Character in Crisis: A Fresh Approach to the Wisdom Literature of the Old Testament

Brown, William P.

ISBN 10: 080284135X / ISBN 13: 9780802841353

Published by Eerdmans Publishers, 2001

About this Item

2001. 3rd printing. Trade paperback. Clear tape reinforces spine. 179pp. Index. VERY GOOD. Ex-college library with the usual.

Seller Inventory # 2644497

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Character in Crisis: A Fresh Approach to the Wisdom Literature of the Old Testament
• Publisher: Eerdmans Publishers
• Publication Date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 080284135X
• ISBN 13: 9780802841353
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: VERY GOOD
• Seller catalogs:
  • Biblical Theology

About this title

Synopsis

At a time when the chasm between academic scholarship and theological reflection seems to be widening, both the academic guild and the church share in common an uncertainty over how to study and appropriate the wisdom literature of the Old Testament. On the one hand, mainline denominations have for the most part avoided the books of Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes in their preaching and educational curriculum. Biblical scholars, on the other hand, have labored hard to identify the theological significance and thematic center of the wisdom literature, but without much consensus. In Character in Crisis, William P. Brown helps to break the impasse by demonstrating that the aim of the Bible's wisdom literature is the formation of the moral character--both for individuals and for the community. Brown traces the theme of moral identity and conduct throughout the wisdom literature of the Old Testament, with a concluding reflection on the Epistle of James in the New Testament, and explores a range of issues that includes literary characterization, moral discourse, worldview, and the theology of the ancient sages. He examines the ways in which central characters such as God, wisdom, and human beings are profiled in the wisdom books and shows how their characterizations impar

About the Author

William P. Brown is associate professor of Old Testament at Union Theological Seminary in Virginia.