06A Babylon

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Hanging Gardens of Babylon: anging Gardens of Babylon







Babylon was the capital of Babylonia, the alluvial plain between the Euphrates and Tigris. After the fall of the Assyrian empire (612 BCE), Babylon became the capital of the ancient Near East, and kingNebuchadnezzar adorned the city with several famous buildings. Even when the Babylonian Empirehad been conquered by the Persian king Cyrus the Great (539), Babylon remained a splendid city.Alexander the Great and the Seleucid kings respected the city, but after the mid-second century, the city's decline started.

he Greek word Babylon is a rendering of Babillu, a very old word in an unknown language. When Mesopotamia was infiltrated by people who spoke a Semitic language (Akkadians or Amorites), they recognized their own words Bâb ("gate") and ili ("gods") and concluded that this place was "the gate of the gods". (A similar etymology was invented for Arbela.)

The oldest building phase of Babylon can not be recovered. The city was (and the ruins are) situated on the banks of the river Euphrates, and the remains of the oldest city are below groundwater level. From written sources, however, we know that the city became important after the fall of the empire of the Third dynasty of Ur, when the Amorites had invaded the area.

Old Babylonian Empire

Mesopotamia, and even though the political power of Babylonia had its ups and downs in the next millennium or so, Babylon remained the cultural capital of the ancient Near East.

Model of Babylon's Esagila Temple

One of the results was that the hitherto unimportant city god of Babylon, Marduk, gained prestige. He superseded the Sumerian supreme god Enlil, took over many of his attributes, and now became the head of the pantheon. The syncretism is expressed in the words that Marduk is "the enlil of the gods", an expression that is perhaps best translated as "president of the council of gods".

The famous temple of Marduk, Esagila, and its ziggurat,Etemenanki, were considered to be the foundation of heaven on earth. In the creation epic Enûma êliš, Babylon is the center of the universe, an idea that is also implied (or parodied?) in the Biblical account of the "tower of Babel", in which the confusion of languages is followed by people spreading all over the world out of Babylon.

The theological fact that Babylon was the center of the world, was reflected in several aspects. One of these was the New Year's Festival (Akitu), during which gods left their cities, visited Marduk, and announced their plans for the new year. Several quarters of Babylon received the name of important Babylonian cities (e.g., Eridu), as if Babylon were some sort of microcosm....................

06 Hammurabi was an Amorite First Dynasty king of the city-state of Babylon,

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammurabi

Hammurabi

Hammurabi was an Amorite First Dynasty king of the city-state of Babylon, and inherited the power from his father, Sin-Muballit, in c. 1792 BC.^[4]Babylon was one of the many largely Amorite ruled city-states that dotted the central and southern Mesopotamian plains and waged war on each other for control of fertile agricultural land.^[5] Though many cultures co-existed in Mesopotamia, Babylonian culture gained a degree of prominence among theliterate classes throughout the Middle East under Hammurabi.^[6] The kings who came before Hammurabi had founded a relatively minor City State in 1894 BC which controlled little territory outside of the city itself. Babylon was overshadowed by older, larger and more powerful kingdoms such as Elam,Assyria, Isin, Eshnunna and Larsa for a century or so after its founding. However his father Sin-Muballit had begun to consolidate rule of a small area of south central Mesopotamia under Babylonian hegemony and, by the time of his reign, had conquered the minor city-states of Borsippa, Kish, andSippar

Thus Hammurabi ascended to the throne as the king of a minor kingdom in the midst of a complex geopolitical situation. The powerful kingdom of Eshnunna controlled the upper Tigris River while Larsa controlled the river delta. To the east of Mesopotamia lay the powerful kingdom of Elam which regularly invaded and forced tribute upon the small states of southern Mesopotamia. In northern Mesopotamia, the Assyrian king Shamshi-Adad I, who had already inherited centuries old Assyrian colonies in Asia Minor, had expanded his territory into the Levant and central Mesopotamia,^[7] although his untimely death would somewhat fragment his empire.^[8]

The first few decades of Hammurabi's reign were quite peaceful. Hammurabi used his power to undertake a series of public works, including heightening the city walls for defensive purposes, and expanding the temples.^[9] In c. 1801 BC, the powerful kingdom of Elam, which straddled important trade routes across the Zagros Mountains, invaded the Mesopotamian plain.^[10]With allies among the plain states, Elam attacked and destroyed the kingdom of Eshnunna, destroying a number of cities and imposing its rule on portions of the plain for the first time.^[11] In order to consolidate its position, Elam tried to start a war between Hammurabi's Babylonian kingdom and the kingdom of Larsa.^[12] Hammurabi and the king of Larsa made an alliance when they discovered this duplicity and were able to crush the Elamites, although Larsa did not contribute greatly to the military effort.^[12] Angered by Larsa's failure to come to his aid, Hammurabi turned on that southern power, thus gaining control of the entirety of the lower Mesopotamian plain by c. 1763 BC.^[13]

As Hammurabi was assisted during the war in the south by his allies from the north such as Yamhad and Mari, the absence of soldiers in the north led to unrest.^[13]Continuing his expansion, Hammurabi turned his attention northward, quelling the unrest and soon after crushing Eshnunna.^[14] Next the Babylonian armies conquered the remaining northern states, including Babylon's former ally Mari, although it is possible that the 'conquest' of Mari was a surrender without any actual conflict.^[15][16][17]

Hammurabi entered into a protracted war with Ishme-Dagan I of Assyria for control of Mesopotamia, with both kings making alliances with minor states in order to gain the upper hand. Eventually Hammurabi prevailed, ousting Ishme-Dagan I just before his own death. Mut-Ashkur the new king of Assyria was forced to pay tribute to Hammurabi, however Babylon did not rule Assyria directly.

In just a few years, Hammurabi had succeeded in uniting all of Mesopotamia under his rule.^[17] The Assyrian kingdom survived but was forced to pay tribute during his reign, and of the major city-states in the region, only Aleppo and Qatna to the west in the Levant maintained their independence.^[17] However, one stele of Hammurabi has been found as far north as Diyarbekir, where he claims the title "King of the Amorites".^[18]

Vast numbers of contract tablets, dated to the reigns of Hammurabi and his successors, have been discovered, as well as 55 of his own letters.^[19] These letters give a glimpse into the daily trials of ruling an empire, from dealing with floods and mandating changes to a flawed calendar, to taking care of Babylon's massive herds of livestock.^[20] Hammurabi died and passed the reins of the empire on to his son Samsu-iluna in c. 1750 BC, under whose rule the Babylonian empire began to quickly unravel

The Code of Hammurabi was inscribed on a stele and placed in a public place so that all could see it, although it is thought that few were literate. The stele was later plundered by the Elamites and removed to their capital, Susa; it was rediscovered there in 1901 in Iran and is now in the Louvre Museum in Paris. The code of Hammurabi contained 282 laws, written by scribes on 12 tablets. Unlike earlier laws, it was written in Akkadian, the daily language of Babylon, and could therefore be read by any literate person in the city.^[22]

The structure of the code is very specific, with each offense receiving a specified punishment. The punishments tended to be very harsh by modern standards, with many offenses resulting in death, disfigurement, or the use of the "Eye for eye, tooth for tooth" (Lex Talionis "Law of Retaliation") philosophy.^[23] The code is also one of the earliest examples of the idea of presumption of innocence, and it also suggests that the accused and accuser have the opportunity to provide evidence.^[24]However, there is no provision for extenuating circumstances to alter the prescribed punishment.

A carving at the top of the stele portrays Hammurabi receiving the laws from the god Shamash or possibly Marduk,^[25] and the preface states that Hammurabi was chosen by the gods of his people to bring the laws to them. Parallels between this narrative and the giving of laws by God in Jewish tradition to Moses and similarities between the two legal codes suggest a common ancestor in the Semitic background of the two. Fragments of previous law codes have been found.^{[26][27][Note 1][28][29]}However David P. Wright argues that the Covenant Code of the Biblical Book of Exodus is 'directly, primarily, and throughout' based upon the Laws of Hammurabi.^[30]

Similar codes of law were created in several nearby civilizations, including the earlier Mesopotamian examples of Ur-Nammu's code, Laws of Eshnunna, and Code of Lipit-Ishtar, and the later Hittite code of laws.

Amurru

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amorites

 Amurru (likely derived from 'aburru', pasture) and Amar were used for them in Sumerian, Akkadian ^[2]and Ancient Egyptian respectively^{[citation needed]}. From the 21st century BC, possibly triggered by a long major drought starting about 2200 BC, a large-scale migration of Amorite tribes infiltrated southern Mesopotamia. They were one of the instruments of the downfall of the Third Dynasty of Ur, and Amorite dynasties both usurped native rulers of long-extant Babylonian city-states such asIsin, Larsa, Eshnunna and Kish and also established new ones, the most famous of which was to become Babylon, although it was initially a minor and insignificant state.

Known Amorites wrote in a dialect of Akkadian found on tablets at Mari dating from 1800–1750 BC. Since the language shows northwest Semitic forms, words and constructions, the Amorite language is a Northwest Semitic language, and possibly one of the Canaanite languages. The main sources for the extremely limited knowledge about Amorite are the proper names, not Akkadian in style, that are preserved in such texts. The Akkadian language of the native Semitic states, cities and polities of Mesopotamia (Akkad, Assyria, Babylonia, Isin, Kish, Larsa, Ur, Nippur, Uruk, Eridu,Adab, Akshak, Eshnunna, Nuzi, Ekallatum etc.), was from the east Semitic, as was the Eblaite of the northern Levant.

05 Amorites

http://www.gotquestions.org/Amorites.html


Who were the Amorites?"

Answer: The Amorites were an ancient nation mentioned frequently in the Old Testament. They were descended from one of the sons of Canaan (Genesis 14:7). In early inscriptions, the Amorites were also known as Amurra or Amurri. The “land of the Amorites” included Syria and Palestine. Some of the southern mountains of Judea were also called the hill country of the Amorites (Deuteronomy 1:7, 19-20).

Two kings of the Amorites named Sihon and Og were defeated by the Israelites under Moses’ leadership (Deuteronomy 31:4). In Joshua 10:10, five Amorite kings were defeated by the people of Israel, and the victory was decisively won in Joshua 11:8. In the time of Samuel, peace existed between Israel and the Amorites (1 Samuel 7:14). 

Less than a century later, King Solomon forced the remaining Amorites into slavery: “All the people who were left of the Amorites . . . who were not of the people of Israel—their descendants who were left after them in the land, whom the people of Israel were unable to devote to destruction—these Solomon drafted to be slaves” (1 Kings 9:20-21). The Amorites are last mentioned in Amos 2:10. It is assumed they either died out or were absorbed into the culture of Israel.

The Amorites were known as fierce warriors during their prime. Moses referred to Og, the king of the Amorites, as a very tall man whose bed was approximately 13.5 feet long (Deuteronomy 3:11). Despite their strong numbers and military might, the Amorites were destroyed due to their worship of false gods. Israel’s conquest of their land was part of God’s judgment on the pagan Amorite culture.

Here are a couple lessons to learn from the Amorites:

First, only the one, true God is worthy of worship. The idols of the Amorites and the false gods they represent cannot compete with the omnipotent God of Israel.

Also, God gives nations opportunity to repent before judgment (2 Peter 3:9; Revelation 2:20-21). The Amorite nation had plenty of time to turn from their idolatry, but they despised God's goodness and longsuffering and refused to repent (Romans 2:4). The Lord’s judgment upon them was severe, and anyone who imitates their rebellion will eternally regret it (Romans 2:5; Matthew 10:28; Revelation 2:22-23).

04 HAMMURABI IS AMRAPHWEL OF THE BIBLE

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amraphel

In the Old Testament, Amraphel (Hebrew: אַמְרָפֶ֣ל‎‎ ’Amrāp̄el) was a king of Shinar (Sumer) in Genesis xiv.1 and 9, who invaded the west along withChedorlaomer, king of Elam, and others, and defeated Sodom and the other Cities of the Plain in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim.

Beginning with E. Schrader (Cuneiform Inscriptions and the Old Testament, vol II (1888), pp 299ff) this king was usually associated with Hammurabi, who ruledBabylonia from 1792 BC until his death in 1750 BC. However, according to The Oxford Companion to the Bible, this view has been largely abandoned in recent years. In Hammurabi's time, the entire former region of Sumer had come to be named Babylonia after the city of Babylon. However, the account of Abraham in Genesis takes place at a time when Amraphel is identified as a king of Shinar, not "Babylonia" — although Babel had previously (ch. 10-11) been mentioned as one of the locations within Shinar.

In past centuries, it was fashionable to identify Amraphel with Aralius, one of the names on the later Babylonian king-lists, attributed first to Ctesias. According to John Van Seters in Abraham in History and Tradition, the existence of Amraphel is unconfirmed by any sources outside the Bible.

Rabbinic sources such as Midrash Tanhuma Lekh Lekhah 6, Targum Yonatan to Ex. 14:1, and Eruvin 53a^[1] and identify Amraphel with Nimrod. This is also asserted in the 11th Chapter of the Sefer haYashar (Book of Jasher), attested from the early 17th century:

"And Nimrod dwelt in Babel, and he there renewed his reign over the rest of his subjects, and he reigned securely, and the subjects and princes of Nimrod called his name Amraphel, saying that at the tower his princes and men fell through his means. - Book of the Upright (Jasher) 11

Genesis Rabbah 42 says Amraphel was called by three names: Cush, after his father's name (Gen. 10:8), Nimrod, because he established rebellion (mrd) in the world, and Amraphel, as he declared (amar) "I will cast down" (apilah).

03D Narmer

http://www.ancientegyptonline.co.uk/narmer.html

Narmer

Narmer (Mernar) was a ruler of Ancient Egypt at the end of the Predynastic Period and the beginning of the Early Dynastic Period. He is often credited with uniting Egypt and becoming the first king of Upperand Lower Egypt. There is some direct evidence for this from near contemporary sources. Seal impressions found in the Abydos tombs attributed to the Pharaohs Den and Qa'a provide us with anancient list of kings and in both cases Narmer is recorded as the first Pharaoh. Freidman (1995) has also noted that the earliest inscribed stone vessel found in the Step Pyramid of Djoser dates to the reign of Narmer and she proposes that Djoser had those vessels placed in his tomb to stress his link with the founder of pharonic Egypt.

According to Manetho and Herodotus the first Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt was Menes. Many experts consider that Menes and Narmer are the same person. (Petrie 1916, Lloyd 1994, Cervello-Autuori 2003). To confuse the issue further, many historians now argue that Scorpion and Narmer are one and the same, but so far no evidence has been discovered to prove or disprove this theory.

It was once thought that he was married to Neithhotep. Petrie suggested that she was a Lower Egyptian (northern) princess who he married to consolidate his rule but according to Wilkinson (1999) Neithhotep was from Upper Egypt and there is no evidence that Narmer did marry a princess from the north. Neithhotep's name also appears on inscriptions found in tombs thought to belong to Hor-Aha and Djer and it is possible that she was the mother of Hor-Aha. However, inscriptions found at Wadi Ameyra at Sinai in 2016 suggest that she was the mother and co-regent of Djer.

03C Menes Narmer (c. 3150 BCE) is the legendary first king of Egypt

Menes (c. 3150 BCE) is the legendary first king of Egypt who is thought to have united Upper and Lower Egypt through conquest and founded both the First Dynasty and the great city of Memphis. His name is known from sources such as Manetho's Chronology (3rd century BCE), The Turin King List, and the Palermo Stone as well as from some scant archaeological evidence such as ivory engravings. In the early days of Egyptology, Menes was accepted as the first historical king based upon the written records. As time went by, however, and archaeological excavations failed to turn up any evidence of such a king, scholars began to question whether he had actually existed or was, perhaps, a composite figure drawn from the memory of the reigns of other kings.

The Egyptologist Flinders Petrie (1853-1942 CE) concluded that the name 'Menes' was actually an honorific title meaning "he who endures", not a personal name, and the first historical pharaoh of Egypt was Narmer (c. 3150 BCE) whose existence was firmly established both by the written record and archaeological evidence (most notably, the Narmer Palette, a siltstone engraving depicting Narmer's victory over Lower Egypt). In the modern day, Petrie's claim is the most widely accepted and Menes is associated with Narmer (though there are some scholars who associate the name with Narmer's son Hor-Aha). The legend of Menes, however, took on a life of its own quite independent of whatever the king Narmer may or may not have done. Narmer allegedly united the two lands of Egypt peacefully over time, married a princess to consolidate his power, and then began building projects and further developing trade with other cultures. These accomplishments, however, were not grand enough for the first king of Egypt who not only needed to be larger than life but also to symbolize a key concept in Egyptian culture: duality.