Mondays 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Did you know that the Hebrew Bible contains not one but two different accounts of Noah’s Ark? Who wrote them, and why? Why are there two different accounts of Jacob being renamed Israel? Two accounts of Abram passing Sarai off as his sister and allowing her to fall into a ruler’s harem? Or two different creation stories?
These are among the clues that led critical scholars to conclude that much of the narrative portions of the Hebrew Bible were not the work of a single author but compilations of different stories skillfully woven together to present a continuous narrative. This Documentary Hypothesis revolutionized—and polarized— biblical studies. For over a hundred years it has been disputed, distorted, modified, and supplemented to the point that there is no scholarly consensus—except that the narratives are not the works of a single author. This course will examine the present state of research into the formation and development of the Hebrew Bible, with the aim that students will become better readers and interpreters of this collection of writings that are considered sacred for three major world religions.
Dr. Larry Eubanks is a retired pastor, having served as Sr. Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Frederick, Maryland, from 1995-2022. He earned a B.S. from Baylor University and a M.Div. and Ph.D. in Old Testament literature from Southern Seminary. In addition to his blog on biblical interpretation (larryeubanks.com), he is a contributing writer at EthicsDaily.com and MissioAlliance.com; and the author of the ebook, The Essence of Jesus: A Fresh Look at the Beatitudes. He also posts video messages on YouTube.