09/28/2011
Deuteronomy
Timeline:
- 1250-1000 BCE: Emergence of Israel in Canaan
- 1000-922 BCE: Israelite Monarchy
- 922 BCE: Kingdom Splits (Judah in the South and Israel in the North)
- 722 BCE: Assyrian Invasion upon Israel
- ca. 621 BCE: King Josiah's Reform (Judah Kingdom)
- see 2 Kings 22:1-5
- the Book of the Law was found, which focused on centralizing worship
- 586 BCE: Babylonian Invasion upon Judah
- Jerusalem Temple destroyed
- large amounts of people were taken into Babylon
- 539 BCE: Persian King Cyrus allows fugitives to return to home country
Documentary Hypothesis Sources (Review):
- (J) and (E) -- written during the Monarchy: Genesis--first 1/2 of Exodus
- (P) -- written during and after the Babylonian Exile: second 1/2 of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers
- (D) -- written (possibly) during Josiah's Reform: Deuteronomy--Kings
Deuteronomy
- King Josiah portrayed as a hero
- written possibly during or after his reign
- centralization of religion/worship
- **(P) and (D) seemed to be unaware of each other, making it difficult to determine which preceded the other.**
- Name:
- from "Second telling of the Law" -- Greek
- "Devarim" -- Hebrew, meaning "These are the words..."
- Structure
- chapters 1-11: Preamble
- also motivational speeches
- chapter 6 is central text; lays out requirements for putting the law on foreheads (Tefillin) and door frames (Mezuzah)
- 12-26: The Law
- corpus of the second telling of the Law
- some discrepancies exist between the first and second law (e.g. Ex. 21 and Deut. 15:12-14)
- 27-28: Blessings and Curses
- based on behavior/obedience
- blessings: land, children, victory, etc.
- curses: reversal of blessings; plagues, disasters, etc.
- see similarities with the VTE (the Vassal Treaty of Esarhaddon)
- 29-34: Appendices
- seemingly added on later
- probably the work of (P) or (R)
- The treaty laid out in Deuteronomy may possibly be a counter-treaty of the one the Israelites signed with Assyria, asserting primary and steadfast allegiance to YHWH.
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