Huldah - by Preston Kavanagh (Paperback)

About the Book

An in-depth examination of the one of the rare female voices in the Bible, the prophet Huldah, showing her to be a much more significant figure than is often realised.

Book Synopsis

An in-depth examination of the one of the rare female Biblical voices, the prophet Huldah, showing her to be a far more significant figure than often realised.

This book reveals- for the first time ever - the extraordinary impact of Huldah the prophet on our Bible. She was both a leader of exilic Jews and a principal author of Hebrew Scripture. She penned the Shema: the ardent, prayerful praise that millions of worshipers repeat twice daily. Moreover, Jesus quoted as his own last words the ones that Huldah had written centuries before - "Into your hand I commit my spirit". Huldah was an extraordinary writer - arguably she ranks among the best in Hebrew Scripture. As such, she added to God's Word a feminine aspect that has inspired numberless believers - men and women alike.

This book's new techniques reveal that though subjected to extreme verbal abuse, Huldah surmounted her era's high barriers to women. As elder, queen mother, and war leader during the sixth century BCE, she helped shape Israel's history. And what, then, can this book mean to scholars - both women and men? Feminists need a rallying point and a heroine, and Huldah makes a superb one. In years ahead, experts might well place Huldah alongside the very greatest women of antiquity; indeed, they may even conclude that she is among the most influential people in human history.

Review Quotes

...Preston Kavanagh's monograph fleshes out a fuller biography for Huldah from the scriptures, by using a combination of mathematical and biblical-analytical tools. ... I would recommend that it is most suitable for an academic readership. Outside of academic circles, Kavanagh's work will be found fascinating, thought-provoking, and enjoyable.---Shola Adegbite "The Expository Times, Vol. 127 No. 10, July 2016"

Kavanagh's research is steeped in modern-critical thought which goes far beyond the traditional framework in using anagrams to add meaning to an already meaningful text.--Ashley E. Lyon, University of Birmingham, Reviews in Religion and Theology, Vol 21, Issue 2, (March, 2014)

Kavanagh's work demonstrates the great impact of the prophet Huldah on the Bible and explores Huldah's influence on Israel's history [...] Huldah overturns the stereotypical figure of the 'mother-wife' living in an Israelite patriarchal framework, and is considered as one of the greatest women of antiquity as well as a feminist heroine. In his original work, Kavanagh encourages critics to attend to female voices by revealing the importance of Huldah in the creation of the Bible.-- "Theological Book Review, volume 26, no 1, 2014"

Preston Kavanagh's book provides a creative a creative and expansive look at the figure of the prophet Hulda.--Beth Stovell, Ambrose University "Journal for the Evangelical Study of the Old Testament, Vol.4, issue 2"