Book details

Book description

This comprehensive, introductory textbook is unique in exploring the emergence of the Hebrew Bible in the broader context of world history. It particularly focuses on the influence of pre-Roman empires, empowering students with a richer understanding of Old Testament historiography.

• Provides a historical context for students learning about the development and changing interpretations of biblical texts
• Examines how these early stories were variously shaped by interaction with the Mesopotamian and Egyptian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Persian, and Hellenistic empires
• Incorporates recent research on the formation of the Pentateuch
• Reveals how key biblical texts came to be interpreted by Jewish, Christian, and Muslim faiths
• Includes numerous student-friendly features, such as study questions, review sections, bibliographies, timelines, and illustrations and photos

David M. Carr is Professor of Old Testament/Hebrew Bible at Union Theological Seminary in New York. Professor Carr's book-length publications include From D to Q: A Study of Early Jewish Interpretations of Solomon's Dream at Gibeon (1991); Reading the Fractures of Genesis: Historical and Literary Approaches (1996); The Erotic Word: Sexuality, Spirituality and the Bible (2003); and Writing on the Tablet of the Heart: Origins of  Scripture and Literature (2005).