Day of Atonement By David A. deSilva Review

Day of Atonement

A Novel of the Maccabean Revolt

By David A. deSilva

978-0-8254-2471-7 | $15.99 | Paperback

Kregel Publications

About the book:

The Greeks have taken over the world, but Jerusalem is still the same backwater city Jason has always known. He wants to help his hometown rise to a new age of prosperity and influence. If that means stretching the terms of the city's divine covenant, so be it. But how far is he willing to go to achieve Greek greatness for this Jewish city? It will take the willingness of a handful of Jews to die rather than violate the covenant in order to turn the tide back to God.

Written by an internationally recognized expert in the period between the Testaments, Day of Atonement invites readers into Judea during the tumultuous years leading up to the Maccabean Revolt. It was this pivotal decade that reminded Jews of the centrality of the covenant to their national security and taught them that the covenant was worth dying for. The story is so foundational, it is still told every year at Hanukkah. The lessons learned during this turbulent time also shed light on just what was at stake in the ministry of Jesus, whose radical message seemed to threaten the covenant once again.

Day of Atonement joins the perennially successful novels Pontius Pilate andThe Flames of Rome by renowned historian Paul Maier on Kregel's premier list of captivating and historically accurate biblical novels.

My Review:

I liked that this book covered times between the 2 testaments. It was a time of war and of greatness. There was so much to be gained and lost. After reading this book, some of the New Testament made more sense to me. I thought a lot about how the preachers and places would have been different. This was not a quick read for me, only because there were a lot of places and people to remember. I also had to take my time and read through the history. The list of characters helped a lot. I would have liked a glossary as well. There was a map, but I would have liked it bigger and more detailed. I am giving this book a 4/5. I was given a copy to review, however all opinions are my own.