Exploring Biblical Backgrounds provides students and teachers with a rich compendium of ancient primary sources that form essential readings for studying both the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. Containing a wide range of comparable texts from the ancient Near East, Second Temple Judaism, the Greco-Roman world, and early Christianity, this collection furnishes students with awareness and insight of the various contexts of the Bible and views into important parallels. Headnotes to the sections and to each individual reading enable students to understand how a reading connects to the biblical text, while the expansive Scripture index provides an easy tool for identifying the biblical texts referenced in the introductions. An indispensable companion for understanding how history and ancient ideas resonate in Scripture, Exploring Biblical Backgrounds guides students through the world out of which Scripture grew and prepares readers to hear the voice with which the Bible speaks.