Concerning the Nations: Essays on the Oracles Against the Nations in Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel

Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel share much in common. They address the pivotal times and topics associated with the last stages of the monarchical history of Israel, and with the development of new forms of communal and religious life through exile and beyond. One important structural component of all three books is a substantial section which concerns itself with a range of foreign nations, commonly called the “Oracles against the Nations”, which form the focus of this book.

These chapters together present the most up-to-date scholarship on the oracles - an oft-neglected but significant area in the study of the prophetic literature. The particular characteristics of Isaiah, Jeremiah (both Masoretic Text and Septuagint versions), and Ezekiel, are discussed showcasing the unique issues pertinent to each book and the diverse methods used to address them. These evident differences aside, the Oracles Against the Nations are employed as a springboard in order to begin the work of tracing similarities between the texts. By focusing on these unique yet common sections, a range of interrelated themes and issues of both content and method become noticeable: for example, though not exhaustively, pattern, structure, language, comparative history, archaeology, sociology, politics, literature, imagery, theme, theology, and hermeneutical issues related to today's context. As a result this collection presents a range of cutting-edge approaches on these key prophetic books, and will provide a basis for further comparative study and reflection.

• Table Of Contents
• Abbreviations
• Contributors
• Preface
• Isaiah
  • Foreword: The Oracles concerning the Nations in the Prophetic Literature Marvin A. Sweeney, Claremont School of Theology, USA.
  • Isaiah 22: A Crux or a Clue in Isaiah 13–23? Hyun Chul Paul Kim, Methodist Theological School in Ohio, USA.
  • Evoking and Evading: The Poetic Presentation of the Moabite Catastrophe in Isaiah 15–16 J. Blake Couey, Gustavus Aldophus College, MN, USA.
  • Isaiah 19:18: A Textual Variant in Light of the Temple of Onias in Egypt J. Todd Hibbard, University of Detroit Mercy, USA.
  • Common and Different Phrases for Babylon's Fall and Its Aftermath in Isaiah 13–14 and Jeremiah 50–51 W. A. M. Beuken, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium.
• Jeremiah
  • Babylon as Judah's Doppelgänger: The Identity of Opposites in the Book of Jeremiah (mt) Rannfrid Thelle, independent scholar, Wichita, USA.
  • Embodying Moab: The Figuring of Moab in Jeremiah 48 as Reinscription of the Judean Body Carolyn J. Sharp, Yale University, USA.
  • “As she did, do to her!”: Jeremiah's OAN as Revenge Fantasies Amy Kalmanofsky, Jewish Theological Seminary, New York, USA.
  • Jeremiah, Sade, and Repetition as Counterpleasure in the Oracle against Edom Rhiannon Graybill, Rhodes College, USA.
  • Postcolonialism and Propaganda in Jeremiah's Oracles against the Nations Hugh Pyper, University of Sheffield, UK.
• Ezekiel
  • Yhwh and the Kings of Middle Earth: Royal Polemic in Ezekiel's Oracles against the Nations Madhavi Nevader, University of St Andrew's, UK.
  • In Defense of the Great King: Ezekiel's Oracles against Tyre John T. Strong, Missouri State University, USA.
  • A Serpent in the Nile: Egypt in the Book of Ezekiel Corrine L. Carvalho, University of St Thomas, St Paul MN, USA.
• Response
  • After the Nation: Reading Oracles against the Nations amidst the Fragmenting of the Nation-State Steed Vernyl Davidson, Graduate Theological Union, CA, USA.
• Bibliography
• Index of References
• Index of Authors