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Secondary sourceBook1905

The Codes of Hammurabi and Moses

W. W. Davies · 1905

A 1905 scholarly book comparing Hammurabi's ancient legal code with the laws of Moses.

This book studies and reproduces Hammurabi's legal code as evidence of his reign and lawgiving.

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About this source

What it is

This is a book written by W. W. Davies, a professor of Hebrew, published in 1905. It compares the laws of Hammurabi, king of Babylon, with the laws attributed to Moses in the Bible, including the full text of Hammurabi's code with comments and biblical references.

Why it matters

The discovery of Hammurabi's code was a major event in archaeology, and this book shows how early twentieth-century scholars used it to understand the history of law and its connections to religious tradition. It reveals how Hammurabi's code was studied not just as Babylonian history but as part of debates about the origins of biblical law.

Look closer

  • Why might a scholar in 1905 want to compare Babylonian and Hebrew law?
  • What does the author's choice of comparison tell you about his own interests or beliefs?
  • What might be lost when ancient laws are studied mainly through comparison with another culture's laws?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Hammurabi on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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