The Making of the Bible

From the First Fragments to Sacred Scripture

Konrad Schmid • Jens Schröter

translated by Peter Lewis

“A landmark . . . If you have time to read only one book on the Bible this year, make sure that it is this one.”

—Katherine J. Dell, Church Times

“Excellent . . . With a sure touch, the authors lead the reader through the geopolitical context of the Hebrew Bible and the setting and background of the New Testament, finding something to say about practically every book’s origins and development.”

—John Barton, The Tablet

“A remarkable deep dive into foundational books whose origins are often taken for granted.”

Publishers Weekly

In this revelatory account of the making of the foundational text of western civilization, a world-renowned scholar of the Hebrew scriptures joins a noted authority on the New Testament to reconstruct Jewish and Christian scriptural histories and reveal the underappreciated contest between them.

The New Testament, they show, did not develop in the wake of an Old Testament set in stone. The two evolved in parallel, often in conversation with each other, ensuring a continuing mutual influence of Jewish and Christian traditions. A remarkable synthesis of the latest Old and New Testament scholarship, The Making of the Bible is the most comprehensive history yet of the long, transformative journeys of these texts on route to inclusion in the holy books, revealing their buried lessons and secrets.

Konrad Schmid is Professor of Hebrew Bible and Ancient Judaism at the University of Zurich and President of the International Organization for the Study of the Old Testament. He is the author, most recently, of A Historical Theology of the Hebrew Bible

Jens Schröter is Professor of New Testament and Ancient Christian Apocrypha at Humboldt University in Berlin and the author of Jesus of Nazareth: Jew from Galilee, Savior of the World. paperbacks   39

August · paper · 304 pages 5 1/2 x 8 1/4 · $18.95

Education

9780674293847

Belknap Press

What the Best College Students Do

Ken Bain

“

The ‘best’ students are curious risk-takers who make connections across disciplines. By following those instincts—rather than simply chasing ‘success’—the best students achieved it . . . A wonderful exploration of excellence.”

Fortune

“Skillfully weaves together some of the best research about effective learning strategies with moving stories about remarkable life-long learners. Some of them had great teachers. But most of them succeed because of what they did for themselves.”

—Thomas Luxon, Dartmouth College

“

We are always telling students to ‘find their passion.’ Now we have a book that looks at how that happens . . . Ken Bain can really tell a story . . . it is very rare for a book based upon research to be such a compelling read.”

—José Antonio Bowen, Southern Methodist University cloth · August 2012 · 9780674066649

Also AvA il A ble What the Best College Teachers Do 9780674013254

Combining academic research on learning and motivation with insights drawn from interviews with people who have won Nobel Prizes, Emmys, or otherwise led lives of meaning and accomplishment, Ken Bain identifies the key attitudes that distinguish the best college students from their peers. Most start out with a belief that intelligence and ability are expandable, not fixed. This leads them to make connections across disciplines and to find ways of reconceiving problems rather than simply looking for the right answer. Intrinsically motivated by their own sense of purpose, they are not overly impressed with conventional notions of success. The best students study in small bites, focus more on concept than procedure, and work collaboratively, getting friends to test them on their knowledge. They don’t achieve success by making success their goal—when it comes, it is a byproduct of following their intellectual curiosity, solving useful problems, and taking risks to learn and grow.

Ken Bain is President of the Best Teachers Institute and the author of What the Best College Teachers Do, winner of the Stone Prize, and Super Courses. An award-winning professor of history, he founded teaching centers at four major universities and served as provost and in other administrative positions. A frequent keynote speaker, he has worked with schools, colleges, and universities, and has consulted with governments around the world.