The City in the Hebrew Bible

These essays explore the idea of the city in the Hebrew Bible by means of thematic and textual studies. The essays are united by their portrayal of how the city is envisaged in the Hebrew Bible and how the city shapes the writing of the literature considered. In its conceptual framework the volume draws upon a number of other disciplines, including literary studies, urban geography and psycho-linguistics, to present chapters that stimulate further discussion on the role of urbanism in the biblical text.

The introduction examines how cities can be conceived and portrayed, before surveying recent studies on the city and the Hebrew Bible. Chapters then address such issues as the use of the Hebrew term for 'city', the rhythm of the city throughout the biblical text, as well as reflections on textual geography and the work of urban theorists in relation to the Song of Songs. Issues both ancient and modern, historical and literary, are addressed in this fascinating collection, which provides readers with a multi-faceted and interdisciplinary view of the city in the Hebrew Bible.

• Table of contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• Abbreviations
• Section 1: Setting the Scene
  • 1. Introduction: A City Perspective -- James K. Aitken, University of Cambridge, UK
  • 2. Reflections on the Meaning(s) of 'City' in the Hebrew Bible -- Alison Gray, University of Cambridge, UK
  • 3. The City as Metropolis -- Hugh Pyper, University of Sheffield, UK
• Section 2: Perspectives from Critical Theory and Cultural Geography
  • 4. Mapping Narrative Complexity: Textual Geography, Literary Studies, and the City in the Hebrew Bible -- Bradford A. Anderson, Dublin City University, Ireland
  • 5. 'A Land with Fine Large Cities': Mapping the Landscapes of Deuteronomy – Hilary F. Marlow, University of Cambridge, UK
  • 6. City as Labyrinth: the Song of Songs and the 'Urban Uncanny' -- Christopher Meredith, St Mary's University Twickenham, UK
  • 7. Wasteland and Pastoral Idyll as Images of the Biblical City -- Mary Mills, Liverpool Hope University, UK
  • 8. Urban Planning according to Ezekiel: The Shape of the Restored Jerusalem -- Deborah Rooke, University of Oxford, UK
• Section 3: Literary and Exegetical Perspectives
  • 9. City Parody as a Literary Trope in Biblical Texts -- Carla Sulzbach, independent scholar
  • 10. Contested Eponymy: Cain, Enoch, and the Cities of Genesis 1-11 -- Robert Gordon, University of Cambridge, UK
  • 11. 'Therefore We Will Not Fear'? The Psalms of Zion in Psycho-Linguistic Perspective -- Rebecca Watson, University of Cambridge, UK
  • 12. Among the Ruins of a Walled City: Reflections on War and Peace in Ecclesiastes 12.1-7 --Stephen J. Bennett, Nyack College, USA
• Index