Focusing Biblical Studies: The Crucial Nature of the Persian and Hellenistic Periods

Jon Berquist is senior academic editor at Westminster John Knox Press, USA.Alice Hunt is President of Chicago Theological Seminary, USA.

• IntroductionJon Berquist and Alice Hunt, The Contributions of Douglas A. Knight History and ContextsJack Sasson, Vanderbilt University, Coveting the Second Temple PeriodPhilip Davies, Sheffield University, The Origins of the Kingdom of JudahNeils P. Lemche, Copenhagen University, Shechem RevisitedIsrael Finkelstein, Tel Aviv University, Jerusalem: A Persian CityKen Stone, Chicago Theological Seminary, The Zoological Gaze in Post-Exilic Biblical Literature Julye Bidmead, Chapman University, From New Moon to New Moon: Women's Rituals in the Persian PeriodTexts and HistoryAnnalisa Azzoni, Vanderbilt University, Genesis: Creating CreationKristin Swanson, Luther College, What happens when we read Judges in the Persian Period?Robert R. Wilson, Yale University, The Persian Period and the Shaping of the Prophetic LiteratureDeborah Appler, Moravian Theological Seminary, "'Digging in the Claws.' Daniel 4 and the Predatory Nature of Empire"Cheryl B. Anderson, Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Ruth and Esther as Models for the Formation of God's People: Engaging Liberationist Critiques Amy-Jill Levine, Vanderbilt University, "Xenophobia" of Ezra/Nehemiah and Post-Colonial Views of "Jews"Herbert R. Marbury, Vanderbilt University, Nehemiah: Caught Between Court and Cult with Lessons for Church and StateJames Crenshaw, Duke University, Pondering the Passing of Time: Psalm 39 and QohelethNorman Gottwald, Pacific School of Religion, Ecclesiastes of the Hellenistic PeriodJennifer L. Koosed, Albright College, The Chronicler Buries Saul David Penchansky, University of St. Thomas (St. Paul), Sophia and Simon: The Two Poles of Ben Sira's AffectionPeter J. Haas, Case Western Reserve University, Was the Judaism of the Dead Sea Scrolls a Mystery Religion?ConclusionJon Berquist and Alice Hunt, The Future Focus of Biblical Studies: Where Do We Go From Here?

The totality of the list of contributors - which includes Job Berquist, Robert Wilson, Norman Gottwald, James Crenshaw, and many others - is immediately impressive ... The sum of the volume is most definitely useful for bringing readers up to speed on some of the central currents in critical scholarship. The contributors have shaped and continued to shape their respective niches and the field as a whole. That point is beyond dispute.