Hebrew Bible Survey II*

Course Objectives

1. Through this course students will become familiar with the content of the Prophets and the Writings. 
2. Students will understand the historical and socio–political context in which the Hebrew Bible emerged. 
3. Students will engage with various communities around the world that are interpreting the Bible.

Requirements & Grades:

1. Students are expected to attend all class sessions and to participate actively in class (10% toward the final grade). 

Attendance Policy:  Attendance in class is required.  If you know you will be unable to attend a class session, please inform the instructor in advance.  Missing four to five sessions will result in an automatic lowering of your final grade by a full letter grade (A to B;  A- to B-;  B+ to C+;  B, B-, or C+ to C;  and C to F). Missing six or more sessions will result in automatic failure of the course.

2. Two reflection papers:

• Reflection paper 1 (20% toward the final grade);  3 pages long, double spaced (700 to 800 words); the professor will pass out the questions in Week 5 and the paper is due on Week 7.
• Reflection paper 2 (20% toward the final grade); 3 pages long, double spaced (700 to 800 words); the professor will pass out the question on Week 10 and the paper is due on Week 12.  

3. Research paper: 10 pages long, double spaced (50% toward the final grade)

• Topic/question (what is the topic/question you are investigating?) due Week 9
• Bibliography (minimum 5 sources) and outline due Week 12
• Final draft due Week 15

Required Books

• John J. Collins, Introduction to the Hebrew Bible (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004)
• Abraham Heschel, The Prophets (Hendrickson, 2007)
• Joseph Blenkinsopp, A History of Prophecy in Israel (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1996)
• James L. Crenshaw, The Psalms: An Introduction (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 2001)
• Roland E. Murphy, The Tree of Life: An Exploration of Biblical Wisdom Literature (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans, 2002)
• Gustavo Guitierrez, On Job (Translated by Matthew J. O’Connell; Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1987)
• Daniel Patte et al., eds., Global Bible Commentary (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2004)

Recommended Books

• J. Maxwell Miller and John H. Hayes, A History of Ancient Israel and Judah (Second Edition; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2006)
• Victor H. Matthews and Doc C. Benjamin, Old Testament Parallels (Paulist Press, 2007)

Class Schedule

Week 1 Introduction to the Prophets

Reading Assignment

• Blenkinsopp, pp. 1-64
• Heschel, pp. xiii-26

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Amos 5:21-24; Micah 6:6-8; Isaiah 1:11-17

What are common elements of these prophecies?  Are these prophets proposing a religion different from the official religion of Israel?

Week 2 The Eighth-century Prophets of Israel: Amos and Hosea

Reading Assignment

• Amos and Hosea

• Collins, pp. 283-306

• Heschel, pp. 27-60
• Patte, pp. 262-71, 277-85

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Amos 3:13-4:3; 5:10-15; 6:4-6

Why is Amos so upset?  What are some problems Amos reports?

• Hosea 2:2-15

How is Hosea using the metaphor of marriage to characterize the behavior of Israel?  Does the metaphor bother your modern sensibility?

Week 3 The Eighth-century Prophets of Judah: Isaiah and Micah

Reading Assignment

• Isaiah 1-39 and Micah

• Collins, pp. 307-29

• Heschel, pp. 61-102
• Patte, pp. 186-94, 295-300

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Isaiah 6

What is the setting of the vision?  Where is Isaiah?  What does God want Isaiah to do?  Is God setting up Isaiah for a failure?

• Micah 3:9-12

Compare this prophecy with Isaiah 31:4-5 and what you know about Isaiah’s Zion theology.  How do you account for the difference between Micah’s message and Isaiah’s message in regards to Jerusalem (Zion)?

Week 4 The Seventh-century Prophets of Judah: Jeremiah

Reading Assignment

• Jeremiah
• Collins, pp. 331-52
• Heschel, pp. 103-139
• Patte, pp. 212-225

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Jeremiah 1

How is the call narrative of Jeremiah similar and different from the call narrative of Moses (Exodus 3)?

• Jeremiah 20:7-18

Do you want to be a prophet after listening to Jeremiah’s lament/complaint?

• Jeremiah 14:13-16; 23:16-22; 27:9-16; 28:1-17; 29:8-9

Is there a crisis in prophecy?  What is Jeremiah saying about the other prophets?  Is he the only true prophet?  How does he understand the Babylonian exile?

Week 5      The Exilic Prophets:  Ezekiel and Deutero-Isaiah

Questions for Reflection Paper 1

Reading Assignment

• Ezekiel and Isaiah 40-55
• Collins, pp. 353-89
• Heschel, pp. 145-158
• Patte, pp. 195-200, 234-252

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Ezekiel 1

What do you think Ezekiel saw?  What do you think he means by “This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord” (Ezekiel 1:28)?

• Ezekiel 9:3-11:25; 43:1-12; 48:35

Follow the movement of the glory of God.  Why does Ezekiel think the glory of God left Jerusalem?  

• Isaiah 40 and 55

How is the tone of these two passages different from the tone of Isaiah 1-39?

Week 6 The Postexilic Prophets

Reading Assignment

• Isaiah 56-66; Zechariah; Malachi
• Collins, pp. 389-424
• Patte, pp. 201-211, 318-328

What are some conflicts the community of Isaiah 56-66 is facing?  Can you speculate which factions/groups are involved in the conflict?

Week 7    Daniel and Apocalyptic Literature

Reflection Paper 1 due

Reading Assignment

• Daniel
• Collins, pp. 553-580
• Patte, pp. 253-261

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Daniel 12:1-4

Why do you think the idea of resurrection occurs so late in the Hebrew Bible?  Is this idea foreign to the Israelite religion?  How is the second half of the book of Daniel, considered an example of apocalyptic literature, different from the prophetic writings?

Week 8     Wisdom Tradition: Proverbs

Exam 1

Reading Assignment

• Proverbs
• Murphy, pp. 1-32
• Patte, pp. 163-174
• Collins, pp. 487-504

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Proverbs 30:18-19; 5:18-20; 21:19

Who is the implied audience?  Who is the implied speaker?  If you are not part of the implied audience, how do you understand these proverbs?

• Proverbs 10

What is retribution theology?  How does the Book of Proverbs support this theology?  What do you think about the validity or usefulness of this theology?

Week 9   Wisdom Tradition:  Job

Reading Assignment

• Job
• Murphy, pp. 33-48
• Patte, pp. 141-150
• Gutierrez, On Job

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Job 1:6-12

Often we struggle with the question of theodicy (whether God is just) when bad things happen to good people or when good things happen to bad people.  But in this passage we are privy to a question God struggles with: Why are humans religious?  Why do humans worship God?

Week 10 Wisdom Tradition:  Qohelet (Ecclesiastes)  

Questions for Reflection Paper 2

Reading Assignment

• Ecclesistaes
• Murphy, pp. 49-64
• Patte, pp. 175-179
• Collins, pp. 505-528

Focus passage and question: 

• Ecclesiates 7:15-18

What do you think of Qohelet’s suggestion in this passage?

Week 11 The Chronicler’s History  Part I

Reading Assignment

• 1-2 Chronicles; Ezra; Nehemiah
• Collins, pp. 445-460
• Patte, pp. 119-126

Week 12 The Chronicler’s History  Part II 

Reflection Paper 2 due

Reading Assignment

• Ezra, Nehemiah
• Collins, pp. 427-444
• Patte, pp. 127-134

Focus Passages and Questions:

• 2 Chronicles 36:22-23; Ezra 1:1-4; Isaiah 44:28-45:3

Who was Cyrus?  Why is he so highly praised in these passages?  Is he a messiah?

• Ezra 9-10

What’s the issue in these two chapters?  Do you agree with Ezra’s policy?  Are you sympathetic to his policy under the circumstance of the returnees?  What would you do if you were married to a non-Israelite?  What would you do if you were a foreign wife?

Week 13 Ruth and Esther

Reading Assignment

• Ruth and Esther
• Collins, pp. 529-551
• Patte, pp. 86-91, 135-140

Focus Passages and Questions:

• Esther 1-2

Who do you think is a better feminist, Vashti or Esther?  Why? 

• Ruth 1:6-22

Who do you admire more, Ruth or Orpah?  Why? Who do you think did the right thing?  Why?  What would you do?  Why?

Week 14 Songs of Israel: Psalms

Reading Assignment

• Psalms
• Collins, pp. 461-486
• Crenshaw, pp. 1-52, 109-69 (discusses Psalms 24, 71, 73, and 115)
• Patte, pp. 151-162

Week 15 More Songs

Research Paper due

Reading Assigment

• Psalms
• Song of Songs
• Patte, 180-185
• Additional selections from the Book of Psalms for discussion will be assigned

Plagiarism Policy

Plagiarism, the failure to give proper credit for the words and ideas of another person, whether published or unpublished, is strictly prohibited. Credit will not be given for written work containing plagiarism, and plagiarism can lead to failure of a course. All written material submitted by students must be their own original work; where the words and ideas of others are used they must be acknowledged. Additionally, if students receive editorial help with their writing they should also acknowledge it appropriately.

Credit will not be given for work containing plagiarism, and plagiarism can lead to failure of a course. Faculty will report all instances of plagiarism to the Academic Dean.  The Academic Dean will then collect documented details of the case and advance any recommendations for further action to the Academic Policies Committee.  Through this process the situation will be reviewed and any additional penalties that may be warranted (up to and including expulsion from the school) will be determined.

For clarity as to what constitutes plagiarism, the following description is provided:

1. Word for word plagiarism: (a) the submission of another person’s work as one’s own; (b) the submission of a commercially prepared paper; (c) the submission of work from a source which is not acknowledged by a footnote or other specific reference in the paper itself; (d) the submission of any part of another person’s work without proper use of quotation marks.
2. Plagiarism by paraphrase: (a) mere re-arrangement of another person’s works and phrases does not make them your own and also constitutes plagiarism; (b) paraphrasing another person’s words, ideas, and information without acknowledging the original source from which you took them is also plagiarism.  See Part II of Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses and Dissertations, (7th Edition, University of Chicago Press, 2007) for an explanation of the proper ways to acknowledge the work of others and to avoid plagiarism.
3. Reuse of your own work: Coursework submitted for credit in one course cannot be submitted for credit in another course.  While technically not plagiarism, this type of infraction will be treated in the same manner as plagiarism and will be subject to the same penalties. If you are using small amounts of material from a previous submitted work, that work should be referenced appropriately. When a student is writing their final program requirement (paper, project or thesis) it may be appropriate, with their advisor’s permission, to include portions of previously submitted material if properly referenced.