Series: Jewish and Christian Heritage Series, 2 Early Jewish Exegesis and Theological Controversy is an important collection of essays on aspects of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament theology, the reception of biblical texts in Judaism and Christianity; the Aqedah, and related topics. The book comprises three main parts: a) the Aqedah and the Temple, b) Biblical Texts in Polemical Contexts, and c) Biblical Theology, Judaism and Christianity. Although each part deals with a specifically defined topic, all are linked by some common themes: all the sections discuss early Jewish exegesis, namely the early scriptures’ interpretation in late Biblical literature, in the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, in Jewish-Hellenistic writings, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and a variety of Rabbinic sources, essentially the Targumim and midrashim. Each chapter of the book covers theological controversies, either among the Jewish groups themselves, and/or between Judaism and other religious denominations, especially Christianity. “By now Isaac Kalimi is recognized the world over as one of the last of the vanishing breed of biblical historians and as one of a handful of experts in the biblical books of Chronicles. Kalimi demonstrates in the first five chapters of Early Jewish Exegesis and Theological Controversy that he is also fully grounded in Second Temple literature and qualified to discuss the exegesis of Hebrew Scripture reflected in rabbinic literature, Samaritan lore, the New Testament, and the Nag Hammadi library. The message conveyed by prefacing five important studies on ancient exegesis—Jewish, Christian, and Samaritan—to his two essays on biblical theology at the dawn of the twenty-first century is that Kalimi’s mastery of all relevant dialects of Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek and his unquestioned competence as a historian of both events and ideas qualifies him to offer some very original and timely advice to the world community of biblical scholars concerning biblical theology.” – Mayer I. Gruber, In: Review of Biblical Literature (2004). “This book belongs on the shelves of every serious Judaica library; it also addresses a general readership, and it is of interest to undergraduate as well as graduate students... [it states] the important engagement and willingness of the author to approach the virtual minefield of discussion about biblical history and exegesis.” – Rivka Ulmer, In: Review of Rabbinic Judaism 7 (2004). “As is necessary in interdisciplinary studies, Isaac Kalimi emerges as a jack of many trades in this book: rabbinic, Samaritan studies, patristics and theology. He has also demonstrated that he is a master in biblical studies... Kalimi’s book is a necessary, timely and much appreciated offering. It serves as a model of mutual scholarly benefit for Jewish and Christian scholars engaged in the literature of their formative periods.” — T. Meacham, In: Biblical Interpretation in Judaism and Christianity (2006). “Kalimi’s argumentation is thorough, wide-ranging, and impressionistic. His technique is to collect evidence from a variety of sources, to construct a history, and then to propose a single circumstantial explanation... There is much to discuss in these essays. Kalimi is an energetic, thoughtful, and challenging scholar...a fine collection by a scholar who represents one of the most interesting traditions in Israeli biblical scholarship.” – Francis Landy, In: Journal of Hebrew Scriptures 4 (2002-2003).

This volume comprises fifteen essays classified in three major sections. Some of these essays raise theoretical and methodological issues while others focus on specific topics. The time span ranges from late biblical period to the present. The volume reflects the current thought of some of the major scholars in the field in various shapes and contexts as well as from a variety of perspectives: inner-biblical, qumranic, New Testament, various rabbinic literature (targumic, midrashic, halachic, and Medieval kabalistic), and some modern interpretation. The essays reflects the contemporary thought of some of the foremost scholars in the field of biblical exegesis from a variety of standpoints, move the biblical exegesis well beyond its conventional limits, and enrich the knowledge and deeper the understanding of the readers.

“Kalimi, one of the esteemed specialists of the Chronicler’s work... has provided us an intriguing historical and theological study about the Chronicler’s work that will surely provoke further discussion.” — Stefan Beyerle, In: Journal for the Study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic and Roman Period 37 (2006). “Among Biblical scholars of Jewish background, Kalimi shows an outstanding ability to see and draw relationships between original passages and sources as well as ancient and modern commentaries.... Kalimi accomplished what he promised in the title of the book: to demonstrate that the Chronicler is “an ancient Israelite historian.'" - Chen Yiyi, In: Journal of Ancient Civilizations 24 (2009). “The book is another important contribution to the study of Chronicles by an eminent expert on that field, and as such is indispensable on every scholar’s desk, not only in the field of Chronicles but also for everyone with an interest in biblical historiography in general.” – M. Marciak, In: The Polish Journal of Biblical Research 8 (2009). “Professor Kalimi is to be congratulated for these two works, which are perhaps the finest analysis of Chronicles in the recent decades. Tons of ink has been spent on discussions that have gone above basic questions that the author has analyzed point by point, and no doubt studies in the future have come in the work of Kalimi a base and inescapable benchmark for discussions.” – J.M. Tebes, In: Antiguo Oriente 8 (2010).

The focus of this book is on early Jewish interpretations of the ambiguous relationship between God and ‛the angel of the Lord/God’ in texts like Genesis 16, 22 and 31. Genesis 32 is included since it exhibits the same ambiguity and constitutes an inseparable part of the Jacob saga. The study is set in the wider context of the development of angelology and concepts of God in various forms of early Judaism. When identifying patterns of interpretation in Jewish texts, their chronological setting is less important than the nature of the biblical source texts. For example, a common pattern is the avoidance of anthropomorphism. In Genesis ‛the angel of the Lord’ generally seems to be a kind of impersonal extension of God, while later Jewish writings are characterized by a more individualized angelology, but the ambivalence between God and his angel remains in many interpretations. In Philo's works and Wisdom of Solomon, the ‛Logos’ and ‛Lady Wisdom’ respectively have assumed the role of the biblical ‛angel of the Lord’. Although the angelology of Second Temple Judaism had developed in the direction of seeing angels as distinct personalities, Judaism still had room for the idea of divine hypostases.

How Jewish is Christianity? The question of how Jesus' followers relate to Judaism has been a matter of debate since Jesus first sparred with the Pharisees. The controversy has not abated, taking many forms over the centuries. In the decades following the Holocaust, scholars and theologians reconsidered the Jewish origins and character of Christianity, finding points of continuity. Understanding the Jewish Roots of Christianity advances this discussion by freshly reassessing the issues. Did Jesus intend to form a new religion? Did Paul abrogate the Jewish law? Does the New Testament condemn Judaism? How and when did Christianity split from Judaism? How should Jewish believers in Jesus relate to a largely gentile church? What meaning do the Jewish origins of Christianity have for theology and practice today? In this volume, a variety of leading scholars and theologians explore the relationship of Judaism and Christianity through biblical, historical, theological, and ecclesiological angles. This cutting-edge scholarship will enrich readers' understanding of this centuries-old debate.

This volume, the first of its sort, takes issue with scholars who believe that the terms biblical theology and Jews contradict rather than approximate each other. Without saying so, they automatically confirm Otto Procksch’s assertion that “alle Theologie ist Christologie.” In recent decades, however, there is increasing interest in earlier and current Jewish biblical theologies. A new generation of Jewish scholars demonstrate great interest in and actively engage in Hebrew Bible theology. They strive to make Jewish biblical theology a legitimate subdiscipline of biblical studies and develop it separately and independently from the Christian theology. Also, many Christian scholars are interested in understanding the Hebrew Bible / Old Testament and its various themes from Jewish theological perspectives. Thus, in response to continual interest from all sides, Isaac Kalimi presents this volume for the benefit of all. Jewish Bible Theology comprises a number of essays that raise substantial, methodological, and historical questions, while others focus on particular topics from the Torah, Prophets, and Writings. Altogether, they reflect fresh and current thinking on important issues in Jewish religious and intellectual world views.

Series: Jewish and Christian Heritage Series, 2 Early Jewish Exegesis and Theological Controversy is an important collection of essays on aspects of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament theology, the reception of biblical texts in Judaism and Christianity; the Aqedah, and related topics. The book comprises three main parts: a) the Aqedah and the Temple, b) Biblical Texts in Polemical Contexts, and c) Biblical Theology, Judaism and Christianity. Although each part deals with a specifically defined topic, all are linked by some common themes: all the sections discuss early Jewish exegesis, namely the early scriptures' interpretation in late Biblical literature, in the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, in Jewish-Hellenistic writings, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and a variety of Rabbinic sources, essentially the Targumim and midrashim. Each chapter of the book covers theological controversies, either among the Jewish groups themselves, and/or between Judaism and other religious denominations, especially Christianity. "By now Isaac Kalimi is recognized the world over as one of the last of the vanishing breed of biblical historians and as one of a handful of experts in the biblical books of Chronicles. Kalimi demonstrates in the first five chapters of Early Jewish Exegesis and Theological Controversy that he is also fully grounded in Second Temple literature and qualified to discuss the exegesis of Hebrew Scripture reflected in rabbinic literature, Samaritan lore, the New Testament, and the Nag Hammadi library. The message conveyed by prefacing five important studies on ancient exegesis--Jewish, Christian, and Samaritan--to his two essays on biblical theology at the dawn of the twenty-first century is that Kalimi's mastery of all relevant dialects of Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek and his unquestioned competence as a historian of both events and ideas qualifies him to offer some very original and timely advice to the world community of biblical scholars concerning biblical theology." - Mayer I. Gruber, In: Review of Biblical Literature (2004). "This book belongs on the shelves of every serious Judaica library; it also addresses a general readership, and it is of interest to undergraduate as well as graduate students... [it states] the important engagement and willingness of the author to approach the virtual minefield of discussion about biblical history and exegesis." - Rivka Ulmer, In: Review of Rabbinic Judaism 7 (2004). "As is necessary in interdisciplinary studies, Isaac Kalimi emerges as a jack of many trades in this book: rabbinic, Samaritan studies, patristics and theology. He has also demonstrated that he is a master in biblical studies... Kalimi's book is a necessary, timely and much appreciated offering. It serves as a model of mutual scholarly benefit for Jewish and Christian scholars engaged in the literature of their formative periods." -- T. Meacham, In: Biblical Interpretation in Judaism and Christianity (2006). "Kalimi's argumentation is thorough, wide-ranging, and impressionistic. His technique is to collect evidence from a variety of sources, to construct a history, and then to propose a single circumstantial explanation... There is much to discuss in these essays. Kalimi is an energetic, thoughtful, and challenging scholar...a fine collection by a scholar who represents one of the most interesting traditions in Israeli biblical scholarship." - Francis Landy, In: Journal of Hebrew Scriptures 4 (2002-2003).

This volume offers a unique approach to the history of biblical interpretation, examining the historical, theological, and philosophical presuppositions of select interpreters in order to tease out the complexity of factors that shape one s engagement with biblical texts. Taking seriously the power of biblical texts to shape and address questions common to all humanity, these essays not only provide a window into how the biblical text was read at specific times and places and but also suggest fruitful ways to read it today. Contributions in both English and German focus on biblical interpretation in Hellenistic Judaism and early Christianity, nineteenth-century German philosophy, and contemporary biblical theology. The contributors are Harold Attridge, Wilhelm Gräb, Stephan Grätzel, Garrett Green, Christine Helmer, Bernd Janowski, Maren Niehoff, Joachim Ringleben, Marvin Sweeney, and Karen Torjesen.Paperback edition is available from the Society of Biblical Literature (www.sbl-site.org)

Diverse approaches to biblical theology This volume presents a collection of studies on the methodology for conceiving the theological interpretation of the Hebrew Bible among Jews and Christians as well as the treatment of key issues such as creation, the land of Israel, and divine absence. Contributors include Georg Fischer, SJ, David Frankel, Benjamin J. M. Johnson, Soo J. Kim, Wonil Kim, Jacqueline E. Lapsley, Julia M. O’Brien, Dalit Rom-Shiloni, Marvin A. Sweeney, and Andrea L. Weiss. Features: Examination of metaphor, repentance, and shame in the presence of God Ten essays addressing the nature of biblical theology from a Jewish, Christian, or critical perspective Discussion of the changes that have taken place in the field of biblical theology since World War II

The fifteen articles in this volume, arising from work in the Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah Section of the Society of Biblical Literature, engage with the author's thought and message through analysis of certain critical texts or by identifying and tracing larger themes through the work. The collection follows The Chronicler as Historian and The Chronicler as Author. Like these previous volumes, this book also endeavours to show the diverse approaches employed in Chronicles scholarship. Contributors: Robert H. Smith, Allen W. Mueller, Gary N. Knoppers, Gerrie F. Snyman, Ehud Ben Zvi, Philip Abadie, Mark A. Throntveit, Leslie C. Allen, Christopher T. Begg, Roddy L. Braun, John C. Endres, Isaac Kalimi, Brian E. Kelly, William M. Schniedewind and John W. Wright.