The Oracles of Jacob and Balaam by Eric Burrows
$150.00
The Oracles of Jacob and Balaam by Eric Burrows, published in 1938 as part of the Bellarmine Series. A scholarly study of two of the most ancient and enigmatic poetic compositions preserved in the Hebrew Bible: Jacob’s final blessings upon the twelve tribes in Genesis 49 and the oracles of the seer Balaam in Numbers 22–24. Burrows examines these texts as early witnesses to the religious and political development of ancient Israel, considering their poetic structure, tribal traditions, prophetic character, and historical setting within the wider world of the ancient Near East. Particular attention is given to the celebrated Star Oracle—”There shall come a star out of Jacob, and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel”—and to the complex figure of Balaam, the foreign diviner whose blessings and prophecies occupy a unique position within biblical literature. Drawing upon philological and comparative Semitic scholarship, the work seeks to illuminate the antiquity, meaning, and enduring significance of these foundational prophetic texts. Exceedingly scarce in the original dust jacket. Hardcover. With original jacket showing light shelfwear to corners and ends. Occasional light foxing.
