Details

Subject(s)

• Bible Old Testament—Criticism, interpretation, etc [Browse]
• Jewish law—Biblical teaching [Browse]
• Justice, Administration of, in the Bible [Browse]

Publisher

• Michigan Publishing (University of Michigan) [Browse]

Series

Law, meaning, and violence [More in this series]

Summary note

Biblical Judgments invites readers to consider today's timeless dilemmas of law and government, social justice, and human rights, through the perspective of a text that has helped shape western society: the Hebrew Bible. By focusing on biblical narratives and literature rather than on traditional interpretations of biblical law, Daphne Barak-Erez is able to look beyond historic norms to concentrate on what Old Testament stories can reveal about the "big" issues. She discusses questions such as: What can modern-day governmental regulation learn from the exercise of food rationing in Egypt as a response to Pharaoh's dream of a future famine? How does social distancing in the time of Covid-19 compare with people sent outside the camp as a precautionary measure against bible-era plagues? What can promoters of social justice glean from the demands made to Moses that daughters should also inherit from their father when biblical law did not recognize inheritance rights of women? Rather than offering a historical study, Barak-Erez draws upon famous court decisions from around the world to root her analysis in modern law. Organized by subject matter, Biblical Judgments analyzes how the themes of law and government, judging and judges, human rights and social justice, criminal law, private law, and family and inheritance law are presented through a number of different stories. In recounting the compelling narratives of the Hebrew Bible, Biblical Judgments exposes their inherent legal tensions and what we can learn about legal dilemmas today.

Bibliographic references

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contents

• Part I: Law and Government
• Part II: Judges and Judging
• Part III: Human Rights and Social Justice
• Part IV: Criminal Law
• Part V: Private Law
• Part VI: Family and Inheritance Law.

Show 3 more Contents items

Other title(s)

New legal readings in the Hebrew Bible

ISBN

• 9780472076581
• 0472076582
• 9780472056583 ((paperback))
• 0472056581

LCCN

2023032839

OCLC

1371747946

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