Overview

Bringing the Bible and ancient Israel into a new and brighter light In the last twenty years, archaeological evidence has dramatically illuminated ancient Israel, particularly its religion. However, instead of proving the truth of the Bible, as an earlier generation had confidently predicted, the new discoveries have forced us to revise much of what was thought to be biblical truth. The new data provokes an urgent question: If the biblical stories are not always true historically, what, if anything, is still salvageable of the Bible&;s ethical and moral values? In a postmodern age much of the Western cultural tradition, resting on the biblical worldview, is being challenged. The Bible, read with a critical and discerning mind, can help us to do right in this world&;and archaeology may be the best tool for the task of bringing to light the ethical value of the Bible. Has Archaeology Buried the Bible? simplifies the complex issues and summarizes the new, archaeologically attested ancient Israel, period by period (ca. 1200&;600 BCE). But it also explores in detail how a modern, critical reader of the Bible can still find relevant truths by which to live.

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9780802877635

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Reviews

"""This book is both vintage Dever and refreshingly innovative. Dever's strongly argued positions on the relationship between the Hebrew Bible and archaeological materials are presented in lucid and riveting language, accessible to all. In addition, Dever shows how biblical accounts--even problematic ones--are not devoid of meaning but rather are rich with the potential to provide lessons for contemporary life."" -- Carol Meyers Duke University ""Bill Dever has long called for a genuine dialogue between biblical studies and archaeology. In this book, he presents both sides of that conversation: the biblical account of ancient Israel's history, from Genesis through the fall of the Israelite monarchy, considered alongside the archaeological record. The result is an eminently readable synthesis that situates the text of the Bible in its ancient context--with the result, as Dever himself says, of bringing the Bible as well as ancient Israel into a new and brighter light."" -- Susan Ackerman Dartmouth College ""Bill Dever is one of the leading archaeologists of the Southern Levant in the last two generations, influencing the course of scholarship for more than fifty years. Has Archaeology Buried the Bible? critically synthesizes biblical history with modern archaeology, offering a detailed and compelling reconstruction of how things really were, as well as a stimulating assessment of the value of this history to modern readership. The book reviews both the biblical history of ancient Israel--from the period of the patriarchs, through the exodus and settlement in Canaan, to the period of the monarchy--as well as various aspects of Israelite religion, and examines them through the lens of archaeology and modern scholarship. It is a must read to anyone interested in biblical history and in understanding its relevance in the modern world."" -- Avraham Faust Bar-Ilan University"

""This book is both vintage Dever and refreshingly innovative. Dever's strongly argued positions on the relationship between the Hebrew Bible and archaeological materials are presented in lucid and riveting language, accessible to all. In addition, Dever shows how biblical accounts--even problematic ones--are not devoid of meaning but rather are rich with the potential to provide lessons for contemporary life."" -- Carol Meyers Duke University ""Bill Dever has long called for a genuine dialogue between biblical studies and archaeology. In this book, he presents both sides of that conversation: the biblical account of ancient Israel's history, from Genesis through the fall of the Israelite monarchy, considered alongside the archaeological record. The result is an eminently readable synthesis that situates the text of the Bible in its ancient context--with the result, as Dever himself says, of bringing the Bible as well as ancient Israel into a new and brighter light."" -- Susan Ackerman Dartmouth College ""Bill Dever is one of the leading archaeologists of the Southern Levant in the last two generations, influencing the course of scholarship for more than fifty years. Has Archaeology Buried the Bible? critically synthesizes biblical history with modern archaeology, offering a detailed and compelling reconstruction of how things really were, as well as a stimulating assessment of the value of this history to modern readership. The book reviews both the biblical history of ancient Israel--from the period of the patriarchs, through the exodus and settlement in Canaan, to the period of the monarchy--as well as various aspects of Israelite religion, and examines them through the lens of archaeology and modern scholarship. It is a must read to anyone interested in biblical history and in understanding its relevance in the modern world."" -- Avraham Faust Bar-Ilan University

This book is both vintage Dever and refreshingly innovative. Dever's strongly argued positions on the relationship between the Hebrew Bible and archaeological materials are presented in lucid and riveting language, accessible to all. In addition, Dever shows how biblical accounts--even problematic ones--are not devoid of meaning but rather are rich with the potential to provide lessons for contemporary life. -- Carol Meyers Duke University Bill Dever has long called for a genuine dialogue between biblical studies and archaeology. In this book, he presents both sides of that conversation: the biblical account of ancient Israel's history, from Genesis through the fall of the Israelite monarchy, considered alongside the archaeological record. The result is an eminently readable synthesis that situates the text of the Bible in its ancient context--with the result, as Dever himself says, of bringing the Bible as well as ancient Israel into a new and brighter light. -- Susan Ackerman Dartmouth College Bill Dever is one of the leading archaeologists of the Southern Levant in the last two generations, influencing the course of scholarship for more than fifty years. Has Archaeology Buried the Bible? critically synthesizes biblical history with modern archaeology, offering a detailed and compelling reconstruction of how things really were, as well as a stimulating assessment of the value of this history to modern readership. The book reviews both the biblical history of ancient Israel--from the period of the patriarchs, through the exodus and settlement in Canaan, to the period of the monarchy--as well as various aspects of Israelite religion, and examines them through the lens of archaeology and modern scholarship. It is a must read to anyone interested in biblical history and in understanding its relevance in the modern world. -- Avraham Faust Bar-Ilan University

Author Information

William G. Dever is professor emeritus of Near Eastern archaeology and anthropology at the University of Arizona in Tucson. He has served as director of the Nelson Glueck School of Biblical Archaeology in Jerusalem, as director of the W. F. Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem, and as a visiting professor at universities around the world. He has spent thirty years conducting archaeological excavations in the Near East, resulting in a large body of award-winning fieldwork.

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