CU4-16


 * 4:16 **  **Conquest of Judah **
 * Goal ** Students will learn about the conquest of Judah by the Babylonians and the beginning of the Exile.
 *  1. **** Gain the attention of the learner ** Ask the students to imagine that the United States has been conquered by a country named Babylonia, which decrees that everyone must leave and move to the conqueror’s country. How would the students feel about this prospect?
 *  2. **** Relevant past learning ** Identify period and locations to be studied on the timeline. Recall what we know about the end of Josiah’s reign, emphasizing the political situation involving Assyria, Egypt, and Babylonia. (See pp. 289-292 in “The Bible Unearthed.”)
 *  3. **** Present new learning ** Relate what historians and archeologists know about the history of Judah from the death of Josiah to its conquest by Babylonia, emphasizing the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple. (See pp. 292-295 in “The Bible Unearthed.”)
 *  4. **** Provide for guided practice ** After Babylonia had conquered Judah, it was faced with the problem of what to do with the Judeans: leave them in Judah by themselves, move other people from the Babylonian empire into the area, disperse the people to other areas, take away the leaders? If Babylonia wants to keep control of Judah, what is the best way to do this?
 * <span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: Arial"> 5. ****<span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"> Provide for independent practice **<span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'"> The Babylonians decided to exile the Judeans to Babylon. Ask the students to imagine that they are among the exiles, and can only take with them what they can carry in two suitcases. Each should make a list of the things they would take along.
 * <span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"> 6. Close the lesson **<span style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA"> Come together and share lists, explaining the choices. Finish by noting that the exiles were mostly the Jewish elite. The poor were left behind in Judea, and some of those fled to Egypt.