War in the Hebrew Bible: A Study in the Ethics of ViolenceOxford University Press, 1993 - 180 من الصفحات Texts about war pervade the Hebrew Bible, raising challenging questions in religious and political ethics. Among the most disquieting war passages are those in which God demands the total annihilation of the enemy without regard to gender, age, or military status. The ideology of the "ban", however, is only one among a range of attitudes towards war preserved in the ancient Israelite literary tradition. Applying insights from anthropology, comparative literature, and feminist studies, Niditch considers a wide spectrum of war ideologies in the Hebrew Bible, seeking in each case to discover why and how these views might have made sense to biblical writers, who themselves can be seen to wrestle with the ethics of violence. Niditch thus challenges the stereotype of the violent "Old" Testament - of law versus gospel, justice versus mercy, and judgment versus love. To understand attitudes about war in the Hebrew Bible, Niditch argues, is to understand war in general: the motivations, justifications, and rationalizations of those who wage it. In addition, this exploration reveals much about the social and cultural history of Israel, as war texts are found to map the world views of biblical writers from various periods and settings. Reviewing ways in which modern scholars have interpreted this controversial material, Niditch sheds further light on the normative assumptions that shape our understanding of ancient Israel. More widely, this work explores how human beings attempt to justify killing and violence. Niditch's unique study will be of particular interest to students of Judaism, the Bible, and religion, as well as ethicists and historians concerned with relating classical sources tocontemporary issues. |
المحتوى
The Ban as Gods Portion | 28 |
The Ban as Gods Justice | 56 |
The Priestly Ideology of War in Numbers 31 | 89 |
حقوق النشر | |
2 من الأقسام الأخرى غير ظاهرة
طبعات أخرى - عرض جميع المقتطفات
عبارات ومصطلحات مألوفة
Abner Achan Amalek Ammonites ancient Israelite attitudes ban as God's ban as sacrifice ban texts bardic tradition battle biblical blood booty cause chapter child sacrifice Chron Chronicles concerning conquest context contrast crusade culture David death defeat deity described destruction Deut Deuteronomic History Deuteronomy 13 devoted Dinah discussed divine Edom enemy Esther ethics explored fight Genesis 14 Gibeah Gideon Girard God's justice Goliath guilt Hebrew Bible Hebrew Scriptures herem holy human sacrifice ideology of expediency implicit Israel Israelite Jephthah Joab Josh Joshua Judah Judean Judges jus in bello killing king land Lord Mesha Midianite Moab Moabite narrative non-Israelite Numbers 31 offering one's passage peace Philistines political portrayals portrayed priest priestly prophet rape ritual Samson Saul scholars sexual Shechem Sihon sort spared spoil suggest sword tale taunt theme tion trajectory trickster unclean vengeance victory violence warriors wars woman women world-view Yahweh