The Bible as Literature: An Introduction

by John B. Gabel, Charles B. Wheeler, Anthony D. York

As in the widely popular Second Edition, this comprehensive and systematic text approaches the Bible from a literary/historical perspective, and studies the work as a body of writing produced by real people who intended to convey messages to a real audience. Avoiding assessments of the Bible's
truth or authority, the authors maintain a rigorously objective tone as they discuss such major issues as the forms and strategies found in biblical writing, the actual historical and physical settings of that writing, the process of canon formation, the sources of the Pentateuch, and the nature of
such literary biblical genres as prophecy, apocalypse, and gospel. Each chapter is an independent yet related essay, and the Third Edition has been updated and enhanced by two new "Ancient Near Eastern Literature and the Bible" and "The Text of the Bible." In addition, the reading lists
following each chapter have been completely updated in order to reflect the most recent scholarship. The result is an easy-to-use, exciting presentation of the art of the Bible that is indispensable to students and accessible to readers of all kinds.

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction, Christianity, Reference, School, Literature, History

352 pages, Paperback

First published March 20, 1986

Reviews

[Stephen Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Only read a few of the chapters that were based on the more interesting books of the Bible, such as Job and Ecclesiastes. What I read was of mixed quality, some of the essays much more interesting than others. On the whole, I wasn't compelled to renew this when it was due back to the library. (I should note that I'm reading the Oxford Annotated Bible, which contains its own intelligent essays and extensive footnotes. If you're reading an unadorned version of the text, than this book may be more interesting and helpful to you.)

[Karl Steel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the 1996 version, but this 2005 version will be assigned reading the next time I teach the class. Just good clear writing. It's not going to blow your mind with its brilliance, but that's what lectures and discussions are for.

[Mills College Library]

809.93522 G112b 2006

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved reading this book! I took a Bible as Literature class this semester and this was the required textbook. It was a genuinely interesting book and discussed the literary elements used within the Bible. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in the literary elements and construction of the Bible.

[S · Rating 3 out of 5]

dense but functional

[Barry · Rating 1 out of 5]

There are many ways to evaluate books. One way is to evaluate it based on the claims or intent of the author. If an author claims to have written the best book ever, we should evaluate their claims and respond accordingly. If an author intends to teach how to brand cattle, yet doesn't effectively broach that topic, we ought to deem the book a failure, even if it is entertaining in its own regard.

The authors of this book proclaim their intention that this book be used as a textbook, so it is upon that claim that I offer my rating and review.

As a textbook, this book is nearly worthless. The preponderance of their claims about who wrote the Bible are unsupported either in the text or in any footnotes. In fact, almost the entirety of the book is without critical support, citations, or anything approaching scholarly treatment.

For instance, in their criticism of Biblical authorship, they make several claims that so-and-so could not possibly have written such-and-such (this is especially true for the wisdom and prophetic books, but also occurs rampantly in the New Testament). However, the authors almost never provide one shred of evidence to support their claims, nor do they offer even a logical explanation for their statements. This leaves the reader with the feeling that the authors are simply making up their claims.

This is akin to saying that Shakespeare didn't write Shakespeare, but offering no evidence or even offering a logical reason why you believe such a thing. Just because a theory exists does not mean it is generally accepted, and if you are creating a textbook you ought to be providing evidence to support your theories.

To give you an idea of what I am talking about, the authors state in their chapter on the Gospels, that "Someone else at a later time wrote [John] chapter 21 and added it to John's work." What evidence is provided for this? None. No footnotes, no citations, and zero explanation behind their rationale for saying this. If one feels compelled to attack the integrity of a work of literature, the burden of proof lies upon the attacker. Sadly, the authors seldom rise to the occasion of defending their claims, all too often making no attempt to support their baseless claims.

As a textbook, this book fails miserably. If you are truly interested in the Bible as literature, there are much better books out there.

[K.A. Castillo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Intellectual Rating: ♣♣♣♣♣
This piece of nonfiction would most certainly fall under the definition of a textbook. With that being said, it contains a wealth of information. The Bible as Literature objectively explores the history of the Bible. It describes the different cultures and time periods during which the Bible was written in order to explain why the Bible is in the form it assumes today. This is not a book for readers who are offended at the concept that the Bible was written by people for people. The Bible as Literature assumes its readers know the Bible fairly well and so may not be the best source for a reader to turn to as an introduction to the the Bible.

Emotional Rating: ♥♥♥♥
While not the most engaging read, I found The Bible as Literature to be incredibly enlightening. I greatly enjoyed its description of ancient history and also its exploration of different genres of literature within the Bible. While reading this text I learned a lot about religions, and I found it refreshing to find a source that discussed this topic in an academic setting.

[Rachael MacLean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'd give it a 3 1/2 if I could. Very solid scholarly text with useful background material on the Bible as Literature, but it's missing some key interpretations and some of the prose is SUPER clunky. It needed a creative writer's eye. I wouldn't use this as an only guide, but it's useful nonetheless.

[Benjamin Davidson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book clearly lays out a shockingly large collection of facts which, despite my passion for the topic of religion, I was completely ignorant of prior to reading. I must recommend this book to everyone that thinks they're prepared to live their life according to the Bible or any book like it.

[Kelly Barry · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading it for a class on the Bible. Both the class and this book have me approaching the Bible in different ways I didn't really think I would.

[Miranda · Rating 2 out of 5]

REL 335: Sacred Texts, Global Context