Zer Rimonim

These original papers all in modern Hebrew were written in honor of Professor Rimon Kasher, emeritus professor of Bible at Bar-Ilan University, whose areas of expertise include, among other subjects, the Aramaic Targum, the book of Ezekiel, and biblical theology. The authors, scholars in a variety of Israeli universities, are specialists in the fields of Bible, the ancient Near East, medieval interpretation, and Masorah. Almost half the essays are devoted to Jewish interpretation of the Bible. Others feature the commentaries of figures such as Rashi, Qimhi, Rashbam, Ibn Ezra, Nachmanides, and Seforno; Karaitic and Byzantine interpretation; and all areas of the biblical canon: law, narrative, historiography, prophecy, and wisdom. The book includes an English table of contents, preface, biographical sketch, and abstracts. The contributors are Yairah Amit, Elie Assis, Jonathan Ben-Dov, Joshua Berman, Gershon Brin, Hezi Cohen, Tmima Davidovitz, David Elgavish, Brachi Elitzur, Yitzhaq Feder, Joseph Fleishman, Gershon Galil, Tova Ganzel, Isaac Gottlieb, Edward L. Greenstein, Jonathan Grossman, Mayer Gruber, Jair Haas, Jonathan Jacobs, Bustenay Oded, Yosef Ofer, Jordan S. Penkower, Yosi Peretz, Frank Polak, Meira Poliak, Moshe Rachimi, Ayelet Seidler, Yael Shemesh, Shimon Shtober, Nili Shupak, Uriel Simon, Miriam Sklarz, Yechiel Tzeitkin, Shmuel Vargon, Eran Viezel, and Yair Zakovitch.

Michael Avioz is senior lecturer in the Department of Bible at Bar-Ilan University. His main areas of teaching and research are Josephus s interpretation of the Bible, biblical prophecy, and biblical historiography. He is the author of Nathan s Oracle (2 Samuel 7) and Its Interpreters (Lang) and I Sat Alone : Jeremiah among the Prophets (Gorgias). He is currently working on a book entitled Josephus s Interpretation of the Books of Samuel. Elie Assis is a professor in the Department of Bible and Dean of the Faculty of Jewish Studies at Bar-Ilan University. His publications are mainly on literary and theological aspects of biblical narrative, poetry, and prophecy. His most recent titles include Self-Interest or Communal Interest: An Ideology of Leadership in the Gideon, Abimelech and Jephthah Narratives (Judg 6 12) (Brill), Flashes of Fire: A Literary Analysis of the Song of Songs (T&T Clark), and The Book of Joel: A Prophet between Calamity and Hope (Bloomsbury). Yael Shemesh is senior lecturer in the Department of Bible at Bar-Ilan University. Her main areas of teaching and research are the poetics of biblical narrative, prophetic stories, feminist biblical interpretation, and animal ethics. She is currently completing a study on mourning in the Bible.