OT042-812 - Interpreting Samuel for Today

  • 3,162 Standard Tuition Fee
  • 12
    Credit Points
  • 0.125 EFT 
  • 8
    AQF level
  • Category advanced unit
    C
  • Old Testament Unit Discipline

Prerequisites

24cps OT

Set Text

This unit counts towards the "set text" unit requirements of courses.

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, students will

A. Know and understand

1. Demonstrate Advanced knowledge and understanding of, and the research underlying, the interpretation and application of the Books of Samuel

B. Be able to

1. Examine recent scholarship in its bearing on the interpretation and application of the Books of Samuel

2. Demonstrate skill in utilising diverse scholarship in the interpretation and application of the Books of Samuel

3. Present Research-Aware evidence-based perspectives on the interpretation and application of the Books of Samuel

C. Be in a position to

1. Applying Advanced perspectives and skills from ‘Interpreting and Applying Samuel’ to ministry practice and Christian living as a reflective practitioner

Content

  1. Detailed exegesis of representative chapters in English in 1, 2 Samuel (e.g. 1 Samuel 1-12; 2 Samuel 5-15) with a focus on advanced exegetical skills
  2. The setting of the Books of Samuel in the Former Prophets as a canonical grouping and its significance for interpretation;
  3. Literary appreciation of the Books of Samuel, including plot, character analysis and paratextual features;
  4. Critical evaluation of recent critical approaches to the Books of Samuel;
  5. Key themes and features of 1, 2 Samuel, such as the ark narrative, the rise of kingship, the interaction of prophets and kings, the Davidic Covenant, and the so-called Succession Narrative;
  6. The meaning and message of the Books of Samuel for today.

Further Information

Prior to 2020, this unit content was delivered under the unit code OT703-4.

Set Readings

This unit's indicative bibliography is currently being revised. Students should contact their home college for further details at the time of taking this unit.


J. Gordon McConville, Grace in the End: A Study in Deuteronomic Theology (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1993);

Stephen B. Chapman, 1 Samuel as Christian Scripture: A Theological Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2016);

Robert P. Gordon, 1 & 2 Samuel: A Commentary (London: Paternoster, 1986);

Walter Dietrich (ed.), The Books of Samuel: Stories - History - Reception History (BETL 284: Leuven: Peeters, 2016);

D. T. Tsumura, The First Book of Samuel (NICOT; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007);

Victor P. Hamilton, Handbook on the Historical Books (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2001);

Mark Leuchter, Samuel and the Shaping of Tradition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2013);

Patricia Dutcher-Walls, Reading the Historical Books: A Student’s Guide to Engaging the Biblical Text (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2014);

David G Firth, 1 & 2 Samuel (AOTC; Nottingham: Apollos, 2009);

David G. Firth, 1 and 2 Samuel: A Kingdom Comes (Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix, 2013);

John Woodhouse: 1 Samuel: Looking for a Leader (Wheaton: Crossway, 2008);

John Woodhouse: 2 Samuel: Your Kingdom Come (Wheaton: Crossway, 2015);

Robert Alter, The David Story: A Translation with Commentary of 1 and 2 Samuel (New York: Norton, 1999);

Graeme Auld, Samuel at the Threshold: Selected Works of Graeme Auld (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2003.).