Old Testament (ca. 1000-300 B.C.E.)
Things to Consider:
- Version of Creation
- Relationship of God to Human
- Time Line of Composition
- Oral Tradition=>Priestly Revision
- Types of Knowledge
- Power of Dreams
- Serpent and Garden/ Figure of Satan
- Relationships b/w Men and Women, Jews and Egyptians
- Justice vs. Mercy
- Connections to Gilgamesh
- See Group Discussion Exercise
** Homework Questions** (See Job Q's )
89:
- Explain the role of redaction in the development of the
Hebrew Bible.
Genesis:
Adam & Eve (Gen 1-4):
96:
- God says that if Adam and Eve eat the fruit, on that day
they will die. Is this true? Explain.
- Why is nakedness (or knowledge thereof) evil?
98:
- Why does Cain kill Abel? (See potentially useful discussion
from Deut. 12:27 )
Noah (Gen 6-9) (See News Story 
):
99:
- Why is there a Flood? Why does Noah survive (Why does God
choose him to build an ark)?
102:
- What does the Rainbow signify? What does God
promise?
- Why does Noah curse Ham?
Babel (Gen 11):
103:
- Why does God create different languages?
Abraham (Gen 12, 17-18):
103:
- Why does God promise to make Abraham a great nation?
Jacob and Esau (Gen 21-22, 25, 27):
109-12:
- Describe the relationship between Jacob and Esau. How does
it compare to that between Cain and Abel?
Other Discussion Questions:
Genesis:
89:
- What, according to the editors, is perhaps the most
important element in Genesis and the Book of Job?
92:
- How, according to the editors, is the Book of Genesis like
The Odyssey?
94-95:
- How does this version of creation compare with other
versions examined this far?
- Where does the idea of the serpent as Satan originate?
98:
- Who would harm Cain (Why is the mark necessary)?
101:
- What birds does Noah release?
Babel:
103:
- Does their desire to build a tower resemble Gilgamesh's
desire to write his name on bricks? Explain.
Abraham:
105:
- Why is Abraham's first born son named Isaac?
- Why does God want Abraham to kill Isaac?
Jacob and Esau:
111:
- Describe Rebekah's actions towards her two sons.
** Job Homework Questions **
(found in The Norton Mix: Chs. 1-3, 12-14, 29-31, 38-42)
30:
- Why doesn't Job give offerings for his daughters'
sins?
- What is the relationship between God and Satan?
- Whose idea is it to make Job suffer? What is the
reason for doing so?
32 (Ch. 3):
33:
- How does Job describe the grave?
36 (Ch. 13):
- Explain: "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in
him: but I will maintain mine own ways before him" (Job
13:15).
38-39 (Ch. 29):
- How does Job describe his past in Ch. 29?
43-51 (Chs. 38-41):
- How does God respond to Job?
51 (Ch. 42):
- What compensation does Job receive for his suffering?
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