Scripture and Cosmology: Reading the Bible Between the Ancient World and Modern Science, ISBN-13: 978-0830840786

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Scripture and Cosmology: Reading the Bible Between the Ancient World and Modern Science, ISBN-13: 978-0830840786

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• Publisher: ‎ IVP Academic (September 3, 2015)
• Language: ‎ English
• ISBN-10: ‎ 0830840788
• ISBN-13: ‎ 978-0830840786

Christians often claim to hold a biblical worldview. But what about a biblical cosmos view? From the beginning of Genesis we encounter a vaulted dome above the earth, a “firmament,” like the ceiling of a planetarium. Elsewhere we read of the earth sitting on pillars. What does the dome of heaven have to do with deep space? Even when the biblical language is clearly poetic, it seems to be funded by a very different understanding of how the cosmos is put together. As Kyle Greenwood shows, the language of the Bible is also that of the ancient Near Eastern palace, temple and hearth. There was no other way of thinking or speaking of earth and sky or the sun, moon and stars. But when the psalmist looked at the heavens, the delicate fingerwork of God, it evoked wonder. Even today it is astronomy and cosmology that invoke our awe and point toward the depths of divine mystery. Greenwood helps us see how the best Christian thinkers have viewed the cosmos in light of Scripture―and grappled with new understandings as science has advanced from Aristotle to Copernicus to Galileo and the galaxies of deep space. It’s a compelling story that both illuminates the text of Scripture and helps us find our own place in the tradition of faithful Christian thinking and interpretation.

Table of Contents:

Cover

Title Page

Dedication

Contents

Preface

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations

1 Scripture in Context

Text in Context

A New Yorker’s Geography

Worldview

Scripture and Cosmology

Part One: Scripture and Cosmos in Cultural Context

2 Ancient Near Eastern Cosmologies

What Is the Ancient Near East?

Why It Matters

Ancient Near Eastern Cosmography

Forms of Ancient Near Eastern Writings

Summary and Conclusion

3 Cosmology in Scripture

Earth

Heavens

Sea

Summary and Conclusion

4 Cosmology and Cosmogony in Scripture

Genesis 1

Genesis 2

Exodus 20:8-11

Nehemiah 9:6

Job 38:2-38

Psalm 8

Psalm 19

Psalm 74:12-17

Psalm 95:1-7

Psalm 104

Psalm 136:1-9

Proverbs 8:22-31

Isaiah 40:12

Summary and Conclusion

Part Two: Cosmology in Scripture in Historical Context

5 Scripture and Aristotelian Cosmology

Spherical Cosmology

Spheres and Scripture

Geocentrism, Anthropocentrism

Summary and Conclusion

6 Scripture and Copernican Cosmology

Cosmological Revolutionaries

Heliocentrism and Scripture

Summary and Conclusion

Part Three: Scripture and Science

7 Cosmology and the Authority of Scripture

The Context of Scripture

Divine Accommodation

Conclusion

8 The Authority of Scripture and the Issue of Science

The Authority of Scripture and Medicine

The Authority of Scripture and Astronomy

The Authority of Scripture and Human Origins

The Authority of Scripture and Science

Notes

Chapter 1: Scripture in Context

Chapter 2: Ancient Near Eastern Cosmologies

Chapter 3: Cosmology in Scripture

Chapter 4: Cosmology and Cosmogony in Scripture

Chapter 5: Scripture and Aristotelian Cosmology

Chapter 6: Scripture and Copernican Cosmology

Chapter 7: Cosmology and the Authority of Scripture

Chapter 8: The Authority of Scripture and the Issue of Science

Bibliography

Image Credits

Author and Work Index

Subject Index

Scripture Index

Praise for Scripture and Cosmology

About the Author

More Titles from InterVarsity Press

Copyright

Kyle Greenwood (PhD, Hebrew Union College) is associate professor of Old Testament and Hebrew language at Colorado Christian University. He is the author of several studies of the Old Testament in its ancient Near Eastern environment.

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