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Overview
Product Details
ISBN-13: | 2900674069410 |
---|---|
Publication date: | 11/01/1999 |
Pages: | 696 |
Product dimensions: | 6.50(w) x 10.00(h) x (d) |
About the Author
Table of Contents
Preface
The World of Ancient Biblical Interpreters
The Creation of the World
Wisdom Came First
• The "Beginning" Did It
• A Special Light
• The Angels Were Also Created
• God and Someone Else
• Completed on Friday
Adam and Eve
Death in a Day
• The Punishment Was Mortality
• Sinfulness is Hereditary
• The Serpent Was Satan
• Blame It on the Woman
• An Extra Proviso
• The Earthly Paradise
• The Garden in Heaven
Cain and Abel
Son of the Devil
• Cain's Sisters
• Professions Decided
• Defective Sacrifices
• The Problem Was the Sacrificer
• The Good and the Bad
• Killed with a Stone
• God Knew Where Abel Was
• Cain's Sevenfold Punishment
• Cain's Repentance
Noah and the Flood
Cain Was the Worst
• The Immortal Enoch
• The Heavenly Scribe * Enoch the Sage
• Enoch the Penitent
• A Bad Match
• The Wicked Giants
• One Hundred and Twenty until Punishment
• Noah Warned of the Flood
• Noah the Righteous
• Only in His Generation
• The Animals Also Sinned
• The Purifying Flood
The Tower of Babel
They Tried to Storm Heaven
• A War against God
• Nimrod Built It
• The Builders Were Giants
• The Tower Lies in Ruins
Abraham Journeys from Chaldea
Abraham the Monotheist
• Terah, Priest of Idolatry
• Abraham the Astronomer
• Tipped Off by the Stars
• Abraham Rescued from Chaldea
• Abraham Saved from Fire
• Abraham Was Upset
• Abraham's Dream
Melchizedek
A Generous Host
• Righteous King and Priest
• Divinely Appointed High Priest
• The Heavenly Melchizedek
• The Christian "Order of Melchizedek"
• An Uncircumcised Priest?
• Melchizedek in Samaria
• Melchizedek Was Shem
• Services No Longer Needed
The Trials of Abraham
Abraham the Tested
• Abraham Saw a Dire Future
• Challenged by Angels
• God Made It Known
• Isaac Was a Willing Victim
• Together in Mind
• Offering Foreshadowed Crucifixion
Lot and Lot's Wife
Lot the Righteous
• Lot the Wicked
• Sodomites' Sexual Sins
• The Proud and the Stingy
• Abraham's Hospitality
• Lot Learned from Abraham
• Lot's Wife Sinned
• A Visible Reminder
• Lot's Daughters Meant Well
Jacob and Esau
Jacob Was Not Just "Simple"
• Jacob the Scholar
• Esau the Wicked
• Good and Evil in Utero
• Esau the Warrior
• Esau Means Rome
• Esau the Deceiver
• Esau Didn't Care
• Jacob Told the Truth
• God Wanted Jacob to be Blessed
• The Ladder Was a Message
• Angels Wanted to See Him
Jacob and the Angel
Jacob Knew Right Away
• Deluded in the Dark
• Additional Trickery Required
• Weak, Bleary Eyes
• "Nice Eyes, But..."
• God Multiplied Jacob's Flocks
• Rachel Was Not a Crook
• Jacob Struggled with an Angel
• Mighty with God's Help
• Israel Means Seeing God
Dinah
Uncontrolled Anger
• Shechem Deserved Death
• Foreigners Are Different
• Intermarriage Is Forbidden
• A Wise Answer
• The Whole City Was Guilty
• City with a Criminal Past
• God Said No
• God Ordered Their Destruction
• Dinah Married Job
Joseph's Ups and Downs
It's a Wise Child
• Eating from the Flocks
• Resembled Jacob in All Things
• Deeds of Youthful Foolishness
• For the Price of Shoes
• Joseph's Great Virtue
• A Very Handsome Man
• Girls Climbing the Walls
• Cast Down Their Jewelry
• Joseph Was Not Tempted
• Remembered Jacob's Teachings
• Saw Jacob's Face
• A Collective Accusation
• Pharaoh's Servants Applauded
• Joseph Had Been Disdained
Jacob's Sons in Egypt
A Good Reason for Concealing
• Joseph Tested His Brothers
• Joseph Disdained Revenge
• Reuben Lost His Inheritance
• Bilhah Bathing
• Bilhah Was Asleep
• Jacob Foretold the Future
• Kingship Will Not Depart Forever
• Another King Will Come
• Until a New King Comes
• A Ruler of the World
• Why Did Joseph Put It Off?
Growing Up in Pharaoh's Court
A Plan to Finish Them Off
• Why Only the Boys?
• A Future Savior
• Jannes and Jambres
• Balaam, Job, and Jethro
• Death by Water
• Schooled in Every Wisdom
• Moses' Speech Defect
• Jealous of Moses
• Zipporah the Ethopian
• Miraculously Burning Bush
• The Medium Was the Message
• "I Am the One Who Is..."
• "I Am the Eternal..."
• An Angel in the Hotel
• Circumcision Delayed Is Circumcision Denied
• A Prenuptial Agreement
The Exodus from Egypt
A Godlike Man
• No Mere Magician's Trick
• Pharaoh Didn't Realize
• Divine Punishment of the Egyptians
• Deservedly Punished by Water
• A Dark Dungeon for Egypt
• Metaphorical Darkness
• Justifiable Death for the Firstborn
• Egyptians Gave Willingly
• Fair Wages at Last
• The Symbolic Passover Laws
• The (Paschal) Lamb of Christianity
The Red Sea
Pillar of Luminous Cloud
• Protective Covering
• An Angel in the Cloud
• Final Payment
• Get Back Our Goods!
• Rebellion at the Sea
• More than One Miracle
• A Grassy Plain
• Miraculous Timing
• If Looks Could Kill
• Light and Dark Together
• Ups and Downs of the Egyptians
• Red Sea as Baptism
• How Did They Know the Words?
• Seeing God at the Sea
• Infants Sang Too
• Miriam's Separate Song
• A New Song
Into the Wilderness
Water, Water...
• A Symbolic Tree
• The Water Was Divine Wisdom
• The Food of the Angels
• Heavenly Grain
• Adapted to Any Taste
• Spiritual Sustenance
• The Traveling Rock
• Miriam's Well
• Amalek Destroyed at the End-Time
• The Symbolic Hands of Moses
• The Christian Battle with Amalek
• Jethro the Polytheist
• Jethro the Good
At Mt. Sinai
Heaven on Earth
• Celestial Sinai
• Heavenly Moses
• God Spoke All Ten
• God Spoke Only Two
• The Ten Were All
• The Decalogue Epitomizes
• Five and Five
• Which Ten Commandments?
• No Talk of Weekday Matters
• Guard the Sabbath Borders
• Do Not Go Out Too Far
• Do Not Take Vain Oaths
• No False Oaths
• Honor Your Heavenly and Earthly Fathers
• A Mishap to the Baby
• A Mishap to the Mother
• Money for an Eye
• Traditions of the Elders
• Moses Was Given More than the Torah
• Oral Teachings from Moses
• A Hidden Torah
• Moses' Secret Book
• A Book before Moses
• Children of the Chosen
• Singled Out from the Start
• Other Nations Knew Anyway
• Other Nations at Fault
• Remember This Blood
The Golden Calf
A Celestial Sanctuary
• Copied from Heaven
• A Likeness of the Universe
• Aaron Tried to Stop Them
• Aaron Feared for His Life
• Hur Murdered by the Rabble
• The Letters Flew Off
• Tables Became Too Heavy
• Divine Traits of Character
• Steadfast Love for Thousands of Generations
• No Pardon for the Wicked
• Thousands of Sins Forgiven
• Moses' Face Beamed Light
• Moses Grew Horns
Worship in the Wilderness
An Error in Priestly Procedure
• A Holy Death
• Coats Not Burned
• Control of Appetites
• Ruminating with One's Mind
• Gentle Birds for Gentle People
• Day of Repentance
• The Day of Partial Atonement
• Hatred Means Hypocrisy
• Reproach Prevents Hatred
• Reproach Gently to Prevent Sin
• Reproach before Charging
• Love As You Would Be Loved
• Love Only Your Neighbor
• The Whole Torah
Trouble along the Way
Quails Weren't for Grousing
• A Wife Related to Prophecy
• Trusted Servant Par Excellence
• Whose Bad Idea?
• Solemnly Warned
• Tassels Set Off Revolt
• Moses Accused of Favoritism
• Moses Was Polite
• Korah's Symbolic Death
• A Truly Dangerous Figure
• Aaron's Symbolic Staff
The Bronze Serpent, Balaam, and Phinehas
Looking Didn't Cure
• Serpent Was Like Moses' Hands
• Balaam the Wicked
• God Knew Who They Were
• A Prophet for Hire
• Balaam Foresaw the Messiah
• A Ruler of the World
• The Star Is the Messiah
• The Star Will Precede the Scepter
• Balaam Counseled Seduction
• A Leader among Priests
• Phinehas the Immortal
• Phinehas Is Elijah
The Life of Torah
The Great Teaching
• These Words Twice a Day
• A Particular Prophet
• Do Not Displace Old Practices
• Necessary Paperwork
• No DivorceExcept for Indecency
• Any Old Reason Is Valid
• Don't Muzzle Me
• Small Commandments as Important as Big
• Torah Refines (Like Fire)
• The Gift of the Torah
• Not in Heaven Anymore
• A Choice for Each Person
• A Choice of Two Paths
• Nice Road at First
• The Path to the Afterlife
• Consider Heaven and Earth
• Heaven and Earth Were Already Witnesses
• Moses Did Not Want to Die
• Moses Disputed with an Angel
• Moses' Last Vision
• Buried by God (or the Angels)
• Buried under a Cloud
• Not Buried at All
• The Supreme Philosopher
Afterword
Abbreviations
Terms and Sources
Bibliography
Illustration Credits
Index
What People are Saying About This
A landmark! This is the story of how we got the Bible that we have today. It will enthrall all readers who love and hate and care about the Bible. There is no one better suited than Kugel to have produced this extremely important book. In addition to his extraordinary erudition in both the Jewish and Christian reading traditions of antiquity, he is gifted with the ability to write clearly and engagingly but with nuance and preciseness.
A landmark! This is the story of how we got the Bible that we have today. It will enthrall all readers who love and hate and care about the Bible. There is no one better suited than Kugel to have produced this extremely important book. In addition to his extraordinary erudition in both the Jewish and Christian reading traditions of antiquity, he is gifted with the ability to write clearly and engagingly but with nuance and preciseness.
Daniel Boyarin, University of California, Berkeley
James Kugel is a scholar much admired for his learning and originality. In this book he addresses not the biblical expert but the ordinary intelligent reader, and explains how the tradition of biblical interpretation was shaped by the earliest interpreters, whether Christian or rabbinical. The Bible As It Was will interest all who care about traditions of interpretation, and all who wish to deepen their understanding of the whole Bible.
James Kugel is one of the great scholars of biblical interpretation in our time, and from the day of its publication this book will become the indispensable classic in the field. The relationship between the formation of texts and the development of their interpretive traditions in the evolution of the Hebrew Bible has been given a treatment both authoritative and innovative, altogether a singular contribution to the realm of biblical study.
Peter J. Gomes, author of The Good Book
A book that not only informs--with a vast, mostly hidden erudition behind it--but also entertains. It is important, and a delight. Kugel invites his readers to think their way into the several manners in which the ancient readers heard the biblical texts.
Wayne Meeks, Yale University