Académique Documents
Professionnel Documents
Culture Documents
B. HALPERN, M. H. E. WEIPPERT
TH. P.J. VAN DEN HOUT, I. WINTER
VOLUME 15
W. RANDALL GARR
BRILL
LEIDEN BOSTON
2003
ISSN 1566-2055
ISBN 90 04 12980 4
Copyright 2003 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored
in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written
permission from the publisher.
Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted
by Koninklijke Brill provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly
to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive,Suite 910
Danvers, MA 01923, USA.
Fees are subject to change.
printed in the netherlands
For Susan
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
Note on Translations and Citations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xi
Abbreviations and Symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . xiii
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.
. The Plural Pronouns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Isolating Nonliteral . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Interpretations of Nonliteral . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. and Gen : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. The Pragmatic Character of the Clause . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Form-Critical Analysis of the Clause . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. Gen : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. Gods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Gods in the Yahwist and Elohist Traditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Gods Elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. Gen : . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
17
23
23
27
28
33
38
45
51
51
65
85
. -
. The Prepositions and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. The Nouns and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. and . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
95
96
104
111
117
118
132
165
.
. The Priestly Cosmogony . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Exercising Creative Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Separation and Differentiation .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Harmonic Order . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Imposing Rule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. Gods Victory over the Gods, and the Elevation of the
Human Race . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. The Gods and Their Demise . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Gods Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
.. Imitatio Dei et deorum . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
179
181
183
186
191
201
202
212
219
Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
Indices
Text Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279
Word Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
Author Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
It should have been clear to me from the beginning how difficult this
book would be. In its first incarnation, delivered at the University of
Toronto in the spring of , I presented a grammatical argument that
Gods first person plural pronouns in Gen : are referentially plural;
viz., that Ps God refers to other gods as he is about to create human
beings. A member of the audience then exposed the basic problem:
From all that is known of P, this tradition is strictly monotheistic and
does not recognize any god other than the one God (see .). It would
seem, then, that grammar and interpretation fundamentally conflict in
this instance and, I feared, that any new attempt to enter this longstanding debate was doomed. This project was trouble from the outset.
As it expanded scope, I called on colleagues, friends, and family to
help me navigate the terrain. Wallace Chafe, Carol Genetti, and especially Marianne Mithun coached me on linguistic issues. In Assyriological matters, I benefitted from the advice of Paul-Alain Beaulieu, Peter
Machinist, Erica Reiner, Piotr Steinkeller, and especially Benjamin Foster. When I got entangled in taxonomic categories, Newton Kalman
and Deborah Kaska patiently sorted out the mess. I thank them all.
I am indebted to a long list of Biblicists and non-Biblicists who
each showed me something new about a topic I thought I understood:
Yohanan Breuer, Marc Brettler, Rabbi Steven Cohen, Alan Cooper,
Barry Eichler, Richard Elliott Friedman, Gail Humphreys, Tikva Frymer-Kensky, Edward Greenstein, Jon Levenson, Jan Joosten, William
Nelson, Simon Parker, William Propp, and Jeffrey Tigay. So too, I thank
Mario Biagioli, Phyllis Bird, David Carr, Vincent DeCaen, Steven Fassberg, Michael Fox, Frank Gorman, Allan Grapard, Richard Hecht,
Aharon Maman, Elisha Qimron, John Revell, and Mark Smith.
This project made me unusually reliant on the generosity of others. James Barr, Judith Hadley, Karel Jongeling, Norbert Lohfink, Jeffrey Tigay, and Eerdmans Publishing Company graciously sent me
preprints or offprints of material not otherwise available to me. I am
grateful to the libraries and librarians of the Claremont School of
Theology, Ecole Biblique, Fuller Theological Seminary, Westmont Col-
AJSL
AJTP
ALASPM
AnBib
ANET 3
AnOr
AOAT
ARw
AS
ASOR
AsSt
ATANT
AuOr
AUSS
AzTh
BA
BARev
BASOR
BASS
BBB
BDB
BEAT
BETL
BetM
BEvTh
BI
Bib
BIS
BiSe
BJRL
BJS
BKAT
BN
BRLAJ
BScR
BT
BTZ
BWANT
BZ
BZAW
CAD
Cath
CBET
CBOT
CBQ
Andrews University Seminary Studies
Arbeiten zur Theologie
Biblical Arch(a)eologist
The Biblical Archaeology Review
Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research
Beitrge zur Assyriologie und semitischen Sprachwissenschaft
Bonner Biblische Beitrge
Francis Brown, S. R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs. A
Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Oxford:
Oxford University Press, []
Beitrge zur Erforschung des Alten Testaments und des
Antiken Judentums
Bibliotheca Ephemeridum Theologicarum Lovaniensium
Beit Mikra
Beitrge zur Evangelischen Theologie
Biblical Interpretation
Biblica
Biblical Interpretation Series
The Biblical Seminar
Bulletin of the John Rylands (University) Library (of) Manchester
Brown Judaic Studies
Biblischer Kommentar Altes Testament
Biblische Notizen
The Brill Reference Library of Ancient Judaism
Bibliothque de Sciences religieuses
The Bible Today
Berliner Theologische Zeitschrift
Beitrge zur Wissenschaft vom Alten und Neuen
Testament
Biblische Zeitschrift (neue Folge)
Beihefte zur Zeitschrift fr die alttestamentliche
Wissenschaft
The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of The
University of Chicago. Edited by Ignace J. Gelb et al.
Chicago/Glckstadt: Oriental Institute/J. J. Augustin,
Catholica
Contributions to Biblical Exegesis and Theology
Coniectanea Biblica, Old Testament Series
The Catholic Biblical Quarterly
CBQMS
CBSC
CILT
CRB
CRBS
CRRAI
CuW
DDD2
DJD
DNWSI
DS-NELL
EI
ErJ
ETL
ExAu
FAT
FRLANT
FV
GKB
GKC
GLECS
GvG
HALOT
HBS
HBT
HdO
Hen
HKAT
HR
HS
HSM
HSoed
HSS
HTR
HUCA
IBT
ICC
IDB
IEJ
Int
Interp
IOS
IRT
JANES
JAOS
JBL
JBTh
JCS
JNES
JNSL
JQR
JRS
JSOT
JSOTS
JSS
The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. Edited
by Walter Baumgartner et al. Translated and edited by
M. E. J. Richardson, G. J. Jongeling-Vos, and L. J. De
Regt. vols. Leiden: E. J. Brill, []
Herders Biblische Studien
Horizons in Biblical Theology
Handbuch der Orientalistik
Henoch
(Gttinger) Handkommentar zum Alten Testament
History of Religions
Hebrew Studies
Harvard Semitic Monographs
Horae Soederblomianae
Harvard Semitic Studies
Harvard Theological Review
Hebrew Union College Annual
Interpreting Biblical Texts
The International Critical Commentary
The Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible. Edited by George
Arthur Buttrick. vols. Nashville/New York: Abingdon
Press,
Israel Exploration Journal
Interpretation. A Journal of Bible and Theology
Interpretation. A Bible Commentary for Teaching and
Preaching
Israel Oriental Studies
Issues in Religion and Theology
The Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society
Journal of the American Oriental Society
Journal of Biblical Literature
Jahrbuch fr Biblische Theologie
Journal of Cuneiform Studies
Journal of Near Eastern Studies
Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages
The Jewish Quarterly Review
Journal of Ritual Studies
Journal for the Study of the Old Testament
Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement
Series
Journal of Semitic Studies
JTS
KAT
KeHAT
KHAT
KUSATU
LebZeug
LeDiv
Les
LouvSt
LT
MARI
MFOB
MUN
NCBC
NIBC
NZST
OBO
OBT
BS
OLA
Orien
OrSu
OTL
OTS
OTWSA
PLO
POS
QD
RA
RB
RHPR
RLA
RScR
RSO
RSP
RST
SBAB
SBB
SBLDS
SBLMS
SBLSP
SBS
SBT
ScEs
ScrB
ScrH
SEL
SHCANE
SHR
SJLA
SJOT
SOTSMS
ST
STAR
SubBi
TAPS
Tarb
TB
TD
TDNT
TDOT
ThAr
ThSt
Ras Shamra Parallels: The Texts from Ugarit and the Hebrew
Bible. Edited by Loren R. Fisher and Stan Rummel.
vols. AnOr . Rome: Pontificum Institutum Biblicum,
ThTo
TICP
TLOT
TLZ
TQ
TS
TSAJ
TWAT
TynB
TZ
UBL
UF
VT
VTS
WAW
WBC
WBTh
WC
WdF
WdM
WMANT
WPKG
WTJ
WuD
YNER
ZA
ZAH
ZAW
ZB
ZTK
Theology Today
Travaux de lInstitut catholique de Paris
Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament. Edited by Ernst Jenni
and Claus Westermann. Translated by Mark E. Biddle.
vols. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, []
Theologische Literaturzeitung
Theologische Quartalschrift
Theological Studies
Texte und Studien zum Antiken Judentum
Theologisches Wrterbuch zum Alten Testament. Edited by
G. Johannes Botterweck et al. vols. Stuttgart:
W. Kohlhammer,
Tyndale Bulletin
Theologische Zeitschrift
Ugaritisch-Biblische Literatur
Ugarit-Forschungen
Vetus Testamentum
Supplements to Vetus Testamentum
Writings from the Ancient World
Word Biblical Commentary
Weiner Beitrge zur Theologie
Westminster Commentaries
Weg der Forschung
Wrterbuch der Mythologie. Edited by Hans Wilhelm Haussig.
Stuttgart: Ernst Klett,
Wissenschaftliche Monographien zum Alten und Neuen
Testament
Wissenschaft und Praxis in Kirche und Gesellschaft
Westminster Theological Journal
Wort und Dienst
Yale Near Eastern Researches
Zeitschrift fr Assyriologie und Vorderasiatische Archologie
Zeitschrift fr Althebraistik
Zeitschrift fr die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
Zrcher Bibelkommentare
Zeitschrift fr Theologie und Kirche
LXX
Meg.
NJPS
NRSV
Babylonian Talmud
Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. Edited by K. Elliger and
W. Rudolph. th corrected ed. Stuttgart: Deutsche
Bibelgesellschaft,
Johannes Renz and Wolfgang Rllig. Handbuch
der althebrischen Epigraphik. vols. Darmstadt:
Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft,
H. Donner and W. Rllig. Kanaanische und aramische
Inschriften. Vol. : Texte. d ed. Wiesbaden: Otto
Harrassowitz,
Biblical manuscript collection of Benjamin Kennicott
(cited by MS number, as listed by De-Rossi, Variae Lectiones
Veteris Testamenti .lixxciv)
Manfred Dietrich, Oswald Loretz, and Joaqun
Sanmartn. The Cuneiform Alphabetic Texts from Ugarit,
Ras Ibn Hani and Other Places (KTU: second, enlarged edition).
ALASPM . Mnster: Ugarit-Verlag,
Septuagint
(Talmud) Tractate Megilla
Tanakh: A New Translation of The Holy Scriptures According to
the Traditional Hebrew Text. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication
Society,
New Revised Standard Version
Miscellaneous
ET
lit.
n.d.
n.p.
p.c.
s.v.
sc.
<
||
=
+
English translation
literally
no date
no place (of publication)
personal communication
sub voce
scilicet
derived from; based upon
(poetically) parallel to
identical, corresponds to; repeated, reprinted in
in conjunction with (of texts)
PREFACE
The book of Genesis begins with two distinct though interrelated narratives. The first is the Priestly cosmogony (Gen ::).1
In this first section, we are vouchsafed a sublime vision of the totality
of creation, portrayed with great synthetic power, which unifies into a
clear and comprehensible order all the endlessly changing categories
of existence; we perceive there, enthroned on high, the Idea that rises
above the accidental, the temporal and the finite, and depicts for us with
complete simplicity of expression the vast expanses of the universe to
their utmost limits. God reveals Himself as a transcendental Being
dwelling in His supernal abode.2
The second is the Yahwist story of the human race (Gen :b-:), a
more intense reflection upon the implications of creation for the destiny
of humanity.3
An interest conspicuously prominent in the entire narrative is the desire
to explain the origin of existing facts of human nature, existing customs and
institutions, especially those which were regarded as connected with the
loss by man of his primaeval innocence. Thus among the facts explained
are, for instance, in ch. ii. the distinction of the sexes, and the institution
of marriage, and in ch. iii. the gait and habits of the serpent, the
subject condition (in the ancient world) of woman, the pain of childbearing, and the toilsomeness of agriculture.4
11 See Phyllis Trible, God and the Rhetoric of Sexuality (London: SCM, []) ;
and Edward M. Curtis, Image of God (OT), in ABD .a.
12 Nahum M. Sarna, Genesis (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia: Jewish
Publication Society, ) .
13 E.g., Hermann Gunkel, Genesis (th ed.; HKAT I/; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck
& Ruprecht, []) (= Genesis [trans. Mark E. Biddle; Mercer Library of
Biblical Studies; Macon: Mercer University Press, ] ); and, differently, Cassuto,
A Commentary on the Book of Genesis (trans. Israel Abrahams; pts.; Jerusalem: Magnes,
[]) ..
14 Hans Walter Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament (trans. Margaret Kohl; Philadelphia: Fortress, []) .
15 Gerhard von Rad, Genesis (trans. John H. Marks; rev. ed.; OTL; Philadelphia:
Westminster, ) .
16 Bird, Sexual Differentiation and Divine Image in the Genesis Creation Texts,
in Image of God and Gender Models in Judaeo-Christian Tradition (ed. Kari Elisabeth Brresen;
Oslo: Solum, ) .
Gods involvement also runs deeper. As P tells the story, this last creative act coincides with an extraordinary divine event. When God initiates human creation, God takes the opportunity to identify himself, for
the first time, in the self-referential first person. At the same time, Gods
identity is invested in this human creature and is represented by two
characteristics: a divine image and a divine likeness. Humanity resembles divinity through two inherent yet divine features.17 Of all Gods
creations, only humanity is envisioned as comparable to divinity.18
V. corroborates and executes this vision. Its first clause names the
creator, the human creature, and the divine image that God invests
in human beings (v. a). Overlapping with the first,19 the second
clause identifies the divine possessor of the image (v. a). The third
clause deletes reference to the image yet describes the human creature
as a constituent pair (v. b). V. therefore reiterates the unique
relationship between God and humanity, explains the relationship, and
tracks it from its source to its individual heirs.20
.. The interpretive details of Gen : are unclear at best.21
To be sure, the characteristics uniquely shared by creator and creature assert the incomparable nature of human beings and their special
relationship to God.22 But when its two nominal componentsimage
and likenessare queried, the assertion of incomparability is quickly
qualified. For example, what does the image of God signify, and how
does the human race reflect it?23 Or, what is a divine likeness, how
Bird, Male and Female He Created Them: Gen :b in the Context of the
Priestly Account of Creation, HTR (): n. (repr. in Missing Persons and
Mistaken Identities n. ).
18 Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament ; and Josef Scharbert, Der Mensch
als Ebenbild Gottes in der neueren Auslegung von Gen ,, in Weisheit GottesWeisheit
der Welt. Festschrift fr Joseph Kardinal Ratzinger zum . Geburtstag (ed. Walter Baier et al.;
vols.; St. Ottilien: EOS, ) ..
19 Paul Humbert, Die literarische Zweiheit des Priester-Codex in der Genesis.
(Kritische Untersuchung der These von von Rad), ZAW (): .
20 See Cassuto, Genesis ..
21 See Claus Westermann, Genesis (trans. John J. Scullion; vols.; Minneapolis:
Augsburg, []) .; or Wenham, Genesis ( vols.; WBC ;
Waco/Dallas: Word, ) ..
22 Sarna, Genesis . In addition to the references cited in n. , see D. J. A. Clines,
The Image of God in Man, TynB (): (repr. as Humanity as the Image
of God, in On the Way to the Postmodern: Old Testament Essays, [ vols.;
JSOTS ; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ] .), quoted in part in
., below.
23 Jrgen Ebach, Die Erschaffung des Menschen als Bild Gottes. berlegungen zur
Anthropologie im Schpfungsbericht der Priesterschrift, WPKG (): .
17
does it compare to the divine image, and how is the likeness reflected
in humankind?24 The responses are often unsatisfying. Preuss finds that
very little distinction can be made between the two words.25 Sarnas
language is somewhat stronger: The two terms are used interchangeably and indiscriminately.26 Horst adds bravado.
[O]ne has to conclude that image and likeness are, like prototype
and original, essentially equivalent expressions.27 They do not seek to
describe two different sorts of relationship, but only a single one; the
second member of the word-pair does not seek to do more than in some
sense to define the first more closely and to reinforce it. That is to say,
it seeks so to limit and to fix the likeness and accord between God and
man that, in all circumstances, the uniqueness of God will be guarded.28
25
lar significance in the change of prepositions (in our image, according to our likeness). In [Gen] . they are exchanged without any difference in meaning.34 It is in accordance with the sense to render
both prepositions in the same way. Both the nouns and the prepositions are interchangeable ; one verb covers both phrases, and
; we have not two but one expression.35 Whereas the language
of Gen : differentiates two types of divine-human relationship, most
scholars abandon a grammatical analysis as futile.36 Early attempts to
distinguish between and have been given up.37
Another grammatical problem engenders an irritating theological
issue. Elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible, God usually refers to himself
as a singular entity (e.g., I).38 But in Gen :, when God introduces
and speaks of himself, he uses the first person plural pronoun. Moreover, this unconventional pronoun is repeated three times within a span
of four Hebrew words. The aggregate is impressive. If the plural is
Erich Zenger, Gottes Bogen in den Wolken. Untersuchungen zu Komposition und Theologie der
priesterschriftlichen Urgeschichte (d ed.; SBS ; Stuttgart: Katholisches Bibelwerk, )
n. . See also Friedrich Schwally, Die biblischen Schpfungsberichte, ARw
(): n. .
34 Von Rad, Genesis . See also Humbert, tudes sur le rcit du paradis ; Johann
Jakob Stamm, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen im Alten Testament (ThSt ; Zollikon:
Evangelischer Verlag, ) ; Barr, OTWSA (): ; Mettinger, ZAW ():
; Bird, HTR (): n. (= Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities n. );
F. J. Stendebach,
s. elem, in TDOT .; and Jenni, Die Prposition Beth (Die
hebrischen Prpositionen ; Stuttgart: W. Kohlhammer, ) .
35 Westermann, Genesis .. See also Loretz, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen ;
Odil Hannes Steck, Der Schpfungsbericht der Priesterschrift. Studien zur literarkritischen und
berlieferungsgeschichten Problematik von Genesis ,,a (d ed.; FRLANT ; Gttingen:
Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, ) n. ; Andreas Angerstorfer, Hebrisch dmwt
und aramisch dmw(t). Ein Sprachproblem der Imago-Dei-Lehre, BN ():
with n. ; and Bird, Bone of My Bone and Flesh of My Flesh, ThTo ():
. Similarly, August Dillmann, Die Genesis (th ed.; KeHAT ; Leipzig: S. Hirzel,
) (= Genesis [trans. Wm. B. Stevenson; vols.; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, ]
.); Gunkel, Genesis4 (= ET ); H. Wildberger,
s. elem image, in TLOT
.; and Ernst-Joachim Waschke, Untersuchungen zum Menschenbild der Urgeschichte. Ein
Beitrag zur alttestamentlichen Theologie (ThAr ; Berlin: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, )
.
36 Note M. Vervenne: [T]he Priestly redactors do not really care about grammar (The Blood is the Life and the Life is the Blood: Blood as Symbol of Life and
Death in Biblical Tradition [Gen. ,], in Ritual and Sacrifice in the Ancient Near East:
Proceedings of the International Conference [ed. J. Quaegebeur; OLA ; Louvain:
Peeters, ] ).
37 Westermann, Genesis ..
38 Cf. the source-critical judgement of Israel Knohl, The Sanctuary of Silence: The
Priestly Torah and the Holiness School (Minneapolis: Fortress, ) .
here, it is here deliberately.39 On occasion, the response to this grammatical detail is strictly grammatical. The point at issue is one of
grammar alone, without a direct bearing on the meaning.40 But the
history of interpretation shows this tack to be naive, narrow-minded,
and absurd.41 The plural form itself implies, if not virtually guarantees,
that the divine referent is not singular. Obviously, there do seem to be
other divine beings in Genesis , to whom God proposes the creation of
humanity.42 But for many, this inference is not obvious. [I]t is impossible that P should have understood the plural in this way, not only
because he was not familiar with the idea of a heavenly court, but also
because of his insistence on the uniqueness of Yahweh, besides whom
there could be no other heavenly being. Angels or any sort of intermediary beings are found nowhere in P.43 Gods self-identification therefore presents an interpretive conundrum. Since Gods self-referential
expressions are plural, they imply a nonsingular referent and simultaneously subvert Ps theological conviction in strict monotheism.44
.. A conundrum indeed. In the beginning, the story of human creation in Gen : is a sublime, interlocking, and well-nigh poetic
39 Clines, TynB (): (= On the Way to the Postmodern .). See also, inter alios,
Walther Zimmerli, Old Testament Theology in Outline (trans. David E. Green; Edinburgh:
T. & T. Clark, []) ; and, esp., P. J. Harland, The Value of Human Life: A Study
of the Story of the Flood (Genesis ) (VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
40 E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB ; Garden City, New York: Doubleday, ) . Cf.
Anderson, God, Names of, in IDB ..
41 See the references in ch. n. .
42 Jon D. Levenson, Creation and the Persistence of Evil: The Jewish Drama of Divine
Omnipotence (Mythos; Princeton: Princeton University Press, []) . See also
Gunkel, Schpfung und Chaos2 (= idem, in Creation in the Old Testament ); Driver,
Genesis12 ; and Sarna, Genesis . Cf. Wildberger, Das Abbild Gottes. Gen. , ,
TZ (): (repr. in Jahwe und sein Volk. Gesammelte Aufstze zum Alten Testament. Zu
seinem . Geburtstag am . Januar [ed. Hans Heinrich Schmid and Odil Hannes
Steck; TB ; Munich: Chr. Kaiser, ] ).
43 Westermann, Genesis .. See also Stamm, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen
; idem, Zur Frage der Imago Dei im Alten Testament, in Humanitt und Glaube.
Gedenkschrift fr Kurt Guggisberg (ed. Ulrich Neuenschwander and Rudolf Dellsperger;
Bern/Stuttgart: Paul Haupt, ) ; Schmidt, Die Schpfungsgeschichte2 ; Gerhard F. Hasel, The Meaning of Let Us in Gn :, AUSS (): ; Vawter,
On Genesis ; Gro, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen im Kontext der Priesterschrift, TQ (): with n. (= Studien zur Priesterschrift und Gottesbildern
with n. ); and idem, BN (): (= Studien zur Priesterschrift und Gottesbildern
). For compromise positions, see Humbert, tudes sur le rcit du paradis ; and Patrick
D. Miller, Jr., Genesis : Studies in Structure & Theme (JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT, )
. See also . with n. .
44 See Zenger, Gottes Bogen in den Wolken2 n. .
can become minimal and limited.57 The specific textual identity of the
Priestly document is not presently certain.58
This uncertainty, though, does not doom the documentary hypothesis altogether but requires modification of its basic results.59 One modification is hermeneutically restorative. There is a general tendency
to retain the labels of the Yahwist, the Elohist and the Priestly work
only as broad traditions rather than as individual literary sources.60
Within this context, most scholars agree that the Yahwist (J) and Elohist (E) traditions not only antedate P, but that P probably knew and
utilized a combined JE tradition.61 The other modification is separative. There is a growing consensus that the Priestly tradition is a composite of internally distinct layers:62 an earlier Priestly source (P), as in
Narrative and Deuteronomy [trans. Linda M. Maloney; Minneapolis: Fortress, ]
n. ).
57 See Knohl, The Sanctuary of Silence .
58 Frank Crsemann, The Torah: Theology and Social History of Old Testament Law (trans.
Allan W. Mahnke; Minneapolis: Fortress, []) .
59 See Lester L. Grabbe, The Book of Leviticus, CRBS (): . Cf. Gary
A. Rendsburg, Biblical Literature As Politics: The Case of Genesis, in Religion and
Politics in the Ancient Near East (ed. Adele Berlin; Studies and Texts in Jewish History and
Culture; Bethesda: University of Maryland Press, ) .
60 Dennis T. Olson, The Death of the Old and the Birth of the New: The Framework of the
Book of Numbers and the Pentateuch (BJS ; Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, ) (despite
his own evaluation).
61 E.g., Lohfink, in Congress Volume: Gttingen, n. (= Theology of the Pentateuch
n. ); J. A. Emerton, The Priestly Writer in Genesis, JTS (): , ;
Richard Elliott Friedman, Torah (Pentateuch), in ABD .; and, in this context,
Johannes C. de Moor, The Duality in God and Man: Gen. : as Ps Interpretation of the Yahwistic Creation Account, in Intertextuality in Ugarit and Israel. Papers
Read at the Tenth Joint Meeting (ed. idem; OTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, )
with n. . See also Cross, Traditional Narrative and the Reconstruction of Early
Israelite Institutions, in idem, From Epic to Canon: History and Literature in Ancient Israel
(Baltimore/London: Johns Hopkins University Press, ) ; idem, The Priestly
Tabernacle and the Temple of Solomon, in ibid. ; Rendtorff, CRBS (): ; and
Barr, in Ebenbild GottesHerrscher ber die Welt . Cf. Blenkinsopp, P and J in Genesis ::: An Alternative Hypothesis, in Fortunate the Eyes That See: Essays in Honor of
David Noel Freedman in Celebration of His Seventieth Birthday (ed. Astrid B. Beck et al.; Grand
Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, ) , esp. ; Philip R. Davies, Making It:
Creation and Contradiction in Genesis, in The Bible in Human Society: Essays in Honour
of John Rogerson (ed. M. Daniel Carroll R., David J. A. Clines, and Philip R. Davies;
JSOTS ; [Sheffield:] Sheffield Academic Press, ) ; and Wenham, VT
(): .
62 For a recent review, see Mark S. Smith and Elizabeth M. Bloch-Smith, The Pilgrimage Pattern in Exodus (JSOTS ; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ) .
For an earlier statement, see Morton Smith, Palestinian Parties and Politics That Shaped the
Old Testament (New York/London: Columbia University Press, ) , n. .
Gen :;63 and a later Holiness stratum (H), as in Lev .64 A subsequent, Priestly redactive hand (RP) can also be detected where Priestly
and non-Priestly texts meet, as in Gen :a.65 Priestly genealogies (PT)
may represent still another developmental level, although their status as
source or redaction is not yet resolved.66 The entire Priestly tradition,
then, is an accretion of three or four constituent parts.67
An underlying heterogeneity can nonetheless be theologically coherent. In case of Ezekiel, for example, Zimmerli and others have demonstrated that heirs of a particular tradition can be theologically consistent
with their antecedent.68 The same may be said of the components of
the Priestly pentateuchal tradition. True, it is likely that H constitutes
an independent entity within P.69 Yet H is also a product of Priestly
circles.70
Notwithstanding differences between them,71 H is closer to P than to any
other part of the Old Testament. The content, language and theology
overlap to a considerable degree [which] suggests that the editors
perceived no basic incompatibility with the Priestly perspective. There
63 Cf. Howard N. Wallace, The Toledot of Adam, in Studies in the Pentateuch (ed. J.
A. Emerton; VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) (on Gen :).
64 So, prominently, Knohl, The Sanctuary of Silence; and Jacob Milgrom, Leviticus (
vols.; AB B; New York: Doubleday, ) ., .. Cf. Crsemann, The Torah n. ; and Kent Sparks, A Comparative Study of the Biblical
Laws, ZAW (): n. .
65 E.g., Brian Peckham, Writing and Editing, in Fortunate the Eyes That See ;
and Carr, Reading the Fractures of Genesis with n. , . See also Blenkinsopp, in Fortunate See . Cf. Scharbert, Der Sinn der Toledot-Formel in der Priesterschrift, in WortGebotGlaube. Beitrge zur Theologie des Alten Testaments. Walther Eichrodt
zum . Geburtstag (ed. Hans Joachim Stoebe, Johann Jakob Stamm, and Ernst Jenni;
ATANT ; Zurich: Zwingli, ) with n. . It has also been alleged that the
redactional bridge may even include the second half of v. (Julian Morgenstern, The
Sources of the Creation StoryGenesis ::, AJSL []: , ; and Levenson, Creation and Evil n. . Cf. Wenham, VT []: ).
66 For a representative sample, see Sean E. McEvenue, The Narrative Style of the Priestly
Writer (AnBib ; Rome: Biblical Institute Press, ) n. ; Propp, VT ():
n. ; and Carr, Revisited: A Synchronic Analysis of Patterns in
Genesis as Part of the Torah, ZAW (): .
67 See Milgrom, Studies in Levitical Terminology (University of California Publications
Near Eastern Studies ; Berkeley: University of California Press, ) ..
68 See Childs, Retrospective Reading of the Old Testament Prophets, ZAW
(): . Note also Moshe Weinfeld, Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomic School (Oxford: Oxford University Press, ) n. .
69 Avi Hurvitz, A Linguistic Study of the Relationship between the Priestly Source and the Book
of Ezekiel: A New Approach to an Old Problem (CRB ; Paris: J. Gabalda, ) .
70 Knohl, The Sanctuary of Silence . See also Crsemann, The Torah .
71 For details, see the references in n. .
The several layers constitute kindred parts of, as well as feed, a theologically common, Priestly tradition.79
72 Philip Peter Jenson, Graded Holiness: A Key to the Priestly Conception of the World
(JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT Press, ) . See also Milgrom, Leviticus .; and
Crsemann, The Torah .
73 Terence E. Fretheim, The Pentateuch (IBT; Nashville: Abingdon, ) . See
also Klaus Koch, Die Toledot-Formeln als Strukturprinzip des Buches Genesis, in
Recht und Ethos im Alten TestamentGestalt und Wirkung. Festschrift fr Horst Seebass zum .
Geburtstag (ed. Stefan Beyerle, Gnter Mayer, and Hans Strau; Neukirchen-Vluyn:
Neukirchener Verlag, ) .
74 Baruch A. Levine, Leviticus (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia: Jewish
Publication Society, ) xxvii. See also Speiser, Genesis xxiv; Anderson, in Biblical
Studies in Contemporary Thought (= From Creation to New Creation ); and, on H,
J. Joosten, People and Land in the Holiness Code: An Exegetical Study of the Ideational Framework
of the Law in Leviticus (VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
75 Rgine Hinschberger, Image et ressemblance dans la tradition sacerdotale Gn
,; ,; ,b, RScR (): .
76 Wallace, in Studies in the Pentateuch, esp. .
77 Cf. Scharbert, in Weisheit GottesWeisheit der Welt .; and, tangentially, Carr,
Reading the Fractures of Genesis n. .
78 Carr, Reading the Fractures of Genesis (italics original). See also Robert R. Wilson,
Genealogy and History in the Biblical World (YNER ; New Haven/London: Yale University Press, ) ; Robert B. Robinson, Literary Functions of the Genealogies of
Genesis, CBQ (): ; and, differently, Westermann, Genesis ..
79 See, in this context, Weinfeld, Deuteronomy (AB ; New York: Doubleday, )
; and Smith and Bloch-Smith, The Pilgrimage Pattern in Exodus .
GOD AND THE GODS
THE PLURAL PRONOUNS
With few exceptions, the Israelite deity is a grammatically singular
entity. In J, for example, singular pronounswhether independent or
affixedregularly substitute for nominal designations of God. Js God,
then, is almost invariably represented by first (e.g., Gen :, :), second (e.g., :, :), and third person singular pronouns (e.g., :,
:). But this grammatical feature is not limited to J. Many passages
indicate that each pentateuchal tradition does the same: e.g., : (E),
Ex : (P), Dt : (D), or Ex : =Dt :. Regardless of documentary source or grammatical person, God is a singular pronominal
entity in Biblical Hebrew.
In four passages, though, God apparently identifies himself as we.
One text falls outside of the Pentateuch and is embedded in Isaiahs
prophetic commission.
Then I heard the voice of my Lord saying, Whom shall I send?
Who will go for us? And I said, Me. Send me. (Is :)
Despite the theological turmoil that it entails, this latter opinion remains the consensus.16
.. This opinion is also correct. But it has not advanced beyond educated opinion or speculation. Absent decisive evidence, corroboration,
and theological rationale, the consensus position has yet to instill confidence. Nonetheless, there is evidence that provides a credible basis for
interpreting the divine plurals of Gen : as references to Gods attendant beings. This evidence is linguistic in nature. It is a phenomenon
that appears in J, one of the sources of P and the Priestly tradition. Further, this linguistic phenomenon intersects with one instance of Gods
plural we (Gen :). The phenomenon is Js expression
.
.. Isolating Nonliteral
The imperative of is morphologically regular but phonologically
irregular. Like all imperatives, it is inflected for gender and number.
Like all inflected imperatives, the form participates in a sound change
that shifts the accent onto the ultima when that final syllable ends in a
monomorphemic, long-vocalic affix.2
He said, ! Present the wrap that you are wearing. (Ru :a)
Joseph said, e Give (me) your livestock, and I will give [the food] to
you in exchange for your livestock. (Gen :a [J])
But other verbs lose their penultimate vowel consequent to the accent
shift, as in K take! > !O take! ( Kgs :; Is :, :) and eO
take! does not. As Ru : and Gen : indicate, the verbs
penultimate, thematic vowel is retained and lengthened instead.3 More1 See Hermann Gunkel, Genesis (th ed.; HKAT I/; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck &
Ruprecht, []) (= Genesis [trans. Mark E. Biddle; Mercer Library of Biblical
Studies; Macon: Mercer University Press, ] ).
2 For this change, see A. Ungnad, Zum hebrischen Verbalsystem, BASS /
(): ; Chr. Sarauw, ber Akzent und Silbenbildung in den lteren semitischen Sprachen (Det
Kgl. Danske Videnskabernes Selskab, Historisk-filologiske Meddelelser /; Copenhagen: Ejnar Munksgaard, ) ; and J. Blau, Notes on Changes in Accent
in Early Hebrew, in Hayyim (Jefim) Schirmann Jubilee Volume (ed. Shraga Abramson
and Aaron Mirsky; Jerusalem: Schocken Institute for Jewish Research, )
(in Hebrew) (repr. in Studies in Hebrew Linguistics [Jerusalem: Magnes, ] [in
Hebrew]).
3 Sarauw, ber Akzent und Silbenbildung n. (continued from ); and E. J. Revell,
Stress Position in Hebrew Verb Forms with Vocalic Affix, JSS (): . See also
GKC o; and GKB c.
The difference may not yet arise in J, whose literal is phonologically identical to that of its other inflected imperatives.4 But after the
time of J, literal does not participate in the contextual accent shift;5
its accent clings to the penult.6 The inflected imperatives of are
phonologically exceptional in their vocalism and, on occasion, their
accent.
Js has two interpretations. In Gen :, where the form participates in the accent shift, it has a literal interpretation. Elsewhere, it
does not.7
They said to one another, Lets let us make bricks and burn them
well. They had brick for stone,
& and they had bitumen for mortar.
(Gen :)
Then they said, Lets let us build ourselves a city and a tower with
its top in heaven, and let us make ourselves a name, or else we will be
scattered over the surface of the whole earth. (Gen :)
When Judah saw her, he considered her a prostitute because she had
covered her face. He turned to her at the road and said, Lets,
please, I come to you, because he did not know that she was his
daughter-in-law. She then said, What will you give me for coming to
me? (Gen :)
4 Cf. Hans Bauer and Pontus Leander, Historische Grammatik der hebrischen Sprache des
Alten Testamentes (Halle a. S.: Max Niemeyer, ) f; and Paul Joon, A Grammar of
Biblical Hebrew (trans. and rev. T. Muraoka; vols.; SubBi /III; Rome: Pontificio
Istituto Biblico, ) , though the alleged phonological condition is special,
circumscribed, and implemented only irregularly.
5 For a typological parallel, see Paul J. Hopper and Elizabeth Closs Traugott, Grammaticalization (Cambridge Textbooks in Linguistics; Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, ) .
6 Heinrich Ewald, Ausfhrliches Lehrbuch der hebrischen Sprache des Alten Bundes (th ed.;
Gttingen: Dieterich, ) a. See also Justus Olshausen, Lehrbuch der hebrischen
Sprache (Braunschweig: Friedrich Vieweg und Sohn, ) a; and Friedrich Eduard
Knig, Historisch-kritisches Lehrgebude der hebrischen Sprache ( pts.; Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs,
) .b.
7 Yeshayahu Teshima, Come, Let Us Deal Shrewdly with Them, or They Will
Increase: Rashis Linguistic Evaluation of the Functions of and the Hithpael Stem,
BetM (): (in Hebrew); and, tangentially, Johannes F. Diehl, Steh auf,
setz dich und iImperative zwischen Begriffswort und Interjektion, in KUSATU
(): .
He said to his people, Look, the Israelite people are more numerous
and robust than us. Lets let us deal wisely with them, or else they
will increase and, in the event of war, they too will join our foes, fight
against us, and go up from the land. (Ex :)
Come, let us make our father drink wine, and let us
lie with him so that we keep the lineage alive through our father.
(Gen : [J])
So come, please, curse this people for me. (Num :aa [J]; see
also v. b)
Israel said to Joseph, Your brothers are pasturing at Shechem, no?
Come, I will send you to them. (Gen :a [J])
When the ark went out, Moses would say, Up, O Lord. May
your enemies be scattered and may your foes flee from before
you. (Num : [J]); see also
Jacob said to his father, I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you
told me. Now, please, sit and eat some of my game,
so that you may bless me. (Gen : [J])
Early in the morning, at the break of dawn, Samuel called to Saul on the
roof, Up! I want to send you off. ( Sam :a)
Nonliteral is restricted to direct speech; its execution is not reported in the ensuing narrative.15 Nonliteral functions as a purely interactional, pragmatic particle.16 It is dialect-specific, syntactically circumscribed, morphologically frozen, and nonreferential.
Perspective, LT (): .
15 Cf. Diehl, in KUSATU (): n. (on ).
16 Jill Snyder, *yhb in the Bible from a Grammaticization Perspective (masters
thesis, University of California, Santa Barbara, ) .
.. Interpretations of Nonliteral
Scholars have suggested a number of interpretations to explain the
function of nonliteral . Many, for example, rely on a formal cue.
Inasmuch as is derived from, and formally identical to, the long
imperative,17 the word is often explained as a directive.18 It may express
wish,19 advice,20 or permission.21 It may express invitation22 or encouragement.23 Or it may be a hortative particle.24 The force of nonliteral
may therefore be weak, mild, or strong.
Another interpretation begins with a formal association. In this case,
though, the association is a morphological comparison between
and the cohortative. Since these two forms also share the identical
ending,25 their common morphology may imply a common semantic component. Like the cohortative,26 is said to express desiderative meaning and register intent.27 Thereafter, though, the specifics of
this intentive particle are elusive. may serve an introductory func17 Ewald, Ausfhrliches Lehrbuch der hebrischen Sprache8 a; and Mann, Le
s ():
. See also B. Jacob, Das erste Buch der Tora. Genesis (Berlin: Schocken, ) .
18 For the imperative as the unmarked directive, see F. R. Palmer, Mood and Modality
(Cambridge Textbooks in Linguistics; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, )
. For various interpretations of the directive, see Geoffrey N. Leech, Principles of Pragmatics (Longman Linguistics Library ; London/New York: Longman, ) .
19 Knig, Historisch-kritisches Lehrgebude der hebrischen Sprache / g.
20 Sifre Deuteronomy (ed. Finkelstein) (on Dt :; citing Sam :). See also
Kimhi, a.
21 See Henkin, in Semitic and Cushitic Studies (on modern Hebrew ).
22 Rashi, on Gen : and Ex :. See also Teshima, BetM (): .
23 Mann, Le
s (): .
24 Waltke and OConnor, Biblical Hebrew Syntax ..c.
25 Franz Delitzsch, Neuer Commentar ber die Genesis (Leipzig: Drffling und Franke,
) (= A New Commentary on Genesis [trans. Sophia Taylor; vols.; ; repr.,
Minneapolis: Klock & Klock, ] .). For the alignment of - in the cohortative
and long imperative, see Olshausen, Lehrbuch der hebrischen Sprache c; GKB f;
Harris Birkeland, Akzent und Vokalismus im Althebrischen (Skrifter utgitt av Det Norske
Videnskaps-Akademi i Oslo, II. Hist.-filos. Klasse, , no. ; Oslo: Jacob Dybwad,
) ; Blau, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew (d ed.; PLO ; Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz,
) .; and Steven E. Fassberg, Studies in Biblical Syntax (Jerusalem: Magnes, )
(in Hebrew).
26 For the desiderative nature of the cohortative, see GKB a; Rudolf Meyer,
Hebrische Grammatik (Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter, []) .;
and Waltke and OConnor, Biblical Hebrew Syntax .b.
27 Joseph Derenbourg and Hartwig Derenbourg, Opuscules et traits dAbou l-Walid
Merwan ibn Djanah de Cordoue (Paris: Imprimerie Nationale, ) ; and Nahum
M. Sarna, Genesis (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia: Jewish Publication
Society, ) .
tion, preparing the addressee for the event expressed by the appositive
verb (e.g., Gen :).28 Or its function may be less referential, more
interactional, and affective (e.g., :).29 And if affective, may
reflect polite speech or its oppositeperemptory and crudely material
requests.30 Regardless of its specific value, though, these interpretations fundamentally agree that nonliteral is willful, manipulative,
and goal-oriented. is a suasive particle.
A final interpretation concedes this pragmatic point yet focuses on
the degree of speaker participation in the desired event.31 According
to this understanding, may imply the speakers involvement in a
future event (e.g., Ex :).32 To this extent, may also serve an affiliative function. It would reflect, promote, or establish solidarity between
speaker and addressee in an interactive conversational context.33
.. and Gen :
For the most part, nonliteral clauses are structurally consistent
(.). always heads its clause and is followed asyndetically by a
verb that expresses the clauses principal argument. Yet the form of
the main verb may vary. In Gen :. and Ex :, it is an explicitly cohortative plural verb form. In Gen : too, are commonly
interpreted as plural cohortatives;34 their final weak root structure virtually precludes a distinct cohortative form.35 Gen :, however, seems
to be different.
28 In addition to the classical references in nn. and , see Jacob, The Second
Book of the Bible: Exodus (trans. Walter Jacob and Yaakov Elman; Hoboken, New Jersey:
Ktav, []) ; and Claus Westermann, Genesis (trans. John J. Scullion; vols.;
Minneapolis: Augsburg, []) ..
29 See John Lyons, Semantics ( vols.; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
[]) ., in conjunction with Thomas Holtgraves, Language Structure in
Social Interaction: Perceptions of Direct and Indirect Speech Acts and Interactants
Who Use Them, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (): . Mann,
however, contests this interpretation of Gen : (Les []: n. ).
30 Robert Alter, The Art of Biblical Narrative (New York: Basic Books, ) . Snyder,
however, does not find these two interpretations incompatible (*yhb in the Bible, ,
).
31 Snyder, *yhb in the Bible, .
32 Fassberg, Studies in Biblical Syntax .
33 Derenbourg and Derenbourg, Opuscules et traits dibn Djanah .
34 Delitzsch, Neuer Commentar ber die Genesis (= ET .); and Waltke and
OConnor, Biblical Hebrew Syntax n. .
35 GKB f. See also GKC l; and Joon and Muraoka, A Grammar of Biblical
Hebrew o.
n. .
language includes morphologically explicit cohortatives and morphologically explicit long imperatives of final aleph roots. In contrast,
in Gen : is nothing other than its obvious grammatical form: the
imperfect.40
... In addition to its form, another feature distinguishes Gen :
from other nonliteral clauses. Its following constituent is not verbal.
It is the clitic .
The syntax of is not problematic. is always placed after the
expression to which it belongs41 and often coincides with postpositive
position. In fact, regularly displaces the constituent that would otherwise follow its head (compare Gen :a and :a, or Num :a and
Gen :, :a, :a [J]). Syntactically, postpositive is not unusual
in Gen :.
But this clitic may have grammatical and/or semantic repercussions.
For when is inserted between two verb forms that would otherwise
participate in modal congruence, the combined verbs do not necessarily appear in their expected forms.
The Lord said to Abram , Up! Walk about the land, its
length and its breadth, for I shall give it to you. (Gen : [J])
Now, O God,
(Ps :; cf. :)
Jacob said to his father, I am Esau, your firstborn. I have done as you
told me. Now, please, sit and eat some of my game, so
that you may bless me. (Gen : [J])
41
44 For a broader discussion, see Garr, Drivers Treatise and the Study of Hebrew:
Then and Now, in S. R. Driver, A Treatise on the Use of the Tenses in Hebrew and Some
Other Syntactical Questions (th ed.; ; repr., The Biblical Resources Series; Grand
Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, ) lxiiilxiv.
45 A. B. Davidson, Hebrew Syntax (d ed.; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, []) .
46 See Hans-Peter Mller, Das Bedeutungspotential der Afformativkonjugation.
Zum sprachgeschichtlichen Hintergrund des Althebrischen, ZAH (): .
47 See Lyons, Semantics . (on the mand), in conjunction with Timothy Wilt, A
Sociolinguistic Analysis of na, VT (): .
48 Wilt, VT (): .
49 See Shulman, HS (): .
50 So Stephen A. Kaufman: does mean please and related nuances in all of its
contexts (An Emphatic Plea for Please, in Let Your Colleagues Praise You: Studies in
Memory of Stanley Gevirtz [ed. Robert J. Ratner et al.; pts.; Maarav ; Rolling Hills
Estates, Calif.: Western Academic Press, ()] . [italics added]). See
also GKC n. ; and Wilt, VT (): . Cf. Fassberg, Studies in Biblical
Syntax .
51
52
53
He said to his people, Look, the Israelite people are more numerous
and robust than us. Lets let us deal wisely with them, or else they
will increase and, in the event of war, they too will join our foes, fight
against us, and go up from the land. (Ex :)
55
.. Form-Critical Analysis of the Clause
Complementary to their common linguistic structure, semantic content, and pragmatic character, clauses share a form-critical pattern.
This pattern has five invariable components which are distributed over
the clause and its narrative execution. One of these components
will also help limit the possible readings of Gods plural pronoun in
Gen :.
... Of its five components, the first three appear in the clause
itself.
i) When a biblical character utters a clause, its core argument is
always expressed by one of two verb forms. For the most part, the argument takes the form of a plural cohortative and expresses the speakers
commitment to bring about a desired future situation for the speakerinclusive group (..). In one case, the argument is a grammatical
imperfect which expresses the speakers affirmative, or near, certainty
about the stated situation (ibid.).76 Each time, then, the core argument
of the clause is grammatically modal: deontic (desiderative) or epistemic, respectively. Each verb form also has its own, conventional function: (self-) directive and (slightly qualified) assertion, respectively.77
ii) The second component of the clause pertains to the type
of situation expressed by the directive/assertive verb. Uncoincidentally,
each verb has the same semantic characteristics. Each verb expresses
a situation that is consciously initiated, such as make bricks or burn
(Gen :). Each is inherently dynamic, like come (:). And each
situation, like build or make (:), is controlled by an agent. The
core argument of the clause expresses an event.78
Ostensibly, the core argument of the clause in Ex : is not
an event. Certainly the root of expresses a state-like notion,
Multilingual Matters, ()] . See also E. Adelaide Hahn, Subjunctive and Optative:
Their Origin as Futures [New York: American Philological Association, ] ).
76 Garr, in Driver, A Treatise on the Use of the Tenses 4 liiiliv.
77 For the imperfect functioning as a directive, see Driver, ibid. with n. . Compare Anson F. Rainey, who overstates the degree of control expressed by the (paragogic)
imperfect (The Ancient Hebrew Prefix Conjugation in the Light of Amarnah Canaanite, HS []: ).
78 For the definition, see, e.g., Bernard Comrie, Aspect: An Introduction to the Study
of Verbal Aspect and Related Problems (Cambridge Textbooks in Linguistics; Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, []) ; and Carlota S. Smith, The Parameter
of Aspect (d ed.; Studies in Linguistics and Philosophy ; Dordrecht: Kluwer, )
.
whether as a nominal entity or a property concept (adjective); it is relatively stable over time (i.e., nondynamic), and its root meaning demands
neither conscious initiation nor control.79 Its grammatical stem, however, suggests otherwise. For when a hithpael verb is derived from a
nominal, the stem often carries a semblative sensethat of acting like
its base:80 e.g., act like a prophet, act like (someone in) mourning, and act like (someone) rich. Denominative hithpaels require semantic agents and express dynamic events,81
albeit to different degrees. expresses an event as well. In fact,
since the directive is executed by imposing a supervisory structure and
inflicting physical hardship on the Israelites (Ex :a.a), the implicature of Pharaohs hithpael is thoroughly agentful. Pharaoh expresses his
desire that the people, himself included, act like with reason,
intelligence, prudence, and pragmatism.82 The act, whatever it be,83 is
willed, willful, and within the agents control.
iii) The agent of each event can be specified as another form-critical
element. Each time, the event expressed in each clause requires
the participation of two distinct parties: the speaker and an addressee.
The collaborative participation may be instigated conversationally, as
when Pharaoh includes himself and his people in his proposal of
(see Ex :b). Or the proposed event may itself require two separate
participants, as in Judahs overture to Tamar. It nevertheless requires
the cooperative involvement of the speaker as well as the addressee.
A similar, cooperative relationship between speaker and addressee
is present in Gen :. Admittedly, speaker and addressee are not
absolutely distinct in these verses, since they are all new arrivals on
the Shinar plain, and they virtually speak with one voice (vv. ).
But their numerical plurality entails an internally composite group, as
79 For a discussion, see Sandra A. Thompson, A Discourse Approach to the CrossLinguistic Category Adjective, in Explaining Language Universals (ed. John A. Hawkins;
Oxford: Basil Blackwell, ) (repr. in Linguistic Categorization [ed. Roberta
Corrigan, Fred Eckman, and Michael Noonan; CILT ; Amsterdam/Philadelphia:
John Benjamins, ] ).
80 GKB c. Cf., e.g., Waltke and OConnor, Biblical Hebrew Syntax ..
81 Cf. Robert R. Wilson, Prophecy and Society in Ancient Israel (Philadelphia: Fortress,
) (on ).
82 See August Dillmann, Die Bcher Exodus und Leviticus (ed. Victor Ryssel; d ed.;
KeHAT ; Leipzig: S. Hirzel, ) . For the ironic nature of the speech, see Childs,
Exodus .
83 Driver, The Book of Exodus (CBSC; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, )
.
indicated by the distributive phrase one to another (v. aa). When the
people speak to one another, they speak separately and exhaustively to
every single member of [the] group.84 In which case, the speaker and
addressee are, indeed, separate. Each time, a speaker bids to engage a
separate addressee jointly in cooperative behavior.
... Whereas three form-critical components of the clause
appear in direct speech, two do not. These latter elements appear,
directly or indirectly, when the clause is executed in the narrative.
iv) Although the clause should theoretically elicit a response of
consent or nonconsent, none is recorded. Only once does the addressee
verbally respond to the speakers prodding. But the response expresses
neither consent nor nonconsent; in this one instance, it consists of
commercial negotiation (Gen :b-a).
It is always possible, however, to infer the addressees response to
the clause. For the response can, as elsewhere, be implied in the
addressees responsive behavior.
When the troops came to the camp, the elders of Israel said, Why has
the Lord routed us today before the Philistines? Let us fetch from
Shiloh the ark of the covenant of the Lord. So the troops
despatched (men) to Shiloh and brought from there the ark of the
covenant of the Lord of hosts seated (on) the Cherubim. ( Sam :a)
Samuel said to the people, Come, let us go to Gilgal and there
renew kingship. So all the people went to Gilgal and made
Saul king there before the Lord in Gilgal. ( Sam :a); see also
Then muster yourself an army like the army you lost, horse for horse,
and chariot for chariot. Let us fight them in the plain; surely we
will overpower them. He heeded them and did accordingly. ( Kgs :)
All of you approached me and said, Let us send men ahead of
us to explore the land for us and bring us back word about the route we
should take and the cities we will come to. The plan seemed good to
me, so I selected twelve of you, one for each tribe. (Dt :)
Then Saul said, Let us go down after the Philistines by night
and plunder them until the mornings light. We mustnt let a single
one of them survive. They said, Whatever seems good to you
do. But the priest said, Let us approach God here. So
Saul inquired of God, Should I go down after the Philistines? (
Sam :a); see also
Then David said to all his courtiers with him in Jerusalem,
Get up! We should flee, for there will be no escape for us from Absalom.
Go quickly, or he may soon overtake us, bring disaster on us, and
attack the city with the sword. So the king left, and all his
household in his charge. The king left, and all the people in
his charge. ( Sam :.a.a)
When the people express their desire to investigate the land and report
back information (cf. Num : [P]), Moses both approves (Dt :a)
and singlehandedly fulfills their wish (v. b; see also Num :.
[P]). When the priest proposes to consult God jointly with Saul (
Sam :b), Saul responds by seeking the oracle alone (v. a); at
the same time, the directive addressed to the troops and leader alike
(v. a; see also v. ab) is reformulated as a query about Sauls own,
personal mission (v. aa).87 Or, in the same vein, when David urges
his entourage to flee with him from Absalom ( Sam :), the ensuing
flight is described not as a communal activity but as that of the leader
accompanied by his subordinates (vv. a.a). In each case, the plural
directive is executedcompletely or principallyby a single, salient,
and leading character who assumes responsibility for the group. The
plural directive is not executed by the addressee.
... Js clause conforms to a single form-critical pattern. Aside
from its initial and identificatory particle, the clause has five components that are distributed between two discourse genres.
I. Beginning with direct speech, a speaker formulates:
(i) a directive or assertive utterance (represented by a cohortative or
imperfect, respectively)
See, in this context, P. Kyle McCarter, Jr., I Samuel (AB ; Garden City, New York:
Doubleday, ) .
87
GEN 11:7
The final example of nonliteral appears in Gen :. This text,
though, is different from the others. In the other clauses, the
subject of the core argument is referentially clear. But in Gen :,
the subject is referentially unclear, at least at first blush. The subject is
divine, yet its plural number, or internal composition, is not explained.
.. The structure of Gen : is familiar.
See Hermann Gunkel, Genesis (th ed.; HKAT I/; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck &
for all.8 The single human race and its unifying achievement prompt
an appropriate divine response; God and his addressee should form a
cooperative and cohesive entity (v. a, echoing v. aa) that, together,
fractures human communication (v. a-b).9 The plan, of course, succeeds. The one God, acting on behalf of himself and his addressee,
scatters the community far and wide (vv. a.b), arrests their cooperative activities (v. b), and achieves the goal of scrambling their language
(v. a). In Gen :, then, God proposes a divine alliance similar to the
human alliances that are formed elsewhere with the encouragement of
nonliteral . Yet there is an important difference. The divine alliance
is retaliatory. Gods partnership arises in response to human provocation. Whether that provocation be intentional (vv. ) or situational
and accidental (vv. ), the result is the same: God forms his alliance
in order to undo and punish the human community.10
.. To a certain extent, all five clauses share a common narrative perspective. In Gen , initiates improper and irresponsible
behavior that is eventually regretted by Judah himself (v. ). Pharaohs
begins a series of evil and ill-fated actions against the Israelites.
Similarly, the peoples clauses of Gen : are sinister in almost
every turn, from the construction style that they propose11 to the name
they wish to leave for posterity.12 From a canonical perspective, too, the
ultimate reason for the building projectthe prevention of spreading
throughout the world (v. b)violates Gods own design for the human
race.
8 Wenham, Genesis .. See also von Rad, Genesis ; and Lothar Ruppert,
Machen wir uns ein Namen (Gen .). Zur Anthropologie der vorpriesterschriftlichen Urgeschichte, in Der Weg zum Menschen. Zur philosophischen und theologischen
Anthropologie. Fr Alfons Deissler (ed. Rudolf Mosis and Lothar Ruppert; Freiburg: Herder,
) (repr. in Studien zur Literaturgeschichte des Alten Testaments [SBAB ; Stuttgart:
Katholisches Bibelwerk, ] ).
9 See U. Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Genesis (trans. Israel Abrahams; pts.;
Jerusalem: Magnes, []) ..
10 Michael Fishbane, Text and Texture: Close Readings of Selected Biblical Texts (New York:
Schocken, ) .
11 See August Dillmann, Die Genesis (th ed.; KeHAT ; Leipzig: S. Hirzel, )
(= Genesis [trans. Wm. B. Stevenson; vols.; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, ] .);
and Franz Delitzsch, Neuer Commentar ber die Genesis (Leipzig: Drffling und Franke,
) (= A New Commentary on Genesis [trans. Sophia Taylor; vols.; ; repr.,
Minneapolis: Klock & Klock, ] .).
12 See Ernst-Joachim Waschke, Untersuchungen zum Menschenbild der Urgeschichte. Ein
Beitrag zur alttestamentlichen Theologie (ThAr ; Berlin: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, )
. For a detailed discussion, see Ruppert, in Der Weg zum Menschen (= Studien
Alten Testaments ).
[S]preading abroad is part of Gods plan for creation and the
fulfillment of the mandate of [Gen] :. Seen from this perspective,
the fear of scattering expressed in : is resistance to Gods purpose for
creation. The peoples do not wish to spread abroad. Thus the tower
and city are attempts at self-serving unity which resists Gods scattering
activity.13
Jacob tells Laban that Rachel is now his (my wife), and Saul requests
that he receive a divine oracle (cf. Sam :). Literal therefore
governs or implies a first person beneficiary or recipient.16
In nonliteral clauses, the speaker is likewise the semantic beneficiary. In Gen :, the beneficiary is an explicit first person indirect pronoun (Lets let us build ourselves a city). Elsewhere, it is implied. In
13 Walter Brueggemann, Genesis (Interp; Atlanta: John Knox, ) . See also
B. Gemser, God in Genesis, in idem et al., Studies on the Book of Genesis (OTS ;
Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) ; and P. J. Harland, Vertical or Horizontal: The Sin of
Babel, VT (): , .
14 Snyder, *yhb in the Bible, (with the examples extending to ).
15 Ibid. .
16 See, more generally, Steven E. Fassberg, Studies in Biblical Syntax (Jerusalem: Magnes, ) (in Hebrew); and idem, The Lengthened Imperative
" J in Biblical
Hebrew, HS (): .
Gen :, the proposals are justified by speaker desire (v. a), speaker
aversion (v. b), and other latent benefits that the speakers would reap.
In Ex :, Pharaohs proposal is conversationally justified by the foreseeable harm that he and his people will suffer by inaction; by implication, they should expect to benefit by an effective response. In Gen ,
Judah enters into the relationship with Tamar in the hope of gratification (v. a), though he soon learns that she wants the relationship to
be mutually beneficial (v. b). Finally, the beneficiary of Gods utterance in Gen : can be inferred from the crisis that God intends to
avert. For if the peoples clauses have the effect of violating Gods
mandate for fruitfulness, number, and worldwide expansion (:; see
also :. [P]) (.), the beneficiary of Gods punitive and restorative
proposal is implicit: the speaker, God himself, and, as its plural formulation indicates, his addressee.
.. In light of the features shared between Gen : and Js four
other nonliteral clauses, it is hardly surprising that all five clauses
display the same form-critical components. Like the others, Gods verbal bid in Gen : is initiated by the suasive particle . Thereafter,
the clauses core argument is semantically desiderative, expressed by
marked cohortative verb forms ( [v. a]) (i). The cohortatives
propose a joint activity or event (ii) which, in the ensuing narrative, is
successfully executed. By inference, the addressee agrees to the proposal
(iv). And, finally, the proposal is executed by a single, salient agent, Yahweh (the Lord confounded [v. a]; see also vv. a.b) (v).
Form-critical considerations limit the options for determining the
third component of this clause, the referent(s) of Gods divine first
person plural. This third component requires that the subject of
be jointly and cooperatively involved in the proposed activity.
More importantly, though, the activity requires two different parties
involved in the cooperative endeavor (iii). The referent of the plural
pronoun, then, can not be singular or God himself (cf. .). Nor can
the referent be coreferential with the single divine speaker of the
clause. The form-critical model prescribes that Gods plural pronoun
include himself and at least one referentially distinct addressee. The
grammatical number of Gods we is nonsingular. It signals a (tactical)
partnership between God, the group leader, and at least one other
addressee, under (troubling) circumstances that are far from ordinary.
GODS
Thus far, the discussion has provided contextualizing and background
information. In order to determine the referent of Gods we in Gen
: (P), it was necessary to explore one of Ps antecedents where God
also utters this self-inclusive plural pronoun (: [J]). Then, several linguistic tacks converged to indicate that Gods we in Gen : refers
to a nonsingular entity. A complementary analysis further described
some pragmatic constituents of Gen :, including its goal of forming a cooperative relationship, under unusual circumstances and with
ominous implications, between Yahweh and one or more gods. Finally,
this background discussion determined that God, in his role as group
leader, enacts the proposal that spurred the union of the divine team.
.. Gods in the Yahwist and Elohist Traditions
The discussion may now be expanded and extended. It will have a
wider methodological scope, including linguistic as well as nonlinguistic
evidence. It will concentrate on two pentateuchal traditions that underlie and antecede P: the Elohist and the Yahwist (see .). It will also
investigate the J tradition in greater detail, especially Gen : where
God again utters the self-inclusive first person plural pronoun and,
again, forms a cooperative relationship with his addressee. The following discussion, then, will establish a broader interpretive and historical rubric within which the divine we of Gen : can be evaluated.
... The two early pentateuchal traditions acknowledge the existence of Israelite angels.1 J and E often refer to them in the singular:
e.g., angel (e.g., Ex : [J]; Num : [E?]), the angel
(Gen : [E?]), angel of the Lord (e.g., : [J], : [E]),
angel of God; divine angel (: [E]), and
(see : [J]).8 In the Yahwist and Elohist traditions, then, the angels
are Gods allies and colleagues: directed by God, controlled by God,
and subordinate to God.9
These subordinate colleagues perform a variety of functions. According to J and E, the angels serve: (a) to convey the mandates of God to
men [e.g., Gen : (E)]; (b) to harbinger special events [e.g., : (J)];
(c) to protect the faithful [e.g., : (J); Ex : (E?)] and execute
condign punishment on their adversaries [e.g., : (J), : (E?)]; and
(d) to serve as instruments of the divine displeasure against sinners and
recalcitrants within Israel itself [see Num : (J)].10 In each case,
angels represent God.11
Angels are also situationally specific. When they communicate and/
or enact Gods will, their addressee is uniformly human. In fact, their
presence in J and E is restricted to situations where the divine world
meets and interacts with the human. [W]hen God enters the apperception of man, the [] [] is introduced.12 Angels can therefore appear as contact between divinity and humanity grows direct.
They act as intermediaries between God, whom they represent, and
humankind, whom they address (see, in this context, Gen : [E]).
Corresponding to their mediating role, angels have characteristics
of both God and humankind (see Gen : [J]).13 On the one hand,
they resemble God. They speak from heaven (:, :. [E]) and
in dreams (e.g., : [E]). God empowers them to act in his stead (e.g.,
Ex : [J]). God and his angel may even be depicted as equivalent
(e.g., Gen : [E?]).14 On the other hand, angels resemble men.
They have the appearance of human males (e.g., : [J]).15 They
8 See Saul M. Olyan, A Thousand Thousands Served Him: Exegesis and the Naming of
Angels in Ancient Judaism (TSAJ ; Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr [Paul Siebeck], ) .
9 August Dillmann, Die Genesis (th ed.; KeHAT ; Leipzig: S. Hirzel, ) (=
Genesis [trans. Wm. B. Stevenson; vols.; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, ] .).
10 Gaster, in IDB .a. See also Newsom, in ABD ..
11 Cf. Claus Westermann, Genesis (trans. John J. Scullion; vols.; Minneapolis: Augsburg, []) ..
12 Von Rad, in TDNT ..
13 E.g., Nahum M. Sarna, Genesis (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, ) .
14 E.g., Freedman and Willoughby, in TDOT .; and Newsom, in ABD .a.
See also Ephraim E. Urbach, The Sages: Their Concepts and Beliefs (trans. Israel Abrahams;
vols.; d enl. ed.; Jerusalem: Magnes, ) .; and, vigorously, von Rad, in TDNT
..
15 E.g., Ludwig Koehler, Old Testament Theology (trans. A. S. Todd; London: Lutterworth, []) .
As the story explains, the two marital parties are distinct in ancestry
and sex. Their ancestors are expressed lexically by their different nomina
recta: God, the gods (vv. .) and humankind (vv. .).
Their sexual distinction is expressed grammatically: sons and
16 Matitiahu Tsevat, God and the Gods in Assembly: An Interpretation of Psalm
, HUCA (): n. ; and J. Khlewein, a ben son, a bat daughter, in TLOT ..
17 See Lowell K. Handy, The Appearance of Pantheon in Judah, in The Triumph
of Elohim: From Yahwisms to Judaisms (ed. Diana Vikander Edelman; Grand Rapids/
Kampen: Eerdmans/Kok Pharos, []) .
18 For a source-critical discussion, see Marc Vervenne, All They Need is Love: Once
More Genesis ., in Words Remembered, Texts Renewed: Essays in Honour of John F.
A. Sawyer (ed. Jon Davies, Graham Harvey, and Wilfred G. E. Watson; JSOTS ;
Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ) (despite his conclusion on ).
19 See Ronald S. Hendel, Of Demigods and the Deluge: Toward an Interpretation
of Genesis :, JBL (): with n. , perhaps in conjunction with Marc Zvi
Brettler, God is King: Understanding an Israelite Metaphor (JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT Press,
) .
daughters, respectively. But the gods and their future brides also have
much in common. They have explicit sexuality.20 They each represent
an entire species that is derived from (the name of) the male heading
the lineage.21 Moreover, each group is presumably known and identifiable; [t]he definite article points to a familiar and well-understood
term.22 The marriage, then, takes place between two generic yet antithetical species:23 male members of , and female members of
.24
Js view of this intermarriage is decidedly negative (see .).25 The
story unfolds quickly. The divinities notice the women (Gen :a),
eye them approvingly26 yet with lewd intentions (v. a),27 and take an
unspecified number of them as wives (v. b). Clearly, the divinities
instigate the liaison.28 No sin is imputed to mankind or to their daughters in these relations. The guilt is wholly on the side of the angels.29
20 Cf. David P. Wright, Holiness, Sex, and Death in the Garden of Eden, Bib
(): .
21 See James Barr, Ein Mann oder die Menschen? Zur Anthropologie von Genesis , in Ebenbild GottesHerrscher ber die Welt. Studien zu Wrde und Auftrag des Menschen (ed. Hans-Peter Mathys; Biblisch-Theologische Studien ; Neukirchen-Vluyn:
Neukirchener Verlag, ) (= One Man, or All Humanity? A Question in the
Anthropology of Genesis, in Recycling Biblical Figures: Papers Read at a Noster Colloquium
[ed. Athalya Brenner and Jan Willem van Henten; STAR ; Leiden: Deo, ]
), in conjunction with Edward L. Greenstein, Presenting Genesis , Constructively
and Deconstructively, Prooftexts (): .
22 Sarna, Genesis (on ).
23 Brevard S. Childs, Myth and Reality in the Old Testament (d ed.; SBT /; London:
SCM, ) , in conjunction with Patrick D. Miller, Jr., Genesis : Studies in Structure
& Theme (JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT, ) .
24 Ellen van Wolde, Words Become Worlds: Semantic Studies of Genesis (BIS ; Leiden:
E. J. Brill, ) .
25 Cf. P. J. Harland, The Value of Human Life: A Study of the Story of the Flood (Genesis )
(VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
26 John Skinner, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Genesis (d ed.; ICC; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, ) (on Gen :), in conjunction with James L. Kugel, The
Adverbial Use of k .tb, JBL (): .
27 Dillmann, Genesis6 (= ET .); and Sarna, Genesis . Cf. von Rad, Genesis
(trans. John H. Marks; rev. ed.; OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, ) .
28 Von Rad, Genesis . See also Marvin H. Pope, Mixed Marriage Metaphor
in Ezekiel , in Fortunate the Eyes That See: Essays in Honor of David Noel Freedman in
Celebration of His Seventieth Birthday (ed. Astrid B. Beck et al.; Grand Rapids/Cambridge,
U.K.: Eerdmans, ) .
29 Skinner, Genesis2 . See also Michael Fishbane, Text and Texture: Close Readings
of Selected Biblical Texts (New York: Schocken, ) ; and, esp., Greenstein, Prooftexts
(): . Cf. Gordon J. Wenham, Genesis ( vols.; WBC ; Waco/Dallas: Word,
) .; and Pope, in Fortunate the Eyes That See .
The intermarriage and its result are catastrophic. When they marry,
the grooms and the brides (con-) fuse categories which the Creator
had intended to be separate.30 They cross the border between heaven
and earth, and they violate the prototypical distinction between divine
and human.31 They produce offspring that are a colossal, powerful,
unnatural mongrel (v. ) and that, consequently, forebode the end of
the earth (vv. [J]).32 The union of the divine spirit and human
flesh33 doubly disrupts the natural order of the world.
Nevertheless the instigators, those divine colleagues belonging to
, are not punished.34 Instead, punishment is deflected. On one
side, it is deflected to the children (v. ). [T]he potential for offspring
reflecting the likeness of the gods in a new way emerges as a threat
to creation, order and blessing.35 The present threat, however, is also
self-destructive. As their name indicates, the Nephilim, the fallen
ones, are those who are doomed to die.36 The form of death is
not specified. They may die by demotion to mortal rank (see Ps :
[ you will die you will fall]). They may die by dint
of battle (see Num : [J] in conjunction with Dt :; see also
Jdg :, :),37 or by inherent defect (see stillborn).38 Yet die
they must. Notwithstanding their achievement of fame (Gen :b;
see also :a), the Nephilim come to a speedy and permanent end
(similarly, : [J]).39
Punishment is also deflected to humanity. When he withdraws his
spirit from them, Yahweh limits the breath of life that
30 Shemaryahu Talmon, The Biblical Understanding of Creation and the Human
Commitment, ExAu (): .
31 Cf. Harland, The Value of Human Life .
32 Hendel, JBL (): ; and Richard S. Hess, Nephilim, in ABD .a.
33 H. F. Beck, Nephilim, in IDB .a.
34 Fishbane, Text and Texture ; and, differently, Simon B. Parker, The Beginning
of the Reign of GodPsalm as Myth and Liturgy, RB (): . See also
Ernst-Joachim Waschke, Untersuchungen zum Menschenbild der Urgeschichte. Ein Beitrag zur
alttestamentlichen Theologie (ThAr ; Berlin: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, ) .
Cf. Sarna, Genesis .
35 Howard N. Wallace, The Toledot of Adam, in Studies in the Pentateuch (ed. J.
A. Emerton; VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
36 Hess, in ABD .b.
37 See Hendel, JBL (): .
38 Skinner, Genesis2 . See also Anne Draffkorn Kilmer, The Mesopotamian
Counterparts of the Biblical Neplm, in Perspectives on Language and Text: Essays and Poems
in Honor of Francis I. Andersens Sixtieth Birthday, June , (ed. Edgar W. Conrad and
Edward G. Newing; Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, ) n. .
39 See Frank Anthony Spina, Babel, in ABD .b.
he had shared of himself with all human beings (see Gen : [J]).40
Human life is now truncated;41 human life expectancy (:b) is limited
(v. a) to a fixed, quantified terminus.42 By implication, a shortened life
span also limits the potential for human reproduction and, canonically,
for realizing Gods mandate of Gen : (P). Yahweh preemptively
curbs the expansion of human population.43 Finally, the punishment of
humanity serves to separate the human and divine spheres a degree
more than they already were. When he withdraws his (divine)
spirit (see Kgs :a = Chr :a), Yahweh makes humans that
much more mortal (e.g., Sam :a; see also flesh in P) and that
much less godlike (see, e.g., Jer :a and Ps :b; see also the title
in Gen : [E]).44 Yahweh makes humanity more finite and
impermanent, iteratively, for complicity in the divine indiscretion.
Whether inflicted on the children or the species from which the
brides were chosen, the punishment for the cosmic transgression is
appropriate to the crime. The semidivine offspring are eliminated,
and human beings become more mortal and more distant from God.
They also become less capable of fulfilling Gods goal of overflowing
human fertility and abundance (Gen :). The crime violated fundamental boundaries and distinctions, and the punishment reinforces
these boundaries and distinctions. The punishment is a form of death
a form that restores and fortifies a boundary previously violated. In
Gen :, the merger of divine and human realms produces deadly
results.
There is a purpose in telling this story. The divine provocateurs
are spared retaliation, yet the human accomplices are not. Humanity
accrues ever more blame for violating the natural order. It is judged
to be evil in its entirety (Gen :a) and in its every scheming thought
(v. b; see also :ab [J]).45 The purpose of Js story, then, is transpar-
41
ent. This is recorded as an example of human depravity.46 Its undoing requires a global solution: the extermination of human and faunal
life (:a; see also : [J]).47 The natural conclusion of Gen :,
according to the logic of the myth, is the delugethe destruction of
humanity and the concomitant annihilation of the disorder. The cosmic imbalance is resolved by a great destruction, out of which a new
order arises.48 All of humanity pays an insuperable price for participating in the divinities scheme.
... In addition to angels and divinities, J may obliquely refer to
gods in Gen :.
Then the Lord God said, Since the man has become like one of us,
knowing good and evil, no way then should he stretch out his hand, take
from the tree of life as well, and eat and live forever! So the Lord God
drove him out of the garden of Eden, to work the soil from which he was
taken. He expelled the man. (Gen :a)
As elsewhere, Js God employs a self-inclusive, first person plural pronoun in an appeal to an addressee which, together with himself, constitutes a nonsingular entity (.). The addressee is invoked in a setting
where divine and human realms meet. The setting is consistent with
the manifestation of angels (..). The addressee seems to be (part of)
Gods allied confederate.49
Conversational strategy supports this assessment. Gen : presumes,
or forges, a relationship between God and his addressee, in which the
whole group is said to be affected by the immediate situation (see
also .). Gen : also describes a palpable breach in a boundary
that God established between heaven and earth50a breach which is
viewed, at least by Js God, as evidence of cosmic disharmony between
46 Westermann, Handbook to the Old Testament (ed. and trans. Robert H. Boyd; Minneapolis: Augsburg, []) .
47 See Tikva Frymer-Kensky, The Atrahasis Epic and Its Significance for Our
Understanding of Genesis , BA (): b.
48 Hendel, JBL (): . Cf. Harland, The Value of Human Life .
49 Dillmann, Genesis6 (= ET .); U. Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Genesis
(trans. Israel Abrahams; pts.; Jerusalem: Magnes, []) .; and
E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB ; Garden City, New York: Doubleday, ) . See also,
with marked confidence, I. Engnell, Knowledge and Life in the Creation Story, in
Wisdom in Israel and in the Ancient Near East Presented to Professor Harold Henry Rowley (ed.
M. Noth and D. Winton Thomas; VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) n. .
50 E.g., Miller, Cosmology and World Order in the Old Testament: The Divine
Council as Cosmic-Political Symbol, HBT / (): (repr. in Israelite Religion and
Biblical Theology: Collected Essays [JSOTS ; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ]
); and Harland, Vertical or Horizontal: The Sin of Babel, VT (): .
the human and divine precincts (see ..).51 To this extent, then,
Gen : shares interpretive indicia with Gen : and :.
Gen :a may be compared directly with :. Both episodes
blame humans for the incursion into divine space. Both stories result
in a type of human exile, whether eviction and expulsion from Eden
(:a.a) or obliteration from earth (: [J]; see also the prospective statements in :a and :b [J]).52 And both episodes place a new
limit on human longevity (:b, :).53 In this comparative context,
these texts also share two more important features. First, the confusion
within the cosmic order explicitly involves gods. Whether they oppose
or collaborate with God, gods are present in the melee. Second, Yahweh responds to the confusion by initiating and imposing corrective
measures, which in turn restore balance as well as control (see below).
In both narratives, then, Yahweh alone implements punishment (see
also :). [T]here is only one God who passes judgment and makes
decisions. The one God is recognized as holding sole title to the
breath of life, which He controls as He wills.54
Gen :a may also be compared with :.55 Gods speech
in both passages begins with the affirmative clitic (:a, :a).56
The clauses jointly introduce a present situation that can, and will,
endanger the divine speaker as well as his addressee. Each situation
is thoroughly unusual and exigent (see .); the language describing
each situation is correspondingly panicked (see .). Each time too,
the speaker attributes the threat to a human achievement that crosses
the boundary between divine and human jurisdictions (see .).57 Even
the achievement is similar; (a representative of) the human race forms
or will form a union in defiance of Gods will.58 Then, each episode
52
But not in Gen :. The emergency depicted in this text is incompatible with divine consultation. Yahweh can not consult those who are
violating the cosmic order that he established. He can not productively
take counsel from those who defy him. Nor can he ally himself with
the human collaborators of ungodly corruption. Humankind will be an
object of Gods reductive and lethal force, as will the Nephilim. Absent
a cooperative partner in this instance, Yahweh acts unilaterally. He acts
on his own behalf. The gods themselves are not destroyed (see :),
though they desist from any further transgression of the divine-human
divide.
... The gods that appear in the J and E traditions are exclusively masculine and, on one occasion, sexually male. They are also
unnamed,62 having only generic descriptors like angels and divinities
(J). Nevertheless, for some interpreters, a goddess Asherah may appear
in the J tradition.63 Reed, for example, finds Asherah in Gen :.
It is said that Leahs maid Zilpah bore Jacob two sons, Gad and Asher.
This apparently pleased Leah who expressed her thanks to the two
deities, Gad and Asher, and named the sons for them. Verse may
be translated: Leah cried, With Asherahs help! for maidens must call
me happy! so she called his name Asher.64
But the Masoretic text (MT) does not support this claim.
Leah said, As my happiness,65 for the young women will
call me happy.66 So she named him Asher.
Reeds rejoinder: As the text now stands the word for asera is written
sry.67 Even so, this interpretation of appeals to an unattested
For named angelic classes, see Olyan, A Thousand Thousands Served Him .
For recent discussions of this goddess, see N. Wyatt, Asherah , in DDD2
; and Judith M. Hadley, The Cult of Asherah in Ancient Israel and Judah: Evidence
for a Hebrew Goddess (University of Cambridge Oriental Publications ; Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, ).
64 William L. Reed, The Asherah in the Old Testament (Fort Worth: Texas Christian
University Press, ) . See also the more reserved discussion in ibid. .
65 For the grammar of this prepositional phrase, see Hans-Peter Mller, Das Beth
existentiae im Althebrischen, in Vom Alten Orient zum Alten Testament. Festschrift fr Wolfram Freiherrn von Soden zum . Geburtstag am . Juni (ed. Manfried Dietrich and
Oswald Loretz; AOAT ; Kevelaer/Neukirchen-Vluyn: Butzon & Bercker/Neukirchener Verlag, ) .
66 For the reading of the perfect, see Dillmann, Genesis6 (= ET .).
67 Reed, The Asherah . See also C. F. Burney, The Book of Judges (; repr., New
York: Ktav, ) .
62
63
Despite the mention of another god in their discourse vicinity (v. a),
these asherim are concrete objects.73 Syntactically, they are aligned with
cultic objects, viz., altars and pillars in v. .74 Grammatically, they are
affected patients of a prototypically transitive verb .75 The plural
68 Cf. Alan Cooper and Marvin Pope, Divine Names and Epithets in the Ugaritic
Texts, in RSP .. For atrty in Ugaritic, see Jeffrey H. Tigay, You Shall Have No Other
Gods: Israelite Religion in the Light of Hebrew Inscriptions (HSS ; Atlanta: Scholars Press,
) n. .
69 Dillmann, Genesis6 (= ET .); and Skinner, Genesis2 . See also Westermann, Genesis ..
70 Sarna, Genesis .
71 See Christian Frevel, Aschera und der Ausschlielichkeitsanspruch YHWHs. Beitrge zu
literarischen, religionsgeschichtlichen und ikonographischen Aspekten der Ascheradiskussion ( vols.;
BBB /; Weinheim: Beltz Athenum, ) .; and, esp., Hadley, The Cult of
Asherah .
72 The traditional assignment of this passage to J is now disputed. See Mark S.
Smith, The Early History of God: Yahweh and the Other Deities in Ancient Israel (d ed.; The
Biblical Resources Series; Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, ) ; and,
esp., John I. Durham, Exodus (WBC ; Waco: Word, ) .
73 E.g., Richard J. Pettey, Asherah: Goddess of Israel (American University Studies
VII/; New York: Peter Lang, ) .
74 See Benno Jacob, The Second Book of the Bible: Exodus (trans. Walter Jacob and
Yaakov Elman; Hoboken, New Jersey: Ktav, []) .
75 Pettey, Asherah . See also the lists in Frymer-Kensky, In the Wake of the Goddesses: Women, Culture, and the Biblical Transformation of Pagan Myth (New York: Fawcett
Columbine, ) n. ; and Hadley, The Cult of Asherah .
Cf. Bernard F. Batto, who labels Js gods functionless figures (Creation Theology in Genesis, in Creation in the Biblical Traditions [ed. Richard J. Clifford and John
J. Collins; CBQMS ; Washington, D.C.: Catholic Biblical Association of America,
] ); or, differently, Parker, Sons of (the) God(s) ()// , in DDD2
b.
82 Baruch Halpern, Brisker Pipes than Poetry: The Development of Israelite
Monotheism, in Judaic Perspectives on Ancient Israel (ed. Jacob Neusner, Baruch A. Levine,
and Ernest S. Frerichs; Philadelphia: Fortress, ) . See also ibid. .
81
(e.g., Jdg :), and his angels (e.g., Ps :). They may be
expressly divine: divinities (e.g., Job :), divinities (e.g., Pss :, :), gods (Ex :), and gods (e.g.,
Ps :). Or they can be identified by an intrinsic property: e.g.,
(divine) spirit ( Kgs :a = Chr :a).83 In these texts, the gods
terminologically resemble their J and E counterparts; they are a plural
entity whose members are relatively generic and indistinct.
Terminology also shows that gods can organize into groups.84 They
may form a gathering (Ps :) or assembly (:). They
may constitute a council (e.g., Jer :),85 or they may muster into
a army (e.g., Is :).86 Gods can form a variety of collectives.87
All of their designations, though, are referentially compatible. On the
one hand, like the grammatical structure of and , gods are
plural. They have internal composition, and they may even number in
the thousands (Dan :; see also Ps :).88 Further, if these gods follow the pattern of those in Gen :, they are also a countable plurality
(..). On the other hand, these divine beings may aggregate into
an undifferentiated or homogeneous group and, altogether, comprise a
mass totality (e.g., Zec :; Ps :). The many gods can coalesce
into unions, assemblies, companies, congregations, or squadrons.89
83 See, e.g., Rudolf Kittel, Die Bcher der Knige (HKAT I/; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck
& Ruprecht, ) . Cf., e.g., James A. Montgomery, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Books of Kings (ed. Henry Snyder Gehman; ICC; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark,
[]) .
84 Oswald Loretz, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen (Schriften des Deutschen Instituts fr wissenschaftliche Pdagogik; Munich: Ksel, ) ; E. Theodore Mullen,
Jr., The Divine Council in Canaanite and Early Hebrew Literature (HSM ; Chico, Calif.:
Scholars Press, ) ; and Newsom, in ABD ..
85 Heinz-Dieter Neef, Gottes himmlischer Thronrat. Hintergrund und Bedeutung von sd
YHWH im Alten Testament (AzTh ; Stuttgart: Calwer, ), esp. .
86 BDB a (ad .b); and, tentatively, H. Ringgren,
s. aba, in TDOT ..
87 See Brettler, God is King .
88 Although CS &
" X in Dt : has also been understood to register the gods
number (e.g., Newsom, in ABD .b), this interpretation is weak (see the discussions by Driver, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Deuteronomy [d ed.; ICC; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, ()] ; and A. D. H. Mayes, Deuteronomy [NCBC;
Grand Rapids/London: Eerdmans/Morgan & Scott, ()] ). Cf. Tigay:
Ribeboth-kodesh must be the name of a place , like all the terms parallel to it
(Deuteronomy [The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia/Jerusalem: Jewish Publication
Society, ] ).
89 For ramifications, see Olyan, A Thousand Thousands Served Him .
Davids wisdom and knowledge are shared only with the gods (see
Gen :.).
But the gods are not all equal. In one setting, a military setting, there
is evidence of differentiation.98
When Joshua was in Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing
opposite him with his sword drawn in his hand. Joshua went to him
and said to him, Do you belong to us or to our enemies? He said,
Negative. Rather, I am commander of the Lords army; I
have now arrived. Then Joshua fell face down to the ground, bowed,
and said to him, What is my lord saying to his servant? (Jos :)
99
On the one hand, the visitor is a deity. As an angel, he can be characterized as a god and project an awesome appearance. On the other
hand, the visitor is also a man106 and speaks with a human voice (see
also Dan :).107 Angels can be recognized as divine and/or human.
Like their predecessors in J and E (..), they are morphologically
(am-) bivalent, manifesting properties of the two worlds they straddle.
... Gods are subordinate to God. Their angelic title connotes
dependency (..). Their grammatical relation in construct phrases
and suffixed nouns suggest dependency or, more widely, taxonomic
assignment: e.g., and, perhaps, the sons of
God (Job :, :); and his sons (Dt : [emended after
QDeutq]);108 as well as council of the Lord (Jer :) and
council of God (Job :).109 Sometimes, gods are even characterized as subservient or servile personnel: e.g., his ministers
(Pss :, :) and his servants (Job :). Israels gods are
subordinate to God, belong to God, and are part of his divine species.
Gods gods perform many other functions as well, most of which
reflect their status vis--vis God himself.110 For example, they show
obedience to Yahweh.
Bless the Lord, O his angels, powerful warriors who
enact his utterance, obeying his utterance. Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
his ministers who perform his will. (Ps :)
See von Rad, Old Testament Theology .; and, in greater detail, Tsevat, HUCA
(): n. .
107 See John J. Collins, Daniel (Hermeneia; Minneapolis: Fortress, ) .
108 DJD ..
109 See Mullen, The Divine Council .
110 Brettler, God is King .
106
They bow down to him (e.g., :)111 and praise him (e.g., :; see
also QDeutq :).112 They tend to him (e.g., Kgs :; see also
Chr :) and applaud him with words (e.g., Job :). The particular
setting may vary, whether royal attendance (e.g., Ps :),113 warfare
(e.g., Zec :), or a courtroom (e.g., Dan :). Still, gods serve the
same basic role; they minister unto Yahweh, their God.114
... They serve another role too, vis--vis the human race.115
When the Supreme One allotted the nations, when he separated humankind, he set the boundaries of peoples according to the number of
divinities. For the Lords portion is his people, Jacob his own
allotment. (Dt : [emended after QDeutj])116
God worked the gods into his cosmic design, and he shared with them
jurisdiction over the worlds population.117
At that time, that is, at the beginning of all history he subordinated
one nation to each of the heavenly beings who had to take care of it,
like a guardian angel. He departed from this general arrangement in one
case alone: Israel was chosen by Yahweh for himself and subordinated
directly to himself. Thus it was in this way that God at the beginning
carried out the division of the world according to its nations. The
peculiarity of this passage is not the fact that it mentions yet other
heavenly beings beside Yahweh (this conception is not rare in the Old
Testament) but that it confers on them such an important place in the
government of the world.118
For the Lord your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords who
performs justice for the fatherless and the widow, and who loves
the stranger by providing him food and clothing. (Dt :a.)
God entrusts his gods with effecting justice, protecting the vulnerable,
and ensuring righteousness and equity in the world.124
Since gods serve an intermediary role, relative to both God and
humankind, they are intrinsically angelicin name (..), nature
(..), and function (..). They do Gods bidding in a divinehuman setting (see ..). The gods harbinger special events (e.g.,
Jdg :). They protect the faithful, either individually or collectively (e.g., Kgs : and Ps :, respectively). They execute
condign punishment on their adversaries (e.g., Ps :), and they
serve as instruments of the divine displeasure against sinners and
recalcitrants within Israel itself (e.g., Sam :; see also Chr
:). Gods angelic envoys therefore represent the benevolence and
malevolence of their dispatcher to their human addressee.125
Gods can serve a more general function, too. They convey Gods
message to humankind (e.g., Zec :). Occasionally, a god may interpret a divine communication (e.g., v. ).126 More often, gods merely
relay Gods message (e.g., Kgs :), simply and faithfully (cf. Job
:, :).127 Gods act as divine spokesmen.128
... Just as the text of Dt :+QDeutj : supports the notion
of angelic gods, it also supports the notion that gods can be more
than Gods subordinates. God and the gods constitute an internally
differentiated administrative agency.
When God organized the government of the world, He established two
tiers: at the top, He Himself, God of gods (elohei ha-elohim) and Lord
of lords (:), who reserved Israel for Himself, to govern personally;
below Him, angelic divine beings (benei elohim), to whom He allotted the other peoples. The conception is like that of a king or emperor
governing the capital or heartland of his realm personally and assigning
the provinces to subordinates.129
124 E.g., von Rad, Deuteronomy ; and Anderson, The Book of Psalms ( vols.; NCBC;
Grand Rapids/London: Eerdmans/Marshall, Morgan & Scott, ) ..
125 See Preuss, Old Testament Theology ..
126 Carol L. Meyers and Eric M. Meyers, Haggai, Zechariah (AB B; Garden City,
New York: Doubleday, ) .
127 See, however, Meier, in DDD 2 b.
128 Note, too, the formula discussed by Frank M. Cross, Jr., The Council of Yahweh
in Second Isaiah, JNES (): ; and supplemented by Christopher R. Seitz,
The Divine Council: Temporal Transition and New Prophecy in the Book of Isaiah,
JBL (): .
129 Tigay, Deuteronomy . See also Meyer, in Verbannung und Heimkehr (= Beitrge
Alten Testaments ); Halpern, The Baal (and the Asherah) in Seventh-Century
Judah: Yhwhs Retainers Retired, in Konsequente Traditionsgeschichte. Festschrift fr Klaus
God and the gods constitute a divine council. As the Bible describes it,
it is fundamentally a sociopolitical [symbol], expressing the activity of
divine government in political terms, that is, as having to do with the
affairs of the human world and the divine world.130 The organization
of the human race reflects that of all the divine beings.
The divine council is also a deliberative body. The gods can function
as an assembly which God can consult and where divine discussion
takes place (see, e.g., Job :).131
Then he [sc. Micaiah ben Imlah] said, Alright, hear the word of the
Lord! I saw the Lord seated on his throne, while all the
host of heaven were attending him to his right and to his left. The Lord
said, Who will entice Ahab so that he will go up and fall at Ramothgilead? One said this, another saying that, when a spirit came forward
and stood before the Lord. He [sc. the spirit] said, Me, let me entice
him. The Lord said to him, How? He said, I will go out and be a
lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. He [sc. the Lord] said, You
will entice (him) and prevail, too. Go out and do it. So the Lord did
put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these prophets of yours; the Lord
expressed disaster upon you. ( Kgs :; see also Chr :)
In this episode, Yahweh sits on his royal perch and confers with his
divine entourage. He formulates a plan and solicits a volunteer. The
divinities consult one another, after which one of their rank comes
forward. Yahweh questions whether the volunteer is prepared. But
after the divinity makes his case, Yahweh agrees and orders the plans
execution; it is executed as if from Yahweh himself.132
The relationship between Yahweh and the council, though, is not
always harmonic. God may accept their advice, as in Kgs :b=
Chr :b. Conversely, the gods may simply obey him (see Ps :
) or defer to him (see Gen :a, :). At other times, though,
the gods may defy him (e.g., Ps ) or challenge his seat at the head of
the council (see Is :). In which case, their disobedient offense is
Baltzer zum . Geburtstag (ed. Rdiger Bartelmus, Thomas Krger, and Helmut Utzschneider; OBO ; Freiburg/Gttingen: Universittsverlag/Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, ) ; and John Day, Yahweh and the Gods and Goddesses of Canaan (JSOTS ;
Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ) . Cf. Whybray, The Heavenly Counsellor in
Isaiah xl : A Study of the Sources of the Theology of Deutero-Isaiah (SOTSMS ; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ) .
130 Miller, HBT / (): (= Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology ). See also
Halpern, in Judaic Perspectives on Ancient Israel .
131 Newsom, in ABD .b.
132 Miller, HBT / (): (= Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology ).
quickly quashed (e.g., vv. .), even in the gods native courtroom setting (Ps :.) (see ..). As Gods advisory yet subordinate body,
gods should submit to, and accept, Gods will over them (see :).133
... Membership in the council is not restricted to divine beings.134
Kgs : shows, for example, that a prophet may view the proceedings of Gods court. Is shows that a prophet may also assume a
participatory role.
In the year of King Uzziahs death, I saw my Lord seated on a high
and lofty throne. Seraphim were attending him from above. One
would call to the other and say, Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts,
filling the whole earth with his glory. Then I heard the voice of my
Lord saying, Whom shall I send? Who will go for us? I said, Me.
Send me. So he [sc. the Lord] said, Go and say to this people
(Is :a.a..a)
The deuteronomistic and Isaian texts begin alike.135 They are presented as eyewitness reports by a prophet of Yahweh. They describe
a royal scene where Yahweh, sitting on his throne, is attended by an
angelic retinue.136 They also depict Yahweh calling for divine consultation, asking for a volunteer, and directing the volunteer to execute his
plan of deception or admonition against (a segment of) his people. Yet
unlike Micaiah, Isaiah includes himself among the addressees.137 Isaiah answers Yahwehs call, volunteers himself, receives Gods approval,
serves as Gods envoy, and communicates his message. Isaiah is Yahwehs representative angel.138
134
139 Cooke, ZAW (): ; Cross, Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic: Essays in the
History and Religion of Israel (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, ) ;
and Hans Wildberger, Isaiah (trans. Thomas H. Trapp; vols.; Minneapolis: Fortress,
[]) .. See also Williamson, The Book Called Isaiah .
140 See Day, Asherah in the Hebrew Bible and Northwest Semitic Literature, JBL
(): . For discussions of the Ugaritic goddess, see Pope, Atirat, in
WdM /.; J. C. de Moor, T
# asherah, in TDOT .; Wilfred G.
E. Watson, The Goddesses of Ugarit: A Survey, SEL (): ; and Wyatt, in
DDD2 .
141 Pope, El in the Ugaritic Texts (VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
142 For Athirats marine title, see Dennis Pardee, Ugaritic Myths, in The Context of
Scripture (ed. William W. Hallo and K. Lawson Younger, Jr.; vols.; Leiden: E. J. Brill,
) . n. ; and Hadley, The Cult of Asherah .
143 W. Herrmann, El , in DDD 2 b. See also, inter alios, Cross, el, in
TDOT .; and, differently, idem, Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic .
144 William G. Dever, Asherah, Consort of Yahweh? New Evidence from Kuntillet
Ajrd, BASOR (): b. See also Day, Yahweh Gods and Goddesses .
See Smith, The Early History of God 2 ; and Day, Yahweh Gods and Goddesses ,
146 Pettey, Asherah , as well as the conclusion drawn on . See also Handy, in The
Triumph of Elohim .
147 Smith, The Early History of God 2 . See also, tentatively, Harriet Lutzky, Shadday
as a Goddess Epithet, VT (): .
148 See Frymer-Kensky, In the Wake of the Goddesses .
149 Ibid. n. . See also Magne Sb, Divine Names and Epithets in Genesis :b-a: Some Methodological and Traditio-Historical Remarks, in History and
Traditions of Early Israel: Studies Presented to Eduard Nielsen, May th (ed. Andr Lemaire
and Benedikt Otzen; VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ]) with n. (repr. in
On the Way to Canon: Creative Tradition History in the Old Testament [JSOTS ; Sheffield:
Sheffield Academic Press, ] with n. ); and, on the associations of the divine
name El Shaddai, David Biale, The God with Breasts: El Shaddai in the Bible, HR
(): , as tempered by Wenham, Genesis ..
150 See, similarly, Richard C. Steiner, c and : Two Verbs Masquerading as
Nouns in Moses Blessing (Deuteronomy :, ), JBL (): (on
Dt :), as opposed to Nybergs attempt to recover Asherah amidst the difficult
(recently resurrected by Weinfeld, VT []: ).
This text shows that prophets of Baal and Asherah received royal support and, to this extent at least, were sanctioned religious figures in
ninth-century Israel.151 The rest of the chapter, though, challenges these
gods power. Baal is proven impotent.152 Asherahs representatives do
not even respond to the challenge.153 The contest demonstrates
conclusively that there is only one true God in Israel (v. )154 and,
by implication, that the other gods are ineffectual.155 In no way can
this story suggest that Asherah is paired with Yahweh.156 Further, the
referential interpretation of and in Kgs : can be questioned.157 The definite article on these nouns either renders a referentially unique entity generic or abstract;158 or the article signifies that
an underlying, common term is specific, identifiable, or known.159 Since
can be inflected for number and possessive suffixes, grammar supports the former reading. Similarly, the definite feminine plural form
expresses a mass (foreign) goddesses (Jdg :).160 It is uncertain, then,
whether Asherah per se appears in Kgs :.161 But if she does, her
role is adversarial to and incompatible with Yahweh.
The same issues surround in Kgs : and Kgs :.
Moreover, he removed Maacah his mother from the rank of queen
mother, because she had made an abominable image for Asherah.
Asa cut down her abominable image and burned (it) in the Wadi Kidron.
( Kgs :)
151 Robert R. Wilson, Prophecy and Society in Ancient Israel (Philadelphia: Fortress, )
; and idem, Kings, in The HarperCollins Study Bible ad loc.
152 See, in this context, Halpern, in Judaic Perspectives on Ancient Israel .
153 For interpretations of this latter point, see Kittel, Knige ; Frymer-Kensky, In the
Wake of the Goddesses ; and Hadley, The Cult of Asherah .
154 Wilson, in The HarperCollins Study Bible ad vv. .
155 Cf. Iain W. Provan, and Kings (NIBC ; Peabody, Mass./Carlisle, U.K.: Hendrickson/Paternoster, ) .
156 Cf. Pettey, Asherah .
157 Wiggins, A Reassessment of Asherah ; and Hadley, The Cult of Asherah .
158 GKC n. , in conjunction with Smith, The Early History of God 2 . See also
Hadley, The Cult of Asherah ; and, sympathetically, Halpern, in Konsequente Traditionsgeschichte , . Cf. Wiggins, A Reassessment of Asherah (on Kgs :).
159 Bruce K. Waltke and M. OConnor, An Introduction to Biblical Hebrew Syntax (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, ) .a, in conjunction with Wiggins, A Reassessment of
Asherah . Cf. Day, Yahweh Gods and Goddesses .
160 Cooper and Pope, in RSP .; McCarter, Aspects of the Religion of the Israelite
Monarchy: Biblical and Epigraphic Data, in Ancient Israelite Religion: Essays in Honor of
Frank Moore Cross (ed. Patrick D. Miller, Jr., Paul D. Hanson, and S. Dean McBride;
Philadelphia: Fortress, ) ; and Smith, The Early History of God 2 .
161 See also Frymer-Kensky, In the Wake of the Goddesses ; and Smith, The Early
History of God 2 , for complementary conclusions.
The king ordered Hilkiah the high priest, the priests of second rank,
and the guards of the threshold to bring out of the Lords temple all the
paraphernalia made for Baal, Asherah, and all the host of
heaven. He burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron. (
Kgs :a-b; see also vv. .)
162 Likewise in Chr : (cf. Wiggins, A Reassessment of Asherah ). The vocalization in BHS is incorrect.
163 E.g., Pettey, Asherah (on Kgs :), (on Kgs :); and Diana V.
Edelman, introduction to The Triumph of Elohim .
164 See Wiggins, A Reassessment of Asherah .
165 Frymer-Kensky, In the Wake of the Goddesses .
166 See Pettey, Asherah .
167 For the text, see HaE . (Kom []:).
168 For discussions, see Tigay, You Shall Have No Other Gods ; Olyan, Asherah and
the Cult of Yahweh ; Wiggins, A Reassessment of Asherah ; and Hadley, The Cult
of Asherah .
169 Smith, The Early History of God 2 .
170 Frymer-Kensky, In the Wake of the Goddesses , ; and Hadley, The Cult of Asherah
.
171 For these texts, see HaE . (Pithoi [KAgr ():]).
172 For this translation, see Anson F. Rainey, Everything You Always Wanted to
Know about Deities and Demons, in Past Links: Studies in the Languages and Cultures of the
Ancient Near East (ed. Shlomo Izreel, Itamar Singer, and Ran Zadok; IOS ; Winona
the gods of Sidon, the gods of Moab. They abandoned the Lord and
did not serve him. (Jdg :; see also Sam :)
But these goddesses hardly resemble the beings that constitute the
divine court or characterize Gods attendants. Ashtarot, for example,
is a deindividuated and generalized term for (foreign) goddesses.179 In
its nonreferential capacity, the Ashtarot is also replaced by another
generic term of similar origin: the Asherot (see, e.g., Jdg : vs. :).180
Though they may have been an Israelite phenomenon,181 their worship is evil and anti-Yahwistic. The Queen of Heaven182 also angers
God (see Jer :b). True, worship of the Queen of Heaven persisted in Israel (Judah) right to the end of the kingdom.183 Yet from a
biblical perspective, she is also a menacing competitor.184 [O]ne cannot combine the service of YHWH with that of the other gods; the
two are mutually exclusive.185 Under such a circumstance, God works
to remove the other divine being(s) from the Israelite sphere (see
Sam :). He does not form an alliance with them.
179 Delbert R. Hillers, Palmyrene Aramaic Inscriptions and the Bible, ZAH
(): . See also Halpern, in Konsequente Traditionsgeschichte .
180 See Olyan, Asherah and the Cult of Yahweh with n. ; and Wiggins, A Reassessment of Asherah .
181 Smith, The Early History of God 2 .
182 For her identity, see Hadley, The Queen of HeavenWho Is She? in Prophets
and Daniel (ed. Athalya Brenner; Feminist Companion to the Bible /; London/New
York: Sheffield Academic Press, ) .
183 Freedman, Who is like Thee among the Gods? The Religion of Early Israel, in
Ancient Israelite Religion (repr. in Divine Commitment and Human Obligation: Selected Writings of David Noel Freedman [ed. John R. Huddlestun; vols.; Grand Rapids/Cambridge,
U.K.: Eerdmans, ] .).
184 Mary Douglas, In the Wilderness: The Doctrine of Defilement in the Book of Numbers
(JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT Press, ) .
185 Jon D. Levenson, Sinai and Zion: An Entry into the Jewish Bible (New Voices in Biblical
Studies; Minneapolis: Winston, ) . See also, in this context, Hadley, in Prophets and
Daniel , .
... There can be little doubt that gods exist throughout much
of the Hebrew Bible, and that the evidence from the wider biblical
context corroborates and complements that of the J and E traditions.186
These divine beings have familiar, generic names such as angels and
divinities. They may be called gods. But, as in J, they also have a
familiar pronominal representation: the speaker-inclusive, first person
plural possessive suffix (Is :). These deities form a group that has
many anonymous members and, in conglomeration, form a masculine
plural entity.
The gods also form a collective. For J and E, the cohesive quality
of this company is somewhat vague. These traditions describe gods as
divine beings who (should) act as Gods emissaries in divine-human
settings, particularly ones prompted by human transgression. But in
Gen : and : at least, another defining constituent of the gods
appears: they act as a panel which God may convene, or whose counsel
he may solicit, when dealing with the affairs of his people. Since gods
share Gods jurisdiction of the human world, serve as his obedient servants and envoys, as well as apply themselves with wisdom and knowledge, they are the proper consultative agency for airing Gods plans
for his human creation. When Yahweh addresses them in Gen :
and :, he is appropriately seeking their advice. The gods are Yahwehs partners in ruling the world.
Gods divine affiliates have God-like characteristics. They are immortal, holy, masculine, and good. Led by an angelic captain (Jos :),
they are soldiers of Yahwehs army. Led by the divine king (Is :),187
they are his royal deputies. They are the members of the judicial
assembly of God under the direction of the divine judge (Ps ). They
are, correctly enough, () in rank, stature, and authorityto
Yahwehs ().188
Accordingly, they symbolize God. As angels, the gods represent,
communicate, and enact Gods will to the human community. As divinities, they implement Gods model of joint custody, oversight, and governance of the worlds nations. As gods, they are charged with practicing and maintaining social justice. The gods register Gods active presSee Olyan, A Thousand Thousands Served Him , in conjunction with Miller, HBT
/ (): (= Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology ).
187 See Preuss, Old Testament Theology ..
188 In addition to the survey in Westermann, Genesis ., see Cooke, ZAW ():
, in conjunction with Hendel, JBL (): n. . See also Tigay, Deuteronomy
.
186
ence on earth and among human beings. Gods, then, are more than
Yahwehs loyal, subordinate allies in the world. They are a theophany.
They represent and imitate God in several respects.
The different texts and traditions within the Hebrew Bible confirm
that the idea of the existence of divine beings other than Yahweh was
acceptable during much of the history of Yahwism.189 There seems
to be no inherent, or necessary, conflict between God and gods in
Israelite theology.190 The strongest testimony remains that which suggests Israels gods were understood to lie within YHWHs suite.191
Whether the proof text be Gen :, Dt :+QDeutj :, Is :,
or Ps :, the gods are real and important.192 But they are not
independent agents.193 They are, or should be, totally subject and subservient to the will of the one God worthy of the name.194
Although gods exist and are acknowledged in much of the Hebrew
Bible, Israel cannot worship them.195
When you look up to heaven and see the sun, the moon, as well as the
starsall the host of heavenyou must not feel driven to bow down to
them and serve themthings which the Lord your God has allotted to
all the peoples everywhere under heaven. Rather, the Lord took you
to become his allotted people, as is the case today. (Dt :)
God was responsible for assigning gods to the non-Israelite nations and
kept Israel for himself (see already Dt :+QDeutj :).196 These
Cooke, ZAW (): , in a somewhat different context.
Cf. Walter Brueggemann, Old Testament Theology as a Particular Conversation: Adjudication of Israels Socio-theological Alternatives, TD (): (repr.
in Old Testament Theology: Essays on Structure, Theme, and Text [ed. Patrick D. Miller; Minneapolis: Fortress, ] ).
191 Halpern, in Judaic Perspectives on Ancient Israel . See also Keel and Uehlinger, Gods,
Goddesses, and Images .
192 H. Wheeler Robinson, The Council of Yahweh, JTS (): ; and Tsevat,
HUCA (): .
193 Levenson, Creation and the Persistence of Evil: The Jewish Drama of Divine Omnipotence
(Mythos; Princeton: Princeton University Press, []) ; and Mullen, The Divine
Council .
194 Freedman, in Ancient Israelite Religion (= Divine Commitment and Human Obligation
.). See also Miller, The Divine Warrior .
195 Olyan, Asherah and the Cult of Yahweh . See also ibid. .
196 For the historical implications of Dt :, see Tigay, Deuteronomy . For wider
implications, see Schmidt, Erwgungen zur Geschichte der Ausschliesslichkeit des
alttestamentlichen Glaubens, in Congress Volume: Paris, (ed. J. A. Emerton; VTS ;
Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) ; and Peter Machinist, The Question of Distinctiveness
in Ancient Israel: An Essay, in Ah, Assyria Studies in Assyrian History and Ancient
Near Eastern Historiography Presented to Hayim Tadmor (ed. Mordechai Cogan and Israel
189
190
GEN 1:26
Although Gen : may be an isolate within the Priestly tradition, it
shares much in common with non-Priestly texts. It shares linguistic
features that include the semantic, discourse, and pragmatic. It shares a
basic form-critical structure. And it may share an awareness that gods
exist in Gods realm. To this extent, Ps story of human creation is not
an isolate within a larger biblical context.
.. Form-critical analysis indicates that Gen : conforms to an
older, pre-Priestly model.
Then God said, Let us make humankind in
our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over
the fish of the sea, and over the birds of heaven, and over the beasts, and
over the whole earth, and over everything that moves on the earth. So
God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created it,
male and female he created them. (Gen :)
Such an analysis shows, in fact, that Gen : exhibits every formcritical component of Js nonliteral clause (see ..).
... To begin with, when Ps God proposes the creation of humankind, he opens his speech with (v. a). Technically, this form is
ambiguous; the imperfect and cohortative of final weak roots are usually not distinguished in the morphology but are expressed by the selfsame ending -.1 The interpretation of , however, is clear enough.
Not only does the clause-initial position of the verb suggest the cohortative reading,2 but a comparison with the jussives that engaged other
acts of creation reinforces its desiderative sense. This speech therefore begins like that of Gen :, :., and Ex :, with a desiderative proposition. In form-critical terms, Gen : begin[s] with direct
speech, in which a speaker formulates (i) a directive or assertive
utterance (represented by a cohortative or imperfect, respectively).
announces trouble ( .). Yet in Gen :, there is no sign of trouble. Nor is there any emergency or peril. The elimination of is
accompanied by a veritable purging of its situational ominousness. In
the hands of the Priestly writer, the negative tenor of the clause is
undone and neutralized.
... The form-critical comparison between Gen : and Js
clause has discourse implications. First, it suggests that Gods plural pronouns refer to a nonsingular entity that is composed of God
and a separate, distinct addressee ( ..). Second, the comparison suggests that Gods first person grammar is intended to be conversationally inclusive as well as affiliative (see ..). Third, it suggests that
Gods allied addressee is the same as in other such conversational and
deliberative contexts in the Hebrew Bible. God expresses his intention
in the context of a heavenly court.6 When he proposes to create the
human race, Ps God consults his team of divine advisors.7
But the form-critical comparison with the clause also suggests
that God needs more than consultation. He needs divine approval. So,
to achieve this goal, Ps God replicates the proven suasive strategies
of the Yahwist. In the first half of v. , Gods plural pronouns convey
camaraderie, solidarity, and the notion that all participants are included
and equally involved in the plan (..). The repetition of the pronoun
conveys the sense that Gods appeal to inclusion is both deliberate
(.) and crucial. God even presents the addressee with a single,
common objective (..). In the second half of v. , he goes a step
further. He appends a complement clause to his directive in which
he presents the goal8 and limitations9 of human creation, explains its
rationale (see ..), and gives his addressee sufficient information to
make a consensual decision. Ps God desires to enlist the approval,
6 Brevard S. Childs, Old Testament Theology in a Canonical Context (London: SCM,
) . See also . with n. .
7 See Terence E. Fretheim, Creator, Creature, and Co-Creation in Genesis ,
in All Things New: Essays in Honor of Roy A. Harrisville (ed. Arland J. Hultgren, Donald
H. Juel, and Jack D. Kingsbury; Word & World Supplement Series ; St. Paul: Luther
Northwestern Theological Seminary, ) ; and idem, The Pentateuch (IBT; Nashville:
Abingdon, ) .
8 Claus Westermann, Genesis (trans. John J. Scullion; vols.; Minneapolis: Augsburg,
[]) ..
9 Nahum M. Sarna, Genesis (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia: Jewish
Publication Society, ) ; and Walter Gro, Gen ,.; ,: Statue oder
Ebenbild Gottes? Aufgabe und Wrde des Menschen nach dem hebrischen und dem
griechischen Wortlaut, JBTh (): n. .
For an example, see Tryggve N. D. Mettinger, Abbild oder Urbild? Imago Dei
in traditionsgeschichtlicher Sicht, ZAW (): .
25 In addition to the references in ch. n. , see von Rad, Old Testament Theology
.; and Oswald Loretz, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen (Schriften des Deutschen
Instituts fr wissenschaftliche Pdagogik; Munich: Ksel, ) .
26 Yet see Hans Walter Wolff, The Old Testament: A Guide to Its Writings (trans. Keith
R. Crim; Philadelphia: Fortress, []) , in conjunction with Burke O. Long,
Letting Rival Gods Be Rivals: Biblical Theology in a Postmodern Age, in Problems
in Biblical Theology: Essays in Honor of Rolf Knierim (ed. Henry T. C. Sun et al.; Grand
Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, ) .
24
THE DIVINE-HUMAN RELATIONSHIP
THE PREPOSITIONS AND
The grammar of Gen :a is unusual (see .). At first, v. a conforms to grammatical expectation. The proposal to create humanity
is introduced by a desiderative predicate () and is then followed
by an undetermined direct object (). Thereafter, though, two different prepositional phrases appear in immediate succession. Neither
phrase is semantically or grammatically required. They each contain a
similative nominal yet are governed by a grammatically distinct prepositional head. They each present information rhetorically peripheral to
the sentential core. Hence, the differential marking of each nonobligatory phrase suggests that each phrase has distinct meaning, at least in
relation to one other.
Gen : is often adduced to prove the contrary (.).1
When Adam had lived one hundred and thirty years, he fathered (a son)
- -. (Gen :a [PT])
Then God said, Let us make humankind
[P])
- -.
(Gen :a
1 E.g., Josef Scharbert, Der Mensch als Ebenbild Gottes in der neueren Auslegung
von Gen ,, in Weisheit GottesWeisheit der Welt. Festschrift fr Joseph Kardinal Ratzinger
zum . Geburtstag (ed. Walter Baier et al.; vols.; St. Ottilien: EOS, ) ..
2 See J. C. L. Gibson, ed., Davidsons Introductory Hebrew Grammar ~ Syntax (th
ed.; Edinburgh: T & T Clark, ) , Rem. , in conjunction with GKC f.
Cf. Ronald S. Hendel, The Text of Genesis : Textual Studies and Critical Edition (New
York/Oxford: Oxford University Press, ) ; and, differently, Howard N. Wallace, The Toledot of Adam, in Studies in the Pentateuch (ed. J. A. Emerton; VTS ;
Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
The construction of the wheels
chariot wheel. ( Kgs :a)
When the layer of dew lifted, there, on the surface of the wilderness, was
a fine flaky substance, (as) fine as frost on the ground. (Ex :
[P])
Even darkness does not become too dark for you; night becomes
light as day. Darkness and light are alike. (Ps :); see
also
But he did not recognize him, because his hands were
hairy like those of Esau, his brother. (Gen :a [J])
serves the same function throughout. It [e]xpresses likeness,9 similitude, resemblance,10 or approximation.11
... This preposition also appears in transitive clauses, such as
those expressing transformation, replication, or (re-) production (see
Gen :a).
He made the breastpiece of skilled work like the work of
the ephod. (Ex :a [P])
I will break your mighty pride, and I will make your heaven
like iron and your earth like copper. (Lev : [H])
13
You must not be partial in justice: small and great alike should
you give a hearing. (Dt :a)
It will befall laity and priest alike, slave and master
alike, maid and mistress alike, buyer and seller
alike, lender and borrower alike, creditor
and debtor alike. (Is :); see also
Judah approached him and said, Please, my lord, may your servant
speak a word into my lords ears, and may you not be angry with your
servant; for you and Pharaoh are alike. (Gen : [J])
ms. sg.
this
that
fm. sg.
this
that
pl.
these o
these
those
Accordingly, Amharic k/k signals conceptual and/or physical boundedness. It further entails the notions of separation and (relative) distinction. Semantically and pragmatically, then, Amharic k/k is related to
the (Hebrew) similative preposition and the (Aramaic) distal element
*k. In each language, *k can serve a separative function.
... There are occasional reflexes of this separative *k in Biblical
Hebrew. It appears, for example, in (< *k).35
He wiped out all existence on the surface of the groundfrom human
beings to beasts, creeping things, and birds of heaven; they were wiped
out from the earth. Only Noah remained, and those with
him in the ark. (Gen : [J])
Every creeping thing that lives shall be yours for food.
must not eat flesh with its own blood in it. (Gen :a. [P])
But you
31 See, e.g., Mandaic ka here and related Aramaic forms. In this context, see also
Leslau, Hebrew Cognates in Amharic (Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, ) (s.v. k) (=
idem, Ethiopic and South Arabic Contributions to the Hebrew Lexicon [University of California
Publications in Semitic Philology ; Berkeley/Los Angeles: University of California
Press, ] [s.v. ]).
32 Hetzron, Studies in African Linguistics (): . See also Cohen, Trait de langue
amharique ; and Leslau, Reference Grammar of Amharic .
33 Cf. Hetzron, Studies in African Linguistics (): n. .
34 Ibid. . Cf. Leslau, Reference Grammar of Amharic ..
35 For the derivation, Friedrich Bttcher, Ausfhrliches Lehrbuch der hebrischen Sprache
(ed. Ferdinand Mhlau; vols.; Leipzig: Johann Ambrosius Barth, ) .
n. . Cf. Frank R. Blake, The Interrogative Particle in Hebrew, AJSL ():
.
(Ephron answered Abraham,) No, my lord, listen to me. I give you the
field, and I give you the cave thats in itin the presence of my people,
I give it to you. Bury your dead. Abraham spoke to Ephron in
earshot of the people of the land, But, if you, would that, listen to
me! I give the price of the field. Accept (it) from me, since I want to bury
my dead there. (Gen :. [P])
When the men of the place asked about his wife, he said, She is my sister. Abimelek summoned Isaac and said, On the contrary, she is
actually your wife! So why did you say, She is my sister? (Gen :a.a
[J])
After Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, Jacob had just left the presence of Isaac his father, when Esau his brother came from his hunt.
(Gen : [J])
You will be groping at noon just as a blind man gropes in darkness. You
shall not have your ways succeed. You shall rather be extorted and
robbed all the time, without any one to provide relief. (Dt :)
He said, Good. I shall make a covenant with you. Just one thing I ask
of you: you shall not see me (again) unless you bring Michal, daughter of
Saul, when you come to see me. ( Sam :)
36 For discussions, see C. H. J. van der Merwe, Old Hebrew Particles and the
Interpretation of Old Testament Texts, JSOT (): , summarizing idem,
The Old Hebrew particles ak and raq (in Genesis to Kings), in Text, Methode und
Grammatik. Wolfgang Richter zum . Geburtstag (ed. Walter Gross, Hubert Irsigler, and
Theodor Seidl; St. Ottilien: EOS, ) , esp. ; and Jongeling, DS-NELL
(): .
37 David J. A. Clines, ed., The Dictionary of Classical Hebrew (Sheffield: Sheffield
Academic Press, ) ..
38 Francis I. Andersen, The Sentence in Biblical Hebrew (Janua Linguarum, Series
Practica ; The Hague: Mouton, ) . Cf. Harland, The Value of Human Life
.
39 N. H. Snaith, The Meaning of the Hebrew _, VT (): . Cf. van
der Merwe, in Text, Methode und Grammatik n. .
40 See van der Merwe, in Text, Methode und Grammatik (..).
41 E. J. Revell, The System of the Verb in Standard Biblical Prose, HUCA
(): ; and, somewhat differently, Waltke and OConnor, Biblical Hebrew Syntax
..d.
43
Afterwards, Moses and Aaron came and said to Pharaoh, Thus says the
Lord God of Israel, Let my people go so that they may make a festival
for me in the wilderness. Pharaoh said, Who is the Lord that
- I should heed him by letting Israel go? I do not know the Lord.
Moreover, I will not let Israel go. (Ex : [J])
These passages illustrate typical semantic and pragmatic characteristics of differential object marking. The direct object, for instance, has
a predictable interpretation. Whether it is marked or unmarked, the
simplest reading of the direct object takes the nominal to be the object
of involuntary perception (Ex :).59 As a perceived object, it also
has sufficient salience or referentiality to be (re-) deployed in the discourse as an entity with literal content (Gen :; Ex :,
respectively). The nondirect object is more nuanced and pragmatically
explicit. It can affect the grammatical subject.60 For example, when the
object is indirect ( ), the effect on the subject is variable: though
the content of the indirect object often influences the subjects behavCf. Robert M. Good, Exodus :, in Love & Death in the Ancient Near East: Essays
in Honor of Marvin H. Pope (ed. John H. Marks and Robert M. Good; Guilford, Conn.:
Four Quarters, ) .
59 H. Cazelles,
sm ql et sm b ql, GLECS (): ; Augustinus Kurt
Fenz, Auf Jahwehs Stimme hren. Eine biblische Begriffsuntersuchung (WBTh ; Vienna: Herder,
) ; Jenni, Die Prposition Beth ; and U. Rterswrden,
sema,
sama,
e" semah, in TWAT ..
60 See Rterswrden, in TWAT ..
58
ior (Gen :; see also, inter alia, Kgs :), a positive response is not
inevitable (e.g., Ex :, : [J]). When the object is oblique, the objects
effect is stronger. An allative object ( ) suggests compliance (e.g.,
Gen : [J]) or another well-meaning response by the subject (:
). A locative object ( ), though, affects the subject intimately.61
When this object refers to divine speech, the verb-object combination
regularly communicates obedience (e.g., : [J]) or responsible, dutiful
conduct (e.g., Sam :).62 From a negative viewpoint, the idiom can
also imply submission or capitulation (e.g., Ex :).63 The connection
between subject and object, then, is greatest when the object is grammatically oblique and governed by the locative preposition.
The themes of intimacy, proximity, as well as participation recur in
other combinations of verb and locative object.
The Lord smelled the pleasing smell, and the
Lord said to himself, I shall not curse the ground ever again because
of humankind. (Gen :aa [J])
I will make your cities a ruin and decimate your sanctuaries.
- I will not smell your pleasing smell. (Lev : [H])
65
The angel of the Lord extended the tip of the staff in his hand
and touched the meat and unleavened bread. (Jdg :a)
For the man who told me, Look! Saul is dead, believed he was a herald
of good news. But I grabbed him and killed him in Ziklagfor
giving me the good news. ( Sam :); see also
No evil will happen to you, nor stroke
(Ps :)
as El Shaddai.
You will speak to the Levites and say to them, When you receive from
the Israelites the tithe that I have given you from them - as your
allotment, (Num :a [P])
75 For the translation, see Victor (Avigdor) Hurowitz, I Have Built You an Exalted
House: Temple Building in the Bible in Light of Mesopotamian and Northwest Semitic Writings
(JSOTS ; JSOT/ASOR Monograph Series ; Sheffield: JSOT Press, ) . See
also Angelika Berlejung, Die Theologie der Bilder. Herstellung und Einweihung von Kultbildern in
Mesopotamien und die alttestamentliche Bilderpolemik (OBO ; Freiburg/Gttingen: Universittsverlag/Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, ) , .
76 For this description, see Garr, The Grammar and Interpretation of Exodus :,
JBL (): ; and Jenni, Die Prposition Beth . Despite the renewed efforts
of J. H. Charlesworth (The Beth Essentiae and the Permissive Meaning of the Hiphil
[Aphel], in Of Scribes and Scrolls: Studies on the Hebrew Bible, Intertestamental Judaism,
and Christian Origins Presented to John Strugnell on the Occasion of His Sixtieth Birthday [ed.
Harold W. Attridge, John J. Collins, and Thomas H. Tobin; College Theology Society Resources in Religion ; Lanham: University Press of America, ] ) and
Hans-Peter Mller (Das Beth existentiae im Althebrischen, in Vom Alten Orient zum
Alten Testament. Festschrift fr Wolfram Freiherrn von Soden zum . Geburtstag am . Juni
[ed. Manfried Dietrich and Oswald Loretz; AOAT ; Kevelaer/Neukirchen-Vluyn:
Butzon & Bercker/Neukirchener Verlag, ] , esp. ), the predicative reading of the beth still does not exist (see C. F. Whitley, Some Functions of
the Hebrew Particles beth and lamedh, JQR []: ; and Jenni, Die Prposition
Beth ).
77 Wildberger, Das Abbild Gottes. Gen. , , TZ (): (repr. in
Jahwe und sein Volk. Gesammelte Aufstze zum Alten Testament. Zu seinem . Geburtstag am .
Januar [ed. Hans Heinrich Schmid and Odil Hannes Steck; TB ; Munich: Chr.
Kaiser, ] ); Manfred Weippert, Tier und Mensch in einer menschenarmen
Welt. Zum sog. dominium terrae in Genesis , in Ebenbild GottesHerrscher ber die Welt.
Studien zu Wrde und Auftrag des Menschen (ed. Hans-Peter Mathys; Biblisch-Theologische
Studien ; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, ) ; and Gro and Jenni,
cited in ch. n. , below.
I have filled him with the spirit of God- - - expertise, ability, and knowledge in every kind of workmanship. (Ex :; see
also : [P])78
For whoever eats what is leavened, that person shall be cut off from the
assembly of Israel- - whether stranger or citizen of the land.
(Ex :b [P])
They took all the spoil and all the booty-
beast. (Num : [H])
human and
.. and
and are clearly different. On the one hand, is a similativeseparative preposition. It expresses approximation, likeness, or similarity (..). It also indicates relative separation, distance, and distinction
between likened entities (..). marks similarity as well as separation. By implication, the likened nominals in this construction are not
coreferential (see ..). On the other hand, is a locative-proximate
preposition. It expresses location (with-) in a realm, whether spacial or
nonspacial (., intro.). It also entails proximity of different kinds: viz.,
physical or emotional (..), coextensive, parallel, and even coincident or coterminous ( ..). Accordingly, in certain constructions, the
locative preposition signals coreferentiality. The prepositions and
each have their own semantic content, interpretive reading, discourse
effect, and function.
... Nevertheless, on occasion these two prepositions seem to be
interchangeable (see ..).
He who blasphemes the name of the Lord shall be put to a certain death.
The whole assembly shall be sure to stone him; - - stranger
and citizen alike, when he blasphemes the name, he will be put to death.
(Lev : [H]; see also v. ; Jos :)
Any person who consumes what has died or what was torn by animals
- - citizen as well as strangershall clean his clothes, wash
in water, and be unclean until evening. Then, he shall be clean.
(Lev : [H])
I will surely gather Jacob, all of you. I will surely collect the remnant of Israel. I will place them together - like sheep of Bozrah.
(Mic :a)
Present according to (each of) your tribes wise, discerning, and knowing
men, and I shall place them - as your heads. (Dt :); see also
May your word please be - like one of theirs; speak favorably. (
Kgs :b; see also Chr :b)
For the word (came) to me - as the word of the Lord, You shall not
eat bread or drink water there. You shall not go back by the route that
you took. ( Kgs :)
87
like a
and then assigned an approximate number. In Dt :, the prepositional phrases appear in separate yet parallel clauses; the Israelite
addressee (you) is characterized as a future pittance (beth essentiae)
which, in the past, was as innumerable as the heavenly bodies. In
each case, the two prepositional phrases express a double characterization of their head. The one marked with presents a measure, constituent, attribute, or form (see Ps :); its nominal core is coreferential with its antecedent. In contrast, when a nominal is governed by
, the nominal core of the phrase is not coreferential with its head;
the similative phrase only approximates or resembles the head in a certain way. The two prepositions, then, each effectively serve a deictic
function: marks a proximate, and a distal, qualification of a shared
antecedent.
... Gen :a adopts this pattern as well. Once Gods quoted
speech begins with a transitive predicate and an unmarked direct object, two prepositional phrases immediately follow. The former is
marked with the locative-proximate , while the latter is marked with
the similative-separative . So too, like all the preceding examples, the
proximate phrase leads the distal qualifier: - -. The same
is true for Gen :: - -.90 The coreferential phrase comes
first; the noncoreferential comparison comes afterwards (cf. .). The
two prepositional phrases present different yet aligned characterizations
of their head.
The syntactic relationship between - and - in Gen :a
offers confirmation that these two phrases jointly qualify their antecedent. They stand side by side91 in asyndetic combination. In the
Septuagint and Samaritan versions, they do not; they each supply
a conjunction between the two phrases92 and thus suggest that the
phrases are potentially unrelated constituents.93 In the MT, though, the
two phrases are not formally connected; they are simply juxtaposed.94
Further, they have a common referent.95 Their two similative nouns
represent some measure of semantic overlap.96 Also, these phrases are
arguably, albeitly grossly, almost in the same case.97 In combination,
then, the prepositional phrases resemble an appositive structure. They
reflect a bipartite qualification of a single head.98
A preliminary reading of the prepositional phrases in Gen :a is
now possible (cf. ...). When Ps God addresses his councillors,
among other things he seeks their support to create a human race
that will represent the divine community; God wishes that humanity correlate with both divine branches, God and his gods. God also
specifies two similative characteristics or attributes of the human creature: one proximate (image),99 and the other distal (likeness).100 In
one respect, then, humanity will intimately participate in divinity; to
a limited degree, the two parties will be close and almost inseparable.
In another respect, humanity and divinity will be separate and distinct;
human beings will be similar and dissimilar to the divine crew.101 In
94 See Dillmann, Genesis6 (= ET .); and Phyllis A. Bird, Male and Female
He Created Them: Gen :b in the Context of the Priestly Account of Creation,
HTR (): n. (repr. in Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities: Women and Gender
in Ancient Israel [OBT; Minneapolis: Fortress, ] n. ).
95 Waltke and OConnor, Biblical Hebrew Syntax .c.
96 Andersen, The Sentence in Biblical Hebrew ; and, on Gen :, Ruppert, Cath
(): .
97 Joon and Muraoka, A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew a. See also GKC a;
and, on Gen :, Weippert, in Ebenbild GottesHerrscher ber die Welt .
98 See Jenni, in Neue Wege der Psalmenforschung (= Studien Alten Testaments
).
99 See Wilhelm Caspari, Imago divina Gen I, in Reinhold-Seeberg-Festschrift (ed.
Wilhelm Koepp; vols.; Leipzig: A. Deichert/Werner Scholl, ) .. See also
Clines: to be human and to be the image of God are not separable (The Image of
God in Man, TynB []: [repr. as Humanity as the Image of God, in On the
Way to the Postmodern: Old Testament Essays, ( vols.; JSOTS ; Sheffield:
Sheffield Academic Press, ) .]).
100 See, perhaps, Karl Ludwig Schmidt, Homo Imago Dei im Alten und Neuen
Testament, ErJ (): (repr. in Der Mensch als Bild Gottes [ed. Leo Scheffczyk;
WdF ; Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, ] ).
101 See, e.g., Julian Morgenstern, The Sources of the Creation StoryGenesis :
:, AJSL (): ; Pierre Bordreuil, lombre dlohim. Le thme de
lombre protectrice dans lAncien Orient et ses rapports avec LImago Dei, RHPR
(): (in part); and, somewhat differently, Walther Zimmerli, Old Testament
Theology in Outline (trans. David E. Green; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, [])
.
THE NOUNS AND
image and likeness are strangely suitable characterizations
of the divine-human relationship in Gen . They are semantically alike;
the nouns are each representational terms that express similative content (see .). They imply, or seem to imply, two foci of comparison
between the divine and human spheres. Ostensibly, humanity is envisioned to be, and created as, a token of divine presence and participation in the world (., .). The nouns suggest that, in two respects at
least, humanity will resemble, replicate, or mimic God and his divine
community. Humanity, then, is (like) a theophany.
The crux lies in the nature of this theophany. According to some
scholars, the theophany is not physical.
The parallel terms image (s. elem) and likeness (demt) suggest
noncorporeal resemblance and representation.1
..
likeness appears twenty-five times in the Hebrew Bible. Most
attestations are found in Priestly writings, whether they be attributed
to P (Gen :), PT (Gen :.), or Ezekiel (:a.b.....a.b.
b., :, :..., :). The remaining few are scattered
throughout a variety of sources: the deuteronomistic history ( Kgs
:), first Isaiah (:), second Isaiah (:), Psalms (:), Daniel
(:), and Chronicles ( Chr :).
... The interpretation of likeness varies considerably in nonPriestly writings. It may, for example, refer to a physical entity.5
Since the likeness of the Babylonians can be seen (v. a), and altars
likeness cum facsimile guide Uriahs building project ( Kgs :), these
representational likenesses must be two-9 or three-dimensional.10 Similarly, the likeness can be real yet referentially unspecific or inexact.11
To whom can you liken God? What
him? (Is :)12
Something like oxen was beneath it, set all around it, each
measuring ten cubits, encircling the sea around. ( Chr :a);13 see also
9 E.g., James A. Montgomery, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Books of Kings
(ed. Henry Snyder Gehman; ICC; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, []) (ad
Kgs :b); and E. Jenni, dmh to be like, in TLOT ..
10 See Preuss, in TDOT ..
11 See Jon D. Levenson, Sinai and Zion: An Entry into the Jewish Bible (New Voices in
Biblical Studies; Minneapolis: Winston, ) .
12 Note, esp., Jenni, in TLOT .. Cf. Wilhelm Caspari, Imago divina Gen I,
in Reinhold-Seeberg-Festschrift (ed. Wilhelm Koepp; vols.; Leipzig: A. Deichert/Werner
Scholl, ) ..
13 Preuss, in TDOT ., in conjunction with H. G. M. Williamson, and
Chronicles (NCBC; Grand Rapids/London: Eerdmans/Marshall, Morgan & Scott, )
.
14 See the discussion by John Day, Gods Conflict with the Dragon and the Sea: Echoes of
a Canaanite Myth in the Old Testament (University of Cambridge Oriental Publications ;
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ) .
15 In addition to the references in n. , see the competing opinions of Caspari,
in Reinhold-Seeberg-Festschrift .; Edward M. Curtis, Image of God (OT), in ABD
.b; and Otto Kaiser, Isaiah (trans. R. A. Wilson; OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, []) n. d (on which, cf. Brevard S. Childs, Isaiah [OTL; Louisville:
Westminster John Knox, ] n. a).
16 Jenni, Pleonastische Ausdrcke fr Vergleichbarkeit (Ps ,; ,), in Neue Wege
der Psalmenforschung. Fr Walter Beyerlin (d ed.; HBS ; Freiburg: Herder, [])
(repr. in Studien zur Sprachwelt des Alten Testaments [ed. Beat Huwyler and Klaus Seybold;
Stuttgart: W. Kohlhammer, ] ). See also BDB a (ad ). For ballast variants,
see Wilfred G. E. Watson, Classical Hebrew Poetry: A Guide to Its Techniques (d corrected
Their venom is like a snakes,
that stops its ear. (Ps :)17
Tehillah le-Moshe: Biblical and Judaic Studies in Honor of Moshe Greenberg (ed. Mordechai
Cogan, Barry L. Eichler, and Jeffrey H. Tigay; Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, )
(on Gen :).
24 For the following, see Garr, Image and Likeness in the Inscription from Tell
Fakhariyeh, IEJ (): .
Finally, reappears four more times in the same vision, when the
prophet describes Gods throne and cherubic attendants.
I looked when, on the dome above the heads of the Cherubim, there
was something like a sapphire stone. Something like the appearance of
a thrones likeness appeared above them. Their appearance: the likeness of one applied to the four of them. (They
were) each the creature that I saw beneath the God of Israel at the river
Chebar. I knew that they were Cherubim. Each had four faces, and each
had four wings and the likeness of human hands beneath
their wings. And the likeness of their faces: they were the
faces that I saw on the river Chebartheir appearance and themselves.
(Ez :.a.a)
is therefore a feature of Gods self-disclosure in its different manifestations, all of which rely on the depiction of chapter . Ezekiels
implicates God, his divine presence, his royal seat, and his thronebearers.34
32 Cf. Pierre Bordreuil, lombre dlohim. Le thme de lombre protectrice
dans lAncien Orient et ses rapports avec LImago Dei, RHPR (): (on the
Cherubim).
33 Barr, The Image of God in the Book of GenesisA Study of Terminology,
BJRL (): . See also Johann Jakob Stamm, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen im
Alten Testament (ThSt ; Zollikon: Evangelischer Verlag, ) .
34 Cf. in P (...). For Ezekiels rejection of the older, Priestly term, see
J. Maxwell Miller, In the Image and Likeness of God, JBL (): ; and
Kutsko, in SBL Seminar Papers .. For Ezekiels preference for , see
Kutsko, ibid. .
35 Greenberg, Ezekiel ..
36 See ibid. (on the phrase ).
37 See Walther Zimmerli, Ezekiel (trans. Ronald E. Clements, James D. Martin, et
al.; vols.; Hermeneia; Philadelphia: Fortress, []) ., ; and
Greenberg, Ezekiel ..
38 Eichrodt, Theology of the Old Testament .. See also, in sympathetic fashion,
Christoph Dohmen, Vom Gottesbild zum Menschenbild. Aspekte der innerbiblischen
Dynamik des Bilderverbotes, LebZeug (): .
39 Greenberg, Ezekiel .. The following quotations are Greenbergs as well.
This is the genealogical record of Adam: When God created humankind,
in the likeness of God he made it, male and female he
created them. He blessed them and named them Humankind when
they were created.When Adam had lived one hundred and thirty
years, he fathered (a son) in his likeness, according to his image,
and he named him Seth. (Gen : [PT])
divine creator and human procreator is homological.55 Adam successfully replicates Gods first act of human creation56 and, in this respect,
imitates God.57
Although likeness belongs to gods (Gen :a), God (:b), and
human beings (v. a), the early Priestly tradition elaborates only on its
human nature.
When God created humankind, in the likeness of God he
made it, male and female he created them. (Gen :b-a [PT])
Be
Like other ancient Near Eastern writers,66 the Priestly school downplays
the female role in human reproduction (see, esp., :. [P]).67 Women
may not be completely absent from the process,68 yet the principal and
active parent is male.69 Adam, then, is the first Priestly parent: it is he
who heads the first human genealogy (:a); and he alone controls the
reproductive verb (father). Throughout P(T) too, males generally head
the genealogical lineage as well as control the verbs of reproduction.
Human fertility and propagation are largely carried along male lines.
Androcentricity does not, however, compel the Priestly tradition to
record every male descendant of the human race. Beginning in the second generation, P and PT are selective. Whereas the Yahwist assigns
Adam three sons, of whom two receive extensive attention (e.g., Gen
:), the Priestly tradition recognizes only one. Moreover, the omissions are deliberate.
When P faced the problem of tracing the transmission of the divine
image and the blessing from Adam to Noah, the Yahwists narrative
presented him with three possibilities. First, he could have traced the
blessing through Adams son Abel. This possibility was ruled out, however, by the narrative in : that recounts Abels early death. A secand Jan Willem van Henten; STAR ; Leiden: Deo, ) , . Cf. Boehmer, ZAW
(): ; and Lohfink, Im Schatten deiner Flgel .
65 Bird, ThTo (): , in conjunction with de Moor, in Intertextuality in Ugarit
and Israel . See also Gunkel, Genesis4 (= ET ); and Cassuto, Genesis ..
66 Frymer-Kensky, In the Wake of the Goddesses .
67 Bird, HTR (): n. (= Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities n. ; and
eadem, in Image of God and Gender Models n. ); and Howard Eilberg-Schwartz, Gods
Phallus and Other Problems for Men and Monotheism (Boston: Beacon, ) . See also
Stefan Schreiner, Partner in Gottes SchpfungswerkZur rabbinischen Auslegung
von Gen ,, Judaica (): .
68 Andreas Kunz, Die Vorstellung von Zeugung und Schwangerschaft im antiken
Israel, ZAW (): .
69 Ibid. .
ond option was to trace the blessing through Adams firstborn son, Cain.
This option was rejected for theological reasons, for J clearly connects
the Cainite line with the growth of evil. According to J, Cain is cursed
(:). Only Seth remained as the genealogical link through whom
the blessing could have been transmitted.70
An image can have characteristics like any concrete entity. It can have
size, shape, color, material composition, and value. It can have number,
whether singular or plural. It can be fabricated (see Sam :) or
destroyed, too (see Num :).
You took your beautiful things, (made) of my gold and silver that I had
given you, and you made yourself male images and
whored around with them. (Ez :)82
Then all the people of the land came to the temple of Baal. They tore
it down, his altars and his images smashed up, and killed
Inheritance of the Land of Canaan by the Israelites (Berkeley: University of California Press,
) .
79 See the discussion by Westermann, Genesis .. Cf. HALOT ..
80 E.g., Vogels, ScEs (): .
81 , too, may have a concrete meaning in v. (e.g., Baruch A. Levine, In the
Presence of the Lord: A Study of Cult and Some Cultic Terms in Ancient Israel [SJLA ; Leiden:
E. J. Brill, ] ; and Adrian Schenker, Once Again, The Expiatory Sacrifices,
JBL []: . Cf. Milgrom, Leviticus [ vols.; AB B; New York: Doubleday,
] .).
82 For discussion, see Greenberg, Ezekiel ..
Mattan, the priest of Baal, in front of the altars. ( Kgs :a; see also
Chr :); see also
King Nebuchadnezzar made an image of gold, sixty cubits high
(and) six cubits wide. He erected it in the plain of Dura in the province
of Babylon. (Dan :)
You were looking when a stone was cut out, not with hands, hit
the image on its feet of iron and clay, and crushed them. (Dan :)
Or, like (see ..), image need not conform to one or the other
of these referential extremes. It can simply be an imprint.
She saw men etched on the wall, ( ) images of
Chaldeans etched in vermillion, a likeness of Babylonians whose homeland was Chaldea. (Ez :b.b)
The interpretations of are therefore varied. It may refer to a threedimensional object in the round (image, idol/statue, model), something two-dimensional yet physical (sketch, drawing), or a nonphysical, nondimensional, and metaphorical nonentity (impermanence,
mortality). Regardless of formal degree, signifies a representation,
copy, or facsimile.
Th. Nldeke, " und
, ZAW (): . Cf. Harland, The Value of
Human Life .
84 See John F. A. Sawyer, The Image of God, the Wisdom of Serpents and the
Knowledge of Good and Evil, in A Walk in the Garden: Biblical, Iconographical and Literary
Images of Eden (ed. Paul Morris and Deborah Sawyer; JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT
Press, ) .
85 See A. F. Kirkpatrick, ed., The Book of Psalms (CBSC; Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, ) ; and, esp., W. O. E. Oesterley, The Psalms (London: S.P.C.K.,
[]) . See also Michael V. Fox, A Time to Tear Down and a Time to Build Up: A
Rereading of Ecclesiastes (Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, ) (on ).
86 Following NJPS and NRSV, the syntax of the original has been altered for greater
clarity.
83
87 On the latter text, see Andr Lacocque, The Book of Daniel (trans. David Pellauer;
rev. English ed.; Atlanta: John Knox, ) ; or John J. Collins, Daniel (Hermeneia;
Minneapolis: Fortress, ) a. Cf., inter alios, R. H. Charles, A Critical and Exegetical
Commentary on the Book of Daniel (Oxford: Oxford University Press, ) .
88 For this interpretation of Sam :, see Levine, In the Presence of the Lord ;
P. Kyle McCarter, Jr., I Samuel (AB ; Garden City, New York: Doubleday, ) ;
and Ralph W. Klein, Samuel (WBC ; Waco: Word, ) .
89 Paul L. Redditt, Daniel (NCBC; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ) .
90 See the references in n. , above.
91 Berlejung, Die Theologie der Bilder .
92 E.g., Bordreuil, RHPR (): ; and Berlejung, Die Theologie der Bilder
n. .
93 H. Wildberger,
s. elem image, in TLOT ..
You will carry off Sikkuth your king, and Kiyyun,94 your images,
your astral deity, (which) you have made for yourselves.95 I shall take you
into exile beyond Damascus, said the Lord, whose name is God of Hosts.
(Am :)
It is embedded among negative terms, negative themes and characterizations, and life-threatening situations (Pss :, :). Moreover,
it may incite a strong physical-emotional reaction, provoking comparisons with sexual desire and its gratification with an unsanctioned partner (Ez :, :).96 But the image does not elicit universal condemnation. The replicas (images) that the Philistines fabricate seem to
be an appropriate and acceptable offering in their context ( Sam :
.).97 More importantly, by all accounts the Priestly image of God is a
distinctly positive characteristic.98 Rather than voicing a unified opinion
about the image, then, biblical writers seem to voice several, whether
negative, neutral, or positive.
... Images are not restricted to the biblical text. As Wildberger
convincingly demonstrates,99 the image has a deep ancient Near Eastern background. Therein, the Mesopotamian sector has proven the
94 For the vocalization of these divine names, see, inter alios, R. Borger, Amos ,,
most fruitful.100 Not only is the Akkadian expression, s. almu image, perfectly cognate to its later, Hebrew relative. S. lm and s. almu also share
a number of functional equivalences101 which have been comprehensively studied from many different perspectives, including the formal,
social, political, and cultic.102 Further, the discovery of an Assyrian-like
image at Fakhariyeh suggests a route along which the eastern image
may have traveled west.103 The s. almu provides an unusually compelling
and detailed correlate to the biblical image.104
.... The Mesopotamian image can be generally defined by the
verbs that control it. Highly transitive verbs like ban make, manufacture or epesu make identify the image as a three-dimensional
set up, and zaqapu
object. Verbs such as kunnu (D) erect, suzuzzu (S)
erect, plant also show that the image can be free-standing. Other
verbs, however, suggest that the image is not always three-dimensional: esequ draw, es.eru draw, and sa.taru inscribe. In these latter
cases, the image is two-dimensional. Its degree of objecthood notwithstanding, in the vast majority of its attestations s. almu can refer to any
representation, whether in relief, in the round, or painted.105
Textual and glyptic evidence indicate that the image can represent
its referent in a number of ways. The image can depict the refer-
100 Some, however, favor an Egyptian prototype (e.g., Boyo Ockinga, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit im Alten gypten und im Alten Testament [AT ; Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz,
], esp. ; Erich Zenger, Gottes Bogen in den Wolken. Untersuchungen zu Komposition und Theologie der priesterschriftlichen Urgeschichte [d ed.; SBS ; Stuttgart: Katholisches Bibelwerk, ] ; Kaiser, Der Mensch, Gottes Ebenbild und Staathalter
auf Erden, NZST []: [repr. in Gottes und der Menschen Weisheit. Gesammelte Aufstze (BZAW ; Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter, ) ]; and
Dohmen, LebZeug (): . See also Weinfeld, God the Creator in Gen I and
in the Prophecy of Second Isaiah, Tarb []: [in Hebrew]).
101 Kutsko, in SBL Seminar Papers ..
102 See, among others, J. Renger, Kultbild. A. Philologisch, in RLA .;
Thorkild Jacobsen, The Graven Image, in Ancient Israelite Religion: Essays in Honor of
Frank Moore Cross (ed. Patrick D. Miller, Jr., Paul D. Hanson, and S. Dean McBride;
Philadelphia: Fortress, ) ; William W. Hallo, Texts, Statues and the Cult
of the Divine King, in Congress Volume: Jerusalem, (ed. J. A. Emerton; VTS ;
Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) ; and Irene J. Winter, Idols of the King: Royal Images
as Recipients of Ritual Action in Ancient Mesopotamia, JRS / (): .
103 See, obliquely, Hinschberger, RScR (): . Cf. F. J. Stendebach,
s. elem, in TDOT ..
104 See Angerstorfer, Ebenbild eines Gottes in babylonischen und assyrischen Keilschrifttexten, BN (): .
105 Winter, JRS / (): with n. . See also Bird, HTR (): (= Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities ); and Renger, in RLA .b.
Lord Samas [BBSt iv ]). The image, then, need not copy its
referent exactly.114 It uses signature elementsthat is, selected significant
characteristicsto signal salient aspects of its intended referent.115
Whether symbolic, pictorial, or literal, these elements are sufficient to
identify the referent.116
.... The referents themselves vary. For instance, s. almu can have
an astral referent,117 when its appositive head118 or genitive nominal119
carries the determinative . It can have a priestly referent, either
107
121
The royal image can appear in explicitly cultic settings. And in these
settings, its physical presence serves a ceremonial role. It represents
a votive as well as commemorative object in the temple. Thus in its
functional capacity, the image substitutes for the king himself. To this
extent, the representational image is replacive; it can function as the
referents surrogate.
The replacive image can serve a homeopathic purpose in magical
rituals.136 In exorcisms especially, [v]ery often figurines (s. almu) in clay,
in dough, in wax, in tallow, or in wood were used. This had the
advantage of being able to represent, more or less accurately, either
an enemy to whom one wanted to pass on the evil one suffered, or
another carrier who could even be the bearer of the evil himself, if
needed.137 A bond would be formed between image and referent,
133
134
135
136 Curtis, in The Bible Cuneiform Literature ; and Berlejung, Die Theologie der Bilder
.
137 Jean Bottro, The Substitute King and His Fate, in idem, Mesopotamia: Writing,
In the course of the ritual, the image becomes a god. Like magical
figurines, the divine image assumes the identity of its referent. It too is
a surrogate, representing the god incarnate.145
.... The divine referent of divine images poses a formidable theological problem. On the one hand, the image is a representational
artifact that is fabricated from (in-) organic materials146 and manufacReasoning, and the Gods (trans. Zainab Bahrani and Marc Van De Mieroop; Chicago/
London: University of Chicago Press, []) .
138 Ibid.
139 For the possible identification of the image and puhu substitute, see TuL :.
And once born as a living thing, the image requires the necessary
care and feeding to sustain it.158 When the image attains life, it be-
147 E.g., BBSt iv , as translated by Jacobsen (in Ancient Israelite Religion ) and
Walker and Dick (in Born in Heaven, Made on Earth ).
148 RIME E... v. (cited by Winter, JRS / []: ). See also Curtis, in
The Bible Cuneiform Literature .
149 BM : (see Walker and Dick, in Born in Heaven, Made on Earth ).
150 Lambert, Donations of Food and Drink to the Gods in Ancient Mesopotamia,
in Ritual and Sacrifice in the Ancient Near East: Proceedings of the International Conference
(ed. J. Quaegebeur; OLA ; Louvain: Peeters, ) .
151 Cf. David H. Aaron, Biblical Ambiguities: Metaphor, Semantics and Divine Image (BRLAJ
; Leiden: Brill, ) .
152 See Jacobsen, in Ancient Israelite Religion .
153 Walker and Dick, in Born in Heaven, Made on Earth .
154 See, e.g., STT :. (ibid. , n. ).
155 Jacobsen, in Ancient Israelite Religion . Cf. Aaron, Biblical Ambiguities , .
156 See, e.g., Agns Spycket, Les statues de culte dans les textes msopotamiens des origines la
re
I dynastie de Babylone (CRB ; Paris: J. Gabalda, ) ; Renger, in RLA .b,
b; Winter, JRS / (): ; and, in greater detail, Walker and Dick, in Born in
Heaven, Made on Earth .
157 Translated after Borger, ad loc.
158 Oppenheim, Ancient Mesopotamia2 .
comes the vehicle through which the referent is manifest. More than a
representation, then, the similative image becomes its referent.159
The idiom expressing this transformation, a birth, has suggestive
implications. One is genealogical.160 Because it is born, the image
is not a strictly manufactured product.161 Instead, it is a ritually induced
descendant of its referent. In a certain sense, the image is the referents
child.162 The other implication is performative. Just as image embodies
the power of its referent,163 it also exercises this power, albeit symbolically.164 Through ritual, [t]he image was empowered to speak, or
to see, or to act, through various culturally-subscribed channels on
behalf of its referent.165 The image born inherits as well as expresses
the authority, efficacy, and sanctity of its source, much like Anus son
Nudimmud in the Enuma Elish.166
Lahmu and Lahamu were brought forth
Anshar and Kishar were formed, greater than they
Anu was their heir, of his fathers the rival.
Anshar made Anu, his offspring, his equal (umassilma).
Anu begot his likeness Nudimmud (tamslasu ulid dNudimmud),
Nudimmud was the dominator of his ancestors;
Profound in wisdom, acute of sense, mighty in strength,
Mightier by far than his grandfather, Anshar,
He has no rival among the gods his brothers. (i )
Curtis, in The Bible Cuneiform Literature ; and Winter, JRS / (): .
See Barbara Nevling Porter, Gods Statues as a Tool of Assyrian Political Policy: Esarhaddons Return of Marduk to Babylon, in Religious Transformations and SocioPolitical Change: Eastern Europe and Latin America (ed. Luther Martin; Religion and Society ; Berlin/New York: Mouton de Gruyter, ) .
161 For different possible readings of ban relevant to this context, see CAD B (N).
162 See Johannes Hehn, Zum Terminus Bild Gottes, in Festschrift Eduard Sachau
zum siebzigsten Geburtstage (ed. Gotthold Weil; Berlin: Georg Reimer, ) . See also
Lambert, The Seed of Kingship, in Le palais et la royaut (Archologie et Civilisation) (ed.
Paul Garelli; CRRAI ; Paris: Paul Geuthner, ) , in conjunction with
Hallo, The Birth of Kings, in Love & Death in the Ancient Near East: Essays in Honor
of Marvin H. Pope (ed. John H. Marks and Robert M. Good; Guilford, Conn.: Four
Quarters, ) a, on the Mesopotamian royal epithets the (lasting) seed of kingship
and the seed of the gods.
163 For examples, see RA i (cited in CAD D a), STT : (cited in CAD
K a), and KAH rev. (cited in CAD S. a).
164 See, in this context, Bird, HTR (): (= Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities
).
165 Winter, JRS / (): .
166 The translation combines those of Benjamin R. Foster (Before the Muses: An Anthology of Akkadian Literature [ vols.; d ed.; Bethesda: CDL, ] .) and E. A.
Speiser (Akkadian Myths and Epics, in ANET 3 a).
159
160
Like an image himself,167 Nudimmud is the genealogical heir and expression of Anus unrivaled prowess; he represents the strength of his
divine birth-father.168
.... The representational image serves social functions, too. It
is not only the vessel that embodies the referent. It embodies the
referent in a world populated by human beings. The image is a
residence for the referent within a community.169 Stated differently, the
Mesopotamian image exists, resides, and functions in the real world.
The divine image is a case in point. It serves an expressive purpose:
to communicate divine presence in its real-world setting. The statue
represents an active and hospitable divine presence in the community.170 For example, it may symbolize divine protection and guardianship for the community.171 In a ritual context, the statue can express
and, to a lesser extent, provide public access to divine power.172 The
statue, then, is the vehicle through which a god resides in the community, maintains a presence, receives worship and prayer, and can
actively participate in society.173 In other words, the divine image represents a theophany.174
Although the expressive divine image can take the form of an object
that is manufactured, animated, and born, it can also take the form of
a human being. The human image may be a priest (see ...).
167 Jacobsen claims, in fact, that Nudimmuds own name signifies image-maker
(The Treasures of Darkness: A History of Mesopotamian Religion [New Haven/London: Yale
University Press, ] ; see also Walker and Dick, in Born in Heaven, Made on
Earth n. ). But the reading of as s. almu is a late phenomenon and, thus,
etymologically unlikely. The standard interpretation avoids this problem altogether.
For as D. O. Edzard proposes, Nudimmud is composed of three Sumerian elements:
nominalizing nu-, dm create, and mud beget (i.e., the one who creates [and]
begets) (Sumerische Komposita mit dem Nominalprfix nu-, ZA []:
; see also Bottro, LEpope de la cration ou les hauts-faits de Marduk et son
sacre, AEPHE []: [repr. in Mythes et rites de Babylone (Paris: Honor
Champion, ) ]). Alternatively, Piotr Steinkeller suggests that the name derives
from nu man; the one who, dm make, and mud blood, tissue (i.e., the one who
makes blood or tissue and who therefore creates life) (p.c.).
168 For an analogous biblical interpretation of Gen :, see Tigay, in Tehillah le-Moshe
.
169 Lambert, AfO (): a.
170 Jacobsen, in Ancient Israelite Religion .
171 For the political symbolism of the image, see, e.g., Lambert, AfO ():
b; and Porter, in Religious Transformations and Socio-Political Change .
172 Bird, HTR (): (= Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities ), in conjunction with Porter, in Religious Transformations and Socio-Political Change .
173 Renger, in RLA .b.
174 Jacobsen, in Ancient Israelite Religion .
176
In this text, the king has divine attributes: e.g., divine form (l. ),
favor (ll. .), and parents (l. ).185 His role is god-given (l. ),
yet it is directed at the people (ll. ). He is a leader (l. ) unrivaled (ll. ), although, like other features, his greatness is not
intrinsic but conferred (l. ). The king also reciprocates the favor by
paying allegiance to the one who empowered him to administer his
flock (ll. ). Tukulti-Ninurta, then, does not merely embody divine
attributes of power, authority, and jurisdiction (the image).186 By virtue
of divine investment, he represents and executes these attributes. He
effectively holds a position intermediate between the divine and human
spheres.
In this position, a king performs two distinct yet interconnected roles.
One is related to divinity.187
Asur ki Assur is king, Silulu
is the vice-regent of Asur ki Assur. (RIMA
.
A...:)
183
Salim-ahum,
vice-regent of Asur ki Assur, son of Puzur-Assur, vice-regent
ki
of Asur Assur: dAsur Assur requested of him a temple and he built forever
a temple (RIMA A...:)
As this text states, the Babylonian king can bear two titles. One characterizes him in relation to his city and his gods: affiliative, subsidiary,
and dependent. The other characterizes him in relation to his people:
supreme, effective, defensive, commanding, and sovereign. As a divine
descendant, Nebuchadnezzar is vicar or vice-regent (); as a deity
(l. ) of enormous power, he is king (sarru).
This double royal office also has a judicial application, as in the case
of Hammurabi (ca. B.C.E.).190
At that time, Anu and Enlil named me to promote the welfare of the
peopleme, Hammurabi, the pious prince, who worships the gods
to make justice prevail in the land, to destroy the wicked and the evil,
to prevent the strong from wronging the weak, to rise like Sama
s over
humankind, to illuminate the land. (CH i )
theirs (prince), and they grant him legal jurisdiction over the people.
At the same time, he solely exercises this sovereign and protective
authority over the people like a god. Like an image, Hammurabi
embodies and enacts divine attributes.
I wrote my precious words on my stela and erected it before s. almya the
statue of me, sar msarim the king of justice, to administer the law of the
land, to render verdicts of the land, to provide justice for the wronged.
(CH xlvii )
Let any wronged man who has a case come before s. almya the statue of
me, sar msarim the king of justice, let him read my inscribed stela, and let
him hear my precious words, and may my stela show him the case. (CH
xlviii ); see also
Not only is Hammurabi characterized as the king of justice,191 his concrete and public display of legal authority is too (s. almya sar msarim).
The person and image of Hammurabi are equivalent.192 They each
represent justice: Hammurabi proper represents (personifies) divine justice on earth; and his image represents (communicates), through the
power of words, royal justice in the public domain. The image of
Hammurabi expresses his god-given authority (to act) as king of justice.
In addition to the judicial arena, the kings dual role extends to the
cult.
Erisum, vice-regent of the god Assur, son of Ilu-summa, vice-regent of
Assur, built for Assur, his lord, for his life and the life of his city, the
temple (and) all the temple area for Assur. (RIMA A...:; see
also :, :, , etc.)
As this early text shows, the kings cultic duties are directed at two
audiences: the gods and the people. In accordance with the ideology
of the royal inscriptions from all periods it is the ruler who is personally
responsible for the building of the temples of the citys gods, and by
doing this properly he ensures the welfare and wellbeing of his city.193
When the king makes an offering to the gods, the beneficiary includes
his people.
Roth, Law Collections2 n. . Cf. G. R. Driver and John C. Miles, eds. and
trans., The Babylonian Laws ( vols.; Oxford: Oxford University Press, ) ..
192 See, in this context, Hehn, in Festschrift Eduard Sachau .
193 Larsen, The Old Assyrian City-State and Its Colonies .
191
The king represents and negotiates for his own interests as well as those
of his land. As human king and divine stepchild, he can interact with,
and mediate, the two worlds he straddles.
The kings dual role in the Mesopotamian cult, and society generally,
has left its mark on iconography.194 Each has its own representation.
One is iconographically subservient. The king is portrayed standing
(izuzzu) or, in like fashion, his royal statue is installed upright (suzuzzu
195 As a pious scion of the gods (vicar, vice-regent), the king dis[S]).
plays respect. The icon may serve a performative role and represent the
supplicant in search of divine favor, or it may function as a votive donation to a god. In either case, the statues deferential pose indicates the
kings religious devotion.196 The other royal pose is lordly and sovereign
(king). The king sits (enthroned) (asabu). The king (s statue) commands
respect as a manifestation of divinity and as a holy entity.197 To the
extent that the king participates in divine status, the seated royal figure functions as an object of religious devotion. The two iconographic
positions of the royal statue, then, again reflect its dual cultic role. It is
both votive and commemorative. It gives as well as receives tribute and
worship.198 Stated differently, the king (s image) represents stewardship:
a ruler of the people who represents them to the gods, and a deputy of
the gods who represents them to their people.
... In addition to a Mesopotamian reflex, the image is attested
in early Aramaic-speaking communities. It is mentioned in the Nerab
inscriptions of the early seventh century, and it appears in the older,
ninth-century bilingual from Tell Fakhariyeh.199 It is therefore attested
in Syria-Palestine, during the biblical period, in extra-biblical sources.
For the following, see Winter, JRS / (): .
For Akkadian examples of standing before (a god), see AHw a (ad I..a).
196 See, in this context, Koehler, Old Testament Theology .
197 See Hallo, in Congress Volume: Jerusalem, .
198 Winter, JRS / (): .
199 For another attestation in a broken, eighth-century text, see Javier Teixidor, Un
object lgende aramenne provenant de Meskn-Emar, RA (): (= Joseph
194
195
(ll. )
(l. )
205 See Gruber, In the Image of GodWhat is It? in Hommage to Shmuel. Studies
in the World of the Bible (ed. Zipora Talshir, Shamir Yona, and Daniel Sivan; Jerusalem:
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev Press/Bialik Institute, ) (in Hebrew).
... There are two features that immediately distinguish the image
of P(T) from its congeners in biblical and nonbiblical traditions. One is
historical.
Then God said, Let us make humankind in our image.
So God created humankind in his image, in
the image of God he created it, male and female he created them.
(Gen : [P])
Whoever sheds the blood of a human being, by a human being shall
his blood be shed; for in the image of God did he make
humankind. (Gen : [P]); see also
When Adam had lived one hundred and thirty years, he fathered (a son)
in his likeness, according to his image, and he named him Seth.
(Gen : [PT])
Every person descended from Seth (:) is created in the image of God
(see ..). Inherent in the human race from its very inception, the
early history of the image demonstrates that it is perdurable as well.
In fact, the very sequence of Gen :, :, and : suggests
that the character of the divine image in man holds equally in all
generations; even after the Fall and the Flood it continues to endure.
In spite of all that may be said concerning the sin of man, it
nevertheless by no means infringes directly upon the divine image which
is in him.207
Absent the genealogical and (pro-) creative likeness, the verse speaks of
a particular role that the human race will play.214 God envisions and/or
intends that humankind exercise mighty control over the earth and
the many creatures that inhabit it.215 In the idiom of v. b (- ),
humankind will both rule and dominate with an enormous power.216
God therefore characterizes the image in terms which are harmonic
214
with its non-biblical correlates; as image, the human race will embody
and assert the power of its referent over the natural world.217
itself is an evocative verb.218 One nuance bears upon mastery,
especially as an expression of victory or punishment.
But if you do not listen to (and obey) me and not perform all these
commandments, I will set my face against you: you will be struck
down before your enemies, your foes will have dominion over you,
and you will flee though no one pursues you. (Lev :. [H])
Oracle of the Lord to my lord, Sit at my right hand while I make your
enemies your footstool. The Lord sends your mighty scepter from Zion;
have dominion over your enemies! (Ps :)
For he [sc. Solomon] held dominion over the whole region west of
the Euphrates from Tiphsah to Gazaover all the kings of the region
west of the Euphrates. He had peace around all his borders. ( Kgs :)
O God, give the king your judgements, the kings son your righteousness.
May he have dominion from sea to sea, from the river to the ends
of the earth. May the desert-dwellers kneel before him, and his enemies
lick the dust. (Ps :.)
That party is often royal;220 can express the power that a king
wields over his subjects (see also Is :).221 In this sense, it is a royal
prerogative (see also Kgs :, :; Chr :). For the reading of
217 Arnold B. Ehrlich, Randglossen zur hebraschen Bibel ( vols.; Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs,
) .; Cazelles, in La vie de la Parole ; Schmidt, Die Schpfungsgeschichte2
; and Steck, Der Schpfungsbericht 2 .
218 For recent discussions, see Udo Rterswrden, Dominium terrae. Studien zur Genese
einer alttestamentlichen Vorstellung (BZAW ; Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter, )
; and Heike Baranzke and Hedwig Lamberty-Zielinski, Lynn White und das
dominium terrae (Gen ,b). Ein Beitrag zu einer doppelten Wirkungsgeschichte, BN
(): .
219 See David T. Williams, Fill the Earth and Subdue It (Gn :): Dominion to
Exploit and Pollute? Scriptura (): .
220 E.g., Wildberger, TZ (): (= Jahwe und sein Volk ); Janowski, Herrschaft ber die Tiere. Gen , und die Semantik von , in Biblische Theologie
und gesellschaftlicher Wandel. Fr Norbert Lohfink SJ (ed. Georg Braulik, Walter Gro, and
Sean McEvenue; Freiburg: Herder, ) (repr. in Die rettende Gerechtigkeit. Beitrge zur
Theologie des Alten Testaments [Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, ] ); and
Rterswrden, Dominium terrae .
221 Bruce Vawter, On Genesis: A New Reading (Garden City, New York: Doubleday,
) . Cf. Janowski, in Biblische Theologie und gesellschaftlicher Wandel n. (=
Die rettende Gerechtigkeit n. ); and, differently, James Limburg, Who Cares for the
Earth? Psalm Eight and the Environment, in All Things New: Essays in Honor of Roy
[t]he psalmist asks from God a world-wide kingdom for the Davidic king
[and] links the rule of the earthly King with the universal rule of
God. It is only as Yahwehs representative that the King has a claim to
dominion over the world.224
Likewise in Ps ,
God calls upon the king to occupy the place of honour at his right hand.
By this his kingship is authorized by God; the earthly ruler is shown to
be the viceregent of God, and his office is proved to function in virtue of
the divine will. The king is therefore backed up by the effective power
of God.225
The same is true of Solomon as well (see Kgs :). The source,
authority, and legitimation of a kings rule lie with God.226 Conversely,
failure to obey Yahweh may turn rulership over to ones enemies (Lev
:). Regardless, dominion is an expression of God (see also :
[H] and Ez :). In Gen , it is too. God expressly gives dominion to
the human race (Gen :b). Through its image, the human race will
A. Harrisville (ed. Arland J. Hultgren, Donald H. Juel, and Jack D. Kingsbury; Word
& World Supplement Series ; St. Paul: Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary,
) with n. ; or Terence E. Fretheim, The Pentateuch (IBT; Nashville: Abingdon,
) .
222 Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament ; Bird, HTR (): (= Missing
Persons and Mistaken Identities ); Sarna, Genesis ; and, esp., Gro, JBTh (): .
Cf. Zobell, in TWAT ..
223 E.g., von Rad, Old Testament Theology (trans. D. M. G. Stalker; vols.; New York:
Harper & Brothers/Harper & Row, []) .; Clines, TynB
(): (= On the Way to the Postmodern .); and Wildberger, in TLOT ..
See also Zenger, Gottes Bogen in den Wolken2 n. .
224 A. A. Anderson, The Book of Psalms ( vols.; NCBC; Grand Rapids/London:
Eerdmans/Marshall, Morgan & Scott, ) ..
225 Artur Weiser, The Psalms (trans. Herbert Hartwell; OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, []) .
226 See, in this context, J. J. M. Roberts, The Divine King and the Human Community in Isaiahs Vision of the Future, in The Quest for the Kingdom of God: Studies in Honor
of George E. Mendenhall (ed. H. B. Huffmon, F. A. Spina, and A. R. W. Green; Winona
Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, ) (repr. in The Bible and the Ancient Near East [Winona
Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, ] ).
ultimately represent divine rule.227 The human race will be the vessel,
or personification, of divine lordship on earth.228 For P, [e]ach human
person is, as it were, a king or a queen.229
Dominating rulership also has its attendant duties, as Ps illustrates.
O God, give the king your judgements, the kings son your righteousness.
May he judge your people with righteousness, and your lowly with
justice. For he saves the needy who cry out, and the lowly who have
no helper. He takes pity on the weak and the needy, and he saves the
lives of the needy. From oppression and violence, he redeems them; their
life (lit., blood) is precious to him. (Ps :.)
On the one hand, dominion by the king entitles him to receive obedience and tribute (vv. ). On the other, the king is clearly responsible for upholding justice. It was his commission to judge the people
in righteousness. As the one who defended the divine will for justice
against men of violence, the king was to carry out the office of judge.230
And as such, the Israelite king is not unlike his Mesopotamian counterpart (...);231 they each (should) represent divine justice on earth (see
..).232
.... The royal duty to champion divine justice, as it applies to
the image, is clearest in Gen . There, in the description of the new
world-order,233 the Priestly writer elaborates on the topic of human
power (vv. ). Its first section discusses [m]ans power over the
227 Zimmerli, .Mose3 .; and Kaiser, NZST (): (= Gottes und der
Menschen Weisheit ).
228 Hinschberger, RScR (): ; Levenson, Creation and Evil ; and, by
implication, Clines, TynB (): (= On the Way to the Postmodern .). In this
context, see also Hallo, in Congress Volume: Jerusalem, with n. .
229 Vogels, ScEs (): . See also Klein, The Message of P, in Die Botschaft
und die Boten: Festschrift fr Hans Walter Wolff zum . Geburtstag (ed. Jrg Jeremias and
Lothar Perlitt; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, ) ; and Thomas Podella,
Das Lichtkleid JHWHs. Untersuchungen zur Gestalthaftigkeit Gottes im Alten Testament und seiner
altorientalischen Umwelt (FAT ; Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr [Paul Siebeck], )
, followed by Janowski, Stellvertretung n. . Cf. Bird, HTR (): (= Missing
Persons and Mistaken Identities ), repeated in eadem, in Image of God and Gender Models ;
or, differently, Barr, Ein Mann oder die Menschen? Zur Anthropologie von Genesis ,
in Ebenbild GottesHerrscher ber die Welt (moderating Boehmer, ZAW []: ).
230 Hans-Joachim Kraus, Theology of the Psalms (trans. Keith Crim; Minneapolis: Augsburg, []) .
231 See Weinfeld, Social Justice in Ancient Israel and in the Ancient Near East (Jerusalem/
Minneapolis: Magnes/Fortress, ) .
232 Levenson, Sinai and Zion .
233 John Skinner, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Genesis (d ed.; ICC; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, ) .
God asserts that animals cannot be eaten alive, nor can their blood be
consumed.239 All the more,240 human bloodshed is prohibited.
But I shall require a reckoning for your own life-blood. From every
animal I shall require a reckoning for it; and from a human being, from
each ones fellow (human being), I shall require a reckoning for human
life. Whoever sheds the blood of a human being, by a human being shall
his blood be shed; for in the image of God did he make
humankind. (Gen :)
235
penalty for homicide.242 At this point in time, then, God permits humanity to rule over nature but within legal limits;243 humanity can not
violate blood laws or, especially, take human life.244
As all commentators agree, the talionic punishment of human bloodshed (Gen :a) is motivated, justified, legitimated, and/or explained in
the subordinate clause (v. b).245 The specific interpretation of that
clause, however, is disputed. For some, v. b empowers and authorizes
a human agent of punishment (- [v. a]) who will share punitive
responsibility with God himself (I [v. (ter)]).
The additional phrase by man, appearing in the emphatic position at
the beginning of the second clause, stresses that the punishment is to be
executed by man.246 Because man is made in the divine image, he is to
punish murder. In other words, the divine image implies a functional
similarity of man to God as governor and executor of justice in the
world.247
This shared role would also be appropriate to the crime; the idea that
humans are created in the image of God confers supreme value
on human life and makes taking it an offense not only against the
victim and his family, but also against God Himself.248 Others opt for
a different interpretation, focusing on the punishment rather than its
executor. In this latter case, v. b explains the death penalty itself.249
Murder is the supreme and capital crime because the dignity, sanctity,
and inviolability of human life all derive from the fact that every human
being bears the stamp of the divine Maker. The murderer may be put
242 Bordreuil, RHPR (): , in conjunction with Harland, The Value of Human
Life .
243 See Jenni, Philologische und linguistische Probleme bei den hebrischen Prpositionen, in idem, Studien Alten Testaments , in conjunction with Harland, The Value
of Human Life .
244 Humbert, in Interpretationes Mowinckel (= Opuscules dun hbrasant ).
245 Cf. Ulrich Wller, Zur bersetzung von k in Gen and , ZAW ():
.
246 See also Sarna, Genesis ; Harland, The Value of Human Life ; and, esp., Steck,
in Veritas Hebraica .
247 Tigay, in (italics original). See also von Rad, Genesis ; Miles,
God: A Biography ; and, in nuce, Edwin Firmage, Genesis and the Priestly Agenda,
JSOT (): . Cf. Westermann, Genesis ..
248 Tigay, Deuteronomy (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia/Jerusalem: Jewish
Publication Society, ) . See also Clines, TynB (): n. (= On the
Way to the Postmodern . n. ), following Humbert, tudes sur le rcit du paradis ;
and, by inference, Frymer-Kensky, The Atrahasis Epic and Its Significance for Our
Understanding of Genesis , BA (): b.
249 Driver, Genesis12 ; and Cassuto, Genesis ..
to death because his unspeakable act effaces the divine image in his
victim and within himself as well, so that his own life forfeits its claim
to inviolability.250
God made the human race in the image of God, humanity shares in
Gods own authority to punish lawlessness and, thus, curb and counteract violence.261 From this perspective, the divine image is the vehicle
through which humanity is legally empowered to police itself.262 But
the postdiluvian context also demonstrates that, absent protective safeguards, power simply destroys.263 Therefore Gen :b also implies that,
because () God made the human race in his image, the human community shares Gods own sovereign responsibility not to extinguish the
very vehicle that expresses his presence on earth.264 The image, then,
includes the divine authority to punish, correct, and protect the self and
community alike.265 Because God made it in his image, the human race
is a sovereign power, legal guardian, and executor of justice.
.... These interpretations of the biblical image (of God) are
compatible with its parallels elsewhere in the ancient Near East. The
realistic, concrete meaning which first offers itself in our biblical expression certainly is not to be denied.266 To a limited degree (..),
the anthropomorphic human race shares in the anthropomorphism
of God and the gods (cf. ...).267 In addition,268 the human race
intimately represents performative aspects of God and the gods in the
world: viz., divine power, dominion, and justice. The human race, then,
is comparable to a statue which a king puts in a conquered land to
signify his real, though not his physical, presence there.269 For in the
Bible, the image of God reflected in human persons is after the manner of a king who establishes statues of himself to assert his sovereign
rule where the king himself cannot be present.270 Like a statue, the
See Tigay, in .
E.g., Hinschberger, RScR (): ; and Sarna, Genesis (on v. ab).
263 Frymer-Kensky, BA (): .
264 Von Rad, Genesis , in conjunction with Harland, The Value of Human Life .
265 See Humbert, tudes sur le rcit du paradis .
266 Horst, Int (): .
267 See de Moor, in Intertextuality in Ugarit and Israel ; and, less robustly, Dohmen,
LebZeug (): .
268 See Anderson, in Biblical Studies in Contemporary Thought (= From Creation to
New Creation ).
269 Clines, TynB (): (= On the Way to the Postmodern .). See also Cazelles,
in La vie de la Parole . Cf. Sawyer, The Meaning of !$ "a (in the image of
God) in Genesis ixi, JTS (): .
270 Walter Brueggemann, Genesis (Interp; Atlanta: John Knox, ) . For the
classical formulation of this analogy, see von Rad, Genesis , based upon idem, Vom
Menschenbild des Alten Testaments, in idem et al., Der alte und der neue Mensch. Aufstze
261
262
Do not turn to
yourselves molten gods. (Lev :a [H])
nongods or make
278
(Gen :a)
(Gen :b)
(Gen :a)
with Gods (-) but distinct from the gods (-): imitatio Dei, not
imitatio deorum.
.... Inverse to likeness, the other component of the divinehuman relationshipimageis first qualified by the locative-proximate preposition in P(T) and, only in its last attestation, is encoded
with its similative-separative counterpart .
-
-
-
-
(Gen :a)
(Gen :a)
(Gen :a; see also :b)
(Gen :a)
Cf. Eichrodt, Theology of the Old Testament . with n. ; Barr, OTWSA ():
has appointed humanity to be his viceroy, the highest ranking commoner,
as it were, ruling with the authority of the king. The human race is
YHWHs plenipotentiary, his stand-in.291
well.296 For after the material concerning likeness has been excised, the
remainder is consistent with the thematic contours of image.
God blessed them and God said to them, and conquer
it [sc. the earth] and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over
the birds of heaven, and over every thing that moves on the earth.
(Gen :)
296 Ruppert, Cath (): . See also Hans-Winfried Jngling, Macht euch die
Erde untertan (Gen ,). Der geschaffene Mensch und die Schpfung, in Macht euch
die Erde untertan? Schpfungsglaube und Umweltkrise (ed. Philipp Schmitz; Wrzburg: Echter
Verlag, ) .
297 See Morgenstern, AJSL (): .
298 For this reading of the imperative, see . with n. and .. with n. .
For other readings, see Caspari, in Reinhold-Seeberg-Festschrift .; Brueggemann, The
Kerygma of the Priestly Writers, ZAW (): (repr. in The Vitality of Old Testament Traditions [d ed.; Atlanta: John Knox, ] ); or Christopher Wright Mitchell,
The Meaning of BRK To Bless in the Old Testament (SBLDS ; Atlanta: Scholars
Press, ) ; or Westermann, Bedeutung und Funktion des Imperativs in den
Geschichtsbchern des Alten Testaments, in Der Weg zum Menschen. Zur philosophischen
und theologischen Anthropologie. Fr Alfons Deissler (ed. Rudolf Mosis and Lothar Ruppert;
Freiburg: Herder, ) .
299 Cf. Lohfink, Orien (): b (= Theology of the Pentateuch ); and Bird, ExAu
(): (= Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities ).
300 Gunkel, Genesis (ET) (German stark [idem, Genesis4 ]). See also Jngling,
in Macht euch die Erde untertan? n. ; and Sawyer, in A Walk in the Garden .
301 Bird, HTR (): with n. (= Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities with
n. ), in conjunction with Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament .
302 S. Wagner, k
kabas; k
kebes; "!k kibsan, in TDOT .; Paul Beauchamp,
Cration et fondation de la loi en Gn , , a. Le don de la nourriture vgtale en
Gn , s, in La Cration dans lOrient ancien. Congrs de lACFEB, Lille () (ed. Fabien
Blanquart and Louis Derousseaux; LeDiv ; Paris: Cerf, ) ; Sharp, ScEs
(): ; and Weippert, in Ebenbild GottesHerrscher ber die Welt . See also HansPeter Mller, Der Welt- und Kulturentstehungsmythos des Philon Byblios und die
biblische Urgeschichte, ZAW (): n. . Cf. Barr, BJRL (): ; and
Zobell, in TWAT ..
303 See Lohfink, Orien (): (= Theology of the Pentateuch ).
304 Waschke, Untersuchungen zum Menschenbild . See also Bird, HTR (): (=
Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities ); and Hinschberger, RScR (): .
305 See Loretz, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen ; Lohfink, Die Priesterschrift
und die Geschichte, in Congress Volume: Gttingen, (ed. J. A. Emerton et al.; VTS ;
Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) (= Theology of the Pentateuch ); Wilson, Genealogy and
History in the Biblical World ; and Sarna, Genesis .
306 See Humbert, in Interpretationes Mowinckel (= Opuscules dun hbrasant ).
Cf. Horst, Int (): (repr. as Der Mensch als Ebenbild Gottes, in Gottes Recht.
Gesammelte Studien zum Recht im Alten Testament [ed. Hans Walter Wolff; TB ; Munich:
Chr. Kaiser, ] ); and Harland, The Value of Human Life , .
307 Vogels, ScEs (): .
308 Note Zimmerli, .Mose3 ..
309 See Sarna, Genesis (on Priestly genealogies).
310 Ibid. (on Gen :). See also Scharbert, Der Sinn der Toledot-Formel in der
Priesterschrift, in WortGebotGlaube. Beitrge zur Theologie des Alten Testaments. Walther
Eichrodt zum . Geburtstag (ed. Hans Joachim Stoebe, Johann Jakob Stamm, and Ernst
Jenni; ATANT ; Zurich: Zwingli, ) , .
311 For the unusual nature of Gen : within the Priestly genealogical tradition,
see Carr, ZAW (): .
312 Note Bird, in Image of God and Gender Models n. .
313 Scharbert, in WortGebotGlaube .
314 See Ruppert, Cath (): . Cf. Gro, JBTh (): .
315 See Ronald E. Clements, b gy, in TDOT .; and A. R. Hulst, /b
am/gy people, in TLOT ..
God assumes personal responsibility for fulfilling his promises of likeness and image; his role is active, deliberate, agentive, and causal
(I).316 But his involvement may be greater still. Despite Sarais infertility and the seemingly insuperable obstacle that it poses against realizing
Gods promises (: [J]; see also :a [P]), God remedies the situation
himself.317
I shall bless her [sc. Sarah]. In fact, I will give you [sc.
Abraham] a son from her. I shall bless her, and she will become
nations; kings of peoples will come from her. (Gen : [P])
317
its (re-) productive counterpart, the royal image is not shared equally
by all; among its heirs, a father embodies and represents this divine
trait with greater fidelity, authenticity, and genuineness than does a son
(see ...). An inalienable feature of humanity, image is nonetheless
represented differentially between generations.
The manner in which likeness and image are tracked in the early
Priestly tradition suggests one last conclusion, too. The Priestly authors
carefully plot these features as they descend through human history. A
feature may be communicated in the narrative (e.g., Gen :, :). It
may be expressed or implied at the editorial level (e.g., :). Likeness
and/or image may appear in Gods speech, in several different ways
explicitly (e.g., :a), descriptively (e.g., :), or inferentially (e.g., :,
:b). These characterological features may even be indexed by Gods
willful and active role in bringing them to fulfillment (e.g., :b
a). Though the signs are minimal, they are adequate to delineate the
specific route along which likeness and image travel. The signs serve
to identify, or designate, the heirs to divine likeness and divine image,
according to the early Priestly tradition. They are Priestly markers that
single out one lineage to be the legitimate representative of God in
the world. In other words, these markers indicate and isolate the one
community chosen to imitate God and the gods in the natural world.
CREATING THE WORLD
THE PRIESTLY COSMOGONY
The Priestly cosmogony not only establishes a physical environment. It
establishes a paradigm.1
The Bible begins with the account of the Priestly Code of the creation of
the world. In the beginning is chaos; darkness, water, brooding spirit.
The primal stuff contains in itself all beings, as yet undistinguished: from
it proceeds step by step the ordered world; by a process of unmixing.
[C]haos being given, all the rest is spun out of it: all that follows is
reflection, systematic construction.2
1 E.g., Philip Peter Jenson, Graded Holiness: A Key to the Priestly Conception of the World
(JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT Press, ) ; and Rainer Albertz, A History of
Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period (trans. John Bowden; vols.; OTL; Louisville:
Westminster John Knox, []) .. See also Smith, quoted in ..,
below.
2 Julius Wellhausen, Prolegomenon to the History of Ancient Israel (trans. J. Sutherland
Black and Allan Menzies; ; repr., Gloucester, Mass.: Peter Smith, )
.
3 Jon D. Levenson, Creation and the Persistence of Evil: The Jewish Drama of Divine
Omnipotence (Mythos; Princeton: Princeton University Press, []) .
4 Hermann Gunkel, Genesis (th ed.; HKAT I/; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, []) (= Genesis [trans. Mark E. Biddle; Mercer Library of Biblical
Studies; Macon: Mercer University Press, ] ); and Nahum M. Sarna, Genesis
(The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, ) .
Backgrounded by syntax5 and located prior to creation by verbal morphology,6 this verse depicts the original stuff of the world.7 Before creation, there was the earth, not as we know it now8 but the unformed
material from which the earth was to be fashioned a chaotic mass,
without order or life.9 Absent of light (v. ), there was darkness.10 There
was a primaeval ocean with abyssal and seamless water.11 There was
also God, or some manifestation of God,12 expressed as Gods wind.
In the very beginning, there were representatives of chaos as well as a
representative of God.13
5 Harry M. Orlinsky, The Plain Meaning of Genesis :, BA (): b;
Gordon J. Wenham, Genesis ( vols.; WBC ; Waco/Dallas: Word, ) .;
and Hans Rechenmacher, Gott und das Chaos. Ein Beitrag zum Verstndnis von
Gen ,, ZAW (): .
6 Franz Delitzsch, Neuer Commentar ber die Genesis (Leipzig: Drffling und Franke,
) (= A New Commentary on Genesis [trans. Sophia Taylor; vols.; ; repr.,
Minneapolis: Klock & Klock, ] .), also quoted in Claus Westermann, Genesis
(trans. John J. Scullion; vols.; Minneapolis: Augsburg, []) .;
and Francis I. Andersen, The Sentence in Biblical Hebrew (Janua Linguarum, Series Practica ; The Hague: Mouton, ) . See also Ziony Zevit, The Anterior Construction in Classical Hebrew (SBLMS ; Atlanta: Scholars Press, ) . Cf. Odil
Hannes Steck, Der Schpfungsbericht der Priesterschrift. Studien zur literarkritischen und berlieferungsgeschichten Problematik von Genesis ,,a (d ed.; FRLANT ; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, ) .
7 Christian Streibert, Schpfung bei Deuterojesaja und in der Priesterschrift. Eine vergleichende
Untersuchung zu Inhalt und Funktion schpfungstheologischer Aussagen in exilisch-nachexilischer Zeit
(BEAT ; Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, ) ; Horst Seebass, Genesis ( vols.;
Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, ) .; Peter Weimar, Chaos
und Kosmos. Gen , als Schlssel einer alteren Fassung der priesterschriftlichen
Schpfungserzhlung, in Mythos im Alten Testament und seiner Umwelt. Festschrift fr HansPeter Mller zum . Geburtstag (ed. Armin Lange, Hermann Lichtenberger, and Diethard
Rmheld; BZAW ; Berlin/New York: Walter de Gruyter, ) ; and, differently,
Walter Gro, Gen ,.; ,: Statue oder Ebenbild Gottes? Aufgabe und Wrde des
Menschen nach dem hebrischen und dem griechischen Wortlaut, JBTh (): .
8 S. R. Driver, The Book of Genesis (th ed.; WC; London: Methuen, ) .
9 U. Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Genesis (trans. Israel Abrahams; pts.;
Jerusalem: Magnes, []) ..
10 Gunkel, Schpfung und Chaos in Urzeit und Endzeit. Eine religionsgeschichtliche Untersuchung ber Gen und Ap Joh (d ed.; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,
[]) (repr. and abr. as The Influence of Babylonian Mythology upon the Biblical Creation Story, in Creation in the Old Testament [ed. Bernhard W. Anderson; IRT ;
Philadelphia/London: Fortress/SPCK, ] ).
11 Gerhard von Rad, Genesis (trans. John H. Marks; rev. ed.; OTL; Philadelphia:
Westminster, ) .
12 Wenham, Genesis ..
13 See Rechenmacher, ZAW (): ; Eduard Knig, Die Genesis (Gtersloh:
C. Bertelsmann, ) ; and Nic. H. Ridderbos, Genesis i und , in B. Gemser
et al., Studies on the Book of Genesis (OTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
God and chaos are different in Gen :. The tokens of chaos constitute the preexisting stuff and state of the world; the description is
relatively static. Gods wind, however, is dynamic. It moves; it is somewhat separate from its opposing deep; and it engages the deep as if
in a face-to-face confrontation.14 It even serves an anticipatory function in context. Gods wind foreshadows the agent and onset of the first
creative act (v. )15 and all creative acts thereafter.16 It announces God
and his active role in establishing a paradigmatic world from a primal
environment of chaotic indistinction.
.. Exercising Creative Control
The commencement of the first creative act marks a transformation of
Gods activity in the world. Inasmuch as
God creates by a word, He works consciously and deliberately. Things
do not emanate from Him unconsciously, nor are they produced by a
mere act of thought but by an act of will, of which the concrete
word is the outward expression. Each stage in His creative work is the
realization of a deliberately formed purpose.17
(), assign, and provide (), when he creates by divine fiat (see
.) the divine word is itself sufficient to effect what it states (e.g.,
v. ).19 Gods speech effects creation. Likewise, Gods act of naming created entities (vv. a.a.a), including humankind (:b [PT]), expresses
the authority which the one who gives the name exerts over the one
who is named.20 A demonstration of the power to direct the creation toward its proper function (vv. .b; see also v. ), naming
exerts control.21
After the cosmos has been created, Priestly references to creation per
se are limited to two.
This is the genealogy
when they were created. (Gen :a [RP])
In one, God creates the world. In the other, he creates the human
race. The common verb suggests that the two events are related. They
are also assigned a common Priestly denomination; refers to the
creation of cosmic domain and the (pro-) creation of human life.23 God
19 Christopher Wright Mitchell, The Meaning of BRK To Bless in the Old Testament
(SBLDS ; Atlanta: Scholars Press, ) . See also von Rad, Genesis ; Zimmerli, .Mose3 .; and Sarna, Genesis . Cf. Westermann, Genesis ..
20 Otto Eissfeldt, Renaming in the Old Testament, in Words and Meanings: Essays
Presented to David Winton Thomas (ed. Peter R. Ackroyd and Barnabas Lindars; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ) . See also Bernard W. Anderson, The
Earth is the Lords: An Essay on the Biblical Doctrine of Creation, in Is God a Creationist? The Religious Case against Creation-Science (ed. Roland Mushat Frye; New York:
Charles Scribners Sons, ) (repr. as The Earth is the Lords, in From
Creation to New Creation: Old Testament Perspectives [OBT; Minneapolis: Fortress, ]
); and Alexander A. Di Lella, Genesis :: A Formal Introduction to Ps Creation Account, in Mlanges bibliques et orientaux en lhonneur de M. Mathias Delcor (ed.
A. Caquot, S. Lgasse, and M. Tardieu; AOAT ; Kevelaer/Neukirchen-Vluyn: Butzon & Bercker/Neukirchener Verlag, ) . Cf. Terence E. Fretheim, Creator,
Creature, and Co-Creation in Genesis , in All Things New: Essays in Honor of Roy
A. Harrisville (ed. Arland J. Hultgren, Donald H. Juel, and Jack D. Kingsbury; Word
& World Supplement Series ; St. Paul: Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary,
) with n. .
21 Baruch Halpern, The New Names of Isaiah :: Jeremiahs Reception in the
Restoration and the Politics of Third Isaiah, JBL (): . In this context, see
also Shemaryahu Talmon, The Biblical Understanding of Creation and the Human
Commitment, ExAu (): .
22 See ch. n. .
23 E.g., Josef Scharbert, Der Sinn der Toledot-Formel in der Priesterschrift, in
controls creation, and God effects in its two capacities. According to these texts, then, the construction of the world and the construction of human lineage are analogous, if not kindred or correlative,
creative Priestly events.24
.. Separation and Differentiation
Originating as an undistinguished mass, the world progressively develops into an ordered cosmos by the systematic application of Gods creative power. In Wellhausens terms, the world is constituted by a process of unmixing.25
God said, Let the waters under heaven be collected to one place,26 and
the dry land will appear.27 And it was so. (Gen :)
God divided between the light and the darkness. (Gen :b)
WortGebotGlaube. Beitrge zur Theologie des Alten Testaments. Walther Eichrodt zum .
Geburtstag (ed. Hans Joachim Stoebe, Johann Jakob Stamm, and Ernst Jenni; ATANT
; Zurich: Zwingli, ) ; and, differently, Joseph Blenkinsopp, The Structure of
P, CBQ (): n. .
24 B. Jacob, Das erste Buch der Tora. Genesis (Berlin: Schocken, ) . The placement of the genealogical formula draws a closer relationship between creation and
human/Israelite history: when the former closes (Gen :a), it inaugurates the latter
which, itself, does not end (ibid. ).
25 See also Luyster, ZAW (): .
26 For text-critical analyses of in v. a, see Hendel, The Text of Genesis
; and David Noel Freedman, Notes on Genesis, ZAW (): (repr. in
Divine Commitment and Human Obligation: Selected Writings of David Noel Freedman [ed. John
R. Huddlestun; vols.; Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, ] .).
27 For , see Brown, Structure, Role, and Ideology n. .
28 Zimmerli, .Mose3 .; James Barr, Was Everything That God Created Really
Good? A Question in the First Verse of the Bible, in God in the Fray: A Tribute to Walter
Brueggemann (ed. Tod Linafelt and Timothy K. Beal; Minneapolis: Fortress, ) ;
and, in this context, Seebass, Genesis ..
Within the six days of creation, in fact, this expression recurs more
often than create and as often as make. Separation, or rather differentiation, is the second modality of creation in the Priestly text.29
In a related move, Ps God places limitations on his creation.
God said, Let the earth make vegetation: seed-producing plants; fruit
trees making fruit according to their kind, with their seed in it,
over the earth. And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation: seedproducing plants according to their kind, and trees making fruit
with their seed in it according to their kind. (Gen :a)
God created the great sea monsters, and every living thing that moves
with which the waters swarm according to their kind, and every
winged bird according to its kind. (Gen :a-b)
God made the earths wild animals according to their kind, and
the beasts according to their kind, and everything that moves on
the ground according to its kind. (Gen :a; see also v. a)
(vv. b.b [-
dence, then, is consistent.
]).
The evi-
[A] state of separation and so of order are basic to [the worlds] existence. The world is conceived of as something divided and ordered
and comprehensible only in this framework. Separation is itself
creation.40
.. Harmonic Order
Gods creative power produces order, and it comprises order, too. As
Wellhausen states so evenhandedly, the ordered world proceeds
step by step; order effects order. Sarna, however, emphasizes the process. The systematic progression from chaos to cosmos unfolds in an
orderly and harmonious manner.41 In either case, Delitzsch provides
the classic exposition.
The Hexameron of the account of creation as now extant falls into two
groups of three days, so arranged that the days works of the second
group accord with the corresponding ones of the first. On the first day
light was created, on the fourth the heavenly light-giving bodies; on the
second day the vault of heaven dividing the waters from the waters, on
the fifth the birds of heaven and the animals of the waters; on the third
day, after the appearance of the dry land, the vegetable world; on the
sixth land animals, to fill the dry land now provided with herbage for
their nourishment, and man, in whom the whole animal creation reaches
its climax.42
The world of internal dependency is therefore founded on order, although this orderly and harmonious manner is not named. Instead,
[t]he marvelous order of creation, in which every creature, celestial
and terrestrial, plays a role in a harmonious whole, receives the Cosmic
Artists imprimatur: very good ([Gen] :).43
Westermann, Genesis .. See also Jeremy Cohen, Be Fertile and Increase, Fill the
Earth and Master It: The Ancient and Medieval Career of a Biblical Text (Ithaca/London:
Cornell University Press, ) (on covenantal epochs).
41 Sarna, Genesis . See also Paul Humbert, Trois notes sur Gense I, in Interpretationes ad Vetus Testamentum pertinentes Sigmundo Mowinckel septuagenario missae (Oslo: Land
og kirke, ) (repr. in Opuscules dun hbrasant [MUN ; Neuchtel: Universit de
Neuchtel, ] ).
42 Delitzsch, A New Commentary on Genesis .. See also, in brief, Dillmann, Genesis6
(= ET .); and, later, Gunkel, Genesis4 (= ET ); and Cassuto, Genesis ..
43 Anderson, Relation between the Human and Nonhuman Creation in the Bibli40
Under the rubric of this very good, orderly, and harmonious world
is the provision that God makes for terrestrial life.
God said, I hereby give you [sc. human beings] every seed-bearing plant
that is upon the surface of the whole earth, and every tree that has seedbearing fruit. It shall be yours for food. (I give) all the earths animals,
and all birds of heaven, as well as every thing that moves on the earth
in which there is living breathall green plants for food. And it was so.
(Gen :)
For each life-form created on the sixth day, whether animal or human,
God assigns vegetarian foodstuffs. He determines that animals will
consume one category of flora: green vegetation. At the same time,
he determines that human beings will consume another: seed-bearing
plants and fruit trees. By divine decree, then, animal and human consumers will share the earths floral resources in relatively distinct ways,44
neither of which completely exhausts the food supply. By implication,
animals and human beings will not directly compete for survival; God
safeguards the turf, and sanctity, of each.45
As the Priestly writer depicts it, God institutes paradisiacal peace
and ecological balance among the worlds living creatures.46
The Creator did not desire war and the thirst for blood, but peace
among His creatures. By the use of the phrase ! in ver. ,
[P] gives it distinctly to be understood that he actually assumed the
maintenance of this peace of God as existing during the earliest age.
Accordingly, ver. f. were intended in especial to give to mankind the
divine and fundamental law with respect to the life of the creatures,
and therewith, at the same time, a characterisation of their original
condition.47
cal Primeval History, in idem, From Creation to New Creation (repr., with corrections,
from AJTP []: ).
44 Dillmann, Genesis6 (= ET .); and John Skinner, A Critical and Exegetical
Commentary on Genesis (d ed.; ICC; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, ) .
45 See Steck, Der Schpfungsbericht 2 , in conjunction with Hans-Winfried Jngling,
Macht euch die Erde untertan (Gen ,). Der geschaffene Mensch und die Schpfung, in Macht euch die Erde untertan? Schpfungsglaube und Umweltkrise (ed. Philipp Schmitz;
Wrzburg: Echter Verlag, ) ; and Beauchamp, Cration et fondation de la loi en
Gn , , a. Le don de la nourriture vgtale en Gn , s, in La Cration dans lOrient
ancien. Congrs de lACFEB, Lille () (ed. Fabien Blanquart and Louis Derousseaux;
LeDiv ; Paris: Cerf, ) .
46 Von Rad, Genesis . But note the qualification argued by Gro, JBTh ():
.
47 Dillmann, Genesis ..
48 See also Norbert Lohfink, Der Schpfergott und der Bestand von Himmel und
Erde. Das Alte Testament zum Zusammenhang von Schpfung und Heil, in Gnter
Altner et al., Sind wir noch zu retten? Schpfungsglaube und Verantwortung fr unsere Erde
(Regensburg: Friedrich Pustet, ) (repr. as God the Creator and the Stability
of Heaven and Earth: The Old Testament on the Connection between Creation and
Salvation, in Theology of the Pentateuch: Themes of the Priestly Narrative and Deuteronomy
[trans. Linda M. Maloney; Minneapolis: Fortress, ] ).
49 Dillmann, Genesis ..
50 Eric E. Elnes, Creation and Tabernacle: The Priestly Writers Environmentalism, HBT (): ; and Martin A. Klopfenstein, Und siehe, es war sehr
gut! (Genesis ,). Worin besteht die Gte der Schpfung nach dem ersten Kapitel der
hebrischen Bibel? in Ebenbild GottesHerrscher ber die Welt. Studien zu Wrde und Auftrag
des Menschen (ed. Hans-Peter Mathys; Biblische-Theologische Studien ; NeukirchenVluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, ) .
51 For the inclusive reading of all flesh, see Jacob, Genesis ; Lohfink, Die Schichten des Pentateuch und der Krieg, in Ernst Haag et al., Gewalt und Gewaltlosigkeit im
Alten Testament (ed. Norbert Lohfink; QD ; Freiburg: Herder, ) with n. (repr.
as The Strata of the Pentateuch and the Question of War, in Theology of the Pentateuch
with n. ); and P. J. Harland, The Value of Human Life: A Study of the Story of the Flood
(Genesis ) (VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) . See also Gen : (P), translated in
.., above.
52 See Harland, The Value of Human Life . See also Ernst Wrthwein, Chaos
und Schpfung im mythischen Denken und in der biblischen Urgeschichte, in Zeit
und Geschichte. Dankesgabe an Rudolf Bultmann zum . Geburtstag (ed. Erich Dinkler and
Hartwig Thyen; Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr [Paul Siebeck], ) (repr. in Wort und
Existenz. Studien zum Alten Testament [Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, ] ).
53 Delitzsch, A New Commentary on Genesis .. See also Jacob, Genesis .
that each creature should act on earth. The world of Gen represents
a perversion of its harmonic beginnings54 as well as an assault on God.55
Whereas Ps God deems the cosmos very good, this new world is
not. Gen : clearly demonstrates that it is filled with violence
(vv. . [P]). When the gods took women as wives, they violated an
absolute boundary56 and committed a crime against God.57 When the
gods took themselves wives from all they chose (v. b), they implicitly
chose not to limit their matrimonial pool; they exercised no self-control
over a growing female population (see v. a).58 That is to say, the gods
successfully exercised their superior power over the women;59 h. amas
refers predominantly to the arrogant disregard for the sanctity and
inviolability of human life.60 Criminal, destructive, injurious, unjust,
and abusive, the violence mentioned in Gen is an evil act harming
the world that God created.61
54 See Israel Knohl, The Sanctuary of Silence: The Priestly Torah and the Holiness School
(Minneapolis: Fortress, ) n. ; Harland, The Value of Human Life ; and the
references in ch. n. , above.
55 Lohfink, Die Ursnden in der priesterlichen Geschichtserzhlung, in Die Zeit
Jesu. Festschrift fr Heinrich Schlier (ed. Gnther Bornkamm and Karl Rahner; Freiburg:
Herder, ) (repr. as Original Sins in the Priestly Historical Narrative, in
Theology of the Pentateuch ).
56 See Jeffrey H. Tigay, The Image of God and the Flood: Some New Developments, in . Studies in Jewish Education and Judaica in Honor of Louis Newman
(ed. Alexander M. Shapiro and Burton I. Cohen; New York: Ktav, ) n. , in
conjunction with H. Haag,
chamas, in TDOT ..
57 See H. J. Stoebe,
h. amas violence, in TLOT .. See also Haag, in TDOT
..
58 See S. D. Snyman, Violence in Amos , and ,, ETL (): (on
Am :), in conjunction with Harland, The Value of Human Life . Cf. Marc Vervenne,
All They Need is Love: Once More Genesis ., in Words Remembered, Texts Renewed:
Essays in Honour of John F. A. Sawyer (ed. Jon Davies, Graham Harvey, and Wilfred G.
E. Watson; JSOTS ; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ) .
59 Note Ernst-Joachim Waschke, Untersuchungen zum Menschenbild der Urgeschichte. Ein
Beitrag zur alttestamentlichen Theologie (ThAr ; Berlin: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, )
. Cf. Wenham and Pope, cited in ch. n. .
60 Sarna, Genesis (on Gen :). In this context, see also Lohfink, in Die Zeit Jesu
(= Theology of the Pentateuch ); Wenham, Genesis .; and, differently, Haag, in
TDOT .; and Moshe Weinfeld, Social Justice in Ancient Israel and in the Ancient Near
East (Jerusalem/Minneapolis: Magnes/Fortress, ) .
61 Tikva Frymer-Kensky, The Atrahasis Epic and Its Significance for Our Understanding of Genesis , BA (): , in conjunction with Lohfink, in Die Zeit
Jesu n. (= Theology of the Pentateuch n. ). See also Michael Fishbane, Text and
Texture: Close Readings of Selected Biblical Texts (New York: Schocken, ) (comparing
Gen : and :). Cf. Bruce Vawter, On Genesis: A New Reading (Garden City, New York:
Doubleday, ) .
the world as God first constructed it. Created in the image of God,
humankind must mobilize against outbreaks of violence in the world.67
Gods very good cosmos of Gen is the antithesis of its subsequent
degeneration. True, the cosmogony provides a reflection of an orderly,
harmonious creation.68 True, Ps cosmos is a pure and perfect age69
that is regulated by principles of justice and righteousness.70 But it
also exemplifies a world devoid of corruption and violence. Order and
separation are instituted and maintained. The many components of
the cosmos neither conflict nor collide; they are interdependent and
mutually beneficial. The relationship among the different forms of animate life is nonadversarial and noncontentious. Each occupies a distinct zone, and there is no competition for space.71 Even human governance of the animals was certainly intended as something altogether
nonviolent, as is evident from the fact that both humans and animals
are restricted to vegetable food.72 The very good cosmos is very much
nonhostile.
.. Imposing Rule
Within the harmonic order that Ps God forges in creation, he also
establishes rule. For example, he makes
the two great luminariesthe greater luminary to rule the
day, and the lesser luminary to rule the nightand the
stars. God set them in the dome of heaven to shine over the earth
and to rule over the day and the night. (Gen :a)
67 For the antymony of violence and image of God, see Harland, The Value of
Human Life ; and Janowski, Stellvertretung .
68 Fishbane, Text and Texture .
69 Brown, Structure, Role, and Ideology .
70 Knohl, The Sanctuary of Silence . See also Robert B. Coote and David Robert
Ord, In the Beginning: Creation and the Priestly History (Minneapolis: Fortress, ) .
71 Since the insects and fauna created on the sixth day are not blessed with reproductive abundance (cf. Gen :), the human population has unfettered license to fill
the earth (v. ) (Jacob, Genesis ; and Beauchamp, in La Cration dans lOrient ancien
. Cf. Zimmerli, .Mose3 .; and Jngling, cited in n. , above).
72 Lohfink, Theology of the Pentateuch , , respectively.
does conflict erupt.80 The Priestly narrative eliminated war from the
story it tells, with paradigmatic intent, of the beginning of the world.81
Yet as Ps God makes the transition from chaos to cosmos, the whiff of
battle is not all that far distant.82
Gods first confrontation with an aquatic foe occurs in a now-familiar
setting (see , intro.), prior to the creative act of v. .
The earth was unformed and void; darkness was upon the surface of
the deep; and Gods wind was fluttering over the surface of the
water. God said, Let there be light. And there was light. (Gen :)
and Mythmaking, in idem, The Exegetical Imagination: On Jewish Thought and Theology
(Cambridge, Mass./London: Harvard University Press, ) . See also Talmon,
ExAu (): .
80 See Mark S. Smith and Elizabeth M. Bloch-Smith, The Pilgrimage Pattern in Exodus
(JSOTS ; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ) . See also Fishbane, Text
and Texture ; and, sermonically, Susan Niditch, Oral World and Written Word: Ancient
Israelite Literature (Library of Ancient Israel; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, )
.
81 Lohfink, Theology of the Pentateuch . See also idem, in Gewalt und Gewaltlosigkeit
(= Theology of the Pentateuch ).
82 J. C. L. Gibson, The Kingship of Yahweh against Its Canaanite Background,
in Ugarit and the Bible: Proceedings of the International Symposium on Ugarit and the Bible
(ed. George J. Brooke, Adrian H. W. Curtis, and John F. Healey; UBL ; Mnster: Ugarit-Verlag, ) . Cf. Smith, distancing the battle farther away (The Origins
of Biblical Monotheism: Israels Polytheistic Background and the Ugaritic Texts [Oxford: Oxford
University Press, ] ); or McBride, denying it altogether (Divine Protocol: Genesis :: as Prologue to the Pentateuch, in God Who Creates: Essays in Honor of W. Sibley Towner [ed. William P. Brown and S. Dean McBride Jr.; Grand Rapids/Cambridge,
U.K.: Eerdmans, ] n. ).
83 E.g., Brevard S. Childs, Myth and Reality in the Old Testament (d ed.; SBT /;
London: SCM, ) ; and Westermann, Genesis .. See also Wellhausen,
Prolegomenon ; and Gunkel, Schpfung und Chaos2 (= idem, in Creation in the Old
Testament ).
84 See Cassuto, The Israelite Epic, in idem, Biblical and Oriental Studies (trans. Israel
Abrahams; vols., Jerusalem: Magnes, []) .; and Waschke, "z
t ehm, in TWAT .. Cf. Westermann, "z t ehm flood, in TLOT .
.
85 See David Toshio Tsumura, The Earth and the Waters in Genesis and : A Linguistic
Investigation (JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT Press, ) .
moment at least (see ..), God contains the deep against outburst.92
Without fanfare, he imposes the force of rule over this potential counteragent, placing it under his control.93
Whereas Gods first theomachy lacks bloodshed, the second lacks a
confrontation.
God said, Let the waters swarm with swarms of living things, and birds
fly over the earth across the surface of heavens dome. God created
the great sea monsters, and every living thing that moves
with which the waters swarm according to their kind, and every winged
bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. Then God
blessed them, Be fruitful, be numerous, and fill the waters in the seas,
and let the birds become numerous on earth. (Gen :)
The sea monsters, like the deep, are attested in biblical and non-biblical
literature alike. In the Ugaritic texts, tunnanu (tnn) (the) dragon is a
mythological being included among the vanquished marine and serpentine enemies of Baal:94 viz., Yamm (Sea) || Nahar (River) and
the crooked serpent || the seven-headed sultan (KTU2 . iii
). When Baal defeats this aquatic deity, he contains (lit., binds) it
(cf. KTU2 .:).95 In the Hebrew Bible, () the Dragon is comparably troublesome.96 It is always under attack. In the past, the monster was pierced by Yahweh (Is :);97 so too, sea monsters heads
were smashed long ago (Ps :) (see below).98 In the future as
well, Yahweh will kill the Dragon in the sea (Is :; see also Ez :,
:).99 Whether in the Ugaritic or biblical texts, it represents a once-
92 Weimar, in Mythos im Alten Testament und seiner Umwelt ; and, differently, Grg,
BN (): .
93 See Christian Brning, Lobet den Herrn, ihr Seeungeheuer und all ihr Tiefen!
Seeungeheuer in der Bibel, ZAW (): (on Ps :).
94 Cf. Dennis Pardee, Ugaritic Myths, in The Context of Scripture (ed. William
W. Hallo and K. Lawson Younger, Jr.; vols.; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
n. .
95 For a summary of opinions on this Ugaritic verb, see Wayne T. Pitard, The
Binding of Yamm: A New Edition of the Ugaritic Text KTU ., JNES ():
.
96 Fishbane, Text and Texture ; and, esp., Edward L. Greenstein, Presenting Genesis , Constructively and Deconstructively, Prooftexts (): .
97 Note Bernhard Duhm, Das Buch Jesaia (d ed.; HKAT III/; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, ) .
98 Levenson, Creation and Evil , .
99 See Hans Wildberger, Isaiah (trans. Thomas H. Trapp; vols.; Minneapolis:
Fortress, []) .; and, on Ez , Theodore J. Lewis, CT .
and Ezekiel : Lion-Dragon Myths, JAOS (): .
vital, marine opponent of the active head god whose continuing life
threatens the gods life and the worlds order. It symbolizes chaos.100
Yet in the Priestly cosmogony, the sea monsters are not destroyed.
They are created.101 Like all of Gods other creatures and creations,
these monsters are the intended result of Gods creative activity in
the world.102 They are also included in the approbative formula of
v. b.
It is as though the Torah said, in effect: Far be it from any one to suppose
that the sea monsters were mythological beings opposed to God or in
revolt against Him; they were as natural as the rest of the creatures,
and were formed in their proper time and in their proper place by the
word of the Creator, in order that they might fulfil His will like the other
created beings.103
E.g., NJPS ad Is : n. b.
Levenson, Creation and Evil .
102 Talmon, ExAu (): ; and Brning, ZAW (): . See also Zimmerli,
Old Testament Theology in Outline ; and, somewhat differently, Day, Gods Conflict .
103 Cassuto, Genesis .. See also, in greater length, idem, Biblical and Oriental Studies .; and, briefly, Zimmerli, .Mose3 .; and Schmidt, Die Schpfungsgeschichte2
.
104 Cassuto, Genesis .. Hence, the reference to the tannnm in Genesis : is
hardly generic (cf. Smith, The Origins of Biblical Monotheism ).
105 In addition to the references in nn. , see Day, Leviathan, in ABD .b
(on Pss :, :).
100
101
rise to kingship.106 In the Hebrew Bible, Yamms legacy has been found
in a number of texts,107 of which Ps is perhaps the most transparent.
God, my king from of old, agent of salvation amidst the earth, it was
you who burst with your might the sea, who smashed the heads of
the sea monsters over the waters. It was you who crushed the heads of
Leviathan, who presented him as food for the denizens of the desert. It was
you who split the springs and wadis; you who dried up the ever-flowing
rivers. (Ps :)
This text celebrates Gods multiple victories over his ancient watery
foes. In particular, it recalls how God dissevered Yamm/the sea just
as Baal had dismembered108 Yamm (esp. KTU2 . iv ).109 But in
Gen :,110 the allusion to this mythological figureif there is oneis
more subtle.111 Its polemical force takes a grammatical form.
God said, Let the waters under heaven be collected to one place,112 and
the dry land will appear. And it was so. God called the dry land Earth,
and the collection of waters he called Seas. And God saw that it was
good. (Gen :)
106 See Pierre Bordreuil and Dennis Pardee, Le combat de Balu avec Yammu daprs
les textes ougaritiques, MARI (): ; and, briefly, F. Stolz, Sea , in DDD2
.
107 Alan Cooper and Marvin Pope, Divine Names and Epithets in the Ugaritic
Texts, in RSP .; Smith, The Early History of God: Yahweh and the Other Deities
in Ancient Israel (d ed.; The Biblical Resources Series; Grand Rapids/Cambridge,
U.K.: Eerdmans, ) ; and N. Wyatt, Myths of Power: A Study of Royal Myth and
Ideology in Ugaritic and Biblical Tradition (UBL ; Mnster: Ugarit-Verlag, ) .
For discussions, see Gunkel, Schpfung und Chaos2 (= idem, in Creation in the Old
Testament ); Fishbane, Text and Texture , ; and Talmon, ExAu ():
.
108 For philological justification of this translation, see Wyatt, Religious Texts from Ugarit:
The Words of Ilimilku and His Colleagues (BiSe ; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press,
) nn. and (which he rejects).
109 Cf. the alternate analysis of Day, Gods Conflict n. , reargued by Jonas C.
Greenfield, atta porarta beozka yam (Psalm : a), in Language, Theology, and the Bible:
Essays in Honour of James Barr (ed. Samuel E. Balentine and John Barton; Oxford:
Oxford University Press, ) (repr. in Al Kanfei Yonah: Collected Studies of Jonas
C. Greenfield on Semitic Philology [ed. Shalom M. Paul, Michael E. Stone, and Avital
Pinnick; vols.; Leiden/Jerusalem: Brill/The Hebrew University Magnes Press, ]
.).
110 For connections between Ps and Priestly material, see Harry P. Nasuti, Tradition
History and the Psalms of Asaph (SBLDS ; Atlanta: Scholars Press, ) .
111 Cf. Rudolf Kittel, Die Psalmen (th ed.; KAT ; Leipzig: A. Deichert/Werner
Scholl, ) .
112 See n. , above.
God assigns plural nomenclature to the newly pooled water (see also
v. ) even though, as vv. . suggest, the referent is probably not
a true, countable plurality.113 Delitzsch disagrees. The sea in its origin is represented as a connected whole,114 in respect of which the
lesser reservoirs, especially the rivers which it receives unto itself, are
unnoticed.115 Still, the plural is not strictly referential; the plural is
here conceived of as singular and intensive,116 and the mythological
background of the sea suggests why. Like the deep, this symbol of unGodly aquatic chaos poses a singular and intensive threat to God and
his cosmic order117a threat which is undone or unmixed, as it were.
For like the case of the sea monsters,118 Ps God dis-integrates and dissipates his powerful archenemy.119 He incorporates it into his orderly
world as a product of his creative objective.120 He then deems its fractured body good. Like the sea monsters and the deep before them,
the sea has been not only neutralized but demythologized and even
depersonalized (see above). Without bloodshed or violence, God overcomes these restive waters and controls them like any other creation of
his.
... Gods rule is firmly ensconced in the Priestly cosmos. It begins
very early, when he confronts and subdues the evil deep. It is expressed
in different ways when he names the worlds seas, appoints heavenly
spheres to rule the day and night, and creates sea monsters. Later, his
rule is shared with the human race, present and future ( ...). Even
after the last creative act, it informs his own ability to allocate vegetable
food among humans and animals. Whether explicitly or implicitly,
then, the theme of Gods rule punctuates the entire Priestly cosmogony.
As the Priestly writer depicts it, Gods rule is not simply a fact. It is
an achievement.121 It begins when God emerges the victor of a highly
sublimated clash with the deep. It is repeated when he disintegrates
113 Skinner, Genesis2 . Cf. Knig, Genesis ; and Otto Procksch, Die Genesis (d
ed.; KAT ; Leipzig/Erlangen: A. Deichert/Werner Scholl, ) .
114 See also Driver, Genesis12 ; Paul H. Seely, The Geographical Meaning of Earth
and Seas in Genesis :, WTJ (): ; and perhaps, Jacob, Genesis .
115 See also Dillmann, Genesis6 (= ET .).
116 Delitzsch, A New Commentary on Genesis ..
117 See Zimmerli, .Mose3 ..
118 Peleg, BetM (): .
119 See, perhaps, Seebass, Genesis .. Cf. Talmon, ExAu (): .
120 Greenfield, in Language, Theology, and the Bible (= Al Kanfei Yonah .).
121 See Humbert, in Interpretationes Mowinckel (= Opuscules dun hbrasant ).
the disruptive sea and absorbs its pieces into the created world. It
recurs a third time when God vitiates the primaeval sea monsters
and reconstitutes them as a deliberately divided, sterilized, and good
creation. In a series of preemptive measures, Ps God thus overpowers
proven or potential enemies, demonstrating that/how he earned his
dominion over the world. In each theomachy, Ps God performs a
bloodless, noncombative, and nonviolent coup.122
Whereas the Priestly cosmogony describes the rule of order that God
imposed on the world, other texts take the next logical step (see already
Ps ).
You rule over the grandeur of the sea; when its waves rise, you still them.
It was you who crushed Rahab like a corpse; with your mighty arm
you scattered your enemies. Heaven is yours, so too the earth is yours;
the world and its contentsit was you who founded them. North and
southit was you who created them. Righteousness and justice are
the seat of your throne. (Ps :a.a)
The Lord has become king,123 robed in grandeur. The Lord is robed,
girded with might. The world is established; it is unshakeable. Your
throne is established from old; you are from eternity. The rivers raise, O
Lord, the rivers raise their voice; the rivers raise their crushing sound.
More than the sounds of the mighty waters, more majestic than the
breakers of the sea, the Lord is majestic on high. (Ps :)
123
See, progessively, Miller, The Divine Warrior (citing Frank Moore Cross, Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic: Essays in the History and Religion of Israel [Cambridge, Mass.:
Harvard University Press, ] ); Halpern, The Constitution of the Monarchy in Israel
(HSM ; Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, ) ; and Weinfeld, Sabbath, Temple
and the Enthronement of the LordThe Problem of the Sitz im Leben of Genesis :
:, in Mlanges bibliques et orientaux en lhonneur de M. Henri Cazelles (ed. A. Caquot and
M. Delcor; AOAT ; Kevelaer/Neukirchen-Vluyn: Butzon & Bercker/Neukirchener
Verlag, ) .
127
GODS VICTORY OVER THE GODS, AND THE
ELEVATION OF THE HUMAN RACE
When God reveals his intention to make the human race, he is hardly
in divine isolation.1 On the contrary, he is situated in his divine community, whose members are invited in Genesis : to participate in
the last and most important act of creation2 (see ., .). They rise
to the occasion and support their leader, too.3 In the plural of vs.
a plurality of heavenly beings may be understood, but there is not a
hint of diversity of will or purpose.4 Gods divine court agrees to his
proposal.
The appearance of gods in Gen : might seem to prove that the
Priestly writer holds a liberal interpretation of monotheism. Indeed,
for many biblical authors the monotheistic character of Israels faith
never precluded the notion of Yahweh having a coterie or surrounded
by a court of semi-divine beings whom he addresses, commands, and
with whom he holds conversation5 (). But unlike those many biblical
1 See Horst Dietrich Preuss, Old Testament Theology (trans. Leo G. Perdue; vols.;
OTL; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, []) ..
2 Timothy Lenchak, Puzzling Passages: Then God said, Let us make man in
our image, after our likeness. (Genesis :), BT (): . See also Moshe
Weinfeld, God the Creator in Gen I and in the Prophecy of Second Isaiah, Tarb
(): (in Hebrew); idem, Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomic School (Oxford: Oxford
University Press, ) ; Patrick D. Miller, Jr., Cosmology and World Order
in the Old Testament: The Divine Council as Cosmic-Political Symbol, HBT /
(): (repr. in Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology: Collected Essays [JSOTS ;
Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ] ); and, with qualification, Lothar
Ruppert, Zur Anthropologie der biblischen Urgeschichte, vornehmlich von Gen ,
Cath (): .
3 Cf. T. L. J. Mafico, The Divine Compound Name !$ and Israels
Monotheistic Polytheism, JNSL (): .
4 B. Gemser, God in Genesis, in idem et al., Studies on the Book of Genesis (OTS ;
Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) .
5 Miller, Genesis : Studies in Structure & Theme (JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT, )
. See also Jeffrey H. Tigay, Deuteronomy (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia/Jerusalem: Jewish Publication Society, ) ; and, more generally, J. Day,
The Religion of Israel, in Text in Context: Essays by Members of the Society for Old Testament
Study (ed. A. D. H. Mayes; Oxford/New York: Oxford University Press, ) .
authors, Priestly tolerance of a divine plurality evaporates; Ps recognition of gods lasts only a moment.
A great deal is accomplished during that moment, however. First,
the Priestly writer defines human character. The human race will rule
and create; it will be a creature sui generis yet placed in the context
of, and in relationship to, the constituents of the cosmos. In particular,
the human race will represent as well as imitate the divine constituents
in the cosmos, God and gods. Second, P describes divine character.
God is the incomparable creator; and he seeks the counsel of fellow
immortals to make a creature that will ultimately be related to the
divines, at least in part. The other divine party, the anonymous gods,
agrees to Gods terms. After all, the human creation will reflect them
too, at least in part. In this circumstance, the gods play a serious
role, and their appearance conforms to form-critical and theological
expectations. Though the Priestly writer refers to the gods only in this
one text, then, in all probability the reference is not unimportant yet
alone accidental or unconscious (see .; cf. .).
If the author of Genesis was in every other instance able to remove all
trace of polytheism from the traditional material he was handling, as he
is generally agreed to have done, why did he not manage to expunge the
plural of let us?6 If the plural is here, it is here deliberately.7
6 See also Andreas Angerstorfer, Der Schpfergott des Alten Testaments. Herkunft und
Bedeutungsentwicklung des hebrischen Terminus (bara) schaffen (RST ; Frankfurt am
Main: Peter Lang, ) . Cf. Day, Gods Conflict with the Dragon and the Sea:
Echoes of a Canaanite Myth in the Old Testament (University of Cambridge Oriental Publications ; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, ) n. .
7 D. J. A. Clines, The Image of God in Man, TynB (): (repr. as
Humanity as the Image of God, in On the Way to the Postmodern: Old Testament Essays,
[ vols.; JSOTS ; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ] .
), in a different context. See also the other references in Preface n. .
(Gen :a)
(Gen :)
(Gen :b-a)
(Gen :a)
(Gen :a;
see also :b)
ing the flood in the tenth human generation (Gen : [P]).21 The water,
though, is again contained by God (: [P]).22 The sea monsters persist as well, albeit in reduced scope and absolutely under Gods control.
The scene is the contest between Aaron and the Egyptian magicians
(Ex : [P]; see also : [J]),23 when Pharaoh asks for a demonstration of Yahwehs power: Aaron produces a rod; the rod is transformed
into a sea monster; and this one monster devours all the sea monsters
that the magicians similarly produce. As all agree, the rod demonstrates
Yahwehs power.24 He unleashes an evil creature that he had formerly
deprived of autonomy, placed under his control, and worked into his
cosmos.25 But Yahweh does something else as well; he transforms this
primaeval creature into an expression of himself. Under his own overwhelming power, the olden sea monster has become an extension of
God.
The Destroyer is another, and more radical, example of an unplugged divine remnant. In the J tradition, the Destroyer is angelic.
When the Lord passes through to strike down the Egyptians and sees the
blood on the lintel and the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the
door and will not let the Destroyer enter your houses to strike
(you) down. (Ex :)26
tive on Genesis : and :, ScEs (): . Cf. Ernst Wrthwein, Chaos
und Schpfung im mythischen Denken und in der biblischen Urgeschichte, in Zeit
und Geschichte. Dankesgabe an Rudolf Bultmann zum . Geburtstag (ed. Erich Dinkler and
Hartwig Thyen; Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr [Paul Siebeck], ) (repr. in Wort
und Existenz. Studien zum Alten Testament [Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, ]
).
21 Otto Procksch, Die Genesis (d ed.; KAT ; Leipzig/Erlangen: A. Deichert/Werner Scholl, ) ; B. Jacob, Das erste Buch der Tora. Genesis (Berlin: Schocken, )
; and Levenson, Sinai and Zion: An Entry into the Jewish Bible (New Voices in Biblical
Studies; Minneapolis: Winston, ) .
22 See P. J. Harland, The Value of Human Life: A Study of the Story of the Flood (Genesis )
(VTS ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ) , who also finds Gods agency in Gen :.
23 For a source-critical discussion of these texts, see John Van Seters, A Contest of
Magicians? The Plague Stories in P, in Pomegranates and Golden Bells: Studies in Biblical,
Jewish, and Near Eastern Ritual, Law, and Literature in Honor of Jacob Milgrom (ed. David
P. Wright, David Noel Freedman, and Avi Hurvitz; Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns,
) , esp. .
24 For the irony of this display, see John D. Currid, The Egyptian Setting of the
Serpent: Confrontation in Exodus ,, BZ (): .
25 See, in part, Scott B. Noegel, Moses and Magic: Notes on the Book of Exodus,
JANES (): . Cf. Pnina Galpaz-Feller, who finds an Egyptian reference in the
sea monster here (Egyptological Motifs in the Sign of the Serpent [Exodus :;
:], BetM []: , [in Hebrew]).
26 For the assignment of this verse to J, see Bernhard W. Anderson, Analytical Out-
It is a personalized, quasi-independent aspect of Yahweh27 that functions as a destructive instrument of Gods will (see also Sam
:a.).28 Yet according to P, the Destroyer does not exist.
The blood of yours will act as a sign on the houses where you are.
When I see the blood, I shall pass over you. No plague shall come
against you for (your) destruction when I strike the land of Egypt.
(Ex :)
is not a concrete entity; it is not an angel or quasi-independent
vehicle of Gods will;29 and it does not act at Gods behest. In v. ,
is an abstraction.30 It does not even refer directly to God (cf.
Gen :b [P]).31 Ps is an attribute of plague.32 In the hands of
P, then, the divine Destroyer is itself destroyed. No longer an aspect of
God, it is depersonalized and demythologized out of existence.33
The Priestly writer seems more than casually aware that gods exist.
In the cosmogony, God reckons with former mythological beings that
have the potential to upset his cosmos. One such being later loosens the
flood. In Egypt, another being reappears yet under Gods firm harness.
At the same time, P unplugs a destructive representative of God. On
several occasions, then, P and Ps God reckon with the legacy of divine
beings.34
Although all these Urgtter suffer a common fate in the early Priestly
tradition, they are nonetheless not alike. Some symbolize evil, chaos,
or harm. Gods first three antagonists in the cosmogony define the
potential undoing of the cosmos. Similarly, the brief reinstatement of
a sea monster in Ex foreshadows the plagues that God will uncork
against Egypt. But other Urgtter are not conspicuously or recognizably
evil. On the sixth day, Ps God presumably solicits the gods because
they will be cooperative and compliant. Also, God speaks only of
positive attributes that they will share with human beings. Yet his
divine assistants suffer the same fate as their obstructive and destructive
counterparts. They quietly fall in a bloodless theomachy.
... Just as the divine scenario of Gen : is supported by other
Priestly narratives, it is also supported by non-Priestly traditions. For
example, Job corroborates that the gods were present at creation.
Where were you when I founded the earth? Tell (me), if you have understanding. Who set its measurements, since you know; or who stretched
a (measuring) line over it? On what were its bases sunk? or who set its
cornerstone when the morning stars sang together, and all the divinities
shouted for joy? (Job :)
The gods celebrated Gods first creative act.35 Perhaps they participated
in creation as well: Since the verbs expressing creation in this text are
not exclusively controlled by God, these terms open the possibility of
38
Greenstein, however, refutes the implication.
high god El/Yahweh.
[T]he notion of divine procreation is reflected, or if you wish, refracted
in the episode of cohabitation between the sons of God and the human
daughters in Gen. :.39 The Yahwist tradition, then, furnished P
with clear evidence that gods are capable of producing a (semi-) human
population.
For Priestly as well as non-Priestly traditions, the gods serve an
administrative function. The Priestly writer registers this trait as .
Other writers describe the setting in which their comes to the fore
(e.g., Dt :+QDeutj :).
The concern for order in the cosmos as a function of the divine assembly
under the rule of Yahweh is seen not only in the governance of Israel
but also in the way the council is the context in which the relationship
between humankind and the divine world is worked out, the nations and
peoples of the earth are established and governed, and righteousness as
the foundation of the cosmos is maintained.40
God shares the governance of the world with his godly subordinates
(..).
36 See Miller, HBT / (): (= Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology );
and Norman C. Habel, The Book of Job (OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, ) ,
in conjunction with Marc Zvi Brettler, God is King: Understanding an Israelite Metaphor
(JSOTS ; Sheffield: JSOT Press, ) . Cf. Hermann Gunkel, Schpfung und Chaos
in Urzeit und Endzeit. Eine religionsgeschichtliche Untersuchung ber Gen und Ap Joh (d ed.;
Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, []) (repr. and abr. as The Influence
of Babylonian Mythology upon the Biblical Creation Story, in Creation in the Old
Testament [ed. Bernhard W. Anderson; IRT ; Philadelphia/London: Fortress/SPCK,
] ).
37 Day, Gods Conflict .
38 E. Theodore Mullen, Jr., The Divine Council in Canaanite and Early Hebrew Literature
(HSM ; Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, ) , also quoted by Miller, HBT /
(): n. (= Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology n. ).
39 Edward L. Greenstein, The God of Israel and the Gods of Canaan: How
Different Were They? in Proceedings of the Twelfth World Congress of Jewish Studies ( vols.;
Jerusalem: World Union of Jewish Studies, ) Division A, *.
40 Miller, HBT / (): (= Israelite Religion and Biblical Theology ).
But non-Priestly traditions also assert that the gods can fail to execute their divine mission.
Truly, O gods,41 do you pronounce justice? do you judge humanity
equitably? Even so, with a perverse heart you act on earth; you mete
out violence (with) your hands. (Ps : [emended])
For this psalmist, their failure constitutes and breeds violence. For
another, it provokes more than an indictment.
God takes his position in the assembly of God, among the gods he
executes justice. For how long will you judge perversely and favor the
wicked? I had said, You are gods; all of you are sons of the Supreme
One. Alas (lit., not so!), you will die like humans and fall like any prince.
(Ps :.)
crimes (vv. );47 as a judge, he pronounces their sentence (v. ).48 Inasmuch as he holds the ideal epithet (v. b), which emphasizes
His supremacy over the other divine beings,49 he exercises the authority that befits his rank.50 Since his divine subordinates (lit., sons) fall
under his jurisdiction,51 he must intervene and restore a just order.52
Now, O God, judge the earth, for you own all the nations. (Ps :)
He must condemn his disloyal deputies, exercise his own rule, and
restore justice.53 The last verse of the psalm brings to God the victorious command to give justice to the world. The God of Israel
is regarded as the only true judge and protector of the weak.54 Ultimately, justice is his responsibility (..).55 And like any suzerain, God
has the right to depose errant vassals. To remedy their failure, God
must impose his over theirs.
.. Gods Rule
From beginning to end, the topic of the Priestly cosmogony is God.
Elohim is the subject; He is the singular agent of will; He has created
everything, including man.56 The human creation, of course, reflects
God.57 After God had make [sic] all the other creatures, he made a
creature similar to himself in whom he could recognize himself. God
created another self.58 As the form-critical background of Gen :
suggests, he makes it partly for his own benefit, too (.). Even the
cosmos reflects God. Like its ancient Near Eastern analogues, the
Priestly cosmogony tells of a god who triumphs over the forces of chaos
and, as victor, constructs a (new) domain in which he can reside and
rule forever.59 Most of all, then, the configuration of the world reflects
Gods handiwork as well as the character of God himself.60
And vice versa. As the world changes, so does God.61 He assumes
four different forms throughout the Priestly cosmogony, the first of
which appears before the onset of creation.
The earth was unformed and void; darkness was upon the surface of the
deep; and Gods wind was fluttering over the surface of the
water. (Gen :)
56 Michael Fishbane, Text and Texture: Close Readings of Selected Biblical Texts (New York:
Schocken, ) . See also Erich Zenger, Gottes Bogen in den Wolken. Untersuchungen
zu Komposition und Theologie der priesterschriftlichen Urgeschichte (d ed.; SBS ; Stuttgart:
Katholisches Bibelwerk, ) .
57 Note, however, Preuss, Old Testament Theology .; and Martin A. Klopfenstein,
Was heit: Macht euch die Erde untertan? berlegungen zur Schpfungsgeschichte
der Bibel in der Umweltkrise heute, in idem, Leben aus dem Wort. Beitrge zum Alten
Testament (ed. Walter Dietrich; BEAT ; Bern: Peter Lang, ) .
58 Walter Vogels, The Human Person in the Image of God (Gn ,), ScEs
(): .
59 Levenson, Creation and Evil ; and Rainer Albertz, A History of Israelite
Religion in the Old Testament Period (trans. John Bowden; vols.; OTL; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, []) .. See also Norbert Lohfink, Die Gottesstatue.
Kreatur und Kunst nach Genesis , in idem, Im Schatten deiner Flgel. Groe Bibeltexte neu
erschlossen (d ed.; Freiburg: Herder, []) .
60 See Fretheim, in All Things New .
61 Cf. Thomas M. Krapf, Biblischer Monotheismus und vorexilischer JHWHGlaube, BTZ (): .
When the cosmos is yet unformed, the earth is shapeless and desolate,62
and there is seamless water all around (see , intro.), Gods form is
amorphous, invisible, and indistinct.63 At this stage, God is as nebulous
as the world that he confronts.64 Then, the world begins to take shape.
When God began to create heaven and earth65
God said, Let there be light. And there was light. (Gen :.)
At this time, God solidifies into a stable, generic entity like much else in
the world. He next adopts a third identity, relative to others.
Then God said, Let us make humankind
image, according to our likeness. (Gen :a)
in our
The moment that God asserts control over human beings (see .),
God becomes fully individuated. He is a self-defined, unique, and completely distinct entity. Once an indefinite, abstract, meteorological phenomenon (v. ),66 God progressively transforms into a self-referential,
concrete, singular being (v. ). In the end, God achieves a unique, selfconscious singularity.
62 Childs, Myth and Reality in the Old Testament (d ed.; SBT /; London: SCM, )
with n. ; William P. Brown, Structure, Role, and Ideology in the Hebrew and Greek Texts of
Genesis :: (SBLDS ; Atlanta: Scholars Press, ) ; and Roberto Ouro, The
Earth of Genesis :: Abiotic or Chaotic? AUSS (): .
63 See Nicolas Wyatt, The Darkness of Genesis i , VT (): ; and Ouro,
AUSS (): .
64 See Walther Zimmerli, .Mose ( vols.; d/st ed.; ZB.AT /; Zurich: Theologischer Verlag, ) ., in conjunction with Ouro, AUSS (): .
65 See Brown, Structure, Role, and Ideology .
66 Harry M. Orlinsky, The Plain Meaning of ruah in Gen. ., in Dropsie College
.
Jubilee Alumni Issue (JQR /; Philadelphia: Dropsie College for Hebrew and Cognate
Learning, ) ; Robert Luyster, Wind and Water: Cosmogonic Symbolism
in the Old Testament, ZAW (): ; and Day, Gods Conflict . Cf. Brown,
Structure, Role, and Ideology .
68
GKC e; and, esp., Ember, AJSL []: . Cf. the phonological interpretation advanced by Gary A. Rendsburg, Linguistic Evidence for the Northern Origin of Selected
Psalms [SBLMS ; Atlanta: Scholars Press, ] , ).
74 Fishbane, Text and Texture .
75 See S. Dean McBride Jr., Divine Protocol: Genesis :: as Prologue to the
Pentateuch, in God Who Creates: Essays in Honor of W. Sibley Towner (ed. William P. Brown
and S. Dean McBride Jr.; Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, ) n. .
76 See Walther Eichrodt, Theology of the Old Testament (trans. J. A. Baker; vols.; OTL;
Philadelphia: Westminster, []) ..
77 See Schmidt, Knigtum Gottes 2 .
78 C. J. Labuschagne, The Incomparability of Yahweh in the Old Testament (POS ; Leiden:
E. J. Brill, ) . See also Dale Patrick, The Rendering of God in the Old Testament (OBT; Philadelphia: Fortress, ) n. ; Herbert Niehr, The Rise of YHWH
in Judahite and Israelite Religion: Methodological and Religio-Historical Aspects, in
The Triumph of Elohim: From Yahwisms to Judaisms (ed. Diana Vikander Edelman; Grand
Rapids/Kampen: Eerdmans/Kok Pharos, []) ; and Miller, quoted
above in , intro.
79 Mullen, Divine Assembly, in ABD .b.
80 Jacob Milgrom, Leviticus ( vols.; AB B; New York: Doubleday, ) ..
See also Susan Niditch, Oral World and Written Word: Ancient Israelite Literature (Library
of Ancient Israel; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, ) ; and Westermann and
Harland, quoted in ., ., respectively.
Ps God does not have a heavenly entourage. Ps God does not have
divine assistants or ambassadors. Ps God has no divine peers. For P,
a host of heavenly beings very much clashed with monotheism.81
Their existence is a theological affront, defining them as Gods rivals
(see ..). And Yahweh the suzerain cannot tolerate rivals.82 He
defeats them as he defeated other rivals in the cosmogony: He neutralizes, or engulfs, them; and they never reemerge in the Priestly pentateuchal tradition. Ps God therefore achieves sole majestic rule over the
world and, in the process, establishes monotheism itself.83
... Whereas Gods council disappears, another set of nonmalevolent divine beings has left distinct traces in the subsequent Priestly
narrative.84 They too were once Gods assistants. They too are now
deposed, depersonalized, demythologized, and deprived of any vitality
whatsoever. And they too specifically express the kingly deity.85 These
beings are the Cherubim.
Outside of the early Priestly tradition, the Cherubim are mythological beings. In most texts, they are celestial winged bearers of God
upon which he was imagined as sitting enthroned (e.g., Ps :).86
They can transport God through space (e.g., Sam :; Ps :).
They represent and attend to God (e.g., Ez :). In other texts, the
Cherubim are protective beings associated with Eden (e.g., :).87
He [sc. the Lord God] expelled the man, and he stationed east of the
garden of Eden the Cherubim and the flame of a whirling sword, to
guard the way to the tree of life. (Gen : [J])
82
For J, these divine guards are important.88 They serve as Gods representatives,89 appointed by God to guard Eden against human incursion.90 By divine decree, the Cherubim function as Gods deputies, on
earth, to protect Gods domain against violation.91
In the Priestly tradition, there are two types of Cherubim, both
of which are incorporated into the physical design of the tabernacle.
One type is three-dimensional. Located in the adytum, these Cherubim do not bear Gods throne (Ex :; Num : [P]). They are gold
icons that protect the covering atop the ark (Ex :, : [P]),92
which are the symbol par excellence of Yahwehs Presence in Israels
midst.93 The other type of Priestly Cherubim is two-dimensional.94
These latter Cherubim are artistic designs adorning tabernacle curtains. They are embroidered on the innermost set of curtains that cover
the tabernacle proper (:, : [P]), and they decorate the curtain
that screens off the Holy of Holies and the ark (:, : [P]). In
their Priestly incarnation, then, the Cherubim have been converted
from angelic assistants to symbolic ornamentation.95 They still implicate God, albeit differently than in other traditions.96 Regardless of their
degree of physicality, the Priestly Cherubim are stationed at boundaries
between ever-increasing spheres of holiness:97 the tabernacle proper
(see also Kgs :); the entrance into the Holy of Holies (see also
88 Cf. Claus Westermann, Genesis (trans. John J. Scullion; vols.; Minneapolis: Augsburg, []) .; and van Seters, The Creation of Man and the
Creation of the King, ZAW (): .
89 See Zimmerli, .Mose3 ..
90 U. Cassuto, A Commentary on the Book of Genesis (trans. Israel Abrahams; pts.;
Jerusalem: Magnes, []) .; David P. Wright, Holiness, Sex, and
Death in the Garden of Eden, Bib (): ; and Beuken, LouvSt (): .
91 See Dillmann, Die Genesis (th ed.; KeHAT ; Leipzig: S. Hirzel, ) (=
Genesis [trans. Wm. B. Stevenson; vols.; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, ] .); and
Jacob, Genesis .
92 Mettinger, The Dethronement of Sabaoth: Studies in the Shem and Kabod Theologies (trans.
Frederick H. Cryer; CBOT ; Lund: CWK Gleerup, ) . See also Mettinger, in
DDD2 b.
93 John I. Durham, Exodus (WBC ; Waco: Word, ) (italics original). See also
Mettinger, The Dethronement of Sabaoth .
94 See Keel and Uehlinger, Gods, Goddesses, and Images .
95 M. Haran, The Ark and the Cherubim: Their Symbolic Significance in Biblical
Ritual, IEJ (): ; and idem, Temples and Temple-Service in Ancient Israel: An Inquiry
into the Cult Phenomena and the Historical Setting of the Priestly School (Oxford: Oxford
University Press, ) . See also Olyan, A Thousand Thousands Served Him .
96 Sommer, BI (): .
97 For the organizational principle, see Balentine, The Torahs Vision of Worship (OBT;
Minneapolis: Fortress, ) .
vv. .); and the arks covering, or sound stage of Gods theophany
(Num : [P]; see also Kgs :, :). In the Priestly tradition,
these Cherubim are ossified symbols of a God enthroned amidst royal
splendor in his earthly sanctuary.98
... Priestly monotheism mandates that God have no competitors,
whether disruptive or supportive. In the case of evil challengers, God
struggles to eliminate them from his world. In the case of other divine
powers that cohabit his world, they pose a different kind of threat. They
pose an immediate threat to Gods singularity in the divine realm. But
they also pose a prospective threat; even Gods divine servants may
fail God, disobey him, and provoke violence. Nevertheless, there is one
Priestly response. The threat is contained and submerged under Gods
control. And through this process, God expresses his claim to exclusive
and all-powerful kingship.
In the cosmogony, God demonstrates and then claims exclusive right
to . God exercises this power as the creator of the world (.), and
he strips his co-creative peers of theirs (..). His timing is impeccable.
As he deliberately seeks their participation to make a human race that
will somewhat resemble their own (cap-) ability to generate and
populate the world with human beings, God thwarts them. He quietly
imposes his and, without assistance, successfully creates a selfsustaining human race. With the same stroke, Ps God also checks their
potential to make miscreants like the Nephilim. God is and remains
prime creator in the world.
What befalls the gods also befalls their . The gods and their
succumb to the essence of the idea of creation in the Hebrew
Bible; like everything else in the cosmos, their ultimate disposition
reflects the uncompromised mastery of YHWH, God of Israel, over
all else (see ..).99 But their fate is also implicit in Gods proposal to
make the human race. Ps God intends that the human image reflect a
divine counterpart; the image of the human race will be homological
with Gods as well as the gods ( ...).100 In the divine world, how-
99
ever, God and the gods do not share image equally. It is a trait that
God, the absolute monarch, wields over his co-regental subordinates. It
is a trait that will allow Ps God to dismiss Cherubic guardians of the
created world (..). It is also a trait that God can impose on violators
of his sovereign rule. Towards the end of the cosmogony, God exercises
his yet again to neutralize even unexpressed threats to his exclusive
majestic status.
The Priestly cosmogony shows how God achieves kingship after
overpowering legacies of evil. It shows how God predominates over
his domain, including his traditional allies that comprise his pantheon.
The cosmogony demonstrates, then, how effectively God imposes rule
over the cosmos.101
For the Lord is a great God and a great king over all gods. (Ps :; see
also :, :)
The Lord is king! For you, O Lord, are supreme over the whole earth;
you are exalted far above all gods. (Ps :a.)
Not only is God incomparable among all his peers, the God of gods
and the Lord of lords (Ps :) (see ..).102 Ps God is altogether
without peer.
.. Imitatio Dei et deorum
According to the Priestly writer, humankind is a godlike and God-like
creation. Created in our image and in the image of God, it represents
both levels of divine authority that govern the cosmos. Humankind
represents Gods community of co-rulers, responsible for performing
the justice and enacting the sovereign will of God. It also represents
the rule of God himself, at least as he demonstrates it throughout the
Priestly cosmogony. A theophany, humankind represents the Enthroned
One as well as those surrounding His throne.
102
Like Gen , this psalm ascribes image to human beings.106 God ensures
that they dominate terrestrial, aviary, and marine life (vv. ; see
Gen :b.b). They collaterally hold the power to place everything
under their control (v. b; see Gen :bb.ab).107 God even assigns
103 Levenson, Creation and Evil . See also Humbert, tudes sur le rcit du paradis
et de la chute dans la Gense (MUN ; Neuchtel: Universit de Neuchtel, ) ;
Bird, Bone of My Bone and Flesh of My Flesh, ThTo (): ; and the
discussion by Sarah Stroumsa, What is Man: Psalm : in Jewish, Christian and
Muslim Exegesis in Arabic, Hen (): . Cf. Beuken, LouvSt (): .
104 The tradition-historical relationship between these two texts is debated (Harland,
The Value of Human Life ). It has been suggested that the Priestly text is dependent
upon Ps (Sigmund Mowinckel, Urmensch und Knigsideologie, ST []: ),
independent of Ps yet derived from a common previous tradition (Preuss, Old Testament Theology .), or subsequent to Ps (Stamm, Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen
im Alten Testament [ThSt ; Zollikon: Evangelischer Verlag, ] , in conjunction
with Kraus, Psalms .).
105 For this interpretation of , see Charles Augustus Briggs and Emilie Grace
Briggs, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Book of Psalms ( vols.; ICC; Edinburgh:
T. & T. Clark, ) ., in conjunction with A. A. Anderson, The Book of Psalms
( vols.; NCBC; Grand Rapids/London: Eerdmans/Marshall, Morgan & Scott, )
.. Cf. Schmidt, Gott und Mensch in Ps. . Form- und berlieferungsgeschichtliche
Erwgungen, TZ (): (repr. in Vielfalt und Einheit alttestamentlichen Glaubens
[ed. Axel Graupner, Holger Delkurt, and Alexander B. Ernst; vols.; NeukirchenVluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, ] .).
106 Humbert, tudes sur le rcit du paradis ; Wildberger, Das Abbild Gottes. Gen.
, , TZ (): (repr. in Jahwe und sein Volk. Gesammelte Aufstze zum
Alten Testament. Zu seinem . Geburtstag am . Januar [ed. Hans Heinrich Schmid and
Odil Hannes Steck; TB ; Munich: Chr. Kaiser, ] ); and Schmidt, Die
Schpfungsgeschichte2 .
107 Schmidt, TZ (): (= Vielfalt und Einheit .); Manfred Grg, Alles hast
Du gelegt unter seine Fe. Beobachtungen zu Ps ,b im Vergleich mit Gen ,, in
Freude an der Weisung des Herrn. Beitrge zur Theologie der Psalmen. Festgabe zum . Geburtstag von Heinrich Gro (ed. Ernst Haag and Frank-Lothar Hossfeld; SBB ; Stuttgart:
Katholisches Bibelwerk, ) (repr. in Studien zur biblisch-gyptischen Religionsgeschichte [SBAB ; Stuttgart: Katholisches Bibelwerk, ] ); and James Limburg, Who Cares for the Earth? Psalm Eight and the Environment, in All Things
New .
them royal status and royal rule comparable to his own (e.g., v. b).108
Nonetheless, the psalmist deems humanity inherently diminutive
(v. ).109 As Wolff asserts, the crowning of man to be steward over the
world is (in view of his minuteness ) anything but a matter of course,
and certainly does not have its ground in man himself (vv. f.).110 God
chooses to elevate human beings to the highest status conceivable,
short of complete divinization (v. a).111 Like the stars before them
(Gen :a) (.), God grants his human creation rulership of the
world. He is the majestic Lord of the universe (vv. .); humankind is
his underlord with whom he shares sovereignty.112 Humanity attests to
God on earth.113
Ps and Gen each affirm that humanity occupies a privileged
position in the world. In Ps , God gives it special protection (v. b) and
determines that it be his near-divine co-regent (vv. ). In Gen , its
privileged position is more dynamic and replacive. For when God ele-
For this Priestly motif, see Zimmerli, Old Testament Theology in Outline (trans. David
E. Green; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, []) ; and Albertz, A History of Israelite
Religion . n. .
115 Friedrich Baethgen, Die Psalmen (d ed.; HKAT II/; Gttingen: Vandenhoeck &
Ruprecht, ) ; and H. L. Ginsberg, A Strand in the Cord of Hebraic Hymnody,
in W. F. Albright Volume (ed. A. Malamat; EI ; Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society,
) a. See also Halpern, The Constitution of the Monarchy . Cf. Emanuel Tov, Textual
Criticism of the Hebrew Bible (d ed.; Minneapolis/Assen: Fortress/Royal Van Gorcum,
) .
116 Briggs and Briggs, Psalms ..
114
rify him as creator (e.g., v. b), king (e.g., v. ab), and judge (e.g., v. ).
They should assume the place of his council (in Ps ), becoming
Gods devotional community.117
Text-critical analysis adds several other instances of this replacement
pattern.
When [the Supreme One] allot[ted the nations, when he separated
humankind, he set the boundaries of peoples according to the number
of] divinities. (QDeutj : [completed after LXX/MT])118
When the Supreme One allotted the nations, when he separated humankind, he set the boundaries of peoples according to the number of
Israelites. (Dt :)
Celebrate, O heaven, with him; bow down to
him, all divinities. For the blood of his sons will he avenge;
he will bring vengeance back on his foes. (QDeutq :;119 see also
LXX)
Celebrate, O nations, his people, for the blood of his servants will he avenge; he will bring vengeance back on his foes. (Dt :
a-b); see also
The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted above all the gods.
(Ps : [with, e.g., Kenn. , ;120 see also Pss :, :, :])
The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted above all the peoples.
(Ps :; see also QPsk :121)
118
Although these two blessings begin identically, they are each headed
by a different introductory frame.125 The blessing of v. is preceded
by . It indicates that, when God speaks to the marine and aviary
life created on the fifth day, the event is not a prototypical dialogue;126
in the Priestly world, animals do not speak and do not engage in
conversation.127 Hence, is pragmatically appropriate. But in v. ,
Gods addressees are human, speech-producing, and finite in number
(..). Each participant is fully capable of engaging in interactive
speech,128 as the introductory frame conveys. The frame suggests that
human beings, unlike animals, can be Gods (conversational) partner in
the world.129 They can replace his deliberative body in heaven.130
See Tigay, Deuteronomy .
Levenson, Creation and Evil with n. . See also McBride, in God Who
Creates .
125 Ebach, Die Erschaffung des Menschen als Bild Gottes. berlegungen zur Anthropologie im Schpfungsbericht der Priesterschrift, WPKG (): . Cf. Ronald S. Hendel, The Text of Genesis : Textual Studies and Critical Edition (New York/Oxford: Oxford University Press, ) .
126 Brown, Structure, Role, and Ideology n. . See also the discussion by Cynthia
L. Miller, The Representation of Speech in Biblical Hebrew Narrative: A Linguistic Analysis
(HSM ; Atlanta: Scholars Press, ) , , .
127 Richard Elliott Friedman, Torah (Pentateuch), in ABD .a.
128 E.g., Friedrich Horst, Face to Face: The Biblical Doctrine of the Image of God,
Int (): (repr. as Der Mensch als Ebenbild Gottes, in Gottes Recht.
Gesammelte Studien zum Recht im Alten Testament [ed. Hans Walter Wolff; TB ; Munich:
Chr. Kaiser, ] ); and Brueggemann, Genesis (Interp; Atlanta: John Knox,
) . See also the survey by Westermann, Genesis ..
129 Ebach, Ursprung und Ziel .
130 See Horst Seebass, Genesis ( vols.; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag,
) ..
123
124
131 E.g., Pierre Azzi, La notion dassemble dans lAncien Testament, Melto
(): ; and F.-L. Hossfeld and E.-M. Kindl, J qahal; qhl; l
! O qehill;
S
qohelet. IV, in TDOT ..
132 See Westermann, Genesis .; and Thomas Pola, Die ursprngliche Priesterschrift.
Beobachtungen zur Literarkritik und Traditionsgeschichte von P g (WMANT ; NeukirchenVluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, ) .
133 Milgrom, Priestly Terminology and the Political and Social Structure of PreMonarchic Israel, JQR (): (repr. in Studies in Cultic Theology and Terminology
[SJLA ; Leiden: E. J. Brill, ] ). See also Robert Gordis, Democratic Origins
ah, in Alexander Marx Jubilee Volume on the Occasion of
in Ancient IsraelThe Biblical Ed
His Seventieth Birthday ( sections; New York: Jewish Theological Seminary of America,
) English Section, , (repr. as Primitive Democracy in Ancient Israel,
in Poets, Prophets, and Sages: Essays in Biblical Interpretation [Bloomington/London: Indiana
University Press, ] , ); and J. Joosten, People and Land in the Holiness Code: An
Exegetical Study of the Ideational Framework of the Law in Leviticus (VTS ; Leiden: E.
J. Brill, ) .
134 G. Sauer, yd to appoint, in TLOT .; Pola, Die ursprngliche Priesterschrift ; and, by implication, Preuss, Old Testament Theology .. Cf. Leonhard Rost,
Die Vorstufen von Kirche und Synagoge im Alten Testament. Eine wortgeschichtliche Untersuchung
(BWANT /; Stuttgart: W. Kohlhammer, ) .
135 See, however, Ursula Struppe, Die Herrlichkeit Jahwes in der Priesterschrift. Eine semantische Studie zu kebd YHWH (BS ; Klosterneuburg: sterreichisches Katholisches
Bibelwerk, ) . For the diverse functions of the Israelite assembly, see, inter alios,
Milgrom, JQR (): (= Studies in Cultic Theology and Terminology ); and
Joosten, People and Land in the Holiness Code .
136 Preuss, Old Testament Theology ., in conjunction with Gibson, in Ugarit and the
Bible .
But the role is soon reassigned. Despite Yahwehs intention that the
man preserve [the garden] from all damage,139 the man damages it
and disrupts Gods established order (..).
Then the Lord God said, Since the man has become like one of us,
knowing good and evil, no way then should he stretch out his hand, take
from the tree of life as well, and eat and live forever! So the Lord God
drove him out of the garden of Eden, to work the soil from which he was
taken. He expelled the man, and he stationed east of the garden of Eden
the Cherubim and the flame of a whirling sword, to guard the way
to the tree of life. (Gen : [J])
137 For another, non-Priestly lexical correspondence between Gods divine and human communities, council, see M. Sb, sd secret, in TLOT .
; and Abraham Malamat, The Secret Council and Prophetic Involvement in
Mari and Israel, in Prophetie und geschichtliche Wirklichkeit im alten Israel. Festschrift fr
Siegfried Herrmann zum . Geburtstag (ed. Rdiger Liwak and Siegfried Wagner; Stuttgart:
W. Kohlhammer, ) (repr. in Mari and the Bible [SHCANE ; Leiden: Brill,
] ).
138 Note D. Levy and J. Milgrom, @ ed. IIV, in TDOT ., for the comparison.
139 Gerhard von Rad, Genesis (trans. John H. Marks; rev. ed.; OTL; Philadelphia:
Westminster, ) .
141
promise that his loyal subordinates will exercise sovereign control (e.g.,
vv. .b [P]) over the land, under his ultimate authority. And God will
promise to claim Israel exclusively as his own people (e.g., Ex :a
[P]).144 At this later time, Yahweh will be God of the Israelites (e.g.,
Lev :, : [H]). He will also acquire the Israelites as his slaves
(: [H]).145
In the cosmogony, however, these developments are only incipient.146
Of all Gods creations, humankind alone has a special stated relationship to God (.). The relationship is not based on any intrinsic human merit but, like a blessing, is a gift of God. He initiates
this relationship, and he commits himself to it.147 It is cooperative
and binding. It is an expression of his right as the (newly) enthroned
king. He replaces his precarious, former partners and creates new
ones who must strictly abide by the terms of the relationship. Among
other things, they must be the functional equivalent of the pantheon
(.., intro.) and represent divine rule in the world.148 For P, God
chooses human vassals to be his godlike deputies and do his bidding
obediently (..).149
.... Gods new community imitates the internal organization of
the gods, too. Within the pantheon, for example, not all gods share
equally. The dominant image lies with God, while the lesser
image belongs to the gods (.., ..). It is a function of differential
power and authority, and it affects the divine rank. Inter alia, Gods
divine subordinates owe him his due reverence. Within the human
community, there is a comparably unequal distribution of image.
When Adam had lived one hundred and thirty years, he fathered (a son)
according to his image, and he named him Seth. (Gen :
[PT]); cf.
Then God said, Let us make humankind in our image So
God created humankind in his image, in the image of
God he created it, male and female he created them. (Gen :a.; see
also :b [P])
151
154 See, e.g., Harland, The Value of Human Life ; and, in this context, Balentine,
The Torahs Vision of Worship . See also Erhard S. Gerstenberger, Leviticus (trans.
Douglas W. Stott; OTL; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, []) (on ritual
performance).
155 Cooke, ZAW (): ; Levenson, Creation and Evil ; and Childs,
Isaiah (OTL; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, ) . For a recent discussion, see
Day, Yahweh Gods and Goddesses .
156 For the nature of this domain, see the references in n. , above.
157 Levenson, The Hebrew Bible, the Old Testament, and Historical Criticism .
158 Sharp, ScEs (): .
159 Miller, Genesis .
self independent. The guiding principle of his life is no longer obedience.160 P maintains otherwise;161
there is a narrative tension and contrast between P and J. The former
speaks quite positively of this similarity of the human to the divine; the
latter reacts very negatively. The kidmten of P is a statement of Gods
highest intention for the human being while being keah. ad mimmenn is for
J that which is absolutely prohibited for the human being and indeed the
result of human sin and the cause of banishment from the garden. To be
elohm-like is for P Gods will for his creature; in J to become elohm-like
is to go precisely counter to the divine will.162
Whereas J condemns the comparison, P applauds it.163 For P, the divinehuman resemblance is a deliberate expression and act of God.
... Imitatio Dei. From the very beginning, the Priestly writer establishes a clear connection between the human world and the divine
world in the creation of adam.164 On the one hand, humankind is
comparable to the lower level of the divine world (..).165 On the
other hand, it is comparable to the leader of that divine world, whose
likeness and image are ultimately imprinted on that segment of the
human race destined to become Israelite.
Preuss presses the comparison one step further.
[N]ot only is God imagined in anthropomorphic terms, humans also are
believed to be theomorphic.166 What are present here [in Gen. ]
are statements of relationship between God and humanity. Whoever
chooses to speak of God must therefore speak at the same time of
humanity, and whoever wishes to speak correctly about humanity must
also speak about God.167
160 Von Rad, Genesis . See also, inter alios, Gunkel, Genesis (th ed.; HKAT I/;
Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, []) (= Genesis [trans. Mark E. Biddle;
Mercer Library of Biblical Studies; Macon: Mercer University Press, ] ); and
John Skinner, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Genesis (d ed.; ICC; Edinburgh: T.
& T. Clark, ) .
161 Cf. Dillmann, Genesis6 (= ET .).
162 Miller, Genesis .
163 Note David M. Carr, Reading the Fractures of Genesis: Historical and Literary Approaches
(Louisville: Westminster John Knox, ) .
164 Miller, Genesis .
165 McBride, in God Who Creates .
166 See .. with n. .
167 Preuss, Old Testament Theology .. See also Christoph Dohmen, Vom Gottesbild zum Menschenbild. Aspekte der innerbiblischen Dynamik des Bilderverbotes,
LebZeug (): .
The human and divine worlds therefore implicate each other. Yet the
prototype of the human world lies in the reality of God.
That reality changes over the course of the cosmogony. Situated in a
world that is undifferentiated, shapeless, and chaotic, God moves step
by step to build a world that satisfies him (very good [Gen :]). He
combats forces in/of the world that can destabilize his creation. He
exercises his right to unseat his morphologically kindred colleagues with
whom he might share both realms of the universe: viz., the celestial
realm of the gods and the terrestrial realm of humankind. Ps God
attains complete control of the world, as creator and as absolute king.
These changes in the reality of God directly impact the world of
human creation. Divinity implicates humanity, as Preuss and Brueggemann note. More narrowly, God implicates the only creature which
discloses to us something about the reality of God. From this perspective, Gods role throughout the cosmogony is analogous to the role of
Ps cosmogony in the Priestly pentateuchal corpus: each establishes the
paradigm that will be repeated throughout Ps version of history ( ).
In the latter case, the cosmogony may be regarded as a charter text
that informs other priestly passages in the Pentateuch.169 In the former case, God himself is the paradigm for all future human behavior
(..). Ps God institutes harmonious cosmic order in the universe.
Thereafter, it is the task of mankind to extend and complete on earth
the divine work of creation.170
Brueggemann, Genesis .
Mark S. Smith and Elizabeth M. Bloch-Smith, The Pilgrimage Pattern in Exodus
(JSOTS ; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, ) . See also Janowski, Tempel
und Schpfung. Schpfungstheologische Aspekte der priesterschriftlichen Heiligtumskonzeption, JBTh (): (repr. in Gottes Gegenwart in Israel: Beitrge zur Theologie des Alten Testaments [Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, ] ); and
McBride, in God Who Creates , esp. .
170 Fishbane, Text and Texture . See Lohfink, Macht euch die Erde untertan?
Orien (): a (repr. as Subdue the Earth? [Genesis :], in Theology of
the Pentateuch: Themes of the Priestly Narrative and Deuteronomy [trans. Linda M. Maloney;
Minneapolis: Fortress, ] ).
168
169
172
monarchs who will rule the world with, and under, God (...).185
Humankind, and its Israelite derivative, will be Gods lesser king.186 As
the image of God, they will represent and perpetuate Gods kingship
on earth as he achieved it at the beginning of time ( .., ..).187
The Israelites serve a related role in the world of the tabernacle. Like
the first human beings, they are a community of genetically related
(Priestly) caretakers, defined in relation to God and one another.188
They are empowered to use vast swaths of preexisting material for
themselves and, especially, for regulating their exclusive alliance with
God.189 As Gods staff in this newly created world, they also ensure
that the tabernacle operates in good order.190 They must, for instance,
preserve the distinctive order of time as commanded by God at creation by maintaining a cultic calendar.191 They must combat the constant insinuation of evil; they must remove sinful breaches that would
disqualify them, individually or as a community, from a harmonic relationship with God.192 As God did at creation, they must both build an
orderly environment for the Divine King and his people, and they must
continually neutralize outbreaks of chaos.193
.... In the Priestly cosmogony, however, the divine work of
creation is more than the concrete product of creative activity (e.g.,
..).194 It includes different ways that God engages and suppresses
Levenson, Creation and Evil .
Klopfenstein, Leben aus dem Wort .
187 Marsha M. Wilfong, Human Creation in Canonical Context: Genesis :
and Beyond, in God Who Creates .
188 Frank Crsemann, The Torah: Theology and Social History of Old Testament Law (trans.
Allan W. Mahnke; Minneapolis: Fortress, []) ; and Joosten, People and
Land in the Holiness Code .
189 For a characterization of the Priestly cult, see Gorman, The Ideology of Ritual
; idem, in History and Interpretation ; and Israel Knohl, Two Aspects of the Tent
of Meeting, in Tehillah le-Moshe: Biblical and Judaic Studies in Honor of Moshe Greenberg
(ed. Mordechai Cogan, Barry L. Eichler, and Jeffrey H. Tigay; Winona Lake, Ind.:
Eisenbrauns, ) .
190 See Gorman, The Ideology of Ritual .
191 Dennis T. Olson, Numbers (Interp; Louisville: John Knox, ) , with accompanying discussion. See also Gorman, The Ideology of Ritual .
192 See Childs, Myth and Reality2 , as elaborated by Balentine, The Torahs Vision of
Worship .
193 Grg, BN (): ; and, differently, Levenson, Creation and Evil . See also
Gerstenberger, Leviticus .
194 See Loren R. Fisher, Creation at Ugarit and in the Old Testament, VT
(): . For the constellation of creation-related features, see Weinfeld, Sabbath,
Temple and the Enthronement of the LordThe Problem of the Sitz im Leben
of Genesis ::, in Mlanges bibliques et orientaux en lhonneur de M. Henri Cazelles
185
186
The program has several components. One is the directive that human
beings wage campaigns and conquer their region ().198 Another
is the region itself, which is explicitly territorial (). Yet a third
(ed. A. Caquot and M. Delcor; AOAT ; Kevelaer/Neukirchen-Vluyn: Butzon &
Bercker/Neukirchener Verlag, ) ; Levenson, Sinai and Zion ; and,
esp., John Gray, The Biblical Doctrine of the Reign of God (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, )
.
195 Wyatt, Myths of Power: A Study of Royal Myth and Ideology in Ugaritic and Biblical
Tradition (UBL ; Mnster: Ugarit-Verlag, ) . See also ibid. , on Gen .
196 Note Jacob, Genesis . Cf. Jngling, Macht euch die Erde untertan (Gen
,). Der geschaffene Mensch und die Schpfung, in Macht euch die Erde untertan?
Schpfungsglaube und Umweltkrise (ed. Philipp Schmitz; Wrzburg: Echter Verlag, )
n. ; Hendel, The Text of Genesis ; and Weippert, in Ebenbild Gottes
Herrscher ber die Welt n. , each differently.
197 Gunkel, Genesis4 (= ET ), followed, e.g., by Eichrodt, Theology of the Old
Testament ..
198 See Grg, in Freude an der Weisung des Herrn (= Studien zur Religionsgeschichte ), with Harland, The Value of Human Life . See also Brueggemann, ZAW (): (= idem, in The Vitality of Old Testament Traditions2
); Blenkinsopp, Sage, Priest, Prophet: Religious and Intellectual Leadership in Ancient Israel
(Library of Ancient Israel; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, ) ; and, differently, Lohfink, Orien (): (= Theology of the Pentateuch ).
The Israelites must obey God, enact his directives, and reclaim the area
from a native nation whose practices are the antithesis of their own.200
In other words, Israels occupation of Canaan is the realization of
the Creators blessing given to all the nations of the world.201 But it
is also a reenactment, extension, and completion of the divine work of
creation. The Israelites should replicate that which God accomplished
in the cosmogony.
.... The continuation of Gods speech in Lev recalls another
creative modality that the Israelites must imitate and reenact: separation, differentiation, and division ( .).
I am the Lord your God who has separated you from the (other)
peoples. You should separate between the pure beast and the
impure, and between the impure bird and the pure. You will not make
yourselves despicable by beast or by bird or by anything that moves on
the ground, which I have separated (out) for you to hold impure.
(Lev :b- [H])
Just as God separated out the cosmos, so he has separated Israel from
its multifarious ambience; God created Israel as he created the world.
Note Grg, in Freude an der Weisung des Herrn (= Studien zur Religionsgeschichte
).
200 See Weinfeld, Social Justice .
201 Lohfink, yara
s; V yeres; g\ yeruss; T mras; T mras, in TDOT
.. See also, sympathetically, Frans Breukelman, Das Buch Genesis als das Buch
der Adams, des Menschenseine Analyse der Komposition des Buches, in
Strenfriedels Zeddelkasten. Geschenkpapier zum . Geburtstag von Friedrich-Wilhelm Marquardt
(Berlin: Alektor, ) , .
199
Inasmuch as God separated the Israelites from the world around them,
he sanctified them (:b- [H]).206 As agent and essence of holiness (e.g., Ex :b [P]; Lev :a.b [H?], respectively), God wills
that Israel imitate him.207 Imitatio Dei, Israel must actively represent
God, Gods holiness, and his separative modality of creation in the
world.208
202 Levenson, Creation and Evil . See also Milgrom, Leviticus .; and, despite
his source-critical judgement, Firmage, JSOT (): .
203 For discussion, see Jacob, Genesis . See also, more generally, Baruch A.
Levine, Leviticus (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society,
) ; and Milgrom, Numbers (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia/New
York: Jewish Publication Society, ) .
204 For the centrality of the Sabbath to P, see Weinfeld, Tarb (): ; and,
source-critical assignment aside, Yairah Amit, Creation and the Calendar of Holiness, in Tehillah le-Moshe ** (in Hebrew).
205 Greenstein, Prooftexts (): .
206 Harland, The Value of Human Life ; and Greenstein, Prooftexts (): .
207 E.g., Eichrodt, Theology of the Old Testament .; and Rendtorff, The Covenant
Formula .
208 Levenson, Creation and Evil ; and Milgrom, Leviticus .. See also
Joosten, People and Land in the Holiness Code .
Stated thus, God provides more than one model for humanity, and
Israel, to follow. True, they should sustain the many ways that God
created the paradigmatic world ( ) and actively participate in the
unfolding of a cosmic order planned for permanence and perfection.209
But they should also imitate God himself. After all, the early history
of God is a model of Priestly achievement (.).210 He begins as an
amorphous entity in an inherited, undifferentiated context; ultimately,
he attains a completely differentiated uniqueness in an environment of
his making. He wrestles forces of opposition, tames the terrain, utilizes
its resources, and makes this world his home. He rules the world as
king, without peer. And he makes himself available to only one partner
in a covenantal relationship. To extend and complete on earth the
divine work of creation ( .., intro.), then, is to imitate and represent
God in the world.
.... But in the end, there is something missing from the Priestly
account of human creation. Despite its celebratory tone, P does not
expressly celebrate the human creature. God does not pronounce humanity good.211
Commentators explain the omission. It is possible, for example, that
humankind is a self-explanatory good.212 It is also possible that the
climactic evaluative clause of Gen :a, at the end of the sixth day,
includes the human creature.213 Or maybe the perfect heptadic repetition of compensates for its absence elsewhere in the cosmogony.214 Such interpretations, then, attempt to retrieve human goodness. But they do not address the import of the omission at this juncture
or elsewhere in the cosmogony. Ps God does not pronounce the second
creative act good, either.215 In this case, though, the reason is clear
enough: the approbative formula is not placed here by the original
writer, because the separation of the waters by a firmament was only
210
216 Driver, Genesis12 . See also Jacob, Genesis ; Cassuto, Genesis .; Westermann,
Genesis .; Nahum M. Sarna, Genesis (The JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia:
Jewish Publication Society, ) ; and Brown, Structure, Role, and Ideology . Cf. A. van
der Voort, Gense I, II, a et le Psaume CIV, RB (): n. .
217 Vogels, Like One of Us, Knowing tb and ra, in Thinking in Signs: Semiotics and
.
Biblical Studies Thirty Years After (ed. Daniel Patte; Semeia ; Atlanta: Scholars Press,
) , with n. .
218 Note Mary Douglas, Purity and Danger: An Analysis of Concepts of Pollution and Taboo
(New York/Washington: Frederick A. Praeger, ) .
219 Cassuto, Genesis . (italics and emphasis original).
220 Bernard F. Batto, Creation Theology in Genesis, in Creation in the Biblical Traditions (ed. Richard J. Clifford and John J. Collins; CBQMS ; Washington, D.C.:
Catholic Biblical Association of America, ) .
221 Morgenstern, AJSL (): , in conjunction with Batto, Slaying the
Dragon: Mythmaking in the Biblical Tradition (Louisville: Westminster/John Knox, ) .
See also Barr, in God in the Fray .
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Aaron, David H. Biblical Ambiguities: Metaphor, Semantics and Divine Image. BRLAJ
. Leiden: Brill, .
Ackroyd, Peter R. Exile and Restoration: A Study of Hebrew Thought of the Sixth
Century B.C. OTL. Philadelphia: Westminster, .
Ahlstrm, G. W. Aspects of Syncretism in Israelite Religion. Translated by Eric
J. Sharpe. HSoed . Lund: C. W. K. Gleerup, .
Albertz, Rainer. A History of Israelite Religion in the Old Testament Period. Translated
by John Bowden. vols. OTL. Louisville: Westminster John Knox,
[].
and C. Westermann. e rah. spirit. In TLOT ..
Allen, Leslie C. The Structure and Intention of Ezekiel I. VT ():
.
Alter, Robert. The Art of Biblical Narrative. New York: Basic Books, .
Amit, Yairah. Creation and the Calendar of Holiness. Pp. ** in Tehillah le-Moshe: Biblical and Judaic Studies in Honor of Moshe Greenberg. Edited by
Mordechai Cogan, Barry L. Eichler, and Jeffrey H. Tigay. Winona Lake,
Ind.: Eisenbrauns, (in Hebrew).
Andersen, Francis I. The Sentence in Biblical Hebrew. Janua Linguarum, Series
Practica . The Hague: Mouton, .
Anderson, A. A. The Book of Psalms. vols. NCBC. Grand Rapids/London:
Eerdmans/Marshall, Morgan & Scott, .
. Samuel. WBC . Dallas: Word, .
Anderson, Bernhard W. Analytical Outline of the Pentateuch. Pp.
in Martin Noth. A History of Pentateuchal Traditions. Englewood Cliffs, New
Jersey: Prentice-Hall, .
. The Earth is the Lords: An Essay on the Biblical Doctrine of Creation. Pp. in Is God a Creationist? The Religious Case against CreationScience. Edited by Roland Mushat Frye. New York: Charles Scribners Sons,
; repr. as The Earth is the Lords. Pp. in From Creation to New
Creation: Old Testament Perspectives. OBT. Minneapolis: Fortress, .
. God, Names of. In IDB ..
. Human Dominion over Nature. Pp. in Biblical Studies in Contemporary Thought. Edited by Miriam Ward. Somerville, Mass.: Greeno, Hadden, ; repr. pp. in From Creation to New Creation: Old Testament
Perspectives. OBT. Minneapolis: Fortress, .
. Relation between the Human and Nonhuman Creation in the Biblical Primeval History. AJTP (): ; repr. pp. in From
Creation to New Creation: Old Testament Perspectives. OBT. Minneapolis: Fortress,
.
. A Stylistic Study of the Priestly Creation Story. Pp. in
Canon and Authority: Essays in Old Testament Religion and Theology. Edited by
George W. Coats and Burke O. Long. Philadelphia: Fortress, ; repr. as
The Priestly Creation Story: A Stylistic Study. Pp. in From Creation to New Creation: Old Testament Perspectives. OBT. Minneapolis: Fortress,
.
Angerstorfer, Andreas. Ebenbild eines Gottes in babylonischen und assyrischen Keilschrifttexten. BN (): .
. Hebrisch dmwt und aramisch dmw(t). Ein Sprachproblem der Imago-Dei-Lehre. BN (): .
. Der Schpfergott des Alten Testaments. Herkunft und Bedeutungsentwicklung des
hebrischen Terminus (bara) schaffen. RST . Frankfurt am Main: Peter
Lang, .
Azzi, Pierre. La notion dassemble dans lAncien Testament. Melto
(): .
Baentsch, Bruno. Exodus-Leviticus-Numeri. HKAT I/. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck
& Ruprecht, .
Baethgen, Friedrich. Die Psalmen. d ed. HKAT II/. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck
& Ruprecht, .
Balentine, Samuel E. The Torahs Vision of Worship. OBT. Minneapolis: Fortress,
.
. What Are Human Beings, That You Make So Much of Them?
Divine Disclosure from the Whirlwind: Look at Behemoth. Pp.
in God in the Fray: A Tribute to Walter Brueggemann. Edited by Tod Linafelt and
Timothy K. Beal. Minneapolis: Fortress, .
Bar-On, Shimon. Zur literarkritischen Analyse von Ex ,. ZAW
(): .
Baranzke, Heike and Hedwig Lamberty-Zielinski. Lynn White und das dominium terrae (Gen ,b). Ein Beitrag zu einer doppelten Wirkungsgeschichte. BN (): .
Barr, James. Adam: Single Man, or All Humanity? Pp. in Hesed ve-Emet:
Studies in Honor of Ernest S. Frerichs. Edited by Jodi Magness and Seymour
Gitin. BJS . Atlanta: Scholars Press, .
. Ein Mann oder die Menschen? Zur Anthropologie von Genesis . Pp.
in Ebenbild GottesHerrscher ber die Welt. Studien zu Wrde und Auftrag des
Menschen. Edited by Hans-Peter Mathys. Biblisch-Theologische Studien .
Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, .
. The Image of God in the Book of GenesisA Study of Terminology.
BJRL (): .
. The Image of God in GenesisSome Linguistic and Historical Considerations. OTWSA (): .
. Man and NatureThe Ecological Controversy and the Old Testament. BJRL (): .
. One Man, or All Humanity? A Question in the Anthropology of
Genesis. Pp. in Recycling Biblical Figures: Papers Read at a Noster Colloquium
in Amsterdam, May . Edited by Athalya Brenner and Jan Willem
van Henten. STAR . Leiden: Deo, .
. Was Everything That God Created Really Good? A Question in the
First Verse of the Bible. Pp. in God in the Fray: A Tribute to Walter
Brueggemann. Edited by Tod Linafelt and Timothy K. Beal. Minneapolis:
Fortress, .
Barth, Jacob. Die Pronominalbildung in den semitischen Sprachen. . Repr., Hildesheim: Georg Olms, .
Batto, Bernard F. Creation Theology in Genesis. Pp. in Creation in
the Biblical Traditions. Edited by Richard J. Clifford and John J. Collins.
CBQMS . Washington, D.C.: Catholic Biblical Association of America,
.
. Slaying the Dragon: Mythmaking in the Biblical Tradition. Louisville: Westminster/John Knox, .
Bauer, Hans and Pontus Leander. Historische Grammatik der hebrischen Sprache des
Alten Testamentes. Halle a. S.: Max Niemeyer, .
Beauchamp, Paul. Cration et fondation de la loi en Gn , , a. Le don de
la nourriture vgtale en Gn , s. Pp. in La Cration dans lOrient
ancien. Congrs de lACFEB, Lille (). Edited by Fabien Blanquart and Louis
Derousseaux. LeDiv . Paris: Cerf, .
. Cration et sparation. tude exgtique du chapitre premier de la Gense. BScR.
Aubier Montaigne/Delachaux & Niestl: Cerf/Descle De Brouwer, .
Beck, H. F. Nephilim. In IDB ..
Berges, Ulrich. Gen ,: Babel oder das Ende der Kommunikation. BN
(): .
Berlejung, Angelika. Die Theologie der Bilder. Herstellung und Einweihung von Kultbildern in Mesopotamien und die alttestamentliche Bilderpolemik. OBO . Freiburg/Gttingen: Universittsverlag/Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, .
Bertholet, Alfred. Leviticus. KHAT . Tbingen/Leipzig: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul
Siebeck), .
Beuken, Willem A. M. The Human Person in the Vision of Genesis : A
Synthesis of Contemporary Insights. LouvSt (): .
Biale, David. The God with Breasts: El Shaddai in the Bible. HR ():
.
Bickel, Balthasar. Converbs in Cross-Linguistic Perspective. LT ():
.
Bird, Phyllis A. Bone of My Bone and Flesh of My Flesh. ThTo ():
.
. Genesis IIII as a Source for a Contemporary Theology of Sexuality. ExAu (): ; repr. pp. in Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities: Women and Gender in Ancient Israel. OBT. Minneapolis: Fortress,
.
. Genesis in der gegenwrtigen biblischen Forschung. JBTh ():
; repr. as Genesis in Modern Biblical Scholarship. Pp. in
Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities: Women and Gender in Ancient Israel. OBT.
Minneapolis: Fortress Press, .
. Male and Female He Created Them: Gen :b in the Context of
the Priestly Account of Creation. HTR (): ; repr. pp.
in Missing Persons and Mistaken Identities: Women and Gender in Ancient Israel.
OBT. Minneapolis: Fortress, .
Fohrer, Georg. Die Hauptprobleme des Buches Ezechiel. BZAW . Berlin: Alfred
Tpelmann, .
Foster, Benjamin R. Before the Muses: An Anthology of Akkadian Literature. vols. d
ed. Bethesda: CDL, .
Fox, Michael V. The Sign of the Covenant: Circumcision in the Light of the
Priestly t Etiologies. RB (): .
. A Time to Tear Down and a Time to Build Up: A Rereading of Ecclesiastes.
Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, .
Frankfort, Henri. Kingship and the Gods: A Study of Ancient Near Eastern Religion
as the Integration of Society & Nature. Chicago/London: University of Chicago
Press, [].
Freedman, David Noel. Notes on Genesis. ZAW (): ; repr.
pp. in Divine Commitment and Human Obligation: Selected Writings of David
Noel Freedman. Edited by John R. Huddlestun. Vol. . Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, .
. Who is like Thee among the Gods? The Religion of Early Israel.
Pp. in Ancient Israelite Religion: Essays in Honor of Frank Moore Cross.
Edited by Patrick D. Miller, Jr., Paul D. Hanson, and S. Dean McBride.
Philadelphia: Fortress, ; repr. pp. in Divine Commitment and
Human Obligation: Selected Writings of David Noel Freedman. Edited by John
R. Huddlestun. Vol. . Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, .
and B. E. Willoughby. _" malak. In TDOT ., ,
, , .
Fretheim, Terence E. Creator, Creature, and Co-Creation in Genesis .
Pp. in All Things New: Essays in Honor of Roy A. Harrisville. Edited by
Arland J. Hultgren, Donald H. Juel, and Jack D. Kingsbury. Word & World
Supplement Series . St. Paul: Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary,
.
. The Pentateuch. IBT. Nashville: Abingdon, .
Frevel, Christian. Aschera und der Ausschlielichkeitsanspruch YHWHs. Beitrge zu literarischen, religionsgeschichtlichen und ikonographischen Aspekten der Ascheradiskussion.
vols. BBB /. Weinheim: Beltz Athenum, .
Friedman, Richard Elliott. Torah (Pentateuch). In ABD ..
Frymer-Kensky, Tikva. The Atrahasis Epic and Its Significance for Our
Understanding of Genesis . BA (): .
. In the Wake of the Goddesses: Women, Culture, and the Biblical Transformation of
Pagan Myth. New York: Fawcett Columbine, .
Galpaz-Feller, Pnina. Egyptological Motifs in the Sign of the Serpent (Exodus :; :). BetM (): (in Hebrew).
Garr, W. Randall. Dialect Geography of Syria-Palestine, B.C.E. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, .
. Drivers Treatise and the Study of Hebrew: Then and Now. Pp. xviii
lxxxvi in S. R. Driver. A Treatise on the Use of the Tenses in Hebrew and Some
Other Syntactical Questions. th ed. . Repr., The Biblical Resources Series.
Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, .
. The Grammar and Interpretation of Exodus :. JBL ():
.
. Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen im Kontext der Priesterschrift. TQ (): ; repr. pp. in Studien zur Priesterschrift
und zu alttestamentlichen Gottesbildern. SBAB . Stuttgart: Katholisches Bibelwerk, .
. Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen nach Gen ,. in der
Diskussion des letzten Jahrzehnts. BN (): ; repr. pp.
in Studien zur Priesterschrift und zu alttestamentlichen Gottesbildern. SBAB .
Stuttgart: Katholisches Bibelwerk, .
Gruber, Mayer. In the Image of GodWhat is It? Pp. in Hommage
to Shmuel. Studies in the World of the Bible. Edited by Zipora Talshir, Shamir
Yona, and Daniel Sivan. Jerusalem: Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Press/Bialik Institute, (in Hebrew).
. Women in the Cult According to the Priestly Code. Pp. in Judaic Perspectives on Ancient Israel. Edited by Jacob Neusner, Baruch A. Levine,
and Ernest S. Frerichs. Philadelphia: Fortress, ; repr. pp. in The
Motherhood of God and Other Studies. South Florida Studies in the History of
Judaism . Atlanta: Scholars Press, .
Gunkel, Hermann. Genesis. th ed. HKAT I/. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck &
Ruprecht, [] = Genesis. Translated by Mark E. Biddle. Mercer
Library of Biblical Studies. Macon: Mercer University Press, .
. Die Psalmen. th ed. HKAT II/. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,
.
. Schpfung und Chaos in Urzeit und Endzeit. Eine religionsgeschichtliche Untersuchung ber Gen und Ap Joh . d ed. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,
[]; repr. and abr. as The Influence of Babylonian Mythology
upon the Biblical Creation Story. Pp. in Creation in the Old Testament. Edited by Bernhard W. Anderson. IRT . Philadelphia/London:
Fortress/SPCK, .
Haag, H. chamas. In TDOT ..
Habel, Norman C. The Book of Job. OTL. Philadelphia: Westminster, .
Hadley, Judith M. The Cult of Asherah in Ancient Israel and Judah: Evidence for a Hebrew Goddess. University of Cambridge Oriental Publications . Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, .
. The Queen of HeavenWho Is She? Pp. in Prophets and
Daniel. Edited by Athalya Brenner. Feminist Companion to the Bible /.
London/New York: Sheffield Academic Press, .
Hagedorn, Anselm C. Guarding the Parents HonorDeuteronomy .
. JSOT (): .
Hahn, E. Adelaide. Subjunctive and Optative: Their Origin as Futures. New York:
American Philological Association, .
Hallo, William W. The Birth of Kings. Pp. in Love & Death in the Ancient
Near East: Essays in Honor of Marvin H. Pope. Edited by John H. Marks and
Robert M. Good. Guilford, Conn.: Four Quarters, .
. Cult Statue and Divine Image: A Preliminary Study. Pp. in Scripture in Context II: More Essays on the Comparative Method. Edited by William
W. Hallo, James C. Moyer, and Leo G. Perdue. Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, .
. Texts, Statues and the Cult of the Divine King. Pp. in Congress
Volume: Jerusalem, . Edited by J. A. Emerton. VTS . Leiden: E. J. Brill,
.
Halpern, Baruch. The Baal (and the Asherah) in Seventh-Century Judah:
Yhwhs Retainers Retired. Pp. in Konsequente Traditionsgeschichte.
Festschrift fr Klaus Baltzer zum . Geburtstag. Edited by Rdiger Bartelmus,
Thomas Krger, and Helmut Utzschneider. OBO . Freiburg/Gttingen:
Universittsverlag/Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, .
. Brisker Pipes than Poetry: The Development of Israelite Monotheism. Pp. in Judaic Perspectives on Ancient Israel. Edited by Jacob
Neusner, Baruch A. Levine, and Ernest S. Frerichs. Philadelphia: Fortress,
.
. The Constitution of the Monarchy in Israel. HSM . Chico, Calif.: Scholars
Press, .
. The New Names of Isaiah :: Jeremiahs Reception in the Restoration and the Politics of Third Isaiah. JBL (): .
. Sybil, or the Two Nations? Archaism, Kinship, Alienation, and the
Elite Redefinition of Traditional Culture in Judah in the th-th Centuries
B.C.E. Pp. in The Study of the Ancient Near East in the Twenty-First
Century: The William Foxwell Albright Centennial Conference. Edited by Jerrold
S. Cooper and Glenn M. Schwartz. Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, .
. What They Dont Know Wont Hurt Them: Genesis . Pp.
in Fortunate the Eyes That See: Essays in Honor of David Noel Freedman in
Celebration of His Seventieth Birthday. Edited by Astrid B. Beck et al. Grand
Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, .
Handy, Lowell K. The Appearance of Pantheon in Judah. Pp. in
The Triumph of Elohim: From Yahwisms to Judaisms. Edited by Diana Vikander
Edelman. Grand Rapids/Kampen: Eerdmans/Kok Pharos, [].
. Tiamat. In ABD ..
Haran, M. The Ark and the Cherubim: Their Symbolic Significance in
Biblical Ritual. IEJ (): , .
. Temples and Temple-Service in Ancient Israel: An Inquiry into the Cult Phenomena
and the Historical Setting of the Priestly School. Oxford: Oxford University Press,
.
Harland, P. J. The Value of Human Life: A Study of the Story of the Flood (Genesis ).
VTS . Leiden: E. J. Brill, .
. Vertical or Horizontal: The Sin of Babel. VT (): .
Hart, Ian. Genesis :: as a Prologue to the Book of Genesis. TynB
(): .
Hartley, John E. Leviticus. WBC . Dallas: Word, .
Hasel, Gerhard F. The Meaning of Let Us in Gn :. AUSS ():
.
Hehn, Johannes. Zum Terminus Bild Gottes. Pp. in Festschrift Eduard
Sachau zum siebzigsten Geburtstage. Edited by Gotthold Weil. Berlin: Georg
Reimer, .
Heintz, Jean-Georges. Lhomme cr limage de Dieu (Gense ,):
pierre de touche de linterprtation biblique. FV / (): .
Themes of the Priestly Narrative and Deuteronomy. Translated by Linda M. Maloney. Minneapolis: Fortress, .
. Der Schpfergott und der Bestand von Himmel und Erde. Das Alte
Testament zum Zusammenhang von Schpfung und Heil. Pp. in
Gnter Altner et al. Sind wir noch zu retten? Schpfungsglaube und Verantwortung
fr unsere Erde. Regensburg: Friedrich Pustet, ; repr. as God the Creator and the Stability of Heaven and Earth: The Old Testament on the
Connection between Creation and Salvation. Pp. in Theology of the
Pentateuch: Themes of the Priestly Narrative and Deuteronomy. Translated by Linda
M. Maloney. Minneapolis: Fortress, .
. Die Ursnden in der priesterlichen Geschichtserzhlung. Pp.
in Die Zeit Jesu. Festschrift fr Heinrich Schlier. Edited by Gnther Bornkamm
and Karl Rahner. Freiburg: Herder, ; repr. as Original Sins in the
Priestly Historical Narrative. Pp. in Theology of the Pentateuch: Themes
of the Priestly Narrative and Deuteronomy. Translated by Linda M. Maloney.
Minneapolis: Fortress, .
. U yaras; V yeres; g\ yeruss; T mras; T mras. In TDOT
..
Long, Burke O. Letting Rival Gods Be Rivals: Biblical Theology in a Postmodern Age. Pp. in Problems in Biblical Theology: Essays in Honor of
Rolf Knierim. Edited by Henry T. C. Sun et al. Grand Rapids/Cambridge,
U.K.: Eerdmans, .
Loretz, Oswald. Die Gottebenbildlichkeit des Menschen. Schriften des Deutschen
Instituts fr wissenschaftliche Pdagogik. Munich: Ksel, .
Lust, Johan. Exodus , and Ezekiel. Pp. in Studies in the Book of
Exodus: RedactionReceptionInterpretation. Edited by Marc Vervenne. BETL
. Louvain: University Press/Peeters, .
Lutzky, Harriet. Shadday as a Goddess Epithet. VT (): .
Luyster, Robert. Wind and Water: Cosmogonic Symbolism in the Old Testament. ZAW (): .
Luyten, Jos. Primeval and Eschatological Overtones in the Song of Moses
(Dt ,). Pp. in Das Deuteronomium: Entstehung, Gestalt und Botschaft. Edited by Norbert Lohfink. BETL . Louvain: Leuven University
Press/Peeters, .
Lyons, John. Semantics. vols. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
[].
Maag, Victor. Alttestamentliche Anthropogonie in ihrem Verhltnis zur altorientalischen Mythologie. AsSt (): ; repr. pp. in Kultur,
Kulturkontakt und Religion. Gesammelte Studien zur allgemeinen und alttestamentlichen
Religionsgeschichte. Zum . Geburtstag. Edited by Hans Heinrich Schmid and
Odil Hannes Steck. Gttingen/Zurich: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, .
Machinist, Peter. Literature as Politics: The Tukulti-Ninurta Epic and the
Bible. CBQ (): .
. The Question of Distinctiveness in Ancient Israel: An Essay. Pp.
in Ah, Assyria Studies in Assyrian History and Ancient Near Eastern Historiography Presented to Hayim Tadmor. Edited by Mordechai Cogan and Israel
Ephal. ScrH . Jerusalem: Magnes, ; repr. pp. in Essential Pa-
pers on Israel and the Ancient Near East. Edited by Frederick E. Greenspahn.
New York/London: New York University Press, .
Mafico, T. L. J. The Divine Compound Name !$ and Israels
Monotheistic Polytheism. JNSL (): .
Malamat, Abraham. The Secret Council and Prophetic Involvement in Mari
and Israel. Pp. in Prophetie und geschichtliche Wirklichkeit im alten Israel.
Festschrift fr Siegfried Herrmann zum . Geburtstag. Edited by Rdiger Liwak
and Siegfried Wagner. Stuttgart: W. Kohlhammer, ; repr. pp. in
Mari and the Bible. SHCANE . Leiden: Brill, .
Mann, Yizhaq. On the Use of Verbs of Exhortation. Les (): (in
Hebrew).
Margueron, Jean and Javier Teixidor. Un object lgende aramenne provenant de Meskn-Emar. RA (): .
Martin, W. J. Some Notes on the Imperative in the Semitic Languages. Pp.
in Scritti in onore di Giuseppe Furlani. RSO . Rome: Giovani Bardi,
.
May, Herbert G. The King in the Garden of Eden: A Study of Ezekiel :
. Pp. in Israels Prophetic Heritage: Essays in Honor of James Muilenburg. Edited by Bernhard W. Anderson and Walter Harrelson. London:
SCM, .
Mayes, A. D. H. Deuteronomy. NCBC. Grand Rapids/London: Eerdmans/
Morgan & Scott, [].
Mays, James L. What is a Human Being? Reflections on Psalm . ThTo
(): .
McBride, S. Dean, Jr. Divine Protocol: Genesis :: as Prologue to the
Pentateuch. Pp. in God Who Creates: Essays in Honor of W. Sibley
Towner. Edited by William P. Brown and S. Dean McBride Jr. Grand
Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans, .
McCarter, P. Kyle, Jr. Aspects of the Religion of the Israelite Monarchy: Biblical and Epigraphic Data. Pp. in Ancient Israelite Religion: Essays in
Honor of Frank Moore Cross. Edited by Patrick D. Miller, Jr., Paul D. Hanson,
and S. Dean McBride. Philadelphia: Fortress, .
. I Samuel. AB . Garden City, New York: Doubleday, .
. II Samuel. AB . New York: Doubleday, .
McEvenue, Sean E. The Narrative Style of the Priestly Writer. AnBib . Rome:
Biblical Institute Press, .
. Word and Fulfillment: A Stylistic Feature of the Priestly Writer.
Semitics (): .
Meek, Theophile J. The Code of Hammurapi. Pp. in ANET 3.
Meier, S. A. Angel I . In DDD2 .
. Destroyer . In DDD2 .
van der Merwe, Christian H. J. The Old Hebrew particles ak and raq (in
Genesis to Kings). Pp. in Text, Methode und Grammatik. Wolfgang
Richter zum . Geburtstag. Edited by Walter Gross, Hubert Irsigler, and
Theodor Seidl. St. Ottilien: EOS, .
. Old Hebrew Particles and the Interpretation of Old Testament Texts.
JSOT (): .
Israel. Papers Read at the Tenth Joint Meeting of the Society for Old Testament Study
and het Oudtestamentisch Werkgezelschap in Nederland en Belgie Held at Oxford, .
Edited by Johannes C. de Moor. OTS . Leiden: E. J. Brill, .
. The First Human Being a Male? A Response to Professor Barr.
Pp. in Recycling Biblical Figures: Papers Read at a Noster Colloquium in
Amsterdam, May . Edited by Athalya Brenner and Jan Willem van
Henten. STAR . Leiden: Deo, .
Moore, Stephen D. Gigantic God: Yahwehs Body. JSOT (): .
Morgenstern, Julian. The Sources of the Creation StoryGenesis ::.
AJSL (): .
Mowinckel, Sigmund. Urmensch und Knigsideologie. ST (): .
Mller, Hans-Peter. Das Bedeutungspotential der Afformativkonjugation.
Zum sprachgeschichtlichen Hintergrund des Althebrischen. ZAH
(): , .
. Das Beth existentiae im Althebrischen. Pp. in Vom Alten
Orient zum Alten Testament. Festschrift fr Wolfram Freiherrn von Soden zum .
Geburtstag am . Juni . Edited by Manfried Dietrich and Oswald Loretz.
AOAT . Kevelaer/Neukirchen-Vluyn: Butzon & Bercker/Neukirchener
Verlag, .
. Der Welt- und Kulturentstehungsmythos des Philon Byblios und die
biblische Urgeschichte. ZAW (): .
Mullen, E. Theodore, Jr. Divine Assembly. In ABD ..
. The Divine Council in Canaanite and Early Hebrew Literature. HSM . Chico,
Calif.: Scholars Press, .
Muraoka, Takamitsu. The Alleged Final Function of the Biblical Hebrew
Syntagm <waw + a Volitive Verb Form>. Pp. in Narrative Syntax
and the Hebrew Bible: Papers of the Tilburg Conference . Edited by Ellen van
Wolde. BIS . Leiden: Brill, .
and Bezalel Porten. A Grammar of Egyptian Aramaic. HdO /. Leiden:
Brill, .
Nasuti, Harry P. Tradition History and the Psalms of Asaph. SBLDS . Atlanta:
Scholars Press, .
Neef, Heinz-Dieter. Gottes himmlischer Thronrat. Hintergrund und Bedeutung von sd
YHWH im Alten Testament. AzTh . Stuttgart: Calwer, .
Newsom, Carol A. Angels. In ABD ..
Niccacci, Alviero. Finite Verb in the Second Position of the Sentence
Coherence of the Hebrew Verbal System. ZAW (): .
. The Syntax of the Verb in Classical Hebrew Prose. Translated by W. G.
E. Watson. JSOTS . Sheffield: JSOT Press, [].
Niditch, Susan. Oral World and Written Word: Ancient Israelite Literature. Library of
Ancient Israel. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, .
Niehr, Herbert. The Rise of YHWH in Judahite and Israelite Religion:
Methodological and Religio-Historical Aspects. Pp. in The Triumph
of Elohim: From Yahwisms to Judaisms. Edited by Diana Vikander Edelman.
Grand Rapids/Kampen: Eerdmans/Kok Pharos, [].
Noegel, Scott B. Moses and Magic: Notes on the Book of Exodus. JANES
(): .
See: Essays in Honor of David Noel Freedman in Celebration of His Seventieth Birthday.
Edited by Astrid B. Beck et al. Grand Rapids/Cambridge, U.K.: Eerdmans,
.
Peleg, Yizhaq (Iziq). In the Beginning, God Created the Heavens and the
Earth. BetM (): (in Hebrew).
Pettey, Richard J. Asherah: Goddess of Israel. American University Studies VII/.
New York: Peter Lang, .
Pitard, Wayne T. The Binding of Yamm: A New Edition of the Ugaritic Text
KTU .. JNES (): .
Podella, Thomas. Das Lichtkleid JHWHs. Untersuchungen zur Gestalthaftigkeit Gottes
im Alten Testament und seiner altorientalischen Umwelt. FAT . Tbingen: J. C.
B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck), .
Pola, Thomas. Die ursprngliche Priesterschrift. Beobachtungen zur Literarkritik und
Traditionsgeschichte von P g. WMANT . Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener
Verlag, .
Pope, Marvin H. El in the Ugaritic Texts. VTS . Leiden: E. J. Brill, .
. Mixed Marriage Metaphor in Ezekiel . Pp. in Fortunate
the Eyes That See: Essays in Honor of David Noel Freedman in Celebration of His
Seventieth Birthday. Edited by Astrid B. Beck et al. Grand Rapids/Cambridge,
U.K.: Eerdmans, .
and Wolfgang Rllig. Syrien. Die Mythologie der Ugariter und Phnizier. In WdM /..
Porter, Barbara Nevling. Gods Statues as a Tool of Assyrian Political Policy:
Esarhaddons Return of Marduk to Babylon. Pp. in Religious Transformations and Socio-Political Change: Eastern Europe and Latin America. Edited
by Luther Martin. Religion and Society . Berlin/New York: Mouton de
Gruyter, .
Preuss, H. D. c damah; e"c d emth. In TDOT ..
. Old Testament Theology. Translated by Leo G. Perdue. vols. OTL.
Louisville: Westminster John Knox, [].
Procksch, Otto. Die Genesis. d ed. KAT . Leipzig/Erlangen: A. Deichert/Werner Scholl, .
Propp, William H. C. Exodus. AB . New York: Doubleday, .
. The Priestly Source Recovered Intact? VT (): .
Provan, Iain W. and Kings. NIBC . Peabody, Mass./Carlisle, U.K.: Hendrickson/Paternoster, .
von Rad, Gerhard. Deuteronomy. Translated by Dorothea Barton. OTL. Philadelphia: Westminster, [].
. Genesis. Translated by John H. Marks. Rev. ed. OTL. Philadelphia:
Westminster, .
. _" in the OT. In TDNT ..
. Old Testament Theology. Translated by D. M. G. Stalker. vols. New York:
Harper & Brothers/Harper & Row, [].
. Vom Menschenbild des Alten Testaments. Pp. in G. von Rad et
al. Der alte und der neue Mensch. Aufstze zur theologischen Anthropologie. BEvTh .
Munich: Evangelischer Verlag Albert Lempp, .
Rainey, Anson F. The Ancient Hebrew Prefix Conjugation in the Light of
Talmon, Shemaryahu. The Biblical Understanding of Creation and the Human Commitment. ExAu (): .
Teshima, Yeshayahu. Come, Let Us Deal Shrewdly with Them, or They
Will Increase: Rashis Linguistic Evaluation of the Functions of and
the Hithpael Stem. BetM (): (in Hebrew).
Thompson, Sandra A. A Discourse Approach to the Cross-Linguistic Category Adjective. Pp. in Explaining Language Universals. Edited by
John A. Hawkins. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, ; repr. pp. in Linguistic Categorization. Edited by Roberta Corrigan, Fred Eckman, and Michael Noonan. CILT . Amsterdam/Philadelphia: John Benjamins, .
Tigay, Jeffrey H. Deuteronomy. The JPS Torah Commentary. Philadelphia/Jerusalem: Jewish Publication Society, .
. He Begot a Son in His Likeness after His Image (Genesis :).
Pp. in Tehillah le-Moshe: Biblical and Judaic Studies in Honor of
Moshe Greenberg. Edited by Mordechai Cogan, Barry L. Eichler, and Jeffrey
H. Tigay. Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, .
. The Image of God and the Flood: Some New Developments. Pp.
in . Studies in Jewish Education and Judaica in Honor of Louis
Newman. Edited by Alexander M. Shapiro and Burton I. Cohen. New York:
Ktav, .
. A Second Temple Parallel to the Blessings from Kuntillet Ajrud. IEJ
(): .
. What is Man That You Have Been Mindful of Him? (On Psalm :
). Pp. in Love & Death in the Ancient Near East: Essays in Honor of
Marvin H. Pope. Edited by John H. Marks and Robert M. Good. Guilford,
Conn.: Four Quarters, .
. You Shall Have No Other Gods: Israelite Religion in the Light of Hebrew Inscriptions. HSS . Atlanta: Scholars Press, .
Tov, Emanuel. Textual Criticism of the Hebrew Bible. d ed. Minneapolis/Assen:
Fortress/Royal Van Gorcum, .
Trask, R. L. A Dictionary of Grammatical Terms in Linguistics. London/New York:
Routledge, .
Trible, Phyllis. God and the Rhetoric of Sexuality. London: SCM, [].
Tsevat, Matitiahu. God and the Gods in Assembly: An Interpretation of
Psalm . HUCA (): .
Tsumura, David Toshio. The Earth and the Waters in Genesis and : A Linguistic
Investigation. JSOTS . Sheffield: JSOT Press, .
Ungnad, A. Zum hebrischen Verbalsystem. BASS / (): .
Urbach, Ephraim E. The Sages: Their Concepts and Beliefs. Translated by Israel
Abrahams. vols. d enl. ed. Jerusalem: Magnes, .
Van Seters, John. A Contest of Magicians? The Plague Stories in P. Pp.
in Pomegranates and Golden Bells: Studies in Biblical, Jewish, and Near Eastern
Ritual, Law, and Literature in Honor of Jacob Milgrom. Edited by David P. Wright,
David Noel Freedman, and Avi Hurvitz. Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns,
.
. The Creation of Man and the Creation of the King. ZAW ():
.
van Wolde, Ellen. Words Become Worlds: Semantic Studies of Genesis . BIS .
Leiden: E. J. Brill, .
Wolfensohn, Avraham. Come, Let Us Build Ourselves a City BetM
(): (in Hebrew).
Wolff, Hans Walter. Anthropology of the Old Testament. Translated by Margaret
Kohl. Philadelphia: Fortress, [].
. The Old Testament: A Guide to Its Writings. Translated by Keith R. Crim.
Philadelphia: Fortress, [].
van der Woude, A. S. s. aba army. In TLOT ..
Wright, David P. Holiness, Sex, and Death in the Garden of Eden. Bib
(): .
Wrthwein, Ernst. Chaos und Schpfung im mythischen Denken und in der
biblischen Urgeschichte. Pp. in Zeit und Geschichte. Dankesgabe an
Rudolf Bultmann zum . Geburtstag. Edited by Erich Dinkler and Hartwig
Thyen. Tbingen: J. C. B. Mohr (Paul Siebeck), ; repr. pp. in
Wort und Existenz. Studien zum Alten Testament. Gttingen: Vandenhoeck &
Ruprecht, .
Wyatt, N. Asherah . In DDD2 .
. The Darkness of Genesis i . VT (): .
. Myths of Power: A Study of Royal Myth and Ideology in Ugaritic and Biblical
Tradition. UBL . Mnster: Ugarit-Verlag, .
. Religious Texts from Ugarit: The Words of Ilimilku and His Colleagues. BiSe .
Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, .
. The Theogony Motif in Ugarit and the Bible. Pp. in Ugarit
and the Bible: Proceedings of the International Symposium on Ugarit and the Bible,
Manchester, September . Edited by George J. Brooke, Adrian H. W. Curtis,
and John F. Healey. UBL . Mnster: Ugarit-Verlag, .
Zenger, Erich. Gottes Bogen in den Wolken. Untersuchungen zu Komposition und Theologie der priesterschriftlichen Urgeschichte. d ed. SBS . Stuttgart: Katholisches
Bibelwerk, .
Zevit, Ziony. The Anterior Construction in Classical Hebrew. SBLMS . Atlanta:
Scholars Press, .
Zimmerli, Walther. .Mose. vols. d/st ed. ZB.AT /. Zurich: Theologischer Verlag, .
. Ezekiel. Translated by Ronald E. Clements, James D. Martin, et al.
vols. Hermeneia. Philadelphia: Fortress, [].
. Old Testament Theology in Outline. Translated by David E. Green. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, [].
Zobell, H.-J. " elyn. In TDOT ..
. @T radah, @T II radah II, AT radad. In TWAT ..
Zoran, Yair. The Language of GreatnessThe Majestic Plural. BetM
(): (in Hebrew).
TEXT INDEX
Biblical Texts
::
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
, , ,
, with n. ,
,
,
, ,
, , ,
,
, , , ,
n. , ,
with n.
, , ,
n. , , ,
n. , ,
, with n. ,
, , , , ,
, , ,
, ,
:
:
, , , , , ,
, , , ,
, , ,
, , ,
, , ,
, , , ,
, , , ,
, , , ,
, , , ,
, , , , ,
, ,
:
, , , , ,
, , , ,
, , , , ,
, , , ,
, , ,
:
:
, , , , ,
, , , ,
, , with
n. , , , , ,
, ,
:
,
:
, ,
:
,
:
, , , , ,
:
, ,
:
:a
, , , n.
:b
n.
:b
:b:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
, , , ,
, , with n. ,
, , , , , , ,
, , ,
,
, , ,
, ,
, , , ,
, , ,
, , ,
, , , ,
, , , ,
, , , , ,
, n. , ,
, , , , ,
, , ,
, ,
with n. , , , ,
, , , , ,
, ,
,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
, with n. ,
n.
n. , ,
, , , ,
with n.
, n.
,
, ,
,
, , , , ,
,
,
,
,
,
with n. , ,
, , ,
, , , ,
, ,
, , , , ,
,
, ,
, ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
, , , ,
, , , , ,
, ,
, , , , , ,
, , , , ,
,
, ,
, ,
,
, , , , , , ,
, , , , , ,
, , ,
, ,
,
,
, , ,
,
,
, ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
, ,
, ,
, ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
n.
,
,
, n. , , ,
, , , ,
:
: ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
, , ,
, n. , , ,
, , , ,
,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
with n.
, ,
,
,
with n.
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
n.
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
, n. , ,
,
:
n. ,
:
:
,
:
:
n.
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
with n.
,
,
,
n.
:
:
:
, ,
nn. and ,
, , ,
n.
,
n.
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
n.
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
with n.
,
n.
, ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
with n.
:
:
:
:
:
:
n. ,
, , , ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
n. ,
n.
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
, ,
,
,
, ,
,
,,
, ,
, ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
, ,
,
,
,
, , ,
, ,
, ,
:
:
:
, n.
:
:
:
:
,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
with n. , with
:
:
n. , with
n.
n.
,
,
,
,
,
n.
, with
n.
, , , ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
,
,
,
, ,
,
with n.
, , ,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
, ,
,
,
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
,
:
:
:
:
:
:
,
:
:
n.
:
:
:
:
, ,
:
:
,
Biblical Manuscripts
Kenn :
Kenn :
Qumran
QDeutj :: , , , ,
QDeutq :: , ,
QPsk ::
Rabbinic
b. Meg a:
Sifre Deuteronomy : n.
Akkadian
AKA i : n.
AKA i : n.
AKA ii : nn. and
BBSt i :
BBSt i :
BBSt Face A : n. ,
BBSt Face A : n. ,
BBSt Face A : n. ,
BBSt Face B : n. ,
BBSt :: with n.
BBSt :: n.
BBSt iii : n.
BBSt iv : n.
BBSt iv :
Bt Mesiri ii : n. ,
BM : with n.
Borger, Esarh. rev. :
Borger, Esarh. :: n.
Borger, Esarh. rev. :
n.
Borger, Esarh. rev. :
CH i :
CH xlvii :
CH xlviii :
CH xlviii :
En El i :
En El i :
En El iv :
En El v : n.
KAH rev. : n.
KAR :.:
KAR i : n.
KAV rev. : n.
Lambert, BWL :: n.
Layard :: n.
Layard :: n.
OIP :: n. , n.
OIP vi : n.
R iii :
RA i : n.
RAcc ::
RIMA A...::
RIMA A...::
RIMA A...::
RIMA A...::
RIMA A...:
RIMA A...::
RIMA A...::
RIMA A...::
RIMA A...:
RIMA A...::
RIME E... v. :
n.
SAA rev. :
SAA rev. : n.
SAA obv. rev. :
SAA rev. : n.
SAA rev. : n.
SAA rev. : n.
SAA rev. : n.
Streck, Asb. :ff.: n.
Streck, Asb. L ff.: n.
Streck, Asb. iv : n. ,
n.
STT :: n.
STT ::
STT :.: n.
STT ::
TCL : n.
TCL : n.
Tell Fakhariyeh .:
Tukulti-Ninurta i/A obv.:
TuL :: n.
Unger, Bel-Harran-beli-usser
: n.
Weidner, AfO obv.
: n.
WORD INDEX
Akkadian
asabu,
issakku,
izuzzu, ,
kakku, with n.
s. almu, ,
sarru,
Tiamat,
Amharic
k/k,
Biblical Aramaic
, , ,
, , , ,
(), , ,
Epigraphic Aramaic
,
, n.
, , with
n.
Biblical Hebrew
,
,
,
,
,
() ,
,
,
, , n.
(), , , , ,
, with n.
,
,
, n.
,
, n.
, ,
,
,
, , ,
, ,
,
,
,
,
, n.
, , ,
, ,
, ,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, , , ,
, , , ,
, n.
,
, with n.
,
,
, , ,
, ,
, ,
,
,
, , ,
, , ,
, ,
,
,
,
,
, ,
,
,
, , ,
, ,
,
, n. , n.
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
, , , n.
,
, ,
, , , with n. ,
, with n.
, n.
, ,
,
,
, ,
(),
(),
, , ,
,
, , ,
, , ,
,
, , ,
,
, n.
, , ,
, , ,
, ,
, n.
,
,
, ,
,
, ,
, , , ,
,
, ,
, ,
Epigraphic Hebrew
,
Sumerian
,
, n.
Nudimmud, n.
Ugaritic
atrt, with n.
ym,
thmtm,
tnn,
AUTHOR INDEX
Aaron, David H., nn. and
, n. ,
Ackroyd, Peter R., n. ,
Ahlstrm, G. W., n. , n. ,
Albertz, Rainer, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Baethgen, Friedrich, n. ,
Balentine, Samuel E., n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Bar-On, Shimon, n. ,
Baranzke, Heike, n. ,
Barr, James, nn. and , n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , nn. and
, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Biale, David, n. , n. ,
n. ,
Bickel, Balthasar, n. ,
Bird, Phyllis A., n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and , with
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
with nn. and ,
nn. and , with nn.
and , nn. and ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with nn. and ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , n. , with
nn. and , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
n. , n. ,
Birkeland, Harris, n. ,
Blake, Frank R., n. ,
Blau, Joshua, n. , n. ,
Blenkinsopp, Joseph, n. ,
n. , n. , n. , with
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Bloch-Smith, Elizabeth M., n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
with n. ,
Boehmer, Julius, n. ,
n. , n. ,
de Boer, P. A. H., n. ,
Bttcher, Friedrich, n. ,
Bordreuil, Pierre, n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Borger, R., n. , n. ,
Bottro, Jean, with nn.
and , n. ,
Brettler, Marc Zvi, n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , n. , n. , with
n. , n. ,
Breukelman, Frans, n. ,
n. ,
Briggs, Charles Augustus,
n. , with n. , . See
also s.v. BDB
Brning, Christian, n. ,
n. ,
Buber, Martin, with n. ,
n. , n. ,
Budd, Philip J., n. ,
Budde, Karl, n. , n. ,
Burney, C. F., n. ,
Carr, David, n. , n. ,
nn. and , with nn. and
, n. , nn. and
, n. , n. ,
n. ,
Caspari, W., n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Cassuto, U., with n. , with n. ,
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
n. , with nn. and
, n. , with n. ,
n. , , with nn.
and ,
Cazelles, Henri, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Charles, R. H., n. ,
Charlesworth, J. H., n. ,
n. ,
Childs, Brevard S., nn. and
, n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
n. , with n. ,
with n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Clements, Ronald E., n. ,
Clines, David J. A., n. , n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
with nn. and , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with n. ,
n. , with n. , with
n. , ,
Cohen, Jeremy, n. , n. ,
Cohen, Marcel, n. , n. ,
Comrie, Bernard, n. ,
Cooke, G. A., with nn. and
,
Cooke, Gerald, n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
n. ,
Cooper, Alan, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Dobbs-Allsopp, F. W., n. ,
Dohmen, C., n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , nn.
and , n. ,
Douglas, Mary, n. ,
n. ,
Driver, G. R., n. ,
Driver, S. R., with n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , with n. ,
with n. , nn. and ,
n. , n. , with
nn. and , . See also s.v.
BDB
Duhm, Bernh., n. , n. ,
Duncker, P. G., n. , n. ,
nn. and ,
Durham, John I., n. , n. ,
with n. ,
Ebach, Jrgen, n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
Edelman, Diana V., n. ,
Edzard, D. O., n. ,
Engnell, I., n. , n. ,
n. ,
Ewald, Heinrich, n. , n. ,
with n. , n. ,
Fassberg, Steven E., n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Fensham, F. Charles, with n. ,
Firmage, Edwin, n. ,
n. , n. ,
Fishbane, Michael, n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , with n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
n. , , , ,
Fisher, Loren R., n. ,
Fitzmyer, Joseph A., nn.
and ,
Fohrer, Georg, n. ,
Foster, Benjamin R., n. ,
n. , n. ,
Fox, Michael V., n. ,
n. ,
Freedman, David Noel, n. ,
n. , with n. , with
n. , n. ,
Fretheim, Terence E., with n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Frevel, Christian, n. ,
Friedman, Richard Elliott, n. ,
n. , n. ,
Frymer-Kensky, Tikva, n. ,
n. , with nn. and ,
nn. and , nn. and
, nn. and , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Galpaz-Feller, Pnina, n. ,
Garr, W. Randall, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Gro, Walter, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Hahn, E. Adelaide, n. ,
Hallo, William W., n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Halpern, Baruch, n. , with
n. , nn. and ,
nn. and , n. ,
with n. , , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with n. ,
Handy, Lowell K., n. ,
n. , n. ,
Haran, M., n. ,
Harland, P. J., n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
nn. and , with n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , nn. , , and ,
n. , n. , n. ,
with n. , n. ,
with nn. and , nn.
and , nn. and ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Hart, Ian, n. , n. ,
Hartley, John E., n. ,
Hasel, Gerhard F., n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Hehn, Johannes, n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Heintz, Jean-Georges, n. ,
n. ,
Hendel, Ronald S., n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
with n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Henkin, Roni, n. , n. ,
Henry, Matthew, with n. ,
Humbert, Paul, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
nn. and , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
Hurowitz, Victor (Avigdor),
n. ,
Jacob, B., n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , nn. and
, n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Jacobsen, Thorkild, n. ,
n. , nn. , , and ,
nn. , , and ,
n. ,
Janowski, Bernd, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , nn.
and , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
Jenni, E., n. , n. , nn.
and , nn. , , and ,
n. , n. , nn. , ,
and , n. , n. ,
nn. , , , and , nn.
and , nn. and ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , nn. , , and ,
nn. , , and , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Jenson, Philip Peter, with
n. , n. ,
Jones, G. H., n. ,
Jongeling, K., xv, n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Jnsson, Gunnlaugur A., n. ,
Kaddari, Menahem
Z., n. ,
.
Kaiser, Otto, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Keel, Othmar, n. , n. ,
with n. , n. ,
n. ,
Kennicott, Benjaminus, n. ,
Kimhi, David, n. , n. ,
Kindl, E.-M., n. ,
King, L. W., n.
Kirkpatrick, A. F., n. ,
Kister, Menahem, n. , n. ,
Kittel, Rudolf, n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Klein, Ralph W., n. ,
n. , n. ,
Klopfenstein, Martin A., n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Knohl, Israel, n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
Koch, Klaus, n. ,
Koehler, Ludwig, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Knig, Eduard, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Kraetzschmar, Richard, n. ,
Lambert, W. G., n. ,
n. , n. , nn.
and , n. , n. ,
Lamberty-Zielinski, Hedwig,
n. ,
Lande, Irene, n. ,
Larsen, Mogens Trolle, with
n. , with n. ,
Leander, Pontus, n. , n. ,
Lee, S., n. ,
Leech, Geoffrey N., n. ,
Lemaire, Andr, nn. and ,
n. , n. , n. ,
with n. , n. ,
nn. and , with n. ,
n. , with nn. and
, with n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. , with
n. , with nn. , , and
, n. , n. , ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with nn. and
, n. , with nn.
and , with n. , with
n. , with n. , n. ,
with n. , n. , ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , with n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
with nn. and , n. ,
Limburg, James, n. ,
n. ,
Lipinski,
Edward, n. ,
n. ,
Loewenstamm, Samuel E.,
n. ,
Lohfink, Norbert, n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , nn.
and , nn. and ,
nn. , , and , nn. , ,
and , with n. , with
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Long, Burke O., n. ,
Loretz, Oswald, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Lust, Johan, with n. ,
Lutzky, Harriet, n. , n. ,
Luyster, Robert, n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Luyten, Jos, n. ,
Lyons, John, n. , n. ,
Maag, Victor, n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Machinist, Peter, n. ,
nn. and ,
Mafico, T. L. J., with n. ,
n. ,
Malamat, Abraham, n. ,
Mann, Yizhaq, n. , nn.
and , n. ,
Martin, W. J., n. , n. ,
May, Herbert G., n. ,
Mayes, A. D. H., n. , n. ,
Niditch, Susan, n. , n. ,
n. ,
Niehr, Herbert, n. ,
n. ,
Noegel, Scott B., n. ,
Nldeke, Th., n. ,
Nyberg, H. S., n.
Ockinga, Boyo, n. ,
OConnor, M., n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with nn. and ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
Oesterley, W. O. E., n. ,
n. ,
del Olmo Lete, G., n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
Olshausen, Justus, n. , n. ,
von Rad, Gerhard, with n. ,
n. , with n. , with
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , with nn. and
, nn. and , nn.
and , n. , n. ,
with n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
with n. , with n. ,
with n. , with n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , n. , nn. ,
, and , nn. and ,
n. , n. ,
Schneider, Wolfgang, n. ,
Schreiner, Stefan, n. ,
Schwally, Friedrich, n. ,
n. ,
Seebass, Horst, n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Seely, Paul H., n. ,
Seitz, Christopher R., n. ,
Seybold, K., n. ,
Sharp, Donald B., n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Shulman, Ahouva, n. ,
with nn. and ,
Skinner, John, with nn. and
, n. , n. , n. ,
with n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Smith, Carlota S., n. ,
Smith, Mark S., n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with nn. and
, nn. , , and ,
with n. , with n. ,
with nn. and , n. ,
with n. , n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
Smith, Morton, n. , n. ,
Snaith, N. H., n. ,
Snyder, Jill, n. , nn. and
, n. , n. , n. ,
with nn. and ,
Snyman, S. D., n. ,
von Soden, Wolfram, xiii, n. ,
n. , n.
Sokoloff, Michael, n. ,
Sommer, Benjamin D., n. ,
n. , n. ,
Sparks, Kent, n. ,
Sperling, S. David, n. ,
Spina, Frank Anthony, n. ,
Spycket, Agns, n. ,
Stamm, Johann Jakob, n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Steck, Odil Hannes, n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Steiner, Richard C., n. ,
Steinkeller, Piotr, n.
Stendebach, F. J., n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Stoebe, H. J., n. , n. ,
Stolz, Fritz, n. , n. ,
n. ,
Streibert, Christian, n. ,
Stroumsa, Sarah, n. ,
Struppe, Ursula, n. ,
Swiggers, Pierre, n. ,
Talmon, Shemaryahu, with
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Teixidor, Javier, n. ,
Teshima, Yeshayahu, n. ,
n. , n. ,
Thompson, Sandra A., n. ,
Tigay, Jeffrey H., n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
with n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
with nn. and , n. ,
with nn. and ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
n. , with n. ,
n. ,
Tov, Emanuel, n. , n. ,
Uehlinger, Christoph, n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
n. ,
Ungnad, A., n. ,
Urbach, Ephraim E., n. ,
n. ,
Van Seters, John, n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Vawter, Bruce, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , nn. and ,
n. , n. ,
Vervenne, Marc, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Vogels, Walter, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , with nn. ,
, and , n. , n. ,
with n. , n. ,
with n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with n. ,
n. , n. ,
Vollmer, J., n. ,
van der Voort, A., n. ,
Wagner, S., n. ,
Walker, Christopher, nn. and
, with nn. , , ,
and , n. ,
Walker, Norman, n. ,
Wallace, Howard N., n. ,
with n. , with n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Waltke, Bruce K., n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
with nn. and , n. ,
with n. , n. ,
Waschke, E.-J., n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Watson, Wilfred G. E., n. ,
n. ,
Weidner, Ernst F., n. ,
Weimar, Peter, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. ,
Weinfeld, Moshe, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Weippert, Manfred, n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Weiser, Artur, with n. ,
Wellhausen, Julius, n. , with
n. , , , n. , ,
n. ,
Wenham, Gordon J., n. , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
n. , with nn. and ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
with nn. and , nn.
and , n. , n. ,
Westermann, Claus, n. , with
nn. and , with n. ,
n. , nn. and , n. ,
with nn. , , and , nn.
and , n. , with n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , with n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
nn. and , , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
with n. , nn. and ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
,
de Wette, W. M. L., n. ,
Whitley, C. F., n. ,
Whybray, R. N., n. , n. ,
n. , with n. ,
Wiggins, Steve A., n. ,
nn. , , and , nn. ,
, and , n. ,
Wildberger, Hans, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , with n. ,
with n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
de Wilde, A., n. ,
Wilfong, Marsha M., n. ,
Williams, David T., n. ,
Williams, Ronald J., with nn.
and , nn. and , ,
n. , n. ,
Williamson, H. G. M., n. ,
n. , n. ,
Willis, John T., n. ,
Willoughby, B. E., n. , n. ,
Wrthwein, Ernst, n. ,
n. ,
Wyatt, N., n. , n. ,
n. , nn. and ,
n. , with n. ,
Zenger, Erich, n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Zevit, Ziony, n. ,
Zimmerli, Walther, n. , ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
nn. and , n. ,
n. , n. , n. ,
Zobell, H.-J., n. , n. ,
n. , n. ,
Zoran, Yair, n. ,