Israel's Covenant compared to Hammurabi's Code of Laws

The ancient Mediterranean world, as well as some modern primitive societies, maintained a strong belief in the reality of a spirit world which continually interacted with the human world (Pilch, 20). They populated their surroundings with gods and goddesses of various natures in order to come to terms and gain some control over their environment and circumstances. Note that these gods/goddesses represented (were) powers of nature. In addition, Abraham came from a nomadic culture, in …

…Pilch, John J., The Cultural World of Jesus, Sunday by Sunday, Cycle B, 1996, by the Order of St. Benedict, Inc., Collegeville, MN. Dyrness, William, Themes in Old Testament Theology, 1977, by InterVarsity Christian Fellowship of the United States of America, Downers Grove, Illniois. The NIV Study Bible, 10th Anniversary Edition, 1995, by The Zondervan Corp., Grand Rapids, MI. Anderson, Bernard W., Understanding the Old Testament, 1998, by Prentice-Hall, Inc., Simon and Schuster/Aviacom Company, Upper Saddle River, NJ.