chapter of the western civilization

Solomon’s judgement
Solomon became the king around 970 B.C.

Timeline

The Impact of the Indo-Europeans
The original Indo-European speaking peoples lived in the steppe region
north of the Black Sea or in southwestern Asia,
in modern Iran or Afghanistan.
Around 2000 B.C. these people began to move into
Europe (including present-day Italy and Greece), India, and western Asia.
(including present-day Italy and Greece), India, and western Asia.
One group of Indo-Europeans moved into Asia Minor and Anatolia (modern Turkey), around 1750 B.C. built Hittite kingdom.

Map 1.4: The Egyptian and Hittite Empires

Table 1.2: Some Indo-European Languages

The Hebrews: “The Children of Israel”
The Hebrews were a Semitic-speaking people
Hebrew Bible –
They first appeared in
By 1,900 b.c. they settled there.
Descendants of Abraham
They moved from Mesopotamia to Palestine.
Migration to Egypt- drought

Slaves of Pharaohs
According to the Book of Exodus
led them out of Egypt (Exodus) around 13th century B.C.
They crossed the Red Sea.
Moses parts the waters to provide his people an escape route.
Parting of the Red Sea – Ten Commandment
He led them to the Sinai peninsula
He persuaded them to become worshipers of Yahweh

They wandered for many years in the desert
Finally entered the land of Canaan
12 tribes
Troubles with the Philistines
Origins of United Kingdom (c. 1200 – c. 1000 B.C.)

Chronology: The Israelites

The United Kingdom
Saul (c. 1020 – 1000 B.C.)
David (c. 1000 – 970 B.C.)
Saul and the Israelites are facing the Philistines at the Valley of Elah.
the champion of the Philistines, challenges the Israelites to send out a champion of their own to decide the outcome in single combat

David declares he will defeat him.
Saul reluctantly agrees and offers his armor,
which David declines in favor of
He strikes Goliah in the head and cuts off his head
This famous story was known more because
sculpted David known as
Statue of David
is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture created from 1501 to 1504.

His reign was one of the most glorious periods in Hebrew history.
Solomon (c. 970 – 930 B.C.)
Temple of Jerusalem
Harem of 700 wives and 300 concubines
Stables for 4,000 horses
The Divided Kingdom
Kingdom of Israel
10 Northern Tribes-refused to submit to his son Rehoboam
Capital in Samaria
Kingdom of Judah
2 Southern Tribes
Capital in Jerusalem

Map 2.1: Palestine in the First Millennium B.C.

Assyria conquers Kingdom of Israel (722 B.C.)
They were all dispersed
They were called ten lost tribes.
Jerusalem Destroyed
The southern kingdom of Judah sustained for a while but was also destructed in 586 B.C. by the Chaldeans from Babylonia.
People of Judah were forced to move to Babylonia.
They lived there as captives.

Return to Jerusalem from Babylonia in 538 B.C.
by permission of the Persian who became the new conqueror in that area.
The ruler was changed to Alexander the Great in the fourth century B.C.
However, they survived and were known

Spiritual Dimensions of Israel
The most important characteristic of Judaism is
monotheism, the belief that there is only one God for all peoples.
10 Commandments
Regulation of economic, social and political life of all Hebrews
Prophets
Yahweh’s voice to his people
Universalism and Social Justice
Separation between Jews and non-Jews

The Persian Empire
Indo-European speaking people
At the beginning of the 7th century the Persians became known.
Unified under the Achaemenid dynasty
Cyrus the Great (559 – 530 B.C.)
Conquered Kingdom of Lydia (c. 547 B.C.)
Conquered Greek city-states
Conquered Mesopotamia (539 B.C.)
He died in 529

Cambyses (530 – 522 B.C.)
Conquered Egypt
Revolt spread
He was murdered
Darius the Great (521 – 486 B.C. )
Crushed the revolts
Seized the throne
Ionian Revolt in Asia Minor
Invasion and Defeat in Greece (490 B.C.)
By the reign of Darius the Persians had created

Map 2.3: The Persian Empire at the Time of Darius

His great achievement is
to standardize the currency and weights and measures.
Another legacy of Persian rulers is
Royal Road- from Sardis to Susa
Some 1,600 miles in length
These roads contributed
to ease

Persian Religion
Zoroastrianism
Zoroaster (born c. 660 B.C.)
Monotheistic-dualistic
Ahuramazda
Ahriman (Evil Spirit)
Struggle between good and evil

Although the religion did not continue in its original state, it influenced a lot in the Western World continuously,
in a different version such as
Mithraism was the oldest one, deriving its name from Mithras, a lieutenant of Ahura-Mazda
Mithras finally won recognition by many of the Persians as the god most deserving of worship.

He believed to have lived an earthly existence involving great suffering and sacrifice.
He performed
giving bread and wine to man and
ending
Finally, he created much of the ritual of Zoroastrianism, proclaiming Sunday as
the twenty-fifth of December

Conclusion
The Assyrian Empire was the first to unite almost all of the ancient Near East.
Even larger, however, was the Persian empire.
Their form of government was adopted by the later Roman monarchs,
in its character of divine-right despotism.

However their rule was tolerant as well as efficient.
Conquered peoples were allowed to keep their own
It brought to the Near East many years of peace, and it helped to facilitate trade.
It is no wonder that many people expressed their gratitude for being subjects of the Great Kings of Persia.

The Romans were impressed by the Persian idea of a world empire.
The Persians generally conducted their wars with a minimum of savagery and treated conquered peoples humanely.
Their ideal was a kind of

Discussion Questions
Explain about Indo-European speaking people!
Where did Hebrews appear first and where did they end up last and how?
What was Persian’s achievement and how was their rule?
Explain about Zoroastrianism and its later version, Mithranism.
In what way did Persian empire affect Roman empire later?