Enrolments for 2020 have closed.
Biblical and Near Eastern Literature and History
Undergraduate | MAQ-AHIX2050 | 2020
Previously MAQ-AHIX250
Course information for 2020 intake View information for 2024 course intake
Let history guide you through the foundation of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. Follow the traditions, myths and ideologies of the past. Scan archaeological evidence. Divide your attention between the ancient empires of Egypt, Assyria and Babylon.
- Study method
- 100% online
- Assessments
- 100% online
- Entry requirements
- Prior study needed
- Duration
- 18 weeks
HECS-HELP and FEE-HELP available
Biblical and Near Eastern Literature and History
About this subject
At the completion of this subject students will be able to:
- Know the literary genres of the biblical text and be able to set them within their social context as illuminated through a knowledge of comparable Near Eastern texts, key issues in the study of this area, and aspects of the cultures studied in this unit
- Identify key archaeological, textual, and historical issues in the study of the ancient Near East and the relationship of those issues to the study of ancient Israel and the biblical text
- Analyse source material, including the archaeological record, ancient sources, and modern scholarship, the critiquing of texts and application of knowledge
- Synthesise acquired knowledge and understanding to produce critical analytical compositions
- A week-by-week guide to the topics you will explore in this subject will be provided in your study materials.
Delve into the traditions, myths and history of ancient Israel, as set within its broader ancient Near Eastern context. This includes discussions of the antecedent societies in ancient Mesopotamia and Syria from which the Israelites descended, from whom they borrowed and adapted cultural aspects, and against whom they ultimately contended. Explore what the Bible and ancient Near Eastern literature have to say about these contemporary cultures, and the light that can be shed on them by both archaeological evidence and modern critical study. Learn how the Israelites interpreted their present by a re-narration of their past and how they came to situate and differentiate themselves theologically from the peoples that surrounded them.
- Essay (50%)
- Paper 1 (25%)
- Paper 2 (25%)
For textbook details check your university's handbook, website or learning management system (LMS).
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Entry requirements
Equivalent subjects
You should not enrol in this subject if you have successfully completed any of the following subject(s) because they are considered academically equivalent:
MAQ-AHIX250-From Ur to Babylon: A History of Israel from Abraham to the Babylonian Exile (no longer available)
Others
3 credit points AHIX subject at 100 level
Additional requirements
- Other requirements -
Students who have an Academic Standing of Suspension or Exclusion under Macquarie University's Academic Progression Policy are not permitted to enrol in OUA units offered by Macquarie University. Students with an Academic Standing of Suspension or Exclusion who have enrolled in units through OUA will be withdrawn.
Study load
- 0.125 EFTSL
- This is in the range of 10 to 12 hours of study each week.
Equivalent full time study load (EFTSL) is one way to calculate your study load. One (1.0) EFTSL is equivalent to a full-time study load for one year.
Find out more information on Commonwealth Loans to understand what this means to your eligibility for financial support.
What to study next?
Once you’ve completed this subject it can be credited towards one of the following courses
UndergraduateMAQ-ART-DEG
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