Berquist provides a useful initiation into the political and intellectual history of Judaism during the two centuries of Persian rule. Joseph Blenkinsopp, University of Notre Dame This lively account of the influence of Persian history on Hebrew Scriptures, and the people whose faith they express, places the emphasis exactly where it belongs.... Students will welcome this clear introduction not only to the period, the time when a surprising amount of the Bible was written, but also to the issues of method that any serious study of the Bible must address. The book is wonderfully concise yet thorough, informed yet selective, leading the reader at a refreshing pace through the almost astounding number of people, events, changes, tensions, and conflicts. Robert B. Coote, San Francisco Theological Seminary A lucid historical overview as well as original research, an invaluable resource for the study of early Judaism. The diverse religious responses in the Persian period offer a way of thinking about religious pluralism in our own time. David L. Petersen, Iliff School of Theology