OT 511 – Final Exam – Comprehensive Study Guide and Key Concepts
Define the Deuteronomistic history. Outline your understanding of Holy War, including its major
elements, their critique, and its significance or lack of significance for the wars of Joshua. -
correct answer ✔✔ - Deuteronomistic history is Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings
-Elements of holy war included 1)commencement with religious ceremonies in which God's will
to fight is determined, 2) selection of a leader by God, 3) divine intervention, 4) the enemy
thrown into panic, 5) and victory. These elements are seen as part of the Deuteronomist's usage
in order to convey theological messages.
-Critique: Holy wars were fought throughout the Ancient Near East (ANE) and probably every
war in which an ANE king engaged was a holy war.
-Significance (for understanding the wars): Holy Wars began with oracles taken to ascertain the
god's will. The divinely chosen leader was the king. Divine intervention in the forms of natural
phenomena were occasionally featured. The enemy was thrown into panic, a feature of most
wars, and victory was assured. Defeat occurred because oracles had been misunderstood or
some offense (committed by the king) had brought divine wrath.
Discuss Joshua and Genocide. What are the charges and what can be the response? - correct
answer ✔✔ Charge: Joshua is a book of genocide that God allowed.
Response:
The Wars Were Defensive
There Was No Genocide...forts were attacked, not those outside of the fort/city
Canaanites Remained in All the Regions (Judges 1) &
Intermarried with Israelites (Judg 2:10-13)
This is What the Bible Understood Whatever the Historicity of the Wars
, Describe the religion, culture, and evidence for ethnicity of Israel during the time of the judges;
- correct answer ✔✔ Culture -
Possibility of functional literacy
Abecedary found at Izbet Sartah Pg. 116
Merneptah stele (1209 B.C.) ethnicity of Israel
-Mentions israel as people group, not nation (that he conquered)
Major cities in Palestine/Canaanite vs. Israelite hill country m
-What is the difference between those?
-In villages absence of temples, shrines, absence of pig bones
-Villages - Israelite. General absence of archaeological evidence of religious sites in the hill
country. Unlike earlier Late Bronze Age Palestinian cities (such as Shechem above), temples and
shrines are absent from these sites (Dever 2001: 113).
Religion-
Archaeological sites are absent of pig bones at suspected Israelite sites, which sets them apart
from the Philistines.
Define the Deuteronomistic history. Outline your understanding of Holy War, including its major
elements, their critique, and its significance or lack of significance for the wars of Joshua. -
correct answer ✔✔ - Deuteronomistic history is Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings
-Elements of holy war included 1)commencement with religious ceremonies in which God's will
to fight is determined, 2) selection of a leader by God, 3) divine intervention, 4) the enemy
thrown into panic, 5) and victory. These elements are seen as part of the Deuteronomist's usage
in order to convey theological messages.
-Critique: Holy wars were fought throughout the Ancient Near East (ANE) and probably every
war in which an ANE king engaged was a holy war.
-Significance (for understanding the wars): Holy Wars began with oracles taken to ascertain the
god's will. The divinely chosen leader was the king. Divine intervention in the forms of natural
phenomena were occasionally featured. The enemy was thrown into panic, a feature of most
wars, and victory was assured. Defeat occurred because oracles had been misunderstood or
some offense (committed by the king) had brought divine wrath.
Discuss Joshua and Genocide. What are the charges and what can be the response? - correct
answer ✔✔ Charge: Joshua is a book of genocide that God allowed.
Response:
The Wars Were Defensive
There Was No Genocide...forts were attacked, not those outside of the fort/city
Canaanites Remained in All the Regions (Judges 1) &
Intermarried with Israelites (Judg 2:10-13)
This is What the Bible Understood Whatever the Historicity of the Wars
, Describe the religion, culture, and evidence for ethnicity of Israel during the time of the judges;
- correct answer ✔✔ Culture -
Possibility of functional literacy
Abecedary found at Izbet Sartah Pg. 116
Merneptah stele (1209 B.C.) ethnicity of Israel
-Mentions israel as people group, not nation (that he conquered)
Major cities in Palestine/Canaanite vs. Israelite hill country m
-What is the difference between those?
-In villages absence of temples, shrines, absence of pig bones
-Villages - Israelite. General absence of archaeological evidence of religious sites in the hill
country. Unlike earlier Late Bronze Age Palestinian cities (such as Shechem above), temples and
shrines are absent from these sites (Dever 2001: 113).
Religion-
Archaeological sites are absent of pig bones at suspected Israelite sites, which sets them apart
from the Philistines.
