Who Wrote the Bible Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Who Wrote the Bible - Dissertation Example For instance, because it was during his lifetime that King James had the Bible translated into English, many have long believed that William Shakespeare actually wrote the book itself. There have many television programs on that subject and believers point to the 46th Psalm as their evidence. â€Å"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early. The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: he uttered his voice, the earth melted. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah. Come, behold the works of the LORD , what desolations he hath made in the earth. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; he breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; he burneth the chariot in the fire. Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah.† Their â€Å"evidence† consists of the fact is the word â€Å"shakes† is forty-six words from the beginning of the verse and â€Å"spear† is forty-six words from the end. Because Shakespeare was forty-six when this passage was printed, that is proof! Therefore, a book was first published in 1987 by Richard Elliott Friedman (updated in 1997) entitled Who Wrote the Bible? Many consider Friedman, a professor of Jewish studies at the University of Georgia, somewhat of an expert on Jewish history and culture and he has studied extensively in Israel, with excerpts of his works published in the Jerusalem Post. He is also a prolific author, for along with Who Wrote the Bible?, Friedman has also published such works as The Disappearance of God and The Bible Now (Friedman). Authors such as Dan Brown and Richard Leigh have concentrated on the New Testament for hidden authorship and meaning (such as Brown’s claim in the Da Vinci Code that Jesus Christ married Mary Magdalene and fathered a child). Interestingly enough, it appears that Friedman has concentrated most of his writings on what Christians call the Old Testament, especially in the first few books of the Bible, what the Jewish people refer to as the Tanakh. As the author himself said in the 1997 preface, he wrote Who Wrote the Bible? as a scholarly work to set his research apart from what he calls the â€Å"popular† works, a thinly veiled references to such authors as Brown. Indeed, he revealed in the decade since he published the original book, many professors and students alike had communicated with him to reveal they h ad used the book in their studies. Friedman humbly dismisses those who compare his findings to that of the rediscovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls or Darwin’s conclusions. However, he does admit that the book should be looked on as a something of a puzzle whose conclusions are somewhat irrefutable (Friedman II, 15). He begins his introduction to Who Wrote the Bible? by asking that very question, concentrating on three areas, the Five Books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) was supposedly written by Moses himself and Lamentations is considered authored by Jeremiah. The third area is considered indisputable by Jews and Christians alike, whether King David wrote most of Psalms. He also mentions that the Bible is such a sacred book in most parts of the