This paper was prepared for a seminar held at the Centre for Advanced Research in Oslo on April 29th 2015, convened by Prof. Terje Stordalen. I am grateful to the scholars present for their comments. The arguments should be seen as a development of those formulated in my Scribes and Schools. The Canonization of the Hebrew Scriptures, Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1998.
By Philip R Davies
Chair, Palestine Exploration Fund
Emeritus, University of Sheffield, England
February 2016
Click here for article.
Comments (1)
One query - you interpret the Deuteronomic tradition as saying you can't leave matters to kings - but to whom can we entrust them? I could never see a 'trust the people' or 'democratic' attitude in the text, on the contrary the people seem to be persistently wayward and the Kings suffer constant reproof for not insisting on good behaviour, ie for toleration rather than repression of misdeeds or what are so regarded. Have I got that wrong?
#1 - Martin Hughes - 02/06/2016 - 13:19