Brueggemann on a girl as Israel's exemplar; joy in Job; and momentum in studies
Welcome to my newsletter, ‘Bible, Mission, and More’, where I share what’s on my mind as I teach, research, and write on the Bible and mission, children-at-risk in the Bible and contemporary society, Psalms and Wisdom Literature, and a range of other topics. I teach at All Nations Christian College in the UK, though views are my own. You may also like to check out my Bible and Mission website.
Each Tuesday I’ll share something I’ve read, something I’ve written or recorded, something on learning and teaching, and a quote to reflect on.
Something read – Brueggemann on a girl as exemplar to Israel
The story of the unnamed Israelite slave girl in 2 Kings 5 is a passage I keep coming back to. Despite the brevity of her story she is probably my favourite character in the Old Testament. Here is an account of an Israelite girl taken from her home in a Syrian military raid, and enslaved in the Syrian general’s household. Yet despite these terrible circumstances she is instrumental in a remarkable turn of events, including the healing and conversion of that same general.
As I continue to work on biblical texts featuring children in situations of risk I’ve been wondering whether there might be more to this story and how it relates to other parts of the Old Testament. Particularly, how might her story of displacement compare and contrast with Israel in Exile?
The other day I came across a 2001 article by Walter Brueggemann that moves in that direction. In ‘A Brief Moment for a One-Person Remnant (2 Kings 5:2-3), Brueggemann suggests that the placement of the story in the wider narrative may have served to instruct Israelites in or after the Exile to keep remembering their Yahweh faith while also adjusting to their new location. He sees it as holding together the tenacity of faith and identity (exemplified in Ps. 137) with the generosity envisaged in Jeremiah’s letter to the Exiles in Jer. 29.
As such, in this remarkable little girl Israel has a model of what faith in displacement might look like.
I thought Brueggemann’s article was excellent but leaves room for further development. For example, could we contrast this girl’s approach with Israel’s, as portrayed in Isa. 40-48 more concretely?
Much to work on here!
The slave girl has featured in various examples of my speaking and writing. The following posts will point you to these:
Unfortunately Brueggemann’s article is behind a paywall on Sage but here is the citation if you can get access to it:
Brueggemann, Walter (2001). ‘A Brief Moment for a One-Person Remnant (2 Kings 5:2-3).’ Biblical Theology Bulletin, 31(2), 53-59. https://doi.org/10.1177/014610790103100203
Something written – Difficult Joy in the Book of Job
I’ve just had a paper proposal accepted for the Tyndale Fellowship Old Testament study group at the 2025 gathering in the Summer. The theme of the conference is ‘Wrestling with difficult texts’ and I wanted to use it as a focus for developing my work on joy in the Old Testament.
Here is the abstract I submitted to give you a flavour of what I’ll be attempting to do:
Difficult Joy and the Book of Job
The book of Job is a difficult text. In addition to numerous linguistic, literary, and structural complexities, readers of Job face a range of ethical and theological questions when seeking to understand and apply the teaching of the book, not least in pastoral contexts and situations of suffering. Even just focusing on the concluding chapters of the book, for example, Yahweh’s speeches in chs. 38-41 and the Epilogue in ch. 42 are often referred to as problematic.
One underexplored and, perhaps surprising aspect of Job is the theme of joy. But is it moral or ethical to focus on joy in a book much better known for its wrestling with the question of unattributed suffering? To paraphrase Jürgen Moltmann, how can we focus on joy in Job ‘when there are still so many tears to be wiped away and when new tears are being added every day?’
In this paper I examine the theme of joy in the book of Job and ask how greater clarity on this subject could inform our understanding and application of Job’s teaching on faith and suffering, including the ‘difficult’ ending of the book.
Learning and teaching – Preserving momentum
Before the Christmas break we had a final session with our MA students who are in the developing stages of their dissertation ideas. Aware that the Christmas break was coming, which might mean a few weeks where ideas and momentum get lost, we tried a simple exercise to capture their progress up to that point. Here is the slide with the instructions.
If feedback is representative, it sounds like this exercise has been very worthwhile and has helped students start with a greater sense of momentum.
Momentum is so important in academic work, especially when (like I did) you are juggling studies alongside work and other responsibilities. I’ll come back to this topic in due course but I guess the rule is, when you are downing tools for the day, how can you help your future self pick them up again and get working with as little fuss as possible?
Quote – Walter Brueggemann on tenacity and generosity
On the Israelite slave girl in 2 Kings 5:
‘She is an embodiment of the tenacity of exiles of faith under duress and of the generosity that permits others to benefit. Belated readers, if they notice her at all, might have recognised in her a model for how to initiate a new narrative of well-being in a circumstance palpably marked by suffering and despair.’ (p. 58, see above)
Thanks for joining the journey and see you next week,
Tim
Congrats on your paper acceptance! Sounds fascinating.