History of Israel : An Essential Guide

Essential to an understanding of the Hebrew scriptures is a basic grasp of the historical context in which they were written.

For example, before students can understand the message of the prophets, they must understand the social and cultural factors, both within Israel and Judah, and on the larger stage of world events, to which that message was addressed.Arriving at a basic grasp of the outline of ancient Israelite history is no easy matter.

The biblical texts themselves do not present that history within a single, unified narrative, and many books on the history of Israel are too technical or too detailed to lend themselves readily to student use.The History of Israel: An Essential Guide meets the need for a succinct, accessible, yet comprehensive overview of the historical events and movements which lie behind the Hebrew scriptures, as well as the sources and methods by which that history is studied.This volume is a thorough revision and expansion of the author's essay Introduction to the History of Ancient Israel in Volume 1 of The New Interpreter'sRM Bible.