Religion in Ancient Israel

Essays in Honour of John Day

Katherine E. Southwood, Stuart Weeks, H.G.M. Williamson

• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Year: 2025
• Edition: 1
• eBook ISBN:
  9780567713018
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Studies

This volume intersects with the work of John Day to illuminate major aspects of the religion of Ancient Israel in its geographical and historical context as well as by attention to the literatures of neighbouring peoples (especially, though not exclusively, Ugaritic). The introduction to the volume uses Day's scholarship as a framework within which the individual studies can be contextualized, whilst also describing broader developments within the field during the course of Day's career (such as arguments over the dating of texts, and questions about the very nature of 'ancient Israel') in order to sketch the history of scholarship in this period and discuss its directions of travel.

The chapters are organized into sections covering 'private' and 'public' religion and, whilst the volume does not seek to provide a comprehensive overview of ancient Israelite religion, it does provide a snapshot – by leading scholar scholars – that can stand as an overview of the current state of scholarly enquiry into the religious landscape of ancient Israel.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Halftitle page
• Photo
• Title page
• Copyright page
• Contents
• Abbreviations for the Bibliography
• List of Contributors
• Introduction
• Chapter 1 ‘BRINGER OF RAIN AND PROVIDER OF ABUNDANCE’: STORM-GOD IMAGERY IN PSALMS 36 AND 65
• Chapter 2 ‘MAY HE RAIN BIRD SNARES, FIRE, AND BRIMSTONE ON THE WICKED’ (PS 11:6): PSALM 11, TAUNT SPEECH AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WARFARE
• Chapter 3 DON’T FORGET ADONIS! REFLECTIONS ON ISAIAH 17:10-11
• Chapter 4 A MULTI-METHOD APPROACH TO A BIBLICAL CONUNDRUM: THE MOLEKH OF SOLOMON OR THE MOSAIC MOLEKH?
• Chapter 5 CANAANITE MYTH AND DANIEL 7: ILLUSION OR ALLUSION?
• Chapter 6 THE ONE AND THE MANY, OR HOW TO REDUCE A PANTHEON
• Chapter 7 CHERUBIM AND SERAPHIM IN THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING WORLD OF THE SIXTEENTH AND SEVENTEENTH CENTURIES CE
• Chapter 8 CENSING THE BOUNDARIES OF PRIESTHOOD: AARON’S ACT OF ATONEMENT (NUM 17:6-15) AND ITS AFTERLIFE IN SECOND-TEMPLE ANTIQUITY
• Chapter 9 INTERPRETING PRIESTLY ORDINATION IN THE TEMPLE SCROLL: A METHODOLOGICAL CASE-STUDY
• Chapter 10 READING THE HEBREW BIBLE IN CHRISTIANITY AND JUDAISM
• Chapter 11 FOLLY AT BETHEL: AMOS ON RELIGION
• Chapter 12 THE IMAGE OF MOURNING IN THE BOOK OF AMOS
• Chapter 13 HABAKKUK – THE PROPHETIC JOB? LINKS OF INTERTEXTS, THEOLOGICAL THEMES AND RELIGIOUS PRACTICE BETWEEN THE BOOKS OF HABAKKUK AND JOB
• Chapter 14 BEWARE THE FEMALE PROPHETS: WOMEN, SEX AND DIVINATION IN PROVERBS 31:3
• Chapter 15 A CATALOGUE OF DIVINE GAMBLING ACTIVITIES IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
• Bibliography
• John Day, Curriculum Vitae
• Index of Authors
• Index of Primary Sources