what was the assyrians important legacy to history, according to john green?

In response to my post on Jonah and His God, an anonymous reader wrote:

Allow me offset to write that I'chiliad glad to read such comments in order to be able to correct many misconceptions and wrong judgements which are passed upon the aboriginal Assyrians. I should get in a betoken and example to put not a penny but a dollar aside for every fourth dimension I see an commodity repeating that the ancient Assyrians were "ruthless" people but no i mentions the accomplishments and the civilisation that the aboriginal Assyrians left for the globe, in addition to being the start people to believe in the message of salvation and spreading it as far as India, Mongolia, Soumatra, Japan, Prc, Republic of azerbaijan, and so on with their monuments being witnesses to that slap-up endeavour long before Marco Polo or the Roman Catholic Church set pes in those remote lands, the missionaries of the Holy Church of The Eastward a.k.a. The Holy Apostolic Assyrian Church building of The East, held a Cross in i hand and the Bible in the other and went on foot to preach the Gospel with Christian brotherly love and not coercion. The aboriginal Assyrians used force just like did the Romans, Greeks or Egyptians, even the Jews did. Since their historical lands in what's today known as Iraq amongst other parts of the Middle East were invaded past Persians, Arabs and Mongols the ethnic Assyrians have paid a highest price over the centuries just to preserve their identity, culture, linguistic communication and history and they continue to suffer. A final point about Jonah who was supposed to be a believer however he tried run away from God'southward command in order not to become to Assyria but the Assyrians listened to his bulletin, repented and later on on became the showtime people to believe in the Messiah and Salvation. The Quondam Testament is full of dissimilar stories which are pro and against people but the most important of them all is this poesy from the New Attestation Luke 11:32 The word which you used in the article every bit niphal is the Assyrian give-and-take napla from the verb napel meaning to fall. It'due south a well known fact that the Hebrews spoke Assyrian which is referred erroneously to every bit Aramaic or Syriac and till today six of the Old Testament books are still read past the Jews in what is referred to erroneously as "Aramaic" and the alphabet which the Hebrews or Jews today use is called the Assyrian letters even though they write information technology differently. The Assyrians believed without seeing but those who had the calorie-free amongst them never saw it. Till today the Liturgical calendar of the Holy Churchly Assyrian Church of The East still commemorates that event with a iii day fast named the Rogation of the Ninevites and many traditions are attached to that fast.

I quote the comments of bearding in full because I am sympathetic to the plight of the Assyrians who are alive today.Their culture has survived even though the Assyrians had to endure much persecution.There are, withal, a few points in his comments that need to be addressed.

1.  The Bible and history show that the Assyrians imposed a policy of terror and violence upon their enemies.The Assyrian monuments give full testify of their brutality.The graphic above shows Tiglath-pileser III besieging a city and bodies of dead enemies impaled and piled upwards on the ground.

2.  The conversion of the Assyrians is a affair of debate.The book of Nahum gives no indication that the Assyrians were converted.The people who settled in Samaria after the exile of the Northern Kingdom were not Assyrians.They were conquered people deported from their countries and settled in Samaria by the Assyrians (2 Kings 17:two-34).The Assyrians would never repopulate their own people.

3.  The original language of the Hebrew people was a dialect of Canaanite; the language spoken by Israel in the pre-exilic time was called "the language of Canaan" (Isaiah nineteen:18). The language of the ancient Assyrians was Akkadian.When Aramean tribes moved into the region, Aramaic became the dominant linguistic communication.Aramaic became the official language of the provinces in the Assyrian empire and eventually became an international language, used in diplomacy and trade.

In fact, when the Assyrians invaded Judah, information technology was very clear that the people did not understand Aramaic.At the fourth dimension of the invasion, the rex of Assyria sent the Tartan, the supreme commander of the Assyrian Army, the Rabsaris, the Assyrian king'south chief officer, and the Rabshakeh, the army's field commander to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem.

When the Assyrian officers spoke to the officers of Hezekiah, the Israelite officials said to the Assyrian field commander: "Please speak to your servants in Aramaic, since we empathize it.Don't speak to us in Hebrew in the hearing of the people on the wall" (2 Kings 18:26).

After the Assyrians established their empire, Aramaic became the language of the Ancient Nigh East.This is seen when the Bible says that some of the Jews who returned from exile had a difficult fourth dimension preserving their native language.

The book of Nehemiah says that of the people who came dorsum, "Half of their children spoke the language of Ashdod or the language of ane of the other peoples, and did not know how to speak the language of Judah" (Nehemiah xiii:24).Thus, when Ezra read the Law of Moses he had to translate it to the people: "Ezra read from the book of the Law of God, translating and giving the sense; so the reading was understood" (Nehemiah eight:8 NJB).

4.Anonymous wrote: "The word which you used in the article as niphal is the Assyrian discussion napla from the verb napel meaning to fall."

This is not correct.The give-and-take "Niphal" does not come from "naphal" (נפל), a Hebrew word meaning "to fall."Rather, the word "Niphal" comes from the Hebrew word "pa`al" (פעל) a Hebrew verb meaning "work."Information technology is also the Modern Hebrew give-and-take for "verb."The word "Niphal" (נפעל) is the discussion "pa`al" (פעל) with the prefix נ (a preformative) attached to the word "pa`al" to give a passive or reflexive significant to a verb.

The Bible is non completely negative nigh the Assyrians.At that place are several passages in the Old Attestation that seem to indicate that Assyria has a special place in God's plan:

In that solar day Israel will exist the 3rd, forth with Egypt and Assyria, a approval on the earth (Isaiah nineteen:24).

In this passage, the prophet affirms that in the last days Israel, Egypt, and Assyria will be united every bit i people nether God.Instead of being enemies, they will be united and instead of having different religions, they shall all worship the same God.Israel, together with Assyria and Arab republic of egypt, volition become a approval to other nations because from them the truthful religion of God will be extended unto other nations.

Blessed exist Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and State of israel my inheritance (Isaiah nineteen:25).

In this passage, God calls Assyria "the work of my hands."This expression is used in parallelism with "my people," and "my inheritance."Since Israel is also the work of God's paw (Isaiah 64:8), the prophet is proverb that in God's hand, Assyria will be a ways of blessing to others.

Consider Assyria . . . I made it beautiful (Ezekiel 31:iii, 9).

This passage describes in a parabolic manner the greatness that was Assyria.Assyria'due south beauty, that it, its power, prosperity, and glory, was the work of God.

From these passages nosotros notice that God has a plan for Assyria.Maybe this is the reason God used them to spread the gospel to other lands.

Many Assyrians today are Christians.According to estimates, at that place are about 4,000.000 Assyrians in the world today.Of these, 3,000,000 still alive in the Eye East; nearly of them live in Iraq (a land that encompasses the lands of the former Assyrian empire) and Syria and more 300,000 alive in the Us.

If anyone wants to know more about Assyrian Christians, a skilful source is Assyria: The Forgotten Nation in Prophecy by John Booko.Booko is an Assyrian American and an alumnus of Northern Seminary.Booko's book takes a maximalist view of Assyria and a pre-millennial view of prophecy.

The volume Assyria: The Forgotten Nation in Prophecy can be ordered from:

John Booko,
200 S. Hooker Artery,
Iii Rivers, Michigan 49093
(616) 279-2672

Claude Mariottini
Emeritus Professor of Old Testament
Northern Baptist Seminary

NOTE: Did you like this post? Exercise you call back other people would like to read this post? Be sure to share this post on Facebook and share a link on Twitter and then that others may enjoy reading it too!

I would love to hear from you! Let me know what you idea of this postal service past leaving a comment below. Exist sure to similar my page on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, Facebook, and subscribe to my weblog to receive each post by email.

givenduchatived.blogspot.com

Source: https://claudemariottini.com/2006/12/13/blessed-be-assyria-the-work-of-my-hands-isaiah-1925/