Power, Politics, and the Making of the Bible: An Introduction

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Summary: The Bible as Social History
Review: While this book is introduced by its authors as an introduction to the Bible and its history, it has much to offer both the layperson and the biblically knowledgable. For the average person seeking to understand the bible as a historical text, the authors outline how this book--so sacred and seminal to Western history--was created by everyday people as part of political struggles and triumphs stretching over eighteen hundred years (1250 B.C.E.to 550 C.E.(A.D.). For the biblical scholar, the book is an introduction, as well as outline for future scholarship, of the Bible using a sophisticated socio-historical approach which is only beginning to be accepted in traditional critical biblical studies circles. The book is dense with ideas, but elegantly well-written. It should be read by both Christians and Jews, since it shows an awareness of scholarship from both traditions, and demonstrates how the "Old Testament"/Torah and "New Testament" are historically linked in their respective productions as canons. For example, we read about how Jewish rabbis and Christian bishops selected and edited their inherited traditions in relation to their respective power struggles under the Roman empire; i.e.how the Mishnah and the Old and New Testaments were created and why. If you've ever wanted to know the real story behind this intriguing book- the Bible, then read "Power, Politics and the Making of the Bible."