Interpreting the Old Testament: A Guide for Exegesis

by Craig C. Broyles

Publisher:

Baker Academic

, 2001

Overview

Serious students of the Old Testament quickly realize that interpreting ancient Scripture is inherently difficult. Understanding the literature of the Old Testament poses unique challenges and requires methods very different from those used to interpret the New Testament. Interpreting the Old Testament is designed to provide students a useful methodology for interpreting Old Testament texts. The authors, all leading evangelical scholars, were chosen because of their particular expertise in the various aspects of the interpretive process; they offer insight and wisdom, helping you unlock the Word. Not simply a book of theory, this work provides practical help to students as they seek to understand and apply the Old Testament.

The Logos Bible Software edition of this volume is designed to encourage and stimulate your study and understanding of Scripture. Biblical passages link directly to your English translations and original-language texts, and important theological concepts link to dictionaries, encyclopedias, and a wealth of other resources in your digital library. In addition, you can perform powerful searches by topic and find what other authors, scholars, and theologians have to say about the Word of God.

Key Features

• Offers a readable collection of essays built as observations on the Bible
• Includes diagrams and tables for visual aid
• Features extensive footnotes, referencing further sources of study

Contents

• Interpreting the Old Testament: Principles and Steps
• Language and Text of the Old Testament
• Reading the Old Testament as Literature
• Old Testament History and Sociology
• Traditions, Intertextuality, and Canon
• The History of Religion, Biblical Theology, and Exegesis
• Ancient Near Eastern Studies
• Compositional History: Source, Form, and Redaction
• Theology and the Old Testament

Praise for the Print Edition

Craig Broyles and his colleagues have written a fine book for those who are beginning their journey into the serious study of the Old Testament. The chapters are easy to read yet truly informative—even formative—for the reader. The basic questions are asked and receive clear, concise, and penetrating answers. This book will no doubt serve as a standard reference tool and textbook for years to come.

—Richard E. Averbeck, professor of Old Testament and Semitic languages, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

This book is a splendid introduction to the exegesis of the Old Testament. It presents and critiques the range of scholarly tools that have been developed to bring out the sense of Scripture and also gives hand-on examples of how they may be used in specific passages. Both the explanations given by the contributors and their citation of further reading in each area open doors for the serious student of the Old Testament to the meaning of the sacred text.

—Leslie Allen, senior professor of Old Testament, Fuller Theological Seminary

This volume presents a useful overview of several pertinent issues for today’s readers of the Old Testament. We should all be grateful to the editor and authors for bringing us up to date regarding recent trends in interpretive theory and the latest tools necessary for interpreting the text for our changing world.

—Bill T. Arnold, Paul S. Amos Professor of Old Testament Interpretation, Asbury Theological Seminary

This is a solid, dependable collection of essays on the various topics related to the contemporary practice of exegesis.

—Canadian Evangelical Review

The book as a whole gives a strong impression that exegesis is an art of listening, being attentive to the voice of God that speaks through the Bible.

—Calvin Theological Journal

This book has many strong points. . . . [It] will be useful and fruitful for the reader who is entering the world of OT interpretation for the first time.

—Concordia Journal

Firmly grounded in theoretical issues but the orientation is thoroughly practical, setting out systematic approaches and providing worked examples and guides to further resources. . . . The book challenges those who read the Bible at face value to penetrate beneath the surface and mine its riches, and seeks to provide the tools and skills to do so.

—Journal for the Study of the Old Testament

Product Details

• Title: Interpreting the Old Testament: A Guide for Exegesis
• Author: Craig C. Broyles
• Publisher: Baker Academic
• Publication Date: 2001
• Pages: 272

About Craig C. Broyles

Craig C. Broyles is a professor of religious studies at Trinity Western University, Canada. He is author of The Conflict of Faith and Experience: A Form-Critical and Theological Study of Selected Lament Psalms and co-editor of Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah: Studies of an Interpretive Tradition.