Contents Maps... vii Illustrations...viii Preface... xi Preface to the Second Edition... xii Preface to the Third Edition...xiii Abbreviations...xv Introduction... 1 PART ONE: THE TORAH/PENTATEUCH 1 The Near Eastern Context...19 2 The Nature of the Pentateuchal Narrative...33 3 The Primeval History...45 4 The Patriarchs...53 5 The Exodus from Egypt...67 6 The Revelation at Sinai...79 7 The Priestly Theology: Exodus 25 40, Leviticus, and Numbers...91 8 Deuteronomy... 103 PART TWO: THE DEUTERONOMISTIC HISTORY 9 Joshua... 121 10 Judges... 135 11 1 Samuel... 145 12 2 Samuel... 155 13 1 Kings 1 16: Solomon and the Divided Monarchy... 167 14 1 Kings 17 2 Kings 25: Tales of Prophets and the End of the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah... 181 v
PART THREE: PROPHECY 15 Amos and Hosea... 201 16 Isaiah... 215 17 The Babylonian Era: Jeremiah and Lamentations... 227 18 Ezekiel... 241 19 The Additions to the Book of Isaiah... 255 20 Postexilic Prophecy: Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Joel, Jonah... 269 PART FOUR: THE WRITINGS 21 Ezra and Nehemiah... 289 22 The Books of Chronicles... 301 23 The Psalms and Song of Songs... 313 24 Proverbs... 327 25 Job and Qoheleth... 339 26 The Hebrew Short Story: Ruth, Esther... 351 27 Daniel, 1 2 Maccabees... 361 28 The Deuterocanonical Wisdom Books: Ben Sira, Wisdom of Solomon... 377 29 From Tradition to Canon... 389 Glossary... 395 Index... 402 Picture acknowledgments... 406 vi A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE
Maps The Fertile Crescent...21 The World of the Patriarchs...55 The Landscape of the Book of Exodus...68 Israel Settlement before the Monarchy... 123 Canaanite Sites in the Late 13th/Early 12th Century b.c.e... 126 12 Tribes of Israel... 132 Tribes of Israel before the Monarchy... 138 Saul s Kingdom... 149 Minimum Extent of David s Kingdom... 158 Maximum Extent of David s Kingdom... 159 Minimum Extent of Solomon s Kingdom... 169 Jerusalem in the Time of Solomon... 173 Approximate Boundaries of the Divided Kingdoms of Judah and Israel... 176 Elijah and Elisha Narratives... 183 Assyrian Empire... 189 Neo-Babylonian Empire... 228 The Chaldean Empire and the Saite Dynasty of Egypt... 242 The Persian Empire at its Zenith... 258 Judah as a Province of the Persian Empire 445 333 b.c.e... 291 Maccabean-Hasmonean Palestine 166 76 b.c.e... 374 The Ancient Near East c. 60 b.c.e... 384 vii
Illustrations Remains of the community settlement at Qumran... xvii Isaiah Scroll, part of the Dead Sea Scrolls from Qumran... 3 The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in caves in these cliffs, Israel...10 Amulet...17 The Rosetta Stone...22 Tablet XI of the Babylonian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh...26 Babylonian relief of a winged and eagle-footed goddess...27 Bronze figurine of Baal, the Canaanite warrior god...28 Bronze female figurine (Anat)...29 Gold mask of Tutankhamun...30 Sculpture of Moses by Michelangelo...34 Noah builds the ark with his sons...37 Fragment of a tablet inscribed with the Myth of Atrahasis...47 Ziggurat of Ur...54 Horned altar from Beersheba...57 Cutaway illustration of an estate at Amarna, Egypt...63 Traditional site of Mount Sinai...70 Statue of Ramesses II...71 Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their children...83 Hammurabi receives the law from the god Marduk...86 Depiction of the tabernacle as described in Exodus...92 Silver amulet found in the Hinnom Valley, Jerusalem... 100 King Esarhaddon of Assyria and his mother Naqi a-zakutu... 104 The Tel Dan altar and high place, Israel... 105 King Jehu prostrates himself before Shalmaneser III of Assyria... 115 Canaanite cultic place in Stone Age Megiddo, Israel... 122 viii A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE
The Merneptah Stele... 124 The goddess Astarte... 137 Samson killing a lion: relief from Milan Cathedral, Italy... 141 The Tel Dan inscription... 151 Stepped structure in Jerusalem... 157 Statue of King David, Jerusalem, Israel... 160 Remains at Megiddo... 170 Plans of the gateways at Megiddo, Hazor, and Gezer... 171 Ground plans of three temples... 174 Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III... 186 Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser... 187 The Siloam inscription... 190 Lamassu, or human-headed winged bull... 195 Clay models of livers, for training in divination... 198 Tiglath-pileser III... 203 Intricate ivory decoration from Samaria... 205 Ruins of Ancient Samaria... 209 Bronze relief depicting a mother and her children... 211 The so-called Sennacherib Prism... 221 Sennacherib sitting on the throne of judgment... 222 Sennacherib sits on his throne before the city of Lachish... 210 Black basalt monument of Sennacherib s son, Esarhaddon... 224 Conjectural reconstructed image of ancient Babylon... 230 Auroch glazed brick tile from the Ishtar Gate, Babylon... 233 Reconstruction of the Ishtar Gate, Babylon... 235 The goddess Astarte; terracotta figurine decorated with gold and inset rubies... 245 The so-called Cyrus Cylinder... 256 Darius I receives a foreign delegation... 270 ILLUSTRATIONS ix
Persian warriors; painted relief from Susa... 272 Assyrian relief from Babylon... 285 The Palace of Darius the Great, Persepolis... 273 The tomb of Cyrus at Pasargadae... 292 Shallow drinking vessel, known as a phiale... 297 Assyrian scribes; relief from Nineveh... 302 Temple Mount, Jerusalem... 304 Inside Hezekiah s Tunnel... 307 Lyre players depicted on the Lachish relief... 315 Statue of Amenemhet III... 328 Coffin fragment of Isis mourning; Egypt... 335 Statuette of Job, showing ulcers... 340 Remains of Persepolis, Iran... 355 Babylonian clay brick with cuneiform inscription... 363 Coin of Antiochus IV Epiphanes... 367 Coin of John Hyrcanus... 373 Bronze coin issued under Antigonus II... 375 Aerial view of Masada... 378 Creation of Man by Michelangelo... 391 x A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE