An image rich, passage-by-passage commentary that integrates textual and artifactual context from the ancient Near East to inform our understanding and interpretation of the Hebrew Bible―while remaining respectful to the inerrancy of Scripture.
Without a deep knowledge of the ancient cultures the Old Testament was born from, we can be tempted to impose our own culture on the text, potentially distorting it. This unique Bible backgrounds commentary examines:
- The history of the ancient Near East as a means of recovering knowledge of the events that shaped the lives of the people.
- The archaeology as a means of recovering the lifestyle reflected in the material cultures.
- The literature of the ancient Near East as a means of understanding the heart and soul of the people who inhabited the ancient world that Israel shared.
Detailed exegetical notes are combined with comparative discussions of the cultural settings that help scholars interpret the Pentateuch.
This volume of the celebrated Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary series brings the first five books of the Bible into sharper focus―enabling scholars, pastors, and laity to access rich data from over one hundred and seventy years of explorations and excavations in the Near East.
THE ZONDERVAN ILLUSTRATED BIBLE BACKGROUNDS COMMENTARY SERIES
Invites you to enter the world of the Old Testament with a company of seasoned guides, experts who will give new insights into these cherished writings. Features:
- Over 2000 photographs, drawings, maps, diagrams, and charts provide a visual feast that breathes fresh life into the text.
- Passage-by-passage commentary presents archaeological findings, historical explanations, geographic insights, notes on manners and customs, and more.
- Analysis into the literature of the ancient Near East will open your eyes to new depths of understanding both familiar and unfamiliar passages.
- Written by an international team of 30 specialists, all top scholars in background studies.
Roy Gane (PhD, University of California, Berkeley) is professor of Hebrew Bible and ancient near eastern languages at the Theological Seminary of Andrews University. He is author of a number of scholarly articles and several books including God's Faulty Heroes (Review Herald, 1996-on the biblical book of Judges), Altar Call (Diadem, 1999-on the Israelite sanctuary services and their meaning for Christians), Ritual Dynamic Structure (Gorgias Press, 2004), Leviticus, Numbers (NIV Application Commentary; Zondervan, 2004), and Cult and Character: Purification Offerings, Day of Atonement, and Theodicy (Eisenbrauns, 2005), as well as the Leviticus portion of the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary on the Old Testament (forthcoming). Dr. Gane and his wife, Connie Clark Gane, who is pursuing a Ph.D. in Mesopotamian archaeology at the University of California, Berkeley, have one daughter, Sarah Elizabeth.
R. Dennis Cole is Professor of Old Testament and Archaeology at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary, where he holds the Mcfarland Chair of Archaeology. The author of numerous journal articles, book reviews, chapters, and dictionary articles, he has 30 years of archaeological field experience in Israel.
Eugene Carpenter was professor of Old Testament and Hebrew, Scholar in Residence, Bethel College, Mishawaka, Indiana.
Bruce Wells is assistant professor of Hebrew Bible, Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia. He contributed the Exodus portion of the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Background Commentary - Old Testament.
John H. Walton (PhD, Hebrew Union College) is professor emeritus of Old Testament at Wheaton College Graduate School. He is the author or coauthor of numerous books, including Old Testament Today, with Andrew E. Hill; volumes on Job and Genesis in the NIV Application Commentary series; the Lost World series; and Old Testament Theology for Christians. He was also coeditor, with Craig Keener, of the ECPA 2017 Bible of the Year winner, the NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible.
