Highland Presbyterian Church Summer of 2015 OLD TESTAMENT

Highland Presbyterian Church Summer of 2015 OLD TESTAMENT SURVEY

Highland Presbyterian Church THEOLOGICAL NARRATIVE AND DEUTERONOMIC HISTORY (IN OTHER WORDS, NEVER LET THE TRUTH GET IN THE WAY OF A GOOD STORY)

“Theological Narrative and deuteronomic History” (In other words, never let the truth get in the way of a good story. ) 7/12 Session 1 Mythic Storytelling from a Hebrew Point of View: “The Purpose of Humanity” 7/19 Session 2 Patriarch Legends and Literary Motifs: “Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob” 7/26 Session 3 Moses, The First Savior: “Covenants, Contracts, and Community” 8/2 Session 4 deuteronomic History: part 1 “Joshua, Judges, and Conquest” 8/9 Session 5 deuteronomic History: part 2 “We Three Kings” 8/16 Session 6 Prophets of the Divided Kingdom: “Conscience of the King”

OLD TESTAMENT SURVEY

Old Testament / Hebrew Bible: Genesis Job Isaiah Hosea Nahum Exodus Psalms Jeremiah Joel Habakkuk Leviticus Proverbs Lamentations Amos Zephaniah Numbers Ecclesiastes Ezekiel Obadiah Haggai Deuteronomy Song of Solomon Daniel Jonah Zechariah Micah Malachi Joshua Judges Ruth 1 & 2 Samuel 1 & 2 Kings 1 & 2 Chronicles Ezra Nehemiah Esther Summer of 2015 OLD TESTAMENT SURVEY

Session 1: Mythic Storytelling from a Hebrew Point of View (Genesis 1 -11) What worldview is expressed in the mythic stories in our Bible, and what does it reveal about theology, psychology and values of the ancient Hebrew people?

So, if you were challenged this morning to think about how you would create a mythic story that captures some of the essence of your own theological / philosophical worldview………. . How would you construct such a narrative for a contemporary audience? (such as your children? )

Things to Consider: 1. While Biblical stories stand on their own as superb narratives, linking narratives together can often expose a broader story-line with meaning of its own. 2. Our Biblical stories can often be read as commentary on stories of other dominant cultures.

Genesis 1 Creation by Elohim Genesis 2 Creation by Yahweh Genesis 3 Garden of Eden & Adam and Eve Genesis 4 Cane and Able Genesis 5 Genealogy Genesis 6 -9 Noah and the Flood Genesis 10 Genealogy Genesis 11 Tower of Babel.

General Historical Timeline of Hebrew Bible (BCE) 1800 -1400? 1400 -1200? 1200 -1050? 1050 -930? c. 922 722 586 538 334 Abraham and other Patriarchs migrate to Canaan (or develop from within) Possible Exodus from Egypt (if historical) Conquest of Canaan / Period of Judges (if historical) First Kings of a United Kingdom (Saul, David, Solomon) Kingdom divides into Northern Kingdom (Israel/Ephraim); and Southern Kingdom (Judah) Assyria defeats Northern Kingdom and capture capital Samaria Babylon defeats Southern Kingdom and capture capital Jerusalem Hebrew exiles are returned from Babylonian captivity, when Cyrus of Persian defeats Babylonia, and begin to restore the Temple Alexander the Great captures Palestine and Persia and Hellenizes the known world

Documentary Hypothesis (Source Criticism) J source (Jehovah or Yahweh) dated to 10 th century BCE during Solomon’s reign E source (Elohim/Ephraim) dated to 9 th century BCE during early divided kingdom D source (Deuteronomy) dated to 7 th century BCE after fall of Israel prior to destruction of Judah P source (Priests) dated to 5 th century BCE during or immediately after exile

Documentary Hypothesis (Source Criticism) J source (Jehovah or Yahweh) dated to 10 th century BCE during Solomon’s reign E source (Elohim) dated to 9 th century BCE during early divided kingdom D source (Deuteronomy) dated to 7 th century BCE after fall of Israel prior to destruction of Judah P source (Priests) dated to 5 th century BCE during or immediately after exile

Genesis 1 Creation by Elohim Genesis 2 Creation by Yahweh Genesis 3 Garden of Eden & Adam and Eve Genesis 4 Cane and Able Genesis 5 Genealogy Genesis 6 -9 Noah and the Flood Genesis 10 Genealogy Genesis 11 Tower of Babel.

Genesis 1 Creation by Elohim (P) Genesis 2 Creation by Yahweh (J) Genesis 3 Garden of Eden & Adam and Eve (J) Genesis 4 Cane and Able (J) Genesis 5 Genealogy (P) Genesis 6 -9 Noah and the Flood (J/P) Genesis 10 (P) Genealogy Genesis 11 Tower of Babel. (J)

Why did the Biblical editor put the stories in the final order that we have today? Is there a larger story being told?

Genesis 1 Creation God creates humanity in God’s own image in a state of perfection Genesis 2 -3 Garden of Eden – Adam and Eve and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil (Genesis 4 – Cane and Able) Original sin enters in the world because of the free will of humanity – The Fall of Humanity Genesis 6 -9 Noah and the Flood The world becomes so evil, that God must start over again, saving only Noah Genesis 11 Tower of Babel Again, prideful humanity attempts to be like God and God must scatter humanity as a consequence. Traditional

Genesis 1 Creation God creates humanity and gives one command: “go forth and multiply” (fill the earth and become all that you are to be. ) Genesis 2 -3 Garden of Eden – Adam and Eve and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil Humanity chooses knowledge and accepts the consequences (loss of innocence) that comes with – The Rise of Humanity Genesis 6 -9 Noah and the Flood God saves Noah from the flood and re-issues the original command: “go forth and multiply” Genesis 11 Tower of Babel Humanity is failing to “go forth”, so God creates the diversity needed Alternative

Things to Consider: 1. While our Biblical stories stand on their own as superb narratives, linking narratives together can often expose a broader story-line with meaning of its own. 2. Our Biblical stories can often be read as commentary on stories of other dominant cultures.

Genesis 1 Creation Story components similar to Babylonian creation story, Enuma Elish. Genesis 2 -3 Garden of Eden – Adam and Eve and the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil Eden has much in common with Near East legend of Dilmun. Genesis 6 -9 Noah and the Flood Noah flood story is a re-telling of older flood stories like the one in the Gilgamesh epic. Genesis 11 Tower of Babel on the plane of Shinar (Babylon) sounds like an ancient Ziggurat structure.

Babylonian Creation Story: Enuma Elish Biblical Creation Story: Genesis 1: 1 -2: 4 a

Enuma Elish (When on high…. ) Babylonian Creation Account Begins: “When on high…” and ends with the founding of Babylon. • Tiamat (Goddess who represents Chaos and Evil and often depicted as a dragon or the Sea [the deep]) becomes enraged due to murder of her husband by one of the other Gods and goes to war. She is nearly unstoppable. • However, Marduk (the good guy) rises up and after winning the loyalty of the other Gods to be their leader, takes on the greatly feared Tiamat. • The ultimate weapon at his disposal is the seven winds, which he uses during the battle to inflate Tiamat. Incapacitated by the winds, he is able to kill her with an arrow to the heart. • Then, Marduk divides Tiamat’s body and uses half to create earth and the other half to form the sky. Then, Marduk creates the Sun and the Moon. • Finally, he establishes the city of Babylon and creates humankind to be slaves to the Gods, which they are to accomplish by following the rules of the God’s representative: the King.

Enuma Elish (When on high…. ) Babylonian Creation Account

Babylonian Creation Story: Enuma Elish Biblical Creation Story: Genesis 1: 1 -2: 4 a

Comparison of our Biblical story to the Babylonian story: Similar components of the stories: • The Deep - watery chaos (Tiamat), • The Wind, • A God creating sky and land humans Differences: • The Babylonian story (When on high…) ends with the creation of a Holy place (the great city of Babylon) while the Biblical story (When in the beginning…) concludes with the creation of Holiness in time (the Sabbath) • The Babylonian story depicts humanity as being created to serve the Gods while the Biblical story suggests that humanity was created to be in God’s image (in relationship with God).

VOCABULARY יהוה (Yah-way / Yeh-ho-vee) ( אלהים El-o-heem) Lord (God) God רוח תהום (ru-ach) (teh-home) spirit / wind deep / sea / abyss שמש ירח ימא מים (she-mesh) (yaw-ray-akh) (yam) (mah-yim) sun moon seas

In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, 2 the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. 4 And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. 6 And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters. ” 7 So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. 8 God called the dome sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day……. .

. . . . . 14 And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth. ” And it was so. 16 God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day…… …. . 22 God blessed them, saying, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth. ” 23 And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day……. .

…. . …… 26 Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness……………… 27 So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. 28 God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living that moves upon the earth. ” 29 God said, “See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. 30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food. ” And it was so…………

2 1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. 2 And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done. 3 So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all the work that he had done in creation. 4 These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created.

Ancient Mesopotamian Flood Myth: Gilgamesh Biblical Flood Narrative: Genesis 6 -9

Gilgamesh Flood Story • Gilgamesh is half-man and half-God with extra-human strength and extra human energy. • The God’s recognize the problem this creates for his people and create a companion for him: a red-headed, hairy wild man who lives with the animals. Enkidu is civilized and becomes the best friend to Gilgamesh. • They have many adventures together. Ultimately, Gilgamesh witnesses his friends death to illness and chooses to seeks out Utnapishtim (the Noah of this story) to understand how to become immortal. • After several more adventures finding the immortal hero, Utnapishtim tells his story of surviving the great flood. .

Gilgamesh Flood Story Excerpts: “For six days and seven nights, the storm demolished the earth. On the seventh day, the downpour stopped. The ocean grew calm. No land could be seen, just water on all sides as flat as a roof. There was no life at all. The human race had turned into clay. I opened a hatch and the blessed sunlight steamed upon me. I fell to my knees and wept. When I got up and looked around, a coastline appeared, a half mile away. On Mount Nimush the ship ran aground, the mountain held it and would not release it. For six days and seven nights, the mountain would not release it. On the seventh day, I brought out a dove and set it free. . The dove flew off, then flew back to the ship, because there was no place to land. ”.

Gilgamesh Flood Story Excerpts: “I waited, then I brought out a swallow and set it free. The swallow flew off, then flew back to the ship, because there was no place to land. I waited, then I brought out a raven and set it free. The raven flew off, and because the water had receded, it found a branch, it sat there, it ate, it flew off and didn’t return. When the waters had dried up and land appeared, I set free the animals I had taken. I slaughtered a sheep on the mountain top and offered it to the gods. I arranged two rows of seven ritual vases, I burned reeds, cedar, and myrtle branches. The Gods smelled the fragrance, they smelled the sweet fragrance and clustered around the offering like flies. ”.

Ancient Mesopotamian Flood Myth: Gilgamesh Biblical Flood Narrative: Genesis 6 -9

Biblical Flood Story Genesis 8: But God remembered Noah and all the wild animals and all the domestic animals that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind blow over the earth, and the waters subsided; 2 the fountains of the deep and the windows of the heavens were closed, the rain from the heavens was restrained, 3 and the waters gradually receded from the earth. At the end of one hundred fifty days the waters had abated; 4 and in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. 5 The waters continued to abate until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains appeared.

Biblical Flood Story 6 At the end of forty days Noah opened the Genesis 8: window of the ark that he had made 7 and sent out the raven; and it went to and fro until the waters were dried up from the earth. 8 Then he sent out the dove from him, to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground; 9 but the dove found no place to set its foot, and it returned to him to the ark, for the waters were still on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand took it and brought it into the ark with him. 10 He waited another seven days, and again he sent out the dove from the ark; 11 and the dove came back to him in the evening, and there in its beak was a freshly plucked olive leaf; so Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth.

Biblical Flood Story 12 Then he waited another seven days, and sent Genesis 8: out the dove; and it did not return to him any more…… …. 20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And when the LORD smelled the pleasing odor, the LORD said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of humankind, for the inclination of the human heart is evil from youth; nor will I ever again destroy every living creature as I have done.

Biblical Flood Story Genesis 9: 9 God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. 2 The fear and dread of you shall rest on every animal of the earth, and on every bird of the air, on everything that creeps on the ground, and on all the fish of the sea; into your hand they are delivered. 3 Every moving that lives shall be food for you; and just as I gave you the green plants, I give you everything.

Gilgamesh Flood Story vs Biblical Flood Story (Similarities) • In both accounts, a God advises a man to build an ark with instructions on size (that has no rudder) to survive a great flood. • In both accounts, the heroes bring animals onto their boat. • Both boats endure massive rainfall and ultimately land on a mountain when the rain subsides. • In both accounts, birds are sent out three times, the animals are unloaded animal sacrifices are offered and the deity smells the pleasing odors.

Gilgamesh Flood Story vs Biblical Flood Story (Differences) • In the Gilgamesh story, the Gods appear to act somewhat arbitrarily; In the Biblical story, there is a moral component to God’s action. • Only the Biblical story introduces the idea of Covenant. • The Biblical story reconnects with the creation story as God initially unleashes chaos again and then stops the flow of water with the Wind, starting over, even repeating the commandment to “go forth and be fruitful and multiply” to Noah (the new Adam) • God makes some concessions: expands the diet and lifts the curse on the ground.

I believe that understanding how the Hebrew editor has taken pre-existing stories and altered them, helps us better understand what was important to the original Hebrew storytellers: • What do you think this tells us about their worldview? • What was the Hebrew storyteller trying to say about the dominant culture of their day? • Is there a lesson for us today?

So, if you were challenged this morning to think about how you would create a mythic story that captures some of the essence of your own theological or philosophical worldview………. . How would you construct such a narrative for a contemporary audience? (such as your children? )

Highland Presbyterian Church Summer of 2015 OLD TESTAMENT SURVEY