A Brief Introduction to the Old Testament

PART I Introductory
1. What Is The Old Testament?
2. The Promised Land
PART II Cosmic Origins
3. Creations: Genesis 1-3
4. The Formation of the Pentateuch and the Primeval History: Genesis 4-11
PART III National Origins
5. The Ancestors of Israel: Genesis 12-50
6. Escape from Egypt: Exodus 1-15
7. From Egypt To Sinai: Exodus 16-20, 24
8. Law, Ritual, and Holiness: Exodus 20.22-23.33 and 25-40, and Leviticus
9. In The Wilderness: Numbers
10. The End of the Journey to the Promised Land: Deuteronomy
11. Joshua and the Conquest of the Land of Canaan: Joshua
12. The Emergence of Israel in the Land of Canaan: Judges
PART IV Kings and Prophets
13. The Establishment of the Monarchy: 1 Samuel
14. The Reign of David: 2 Samuel and 1 Kings 1-2
15. The Reign of Solomon: 1 Kings 1-11 and Psalm 89
16. The Divided Kingdoms of Israel and Judah from the Late Tenth to the Early Eighth Centuries BCE: 1 Kings 12-2, Kings 14 with an Introduction to Prophecy
17. The Northern Kingdom of Israel in the Eighth Century BCE: 2 Kings 14-17, Amos, and Hosea
18. The Southern Kingdom Of Judah in the Eighth and Early Seventh Centuries BCE: 2 Kings 15-20, 2 Chronicles 29-32, Isaiah 1-39, and Micah
19. Judah in the Seventh and Early Sixth Centuries BCE: The End of Assyrian Domination and the Fall of Jerusalem: 2 Kings 21-25, 2 Chronicles 33-36, Zephaniah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Jeremiah
PART V Exile and Return
20. After the Fall: Judeans In Judah And Babylon: Lamentations, Psalm 137, Obadiah, and Ezekiel
21. Return From Exile: Ezra 1-2 and Isaiah 34-35 And 40-55
PART VI Reconstruction, Consolidation, and Challenge
22. The Restoration: Judah in the Late Sixth and Fifth Centuries BCE: Ezra 3-10, Nehemiah, Haggai, Zechariah, Isaiah 24-27 and 56-66, Joel, and Malachi
23. Retelling the Story of David: 1-2 Chronicles and Psalms
24. The Wisdom of the Sages: Preservation and Challenge: Proverbs, Job, Ecclesiastes And The Song of Solomon with an Introduction to Wisdom Literature
25. Heroes in Foreign Lands: The Post Exilic Literature and Diasporic Identity: Ruth, Jonah, Esther, And Daniel
Appendix: The Apocryphal/ Deuterocanonical Books
Chronology
General Bibliography
Glossary
Weights and Measures
Index

Instructor's Resources:
Oxford Learning Link
- Computerized test bank
- PowerPoint lecture slides
- Images and maps from the text
- Instructor's Manual
Students Resources:
Companion Website
- Self-quizzes for each chapter
- Flashcards of key terms
- Helpful web links
Oxford Biblical Studies Online www.oxfordbiblicalstudies.com
FREE 6-month subscription included with the purchase of every new copy
- Edited by Michael D. Coogan
Access to:
- Six essential Oxford Bibles
- Concordances
- Oxford Bible Commentary
- Nearly 5.000 articles integrated with chapter-based scholarly works
- Hundreds of images and map
- Countless other internet resources

Michael D. Coogan has been Lecturer on the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible at Harvard Divinity School and is Director of Publications for the Harvard Semitic Museum. He has edited The New Oxford Annotated Bible for twenty years and written and edited many other books.

Cynthia R. Chapman is Professor of Biblical Studies at Oberlin College. She is the author of The House of the Mother: The Social Roles of Maternal Kin in Biblical Hebrew Narrative and Poetry (2016) and The Gendered Language of Warfare in the Israelite-Assyrian Context (2004).

Making Sense - Margot Northey
The Old Testament - Michael D. Coogan and Cynthia R. Chapman
The Jewish Study Bible - Edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler
A Reader of Ancient Near Eastern Texts - Edited by Michael D. Coogan
The Bible As Literature - John B. Gabel, Charles B. Wheeler, Anthony D. York and David Citino
with a new chapter by Nicola Denzey
Introducing the Old Testament - Richard Coggins
The Bible: A Very Short Introduction - John Riches

Special Features

• A balanced and engaging narrative draws on the latest scholarship and archaeological data, taking a primarily historical-critical approach while also introducing students to literary analysis and other interpretive strategies.
• Two introductory chapters - one on the composition of the Old Testament and one on the history and geography of the ancient Near East and how it influenced the Hebrew Bible - provide students with the context necessary to analyze biblical texts.
• Strategically placed box features address issues that often puzzle readers of the Bible, provide models of interpretation of particular texts, and discuss their significance to Judaism and Christianity.
• Engaging pedagogy includes introductions and summaries, key terms, questions for review and discussion, and suggestions for further reading.
• A strong visual program includes timelines, charts, photographs, line drawings, maps, and a color insert that addresses Jerusalem in biblical times.
• Coverage of female characters integrated more fully into discussions of the history of ancient Israel and Judah, rather than treating them as a separate category, and presents a more in-depth coverage of women and issues related to gender in the Bible.

New to this Edition

• Thoroughly revise chapter two provides an introductory overview of the full historical arc of the Hebrew Bible to ground students in their study. (Ch. 2)
• Updated and revised throughout to present the most recent scholarship with the greatest clarity, accuracy, and accessibility. Improved coverage includes coverage of:
• - Distinctions between Jewish and Christian canons of scripture and revisions of sections on the Golden Calf (Ch. 8)
• - The book of Ruth (Ch. 25)
• - Expanded treatment of the significance of queen mothers in the history of the monarchy in Judah (Ch. 16)
• - New boxes on "David and Goliath" and "The Curses in the Treaties of Esarhaddon"
• Expanded coverage of the methodological approaches to the study of the Hebrew Bible, including six new boxes covering cultural ideologies and criticism; a new series of Across Time boxes, and new discussions of canonical criticism and redaction criticism.
• Added coverage of postcolonial, African American, queer, and feminist interpretations of the Old Testament.