Friedman-the Levites as the people of the Exodus

Posted on December 6, 2017 by jamesbradfordpate

theoutwardquest

I am posting about Richard Elliott Friedman’s new book The Exodus.

Two old poems give primitive information that relates to the Exodus.

One of them, which does not have anything straight forward to do with the Exodus is the Song of Deborah in Judges 5.  Friedman accepts the work of those who see this as possibly the most ancient source in the Bible.   For him, the fact that it does not mention the tribe of Levi among the tribes it names is highly significant.  It presents a situation where early Israel consists of about ten tribes in northern Palestine and east of the Jordan.

He thinks the battle of Judges 5 may have been a prelude to the archeologically verified destruction of Hazor.

The Exodus from Egypt may not have taken place yet when this battle happened.  You can’t use the Mernephah Stela’s mention of “Israel” to date the…

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About jamesbradfordpate

My name is James Pate. This blog is about my journey. I read books. I watch movies and TV shows. I go to church. I try to find meaning. And, when I can’t do that, I just talk about stuff that I find interesting. I have degrees in fields of religious studies. I have an M.Phil. in the History of Biblical Interpretation from Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, Ohio. I also have an M.A. in Hebrew Bible from Jewish Theological Seminary, an M.Div. from Harvard Divinity School, and a B.A. from DePauw University.
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