Professor Machinist joined the Harvard faculty in 1991, where besides NELC, he is a member of the Program in the Study of Religion and the Divinity School. Earlier, he taught in departments of religion or Near Eastern studies at Case Western Reserve University (1971-77), the University of Arizona, Tucson (1977-86), and the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (1986-1990). His primary interest is in ancient Near Eastern cultural, intellectual, and social history, focusing particularly on ancient Israel and Mesopotamia. Within this framework, research and teaching topics include: forms of group identification; ancient historiography; mythology; prophecy; Assyrian history; and the history of modern Biblical and other Near Eastern scholarship. Among his publications are: Provincial Governance in Middle Assyria ; Letters from Priests to the Kings Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal (with Steven W. Cole); "Assyria and Its Image in the First Isaiah;" "Outsiders and Insiders: The Biblical View of Emergent Israel and Its Contexts;" "Fate, Miqreh, and Reason: Reflections on Qohelet and Biblical Thought;" and "The Fall of Assyria in Comparative Ancient Perspective." Presently, he is working on a commentary on the prophetic book of Nahum. Professor Machinist is currently serving as NELC's Director of Undergraduate Studies.
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