In Search of the Spirit: Selected Works, Volume Two: The Spirit and Early Jewish Literature

Levison, John R.

ISBN 10: 1725290553 / ISBN 13: 9781725290556

Published by Cascade Books, 2024

About this Item

Seller Inventory # mon0003735302

Bibliographic Details

• Title: In Search of the Spirit: Selected Works, Volume Two: The Spirit and Early Jewish Literature
• Publisher: Cascade Books
• Publication Date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1725290553
• ISBN 13: 9781725290556
• Binding: paperback
• Condition: Fine

About this title

Synopsis

In his trailblazing studies of the spirit in Jewish and Christian antiquity, John R. (Jack) Levison shatters theological and exegetical taxonomies. Should the spirit be understood as breath or Spirit—or both? Is the spirit directed to creation or salvation—or both? Is the spirit a force or an angel—or both? Does the spirit inspire ecstasy or wisdom—or both? When Levison transfers the starting point of pneumatology from the New Testament to the Hebrew Bible, from Christianity to Judaism, questions swell, assumptions detonate, and expectations flourish. Consequently, Levison’s studies are considered “impressive and provocative” (Review of Biblical Literature), “delightful, engaging” (Catholic Biblical Quarterly), “impressive” (Journal of Ancient Judaism) and “a significant shift in research on understandings of the spirit in Judaism” (Journal of Theological Studies), with “profound ramifications for both Jewish and New Testament Studies” (Journal of Jewish Studies). Now, for the first time, selections of his breathtaking array of studies are available in three accessible volumes. In this volume, you will encounter Levison’s unprecedented and probing studies of the spirit in early Judaism in the context of Greek and Roman thought, from Sirach to the Tosefta, from the Dead Sea Scrolls to Philo of Alexandria, from Judith to Josephus. As they engage, readers will understand why Reading Religion: A Publication of the American Academy of Religion forecasts that “Levison will continue to be at the center of our most fruitful discussions of pneumatology.”

About the Author

John (Jack) R. Levison is Professor of New Testament at Seattle Pacific University. He is the author of Fresh Air: The Holy Spirit for an Inspired Life (2012); Filled with the Spirit (2009); and Texts in Transition: the Greek Life of Adam and Eve (2000).

Together with Priscilla Pope-Levison, he is author of Jesus in Global Contexts (1992) and editors of Return to Babel: Global Perspectives on the Bible (1999).