PART ONE: THE TORAH/PENTATEUCH

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1 Contents Maps... vii Illustrations... ix Preface...xiii Preface to the Second Edition...xv Preface to the Third Edition... xvi Abbreviations... xvii Introduction: What Are the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament?... 1 PART ONE: THE TORAH/PENTATEUCH 1 The Near Eastern Context The Nature of the Pentateuchal Narrative The Primeval History The Patriarchs The Exodus from Egypt The Revelation at Sinai The Priestly Theology: Exodus 25 40, Leviticus, and Numbers Deuteronomy PART TWO: THE DEUTERONOMISTIC HISTORY 9 The Book of Joshua Judges First Samuel Second Samuel Kings 1 11: Solomon and the Divided Monarchy Kings 12 2 Kings 25: Tales of Prophets and the End of the Kingdoms of Israel and Judah v

2 PART THREE: PROPHECY 15 Amos and Hosea Isaiah, Micah, Nahum, and Zephaniah The Babylonian Era: Habakkuk, Jeremiah, and Lamentations The Exilic Period: Ezekiel and Obadiah The Additions to the Book of Isaiah Postexilic Prophecy: Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Joel PART FOUR: THE WRITINGS 21 Ezra and Nehemiah The Books of Chronicles The Psalms and Song of Songs Proverbs Job and Qoheleth The Hebrew Short Story: Ruth, Esther, Tobit, Judith Daniel, 1 2 Maccabees The Deuterocanonical Wisdom Books: Ben Sira, Wisdom of Solomon, Baruch From Tradition to Canon Glossary Index Picture acknowledgments vi INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE

3 Maps The Fertile Crescent...14 Some Major Archaeological Sites in Anatolia and the Middle East...30 The World of the Patriarchs...87 The Landscape of the Book of Exodus Israel Physical Israel Settlement before the Monarchy Canaanite Sites in the Late 13th/Early 12th Century b.c.e Major Archaeological Sites Tribes of Israel Tribes of Israel before the Monarchy Migration of the Sea Peoples Saul s Kingdom Minimum Extent of David s Kingdom Maximum Extent of David s Kingdom Minimum Extent of Solomon s Kingdom Ancient Trade Routes Elijah and Elisha Narratives Israel and Judah under Jeroboam and Uzziah Campaigns of Tiglath-pileser Assyrian Empire The End of the Kingdom of Judah Sennacherib s Invasion 701 b.c.e Neo-Babylonian Empire The Persian Empire at its Zenith Alexander the Great s Invasion Alexander s Empire at its Zenith vii

4 Judah as a Province of the Persian Empire b.c.e Maccabean-Hasmonean Palestine b.c.e The Ptolemaic and Seleucid Empires c. 240 b.c.e The Ancient Near East c. 60 b.c.e viii INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE

5 Illustrations The Dead Sea Scrolls caves... 7 Isaiah Scroll... 9 Amulet...25 Slab inscribed with cuneiform...26 The Rosetta Stone...31 Sir Austen Layard removes human-headed bull...31 Cuneiform tablet with part of the Enumah Elish...36 Tablet XI of the Epic of Gilgamesh...38 Terracotta relief probably depicting the marriage of Inanna and Dumizi...40 Babylonian relief of winged and eagle-footed goddess...41 Bronze figurine of Baal...42 Bronze female figurine (Anat)...46 Carved head of Akhenaten...47 Cutaway illustration of an Egyptian pyramid...48 Gold mask of Tutankhamun...49 Sculpture of Moses by Michelangelo...54 Noah builds the ark with his sons...61 Ziggurat of Ur...86 Horned altar from Beersheba...92 Statue of Ramesses II Relief depicting Asian captives from Temple of Ramesses Traditional site of Mount Sinai Statuette of Baal Akhenaten, Nefertiti and their children Hammurabi receives the law from the god Marduk Bronze calf, Samaria ix

6 Depiction of the tabernacle as described in Exodus Ark of the covenant depicted on a stone relief Silver amulet found in the Hinnom Valley King Esarhaddon of Assyria and his mother Tel Dan altar and high place, Israel Terracotta figurines of women from Iron Age King Jehu prostrates himself before Shalmaneser III Canaanite cultic place in Stone Age Megiddo Human skull from Jericho Neolithic tower in Jericho Merneptah Stele The goddess Astarte; pottery relief Egyptian wall relief depicting the Sea Peoples The Tel Dan inscription Statue of King David, Jerusalem Stepped structure in Jerusalem Remains at Megiddo Ruins of six-chambered gate at Hazor Plans of the gateways at Megiddo, Hazor, and Gezer Aerial view of the remains of ancient Megiddo Conjectural reconstruction of Solomon s temple Plans of Solomon s temple and temples at Tayinet and Ain Dara, Syria Moabite Stone Black Obelisk of Shalmaneser III Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser Assyrian king Sargon II Reconstruction of the citadel at Dur-Sharrukin Siloam inscription x INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE

7 Cuneiform tablet from Babylon Lamassu from Assyrian palace at Nimrud Clay models of livers Tiglath-pileser III, bas-relief Ivory decoration from Samaria Ruins of ancient Samaria Bronze relief depicting mother and children Sennacherib sitting on the throne of judgment Winged lamassu from Nimrud The so-called Sennacherib Prism Relief from Nineveh depicting Assyrian assault Sennacherib on his throne before the city of Lachish Black basalt monument of Esarhaddon King Ashurbanipal in lion hunt Reconstructed image of ancient Babylon Auroch glazed brick tile from Babylon Reconstruction of the Ishtar Gate, Babylon Sirrush from the Ishtar Gate, Babylon The goddess Astarte; terracotta figurine The so-called Cyrus Cylinder Cave where the Isaiah scroll was discovered Darius I receives a foreign delegation Persian warriors; painted relief from Susa Palace of Darius the Great, Persepolis Alexander and Bucephalus at the battle of Issus Bull glazed brick tile from the Ishtar Gate, Babylon Assyrian relief from Babylon Tomb of Cyrus at Pasargadae, Iran ILLUSTRATIONS xi

8 Shallow drinking vessel, known as a phiale Assyrian scribes Temple Mount, Jerusalem Inside Hezekiah s Tunnel Lyre players depicted on Lachish relief Baal from Megiddo, Israel Statue of Amenemhet III Coffin fragment of Isis mourning Statuette of Job, showing ulcers Remains of Persepolis Sculpture Tobit and the Angel by Mari Andriessen Babylonian clay brick from sixth century b.c.e Coin of John Hyrcanus Coin of Antiochus IV Epiphanes Bronze coin issued under Antigonus II Aerial view of Masada, Israel Plato. Etching by Cunego Creation of Man by Michelangelo xii INTRODUCTION TO THE HEBREW BIBLE