236 - Archaeology of the Bible: Book by Book

Archaeology of the Bible: Book by Book
By Gaalyahu Cornfeld (David Noel Freedman, consulting editor)
New York, Harper and Row, 1976. 343 pp. $16.95.

This volume is a unique, book-by-book commentary on the whole range of archaeological discoveries as they apply to the historical, cultural, and literary backgrounds of both the Old and New Testaments. This fascinating format makes the treasures of archaeological discovery readily accessible to both the non-specialist and the serious student of the Bible and archaeology. Gaalyahu Cornfeld, an Israeli biblical scholar and publisher, and David Noel Freedman of the University of Michigan present here an up-to-date picture of the amazing advances made in archaeological discoveries in Bible lands. Even the fabulous treasures unearthed at Ebla in Syria in the last few years are mentioned, although there still is no published evidence of "stories recounting the creation of the world and a great flood corresponding to the biblical accounts of the world's beginnings" (p. 12) found among the thousands of clay tablets at Ebla.

The well-written text is accompanied by numerous illustrations, many of which are considerably reduced in size to fit into the margins of the pages. In the photograph on top of p. 273 the figures mentioned in the legend describing it are undecipherable. Because of this marginal arrangement of many of the photographs, quite a number of the page numbers throughout the book are not indicated, making it difficult to find cited pages.

In opposition to scholars like Albright, Glueck, and Wright, the author follows the view of many Israeli biblical scholars that Abraham lived, not in the first part of the second millennium B.C. (Middle Bronze Age) but in the Early Iron Age (ca. 1200 B.C.). If this date is accepted for the patriarchal period, the references to Philistines in Genesis would no longer be a serious anachronism, as most scholars have held. Also, the relation of Israel's early poems-Gen. 49, Num. 22-24 (the Balaam oracles), and Deut. 33-to their setting in the premonarchic period of Israel now becomes clear.

One of the most unusual aspects of this volume is the fact that there is not a single footnote or bibliographical reference throughout the text, nor does the name of any archaeologist appear in the rather skimpy index. This means, of course, that it is impossible to find the

237 - Archaeology of the Bible: Book by Book

definitive publications of the archaeological discoveries described, nor is the reader able to evaluate critically the interpretations of these discoveries by the author(s).

It is strange that the myth of the Megiddo "stables" still persists in this volume after Pritchard has conclusively shown that they were royal storehouses. Some mistakes in printing also call for correction: "c'ôd" (p. 138), "stifted" for "stifled" (p.199), "exiting" (p. 281), and "poured" for "filled" (p. 162, in marginal legend).

In spite of these strictures this volume may be recommended as a reliable handbook for the student of biblical archaeology. Many maps and charts enhance its value for the reader.

Charles T. Fritsch
Princeton Theological Seminary
Princeton, New Jersey