Caleb Chow | Lancaster Bible College and Graduate School (original) (raw)

Uploads

Articles by Caleb Chow

“Now These Records are Ancient”: Studies in Ancient Near Eastern and Biblical History, Language and Culture in Honor of K. Lawson Younger, Jr., 2022

ISBN 978-3-96327-190-8 (book) ISBN 978-3-96327-191-5 (e-book, via ProQuest) XVI + 497 pp. / DI... more ISBN 978-3-96327-190-8 (book)
ISBN 978-3-96327-191-5 (e-book, via ProQuest)
XVI + 497 pp. / DIN-A4 / hardcover, thread stitching

Iraq (Cambridge University Press), 2020

This paper explores the meaning behind the two methods of sword carry depicted in the iconography... more This paper explores the meaning behind the two methods of sword carry depicted in the iconography of Ashurnasirpal II. While the sword is regarded as a prestigious weapon tied to the owner’s identity, the implications of how such an understanding of the sword in the Neo-Assyrian Empire might further delineate the underlying messages of the palace reliefs of Ashurnasirpal II remain unaddressed in secondary literature. As a result, through a combination of a cognitive analysis in regards to the significance of the sword’s appearance in Neo-Assyrian texts and iconography as well as an analysis of visual formulas in the palace reliefs of Ashurnasirpal II as identified by Mehmet-Ali Ataç, this paper argues that the visual representation of the sword is intended to communicate not only the wielder’s power and wealth but also the wielder’s exercise or restraint of divine authority based on the carry method displayed.

Conference Presentations by Caleb Chow

Annual meeting of the American Schools of Overseas Research (formerly American Schools of Orienta... more Annual meeting of the American Schools of Overseas Research (formerly American Schools of Oriental Research), 2020.

This paper introduces and tests a new method of analyzing the textual, archaeological, and geographical evidence for the northern borders of Israel during the reign of Jeroboam I. In the absence of primary sources providing complete borders of pre-Omride Israel or clear distinguishing markers for Israelite and Aramean material culture, the method utilized in this study consists of two major steps: 1) analyzing long-term and continuous (moyenne-durée) evidence from text, archaeology, and geography in order to establish a terminological framework for ethnic and political entities, and 2) defining and assessing border claims from textually-attested episodic events under the established framework from the first step. By re-examining the biblical narrative concerning the cult center at Dan build by Jeroboam I in this way, this paper demonstrates how 1 Kings 12:4-32 may not be a chronologically-displaced narrative from the time of Jeroboam II. Given the geography of the Tel Dan region and the road systems identifed by David Dorsey, the cultural and economic incentives in conjunction with the lull in Aramean aggression, and the new pottery results from Tel Dan this paper argues that Jeroboam I had strong incentives and ample opportunity to establish a cult center at Tel Dan. This being the case, this paper also seeks to demonstrate some of the methodological problems associated with assuming chronological displacement of biblical texts for the historical reconstruction of the Iron II period.

Princeton Theological Seminary Old Testament Research Colloquium, 2019

Annual Meeting of the American Schools of Oriental Research, 2018

While its use as a battlefield weapon is obvious, the sword is also seen in Neo-Assyrian iconogra... more While its use as a battlefield weapon is obvious, the sword is also seen in Neo-Assyrian iconography as an integrated part of court dress among high-ranking individuals. Based on depictions of sword-wielding individuals such as the Khorsabad throne room reliefs of Sennacherib and the Nimrud central palace relief of Tiglath-pileser III depicting sword-bearing scribes, it is clear that swords were also carried off the battlefield and worn in non-military contexts. In scenes depicting hunting or battle the Neo-Assyrian reliefs often show soldiers and kings wearing a cross-body shoulder strap that held the sword scabbard outside the armor, but in depictions of sword-bearers outside the battlefield the sword is shown to be worn directly in the clothing and at a more horizontal angle. It therefore stands to reason that there is not only a prestigious and symbolic aspect to sword-carrying outside the battlefield but there may also be a functional design in Neo-Assyrian dress that allowed for the convenient carry of swords as well as for their ease of access in times of need. To identify such possible functional aspects of Neo-Assyrian non-battlefield dress, this paper will analyze and compare the Neo-Assyrian iconographic evidence for sword-bearing in both military and non-military contexts by examining the differences in the position of carry, features of the scabbard and hilt designs, and especially the differences in the clothing depicted in Neo-Assyrian art.

University of Pennsylvania Center for Ancient Studies Graduate Conference, 2018

Although some scholars in the past have resisted the idea that human sacrifice was practiced in a... more Although some scholars in the past have resisted the idea that human sacrifice was practiced in ancient Egypt, two forms of human sacrifice have been identified in pre dynastic and early dynastic Egypt: ritual sacrifice where a person is sacrificed as part of a religious rite, and retainer sacrifice where servants of the king or noble are buried with their master. These two forms of human sacrifice are attested in the archaeological record of early tombs, but are they related or independent phenomena? This essay seeks to answer this question by analyzing the iconographic evidence from two labels of the tombs of Aha and Djer, the organization and architecture of the early dynastic and pre-dynastic tombs that show evidence of human sacrifice, and especially the scientific results from corpse analyses of the sacrificed victims. In doing so I demonstrate that while there is ample evidence to show that these two types of human sacrifice were indeed practiced in early Egypt, there is insufficient evidence to link the two types of human sacrifice. Consequently, in this paper I argue that until there is clear evidence from the skeletal remains of the sacrificed victims that shows a link between the iconographic and archaeological evidence, the two major types of human sacrifice should be seen as separate practices that may reflect different beliefs about the dead and afterlife in early dynastic and pre-dynastic Egypt.

Book Reviews by Caleb Chow

Bulletin for Biblical Research, 2020

Bulletin for Biblical Research, 2019

Bulletin for Biblical Research, 2018

Ph.D. Dissertation by Caleb Chow

Ph.D. Dissertation (Trinity International University), 2018

This study re-examines the available primary and secondary evidence concerning the northern bord... more This study re-examines the available primary and secondary evidence concerning the
northern borders of Israel during the Iron II period from the reign of Jeroboam I to the fall of Samaria in 722 BCE. To work around the limitations and fragmentary nature of the available evidence, at the heart of this discussion are three major elements: the means of distinguishing tribal and ethnic groups, identifying borders through the available evidence, and the integration text, archaeology, and geography in a historical reconstruction of Israel. This study therefore utilizes a multidisciplinary approach that prioritizes the primary evidence and distinguishes between “long-term” and “short-term” evidence in its investigation of Israel’s interactions with its northern neighbors, especially the kingdom of Aram-Damascus. In doing so this approach works around the limitations of both textual and archaeological evidence, providing a status quaestionis of the available evidence for the ebb and flow of Israel’s northern border, summarizing each textually-attested border claim as it appears in the biblical and Ancient Near Eastern texts. To summarize the results of this study, here it will be demonstrated that the early northern kingdom of Israel could have extended into Dan and Ijon while the evidence does not clearly show that the more powerful Omride dynasty extended further north than the Jezreel area. The period of Jehu and Jehoahaz was a period of weakness due to the pressure of Hazael, but after Hazael’s death Jehoash and Jeroboam II were able to reverse Israel’s fortune and eventually extend into the Galilee region. Following the tumultuous end of the Jehuite dynasty, Israel’s borders quickly shrank before being ultimately captured by the Assyrians.

Th.M. Thesis by Caleb Chow

Th.M. Thesis (Westminster Theological Seminary), 2013