Old Testament Times…

This afternoon I succeeded in reading R.K. Harrison’s comprehensive Old Testament Times ‘A Social, Political, and Cultural Context’. Essentially Harrison’s book attempts at reconstructing the cultures of civilizations surrounding and interacting with the nation of Israel throughout the Biblical narrative. Because of this, his material is heavily reliant on Archeological evidence fundamental to understanding the surrounding nations and by their similarity, Israel. His primary objective is not necessarily to confirm the historicity of the Old Testament (though the evidence he provides continually does along the way) but rather to provide relevant information that may add more depth of understanding to the modern reader who is unfamiliar to the history and cultures of antiquity. As far as structure is concerned he begins some time before the Patriarchal period exploring the ancient civilizations that resided in Mesopotamia followed by a thorough look at ancient Egypt. From this point he loosely follows the Biblical narrative and its characters stopping to divert at appropriate occasions for a look at the contemporary civilizations and cultures. The book ends by preparing the reader for the opening scene of the New Testament. So now my verdict…

I enjoyed Harrison’s book, particularly the insights he provided into the Genesis to Deuteronomy period. Some of the information there was extremely helpful and relevant to gaining a greater understanding of subjects such as the background of Abraham in Ur, Jacob’s conscription to work for Laban, the household god drama, the birthright transfer, Joseph’s ascent to power, the background of Moses, dating the Exodus, and the matriarchal succession of Israel’s kings to name a few. The second half of the book was less revolutionary and served more as a review than instruction, probably due to the excellent Job my teachers in England did while teaching the latter period of Israel’s history. In conclusion, though not as exciting or immediately applicable as F.F. Bruce’s work, Harrison’s book contained some valuable nuggets of information and was a clear, well rounded explanation of Old Testament history. I am however reluctant to recommend this particular book to the casual/average reader with the exception that they are highly motivated and committed to the subject because I suspect they will not survive the opening section on Sumerian culture…