The Hebrew Bible/Old Testament tells the story of "Biblical Israel" in ways that overlap with but are not identical to the evidence for "ancient Israel" provided by archaeological sources. Close attention to archaeology and inscriptional evidence allows for an understanding of biblical literature in light of its ancient Near Eastern context. Primary focus is on the Iron Age (ca. 1200-540 BCE), whose archaeology and inscriptions will be explored alongside biblical texts set during the this period but often written much later. Class discussion will address modern controversies regarding ancient Israel, including questions of origins (what does proto-Israelite mean?), problems of historiography (minimalist vs. maximalist), and archaeological dating (low chronology vs. high chronology).