Description
Whereas much recent work on the ethics of the Hebrew Bible addresses the theological task of using the Bible as a moral resource for today, this book aims to set Ezekiel's ethics firmly in the social and historical context of the Babylonian Exile. The two 'moral worlds' of Jerusalem and Babylonia provide the key. Ezekiel explains the disaster in terms familiar to his audience's past experience as members of Judah's political elite. He also provides ethical strategies for coping with the more limited possibilities of life in Babylonia, which include the ritualization of ethics, an increasing emphasis on the domestic and personal sphere of action, and a shift towards human passivity in the face of restoration. Thus the prophet's moral concerns and priorities are substantially shaped by the social experience of deportation and resettlement. They also represent a creative response to the crisis, providing significant impetus for social cohesion and the maintenance of a distinctively Jewish community.
About the Author
Andrew Mein is Tutor in the Old Testament, Westcott House, Cambridge.
Reviews
Review from previous edition The author considers the prophet's ethical message, and he does so with great success ... An excellent contribution to prophetic studies. * International Review of Biblical Studies *
Fine contribution to both a more rigorous methodology for examining Ezekiel texts, and a distinct advance in understanding the unity and purpose of the judgment oracles in Ezekiel. * Biblica *
A valuable contribution to the study of the prophet. Its chief importance lies in its careful inquiry into a basic feature of ethics that has not been taken into account in the main studies of Old Testament ethics: the close relation between ethics and social situation. Mein has shown how a detailed examination of one prophet in the light of sociological theory can take us a considerable way in understanding this. * Theology *
In this very fine study Andrew Mein both stimulates our interest in the work of the prophet and makes a major advance in the study of Old Testament ethics. * Theology *
Book Information
ISBN 9780199291397
Author Andrew Mein
Format Paperback
Page Count 320
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 420g
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 138mm * 19mm
About the Author
Andrew Mein is Tutor in the Old Testament, Westcott House, Cambridge.
Reviews
Review from previous edition The author considers the prophet's ethical message, and he does so with great success ... An excellent contribution to prophetic studies. * International Review of Biblical Studies *
Fine contribution to both a more rigorous methodology for examining Ezekiel texts, and a distinct advance in understanding the unity and purpose of the judgment oracles in Ezekiel. * Biblica *
A valuable contribution to the study of the prophet. Its chief importance lies in its careful inquiry into a basic feature of ethics that has not been taken into account in the main studies of Old Testament ethics: the close relation between ethics and social situation. Mein has shown how a detailed examination of one prophet in the light of sociological theory can take us a considerable way in understanding this. * Theology *
In this very fine study Andrew Mein both stimulates our interest in the work of the prophet and makes a major advance in the study of Old Testament ethics. * Theology *
Book Information
ISBN 9780199291397
Author Andrew Mein
Format Paperback
Page Count 320
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 420g
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 138mm * 19mm
