Journal of Hebrew Scriptures - Volume 4 (2002-2003) - Review
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Albertz, Rainer and Bob Becking, eds, Yahwism after the Exile:
Perspectives on Israelite Religion in the Persian Era (Studies in
Theology and Religion 5; Assen: Van Gorcum, 2003), Pp. xxi, 300.
ISBN: 902323880X. Euro. 67,50.
In this compilation, Rainer Albertz and Bob Becking present thirteen essays related to Judean religion in the Persian era, originally presented at the first meeting of the European Association for Biblical Studies (August 6‚9, 2000 in Utrecht). As the name of the Association might imply, the essays tend mostly toward biblical interpretation. All of the contributions are valuable, with less unevenness in quality than found in some such compilations. Albertz's own contribution, "The Thwarted Restoration," exposes the inappropriateness of "restoration" to describe what happened in Yehud. In relevant biblical texts, correlated with developments in the Persian empire, Albertz detects both pro- and anti-monarchical factions in Yehud. The national-religious faction, intent on restoring the Davidic monarchy, failed, while factions who emphasized temple building over dynastic restoration, or who were uninterested in any sort of restoration, succeeded. In "Law as an Expression of Religion (Ezra 7‚10)," Becking explores the function and character of torah in Yehud. He does so in explicit contrast to earlier scholars who construed post-exilic Yahwism's emphasis on "law" as a degeneration of longstanding Israelite faith. Torah, Becking's study suggests, express |