Exploring the Old Testament (BA8740Z)

Content

This unit provides an introduction to the contemporary interpretation of the Old Testament by reading it as a collection of diverse writings and by exploring its varied historical, cultural and social backgrounds. It introduces some methods used in the exegesis of biblical texts, and explores some of the issues surrounding the application of the ancient writings to contemporary contexts. A series of discrete but incremental topics will be covered throughout the semester presenting both an overview of the literature and specific study of representative sections of biblical material.

Learning outcomes

Unit sequence

A Level 8 unit in postgraduate theology and ministry awards

Pedagogy

Primary and secondary sources are considered through different lenses to identify and explore the challenges of the unit material for the contemporary world. Students are engaged in a range of comparative, analytical and reflective practices to identify the original meanings of the text in their contexts and to interpret them hermeneutically.

Indicative Bibliography

• The Old and New Testaments with Apocrypha, NRSV (e.g. The New Interpreter’s Study Bible, The Harper Collins Study Bible, or The New Oxford Annotated Bible).
• Brown, William P. A Handbook to Old Testament Exegesis, Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2017.
• Brueggemann, Walter. Introduction to the Old Testament: the Canon and Christian Imagination, Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2003.
• Collins, John J. Introduction to the Hebrew Bible, 3rd ed. Fortress Press, 2018.
• Coogan, M. Old Testament: A Historical and Literary Introduction to the Hebrew Scriptures, New York: Oxford University, 2011.
• Davies, Erl W. Biblical Criticism London: Bloomsbury, 2013.
• Davies, Philip R. The History of Israel: A Guide for the Perplexed. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2015.
• Havea, Jione, Postcolonial Voices from Downunder: Indigenous Matters, Confronting Readings. Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2017.
• McKenzie, Steven L, & Stephen R. Haynes, To Each Its Own Meaning: An Introduction to Biblical Criticisms and Their Application, Revised and expanded ed. Louisville, KN: Westminster John Knox, 1999.
• Scholz, Susanne. Introduction to the Women’s Hebrew Bible: Feminism, Gender Justice, and the Study of the Old Testament, (2nd ed.). London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2017.
• Un Sok Ro, J (ed.). From Judah to Judaea : Socio-economic Structures and Processes in the Persian Period, Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2013.

Assessment