Jack reviewed Bible among the Myths by John N. Oswalt
Review of 'Bible among the Myths' on 'Goodreads'
1 star
I was told this book would be a circumspect and honest review of the Old Testament from a scholarly perspective. Instead, I found readings of the texts that clearly came from a religious interpretation that departs radically from the actual text . For example, in chapter 4 the author reads "satan" into the eden story when anyone with a passing familiarity with the text knows that there is no such reference and the insertion of satan is a pure interpretation . He immediately goes on to, without evidence, claim that the biblical phrase "image of god" is a reflection of "freedom of choice" - which is additionally unsourced in the text, dismissive of the incredibly widespread debate about how to interpret the phrase, and clearly a philosophical/religious reading of the text. This is amidst suspicious and mostly unsourced generalizations about biblical theology and the beliefs of ancient peoples.
I am …
I was told this book would be a circumspect and honest review of the Old Testament from a scholarly perspective. Instead, I found readings of the texts that clearly came from a religious interpretation that departs radically from the actual text . For example, in chapter 4 the author reads "satan" into the eden story when anyone with a passing familiarity with the text knows that there is no such reference and the insertion of satan is a pure interpretation . He immediately goes on to, without evidence, claim that the biblical phrase "image of god" is a reflection of "freedom of choice" - which is additionally unsourced in the text, dismissive of the incredibly widespread debate about how to interpret the phrase, and clearly a philosophical/religious reading of the text. This is amidst suspicious and mostly unsourced generalizations about biblical theology and the beliefs of ancient peoples.
I am sure this is a fine book if you want to learn about how christians read the bible, and I may yet finish it for that reason, but this is in not a scholarly work.