1. English II

2. The most important example of Hebrew literature is the Hebrew Bible The books of the Hebrew Bible have been divided into three main selections: the Torah (laws); The Nevi-im- (Prophets); Ketuvim (Writings) Authorship of the bible is still debated. Many believe it is the work of God- written through divine inspiration- human beings wrote down God’s message

3. For Jews the Bible was a “written temple” sustaining Jewish cultures and beliefs The Bible also had a Major importance for Muslims and Christians who like Jews worship a single God 16 th century Martin Luther translated to German leading to Protestantism The poetic cadences of King James version have influenced English language for nearly 400 years

4. Despite the diversity of the Bible, the text is unified by a few constant themes or insights into life Some of the themes seen are: power, goodness, and mercy of a single God (difference between what we have been studying One God versus many gods; what is this called? Discuss what the difference is? How is the way that the Hebrew’s believe in their God similar and or different to the way the Greeks believed in their god?) The Bible contains many stories or parables in which writers present themes that can be interpreted as life lessons

5. The Jews of antiquity or the Hebrews originated as a nomadic tribe in Iraq somewhere around 2000 BC By 1600 BC they had arrived at the promised Land of Canaan (now known as Israel and Lebanon) After moving to Egypt to escape famine the Hebrews suffered centuries of enslavement by the Egyptians Hebrews documented their nation’s beginning and other details of their history within the work now called the Bible This is the Hebrew’s Creation Story As you read think about the similarities and differences between the Creation Stories from Greek mythology and the Hebrew’s beliefs