Books by Niels Peter Lemche

Den historisk-kritiske forskning, der dominerede studiet af Det Gamle Testamente i nærved tohundrede år, tog næsten livet af det. Denne bog beskriver den historisk-kritiske forsknings opgang, storhed og fald uden at kaste vrag på de bedste sider af denne forskning. Man kan ikke bare rulle historien baglæns, men man kan forsøge at frugtbargøre de landvindinger, som denne forskning opnåede. Det indebærer et opgør med mange vaneforestillinger om Det Gamle Testamente og dets baggrund. Det Gamle Testamente fortæller det bibelske Israels historie. Denne historie er ikke identisk med det gamle Palæstinas historie. I et appendiks til bogen findes en Palæstinahistorie uden Det Gamle Testamente.

Niels Peter Lemche focuses on the way Israelites understood themselves at different points in history--before, within, and after the monarchy. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in understanding Israel's rich history.Volumes in the Library of Ancient Israel draw on multiple disciplines--such as archaeology, anthropology...

From its inception at the time of the Enlightenment until the mid-twentieth century, the historical-critical method constituted the dominant paradigm in Old Testament studies. In this magisterial overview, Niels Peter Lemche surveys the development of the historical-critical method and the way it changed the scholarly perception of the Old...

'Biblical Studies and the Failure of History' brings together key essays which reflect the trajectory of this scholarly shift in order to illuminate the state of biblical studies today.

Of the many ancient civilizations we are aware of, few are smaller than the ancient Kingdom of Israel. Small both in geographical area and population, it was barely noticed by the major civilizations of the time in Egypt, Mesopotamia and elsewhere, which either ignored or crushed it. Yet, several millennia later, Israel is the civilization we remember most acutely, which we know D or think we know D the most about, and which has even been revised after a manner. Alas, what we know D or think we know D about Israel comes partly from the Old Testament and partly from fragmentary and sometimes distorted bits of historical evidence. For these very reasons, because Ancient Israel means so much to us and because we actually know so little for sure, this Dictionary is particularly important. It examines the usual sources in the Old Testament and surveys the findings of more recent archaeological research to help us determine just what happened and when, a far from simple task. It includes entries on most of the persons, places, and events which are generally considered, and shows more broadly what the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah were like and what role they played in the ancient world, but it also defines them as closely as possible according to the latest data. While the results may differ from traditional views, they are essential correctives.