Jun 30, 2012

Geographical Boundaries and the Old Testament



I was recently reading through a section of Davies and Rogerson’s, The Old Testament World and came upon the statement below.

“An important point to bear in mind when reading about countries in the Old Testament is that traditional states did not have borders in the way that modern states do (see Giddens 1985:49–53). Modern states have borders defined both on maps and on the ground and claim total authority within those borders. In the world of the Old Testament countries were defined by border towns often sited near natural boundaries such as mountain ranges. Possession of a border town by a small garrison of soldiers enabled a monarch to claim to rule the whole country. In practice, very little actual control was exercised. This fact explains why the account of the “conquest” of Palestine by Joshua is so incomplete; for even if one doubts the historicity of the account, it will have made political sense to the writers and readers/hearers. It was necessary only for border towns such as Hazor and Lachish (Joshua 10:31–32; 11:10–13) to have been captured in order to claim that the whole land had been taken into possession, even though other conquests are also claimed in Joshua. Similarly, the heated arguments about whether or not David created a small empire may be seen in a different light if it is realized that it was necessary to capture and minimally garrison only a handful of border towns in order to claim control a number of surrounding nations. It is true that the book of Joshua contains descriptions of some of the tribal boundaries of an idealized Israel, but these are literary creations obtained by imagining lines running between towns claimed to belong to different tribes. These boundaries did not exist on maps (there were no maps in the modern sense) and were not boundaries in the modern sense (see Rogerson 1999: 116–26)” (Philip R. Davies and John Rogerson, The Old Testament World [Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox, 2005], 21–2.


While I tend to agree with the suggestion concerning the reality of fluid borders in the ancient world, I am not sure that the conclusions drawn from this by the authors is necessary or persuasive. Take for example the assertion that,


“This fact explains why the account of the “conquest” of Palestine by Joshua is so incomplete; for even if one doubts the historicity of the account, it will have made political sense to the writers and readers/hearers. It was necessary only for border towns such as Hazor and Lachish (Joshua 10:31–32; 11:10–13) to have been captured in order to claim that the whole land had been taken into possession, even though other conquests are also claimed in Joshua.”


Not only does this not square with the claims in Joshua 15–19, but it also difficult to explain the explicit recognition that the conquest was incomplete (Josh 9:14–15; 16:10; 17:12–18; 19:47; 23:7, 12–13; 24:23; cf. Judg 1:19–36). Indeed, one of the important theological points in Joshua and Judges is not that Israel could claim to have completed the conquest because it held the major border towns but rather that Israel had failed to complete the conquest of the land that God had given them.


One could also critique that statement that:


“Similarly, the heated arguments about whether or not David created a small empire may be seen in a different light if it is realized that it was necessary to capture and minimally garrison only a handful of border towns in order to claim control a number of surrounding nations.”


This statement is problematic for at least three reasons. (1) This argument implies that the ancient writers weren’t honest and the ancient readers were gullible. (2) This statement does not really do justice to the biblical text. For example, 2 Samuel 8 states that David put garrisons “in” the Aramean kingdom of Damascus and “throughout” Edom. These nations didn’t pay large tribute because David had a “minimal” number of men in a border town on the periphery of their territory; they submitted because their nation was subdued. (3) I am not sure how this “different light” really addresses the core issues that create the “heated arguments.” Such arguments typically involve whether David actually had a significant kingdom as the Bible seems to suggest or not. I do not believe that resorting to a geographical fiction, even if one could make a case for it culturally, really addresses that issue.


Finally, I am puzzled by the suggestion that,


“It is true that the book of Joshua contains descriptions of some of the tribal boundaries of an idealized Israel, but these are literary creations obtained by imagining lines running between towns claimed to belong to different tribes. These boundaries did not exist on maps (there were no maps in the modern sense) and were not boundaries in the modern sense (see Rogerson 1999: 116-26).”


Why would the author of Joshua resort to literary creation if it were not necessary to do so since the audience would not require it? Why would one draw imaginary lines running between towns if such lines were not the way boundaries were perceived in the culture? It seems like the authors of The Old Testament World want their cake and eat it too. Rather, one could just as easily argue that the reason why boundaries/borders were fluid is not because they could not be defined (or because ancient people could not conduct a survey), but because tribes and nations were often disputing the border (e.g., Judg 11; 1 Kgs 15; 2 Kgs 9). The very fact that there were border disputes indicates that borders were recognized and important.
   

Daniel and the Stele of Nabonidus

  
Leon Mauldin has a brief post on Daniel and the Stele of Nabonidus here.
 

Jun 29, 2012

Latest Issue of Review of Biblical Literature

  
The latest issue of Review of Biblical Literature is out. Reviews can be accessed by clicking the links below.

Christopher B. Ansberry
Be Wise, My Son, and Make My Heart Glad: An Exploration of the Courtly Nature of the Book of Proverbs
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8245
Reviewed by Anne W. Stewart
 
James B. Charlesworth
The Good and Evil Serpent: How a Universal Symbol Became Christianized
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7451
Reviewed by Volker Rabens and Rosel Pientka-Hinz
 
Roy E. Ciampa and Brian S. Rosner
The First Letter to the Corinthians
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7856
Reviewed by Jeffrey Cayzer
 
Richard E. DeMaris
The New Testament in Its Ritual World
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=7692
Reviewed by Jason T. Lamoreaux
 
David L. Eastman
Paul the Martyr: The Cult of the Apostle in the Latin West
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8026
Reviewed by Lee M. Jefferson
Reviewed by Shelly Matthews
 
John T. Fitzgerald, ed.
Passions and Moral Progress in Greco-Roman Thought
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=6860
Reviewed by Douglas A. Hume
 
Elim Hiu
Regulations concerning Tongues and Prophecy in 1 Corinthians 14.26-40: Relevance beyond the Corinthian Church
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8075
Reviewed by Lars Kierspel
 
Beate Pongratz-Leisten, ed.
Reconsidering the Concept of Revolutionary Monotheism
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8216
Reviewed by Michael B. Hundley
 
Hanne von Weissenberg, Juha Pakkala, and Marko Marttila, eds.
Changes in Scripture: Rewriting and Interpreting Authoritative Traditions in the Second Temple Period
http://www.bookreviews.org/bookdetail.asp?TitleId=8251
Reviewed by Ian Young
  

Jun 28, 2012

The First Quotation in the Gospel of Mark

  
Rikk E. Watts has a good explanation here of the the problems associated with the first quotation in the Gospel of Mark.
 

Hamilton on Preaching the Minor Prophets

  
See James Hamilton's brief post on preaching the Minor Prophets.
   

Jun 27, 2012

The Philippians of the Old Testament

  
I have a recurring interest in the book of Ecclesiastes. Recently, I was browsing through my seminary's library and William Barrick's 2011 commentary on Ecclesiastes caught my eye. I knew I had to check it out when I read the book's subtitle: "The Philippians of the Old Testament." This title of course tips Barrick's hand on how he understands the book. That is, he sees the book as primarily positive rather than negative. I happen to share that conclusion, but to be honest, I had not really thought about it that way before. The comparison is a bit overstated in my view since joy/rejoicing is more explicit in Philippians than Ecclesiastes and the latter is certainly darker than the former, but the subtitle did what it was probably designed to do, that is, get my attention and make me want to read more.

William D. Barrick, Ecclesiastes: The Philippians of the Old Testament, Focus on the Bible (Ross-shire: Christian Focus, 2011). 
  

Jun 26, 2012

Finding Themes in Acts

  
Walter Liefeld has noted that there are two ways to identify themes in a book. He notes that themes may be identified either inductively or deductively. An inductive approach would involve examining the text carefully and then summarizing and generalizing the data. That is, noting themes that appear bubble up from the text. A deductive approach begins with specific categories (prayer for example) and then working through the text to see what it has to say about that particular category. Students of the Scriptures have utilized both methods with different degrees of success. One might want to begin deductively and then follow it with an inductive investigation.

Walter L. Liefeld,
Interpreting the Book of Acts (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1995), 79–80. 
  

Jun 25, 2012

Three Clearance Titles from Westminster

  
The Westminster Bookstore has three titles at a 60% discount which might be of some interest.

Preaching Christ from Ecclesiastes: Foundations for Expository Sermons by Sidney Greidanus @ $10.40 (60% off). This a helpful resource, especially as a supplement to other more comprehensive commentaries. I used this book when I went through Ecclesiastes earlier this year. 
Ephesians, BECNT series by Frank Thielman @ $18.00 (60% off). I have used parts of this commentary here and there and have found it to be pretty solid.


Speaking God's Words: A Practical Theology of Preaching by Peter Adam @ $7.98 (60% off). I have not used this resource but it looks interesting. I appreciate the work of Dick Lucas and he has written the forward.

Shipping is free If you spend at least $49.
  

Elements of Good Preaching

  
Check out what Shayne Looper has to say about good preaching here.
 

Jun 24, 2012

Witherington on PhD's

  
Those who might be considering a Ph.D. might want to read Ben Witherington's post here.