Beware the Evil Eye

The Evil Eye in the Bible and the Ancient World: Volume 1 Introduction, Mesopotamia, and Egypt

by John H. Elliott

Book cover: Beware the Evil Eye

Extent: 232 pages

Publisher: James Clarke & Co

Subjects: Biblical Studies

Language: English

Paperback (No longer our product)

(April 2016)

ISBN: 9780227175682

5.98 x 9.02 inches

Price: $29.00

On back order

PDF (No longer our product)

(April 2016)

ISBN: 9780227905265

Price: $23.99

The first in a four-volume series exploring belief in the Evil Eye and the practices associated with it amongst the cultures of the Biblical world.


In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus of Nazareth makes reference to one of the oldest beliefs in the ancient world – the malignity of an Evil Eye. The Holy Scriptures in their original languages contain no less than twenty-four references to the Evil Eye, although this is obscured by most modern Bible translations. John H. Elliott’s Beware the Evil Eye describes this belief and associated practices, its history, its voluminous appearances in ancient cultures, and the extensive research devoted to it over the centuries in order to unravel this enigma for readers who have never heard of the Evil Eye and its presence in the Bible. This is the first of a four-volume work on the Evil Eye.

John H. Elliott is Professor Emeritus of Theology and Religious Studies at the University of San Francisco. He is the author of Conflict, Community, and Honour (2007).

  • By (author) John H Elliott

"Elliot's study is, without a doubt, a masterpiece of its genre. ... It is encyclopaedic in its coverage, but the monograph format allows greater detail and makes for a more readable and less atomistic text. Elliot's coverage is exhaustive, yet never falls into superficiality that such work can sometimes take on ... Elliot's work, which reads like the culmination of a lifetime interest in the topic, is destined to remain the standard reference on the Evil Eye for many decades to come." Jonathan Kearney, Journal for the Study of The New Testament: Booklist 2017, Volume 39.5, August 2017 "An excellent study, entering profoundly into the psychology of ancient religiosity." NICK WYATT, Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Vol.42 issue 5 (2018)
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