DESCRIPTION: This course will offer a survey of Israel's history in the land, from the conquest to the exile, as it is portrayed in the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings. A central concern throughout the course will be to investigate the relationship between Israel's historical traditions and her theological appropriation of those traditions around such themes as election, law, the land, and leadership. Each week a session will be devoted to the translation and careful exegetical examination of a representative passage.

SIGNIFICANCE FOR LIFE AND MINISTRY: Having practice in exegetical work with Hebrew texts is foundational for interpreting Scripture and for assessing the interpretations of others. In these narrative texts, we will discover new challenges and new possibilities for the church's reading of stories once familiar but increasingly neglected.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Students completing this course will have attained

1. a thorough overview of the content and literary features of the four books of the Former Prophets;

2. a working knowledge of Israel's history from the conquest to the exile, with an appreciation of the issues involved in relating history to faith;

3. an enhanced competence in basic Hebrew, as well as in exegetical and hermeneutical skills;

4. a sensitivity to the theological issues presented in these narratives: the significance of the land, the dangers of cultural and theological syncretism, the need for order and leadership, the challenge of holding together pragmatic politics and the demands of faith.

Brown, F., S. R. Driver, and C. A. Briggs. A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. [Orig. pub. 1907.] Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 1996. ISBN: 978-1565632066; $34.95.

Elliger, K., and W. Rudolph, eds. Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. New York: American Bible Society, 1977. ISBN: 978-1598561623; $37.95 [pb].

Arnold, Bill T., and H. G. M. Williamson, eds. Dictionary of the Old Testament: Historical Books. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2005. ISBN: 978-0830817825; $60.00.

Coogan, Michael D., ed. The Oxford History of the Biblical World. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. ISBN: 978-0195139372; $19.95.

Course reader.

See the Biblical Division bibliography "Linguistic and Exegetical Books Required in the Master of Divinity Programs" available at http://schedule.fuller.edu/sot/ecds/Ling-Exeg-Biblio.html and in the SOT Academic Advising office.

Bright, John. A History of Israel. 4th ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2000. ISBN: 978-0664220686; $40.00.

Finkelstein, Israel, Amihai Mazar, and Brian B. Schmidt. The Quest for the Historical Israel: Debating Archaeology and the History of Early Israel. Atlanta: Society of Biblical Literature, 2007. ISBN: 978-1589832770; $24.95.

Miller, J. Maxwell, and John H. Hayes. A History of Ancient Israel and Judah. 2nd ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2006. ISBN: 978-0664223588; $40.00.

Moore, Megan Bishop, and Brad E. Kelle. Biblical History and Israel's Past: The Changing Study of the Bible and History. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2011. ISBN: 978-0802862600; $46.00.

Provan, I., V. P. Long, and T. Longman III. A Biblical History of Israel. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2003. ISBN: 978-0664220907; $40.00.

A bibliography will be included in the syllabus.

1. Weekly preparation for translation and exegetical discussions (40%)

2. The writing of an exegetical paper (12 pages) (30%)

3. The use of lecture notes and syllabus readings to develop answers to study questions from which the final examination will be drawn (30%)