First Person: Essays in Biblical Autobiography

Hebrew Biblical narratives are notoriously sparing in their portrayal of character, leaving much to the reader. Here a number of internationally renowned scholars assume the identities of some familiar biblical characters, and use the clues in the text, their own exegetical skills and knowledge of the biblical world, and their readerly imagination to fill in the gaps of the biblical text. In doing so, they remove the point of view of the biblical narrator, allowing the ideology of the text to be affirmed, adjusted or challenged. Contributors to this volume include Francis Landy, Athalya Brenner, Yairah Amit, John Goldingay, Jonathan Magonet, Hugh Pyper, and Philip Davies; the characters include Rahab, Isaiah, Gomer, Eve, Delilah, Joseph, Jeremiah and Haman.