The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel's Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts [Paperback]

Mark S. Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 6, 2003

According to the Bible, ancient Israel's neighbors worshipped a wide variety of gods. In recent years, scholars have sought a better understanding of this early polytheistic milieu and its relation to Yahweh, the God of Israel. Drawing on ancient Ugaritic texts and looking closely at Ugaritic deities, Mark Smith examines the meaning of "divinity" in the ancient near East and considers how this concept applies to Yahweh.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"This is an important work which will alter the perspectives of many."--The Bible Today

"Not only is the text wide-ranging and insightful at every turn, but it is greatly complemented by the endnotes, which resume arguments, develop tangential aspects, and offer a massive bibliography for further exploration."--Journal of Near Eastern Studies

"Brilliant, well-documented, well-organized, and very discomforting. Biblical scholars now recognize that in the pre-exilic era Asherah worship, infant sacrifice, solar veneration, and other religious practices attacked by biblical authors represented normal Israelite worship, while monotheism was a late development in the Babylonian Exile and subsequent years. Smith and others led the charge in this new scholarly perception of Israelite religion. But with this volume Smith has thrown down a gauntlet to challenge our understandings even more. Smith has produced a seminal work with which scholars must come to grips for years."--Journal of Hebrew Scriptures

About the Author

Mark S. Smith is Skirball Professor of Bible and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at New York University. His publications include The Pilgrimage Pattern in Exodus (1997), The Ugaritic Baal Cycle (1994), The Early History of God (1990), as well as several other books on the Hebrew Bible, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and West Semitic mythology and literature.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (November 6, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0195167686
• ISBN-13: 978-0195167689
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #218,178 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

110 of 114 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Scholarly Tour De Force, May 10, 2003

By 

Timothy Dougal (Madison, Wi United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel's Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts (Hardcover)

If you have read Smith's "Early History of God" and been intrigued by his conception of the development of our notion of God during the Biblical period, "The Origins Of Monotheism" delivers a significantly more detailed analysis of the ancient Bronze Age texts from Ugarit and their influence on the culture of ancient Palestine in general, and Biblical texts in particular. Mr. Smith examines conceptions of the divine family and council of the gods, more general notions of ancient aspects of divinity, and the roles of various divinity. Especially insightful is his critique of James Frazier's category of "dying and rising" gods in the Near East. In his analysis of Isaiah, he gives considerable background into Mesopotamian views on the divinity of statues of gods, whithout prejudice. There is a lot more than I can list here in this book, but if you're interested in how the idea of one, all-powerful god came about, this is really essential reading.

25 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Presentation, August 22, 2007

By 

G. Goldwater (Seattle, Washington) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel's Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts (Paperback)

Mark Smith has arranged his materials such that his critiques are easy to follow with the aid of a tanach [I don't have an Ugaritic text]. Thought provoking and thorough. Smith tells you the relative probabilities of different critical hypothesis' & it is apparent when he is positing his own opinions.

I especially like the way Smith's approach opens up tanach as a text with a context familiar to contemporaneous West Asians.

This is not a quick read. The citations in the manuscript as well as the footnotes are worth following up if possible.

It is especially helpful if one knows hebrew language. The hebrew letters are transliterated into a roman alphabet which means you've got to retranslate from the roman letters into the hebrew letters in order to realize the shoreshim [roots of the word meanings]...a minor irritant.

I highly recommend this book for those with an interest in tanach in particular or West Asian religions in general.

41 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scholars Dream, January 4, 2006

By 

Eric Gray (Colorado, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Origins of Biblical Monotheism: Israel's Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts (Paperback)

This is an excellently documented book, written by a true scholar. All assertions are documented, and when the author makes an assertion, any contrary evidence is disclosed as well.

This book examines the the Ugaritic pantheon and how it relates to pre-exilic Hebrew religion.