The Oxford Companion to the Bible (review)

Abstract

Hebrew Studies 36 (1995) 142 Reviews filled with information about patterns and cross-references within the Hebrew Canon. For another, it is a gold mine of variant textual and versional orderings of the biblical books over the centuries. It also contains many intriguing and stimulating individual discussions, such as why Freedman believes Baruch to have been one of the authors of the Deuteronomic History. But ultimately even the musing giant selects his evidence rather arbitrarily to achieve the order he seeks. He abandons the traditional listing of the Writings in favor of that of the Aleppo and Leningrad codices, decides Daniel doesn't fit the scheme, lamely links Obadiah, Jonah and Joel as a group so he can fit them with Ezekiel (which defies the imagination on almost all counts!) and, finally has to invert the order of the Ten Commandments to agree with a passing reference in Jer 7:8-11 to get a workable pattern. The whole book is fun, it is suggestive, and it should convince scholars that there must be some intentional order in the fmal compilation of the Canon. But the search will have to go on! Lawrence Boadl Washington Theological Union Silver Spring. MD 20903 THE OXFORD COMPANION TO THE BIBLE. Bruce M. Metzger, Michael D. Coogan, eds. Pp. xxi + 903. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993. Cloth, $49.95. The recently published Oxford Companion 10 Ihe Bible fulfills all reasonable promises and even exceeds expectations as a model of its kind of handbook: the necessary and fitting guide for the modem reader of the Bible. The title is appropriate: "Companion" is somewhere between "Introduction" and "Dictionary," with something of a "History" and "Commentary" thrown in. The initial impression is that of a dictionary, because the entries are arranged alphabetically. But the contents show that the book is both less and more, with emphasis on the more. As the editors point out, not every term, not every name, and not every item in the Bible is registered in the Companion, but there is very little to be said about many of them, and at the same time, all the major and most of the minor subjects are duly covered: the books of the Bible to be sure, the personalities , places, and events certainly. But there is much more besides: a running account of the history of the Bible, its interpretations and applications over Hebrew Studies 36 (1995) 143 Reviews many centuries and many lands, as well as topics of very recent or current concern, as they relate to the Bible: for example, feminist, AfricanAmerican responses and reactions, as well as specific topics, such as abortion, homosexuality, and unusual features, such as Freud on the Bible, Marx on the Bible (one may wonder whether both of them will show up in the next Companion). Balance is also achieved in the realm of critical inquiry and assessment, a rather difficult undertaking in the light of the proliferation of "Criticisms" in our generation. Among the numerous types or classes of such criticism, we fmd traditional linguistic and literary interests balanced against more recent sociological and anthropological approaches, while historical and archaeological entries can be matched with older style word studies and essays on key theological terms. The reach of this ambitious work is breathtaking, but it does not exceed its grasp. The scope is universal, and considering the deliberate decision to limit the work to a single volume, one might wonder whether it could truly include everything or at least everything of importance. The key to success lies in the careful selectivity of the editors and the restraints imposed on and by the contributors. The result is a work that is far from being exhaustive ; but it is truly representative. And for those who seek more information, help is provided in the form of a general and useful bibliography. When it comes to finding topics that are not in the alphabetic listing, that is, where they are and how they are handled, another major boost for the reader is the detailed index (along with numerous cross-references in the articles themselves). Practically everything that one could expect in a one-volume work of this kind is there...