Mythic Past
I have had Thomas L. Thompson’s Mythic Past Biblical Archaeology and the Myth of Israel on my book shelf for years and finally got around to reading it a few months ago. Dr. Thompson rejects the generally accepted idea that the Israelites arrived in Biblical Israel as invaders of an already existing civilization, conquered and replaced it. (A stand that caused him much opposition in his field and was detrimental to his career.) Thompson basically asserts a gradual evolution of already existing cultural elements.