Author Description

An Introduction to Ancient Israel and the Hebrew Bible: A Diachronic Approach pairs biblical material with primary source texts from the Middle Bronze Age to the Hellenistic Period. It places emphasis on archaeological and historical data that help to illuminate the Hebrew Bible in its ancient Near Eastern context. The opening chapter focuses on the Middle Bronze Age, including information on societal development, innovations, material culture, Abraham and the Amorite Migration, Joseph in Egypt, Genesis, and more. Characteristics of the Late Bronze Age, the Exodus Narrative, Leviticus, and Numbers are addressed in Chapter 2. The Iron Age is covered in Chapters 3 and 4, speaking to the emergence of Israel, Deuteronomy, the archaeology of the period, Samuel and Kings, Excursus, and latter Prophets. The final chapter addresses the end of the kingdom of Judah, the rise of the Medes and Persians, Psalms, the Book of Ruth, Proverbs, Job, wisdom literature, and more. An Introduction to Ancient Israel and the Hebrew Bible is an ideal text for introductory courses in the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament.