Invention of Monotheist Ethics

Hillel I. Millgram currently resides in Jerusalem. He was born in the United States, was ordained at the Jewish Theological Seminary of America, and served in pulpits in the U.S. and Canada. He now combines research and writing with teaching graduate courses on the Bible. His last book, Three Biblical Heroines and the Case for Female Authorship, has been highly acclaimed. The Invention of Monotheist Ethics continues his explorations into the origins and deeper meaning of Biblical narrative.

• Chapter 1 ACT FOUR: DAVID THE GREATChapter 2 19. The Paths of Glory: The Curtain RisesChapter 3 20. The Paths of Glory: Brother Against BrotherChapter 4 21. The Paths of Glory: The Making of a KingChapter 5 22. The Paths of Glory: David TriumphantChapter 6 23. Reaching for Something Higher - Excursus VII: The Tent ShrineChapter 7 24. To Build A House for GodChapter 8 25. The Course of Empire - Excursus VIII: David's War MachineChapter 9 26. Interlude: Keeping Faith With Them That Sleep in the DustChapter 10 27. The Course of Empire II: The Loosing of the Blood-Dimmed TideChapter 11 ACT FIVE: THE FALL OF THE KINGChapter 12 28. The Bathsheba AffairChapter 13 29. Before the Bar of JusticeChapter 14 30. Rape and RevengeChapter 15 31. The Fugitive's ReturnChapter 16 32. The Man Who Would Be KingChapter 17 33. The Day of the MercenariesChapter 18 34. The Return of the King: Planting the SeedsChapter 19 35. The Return of the King: Reaping Bitter FruitChapter 20 EPILOGUE: The Alternative VisionChapter 21 36. The Martyrdom of the House of SaulChapter 22 37. The Sweet Singer of IsraelChapter 23 38. The Sweet Singer of Israel: Twenty Years LaterChapter 24 39. David's Heroes: The Halls of FameChapter 25 40. The Ancient SacrificeChapter 26 CONCLUSIONSChapter 27 Toward a New Conception of MoralityChapter 28 Postscript: The Death of the KingChapter 29 APPENDIX 1: Psalm 34Chapter 30 APPENDIX 2: Psalm 51Chapter 31 APPENDIX 3: Who's Who in Samuel: A Listing of the CastChapter 32 APPENDIX 4: Timeline - Keeping Track of When it HappenedChapter 33 APPENDIX 5: Timeline - Putting Things in PerspectiveChapter 34 Glossary of Terms and Place NamesChapter 35 Selected BibliographyChapter 36 Index of Scriptural ReferencesChapter 37 General IndexChapter 38 About the Author

[Millgram]?wonderfully integrates an explanation of the relevant historical background of the book and includes an analysis of the concepts necessary for a deep understanding of the text. The author also deliberates?the literary, historical and religioussignificance of Samuel?giv[ing] no little attention to the linguistic and textual problems in order to explain words, expressions and difficult concepts whose significance requires elucidation, comparing the text we have with those that exist in ancienttranslations of the Bible (the Septuagint, the Vulgate) or by examining the medieval Jewish commentaries and modern non-Jewish expositors. A unique work that every reader?will enjoy reading immensely, and?will learn much from it about this literary creation in particular, and about the Bible in general.