I rate nonfiction books on the basis of whether or not they impart knowledge I didn't have, are clearly written, and whether the author has solid evidence to support the theories/arguments given.
I have read other books by Eisenman and can say that he always has many references to back up his views. These two volumes on James is no exception. He invites the reader to use the references he has used so that the reader can keep up, because he is meticulous with notes and every paragraph has relevant information. I suppose that is why he needed two volumes to get the job done. He is very easy to read. It doesn't matter if one agrees with his conclusions or not. What is important is that if you are interested in Biblical history, this is a super two volume set. You may or may not agree with him. That is up to you.
Add to book club
Loading your book clubs
There was a problem loading your book clubs. Please try again.
Not in a club?
Learn more
Join or create book clubs
Choose books together
Track your books
Bring your club to Amazon Book Clubs, start a new book club and invite your friends to join, or find a club that’s right for you for free.
Flip to back
Flip to front
Follow the Author
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.
OK
James the Brother of Jesus and the Dead Sea Scrolls I: The Historical James, Paul the Enemy, and Jesus' Brothers as Apostles Paperback – May 21, 2012
by
Robert Eisenman
(Author)
|
Robert Eisenman
(Author)
Find all the books, read about the author, and more.
See search results for this author
Are you an author?
Learn about Author Central
|
|
Price
|
New from | Used from |
-
Print length428 pages
-
LanguageEnglish
-
Publication dateMay 21, 2012
-
Dimensions7 x 0.97 x 10 inches
-
ISBN-100985599138
-
ISBN-13978-0985599133
Enter your mobile number or email address below and we'll send you a link to download the free Kindle App. Then you can start reading Kindle books on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.
-
Apple
-
Android
-
Windows Phone
-
Android
|
Download to your computer
|
Kindle Cloud Reader
|
Customers who viewed this item also viewed
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Get everything you need
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Customers who bought this item also bought
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Editorial Reviews
About the Author
Robert Eisenman is the author of The New Testament Code: The Cup of the Lord, the Damascus Covenant, and the Blood of Christ (2006), James the Brother of Jesus: The Key to Unlocking the Secrets of Early Christianity and the Dead Sea Scrolls (1998), The Dead Sea Scrolls and the First Christians (1996), Islamic Law in Palestine and Israel: A History of the Survival of Tanzimat and Shari'ah (1978), and co-editor of The Facsimile Edition of the Dead Sea Scrolls (1989) and The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered (1992). He is Professor of Middle East Religions and Archaeology and Islamic Law and the Director of the Institute for the Study of Judeo-Christian Origins at California State University Long Beach and Visiting Senior Member of Linacre College, Oxford. He holds a B.A. from Cornell University in Philosophy and Engineering Physics (1958), an M.A. from New York University in Near Eastern Studies (1966), and a Ph.D from Columbia University in Middle East Languages and Cultures and Islamic Law (1971). He was a Senior Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Postgraduate Hebrew Studies and an American Endowment for the Humanities Fellow-in-Residence at the Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem, where the Dead Sea Scrolls were first examined. In 1991-92, he was the Consultant to the Huntington Library in San Marino, California on its decision to open its archives and allow free access for all scholars to the previously unpublished Scrolls. In 2002, he was the first to publicly announce that the so-called 'James Ossuary', which so suddenly and 'miraculously' appeared, was fraudulent; and he did this on the very same day it was made public on the basis of the actual inscription itself and what it said without any 'scientific' or 'pseudo-scientific' aids.
Start reading James the Brother of Jesus and the Dead Sea Scrolls I on your Kindle in under a minute.
Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.
Product details
- Publisher : Grave Distractions Publications (May 21, 2012)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 428 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0985599138
- ISBN-13 : 978-0985599133
- Item Weight : 1.63 pounds
- Dimensions : 7 x 0.97 x 10 inches
-
Best Sellers Rank:
#861,746 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #153 in Dead Sea Scrolls Church History
- #5,596 in Christian Church History (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
Customer reviews
4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
52 global ratings
How are ratings calculated?
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzes reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Top reviews
Top reviews from the United States
There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.
Reviewed in the United States on July 8, 2015
Verified Purchase
8 people found this helpful
Report abuse
Reviewed in the United States on January 13, 2016
Verified Purchase
Eisenman deserves considerable credit as a political credit in making the Deep Sea Scrolls to the public, and providing some initial description of what is in them. This, and its sequel, total 800 pages in which Eisenman seeks to explain characters described by generic identifiers as specifically applying to James, the brother of Jesus Christ, and the Apostle Paul. Alhtough considered a Historian, Eisenman argument really qualify as comparative analysis, and time one is convinced that his arguments are completely flaky. To make things worse, he interprets everything through the lens of Anti-Semitism even for things which clearly are not. For his part, he repeated goes off on anti-Christian rants. His misrepresentation of Christian culture and belief makes one concerned that his representations of Jewish culture and belief is equally off base. Nevertheless, as a Jew, he provides what is clearly the best survey of Jewish writings as enlighten understanding of Christian writings. And for all the problem of his less than credible conclusions, the process of and vigor of his attacks against understandings which have been held for thousands of years incorrectly as settled, and not subject to challenge. He does not well end the debate, but he begin unapologetically an adversarial academic conversation which needs to be had and does, at least, shake your conviction that factual accounts that Christian have long accepted need to be reviewed and revised. At his worst, Eisenman completely loses professional objectivity, attacking the content of written accounts by asserting, with nothing more than a sarcastic mocking tone, that certain passages of the New Testament are complete nonsense. At this best, Eisenman gives insights that should shake your Christian world view. Of questionable weight, and at time obnoxious in the tone of his criticism the book still deserves a high rating, and should be considered a must read for the serious student of the history of the Intertestamental, and New Testament, periods.
6 people found this helpful
Report abuse
Reviewed in the United States on May 13, 2021
Verified Purchase
Good but he is the most terrible author. He simply can't write. He should get someone to write it for him. He knows what he is talking about but can't explain it properly
Reviewed in the United States on August 7, 2017
Verified Purchase
Robert Eisenman is brilliant! He is one of the best original thinkers in the study of early Christianity. Of course, he encountered some opposition from mainstream traditional thinkers, but you can read his scholarship for yourself and come to your own opinion. You might also want to watch the Caesar's Messiah video on YouTube or watch his Dead Sea Scrolls course.
2 people found this helpful
Report abuse
Reviewed in the United States on October 12, 2016
Verified Purchase
I had trudged through the original book (James, the Brother of Jesus) which was fascinating but unbelievably wordy. I sprang for this one because the topic is crucial and the guy does his research. I hoped that he had figured by now that his interminable details and repetitions were making for an exceedingly tough read. No such luck.
Again, a very thorough book on a neglected and very important topic, so something of a must-have for people interested in the genuine roots of what we know as Christianity. Lots of real revelations here, but unfortunately written again in a style so mired in repetition, redundancy and exhausting detail that getting through the whole book is an absolute trial. Still recommend it, but I do wish the author would pay attention to the many comments and complaints that his writing style is impossibly granular and verbose. He really needs to work with an editor or co-author who would be able to sift through the manuscript and sift out all the endless repetitions and rewordings of the key teachings.
Again, a very thorough book on a neglected and very important topic, so something of a must-have for people interested in the genuine roots of what we know as Christianity. Lots of real revelations here, but unfortunately written again in a style so mired in repetition, redundancy and exhausting detail that getting through the whole book is an absolute trial. Still recommend it, but I do wish the author would pay attention to the many comments and complaints that his writing style is impossibly granular and verbose. He really needs to work with an editor or co-author who would be able to sift through the manuscript and sift out all the endless repetitions and rewordings of the key teachings.
6 people found this helpful
Report abuse
Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2013
Verified Purchase
Robert Eisenman is one of my big three scholarly giants in the subject Biblical history along with the late Hyam Maccoby and James D. Tabor. Eisenman has a particularly endearing position due to his work in breaking up the 40 year publication logjam of the Dead Sea Scrolls. This book condenses his previous exhaustive '96 work, "James the Brother of Jesus" (What, Jesus had a brother!?!). Not only does he equate James with the DSS "Teacher of Righteousness", he also makes an excellent case for Paul being a Herodian and the "Spouter of Lies" in the DSS. I think he makes an ironclad case for Paul's familial connections, which is the source of his birthright as a Roman Citizen. Bells start going off and pieces of the puzzle start falling into place with the information he presents here.
Though they sometimes disagree with each other, this book, Maccoby's "The Mythmaker", and Tabor's "The Jesus Dynasty" & "The Jesus Discovery" (the latter with Simcha Jacobovici), should always be at hand for those looking to decode the tangled web of information about early Church history and the religion that came to be known as Christianity.
Though they sometimes disagree with each other, this book, Maccoby's "The Mythmaker", and Tabor's "The Jesus Dynasty" & "The Jesus Discovery" (the latter with Simcha Jacobovici), should always be at hand for those looking to decode the tangled web of information about early Church history and the religion that came to be known as Christianity.
19 people found this helpful
Report abuse
Reviewed in the United States on March 1, 2018
Verified Purchase
This is the most sensitive and insightful reading of Josephus and Paul’s letters. The approach to understanding Jesus through our knowledge of James his brother and head of the first Jerusalem Church was brilliant and convincing. This is not an easy read, but the reward is very well worth the effort
2 people found this helpful
Report abuse
Reviewed in the United States on August 18, 2018
Verified Purchase
Haven’t read yet
Top reviews from other countries
Mr. Christopher Monk
3.0 out of 5 stars
Fascinating but woeful writing
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 19, 2020Verified Purchase
Absolutely fascinating but his writing style is turgid, repetitive and often confusing. The punctuation is all over the place and don't talk about proof reading. Some paragraphs are justified followed by ranged left then back to justified which is disconcerting. The page size is large so one column per page is a very long line-length - so your eye will wander occasionally, which is poor design. Thousands of words are italicised for no reason I can fathom - sometimes ten per paragraph. Long winded and frequently saying "as I will discuss later" of "as discussed already" and you think 'did we?". Overall could and should be half the length but still very very interesting from an author who clearly knows a lot about his subject.
Murray Hughes
4.0 out of 5 stars
Eisenman's books are always fascinating if a bit heavy to ...
Reviewed in Canada on February 25, 2018Verified Purchase
Eisenman's books are always fascinating if a bit heavy to wade through. The only reason I didn't give it five stars is that it arrived with the first thirty-five pages missing. Not much point in returning it due to the time and cost involved, and since the missing pages consisted of the introduction.
Irene Georgison
5.0 out of 5 stars
It is going to take me a while to read ...
Reviewed in Canada on July 18, 2017Verified Purchase
It is going to take me a while to read it. I'm enjoying it - I have to do some research to prove the author's point of view, a challenging book.
What other items do customers buy after viewing this item?
Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1
Pages with related products.
See and discover other items: the black sea













