William P. Brown

Whatever your hand finds to do : Qoheleth's work ethic

Contrary to popular opinion, Qoheleth does not disparage work; he redefines it by dislodging it from the arena of the marketplace and setting it within the ethos of enjoyment. Qoheleths “work ethic” is profoundly subversive and relevant.

The Didactic Power of Metaphor in the Aphoristic Sayings of Proverbs

Many proverbial sayings make significant use of metaphor not simply to enhance their rhetorical appeal but to convey essential meaning. By examining aphorisms that refer to human discourse, this article argues that a cognitive approach to metaphor not only sheds light on the didactic power of aphorisms, but also opens new avenues of intertextual analysis among the various sayings and collections of Proverbs. Such an approach highlights, for example, the differing metaphorical schemas employed by the socalled Solomonic and Hezekian collections.

The Garden and the Plaza Biblical Images of the City

The Bible has more to say about urban landscapes than it does about green pastures and still waters. Moreover, scripture uses certain agricultural images to impart a compelling vision of the city and, more broadly, what it means to live in community before God.

Introducing Job A Journey of Transformation

Perhaps the most feared book of the Bible, Job generates more questions than answers. Yet for all its exegetical enigmas and conflicting perspectives, the book is about the painful journey of transformation— Jobs, ours, and perhaps even Gods.

Proverbs 8:22–31

ONE OF THE MOST EXQUISITELY CRAFTED POEMS in all of Scripture is found in Proverbs, a singularly evocative passage that has captivated readers for centuries, from ancient sages and church fathers (and heretics) to feminists and ecologists. The text has been fought over in the christological disputes of the past and theological controversies of the present. Through no fault of its own, the text bears a bruised legacy, and the interpreter may do well to drop at least some of the interpretive baggage, weighty as it is, and walk about a little less encumbered in the texts strange world with eyes wide open, delighting in its richness, come what may.

The Unexpected Universe: Emergence, Convergence, and the “Overview Effect”

Employed hermeneutically, science helps to highlight the interrelations between the first creation account in Genesis and the new creation account in Revelation, the “bookends” of the Bible. Both have to do, for example, with processes of emergence and convergence. Moreover, an overview of creation and new creation reveals an ancient pattern that has important implications for ecological practice today.

Psalms 3: A Commentary on Psalms 101–150 by Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich ZengerPsalms 3: A Commentary on Psalms 101–150 by HossfeldFrank-LotharZengerErich Hermeneia: A Critical and Historical Commentary on the Bible. Fortress, Minneapolis, 2011. 712 pp.

a fittiNg motto for this rich commentary would be “no psalm is an island.” A similar motto could apply to authors Frank-Lothar Hossfeld and Erich Zenger: no commentator is an island. This third volume marks another fruitful collaboration of two internationally renowned German scholars (sadly, Zenger passed away unexpectedly two years ago). This “third” volume of the Hermeneia Psalms commentary, a translation of the 2008 German original, is actually the second volume in publication order. The “first” volume (Psalms 1–50) is yet to be completed. Psalms 3 follows the 2005 volume, which covers Psalms 51–100. Like its predecessor, this commentary’s strength lies in its close attention to linguistic detail, iconography, and, perhaps most groundbreaking, the wider literary and theological contexts of each psalm. Simply put, the commentary follows a twofold methodology: “psalms exegesis” and “psalter exegesis” (p. xiii). The former treats each psalm individually, as a complete unit in itself. The latter treats each psalm as a component of a group of psalms, a part of a collection of psalms (“psalter”), or a part of the Psalter as a whole. In addition, there is special attention to the Septuagint Psalter in comparison to the Masoretic. The commentary also features several extensive excurses that address, among other things, the compositional history of particular psalm groups and their functions within the Psalter as a whole—in short, the “macrostructural” issues of Psalms exegesis. The commentary concludes with coverage of Psalm 151 as featured in the Septuagint and in 11QPsa (Zenger regards Psalm 151 as an “afterword” to the Septuagint Psalter).

69.00 (cloth). ISBN 978-0-8006-0762-3.

This essay offers a snapshot of the some of the challenges facing seminary education, specifically teaching the Bible, in the late 19th century that have proved to be fruitful opportunities to recast biblical hermeneutics and, more broadly, theological education in new ways. It examines the way the Bible is handled today in the seminary classroom and charts how we got here theologically and pedagogically as a result of these challenges.

From Apology to Pedagogy: Interpreting the Bible Past and Present in the Seminary Classroom

non-human creation. Marlow addresses perhaps the topic of greatest urgency for the church in scholarly rather than popular mode. The book provides excellent background for anyone working or teaching in the area of Bible and ecology. It covers much ground— historically, theologically, and exegetically—with admirable brevity and great clarity; the superb bibliography points the way for further work. Texts are well chosen to show different ways in which the Prophets represent interactions among non-human creation, God, and humanity. Throughout, Marlow displays good theological and exegetical sense; in contrast to the Earth Bible Project, she never loses sight of the resolute theocentricity of the prophetic texts. Moreover, she shows that their imagery and rhetoric is not casually chosen, but targeted to yield a theologically acute reading of the world. The excellent treatment of creation theology within First Isaiah corrects the tendency of biblical scholars to focus exclusively on Second Isaiah in this regard. One quibble: for Hosea, more might be done with Canaanite religious literature, especially as it illumines “the converse of heaven and earth” (Hos 2: 20–25). Overall, Marlow certainly demonstrates how the Prophets can help equip the church to exercise essential moral leadership in our time.

Book Review: Wind, Sun, Soil, Spirit: Biblical Ethics and Climate ChangeWind, Sun, Soil, Spirit: Biblical Ethics and Climate Change by RobbCarol S.Fortress, Minneapolis, 2010. 195 pp.

FEW BIBLICAL BOOKS raise such daunting challenges as the book of Joshua. The commentator must address discrepancies between the archaeological record and the claims of the text, complexities in the books composition and transmission, and vexing theological affirmations, and all this must be undertaken while keeping the exposition focused squarely on the text itself. The task of writing a comprehensive commentary on Joshua is therefore a formidable one. Rarely has it been accomplished as skillfully as in the present work.