Session 2 - Lecture 1

Prehistory of the Ancient Middle East and The Early Bronze including Mesopotamia(the Home of Abraham)

I. Introduction

In the beginning, God created the universe and the planet earth. This is what the Bibletells us in Genesis 1:1. The Bible then proceeds, in chapters 1-11, to present primevalhistory. Genesis 1-11 is an introduction to salvation history, setting forth the origin of theworld, humanity and sin.

The time discussed in Genesis 1-11 is called prehistory. This word is used because thetime period in question preceded the development of writing. As such, our knowledge ofthis period depends solely on archaeological data.

Archaeology has divided prehistory into sub-divisions or sub-sections based upon thedevelopments or advancements which took place. The names of the sub-divisionsgenerally end with the Greek word lithic, meaning stone.

The Archaeological Periods of the Middle East with Special Referenceto Palestine (Part I)

Paleolithic ??? - 15,000 B.C.

Epipaleolithic 15,000 - 8,000 B.C.

Neolithic 8,000 - 4,500 B.C.

Chalcolithic 4,500 - 3,200 B.C.

Early Bronze Age 3,200 - 2,000 B.C.

Early Bronze I 3,200 - 3,000 B.C.

Early Bronze II 3,000 - 2,700 B.C.

Early Bronze III 2,700 - 2,200 B.C.

Early Bronze IV or Intermediate 2,200 - 2,000 B.C.

Middle Bronze Age 2,000 - 1,550 B.C.

Middle Bronze I 2,000 - 1,800 B.C.

Middle Bronze II 1,800 - 1,550 B.C.

Late Bronze Age 1,550 -1,200 B.C.

Late Bronze I 1,550 - 1,400 B.C.

Late Bronze II 1,400 - 1,200 B.C.

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1. Paleolithic (Old Stone Age)

a. ?? - 15,000 B.C.

b. This period is typically divided into three categories: Lower, Middle,Upper

c. The Paleolithic period is generally considered a time when people subsistedby hunting and gathering.

2. Epipaleolithic (Middle Stone Age)

a. 15,000 - 8,000 B.C.

b. This is a transitional period where people moved from being hunters andgatherers to a more permanent agricultural lifestyle.

c. The Natufian culture of Palestine represents one of these transitionalcultures. They herded wild animals and intensively collected wild cereals.

3. Neolithic (New Stone Age)

a. 8,000 - 4,500 B.C.

b. This period is characterized by several achievements:

1) The appearance of village life in most areas of the Near East whosepeople lived by farming.

2) The domestication of plants and animals

3) The introduction of pottery circa 6000-5000 B.C. The Neolithic is oftenbroken into two parts: the Pre-Pottery Neolithic and the Pottery Neolithic

c. The following are Neolithic sites in the Ancient Near East:

1) Levant

a) Jericho - This is one of the oldest known permanent settlements in theworld. It was probably settled sometime around 8,000 B.C.

Old Testament Tell of Jericho

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A. The Lithic Sequence

Neolithic Tower at Jericho

b) Byblos and Ugarit in Lebanon

Byblos

Ugarit

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2) Mesopotamia - Jarmo, Ninevah, the Hassura culture, and the Halafian culture.

3) Egypt - Faiyum "A", please note however, that Egypt lagged behind theLevant and Mesopotamia during the Neolithic period.

4) Anatolia - Catal Huyuk

Catal Huyuk

4. Chalcolithic (Copper Stone Age)

a. 4,500 - 3,200 B.C.

b. This period saw the intensification of village life throughout much of theAncient Near East which would pave the way for rapid urbanization in thenext period.

c. This period witnessed the first known use of metal (copper) for weaponsand utensils.

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Chalcolithic Copper Items

d. The earliest evidence of writing comes from this period and will mark thetransition from pre-history to history.

The Earliest Writing - Pictographs

e. Mesopotamia was the area of the most drastic changes. The most importantcultural advancements of the Chalcolithic age occurred in southernMesopotamia.

1) Al Ubaid Period (4000-3500 B.C.) - This period is characterized bysmall temples and houses made of mudbrick.

2) Uruk Period (3500-3100 B.C.) - This period is named for the city Uruk(or Erech in the Bible). The period exhibited highly evolved architecture,especially in the area of temples, the introduction of writing, expandedsystems of dykes and canals to control the rivers, widespread trade, and anincrease in metals use and population.

Ruins of Uruk

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Artist Rendering of Uruk

3) Proto-literate Period or Jemdet Nasr Phase (3100-2900 B.C.) - Thisperiod showed an intensification of the preceding period and was atransition to the historical ages.

f. Egypt lagged behind Mesopotamia in both the Neolithic and Chalcolithicperiods. In general, there was a gradual development of small agriculturalvillages along the Nile. Around 3200 B.C., Egypt was divided into smalldistricts or nomes, each district with a ruler. Between 3200 and 3100 B.C., thedistricts in the north and the districts in the south consolidated, each with itsown king. Circa 3100 B.C., Narmer, a strong king, united the north and thesouth and began the first Egyptian Dynasty. A system of writing also emergedfrom Egypt during this time called hieroglyphics.

Egyptian Hieroglyphics

B. Human Origins

Before we move into history, we must first take a brief look at the origins ofmankind. We will start with some preliminary concerns and then examine someevolutionary and non-evolutionary models of human origin.

1. Concerns

a. Concordism versus Non-Concordism

1) Concordism is the attempt to harmonize the scriptural creation accountwith modern science.

2) Non-Concordism says that concordism is missing the point of creationby trying to impose modern scientific meaning on it. Non-concordism is

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content to separate theological truth from scientific truth and to affirm thatthe Bible is not a science text. As such, one should not expect modernscience from a book that reflects ancient cosmology.

b. Issue of literary genre - One must realize that the Bible was not written as ascientific text. It was written as a theological text which provides God'srevelation of himself to mankind through history. While it is true and correctin every area to which it speaks, the Bible is a theological text and must belooked at as such.

2. Models of Creation

a. Evolutionary

1) Naturalistic Evolutionary Models

a) Macro Evolution - Evolution took place across species lines. All lifeevolved from a prebiotic soup, either gradually or in spurts called"punctuated equilibrium" Either process took billions of years.

b) Darwinian Evolution - Charles Darwin taught that both humans andapes evolved from a common primate ancestor. He was critical of athoroughgoing macro evolution. He proposed a theory of naturalselection which had five key theses:

- Population is increasing by multiplication, food supply byaddition

- A struggle for existence is inevitable

- Each birth produces genetic variations

- Some will have a better genetic inheritance (gene pool) thanothers

- Thus, there will be survival of the fittest or best genetic inheritors

c) Micro Evolution - Evolution within a species, such as athoroughbred horse, a hybrid seed, or a pedigreed dog

2) Theistic Evolutionary model - Evolution was the process God used. Infact, there is no time for evolution without divine intervention. God wasthe one who punctuated the equilibrium.

b. Non-evolutionary models. These are Concordist views.

1) Scientific Creationism or Fiat Creationism This is a view made popularby Henry Morris. This theory holds to the following:

- Belief in a literal and chronological interpretation of the Genesiscreation account

- That the creation of the earth is very recent, about 6000 to 10,000years ago

- Science is not wrong when properly understood

- The dating of the earth is mistaken because of reliance uponevolutionary hypotheses and the theory of uniformity (the theory thatall geologic phenomena may be explained as the result of existingforces having operated uniformly from the origin of the Earth to thepresent time)

- Creation scientists account for the apparent age of fossils bycatastrophism. This means that the catastrophe of the universal flood

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in Noah's day radically altered the appearance of the earth

2)Progressive Creationism - This is a more general term which believesGod intervened in creation, particularly at the places in the Bible wherethe word for create (bara) is used. Progressive Creationists would denymacro evolution but might accept a modified Darwinian evolution.

3) Mature Earth Theory - This theory states that God created the earth inits present or mature state. Thus the earth was created with the appearanceof age.

4) Gap Theory - This theory accounts for the disparity between scientificand biblical dating by theorizing a gap of time between Genesis 1:1 and1:2 which is not elaborated on in Scripture. This gap accounts for the fallof Satan as well as the age of dinosaurs.

II. Early Bronze Age 3,200 - 2,000 B.C.

A. Introduction

The period known as the Early Bronze Age witnessed a rapid urban development,especially along the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers and the Nile. The rivers stimulatedgrowth because they fostered communication and trade, and provided an abundanceof water.

B. Mesopotamia

1. The Proto-literate Period (3200-2900) set the stage for history and theflowering of culture that would take place in southern Mesopotamia.

2. The Classical Sumerian Age (2,900-2350 B.C.)

a. The Sumerian culture first arose in southern Mesopotamia in approximately3500 B.C. They laid the foundation for their impressive culture just prior to3000 B.C. with the invention of writing, large scale building, and thedevelopment of a complex social structure headed by a king.

b. The important Sumerian cities included Kish, Uruk, Nippur, Lagash, andUr.

c. Characteristics of the Sumerian Culture

1) City-State organization - The Sumerians were organized into aconfederation of independent city states. Each city had its own king whoruled the city and the land around it. While generally friendly to eachother, these city-states sometimes fought each other in territorial feuds.

2) Dominance of Temples - At the center of each city was the Templededicated to the chief god or goddess of the city. The Temple was both theeconomic and political center of the city. In fact, the king usuallyperformed priestly functions.

3) Polytheism - Sumerian culture had a well- developed polytheism. Eachcity was home to one of the gods or goddesses of the pantheon. Thegreatest Sumerian god was Enlil, who home city was Nippur.

d. Information about the Sumerians

Our knowledge about the Sumerians comes from two sources: archaeologyand Sumerian literature.

1) Archaeology has unearthed many Sumerian cities. The site which hasthus far provided the most impressive evidence for the culture has been the

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Royal cemetery at Ur. Excavated by Leonard Woolley in 1928, thecemetery has yielded equipment, as well as many beautiful objects of art.

Royal Cemetery at Ur

Goat from Ur

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Ceremonial Dagger form Ur

2) The Sumerians produced a huge amount of literature. It has providedscholars with a window through which to view their culture. This literatureincludes economic documents, epics, law codes, medical documents, andagricultural manuals. In fact, the earliest version of the story of a greatflood comes from the Sumerians.

3. Akkadian Period (2371 - 2230 B.C.)

The Akkadian period follows the classical Sumerian Age in Mesopotamia.

a. The Akkadians were a Semitic people who lived peacefully with theSumerians for many centuries.

b. Around 2371 B.C., a local Akkadian governor named Sargon took controlof the city Kish. He then preceded to subdue all the Sumerian kings and uniteMesopotamia under his rule. He became known as Sargon the Great andfounded a dynasty which ruled for approximately 160 years. The last ruler ofthis Akkadian Empire was Naram-Sin. He was a great ruler, but after hisdeath the empire fell to a mountain people called the Gutians.

c. Key Developments of the Akkadians

1) The concept of one strong ruler who controlled a large area. As such,power shifted from the Temples to the king.

2) The Akkadian language became the common language of diplomacy,economics, and literature for over 1000 years.

4. Decline and Recovery

a. A decline in civilization followed the collapse of the Akkadian Empire(2230 - 2113 B.C.)

b. A renewal occurred with the establishment of the Third Dynasty of Urcirca 2113 B.C.

c. This dynasty is known as Ur III and represents the Neo-Sumerian revivalcirca 2113 - 2006 B.C.

1) Ur-Nammu established Ur III, regaining control of southernMesopotamia. He, and the kings which followed, returned the social andpolitical order to the area, patterning their culture on that of Sumer.

2) Ur III had outstanding cultural achievements. The period is especiallyknown for the giant Ziggurat (a tower consisting of a series ofsuperimposed platforms made from mud brick with a temple on top) at Urand for one of the earliest law codes: the "Law Code of Ur-Nammu."

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Ziggurat at Ur

Artist Reconstruction of the Ziggurat

C. Egypt

1. As we mentioned before, Egypt before 3100 B.C. was made up of numerousdistricts or nomes, each controlled by a local ruler. Progressively, some of theserulers became stronger and united many of the districts. Eventually, twokingdoms arose, one in the Delta region of the Nile and one in the Nile Valley.

2. Circa 3100 B.C., an ambitious southern king named Narmer, conquered thenorth and unified Egypt. Narmer, who is sometimes identified with Menes ofGreek tradition, founded the First Dynasty and built a new capital at Memphis.

3. Archaic Period 3100 - 2700 B.C.

This period covers the First and Second Dynasties of Egypt. Most of ourknowledge of this period comes from the tombs of the kings found at Saqqarahand Abydos.

4. The Old Kingdom (2686 - 2182 B.C.)

a. This period covers the Third through Sixth Dynasties of Egypt.

b. The period was characterized by the following:

1) Strong, centralized authority - The Egyptians viewed the king orpharaoh, as he was called, as a god who ruled according to divineprinciples of justice, truth, and the natural order. The land's fertility,

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prosperity, and security depended on the king and his actions. The king wasregarded as a god. This concept of divine kingship was a central feature ofEgyptian civilization.

2) Monumental architecture (see picture 2) - The Old Kingdom was knownfor its monumental architecture, the best known being the great pyramids.The Step Pyramid, built by Pharaoh Zoser during the Third Dynasty, wasthe first. The Fourth Dynasty built even more magnificent pyramids, thebest known being the Great Pyramid of Cheops at Gizeh. These pyramidsreflect the supreme importance of the pharaoh during the Old Kingdom.

Step Pyramid of Zoser

Great Pyramid and Sphinx

3) Norms establishment - The Old Kingdom established many norms forEgyptian civilization. Many of the styles in sculpture, painting, andarchitecture characteristic of later Egyptian civilization were establishedduring the Old Kingdom.

4) Pyramid Texts - The Old Kingdom is the first period to see the walls ofthe burial chamber covered with religious texts concerned with the fortunesof the pharaoh after his death. These are known as Pyramid Texts.

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Pyramid Texts

c. The Old Kingdom is when we first see evidence of Egyptian contact withPalestine.

5. First Intermediate Period (2182 -2040 B.C.)

a. At the end of the Sixth Dynasty the power of the pharaoh disintegrated andcontrol in Egypt was transferred to powerful nobles. This decline in thecentral authority resulted in the political fragmentation of Egypt andnumerous petty rulers claimed the title of king.

b. This period covers the Seventh through the Eleventh Dynasties.

c. This breakdown of central authority coincided with a decline in urbansociety throughout the Near East just before 2000 B.C.

d. During this time many Asiatics or "sand crossers" migrated into Egypt. TheEgyptians blamed them for the decline of Egyptian civilization.

e. Although this period represents a decline politically, the literature of thisperiod flourished. It was rich and appealing, and showed a concern for socialjustice and a profound bewilderedness and pessimism.

D. The Levant

1. The Levant also went through a period of urbanization around 3000 B.C.,though on a much smaller scale than in Mesopotamia or Egypt.

2. Large, fortified towns appeared primarily along the coast and in the fertilevalleys. These cities had walls up to thirty feet thick and contained temples andpalaces.

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Early Bronze Age Temple at Megiddo

3. Each of these towns was a city-state with its own king.

4. The period was a time of extensive trade with both Mesopotamia and Egypt.

5. Like the rest of the Near East, the urban culture of the Levant suffered a seriousdecline around 2000 B.C. The reasons for this are unknown, but scholars havesuggested several factors including climate changes, the ebbing power of agingcivilizations, and the disruption of economic and social relationships.

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