This course is a study of the worship of Yahweh and the other deities -- El, Baal, Asherah, Astarte, etc. -- in ancient Israel with special attention to tracing the development of monotheism from its inception in the early sources to its full expression centuries later.

The central question of the course is this: Why did the Israelites eventually reject these other deities as 'foreign' gods and regard their images as 'idols', even though the same deities were originally native members of the Israelite cult and contributed much divine imagery to the way Yahweh came to be understood? A related issue is the question of how and when this process of 'alienation' or 'differentiation' took place. A special feature of the course will be the examination of the feminine imagery which the ancient Israelites applied to Yahweh, even though the goddesses Asherah and Astarte from whom much of the imagery was drawn, were ultimately rejected.

We shall examine recent epigraphic and archaelogical discoveries along with the evidence of the biblical texts and other materials from the ancient Near Eastern world.

GOALS OF THE COURSE

At the end of the course students should be able to demonstrate:

• Knowledge of major biblical texts and artifacts that depict the divine realm in ancient Israelite thought and practice;
• Awareness of why historical and social contexts are important for understanding the variety of religions and representations of Yahweh and the gods in ancient Israel;
• Knowledge of some of the major scholarly issues in the interpretation of Israelite religion; and
• Ability to set forth and defend personal views on the emergence of monotheism and aniconism in ancient Israel's religion.

CLASS FORMAT AND REQUIREMENTS

A lecture-discussion format, with occasional slides, will be used. All students will write three essay exams, including the final, and one research paper of approximately 8-10 typewritten or printed pages. Participation in the class discussions on Blackboard is expected. The Friday in-class discussions will continue the discussions on Blackboard. Regular class attendance is expected. More than four unexcused absenses may result in a grade penalty. The course grade will be determined as follows:

Required:

. Mark S. Smith, The Early History of God, 2nd Edition (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 2002);

. The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocryphal/Deuterononical Books, New Revised Standard Version (Oxford, 1991).

SCHEDULE

PART I: BACKGROUND
week 1	•	Introduction
	•	Issues and Methods in the Study of Israelite Religion	S:1-18
week 2	•	Slides	S:14-18
	•	Recent Discussion of Issues	S: xii-xxxviii
	•	Slides
PART II: ISRAEL’S DEITIES IN THE PERIOD OF THE JUDGES
week 4	•	Israel ’s Canaanite Heritage	S:19-31
	•	Yahweh and El	S:32-43
	•	Slides/Discussion/Related Issues
week 5	•	Yahweh and Other Deities	S:43-54
	•	Early Israel's Religion in Comparative Perspective	S:54-64
	•	Slides/Discussion/Related Issues
week 6	•	FIRST EXAM
PART III: ISRAEL'S DEITIES IN THE MONARCHIC PERIOD
	•	Jeroboam’s ‘Golden Calves’ (1 Kgs 12-14; Ex 32)
	•	Slides/Discussion/Related Issues
week 7	•	Baal Worship in Israel	S:65-79
	•	Imagery of Baal and Yahweh	S:80-91
	•	Discussion
week 8	•	The Monarchy’s Influence on Divine Imagery	S:91-101
	•	Asherah in the Bible	S:108-111
	•	Slides/Discussion/Related Issues
week 9	•	The Symbol of the Asherah	S:111-118
	•	Asherah -- Inscriptional Evidence	S:118-125
	•	Slides/Discussion/Related Issues
week 10	•	Once More: Asherah - An Israelite Goddess?	S:125-133
	•	Assimilation of Imagery of Asherah	S:133-137
	•	Discussion of Gender Language for Yahweh	S:137-147
week 11	•	SECOND EXAM
	•	Yahweh and the Sun	S:148-159
	•	Yahwistic Cultic Symbols and Sites	S:160-162
week 12	•	Practices associated with the Dead	S:162-171
	•	Child Sacrifice	S:171-181
	•	Discussion/Related Issues
PART IV: THE ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT OF ISRAELITE MONOTHEISM
week 13	•	Overview; the Period of the Judges	S:182-185
	•	First Half of the Monarchy	S:185-189
	•	Discussion
week 14	•	Second Half of the Monarchy	S:189-191
	•	The Exile	S:191-199
	•	More on Divine Portraiture in Israel	S:200-207
PART V: DIVINE IMAGES, ANICONISM, AND ISSUES OF INCLUSION/EXCLUSION
week 15	•	Divine Images, Aniconism, and Book Religion	GS Report
	•	Metaphor, Semantics, and Divine Imagery	GS Report
	•	Inclusion/Exclusion in the Israelite Cult	GS Report
	•	FINAL EXAM