Med utgångspunkt i Bakhtins begrepp dialogicitet diskuteras olika aspekter av den dialogiska karaktären hos texter i Bibeln, i relation till den samtida diskussionen om predikan.
This study explores the world of Hosea 4-14, using a method informed by modern metaphor theory.
Strictly speaking, Geo Widengren was not a biblical scholar. He never held an academic position within an exegetical discipline. Nevertheless, he made several important contributions to the field of biblical studies in general, and to Old Testament/ Hebrew Bible exegesis in particular. In this chapter, I discuss some key factors that enabled Widengren, being an expert within history of religion, to attain a rather prominent position within the exegetical guild, such as the academic milieu in Uppsala and the discovery of ancient Ugarit. Arguably, though, the most important factor was Widengren’s ability to combine these two disciplines in a fruitful way. In all the works discussed in this chapter, he consistently applied comparative methodology from the history of religion in order to throw new light on biblical texts. As regards the latter, he tended to prefer laments from the book of Psalms.
Almost all studies on the “Elijah at Horeb” narrative in 1 Kings 19 have one thing in common: the assumption that this story conveys a profound theological message. But which one? The suggestions are manifold, and sometimes strongly divergent. In this study, the various theories propounded by scholars are grouped under three headings: a) polemics against Ba‘al, b) a new image of Yhwh, and c) a lesson for Elijah. After a brief discussion of these theories, an alternative interpretation is outlined, focusing on the most likely function (rather than message) of the passage 1 Kgs 19:11-13a within its literary context. According to the analysis presented here, the theophany in 1 Kings 19 serves as a demonstration of divine power and presence. The enigmatic phrase qôl děmāmâ daqqâ describes Elijah’s auditive experience of a sudden stillness after the storm: the thin sound of the cessation of all movement. This signifies that ÝHWH can control the powers of chaos. The main function of the theophany within the narrative is to support and encourage a prophet in crisis.
This article explores a cluster of metaphors in the book of Hosea 7 (vv. 3-12). The methodological approach is informed by cognitive metaphor theory as well as by recent developments in the study of biblicalmetaphors. Hos 7:3-12 displays a bewildering array of images. Passions are likened to fire in an oven (vv. 4-7); the nation is depicted as poorly baked bread (v. 8), but also as a silly dove (v. 11); the punitive acts of YHWH are,finally, described in terms of catching birds with a net (v. 12). The analysis seeks to answer the following questions: To what extent can the various metaphors in Hos 7:3-12 be regarded as interrelated and interacting? How is each transition from one source domain to another best explained? How does this assemblage of different metaphors and similes contribute to the overall message of Hosea 7? It is argued that the recognition of two underlying, and overlapping, conceptual metaphors, namely passion is fire and the body is a container of emotions, provides important keys to the interpretation of 7:3-7. Finally, it is suggested that the entire cluster in Hos 7:3-12 is held together by thematic links to the domain of food production.
The textual analysis focuses on the characterization of the enemy, the rhetorical strategy adopted, the text's function in the historical context(s), and the ideology of the author(s) and/or editor(s). Enemy images of hostile empires (Assyria, Babylon, and Egypt) are studied, as well as portraits of neighbor nations. Ideological language, such as the Zion-centered perspective and the legendary version of the events in 701 BCE, is paradigmatic in Isaiah, raising the question to what extent the prophecies therein can be understood as instances of contextually determined (and continually reworked and reinterpreted) religious and political propaganda.
Sacrifice is a central but contested topic in the prophetical literature in the Hebrew Bible. Whereas some texts criticize the sacrificial cult vehemently, other texts express strong support for such a cult. Interestingly, and somewhat paradoxically, a certain writing, such as the book of Jeremiah, may contain both cult-critical prophecies and passages that promote sacrifices. Divergent interpretations of this ancient debate have engendered an intense scholarly debate. Adopting a new approach, informed by sacrifice theories that emphasize the notion of reciprocity, this article refutes the view that prophets like Amos and Jeremiah rejected all sacrifices. Rather, they (that is, the authors of these books) addressed specific situations, or explained specific catastrophes in retrospect. Viewed from this perspective, the cult-critical prophecies, as well as other references to rejected sacrifice, are in fact compatible with a basically positive attitude towards the sacrificial cult.
This study aims at exploring the attitudestoward the sacrificial cult that are expressed in the prophetic literature inthe Hebrew Bible. Based on a new understanding of sacrifice, where the key word is reciprocity, it throws new light on a much debated issue:Did prophets like Amos and Jeremiah denounce sacrifice as such, or can passages like Amos 5:21-24 be explained in some other way? The textual investigation, which involves historical and rhetorical analyses of carefully selected prophetic passages, aims at proving the validity of the following hypothesis: All utterances on sacrifices in the prophetic literature share a basically positive view of the sacrificialcult as a legitimate means of worship.