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Women's Rights
in
Old Testament Times

by
James R. Baker

Signature Books; Salt Lake City
© 1992 by Signature Books.

Table of Contents:
front cover
"Women's Rights in Old Testament Times performs two tasks for modern students of the Bible: it unlocks the complex web of ancient laws that governed just about every aspect of a woman's life, and it reveals the powerful and inspiring actions of women in the biblical texts. Where most commentators treat women mostly as the victims of ancient laws, James Baker shows how they turned restrictions into opportunities. This book throws helpful light on many difficult Old Testament passages and at the same time shows that for the biblical authors women played a much more important role than is usually recognized." —Lawrence Boadt, C.S.P., Professor of Old Testament, Washington Theological Union

"James Baker's impressive work, Women's Rights in Old Testament Times, carries forward a method of finding law, not clearly flagged as such, in the narrative accounts of daily events in the lives of leading Old Testament men and women. Baker shows that their dealings with
one another were played out according to the settled expectations of the prevailing legal customs and norms in force generally among people of the fertile crescent. The narrative accounts of these events, as Baker demonstrates, portray much more than matters containing only religious significance. Throughout in this informative and fascinating work, the stories of the great women of the Old Testament come alive in a way they never have before." —Douglas H. Parker, Professor of Law Emeritus, J. Reuben Clark Law School, Brigham Young University

About the author

James Baker is a Salt Lake City attorney and freelance writer who has studied at Brigham Young University, York University, and Hebrew University


Title page

Women's Rights in Old Testament Times

James R. Baker

Signature Books
Salt Lake City
1992


Dedication

To my father, Al Baker,
who, apart from my wife,
is my best friend
and has been an inspiration to me
all my life.


Copyright page

cover design: Julie Easton

© 1992 by Signature Books, Inc. All rights reserved.
Signature Books is a registered trademark of Signature Books., Inc.
Composed and printed in the United States of America

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Baker, James R.
Women's rights in Old Testament times / James R. Baker
p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Women in the Bible. 2. Bible. O.T.—Criticism, interpretation, etc.
3. Jewish law—Sources. 4. Women—Legal status, laws, etc. (Jewish law) I. Title.

ISBN 1-56085-029-9
BS575.B28 1992
221.9'5'082—dc
92-4953 CIP


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