The Hermeneutics of Torah by Bernd U Schipper

The Hermeneutics of Torah by Bernd U Schipper

This revised and extended English edition of Bernd U. Schipper's 2012 German study of Proverbs incorporates the results of his continued research and writings on Proverbs. For nearly a century, many biblical scholars have argued that the main theological traditions, such as the divine law, God's torah, do not appear in the book of Proverbs. In this volume, however, Schipper demonstrates that Proverbs interacts in a sophisticated way with the concept of the torah. A detailed analysis of Proverbs 2 and other passages from the first part of the book of Proverbs shows that Proverbs engages in a postexilic discourse around wisdom and torah concerning the abilities of humans to fulfill the will of YHWH exemplified in the divine torah.

This revised and extended English edition of Bernd U. Schipper's 2012 German study of Proverbs incorporates the results of his continued research and writings on Proverbs. For nearly a century, many biblical scholars have argued that the main theological traditions, such as the divine law, God's torah, do not appear in the book of Proverbs. In this volume, however, Schipper demonstrates that Proverbs interacts in a sophisticated way with the concept of the torah. A detailed analysis of Proverbs 2 and other passages from the first part of the book of Proverbs shows that Proverbs engages in a postexilic discourse around wisdom and torah concerning the abilities of humans to fulfill the will of YHWH exemplified in the divine torah.

Bernd U. Schipper received his Dr. theol. from the University of Bonn in 1999 and Dr. phil. in Egyptology from the University of Hamburg in 2004. He held appointments at the University of Bremen, University of Oldenburg, the University of Heidelberg, and Harvard University. Since 2010 he has been professor of Old Testament/Hebrew Bible at the Faculty of Theology of the Humboldt University in Berlin. His research focuses on Wisdom literature, the history and religion of ancient Israel, the cultural contacts between Israel and Egypt, and the 'Judean-Aramaic' community on Elephantine. His publications include Geschichte Israels in der Antike (2018).