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PREVIEW TO BOT/BCS 650

HISTORY OF ISRAEL: PERIOD OF ORIGINS

0.0 ESSENTIAL FACTS

3 Credit Hours

Cincinnati Christian University

Meets Early Week, Fall Semester, 2008

August 18, 10:00 am-5:00 pm

August 19-21, 8:00 am-5:00 pm

August 22, 8:00 am-3:00 pm

A one-hour recess for lunch will be taken each day, as will a mid-morning and mid-afternoon break.

Mark Ziese, Professor of Old Testament

Office location: Crouch Building (Library), Lower Level

Email: or

Office: (513) 244-8190

1.0 COURSE RATIONALE

The purpose of the HOI series is to acquaint learners with the warp and woof of Israelite history. Attention is given to specific interpretive problems in the reconstruction of that history by the close examination of biblical texts and extrabiblical materials. A modified annales approach is taken to the subject; the historical task is divided into three tiers as reflected in the outline of subject content below. Class meetings are lecture driven, although discussion is encouraged. Assignments are due later in the semester as detailed below.

BOT 650 surveys the earliest remembrances of Israel's history, a period that might be called patriarchal, premonarchial, or, even at times, "preIsraelitic." Texts are examined that recount select events from the moment of creation to the death of Moses. These texts point to the identity of YHWH, the authority of his messenger(s), and the definition of his people.

2.0 A FEW GOOD TEXTBOOKS

Arnold, B. T., and Beyer, B. E., eds., Readings from the Ancient Near East. Primary Sources for Old Testament Study (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002).

Dever, W. G. Who Were the Early Israelites and Where did They Come From? (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003).

Kitchen, K. A., On the Reliability of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003).

3.0 COURSE OBJECTIVES

The student who satisfactorily completes this course should be able to do the following:

  • Articulate the annales approach to the challenge of historical inquiry.
  • Outline in broad strokes the cultural and political history of the ANE generally and the trajectory of Israel specifically during the Middle and Late Bronze Ages.
  • Isolate and describe interpretive problems in the reconstruction of Israel’s story.
  • Draw a map of the Near East of the 2nd millennium BC, identifying the geographical location of major cities, countries, districts, bodies of water, and peoples.
  • Use the biblical text to describe the developing faith of Israel during the period of origins, noting how that expression was similar to yet different from Israel's neighbors.
  • Understand that a NT faith is a continuation of that revealed in the OT.

4.0 MAJOR LEARNING EXPERIENCES

For learners seeking personal satisfaction (and three hours of graduate credit), minimum expectations include:

  • Regular class attendance and participation (5% of the final grade assignment). Attendance is expected; any missed sessions will compromise this 5% of the final grade. A missed day will result in course failure.
  • The completion of all assigned readings. These will be outlined on a series of “Reading Sheets” posted on CCU’s Moodle class website, and will number approximately 2,000 total pages (30% of the final grade assignment).
  • Accountability for textbook readings will be measured by exam content and by a single email statement self-estimating the percentage of completion: e.g. “I have completed 95% of the textbook reading.” Grades for this are assigned as follows: 100-90% completed = A; 89-80% completed = B; 79-70% completed = C; 69-60% completed = D; below 60% completed = F.
  • The successful completion of a final exam (25% of the final grade assignment). Questions for this exam will be drawn from course lectures and assigned reading. To assist the student in reading strategically, items of importance will be listed on the “Reading Sheet.”
  • The writing of four mini paperprojects (40% of the final grade assignment), succinctly written according to the guidelines set forth by The Chicago Manual of Style (discipline specifics may be found on pages 57996 in the Journal of Biblical Literature 107/3 [1988], or pages 18 in the Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 262 [May, 1986]).

4.10 Topics for paperprojects are as follows:

4.11 Paper Project #1: A position paper which alleges that there is a determined effort in Genesis 1 11 to counter/undermine/deconstruct other primeval "histories" in existence by the time of Moses. Beginning point for research: See I. M. Kikawada and A. Quinn, Before Abraham Was (Abingdon, 1985) or G. Hasel in Evangelical Quarterly 46 (1974). Paper should not exceed 7 typed pages (about 1,750 words).

4.12 Paper Project #2: An annotated bibliography of one longue durée topic relevant to the period under study. This bibliography should be uptodate and should include no less than 30 entries from a variety of sources, i.e. books, journals, magazine articles, original source materials, reference works, etc.

4.13 Paper Project #3: A personal reflection paper entitled "My Response to the God of the Wilderness.” Focus should be give to Israel’s wilderness wanderings as revealed in the Pentateuch. Biblical passages should be cited regularly (by reference only, for the sake of brevity). Issues of personal spiritual formation are encouraged. Paper should not exceed 7 typed pages (about 1,750 words).

4.14 Paper Project #4: A book review of Dever’s Who Were the Early Israelites and Where did They Come From?, commenting directly on the author’s purpose and method. An offering of personal critique is also expected. Paper should not exceed 7 typed pages (about 1,750 words).

4.15 All assignments must be turned in as hard copy (no electronic submissions, please) no later than December 1, 2008.

5.0 SCHEDULE AND OUTLINE OF SUBJECT CONTENT

Part One. "A Wandering Aramean was My Father": The Patriarchal Period

I. la longue durée: Daily Life

IA. Land Matters

IB. Animal Husbandry

IC. Childbirth

ID. Bread and Famine

II. Contexts: the Middle Bronze Age

IIA. The Problem of (Pre-) History

IIB. The ANE, ca. 2000-1750 BC

IIC. The ANE, ca. 1750-1550 BC

III. Israel's Story: A 2nd Millennium Reflection on the Past

IIIA. The Nature of the Texts

IIIB. The Story the Texts Tell

Part Two. "He Became a Great Nation": Israel from Egypt to Canaan

I. la longue durée: Daily Life

IA. Ceramic Vessels

IB. Clothing

IC. Reading & Writing

ID. Weapons & Warfare

II. Contexts: the Late Bronze Age

IIA. The larger ANE

IIB. Egypt’s 18th Dynasty, ca. 1550-1300 BC

IIC. Egypt’s 19th Dynasty, ca. 1300-1200 BC

IID. The Catastrophe, ca. 1200 BC

III. Israel's Story: A 2nd Millennium Reflection on the Present

IIIA. The Nature of the Texts

IIIB. The Story the Texts Tell