I was hoping someone could point me in a more precise direction as to where the work Doros Rishonim (by Rav Yitzchak Issacc HaLevi) speaks about the opinion of some Bible scholars that Shmuel wrote/made up the Tanach. Perhaps we could find some sort of English translation or summary to go along with it?
Any help in this would be much appreciated!
Rabbi Halevi doesn't write that some Bible scholars thought that Shmuel wrote the Tanach, but that they claim that the Book of Shmuel along with most of the Tanach was made up during the time of Yirmiyahu (Dorot Harishonim vol. 6). Here are a few selected quotes:
"...והלא לפי דברי החוקרים האלה אין לנו בכל כתבי הקדש ספרים יותר קודמים מדור ירמיהו, כי אם רק שנים שלשה דורות לפניו...ופתאום נתהפך לו הדבר וירמיה במקום ההוא עצמו וספר שמואל במקום ההוא, וספר דברים אשר זמנו לדעתם בימי יאשיהו, דהיינו בימי ירמיהו הם כולם היו לו לעדות נגד ספר ויקרא מתוך זה עצמו..." (pg. 144)
Translation: "...however, according to what these scholars say, we don't have among the holy scriptures books that are older than the time of Yirmiyahu, except for two-three generations before him...and suddenly he [Julius Wellhausen] switched things around and Yirmiyahu in that place itself and Shmuel in that place, and the Book of Devarim whose time according to their view is in the time of Yoshiyahu, meaning in the days of Yirmiyahu they were all used as evidence against the Book of Vaykira from within itself..."
"...והנה מצא סתירה גדולה ומפורשת כי שמואל הקריב בבמה וגם שלמה לפני בנין הבית הקריב בבמה והכתוב לא יגנה אותם על זה, ועל כן ברור הדבר כי דעתם של ספר שמואל ומלכים שלפני בנין הבית בימי שלמה הי' מותר להקריב בכל מקום. אבל הלא אך איזו שורות לפני זה הודה בעצמו כי כותב ספר שמואל חשב כי גם בימי שילה הי' אסור להקריב במקום אחר." (pg. 149)
Translation: "...and here, he [Wellhausen] found a clear, great contradiction for Shmuel sacrificed in a Bamah and also Shlomo before the building of the Temple sacrificed in a Bamah and the scripture did not rebuke them for this, and so it's clear that the view of the Book of Shmuel and Melachim is that before the building of the Temple in the time of Shlomo it was allowed to sacrifice in any place. However, wasn't it just a few lines prior that he admitted himself that the author of the Book of Shmuel thought that also in the time of [the Mishkan in] Shiloh it was forbidden to sacrifice in another place."
"...וכמה יעורר צחוק לראות הבלי הבלים כאלה נכתבים לשם חקירה, כי מפני אשר שמואל הקדיש קרואיו לאכול אתו שלמים...ומזה ראי' כי ספר ויקרא הוא רק יהדות חדשה אשר בו בטל כל זה." (pg. 168)
Translation: "...and how much laughter does it bring to see such nonsense as that which is written [by these scholars] in the name of research, that because Shmuel sanctified his congregants to eat with him the Shlamim...and from here "evidence" that the Book of Vayikra is only New Judaism in which all of this was canceled."
