Overview

Aaron Chalmers gives students a unique introduction to the religious and social world of ancient Israel. The first part explores the major religious offices mentioned in the Old Testament, including prophets, priests, sages and kings. As well as considering what these key people said and did, the author traces the process through which one became recognized as a prophet, priest or sage, and where each of these offices were located in ancient Israel. The second part of the book focuses on the beliefs and practices of the common people--the group that made up the majority of ancient Israel's population.

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Reviews

What did people such as priests and prophets do in Israel? How were they chosen and trained? How did ordinary people's relationship with God work out? This volume is a fine user-friendly guide to what we can learn about such questions from the Bible, from archeology and from current scholarly theory. --John Goldingay, author of OId Testament Theology

Chalmers accomplishes his goal to provide an accessible introductory text to the religion of ancient Israel for the beginning student or non-specialist. Exploring the Religion of Ancient Israel is well balanced and researched. Chalmers navigates well between various extremes and the difficult land between biblical studies and archaeology. I would recommend this as a supplemental text to a book on the history of 'biblical Israel' because Chalmers effectively brings out the nitty-gritty of 'real life' in ancient Israel. --Benjamin S. Davis, Journal for the Evangelical Study of the Old Testament, 4.1

In Exploring the Religion of Ancient Israel, Aaron Chalmers offers an insightful and engaging study of Israelite religion. His attention to 'groundedness' supports his insightful analysis of the Hebrew Bible and his integration of relevant Near Eastern texts. Chalmers's book is enriched by his judicious use of critically important material from Israel's rich archaeological heritage. The many illustrations, useful sidebars and more are valuable additions to this well-argued book, which answers critical questions both about what we know and about how we know it. Exploring the Religion of Ancient Israel will satisfy students, faculty and lay readers alike. --Beth Alpert Nakhai, The University of Arizona

Author Information

Aaron Chalmers is senior lecturer in biblical studies at Tabor Adelaide in Adelaide, Australia. He has published many articles in scholarly journals.

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