Jewish Bundle, M (12 vols.)

The Tanakh is an entirely original translation of the Holy Scriptures (Old Testamant) into contemporary English, based on the Masoretic—the traditional Hebrew text. It is the culmination of three decades of collaboration by academic scholars and rabbis representing the three largest branches of organized Judaism in America.

They drew upon the latest findings in linguistics and archaeology as well as the work of early rabbinic and medieval commentators, grammarians, and philologians. The resulting text is a triumph of literary style and biblical scholarship, unsurpassed in accuracy and clarity.

This book is divided into three major sections. Part I gives a general introduction to the Talmud — its language, style of writing, mode of thinking and outlook on the world. Part II presents over 90 Talmud texts in novel format: Each selection, chosen from the Babylonian Talmud, begins with a famous talmudic aphorism or maxum. Next, a short selection of Talmud test is presented, within which the aphorism is embedded, in a new, modern translation. It is not only the language of the Talmud that is enigmatic: the concepts, values, and worldviews are often difficult for us to understand. The “Context” section is a response to this challenge. Finally, in the “D’rash” section, modern applications of the talmudic teachings are given. Part III contains glossary and indexes to make this book more user-friendly as well as guidance for the reader who wishes to continue the study of Talmd on his or her own.

A comprehensive, clear and accessible guide to the study of Midrash. Rabbis Katz and Schwartz explore the fascinating body of Jewish literature called Midrash—creative interpretations of the Bible that are designed to reveal hidden or deeper meaning in Scripture. Each of the over 50 Midrash selections, in English, featured in this book sit next to its corresponding biblical text (Hebrew and English), along with commentaries (English) on the times and insights of the Rabbis who wrote each Midrash. Guidance by the authors help readers answer the question “What does this text mean to me?”

The eminent Judaica scholar Jacob Neusner provides here the first form-analytical translation of the Mishnah. This pathbreaking edition provides as close to a literal translation as possible, following the syntax of Mishnaic Hebrew in its highly formalized and syntactically patterned language. Demonstrating that the Mishnah is a work of careful and formal poetry and prose, Neusner not only analyzes the repeated constructions but also divides the thoughts on the printed page so that the patterned language and the poetry comprised in those patterns emerge visually.

We all know about King David and King Solomon, but what about the kings Omri and Uzziah? Of the more than 50 monarchs who sat on the throne of the Jews for over 1000 years, most of us can recall only a few. What we do remember about them has been colored by legend and embellishment. In Kings of the Jews, Norman Gelb tells us the real stories of them all. And in doing so, he reveals how a remarkably resilient people survived divisions, discord, and conquest to forge a vibrant identity that has lasted to the present day.

Kings of the Jews explores some of the most dramatic periods in Jewish history: those of the united Israelite kingdom under David and Solomon, the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the Babylonian exile, and the destruction of the Second Temple and the Roman conquest of Jerusalem.

What was Judaism like in the time of Jesus? Jewish Sects of the New Testament Era answers this question and brings readers into the Word and world of New Testament Judaism. Jewish believer Dr. Randy Weiss identifies the dramatic, undeniable, ancient connection between ancient Judaism and nascent Christianity. Did the Jews kill Christ? If so, what form of Judaism is to blame? Many “flavors” of ancient Judaism are examined in this work. Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, Ebionites, Sicarii, Theraputae, and others are considered. Jesus lived in an apocalyptic era. He came to a people ripe with messianic expectations. This text enables students of the New Testament to understand the varied Jewish belief systems at work among the segmented groups of Jews who lived in the time of Christ.

In this fascinating book, Knohl shares his understanding of how the Torah was edited into its final form. He bridges the gap between ancient Israel (c.1400–586 B.C.E.) and Second Temple times (c.536 B.C.E.–70 C.E.) by showing the continuity between these eras and the gradual evolution of the biblical worldview, which formed the foundation of later rabbinic Judaism. The book focuses on the editing of the Torah, interpreting the textual evidence, most notably contradictions and redundancies, to show that the idea of a pluralistic understanding of Revelation can be traced back to the editing of the Torah itself.

Knohl’s interpretation of biblical composition challenges a popular trend in contemporary biblical scholarship: the idea that ancient Israel never existed as a historical reality, but was invented and “retrojected” back in time by later Israelite priests as part of their national myth.

This adaptation of the JPS translation of the Torah (1962) will appeal to readers who are interested in a historically based picture of social gender roles in the Bible as well as those who have become accustomed to gender-sensitive English in other aspects of their lives. Many contemporary Bible scholars contend that the Bible’s original audience understood that the references to God as male simply reflected gendered social roles at the time. However, evidence for this implicit assumption is ambiguous. Accordingly, in preparing this new edition, the editors sought language that was more sensitive to gender nuances, to reflect more accurately the perceptions of the original Bible readers.

In places where the ancient audience probably would not have construed gender as pertinent to the text’s plain sense, the editors changed words into gender-neutral terms; where gender was probably understood to be at stake, they left the text as originally translated, or even introduced gendered language where none existed before. They made these changes regardless of whether words referred to God, angels, or human beings. For example, the phrase originally translated in the 1962 JPS Torah as “every man as he pleases” has been rendered here “each of us as we please” (Deut. 12:8). Similarly, “man and beast” now reads “human and beast” (Exod. 8:14), since the Hebrew word adam is meant to refer to all human beings, not only to males. Conversely, the phrase “the persons enrolled” has been changed to “the men enrolled” (Num. 26:7), to reflect the fact that only men were counted in census-taking at this time.

In most cases, references to God are rendered in gender neutral language. A special case in point: the unpronounceable four-letter name for the Divine, the Tetragammaton, is written in unvocalized Hebrew, conveying to the reader that the Name is something totally “other”—beyond our speech and understanding. Readers can choose to substitute for this unpronounceable Name any of the numerous divine names offered by Jewish tradition, as generations have before our time. In some instances, however, male imagery depicting God is preserved because it reflects ancient society’s view of gender roles.

David Stein’s preface provides an explanation of the methodology used, and a table delineates typical ways that God language is handled, with sample verses. Occasional notes applied to the Bible text explain how gender is treated; longer supplementary notes at the end of the volume comment on special topics related to this edition. In preparing this work, the editors undertook a thorough and comprehensive analysis of the Torah's gender ascriptions. The result is a carefully rendered alternative to the traditional JPS translation.

Studies In Biblical Interpretation, a volume in the acclaimed JPS Scholars of Distinction series, is a collection of essays by Nahum M. Sarna, one of the most distinguished scholars who has guided the field of Jewish biblical scholarship to maturity in the second half of the twentieth century.

Though under one cover it is impossible to encapsulate the life’s work of a renowned academic, the 27 essays presented in this volume are exemplars of the Jewish exegetical tradition. Saran has been honored in many ways for his contributions, which are far from parochial; his expertise in Jewish interpretive writings accounts for the popularity of his work among non-Jewish scholars. At the same time, the lucidity of those writings makes them accessible to the lay reader as well.

Religious scholars will appreciate the comprehensive and thoughtful foreword by Sarna’s former student Jeffrey Tigay, now the Abraham H. Ellis professor of Hebrew and Semitic Languages and Literatures at the University of Pennsylvania Tigay offers an engaging biography of his mentor and provides an overview that leads the reader into the text.

This volume began with a simple idea: to create a concise companion to the Bible. But that led to a not-so-simple question: How does one develop a guide that is worthy of accompanying such a complex book and keep it short and uncomplicated? A book based on scholarship without being “scholarly?” The Jewish Bible: A JPS Guide is what it set out to be: an introduction and compact reference to the most fascinating and influential book of all time.

This new volume in the acclaimed JPS Guides series is an invaluable companion to the Jewish Bible, providing readers with ready access to important facts and Bible basics:

• How the Bible became the “Bible”: its origins, content, and organization
• Distinctions between the Jewish Bible (JPS TANAKH) and Christian Bibles
• A short history of Bible translations, and how they differ
• Bible commentaries
• Storytelling, poetry, law, prophecy, and wisdom literature
• Popular methods of Bible study
• Finding meaning through midrash

In addition, there are summaries of all the biblical books; dozens of text boxes; an extensive glossary of Bible terms, places, and people; maps, charts, and tables; and large foldout timelines and family trees—all in color.

Contributions are by leading Bible scholars and educators: Marc Zvi Brettler, Joyce Eisenberg, Michael Fishbane, Michael V. Fox, Leonard Greenspoon, Jill Hammer, Stuart Kelman, Adriane Leveen, David Mandel, Lionel Moses, Shalom Paul, Benjamin Edidin Scolnic, Ellen Scolnic, David E. S. Stein, Barry Dov Walfish, and Andrea Weiss.

Every commentator, from the classical rabbi to the modern-day scholar, has brought his or her own worldview, with all of its assumptions, to bear on the reading of holy text. This relationship between the text itself and the reader’s interpretation is the subject of Torah Through Time. Shai Cherry traces the development of Jewish Bible commentary through three pivotal periods in Jewish history: the rabbinic, medieval, and modern periods. The result is a fascinating and accessible guide to how some of the world’s leading Jewish commentators read the Bible.

Torah Through Time focuses on specific narrative sections of the Torah: the creation of humanity, the rivalry between Cain and Abel, Korah’s rebellion, the claim of the daughters of Zelophechad, and legal matters concerning Hebrew slavery. Cherry closely examines several different commentaries for each of these source texts, and in so doing he analyzes how each commentator resolves questions raised by the texts and asks if and how the commentator’s own historical frame of reference — his own time and place — contributes to the resolution. A chart at the end of each chapter provides a visual summary that helps the reader understand the many different elements at play.

David Mandel has undertaken the enormous task of cataloging every character in the Hebrew Bible. From Aaron to Zurishaddai, this comprehensive biographical dictionary gives readers the opportunity to get up close and personal with everyone named in the Bible—its patriarchs, matriarchs, and prophets, warriors and peacemakers, holy men and sinners, heroes and villains.

Arranged in an encyclopedic A to Z format, Who’s Who in the Jewish Bible is much more than a catalog of names. It contains detailed biographical information as well as fascinating facts and intriguing stories, written in a contemporary narrative style, about all the Bible’s characters. Each entry also includes the origin and meaning of the name, the dates he or she lived (if known), and the person’s first appearance in the Bible by book, chapter, and verse.

Who’s Who in the Jewish Bible is the most thorough and comprehensive book of its kind and an invaluable reference for students, teachers, rabbis, and anyone interested in knowing more about the people of the Hebrew Bible. Those who search for a name in the Bible, whether well-known or obscure, will be rewarded with well-organized information that will add new meaning and enjoyment to their reading.

The postmodern Jew seeks a Judaism that weaves God, folk, and self into a seamless whole. In twenty searching chapters, Eugene B. Borowitz creatively explores his theory of Covenant, linking self to folk and God through the contemporary idiom of relationship.

Widely regarded as one of liberal Judaism’s leading theologians, Rabbi Borowitz has long championed the need for Jews to return to the Covenant—a personal relationship with God. In this volume, Rabbi Borowitz straightforwardly faces fundamental theological issues: “The who/what of God,” “What does God still do?” and “What can we do about our will-to-do-evil?” He concludes by articulating his own vision: a theology of contemporary Jewish duty.

Originally a lecture given at Oberlin College in 1913, this is a comparative study of Hebrew and Babylonian traditions, such as their folk-tales, beliefs, religious practices, and modes of thought. Using historical records, early biblical studies, and materials excavated from the Euphrates Valley archeological sites, Morris Jastrow’s captivating work shines light on the similarities and differences of those two historically important cultures.

Every year hundreds—even thousands—of scholars and students go to Israel and pay for the privilege of working hard at uncovering its past. Why? The appeal of the Hebrew Bible lies pre-eminently in its link with history and archaeology. Questions of Israelite origins have dominated much of the twentieth century scholarship on biblical history, and continue to fascinate scholars and laypersons from both Christian and Jewish traditions around the world. This volume examines the history of the Israelite and Judean states. The contributors cover method, society, and historical sources.

Cohen and Mendes-Flohr’s classic work has been hailed by many as the most important comprehensive anthology ever published on topics central to Judaism from a modern perspective. This outstanding volume presents 140 concise yet authoritative essays by renowned Jewish figures Eugene Borowitz, Emil Fackenheim, Blu Greenberg, Susannah Heschel, Jacob Neusner, Gershom Scholem, Adin Steinsaltz, and many others. They define and reflect upon such central ideas as charity, chosen people, death, family, love, myth, suffering, Torah, tradition and more.

With entries from Aesthetics to Zionism, this book provides striking insights into both the Jewish experience and the Judeo-Christian tradition. This resource is sure to bring readers closer to an understanding of what Judaism is all about.

The Shema is the central prayer of the Jewish faith. Jews utter this single sentence, affirming God’s unity as their final words before dying, as well as at the beginning and ending of each day. Using the Shema as his focus, Lamm, prominent Orthodox scholar and long-time president of Yeshiva University, explores the relationship between spirituality and law in Judaism.

A 12th-century rabbi, scholar, physician, and philosopher, Moses Maimonides is best known for his two great works on Judaism: Mishneh Torah and Guide to the Perplexed. They have often been viewed by scholars as having different audiences and different messages, together reflecting the two sides of the author himself: Maimonides the halakhist, who focused on piety through obedience to Jewish law; and Maimonides the philosopher, who advocated closeness with God through reflection and knowledge of nature. David Hartman argues that while many scholars look at one aspect of Maimonides to the exclusion or dismissal of the other, the way to really understand him is to see both adherence to the law and philosophical pursuits as two essential aspects of Judaism. This expanded edition contains a new postscript by Hartman that sheds new light on his argument and indeed on Judaism as Maimonides interpreted it.

Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael is a classic collection of midrash. It contains commentary on a large part of the Book of Exodus (chapters 12 to 23) and represents the two main modes of interpretation: the halakhah (legal doctrine), and the aggadah (moral and religious teachings). The work also contains allusions to historical events and ancient legends not found elsewhere. A new introduction by noted scholar David Stern highlights the work. It retains the original text—based on manuscript and early editions—from the JPS 1933 edition.

This classic work is widely recognized as a model of meticulous and thorough scholarship. Its translation is accurate, straightforward, and usable by scholars, students, and lay readers. Out of print for many years, Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael should belong to every rabbi, rabbinical school, and Jewish Studies professor, or anyone interested in Midrash.

The Mekhilta de-Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai is a collection of classical midrashic interpretation of the biblical Book of Exodus. Lost for centuries, the text was reconstructed and recovered in the 19th and 20th centuries by both German and Israeli scholars from a variety of source materials, including medieval manuscripts of the text and midrashic anthologies. As one of the first collections of rabbinic biblical interpretation, the Mekhilta de-Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai is an indispensable source for understanding the history, beliefs, and practices of the earliest rabbis. A critical introduction provides the reader with a firm grounding in the historical setting of the text, as well as its source material, reconstruction, subject matter, and significance for understanding the history of Judaism.

Long known only to scholars and specialists, Pesikta de-Rab Kahana is a masterpiece of midrashic literature. A collection of discourses for special Sabbaths and festival days compiled and organized during the fifth century, it was well known and studied from the end of that century until it disappeared sometime in the sixteenth century. From manuscripts discovered in 1868 and still others 100 years later, it was reborn. Braude and Kapstein’s translation brings this classic to English readers, with forward by Yehiel E. Poupko.

One of the earliest English translations of the Babylonian Talmud, the first volumes of Michael L. Rodkinson’s New Edition of the Babylonian Talmud began appearing in 1896. And in 1918, after many revisions and editing, The Talmud Society published the second editions of Rodkinson’s monumental work in one complete collection. The Babylonian Talmud: Original Text, Edited, Corrected, Formulated and Translated into English contains all 19 volumes that Rodkinson completed—almost the entire Babylonian Talmud (contains all of the tractates in the Order Mo’ed (Festivals) and Nezikin (Damages), plus some additional material related to these Orders).

This volume contains Etienne Nodet’s fascinating theory of Jewish origins. This radical reconstruction of the origins of Judaism starts by observing that Josephus’ sources on the early history of Israel do not agree with the Bible and that the oldest rabbinic traditions show no sign of a biblical foundation. Another interesting question is raised by the Samaritan claim, at the time of Antiochus Epiphanes, that they had only recently received the Sabbath from the Jews. From such details, Nodet creates a comprehensive line of argument which reveals two major sources of Judaism, as symbolized in the subtitle of his work: Joshua was the one who established in writing a statute and a law at the Shechem assembly, while the Mishnah was the ultimate metamorphosis of traditions brought from Babylon and combined with Judaean influences.

In The Samaritans and Early Judaism, Ingrid Hjelm examines the various ancient sources mentioning Samaritans, dating from the Persian period to well into the Roman period and emanating from Jewish, Christian, Hellenistic and Samaritan circles. She addresses those issues that can be related to a possible Samaritan-Judean conflict, and special attention is given to questions about temple, high priests, Levites and prophets, as well as Shechem and Heliopolis. In this radical new investigation, Hjelm points out anachronisms in both the ancient writers and our reading of them and proposes a new understanding of the formation of both Samaritanism and Judaism.

In this important volume, Tamara Prosic gives a new explanation of the origins, development and symbolism of Passover.

First, she examines Passover from the diachronic perspective, tracing its development from the period before the centralization of the cult until the second destruction of the temple. Issues with previous scholarship are considered, while at the same time she places the study of Passover within the framework of the new paradigm of historical studies of ancient Israel that advocates the indigenous Canaanitic origin of Israelites.

The second part of the book is synchronic in its approach to Passover and deals with its symbolism. Prosic discusses Passover in biblical legends arguing that the pre-Yahwistic Passover was essentially a rite of passage. From there the investigation moves to symbolic elements of Passover such as time symbolism, space symbolism and symbolism of the sacrifice.

The study of exile has had forceful influence on Old Testament scholarship. When discussing history and literature, things are measured in “pre-exilic” and “post-exilic” terms. The concept of sin;–exile–restoration has made a major impact on theological thinking, both in the Old Testament itself and in subsequent theological discussion. The exile is a powerful symbol in the Bible. Did real people from Judah go to Babylon into exile? Or are we dealing with a theological and literary concept? This volume aims to address many of the issues in the current approach to studying the exile.

In Fabric of History, six scholars explore the nature of history and historical reconstruction and the place of history within biblical studies. The uncritical use of both text and artifact that continues to dominate histories of Israel and Judah testifies to the need for a wider grassroots awareness of the basic issues involved in doing history as a biblical scholar. A growing number of scholars are questioning the theoretical underpinnings of the main schools of research and are calling for an approach that makes a more critical evaluation of both textual and artifactual material before using it in historical reconstruction.

This work investigates the reliability of Moses, Joshua, Elijah, and Elisha as they are presented in biblical history. Biblical scholarship often examines textual traditions, archaeology, and the historical context, but spends little time seeking to understand the characters themselves as they are portrayed in the biblical narrative. There is also a marked tendency to idealize characters such as Moses, Joshua, Elijah, and Elisha by emphasizing their positive aspects, and minimizing their negative aspects. This volume intends to correct that, and tries to see the key figures in Israel’s history for who they really are.

This book is concerned primarily with the chronology of the Hebrew Bible in its various textual forms. The central thesis is that these chronologies are essentially schematic and may be seen as mythical expressions of a belief that human history is ordered according to a divine plan.

This work is the first comprehensive treatment of the biblical traditions pertaining to the Israelite sanctuary at Shiloh. A survey of previous research puts the current discussion of Shiloh into historical context and exposes the real issues behind the often bitter debate over Shiloh’s supposed destruction during the Philistine wars and its traditional status as the first central shrine.

Tel Dan Inscription is the first book-length treatment of the most important, and controversial, inscription found in Israel in recent years. The inscription contains a possible mention of the name “David” and is thought by many scholars to verify the existence of this king. This volume contains a full account of the discovery, epigraphic analysis, paleographical analysis, possible arrangement of the three fragments discovered, textual analysis and historical commentary. It is more thorough in each of these treatments than any preceding discussion, and reviews all of the major theories about the inscription, with a well-considered conclusion.