Civilization: The evolution of society

Civilization: a complex society that displays advanced features of culture, religion, politics, technology, art, farming, etc. (National Geographic).

The Ancient Near East civilization took place during a time period in history known as the Neolithic period, meaning the New Stone Age. This age brought about the beginning of civilization as we know it today, where men went from being hunters and gatherers to becoming a settled society with farmers and builders living in cities enforced with politics, society, and law. Despite what many believe, man didn’t just suddenly evolve from brutal ape-like creatures into a civilized society. Rather, I believe that civilization started when man was created by God in His image, and our humanity is what separates us from the other creatures that God created.

One of the primary sources to record the beginning of civilization is the Pentateuch, also called the Laws of Moses, which is the first five books of the Bible. This Ancient civilization was called the children of Israel and they are remembered today for their distinct religious culture. In the book of Exodus, we see God give Moses the Ten Commandments, which was a set of basic rules and a moral guideline for the children of Israel to follow (KJV). These commandments gave Israel a structure to their society and a base for a basic system of government and religion. These laws were a covenant; if they followed these rules, God would bless them and give them land and descendants, but if they disobeyed the laws, they would be punished and God would turn His back on them. We still reference the Ten Commandments today in our society as a reference for what is right and wrong in our legal systems, and our God is still worshipped today thousands of years later.

Another primary source that records early civilization was Hammurabi’s code of laws. This was a set of 282 rules written by King Hammurabi for the ancient city of Babylon and carved upon a large black obelisk. The rules covered everything from marital relationships, farming, building, slavery, prison, disputes, etc (King). Each law was very specific, and the punishments were often brutal and deadly. This code of laws was important to the civilization of Babylon because it protected the oppressed and weak, and created a legal system for trading and a complex social and political structure (World History Edu.).

After reading the Pentateuch and the code of Hammurabi along with other primary sources about the Ancient Near East, I learned that civilization featured a written law, an intelligent form of thinking, a distinct religious culture, and a complex political and social structure.

Works Cited

King, L.W. “Code of Hammurabi, C. 1780 BCE.” Fordham.edu, 2019, sourcebooks.fordham.edu/ancient/hamcode.asp.

KJV. “Exodus Chapter 20.” Www.kingjam

esbibleonline.org, www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Exodus-Chapter-20/.3

National Geographic Society. “Civilizations.” Education.nationalgeographic.org, education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/civilizations/.

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