• The Hebrew Bible

  • A Translation with Commentary
  • By: Robert Alter
  • Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
  • Length: 64 hrs and 4 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (171 ratings)

Access a growing selection of included Audible Originals, audiobooks, and podcasts.
You will get an email reminder before your trial ends.
Audible Plus auto-renews for $7.95/mo after 30 days. Upgrade or cancel anytime.
The Hebrew Bible  By  cover art

The Hebrew Bible

By: Robert Alter
Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
Try for $0.00

$7.95 a month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $34.39

Buy for $34.39

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

A landmark event: the complete Hebrew Bible in the award-winning translation that delivers the stunning literary power of the original.

A masterpiece of deep learning and fine sensibility, Robert Alter's translation of the Hebrew Bible, now complete, reanimates one of the formative works of our culture. Capturing its brilliantly compact poetry and finely wrought, purposeful prose, Alter renews the Old Testament as a source of literary power and spiritual inspiration. From the family frictions of Genesis and King David's flawed humanity to the serene wisdom of Psalms and Job's incendiary questioning of God's ways, these magnificent works of world literature resonate with a startling immediacy. Featuring Alter's generous commentary, which quietly alerts listeners to the literary and historical dimensions of the text, this is the definitive edition of the Hebrew Bible

©2019 Robert Alter (P)2019 Recorded Books

What listeners say about The Hebrew Bible

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    144
  • 4 Stars
    8
  • 3 Stars
    4
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    10
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    118
  • 4 Stars
    9
  • 3 Stars
    2
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    4
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    115
  • 4 Stars
    8
  • 3 Stars
    3
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    6

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Where is the promised commentary?!

I own the printed version of this book and I really enjoy it.
I was really looking forward to listening to it too.

The book description plainly says “ Featuring Alter's generous commentary, which quietly alerts listeners to the literary and historical dimensions of the text”. But it’s a flat out lie. The commentary is completely missing. The publisher needs to update their description immediately and stop selling this book under false pretenses.
What’s here is good, and worth a listen. But it’s just not all that’s advertised. I feel cheated.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

89 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Commentary Missing

As a huge biblical history buff I was extremely excited to have an audio version of this translation. I was even more excited to learn Edoardo Ballerini would be narrating.

However the line by line/verse by verse commentary written in the physical book is not present in the audiobook. It’s a shame because I was really hoping to have the commentary as stated.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

65 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A bible without access to a table of contents with

A bible without a table of contents is really problematic since a bible is not used as a straight read through. It took me 5 minutes to find the Minor Prophets and Hosea, and jumping back and forth for weekly portions or simply different readings will be very difficult.
I regret purchasing it and I'll probably just use it for a single read through.
---------
Performance: Great enunciation. I believe the names should be pronounced as the Hebrew has them so that for those of us who understand Hebrew, puns come through.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

41 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Masterful Translation

Very exciting to have an audiobook version of this excellent work. Robert Alter brings a literary sensitivity to the text so that it is not only a translation but a literary accomplishment in its own right.

There is a table of contents included now (in case there wasn't one before). So if a table of contents is important to you don't worry, it has one. Chapter by chapter.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

38 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

great content, but poor chapter division.

the book is a marvelous literary work, no question. there are a few issues with the translation because Robert alter is not a philologist. on these problems you can read the review of professor Ed Greenstein criticizing the translation in someplace, especially the translation of Job.

however, the book is missing the commentary part, and worse still, the publisher changed the chapter division. so it no longer says Genesis 1, 2 ,3 etc.. but the entire Hebrew bible is divided into chapters numbered from 1 to 1069!!! how can anyone find a particular chapter this way?

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

25 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
  • CS
  • 09-22-21

Missing Part

Where is the commentary? The title says “A Translation with Commentary. This is simply a reading of the text.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

19 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Missing Commentary a Disappointment

Along with other reviewers I will say that I am disappointed this title does not include the invaluable commentary. Without the commentary, this work is incomplete. I feel for the publisher and performer, though. They had to make an impossible decision. It would be unwieldy to provide the commentary. I mean, do you record it verse by verse or chapter by chapter? Or do you run all the commentary after all the biblical text? So I think they did the best they could. I only hope they decide to make a complete version available at some point down the road based on the obvious desire from the public to have it. With that being said, I love the quality of the performer, and I am thankful for what they did make available to us. And for those who complain about the title not having a easily navigated table of contents, or for other interested listeners, I provide here a quick summary of where to find which books:

Genesis chs. 5-54
Exodus chs. 56-95
Leviticus chs. 97-123
Numbers chs. 125-160
Deuteronomy chs. 162-195
Joshua chs. 198-221
Judges chs. 223-243
1 Samuel chs. 245-275
2 Samuel chs. 276-299
1 Kings chs. 301-322
2 Kings chs. 323-347
Isaiah chs. 349-414
Jeremiah chs. 416-467
Ezekiel chs. 469-516
Hosea chs. 518-531
Joel chs. 532-535
Amos chs. 536-544
Obadiah ch. 545
Jonah chs. 547-550
Micah chs. 551-557
Nahum chs. 558-560
Habakkuk chs. 561-563
Zephaniah chs. 564-566
Haggai chs. 567-568
Zechariah chs. 569-582
Malachi chs. 583-586
Psalms chs. 589-738
Proverbs chs. 741-771
Job chs. 773-814
Song of Songs chs. 816-823
Ruth chs. 825-828
Lamentations chs. 830-834
Ecclesiastes chs. 836-847
Esther chs. 849-858
Daniel chs. 860-871
Ezra chs. 873-882
Nehemiah chs. 883-895
1 Chronicles chs. 897-925
2 Chronicles chs. 926-961

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A SUPERB READING OF THE ANCIENT BOOKS

A wonderful combination of the latest translations and a sonorous reading. i own the print version so I was delighted to just sit and listen to these pillars of our literature and religious tradition. I would have bought only the Ketuvim if it was offered on Audible,,. but I really enjoyed the Nevi'im as well, which Alter presents clearly and Ballerini reads as if it is all a song of praise. Torah is excellent, but I haven't heard it all yet, as I'm familiar with it from the print version. Enjoy!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

15 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Too bad... it has such a terribly poor table of contents!

Robert Alter’s translation of the Hebrew Bible (“tanach”) is creative and engaging... and I deeply appreciate his work. Unfortunately, the table of contents is a mess... to find an individual book or chapter one often has to download multiple “Parts” until one can finally locate what one is looking for! It’s like a grim game of Audible “blind man’s bluff”! An excellent book that is, sadly, poorly served by its publication.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

12 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great

My only contentions are that I wish Prof. Alter did his own name transliteration and that the chapters aren't better organized. There are too many books and chapters to navigate this work with just chapter numbers. The bible is a collection of books not one big book.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

10 people found this helpful