Who Were the Early Israelites and Where Did They Come From?

by Dever, William G.

• ISBN13: 9780802809759
• ISBN10: 0802809758
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2003-03-01
• Publisher: Eerdmans Pub Co

Summary

This book addresses one of the most timely and urgent topics in archaeology and biblical studies - the origins of early Israel. For centuries the Western tradition has traced its beginnings back to ancient Israel, but recently some historians and archaeologists have questioned the reality of Israel as it is described in biblical literature. In Who Were the Early Israelites and Where Did They Come From? William Dever explores the continuing controversies regarding the true nature of ancient Israel and presents the archaeological evidence for assessing the accuracy of the well-known biblical narratives.

Author Biography

William G. Dever is professor of Near Eastern archaeology and anthropology at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. ix
The Current Crisis in Understanding the Origins of Early Israel	p. 1
The "Exodus"--History or Myth?	p. 7
The Conquest of Transjordan	p. 23
The Conquest of the Land West of the Jordan: Theories and Facts	p. 37
Facts on the Ground: The Excavated Evidence for the Archaeological Rediscovery of the Real Israel	p. 75
More Facts on the Ground: Recent Archaeological Surveys	p. 91
A Summary of the Material Culture of the Iron I Assemblage	p. 101
Previous Attempts at a Synthesis of Textual and Artifactual Data on Early Israel	p. 129
Toward Another Synthesis on the Origins and Nature of Early Israel	p. 153
Yet Another Attempt at Synthesis: Early Israel as a Frontier Agrarian Reform Movement	p. 167
Who Were the Early Israelites? Ethnicity and the Archaeological Record	p. 191
Salvaging the Biblical Tradition: History or Myth?	p. 223
Some Basic Sources (Usually in Chronological Order)	p. 242
Index of Authors	p. 258
Index of Subjects	p. 261
Index of Scripture References	p. 267
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