The Bible in History: How Writers Create a Past
Encyclopedia
The Bible in History, subtitled How Writers Create a Past, (Pimlico, 1999), is a book by Thomas L. Thompson
, Professor of Old Testament at the University of Copenhagen
. Its US title is The Mythic Past: Biblical Archaeology and the Myth of Israel.
Part 1 deals with general historiogaphical issues, including the importance of understanding the types and purposes of different biblical stories, the dangers of treating myth and poetry as history, and the use of origin-myths as recurring motifs, concluding that the bible was intended to provide an ancient people with a common past, and thus was very different from our own tradition of critical history-writing. Part 2 is a history of ancient Palestine and the surrounding region from the earliest human settlement to the Hellenistic period
drawing on the most recent archaeological and historical studies, and Part 3 concludes with a survey of the theological implications of the preceding study.
, Philip R. Davies, and Keith W. Whitelam among others who say that the Hebrew bible
cannot be treated as history, because it was not intended as history. The minimalist argument has been received with emotions bordering on outrage by other scholars, somewhat inaccurately known as "maximalists" - most of them do not in fact subscribe to a view that would take all or even most of the bible as being historically accurate, but object strongly to the minimalist contention that it is completely or almost completely ahistorical. The debate has been frequently framed in political terms, with the minimalists accused of subverting the existence of the modern state of Israel and worse. "The Bible in History", Thompson's attempt to summarise the minimalist thesis and set it before a wider public, was the immediate cause for William G. Dever
's rejoinder, What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It?
, (2001), which then led into a long and frequently heated debate (in which Davies, rather than Thompson, championed the minimalist side) on the merits of the bible as history.
Thomas L. Thompson
Thomas L. Thompson is a biblical theologian associated with the movement known as the Copenhagen School. He was professor of theology at the University of Copenhagen from 1993–2009, lives in Denmark and is now a Danish citizen.-Background:Thompson obtained a B.A...
, Professor of Old Testament at the University of Copenhagen
University of Copenhagen
The University of Copenhagen is the oldest and largest university and research institution in Denmark. Founded in 1479, it has more than 37,000 students, the majority of whom are female , and more than 7,000 employees. The university has several campuses located in and around Copenhagen, with the...
. Its US title is The Mythic Past: Biblical Archaeology and the Myth of Israel.
Summary
The theme of "The Bible and History" is the need to treat the bible as literature rather than as history: "The Bible's language is not an historical language. It is a language of high literature, of story, of sermon and of song. It is a tool of philosophy and moral instruction."Part 1 deals with general historiogaphical issues, including the importance of understanding the types and purposes of different biblical stories, the dangers of treating myth and poetry as history, and the use of origin-myths as recurring motifs, concluding that the bible was intended to provide an ancient people with a common past, and thus was very different from our own tradition of critical history-writing. Part 2 is a history of ancient Palestine and the surrounding region from the earliest human settlement to the Hellenistic period
Hellenistic period
The Hellenistic period or Hellenistic era describes the time which followed the conquests of Alexander the Great. It was so named by the historian J. G. Droysen. During this time, Greek cultural influence and power was at its zenith in Europe and Asia...
drawing on the most recent archaeological and historical studies, and Part 3 concludes with a survey of the theological implications of the preceding study.
The minimalist/maximalist debate
Thompson is a leading biblical minimalist, a group of like-minded scholars including Niels Peter LemcheNiels Peter Lemche
Niels Peter Lemche is a biblical scholar at the University of Copenhagen.-Biblical minimalism:Lemche is closely identified with the movement known as biblical minimalism, and "has assumed the role of philosophical and methodological spokesperson" for the movement.In common with the general trend...
, Philip R. Davies, and Keith W. Whitelam among others who say that the Hebrew bible
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible is a term used by biblical scholars outside of Judaism to refer to the Tanakh , a canonical collection of Jewish texts, and the common textual antecedent of the several canonical editions of the Christian Old Testament...
cannot be treated as history, because it was not intended as history. The minimalist argument has been received with emotions bordering on outrage by other scholars, somewhat inaccurately known as "maximalists" - most of them do not in fact subscribe to a view that would take all or even most of the bible as being historically accurate, but object strongly to the minimalist contention that it is completely or almost completely ahistorical. The debate has been frequently framed in political terms, with the minimalists accused of subverting the existence of the modern state of Israel and worse. "The Bible in History", Thompson's attempt to summarise the minimalist thesis and set it before a wider public, was the immediate cause for William G. Dever
William G. Dever
William G. Dever is an American archaeologist, specialising in the history of Israel and the Near East in Biblical times. He was Professor of Near Eastern Archaeology and Anthropology at the University of Arizona in Tucson from 1975 to 2002...
's rejoinder, What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It?
What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It?
What Did the Biblical Writers Know and When Did They Know It? is a book by biblical scholar and archaeologist William G. Dever detailing his response to the claims of minimalists to the historicity and value of the Hebrew Bible.- Summary :...
, (2001), which then led into a long and frequently heated debate (in which Davies, rather than Thompson, championed the minimalist side) on the merits of the bible as history.
External links
- Review at the Spectator by Raymond Carr
- Review at Contemporary Review by Martin Dudley
- "On Reading the Bible for History", JBS in which Thompson answers Dever
- Thomas L. Thompson, "A View from Copenhagen" in which Thompson defends his book from critics in general