Geographical, Historical, and Literary Context CHAPTER TWO MAPS FOR THE JOURNEY Geographical, Historical, and Literary Context

Archaeology & Biblical Studies - Archaeology is an ancient activity • Understanding the context of each find is as important as the actual item found • The artifact is almost useless if we do not know the level of the dig, other artifacts associated with it, and its location

Archaeology & Biblical Studies - Early writing forms included pictograms, which evolved into conventional symbols - Before alphabets were invented, scribes needed to learn hundreds of signs and symbols - The Rosetta Stone featured the same text in both hieroglyphics and Greek, allowing Greek readers to work on Egyptian translations

Archaeology & Biblical Studies - The “Mesha Inscription” • Discovered in 1868 • References have evidence that piece together the world in which the Old Testament was created - The “Merneptah Stele” • Discovered by Sir Flanders Petrie • Writes about a “people” called “Israel” • Oldest reference to the Israelites in existence

Archaeology & Biblical Studies - Archaeological evidence (mostly stone tools) shows humans have lived in the Palestinian region over a million years - Two of the most important sites for discovering prehistoric artifacts are Jericho and Ain Ghazal

Archaeology & Biblical Studies - Tools of the Israelites show us they settled in the hills of Palestine instead of on the coastal plains -Largest motivation for writing was not spiritual or religious, but business or military

Vocabulary • Context • Pictograms • Scribes • Hieroglyphic Writing • Prehistoric

Modern Day Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, and Syrian Coastlands Area that was once Canaan http://www.public.iastate.edu/~cfford/fertile%20crescent.jpg

Land of Canaan Zones of Canaan (now Palestine): 1.) Coastal Plains 2.) Hill Country 3.) Jordan Valley 4.) Transjordanian Plateau

Land of Canaan 1.) Coastal Plains - Become narrow towards the North of Palestine 2.) Hill Country - Runs up the back of Palestine, where the hills turn into mountains

Land of Canaan 3.) Jordan Valley - A rift extending from Turkey into Africa - Somewhat unstable which accounts for the frequency of serious earthquakes in Palestine 4.) Transjordanian Plateau - Contained the “King’s Highway” • Major North-South trade route of the ancient world

Land of Canaan - The fertile crescent is the land bridge between Egypt and Mesopotamia - This was a major trade route for the ancient world http://www.netours.com/2003/appendices_files/08112002145657.jpg

Land of Canaan - The Israeli people settled in the Fertile Crescent - Many armies marched north and south through this area as Egyptian and Mesopotamian empires struggled for control of the passageway - Israel was “caught in the middle” - Helps us understand why the Old Testament has many examples of warfare- it was all around the Israelites

Land of Canaan - The Israelites’ God Yahweh was portrayed as a warrior - Since the Israelites could not do much military damage, they needed to rely on their God to protect them - It was not the vast empires that wanted to control the Israelites, rather the passageway they lived in that interested enemies

Land of Canaan - The Canaanites worshipped a variety of gods in temples - The most popular was Baal - This was Yahweh’s most significant rival. - Israel arose into the land known as Canaan - The Canaanites established a strong civilization

History of Israelites - The book of Exodus formally introduces the Chosen People - Early Israelite faith was based on: • A relationship with a God named Yahweh • Worship in a movable shrine or tent • Basic moral expectations (laws)

History of Israelites - Worship and living by the laws of Yahweh began among Egyptian slaves and converted Canaanites - Would lead to Judaism, relying that God would save the people from their enemies, and that faith meant obedience to God wherever they lived

History of Israelites Assyrian Exile - Israel joined a coalition of states in an attempt to resist increasing pressure of the Assyrian Empire - Assyria invaded the west, the coalition of states - Deported large numbers of newly conquered, and replaced them with a group from another part of the empire. - Assyrian empire was eventually defeated by the rise of a rival Mesopotamian power, the Babylonians

History of Israelites Babylonian Exile - Nebuchadnezzar defeated the Assryrians and placed a new ruler, Zedekiah, on the throne - He returned to Babylon with Jewish exiles • Involved upper classes of Jewish society and anyone who posed a threat to the rule of Babylon - Exile represents one of the most decisive changes in destiny for the Jewish people • Judeans continued to reconstruct the faith, community, and temple worship

Literature Styles - The main task of the historical writers of ancient Israel was to illustrate their understanding of God and how He was involved in their lives - The Old Testament was written as religious literature

Literature Styles Pentateuch - Core of the Old Testament - Means “five books” • In the Hebrew Bible, called the Torah - Collections of laws contained in first five books: 1.) Covenant Code (contained in Exodus) 2.) Deuteronomic Code (included Deuteronomy) 3.) Priestly or religious laws added by priests (found mainly in Leviticus)

Literature Styles Historical Books - Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings, 1 & 2 Chronicles - Tell about the history of Israel as a collection of tribes and then moving toward existence as a royal state - Discuss the breakup of the kingdom • Disobedience of the kings • Disasters preceding the exiles

Literature Styles Wisdom Books and Psalms - Includes books of Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Wisdom, and Sirach - Intended to guide people in learning the lessons of human life - Main themes of wisdom literature: • Relationships • Diplomacy • Gaining of Knowledge • Dangers of Adultery

Literature Styles The main activities of the prophets: - To be messengers of God - To be God’s prosecutor, delivering judgement on sinful acts - To act as tireless advocates for the less fortunate of Israelite society