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Editorial Review:
"It is a strange fact that we have never known with certainty who produced the book that has played such a central role in our civilization," writes Friedman, a foremost Bible scholar. From this point he begins an investigation and analysis that reads as compellingly as a good detective story. Focusing on the central books of the Old Testament--Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy--he draws upon biblical and archaeological evidence to make a convincing argument for the identities of their authors. In the process he paints a vivid picture of the world of the Bible--its politics, history, and personalities. The result is a marvel of scholarship that sheds a new and enriching light on our understanding of the Bible as literature, history, and sacred text."J," "P," "E," and "D" are the names scholars have given to some authors of the Bible, and, as such, they are very important letters to a lot of people. Churches have died and been born, and millions of people have lost faith or found it, because of the last two centuries of debate about who, exactly, wrote the canonical texts of Christianity and Judaism. Richard Elliott Friedman's survey of this debate, in Who Wrote the Bible? , may be the best written popular book about this question. Without condescension or high-flown academic language, Friedman carefully describes the history of textual criticism of the Bible--a subject on which his authority is unparalleled (Friedman has contributed voluminously to the authoritative Anchor Bible Dictionary ). But this book is not just smart. Perhaps even more impressive than Friedman's erudition is his sensitivity to the power of textual criticism to influence faith. --Michael Joseph Gross
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
Makes as much sense as do our traditions of who wrote what:
Professor Friedman's book shatters most of my beliefs since childhood relative to who wrote the Bible. My earliest beliefs were formed by my teachers who were strict orthodox protestant believers. Basically I believed that every word of God in the Old Testament was there as if God had dictated it to those who penned its contents. I can recall questioning authorship at least of some of its sections, such as the death of Moses. It was logical to assume that the account written describing his death and burial... more info
Excellent, short, compelling book:
This is a very good book, making careful and reasonable arguments about the various authors of the Bible - J, E, D, P, and their redactor R. While I am not an expert in this field, Friedman makes arguments that seem very compelling and accessible even to a lay audience not deeply familiar with the historical, academic of constructing the Bible's authorship. Careful reading is required, and an open mind. Friedman's analysis seems to be fair-minded and academically honest, without sounding pretentious or... more info For Those who are students of the Documentary Hypothesis:
This book is an excellent read. For those who are literary critics of the Holy Bible, this would prove to be the back bone for understanding who evolution of who wrote the bible, why they wrote it, and when. Friedman's emphasis' lies on the Pentateuch, or the first five books of the bible which were purportedly written by Moses. Friedman however dismisses this, and provides a more plausible explaination behind these first five books. His image of the documentary hypothesis cannot be matched in this day and... more info Important For Those Who Like Postmortem:
Most of this book concentrates on a hypothesis for how the Torah, not the bible as a whole was written (regardless of what the book's name or some of the reviewers say)- it is the origin of Torah that is attributed to Moses, not the bible as a whole.more info Similar Products:
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