Monthly Archives: January 2011

I started Bernard Levinson’s Deuteronomy and the Hermeneutics of Legal Innovation. Levinson argues that Deuteronomy was associated with King Josiah of Judah’s “centralization and purification of the cultus in 622 B.C.E., as narrated in 2 Kings 22-23” (9).  Against scholars … Continue reading →

I finished up Jon Levenson’s Sinai and Zion today. In this post, I want to discuss Levenson’s view on the Sinai and the Zion traditions as they relate to Northern and Southern Israel. Many biblical scholars hold that the Sinai … Continue reading →

I finished James Hoffmeier’s Ancient Israel in Sinai. Here are the Hoffmeier points that stood out to me: 1. In my post,Wellhausen’s Chronology of Sources, I discussed a defense of the historicity of the Tabernacle by David Heagel, which appeared … Continue reading →

I’m continuing my way through James Hoffmeier’s Ancient Israel in Sinai.  The book has a lot of good information—such as evidence that the biblical writings attributed by scholars to “P” reflect knowledge of thirteenth century Egyptian terminology rather than the … Continue reading →

I’m continuing my way through James Hoffmeier’s Ancient Israel in Sinai. Perhaps Hoffmeier’s strongest argument so far occurs on pages 56-57.  Hoffmeier argues that the occurrence of the city-name of Ramesses in Exodus 1:11, 12:37, and Numbers 33:3 indicates that … Continue reading →

I started James Hoffmeier’s Ancient Israel in Sinai: The Evidence for the Authenticity of the Wilderness Tradition.  You can tell from the title that Hoffmeier is a conservative scholar.  And yet, I know of centrist and liberal scholars who respect … Continue reading →

I finished Julius Wellhausen’s Prolegomena. In this post, I want to comment on two issues. First, I’ll pick out something from today’s reading that stood out to me. Second, I’ll discuss Wellhausen’s date for the Yahwist source (J). 1. In … Continue reading →