Publisher's Synopsis
This study uses Voegelin's "Theory of Symbolic Forms" as a framework from which to study the development of the monarchy in Israel in its move from compactness to differentiation. The study offers an explanation of the contradictions that the ambivalence of the monarchy presents. Old Testament scholars to date have not given due attention to Voegelin's theory of symbolic forms. That is unfortunate, because by going beyond the philological preoccupations of Scripture scholars, Voegelin goes right to the heart of the "meaning" of texts. Voegelin connects the Old Testament symbolism to human experience and shows that it is still relevant to the contemporary world. This study is in keeping with the recent contemporary shift from historical criticism to narrative criticism in Biblical studies and its application to the biblical domain provides a new method and approach that should be of benefit not only to philosophers and biblical exegetes, but also to theologians, historians, political scientists and scholars of ancient civilizations.
