Israel's Past in Present Research
Essays on Ancient Israelite Historiography
Edited by V. Philips Long
Israel's Past in Present Research
Essays on Ancient Israelite Historiography
Edited by V. Philips Long
The debate over history, history-writing, and the scientific study of history is reaching an apex in the late twentieth century and shows no signs of abating in the near future. The literature on the topic is prodigious. The time is thus ripe for an anthology of essays of the sort that Professor Long has collected, essays that trace the history of the issues that have fed into the debate. The classic and contemporary essays presented here provide an overview and introduction to the topic, bringing together the most essential of these in a handy compilation. The book is organized in six sections:
- Description
- Table of Contents
(1) The State of Old Testament Historiography
(2) Ancient Near Eastern Historiography
(3) Ancient Israelite Historiography
(4) Method in the Study of Ancient Israelite Historiography
(5) The Historical Impulse in the Old Testament
(6) The Future of Israel’s Past
Long’s goal is to provide a context for Israelite history-writing within the milieu of the ancient Near East, expose the methodologies and assumptions of various approaches and perspectives on historiography, and provide access to essays that examine the contribution of the Hebrew Scriptures themselves to the origins of history-writing. The final essay, by Long, points the way to future research and topics that will move the discussion forward into the next millennium.
Professor V. Philips Long teaches Old Testament at Covenant Theological Seminary, St. Louis.
Series Preface
Editor’s Preface
Abbreviations
Part 1: Israel’s Past in Present Research
Introduction 2
(i) The Path to the Present
The History of the Study of Israelite and Judaean History: From the Renaissance to the Present - John H. Hayes 7
(ii) The Present Lack of Consensus
The New Biblical Historiography - Mark Zvi Brettler
The Paradigm Is Changing: Hopes—and Fears - Rolf Rendtorff
Part 2: The Historical Impulse among Israel’s Neighbors
Introduction
Biblical History in Its Near Eastern Setting: The Contextual Approach - William W. Hallo
Biblical and Prebiblical Historiography - H. Cazelles
Israelite and Aramean History in the Light of Inscriptions - A. R. Millard
Part 3: Israel’s History Writing: Its Multiplex Character
Introduction
(i) Antiquarian
The ‘Historical Character’ of the Old Testament in Recent Biblical Theology - John J. Collins
Joshua’s Campaign of Canaan and Near Eastern Historiography - John Van Seters
What Do We Know about Ancient Israel? - R. N. Whybray
‘Ancient Israel’ and History: A Response to Norman Whybray - Philip R. Davies
Truth and Reality in the Historical Understanding of the Old Testament - Gerhard Maier
(ii) Aspectual
History as Confession of Faith—History as Object of Scholarly Research: On One of the Basic Problems of the History of Israel - J. Alberto Soggin
The Old Testament’s Understanding of History in Relation to That of the Enlightenment - Claus Westermann
(iii) Artistic
History and Fiction: What Is History? - V. Philips Long
Narrative Art in Joshua-Judges-Samuel-Kings - L. Alonso Schokel
Part 4: Writing Israel’s History: The Methodological Challenge
Introduction
(i) General Discussions of Method
Doing History in Biblical Studies - Diana Edelman
The Underpinnings - K. Lawson Younger, Jr
The Devaluation of the Old Testament as a Historical Source: Notes on a Problem in the History of Ideas - Siegfried Herrmann
Reading the Bible Historically: The Historian’s Approach - J. Maxwell Miller
Contingency, Continuity and Integrity in Historical Understanding: An Old Testament Perspective - Ferdinand Deist
(ii) Social Science and the Battle over the Bible
Is It Still Possible to Write a History of Ancient Israel? - Niels Peter Lemche
Erasing History: The Minimalist Assault on Ancient Israel - Baruch Halpern
(iii) Literary Study and Historical Reconstruction
Historical Criticism and Literary Interpretation: Is There Any Common Ground? - John Barton
Modern Literary-Critical Methods and the Historicity of the Old Testament - Herbert H. Klement
Part 5: The Historical Impulse in the Hebrew Canon: A Sampling
Introduction
(i) The Law
The Hebrew Patriarchs and History - Roland de Vaux
Historical and Christian Faith - Thomas L. Thompson
The Patriarchs in Scripture and History - John Goldingay
(ii) The Prophets (Former)
Early Israel in Canaan: A Survey of Recent Evidence and Interpretations - Richard S. Hess
Faces of Exile in Old Testament Historiography - J. G. McConville
(iii) The Prophets (Latter)
The Understanding of History in the Old Testament Prophets - Hans Walter Wolff
‘The Early Traditions of Israel in the Prophecy of Hosea’—A Review - Heinz-Dieter Neef
(iv) The Writings
History and Historiography: The Royal Reforms - Gary N. Knoppers
Part 6: The Future of Israel’s Past
The Future of Israel’s Past: Personal Reflections - V. Philips Long
Indexes
Index of Authorities
Index of Scripture
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