Goliath inscription

gives credibility to formation of Israelite monarchy

found near where the battle between David and Goliath was said to take place

dated to the years of the reign of David, pot shard

first extra-biblical evidence of Israel as a distinct people during the beginning of the Iron Age

inscription that celebrates the victories of the pharaoh over people in Libya and Palestine

word "Israel" is preceded by determination for people rather than a place

"Israel is laid waste, their seed is not"

depending on interpretation-15th (read Israel as synonymous with Canaan, israelites established enough at the time to pose a threat to Egyptian control) or 13th century (people present in area that did not yet bear their name as the country, must have come recently) Exodus

extrabiblical support for 15th century exodus

correspondence between Egyptian vassals in Palestine to Pharaohs Amenhotep III and IV describe instability, Israel would have entered Palestine with the unrest

Time of unrest, turmoil in the late bronze age

Economic down time, famine, outbreaks of disease

Economic disparity, rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer

Explosion of new settlements, more egalitarian

City state kings having things taken from them by Apiru (social bandits, could represent pre-Israelites)

whole land is not conquered by Joshua

foreigners who established themselves as rulers over Egypt

evidence for 15th century exodus

connection between Hyksos rule and patriarchal migration, Joseph rose to power because fellow semites were already ruling

Deuteronomistic Historian, redactor

work found in Joshua 1 and 2 Judges, Samuel, 1 and 2 Kings

adds to aspect of moral history, editorial comments about punishments for bad deeds, contradictions in joshua and judges suggest his existence, references things in the future as if they existed in this period, very selective in who he focuses on (David), king Manessa is an exception, Elijah- power of god supports his words

belief that one God is important in a particular time and to a particular people

Israelites practiced this before they were strictly monotheistic

though one of its main contributions is seen to be the idea of monotheism, Israel was not always a monotheistic society

the characteristics of el were assumed into yhwh

give rationale for laws, didactic, want to teach community something, represents cultural traditions

makes it different than other ancient near eastern codes of law such as Hammarabi's code

example- don't make altar of hewn stone with steps because your nakedness will be exposed

law that states if this occurs then this will be the legal consequence, used in case law, similarity between covenant code and other Near East legal material

opposite of apodictic

a form of law given in absolute commands without any conditions, unique to the Israelites, decalogue

"Thou shall not steal"

10 commandments that appear in Exodus and Deuteronomy

essence of covenant demands on Israel

many precepts already existed, no idols and holy sabbath may be unique, spoken directly to each individual by God, meant to be known by all, apodictic

promote good of the community

 (1792 -1750 bce) set of laws from ancient mesopotamia

Similarities with Covenant code- civil and criminal law, similar topics and wordings, casuistic,

differences- no religious law, justice is the goal, very descriptive, adherence to cosmic order, gods monitor

like US law is to English law

city in canaan that Joshua supposedly destroyed

there is archaeological evidence of destruction of the city, but there are discrepancies in the date of the destruction, so it could have happened before the time of Joshua, could have been an earthquake, no late bronze age II occupation

Exodus, event that happens,event that happens in time, plays an important role in the culture of the descendants to whom it actually happened, continues to influence people, experience gets repeated generation after generation, has meaning that transcends the moment in which it happens (thanksgiving, resurrection, nativity)

becomes more and more fantastic and elaborate as it is passed on to ensure that each generation understands the importance of the event (memory)

mnemohistory

narratives in Exodus help people remember a formative experience that happen to a small group of them (collective cultural memory), not meant to simply record facts

hebrew for "anointed one"

davidic monarchy is considered god's son

kings are marked by god

Jesus is considered a son of david, will restore Israel after kings fail

only female prophet mentioned in the book of kings, her oracle was event that led to Josiah's reform

judgement against Judah, Josiah will die in peace before judgement, gives authority to "book of law" found during the refurbishing of the temple

He was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Bethpeor, but no one knows his burial place to this day…

No known burial place so that people will be less likely to worship him, it is possible that God buried him, Moses didn’t write all of Deuteronomy because it is in third person and about his death, dies before he enters the promise land, keeps him human, god shows him the promise land but does not let him go in, deut

So Joshua defeated the whole land…

Joshua, complete conquest as the lord told moses, that they should not make covenants with the previous inhabitants, does not match archeology or judges which talks about native people and about further battles, contradiction in the bible, genocide?

But sir, how can I deliver Israel…

Judges, God talking to Gideon and telling him to go to battle with the Midianites who had conquered Israel, archetype example of a judge, deliverer, outside of hierarchy, spirit of the lord trumps everything else about you,

Inquire of God that we may know whether the mission will be a success…

Judges, spies from the Danite clan stop at house of Micah and ask if their mission to get territory would succeed, example of professional prophecy, customers came to seek out the prophet, gave them a yes or no answer

Israel is defeated by the Philistines even after they bring the ark of the covenant into the camp…

1 Samuel, exception to the idea that God’s presence equals protection and provision, did inspire fear in the hearts of the Philistines, when they need extra help, the bring the ark closer to them, ark contains covenant betweeen god and Israel, makes apparent that people need a military leader becaue they still lost

Then all the elders gathered and asked Samuel to appoint a king…

1 Samuel, want a king after Samuel appoints his sons to be judges, but they do not follow his ways and are corrupt and unjust, other reasons they want a king are large threat from philistines, difficult communication, need mechanism for trade, anarchy, irregular transition between leaders, bad- human king replaces god as king, takes kids, taxes

Now there was no smith to be found throughout all the land of Israel…

1 Samuel, Saul and Jonathon are leading the Israelites into battle against the Philistines, Philistines have more advanced weapns, why they are such a big threat to Israelites, why they want a king,

2 Samuel, Prophet Nathan speaking to king David, temple will make permanent the presence of god, legitimize him as king, kings as son of god, Jesus is a part of the Davidic line, dynasty will go on forever, connects david to the covenant

Now these are the last words of David…

Oracle, shows multiplicity of roles as a prophet, rules in the fear of god, 2 Samuel, transition period

1 kings, actually acts are recorded in another book that is not included in bible, bible is only a piece of literature from the time period, commentary of dtr, blessings and curses

Hammurabi, owner is not liable if it is not a gorer, if it is a gorer, must pay recompense, in bible ox and owner are killed immediately, different recompense for different classes of people