Looking for Jesus according to Matthew

[JLG]

The city of Adab

The city of Adab was an important Sumerian city-state in ancient Mesopotamia, known from the Early Dynastic Period. It was one of the key cities alongside Eridu, Uruk, and Ur, contributing to early urban development, agriculture, and trade. Adab participated in trade networks extending to Egypt and other Mesopotamian cities. It was under Akkadian control during the Akkadian Period, with local officials managing trade and administration. The city was part of the complex political and economic landscape of Sumer between c. 3600 BCE and the end of Sumerian dominance around 1750 BCE. Adab's temple and administrative structures played vital roles in its civic organization. Its history reflects the broader cultural and political shifts in ancient Mesopotamia.

 

[JLG]

The city of Kullah

The city of Kullah was one of the important ancient Sumerian cities in southern Mesopotamia, part of the cradle of civilization. It was among key Sumerian cities such as Eridu, Uruk, Ur, Larsa, and Lagash that emerged by around 3600 BCE, known for early developments like writing, the wheel, and irrigation. Kullah was one of several city-states that contributed to the rise of urban civilization in Sumer before its decline around 1750 BCE due to invasions.

 

[JLG]

The city of Nippur
Nippur is an ancient Sumerian city in southern Mesopotamia, located in modern-day Iraq. It was a major religious center dedicated to the god Enlil, considered the father of the gods. The city held great intellectual importance in Sumer, with extensive educational activities including scribal schools where students mastered languages like Sumerian and Akkadian. Nippur appears prominently in myths, such as the story of Enlil and Ninlil, and served as a cultural and religious hub in Mesopotamian civilization.

 

[JLG]

The city of Kish

Kish (Tell al-Uhaymir, Iraq) was a major Sumerian city-state, inhabited from the Jemdet Nasr period (3100–2900 BCE) into the Seleucid era, famous as one of the twelve city-states of Sumer and the first to have kings after the great flood; its modern location features reddish-brown mounds and was a military base post-2003. The myth of King Etana, who sought a son, and Queen Kubaba, the only woman on the Sumerian King List, are linked to Kish.

 

[JLG]

1) Ur

Ur was a major Sumerian city-state located in Mesopotamia, marked today by Tell el-Muqayyar in southern Iraq. It was founded circa 3800 BCE, and was recorded in written history from the 26th century BCE. Its patron god was Nanna, the moon god, and the city's name literally means “the abode of Nanna.”

 

[JLG]

2) Who was the moon god Nanna?

Nanna is the Sumerian god of the moon. He is referred to as Sin or Suen in later Mesopotamian religious texts. Little is known about the etymology of the names of the moon god. The Sumerians also associated Nanna with their cattle herds and the prosperity of the lower Euphrates reed marshes.

 

[JLG]

3) What is the symbol of the god Nanna?

The crescent, Nanna's emblem, was sometimes represented by the horns of a great bull. Nanna bestowed fertility and prosperity on the cowherds, governing the rise of the waters, the growth of reeds, the increase of the herd, and therefore the quantity of dairy products produced.

 

[JLG]

4) What is the story of Nanna?

Nanna is a prominent Sumerian deity, revered as the moon god within the Mesopotamian pantheon. As the son of Enlil, the god of air and kingship, and Ninlil, the grain goddess, Nanna holds significant familial ties, with his wife Ningal and children Inanna, the goddess of love and warfare, and Utu, the sun god.

 

[JLG]

5) Nanna

Nanna (also known as Nannar, Nanna-Suen, Sin, Asimbabbar, Namrasit, Inbu) is the Mesopotamian god of the moon and wisdom. He is one of the oldest gods in the Mesopotamian pantheon and is first mentioned at the very dawn of writing in Sumer c. 3500 BCE. His worship continued until the 3rd century CE.

- The god of the moon and wisdom!

- His worship continued until the 3rd century CE!

 

[JLG]

6) Nanna

Nanna was his Sumerian name while he was known as Sin, Nanna-Sin, Nanna-Suen and other names by the Akkadians, Assyrians, Babylonians, and others. His cult center was the great temple and ziggurat at the Sumerian city of Ur, and he is frequently mentioned in hymns and inscriptions from the Ur III Period (2047-1750 BCE) as the chief god of the pantheon with the epithet Enzu, lord of wisdom. His importance is evident in the number of inscriptions which refer to or praise him and the stories in which he features.

- Nanna was his Sumerian name!

- He was known as Sin, Nanna-Sin, Nanna-Suen and other names by the Akkadians, Assyrians, Babylonians, and others!

- He was the god of Ur!

- He was the chief god of the pantheon with the epithet Enzu, lord of wisdom!

 

[JLG]

7) Nanna

He was the son of Enlil and Ninlil and is their first-born after Enlil seduces Ninlil by the riverbank in the myth Enlil and Ninlil. His wife was Ningal (also Nikkal, the 'Great Lady'), a fertility goddess, and their children were Utu-Shamash (the sun god) and, in some stories, his twin sister Inanna/Ishtar (goddess of love and sexuality), Ereshkigal (Queen of the Dead), and Ishkur (also known as Adad, god of storms).

- he was the son of Enlil and Ninlil!

- His wife was ningal, a fertility goddess!

- Their children were:

- Utu-Shamash (the sun god) and, in some stories,

- his twin sister Inanna/Ishtar (goddess of love and sexuality),

- Ereshkigal (Queen of the Dead),

- and Ishkur (also known as Adad, god of storms).

 

[JLG]

8) Nanna

An interesting aspect of this family tree is that the moon (Nanna) is the father of the sun (Utu/Shamash). It is thought this belief originated in the early days of a hunter-gatherer social structure when the moon was more important to a community for traveling by night and telling the time of the month; the sun only became more important once the people settled down and began to practice agriculture. The religious belief, then, mirrored the cultural development. Scholar Stephen Bertman writes:

The Mesopotamians thus conceived of day, illuminated by the sun, as emanating from the darkness of night and the lesser light of the moon. As the time of lovemaking, the night and the moon were linked to the goddess of the erotic. As a source of light, the moon was also viewed as humanity's protector against acts of criminality undertaken under the cover of darkness even as the illuminating and all-seeing sun was looked upon as a guardian of justice. (122)

- An interesting aspect of this family tree is that the moon (Nanna) is the father of the sun (Utu/Shamash)!

- It is thought this belief originated in the early days of a hunter-gatherer social structure when the moon was more important to a community for traveling by night and telling the time of the month!

- the sun only became more important once the people settled down and began to practice agriculture!

 

[JLG]

9) Nanna
Nanna is represented as a recumbent moon and associated with the bull and lion-dragon. He is further depicted as a seated man with a long beard of lapis lazuli, a crescent moon above him, or riding on the back of a winged bull. In many inscriptions he is represented simply by the number 30, referring to the number of days in a lunar month, and the crescent moon was regarded as his barge in which he sailed through the night sky.

- Nanna is represented as a recumbent moon!

- He is associated with the bull and lion-dragon!

- He is depicted as a seated man with a long beard of lapis lazuli, a crescent moon above him, or riding on the back of a winged bull!

- In many inscriptions he is represented simply by the number 30, referring to the number of days in a lunar month, and the crescent moon was regarded as his barge in which he sailed through the night sky!

 

[JLG]

10) Nanna
He was an immensely popular god, one of the original Sumerian pantheon. His cult center was at Ur and his most famous high priestess was Enheduanna (l. 2285-2250 BCE), although he also had an important temple at Harran in modern-day Syria where his son was Nusku, god of fire and light. Nanna, Ningal, and Nusku were worshiped as a triad, though this veneration mainly focused on the father and son.

- Nanna (The father), Ningal (the mother), and Nusku (the son) were worshiped as a TRIAD,

- Though this veneration mainly focused on the FATHER and SON!

 

[JLG]

11) Nanna

Under the reign of Nabonidus (c. 556-539 BCE) the king's mother served as high priestess at Harran while his daughter held the same position at Nanna's temple in Ur. This arrangement consolidated Nabonidus' power in the same way that Sargon of Akkad (r. 2334-2279 BCE) had earlier placed his daughter Enheduanna in her position at Ur. Nanna is repeatedly seen in ancient texts as a god who provides and unifies, and some of the most successful Mesopotamian rulers capitalized on this belief.

 

[JLG]

12) Nanna

Names & Significance​

Nanna first appears under that name (whose meaning is unknown) c. 3500 BCE. He is already an important deity when he is mentioned as Sin/Suen during the reign of Sargon of Akkad and is referred to as "the illuminator." Even from this early period, he was associated with wisdom and was honored by Sargon's grandson, the great Naram-Sin (r. 2261-2224 BCE), who took his name upon coming to the throne. Naram-Sin, considered the greatest of the Akkadian kings, was among those who understood how to use religious belief to rule most effectively.

Nanna is repeatedly seen in ancient texts as a god who provides & unifies & some of the most successful Mesopotamian rulers capitalized on this belief.
The Akkadians also knew Nanna/Sin by a number of other names, which are actually epithets such as Asimbabbar/Ashgirbabbar (possibly meaning 'embellisher' or 'he who embellishes'), Namrasit ('who shines forth'), and Inbu ('The Fruit,' possibly referring to the moon's changing shape). To the Babylonians, Nanna was the son of Marduk who created him and placed him in the sky.

- To the Babylonians, Nanna was the son of Marduk who created him and placed him in the sky!

 

[JLG]

13) Nanna

Lunar eclipses were thought to be caused, in some eras, by gods or demons trying to steal the moon's light, and Nanna (or in some stories Marduk) had to fight against them to restore natural order. Bertman comments on how "during the new moon when Nanna/Sin's light was not visible, the god was said to be in the netherworld, where he judged the dead" (123). At one point or another throughout Mesopotamia's long history, Nanna was king of the gods, lord of wisdom, keeper of time, guardian of the future (diviner), holder of secrets, but is always seen as the devoted son of Enlil and a protector and guardian of humanity.

- Nanna was king of the gods, lord of wisdom, keeper of time, guardian of the future (diviner), holder of secrets, but is always seen as the devoted son of Enlil and a protector and guardian of humanity!

 

[JLG]

1) Mesopotamian Religion​

Mesopotamian Religion, also known as Assyro-Babylonian religion, included a series of belief systems of the early civilizations of the Euphrates valley. The development of the religion of this region was not only important in the history of the people who practiced it, but also strongly influenced the semitic peoples from whom the Hebrew religious tradition evolved. Moreover, many of the older Mesopotamian religious ideas worked their way west into the Greek and Roman culture as well. Mesopotamian religion left a profound mark on human civilization. Both the Judeo-Christian and Graeco-Roman tradition have inherited much from the religion of the "Land between the Rivers."

- Thus right at the beginning, we are told that there is an evolution of religion!

- It appears as a mixture of influences as peoples would mix through geographic moves!

- Then we can also say the same thing through the replacement of civilizations!

- We can give the image of a hunter who follows the tracks of a wild animal!

- Then we can think about human corruption!

- It can be acceptable for men, even normal!

- But it is an abomination for Yah.weh!

- The Hebrews paid a high price for it, that is destruction!

- The Jews paid a high price for it, that is destruction!

- Mankind will pay a high price for it, that is destruction!

- I should say they have already paid a high price because Yah.weh has abandoned them!

 

[JLG]

2) Mesopotamian Religion​

Historical periods​

The periods in the development of the Babylonian-Assyrian religion may be divided as follows:

1. The oldest period was from c. 3500 B.C.E. to the time of Hammurabi (c. 1700 B.C.E.). During this period, few historical records have been preserved. The deities later known as the Anunnaki may have been worshiped individually in various population centers. As major centers came to dominate the region, their deities came to be more universally recognized and to assimilate the characteristics of some of the lesser gods. Several major deities arose, such as Innana/Ishtar, Anu, Enki, Enlil, and others. The great city of Uruk emerged as a major religious center. Other centers included Nippur, Ur, Sippar, Eridu, and Agade. The greatest religious-literary event of the era was the creation of the Epic of Gilgamesh, the world's oldest surviving epic poem.

- The deities later known as the Anunnaki may have been worshiped individually in various population centers!

- As major centers came to dominate the region, their deities came to be more universally recognized and to assimilate the characteristics of some of the lesser gods!

- Several major deities arose, such as Innana/Ishtar, Anu, Enki, Enlil, and others!

- The great city of Uruk emerged as a major religious center!

- Other centers included Nippur, Ur, Sippar, Eridu, and Agade!

- The greatest religious-literary event of the era was the creation of the Epic of Gilgamesh, the world's oldest surviving epic poem!

 

[JLG]

3) Mesopotamian Religion​

2. The post-Hammurabic period in Babylonia ranged between 1700-1365 B.C.E. Hammurabi united the Euphratean states, and the god Marduk began to emerge as the supreme deity, though by no means the only god. His heroic rise to power and recognition as the king of the gods is dramatically portrayed in the myth known as Enuma Elish.

- Marduk became the supreme deity and king of the gods!