Admonition and Curse: The Ancient Near Eastern Treaty/Covenant Form as a Problem in Inter-Cultural Relationships(The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies)

The occurrence of treaties throughout the Ancient Near East has been investigated on a number of occasions, generally in order to resolve certain questions arising in the biblical field. As a result of that focus, the existence of a similar institution in a number of different cultures has not been treated as a problem in itself. Generally the existence of treaties throughout the area has been taken for granted, or a simple borrowing model has been used to explain how similar forms came to be used in different cultures. Why forms were similar across the area has not been probed. This work investigates treaty occurrences in different cultures and finds that the forms used correlate with ways of maintaining political control both internally and over vassals. Related concepts are projected in official accounts of history. Thus one can roughly distinguish threats based on power from persuasion based on benevolence and historical precedent, though various combinations of these two occur. There is a likely further connection of the means chosen to the degree of centralisation of power within the society. Underlying the local traditions is a common tradition which has to be dated to the pre-literate period. Biblical covenants fit within this pattern. The cultures treated are Mesopotamia, the Hittites, Egypt, Syrian centres and Israel.

About the Author :
Dr. Noel Weeks is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Ancient History at the University of Sydney.

Review :
Review ~ International Review of Biblical Studies, vol 51, 2004/05 "Weeks presents here his findings on the differing forms treaties and covenants can take throughout ancient Near Eastern governments and cultures and what those forms can reveal about the people employing them. Weeks shows himself to be a thorough and careful scholar who says the minimum that the evidence will allow rather than the maximum. He also displays a breadth of scholarship with his treatment and personal translation of treaty/covenant texts from Egypt to Hatti that is truly noteworthy. His findings are cautious and well-reasoned, and he certainly gives the scholarly community a great deal to think about. This is so not only with reference to ancient Near Eastern treaty/covenants themselves but also to the challenges he presents to redaction critics by positing that their main vehicles for determining editorial layers are normal forms of unified composition. We wait now with much anticipation to see how Weeks will influence the scholarly discussion." - RBL, November 2005