Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible. 2nd ed. – Karel van der Toorn, Bob Becking, and Pieter W. van der Horst
“The Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible” is the single major work of reference on the gods, angels, demons, spirits and semi-divine heroes whose names occur in the biblical books. First published in 1995 and chosen by “Choice” as Best Reference Work of 1996, it is now republished in a new extensively revised edition. 30 entries appear for the first time in the new edition, while more than 100 others have been brought up to date with the latest state of research.
Arranged in the order of the Latin alphabet, the more than four-hundred names are those found in the books of the Hebrew and the Greek Bible, Old and New Testament, including the Apocrypha. There are entries on divine names recognized as such by the biblical authors; divine names in theophoric toponyms and anthroponyms; secular terms which occur as divine names in neighboring civilizations, conjectural divine names, at times based on textual emendation, proposed by modern scholarship; and humans who acquired a semi-divine status in tradition.
A typical entry contains a discussion of the pertinent name, its meaning, the religio-historical background, relevant biblical passages and an up-to-date bibliography. Owing to the comprehensive coverage of names and its religio-historical emphasis, the “Dictionary of Deities and Demons” provides crucial information concerning the spiritual world in which the Peoples of the Book have lived. Extensive indices and cross-references provide easy access to the rich information of the dictionary.
The “Dictionary of Deities and Demons” is the fruit of a common effort of a group of more than a hundred international scholars from a variety of traditions. Chosen for their special competence, the contributors write about those deities or demons for which their research makes them eminently qualified. Acting as advisors are Hans Dieter Betz (Chicago), Andre Caquot (Paris), Jonas C. Greenfield (Jerusalem), Erik Hornung (Basel), Michael Stone (Jerusalem), and Manfred Weipert (Heidelberg). A Brill-Eerdmans co-publication (0 8028 2491 9)
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