The Jewish Bible and the Christian Bible: An Introduction to the History of the Bible

This is a wide-ranging handbook presenting an overview of current knowledge on the history of the Bible. Divided into three parts, it shows how the collections of canonical and apocryphal books were formed, explains the transmission and translation of the Biblical texts, and describes biblical interpretation in Judaism and Christianity. Incorporating the large amount of information that has become available since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the author sets out to bridge the gaps between widely different areas and trends in the field of Biblical Studies: canonical and apocryphal literature, written and oral traditions, rabbinic and Christian exegesis and modern critical exegesis, and literal and allegorical interpretation, among others. Also, Trebolle Barrera looks at the Wirkungsgeschichte of the Bible in relation to the Greek and Roman world, the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. The book includes detailed discussion on many topics currently under debate, from the significance of the Qumran to the influence of the Semitic and Greek world on Christianity.