Siegel mounts a vigorous yet inviting response to “the theory that the story of the exodus and monotheism,” as set down in the Torah, were “later inventions meant to unify the Israelites,” finding this claim “not just implausible” but simply failing “to explain many facts.” The History Behind the Bible digs deep into the composition of the Bible’s first five books, how the history laid out by the four accepted authors of the Torah reflects the beliefs and thinking of their likely eras, and how revelations from the archaeological record point to the likelihood that an actual Israeli exodus from Egypt did occur, contrary to the arguments of some current historians. While always acknowledging that the Torah is no infallible historical record—its stories, he notes, can be “rambling, repetitive and sometimes self-contradictory” and written to “serve” their authors’ contemporary purposes—Siegel (author of The Bible Untangled) mounts fascinating evidence for the plausibility of Torah stories, the common origins of overlapping “doublet” passages, and more insights into a theory that “there was an exodus” albeit one “different in many ways from what the Bible describes.”

Siegel earns reader’s trust with his painstaking, historically informed approach, drawing on established scholarship about biblical authorship, offering clear explanations of how different texts were combined and expanded upon over the course of the Bible’s composition, and illuminating consideration of why authors in different eras would pen contradictory details, such as why in one version of the Noah story the ark-builder gathers seven pairs of animals rather than just two. (The likely explanation? Each authorship period’s rules for animal sacrifice.)

Writing with crisp precision and a welcome lack of dogmatism, Siegel both illuminates and challenges contemporary scholarship about biblical history, the development of monotheism, the deep histories of the twelve tribes of Israel, the life of Moses, and more. He always acknowledges that he’s offering informed speculation rooted in the best-available history and interpretation, rather than carrying truth down from the mountain, buoying his arguments.

Takeaway: Historically informed look at the veracity of the Torah’s story of exodus.

Comparable Titles: Richard Elliott Friedman’s The Exodus, Yitzhak Meitlis’s Excavating the Bible.

Production grades
Cover: B
Design and typography: A-
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: A
Marketing copy: A-