Identifying Biblical Persons in Northwest Inscriptions of 1200-539 B.c.e. (Academia Biblica (Society of Biblical Literature) (Paper))

This book establishes the first comprehensive system for evaluating potential identifications of persons mentioned in the Hebrew Bible with persons mentioned in Northwest Semitic inscriptions. It applies this system in detail to a small number of Hebrew inscriptions, the Mesha Inscription, and the Tel Dan stela. Appendixes updated through mid-2002 briefly evaluate potential identifications of over seventy-five biblical persons in over ninety Northwest Semitic inscriptions that are mostly contemporary with the person. Resulting identifications and nonidentifications appear in six categories of strength or weakness, from unmistakable to disqualified. The final product is the first extensive corpus consisting only of inscriptions that name biblical persons. This technical book will appeal to advanced scholars, graduate students, seminarians, clergy, and others who have a working knowledge of at least one Northwest Semitic language (e.g., biblical Hebrew) as well as! to all, including nonspecialists, who are interested in questions of biblical historicity.