Kaplan-Bruer Lecture: ‘How Biblical Poetry Works,’ Jacqueline Vayntrub

What makes the poetry of the Bible different from other ancient poetic traditions? Placed in its ancient Near Eastern and Mediterranean context, Jacqueline Vayntrub highlights the unique characteristics of biblical poetry and shows how novices and experts alike can appreciate the beauty and insights of these texts.

Jacqueline Vayntrub is assistant professor of Hebrew Bible at Yale Divinity School and affiliated faculty in Judaic Studies at Yale University. She is the author of Beyond Orality: Biblical Poetry on its Own Terms (Routledge, 2019) and has published widely on biblical poetry, wisdom literature and the history of biblical scholarship in top academic journals as well as in popular venues. Vayntrub is currently working on two book projects: Reframing Biblical Poetry, to be published with Yale University Press, and Seeking Eternity: Transmission and Mortal Anxiety in Biblical Literature.