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Jon Douglas Levenson

Esther (1997) (Old Testament Library) Hardcover – January 1, 1997

by Jon D. Levenson (Author)

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The book of Esther has been preserved in ancient texts that diverge greatly from each other. As a result, Jews and Protestants usually read a version which is shorter than that of most Catholic or Orthodox Bibles. In this volume, now available in a new casebound edition, Levenson capably guides readers through both versions, demonstrating their coherence and their differences.

The Old Testament Library provides fresh and authoritative treatments of important aspects of Old Testament study through commentaries and general surveys. The contributors are scholars of international standing.

Print length

162 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Westminster John Knox Press
Publication date

January 1, 1997
Dimensions

6 x 0.5 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

0664220932
ISBN-13

978-0664220938
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Among the books of the Old Testament, the book of Esther presents significant interpretive problems. The book has been preserved in Greek and Hebrew texts that diverge greatly from each other. As a result, Jews and Protestants usually read a version of the book of Esther that is several chapters shorter than the one in most Catholic and Orthodox Bibles. Jon D. Levenson capably guides the reader through both the longer Greek version and the shorter Hebrew one, demonstrating their coherence and their differences.This commentary listens to the voices of modern scholarship as well as rabbinic interpretation, providing a wealth of interpretive results.

About the Author

Jon D. Levenson is Albert A. List Professor of Jewish Studies, Harvard Divinity School.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Westminster John Knox Press; 1st edition (January 1, 1997)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 162 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0664220932
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0664220938
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.5 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.5 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #572,173 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,189 in Old Testament Commentaries

Customer Reviews:
13 ratings

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4.8 out of 5

13 global ratings

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A. R. Karalitzky

Heroes & Villains

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 2, 2013

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If I were teaching a course on the Bible's Megillat Esther, this would be my textbook. Prof Levenson writes clearly and concisely but the text always pushes you to anticipate, to put together what you know about the Esther saga and what you realize are the questions that the scroll's author always dangles in your face. Levenson relies on earlier sources but is always original in suggested interpretation. The key to a good production is, of course, its heuristic quality -- Levenson always keeps setting up the parameters for the next question. An excellent read.

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Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on May 7, 2015

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great resource

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Jimmy R. Reagan

Probably the Best Critical Commentary!

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 7, 2017

Jon Levenson has written in the Old Testament Library (OTL) series one of the very best commentaries available from the critical camp on the exciting Book of Esther. As a conservative reviewer, any critical commentary on Esther grates on my nerves more than usual because of critical scholar’s disdain for Esther’s history, but if you are like me and want at least one of the better critical commentaries in your library on every book of the Bible, you should probably consider this one.

There’s no doubt that Mr. Levenson writes with skill. When he says in the first paragraph, “it is also a tale of the ascent of an orphan in exile to the rank of the most powerful woman – and perhaps even the most powerful person – in the Empire and, arguably, the world”, his writing prowess becomes clear.

He begins his discussion in the Introduction on the plot of the Book of Esther. I thought his comment that there’s more narration than quoted speech as compared to similar biblical stories as perceptive. He gives a great overview of the plot. Next, he tackles structure and style and after surveying various scholarly opinions, he gives an outstanding visual representation of his thought of the structure of the Book of Esther. I can’t follow him in all his thoughts about the messages of the book of Esther, but he does give much food for thought. I totally disagree with his discussion of historicity. He gives a fine summary of the textual history of the book of Esther, though he could be disagreed with at points.

Though it has some of the same critical conclusions as the Introduction, the commentary proper is illuminating and thought-provoking. Let’s just say that he provides what I’m looking for in this type of commentary. You might want to check it out.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.

4 people found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

The Bible As Literature

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on September 9, 2001

Levenson's book consists of two parts -- an introductory essay of 35 pages, followed by a line-by-line commentary on the text of Esther. The introductory essay provides a good overview of the book of Esther -- a summary of the plot, an analysis of the book's structure and themes, and a discussion of the historicity and origins of the various versions of text itself. Esther is famous as the only book in the Bible that does not mention God (at least in the canonical Hebrew version); I found Levenson's discussion of the politics and theology of this "godless" Esther particularly interesting. He does a very good job (in both the introduction and the line-by-line commentary) of alerting the reader to differences between the Masoretic and Septuagint versions of the text.
The line-by-line commentary was disappointing. It did not add much to the introduction (although it did elucidate some of the themes in more detail). Levenson has studied the recent scholarly commentary on Esther, and a great deal of his commentary seemed to be citations of (or, in some cases, reaction to) other people's thoughts. Most of the discussion focuses on Esther as a literary work. I would have liked to have learned more about how the book was treated by the rabbis and by early Christian commentators. Overall, however, Levenson has provided a decent introduction to the book of Esther and the major concerns of modern literary scholarship concerning it.

10 people found this helpful

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