Justice for the Poor? Social Justice in the Old Testament in Concept and Practice
Ebook
Overview
Can the Old Testament help us in keeping the excesses of capitalism in check? How can a book that goes on about “justice and righteousness,” but says “there will always be poor people in the land” and accepts slavery have anything to say to us about social justice? Did kings of Israel draft their subjects--and which subjects--for forced labor? What does it mean when the Psalms say God is coming to judge the world? Is charity justice?--or is justice more than charity? Does Genesis give us the right to use the earth and its creatures as we like? These are some of the questions that Walter Houston asks, and tries to answer, in this book of essays from his work over the last twenty-five years.
“While the Old Testament’s concern for justice is well-known,
Houston brilliantly transcends general statements on the issue,
deeply contextualizing the statements of the various Old Testament
texts within their historical and literary settings. His thorough
analysis undoubtedly provides the basis and model for generations
of further study into the historical contexts of the biblical texts
and pathways to application of their insights to modern
settings.”
—Peter Altmann, Assistant Professor of Old Testament, University of
Zurich
“This book is something rich and rare. Walter Houston’s collected
essays are rich with attention to detail, and such detail is set in
the context of the most significant relevant works of biblical
scholarship, all critically and sympathetically cross-examined. In
profound ways rarely encountered in biblical scholarship, the
detail is not left to stand on its own but is encouraged to speak
to ethical and political issues old and new. Here is much
challenging insight.”
—George J. Brooke, Professor of Biblical Criticism and Exegesis
Emeritus, University of Manchester
“Every time I read something by Walter Houston, it makes me think.
He lets no one get away with sloppy arguments, he respects no
sacred cows, and his arguments are always rigorous and critical.
Never does he forget the reason he is studying the Old Testament.
He keeps in focus the question of what it has to say about justice
and righteousness and his commitment to helping the reader see what
it says.”
—John Goldingay, Professor Emeritus of Old Testament, Fuller
Theological Seminary
“Walter Houston here combines his considerable expertise in both
biblical theology and biblical law with critical applications to
modern issues. This volume of his collected essays (with one new
chapter on ‘The Psalms of YHWH’s Kingship’) is highly
recommended.”
—Bernard Jackson, Professor Emeritus, University of
Manchester
Product Details
- Title : Justice for the Poor?: Social Justice in the Old Testament in Concept and Practice
- Author: Houston, Walter J.
- Publisher: Cascade Books
- Publication Date: 2020
- ISBN: 9781532646027
Walter J. Houston is an Honorary Research Fellow at the Center for Biblical Studies at the University of Manchester, England, and an Emeritus Fellow of Mansfield College, Oxford. He is the author of Contending for Justice (2008).