When Othmar Keel's book first appeared in Germany in 1972, it was a pioneering study, the first to compare systematically the conceptual world of a biblical book with that of ancient Near Eastern iconography. First translated into English in 1978, the book has proven its lasting value for exegesis of the Psalms, the comparative study of the Bible and its world, and the study of ancient Near Eastern art and iconography.

Based on the author's thesis (Ph.D.)--Hebrew Union College, 2006 under the title, The ceremonial and symbolic significance of donkeys in the Biblical world.

Many people with illnesses seek healing in religions and practices that are only weakly inculturated among us. Our understanding and use of such foreign wisdom is often just as superficial; but it is easily understood against the background of a centuries-long Christian tradition of interpreting the Bible in a way hostile to the body, particularly the female body. In Body Symbolism in the Bible, Schroer and Staubli offer a better understanding of this subject by exploring the symbolism of various body parts in the Bible. They reinterpret and thereby reclaim the notion of the body as a temple of God so that regard for the body can lead to respect for the human rights of women and men. Exploring the topic through the lenses of theological anthropology and biblical spirituality, their presentation will surely add clarity to our understanding and generate future discussion. Richly illustrated in full color.

"[The Book of] Revelation has served as a "language arsenal" in a great many of the social, cultural, and political conflicts in Western history. Again and again, Revelation has stirred some dangerous men and women to act out their own private apocalypses. Above all, the moral calculus of Revelation—the demonization of one's enemies, the sanctification of revenge taking, and the notion that history must end in catastrophe—can be detected in some of the worst atrocities and excesses of every age, including our own. For all of these reasons, the rest of us ignore the book of Revelation only at our impoverishment and, more to the point, at our own peril." The mysterious author of the Book of Revelation (or the Apocalypse, as the last book of the New Testament is also known) never considered that his sermon on the impending end times would last beyond his own life. In fact, he predicted that the destruction of the earth would be witnessed by his contemporaries. Yet Revelation not only outlived its creat∨ this vivid and violent revenge fantasy has played a significant role in the march of Western civilization. Ever since Revelation was first preached as the revealed word of Jesus Christ, it has haunted and inspired hearers and readers alike. The mark of the beast, the Antichrist, 666, the Whore of Babylon, Armageddon, and the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are just a few of the images, phrases, and codes that have burned their way into the fabric of our culture. The questions raised go straight to the heart of the human fear of death and obsession with the afterlife. Will we, individually or collectively, ride off to glory, or will we drown in hellfire for all eternity? As those who best manipulate this dark vision learned, which side we fall on is often a matter of life or death. Honed into a weapon in the ongoing culture wars between states, religions, and citizenry, Revelation has significantly altered the course of history. Kirsch, whom the Washington Post calls "a fine storyteller with a flair for rendering ancient tales relevant and appealing to modern audiences," delivers a far-ranging, entertaining, and shocking history of this scandalous book, which was nearly cut from the New Testament. From the fall of the Roman Empire to the Black Death, the Inquisition to the Protestant Reformation, the New World to the rise of the Religious Right, this chronicle of the use and abuse of the Book of Revelation tells the tale of the unfolding of history and the hopes, fears, dreams, and nightmares of all humanity.

The final book of the Bible, Revelation prophesies the ultimate judgement of mankind in a series of allegorical visions, grisly images and numerological predictions. According to these, empires will fall, the "Beast" will be destroyed and Christ will rule a new Jerusalem. With an introduction by Will Self.

Under the guidance of one of the world's leading New Testament scholars, you and your small group will here discover that the bizarre images of Revelation conceal one of Scripture's clearest and most dramatic visions of God's plan for creation.

Symbolic interactionism is a social-scientific perspective that seeks to describe how human beings create meaning with one another in their daily lives. Since the world is populated by symbols that characterize all interactions among living beings, this book explores the importance of symbols and symbolic interaction while moving beyond the social sciences to theological studies. By examining the way symbolic interaction is portrayed among characters in the Gospel according to John in the "water narratives," this book argues that the Bible is a symbol that is itself full of symbols whose meanings are worthy of our study. Hence, the interaction of characters in the Gospel of John and the whole Bible, along with the symbols they use in their interactions, demonstrates that symbolism is directly linked to human life because symbols are major means of communication, and without symbols, human beings are in chaos.