Windows into Old Testament History: Evidence, Argument, and the Crisis of Biblical Israel

by Long, V. Philips

• ISBN13: 9780802839626
• ISBN10: 0802839622
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-05-01
• Publisher: Lightning Source Inc

Summary

In recent years revisionist scholars have attacked the Bible's picture of ancient Israel as a fiction. While the majority of scholars reject this claim, a spirit of uneasiness remains among those who affirm the Old Testament's reliability. This bracing book provides fresh evidence for the historical value of Scripture.

Written by international authors ranging from promising young thinkers to accomplished scholars, these chapters rebuild the case for a positive appraisal of biblical Israel. Approaching the historicity of Scripture from several fruitful angles -- philosophical, archaeological, and literary -- the contributors attack head-on the issues involved in this controverted field. The diversity of the subject matter treated and the competence of the authors involved make this work an excellent resource for anyone interested in the facts surrounding ancient Israel.

Table of Contents

Abbreviations	vii
Introduction	1	(22)
V. Philips Long
Epistemology, Historiographical Method, and the ``Copenhagen School''	23	(21)
Jens Bruun Kofoed
Fact, Fiction, and Language Use: Can Modern Pragmatics Improve on Halpern's Case for History in Judges?	44	(38)
Nicolai Winther-Nielsen
Literary in Iron Age Israel	82	(21)
Richard S. Hess
History and Legend in Early Babylonia	103	(8)
Alan R. Millard
The Controlling Role of External Evidence in Assessing the Historical Status of the Israelite United Monarchy	111	(20)
Kenneth A. Kitchen
Manasseh in the Books of Kings and Chronicles (2 Kings 21:1-18; 2 Chron 33:1-20)	131	(16)
Brian E. Kelly
Israel outside the Land: The Transjordanian Tribes in 1 Chronicles 5	147	(14)
Peter J. Williams
In the Stable with the Dwarves: Testimony, Interpretation, Faith, and the History of Israel	161	(37)
Iain W. Provan
List of Editors and Contributors	198	(1)
Index of Names	199	(3)
Index of Scripture References	202