Exodus

The latest reviews from the Review of Biblical Literature include: Francis Borchardt, The Torah in 1 Maccabees: A Literary Critical Approach to the Text, reviewed by Thomas Hieke Cilliers Breytenbach and Jörg Frey, eds., Reflections on the Early Christian History of Religion—Erwägungen zur frühchristlichen Religionsgeschichte, reviewed by Thomas J. Kraus Walter Dietrich, Die Samuelbücher im deuteronomistischen Geschichtswerk: Studien zu den Geschichtsüberlieferungen des Alten Testaments II, reviewed by Mark W. Hamilton James D. G. Dunn, The Oral Gospel Tradition, reviewed by David B. Sloan Paul S. Evans and Tyler F. Williams, eds., Chronicling the Chronicler: The Book of Chronicles and Early Second Temple Historiography, reviewed by Michael D. Matlock Katharina Galor and Hanswulf Bloedhorn, The Archaeology of Jerusalem: From the Origins to the Ottomans, reviewed by Aren M. Maeir Moshe Garsiel, From Earth to Heaven: A Literary Study of the Eliijah Stories in the Book of Kings, reviewed by Keith Bodner and by David A. Glatt-Gilad Alison Ruth Gray, Psalm 18 in Words and Pictures: A Reading through Metaphor, reviewed by Leslie C. Allen Mignon R. Jacobs and Raymond F. Person Jr., eds., Israelite Prophecy and the Deuteronomistic History: Portrait, Reality, and the Formation of a History, reviewed by James M. Bos and by Thomas Wagner Ronald Jolliffe, Gertraud Harb, Christoph Heil, Anneliese Felber, and Angelika Magnes, Q11: 39a, 42, 39b, 41, 43-44: Woes against the Pharisees, reviewed by Peter J. Judge W. G. Lambert, Babylonian Creation Myths, reviewed by Michael S. Moore Daniel C. Matt, trans., The Zohar: Pritzker Edition (vol. 6), reviewed by Ralph K. Hawkins Abera M. Mengestu, God as Father in Paul: Kingship Language and Identity Formation in Early Christianity, reviewed by Inhee C. Berg Anthony M. Moore, Signs of Salvation: The Theme of Creation in John’s Gospel, reviewed by Brian J. Tabb Valérie Nicolet-Anderson, Constructing the Self: Thinking with Paul and Michel Foucault, reviewed by Chris L. de Wet Vernon K. Robbins, Who Do People Say I Am? Rewriting Gospel in Emerging Christianity, reviewed by Michael J. Kok David S. Vanderhooft and Abraham Winitzer, eds., Literature as Politics, Politics as Literature: Essays on the Ancient Near East in Honor of Peter Machinist, reviewed by Shawn W. Flynn Ryan Donald Wettlaufer, No Longer Written: The Use of Conjectural Emendation in the Restoration of the Text of the New Testament, the Epistle of James as a Case Study, reviewed by Jeff Cate

Biblical Theology Bulletin (Photo credit: Wikipedia) The next issue of the Biblical Theology Bulletin is set to include: Carey Walsh, “Where Did God Go?: Theophanic Shift in Exodus” Mark T. Finney, “Servile Supplicium: Shame and the Deuteronomic Curse—Crucifixion in Its Cultural Context” Dennis C. Duling, “Paul’s Aegean Network: The Strength of Strong Ties” Lee A. Johnson, “Social Stratification”

The latest issue of the Bulletin for Biblical Research arrived in yesterday’s mail and includes: Joshua Philpot, “Exodus 34:29–35 and Moses’ Shining Face” Edward Bridge, “The Metaphoric Use of Slave Terms in the Hebrew Bible” Gregory Goswell, “Joshua and Kingship” Gregory Wong, “A Farewell to Arms: Goliath’s Death as Rhetoric against Faith in Arms” David DeSilva, “The Human Ideal, the Problem of Evil, and Moral Responsibility in 4 Maccabees”

The Journal of Theological Studies 63, no. 2 includes several articles of note.

[caption id="" align=“alignright” width=“268” caption=“Scenes of the Passion of Christ (Image via Wikipedia)”] [/caption] As יהוה was delivering Israel from Egypt, he commanded his people spread lamb’s blood on their doorposts and lintels ( Exod 12:7). In view of this blood, יהוה passed over his people and judged only the Egyptians’ firstborn and their gods ( Exod 12:12–13), for יהוה had provided that the Israelites should redeem their firstborn with lamb’s blood ( Exod 13:15; cf. Exod 34:18–20). He delivered them mightily, he brought them through the sea, he made a covenant with them, and he settled them in Canaan ( Exod 12:29– Judges 1:26). Nevertheless, even those who entered the land did not fully enter יהוה’s rest ( Heb 4:8–11), and year by year, they offered sacrifices for sins ( Lev 16:1–34; 23:26–32; Num 29:7–11; Heb 9:6–10; 10:1–4). ...

[caption id="" align=“alignright” width=“174” caption=“Gustave Dore, “The Children of Israel Crossing the Jordan” (Image via Wikipedia)”] [/caption] Within the narrative of Exodus, identifying the referent of the term מלאך (angel, messenger) in Exod 23:20 is somewhat nettlesome (Ausloos, “The ‘Angel of YHWH,’” VT 58, no. 1 [2008]: 7–10; Enns, Exodus, 473–74), but one reasonable reading is to understand this term as a reference to Joshua (Augustine, Faust., 16.19 [NPNF1 4:226]; Justin, Dial., 75 [ANF 1:236]; Tertullian, Adv. Jud., 9 [ANF 3:163]; Tertullian, Marc., 3.16 [ANF 3:335]; see also Ausloos, “The ‘Angel of YHWH,’” 9n43; cf. Exod 33:12; Gowan, Theology in Exodus, 227–28; Stuart, Exodus, 542–43). Yet, this Joshua does not pardon sins because the name of the God of Abraham is only in him ( Exod 23:21; i.e., he acknowledges this God’s renown; cf. 1 Kgs 5:11 [Eng.: 4:31]; see also Mal 1:11; Ps 8:2 [Eng.: v. 1]; 1 Chron 14:17; 2 Chron 20:9). Rather, such forgiveness comes by him who has received this God’s name as his own ( Mark 2:1–12; Luke 5:17–26; John 17:11–12; Phil 2:9–11; cf. Wright, Jesus and the Victory of God, 272–74, 631–45) and in whom Abraham’s offspring inherit not one region only by conquest ( Exod 23:24, 31) but the whole world by meekness and rest ( Matt 5:5; Rom 4:13; Heb 4:8–10; see also Pao and Schnabel, “Luke,” 300–3). ...