This book examines the ways in which two distinct biblical conceptions of impurity-"ritual" and "moral"-were interpreted in the Hebrew Bible, the Dead Sea Scrolls, rabbinic literature, and the New Testament. In examining the evolution of ancient Jewish attitudes towards sin and defilement, Klawans sheds light on a fascinating but previously neglected topic.
Reviews
"Klawans has offered some very helpful illumination, particularly to the study of the New Testament. The clarity and simplicity of his thought is very attractive, and throws light into some very obscure corners of ancient thought." --Journal of Theological Studies
"Jonathan Klawans makes an important contribution to scholarship on ancient Judaism by providing a fresh look at the relationship between sin and impurity. Klawans writes well; he is concise, well-organized, and usually very clear. I recommend this book for all professors or students of ancient Judaism or early Christianity."--Review of Biblical Literature
"This volume makes a major contribution to the study of Ancient Judaism and Christianity. Professor Klawans has disentangled some confusing threads of ancient thinking about purity and has revealed a complex, nuanced array of perspectives to be found in our documentation. Those who wish to homogenize ancient Jewish thinking on the subject will hence forth be without excuse."--Anglican Theological Review


Awards
Winner of Co-winner of the AAR Best First Book in the History of Religions award and Awarded the Salo Wittmayer Baron Book Prize by the American Academy for Jewish Research.



Book Information
ISBN 9780195177657
Author Jonathan Klawans
Format Paperback
Page Count 272
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 386g
Dimensions(mm) 229mm * 152mm * 15mm