Understanding Old Testament ethics : approaches and explorations / John Barton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Barton, John, 1948-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Bible. Old Testament.

Ethics in the Bible.

Bible. Old Testament--Theology.

Bible.

Theology.

Physical Description:

xi, 212 pages ; 23 cm

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Louisville, Ky. : Westminster John Knox Press, [2003]

Summary:

How can we best understand the different ways that ethical issues are addressed in the Hebrew Bible? And how might that understanding usefully inform ethical decision making in our own day? These are the two key questions explored by John Barton in part 1 of this study, in which he looks at how the Bible's narratives, as well as its collections of laws, oracles, and wisdom writings, all contribute to our understanding of the whole. In part 2, he focuses on the moral vision of the Prophets -- especially Amos, Isaiah, and Daniel -- providing the reader with the fruits of his research in ethics in the prophetic literature over the last few decades. The result is a book that enables students of the Bible, ethics, and other theological disciplines to grasp firmly the main issues at stake in current scholarly debate about the ethical legacy of the Old Testament. At the same time, the reader will gain a thorough appreciation of Professor Barton's own groundbreaking research in this field and how his studies have advanced our understanding of the ways in which the prophets, sages, and storytellers of ancient Israel expressed their visions of God's justice and goodness -- both for their own time and for generations to come.

Contents:

Introduction: The Moral Vision of the Old Testament 1

Part 1 Morality and Justice in the Hebrew Bible

1 Understanding Old Testament Ethics 15

2 Natural Law and Poetic Justice in the Old Testament 32

3 The Basis of Ethics in the Hebrew Bible 45

4 Reading for Life: The Use of the Bible in Ethics 55

5 Virtue in the Bible 65

Part 2 Explorations in the Prophets

6 Amos's Oracles against the Nations 77

7 Ethics in Isaiah of Jerusalem 130

8 Ethics in the Isaianic Tradition 145

9 Theological Ethics in Daniel 154

Conclusion: The Future of Old Testament Ethics 162.

Notes:

Includes the author's Amos's oracles against the nations, which was originally published in 1980.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 196-204) and indexes.

Contains:

Barton, John, 1948- Amos's oracles against the nations.

ISBN:

0664225969

OCLC:

50334237