Description
Book SynopsisThe Hebrew Bible has long been the subject of theological inquiries and debates in Judaism and Christianity. But is there something like theology already in the Hebrew Bible itself? Is it possible to describe the literary growth of the Hebrew Bible by means of an ongoing theological debate? Answers to these questions depend on how one conceives of the category “theology.” In this book, Konrad Schmid reconstructs the development of this category, then describes and discusses biblical texts in the Hebrew Bible that are relevant to the question Is There Theology in the Hebrew Bible?
The book consists of two main sections. In the first, Schmid traces the notion of “theology” from its earliest use, in Greek philosophy, through the medieval period and to today. He pays close attention to “biblical theology,” particularly the different understandings of this idea as something emanating from the Hebrew Bible itself versus something that readers impose onto the biblical text. He also tracks the influence of the discipline of comparative religion on biblical theology, especially with regard to the growing division between biblical and systematic theology. In the second part, Schmid focuses specifically on “implicit” biblical theology, that is, theological reflection apparent within the Hebrew Bible itself. He provides several examples, such as the theologization of the law that resulted from inner-biblical exegesis and Jeremiah’s universal theology of history.
Is There Theology in the Hebrew Bible? will serve as an important reference to all those interested in the question posed by the title. Schmid provides a nuanced answer to this question that both takes into account the convoluted history of biblical theology and lays out new ways of approaching the subject.
Table of ContentsPreface to the English Edition
Chapter 1. Formulating the Question and the Approach
Chapter 1. The Emergence and History of the Concept of Theology with Regard to the Bible
I. The Premodern Concept of Theology: From Mythology to Systematic Doctrine
II. The Reformation’s Reconstrual of the Concept of Theology
III. From Biblical Theology to the Theology of the Old Testament
IV. The Romantic Devaluation of the Concept of Theology
V. The Reception of the Concept of Theology in the “Academic Study of Judaism” and Its Application to Rabbinic Tradition
VI. The Devaluation of the Concept of Religion in Dialectical Theology
VII. The Pluralization of the Theology of the Hebrew Bible as a Result of its Historicization
Chapter III. The Emergence of Theology in the Hebrew Bible and Ancient Jewish Tradition as a Religious-Historical Inquiry
I. Processes of Theologization in the Hebrew Bible and Early Jewish Tradition
II. The Formation of Implicit Theology in Prophetic Literature
III. The Theologization of the Law
IV. The Theologization of Political History
V. Theology in the Pentateuch at Large
VI. Theology in the Psalter
VII. Processes of Theologization in Canon Formation
VIII. Theological Interpretation from the Second Temple Period
IX. The Septuagint’s Attempts at Theological Reconciliation with Platonic Philosophy
X. The Theology of Revelation in Apocalyptic Literature
Chapter 4. Is There Theology in the Hebrew Bible? Striking a Balance between Conceptual History and Exegesis
I. Theologizing in Traditional Literature
II. Implications for a Theology of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament
Bibliography
Indexes
Index of Authors
Index of Scripture
