Overview
This watershed book by a leading Old Testament scholar presents an alternative perspective in the ongoing debate about the formation of the Hebrew Bible. It marshals all of the important counterarguments to the standard theory of Old Testament canon formation, showing how the Pentateuch and the Prophets developed more or less simultaneously and mutually influenced each other over time. The widely praised European edition is now available in North America with an updated bibliography and a new postscript reflecting on how the study of the Old Testament canon has developed over the last twenty years.
Media
The Law and the Prophets reviewed in RBL
“A landmark in discussion about the canon of the Old Testament. . . . Offers insights that are not found elsewhere.”
Table of Contents
Contents
1. The Question of the Law and the Prophets
Introduction
The Rise of the Standard Theory
H. E. Ryle
Canon and High Criticism
J. Wellhausen
W. J. Beecher
G. Hӧlscher
Summary
The First Half of the Twentieth Century
M. L. Margolis
Mid-Century Views and New Findings
R. H. Pfeiffer
Summary
The Rise of a Canonical Approach
P. R. Ackroyd
D. N. Freedman
R. E. Clements
J. C. H. Lebram
A. C. Sundberg Jr.
T. N. Swanson
J. A. Sanders
S. Z. Leiman
J. Blenkinsopp
J. Conrad
B. S. Childs
Recent Proposals
J. Barr
J. Barton
R. T. Beckwith
N. K. Gottwald
O. H. Steck
E. E. Ellis
J. W. Miller
L. M. McDonald
Conclusions
2. "Density within History": Canon as Theological Grammar
Introduction
Ideology and Historical Criticism
P. R. Davies
A "Canonical" Approach?
H. Bloom
N. Frye
Canons, Power, and Self-Interest
C. Altieri
Canon as a Theological "Grammar"
"Self-Sumsumption" and the Old Testament Canon
The Articulation of Shared Values
A Critical Benchmark
"Canon" versus "Scripture"
3. No Prophet Like Moses?: Canonical Conclusions as Hermeneutical Guides
Introduciton
Deuteronomy 34:10-12
A Conclusion to the Torah
An Incomparability Formula
Moses as Covenant Mediator
Moses as a Prophet
Dual Agency
Summary
Malachi 3:22-24 [4:4-6]
Appendices to Malachi Alone?
Appendices to the Prophetic Corpus?
A Variety of Orders in the Prophets
Canon-Conscious Appendices
Further Deuteronomistic Background
Appendices to Malachi and the Twelve
Summary
4. The Law and . . .
Introduction
Deuteronomy 31-34
Deuteronomy 30-31
Deuteronomy 31
Deuteronomy 32
1. A Prophetic Account of History
2. Prophetic Motifs and Idioms
3. Prophetic Citations and Allusions
Conclusions regarding Deuteronomy 32
Deuteronomy 33
Summary of Deuteronomy 31-34
Joshua
A "Deuteronomistic History"
A Deuteronomistic Edition of Joshua
A Second Deuteronomistic Edition of Joshua
The Problem of Joshua 23-24
The Relation of Joshua to Judges
A Third Layer of Redaction?
Joshua 8:30-35
The Relation between Joshua 8:30-35 and 24:1-28
Redactional Summary of Joshua
Prophecy in Joshua
A Prophet like Moses
The Final Form of Joshua
5. The Law and the Words
Introduction
The Deuteronomistic History Revisited
The Book of Judges
The Books of Samuel
The Books of Kings
1 Kings 17-19, the Elijah Stories
2 Kings 17:7-23 and 21:10-15
Summary
Jeremiah
"The Law and the Words"
"My Servants the Prophets"
The "Word" and the "Words"
A "Prophet like Moses"
Summary
Zechariah 1 and 7-8
Prophecy in First Zechariah
"The Law and the Words"
Citations and Allusions
Summary
Chronicles
Prophecy in Chronicles
1. Stories about Prophets
2. The Prophetic Addresses
3. Citation Formula
Summary
Ezra-Nehemiah
Prophecy in Ezra-Nehemiah
1. A Surprising Beginning
2. A Surprising Ending
3. Prior Knowledge of the Law
4. The Authority of Prophetic Scripture
5. Prophetic "Words"
Daniel
6. The Pre-eminence of Torah?
Introduction
Counter-Indications: Ground for the Torah's Pre-eminence
Internal Evidence
External Evidence
1. Perisan Policy
2. Prior Canonization
3. Text Criticism
4. The Samaritan Pentateuch
5. The Septuagint
6. The Dead Sea Scrolls
7. Ben Sira
8. The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha
9. The Cessation of Prophecy
10. The New Testament
11. The Sadducees' Canon
12. The Synagogue Lectionaries
13. Philo
14. Josephus
15. Literary Position
The Twin Authority of Law and Prophets
Christian Tradition
Jewish Tradition
Reconstruction and Conclusions
The Place of the Writings?
Theological Implications for Jewish and Christian Traditions
Indexes
1. The Question of the Law and the Prophets
Introduction
The Rise of the Standard Theory
H. E. Ryle
Canon and High Criticism
J. Wellhausen
W. J. Beecher
G. Hӧlscher
Summary
The First Half of the Twentieth Century
M. L. Margolis
Mid-Century Views and New Findings
R. H. Pfeiffer
Summary
The Rise of a Canonical Approach
P. R. Ackroyd
D. N. Freedman
R. E. Clements
J. C. H. Lebram
A. C. Sundberg Jr.
T. N. Swanson
J. A. Sanders
S. Z. Leiman
J. Blenkinsopp
J. Conrad
B. S. Childs
Recent Proposals
J. Barr
J. Barton
R. T. Beckwith
N. K. Gottwald
O. H. Steck
E. E. Ellis
J. W. Miller
L. M. McDonald
Conclusions
2. "Density within History": Canon as Theological Grammar
Introduction
Ideology and Historical Criticism
P. R. Davies
A "Canonical" Approach?
H. Bloom
N. Frye
Canons, Power, and Self-Interest
C. Altieri
Canon as a Theological "Grammar"
"Self-Sumsumption" and the Old Testament Canon
The Articulation of Shared Values
A Critical Benchmark
"Canon" versus "Scripture"
3. No Prophet Like Moses?: Canonical Conclusions as Hermeneutical Guides
Introduciton
Deuteronomy 34:10-12
A Conclusion to the Torah
An Incomparability Formula
Moses as Covenant Mediator
Moses as a Prophet
Dual Agency
Summary
Malachi 3:22-24 [4:4-6]
Appendices to Malachi Alone?
Appendices to the Prophetic Corpus?
A Variety of Orders in the Prophets
Canon-Conscious Appendices
Further Deuteronomistic Background
Appendices to Malachi and the Twelve
Summary
4. The Law and . . .
Introduction
Deuteronomy 31-34
Deuteronomy 30-31
Deuteronomy 31
Deuteronomy 32
1. A Prophetic Account of History
2. Prophetic Motifs and Idioms
3. Prophetic Citations and Allusions
Conclusions regarding Deuteronomy 32
Deuteronomy 33
Summary of Deuteronomy 31-34
Joshua
A "Deuteronomistic History"
A Deuteronomistic Edition of Joshua
A Second Deuteronomistic Edition of Joshua
The Problem of Joshua 23-24
The Relation of Joshua to Judges
A Third Layer of Redaction?
Joshua 8:30-35
The Relation between Joshua 8:30-35 and 24:1-28
Redactional Summary of Joshua
Prophecy in Joshua
A Prophet like Moses
The Final Form of Joshua
5. The Law and the Words
Introduction
The Deuteronomistic History Revisited
The Book of Judges
The Books of Samuel
The Books of Kings
1 Kings 17-19, the Elijah Stories
2 Kings 17:7-23 and 21:10-15
Summary
Jeremiah
"The Law and the Words"
"My Servants the Prophets"
The "Word" and the "Words"
A "Prophet like Moses"
Summary
Zechariah 1 and 7-8
Prophecy in First Zechariah
"The Law and the Words"
Citations and Allusions
Summary
Chronicles
Prophecy in Chronicles
1. Stories about Prophets
2. The Prophetic Addresses
3. Citation Formula
Summary
Ezra-Nehemiah
Prophecy in Ezra-Nehemiah
1. A Surprising Beginning
2. A Surprising Ending
3. Prior Knowledge of the Law
4. The Authority of Prophetic Scripture
5. Prophetic "Words"
Daniel
6. The Pre-eminence of Torah?
Introduction
Counter-Indications: Ground for the Torah's Pre-eminence
Internal Evidence
External Evidence
1. Perisan Policy
2. Prior Canonization
3. Text Criticism
4. The Samaritan Pentateuch
5. The Septuagint
6. The Dead Sea Scrolls
7. Ben Sira
8. The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha
9. The Cessation of Prophecy
10. The New Testament
11. The Sadducees' Canon
12. The Synagogue Lectionaries
13. Philo
14. Josephus
15. Literary Position
The Twin Authority of Law and Prophets
Christian Tradition
Jewish Tradition
Reconstruction and Conclusions
The Place of the Writings?
Theological Implications for Jewish and Christian Traditions
Indexes
Author
Stephen B. Chapman
Stephen B. Chapman (PhD, Yale University) is associate professor of Old Testament at Duke Divinity School in Durham, North Carolina. He is the editor in chief of the Journal of Theological Interpretation and the author of The Law and the Prophets: A Study in Old Testament Canon Formation and 1 Samuel as Christian Scripture: A Theological Commentary. He is also an ordained American Baptist minister.