The Hebrew Bible and History: Critical Readings

Description

These critical readings explore the history of ancient Israel, from the Late Bronze Age to the Persian period, as it relates to the Bible. Selected by one of the world's leading scholars of biblical history, the texts are drawn from a range of highly respected international scholars, and from a variety of historical and religious perspectives, presenting the key voices of the debate in one convenient volume. Divided into five sections - each featuring an introduction by Lester Grabbe - the volume first covers general methodological principles, before following the chronology of Israel's earliest history; including two sections on specific cases studies (the reforms of Josiah and the wall of Nehemiah). A final chapter summarizes many of the historical principles that emerge in the course of studying Israelite history, and an annotated bibliography points researchers towards further readings and engagements with these key themes.

Lester L. Grabbe is Professor Emeritus of Biblical Studies and Early Judaism at the University of Hull, UK, and the author of numerous books on the history of Ancient Israel.

It is well known that for the last several decades the study of ancient Israelite history has been a hotbed of scholarly dispute. Lester Grabbe's new book addresses this dispute directly. The essays, from a variety of scholars, range from general reflections on historical method to studies of particular episodes in the history of ancient Israel and the sources for them, especially the Hebrew Bible. To help the reader sort these essays out, Grabbe provides summaries of them, along with remarks on the common issues they treat and the context of contemporary scholarship to which they belong. The essays themselves are detailed and provocative, and while a number of them take a seriously critical stance toward the Hebrew Bible as a reliable historical source, Grabbe has sought in places to balance these out with others that offer an opposing or moderating voice. In all, a substantial volume that repays close scrutiny. * PETER MACHINIST, HARVARD UNIVERSITY, USA *