constraints, letting the interpretive chips fall where they may?3 Each of these questions deserves an at least partly affirmative answer. However, a simple “yes” to any of them is ultimately insufficient. The remainder of this study will hopefully demonstrate why this is the case. For the time being, a couple of points can be made. First, the Bible is not an ordinary book. From a certain vantage point of course, the point is not debatable. No other book has had a comparable influence upon Western