RUTH, A PROSELYTE PAR EXCELLENCE – EXEGETICAL AND STRUCTURAL OBSERVATIONS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.25159/1013-8471/3438Abstract
The little book of Ruth is not only a literary jewel in the Old Testament, but can also, as the article argues, be understood as a model for proselytism. Ruth can be seen as “a proselyte par excellenceâ€. Jewish exegesis (Targum, Midrash and Talmud) interprets the book of Ruth in this way. But it can also be shown by exegetical insights as well as structural elements
References
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Bar-Efrat, S 2006. Wie die Bibel erzählt: Alttestamentliche Texte als literarische Kunstwerke verstehen.
Gütersloh: Gütersloher Verlagshaus.
Beattie, D R G 1977. Jewish exegesis of the book of Ruth (in: Clines, D J A, Davies, P R & Gunn, D M (eds), JSOT Supplement Series, Vol. 2. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press. 1994. The Targum of Ruth: Translated, with introduction, apparatus, and notes, in McNamara 1994:19.
Brady, C M M 2013. The conversion of Ruth in Targum Ruth, The Review of Rabbinic Judaism 16:133–146.
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Rosenzweig, F. 1936. Die Schrift und ihre Verdeutschung, in Buber 1964:1131–1149.
Buber, M (ed.) 1964. Werke: vol. 2: Schriften zur Bibel. München: Köselverlag.
Gesenius, W, Kautzsch, E & Bergsträsser, G.1985. Hebräische Grammatik. 5th ed. Hildesheim: Georg Olms.
Glover, N 2009. Your people, my people: an exploration of ethnicity in Ruth, JSOT 33/33:293–313.
Goldschmidt, L 1931. Der Babylonische Talmud: neu übertragen durch Lazarus Goldschmidt. 12 volumes. Berlin: Jüdischer Verlag. (Der Babylonische Talmud, vol. 4).
Gow, M D 1992. The book of Ruth: its structure, theme and purpose. Leicester: Apollos.
Guggenheimer, H W (ed.) 2004. The Jerusalem Talmud: Third Order: Našim, Tractate Yebamot. Edition, translation, and commentary. Berlin, New York: Walter de Gruyter. (Studia Judaica: Forschungen zur Wissenschaft des Judentums, vol. 24).
Hamlin, E J 1996. Ruth: surely there is a future. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans.
Hubbard, R L 1988. The book of Ruth. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans. (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament). 1991. The Go’el in ancient Israel: theological reflections on an Israelite institution, Bulletin for Biblical Research 1:3–19. 1996. ×’×ל , in VanGemeeren, vol. 1, 1996:789–794.
Köhler, L, Baumgartner, W & Stamm, JJ. 2004. Hebräisches und aramäisches Lexikon zum Alten Testament. 3rd ed. Leiden: Brill.
Linafelt, T 2010. Narrative and poetic art in the book of Ruth. Interpretation – A Journal of Bible and Theology 64/2:117–129.
McNamara, M (ed.) 1994. The Aramaic Bible: The Targums. Minnesota: Liturgical Press.
Mihăilă, A 2011. The conversion of the foreigners between Ruth and Ezra-Nehemiah, PlÄ“rÅma 13/2:23–54.
Neusner, J 1987. Yebamot (in: Neusner, J (ed.), The Talmud of the land of Israel: A preliminary translation and explanation, vol. 21). London: The University of Chicago Press.
Nielsen, K 1997. Ruth: A commentary. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press.
Porten, B 1978. The scroll of Ruth: a rhetorical study, Gratz College Annual of Jewish Studies 7:23–49.
Rabinowitz, L 1983. Midrash Rabbah: Ruth: translated into English with notes, glossary and indices under the editorship of Rabbi Dr H Freedman, BA, PhD and Maurice Simon, MA. London: The Soncino Press.
Rogers, C L & Cornelius, I 1996. טקל , in VanGemeeren, vol. 2, 1996:817–818.
Sasson, J M 1995. Ruth: a new translation with a philological commentary and a formalist-folklorist interpretation. 2nd ed. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press Ltd.
Schneider, W 1989. Grammatik des biblischen Hebräisch: Ein Lehrbuch. 7th ed. München: Claudius.
Thompson, J A & Martens, Elmer A 1996. ש×וּב , in VanGemeeren, vol. 4, 1996:55–59.
VanGemeeren, W A (ed.) 1996. New international dictionary of Old Testament theology & exegesis, 5 volumes. Carlisle, Cumbria: Paternoster Publishing.
Wakely, R 1996. חַיִל , in VanGemeeren, vol. 2, 1996:116–126.
Williams, W C 1996. ש×כב , in VanGemeeren, vol. 4, 1996:101–102.
Wünch, H-G 1998. Buch Rut. Neuhausen-Stuttgart: Hänssler. (Edition C Bibelkommentar, Altes Testament, vol. 10). 2014. The stranger in God’s land – foreigner, stranger, guest: what can we learn from Israel’s attitude towards strangers? Old Testament Essays 27/3:1129–1154.
Zaluska, A 2013. Female proselytes in the light of the book of Ruth and its targumic interpretation, Judaica Olomucensia 1:171–189.
Zehnder, M 2005. Umgang mit Fremden in Israel und Assyrien: Ein Beitrag zur Anthropologie des "Fremden" im Licht antiker Quellen. Univ., Habil.-Schr.--Basel, 2003. Stuttgart: Kohlhammer. (Beiträge zur Wissenschaft vom Alten und Neuen Testament, vol. 168).
Zenger, E 1992. Das Buch Ruth: Zürcher Bibelkommentare. 2nd ed. Zürich: Theologischer Verlag.
Bar-Efrat, S 2006. Wie die Bibel erzählt: Alttestamentliche Texte als literarische Kunstwerke verstehen.
Gütersloh: Gütersloher Verlagshaus.
Beattie, D R G 1977. Jewish exegesis of the book of Ruth (in: Clines, D J A, Davies, P R & Gunn, D M (eds), JSOT Supplement Series, Vol. 2. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press. 1994. The Targum of Ruth: Translated, with introduction, apparatus, and notes, in McNamara 1994:19.
Brady, C M M 2013. The conversion of Ruth in Targum Ruth, The Review of Rabbinic Judaism 16:133–146.
Buber, M 1964. Leitwortstil in der Erzählung des Pentateuch: Aus einem Vortrag: first published in Buber, M &
Rosenzweig, F. 1936. Die Schrift und ihre Verdeutschung, in Buber 1964:1131–1149.
Buber, M (ed.) 1964. Werke: vol. 2: Schriften zur Bibel. München: Köselverlag.
Gesenius, W, Kautzsch, E & Bergsträsser, G.1985. Hebräische Grammatik. 5th ed. Hildesheim: Georg Olms.
Glover, N 2009. Your people, my people: an exploration of ethnicity in Ruth, JSOT 33/33:293–313.
Goldschmidt, L 1931. Der Babylonische Talmud: neu übertragen durch Lazarus Goldschmidt. 12 volumes. Berlin: Jüdischer Verlag. (Der Babylonische Talmud, vol. 4).
Gow, M D 1992. The book of Ruth: its structure, theme and purpose. Leicester: Apollos.
Guggenheimer, H W (ed.) 2004. The Jerusalem Talmud: Third Order: Našim, Tractate Yebamot. Edition, translation, and commentary. Berlin, New York: Walter de Gruyter. (Studia Judaica: Forschungen zur Wissenschaft des Judentums, vol. 24).
Hamlin, E J 1996. Ruth: surely there is a future. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans.
Hubbard, R L 1988. The book of Ruth. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans. (The New International Commentary on the Old Testament). 1991. The Go’el in ancient Israel: theological reflections on an Israelite institution, Bulletin for Biblical Research 1:3–19. 1996. ×’×ל , in VanGemeeren, vol. 1, 1996:789–794.
Köhler, L, Baumgartner, W & Stamm, JJ. 2004. Hebräisches und aramäisches Lexikon zum Alten Testament. 3rd ed. Leiden: Brill.
Linafelt, T 2010. Narrative and poetic art in the book of Ruth. Interpretation – A Journal of Bible and Theology 64/2:117–129.
McNamara, M (ed.) 1994. The Aramaic Bible: The Targums. Minnesota: Liturgical Press.
Mihăilă, A 2011. The conversion of the foreigners between Ruth and Ezra-Nehemiah, PlÄ“rÅma 13/2:23–54.
Neusner, J 1987. Yebamot (in: Neusner, J (ed.), The Talmud of the land of Israel: A preliminary translation and explanation, vol. 21). London: The University of Chicago Press.
Nielsen, K 1997. Ruth: A commentary. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press.
Porten, B 1978. The scroll of Ruth: a rhetorical study, Gratz College Annual of Jewish Studies 7:23–49.
Rabinowitz, L 1983. Midrash Rabbah: Ruth: translated into English with notes, glossary and indices under the editorship of Rabbi Dr H Freedman, BA, PhD and Maurice Simon, MA. London: The Soncino Press.
Rogers, C L & Cornelius, I 1996. טקל , in VanGemeeren, vol. 2, 1996:817–818.
Sasson, J M 1995. Ruth: a new translation with a philological commentary and a formalist-folklorist interpretation. 2nd ed. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press Ltd.
Schneider, W 1989. Grammatik des biblischen Hebräisch: Ein Lehrbuch. 7th ed. München: Claudius.
Thompson, J A & Martens, Elmer A 1996. ש×וּב , in VanGemeeren, vol. 4, 1996:55–59.
VanGemeeren, W A (ed.) 1996. New international dictionary of Old Testament theology & exegesis, 5 volumes. Carlisle, Cumbria: Paternoster Publishing.
Wakely, R 1996. חַיִל , in VanGemeeren, vol. 2, 1996:116–126.
Williams, W C 1996. ש×כב , in VanGemeeren, vol. 4, 1996:101–102.
Wünch, H-G 1998. Buch Rut. Neuhausen-Stuttgart: Hänssler. (Edition C Bibelkommentar, Altes Testament, vol. 10). 2014. The stranger in God’s land – foreigner, stranger, guest: what can we learn from Israel’s attitude towards strangers? Old Testament Essays 27/3:1129–1154.
Zaluska, A 2013. Female proselytes in the light of the book of Ruth and its targumic interpretation, Judaica Olomucensia 1:171–189.
Zehnder, M 2005. Umgang mit Fremden in Israel und Assyrien: Ein Beitrag zur Anthropologie des "Fremden" im Licht antiker Quellen. Univ., Habil.-Schr.--Basel, 2003. Stuttgart: Kohlhammer. (Beiträge zur Wissenschaft vom Alten und Neuen Testament, vol. 168).
Zenger, E 1992. Das Buch Ruth: Zürcher Bibelkommentare. 2nd ed. Zürich: Theologischer Verlag.
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Published
2017-11-15
How to Cite
Wünch, Hans-Georg. 2017. “RUTH, A PROSELYTE PAR EXCELLENCE – EXEGETICAL AND STRUCTURAL OBSERVATIONS”. Journal for Semitics 24 (1):36-64. https://doi.org/10.25159/1013-8471/3438.
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