Parent and Child in Ancient Near East and the Bible

The nuclear family in the Ancient Near East and in Israel generally included a father, a mother and children. The whole family was subject to the authority of the father. The father had extensive legal capacities - despite certain restrictions - that had a decisive impact on the fate and economic situation of the whole family.

This book investigates the nature of the legal relationship between parents and children and the nature of the patriarchal regime in the Bible and the Ancient Near East.

The main questions discussed in the book are: What gives a child legal status? What was the infrastructure and the nature of the legal relationship between parents and children? Did parents have to provide for their children? What was the legal authority of parents to punish their children in respect of unlawful conduct towards them?
The book makes an important contribution to understanding the basic issues of character and personality of society in ancient times.