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E-book
Author Sparks, Kenton L

Title Ethnicity and identity in ancient Israel : prolegomena to the study of ethnic sentiments and their expression in the Hebrew Bible / Kenton L. Sparks
Published Winona Lake, Ind. : Eisenbrauns, 1998

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Description 1 online resource (xiv, 344 pages)
Contents 1. Introduction -- Israel's ethnic identity: issues and problems -- the role of ethnicity studies -- 2. Ethnicity and identity in Israel's ancient context -- ethnicity and identity in Neo-Assyria -- ethnicity and identity in Archaic and classical Greece -- ethnicity and identity in Egypt -- 3. Merneptah's Stele and Deborah's song -- Israelite identity and the Merneptah Stele -- the song of Deborah (Judges 5) -- 4. Ethnicity and identity in the Assyrian period -- ethnicity and identity in Hosea -- ethnicity and identity in Amos -- ethnicity and identity in Isaiah of Jerusalem -- Summary: ethnicity and identity in the Assyrian period -- Excursus: core and periphery in the Assyrian period -- a proposal -- 5. Ethnicity and identity in the Judean monarchy -- Deuteronomy -- Excursus 1: the tribal list in the "blessing of Moses" (Deuteronomy 33) -- Excursus 2: the Deuteronomistic history -- Jeremiah -- Summary: ethnicity and identity in the Judean monarchy -- 6 . Ethnicity and identity in the exilic period -- Ezekiel -- Deutero-Isaiah -- Summary: ethnicity and identity in the exilic period and beyond -- 7. Summary and conclusions -- the history of Israelite ethnicity -- tribal organization in Ancient Israel -- the forefather traditions of Ancient Israel -- implications for ethnicity studies -- the task that remains -- theological reflections
Summary From the introduction:"When we speak of ethnicity, we bring into view a particular kind of sentiment about group identity wherein groups of individuals view themselves as being alike by virtue of their common ancestry. It is something of a truism to point out that ethnicity has played an important role in the history of Judaism, both in the postbiblical era and prior to it.The reason for this interest is twofold. First, in virtually every discipline of the humanities, there seems to be a general unhappiness with the superficial way that scholars have handled the issues of culture and identity. More specifically, with respect to ancient Israel, recent biblical scholarly activity-both literary and historical-has raised serious doubts about the supposed origins and antiquity of Israelite ethnicity."With this agenda in view, Kent Sparks provides a summary of current studies in ethnicity and ethnic identity, then moves to a discussion of Israel's ancient Near Eastern context and expressions of ethnic identity in the written remains from surrounding nations. Turning next to ancient Israel itself, he examines texts generally considered early in Israel's history for information relevant to Israel's ethnic identity. Sparks then investigates the witness of the prophets and the historical materials relating to the Judean monarchy and the exilic period, looking for expressions of ethnic sentiment. His research will likely prove to be the foundation on which future study of the topic will be built
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and indexes
Notes Print version record
SUBJECT Bible. Old Testament -- Social scientific criticism
Bible. Old Testament fast
Subject Ethnicity in the Bible.
Jews -- Identity -- History
RELIGION -- Biblical Studies -- Old Testament.
RELIGION -- Judaism -- Sacred Writings.
Social scientific criticism of sacred works
Ethnicity in the Bible
Jews -- Identity
Oude Testament.
Etnisch bewustzijn.
Genre/Form History
Form Electronic book
ISBN 9781575065168
1575065169