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Title: The Bible As History
ISBN: 0688037240
Author:
Werner Keller
Publicate Date: 1981-01
Publish: 1981-01
List Price: $14.95
Average Customer Rating: 3.5
Format: Hardcover
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Amazon Lowest New Price: $7.45
Amazon Lowest Used Price: $0.02
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| Customer Review: |
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1: Confusing?
When I first began this book I was pretty excited as I didn't know that much about archaeology as this book came off to me as some exciting quest into antiquity to discover some profound, riveting truth. I was a little confused after a chapter or two, but I thought it was just me. Then as the chapters went on and on I began to wonder if someone had sabotaged this book or if the author was insane. Based on the cover and description of the book, I concluded that it was a treatise on proving the historical accuracy of the Bible based on archaeological evidence. Every chapter seemed to follow this premise, until the last page or few. The author would go on and on about how it was when Abram lived in Ur and this new and exciting truth about this and that that changes peoples perspectives and all this and his tone came off as one who was pretty enthralled by this discovery, and then at the end of the chapter he would basically refute everything he had previously argued.
Basically, a chapter consisted of 80%: the evidence is undeniable Abram lived in ancient Ur as a cosmopolitan in the big city wow! and would be followed by: oh, but Abram actually was a rural shepherd or whatever and it would be impossible for him to have lived in Ur; and in your mind you wonder why he bothered to mention the initial hypothesis in the first place. Simply I didn't understand this author at all. Why would someone write a book where they set forth a bunch of new ideas and then refute every single one of them?
Though the title claims to be a treatise upholding the accuracy of the Bible (and the author concurs in the introduction), if the author conveyed anything to me at all aside from utter confusion, his ending conclusions of each chapter entirely uproot the argument he apparently intended to uphold, unless it is that he is secretly trying to do just that, but who knows what this guy is really trying to convey?
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2: A Stunning Affirmation of Historical Significance
I see several reviews here that attack this book for daring to acknowledge the historical accuracy of the Bible. Those reviews say more about the bitterness and intolerance of the reviewer than they do about "The Bible As History."
After reading all of them, I wonder if they're more fueled by fear than their smug arrogance: if the Bible proved to be historically accurate...then what if the rest were true? (Those arguments are best left to the many other books out there).
Anyway, if you're intrigued by archaeology and the Bible, I would definitely recommend this book. Written by a German journalist and originally published in the 1950s (I believe), it's a book that badly needs to be updated or at least perhaps someone should undertake a second volume that's as well written for the general masses as this one. The discrediting of Kathleen Kenyon's attempt to discredit the Bible should be addressed, along with the discovery of bone boxes of Jesus' Jewish judge and the amphitheatre step with King David's name on it should be added to this incredible story.
What I loved about this book was the early history of archaeology in the Middle East and how many people literally used the Bible as a map to locate entire lost cities under the sand. It's as fun as it was fascinating to read.
As more and more discoveries are unearthed there every few years--and all of them only attest to the Bible's impregnable authenticity as a record of history--a book like "The Bible as History" becomes as essential as it is enjoyable to read and keep on the shelf.
If the athiests weren't so afraid of what the sand and stones still yield, they might even enjoy it too.
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3: Everything done as expected
Everything was as expected. Very happy with the condition of the book. Actually better than I expected for its age.
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4: Interesting take on Biblical history
This is a pretty good read. The author covers a great amount of territory to explore the extent to which there is historical evidence to bolster Biblical text. The author, in his "Introduction," notes that "In Palestine, places and towns which are frequently mentioned in the Bible are being brought back once more into the light of day. They look exactly as the Bible describes them and lie exactly where the Bible locates them." He concludes his introduction with the statement that, after poring over great amounts of material (page 24), ". . .there kept hammering in my brain this one sentence: `The Bible is right after all.'"
The book itself looks at many Biblical passages--on the "flood," on Canaan, on the Israeli's term in Egypt, on the forty years in the Wilderness, on the historical arc from Joshua to Saul, and--finally--to the New Testament. Keller concludes that there is much historical evidence that is consistent with many passages in the Bible.
Some question, though, must be considered. He tends to be fairly accepting of the validity of the Shroud of Turin (although he does note some questions), which is, needless to say, under great question. And the book by Robin Lane Fox, "The Unauthorized Version: Truth and Fiction in the Bible," raises many questions about the inconsistencies and historical inaccuracies in Scripture.
Nonetheless, this is an interesting work. While I think that the historical facts are less clear-cut than the author, he makes his case eloquently.
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5: Awesome
Everyone should read this book. I reinforces so much and at the same time it helped me understand the old testement like never before. The entire bible should be written like a history book for all to understand better.
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