The volume will be a collection of essays by leading scholars on the interpretation of the Old Testament on the topics of law and ethics. The book is a Festschrift for Prof. Gordon Wenham. Its chosen theme is intended to reflect his central interests in his long career of writing on the Old Testament, in which he has exemplified the highest standards of scholarship, but also written for practitioners of biblical interpretation. The topic of 'reading the law' has three aspects which will be treated by the various contributions, namely: Reading the Pentateuch: Pentateuchal criticism, narrative readings, rhetorical-critical readings; Reading the Law: the law codes in historical and/or literary context, anthropological readings, the law in relation to prophets, wisdom, worship; Reading the Bible ethically: e.g. ethics of marriage, war. Claudia Camp and Andrew Mein were formerly of "Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement", a book series that features original and creative approaches to the interpretation of Old Testament literature.
"The Bible in the 21st Century" series, a part of "JSOTS", seeks to examine contemporary authoritative and cultural meanings of bibles by focusing on the processes of transmission, readership and actualization of biblical texts up to and including the twenty-first century. The series explores issues related to contemporary culture and the place of the bible and religion within it. Copenhagen International Seminar is also part of "JSOTS."