Yale University Library Research Guides: Hebrew Bible Interpretation I &amp; II: Race &amp; Ethnicity

Race & Ethnicity in HB

The Africana Bible by Valerie Bridgeman; Hugh Page Gathers multicultural and interdisciplinary perspectives on every book in the Hebrew Bible. Highlights issues of concern to the global Black community (such as globalization and the colonial legacy) and the distinctive norms of interpretation in African and African Diasporan settings.
Ethnicity, Race, Religion: Identities and Ideologies in Early Jewish and Christian Texts, and In Modern Biblical Interpretation by Katherine M. Hockey (Editor, Editor); David G. Horrell (Editor, Editor) Focuses on historical facets of ethnicity and race in antiquity, the identities of Jews and Christians, and the critique of scholarly ideologies and racial assumptions which have shaped this branch of study.
Ethnicity and Identity in Ancient Israel (Online) by Kenton L. Sparks Provides a summary of current studies in ethnicity and ethnic identity, then moves to a discussion of Israel's ancient Near Eastern context and expressions of ethnic identity in the written remains from surrounding nations.

Case Studies in Hebrew Bible

Cognitive Perspectives on Israelite Identity by Dermot Anthony Nestor; Andrew Mein (Series edited by); Claudia V. Camp (Series edited by) Discusses formation of Israelite identity using contemporary concepts of race and ethnicity. Looks particularly at Deuteronomy.
Cushites in the Hebrew Bible: Negotiating Ethnic Identity in the Past and Present by Kevin Burrell Offers a reassessment of Cushite ethnographic representations in the biblical literature as a counterpoint to misconceptions about Africa and people of African descent which are largely a feature of the modern age.
The Making of Israel: Cultural Diversity in the Southern Levant and the Formation of Ethnic Identity in Deuteronomy by C. L. Crouch Presents the southern Levant during the seventh century BCE as a major period for the formation of Israelite ethnic identity, challenging scholarship which dates biblical texts with identity concerns to the exilic and post-exilic periods as well as scholarship which limits pre-exilic identity concerns to Josianic nationalism.
Reimagining Hagar: Blackness and the Bible by Nyasha Junior Offers a reception history that examines interpretations of Hagar with a focus on interpretations of Hagar as a Black woman.
Womanist Interpretations of the Bible by Gay L. Byron (Editor); Vanessa Lovelace (Editor) Brings together cross-generational and cross-cultural readings of the Bible, including essays on Numbers 30, Delilah, Jezebel, and other figures from the Hebrew Bible in relation to womanist interpretation.