Justice and Righteousness in the Old Testament
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Ulrich Berges
About this book
The phenomena of slavery and asymmetrical dependencies in the writings of ancient Israel cannot be adequately addressed without also looking at the discourses on divine and human justice. Only then does the position of the slaves in their uniqueness become clear, because they are almost completely left out of the moral demand for justice that otherwise applies to the poor, widows, orphans and strangers. Their status as property, which only in exceptional cases allowed them to be considered as subjects with personal rights, dominates the discourse. On a theological level, the phenomenon of slavery also influenced the Old Testament image of God, as YHWH himself became the owner of his people. Liberation from slavery in Egypt lead not to freedom, but to permanent dependency on the liberating God. However, radical dependency on YHWH also means that the divine master must protect the righteous. Otherwise, YHWH would degenerate into an arbitrary tyrant. The demand for justice binds the divine sovereign. If one examines the discourses of justice in the Hebrew Bible about the position of slaves, their deficits become particularly visible. This should urge caution in declaring the biblical writings to be the forerunners of human rights.
Author / Editor information
Ulrich Berges, Professor of Old Testament Exegesis at the Catholic Theological Faculty, University of Bonn, Germany; Extraordinary Professor in the Department of Old Testament Studies, University of Pretoria, South Africa.
Topics
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Frontmatter
I -
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Contents
V -
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Foreword
VII -
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1 Introduction
1 -
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2 Foundations of the Concept of Justice in Near Eastern Antiquity and the Old Testament
7 -
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3 Justice as a Central Category of Old Testament Literary History and Theology
21 -
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4 Law and Justice in the Book of Isaiah
55 -
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5 Excursus: Prophetic Discourses on Justice in Tension Between Collective Liability and Individual Responsibility
92 -
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6 Law and Justice in the Psalms
98 -
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7 Law and Justice in the Book of Proverbs
151 -
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8 Law and Justice in the Book of Job
166 -
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9 Law and Justice in the Book of Ecclesiastes
173 -
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10 Conclusion
187 -
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Bibliography
199 -
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Index
225
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