Joshua

What does Joshua hold to be the essential marks of Israelite identity? What distinguishes Israel from all other peoples?

In tracking these themes, L. Daniel Hawk reveals in Joshua a profound struggle to define the people of the God of Israel.

Hawk shows that the themes surrounding Joshua express fundamental markers of national identity: religious practice (obedience to the commandments of Moses), ethnic separation (extermination of the peoples of Canaan), and possession of land ("the land that YHWH gives").

Through the medium of narrative, Joshua tests each of these markers and demonstrates that none clearly characterize the people of God.

Instead, Joshua presents Israel as a nation fundamentally constituted by choosing: YHWH's choosing of Israel and Israel's choosing of YHWH.

In the present day in which ideologies of religion, race, and territorial possession have given rise to countless expressions of violence, Hawk expresses the particular value of reading Joshua.

The Joshua story holds a mirror up to all who regard themselves as the people of God. The reflection is both repelling and inspiring but until we confront it, what it truly means to be the chosen people of God will remain elusive.

Chapters are "Rights of Passage (1:1-18)," "Who's Who in the Promised Land? (2:1-12:24)," "Strangers in the Night (2:1-24)," "Changing State (3:1-4:24)," "First Things First (5:1-15)," "Going in Circles (6:1-27)," "Ai Spy (7:1-8:35)," "Foiled Again (9:1-10:27)," "Conquering Canaanites (10:28-12:24)," "Organizing Israel (13:1-21:45)," "Altar Egos (22:1-34)," "Unfinished Business (23:1-18)," and "Decisions, Decisions (24:1-33)." Includes twelve charts that lay out the structural features of the book.

Author: L. Daniel Hawk
Publisher: Liturgical Press
Published: 12/01/2000
Pages: 336
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.46lbs
Size: 9.33h x 6.34w x 1.24d
ISBN: 9780814650424
Binding Color: Multi-Colored
Binding Material: Cloth

About the Author
Hawk, L. Daniel: - L. Daniel Hawk, Ph.D., is a professor of Old Testament and Hebrew at Ashland Theological Seminary, Ashland, Ohio. He has also taught at Centenary College of Louisiana, Candler School of Theology, and Asbury College. A United Methodist minister with pastoral experience, he remains active in the life of the Church through preaching, teaching, and leadership in worship. He has also written Every Promise Fulfilled: Contesting Plots in Joshua (Westminster/John Know, 1991).

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