Bible
Hesed , the Seed of the Biblical Story New Life for Old Testament Theology Jennifer M. Matheny
The Hebrew word ḥ esed is often translated as the love, faithfulness, loyalty, or steadfastness of God, but it means so much more. Could ḥ esed be the seed from which the diverse biblical story grows and expands? Traditionally, Old Testament theology has focused on key themes or a “center” around which to organize the Old Testament. These approaches may help unify the Old Testament, but they also ignore important material and simplify the Old Testament’s complexity and diversity. As an alternative to a gravitational center that reduces, Jennifer Matheny’s argument emphasizes possibilities as she posits that ḥ esed is the relational seed from which the complex and diverse biblical story grows. In her accessibly written analysis, Matheny engages theologically with the Torah, Prophets, and Writings to trace ḥ esed ’s relational impact through the Old Testament. Through stories, poems, and songs of broken covenants, war, and exile, Matheny also shows how violence and injustice reign when humanity fails to be keepers and doers of Yhwh’s ḥ esed , while justice and hope prevail when humanity chooses courageous acts of ḥ esed . This fresh, introductory-level approach emphasizes the importance of story, complexity, and diversity—and how we do ḥ esed to others and back to Yhwh.
MAY 2026 • 208 pp. • $26.99p • 9781540966681
Jennifer M. Matheny (PhD, University of Kent) is associate profes - sor of Christian Scriptures at George W. Truett Seminary, Baylor University, and serves as cochair of the biblical studies unit for the Wesleyan Theological Society. Matheny is the author of Illustrated Joshua in Hebrew in the GlossaHouse Illustrated Biblical Texts se - ries, Judges 19–21 and Ruth: Canon as a Voice of Answerability , and Clothing, Dress, and Nudity in the Five Scrolls (forthcoming).
“This book is a testament to God’s ever-reverberating love, which offers a new lens on the Old Testament as a whole. It should be required reading for every Old Testament theology course!” —Beth Stovell, Ambrose University
CONTENTS 1. Why Another Old Testament Biblical Theology? 2. Ḥ esed in the Old Testament 3. Ḥ esed in the Torah
4. Ḥ esed in the Prophets 5. Ḥ esed in the Writings 6. Ḥ esed in the Psalms Conclusion Indexes
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