Which Came First, The Cosmology or the Bible?

[jordanriver]

If the Hebrews had a geocentric cosmology, did they get it from reading their Scriptures, or did they get if from their neighbors before the Scriptures existed.

In other words, did the theology influence their cosmological views or did their cosmological views influence their theology.

JR

[shunyadragon]

If the Hebrews had a geocentric cosmology, did they get it from reading their Scriptures, or did they get if from their neighbors before the Scriptures existed.

In other words, did the theology influence their cosmological views or did their cosmological views influence their theology.

JR

The present view of the origins of cosmology is that the Babylonian Cultures and in the East Neolithic/Jade Age/ Bronze Age China developed the earliest cosmologies.

[jordanriver]

The present view of the origins of cosmology is that the Babylonian Cultures and in the East Neolithic/Jade Age/ Bronze Age China developed the earliest cosmologies.

Thanks for the reply.
I am trying to find out if people think those early cosmologies influenced the writing of the Hebrews' Scriptures (the Old Testament).
Some people agree with me that the Bible does not teach geocentrism and some people do believe the Bible teaches geocentrism.

If it doesn't teach geocentrism, then, if the early Hebrews had a geocentric view, it must have come from something other than their Scriptures, (IOW, how could you have a geocentric view from reading a text unless that text actually advocates it)

In that case, they would have had the geocentric view first, and then read into Scripture an interpretation that agrees with their preconceived geocentric cosmology.

JR

[shunyadragon]

Thanks for the reply.
I am trying to find out if people think those early cosmologies influenced the writing of the Hebrews' Scriptures (the Old Testament).
Some people agree with me that the Bible does not teach geocentrism and some people do believe the Bible teaches geocentrism.

If it doesn't teach geocentrism, then, if the early Hebrews had a geocentric view, it must have come from something other than their Scriptures, (IOW, how could you have a geocentric view from reading a text unless that text actually advocates it)

In that case, they would have had the geocentric view first, and then read into Scripture an interpretation that agrees with their preconceived geocentric cosmology.

JR

Not only the early cosmologies associated with tribes of the Middle East around where the Hebrews originated , but the stories of the OT, as well as the descriptions that appear to describe a geocentric world. The OT represents this ancient world view of the pre-Babylonian Cultures.

[jordanriver]

Not only the early cosmologies associated with tribes of the Middle East around where the Hebrews originated , but the stories of the OT, as well as the descriptions that appear to describe a geocentric world. The OT represents this ancient world view of the pre-Babylonian Cultures.

I got a helpful email on this about discoveries at Uruk demonstrate their observations and how the zodiac invented by the ancient Egyptians was based on their observations of the heavenly objects 'moving across the sky. It appears that the ancients' sense perceptions (what they saw with their eyes) influenced their theological conclusions.

JR

[kuboes1831]

The hebrews did not have a geocentric cosmology but a flat earth one. Geocentricity came in from the Greeks in c500BC

Michael

[shunyadragon]

I got a helpful email on this about discoveries at Uruk demonstrate their observations and how the zodiac invented by the ancient Egyptians was based on their observations of the heavenly objects 'moving across the sky. It appears that the ancients' sense perceptions (what they saw with their eyes) influenced their theological conclusions.

JR

The discoveries at Uruk and other places in the Middle East indicate that the zodiac predated the Egyptian civilization.

[jordanriver]

The discoveries at Uruk and other places in the Middle East indicate that the zodiac predated the Egyptian civilization.

You're probably right, but a person can really take their pick. There are claims of zodiac descriptions in the ancient Rig Veda of India. David Silverman in his book Ancient Egypt (http://www.amazon.com/Ancient-Egypt-David-P-Silverman/dp/0195212703/ref=sr_11_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1200322852&sr=11-1)claims "Egyptian astronomers bequeathed to the world the zodiac" (page 57) and that the Egyptians believed that "their country lay at the centre of the cosmos" (page 92) a sort of geocentrism and then some.

JR

[shunyadragon]

You're probably right, but a person can really take their pick. There are claims of zodiac descriptions in the ancient Rig Veda of India. David Silverman in his book Ancient Egypt (http://www.amazon.com/Ancient-Egypt-David-P-Silverman/dp/0195212703/ref=sr_11_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1200322852&sr=11-1)claims "Egyptian astronomers bequeathed to the world the zodiac" (page 57) and that the Egyptians believed that "their country lay at the centre of the cosmos" (page 92) a sort of geocentrism and then some.

JR

It is most likely that astrology was a part of all Neolithic Cultures. The oldest I know of is the phases of the moon carved on a mammoth bone in Neolithic Europe. the next is groupings of stars carved in jade and other stones in China. The pre-Babylonian cuniform tablets still represent the first clear written reference to our contemporary astrology, and trade between India the Middle East to Egypt seems to be the motivation for the earliest known cuniform tablets. Various parts of the legend of Gilgamesh have been found along the these trade routes.