Product Description

Provides an excellent and informative introduction to a collection of writings that lie at the heart of the Judeo-Christian tradition, and is illustrated throughout with maps, charts and photographs.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #70850 in Books
• Published on: 2000-08-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

About the Author
John Drane is Head of Practical Theology in the University of Aberdeen, Scotland. He is also an adjunct professor of New Testament at Fuller Theological Seminary, California, and a visiting professor at Morling College, Sydney.

Customer Reviews

A very informative easily-digested introduction to the O.T.
If you only want to buy one book to assist your study of the Old Testament, then this is the one! Well set out, with plenty of graphics and time-lines to please the eye and help you picture what it is you are reading about. Knowledgable and informative, the book succesfully avoids the pitfalls of being too 'academic', but provides plenty of margin references for you to go direct to the biblical text being commented on. A first-rate study aid.

Should be considered compulsory reading!
I agree wholeheartedly with the next reviewer: if you only get one book on the Old Testament, get this one.

John Drane has the knack of writing about complex theological issues in an easily digestible way. When you consider how difficult it is to read a Matthew Henry commentary you'll appreciate how very well this is laid out. Chapters are divided into main headings with various, clearly separated `Special Articles' (in a different type face) which offer more detailed scholarly considerations:

For instance, Chapter 3 - `A Land Flowing with Milk and Honey' - begins the record of the history of Israel proper. The main text begins with a section entitled `Canaan and it's history' (p62) and later (p84) comes the Special Article entitled `The deuteronomic history'. This article details Martin Noth's hypothesis that all the OT books from Joshua to Kings were edited together by the same person or group that compiled Deuteronomy (i.e. the Deuteronomist/s). This information may not be important to everyone (though I find it fascinating!) but if that doesn't appeal, it's easy to skip a Special Article without feeling like you've missed anything crucial from the main text.

Drane clearly and fairly spells out each school of thought, and when he agrees with one hypothesis over another, he says so openly and why. This book is a gem for starting OT study and really should be considered a `must read' title by anyone and everyone interested in Christianity.

Just a perfect introduction to the "old" Testamemt
Introducing the Old Testament is a great book. Full of details, pictures and maps. If you only want to have one Old Testament reference book then this is the one!

What makes this book so good is that it makes the Old Testament come alive - it becomes 'real'. The people whose story is in the book did live they had lives and as such have so much to tell us now.