History or legend? Digging into Israel's origins.

From: The Christian Century | Date: February 24, 2004| Author: Miller, J. Maxwell | Copyright information

WHAT DID THE biblical writers know and when did they know it? That question formed the title of a recent book by William G. Dever. At issue is the historical veracity of the so-called historical books of the Hebrew Bible, particularly the early parts of the narrative that begins in the Book of Genesis with creation and concludes in the Book of 2 Kings with the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem.

Quite apart from controversies connected with the Genesis account of creati...

Read all of this article with a FREE trial to HighBeam Research

Related newspaper, magazine, and journal articles from HighBeam Research

The Religion of Ancient Israel
The Catholic Biblical Quarterly ; PATRICK D. MILLER, The Religion of Ancient Israel (Library of Ancient Israel; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2000). Pp. xx + 335. $44.95. In this work, which represents a lifetime of study, Miller develops a "construct" of Israelite religion arranged topically rather than historically, a
Education in Ancient Israel: Across the Deadening Silence / Scribes and Schools: The Canonization of the Hebrew Scriptures
Interpretation ; Education in Ancient Israel: Across the Deadening Silence, by James L. Crenshaw. Anchor Bible Reference Library. Doubleday, New York, 1998. 320 pp. $34.95 (cloth). ISBN 0-385-46891-1. Scribes and Schools: The Canonization of the Hebrew Scriptures, by Philip R. Davies. Library of Ancient Israel.
Reconstructing the Society of Ancient Israel
The Catholic Biblical Quarterly ; PAULA MCNUTT, Reconstructing the Society of Ancient Israel (Library of Ancient Israel; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1999). Pp. xii + 284. $29.95. This volume in the Library of Ancient Israel series is an attempt to synthesize recent social-scientific research on ancient Israel. Its first
How the Bible Became a Book: Textualization of Ancient Israel
The Catholic Biblical Quarterly ; WILLIAM M. SCHNIEDEWIND, How the Bible Became a Book: Textualization of Ancient Israel (Cambridge/New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004). Pp. xiv + 257. $27. This is one instance when the subtitle of a work is crucial to understanding the author's purpose. The word "book" in the title is meant
Did God Have A Wife? Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel
Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society ; Did God Have A Wife? Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel. By William G. Dever. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2006, xvi + 344 pp., $25.00. This book, which completes Dever's trilogy on Israelite history, society, and religion, seeks to reconstruct the practice of religion "from the ground up,"
The Fruit of the Vine: Viticulture in Ancient Israel
The Catholic Biblical Quarterly ; CAREY ELLEN WALSH, The Fruit of the Vine: Viticulture in Ancient Israel (HSM 60; Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 2000). Pp. ix + 294. $29.95. This is a remarkably fine work on the subject of the cultivation of vines and the making of wine in the life and culture of ancient Israel. It is a reworking
Book reviews -- Divination in Ancient Israel and Its Near Eastern Environment: A Socio-Historical Investigation by Frederick H. Cryer
The Catholic Biblical Quarterly ; FREDERICK H. CRYER, Divination in Ancient Israel and Its Near Eastern Environment: A Socio-Historical Investigation (JSOTSup 142; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1994). Pp. 367. L45, $67.50. According to the chronographic literature of the OT, divination played a prominent role in ancient Israelite society.
The City in Ancient Israel
The Catholic Biblical Quarterly ; VOLKMAR FRITZ, The City in Ancient Israel (Biblical Seminar 29; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1995). Pp. 197. Paper 15.50, $29. This work brings together the archaeological and textual data available for the study of urbanism in ancient Israel. The heart of the book, and its greatest strength, is the
Did God Have a Wife?: Archaeology and Folk Religion in Ancient Israel.(Brief Article)(Book Review)
Reference & Research Book News ; ... not doctrine. Aspiring to be factual but not subjective, he describes the religions of ancient Israel from the archaeological evidence. Among his topics are Asherah and the move from polytheism to monotheism. ([c] 2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR)
How the Bible Became a Book: the Textualization of Ancient Israel.(Book Review)
The Christian Century ; How the Bible Became a Book: The Textualization of Ancient Israel. By William M. Schniedewind. Cambridge University Press, 257 pp., 827.00, IT IS EASY for us to underestimate the aura that surrounded a written text in the ancient world. As you read this review, you are performing something that