The following review of the new third edition of John Bright’s A History of Israel was written by Professor Norman K. Gottwald of New York Theological Seminary. Bright’s History has been a dominant influence in Biblical scholarship for more than 20 years, and Gottwald’s review, written for BAR, is an important analysis of the Patriarchal period through the Conquest. BAR readers unfamiliar with Gottwald’s other writings may find some background helpful to understand more easily this analysis of Bright’s work.

Over the years Professor Gottwald …