Chapter 1: The present moment in ancient Israelite perceptions of historiography

Reflecting the ambiguity of the title, this paper focuses first on some contemporary views about the existence of history writing in ancient Israel, and then on how ancient Israelite use of the concept of the 'present' may actually shed light on what they thought about history. In the first half, therefore, secular rationalism, archaeology, and, in our own 'preesnt moment', postmodern interests in ideology, are seen to have influenced scholarly assessment of the historiographical nature of Old Testament narratives. In the second half, after a brief overview of the centrality of past events for ancient Israelites, their idea of 'history' is presented as the combination of collective memory, anticipation of promise fulfilment, and personal participation in the divine convenant established with past generations. Finally, the paper explores various possible explanations for the common and widespread biblical phrase "until this day", apparently linking the past with the historian's own present moment