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The IVP

Bible

Background

Commentary

Old Testament

John H. Walton
Victor H. Matthews &
Mark W. Chavalas

InterVarsity Press
P.O. Box 1400, Downers Grove, IL 60515
World Wide Web: www.ivpress.com
E-mail: mail@ivpress.com

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from InterVarsity Press.

InterVarsity Press® is the book-publishing division of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA®, a student movement active on campus at hundreds of universities, colleges and schools of nursing in the United States of America, and a member movement of the International Fellowship of Evangelical Students. For information about local and regional activities, write Public Relations Dept., InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/USA, 6400 Schroeder Rd., P.O. Box 7895, Madison, WI 53707-7895.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

Charts on pages 821-22 taken from Chronological & Background Charts of the Old Testament by John H. Walton. Copyright ©1978 by The Zondervan Corporation. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House.

Cover illustration photograph: ©Daniel Blatt

ISBN 0-8308-1419-1

Printed in the United States of America×

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Walton, John H., 1952-
The IVP background Bible commentary : Old Testament / John H. Walton, Victor H.
Matthews, & Mark W. Chavalas.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8308-1419-1 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Bible. O.T.—Commentaries. I. Matthews, Victor Harold. II. Chavalas, Mark W.
(Mark William), 1954- III. Title.

BS1151.2 .W35 2000
221.7—dc21
00-057545

Preface

This book is an attempt to fill a particular niche in the vast field of one volume commentaries on the Bible. Rather than addressing all the varied elements of theology, literary structure, word meanings, history of scholarship, and so on, we have focused on the task of providing background information to the text.

Some might wonder what significance background information has for the interpretation of the text. What is it that we might expect to gain from knowing what this commentary seeks to make available? It has been rightly observed that the theological message of the Bible is not dependent on knowing where the places are or what the cultural background was. It is also correct to observe that one could gather all the proof from history and archaeology that, for instance, there actually was an Israelite exodus from Egypt, but that would still not prove that God orchestrated it—and it is God’s involvement that is the most important point of the biblical author. So why should ...

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About The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament

How can we account for the "Book of the Law" suddenly being discovered during Josiah's renovation of the temple (2 Chron 34:14)? We know from Egypt and Mesopotamia that it was common to seal important documents—including theological documents—in the masonry or foundations of a palace or temple in order to inform a future king who might undertake restoration of the building.

What might the psalmist have had in mind when praising God for removing our transgressions "as far as the east is from the west" (Ps 103:12)? In an Egyptian hymn to Amun-Re, the deity is praised for his judgment of the guilty. As a result of the god's discernment the guilty are assigned to the east and the righteous to the west.

What is meant by God "weighing the heart" (Prov 21:2)? In Egyptian religious tradition we find the notion of the dead being judged before the gods. As the soul is examined, the dead person's heart is weighed in a scale against a feather symbolizing Truth. If the answers are correct and the heart does not outweigh the feather, the soul may enter the realm of everlasting life.

The narratives, genealogies, laws, poetry, proverbs and prophecies of the Old Testament are deeply rooted in history. Archaeologists, historians and social scientists have greatly advanced our knowledge of the ancient world of the Bible. When we illuminate the stories of Abraham or David, the imagery of the Psalms or Proverbs, or the prophecies of Isaiah or Jeremiah with this backlight of culture and history, these texts spring to new life.

This unique commentary joins The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament in providing historical, social and cultural background for each passage of the Old Testament. From Genesis through Malachi, this single volume gathers and condenses an abundance of specialized knowledge—making it available and accessible to ordinary readers of the Old Testament. Expert scholars John Walton, Victor Matthews and Mark Chavalas have included along with the fruits of their research and collaboration

• a glossary of historical terms, ancient peoples, texts and inscriptions

• maps and charts of important historical resources

• expanded explanations of significant background issues

• introductory essays on each book of the Old Testament

The IVP Bible Background Commentary: Old Testament will enrich your experience of the Old Testament—and your teaching and preaching from Scriptureߞin a way that no other commentary can do.

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