Jack M. Sasson

Canaanite Maritime Involvement in the Second Millennium B. C.

Professor Sasson traces the history of Cananite shipping. Since there is little documentation before the Late Bronze Age, little is known about the means of trade used by the Canaanites pre Bronze Age, but according to Professor Sasson, there is evidence that the Canaanites ruled the sea in the second millennium. Professor Sasson discusses the different types of ships built by the Canaanites and how they were used by them.

Circumcision in the Ancient near East

In this article, Professor Sasson argues that the practice of circumcision may not have passed from Egypt to the Israelites and the Phoenicians, but the opposite. He points to several factors which indicate that the practice may have traveled from northern Syria southward and to Egypt.

The King and I: A Mari King in Changing Perceptions

In this journal article, Professor Sasson provides a biographical look at Zimri-Lim, king of the ancient city Mari. Zimri-Lim reigned over Mari for over 30 years. Mari was conquered by Hammurabi of Babylon and its once magnificent palace destroyed, but enough remains have been excavated to provide a picture of the civilization of this once prosperous city and the life of its king.

Thoughts of Zimri-Lim

A scholar who has been immersed in the study of the Mari texts for twenty years presents an imaginative portrait of the last king to occupy the famous palace. This unique work also provides extensive supporting information, including many texts translated into English for the first time.

DOEG’S JOB

In this brief study I follow up on a recent JBL article in which SZ Aster discusses and rejects proposed emendations for the title ~y[rh ryba (1 Sam 21:8) applied to the Edomite Doeg, Saul’s instrument in killing the priests of Nob. I offer one more possible explanation of his title via the Mari archives and use that explanation to expand on Doeg’s vita.

Albright as an Orientalist

What made Albright so supremely confident of his ultimate vindication as a scholar? Albright brought an American-bred conviction about the centrality of the Bible to a powerful experience of identification with the landscape of Palestine. These influences combined in Albrights passion for the historical trustworthiness of the biblical witness.

The Treatment of Criminals at Mari: A Survey

Professor Jack Sasson looks at crime and punishment within the justice system of the ancient city of Mari.

The Lord of Hosts, Seated over the Cherubs

There is disagreement about how to render a phrase in II Sam. 6,2 that is concerned with the movement of the divine ark. David had picked 30,000 of Israels best and with them had proceeded to fetch it, intending to bring it to Jerusalem. In this note, dedicated with much affection to John Van Seters, a fine colleague for over two decades, I evade the issues on which he is a master sleuth: the composition, date, and permutations of this tradition I. Nor do I entertain the contextual issues raised by the passage, such as the reasons (theological or political) for relocating the ark, who participated in the enter-

A Major Contribution to Song of Songs Scholarship@@@The Song of Songs and the Ancient Egyptian Love Songs

This article welcomes M. Foxs, The Song of Songs and the Ancient Egyptian Love Songs; but it also critically reviews his initial assumptions regarding the relationship between Hebrew and Egyptian love poetry. It then proceeds to suggest alternate ways of understanding a number of cruxes in canticles. THIS VERY WELCOME ADDITION to the studies of the Song of Songs features a bonus that should attract Egyptologists as well as specialists in Near Eastern and comparative literature: an elaborate analysis of the Egyptian love lyrics, available to us mostly from the Empire period. The book divides into two major segments, the first of which philologically treats the four disparate collections of love songs from Egypt, then lightly annotates the Hebrew Song. The second segment itself divides into six chapters which discuss a date for the documents, interpret their contexts, ana

Biblical Archaeologist Update: Zimri-Lim Takes the Grand Tour

Using information from fifteen just-translated texts, this article adds to the description given in our June 1984 issue of the last king to occupy the famous palace at Mari.