From Eden to Exile: Unraveling Mysteries of the Bible

Eric Cline, who has served as a consultant to National Geographic's "Science of the Bible" series, has written a great book for the layman who's curious about a scholarly perspective on the bible. More beginner-oriented than "The Bible Unearthed," "From Eden to Exile" explores 7 "mysteries" of the bible: *The Garden of Eden- There have been theories that the Eden story has a kernel of truth to it. Many archaeologists have tried to locate the Garden of Eden, in places from Iraq to Missouri, but no hypothesis has ever gained wide acceptance in the archaeological community. We'll probably never find the Garden of Eden outside the bible. *Noah's Ark- Expeditions are launched every year to locate Noah's Ark, but none of them have panned out. Cline wonders why no one is looking for the ark in Gilgamesh or the other ancient flood stories. Contrary to what many think, the bible never says that the Ark landed on Mt. Ararat, only on "the mountains of Ararat," which is much more vague. *Sodom and Gomorrah- Many attempts have been made to locate the cities, but none have succeeded definitively. If the flood story is purely mythical, then quite frankly, it's all moot. *Moses & The Exodus- Cline notes that the story of Moses' birth, flight, and discovery is probably a foundation myth, similar to Sargon of Akkad, Romulus and Remus, and Cyrus the Great. How much truth is there to the Exodus story? We don't know, and probably never will. Efforts to pin down the Pharoah who would have been alive during the Exodus have not succeeded, nor have efforts to locate archaeological evidence for a mass exodus. Egyptian scriptural evidence for such an event is not to be had. *Joshua and Jericho- Essentially, all evidence indicates that Jericho was destroyed long before Joshua and the Israelites were supposed to have arrived. "In short, it would seem that the only mystery still remaining about the story of Joshua and the Battle of Jericho is how it came to be written in the first place." (p. 120) *The Ark of the Covenant- No end of theories, expeditions, and excavations have been undertaken to find the Ark, but it has not been found. The most popular theories are that it is in a monastery in Ethiopia and that it's somewhere underneath the Temple Mount. In Ethiopia, no one but the head priest of the monastery is allowed to see the Ark, so we can't verify what they really have. Cline, however, quotes an author who was able to see it in 1941, and evidently it was simply constructed in medieval times. As for the Temple Mount, archaeologists have not obtained permission for excavations, and are unlilely to get it any time soon. Cline's view is that if there was an Ark, it was destroyed during the Babylonian invasion. *The Ten Lost Tribes- Although the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel have been believed to be everywhere from Africa to America, Cline says that most of them were probably never lost. All the Assyrian evidence indicates that about 20,000 were taken from the Northern

Rarely does anyone manage to credibly combine Ancient Near Eastern studies and Classical studies, but Cline balances well between the two in his archaeological research and many publications. As this thoughtful and well-written book FROM EDEN TO EXILE shows, Cline has also managed something even rarer: to sensibly communicate biblical problems without taking sides in religious controversy or demeaning others' ideas. The topography and texts are carefully allowed to speak for themselves. Enormously fascinating topics like the location of Eden and where Noah's Ark purportedly went - old favorites that have been mystifying for millennia and will continue to do so - will have Cline's readers note how fair he is to divergent opinions. Very refreshing to find a scholar with a such a readable voice.

With "From Eden to Exile", Eric Cline has written a great book that I would like to describe with a sequence of adjectives: beautifully clear, concise, short but all encompassing, understanding of problems with religious readership, based on profound studies, knowledge and experience. If I could I would make this book a "compulsory" reading in many "religious societies".

In "From Eden to Exile," Eric H. Cline takes several library stacks' worth of biblical, archaeological and enthusiasts' ponderings on the mysteries of the Bible and delivers a highly readable, cogent explanation of their findings. Written in part as a companion piece to National Geographic Channel's television series on the same topics, this is no lightweight transcription of those shows, but rather a scholarly work of merit. Cline's writing is clear, conversational and at times witty as he weighs theories about each of these biblical mysteries against three points of evidence: biblical sources, non-biblical sources and empirical archaeology. Most impressive, however, is that "From Eden to Exile" does not simply present the data; Cline bravely delivers conclusions based on the evidence and his own well-respected expertise in the fields of ancient history and archaeology. Alternative theories by armchair archaeologists and untrained amateurs are given their due where appropriate, but Cline does not hesitate to dash unfounded notions with fact and reason. The reader is left with an unambiguous pronouncement on each of the mysteries addressed; even when the pronouncement is that the data is inconclusive, the reader clearly understands the wherefore and the why. Reading "From Eden to Exile" is like sitting in on a distinguished lecture series about the most enduring biblical and archaeological questions of the modern era.

The single most valuable item for me is the author's explanation of the scholarly processes or methodologies which are needed to undertake any investigation. Wrong premises or presuppositions can result in wrong-headed conclusions. Cline explains these scholarly methodologies and uses them in his investigations. Subjects he adresses are: (1) The Garden of Eden; (2) Noah's Ark and the Flood; (3) Sodom and Gomorrah's location; (4)The dating of the Exodus; (5) The Fall of Jericho; (6) The Ark of the Covenant; (7) The Lost Tribes of Israel. Each of the seven has its own "problems" and he carefully notes them and attempts to come to grips with them. Are we dealing with truth or fiction? How to determine which? The book is an engrossing read and its scholarly methodologies ought to be helpful to all who are interested in these subjects.