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FROM EDEN TO EXILE: Unraveling Mysteries of the Bible
Renowned Archaeologist Explores Some of the Bible's Most Puzzling Stories
WASHINGTON (April 4, 2007)--In a provocative yet persuasive book from National Geographic, acclaimed archaeologist and historian Eric H. Cline unravels the threads of seven of the most challenging and enduring mysteries in the Bible, shedding new light on questions that have intrigued scholars and believers for centuries.
In FROM EDEN TO EXILE: Unraveling Mysteries of the Bible (National Geographic Books; ISBN 978-4262-0084-7; June 19, 2007; $26), Cline explores the possible locations of the Garden of Eden, Noah's Ark, Sodom and Gomorrah, the Ark of the Covenant and the Ten Lost Tribes. He also delves into the stories of Moses and the Exodus, and Joshua and the Battle of Jericho, examining what made the Ten Commandments unique to Israelite society, why there is no mention of the Exodus in Egyptian texts, whether Joshua and the Israelites had assistance in conquering the land of Canaan, how the civilizations of the Near East influenced each other, and much more.
Seeking clues in ancient texts, archaeological finds and the Bible itself, Cline presents and evaluates all available evidence and investigates each biblical event in the context of science, history and literature. In each chapter he presents a brief summary of the biblical account of the mystery, then looks at additional textual and archaeological evidence and assesses some of the suggestions that have been proposed in the past to explain each mystery. He includes a section on the historical context of the mystery to see if it is possible to explain the story logically. Cline concludes each chapter by disclosing tantalizing possibilities for each of the mysteries in question and proposes solutions that may startle some readers.
Was Noah's Flood real, a myth, or the cultural memory of a real, catastrophic inundation that occurred centuries before Noah's time but was retold and reshaped over countless generations? Was Jericho destroyed by Joshua and his trumpets, or did the city's walls fall down centuries after an earthquake? Was the Garden of Eden located in Mesopotamia? And could the Ark of the Covenant be buried within the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, or was it destroyed during the obliteration of Solomon's Temple by Nebuchadnezzer and the Neo-Babylonians?
"We need to keep in mind there is a wide range of reactions and responses to these mysteries, even among archaeologists, ancient historians and biblical scholars themselves -- from those that say the Bible can be proven to those that say there isn't a single word of truth in it -- so my suggested solution to each of these biblical mysteries will be just that, no more and no less," Cline writes.
In this informative and entertaining book, Cline combines academic discipline with the accessible style that makes him a favorite with readers and audiences alike. As he debates each mystery, our understanding of the ancient world of the Bible comes alive in dramatic but accurate detail -- providing an essential but all-too-rare commodity in today's world overrun with unlikely and irrational theories frequently proposed by enthusiastic amateurs.
Israel Finkelstein, of Tel Aviv University's Institute of Archaeology, says of FROM EDEN TO EXILE, "In a world that turns more and more to irrational views of history, Eric Cline demythologizes the 'mysteries of the Bible.' He does so with the force of reason, using clear language and a perfect command of the ancient records and the finds from the field. In this Cline does a great service to rationality and solid academic research."
Cline, who served as a consultant to the National Geographic Channel's television series "Science of the Bible," has degrees in classical archaeology, Near Eastern archaeology and ancient history from Dartmouth College, Yale University and the University of Pennsylvania. He currently serves as chair of the department of classical and Semitic languages and literatures at The George Washington University, where he has won both national and local teaching awards, and as the associate director (USA) of the ongoing excavations at Megiddo (biblical Armageddon) in Israel. He is also an award-winning author, having won a Biblical Archaeology Society Publication Award for Best Popular Book on Archaeology for "The Battles of Armageddon: Megiddo and the Jezreel Valley from the Bronze Age to the Nuclear Age."
Cline lives in Chevy Chase, Md.
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Contacts:
Alison Reeves
National Geograpahic
(202) 857-7793
areeves@ngs.org
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