A History of Israel, Assyria, and Babylonia

by atozmom, posted in Bible Study Fellowship (BSF)

I have realized while doing Lesson 9 of Bible Study Fellowship that the history of what is going on between these nations needs to be understood in order to understand the lesson better.  So, I’ve gathered my Internet resources and put them together for those of you who are interested.

In the late 7th century BC (when Isaiah was prophesizing), the kingdom of Judah was a client state of the powerful Assyrian empire.  In the last decades of the century, Assyria was overthrown by Babylon, which at the time was an Assyrian province.  Most of us know Babylon as a powerful country in its own right and as we have seen was founded by Nimrod.  Egypt throws it’s two cents in the mix:  fearing the sudden rise of Babylon, Egypt seizes control of Assyrian territory up to the Euphrates River in Syria.  Babylon counter attacks this move and during this time, Josiah, the King of Judah was killed around 609 BC.  Judah is now a Babylonian client but the stage is set for a future alliance with Egypt. Babylonian captivity occurs in 586 BC.

Most of this is taken from:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Babylonian_captivity

In 609 BC, Babylon defeats Egypt at the battle of Carchemish, usurping Assyria as the dominant power in the region.  Jerusalem was then conquered by Babylon in 586 BC when the main exile begins.  The Book of Daniel is the only record of Israel’s time in Babylon.  In 539 BC, Persia replaces Babylon as the new dominant world power.  Unlike Babylon, Persia believes in resettlement, which allowed the Jews to return to their land and re-build the Temple.

Most of this is taken from:  http://www.essortment.com/all/historybabylon_rzyf.htm

As we’ve learned, Judah/Israel is a tiny country compared to its neighbors and it is constantly jockeying for position.  It switches alliances to whomever promises the best deal at the time (very common in history), whether or not God says so or not.  Judah is petrified of being conquered and rightly so.  It is struggling to maintain its autonomy.

However, it seems to me Judah’s defeat was inevitable.  From my previous posted map, you can see Judah was surrounded.  In order to stay alive, it had to have help from its neighbors or miracles from God.  God kept Judah alive as long as possible by providing them with miraculous military defeats until He decided no more and allowed His people to be conquered.  The fact Judah did survive as long as it did is a miracle from God and only by his decree.  Otherwise, Judah would have disappeared long before.

Lessons From Gilgamesh Part 2

by atozmom, posted in Book Reviews

I love kids books and I read a lot of them since I have three little ones.  I also like quotes and I love the story of Gilgamesh.  I have a previous post from this summer that is from another translation of Gilgamesh with lessons learned as well and a summary of the story. 

You can read that here:  http://atozmomm.com/2010/05/25/lessons-from-gilgamesh/

All quotes are from “Gilgamesh the Hero” by Geraldine McCaughrean.

“Why live if not to make a mark on this world?  To blaze a trail through it!  To do deeds worthy of remembrance!  Do or die!”

“The trouble with you, madam, is that you start by kissing and end by cursing.”

“It was unbearable, and yet it had to be borne.”

“Do or die.”

“Grab the day and run with it.”

You need “someone who can weather you even when you’re sour as a lemon.”

“It’s the quality of life that matters, not how long it drags on…”

“I’ve had time to learn the important things are few.  A wife, contentment, memories, peace.”

“Bread is like the life of man:  sweet smelling and softly tender at first, harder with age–a hard outer crust to defend a man against life’s knocks, then little by little more and more brittle until at last, decay.”

“The gods never meant you to live forever, so why spoil the life they did give you?  Is the rainbow any less beautiful because it’s short-lived?  Or because you can’t grasp hold of it?  Perhaps it is beautiful expressly because of that.”

“He walked through darkness and so glimpsed the light.”

Excitement Regained

by atozmom, posted in Writing

I spent a lot of yesterday editing my book and am quite enjoying it for once.  I am finding my mistakes are a lot more prevalent to my eye and I feel with each stroke of my keyboard it is only getting better.

This is what gives me hope.  I believe my destiny does have more for me in this world and this is the means God has given me to achieve it.  Admittedly, I feel happier–better–when my writing is progressing.  Otherwise, life quickly drags me under with the monotony of kid-life:  breakfast, school, errands, bills, diapers, doctor appointments, permission slips, parent/teacher conferences, homework, shuttle to soccer practices, dinner, bed time, and on and on and on…

So, here I am, typing again, molding my work before my eye, wondering all the while if this will be it, if the fourth time is the charm (this is my fourth book), if I am finally speaking what the world needs to hear.

Why Johnny Can’t Tell Right From Wrong

by atozmom, posted in Book Reviews

This is the title of an older book (published in 1992) on education by William Kilpatrick.  Surprisingly, I found this book fascinating.

I’m not one for books on education especially one that quotes studies and other books (which this book does a lot of).  But, just in case my school needs a new Board member, I’ll be ready (you have to read this book in order to apply).

What I took from this book (the overarching premise): Kids need to be taught morals through stories in school.  Kids need to be taught the classics so they will have a frame of reference in order to act.  They need to hear examples of heros such as Odysseus returning home to his family and David slewing Goliath as an under dog.

Every person has a story and kids need to be connected with their story.  If you lose your story and your place and significance in life, kids will be headed for trouble.  Stories help us to see our lives are worth living.  We are willing to endure suffering when the suffering has meaning.

Our greatest need is to find meaning in our lives.  We need to feel that we are getting somewhere, making progress.  This impulse leads us to buy books that have a plot since we want our lives to have a plot.  Look at Harry Potter.  He’s trying to save the world from Lord Voldermort and he himself is key to his defeat.

Acting nobly is not behaviors that come naturally to men so we need to hear about how to overcome temptations.

Fairy tales and hero stories teach that a struggle against severe difficulties in life is unavoidable and a part of human existance.  One must be able to overcome innate selfishness and believe he or she will make a significant contribution to life–if not now, then at some point in the future.  This is what keeps me writing–knowing in my heart some day I will leave my mark.

It’s a Wonderful Life resonates with so many people because the everyman learns his life does have meaning to someone.

Kids need to be taught to act against their own self-interest for the sake of something larger.  Kids need examples that go against our nature in order to learn what is right and what is wrong.

At one point Kilpatrick says, “One of the surest routes for bringing morality back to society is to bring back marriage.” (P. 250)

I LOVED this!  I wish more people would talk about the importance of a mother and a father to kids.

Of course, most of this book was preaching to the choir as I thoroughly agree with most of this.  But it’s good to read that I’m not the only one out there who believes this stuff and it’s good to just refresh myself on why I am such a psycho when it comes to my kids and their education.

This book is a must-read (okay, you can skip the studies and theories) for parents who want to know what a good education entails and looks like.  It has a whole section on what parents can do (again, I’ve already done all of its suggestions).

A Dog’s Life

by atozmom, posted in Dogs, Life

As I sit here typing this, my male Mastiff is lying by my side (he’s really in my way but he’s too cute to make him move).

There are many days I want a dog’s life.  How rough can it be when your food and water appear magically every day (free room and board), you can sleep wherever you want whenever you want, you lie around in the sun and throw out a few barks here and there, and you have no worries?  You lead a great life, loved by the family, and petted every now and then.

You really don’t have to do anything.  Looking cute helps and being adorable.  Barking when the doorbell rings helps to alert your owners.  Wagging your tail when your owners return home.  Occasional lick here and there to show appreciation.

Then it’s back to bed until dinner time.

Quite an easy day, wouldn’t you agree?

Cultural Literacy by E.D. Hirsch

by atozmom, posted in Book Reviews

I just finished this book (admittedly skimmed some parts since I find studies incredibly boring) and found it interesting.

I had never thought how our language did come to be and come to be standardized.  It was fascinating to read how people actually sat down and decided to do this hundreds of years ago.

It is a great reminder how things can be manipulated in life and how I must be ever the more vigilant with my children’s education.

I agree whole-heartedly with the premise that there must be a national cultural literacy in order to function in today’s society.  You have to know what people are talking about in order to talk to people.  Most of this book was preaching to the choir but I have to constantly remind myself of the importance of my kids’ education.

For me, it’s more I enjoy learning and like to know where things come from and how.  But it makes me re-focus on what my kids need to know.

They attend a Core Knowledge school so I know they will get most of this stuff.  Still, it is up to me to supplement (as always) where needed.

Bible Study Fellowship–Isaiah

by atozmom, posted in Bible Study Fellowship (BSF), Faith

Yesterday was our first day of Bible Study Fellowship (BSF), studying the book of Isaiah.  I’m excited to begin.  This is my first year.

So, I began the questions this morning and I hope I get better as I go along.  I had to leave 4b blank because I am unsure how Isaiah 1:1-9 relates to dealing with a past hurt.  The passage is about how God is angry at his children because they have rebelled and speaks nothing of forgiveness or restoration.  It only mentions how his people are stupid and how there will be chosen survivors.

Maybe it’ll come to me in the coming days.

I loved the lecture, especially Principle #1: God uses committed people to impact culture today.  I’d like to think I’m one of these.

It’s also good to be reminded that you were born with a purpose in mind.  I know this instinctively but it’s good to bring it back up especially when someone else says so.

There Is a Tide…

by atozmom, posted in Book Reviews, Life

There is a tide in the affairs of men

Which taken at the flood leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life

Is bound in shallows and in miseries.

On such a full sea are we now afloat,

And we must take the current when it serves,

Or lose our ventures.

Passage from Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare.

I hope this is me now.

Why I DON’T Want a Writing “Job”

by atozmom, posted in Faith, Writing

My mother-in-law mentioned to me last night that Craigslist has tons of blog writer positions or copywriter or writer in general and I should look into those.  Immediately, without thinking, I said, “I don’t want to write for other people.  I want to write what I want to write, not what others tell me to write.”

I started mulling this over this morning.  I searched Craigslist and everything sounded about as exciting as a 8:00 AM Economics lecture.  Then I thought about my answer last night and seconded it.

I don’t want to write for others.  I write for myself and what my heart (and I believe God) tells me to write about.  I don’t want to have to do research on some mind-numbing topic and turn in a report about it.  Lord knows I did enough of that in college to last me a life time.  I don’t want to blog for others when I can blog about whatever I want to.

Call this selfish or whatever but to me, this is what makes writing fun and if writing is not fun for me, I won’t do it.  I’m old enough in life to realize I’m through doing monotonous stuff if I don’t have to.  Praise God I don’t have to write for a living.  My husband does all of that.

I also mentioned to my mother-in-law that I write books for me and I am going to try my hardest to get published.  But if I don’t succeed, if God doesn’t will it, I will still keep on doing it.

This is passion.  This is where I stand.

Seek God First…

by atozmom, posted in Faith

Everything else falls into place.

Jesus said, “Seek first [God’s] kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things [eat,drink, wear] will be given to you as well.” Matthew 6:33

Remember God is with you.  You are not alone.  He’s there in your highs and in your lows.  He’s there always.