Hammurabi's Code and its impact on Religion

    Hammurabi was the first one to write laws and use religion to influence people to follow his laws. Hammurabi used the fear of religion to enforce and justify his rules. Hammurabi also used religion and the gods to explain why he was king. Simply put, he was king because the gods had chosen him. Because he was "chosen by the gods," people feared him and therefore followed his rules and laws. Hammurabi's code was also considered the basis for religious legal systems. It is considered the basis for Jewish, Christian, and Islamic religious systems. 

Babylonian Religion

   The people of Hammurabi's empire worshiped many gods. Their chief god was Marduk. Marduk was the patron god of Babylon and was associated with vegetation, judgement, and magic. The Babylonian had and worshiped at many temples or ziggurats. Babylon in particular had many temples, statues, and ziggurats.