Isaiah 6-12
Who truly wrote the book of Isaiah is a puzzle that archaeologists, historians, and other scholars (theists and atheists alike) are still trying to piece together. The oldest copy of this Hebrew Scripture is called the Isaiah Scroll aka the Great Isaiah Scroll. In 1947 this scroll was one of 220 scrolls discovered at the caves of Qumran located in the West Bank near the Dead Sea; part of the contentious Israeli/Palestinian conflict that has been raging for a few generations now.
These scrolls are known as the Dead Sea Scrolls. They are the remnants of a Jewish sect, most likely the Essenes, that got wiped out a few years after the Roman Revolution of 66 B.C.E. when the Jews kicked Rome out of Jerusalem. The nation of Israel would be independent again for the first time since the fall of Judah to the Babylonians. Of course three years later the Romans return and slaughter everyone and burn the Temple of Yahweh to the ground. The Dead Sea Scrolls are the holy scrolls that the Essenes, or other jewish group on the run, hid away in order to protect before either fleeing or falling to the sword.
What is interesting about the Great Isaiah scroll, though, is the fact that it is the oldest copy of the entire book of Isaiah with a carbon dating placing the scroll between 330-110 B.C.E. The scroll itself is most likely a copy of an even older scroll that has been lost to history and that was probably not the oldest copy of this story, either. There are some slight grammatical and textual differences between this Great Scroll and the modern hebrew versions, but these variances don’t change the meaning of what is being conveyed too drastically. Although, with the extent that mankind likes to twist things to their own advantages that could be debatable.
Despite the Jewish tradition of the author being the Prophet himself Biblical Studies of the past two centuries have led most scholars to believe that the text was probably written over a large period of time and can be broken into three major sections; Proto-(1st), Duetero-(2nd), and Trito-(3rd)Isaiah. We will get into the 2nd and 3rd Isaiahs later.
The 1st part (chapters 1-39) is believed to have been either written by the prophet Isaiah or a historian of the time soon after Isaiah in the 8th century B.C.E. Chapters 6-8 give a little biography of the man. He was known to use his own self as well as his wife and children as tools for his prophecy. His wife was even known as the Prophetess. These first 39 chapters are believed to be the actual recorded sayings of the ancient prophet Isaiah. Up till chapter 12 is believed to be the early years of the prophet. These are the warnings to the people of Israel that they are living the wrong way according to words of Moses. This is all told in the book of Kings, too, as this would have been during the reign of first King Uzziah and then King Jotham, roughly 750 B.C.E. Uzziah died near the start of Isaiah’s preaching.
Chapters 10-11 warn of the impending doom at the hands of Assyrians. Isaiah warns that Yahweh will use the Assyrians as his instrument of punishment against the Israelites just as he used the Israelites against the Canaanites after warning those heathens for hundreds of years, as well. However, just as Yahweh warned the Israelites all those generations ago, so too does Isaiah issue a warning to Assyria. He tells them in chapter 10 that they will be judged for their transgressions, as well. Just because they are the instrument of God’s wrath does not mean they get to escape that wrath.
In Chapter 11 we get the prophecy concerning the next great leader of Israel. For Isaiah, this prophecy was for a coming king that would lead after Assyria had laid waste to its people. This would be a leader that would call back the people that had been scattered by the conquest of Assyria and restore the kingship of the divided nations back into the one nation of Israel under one King. This king would be a descendent of the last great king, David. Unfortunately, Assyria destroyed the northern kingdom and whoever escaped fled to southern Judah.
Since this king never came, as all kings up until the fall of Judah fell short of this expectation, the prophecy of Isaiah was still used in the days of Roman occupied Israel. These would have been the prophecies that were talked about in the days of Jesus and John the Baptist. The fact that the Great Scroll of Isaiah was the most complete scroll of 220 shows its significance and respect in the ancient Jewish mind. The people of that time, just as today, could use these passages as prophecy for their political situations in that time period. The Essense especially were huge fans of this scroll and had many parallel prophecies of their own using passages from The Great Isaiah Scroll.
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Time to Shake Things Up
Isaiah 1-5
This book begins the collection of scrolls of the Major Prophets. The events of the book of Isaiah take place during the periods mentioned in II Kings and II Chronicles. Isaiah is a prophet that preaches in Judah, the southern Kingdom, during the reigns of Kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah; 740-690 B.C.E. During this time period Assyria was the dominant civilization, with Babylon making rapid progress as well. It was also within this time period that the Northern Kingdom of Israel was conquered by the Assyrians; around 729 B.C.E. The origin of this book of the Tanakh is interesting and I will be able to get into it as we get deeper into the story of Isaiah. For now, though, lets soak up the atmosphere of the time and place of ancient Judah. We don’t learn anything about the prophet until Chapter Six, but the story opens right up with a harsh critique of the people of Judah in the year following the reign of King Uzziah, who ruled Judah from around 791-739 B.C.E.
Under King Uzziah the nation of Judah was rich and powerful. Since Uzziah was a boy of sixteen when he became king (II Kings 15:2) his reign lasted fifty-two years. He was one of the most prosperous kings since King Solomon. He also did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to scripture. The events in II Kings and II Chronicles indicate an event late in his life where Uzziah’s pride got the best of him and he sinned against God (II Chronicles 26:19-21). He was struck with leprosy and died (2 Kings 15:5, 27; 2 Chronicles 26:3) leaving the kingdom to his son Jotham (II Kings 15:5) in roughly 739 B.C.E.
It is under the rule of King Jotham that the Book of Isaiah opens upon. Jotham is a good king. He rebuilds many towns and fortresses as well as the walls of the Temple in Jerusalem. Over his sixteen year reign as king he does well to stay within God’s favor. Unfortunately, the people grow lazy and proud with his success and his piety does not rub off on them. That’s where Isaiah comes in.
The first five chapters are an admonition to the people of Judah warning them of their proud ways and teaching that the descendants of Abraham and Jacob have a unique relationship with the God of gods, but they are failing to live up to their end of the covenant. Isaiah warns the people that their refusal to honor the Lord by taking care of the less fortunate people (widows, orphans, the poor, etc), as well as their love of things other than Yahweh, would cause them to lose the favor of Yahweh. They had entered into an agreement with the Creator and were not living up to their end of the bargain. Isaiah then explains exactly what the consequences for their behavior will be.
Finally, in chapter five Isaiah explains that because Israel has failed, generation after generation, to fulfill its covenant with Yahweh they will be uprooted and scattered to the four winds. This does not mean that God’s plan of bringing the nations of the world back into his grace, explained to Abraham in the book of Genesis, has failed and ends here with the Jews. It just means that the next phase is about to begin.
Under King Uzziah the nation of Judah was rich and powerful. Since Uzziah was a boy of sixteen when he became king (II Kings 15:2) his reign lasted fifty-two years. He was one of the most prosperous kings since King Solomon. He also did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to scripture. The events in II Kings and II Chronicles indicate an event late in his life where Uzziah’s pride got the best of him and he sinned against God (II Chronicles 26:19-21). He was struck with leprosy and died (2 Kings 15:5, 27; 2 Chronicles 26:3) leaving the kingdom to his son Jotham (II Kings 15:5) in roughly 739 B.C.E.
It is under the rule of King Jotham that the Book of Isaiah opens upon. Jotham is a good king. He rebuilds many towns and fortresses as well as the walls of the Temple in Jerusalem. Over his sixteen year reign as king he does well to stay within God’s favor. Unfortunately, the people grow lazy and proud with his success and his piety does not rub off on them. That’s where Isaiah comes in.
The first five chapters are an admonition to the people of Judah warning them of their proud ways and teaching that the descendants of Abraham and Jacob have a unique relationship with the God of gods, but they are failing to live up to their end of the covenant. Isaiah warns the people that their refusal to honor the Lord by taking care of the less fortunate people (widows, orphans, the poor, etc), as well as their love of things other than Yahweh, would cause them to lose the favor of Yahweh. They had entered into an agreement with the Creator and were not living up to their end of the bargain. Isaiah then explains exactly what the consequences for their behavior will be.
Finally, in chapter five Isaiah explains that because Israel has failed, generation after generation, to fulfill its covenant with Yahweh they will be uprooted and scattered to the four winds. This does not mean that God’s plan of bringing the nations of the world back into his grace, explained to Abraham in the book of Genesis, has failed and ends here with the Jews. It just means that the next phase is about to begin.
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
The Book That Makes You Blush
Song of Solomon 1-8
The Song of Songs, as it is also known, is the last piece of work of the section of the Tanakh known as the Ketuvim (Writings). It is a story about a man and a woman who are in love and going through the different stages of romance. It starts of with them romancing each other and ends with the final act of love. It is a very odd piece of scripture to be included among the other writings. In fact, through the whole short work of Song of Songs there is only one mention of God. Solomon is never mentioned as the protagonist in the story, in fact Solomon is referenced by the man in the story as the King, which leads one to believe that this main character is someone other than King Solomon. Some people think the song was written for Solomon rather than by him.
According to the Talmud, the Jewish book of tradition compiled by the Jews after the Roman destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D., King Solomon is the author of the Song of Songs and he wrote this piece after first writing the Book of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. However, according to modern scholars the authorship of this book cannot be specified. Scholars can not even agree on an estimated date of authorship. The estimates of these scholars put the origin of this book between 950 B.C.E. to 200 B.C.E. There are some schools of thought that state the original author existed in the 900s B.C.E. and wrote in the language style of that day. Other scholars state that some of the language used in the original texts is actually Persian, which would put the date of composition sometime during or after the exile in 500 B.C.E.
The love story contained within the Song of Songs can be a little sexy compared to the rest of the Tanakh. It really is a mystery as to why it was included in the Jewish Holy scriptures. The use of the book has been, traditionally, as a metaphor for God’s love for his chosen people. Later, it was included in the Christian Canon and used as a metaphor for God’s love for all of his children. Early church history has some of the original leaders interpreting it for their followers and using it as an allegory for Christ’s relationship with Israel and the Gentiles. Some interpretations have lended it to the idea that this is a metaphor for the soul in relation to Christ.
Despite the mystery and uncertainty over the history this is a very beautiful piece of poetry and I bet it's even better when read in its original language.
According to the Talmud, the Jewish book of tradition compiled by the Jews after the Roman destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D., King Solomon is the author of the Song of Songs and he wrote this piece after first writing the Book of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. However, according to modern scholars the authorship of this book cannot be specified. Scholars can not even agree on an estimated date of authorship. The estimates of these scholars put the origin of this book between 950 B.C.E. to 200 B.C.E. There are some schools of thought that state the original author existed in the 900s B.C.E. and wrote in the language style of that day. Other scholars state that some of the language used in the original texts is actually Persian, which would put the date of composition sometime during or after the exile in 500 B.C.E.
The love story contained within the Song of Songs can be a little sexy compared to the rest of the Tanakh. It really is a mystery as to why it was included in the Jewish Holy scriptures. The use of the book has been, traditionally, as a metaphor for God’s love for his chosen people. Later, it was included in the Christian Canon and used as a metaphor for God’s love for all of his children. Early church history has some of the original leaders interpreting it for their followers and using it as an allegory for Christ’s relationship with Israel and the Gentiles. Some interpretations have lended it to the idea that this is a metaphor for the soul in relation to Christ.
Despite the mystery and uncertainty over the history this is a very beautiful piece of poetry and I bet it's even better when read in its original language.
Friday, August 2, 2013
Life? Don't Talk To ME About Life
Ecclesiastes 1-12
Before we delve into this book of the Book I’d just like to say that this is my favorite one in the Tanakh. I admit that there are a lot more compelling stories, characters and theology throughout the Old Testament, but this book is my absolute favorite from start to finish. It is attributed to my favorite character in the Hebrew Scriptures, Solomon. When I first read this book ten years ago I felt like it was drawn right from my own personal worldview. I completely agreed, and still do somewhat, with Solomon’s perspective. There is a sort of depressing view that one could take when reading this book, but I love reading it. It is a very freeing philosophy that Solomon presents because he encourages the reader to indulge in the pleasures that life has to offer, but at the same time he cautions the reader against becoming a fool because of it. This is the true Wisdom that Solomon is sharing. That’s just my opinion, though. Let’s get into the history of this book.
The title, Ecclesiastes, comes from the Latin version of the Greek word (Ἐκκλησιαστής, Ekklesiastes) for the Hebrew title קֹהֶלֶת which sounds like Koheleth. Koheleth literally translates to ‘Gatherer’, but is traditionally translated as ‘Teacher’. Koheleth is written in First Person and the author claims to be the son of David and the king in Jerusalem. Though Solomon is the author by tradition, the actual author is anonymous.
In fact, many scholars agree that the book was written between 400 and 100 B.C. and so could not possibly have been written by the actual first son of David because that guy is supposed to have lived in the tenth century B.C. The main argument against Solomonic authorship is the fact that this book contains words that do not appear in any other ancient texts until hundreds of years after the time of King Solomon.
However, this argument can be challenged by the fact that there are a limited number of texts from the ancient Near East so there can be no definitive way to verify when a certain word was in use or not. Another challenge to the 400-100 B.C. authorship lies in the Koheleth borrowing phrases from even older works such as the Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, 9:7-10 being the most used example. Add to that the lack of any reference to any later works of wisdom such as the classic Greek texts from the fifth century to the first B.C. This could support the notion that Solomon was the actual author because he was a king that would have had access to great works of other foreign nations’ history on account of his many wives from those nations.
This book may trouble certain people. It can come across as very cynical and depressing. It may be especially troubling for Christians because Koheleth talks a lot about the finality of death. There is no talk of a happy afterlife or God rewarding you for your good works. There is no concept of salvation because that is not what the author was about. In fact, I'm not even sure there was a concept of salvation in those old days.
Yet, this book was included for a reason. When it came time to decide what made it into the Hebrew Scriptures this was a known piece of work and deemed worthy of inclusion. There is much wisdom in these pages if you can see past the grim portrayal of the Real World.
Before we delve into this book of the Book I’d just like to say that this is my favorite one in the Tanakh. I admit that there are a lot more compelling stories, characters and theology throughout the Old Testament, but this book is my absolute favorite from start to finish. It is attributed to my favorite character in the Hebrew Scriptures, Solomon. When I first read this book ten years ago I felt like it was drawn right from my own personal worldview. I completely agreed, and still do somewhat, with Solomon’s perspective. There is a sort of depressing view that one could take when reading this book, but I love reading it. It is a very freeing philosophy that Solomon presents because he encourages the reader to indulge in the pleasures that life has to offer, but at the same time he cautions the reader against becoming a fool because of it. This is the true Wisdom that Solomon is sharing. That’s just my opinion, though. Let’s get into the history of this book.
The title, Ecclesiastes, comes from the Latin version of the Greek word (Ἐκκλησιαστής, Ekklesiastes) for the Hebrew title קֹהֶלֶת which sounds like Koheleth. Koheleth literally translates to ‘Gatherer’, but is traditionally translated as ‘Teacher’. Koheleth is written in First Person and the author claims to be the son of David and the king in Jerusalem. Though Solomon is the author by tradition, the actual author is anonymous.
In fact, many scholars agree that the book was written between 400 and 100 B.C. and so could not possibly have been written by the actual first son of David because that guy is supposed to have lived in the tenth century B.C. The main argument against Solomonic authorship is the fact that this book contains words that do not appear in any other ancient texts until hundreds of years after the time of King Solomon.
However, this argument can be challenged by the fact that there are a limited number of texts from the ancient Near East so there can be no definitive way to verify when a certain word was in use or not. Another challenge to the 400-100 B.C. authorship lies in the Koheleth borrowing phrases from even older works such as the Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, 9:7-10 being the most used example. Add to that the lack of any reference to any later works of wisdom such as the classic Greek texts from the fifth century to the first B.C. This could support the notion that Solomon was the actual author because he was a king that would have had access to great works of other foreign nations’ history on account of his many wives from those nations.
This book may trouble certain people. It can come across as very cynical and depressing. It may be especially troubling for Christians because Koheleth talks a lot about the finality of death. There is no talk of a happy afterlife or God rewarding you for your good works. There is no concept of salvation because that is not what the author was about. In fact, I'm not even sure there was a concept of salvation in those old days.
Yet, this book was included for a reason. When it came time to decide what made it into the Hebrew Scriptures this was a known piece of work and deemed worthy of inclusion. There is much wisdom in these pages if you can see past the grim portrayal of the Real World.
Saturday, May 4, 2013
Job and Friends
Job 3-42
The poem of the trials of Job is a fascinating read. I really wish I could read and understand the original Hebrew because the language and flow of the poem is probably lost in the translation. It took some real focusing when I first started into the book. I kept getting lost in the language and the characters. I’m thankful for all the footnotes and extra information that is included in my Bible. I don’t think I fully appreciated the advice from Job’s buddies the last time through. These wise old men from the early days of civilization all provide some great insight and observation of the nature of God. However, even though they may speak some truth they also are condemning their poor friend for wrongs and trespasses that he did not necessarily commit. The lesson I gained from their statements was that even though they were wise in understanding the nature of God based on the information they had at the time it is arrogant to assume you can possibly know everything about God.
The poem runs in a set of three cycles. Each cycle starts with Job and is an interaction with each of his friends in the same order. At least up until chapter 31. After that some other character pipes up that was not mentioned in the previous chapters. He claims to be the ‘youngest’ of the old men, but he kind of just shows up out of nowhere to reprimand everyone.
Satan: The Accuser, the one that accuses man of breaking the Laws of God and reports back to the Creator. Being the one that focuses on the negative aspect of humanity over thousands of years would probably skew the perspective of an individual. This story sort of presents a prologue for the story of the Enemy, as he is referred to in the New Testament. You see the beginning of the rebellious nature of this angel as his accusations switch from humanity to a challenge of God’s omnipotence.
Job: The righteous sufferer. The poem revolves around his perspective that he is an innocent man suffering for no good reason. Time and time again he brings up the fact that he has led an honest life and been a decent human being to all those he has come in contact with. He has always been loyal to his God and given him praise for all the blessings he has received. Even when he is at his wits end and covered in sores he does not accuse God of doing wrong. He simply wants an answer as to what he has done to offend God. I was really drawn to the passage Job 13:26 where Job hints at the fact that he knows he has done something wrong or some things wrong and it may have happened in his early days. We are all idiots in our late teens and early twenties, no matter how good we want to be. Everyone makes mistakes. Yet, to Job the punishment does not match the crime. He simply wants an explanation.
When God shows up at the end and gives the Ultimate Beratement (my favorite part, btw) the response to Job is righteous indignation and almost a mocking tone when God asks if Job had ever caused the sun to rise or the oceans’ tides to change. God never tells Job about the stakes at play with Satan’s challenge. God makes it very clear that there is no need for the approval from the creation to rule as the Creator sees fit. However, God does offer praise to Job in the fact that Job represented the Creator the most accurately compared to the other guys.
Eliphaz: The name of Job’s first friend is an interesting one. Eliphaz is called a Temanite in the text. Teman is a major city in the ancient land of Edom. In the book of Genesis we find the name Eliphaz again, as the eldest son of Esau, nephew to Jacob (Israel), and the father of the Edomites. The name is believed to have been chosen because the perspective of Eliphaz’s argument to Job is based in Edomite philosophy. That philosophy being grounded in the principle that the righteous people of the world do not suffer, possibly even conquering death. Only the wicked suffer and in equal measure to their sin. He believes that Job is either lying to his friends or to himself about the sins that have warranted this punishment.
However, when God shows up he is shown the error in his logic. The same God is also the healer in life as well as the one who punishes. Eliphaz believed that these two things were based only on whether a person does good or does bad. Very black and white. God convicts Eliphaz of having a false understanding of Divine Dispensation. Job understands the fact that, from a human perspective, things work much more randomly.
Bildad: Another fun name to dissect. Bildad is referred to as a Shuhite from the lands near ancient Chaldea (Babylon) and Arabia. These people are supposedly descendants of Shuah, the son of the Patriarch Abraham and his second wife Keturah. Bildad has a slightly softer approach and tries to offer support for Job. Yet, he always ends up sounding like Eliphaz only a little more so. In fact there is almost an hysterical element as he ramps up his argument and accuses Job of speaking wickedness and impiety towards the Creator of All Things. Bildad even goes so far as to say that Job’s children deserved to die for whatever sins they committed.
Zophar: Probably the quietest of the three he is by no means the least harsh. He is referred to as a Naamathite, but the land of Naaman is not mentioned anywhere else in the Bible and I can’t find a lot of information about it. One thing that was interesting is that the name Zophar is a Gentile name. Gentiles were non-hebrew. He kind of sounds like he might be the oldest and he kind of rambles on and on about the consequences of sin and how Job is getting what he deserves. Zophar is pretty blunt and really rips into Job accusing him of being a really wicked person.
Elihu: Where did this guy come from?!? According to the text he is descended from Nahor which can be traced back to the descendants of Shem, son of Noah. He definitely has a softer and kinder approach towards Job than the other three, but that doesn’t stop him from cutting the poor guy down. Elihu argues that the righteous and the wicked suffer and prosper equally. However, it is always at God’s discretion as to why these things happen. A wicked person may prosper by the standards of the world, but eventually God’s justice will be meted out. He claims that the righteous may suffer in the present to avoid an even greater sin from arising in the future. Sometimes suffering is used to make the person stronger or even a warning sign of future dangers. After Elihu speaks he is again gone from the story and God shows up for his big monologue. Interestingly enough Elihu is the only not chastised by God, like the other three friends, for misrepresenting the nature of God. Job is also given praise, after a heavy lecture, as being the only one that represented the nature of God correctly. Not sure what happened to Elihu. Some think he may have been inserted later on in the construction of the Old Testament as a counter argument to the other three friends similar philosophies.
The poem of the trials of Job is a fascinating read. I really wish I could read and understand the original Hebrew because the language and flow of the poem is probably lost in the translation. It took some real focusing when I first started into the book. I kept getting lost in the language and the characters. I’m thankful for all the footnotes and extra information that is included in my Bible. I don’t think I fully appreciated the advice from Job’s buddies the last time through. These wise old men from the early days of civilization all provide some great insight and observation of the nature of God. However, even though they may speak some truth they also are condemning their poor friend for wrongs and trespasses that he did not necessarily commit. The lesson I gained from their statements was that even though they were wise in understanding the nature of God based on the information they had at the time it is arrogant to assume you can possibly know everything about God.
The poem runs in a set of three cycles. Each cycle starts with Job and is an interaction with each of his friends in the same order. At least up until chapter 31. After that some other character pipes up that was not mentioned in the previous chapters. He claims to be the ‘youngest’ of the old men, but he kind of just shows up out of nowhere to reprimand everyone.
Satan: The Accuser, the one that accuses man of breaking the Laws of God and reports back to the Creator. Being the one that focuses on the negative aspect of humanity over thousands of years would probably skew the perspective of an individual. This story sort of presents a prologue for the story of the Enemy, as he is referred to in the New Testament. You see the beginning of the rebellious nature of this angel as his accusations switch from humanity to a challenge of God’s omnipotence.
Job: The righteous sufferer. The poem revolves around his perspective that he is an innocent man suffering for no good reason. Time and time again he brings up the fact that he has led an honest life and been a decent human being to all those he has come in contact with. He has always been loyal to his God and given him praise for all the blessings he has received. Even when he is at his wits end and covered in sores he does not accuse God of doing wrong. He simply wants an answer as to what he has done to offend God. I was really drawn to the passage Job 13:26 where Job hints at the fact that he knows he has done something wrong or some things wrong and it may have happened in his early days. We are all idiots in our late teens and early twenties, no matter how good we want to be. Everyone makes mistakes. Yet, to Job the punishment does not match the crime. He simply wants an explanation.
When God shows up at the end and gives the Ultimate Beratement (my favorite part, btw) the response to Job is righteous indignation and almost a mocking tone when God asks if Job had ever caused the sun to rise or the oceans’ tides to change. God never tells Job about the stakes at play with Satan’s challenge. God makes it very clear that there is no need for the approval from the creation to rule as the Creator sees fit. However, God does offer praise to Job in the fact that Job represented the Creator the most accurately compared to the other guys.
Eliphaz: The name of Job’s first friend is an interesting one. Eliphaz is called a Temanite in the text. Teman is a major city in the ancient land of Edom. In the book of Genesis we find the name Eliphaz again, as the eldest son of Esau, nephew to Jacob (Israel), and the father of the Edomites. The name is believed to have been chosen because the perspective of Eliphaz’s argument to Job is based in Edomite philosophy. That philosophy being grounded in the principle that the righteous people of the world do not suffer, possibly even conquering death. Only the wicked suffer and in equal measure to their sin. He believes that Job is either lying to his friends or to himself about the sins that have warranted this punishment.
However, when God shows up he is shown the error in his logic. The same God is also the healer in life as well as the one who punishes. Eliphaz believed that these two things were based only on whether a person does good or does bad. Very black and white. God convicts Eliphaz of having a false understanding of Divine Dispensation. Job understands the fact that, from a human perspective, things work much more randomly.
Bildad: Another fun name to dissect. Bildad is referred to as a Shuhite from the lands near ancient Chaldea (Babylon) and Arabia. These people are supposedly descendants of Shuah, the son of the Patriarch Abraham and his second wife Keturah. Bildad has a slightly softer approach and tries to offer support for Job. Yet, he always ends up sounding like Eliphaz only a little more so. In fact there is almost an hysterical element as he ramps up his argument and accuses Job of speaking wickedness and impiety towards the Creator of All Things. Bildad even goes so far as to say that Job’s children deserved to die for whatever sins they committed.
Zophar: Probably the quietest of the three he is by no means the least harsh. He is referred to as a Naamathite, but the land of Naaman is not mentioned anywhere else in the Bible and I can’t find a lot of information about it. One thing that was interesting is that the name Zophar is a Gentile name. Gentiles were non-hebrew. He kind of sounds like he might be the oldest and he kind of rambles on and on about the consequences of sin and how Job is getting what he deserves. Zophar is pretty blunt and really rips into Job accusing him of being a really wicked person.
Elihu: Where did this guy come from?!? According to the text he is descended from Nahor which can be traced back to the descendants of Shem, son of Noah. He definitely has a softer and kinder approach towards Job than the other three, but that doesn’t stop him from cutting the poor guy down. Elihu argues that the righteous and the wicked suffer and prosper equally. However, it is always at God’s discretion as to why these things happen. A wicked person may prosper by the standards of the world, but eventually God’s justice will be meted out. He claims that the righteous may suffer in the present to avoid an even greater sin from arising in the future. Sometimes suffering is used to make the person stronger or even a warning sign of future dangers. After Elihu speaks he is again gone from the story and God shows up for his big monologue. Interestingly enough Elihu is the only not chastised by God, like the other three friends, for misrepresenting the nature of God. Job is also given praise, after a heavy lecture, as being the only one that represented the nature of God correctly. Not sure what happened to Elihu. Some think he may have been inserted later on in the construction of the Old Testament as a counter argument to the other three friends similar philosophies.
Saturday, April 20, 2013
God and His Man
Job 1-2
This book has been the toughest one for me to get through, so far. Not just reading it, but trying to organize the thoughts into a way that fit the structure of what I’m trying to accomplish with the Journey Through the Book. I think what has been so difficult with this book is that up until now its been very easy to deal with the content of each book in their historical context, but this writing of the Ketuvim is so steeped in theological ideas and philosophical arguments that it’s difficult to avoid getting sucked into the debate between Job and his friends in the process.
Before even getting too deep into the content of the book I was struck by how hard it was for me to actually read and comprehend the message in the text after chapter 3. I think it was because it is actually an old Hebrew poem from chapters 3-42:7 that is translated into English I tried many different translations until I settled on the NIV and just took it slow.
The Talmud states the book of Job was written by Moses even though the text doesn't really give any indication of who the author is. Yet, there are also other statements in the Talmud that hint that Job may have been a story from the days of the Patriarchs considering the importance of Job’s wealth being based off land and livestock and the fact that it took place in the land of Edom. In fact, the Talmud contains many differing opinions of the origin of this story including the possibility that Job ‘never existed and was never created; it is a parable’.
The poem itself could be based on a story that is older than the days of Egypt. Stories are fascinating things. The human brain is actually designed to learn through storytelling. The activity in the brain that occurs during the storytelling experience is astronomically more intense than what happens when the brain takes in simple statements of information. When the brain is engaged in a story the activity is equal to that of actually participating in the events. The concept of the Righteous Sufferer is an archetype that goes back to the first written recordings of human history and is an idea that we struggle with into this age.
Why do bad things happen to good people? Why do the schemes of evil hearts seem to succeed while the innocent are trampled under their feet? I think this question burns in the hearts of people all across the world these days.
In the old days these questions were also asked. The Sumerian people had a story that they wrote down in the Akkadian language. A language that predates the Ancient Assyrian and Egyptian languages by a couple thousand years in written form and in spoken form by tens of thousands of years. The Sumerians believed in many gods, some good and some evil, but they too had morals and concepts of right and wrong within their cultural frame. They had a story called A Man and His God that concerned the unjust suffering of a good and honest man. The Babylonians even had a version of the story they called the Poem of the Righteous sufferer with the same theme befalling a man named Shubshi-meshre-Shakkan. There is even an old Palestinian folk tradition that says that when Job was finally healed of his afflictions it was at a ‘fountain of youth’ type spring located in the town of Al-Joura. There is a four day festival every year where people from all faiths come to bathe in this spring.
The Hebrew version of this story replaces the pantheon of gods with the monotheistic name of YHWH. This book mentions the name Satan, but the character is a little different than how our culture recognizes him. In this story the ‘sons of god’ (angels) present themselves before God and among them is one named Satan. The name in Hebrew, Ha-Satan, translates to the Adversary or the Accuser. It would seem he is a member of this Divine Council of Angels and his role seems to be one that is sent to tempt mankind and report back to YHWH regarding all who break his decrees. Ha-Satan states that he has come from roaming the earth and offers a challenge to YHWH when asked about the Lord’s favored. He states that Job only praises YHWH because YHWH has showed him favor. If he was afflicted with suffering he would curse the name of the Lord. YHWH accepts the challenge. Already in the first two chapters we see the reason for Job’s affliction. Job may not understand and his friends can not fathom the underlying reasons for the events they are speculating about, but we can. Through Job’s suffering and continued allegiance to YHWH the Accuser is rebuked and his power over the oppressed will be lifted in the fullness of the story arch. If Job does forsake YHWH not only is he lost, ‘cause Ha-Satan sure isn't gonna take care of him, he will become a beacon of darkness and hopelessness for all those who come after him and suffer in this broken world. There is a reason for Job’s suffering and in the end as with most of the Books in the Bible it is ultimately for the benefit of humanity and the Glory of YHWH in the long run that suffering is allowed to happen in the short term. However, in the end evil is defeated and the righteous are restored. Spoiler!
Talmud: Second in importance to the Torah in Judaism. It is a mixture of the first written collection of Jewish Oral Law as well as theology and history of the Hebrew people.
Patriarchs: Abraham, Issac, and Jacob.
Before even getting too deep into the content of the book I was struck by how hard it was for me to actually read and comprehend the message in the text after chapter 3. I think it was because it is actually an old Hebrew poem from chapters 3-42:7 that is translated into English I tried many different translations until I settled on the NIV and just took it slow.
The Talmud states the book of Job was written by Moses even though the text doesn't really give any indication of who the author is. Yet, there are also other statements in the Talmud that hint that Job may have been a story from the days of the Patriarchs considering the importance of Job’s wealth being based off land and livestock and the fact that it took place in the land of Edom. In fact, the Talmud contains many differing opinions of the origin of this story including the possibility that Job ‘never existed and was never created; it is a parable’.
The poem itself could be based on a story that is older than the days of Egypt. Stories are fascinating things. The human brain is actually designed to learn through storytelling. The activity in the brain that occurs during the storytelling experience is astronomically more intense than what happens when the brain takes in simple statements of information. When the brain is engaged in a story the activity is equal to that of actually participating in the events. The concept of the Righteous Sufferer is an archetype that goes back to the first written recordings of human history and is an idea that we struggle with into this age.
Why do bad things happen to good people? Why do the schemes of evil hearts seem to succeed while the innocent are trampled under their feet? I think this question burns in the hearts of people all across the world these days.
In the old days these questions were also asked. The Sumerian people had a story that they wrote down in the Akkadian language. A language that predates the Ancient Assyrian and Egyptian languages by a couple thousand years in written form and in spoken form by tens of thousands of years. The Sumerians believed in many gods, some good and some evil, but they too had morals and concepts of right and wrong within their cultural frame. They had a story called A Man and His God that concerned the unjust suffering of a good and honest man. The Babylonians even had a version of the story they called the Poem of the Righteous sufferer with the same theme befalling a man named Shubshi-meshre-Shakkan. There is even an old Palestinian folk tradition that says that when Job was finally healed of his afflictions it was at a ‘fountain of youth’ type spring located in the town of Al-Joura. There is a four day festival every year where people from all faiths come to bathe in this spring.
The Hebrew version of this story replaces the pantheon of gods with the monotheistic name of YHWH. This book mentions the name Satan, but the character is a little different than how our culture recognizes him. In this story the ‘sons of god’ (angels) present themselves before God and among them is one named Satan. The name in Hebrew, Ha-Satan, translates to the Adversary or the Accuser. It would seem he is a member of this Divine Council of Angels and his role seems to be one that is sent to tempt mankind and report back to YHWH regarding all who break his decrees. Ha-Satan states that he has come from roaming the earth and offers a challenge to YHWH when asked about the Lord’s favored. He states that Job only praises YHWH because YHWH has showed him favor. If he was afflicted with suffering he would curse the name of the Lord. YHWH accepts the challenge. Already in the first two chapters we see the reason for Job’s affliction. Job may not understand and his friends can not fathom the underlying reasons for the events they are speculating about, but we can. Through Job’s suffering and continued allegiance to YHWH the Accuser is rebuked and his power over the oppressed will be lifted in the fullness of the story arch. If Job does forsake YHWH not only is he lost, ‘cause Ha-Satan sure isn't gonna take care of him, he will become a beacon of darkness and hopelessness for all those who come after him and suffer in this broken world. There is a reason for Job’s suffering and in the end as with most of the Books in the Bible it is ultimately for the benefit of humanity and the Glory of YHWH in the long run that suffering is allowed to happen in the short term. However, in the end evil is defeated and the righteous are restored. Spoiler!
Talmud: Second in importance to the Torah in Judaism. It is a mixture of the first written collection of Jewish Oral Law as well as theology and history of the Hebrew people.
Patriarchs: Abraham, Issac, and Jacob.
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Esther and the Yehudim
Our next stop on our Journey takes us to the Book of Esther. A gripping story of the rise of an orphaned Israelite to become the Queen of the Persian Empire and in so doing saves her people from imminent genocide. This book is the third in the Ketuvim (Writings) portion of the Tanakh and besides the Song of Songs it is the only book in the Bible that does not mention God.
This has been a rather difficult book to nail down as actual history. Certain elements of it are verifiable, such as certain persons of power in the Persian empire as well as various locations and customs. One biblical scholar, Michael Coogan, even claims that the original intent of the Book of Esther by its author was for it to be a historical short story. This was something that was very popular during the Persian and Hellenistic periods, according to Coogan. What is the Hellenistic Period, you ask? Well, that is another blog.
The compilation of the Bible in the modern form we know was a very interesting process and in researching the origin of the Book of Esther I can see why there is so much confusion surrounding this book. Some claim it as history and others claim it to be historical fiction. According to Jewish tradition most of the Tanakh (Old Testament) was completed and compiled by 450 BCE, however it is believed by many scholars that there were a few additions and edits over the centuries and the final Hebrew version was not finalized until between 200 BCE and 200 CE. That is still a pretty big window of 400 years.
The Septuagint is the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible aka the Christian Old Testament. There are many wonderful, fantastical tales surrounding its origin in the Greek Empire during the 3rd century BCE. What can be gleaned from them is this. In the 300s BCE the king of Egypt, Ptolemy II, had the Torah translated into the early form of Greek spoken in his region by the Alexandrian Jews. He did this for the purpose of having a copy of their holy book in the Library of Alexandria. Then over the centuries many more Hebrew works were translated into Greek. It is not known when or what was transcribed and its believed that some books could have been translated more than once and revised and combined, possibly even reinterpreted or paraphrased, thus leading to many errors.
I gave all that background to help you understand that, when it comes to Esther, the Hebrew version of the story and the Greek version of the story cannot be reconciled. The Hebrew names for the royalty mentioned put the date of the book centuries off from the Greek translated names of royalty. This causes the actual events and story line to be clouded in a shadow of mystery as to its legitimacy as actual Hebrew history.
Regardless of its origin or its authenticity of the details the Book of Esther had to have come by the time the Hebrew word Yehudim was a popular word with a meaning that was understood by many cultures. The book of Esther is the first book so far to use that word. Yehudim, or ‘Jews’, was a term for the people of Hebrew descent that had been scattered to the four winds and lived among many cultures and were constantly a target for hatred.
Yehudim is derived from the Hebrew word Yehudi which means ‘From the Tribe of Judah’. If you remember the stories before Esther when the kingdom split eleven tribes went north and created Israel while the southern kingdom remained Judah. Israel was destroyed and though Judah was taken away to captivity by Babylon, they survived.
The compilation of the Bible in the modern form we know was a very interesting process and in researching the origin of the Book of Esther I can see why there is so much confusion surrounding this book. Some claim it as history and others claim it to be historical fiction. According to Jewish tradition most of the Tanakh (Old Testament) was completed and compiled by 450 BCE, however it is believed by many scholars that there were a few additions and edits over the centuries and the final Hebrew version was not finalized until between 200 BCE and 200 CE. That is still a pretty big window of 400 years.
The Septuagint is the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible aka the Christian Old Testament. There are many wonderful, fantastical tales surrounding its origin in the Greek Empire during the 3rd century BCE. What can be gleaned from them is this. In the 300s BCE the king of Egypt, Ptolemy II, had the Torah translated into the early form of Greek spoken in his region by the Alexandrian Jews. He did this for the purpose of having a copy of their holy book in the Library of Alexandria. Then over the centuries many more Hebrew works were translated into Greek. It is not known when or what was transcribed and its believed that some books could have been translated more than once and revised and combined, possibly even reinterpreted or paraphrased, thus leading to many errors.
I gave all that background to help you understand that, when it comes to Esther, the Hebrew version of the story and the Greek version of the story cannot be reconciled. The Hebrew names for the royalty mentioned put the date of the book centuries off from the Greek translated names of royalty. This causes the actual events and story line to be clouded in a shadow of mystery as to its legitimacy as actual Hebrew history.
Regardless of its origin or its authenticity of the details the Book of Esther had to have come by the time the Hebrew word Yehudim was a popular word with a meaning that was understood by many cultures. The book of Esther is the first book so far to use that word. Yehudim, or ‘Jews’, was a term for the people of Hebrew descent that had been scattered to the four winds and lived among many cultures and were constantly a target for hatred.
Yehudim is derived from the Hebrew word Yehudi which means ‘From the Tribe of Judah’. If you remember the stories before Esther when the kingdom split eleven tribes went north and created Israel while the southern kingdom remained Judah. Israel was destroyed and though Judah was taken away to captivity by Babylon, they survived.
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