STAR - Studies in Theology and Religion, 2 The fruits of discussion at an international gathering of biblical and other scholars interested in families in the ancient Near East are offered here. This is not a collection of proceedings in the usual sense; rather the essays mark a conscious joint effort to advance the discussion in the newly opened debate on families in the biblical worlds . Topics discussed include the metaphor of marriage in Early Judaism, the brother-sister relationship in Ancient Israel, Hebrew family names, domesticity in Judaism, kinship in the Pauline churches, and women in John’s Gospel. The contributors include, among others, A. van der Kooij, R. Hachlili, G. Mussies, M. Peskowitz, P. Esler, S. van Tilborg, and R. Bieringer.