A team of international authors builds a case for a positive appraisal of biblical Israel. Approaching the authenticity of Scripture from several angles--philosophical, archaeological, and literary--the contributors attack the issues involved in this controversial area.

To get the full benefit of reading the Bible, you need to understand (1) spatial and geographical features that shape the text, (2) the history of the Jewish people, (3) the Israelite and Greco-Roman cultures, and (4) the religious beliefs of the ancient writers. As Marc Turnage takes you on a virtual tour of the Holy Lands, you'll see Bible events in a fresh new way.

An examination of current methodologies for writing Israel's history.

The 'Dictionary of the Old Testament: Historical Books' is the second volume in IVP's Old Testament dictionary series. This volume picks up where the 'Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch' left off - with Joshua and Israel poised to enter the land - and carries us through the postexilic period. Following in the tradition of the four award-winning IVP dictionaries focused on the New Testament, this encyclopedic work is characterized by in-depth articles focused on key topics, many of them written by noted experts. The history of Israel forms the skeletal structure of the Old Testament. Understanding this history and the biblical books that trace it is essential to comprehending the Bible. The 'Dictionary of the Old Testament: Historical Books' is the only reference book focused exclusively on these biblical books and the history of Israel.

Although scholars have for centuries primarily been interested in using the study of ancient Israel to explain, illuminate, and clarify the biblical story, Megan Bishop Moore and Brad E. Kelle describe how scholars today seek more and more to tell the story of the past on its own terms, drawing from both biblical and extrabiblical sources to illuminate ancient Israel and its neighbors without privileging the biblical perspective. Biblical History and Israel’s Past provides a comprehensive survey of how study of the Old Testament and the history of Israel has changed since the middle of the twentieth century. Moore and Kelle discuss significant trends in scholarship, trace the development of ideas since the 1970s, and summarize major scholars, viewpoints, issues, and developments.

The history of Israel is a much-debated topic in Old Testament studies. On one side are minimalists who find little of historical value in the Hebrew Bible. On the other side are those who assume the biblical text is a precise historical record. Many serious students of the Bible find themselves between these two positions and would benefit from a careful exploration of issues in Israelite history. This substantive history of Israel textbook values the Bible's historical contribution without overlooking critical issues and challenges. Featuring the latest scholarship, the book introduces students to the current state of research on issues relevant to the study of ancient Israel. The editors and contributors, all top biblical scholars and historians, discuss historical evidence in a readable manner, using both canonical and chronological lenses to explore Israelite history. Illustrative items, such as maps and images, visually support the book's content. Tables and sidebars are also included.

Numerous useful books on Old Testament theology are now available. However, they often give too much information - or too little. Some can seem large, and daunting to the ordinary student or pastor, and because of their layout, information may be hard to access. Others take a more introductory approach and do not deal with many of the theological issues and questions that the Old Testament raises. Robin Routledge's aim is to bridge this gap. He provides a substantial overview of the central issues and themes in Old Testament theology in the main body of the text, with more detailed discussion and references for further reading in the footnotes. His purpose is to examine the theological significance of the various texts in their wider canonical context, noting unity and coherence within the Old Testament (and to some extent between the Old and New Testaments), whilst also being aware of diversity. A brief outline of the relationship between exegesis and biblical theology within the overall task of interpreting and applying biblical material is given in the first chapter. His hope as a Christian minister is that, while this volume has grown out of a teaching context, and is intended for students, it will also be of benefit to others who want to take the theological content of the Old Testament seriously, and to apply its message to the life and ministry of the church today.