New Horizons in Biblical Research (The Whidden Lectures for 1961)

In the field of Biblical scholarship, especially in its relation to archaeology, few men can speak with greater authority than Professor Albright. In this brief but masterly survey, he deals first with the effect of archaeological discoveries on our understanding of the Old Testament, from Abraham to the Judges, and then with linguistic arguments which have been advanced about the nature of Hebrew thought and its contrast with Greek - with some wise words on demythologization. Finally he surveys the effect on New Testament scholarship and early Christian history of the availability of comparative material from the Dead Sea Scrolls and from Gnostic papyri, showing that it is conservative, rather than radical, views which are supported by the new evidence. [From front flap]