Geography as Destiny in Achaemenid Ideology and Ezra-Nehemiah
Abstract
The lists of lands ruled by the Persians that appear in Achaemenid inscriptions reflect an ideology in which it is the divine will for Achaemenid power to emanate from the center of the world in order to rule all peoples, who would live in violence and chaos absent their control. This geographical understanding is reflected in Ezra-Nehemiah, which assumes a world in which the imperial periphery, where Judah is located, is inherently evil, and where moral corruption is inevitable without the divinely mandated rule of the Persian king, who sends Judah leadership from more central regions of the empire like Babylonia and Elam.
Abstract
The lists of lands ruled by the Persians that appear in Achaemenid inscriptions reflect an ideology in which it is the divine will for Achaemenid power to emanate from the center of the world in order to rule all peoples, who would live in violence and chaos absent their control. This geographical understanding is reflected in Ezra-Nehemiah, which assumes a world in which the imperial periphery, where Judah is located, is inherently evil, and where moral corruption is inevitable without the divinely mandated rule of the Persian king, who sends Judah leadership from more central regions of the empire like Babylonia and Elam.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Preface V
- Contents VII
- List of Abbreviations
- Introduction 1
-
Part I: Torah
- “United we stand, divided we fall”?: A Postcolonial Reading of Gen 11:1–9 7
- “The Land That Devours People”: Struggles Against Colonial Ideology in the Bible (Ezek 36; Num 13) and Christianity in Korea 27
- The “Anti”-Royal Theology in the Priestly Writings? 51
-
Part II: Nevi’im
- Conflicting Memories in Post-Colonial Textual Traditions: Remembering the Story of Nob (1 Sam 21:1–9; 22:6–23) 70
- A Postcolonial Reading of Sheba’s Revolt (2 Sam 19:41–20:22) 101
- Literary Historiography as a Method for State-Building: Competing Traditions and Trans-historical Memories of Saul and David’s Kingship 121
- The Gibeonites’ Migration and Resettlement in Persian Yehud in Light of the Korean Historical Context Through the Lens of Postcolonialism 139
- Otherizing Violence: Dismemberment and Remembrance of Jezebel 169
- YHWH and Babylon in the Book of Jeremiah 197
- Understanding Two Jonahs in the Reader’s Context 217
-
Part III: Ketuvim
- Davidic Resurgence in the Shadows of Empire: A Postcolonial Reading of Books 3–5 of the Psalms and Related Hebrew Texts 237
- Secrecy and Subversion in Esther 259
- Geography as Destiny in Achaemenid Ideology and Ezra-Nehemiah 279
- Subject Index
- Scripture Index
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- Preface V
- Contents VII
- List of Abbreviations
- Introduction 1
-
Part I: Torah
- “United we stand, divided we fall”?: A Postcolonial Reading of Gen 11:1–9 7
- “The Land That Devours People”: Struggles Against Colonial Ideology in the Bible (Ezek 36; Num 13) and Christianity in Korea 27
- The “Anti”-Royal Theology in the Priestly Writings? 51
-
Part II: Nevi’im
- Conflicting Memories in Post-Colonial Textual Traditions: Remembering the Story of Nob (1 Sam 21:1–9; 22:6–23) 70
- A Postcolonial Reading of Sheba’s Revolt (2 Sam 19:41–20:22) 101
- Literary Historiography as a Method for State-Building: Competing Traditions and Trans-historical Memories of Saul and David’s Kingship 121
- The Gibeonites’ Migration and Resettlement in Persian Yehud in Light of the Korean Historical Context Through the Lens of Postcolonialism 139
- Otherizing Violence: Dismemberment and Remembrance of Jezebel 169
- YHWH and Babylon in the Book of Jeremiah 197
- Understanding Two Jonahs in the Reader’s Context 217
-
Part III: Ketuvim
- Davidic Resurgence in the Shadows of Empire: A Postcolonial Reading of Books 3–5 of the Psalms and Related Hebrew Texts 237
- Secrecy and Subversion in Esther 259
- Geography as Destiny in Achaemenid Ideology and Ezra-Nehemiah 279
- Subject Index
- Scripture Index
