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Recommended Books

• Armstrong, Karen. A History of God. This bestseller covers the evolution of ideas about God in the Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
• Baring, Anne & Cashford, Jules. The Myth of the Goddess. Only part of this very long tome relates to Biblical mythology and history, but it's a real eye-opener. Find out about God’s wife, Asherah. Includes many pictures, including one on page 455 showing Asherah (aka. Astarte), from seventh century BCE Palestine!
• Barr, James. Fundamentalism. Examination of the roots of fundamentalism.
• Barthel, Manfred. What The Bible Really Says. Commentary on the meaning of Biblical passages based on the cultural concepts of the time they were written and variations between manuscripts.
• Bultmann, Rudolph. The History of the Synoptic Tradition. Breakthrough survey of the synoptic problem.
• Callahan, Tim. Biblical Prophecy: Failure or Fulfillment? Must read! A primer on what is prophecy, where prophecy is in the Bible, and which have been fulfilled (or not).
• Campbell, Joseph. The Hero With A Thousand Faces. Campbell's magnum opus covering similarities in mythology spanning the world, including Biblical characters. Campbell's many books are great for anyone interested in mythology.
• Comfort, Dr. Philip. Essential Guide to Bible Versions. A believer's guide to Bible texts, manuscripts, and translations.
• Coogan, Michael, ed. Oxford History of the Biblical World. Articles written by foremost Biblical scholars, and dispel Christian notions about what parts of the Bible have been historically verified.
• Cross, Frank Moore. Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic. Covers evolution of deity in Canaan, from early deities to the Biblical God. Includes comparisons of Biblical passages and earlier hymns to other deities.
• Crossan, John Dominic. The Birth of Christianity. A massive tome going over all the many traditions which eventually gave rise to Christianity, including speculation about the man at its center (Jesus).
• Davis, Kenneth. Don't Know Much About The Bible. One installment in Davi's series, includes a good deal of interesting information about the Bible and the history behind it. Has a Christian flavor, but literalists will be disappointed; skeptics will be amused nonetheless.
• Finkelstein, Israel & Silberman, Neil. The Bible Unearthed: Archaeology’s New Vision of Ancient Israel and the Origin of its Sacred Texts. Popular survey of current archaeological findings and biblical history scholarship.
• Fox, Robin Lane. The Unauthorized Version: Truth and Fiction in the Bible. Written with a Christian flavor, includes accurate historical information. Knowledgeable unbelievers will find parts unacceptable, as it attempts to reconcile the history with a belief in Jesus and the Bible. Believers may find the historical information uncomfortable.
• Freke, Timothy & Gandy, Peter. The Jesus Mysteries. A popular survey of the problem of Christ's historicity, and the many links between pagan beliefs and later Christianity.
• Gordon, Cyrus & Rendsburg, Gary. The Bible and the Ancient Near East. Puts the Bible in perspective with the actual history of the area, as discovered by modern archaeology. Later in the book, unbelievers will note the results of the authors’ attempts to reconcile the disproving evidence with their continuing belief in the Bible.
• Hick, John. Philosophy of Religion. A small, pithy, wonderful paperback, comes with a high price tag; $29 at Amazon.Com!
• Kloppenborg, J.S. The Gospel of Q. First distillation of a proposed Q text, for the general reader.
• Laughlin, John. Archaeology and the Bible. In-depth, point-by-point comparison of Biblical passages with actual archaeological findings.
• Lutzer, Erwin. Ten Lies About God; How You Might Already Be Deceived. May make believers as well as unbelievers cringe. An attempt to compile a doctrine solely on the basis of the Bible. As such it includes predestination, and other ideas.
• Maccoby, Hyam. The Mythmaker. This little book by a Talmudic scholar provides an insight into the life and teachings of Paul and how they relate to the Jewish teachings and life of the time. Very easy to read, available in Barnes & Noble reprints.
• Mack, Burton. The Lost Gospel. A later distillation of Q, along with a discussion of its significance in Christian origins.
• Mack, Burton. Who Wrote The New Testament? Follows up on The Lost Gospel, covering the many Jesus and Christ movements, and how their texts collectively became the New Testament. As comprehensive as Crossan in its coverage of Christian origins, but briefer.
• O’Grady, Joan. Early Christian Heresies. Survey of Christian beliefs, before Constantine (and after). Another Barnes & Noble reprint.
• Pagels, Elaine. The Gnostic Gospels. Several Gnostic texts along with a survey of Gnosticism, and how it contributed to Christianity.
• Pritchard, James, ed. The Ancient Near East; Volume 1. Anthology of ancient texts and pictures of archaeological findings. Readers will find the similarity of some of these texts with the Bible striking. When texts are identical, or almost identical, to Biblical passages, the passage or passages are noted in the margin. When the text supports a historical Biblical passage, these passages are also noted.
• Redford, Donald. Egypt, Canaan, and Israel in Ancient Times. An Egyptologist covers three thousand years of history, making the case that the Exodus did not occur as indicated in the Bible, and that the Israelites were not a new people to Canaan.
• Rogerson, John, ed. Oxford Illustrated History of the Bible. Articles by leading scholars cover the development of the Bible, Biblical manuscripts, translations, what scriptures were in use during various times in history, etc.
• Sagan, Carl. The Demon-Haunted World: Science As a Candle in the Dark. Not precisely Bible-related, but the best description of skeptical thinking available for the general reader. The chapter "The Baloney Detection Kit" should be required reading in all schools worldwide.
• Schweitzer, Albert. The Quest of the Historical Jesus. The first "major" work surveying the problem of Christ's historicity. Yes, this is the Albert Schweitzer: physician, humanitarian and theologian. Published in 1906, it set the stage for all later such surveys, including Freke & Gandy and Crossan, so it's still relevant today.
• Thompson, Thomas. The Mythic Past: Biblical Archaeology and the Myth of Israel. Appears to be a compilation of lecture notes; writing is uneven, some points repeated, and there's no index. Still, very informative.
• Vermes, Geza. The Changing Faces of Jesus. Excellent study of the chronological evolution of how Jesus was viewed by his followers, as indicated by the New Testament texts.
• Magazines: Bible Review and Biblical Archaeology Review are both highly recommended. Christianity Today is also worth a review now and then.