The two-volume Oxford Encyclopedia of Biblical Interpretation (OEBI) will fill a crucial need in the field of biblical studies by providing detailed, comprehensive treatments of the latest approaches to and methods for interpretation of the Bible written by expert practitioners. It willprovide a single source for authoritative reference overviews of scholarship on some of the most important topics of study in the field of biblical studies. As with all high quality reference works, it provides a solid foundation that students and scholars can use to orientate themselves beforeventuring into original research.The Encyclopedia will contain nearly 120 entries, ranging in length from 3,000 to 5,000 words. It will be organized in an A-to-Z format. Each entry will be signed, contain a bibliography for further reading, and will be cross-referenced to other useful points of interest within the Encyclopedia. Itwill also feature a topical outline of contents and an extensive index.

The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Theology (OEBT) is a new encyclopedic treatment of major theological issues and themes in the Bible that surpasses all similar reference works in scope and significance. Leading scholars provide extensive overviews of key topics, offering analyses ofthe trajectory and reception history of theological issues as well as critical assessment of Near Eastern and Greco-Roman antecedents for Old and New Testament perspectives. While many entries address the Bible's historical context, including traditional theological perspectives on creation, sin,covenant, grace, and forgiveness, others are more rooted in modern issues, featuring biblical perspectives on contemporary concerns such as wealth and poverty, gender/race discrimination, and market economics.The two-volume OEBT contains 168 entries ranging in length from 2,000 to 8,000 words. With bibliographic references and suggestions for further reading, each entry affords students and scholars a comprehensive topical and methodological summary of the topic that serves as both a go-to reference anda starting point for original research. The OEBT's distinctive approach and range of entries make it a unique resource that fills a void in biblical scholarship.

As the first major encyclopedia of its kind, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Gender Studies (OEBGS) is the go-to source for scholars and students undertaking original research in the field. Extending the work of nineteenth and twentieth century feminist scholarship and more recentqueer studies, the Encyclopedia seeks to advance the scholarly conversation by systematically exploring the ways in which gender is constructed in the diverse texts, cultures, and readers that constitute "the world of the Bible." With contributions from leading scholars in gender and biblicalstudies as well as contemporary gender theorists, classicists, archaeologists, and ancient historians, this comprehensive reference work reflects the diverse and interdisciplinary nature of the field and traces both historical and modern conceptions of gender and sexuality in the Bible.The two-volume Encyclopedia contains more than 160 entries ranging in length from 1,000 to 10,000 words. Each entry includes bibliographic references and suggestions for further reading, as well as a topical outline and index to aid in research. The OEBGS builds upon the pioneering work ofbiblically focused gender theorists to help guide and encourage further gendered discussions of the Bible.

In recent decades, reception history has become an increasingly important and controversial topic of discussion in biblical studies. Rather than attempting to recover the original meaning of biblical texts, reception history focuses on exploring the history of interpretation. In doing so itlocates the dominant historical-critical scholarly paradigm within the history of interpretation, rather than over and above it. At the same time, the breadth of material and hermeneutical issues that reception history engages with questions any narrow understanding of the history of the Bible andits effects on faith communities.The challenge that reception history faces is to explore tradition without either reducing its meaning to what faith communities think is important, or merely offering anthologies of interesting historical interpretations. This major new handbook addresses these matters by presenting receptionhistory as an enterprise (not a method) that questions and understands tradition afresh.The Oxford Handbook of the Reception History of the Bible consciously allows for the interplay of the traditional and the new through a two-part structure. Part I comprises a set of essays surveying the outline, form, and content of twelve key biblical books that have been influential in thehistory of interpretation. Part II offers a series of in-depth case studies of the interpretation of particular key biblical passages or books with due regard for the specificity of their social, cultural or aesthetic context.These case studies span two millennia of interpretation by readers with widely differing perspectives. Some are at the level of a group response (from Gnostic readings of Genesis, to Post-Holocaust Jewish interpretations of Job); others examine individual approaches to texts (such as Augustine andPelagius on Romans, or Gandhi on the Sermon on the Mount). Several chapters examine historical moments, such as the 1860 debate over Genesis and evolution, while others look to wider themes such as non-violence or millenarianism. Further chapters study in detail the works of popular figures who haveused the Bible to provide inspiration for their creativity, from Dante and Handel, to Bob Dylan and Dan Brown.

McKenzie argues that to comprehend the Bible we must grasp the intentions of the biblical authors themselves--what sort of texts they thought they were writing and how they would have been understood by their intended audience. In short, we must recognize the genres to which these texts belong. McKenzie examines several genres that are typically misunderstood, offering careful readings of specific texts to show how the confusion arises, and how knowing the genre produces a correct reading. The book of Jonah, for example, offers many clues that it is meant as a humorous satire, not a straight-faced historical account of a man who was swallowed by a fish. Likewise, McKenzie explains that the very names "Adam" and "Eve" tell us that these are not historical characters, but figures who symbolize human origins ("Adam" means man , "Eve" is related to the word for life ). Similarly, the authors of apocalyptic texts--including the Book of Revelation--were writing allegories of events that were happening in their own time. Not for a moment could they imagine that centuries afterwards, readers would be poring over their works for clues to the date of the Second Coming of Christ, or when and how the world would end. For anyone who takes reading the Bible seriously and who wants to get it right, this book will be both heartening and enlightening.

The Cambridge Companion to the Bible, 2nd edition provides in-depth data and analysis of the production and reception of the canonical writings of the Hebrew Bible and New Testament, and also of the apocryphal works produced by Jewish and Christian writers. Unique among single-volume introductions, this book focuses on the ever-changing social and cultural contexts in which the biblical authors and their original readers lived. The authors of the first edition were chosen for their internationally recognized expertise in their respective fields: the history and literature of Israel; postbiblical Judaism; biblical archaeology; and the origins and early literature of Christianity. In this second edition, all chapters have been updated and thoroughly revised,under the direction of a new volume editor, Bruce D. Chilton. More than 22 new maps, 90 new photographs and a full-color section help illustrate the book.

The Oxford Companion to the Bible provides an authoritative one-volume reference to the people, places, events, books, institutions, religious belief, and secular influence of the Bible. Written by more than 250 scholars from some 20 nations and embracing a wide variety of perspectives, the Companion offers over seven hundred entries, ranging from brief identifications--who is Dives? where is Pisgah?--to extensive interpretive essays on topics such as the influence of the Bible on music or law. Ranging far beyond the scope of a traditional Bible dictionary, the Companion features, in addition to its many informative, factual entries, an abundance of interpretive essays. Here are extended entries on religious concepts from immortality, sin, and grace, to baptism, ethics, and the Holy Spirit. The contributors also explore biblical views of modern issues such as homosexuality, marriage, and anti-Semitism, and the impact of the Bible on the secular world (including a four-part article on the Bible's influence on literature). Of course, the Companion can also serve as a handy reference, the first place to turn to find factual information on the Bible. Readers will find fascinating, informative articles on all the books of the Bible--including the Apocrypha and many other ancient texts, such as the Dead Sea Scrolls,Pseudepigrapha, and the Mishrah. Virtually every figure who walked across the biblical stage is identified here, ranging from Rebekah, Rachel, and Mary, to Joseph, Barabbas, and Jesus. The Companion also offers entries that shed light on daily life in ancient Israel and the earliest Christian communities, with fascinating articles on feasts and festivals, clothing, medicine, units of time, houses, and furniture. Finally, there are twenty-eight pages of full-color maps, providing an accurate, detailed portrait of the biblical world.A vast compendium of information related to scriptures, here is an ideal complement to the Bible, an essential volume for every home and library, the first place to turn for information on the central book of Western culture.