It's a collection elaborated over thirteen centuries. I think having in mind the shifting context of writing and the various forces bearing on it make it a far

It's a collection elaborated over thirteen centuries. I think having in mind the shifting context of writing and the various forces bearing on it make it a far more compelling text. Otherwise a lot of it just reads like out of date mythology and antiquated propaganda. You can see the evolution of Canaanite polytheism to Jewish monolatry and monotheism over time, the political conflicts between the groups of the region following the Bronze Age collapse, the conflicts between Canaanite polities, the retcons to invent a unified Kingdom of Israel, the creation of a literate orthodoxy with the Babylonian exile etc. And that's just the Jewish stuff. The dynamics of Late Second Temple Judaism and Early Christianity are also fascinating.