Carol Newsom, Sharon Ringe, Jacqueline Lapsley
The Women's Bible Commentary - Speaking about Love
The Women's Bible Commentary - Speaking about Love
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Speaking about Love These opening verses, by disorienting the reader with a seemingly dizzying array of speakers, abrupt scene changes (king’s chambers, vineyards, pastureland, Pharaoh’s stables, leafy bower, wine house), and variously identified lovers (royal figures, vineyard k…
The Women's Bible Commentary - Women Are without Wisdom
The Women's Bible Commentary - Women Are without Wisdom
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Women Are without Wisdom Ecclesiastes speaks highly of the relationship between men, but also of the relationship a man can have with his wife (9:9). He makes frequent reference to mothers and wombs, grounding human existence in them (4:14)…
The Women's Bible Commentary - Introduction of Speaker and Themes
The Women's Bible Commentary - Introduction of Speaker and Themes
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Introduction of Speaker and Themes Despite the declaration that Ecclesiastes is king in Jerusalem, the speaker is probably best described as a sage or teacher, perhaps a mid-level official in the provincial administration…
The Women's Bible Commentary - On Government and Power
The Women's Bible Commentary - On Government and Power
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
On Government and Power The royal court takes centre stage in these proverbs that are attributed to Solomon and transmitted by scribes in the court of Hezekiah (ca. 715–687 BCE). Indeed, some interpreters argue that portions of Proverbs 25–29 were used to educate aspiring young m…
The Women's Bible Commentary - Proverbs
The Women's Bible Commentary - Proverbs
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Proverbs Many of the themes addressed in 10:1– 15:33 continue, but antithetical proverbs are now mixed with a greater diversity of wisdom genres, including synonymous and synthetic proverbs, “better than” proverbs (e.g., 16:8, 32; 17:1), rhetorical questions (e.g., 17:16; 18:14),…
The Women's Bible Commentary - The Moral World of Biblical Patriarchy and the Problem of Solidarity
The Women's Bible Commentary - The Moral World of Biblical Patriarchy and the Problem of Solidarity
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
The Moral World of Biblical Patriarchy and the Problem of Solidarity For the author’s purposes it was necessary that the hero of the book be a character at the top of the social order. The hero must be one who quite literally has everything to lose…
The Women's Bible Commentary - The Story of Vashti
The Women's Bible Commentary - The Story of Vashti
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
The Story of Vashti The first female character the book of Esther introduces is Vashti the queen, the wife of Ahasuerus. Ahasuerus summons her to appear before his court in the midst of a wild drinking party, in order that he may show off her beauty…
The Women's Bible Commentary - Third Movement: Nehemiah and the Judahites Build Jerusalem’s Wall
The Women's Bible Commentary - Third Movement: Nehemiah and the Judahites Build Jerusalem’s Wall
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Third Movement: Nehemiah and the Judahites Build Jerusalem’s Wall The third stage is presented through the eyes and words of Nehemiah in a first- person recollection often labelled “memoirs” (which many scholars attribute to Nehemiah himself)…
The Women's Bible Commentary - First Movement: Returnees Build the Altar
The Women's Bible Commentary - First Movement: Returnees Build the Altar
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
First Movement: Returnees Build the Altar The first section describes the return from Babylon of a large contingent of exiled Judahites (or Jews). Upon their arrival, the Judahites build an altar and resume proper worship…
The Women's Bible Commentary - Solomon: The Temple-Birther
The Women's Bible Commentary - Solomon: The Temple-Birther
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Solomon: The Temple-Birther The man of peace (1 Chr. 22:9), Solomon, is a peculiar character in Chronicles. Stripped of his role as temple builder, and relegated to being a mere general contractor and decorator, he is also stripped of his women: no catalogue of wives and secondar…
The Women's Bible Commentary - Genealogies: The Birthing Father
The Women's Bible Commentary - Genealogies: The Birthing Father
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Genealogies: The Birthing Father Surely 1 Chronicles 1 is the most masculine chapter in the entire Hebrew Bible. Beginning with Adam, a genealogy of sons traces the male line to Esau and Jacob, concluding with a genealogy of the kings of Edom…
The Women's Bible Commentary - Hezekiah and the Siege of Jerusalem
The Women's Bible Commentary - Hezekiah and the Siege of Jerusalem
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Hezekiah and the Siege of Jerusalem This final section of the book of Kings begins with praises for Hezekiah, king of Judah, who has instituted religious reforms crucial in the Deuteronomists’ eyes, including finally removing the “high places” from the land…
The Women's Bible Commentary - Dividing the Kingdom
The Women's Bible Commentary - Dividing the Kingdom
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
Dividing the Kingdom THE WOMEN’S BIBLE COMMENTARY (1 Kings 12-15) From the death of Solomon at the end of 1 Kings 11 until the fall of the northern kingdom in 2 Kings 17, the narrative generally alternates between accounts of the kingdom of Judah and the kingdom of Israel. The co…
The Women's Bible Commentary - The Wise Woman of Abel-Maacah
The Women's Bible Commentary - The Wise Woman of Abel-Maacah
by SPCK - Newsom, Ringe and Lapsley
The Wise Woman of Abel-Maacah The second story about a wise woman (2 Sam. 20) is more instructive. When Joab is besieging the town of Abel of Beth-maacah and attacking it in order to drive out a rebel who had taken refuge there, a wise woman from within the city calls out to him …
The Women's Bible Commentary - Rape, Revenge, and Revolt: The Story of Tamar