The JPS Bible Commentary: Haftarot
Overview
The haftarot are an ancient part of Hebrew liturgy. These supplemental readings are excerpted from the Prophets (Nevi’im) and accompany each weekly Sabbath reading from the Torah as well as readings for special Sabbaths and festivals.
Noted Bible scholar Michael Fishbane introduces each haftarah with an outline and discussion of how that passage conveys its meaning, and he follows it with observations on how it relates to the Torah portion or special occasion. Individual comments—citing classical rabbinic as well as modern commentators—highlight ambiguities and difficulties in the Hebrew text. The haftarot are also put into biblical context by a separate overview of all prophetic books (except Jonah) that are excerpted in the haftarah cycle. This volume was a National Jewish Book Award Finalist.
This resource is available as part of the JPS Tanakh Commentary Collection (11 volumes).
Top Highlights
“Joshua is thus a book of transition: between the desert wanderings and the settlement in the Land. The generation of the desert forgot the wonders of the Exodus and did not believe in God’s power to realize the conquest (Num. 14:11, Num. 14:22); in turn, their descendants forgot the historical wonders of the conquest and wandered after the gods of nature.” (Page 505)
“‘bring them close to each other [lit., one to the other; ʾeḥad ʾel ʾeḥad], so that they become one stick [le-ʾaḥadim], joined together in your hand’” (Page 72)
“The foregoing triad (Torah, prophecy, and homily) represents three levels of authority in Judaism and three modes of religious instruction.” (Page xix)
“The third level of this commentary is that of the derash, or creative interpretation and theology” (Page xxxii)
“is rewarded for her hospitality with the announcement that ‘at this season [la-moʿed” (Page 28)
Praise for the Print Edition
... without a doubt, the finest commentary on the Haftarot I have studied.
—David L. Lieber, President Emeritus and Skovron Distinguished Service Professor of Biblical Literature and Thought, University of Judaism; Senior Editor of Etz Hayim
Product Details
- Title: Haftarot
- Author: Michael Fishbane
- Series: The JPS Bible Commentary
- Publisher: Jewish Publication Society
- Publication Date: 2002
- Pages: 700
About Michael Fishbane
Michael Fishbane, Ph.D., is one of the foremost Hebrew Bible scholars in the world today and is the Nathan Cummings Professor of Jewish Studies and chair of the Committee on Jewish Studies at the University of Chicago.
About the Jewish Publication Society
The Jewish Publication Society of America was founded in Philadelphia in 1888 to provide the children of Jewish immigrants to America with books about their heritage in the language of the New World. As the oldest publisher of Jewish titles in the English language, the mission of JPS is to enhance Jewish culture by promoting the dissemination of religious and secular works of exceptional quality, in the United States and abroad, to all individuals and institutions interested in past and contemporary Jewish life.
Over the years JPS has issued a body of works for all tastes and needs. Its many titles include biographies, histories, art books, holiday anthologies, books for young readers, religious and philosophical studies, and translations of scholarly and popular classics. It is perhaps known best for its famous JPS Tanakh, the translation of the Hebrew Bible in English from the original Hebrew.