DESCRIPTION: This course is intended to introduce students to the religions of the ancient Near East that form the backgrounds for Israelite religion and culture. It surveys both primary texts and secondary literature. It further introduces the comparative study of the Old Testament and encourages students to think about the relevance and proper application of the material to the interpretation of the Bible.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students successfully completing this course will have attained (1) an acquaintance with a large corpus of ancient Near Eastern texts relevant to comparative study of the Old Testament; (2) a familiarity with the scholarly conversation in the secondary literature regarding the relationship of Israel's religion to that of its neighbors; and (3) an understanding of the ways in which major recent monographs on Israelite religion have used comparative data. Students will also (4) gain expertise in classical Hebrew through weekly translations.

RELEVANCE FOR MINISTRY: An understanding of Israelite religion is crucial to the way in which both the history of Israel and the formation of the Old Testament are understood.

COURSE FORMAT: This course will meet weekly for a three-hour session. Class sessions will involve weekly student presentations and guided discussions on various topics.

REQUIRED READING:

Albertz, Rainer. A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period. Trans. J. Bowden. 2 vols. Westminster John Knox, 1994.

Foster, Benjamin R. Before the Muses: An Anthology of Akkadian Literature. 3rd ed. CDL Press, 2005.

Greenspahn, Frederick E., ed. Essential Papers on Israel and the Ancient Near East. New York University Press, 1991.

Hallo, William W., ed. The Context of Scripture. Brill, 1997-.

Roberts, J. J. M. The Bible and the Ancient Near East. Eisenbrauns, 2002.

Sparks, Kenton L. Ancient Texts for the Study of the Hebrew Bible: A Guide to the Background Literature. Hendrickson, 2005.

Bottéro, Jean. Religion in Ancient Mesopotamia. Trans. T. L. Fagan. University of Chicago Press, 2001.

Gammie, John, and Leo Perdue, eds. The Sage in Israel and the Ancient Near East. Eisenbrauns, 1990.

Hornung, Erik. Conceptions of God in Ancient Egypt: The One and the Many. Trans. J. Baines. Cornell University Press, 1982.

Jacobsen, T. The Treasures of Darkness: A History of Mesopotamian Religion. Yale Univ. Press, 1976.

Keel, O., and C. Uehlinger. Gods, Goddesses, and Images of God in Ancient Israel. Fortress, 1998.

Lichtheim, M. Ancient Egyptian Literature: A Book of Readings. Univ. of California Press, 1973-80.

Miller, Patrick D. The Religion of Ancient Israel. Westminster John Knox, 2000.

Nissinen, Marti. Prophets and Prophecy in the Ancient Near East. Society of Biblical Literature, 2003.

Olmo Lete, G. del. Canaanite Religion According to the Liturgical Texts of Ugarit. Trans. W. G. E. Watson. Eisenbrauns, 2004.

Pardee, Dennis. Ritual and Cult at Ugarit. Ed. T. J. Lewis. Society of Biblical Literature, 2002.

Pritchard, J. B. ed., Ancient Near Eastern Texts [ANET].

Sasson, Jack M. Civilizations of the Ancient Near East. 2 vols. Hendrickson, 2006.

Smith, Mark S. The Early History of God: Yahweh and the Other Deities in Ancient Israel. 2nd ed. Biblical Resource Series. Eerdmans, 2002.

Zevit, Z. The Religions of Ancient Israel: A Synthesis of Parallactic Approaches. Continuum, 2001.