The Hidden Book in the Bible

by Richard Elliott Friedman

Renowned biblical sleuth and scholar Richard Elliott Friedman, author of Who Wrote the Bible?, reveals for the first time his most startling and revolutionary embedded within the Bible is a continuous narrative that had been sliced apart by ancient editors who interlaced it with other stories, laws, and poetry. It is a singular work of genius, the core of the Bible. Across three millennia, this great work of prose comes back to us--pieced together as it was originally meant to be read--in a fresh and powerful translation. In recent years, Harold Bloom's The Book of J and Friedman's own Who Wrote the Bible? have made the short work called J known to the public. But in The Hidden Book in the Bible Friedman presents his landmark discovery that "J is not a work. It is the beginning section of a a long, exquisitely connected prose composition full of artistry and power." Using a creative blend of scholarship and detective work, Friedman has joined together this story from the dawn of written history, and what emerges is astonishing. Far from a primitive first attempt atr writing, it is an exciting and complex saga, a passionate work of love, deception, war, and redemption. Readers will experience the story that has not been read as a single continuous narrative for almost three millennia. Friedman begins by leading the readers through the exciting story of his discovery of this hidden work. He marshals the evidence, showing how a unique use of language and themes--from the two cases of the famous "coat of many colors" to all nine references to Sheol (the place of the dead), and from incidents of sibling rivalry to sexual violation--recur in a connected way in certain parts of hte Bible but nowhere else. Friedman dramatically illustrates how these clues establish a singular author's voice guiding more of the Bible than was ever previously suspected. Friedman presents the work itself in a bold translation that is remarkable faithful to the original. It begins with a well-known tale of the deity's creation of a paradise that goes wrong and then conveys a sweep of history, telling the story of a family through twelve a story of deception and recompense, of powerful loves and sibling rivalries, of wars and spies. The family becomes a nation, the nation finds a ruling family, and they find their way to peace. The author of this saga crafts a compelling and densely woven tale of family struggles, bitter betrayal, and, finally, the birth of a great kingdom under Solomon, the son of David. This work, says Friedman, is a treasure. It became the core of the Bible and the beginning of prose literature. Readers now have the opportunity to see the first great prose writer's full an epic work of the struggle between God and human, and between good and bad. The Hidden Book in the Bible will forever change the way we regard the Bible. "Exciting, provocative, ambitious yet reverent," says Donald Spoto, "Friedman's latest book is, as usual, grounded in impeccable scholarship."

Genres: Religion, Nonfiction, History, Theology, Christian, Christianity, Old Testament

416 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

RICHARD ELLIOTT FRIEDMAN is one of the premier bible scholars in the country. He earned his doctorate at Harvard and was a visiting fellow at Oxford and Cambridge, a Senior Fellow of the American Schools of Oriental Research in Jerusalem, and a Visiting Professor at the University of Haifa. He is the Ann & Jay Davis Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Georgia and the Katzin Professor of Jewish Civilization Emeritus of the University of California, San Diego.

He is the author of Commentary on the Torah, The Disappearance of God, The Hidden Book in the Bible, The Bible with Sources Revealed, The Bible Now, The Exile and Biblical Narrative, the bestselling Who Wrote the Bible?, and his newest book, The Exodus.

He was an American Council of Learned Societies Fellow and was elected to membership in The Biblical Colloquium. His books have been translated into Hebrew, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Polish, Hungarian, Dutch, Portuguese, Czech, Turkish, Korean, and French.

He was a consultant for the Dreamworks film "The Prince of Egypt," for Alice Hoffman's The Dovekeepers, and for NBC, A&E, PBS, and Nova.

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

With appreciation from Dr. Friedman's scholastic honesty and sincerity, I am enjoying reading about an approach to Biblical studies that should otherwise enrage me as a believer. As I read, thought, my interest in the Bible as God's Word is strengthened not challenged. My faith has a tighter grasp of its hope in the message of Scripture and I continue to see it as more than good literature or merely the first history or prose.

Any talk of viewing the Bible stories or discrediting its miracles as myth or the fantastic story telling of semitic oral tradition is not the burden of this work. This is not an apology. Dr. Friedman advances his interest in rearranging the puzzle pieces as proposed by—a now debunk documentary hypothesis of— Julius Wellhausen. Friedman identifies a book within the Bible as the product of a single author which in no way discredits its inspiration or our faith that this work is the product of divine providence in getting it to us.

The Hidden Book in the Bible comprises 236 entries [Jehovistic] from 9 books from Genesis 2:4b to I Kings 2:46.

The work of 5 primary sources for the Torah is still maintained as likely: J,E,D,P and R—a redactor who put it all together, probably Esau. But the pieces to the Biblical puzzle were put in place by scribes, prophets and priest—see Friedman's work, Who Wrote the Bible —and these are the people who should have done it as Divine agents.

The traditions themselves, I still believe, still originate with Moses.

A captivating read.

[James Madsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent follow-up to Friedman's earlier work Who Wrote the Bible, this book restores what Friedman considers to be the text of the core story from the Old Testament. I find such reconstructed texts (as in The Five Gospels, by the Jesus Seminar, or, in a fantasy setting, The Silmarillion) to be both exhilarating and problematic, but Friedman's excellent writing carries the day.

[David Holmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been brought up believing we have to "rightly divide" the Bible (II Tim 2:15) and I think Friedman got it right!

[Crystal Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Compelling scholarship and very readable text.

[David Peck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bible brought to new level

Having read all of Friedman’s books, he still manages to bring my understanding and love of the Bible to new levels

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book represents the consecutive writings of "J" as interpreted by Friedman. It's interesting and beautifully put together (after all, isn't this person a Bible writer, eloquent and poignant?), but at this time I'm more interested in reading the whole history of the times, including the documents found from neighboring states, to gain a greater understanding of how this faith I subscribe to took shape - its context, its culture, its times. This book will stay on my shelves and I'll pick it up from time to time to study.

[Jcurmudge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting concept based on linguistic research. The early books of the Bible contain what was just one major work from Adam to Solomon. The original author used only the 4 letter "word" for God throughout (YHWH) and never variations of "elohim". It certainly makes sense to me. In our time other writers would have been sued for plagiarism.

[Ahdom · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an incredible read. I have really enjoyed the works of Friedman in relation to The Bible. He has helped shape my understanding of the texts and the beauty in them. This book lays out the book of J in it's entirety and brings into light the first book of prose literature that we know of. This book is a thing of beauty!

[Kilian Metcalf · Rating 3 out of 5]

Way over my head. This is a work for people who are very grounded in Torah and knowledgeable about Torah scholarship and research. I understood about one word in three. Not his fault, the lack is mine, but readers should know this is not for the average person.

[Sandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

interesting book --worth paging through....