The Deities Prophecy Two deities, one the rightful creator of the world-known as the Land, the other, who believes the Land should have always been his. Then, an ancient book of prophecy comes to light which could tip the scales in the other's favor leading to the decreation of the world and its people, to a new creation brought about the other deity. With time working against them to determine which deity will gain control; the prophecy will lead our heroes consisting of two wizards, Alistarr and Marcus, along with a full ship crew across the Great Sea to a remote island where the prophecy will be settled. However, first, they must work their way through nightmarish creatures, and an insane warlock that is determined to let time run out.

This text discusses how W. B. Yeats, Aleister Crowley, Ezra Pound and Robert Graves had access to the forbidden knowledge of the Goddess. These four poets experienced a confrontation with their unconscious and let the grace of the Goddess touch their heart strings. Consequently, through this surrendering, they created avant-garde poetry and were inspired to write seditious manifestos that would teach humanity an esoteric creed. This creed, based on humans’ eternal divine essence, aspires to liberate the eternal feminine. These poets became the instruments of the Goddess. As defenders of the Light, they took arms against the forces of inertia and proclaimed the eleusis of a new faith. This creed pledges to overthrow the anachronistic religious and social institutions and initiate a new world order and a new divinity based on the ancient rites of the Great Goddess. No matter how disparate these four were in character, they shared the vision of transmitting esoteric knowledge to profane humanity. They were specifically chosen by the Goddess as Her troubadours and they pave Her way to the religious consciousness of the people.

Power, Politics, and Prophecy is an examination of the view of prophetic experience and prophetic institutions by the writers of Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomistic History (Joshua—2 Kings). The thesis of the book is that the Deuteronomic writers consistently hold two different and competing views on prophecy in tension: § Prophecy is a valid and true means by which God communicates the divine will and intention to people. § Prophecy is a highly ambiguous and dangerous phenomenon and, because of its essential subjective nature, should be treated with a high degree of suspicion in all cases. These views are meticulously intertwined in the narratives about the character of Samuel and both are absolutely central for the meaning of the narrative and of its portrayal of the prophet. From beginning to end, Samuel is clearly understood by the writers as fulfilling the promise of Deuteronomy 18 as the Mosaic prophet, one who serves as the primary intermediary between the divine and human realms. Yet, unlike the sympathetic readings offered by some commentators, Samuel is obviously not an unambiguously positive character.

Multifaceted insights into female life in prophetic contexts Both prophets and prophetesses shared God’s divine will with the people of Israel, yet the voices of these women were often forgotten due to later prohibitions against women teaching in public. This latest volume of the Bible and Women series focuses on the intersection of gender and prophecy in the Former Prophets (Joshua to 2 Kings) as well as in the Latter Prophets of the Hebrew Bible. Essays examine how women appear in the iconography of the ancient world, the historical background of the phenomenon of prophecy, political and religious resistance by women in the biblical text, and gender symbolism and constructions in prophetic material as well as the metaphorical discourse of God. Contributors Michaela Bauks, Athalya Brenner-Idan, Ora Brison, L. Juliana Claassens, Marta García Fernández, Irmtraud Fischer, Maria Häusl, Rainer Kessler, Nancy C. Lee, Hanne Løland Levinson, Christl M. Maier, Ilse Müllner, Martti Nissinen, Ombretta Pettigiani, Ruth Poser, Benedetta Rossi, Silvia Schroer, and Omer Sergi draw insight into the texts from a range of innovative gender-oriented approaches.

Annotation A study of the phenomenon of prophecy as documented in ancient Near Eastern texts and the Hebrew Bible as well as Greek sources, from the twenty-first century BCE to the second century CE.

Prophecy was a wide-spread phenomenon in the ancient world - not only in ancient Israel but in the whole Eastern Mediterranean cultural sphere. This is demonstrated by documents from the ancient Near East, that have been the object of Martti Nissinen’s research for more than twenty years. Nissinen's studies have had a formative influence on the study of the prophetic phenomenon. The present volume presents a selection of thirty-one essays, bringing together essential aspects of prophetic divination in the ancient Near East. The first section of the volume discusses prophecy from theoretical perspectives. The second sections contains studies on prophecy in texts from Mari and Assyria and other cuneiform sources. The third section discusses biblical prophecy in its ancient Near Eastern context, while the fourth section focuses on prophets and prophecy in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. Even prophecy in the Dead Sea Scrolls is discussed in the fifth section. The articles are essential reading for anyone studying ancient prophetic phenomenon.

In this unique introduction to the Minor Prophets, two biblical scholars survey the twelve books and explore the theological themes of each. Filled with helpful exegetical insights, this books is an invaluable guide for students, pastors, and scholars looking for a cohesive exploration of these often-overlooked books of the Hebrew Bible.

The Former Prophets of the Hebrew Bible includes the books of Joshua through 2 Kings; it is a narrative of ancient Israel's history of some seven hundred years from the 'conquest' of Canaan to the exile, when Israel lost the land. Thomas Mann adoptsa critical perspective and incorporates many distinct literary sources from different times into his work. The result is a compelling example of ancient historiography as well as an impressive artistic achievement. The book contains fascinating (andoften horrifying) stories of war, religious fanaticism, terror, and disaster, as well as stories of deep personal loyalty, friendship, and faith. Finally, in a deeply thoughtful and constructive way, The Former Prophets addresses perennial questionslike, amongst others, 'What is the relationship between divine sovereignty and human political institutions?' or 'In what sense are historical events the result of human acts and also of divine Providence?'

God in Translation offers a substantial, extraordinarily broad survey of ancient attitudes toward deities, from the Late Bronze Age through ancient Israel and into the New Testament. Looking closely at relevant biblical texts and at their cultural contexts, Mark S. Smith demonstrates that the biblical attitude toward deities of other cultures is not uniformly negative, as is commonly supposed. He traces the historical development of Israel's "one-god worldview, " linking it to the rise of the surrounding Mesopotamian empires. Smith's study also produces evidence undermining a common modern assumption among historians of religion that polytheism is tolerant while monotheism is prone to intolerance and violence.