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Ancient Israelite Literature in its Cultural Context Paperback – August 8, 1994

by John H. Walton (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 41 ratings
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This unique book surveys within the various literary genres the parallels between the Bible and the literature of the ancient Near East. Each section begins with a survey of the available ancient literature, continues with a discussion of the literature, and concludes with a discussion of cases of alleged borrowing. The genres covered are - cosmology - laws - historical literature - wisdom literature - apocalyptic literature - personal archives and epics - covenants and treaties - hymns, prayers, and incantations - prophetic literature

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  1. Print length
    256 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Zondervan Academic
  4. Publication date
    August 8, 1994
  5. Dimensions
    6.07 x 0.71 x 8.95 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0310365910
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0310365914
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

This unique book surveys within the various literary genres the parallels between the Bible and the literature of the ancient Near East. Each section begins with a survey of the available ancient literature, continues with a discussion of the literature, and concludes with a discussion of cases of alleged borrowing. The genres covered are - cosmology - laws - historical literature - wisdom literature - apocalyptic literature - personal archives and epics - covenants and treaties - hymns, prayers, and incantations - prophetic literature

About the Author

John H. Walton (PhD, Hebrew Union College) is professor emeritus of Old Testament at Wheaton College Graduate School. He is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including Old Testament Today, with Andrew E. Hill; volumes on Job and Genesis in the NIV Application Commentary series; the six-volume Lost World series; and Genesis 1 as Ancient Cosmology. He was also coeditor, with Craig Keener, of the ECPA 2017 Bible of the Year winner, the NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Zondervan Academic (August 8, 1994)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 256 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0310365910
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0310365914
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.07 x 0.71 x 8.95 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 41 ratings

About the author

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John H. Walton

John H. Walton

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John H. Walton (Ph.D., Hebrew Union College) is professor of Old Testament at Wheaton College. Previously he was professor of Old Testament at Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, Illinois. Some of his books include Ancient Near Eastern Thought Essential Bible Companion), Old Testament Today (with Andrew Hill), Genesis NIV Application Commentary and IVP Bible Background Commentary (with Victor Matthews and Mark Chavalas).

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
41 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Mike
5.0 out of 5 stars A good introduction to the literature of the world the Israelites lived in.
Reviewed in the United States on May 16, 2023
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This book is a good introduction to the literature that may have influenced the Hebrew scriptures. None of the evaluations go too in-depth, but the book does provide a brief and adequate evaluation for each of the ancient texts considered. Great for a Bible student who has questions or concerns about the topic but not the time or ability to do a more thorough investigation. A great source for Christians worried that their faith might have been a mere adaption of ancient pagan religions (it's not).
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Ray Boshers - Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting and Enlightening
Reviewed in the United States on November 12, 2012
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Who would think that looking at parallels between Israelite literature and other near eastern writings could have been so interesting? I didn't. I really wanted to read this book just to get a better understanding of how The Bible compared with other texts from the same area. This book was a great read that not only helped me understand what I was seeking to learn, but also improved my understanding of the Scriptures. While there can be some comparisons made between the different writings you can easily see the differences between the different writings. Like in the psalms and incantations- Israel reminded Yahweh of His obligations through the covenants the He had made. While in Mesopotamia they used ritual and incantations to make the deity do their bidding. I highly recommend this book to help you understand just what was going on in the near east and how the writings of Scripture refute their beliefs.
17 people found this helpful
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Aaron Hill
5.0 out of 5 stars Sheds Light on the Old Testament
Reviewed in the United States on July 19, 2016
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A great survey of ancient literature, the various genres, and how it helped to inform the cultural setting in which much of the Old Testament was composed. It does us no good to view the Bible as being revealed by God into a cultural vacuum. The ancient Israelite authors and audience had a worldview that is very different from our own today. Dr. Walton does an excellent job of summarizing the existing literature and discussing how it sheds light on the context of the Old Testament. I highly recommend for anyone interested in taking OT scholarship seriously.
5 people found this helpful
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D. Miller
5.0 out of 5 stars Terrific Resource
Reviewed in the United States on November 20, 2016
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Excellent overview from a conservative scholar of the Ancient Near Eastern literary context for the Old Testament. Heavily footnoted, very useful.
3 people found this helpful
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F Bush
5.0 out of 5 stars History on steroids!!
Reviewed in the United States on December 7, 2019
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Love the history. Well researched!
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Caleb & Megan Martin
1.0 out of 5 stars The formatting of this digital copy is terrible
Reviewed in the United States on May 7, 2023
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I would not recommend this kindle book to anyone. The formatting is absolutely terrible. I would get my money back if I could as it is not well formatted and nearly impossible to separate the footnotes from the rest of the book.
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Scott Kimbrough
4.0 out of 5 stars Helpful companion to OT background study
Reviewed in the United States on August 24, 2004
Dr. Walton's work is well worth reading. As one reviewer suggests, background material is very helpful in shedding light on the text and meaning of the Old Testament. To be fair to Walton, however, requires a more thorough explanation.

Walton's general thesis is that the comparative method can help readers understand the Old Testament better because it helps put us in the place of the original author/audience. While there was an effort earlier in the 19th and 20th centuries to point out only the similarities between texts or only the differences, Walton's approach is similar to that of William Hallo or Lawson Younger; namely, to think through both the similarities and the differences between ancient near eastern texts and the OT biblical canon.

What is particularly helpful about Walton's book is that the material is arranged according to genre. The following genres are covered:

cosmology (trying to understand the ancient's conceptual worldview)

law codes

historical literature

wisdom literature

apocalyptic literature

personal archives

covenants and treaties

hymns, prayers and incantations

prophetic literature

By grouping various ancient texts in this fashion, it provides the reader with a well organized approach and makes using this book as a quick reference very helpful. Each chapter contains an introductory piece on the literary genre, followed by a brief but thorough listing of ancient texts that fit into this genre from Egypt, Canaan and Mesopotamia (absolutely replete with bibliography), concluded by a discussion of the texts and what kinds of insights can be given into biblical texts. It is a trustworthy evaluation because Walton is a faithful evangelical as well as a rigorous scholar. It is important to note that he points out both the similarities and differences. In recognizing similarities, he doesn't suggest gross borrowing, as some in the past suggested, but rather that the biblical material is given by revelation from God into a cultural context that could appropriately understand and receive God's revelation. In this way he upholds the authority of Scripture. Furthermore, he demonstrates very significant differences between the ancient near eastern literature and the biblical corpus such that it becomes increasing clear that the OT functions in different ways we normally wouldn't recognize: polemically against ancient cultures; demonstrating the LORD to be unique and holy compared to other deities; and revealing how extraordinary it is that the LORD, his character, ways and will can be known by the Hebrew people.

Another highlight is that the reader will learn a bit about the comparative method as well. Walton always takes into consideration the following important factors:

Are the texts to be compared of the same genre?

Are the texts to be compared talking about the same subject matter?

Are the texts being compared geographically close enough to suggest an influence one way or another?

Are the texts being compared close enough together in time to be compared?

These are important questions to ask and can go a long way in helping anyone think through many of the crassly alleged cases of "borrowing."

A particular highlight for me is the section on hymns, incantations and omens. Here the reader will be introduced to Mesopotamian laments, for instance, that show that the Mesopotamians had little way of knowing how or if they had offended a diety. You compare that with Psalm 51, for example, and you begin to appreciate all the more how gracious and extraordinary the LORD is who has revealed himself to his people in a discernable and trustworthy way such that they can knowledgably approach him in prayer, repentance, worship or whatever else.

Also, the chapter on treaties and covenants is very helpful in addition to a work like Craigie's commentary on Deuteronomy where the Hittite vassal treaty has long be seen to be parallel to the form of Deuteronomy.

Finally, a very helpful Summary and Conclusions chapter helps bring the material and conclusions together in a neat and summary fashion that is especially helpful for reference and general review.

I recommend this work for the more serious student of the Bible to fill in a crucial and sometimes overlooked area of biblical study and for the seminary or graduate level as well.
30 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Esther Hoogenraad
4.0 out of 5 stars Four Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 2, 2015
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book is oke
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