First Glance

In the wilderness of Sinai, at the base of the rugged mountain that he had climbed to receive the Tablets of the Law, Moses made a simple and sacred pact between his people and God: As an exuberant expression of love and gratitude for their escape from Egypt, Israel’s would observe the Ten Commandments. Israel journeyed on; Canaan came into view; centuries passed, and the covenant—always strong—changed with the times. In “Continuity and Change in Israel’s Covenant with God,” Kevin O’Connell, S.J., charts the dynamic relationship between Israel and God—as patriarchs, judges, kings and prophets affected it—from the Exodus to post-Exilic times.

O’Connell, chairman of the Religious Studies Department of John Carroll University in Ohio, is now writing a translation and commentary on the Book of Exodus for the Anchor Bible series. A science fiction and handball enthusiast, O’Connell is also an experienced field archaeologist; he dug at Tell el-Hesi, in Israel, from 1973 to 1981.