Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Jonathan D. Safren" <yonsaf AT beitberl.beitberl.ac.il>]

Andrew C Smith wrote:
It is true that, as far back as the conquest under Joshua, the were nots 
unified as
God had wanted them to be: the book of Judges recordsdisputes between tribes. 
Later,
David would be acknowledged as kingtwice, once by the south, and once by the 
north. So
it is clear that theultimate north-south split had very early roots. But I 
cannot
agree withLloyd's general view of Israelite history.

The Bok of Joshua presents an idealized, theological view of a conquest which 
never
happened. The main conquest narratives in Joshua have either been disproved, 
or are
rewritings of stories from elsewhere. Examples: Ai, destroyed 1000 years 
before Israel
ever got there. Jericho: no fortified city existed at the supposed time of 
Joshua.
The war against the Hazor coalition: parallels Jud. 4. Even someone like me, 
who tends
to see some historical kernel in First-Temple biblical historiographical 
literature,
cannot ignore the evidence of archaeology and historical criticism.
Sincerely,
Jonathan D. Safren
Dept. of Biblical Studies
Beit Berl College
Beit Berl Post Office 44905
Israel