Week 1: Geography & Canon Formation

Question 1

What is the Bible?

Answer 1

The Bible is a collection or anthology of texts of many different genres.

Question 2

Exegesis

Answer 2

“To draw/lead out of…”

• To explain
• To interpret based on evidence in the text
• To develop further meaning of the text for today, based on information gained about the text

Method of extracting as much information as we can from a biblical passage about the history and background of when the text was written

Question 3

The method of extracting as much information as we can from a biblical passage about the history and background of when the text was written

Answer 3

Exegesis

Question 4

Low Context Material

Answer 4

Documents that do not contain a great amount of information and assume that the other person understands enough about the shared environment to understand the document.

Biblical material is often low context material because the audience for whom it was written understood many things that are assumed in the story, which we do not understand; it lacks detail and assumes background knowledge.

Therefore, stories which are heavily detailed in the Bible signify great importance (e.g. structure of Temple, Priestly vestments).

Note: pay attention to repetition and detailed passages

Question 5

The Bible

Answer 5

Ta biblia: “The Books”

Question 6

What name do we give to the collection of books?

Answer 6

(1) Hebrew Bible
(2) Old Testament
(3) Jewish Bible: TaNaKh

Question 7

What name do we give to the collection of books?

Hebrew Bible

Answer 7

Term used by scholars to refer to the Hebrew and Aramaic book shared by Jews and Christians.

“Bible” is Greek for “Books”; the Hebrew Bible is a series of books.

Question 8

What name do we give to the collection of books?

Old Testament

Answer 8

Term used by Christians to refer to the first part of the Christian Bible

Testament: contract/covenant

Implies that the Old Testament is of the past and that the New Testament overrides it

Christians use this term believing the OT is a precursor

Question 9

What name do we give to the collection of books?

TaNaKh

Answer 9

Hebrew name (used by Jews)

Torah, Nevi’im, Ketuvim

1) Torah (= Instruction)
2) Nevi’im (= Prophets)
3) Ketuvim (= Writings)

Question 10

How did ancient Israel emerge on the geo-political map?

Answer 10

Ancient Israel emerged gradually on the geo-political map and was small relative to the much larger political entities in the Ancient Near East.

Question 11

Geography of Canaan/Israel

Canaan

Answer 11

Egypt controlled the area around Palestine for a great deal of time. During this time it was called “Canaan” and it was a province of Egypt.

Question 12

“Fertile Crescent”

Answer 12

Mediterranean Sea - Palestine (Jerusalem), Phoenicia, Assyria, Akkad, Sumer (Babylon) - Persian Gulf

Question 13

Describe the formation of writing systems.

Answer 13

Around 3000 BC, people began to settle and became less nomadic in the “Fertile Crescent.”

As a result, Sumer and Egypt became such complex civilizations, they had to create writing systems (in order to keep a record of business, marriages, etc.).

They had to take vocal sounds and put them into a visual form, which they did on clay tablets.

They began to write epics (stories of the gods, legends, heroes).

In Egypt, they used Papyrus
Papyrus disintegrates over time and so it had to be copied over and over again, so copying systems began to be put in place.

There is no original copy of the Old or New Testament.

Question 14

How do technology and politics dictate where people live? How did this affect Israel?

Answer 14

Living along the coast line made it easy to live, but became increasingly difficult closer to the Dead Sea because it was hilly and dry and so technology began to adapt to make it easier to farm (e.g. the use of iron over bronze).

The greater ability to farm meant a greater population because populations are well-fed and can have better defence.

The “Land of Canaan” eventually becomes “Israel” (Israel is also the name for Jacob, the son of Isaac and grandson of Abraham. Jacob’s name is changed to Israel.)

Question 15

Describe the Idea of the Promised Land

Answer 15

The land belongs to God, God is the owner and lover of the land. God promises the land to Israelites (Abraham and his descendants) in fulfillment of conditions of obedience. and the Israelites are the tenants.

The land is considered sacred because God lives and dwells there; He is part of the land (in the ancient world, every land had its local God).

Israel has an important relationship with the land that continues to this day.

Aretz Israel: “Land of Israel”

Question 16

Aretz Israel

Answer 16

“Land of Israel”

Question 17

When was the Hebrew Bible composed?

Answer 17

The texts of the Hebrew Bible were composed over ~1000 year period and may represent even older traditions.

Question 18

Canon

Answer 18

(Heb. qaneh): “reed” or “measuring stick”

Set of writings considered authoritative.

Books may not be added or removed.

Different canons are used in different religious communities

Question 19

The Process of Canonization

Answer 19

( 1 ) Experience

• Events, miracles, theological insights
• These have to be experienced

( 2 ) Oral Tradition

• Stories, prophecies, songs and poems
• Oral Tradition is stable, preservative and able to correct itself (especially through song)

( 3 ) Writing
Things are written down during periods of:
1. Stability
2. Crisis

( 4 ) Canon Formation

• Process of collection, elimination, and addition.
• Impacted by politics, language, geographical location, and so on

Question 20

When are things written down?

Answer 20

During periods of:

1. Stability (when the monarchy is not defending against others trying to take over)
2. Crisis (when communities fear that things will be lost)

Question 21

How many books are in the Jewish Canon?

Answer 21

24

Question 22

Torah

Answer 22

“Instruction” “Teaching” “law”

Pentateuch (first five books): Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus. Numbers and Deuteronomy

Continuous narrative from creation of world to the death of Moses.

Traditional view: Moses’ teachings and Moses was the author

The core; the first group of texts regarded as official, authoritative and canonized. At the centre of everything.

Question 23

Nevi’im

Answer 23

Prophets

Question 24

Ketuvim

Answer 24

Writings

Question 25

When did Jews canonize their scripture?

Answer 25

In 70 CE, the Romans destroyed Jerusalem.

In 90 CE, Jews decide to canonize their Scripture.

Question 26

Criteria for Canonization:

Answer 26

( 1 ) Use in Jewish Communities
( 2 ) Authority of the Author 
( 3 ) Theological Accuracy 
( 4 ) Age of the Text 
( 5 ) Language of Composition

Question 27

Septuagint (LXX):

Answer 27

The Septuagint is the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. It was prepared for Greek-speaking Jews in ~300 BCE and it includes additional Jewish texts (written in Greek) that are not part of the TaNaK.

72 Scribes produced 72 perfect copies in Alexandria, Egypt in 300.

Question 28

Why is the Septuagint longer than the Jewish Bible?

Answer 28

Scribes included other Jewish texts that are newer and do not have a Jewish original; they are only in Greek. Therefore, the Septuagint is longer than the Jewish Canon.

For the communities living in Alexandria, those extra books were taken as authoritative.

Question 29

Why did Jews exclude the extra texts in the Septuagint from the Jewish Bible?

Answer 29

( 1 ) Language
When the Jewish Bible was canonized, the extra books were excluded for the reason of language.

( 2 ) Christianity
They were also excluded because Early Christianity spread into mostly Greek-speaking communities, and the Early Christians included (and used) the Septuagint as authoritative. The Jews excluded the Septuagint because the Greek Early Christian communities used the texts.

Question 30

Septuagint in Christianity

Answer 30

The Catholic Old Testament includes these additional texts from the Septuagint.

The Protestant Old Testament includes only those texts also found in the TaNaK.

Question 31

Why do the Protestants not regard these Septuagint texts as canonical (but rather, as secondary, as “apocrypha”)?

Answer 31

During the Protestant Reformation in 1517, Martin Luther began the Protestant Reformation and reformed against texts that could be used to support indulgences
The ordering of the historical writings and prophets differ between the Jewish Bible and the canons used by Chrisian groups (whether Prtoestant or Catholic).