Nectaris

Joel,

Thank you for the info, I've only read a few books on Biblical scholarship, one being Friedman's book, which I found to be quite enjoyable. Another was book comparing various Middle Eastern and Near Eastern mythologies and trying to explain possible origins of Biblical stories (Tim Callahan's Secret Origins of the Bible), which, while quite enjoyable, I found to have some problems, such as the common use of the phrase, "there is no evidence to suggest otherwise" in too many situations.

I'll have to check out The Pentateuch when I get a chance.

Actually I've also read Asimov's book, but I don't know if I consider that to be serious biblical scholarship, as it just seems to be more or less of an overview of The Bible, and doesn't go into depth about any specific issues.

Thanks again for the information.

Dave

Soul Invictus

Isn't that the truth? Outside of the recommended reading list, what other sources/books do you feel are paramount for historical or religious studies?

I am currently working on something on the demise of the Documentary Hypothesis, but it won't be up for a good few months owing to real-life commitments.

Real life commitments-I know the feeling...

Celsus

Well... er... I haven't read quite as extensively on the topic as you might assume. Please check out Minimalist recommendations and a few others. in which I can now heartily second Lemche and Zevitt (both recently added to the recommended reading list). Whitelam's The Invention of Ancient Israel is a very worthwhile purchase as a critique of the paradigms within biblical archaeology. I haven't finished anything else outside the reading list (well, actually, everything I've read except for Whitelam, I've put in the reading list). In terms of getting a grasp of the field, you would probably do best to read in this order (from the reading list, except the first book):

0. It Ain't Necessarily So by Matthew Sturgis (a popularisation, but an extremely easy read)
1. Laughlin
2. Finkelstein & Silberman
3. Dever
4. Lemche
5. Zevitt (only if you're not sick of the topic by now)

For the Pentateuch/Torah/Herew Bible, Blenkinsopp is a much better introduction than Friedman (though it presupposes some familiarity, and is not a popularisation), in terms of getting a good idea of the state of the field of Pentateuchal studies. So in order of reading, if one were to examine the Pentateuch, I'd get:

1. Boadt
1a. Friedman
2. McKenzie & Graham
2a. Blenkinsopp

With those, you'll have as good an understanding of the Pentateuch as I do. You could also look up the relevant entries (J, E, D, P, Documentary Hypothesis, Supplementary Hypothesis, Fragmentary Hypothesis, chiasmus, toledot, etc.) in the Anchor Bible Dictionary at a nearby library. I've been meaning to get my hands on R.N. Whybray and a few others as well who present alternative views.

Apikorus and DrJim are the ones to ask for additional recommendations.

Joel