Biblical Hebrew Forum

[jimstinehart AT aol.com]

Based on its substantive content and the nature of its proper names, I myself 
see the Song of Deborah in chapter 5 of Judges as being a 12th century BCE 
composition that reflects the peculiar circumstances in Canaan in the 13th 
and 12th centuries BCE.  That has long been the majority view:

“A broad and longstanding consensus of modern biblical scholars holds that 
the so-called Song of Deborah in Judg. 5.2-31a…‘may be one of the most 
ancient works of the Hebrew Bible’.  Studies and commentaries, including 
those published in this century, overwhelmingly either argue or assume that 
this text came into being, as a whole or in part, in the eleventh or even 
twelfth century BCE….  Modern studies and commentaries routinely claim that 
the sociohistorical situation presupposed by Judg. 5.2-31a is that of the 
eleventh or twelfth century BCE….”  Serge Frolov, “How Old Is the Song of 
Deborah?”, JSOT, Vol. 36.2 (2011), pp. 163-164, 175.

The above-cited article, however, argues for a very late dating of the Song 
of Deborah.  Here’s the abstract for this controversial article:

“The article challenges the conventional view of the Song of Deborah (Judg. 
5.2-31a) as an originally independent composition from the pre-monarchic 
period (twelfth or eleventh century BCE).  Based on a comprehensive 
examination of the fragment’s internal parameters (grammar, syntax, 
vocabulary, intertextual links, outlook, and agenda) as well as of the 
external conditions of its production and circulation, the article argues 
that the Song of Deborah best qualifies as a late pre-exilic, exilic, or 
early post-exilic piece and an integral part of the Deuteronomistic corpus.”

The article makes no analysis whatsoever [none] of the fascinating names in 
the Song of Deborah:  Shamgar, Ben Anat, Heber, Jael.  Thus the article never 
asks the most important question I would ask:  How on earth could an “early 
post-exilic piece” come up with the proper names that appear in chapter 5 of 
Judges?  Were post-exilic Jews capable of effortlessly coming up with a 
non-Semitic personal name like Shamgar that is redolent of the Late Bronze 
Age?

1)  How old do people on the b-hebrew list think the Song of Deborah is?

2)  In determining the date of composition of the Song of Deborah, how much 
weight, if any, should be given to the proper names in the received text?

Jim Stinehart
Evanston, Illinois