Mark S. Smith is Skirball Professor of Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies at New York University. He is the author of fifteen books, including The Early History of God; The Pilgrimage Pattern in Exodus (with contributions by the archaeologist Elizabeth Bloch-Smith); The Origins of Biblical Monotheism; God in Translation; Poetic Heroes; and How Human Is God? Seven Questions about God and Humanity in the Bible.

“Mark Smith provides an authoritative survey of concepts of God in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Israel, focusing on issues of representation and spatiality.  He is exceedingly well-versed in the primary texts, the secondary literature, and theoretical frameworks for these topics.  It is a bravura performance.  Smith doesn’t simplify, but – as an expert teacher – makes complex materials come to life.” —Ronald Hendel, University of California, Berkeley