Response to Davies On Tell Dan Inscription

BAR 20:06, Nov/Dec 1994

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The “House of David” and the House of the Deconstructionists

Davies is an amateur who “can safely be ignored”
 

By Anson F. Rainey
 

In response to Philip R. Davies’s brief article (“‘House of David’ Built on Sand,” BAR 20:04), a few observations are in order. Apart from the details of the Dan (and now the Mesha) inscriptions, there is a wider issue that concerns both Bible students and teachers.

Davies represents what he and a circle of colleagues call the “deconstructionist” approach to Biblical traditions. The present instance can serve as a useful example of why Davies and his “deconstructionists” can safely be ignored by everyone seriously interested in Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern studies.

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