This volume publishes twenty-three papers given by invitation at the thirteenth Congress of the International Organization for the Study of the Old Testament, which was held at Leuven from 27 August until 1 September 1989 under the Presidency of C. Brekelmans. The articles cover a range of subjects relevant to the Old Testament: the Pentateuch (E.W. Nicholson, W.H. Schmidt, E. Blum, J. Van Seters, A. de Pury), the historical books (C. Brekelmans, Helga Weippert, R.D. Nelson, W. Thiel, Sara Japhet, K.-F. Pohlmann), the prophets (C. Hardmeier, D.L. Petersen, W.A.M. Beuken, R.P. Carroll, P.-M. Bogaert), the Psalms (J. Trublet, N. Füglister), textual criticism (E. Tov), the Targums (L. Díez Merino), the development of Israelite religion (N.P. Lemche), the Babylonian New Year Festival and the Old Testament (K. van der Toorn), and the Apocryphon of Jannes and Jambres (A. Pietersma).

This volume publishes the papers given by invitation at the fifteenth Congress of the International Organization for the Study of the Old Testament, which was held at Cambridge in July 1995, under the Presidency of J.A. Emerton. The articles cover a wide range of subjects relevant to the study of the Old Testament, and reflect the ongoing debate on a variety of themes among the world's leading contemporary Old Testament scholars.

The articles collected in this volume cover a wide range of subject concerned with the Old Testament. They were originally read at a Congress in Paris of the International Organization for the Study of the Old Testament in July 1992.

This third volume, like its predecessors, adds to the growing body of literature concerned with the history of biblical interpretation. With eighteen essays on nineteen biblical interpreters, volume 3 expands the scope of scholars, both traditional and modern, covered in this now multivolume series. Each chapter provides a biographical sketch of its respective scholar(s), an overview of their major contributions to the field, explanations of their theoretical and methodological approaches to interpretation, and evaluations and applications of their methods. By focusing on the contexts in which these scholars lived and worked, these essays show what defining features qualify these scholars as “pillars” in the history of biblical interpretation. While identifying a scholar as a “pillar” is somewhat subjective, this volume defines a pillar as one who has made a distinctive contribution by using and exemplifying a clear method that has pushed the discipline forward, at least within a given context and time period. This volume is ideal for any class on the history of biblical interpretation and for those who want a greater understanding of how the field of biblical studies has developed and how certain interpreters have played a formative role in that development.

This is the final volume in Wilberger's comprehensive treatment of Isaiah 1-39. In addition to verse-by-verse commentary, the author provides a systematic overview of the entire Book of Isaiah. This "introduction" to Isaiah covers: the book and the text, the formation of Isaiah 1-39, the prophet Isaiah and his religious roots, the theology of post-Isaianic materials, language and forms of speech in Isaiah, and a listing of recent Isaiah scholarship.

A thorough study of quotation within ancient and modern literatures is the background for this new approach to alleged quotations within the prophetic writings. The common claim that specific verbal parallels result from the conscious repetition of the words of a predecessor is beset by difficulties. After examining quotation in non-prophetic (ancient Near Eastern, early Jewish, Old Testament wisdom and narrative, and modern Western) literatures, Schultz proposes a new model for interpreting verbal parallels that utilizes several criteria for identifying quotation and combines diachronic with synchronic analysis. He then applies this model to five representative verbal parallels involving the book of Isaiah. This book illustrates how an awareness of the versatility of quotation facilitates a more accurate interpretation of verbal parallels, and at the same time calls for greater caution in employing them in support of various theories.

Ingrid Hjelm examines the composition of the Books of Kings, using the Hezekiah narratives in 2 Kings 18-20 as a focus. She argues that this narrative is taken from that of the book of Isaiah, with which it shares linguistic and thematic elements. In Kings, it is used with the specific purpose of breaking the compositional pattern of curse, which threatens to place Jerusalem on a par with Samaria. Jerusalem traditions are examined against theories of a late Yahwist author and the Pentateuch's origin within a Jerusalem cult. While the Pentateuch in its final form became a common work, acceptable to all groups because of its implied ambiguity, the Deuteronomistic History's favoring of David and Jerusalem holds a rejection of competitive groups as its implied argument.

This book examines the way in which the story of the flood in Genesis 6-9 presents the ethical question of the value of human life. The sources J and P are examined to see how their combination in the canonical text enhances interpretation. Several themes of the story are studied including the causes of the flood, the righteousness of Noah, God's repentance, creation and uncreation, the covenant and the image of God. The work concludes by arguing that the value of human life is found in man's relation to God (Gen. 9:6).

This monograph deals with an important but unexplored document of Hellenistic Judaism. The question of "Hellenistic influence" is addressed on the basis of an analysis of a representative number of chapters of Septuagint Proverbs (1, 2, 6, 8, 9, 24, 29, 30 and 31). Scholars have argued that this book was influenced extensively by Greek philosophy. The author follows a contextual cultural method. The Greek text is analysed on four levels: the semantic, syntactical, stylistic (which represents the translation technique of the translator), and finally the "theological" level. This study represents the first exhaustive analysis of the theme. The conclusion is that the impact of Stoicism on this Greek version has been overestimated in the past. Novel views are also formulated concerning the role of the law in LXX Proverbs, its historical setting and its text-critical value.