Stories

Book of Legends/Sefer Ha-Aggadah: Legends from the Talmud and Midrash

The first complete English translation of the Hebrew classic Sefer Ha-Aggadah brings to the English-speaking world the greatest and best-loved anthology of classical Rabbinic literature ever compiled. First published in Odessa in 1908-11, it was recognized immediately as a masterwork in its own right, and reprinted numerous times in Israel.

The Hebrew poet Hayim Nahman Bialik and the renowned editor Yehoshua Hana Ravnitzky, the architects of this masterful compendium, selected hundreds of texts from the Talmud and midrashic literature and arranged them thematically, in order to provide their contemporaries with easy access to the national literary heritage of the Jewish people -- the texts of Rabbinic Judaism that remain at the heart of Jewish literacy today.

Bialik and Ravnitzky chose Aggadah -- the non-legal portions of the Talmud and Midrash -- for their anthology. Loosely translated as "legends", Aggadah includes the genres of biblical exegesis, stories about biblical characters, the lives of the Talmudic era sages and their contemporary history, parables, proverbs, and folklore. A captivating melange of wisdom and piety, fantasy and satire, Aggadah is the expressive medium of the Jewish creative genius.

The arrangement of this compendium reflects the theological concerns of the Rabbinic sages: the role of Israel and the nations; God, good and evil; human relations; the world of nature; and the art of healing. Here, the reader who wants to explore traditional Jewish views on a particular subject is treated to a selection of relevant texts at his fingertips but will soon become immersed in a way of thinking, exploring, and questioning that is the hallmark of Jewish inquiry.

"Whatever the imagination can invent is found in the Aggadah," wrote the historian Leopold Zunz, "its purpose always being to teach man the ways of God." The Book of Legends/Sefer Ha-Aggadah, now available in william Braude's superbly annotated translation, enables modern Jews to experience firsthand the richness and excitement of their cultural inheritance.

The Bible For Children

A classic treasure that vividly captures the eternal theme of God's unending love and the many people and occasions that fill the Old and New Testaments.

The Bible for Children contains more than 200 Bible stories, retold by playwright and filmmaker Murray Watts and elegantly illustrated by beloved artist, Helen Cann.

The stories comprehensively cover key themes of the Bible; they are faithful to the meaning and spirit of the original Scripture. The imaginative style reflects the variety of the biblical text—riveting stories, reporting, poetry, history, letters.

The Bible for Children is a visual delight, filled with illustrations that add meaning to the stories. The rich color, the exquisitely drawn faces and settings draw readers into the emotion and power of all that happens.

This book for 7-12 year-olds has the design and drama of a modern classic.

Author Murray Watts has written many books and plays. He has also directed and produced for the theater and for film, radio, and television.

Helen Cann is an experienced illustrator of books for children, including several that deal with ancient stories. Her art has been widely exhibited and can be found in private collections in the United States and Europe.

Introduction to the Old Testament Prophetic Books

Listen to Her Voice: Women of the Hebrew Bible

Eve, Sarah, Rachel, Delilah, Ruth their names live on, but their ancient stories have been obscured. This newly issued paperback presents a sumptuously illustrated retelling of the lives of 18 women in the Hebrew Bible. Author Miki Raver pairs each vibrant and daring tale with an eloquent meditation on their meaning for modern women. Beautiful reproductions of classic Biblical art from such masters as Rubens, Brueghel, Raphael, and Chagall illustrate these dramatic stories. This rich marriage of art, literature, and spirituality offers substantive and entertaining reading, as well as a fresh entry into traditional faith. The perfect Chanukah or Bat Mitzvah gift, Listen to Her Voice is a book to treasure and share.

The Niv Quiet Time Bible: New Testament & Psalms : New International Version (A Life Guide Bible)

Parables by the Sea

Using beautiful photographs of nature and personal reflections, the author explores the beauty of God's creation in each of us and His unique plan for us, and invites us to respond to Him. More than 220,000 copies in print.

The Bible As Literature

As in the widely popular earlier editions, the latest revision of this comprehensive and systematic text approaches the Bible from a literary/historical perspective and studies it as a body of writing produced by real people who intended to convey messages to real audiences. Avoiding assessments of the Bible's truth or authority, the authors maintain a rigorously objective tone as they discuss such major issues as the forms and strategies of biblical writing, its actual historical and physical settings, the process of canon formation, the sources of the Pentateuch, and the nature of such biblical genres as prophecy, apocalypse, and gospel. Each chapter is an independent yet related essay. The Fourth Edition has been enhanced by the addition of two new chapters: "Judaism in the Intertestamental Period" and "The Hellenistic Background of the New Testament." Also new are an appendix on Palestine in the intertestamental period, a set of review questions on the text of the book, and a glossary of biblical/literary terms. In addition, the reading lists following each chapter have been completely updated to reflect the most recent scholarship. The result is an easy-to-use, exciting presentation of the Bible that will be indispensable to students and accessible to readers of all kinds.

The Old Testament: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)

Eminent biblical scholar Michael D. Coogan offers here a wide-ranging and stimulating exploration of the Old Testament, illuminating its importance as history, literature, and sacred text.
Coogan explains the differences between the Bible of Jewish tradition (the "Hebrew Bible") and the Old Testament of Christianity, and also examines the different contents of the Bibles used by Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, and Protestants. He looks at the rise of modern biblical scholarship as well as the recovery of ancient Near Eastern literatures and their significance for biblical interpretation. Coogan explores the use of invented dialogue and historical fiction in the Old Testament, the presence of mythic elements in apparently historical accounts, and the relationship of ancient Israelite myths to those of their neighbors. The book considers the Old Testament's idea of divine justice, especially in Ecclesiastes and Job, and looks at notions of the afterlife in the ancient Near East and in ancient Israel. Coogan highlights the significance of the history and literature of the Old Testament and describes how non-biblical evidence, such as archaeological data and texts, has placed the Old Testament in a larger and more illuminating context. The book also discusses law and ritual in the Bible as well as the biblical understandings of prophecy. Here then is a marvelous overview of one of the great pillars of Western religion and culture, a book whose significance has endured for thousands of years and which remains vitally important today for Jews, Christians, and Muslims worldwide.

Robinson's Paradigms and Exercises in Syriac Grammar

T. H. Robinson published Paradigms and Exercises in Syriac Grammar in 1915 to meet the need for 'something of an elementary nature which should be of value to the student who takes up Syriac for the first time'. Since then, the book has met this need for generations of students. Still, teachers have recognized its weaknesses and this fifth edition is a thorough revision. Much of the old explanatory text and many of the exercises have been superseded. Some matters of grammar and pronunciation receive more systematic treatment and there are new appendices to introduce the estrangela and East Syriac scripts. In its format and level, however, the book aims to be, as before, an approachable introduction to this important language.

3-D Bible Stories

FOR the first time ever beloved stories from the Old and New Testaments are illustrated in fascinating and colorful 3-D stereogram art.

Retold simply and beautifully, these teachings take on renewed significance as miracles unfold before your eyes.

Contains 26 state-of-the-art images created by leading innovators in computerized 3-D artwork.

Comes complete with instructions on how to see in 3-D as well as a full set of "grey scale" solutions which reveal the hidden mysteries within each illustration.