I’ve blogged about the importance of scholarly journal literature a number of times on this blog. The primary impediment to their use is that you need to live near a university or seminary library that subscribes to them or has a JSTOR subscription it can extend to community borrowers. Each individual journal title costs between $50-$200 per year, so price is also an issue.
In light of these obstacles, this is great news – JSTOR account options for the masses (at least one of them is FREE).
I live in Toronto. I was able to get online journal access, including JSTOR, through the Toronto Public Library, just using my library card. There are no article limits — as long as the library has a digital subscription, I’m in.
It’s pretty great.
I know. That’s exactly what I’d look for if I didn’t have an institutional affiliation for the databases.
I’ve followed your website for a few years. Thank you for promoting sound answers to questions that can easily lead astray. I just signed on to jstor.com, found a journal article that looked interesting and began reading. I will enjoy this! Curently I’m looking for information about Biblical prophetic numbers and the precession of the equinoxes. You got me onto this idea when you said (somewhere) that David Flynn might be right about this relationship. It makes sense, but do you think that looking for scholarly information on it will be a waste of time?
To clarify, I think there is something to astral prophecy – the notion that *certain* passages in the OT/NT connected prophecy with signs in the heavens (specific ones having to do with constellations and, perhaps precession, among other features). I sketch some of that in my novel, The Portent, sequel to The Facade. The handbook to The Portent actually has a good starter bibliography (but don’t get that unless you’ve read the book — too many spoilers). That’s a small part of what Flynn did. Other parts of what he was doing I don’t think are fruitful with respect to biblical interpretation.
In terms of what you’d find on JSTOR, Bruce Malina has a couple articles on astral prophecy. Other than that, you’d need to focus on specific passages and language in those passages.
Thank you for all these sources. Because I don’t enjoy reading fiction, I have never read your books, but now I’m going to read them since you have indicated that they might help me understand this subject. I appreciate your taking the time to point me in the right direction. Also, I’m eagerly looking forward to your new podcasts!
thanks – the podcast will be helpful to many I think.
I see you have become a sort of table of contents for JSTOR? 🙂 Good.
I am looking to read stuff on rebutting JEPD. I know you have written about it, but I want to read stuff on how scholars claim you can perfectly untangle the sources and have the two separate strands. Does JSTOR have anything about that?
JSTOR has piles of material about everything in biblical studies. The problem is, though, that the material is often technical. If you want something (more than one view) on this that is likely more readable, email me.
Hi Dr. Heiser, I am a late reader of your book The Portent. I have read the first book The Facade and hopefully very soon will begin on The Unseen Realm. The book arrived about a month ago. What I am wondering is, is there anywhere I can get hold of the handbook to The Portent alluded to in Chapter 80. The website says it is no longer available along with the competition. I don’t care about the competition, just the handbook. Many thanks. Steven.