| Israel Finklestein and Amihai Mazar, The Quest for the | | | | between Finkelstein and Mazar. Mazar still maintains |
| Historical Israel: Debating Archaeology and the History | | | | there was a united monarchy under David and |
| of Early Israel. Invited Lectures Delivered at the Sixth | | | | Solomon while Finklestein argues that David and |
| Biennial Colloquium of the International Institute for | | | | Solomon were no more than chieftains in an |
| Secular Humanistic Judaism, Detroit, October 2005. | | | | underdeveloped south that was not yet a state. Mazar |
| Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2007. | | | | also stretches the period of biblical origins to the eighth |
| In this collection, two prominent Israeli archaeologists | | | | through the seventh centuries rather than limiting it to |
| share their credo and philosophy as well as their views | | | | the reign of Josiah. He criticizes Finklestein as seeing |
| on the history of early Israel. They are not far apart. | | | | too much of the Deuteronomistic History as a |
| Both make it clear that they differ from revisionists or | | | | reflection of Josiah projected backward, for Mazar |
| minimalists like Philip Davies and Thomas Thompson | | | | thinks the collecting and editing involved passing down |
| and also from the biblical school founded by William | | | | recollections showing the influence of earlier periods. |
| Albright. Finkelstein calls his position the center between | | | | Both scholars believe in viewing history retrospectively |
| those extremes. | | | | by honing in on the period of Josiah and looking |
| The view from the center is that the Deuteronomistic | | | | backward from that point as through a telescope to |
| History, Torah, and many prophets were compiled and | | | | see what parts of early history have value. |
| edited in the late monarchy, not in the post-exilic or | | | | All in all, these scholars are not far apart on most of |
| Hellenistic periods as revisionists claim. This view also | | | | what they have to say. One of their biggest |
| maintains that there is historical value in the biblical | | | | differences is that they use different approaches to |
| historical accounts. Finklestein makes it clear that he | | | | dating Yigael Yadin's discoveries at Megiddo, thus |
| cannot go along with revisionists who maintain that | | | | leading to their divergences over the united monarchy. |
| much of the Hebrew Bible was invented out of thin air. | | | | This collection can be recommended to anyone |
| He says: "It is unthinkable that the biblical authors | | | | interested in seeing how archaeology impacts the |
| invented stories only in order to serve their aims. Had | | | | history of early Israel. I would also recommend the |
| they done that they would have lost credibility among | | | | statements of personal philosophy in the first and last |
| the people of Judah, their target population." (p. 18) | | | | lectures they give. |
| These lectures also bring out significant disagreements | | | | |