This classic work examines early Hebrew life from the time of the settlement of Canaan to the monarchy from an anthropological perspective, drawing the details of Hebrew social organization from Biblical texts and traditions. To the familiar religious narrative and chronology, Day adds the social facts that emerge from his analysis, such as the shift from a pastoral to an agricultural way of life, the dynamics of clan organization and the consequences of contact with the Canaanites and Philistines. He shows that instead of a monotheistic people numbering several millions who passed into a land that of right was theirs as was commonly thought, there were instead several clans, each with a few thousand members, who made the journey and were only drawn together as they developed common interests when confronting a hostile land. Day goes on to consider the social significance of sacrifice, religion and the rise of nationalism, environmental change, the end of clanship, family and the home, warfare, law and the changing social conditions that led to the purification of Yahwism. | The Social Life Of The Hebrews by Edward Day, Paperback | Indigo Chapters