Ferdinand Deist 
Material Culture of the Bible 
An Introduction

Scholarly discussions of biblical interpretation often ignore the fact that language and literature form an integral part of a people”s culture, that interpretation therefore implies the total cultural system of the relevant literature, and that biblical interpretation consequently implies inter-cultural communication. This book explores the theoretical and practical implications of this observation from a cultural anthropological perspective, looks at recent anthropological studies of ancient Israelite society, supplies practical examples of a cultural interpretation of ancient Hebrew narratives, and discusses the impact of the notions ”cultural relativity” and ”inter-cultural communication” for biblical interpretation.