About the Author

Michael Shepherd is Associate Professor of Biblical Studies at Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio. He previously taught at Louisiana College and is the author of several monographs on the Old Testament.

Reviews

"In A Commentary on the Book of the Twelve, Michael B. Shepherd takes up the challenge of writing a commentary on the Twelve as a composition in its own right. He takes seriously the results of work in the last thirty years that have reclaimed ancient Jewish and Christian traditions that treat the Twelve as a single scroll, not merely collections of Twelve individual prophets. The introduction to the Twelve is concisely presented and invites readers to consider how taking seriously the literary context of the Twelve can enhance the reading of the books. He looks for internal clues upon which to ground his reading. Those approaching the Twelve for the first time will be struck by the number of places that Shepherd provides illuminating avenues of interpretation that others have missed. Even among those of us who have been reading this corpus for a number of years, Shepherd's analysis provides new positions to ponder. Shepherd's focus upon reading the Twelve offers an accessible reading of the Twelve that is text driven. It differs from other readings in that it focuses upon the final text, not the redactional processes leading to the final form. Yet, Shepherd's reading does reflect a more sophisticated series of assertions that distinguish the claims of the 'composer of the Twelve' from earlier traditions in the book. This distinction allows him to track themes and motifs across the Twelve in creative ways, perhaps none more so than his treatment of Hosea 3:4-5 as a programmatic text for the Twelve."--James E. Nogalski, prof. & chair of graduate studies in the Department of Religion, Baylor Univ. (3/1/2018 12:00:00 AM)