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A review by leswag97
The Early History of God: Yahweh and the Other Deities in Ancient Israel by Mark S. Smith
4.0
Mark S. Smith's popular and important work on the "history of God" and religion in ancient Israel is an interesting and very comprehensive book. Overall, I enjoyed the book, but am also unsure of where I stand on some of Smith's conclusions. It seems logical enough that many of the characteristics that Israel's ancient neighbors applied to a pantheon of gods Israel (eventually) applied solely to their God, YHWH (but this was true of only "positive" characteristics; any characteristics deemed "negative" were not attributed to YHWH); the ways in which YHWH looks like other deities from the ANE is an important topic, and it is one that has key theological and spiritual implications (for the best treatment of this issue that I have come across, see the edited volume [b:Divine Doppelgängers: Yhwh's Ancient Look-Alikes|50203744|Divine Doppelg�ngers Yhwh's Ancient Look-Alikes|Collin Cornell|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1569899789l/50203744._SX50_SY75_.jpg|73586771]).
It is also quite apparent that throughout Israel's history, many people (perhaps even a large portion of the nation, including monarchy, priesthood, prophetic circles, and laypeople) were polytheistic in belief and practice (this is exactly what some prophetic and monarchic figures throughout Israel's history were trying to combat). It is hard to know, though, exactly how Israel's monotheism/monolatry developed (if it did develop at all). Smith, like many other scholars, argues that Israel's past was polytheistic (although a limited polytheism in comparison with the pantheons of Ugarit, Mesopotamia, and Egypt), and that over time Israel became more and more monotheistic, eventually resulting in the clear monotheism one plainly sees in the exilic and post-exilic periods. This seems logical enough, given that most of Israel's ancient neighbors were polytheistic; religion in ancient Israel would have begun similarly, according to this historical reconstruction, eventually evolving into a monotheistic faith, due to a host of developments throughout Israel's history. This argument, however, is not without its own problems. For instance, Josey Bridges Snyder, in an article in the aforementioned book "Divine Doppelgängers," argues convincingly that it is quite possible that the Moabites (one of Israel's closest ancient neighbors) only worshipped one god, a "bachelor god," who did not have a consort/wife, and who was not worshipped alongside a pantheon: "[T]he Moabites might provide an ANE example of a people who worshipped a 'bachelor god'—and that, in turn, might provide corroborating evidence that ancient Israel too could have been a single-deity people" (Snyder, 125). Snyder cautions against seeing this (potential) similarity between Israel and Moab as being either "good" or "bad" (from a theological perspective); still, however, it may be an argument in favor of monotheism being an early facet of ancient Israelite religion, rather than a later development.
All that to say, Smith's book is an impressive treatment of a very complex topic, and I learned much from it. Smith's command not only of the biblical text, but also of the literature and history of the ANE, especially Ugaritic history and literature, is astounding. I will definitely return to his writings in the future.
It is also quite apparent that throughout Israel's history, many people (perhaps even a large portion of the nation, including monarchy, priesthood, prophetic circles, and laypeople) were polytheistic in belief and practice (this is exactly what some prophetic and monarchic figures throughout Israel's history were trying to combat). It is hard to know, though, exactly how Israel's monotheism/monolatry developed (if it did develop at all). Smith, like many other scholars, argues that Israel's past was polytheistic (although a limited polytheism in comparison with the pantheons of Ugarit, Mesopotamia, and Egypt), and that over time Israel became more and more monotheistic, eventually resulting in the clear monotheism one plainly sees in the exilic and post-exilic periods. This seems logical enough, given that most of Israel's ancient neighbors were polytheistic; religion in ancient Israel would have begun similarly, according to this historical reconstruction, eventually evolving into a monotheistic faith, due to a host of developments throughout Israel's history. This argument, however, is not without its own problems. For instance, Josey Bridges Snyder, in an article in the aforementioned book "Divine Doppelgängers," argues convincingly that it is quite possible that the Moabites (one of Israel's closest ancient neighbors) only worshipped one god, a "bachelor god," who did not have a consort/wife, and who was not worshipped alongside a pantheon: "[T]he Moabites might provide an ANE example of a people who worshipped a 'bachelor god'—and that, in turn, might provide corroborating evidence that ancient Israel too could have been a single-deity people" (Snyder, 125). Snyder cautions against seeing this (potential) similarity between Israel and Moab as being either "good" or "bad" (from a theological perspective); still, however, it may be an argument in favor of monotheism being an early facet of ancient Israelite religion, rather than a later development.
All that to say, Smith's book is an impressive treatment of a very complex topic, and I learned much from it. Smith's command not only of the biblical text, but also of the literature and history of the ANE, especially Ugaritic history and literature, is astounding. I will definitely return to his writings in the future.