Posted: February 6th, 2015

• nature and actions of God • violence • social justice • Divine will for human society • human actions and Divine response • Jewish thought on this section of the course • Muslim thought on this section of the course

Unit One Paper

Order Description

The Main Topic.
In plain English, in your own words, teach Unit 1 of this course to someone who has not taken this class. To do this, write

a paper giving:
• brief background, from earlier in the course, whatever your readers need to know to understand your paper now
• a summary of the most important class knowledge (subject matter) of Unit 1; this will be most of your paper
• your response to it or reflection on it, i.e., what you think of it, or what thoughts it generates
In any case, you are telling: (i) what you are learning (most of the paper), and (ii) what you think of it (maybe 5 or 10%,

up to 20% max). In the process, you are demonstrating a sound knowledge and understanding of the OT, as learned in this

course specifically, for this unit of the course.

Theme Option.
If you wish, you may choose to structure your paper around a selected theme or themes running through this unit, rather

than the structure described above as “The Main Topic.” You still need to do this in a way that shows as much foundational

knowledge and understanding as possible, so that you are still carrying out the purpose of the assignment. Example themes:
• nature and actions of God
• violence
• social justice
• Divine will for human society
• human actions and Divine response
• Jewish thought on this section of the course
• Muslim thought on this section of the course
Your target audience. Write this for someone who has not taken this class (not for me). Explain things clearly in plain

English. A good way is to picture someone you know and write to that person. One useful format (this is optional) is to

write it as a letter to that person. True, it would be a slightly unusual letter to have citations and a bibliography, but

a letter just the same.

Citation.
The purpose of accurate citation is not rules or red tape but knowledge integrity. Knowledge is not credible if we do not

know or cannot show exactly where it came from. This is especially important because biblical misinterpretation has often

been carried into action harmfully. One way to limit this problem is to carefully maintain knowledge integrity through

accurate citation of our sources, including the Bible itself.
• System: choose MLA, Turabian, or Chicago (Humanities), whichever one you are familiar with already.
• In general, use the standard method for in-text citation as given in your chosen citation system, but also follow the

other instructions here if they are different
• Give in-text citation when you paraphrase a source, and also for all information which is not common public knowledge

(not just for direct quotes)
• Cite the handouts which I have authored using the format for unpublished papers
• Give the page numbers for print sources for in-text citation
• Include a Works Cited or Bibliography at the end
• You do not need to cite the instructor’s lectures within the body of the paper itself. (It is true that there is a formal

way to do this, but it would be a needless burden.) However, include an entry in the Works Cited like this:

Unit 1 begins here :
The Basic Storyline or “Meta-narrative” of the OT. “i will attach the reading for that”

Meet the Book of Genesis, the Story of Beginnings.? Read TOT, Chapter 8, pp. 135-137b.
? What are the main points here which will help us understand the Book of Genesis as a whole?

Cosmic Origins: The Creation Story in Genesis.? Bible reading: Genesis 1:1-2:3.
? Read TOT, pp. 137b-139b; and also p. 58, Box 3.3. ? Read the online document: “Notes on the First Creation Story.”

Early Humanity: The Garden of Eden Story.
? Read Genesis 2:4-3:24. ? Read TOT, Chapter 8 pp. 139b-141c. ? Read the online document: “Notes on the Garden of Eden

Story.”

Primeval History: From Cain and Abel to the Tower of Babel.
? Read Gen 4-11. ? Read TOT, pp. 141c-142d; also pp. 47c-50c on the Epic of Gilgamesh on the Mesopotamian flood story; and

pp. 44-46b plus Figure 3.6 on p. 47, with special attention to the ziggurat as background to the Tower of Babel story. ?

For understanding the Flood story, note the important vocabulary found in the online handout “Important Vocabulary in the

Flood Story.”? Symbolic geography begins to play a role. Read the first part of the online document “Salvation Geography in

the Book of Genesis,” as far as the section “Tower of Babel.” What are the main ideas here? How might they help us

understand the storyline at this point, plus the rest of the Old Testament? ? What might be considered to have enduring

value?

Abraham and Sarah: Primal Ancestors of Ancient Israel.
? Read and absorb Gen 12-25. ? Read TOT, pp. 142d-147c.

More Ancestors of Ancient Israel.
? Read and absorb Genesis 26-50. ? Read TOT, pp. 147d-151.

Slavery at the Time of the Exodus.
Online document: “Slavery in the Biblical World.” I will attach the document

Escape from Egypt: The Exodus Story. One of the most dramatic, famous, and beloved stories in the entire Old Testament is

the saga of the Israelites escaping from empire slavery in ancient Egypt, led
by their extraordinary leader, Moses. ? First read about the background, and the book of Exodus as a whole, in TOT, 153-

162c. (But feel free to skip the strange section on “YHWH’s Attack on Moses” on p. 159.) ? Then read the story itself in

Exodus chapters 1-18. ? For further explanation, read the online document: “Notes on the Exodus Story.” ? What is happening

in these chapters as a story? ? The desert context continues to play an important role. How does it help us understand what

is happening? ? What misunderstandings or traditional interpretations of this section might need revising? ? What might be

considered to have enduring value?

At Mount Sinai: The Famous Covenant and Ten Commandments.
? Read Exodus 19:1 – 20:21. ? For a good take on the Ten Commandments, read the online document, “Exodus 20:1-17 in OBC.” ?

For another good take, read TOT, 162c-165. ? What is happening in these chapters as a story? What is going on besides the

giving of “laws”? ? What is the function of the Ten Commandments? ? Again, the desert context plays an important role. How

does it help us understand what is happening? ? What misunderstandings or traditional interpretations of this section might

need revising? ? What might be considered to have enduring value?
Community Regulations (the “Covenant Code” laws) in the Book of Exodus. The Book of Exodus now continues with a collection

of rules and regulations for the newly forming nation. It’s about
three chapters long–about 3 pages’ worth in your Bible. ? Read Exodus 20:22 through chapter 23. Try to make sense of these

regulations (or “laws”), even if some of them don’t seem to make sense. ? What do you notice about these regulations if we

picture them as law? ? What kind of beliefs or values might be perceived as their basis? ? What misunderstandings might

arise over time? ? Do they contain any timeless voice or meaning?
Building the Portable Shrine. Exodus continues with detailed instructions for building the
“Tabernacle,” a portable sanctuary or place of worship, like a mobile chapel which can be carried by hand. This makes sense

for a people who will be on the move, and in fact it is the custom of some Bedouin tribes in the deep desert to this day. ?

Read Exodus 25-27. Try to picture this structure plus the several objects, such as the Ark of the Covenant, which go with

it. (Important: you will NEVER succeed as a future Indiana Jones if you don’t learn what the Ark looks like.) ? Read TOT,

167b-169. ? What do you notice about all this? Why do it? What does it mean? What kind of beliefs or values might be

perceived behind this?

? What misunderstandings about this might arise over time? ? Can we sense anything that might seem to be timeless voice or

meaning?
The Golden Calf Episode. While Moses is up on the mountain receiving all these instructions,
something takes place below. Oops! ? Read Exodus 32-34. ? Read TOT, 166b-167b. ? What is going on in this sequence? What is

the big picture? ? What misunderstandings about this might arise over time?
Meet Leviticus: A Holy God, a Holy People. Leviticus is weird. Killing innocent animals, blood and guts all over the place,

just to please God. This is the big barrier to reading straight through the whole Bible. People start out with good

intentions, and then they hit Leviticus. The rest is what might have been. So we should just skip it for this class, right?

But no–let’s give it a chance. ? First, read TOT, 172-177b. Is anything here meaningful to you? What did you read that

might
help you understand the Book of Leviticus?
Example Sacrifices. Now read Leviticus chapter 4. What do you notice about all this? Why do it? What does it mean? What

beliefs or values might underlie this? Does anything have enduring
value?
The Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). Next read chapter 16. What is this special day about? What does it mean? What kind of

beliefs might lie behind it? What its merit, and what enduring value
might it have?
The Ethics of Leviticus. Finally, read chapter 19. What do you notice here? (For example, can the writer be serious about

verses 13 and 19?) What kind of beliefs or values might be perceived
behind this? Anything lasting, any timeless principles?
Side by Side. Why are these 3 kinds of things (sacrifices; holy days; social ethics instruction) set side by
side in the same book? What might be the effect or message of that arrangement?

The Book of Numbers: In the Desert, Toward the Promised Land. Who would think that the barren dry regions of the Middle

East might have a message for the world? In the Bible the deserts play a major role as a place where God shows the proper

use of power, where people train and prepare to serve their God, and where God makes new beginnings for many people–often

in contrast to the temptations of complacency and prosperity in well-watered land. All this comes to focus in, of all
places, the Book of Numbers. ? First, read TOT, 177b-181. What might help you understand the Book of Numbers?
Desert Context. Also to prepare for understanding Numbers:
? Read the following sections of the online document “Desert Themes in the Bible,” titled: Sinai; Paran; Zin; Kadesh

Barnea; Conditions and lessons; Mt.Sinai and 40 Years in the Desert.

? Again read and now absorb the online document “Desert Living: The Traditional Bedouin Way of Life.”
Selections in Numbers. Now read Numbers 10:11 through chapter 14, plus 20:1-14.
? What is happening in these chapters as a story? How does it function as part of the meta-narrative? ? How does knowledge

of the desert context help us understand what is happening? ? What might be considered to have enduring value?
End of the Journey: Deuteronomy as Moses’ Final Speech and Action. At the end of the 40 year desert period, right on the

doorstep to Canaan (the “Promised Land”), Moses gives a series of speeches which review the long story from slavery in

Egypt until now. He also gives final advice to his people about their actions and the consequences for their future

wellbeing, and this of course
is the main point. The Book of Deuteronomy describes all this taking place. ? First, read TOT, Chapter 11. What is

happening in Deuteronomy?
Selections from Moses’ Farewell Speeches. Read selected chapters in the Book of Deuteronomy: chapters 1, 4-6, 8, 10-11, 15,

and 30. What do you notice in these chapters? What does it mean?
How would it fit into the meta-narrative?
Now Choose Life! Why does Moses sound like Robert Frost in Deuteronomy 30? Focus on the “Promised Land.” Read the online

document, “Promised Land and Social Justice in Torah.” What are the main points in this article? What traditional

misunderstandings have arisen
about the Promised Land and how might we correct them?
The Deuteronomistic History. Yes, try pronouncing that word fast, 5 times, after a little cheerful liquid stimulation. We

will call it the “D-history” for convenience. What is it? Read TOT, chapter 12, to
find out.
Fortress Cities in the Land of Canaan. On the doorstep to Canaan we pause to consider what to expect,
and one of the dominant features of that land is a system of fortress cities. ? “Cities” in Canaan were basically hilltop

fortress castles, inhabited by the ruling class who controlled the lives of the majority population–those who lived

outside. ? The resulting picture is centers of power and injustice, and trust in military defenses for security, for those

within the walls. ? Read and absorb the implications of the simple looking online document, “Nature of a City in the Time

of the Old Testament.” What are the main points here? How might this knowledge help us understand the rest of the O.T.?
In We Go! Joshua and the Conquest of the Land of Canaan.
? First, read TOT, Chapter 13. What is happening in the Book of Joshua?
Two Stories? The Book of Joshua contains a surprise: it gives two apparently quite different takes on
entering Canaan.

? Read story one (Joshua 1-12), which describes a rapid and sweeping conquest. What is the message here? ? Read story two

(Joshua 13 – Judges 1), which describes a long slow process, not actually completed until King David’s conquests as

summarized in 2 Samuel 8. What is the message here? ? What should we think of this business of 2 such different stories?

How might we understand this? ? See the online document, “Joshua and the Conquest,” for a take on this issue.
Ethics and the Conquest. The Book of Joshua describes the Israelites carrying out some war crimes and crimes against

humanity, and in some cases the wording is even in the form of God actually commanding this. It looks pretty inconsistent

with the critique of violence theme running through the O.T. so far. So: how should we understand this violence in Joshua?

What should we do with
it? ? See the online document, “Joshua and the Conquest,” for a take on this issue also.
Canaanite Religion. Again we pause to consider what the Israelites would find in Canaan, and another major feature of that

land was the dominant religion. Baal, the high god of Canaan, was the god of kings and aristocracy, of palace and temple

and fortress city, of priests and leaders and powerful
land-owners, of the whole system of advantage for those with power. ? Read and absorb the implications of the short online

document, “The Attractions of Canaanite Religion.” What are the main points here? How might this knowledge help us

understand the rest of the O.T.?

WED FEB 11 UNIT 1 ONLINE EXAM OR OPTIONAL PAPER . No class. For details, see “Instructions for the Unit 1 Online Exam” and

“Instructions for the Optional Unit 1 Paper (instead of the online exam)” in the Unit 1 module.

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