Name: Click Here to Enter Text

Prophets: Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi Gary E. Schnittjer, Ph.D. Pre-museum Assignment Biblical Theological Seminary Name: Click here to enter text.

Date: Click here to enter text.

The purpose of this study guide is to prepare for the field trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and an associated assignment, by working through a series biblical and historical contexts related to selected exhibits at the museum. The student will find the readings needed to complete this study guide at http://scriptureworkshop.com/research/met_bts/, username: student, password: research2start.

ANCIENT NEAR EAST

(1) The gods of the ancient Levant (Syria, Phoenicia, Canaan)

● Read John Day, “Baal,” Anchor Bible Dictionary (ed. D. N. Freedman; Doubleday, 1992), 1:545-551 (see web address above). Explain how Baal the storm god functioned as a god of fertility and prosperity in the ancient Levant. Click here to enter text.

● Read 1 Kgs 17-18. The Elijah narrative offers a critical polemic against Baal. What are 4 ways the biblical storymakers ridicule Baal in 1 Kgs 17-18? Click here to enter text.

(2) Assyrian kings

● Read Annals of Ashurnasirpal II (883-859) translated by Daniel David Luckenbill, Ancient Records of Assyria and Babylonia (2 vols; University of Chicago, 1926), 2:138-148 (see web address above) (part of this script is written across image below). The annals of Ashurnasirpal II are representative of the long line of Assyrian emperors who eventually dismembered Israel and oppressed and ruled over Judah (see http://scriptureworkshop.com/context/ane_chronos.html). List at least seven ways, numbering each one, that the annals glorify the oppressive power of Ashurnasirpal II. Click here to enter text.

● View video file on interpreting reliefs from the throne room of Ashurnasirpal II (see web address above). List the letters in the image below (from Benzel 89) and define who or what each one is. Click here to enter text.

1 ● Read Isaiah 10. How and why does Israel’s God use the Assyrian war machine? Click here to enter text.

● Read Nahum 3. Why does God bring destruction and judgment against the Assyrian empire? Click here to enter text.

(3) Persian empire

● There is much continuity between the images the Persians used to depict their rule and power and the image of the older empires. There are also differences. “The creation of an imperial image by the Persian emperors runs on a sliding scale between benevolent ideals and tyrannical megalomania. The programmatic presentation through visual propaganda emphasized visions of voluntary pacification rewarded by generous embrace. … [T]he greatest power emanates from the degree to which the dominated can be made to feel happily complicit in their being dominated” (Root 422-23). Study the images which compare Persian propaganda (see web address above). Based on the images, list at least 3 ways the Persians maintained a similar image of their power and those who went before. Click here to enter text. List at least 3 ways the Persians presented themselves as more generous and merciful in the way they wielded their power. Click here to enter text.

● Several Jews served in key governmental positions in the Persian empire: Esther during the rule of Ahasuerus (Xerxes) and Nehemiah under Artaxerxes (see http://scriptureworkshop.com/context/ane_chronos.html). Read Esther 1-2, and Nehemiah 1-2. List 3 things in common and 3 differences regarding the kings whom Esther and Nehemiah served. Click here to enter text.

(4) Speaking of Egypt

● Read Isa 19-20. What is the function of the prophet’s oracles concerning Egypt? What is surprising in these oracles? Click here to enter text.

(5) Temple of Dendur, Egypt, c. 15 BCE

● Read William A. Ward, et al, “Temples and Sanctuaries,” Anchor Bible Dictionary (ed. D. N. Freedman; Doubleday, 1992), 6:369-382 (see web address above). List 3 similarities in the purpose and function of temples in ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. Click here to enter text. Explain the similarities and difference between these and the temples of ancient Syria-Palestine and Greece and Rome. Click here to enter text.

GREECE, ROME

(6) Wisdom ● Ancient Greeks celebrated wisdom. Read 1 Cor 2; list 4 alternatives to human wisdom which Paul promotes. Click here to enter text.

(7) Social issues

● Greek culture celebrated sensuality. Read 1 Cor 5; list 4 problems Paul addresses regarding the sexual sin. Click here to enter text. Read 1 Cor 6:12-20; list 3 problems with fornication. Click here to enter text. Read 1 Cor 7:1-7; list 3 limits Paul places on abstinence within marriage. Click here to enter text. Read 1 Thess 4; list 5 purposes for sexual purity. Click here to enter text.

● Responsibility of widows. Read 1 Tim 5; list 5 reasons why some widows should not receive financial support from the church. Click here to enter text.

● Responsibility to government. Read Romans 13:1-7; list 5 responsibilities of people toward governing officials. Click here to enter text.

● Social roles. Read Col 3:12-4:6; list 5 characteristics Paul promotes for believers. Click here to enter text. From the same passage, list 6 different social roles and the ideal character of each. Click here to enter text. For Further Reading

Kim Benzel, et al, Art of the Ancient Near East: A Resource for Educators (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2010) http://www.metmuseum.org/en/learn/for-educators/publications- for-educators (accessed 5.10.14). Michael Norris, Greek Art from Prehistoric to Classical: A Resource for Educators (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000) http://www.metmuseum.org/en/learn/for- educators/publications-for-educators (accessed 5.10.14). Barbara N. Porter, “Decorations, Political Posters, Time Capsules, and Living Gods,” in Assyrian Reliefs for the Palace of Ashurnasirpal II: A Cultural Biography (ed. Ada Cohen and Steven E. Kangas; Hanover: Hood Museum of Art/University Press of New England, 2010), 143-158. Margaret Cool Root, “Elam in Imperial Imagination: From Nineveh to Persepolis,” in Elam and Persia (ed. Javier Álvarez-Monand Mark B. Garrison; Eisenbrauns, 2011), 422-23. Nancy L. Thompson, Roman Art: A Resource for Educators (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2007) http://www.metmuseum.org/en/learn/for-educators/publications-for-educators (accessed 5.10.14). Edith Watts, et al, The Art of Ancient Egypt: A Resource for Educators (Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1998) http://www.metmuseum.org/en/learn/for-educators/publications-for-educators (accessed 5.10.14).