Biblical Israel: State and People.

Miller, J. Maxwell

The late Benjamin Mazar was a major figure in the study of the history and archaeology of biblical times for almost a half century. His approach was interdisciplinary, and he presented many of his best ideas in short papers scattered among a variety of professional journals and Festschriften. Fifteen of these papers were republished in 1986, on the occasion of his eightieth birthday, under the title The Early Biblical Period: Historical Studies, ed. Shmuel Ahituv and Baruch A. Levine (Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society). On the occasion of his eighty-fifth birthday, this companion volume appeared, with fourteen more of Mazar's papers.

The fourteen papers span more than forty years, from 1946 to 1989, although most of them appeared originally during the 1960s and 1970s. Six have been available only in Hebrew. The remaining eight were available, with two exceptions, in publications which are generally accessible. One of these exceptions, "The Eastern Mediterranean in 1500-1000 B.C.E.," is a very brief overview statement (four and a half pages). The other, "David's Reign in Hebron and the Conquest of Jerusalem," is a more substantial study that first appeared in a 1963 Festschrifi for A. H. Silver. Mazar argues that David conquered Jerusalem already during the first year of his rule at Hebron, even though he did not transfer his capital there until seven years later.

Most of the papers have the character of detailed encyclopedia articles - i.e., each focuses on a topic which it treats comprehensively and with maximum use of biblical, epigraphical, and archaeological evidence. Two papers focus on ancient Israel's neighbors: "Canaan and Canaanites" and "The Philistines." Four focus on Jerusalem: "David's Reign at Hebron and the Conquest of Jerusalem," "Jerusalem: Royal Sanctuary and Seat of the Monarchy," "Jerusalem from Isaiah to Jeremiah," and "The Temple Mount from Zerubbabel to Herod." Three treat other important cultic centers: "Shechem: A City of the Patriarchs," "The Sanctuary of Arad and the Family of Hobab the Kenite," and "Carmel the Holy Mountain." Three explore political dynamics: "Kingship in Ancient Israel," "The Dynasty of Omri," and "The Cities of the Priests and Levites." One, "The Oasis of En-gedi and Its History," summarizes and interprets the results of Mazar's excavations at En-gedi during the 1960s.

Although Mazar makes occasional comments which presuppose the results of historical-critical analysis of the Hebrew Bible, he clearly assumes the essential accuracy of the biblical materials for historical reconstruction. In that regard, his approach is reminiscent of Albright, Alt, and de Vaux, in whose company he deserves to be named. The editor provides some update information in the footnotes, although this consists largely of references to Israeli scholarship before the mid-1980s. Neither the papers (as one would expect) nor the footnotes engage the interesting and somewhat radical directions that the study of ancient Israelite history has taken over the past decade.

J. M. M.