Anne-Mareike Wetter (PhD, Utrecht University, Netherlands) is at the Leiden Institute for Area Studies (LIAS), Netherlands.

• Acknowledgments AbbreviationsPart 1: 'Israel,’ ‘Judah,’ ‘Yehudim’ – The Problem of Definition and Demarcation 1 (Re-)Constructing Israel: Tradition and Invention 2 Judaism? 3 Religion – A Provisional Definition 4 Ethnicity – A Provisional Definition Part 2: Methodology and the Power of Form1 Text and Identity – Historical Discourse Analysis 2 Text and Cognition - Cognitive Linguistics3 Embodying Israel – Tradition and Invention Part 3: Ruth 1 Religious Identity in Ruth 2 Ethnic Identity in Ruth 3 Gender Identity in Ruth 4 Conclusions - Embodying Israel in the Book of Ruth Part 4: Esther 1 Religious Identity in Esther 2 Ethnic Identity in Esther 3 Gender Identity in Esther 4 Conclusions – Embodying Israel in the Book of Esther Part 4: Judith1 Religious Identity in Judith 2 Ethnic Identity in Judith 3 Gender Identity in Judith 4 Conclusions: Embodying Israel in the Book of Judith Part 5: Conclusions: Of Israelites, Women, and Other Strangers 1. Imagining Israel – Embodying Israel 2. Common Ground and Common Sense 3. Ecce Femina BibliographyIndex

This is a timely book that continues current trends concerning the portrayal of identity in the biblical texts and takes these conversations further. ... This volume draws on up to date scholarship in a recognizable way while offering keen insights that push the fields of these three texts into some unexpected waters. ... [A]ny researcher or reader of Ruth, Esther of Judith studies, as well as those with a broader interest in biblical intertextuality, will find this to be a valuable and engaging book.

Anne-Mareike Wetter (PhD, Utrecht University, Netherlands) is at the Leiden Institute for Area Studies (LIAS), Netherlands.

• Acknowledgments AbbreviationsPart 1: 'Israel,’ ‘Judah,’ ‘Yehudim’ – The Problem of Definition and Demarcation 1 (Re-)Constructing Israel: Tradition and Invention 2 Judaism? 3 Religion – A Provisional Definition 4 Ethnicity – A Provisional Definition Part 2: Methodology and the Power of Form1 Text and Identity – Historical Discourse Analysis 2 Text and Cognition - Cognitive Linguistics3 Embodying Israel – Tradition and Invention Part 3: Ruth 1 Religious Identity in Ruth 2 Ethnic Identity in Ruth 3 Gender Identity in Ruth 4 Conclusions - Embodying Israel in the Book of Ruth Part 4: Esther 1 Religious Identity in Esther 2 Ethnic Identity in Esther 3 Gender Identity in Esther 4 Conclusions – Embodying Israel in the Book of Esther Part 4: Judith1 Religious Identity in Judith 2 Ethnic Identity in Judith 3 Gender Identity in Judith 4 Conclusions: Embodying Israel in the Book of Judith Part 5: Conclusions: Of Israelites, Women, and Other Strangers 1. Imagining Israel – Embodying Israel 2. Common Ground and Common Sense 3. Ecce Femina BibliographyIndex

This is a timely book that continues current trends concerning the portrayal of identity in the biblical texts and takes these conversations further. ... This volume draws on up to date scholarship in a recognizable way while offering keen insights that push the fields of these three texts into some unexpected waters. ... [A]ny researcher or reader of Ruth, Esther of Judith studies, as well as those with a broader interest in biblical intertextuality, will find this to be a valuable and engaging book.

Anne-Mareike Wetter (PhD, Utrecht University, Netherlands) is at the Leiden Institute for Area Studies (LIAS), Netherlands.

• Acknowledgments AbbreviationsPart 1: 'Israel,’ ‘Judah,’ ‘Yehudim’ – The Problem of Definition and Demarcation 1 (Re-)Constructing Israel: Tradition and Invention 2 Judaism? 3 Religion – A Provisional Definition 4 Ethnicity – A Provisional Definition Part 2: Methodology and the Power of Form1 Text and Identity – Historical Discourse Analysis 2 Text and Cognition - Cognitive Linguistics3 Embodying Israel – Tradition and Invention Part 3: Ruth 1 Religious Identity in Ruth 2 Ethnic Identity in Ruth 3 Gender Identity in Ruth 4 Conclusions - Embodying Israel in the Book of Ruth Part 4: Esther 1 Religious Identity in Esther 2 Ethnic Identity in Esther 3 Gender Identity in Esther 4 Conclusions – Embodying Israel in the Book of Esther Part 4: Judith1 Religious Identity in Judith 2 Ethnic Identity in Judith 3 Gender Identity in Judith 4 Conclusions: Embodying Israel in the Book of Judith Part 5: Conclusions: Of Israelites, Women, and Other Strangers 1. Imagining Israel – Embodying Israel 2. Common Ground and Common Sense 3. Ecce Femina BibliographyIndex

This is a timely book that continues current trends concerning the portrayal of identity in the biblical texts and takes these conversations further. ... This volume draws on up to date scholarship in a recognizable way while offering keen insights that push the fields of these three texts into some unexpected waters. ... [A]ny researcher or reader of Ruth, Esther of Judith studies, as well as those with a broader interest in biblical intertextuality, will find this to be a valuable and engaging book.