The Golden Age of the ancient Israelites Kings David and Solomon Today’s Objectives • Class Logistics: Quiz, Media journal • Review • Transition to the “Promised Land” o Establishment of the Golden Age o David & Messiah o Isaiah Review: Foundational events of Jewish history ~ 2000-1800 BCE Abraham ~1300 BCE Exodus events • 1000 BCE King David, est. of Golden Age • 600-500 BCE Exile & Return o Beginning of “Jews, ancient Judaism”
• 70 CE Post-Temple, Classical Judaism Review • What is the Bible? o Hebrew Bible vs. Old Testament o Christian Bibles
• What is the Torah? o Genesis: Creation to patriarchs o Exodus: Israelites become a people, covenant with God o Leviticus: the wilderness tabernacle o Numbers o Deuteronomy Review of Exodus • What do stories of Exodus provide rationale for?
• Collective Israelite Identity
• Basis of Israelites/Jews’ relationship with God
• Inextricably tied to Israelite society Review of Exodus • Basis of relationship with God
• You have seen for yourselves what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to Myself. Now if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, you will be My treasured possession out of all the nations—for the whole earth is Mine. ---Exodus 19:4-5 Re: 10 Commandments 1. I am the LORD who 6. You Shall not murder brought you out of the 7. You shall not commit land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. adultery 2. You shall not make for 8. You shall not steal yourself an idol. 9. You shall not bear false 3. You shall not take make witness wrong use of God’s 10. You shall not covet name your neighbor’s house, 4. Remember the wife, slave, ox, ass, or Sabbath day anything of your 5. Honor your father and neighbors… mother Review of the Ten Commandments For Jews… • First commandment (Exodus 20) o I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. • Second Commandment o You shall have no other gods before Me. o And you shall not make yourself an image…
• For Catholics/Lutherans o Second commandment is first o Last Commandment (following Deut 5.21) is split in two • (You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife. You shall not covet your neighbor’s house or field, or his manservant or maidservant, or his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.) Re: 10 Commandments 1. I am the LORD who 6. You Shall not murder brought you out of the 7. You shall not commit land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. adultery 2. You shall not make for 8. You shall not steal yourself an idol. 9. You shall not bear false 3. You shall not take make witness wrong use of God’s 10. You shall not covet name your neighbor’s house, 4. Remember the wife, slave, ox, ass, or Sabbath day anything of your 5. Honor your father and neighbors… mother Re: Sabbath commandment • Rationale in Exodus 20
• Rationale in Deut 5:12 • 12Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the LORD your God has commanded you. 13Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 14but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox or donkey or any of your livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest as you do. 15Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and that the LORD your God brought you out of there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm. That is why the LORD your God has commanded you to keep the Sabbath day. Significance of Exodus
The book of Exodus explains basis of Jews’ special relationship to God
o Rationale for Passover and other holy days
o Rational for following law/rituals (Torah)
o Rationale for ethics and social structure Exodus as rationale for Israelite/Jewish ethics
• “There will be one Law [Torah] for the citizen and stranger sojourning among you.” (Exod. 12:49)
• “You shall not wrong or oppress a resident alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt” (Exod. 22:21)
• “You shall not oppress a resident alien; you know the heart of an alien, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt” (Exod.23:9). Strangers/aliens/refugees
• The stranger who resides with you shall be to you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt; I am the LORD your God (Leviticus 19:34). Strangers/aliens/refugees
• “Take heed that you do not forget the Lord who freed you from the land of Egypt, the house of bondage.” (Deut 6:12)
• ”You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt.”(Deut 10:19)
• “And you shall rejoice in all the goodness that the Lord your God has given you and your household: you, the Levite, and the stranger that lives among you” (Deut 26:11) On strangers in the prophetic texts
• “And the people of the land have practiced fraud and committed robbery; they have wronged the poor and needy, have defrauded the stranger without redress.” (Ezekiel 22:30)
• “Oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor, and let none of you devise evil against his fellow in your heart (Zech. 7:10) Review: Foundational stories • For Israelite/Jewish people, story of oppression as strangers in Egypt o And liberation from Egypt by God through Moses
• Establishment of relationship to God through observance/ adherence to Torah Next
• Transition to “Promised Land”
• King & Messiahs: David & Solomon
• Jerusalem and its Temple
• Isaiah: a prophet for his own time or later times and our times? Promised Land
• Tribal organization
• Transition to monarchy
• Why do Israelites want a monarch? What is a messiah?
• How is kingship bestowed in ancient Israel?
• Anoint with oil à “anointed one” = Messiah à Messiah משח M-Sh-H • o χριστος from χριω (rub/anoint) à Christ Stories of young David
From Bethlehem in Judah • The youngest son o The shepherd • The musician • David & Goliath
Michelangelo’s David, 1504 The Kingdom of David
• Beginning of a Golden Age (ca. 1000 BCE)
• Conquest Jerusalem o (AKA Zion, city of David) • Establishment of Jerusalem as holy city o Ark of the covenant • Unites tribes; forms a kingdom Ark of the Covenant City of David
How does Bible depict David?
o David the King, dynastic founder o David the Messiah o David the Singer o David the Prophet
• Is he perfect? Immune to criticism? The Dynasty of David
• What does God promise David?
• How does this relate to messianic expectations? Promises to David & Jewish expectations of Messiah 1. Descendant of King David 2. Gain sovereignty over land of Israel & bring peace to region 3. Gather Jews from four corners of the earth 4. Restore Jews to full observance of Torah Check-in & Discuss:
• How does this differ from your associations with the word messiah?
• What does messiah mean in biblical context?
• Who are the anointed ones in ancient Israel? Solomon’s Jerusalem
Holy of Holies Kingdom of Israel -- Social structure • Authorities in ancient kingdom of Israel?
• Kings • Prophets (advisors to kings) • Priests (focus on ritual worship in temple, teach, and mediate) • Scribes (copy & transmit sacred texts) Legacy of Solomon’s rule
• Kingdom divides
• Kingdom of Israel (northern 10 tribes; AKA Ephraim, E source)
• Kingdom of Judah (J source)
Lost 10 tribes…
Kingdom of Israel (northern 10 tribes)
Conquered by Assyria in 722 BCE
People of Lachish Exiled
Captive Israelites playing Lyre: Nineveh, northern Iraq, ca.704-681 BCE
The Lost tribe of Dan?
• Ethiopian Jewish community
• “Beta Israel” (house of Israel) Isaiah
• Historical Context: 8th century Kingdom of Judah o Judah in geopolitical uncertainty; o threatened by Assyrian Empire…
• Isaiah o Prophet/Advisor to King Ahaz, Hezekiah o Visionary o Writing prophet Key texts from Isaiah • Isaiah 6: The transformation into a prophet o Seraphim singing “Holy, Holy, Holy”
• Part of Jewish liturgy o Christian liturgy
• (Jews, Christians, and Muslims imitate angels in prayer) Key texts from Isaiah
• Isaiah 7: Advice on independence of Judah… o “a certain young woman” and “Immanuel”
• Isaiah 11: Dynasty of David continues… o “A shoot will spring forth from the tree trunk of Jesse”
• God saves Jerusalem in 701 BCE (Isaiah 36-7) Key texts from Isaiah
• “seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow” –Isaiah 1:17
• Prophecies of 8th century or lessons for 1st century followers of Jesus? Legacy in Religious history…
• Significance of Jerusalem as eternal city
• Davidic monarchy ends in 586 BCE exile
o Mystery: What happens to the last descendant of David?
Take-Aways
• Teachings of the Torah on Exodus and being a stranger/alien/refugee
• What are the achievements of David and Solomon?
• Isaiah: an interpreter of his own time o A prophet for later Jews • And a prophet for later Christians? Next time: Exile and Return
• The Almost End of Ancient Israel
• And the beginning of Judaism