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16 - Isaac and Rebekah

The Family Story

from Part III - A New Narrative

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 July 2023

Jacob L. Wright
Jacob L. Wright
Affiliation:
Emory University, Atlanta
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Summary

The present chapter is an outlier. It treats a single story from the book of Genesis, using it as a case study for the composition-history of the National Narrative. With our focus on the texture of the text, we will witness how scribes, working across both generational and geographical gulfs, synthesized and supplemented originally unrelated materials to create a sweeping saga of one family. The editorial techniques on display in this account have shaped the entire biblical corpus, and thus one can apply what is learned here to the interpretation of other biblical writings. (Some readers may wish to skip this chapter, as it dives deep into the details of textual analysis.)

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Type
Chapter
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Why the Bible Began
An Alternative History of Scripture and its Origins
 , pp. 252 - 269
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

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References

Further Reading

Exum, J. Cheryl, Fragmented Women: Feminist (Sub)versions of Biblical Narratives, Bloomsbury, 1993.Google Scholar
Frankel, David, “Isaac Before He Was Abraham’s Son,” TheTorah.com, 2020, www.thetorah.com/article/isaac-before-he-was-abrahams-sonGoogle Scholar
Hayes, John H. and Holladay, Carl R., Biblical Exegesis: A Beginner’s Handbook, 2nd ed., Westminster John Knox, 2007.Google Scholar
Jackson, Melissa A., Comedy and Feminist Interpretation of the Hebrew Bible: A Subversive Collaboration, Oxford University Press, 2012.Google Scholar
Keshet, Shula, “Say You Are My Sister”: Danger, Seduction, and the Foreign in Biblical Literature and Beyond, Sheffield Phoenix, 2013.Google Scholar
Kratz, Reinhard G., The Composition of the Narrative Books of the Old Testament, Continuum, 2005.Google Scholar
Lemon, Joel M. and Richards, Kent Harold (eds.), Method Matters, Society of Biblical Literature, 2009.Google Scholar
Muller, Reinhard; Pakkala, Juha; and Romeny, Bas Ter Haar, Evidence of Editing: Growth and Change of Texts in the Hebrew Bible, Society of Biblical Literature, 2014.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Na’aman, Nadad, “The Isaac Story (Genesis 26) and the Land of Gerar,” Semitica 61 (2019): 59–88.Google Scholar
Niditch, Susan, Underdogs and Tricksters: A Prelude to Biblical Folklore, Harper & Row, 1987.Google Scholar
Person, Raymond F. Jr. and Rezetko, Robert, Empirical Models Challenging Biblical Criticism, SBL Press, 2016.Google Scholar
Rachmuth, Moshe S., “Observations on the Deeds of Isaac in Genesis 26,” Semitica 63 (2022): 169–181.Google Scholar
Schneider, Tammi, Mothers of Promise: Women in the Book of Genesis, Baker, 2008.Google Scholar
Shectman, Sarah, “Israel’s Matriarchs: Political Pawns or Powerbrokers?” in Brett, Mark G. and Wöhrle, Jakob (eds.), The Politics of the Ancestors, Mohr Siebeck, 2018.Google Scholar
Steck, Odil Hannes, Old Testament Exegesis: A Guide to the Methodology, Society of Biblical Literature, 1998.Google Scholar

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  • Isaac and Rebekah
  • Jacob L. Wright, Emory University, Atlanta
  • Book: Why the Bible Began
  • Online publication: 13 July 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108859240.021
Available formats
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Save book to Dropbox

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  • Isaac and Rebekah
  • Jacob L. Wright, Emory University, Atlanta
  • Book: Why the Bible Began
  • Online publication: 13 July 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108859240.021
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Isaac and Rebekah
  • Jacob L. Wright, Emory University, Atlanta
  • Book: Why the Bible Began
  • Online publication: 13 July 2023
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108859240.021
Available formats
×