The Old Testament Audiobook By Amy-Jill Levine, The Great Courses cover art

The Old Testament

Preview

Try for $0.00
Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks, and podcasts.
You will get an email reminder before your trial ends.
Audible Plus auto-renews for $7.95/mo after 30 days. Upgrade or cancel anytime.

The Old Testament

By: Amy-Jill Levine, The Great Courses
Narrated by: Amy-Jill Levine
Try for $0.00

$7.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $33.90

Buy for $33.90

Confirm purchase
Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.
Cancel

About this listen

The Old Testament - written in ancient Israel by many different authors over the course of a thousand years - has had more meaning to more people than any other book the world has known. Its influence, whether you consider it scripture or literature, is evident everywhere in our culture, from medieval mystery plays to modern novels, art, music, theater, film, and dance. What can this work teach us about those who wrote it? About the people we once were? And can new academic understanding also speak to faith? As Professor Levine observes: "The Old Testament is endlessly fascinating because it offers everything to explore: myth, saga, and history; tragedy, comedy, and farce; economics and politics; literature and poetry of surpassing beauty; court intrigue and prophetic morality; heavenly miracles and sometimes heavenly silence; questions of theodicy; answers that satisfy and answers that may not; destruction and rebuilding; despair and hope."

In a series of 24 lively lectures, she takes you down all of these avenues, exploring selected passages from the texts known as the Old Testament, the Hebrew Bible, and the Tanakh, revealing how fresh research and findings from scholars of archaeology, cross-cultural studies, and comparative religion can deepen your understanding.

And though the focus of her lectures is on historical and literary issues, Professor Levine does not shy away from issues of religious concern, maintaining that the goal of an academic course is not to undermine religious faith, but to use that academic knowledge as a new source of insight into the writings that form a believer's spiritual bedrock.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

©2001 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2001 The Great Courses
Bibles Old Testament Great
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about The Old Testament

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    1,063
  • 4 Stars
    317
  • 3 Stars
    124
  • 2 Stars
    50
  • 1 Stars
    54
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    967
  • 4 Stars
    260
  • 3 Stars
    106
  • 2 Stars
    38
  • 1 Stars
    37
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    947
  • 4 Stars
    250
  • 3 Stars
    101
  • 2 Stars
    47
  • 1 Stars
    49

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

magnificent

I truly loved this Old Testament. the author was amazing I learned so much and I'm so thankful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great intro to the Old Testament

I’ve never read the Old Testament and used this course to get an overview of the popular stories and themes. The lecturer was great; she made a wealth of information digestible. I loved that she included some historical context and a telling of a popular Babylonian story that helped put the origins of the book into context. Fantastic Great Course!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding and engaging

Spiritually enriching, great narrator/lecturer with contagious excitement for the material. I'm going to listen to her Great Figures of the New Testament next. Oh, and check out Song of Songs 5:4-5, which she encourages listeners to read, but doesn't read as part of the lecture for fear of having this placed in the Erotica section:).

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Overview rather than Innerview

The narrator, Professor Levine, is energetic and wonderfully articulate. She laces her historical account with appropriate humor. She is committed to a mild feminist agenda, dishing on male heroism -- as with Samson, and with King David -- and exalting female deception and assassination. Her approach is historical, placing texts in contexts, but at the cost of not working hard on style, especially poetic accomplishments, narrative complexity, and shades of meaning. However, as Professor Levine constantly complains, there is so much to be said that even these 24 lectures cannot do more than scratch the surface. Her excitement with her area of expertise is wonderful, and as an introduction to further study, this course is well conceived and performed.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Review5

this was an excellent lecture series, I'm curious as to what other titles the Professor has available

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Excellent again

This is the second time I have gotten to listen to Professor Levine. What a treasure! It is like journeying with her into the land of discovery. I am so grateful for this opportunity. And yes wouldn't it be great if I could meet her in person sometime.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

I loved this course!

I found it really engaging, and really learned a lot. In spite of thinking I was relatively well read in scripture. I would love to listen to another of Prof Levine's courses. Absolutely value for money compared with some audio books I have bought lately.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

amazing!!

professor Levine does an amazing job taking us through not only the text itself but also giving background and historical information to help better understand how things worked.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Not a beginner course

The professor is very good, but she assumes that you have a prior knowledge about the Bible and the stories in it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Most excellent!

I wish there were part II of this course. Amy-Jill Levine is such an expert. She has an ability to share her enormous knowledge with excitement. She is also very sensitive to differences in religious interpretation of particular texts. Overall the best!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful