Пътеводител в Библията: старият завет

Asimov's Guide to the Bible #1

by Isaac Asimov, Айзък Азимов, Владимир Германов (Translator)

„Пътеводител в Библията“ е уникален опит да се разгледат текстовете на Светото писание през призмата на науката. Уменията на автора на велик разказвач и широтата на неговите научни познания, привличането на възможностите на съвременната историография, археология, антропология и география превръщат тази книга в ключ за разчитане на преплетените нишки в библейската история и митология, но и в средство за по-дълбоко разбиране на библейските послания.

Айзък Азимов е познат на българските си читатели като изключителен автор на научнофантастични произведения. Значимостта на неговите творби никога не се изчерпва с отделни истории. Майсторството му на разказвач, мащабите на мислене, които превръщат всеки разказ в епично произведение, както и блестящите идеи, които формират стила на мислене на милиони читатели и на плеяда млади автори, стоят в основата на цели направления в развитието на жанра.
Не са много обаче хората, които знаят, че Айзък Азимов е един от най-големите учени енциклопедисти на 20-и век.

Genres: Religion, History, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Christianity, Spirituality, Science

752 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

Works of prolific Russian-American writer Isaac Asimov include popular explanations of scientific principles, The Foundation Trilogy (1951-1953), and other volumes of fiction.

Isaac Asimov, a professor of biochemistry, wrote as a highly successful author, best known for his books.

Asimov, professor, generally considered of all time, edited more than five hundred books and ninety thousand letters and postcards. He published in nine of the ten major categories of the Dewey decimal classification but lacked only an entry in the category of philosophy (100).

People widely considered Asimov, a master of the genre alongside Robert Anson Heinlein and Arthur Charles Clarke as the "big three" during his lifetime. He later tied Galactic Empire and the Robot into the same universe as his most famous series to create a unified "future history" for his stories much like those that Heinlein pioneered and Cordwainer Smith and Poul Anderson previously produced. He penned "Nightfall," voted in 1964 as the best short story of all time; many persons still honor this title. He also produced well mysteries, fantasy, and a great quantity of nonfiction. Asimov used Paul French, the pen name, for the Lucky Starr, series of juvenile novels.

Most books of Asimov in a historical way go as far back to a time with possible question or concept at its simplest stage. He often provides and mentions well nationalities, birth, and death dates for persons and etymologies and pronunciation guides for technical terms. Guide to Science, the tripartite set Understanding Physics, and Chronology of Science and Discovery exemplify these books.

Asimov, a long-time member, reluctantly served as vice president of Mensa international and described some members of that organization as "brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs." He took more pleasure as president of the humanist association. The asteroid 5020 Asimov, the magazine Asimov's Science Fiction, an elementary school in Brooklyn in New York, and two different awards honor his name.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_As...

Reviews

[Wilier · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excepcional trabajo de Asimov en este libro...

Llama la atención que Asimov sea ateo y se haya dedicado a crear esta obra desde un punto de vista meramente objetivo, dejándonos un festín de anécdotas curiosidades históricas y un sentido lógico de los acontecimientos que la Biblia misma no te lo da.

Se que no es del interés de todo el mundo pero para quien lo sea les recomiendo leer paralelamente con la biblia mis y verán como su comprensión va en aumento a medida que avanza la guía.

5/5

[Javier Casado · Rating 4 out of 5]

Si estás convencido de que la Biblia no es ni más ni menos que literalmente la palabra de Dios, entonces olvida este libro. Si aceptas la biblia como una obra humana que mezcla elementos históricos y mitológico-religiosos, entonces la lectura de este libro te puede resultar sumamente interesante.

En él se analiza en profundidad la biblia desde un punto de vista totalmente neutro, contrastándolo con lo que conocemos de la historia de esa región por otras fuentes y analizando la evolución de la religión judeo-cristiana a lo largo de los siglos en los que se fueron escribiendo los distintos libros que conforman la biblia (una estructura interna que también se analiza en este texto). Es una fantástica forma de conocer esta obra básica de la cultura occidental para todos aquellos (inmensa mayoría, creo, al menos en nuestro país) que no hemos leído la biblia o que, como yo, lo hemos intentado y hemos terminado abandonando por la aridez de su arcaico lenguaje o la complejidad que suponen sus cientos de personajes.

El análisis de Asimov (basado en realidad en otros análisis de expertos historiadores y estudiosos del tema) clarifica enormemente la lectura, como por ejemplo al aclarar la confusión de nombres de los personajes (un mismo personaje histórico a menudo aparece en la biblia con varios nombres diferentes, según el autor de esa parte utilice el nombre griego, el hebreo, el latino…). A través de las páginas de este denso libro (tan denso o más que la propia biblia) iremos descubriendo el antiguo testamento como lo que es, una crónica de la historia del pueblo judío, una sucesión de guerras de fronteras, intrigas palaciegas y acuerdos políticos entre las civilizaciones de la época en la región (egipcios, sirios, asirios, babilonios, fenicios…); todo ello adornado con la protección de Yahvé, el dios del pueblo de Israel, que los guía y los protege frente a los dioses de las civilizaciones vecinas.

Descubriremos también la sutil evolución de la inicial religión yahvista, henoteísta (creencia de que cada región tiene sus dioses, que sólo son poderosos en un cierto ámbito territorial) y primitiva (Yahvé empieza siendo básicamente un dios guerrero y amante de los sacrificios sangrientos) hacia una religión más elaborada, en la que poco a poco, con el paso de los siglos, va cambiando la concepción henoteísta por la de una religión más global, al tiempo que el dios se va haciendo más “humano” y compasivo, y a la vez que los rituales van adquiriendo complejidad. Veremos también cómo la religión yahvista va adoptando conceptos de otras religiones de las civilizaciones con las que va conviviendo a lo largo de los siglos. Asistiremos, por ejemplo, al “nacimiento” del concepto del demonio en una etapa muy tardía, y descubriremos las enormes diferencias entre lo que dice textualmente la biblia, lo que probablemente quería decir de forma metafórica, y la interpretación que le dan la religiones actuales de origen judeo-cristiano.

El libro es largo y exhaustivo, incluyéndose a menudo análisis versículo a versículo. La objetividad y neutralidad de Asimov es destacable a lo largo de todo el texto, diferenciando además claramente entre hechos objetivos (equivalencia constatada entre nombres diferentes, cronologías históricas, etc) o interpretaciones (forma de interpretar una metáfora, por ejemplo). Aunque realmente lo que más sorprende es lo poco que se necesitan las interpretaciones, siendo la mayor parte del texto de lo más claro (y totalmente alejado de cualquier interpretación sobrenatural) una vez se lee a la luz del conocimiento de la historia antigua de la región. La verdad es que no extraña demasiado que la iglesia católica prohibiera durante siglos la lectura de la biblia a sus feligreses, reservándose el derecho a interpretarla y "transmitirla" (a su modo): leerla sabiendo lo que se lee es una forma bastante efectiva de conseguir que pierda todo el aire místico que la envuelve, convirtiéndola sin más en una crónica histórico-mitológica de la región palestina y sus pueblos.

En resumen, un libro denso y complejo, pero tremendamente interesante para quienes sientan interés crítico hacia la historia de las religiones occidentales, o más bien del libro en el que se inspiran.

[Forrest Horton · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an avowed atheist (and, of course, a prolific science fiction writer), Asimov provides an excellent guide to the incredible history recorded--albeit in contradictory and convoluted ways--in the new and old testaments. In this 1200-page two-volume tome, he largely avoids commenting on the spiritual and moral content of the bible, focusing instead on historical plausibility of biblical events. He discusses the phonetic origins of names and places ad nauseam, the religious and cultural influences exerted on early Jews and Christians, and the motives of biblical authors (among much else). I experienced many "Ah-ha!" moments when he described the origins of common modern phrases. My only complaint is that he provides no references, so it is difficult to tell where consensus among historians ends and where his personal speculation begins.

Overall, I found this book to be an admirable attempt to provide a thorough secular guide to the bible, one that has undoubtedly has been overlooked due to the glut of biblical literature with religious and/or political overtones.

[Juan Manuel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un libro muy entretenido en el cual Asimov, de una forma muy clara y didáctica, va explicando diferentes pasajes del antiguo testamento, indicando en que época fueron escritos (aproximadamente), a que se refería el autor del pasaje y situando siempre el contexto histórico y geográfico. Asimov también explica como en el antiguo testamento se van recogiendo otros mitos, algunos más antiguos (como por ejemplo el del diluvio) y como en sus páginas han quedado restos de una versión más primitiva de religión: politeísta y henoteísta y cómo estos han ido evolucionando a medida que los textos que componen la biblia se van volviendo más modernos.

[Ivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Айзък Азимов поема върху раменете си неблагодарната задача да отсее мит, от история, от религиозни послания в Стария завет. "Пътеводител в Библията" е много по-интересната, стегната и информативна Библия – без да навлиза в теологични дискусии, Азимов ни превежда през възникването на човешката цивилизация в Плодородния полумесец, навлизането на еврейските племена в Ханаан, империята на Давид и Соломон, та чак до края на античната еврейска държава под напора на по-големите и силни завоеватели в този толкова спорен регион. Ако имате търпението за всичките 700+ страници, няма да съжалявате.

[Doram Jacoby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This fascinating book gave me a new perspective on the bible.
Don't get me wrong, I am still an Atheist but I do see this important book in a new light.
I now recognize the historical significance of these writings and know much more about it then I have ever learned in school (they taught us the Bible in such a simplistic way and only small, hand picked, parts of it).

Thanks to this book I now also have a more complete understanding of the empires and great powers of ancient Europe, Africa and the Near-East and how they connected and interacted with the Jewish nation (or more correctly- nations), of the birth of Christianity, its roots and its early history and of the real source of many modern phrases and rituals.

I recommend this book wholeheartedly for anyone interested in history or theology, whether he believes in god/s or does not.

[Alvaro · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tengo que admitir que esta vez no he disfrutado tanto como otras veces de un libro de Asimov, en este libro echo de menos la fluidez de otros de sus libros de historia, cómo puedes descender de línea en línea de una forma suave y sin esfuerzo.

[Minifig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Asimov hace en este libro (tanto en el tomo I, dedicado al Antiguo testamento, como en el tomo II, dedicado al Nuevo Testamento), un repaso de los libros de la Biblia.

Este repaso se hace desde un punto de vista racional, señalando el contenido de los libros pero, sobre todo, contextualizándolos en su época. Así, señala cuáles son lo hechos históricos posibles a los que se refiere el libro, pero también cuáles son sus errores comparándolos con el conocimiento real aportado por la historia y la arqueología.

Señala también la importancia de los libros para los gobernantes de su época, qué resaltan y qué ocultan para sus fines políticos, o cuáles son las incoherencias (tanto internas de cada libro como entre ellos).

Pese a todo, la arqueología de los lugares bíblicos es un tema controvertido que ha sido a menudo malinterpretado y que no ha podido se dilucidada con mayor claridad hasta basarse en métodos modernos como la datación por radiocarbono, que ha dado lugar a la revisión de muchas fechas.

En este sentido, los libros de Asimov fallan al contextualizar e interpretar libros del Antiguo Testamento. Por ello, resulta muy interesante leer "La biblia desenterrada" de Silverman y Filkenstein antes de afrontar la lectura de estos libros, a fin de tener conocimiento previo de en qué errores incurre Asimov (pues su guía es anterior a esta revisión de datos arqueológicos).

Pese a todo, la Guía de Asimov sigue siendo un libro muy interesante de leer para todo aquel que quiera interesarse por la Biblia de una forma objetiva y racional.

[SaraKat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Asimov does his typically great explaining thing with the Bible this time. He points out mis-translations and ambiguities. I learned many new and interesting facts about the Middle East's history. He focuses on the historical context and doesn't comment on the moral aspects of the stories. This is a must-read for anyone who considers themselves a Bible scholar.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read up to his analysis of 1 Samuel and it is very interesting. He's focusing on the historical, rather than the religious side of the Bible, which does help in understanding where the writers of the Bible were coming from in that time period. So far, not bad.

[Ariadna73 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lo maravilloso de Asimov es que recuerdas siempre algo de lo que te cuenta, y todo te sirve. Siempre aprendes algo y es fascinante de leer. Algún día sá que tendré tiempo para terminarlo y no me voy a arrepentir.

[Pablo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un libro muy interesante pero algo denso.

[Kevin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Puts the Bible into historical perspective. I thought the explanation of some the recurring devices, like genealogies, was illuminating

[Stefan Stanchev · Rating 5 out of 5]

Много интересно, задълбочено и увлекателно четиво. Айзък Азимов освен великолепен фантаст, е и страхотен библейски изследовател.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE FAMED SCIENCE AUTHOR LOOKS AT THE BIBLE (OLD TESTAMENT)

Author Isaac Asimov wrote in the Introduction to this 1968 book, “The most influential, the most published, the most widely read book in the history is the Bible. No other book has been so studied and so analyzed and it is a tribute to the complexity of the Bible, and the eagerness of its students that after thousands of years of study there are still endless books that can be written about it… I have long wanted to take on a job … that I can most briefly describe as a consideration of the secular aspects of the Bible… Most people who read the Bible do so in order to get the benefit of its ethical and spiritual teachings, but the Bible has a secular side, too. It is a history book covering the first four thousand years of human civilization. The Bible is not a history book in modern sense… Nevertheless, for most of the last two thousand years, the Bible has been virtually the only history book used in Western civilization…

“In this book, then, I am assuming a reader who is familiar with the Bible, at least in its general aspects, but who knows little of ancient history outside the Bible. I assume a reader who would be interested in filling in the fringe… and who would expect much of the Bible to become easier to understand if some of the places and people mentioned in it are made less mysterious… I am trying… to bring in the outside world, illuminate it in terms of the Biblical story and, in return, illuminate the events of the Bible by adding to it the non-Biblical aspects of history, biography, and geography.”

He says of the Flood, “This, according to the Bible, was a world-wide deluge, but there is no such record of any such phenomenon, of course… This is not to say, however, that the Biblical story of the Flood was not based on some actual, but local, flood in Sumerian history… In a country as flat as Sumeria, it would not take much of a flood to cover large portions of the entire region… With time, as the story is told and retold it is dramatically inevitable that a flood which spreads out over parts of Sumeria… will be said to have covered ‘all the world,’ meaning the entire region.” (Pg. 38)

Of the “Nephilim” in Numbers 13:33, he says, “At least one reason for the persistent tales of giants may rest in the wonder felt by barbarian invaders at the sight of the works of the civilizations they replaced… It is almost needless to say that archaeologists have come across no traces of giant races in historic times. To be sure, there are a very few fossil remains, mostly teeth, indicating the one-time existence of a manlike being even larger than the modern gorilla. These must, however, have lived a hundred thousand years ago and more, and it is unlikely in the extreme that any existed as recently as Abraham’s time.” (Pg. 72-73)

Of Hebrew slavery and the Exodus, he suggests, “One must look later… for the Pharaoh of the Oppression and speculation inevitably alights on Rameses II himself… Furthermore, the reign of Rameses II is followed by a decline during which the Israelites could have broken out of Egypt… It would seem then that Rameses II would have to be the Pharaoh of the Oppression, IF there was any Pharaoh of the Oppression at all. This last reservation is made necessary by the fact that there is no record outside the Bible of Israelites in Egypt, of their enslavement, and of their escape. In particular, none of the events in Exodus are to be found anywhere in the Egyptian records uncovered by modern archaeologists.” (Pg. 125-126)

He says of the Book of Ruth, “The purpose of the book seems clear. It was written at the time when the Jews, like Naomi, were returning from exile. The exiles were bitterly anxious to purify the land from the strangers who had been settled on it during the Exile. Their leaders established a rigid and narrow racial policy by which all intermarriage with foreigners was forbidden and all who had already married foreign wives must put them away. But there must have been many among the Jews who were appalled at the pettiness of such a policy and at the heartlessness with which it would have to be enforced. One of them wrote the Book of Ruth as a clarion call for universality and for the recognition of the essential brotherhood of man.” (Pg. 265)

He says of the so-called “Ten Lost Tribes” of Israel: “Many people believed legends to the effect that the Ten Tribes still existed in some remote vastness of Asia or Africa, that they had established a powerful kingdom, and that they would someday emerge, glowing with true religion, to rescue the downtrodden Jews… from their oppressors… Some even believed that existing modern nations might be the descendants of the Ten Tribes. In the nineteenth century, the notion grew in some circles that the Ten Tribes somehow became … the Saxons (“Isaac’s sons”), and, since these invaded Britain, that the English people are therefore the descendants of the Ten Tribes. Surely it is hard to imagine anything more silly than these beliefs of the so-called ‘British-Israelite’ cult. What really happened to the Ten Tribes?... the Israelites were moved 450 miles northeastward to the top of the Fertile Crescent… They undoubtedly intermarried with the people of that region, adopted the gods and customs of the region, and ‘vanished’ by assimilation.” (Pg. 379-380)

Of the “seventy years of exile” predicted by Jeremiah in 29:10, he states, “And yet the period of exile was not seventy years. From the destruction of the Temple in 586 B.C. to Cyrus’s proclamation in 538 B.C. was a lapse of time of only forty-eight years. Of course, Jeremiah and the Chronicler may not have thought of seventy years as representing a precise length of time… Seventy years may merely have meant ‘the lifetime of a man’ to them… On the other hand, the seventy years that were accomplished at Babylon may refer to the duration of the Chaldean Empire, which from the accession of Nebuchadnezzar to that of Cyrus lasted sixty-seven years.” (Pg. 436-437)

Of the creatures “Behemoth” and “Leviathan” mentioned in Job 41:1, 15, he comments, “The Hebrew word ‘behemoth’ … is placed in the plural to imply, apparently, that the behemoth … is the greatest of beasts… the behemoth seems to be larger and stronger than even a hippopotamus or elephant. Instead, it bears a mythological character… The leviathan is obviously a sea creature… But again there seem to be strong mythological components to Leviathan, as to behemoth… Leviathan can also represent the forces of evil in the world…” (Pg. 485-487)

Of Isaiah 7:14-16, he states, “The most interesting part of Isaiah’s ‘sign’… is the identity of the child who was to be called Immanuel… Whatever the merits of the traditional Christian interpretation of the verse, it must have a more immediate meaning. Isaiah could scarcely offer to Ahaz, as a sign for the present predicament, the birth of a child more than seven centuries later. But what child of his own time can Isaiah be referring to? The name Immanuel means ‘God is with us’… God is with Judah and will not allow it to be destroyed by Syria and Israel… if the name is symbolic, any other name of equal symbolism might do… what seems more likely [is that] Isaiah’s reference to a young woman is a reference to his own wife… It seems perfectly reasonable, then, to suppose Isaiah’s own son is the predicted Immanuel.” (Pg. 532-533)

Of the “seventy weeks” of Daniel 9:24-26, he says, “Seventy weeks of years, or 490 years, counting from the destruction of the first Temple in 586 B.C., would carry matters to 96 B.C., a date safely in the writer’s future. (As it turns out, of course, the ideal Jewish state was not established in 96 B.C., either, and that date has no particular significance in Jewish history… One might see in this a reference to Jesus, particularly since the King James Version capitalizes ‘Messiah’ and ’Prince.’ The Revised Standard version does not, however… What [9:25] seems to say is that seven weeks of years (forty-nine years) will pass from Jeremiah’s prediction, or from the fall of the first Temple in 586 B.C. to the coming of an anointed king who will make it possible to rebuild. A passage of forty-nine years … brings us to 537 B.C., which is indeed within a year of the time (538 B.C.) when Cyrus granted permission to rebuild… It is completely reasonable, then, to understand ‘Messiah the Prince’ to signify Cyrus of Persia… At the end of that time, 104 B.C., ‘shall Messiah be cut off.’ This can’t be the same Messiah spoken of in the verse before… It may, therefore, be Onias III who is the Messiah that is cut off, although the date given in Daniel misses the actual date by sixty-six years.” (Pg. 613-614)

This book—despite being written fifty years ago---will be of great interest to those wanting a non-religious perspective on the Bible.

[John P · Rating 4 out of 5]

Note that Asimov's intent was to clarify the historical records contained in the OT. The timeline of events, movements of people, reigns of leaders, are made clear - not an easy task by any means since many of the books describe the same events by different people, in different times, with different agendas.

The audacity of the extremely prolific author to take on this challenge - 5 stars

The mind-boggling amount of research and detective work to decipher the works of the Old Testament - 5 stars

The actual historicity, stripped of the miraculous (of which Asimov does not treat in any significant way), to this reviewer - 3 stars

The seemingly endless battles for what turns out to be temporary control of the various regions of the middle east as told by the authors of the OT books will be of great interest to some.

Asimov brings a clarity to the story which is refreshing.

[Carlos Mock · Rating 2 out of 5]

Asimov's Guide to the Bible: The Old Testament (Paperback) by Isaac Asimov

Isaac Asimov is my favorite Science fiction writer. Not everyone is aware that he's written multiple non-fiction books in very many subjects.

I was attracted to his take on the Old Testament, but sadly I thought the book was boring and did little to explore all the ridiculous statements that the books contain. Starting with the age of the Universe - 6000 years old - to many of the lies told about how long the OIld Testament characters lived - Methuselah purportedly lived to be 969 years old.

I was expecting scientific commentary on the inaccuracies of the Old Testament and instead, I found trivial explanations of where the Harden of Eden might have been located.

I was disappointed with the book and do not recommend it.

[dejah_thoris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as a commentary to my daily Bible readings and I'm thankful I did. Asimov explains the symbolism, astronomy, political situation, and any other elements relevant to the selected verse. In the Old Testament's case, this really helped me understand all of the tribal interactions across time. Asimov also provided many prophetic cross-references between the two testaments to tie them together.


Dad must've used this one much more frequently than the other testament because the binding disintegrated. I've considered repairing it or keeping it bound in a rubber band, but I know I need to recycle it. I also considered removing the excellent maps, but I really can't come up with a good craft project for them. Oh well, I'm glad I read it at least once.

[Luis Andrade M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una buena y densa guía qué nos Lleva desde el génesis hasta el final del antiguo testamento con notas históricas (con la mejor información ubicando casa momento en una muy probable línea del tiempo), notas sobre las palabras, significados y lenguaje, así como relaciones entre los personajes para entender completamente y mejor el gran Libro.

No conocía este aspecto de Asimov, pero no le quedará a deber: es bueno en estos temas tanto como en la ciencia ficción.

Realmente bueno, independientemente de la religión que profese el lector.

[Stephanie Gordon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Te cuenta la Biblia de manera novelada pero explicando dónde supuestamente están localizados los lugares que menciona, y la conclusión es que la mayoría de los lugares y personajes no tienen ningún lugar en la historia, o sea que estamos hablando de un libro casi en su totalidad ficticio, lleno de anacronismos y contradicciones. Y como no está contada cronológicamente, es un ir y venir que para nada te deja enganchado, lo cual lo hace pesado. Algunos datos están interesantes y se le puede aprender una que otra cosa.

[Gabriela Hassan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has been a great companion while reading the Old Testament. As an atheist, Asimov provides interesting facts about the context and history behind this part of the Bible. It helps a lot to understand why, how, and when these myths were collected. Of course, If you are a believer, this book is not for you. But if you are interested in the historical and political context of the Israel of the Old Testament, I highly recommend it.

[Kris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mostly a summary of the biblical verses with some attempt to determine the year they were written and who exactly the writers and characters were. An admirable piece of scholarship but it makes for pretty dry reading much of the time. Asimov’s voice comes through too rarely.

[Daniel Pereira · Rating 5 out of 5]

Muy bueno, leí la Biblia completa, pero resulta tediosa en realidad, pero gracias a este libro se logra obtener una mirada más amplia y del contexto en que se armó la Biblia.
Con este libro me queda más claro aún que la Biblia de historica poco, de cierta menos y de moral nada.

[Jose Sanz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I couldn't get into it.

[R. Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wait, so Hell isn’t even in the Bible?

[Maximiliano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un excelente libro de historia. Para sacarle más provecho es conveniente haber leído los primeros libros de Historia Universal Asimov. Por lo menos El Cercano Oriente, La Tierra de Canaán y Los Egipcios (y, opcionalmente, también Los Griegos).
La única crítica es a la edición española, que en todo el libro usa las traducciones españolas de los versículos citados por el autor. Como éstas no coinciden con las de las ediciones de la Biblia que usa Asimov, el traductor debe poner incontables notas al pie para aclarar las diferencias.

[William Orr · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this book in Voertman's for $6.95 when I was in my first senior year. Been meaning to read it ever since.

Asimov really doesn't disappoint. His writing is clear, he is curious, loves words, loves history, and has an analytical mind. He does jump around a bit and there is no overall philosophy except framing the Old Testament with historical context that interests him (and should interest you).

At the end, I feel like he left lots of data out, but there was still a lot of detail in the book.

Now on to the New Testament!

[Hugo Charles · Rating 5 out of 5]

Asimov hace una investigación sobre las civilizaciones, culturas y hechos que afectaron para la creación del Antiguo Testamento, las influencias, reinos, personajes clave, así como costumbres, festividades que moldearon las propias, libro por libro instruye con los datos posibles de su creación según los concilios y los contrasta con lo que hemos aprendido de la Media Luna Fértil, un repaso increíble sobre Mesopotamia, los Medos, Persia, Asiria, Babilonia, las diferentes dinastías egipcias, los Fenicios e incluso los griegos y grupos indios.

[Sharonlee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Amazing amount of research, much of the info didn't penetrate my thick skull, but here and there some interesting insights on how the bible was written, what was going on during that time period that we know about from other, contemporary accounts. Most striking fact: We apparently are living in the wrong year, if we're counting from when Jesus was born.

[Albert Sala · Rating 5 out of 5]

un altre gran llibre del sempre excepcionalment erudit Asimov.

Llibre dens, millor llegir.lo amb un mapa al costat.

Asimov torna a demostrar-nos la seva meticulositat a l,hora d,analitzar qualsevol tema.

Magnífica visió històrica de l,antic testament.

Un gran llibre a llegir tant pels creients com pels no creients.