Mari and the Bible

The town of Mari is situated on the Euphrates, near the eastern Syrian border. This study compares the 18th century BC Old Babylonian texts from Mari with the Hebrew Scriptures and the early history of Israel. Given the West Semitic or Amorite character of both Mari and the Bible, this comparison may rightly be called imperative.

Mari and the Bible contains 22 chapters of essays, both old and new, conveniently assembled here and divided into three sections: 1) Mari and the West, dealing with Mari documents pertaining to Syria and Palestine, as well as the Mediterranean region. 2) Prophecy, dealing with Mari prophetical texts, particularly those recently published as compared to Biblical prophecy. 3) Customs and Society, also including topics such as female royal correspondence, the royal harem, the epithet 'Great King' and king-lists involving the cult of the dead.