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Israelite Religions: An Archaeological and Biblical Survey, by Richard S. Hess. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2007. 432 pp. $34.99.
This volume in the reviewer’s humble opinion is one of the best studies on the religion(s) of ancient Israel that has appeared in recent years. Although the overall approach taken by the author is rather conservative, in particular in relationship to his understanding of the historicity of major parts of the biblical text, and, as such, will not be accepted by many, it is nevertheless an extremely learned and erudite survey of the field, combining up-to-date (for the most part) archaeological evidence, the relevant biblical texts, and a very impressive philological control of ancient Near Eastern texts. Of particular emphasis (and clearly, his field of expertise) is the author’s in-depth analyses of the use of names in biblical and other relevant ancient texts, and their utility for understanding aspects of religion during the various periods, and, inter alia, as a tool for dating the relevant texts and the cultic aspects revealed in them.
There are twelve chapters in the volume. In the first three chapters the author introduces the topic and his approaches to the study, defines the topics that will be studied (e.g., “religion,” “Israelite”), and reviews various approaches and previous studies on Israelite religion. Of particular interest is the excursus on pp. 46–59 in Chapter 3, in which Hess presents a critical evaluation of the “Documentary Hypothesis.” Although I have a feeling that his viewpoint is not shared by many biblical scholars, the cogent and well-argued points that he raises are worthy of close scrutiny and discussion.
In Chapters 4 and 5 the author reviews evidence for pre-Israelite religion from Palestine and neighboring countries. In these chapters, his command of the Semitic texts is impressive. He presents repeated examples of clear connections between early Israelite traditions and cults and aspects reflected in the cuneiform texts from Syrian sites dating to the Middle and Late Bronze Ages, which he sees as evidence of clearly early strands in portions of the biblical text. On the other hand, his discussion of the archaeological evidence is a bit cursory, and so is the discussion of the relevant Egyptian evidence. These two latter topics could have been expanded. For example, the monumental Bronze Age temple at Pella, Jordan is not mentioned, nor is there discussion of the possibility that the “royal palace” at Hazor is in fact an enormous temple.
In Chapters 6 and 7, the author outlines his understanding of the narrative, legal, and priestly “strands” seen in the Pentateuch. In accordance with this hesitation to accept the “Documentary Hypothesis,” he believes that these texts contain a significant amount of information on the religion of pre-Monarchial Israel.
In Chapter 8, Hess discusses and reviews the biblical evidence and its various interpretations, as well as the cult-related archaeological evidence from the early Iron Age (12th–11th centuries BCE) and the “United Monarchy” (10th century BCE). The reviewer, as an archaeologist, felt that this chapter could have been improved. To start with, in the discussion of the early Iron Age cultic sites, a mention of the now impressive evidence of the contemporary Philistine cult (from Ekron, Qasile, and elsewhere) is missing. In addition, in his discussion of the finds from the time of the “United Monarchy,” the author does not consider the current debate on the very remains that are dated by him to this period. Although some would date these finds (such as at Megiddo, Tell el-Hammah, Rehov, etc.) to the 10th century, others (such as I. Finkelstein) would date them to the 9th century, to the time of the later Omride dynasty.
In Chapter 9, Hess reviews the written sources for religion during the “Divided Monarchy,” reviewing the biblical sources and the relevant extra-biblical texts. He then discusses various epigraphic finds from the Iron Age that are relevant for this topic, with a strong emphasis on what is revealed from the personal names and deities that appear in these texts. From these sources he stresses the diversity of the religious praxis in Israel during the Iron Age, portrayed, on the one hand by a strand pushing for a “Yahweh alone” approach, while at the same time, illustrated by ample evidence of beliefs in multiple deities (such as, in addition to Yahweh, Baal and Asherah).
In Chapter 10, the picture portrayed in the previous chapter is amplified through a review of the cult-related archaeological evidence from the latter parts of the Iron Age (ca. 9th–6th centuries BCE). Once again, the reviewer feels that a lack of reference to cultic finds from the region, even if relating to other ethnic groups (such as the “Edomite” shrines at Hazeva and Qitmit), would have added to this chapter.
In the following chapter, Chapter 11, the author presents a brief discussion of Israelite religion during the Exilic and Post-Exilic periods. This is followed by the summary chapter (Chapter 12) in which he gives a brief overview of the main points discussed in the volume.
The bibliography at the end of the book is of particular importance, since it covers a very impressive array of relevant literature, spanning many disciplines.
All told this volume is a very useful introduction to the study of Israelite religion. The book, both in its scope and size, would serve very well as an introductory text book on the topic, for both college level and educated laypersons. Of particular importance is the manner and thoroughness in which ancient Near Eastern philology is woven into the study, something that is all too missing in many current studies of ancient Israel in general and ancient Israelite religion in particular. Nevertheless, due to the somewhat conservative approach to biblical studies that is reflected in the book, I would suggest that it be supplemented by other views on the development and historicity of the biblical text.
Aren M. Meir
Institute of Archaeology
Bar-Ilan University
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