God's Others

God's Others: Non-Israelites' Encounters with God in the Hebrew Bible reveals the stories of two-dozen of the "best-kept secrets" in what is often referred to as the Old Testament-the foundation text for the three Abrahamic faiths. Often overlooked or misunderstood, these non-Israelite individuals and groups encounter God through personal or historic revelations. They include:
Melchizedek, King of Salem Lot, Abraham's nephew
Hagar, Abraham's concubine Laban, Jacob's brother-in-law
The Pharaoh of the Exodus Jethro, Moses' father-in-law
Rahab, harlot of Jericho The Queen of Sheba
Ruth Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon
The Gentiles of Jonah Job
"God's others" demonstrate that people may approach God by many paths. They show that claims to exclusive religious truth, which often have pitted Jews, Christians and Muslims against each other, represent a misreading of the Hebrew Bible and the Jewish position of respect for others. Traditional and modern commentary add depth to these biblical stories, making them as accessible as they are fascinating.