The So-called Deuteronomistic History: A Sociological, Historical and Literary Introduction - Tapa dura

"Our Lausanne colleague has proved his expertise in matters Deuteronomistic in many essays and several edited volumes. This larger synthesis of the development of 'Deuteronomistic' thought from the Assyrian through the neo-Babylonian to the Persian period is less radical than some of the contemporary approaches he also surveys. But it is all the more welcome, since I know of no comparable volume in English. Graeme Auld This is a tour de force by a leading scholar of international renown who is thoroughly conversant with both European and American biblical scholarship. The book is erudite and eminently readable. Romer's analysis of the Deuteronomistic History is well informed by its ancient Near Eastern background and literary parallels. Whether one is ultimately persuaded by his overall reconstruction or not, this volume has plenty of provocative new ideas and proposals. Steven L. McKenzie is Professor of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament at Rhodes College, Memphis, USA."

Thomas Romer begins by examining the content of the so-called 'Deuteromistic History' and then asks what the term really means. He then goes on to provide a sociological, historical and literary approach to the books from Deuteronomy to Kings. Romer examines questions such as: Why and how did Deuteronomism rise as a 'school' under Assyrian hegemony? What role did propaganda play in the composition of these books? What happened on an ideological and sociological level during the Exile and Persian Period? Is the so-called Deuteronomistic literature properly understood as crisis literature? And what influence did the Deuteronomistic History have on the identity of the Second Temple period.