Overview

""Everyone did what was right in their own eyes."" This well-known indictment rumbles across the epilogue of Judges, denouncing God's people as wayward. Yet understanding the source of Israel's degenerative and downward spiral comes from an oft-overlooked declaration: Yahweh is testing Israel's fidelity to the commandments he gave ""by the hand of Moses."" By employing covert allusions rather than explicit quotations Judges contrasts the obvious sins of Israel with veiled reminders of the law that they have abandoned. In this volume, Jillian Ross employs current insights from literary theory, establishing a robust methodology for identifying allusions in the text. Once applied, the allusions to the Law, especially as presented in Deuteronomy, display three clear peaks: the prologue, Gideon narrative, and epilogue. The results suggest that Judges teaches a Deuteronomistic concept that the Israelites failed to obey the Torah, particularly its call for covenant fidelity in worship and warfare, as given to them ""by the hand of Moses.""

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9781666795943

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Reviews

With methodological clarity and close attention to the text, Jillian Ross demonstrates how the book of Judges engages with the Pentateuch. What emerges is a theologically sensitive and informative reading of Judges that demonstrates the perils of failing to heed Scripture. This is a persuasive work that merits close attention. --David G. Firth, Trinity College Bristol Something is amiss in the book of Judges. Jillian Ross investigates what's going on and helps readers learn to carry out such an investigation. Ross reveals the recurring subtle web of allusions to the Torah in Judges and draws out the deep irony that a people who heeds not Scripture is a people who are in conflict against the Torah-shaped narrative in which they are set. This book provides a discerning evaluation of allusions in Judges that will greatly benefit readers. --Gary Edward Schnittjer, Cairn University Allusion is an important literary device, crucial to any study of biblical intertextuality. Yet, it has not always been clearly understood and has often been based primarily on the scholar's intuition. Moreover, literary allusion in the book of Judges as a whole has never been fully explored. Fortunately, Jillian Ross's significant monograph addresses these issues. --K. Lawson Younger Jr., Trinity International University Ross's volume offers readers of Judges a more nuanced look at just how the biblical book traces the Israelites' disobedience to their divine Sovereign. Her diligent analysis of the text reveals the intricacies of the Judges narrative and the crucial role Pentateuchal allusions play at key points in its unfolding message. --Michelle Knight, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

Author Information

Jillian L. Ross is associate professor of biblical studies at Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA.

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