Since the beginning of critical scholarship, Biblical texts have been dated using linguistic evidence and, in recent years, this has become a controversial topic. However, until now there has been no introduction to the field aimed at students with only a reasonable grounding in Biblical Hebrew. This textbook introduces the field of linguistic dating of biblical texts, particularly to intermediate and advanced students of biblical Hebrew who have a reasonable background in the language, having completed at least an introductory course at the university or divinity school level, but also to scholars of the Hebrew Bible in general who have not been exposed to the full scope of issues. The book is useful to a wide range of readers by introducing topics at a basic level before entering into detailed discussion. Among the many issues discussed in this volume are: What is it that makes Archaic Biblical Hebrew 'archaic', Early Biblical Hebrew 'early', and Late Biblical Hebrew 'late'? Does linguistic typology, i.e. different linguistic characteristics, convert easily and neatly into linguistic chronology, i.e. different historical origins? A large amount of text samples are presented for study. Readers are introduced to significant linguistic features of the texts by means of notes on the passages. For use as a textbook in a classroom context, the detailed notes on the text samples provide a background, concrete illustrations, and a point of departure for discussion of the general and theoretical issues discussed in each chapter.After a brief introduction (Chapter 1), the following chapters look in detail at the principles and methodology used to differentiate Archaic, Early and Late BiblicalHebrew (Chapters 2-5, 12), the complicating matters of dialects and diglossia and textual criticism (Chapters 7, 13), and the significance of extra-biblical sources, including Amarna Canaanite, Ugaritic, Aramaic, Hebrew inscriptions of the monarchic period, Qumran and Mishnaic Hebrew, the Hebrew language of Ben Sira and Bar Kochba, and also Egyptian, Akkadian, Persian and Greek loanwords (Chapters 6, 8-12).

Misusing Scripture offers a thorough and critical evaluation of American evangelical scholarship on the Bible. This strand of scholarship exerts enormous influence on the religious beliefs and practices, and even cultural and political perspectives, of millions of evangelical Christians in the United States and worldwide. The book brings together a diverse array of authors with expertise on the Bible, religion, history, and archaeology to critique the nature and growth of "faith-based" biblical scholarship. The chapters focus on inerrancy and textual criticism, archaeology and history, and the Bible in its ancient and contemporary contexts. They explore how evangelicals approach the Bible in their biblical interpretation, how "biblical" archaeology is misused to bolster distinctive views about the Bible, and how disputed interpretations of the Bible impact issues in the public square. This unique and timely volume contributes to a greater understanding and appreciation of how contemporary American evangelicals understand and use the Bible in their private and public lives. It will be of particular interest to scholars of biblical studies, evangelical Christianity, and religion in the United States.

This book evaluates the relationship between "Samuel" and "Chronicles" in a single synoptic story: David's transfer of Israel's sacred ark to Jerusalem in "2 Samuel 6" and "1 Chronicles 13, 15-16". Chapter one surveys areas of research related to "Samuel" and "Chronicles". Rezetko summarises research and perspectives on these books and their stories of David's ark transfer. The review highlights competing approaches to "Samuel" which center on either sources or composition and on either a diachronic or synchronic methodology. Chapter two surveys issues related to synchronic and diachronic approaches to "Samuel" and "Chronicles". The writer suggests that the impasse between these competing approaches may be resolved by the textual-exegetical approach, that is, by using text-critical controls on redactional arguments.Finally, it is stated that the principal text-critical aim in this book is the detection of earlier and later forms of biblical texts or stories, or to state it differently, the discovery of earlier and later stages in their editorial histories. Using the aforementioned insights and methodologies, chapters three through six closely examine "2 Samuel 6" and the synoptic portions of "1 Chronicles 13, 15-16". All these interconnected adjustments point to successive editorial interventions over a substantial period of time and their cumulative appearance and objective may be labelled a literary layer. The book concludes with observations regarding the implications of the present investigation for the theories of A G Auld.