Layers of History in the Land of Israel (Part I)

Hattusas, Capital of the Hittite Empire and the Oldest civilization

The hunt for truth is deep core both to those who believe and to those who are still seeking. At its very heart is the urgency to validate what you believe or disbelieve.

Here, shown on the left is Hattusas, the capital of the Hittite Civilization, the oldest known Empire. Ezekiel's polemic invective underlines the origin of the Jews to these Hittites (Ezekiel 16: 1-3).

Now, tracing the dawn of history that connects with Abraham (Gen 5 & 11), the journeys of the Patriarchs, the formation of the 12 tribes, the spiritual vacillation in the time of Judges, followed by the Monarchy and the subsequent divided kingdoms of Judah & Israel in the Old Testament is to discover that it is pock-marked with the pot-holes of different cultures and history. Negotiating through these cultures, their languages, prevalent customs, taboos and myths play a critical role in understanding how the Bible texts differed or resonated from other texts written during the same periods. Some thick books are entirely devoted to this subject, and vast volumes of technical journals are available. In fact it is impossible to properly understand some sections of the Old Testament, without a parity assessment with extra-Biblical sources and archaeological discoveries.  And all this is irrevocably connected with available documentation in the ancient written records. Technically, it is impossible to escape the fact that the Bible is a historical document.

The most ancient written records were in various forms as inscriptions on clay tablets, pots (ostraca), papyri and parchment. The earliest was Anatolian as seen in the form of logophonetic Luwian Hieroglyphs, discovered at Hattusas (near present day Boghazkoy in Turkey). Actual writing, not hieroglyphs, is seen in the Sumerian texts (Southern Mesopotamia) dating between 3500 – 3000 BC. It arose from long distance communication necessitated by trade. The exception is Enheduanna, the Akkadian poet (2285-2250 BC). She is the world’s first author known by name and was the daughter of Sargon of Akkad (Sargon the Great). Interestingly, the British archaeologist Sir Leonard Wooley found the now-famous Enheduanna calcite disc in his excavations at the Sumerian site of Ur, in 1927, which was also the city of Abraham (Gen 12).  It was Sumerian mathematicians, who devised the sixty-minute hour that still rules our lives. Of course, there is also the well known Hammurabi’s Code of Law and it is dated at 1754 BC.

Both the Luwian texts and Hittite texts are part of the Indo-European group of languages, based on the evidence in historical linguistics. As a result they are considered as precursors to English, German, Sanskrit, Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati etc.

James Pritchard’s “Ancient Near Eastern Texts” is an exhaustive, technical and archaeological compendium of all the early texts of this region. Originally printed in 1969, it is now updated and available in its III edition. However, today much of this information is easily verifiable and available on the internet. So here I provide just a brief outline of the slices of Israel's history and also provide some clues to trace further data on extra-biblical sources. Some recent books of great value provide geographical information that is chronologically arranged and updated with archaeological discoveries:

• William Schlegel, Satellite Bible Atlas: Historical Geography of the Bible
• Anson F. Rainey & R. Steven Notley, A Sacred Bridge: Carta’s Atlas of the Biblical World

Thus, the whole the history of the Levant can be sliced into the following categories up to the present. These slices outline only periods of occupation and control in Palestine, and not the actual periods of their power globally:

1. Mesopotamian Migration (2125 to 1700 BC)
2. Egyptian Settlement and Slavery (1700-1447 BC)
3. Exodus and Settlement in Palestine (1407-722 BC)
4. Neo-Assyrian Period (722-609 BC)
5. Neo-Babylonian Exile (597-539 BC)
6. Medo-Persian Period (539-330 BC)
7. Greek Period (333-30 BC)
8. The Roman Period (30 BC-313 AD)
9. Byzantine Period (313-638 AD)
10. Islamic Occupation (638- 1098 AD)
11. Crusader Period (1091-1259 AD)
12. Mameluke Period (1260 -1516 AD)
13. Ottoman Empire (1517-1917 AD)
14. British Mandate (1917-1948)
15. Statehood of Independent Israel (Since 1948)

I will continue with more detail in my next blog on each of these sections. The first 8 sections cover the ground in which the texts of the Bible were written.

For more information on the Luwians, Hittites and the ancients scripts of Luwian Hieroglyphics and Cuneiform read these two books:
1. Eberhard Zanger, The Luwian Civilization
2. Marl Wilson, Biblical Turkey

Defining Moments

Some time later God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" ?"Here I am," he replied. Then God said, "Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah. Sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains I will tell you about." Genesis 22: 1,2 (NIV)

True love can be measured only by sacrifice. You truly love something more than yourself, only when you are willing to give it away, only when you are willing to let it go. Your love is immeasurable when you sacrifice the one that you cherish the most. You cherish their happiness more than your own. You cut off the umbilical. You abandon yourself. You brace yourself for death, a hollow in your soul, with a loss that can never be replaced.

If you cannot make this sacrifice, then your love is shallow. This kind of love is only possessive. And possessive love never lasts. Whenever did any possessiveness of your possessions, ever last through your childhood? You grow out of it. Possessive love never lasts. It may seem great, but it never lasts. It may be demanding, for a period, but you move on.

In the well-known sacrifice of Abraham, his great love for God stands paramount like a bright shining light. What we easily miss out is the quiet candle, of the paradox, of his love for Isaac silently burning within and eroding all personal future. We see his willingness to cut off the emotional umbilical. For whenever you walk to Mount Moriah, you pass through the blazing heat of spiritual catharsis. It’s what parents must do for their children. It's what a true lover will do for his beloved. It's what a dog would do for his master. It’s what God did for us, when he granted us free-will. It is the paradox of supreme love. The paradox of God's love and our own, as they merge.  An intimacy in which God understands our pain, and we his. And we look with wonder at the disfigurement, our own disfigurement, on the Cross... resolving to continue our walk home, with broken gratitude... even if it is the long walk through Moriah.

No Residues

       A simple life, with only one lifelong principle: Be the blessing to others. No other clutter.
       No extra baggage from the past. No toxic emotions. No injury from those who curse. No hurt from those who reject. No insult from those who ignore. No heartbreaks from betrayal. Even, no doubts from unfulfilled needs. No fear of terminal dangers. Absolutely, no emotional residues. Just be the blessing to others. God takes care of the residues.
       All this was compressed and packed into those verses, which land-marked the call of Abraham (Genesis 12: 2-3):

I will make you into a great nation,
and I will bless you;
I will make your name great,
and you will be a blessing.
I will bless those who bless you,
and whoever curses you I will curse;
and all peoples on earth
will be blessed through you.

       Parallel to this Abrahamic call, the Mishnaic Rabbis in their ethical directives declare:

Do His will as if it were your own, so that He will do His will as it were yours. Nullify your own will before His so that he will nullify the will of others before you. ― Pirkei Avot 2: 4

       Isn't this exactly what Jesus said (Matthew 5: 13 - 16) - calling us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world ? Salt retards decay, but it loses itself and cannot be seen. A candle dispels darkness, but it loses itself. Therefore, just be a blessing to the others. Follow God single-mindedly. Move on. Carry no residues. Be professional. Complete tasks. Celebrate. Stay uncluttered and unfettered. It simply means, nobody owes me anything but I am responsible to all.
       A single principle and a simple life. Nothing more. Nothing less. Nothing else.