Israel Physical .......................................................................................................................................193 Israel Settlement before the Monarchy ...........................................................................................194 Canaanite Sites in the Late 13th/Early 12th Century b.c.e. .....................................................198 Major Archaeological Sites ...............................................................................................................202 12 Tribes of Israel ...............................................................................................................................210 Tribes of Israel before the Monarchy .............................................................................................219 Migration of the Sea Peoples ...........................................................................................................224 Saul’s Kingdom ....................................................................................................................................238 Minimum Extent of David’s Kingdom ..........................................................................................254 Maximum Extent of David’s Kingdom ..........................................................................................255 Minimum Extent of Solomon’s Kingdom .....................................................................................263 Ancient Trade Routes .........................................................................................................................266 Elijah and Elisha Narratives .............................................................................................................284 Israel and Judah under Jeroboam and Uzziah ...............................................................................292 Campaigns of Tiglath-pileser ...........................................................................................................295 Assyrian Empire ..................................................................................................................................297 The End of the Kingdom of Judah ................................................................................................302 Sennacherib’s Invasion 701 b.c.e. .....................................................................................................348 Neo-Babylonian Empire ....................................................................................................................356 The Persian Empire at its Zenith ....................................................................................................411 Alexander the Great’s Invasion .........................................................................................................438 Alexander’s Empire at its Zenith ......................................................................................................439 vii (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 7 08/01/2018 16:59 Judah as a Province of the Persian Empire 445–333 b.c.e. .......................................................462 Maccabean-Hasmonean Palestine 166–76 b.c.e. .........................................................................601 The Ptolemaic and Seleucid Empires c. 240 b.c.e.. .....................................................................608 The Ancient Near East c. 60 b.c.e. .................................................................................................617 viii INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 8 08/01/2018 16:59 Illustrations The Dead Sea Scrolls caves ....................................................................................................................7 Isaiah Scroll ...............................................................................................................................................8 Amulet ......................................................................................................................................................23 Slab inscribed with cuneiform .............................................................................................................26 The Rosetta Stone .................................................................................................................................28 Sir Austen Layard removes human-headed bull ...............................................................................29 Cuneiform tablet with part of the Enumah Elish ...............................................................................36 Tablet XI of the Epic of Gilgamesh ..................................................................................................38 Terracotta relief probably depicting the marriage of Inanna and Dumizi ................................40 Babylonian relief of winged and eagle-footed goddess ..................................................................41 Bronze figurine of Baal .........................................................................................................................42 Bronze female figurine (Anat) .............................................................................................................46 Carved head of Akhenaten ..................................................................................................................47 Cutaway illustration of an Egyptian pyramid ..................................................................................48 Gold mask of Tutankhamun ...............................................................................................................49 Sculpture of Moses by Michelangelo ................................................................................................54 Noah builds the ark with his sons ......................................................................................................61 Ziggurat of Ur ........................................................................................................................................86 Horned altar from Beersheba ..............................................................................................................92 Statue of Ramesses II ........................................................................................................................108 Relief depicting Asian captives from Temple of Ramesses .......................................................110 Traditional site of Mount Sinai.......................................................................................................114 Statuette of Baal ..................................................................................................................................119 Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their children .........................................................................................132 Hammurabi receives the law from the god Marduk ....................................................................135 Bronze calf, Samaria ...........................................................................................................................139 ix (cid:127) Hebrew Bible_Unabridged_layout.indd 9 08/01/2018 16:59