Deck 2: The Ancient Near East: Peoples and Empires

Question 1

Scholars generally agree that the Israelites emerged as a distinct group of peoples, possibly organized into tribes between which dates?

A)1200 and 1000 B.C.E.
B)2500 and 2000 B.C.E.
C)1800 and 1500 B.C.E.

Answer 1

1200 and 1000 B.C.E.

Question 2

Which group is known as the greatest international sea traders of the ancient Near East?

A)Sea Peoples
B)Phoenicians
C)Carthaginians

Answer 2

Phoenicians

Question 3

The Assyrians are important in history for their innovations in which of the following?

A)Empire building
B)Urban architecture
C)Trade and commerce

Answer 3

Empire building

Question 4

Which of the following statements BEST describes the Assyrian government?

A)It was a limited monarchy, where the king's power was checked by an assembly.
B)The king's power was absolute; they were vicars of the Assyrian god Ashur.
C)It was an aristocracy, with the landed nobility possessing political power.

Question 5

According to the tradition of the Hebrews, they were descendants of which patriarch?

A)Adam
B)Noah
C)Abraham

Question 6

How is the Assyrian use of terror tactics and atrocities best described?

A)They were used universally on all captured prisoners.
B)They especially targeted inhabitants of the empire who rebelled against Assyrian rule.
C)They were used to make up for an absence of an intelligence network.

Question 7

Many scholars today take what position regarding the Hebrew Bible?

A)They believe the Hebrew Bible is a completely accurate historical record.
B)They contend that the Hebrew Bible was originally written down in the fifth century a.d.
C)They doubt that the early books of the Hebrew Bible reflect the true history of the Israelites.

Question 8

All of these statements are correct about Byblos EXCEPT which one?

A)It was an Egyptian commercial center.
B)It was a major Phoenician city.
C)It was a distribution center for Egyptian papyrus.

Question 9

Which of the following was the principal economic basis of Assyrian society?

A)Heavily irrigation-based farming
B)Agriculture based on farming villages
C)International trade

Question 10

For what was Assyrian society well known?

A)Assimilation of other cultures
B)Manumission of slaves
C)Monumental cities

Question 11

Which of the following best describes the covenant?

A)It acted as a contract between God and the tribes of Israel.
B)It identified the Babylonians as God's chosen people.
C)It was formed during the period of Roman rule.

Question 12

All of the following were Assyrian kings EXCEPT for whom?

A)Sennacherib
B)Ashur
C)Ashurbanipal

Question 13

Which of the following was NOT part of the Hebrew religious tradition?

A)The law
B)The revelation
C)The covenant

Question 14

Assyrian art was primarily concerned with which of the following?

A)Outshining the remnants of Sumerian and Babylonian culture
B)Illustrating the gods, especially Marduk
C)Glorifying the king, hunting, and war

Question 15

Nebuchadnezzar II accomplished all EXCEPT which of the following?

A)The revision of the Persian law code
B)Rebuilding Babylon
C)Defeating the Assyrians

Question 16

The Phoenicians' contributions to the ancient Near East included which of the following?

A)The founding of several permanent colonies on the Italian peninsula
B)A simplified alphabet and system of writing
C)The establishment of an empire in Mesopotamia

Question 17

The Assyrian army was able to conquer and maintain an empire due to which of the following?

A)Its ability to use diversified military tactics
B)Its avoidance of siege war
C)Its lenient treatment of rebellious subjects

Question 18

How did Assyrian kings organize their empire more effectively?

A)Increasing the power of local noble governors
B)Reducing the numbers of royal officials
C)Being middlemen in the international trade of the era

Question 19

All of the following helped make Assyria an efficient military machine EXCEPT for which one?

A)Iron weapons
B)Terrorist actions
C)Humane treatment of prison

Question 20

How is the Hebrew Bible best described?

A)It differs fundamentally from the Torah and the Old Testament of the Christian Bible.
B)It focuses on the basic theme of the necessity of the Hebrews to obey their God.
C)It related only the words of the prophets and tells us little about Hebrew daily life.

Question 21

Describe Hebrew relations with other local groups.

Question 22

The Hebrew Bible describes the conquest of the Philistines, the Moabites, and Jerusalem as the achievements of which person?

A)David
B)Joshua
C)Solomon

Question 23

Which Persian king undertook an invasion of the Greek mainland in the early fifth century B.C.E.?

A)Cyrus
B)Cambyses
C)Darius

Question 24

Describe the Kingdom of Judah.

Question 25

Which of the following statements concerning Zoroastrianism is false?

A)It taught a spiritual message of monotheism.
B)It spread due to its acceptance by the Persian kings.
C)It did not include a last judgment among its beliefs.

Question 26

What was the name of thesun god who became a helper of Ahuramazda and later, in Roman times, the source of another religion?

A)Avesta
B)Osiris
C)Mithra

Question 27

To what was the weakening of the Persian Empire largely attributed?

A)A corrupt system of satraps that was never closely monitored by the king
B)The constant erosion and diminishment of its standing army
C)The kings' hoarding of wealth and overtaxation of their subjects

Question 28

What is the Biblical account of early Hebrew origins?

Question 29

The Persian Empire reached its largest territorial boundaries under which leader?

A)Cyrus
B)Darius
C)Xerxes

Question 30

The Persian Empire's system of satrapies allowed for which of the following?

A)Subject peoples to play a dominant role in civil administration
B)A sensible system of collecting tribute based on an area's productive capacity
C)Noble offices to be filled by election rather than hereditary means

Question 31

Describe the kingdom of Israel.

Question 32

According to early Hebrew religion, what is humanity's place in the cosmos?

Question 33

According to the Hebrew Bible, where Moses united the Israelites after their enslavement?

A)Canaan
B)Egypt
C)Akkad

Question 34

Darius accomplished all EXCEPT which of the following?

A)Building a canal that linked the Red Sea with the Mediterranean Sea
B)Conquering Egypt
C)Creating a Persian province in western India

Question 35

Describe Hebrew concepts of god.

Question 36

Zoroastrianism emphasized which of the following?

A)A struggle between good and evil
B)The eventual triumph of evil over good
C)The inability of humans to choose between right and wrong

Question 37

What is the name of the Persian Royal Road that stretched from Sardis to the capital?

A)Persepolis
B)Susa
C)Athens

Question 38

Who founded the Persian Empire, defeated Babylon, and freed the Jews from captivity in 539 b.c.?

A)Cyrus the Great
B)Artaxerxes
C)Cambyses

Question 39

Which of the following statements is NOT true of the Chaldean Empire?

A)Babylon was its great central city.
B)It was the longestlasting of the great Near Eastern empires.
C)The Hanging Gardens was created in its time.

Question 40

Which of the following statements about the Persian army is true?

A)By the time of Darius, the army had disintegrated.
B)By the time of Darius, the army had seized control of the empire.
C)By the time of Darius, the army had become professionalized.

Question 41

What sources exists for early Hebrew history, and how have they been used?

Question 42

Describe how the Assyrians governed their empire.

Question 43

According to the biblical account, what was Solomon's most revered contribution to Hebrew society?

A)Constructing the Temple, the symbolic center of the Hebrew religion and society
B)Dividing the Hebrew tribes into two separate political kingdoms
C)Decentralizing royal power and spread it among the 12 Hebrew tribes

Question 44

After the death of Solomon, tensions between the northern and southern tribes led to the establishment of which kingdoms?

A)Israel and Judah
B)Canaan and Palestine
C)Palestine and Judea

Question 45

How was religion the basis for early Hebrew culture, politics, and society?

Question 46

Describe the importance of Phoenicia to regional trade.

Question 47

How did the Persian communication system allow for a more efficient administration of the empire?

Question 48

Describe how the Achaemenids governed their empire.

Question 49

Describe the origins of the Neo-Babylonian Empire.

Question 50

According to early Hebrew worldviews, what is the role of kings?

Question 51

According to early Hebrew worldviews, what is the role of prophets?

Question 52

Describe the role of the army in the Persian Empire.

Question 53

What are the key beliefs of Zoroastrianism?

Question 54

On what points does present-day scholarship diverge from Biblical accounts of early Hebrew history? Are these important divergences?

Question 55

Describe the differences between Assyrian and Phoenician Empires.

Question 56

Describe the expansion of the Persian Empire under Cyrus.

Question 57

Describe the importance of Phoenicia to regional technological advancement.

Question 58

Why was the Assyrian army so effective?

Question 59

How did the Hebrew god differ from other Mesopotamian gods and beliefs about them?

Question 60

How did the Neo-Babylonian Empire govern its territories?

Question 61

How did Nebuchadnezzar try to associate himself with former Babylonian glory? How effective was he in doing so?

Question 62

What role didthe Hebrew prophets play in Hebrew society?

A)They were considered by the Hebrews to be the voice of God.
B)They often served as judges in the Hebrew courts.
C)They attempted to foretell the future for the Hebrew military leaders.

Question 63

Which was more important to the Assyrian empire, its army or its bureaucracy? Why?

Question 64

Hebrew religion had which of the following properties?

A)Hebrews believed in two gods who struggled for power.
B)It was an ethical religion centered around the law of God.
C)It taught there was covenant between the Hebrews and Ahuramazda.

Question 65

Why are the Phoenicians regarded as the most important of ancient Israel's neighbors?

Question 66

How are Zoroastrian beliefs represented in Persian approaches to imperial governance?

Question 67

The destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C.E. and the Babylonian captivity of the people of Judah occurred at the hands of which of the following?

A)Chaldea
B)Assyrians
C)Philistines

Question 68

How was Zoroastrianism different to other Mesopotamianreligions? What effect did Zoroastrianism have on other religions?

Question 69

All of the following are true of the Hebrew conception of God EXCEPT which one?

A)There was no room for personal relationships with him, as his word was law.
B)All peoples of the world were subject to him.
C)He would punish those not following his will.

Question 70

Would the Assyrian Army have been more effective if it did not use terror tactics? Why or why not?