The first volume of the new Pericope series, Delimitation Criticism contains the papers read at a workshop of the Pericope Group during the First Meeting of the European Association for Biblical Studies, held at Utrecht, The Netherlands, 6-9 August 2000. The volume highlights the importance of the long-ignored unit delimitation markers in ancient manuscripts for the interpretation of Scripture. Much of the data presented here has never been published before and opens up fresh vistas for biblical scholarship.

The new series Pericope aims at providing Bible translators and exegetes with the raw data concerning unit delimitation in the ancient manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint, the Peshitta and the Vulgate. It will contribute significantly to our understanding of the meaning of Scripture as it was written and understood in Antiquity.

Pericope is directed by an international editorial board of distinguished specialists. The series will comprise monographs and collaborative volumes on unit delimitation in Antiquity, primarily in biblical manuscripts and lectionaries, but also in other texts relevant to biblical studies. The series will also incorporate exegetical studies which seek to demonstrate the impact of delimitation criticism on various branches of biblical scholarship.

From the Contents

M.C.A. Korpel - Introduction to the Series
M. van Amerongen - Structuring Division Markers in Haggai
R. de Hoop - Lamentations: The Qinah-Metre Questioned
K.D. Jenner - The Unit Delimitation in the Syriac Text of Daniel and their Consequences for
the Interpretation
M.C.A. Korpel - Pericope Division in the Book of Ruth
J.C. de Moor - Micah 7:1-13: The Lament of a Disillusioned Prophet
J.M. Oesch - Skizze einer synchronen und diachronen Gliederungskritik im Rahmen der
alttestamentlichen Textkritik
J. Renkema - The Literary Structure of Obadiah
P. Sanders - Ancient Colon Delimitations: 2 Samuel 22 and Psalm 18
E. Tov - The Background of the Sense Divisions in the Biblical Texts

Consultant editor: Mireille Charmantier-Daures, Jac Forest (†)