Academic literature on the topic 'Exodus (bible book)'

Abstract Lehi’s exodus to the promised land is only the first of a series of exoduses occurring throughout the Book of Mormon. Indeed, Lehi’s exodus becomes mere precedent for later flights into the wilderness by Nephi, Mosiah, Alma, Limhi, and the Anti-Nephi-Lehites. For the Nephites, continuing exodus is not merely historical fact. Understanding the biblical exodus as a type and shadow, the Nephites come to see their wandering as a metaphor of their spiritual condition. Thus, even centuries after Lehi’s arrival in the promised land, Nephite prophets recognize their status as "wanderers in a strange land" (Alma 13:23). As Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the Nephites looked beyond their temporal land of promise "for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God" (Hebrews 11:10).

The appearance of the Exodus motif in several books of the Bible has been the subject of several studies. The present article examines the use of the Exodus motif in chs. 1–14 of the first book of Kings, first identifying explicit references, and concluding with more oblique ones. These allusions appear in passages attributed to various redactional layers, and are raised by a variety of figures (the narrator, God, the characters). Through their very appearance, the Exodus allusions contribute to the overall unity of the text. It is proposed that these references serve several different functions: to heighten the importance of the United Kingdom and its link to the Exodus; to abet the assessment of the characters of Solomon and Jeroboam, including the reversal of the assessment concerning them; to underscore the debt of fealty to God, and the justification of the punishment meted out against the sinners. Conversely, they highlight the commitment of God to his people, leading to their pardon.

The Book of Jubilees, dating from about 2300 years ago, contains material that is very similar to narratives found in the Hebrew Bible (Masoretic Text [MT]), specifically the books of Genesis and the first half of Exodus. The text in Jubilees both adds to and omits data found in the MT. In addition, a striking feature of Jubilees is its reliance on a jubilee (50) year cycle, made up of seven sets of “weeks,” and its reliance on solely a solar calendar, as opposed to the Bible’s lunisolar configuration.

The literal differences found in the text of Exodus 34 verses 1 and 28 can trigger accusations of Bible inconsistency. In fact, in the Christian view, the Bible is a book that cannot be wrong or inner. Evangelical Christian beliefs assert that the Bible contains God's word and God's word itself. If there are differences and inconsistencies in the Bible, is that an indicator to deduce the low credibility of truth in the Christian scriptures? This study aims to answer that question through a hermeneutic and theological analysis of the differences in texts in Exodus 34 or 1 and verse 28, about who actually wrote the two new tablets. God as referred to verse 1 or Moses as read in verse 28. In addition to conducting text analysis, the author also uses the source approach and theological concepts. As a result, verse 28 actually legitimizes verse 1 that God himself wrote the law. This perspective also confirms that the search for the meaning of texts in context does not merely involve a grammatical approach.

This article examines the use of biblical vocabulary in Pilypas Ruigys’ dictionary „Littauiſch=Deutſches und Deutſch=Littauiſches Lexicon“ (Königsberg 1747). The biblical words in this dictionary were derived from the 1735 Lithuanian translation of the Bibel. This fact is clearly stated in the title of the dictionary. Moreover, in the foreword to the dictionary the author highlights that he attempted to pick out as many Lithuanian synonyms from the Holy Script as possible. The exact chapters and verses of the Bible referenced next to the Lithuanian words help to determine which words and multi-word expressions were included in the dictionary. To this day there hasn’t been a statistical and textual analysis, which would show the nature and scale of the Bible references in Ruigys’ dictionary. The analysis has shown that Ruigys refered to the Bible mostly in search of suitable translation of German words and multi-word expressions. In addition, the Bible was a source for expanding the list of lemmata of German-Lithuanian part of the dictionary. The biblical references are in most cases placed next to the single words or two-word (in rare cases three-word) expressions that refer to some kind of Biblical terminology, i.e. name of a person, a thing or an occurence. There are very few longer citations of the Bible. Approximately 3500 words and multi-word expressions were copied from the Old Testament and about 650 – from the New Testament. Book of Genesis was referenced most times (more than 350), more than 200 examples were taken from Book of Exodus, Psalms, Book of Isaiah and Book of Job. The most cited part of the New Testament was the Book of Matthews.

Dr. Fatoohi and Prof. al-Dargazelli have produced an intriguing and farreachingcomparison of the Bible and the Qur' an relating to Moses and theIsraelites. Both authors are kha/ifahs of Shaykh Muhammad al-Casnazanial-Husseini of the Aliyyah Qadiriyyah Casnazaniyyah Sufi tariqah. Theyhold degrees in physics from Baghdad University and Durham University,and have authored numerous books, especially on Sufism, in Arabic andEnglish.Although readers might expect this book to address literary and culturalissues surrounding the shared but different accounts of Moses and theIsraelites in the Bible and the Qur'an, the authors have chosen to focus ondemonstrating the Qur'an's historical accuracy. Dividing their book intoIO chapters, they argue alternately that the Bible is inconsistent and historicallyinaccurate, while the Qur'an is consistent and confirmed byexternal historical evidence. The Biblical account of Moses and theIsraelites is not directly compared to the Qur'anic account; rather, theBible is used primarily as a foil to emphasize what the authors see as theQur'an's reliability. For example, while the authors point out that the Bibleappears to give various names for Moses' father-in-law (Exodus 2: I 8, 3: I, ...

Musa merupakan pemimpin berkharisma bagi Israel. Alkitab telah memberikan penghormatan yang tinggi terhadap Musa sebagai pemimpin yang lemah lembut bagi Israel. Banyak sarjana Alkitab menafsirkan kitab Keluaran berfokus pada tokoh Musa. Namun, masalahnya adalah sebagian besar tafsiran hanya mengambil bagian kecil dari sastra narasi kitab Keluaran. Faktanya, ada banyak tafsiran yang dibingkai dengan topik kepemimpinan sehingga melupakan makna teologis kitab keluaran. Kitab Keluaran merupakan narasi yang mencatatkan narasi tentang perjalanan Israel yang dipelihara oleh TUHAN melalui seorang pemimpin. Tulisan ini memaparkan analisis narasi panggilan dan penolakan Musa atas panggilan TUHAN. Meskipun narasi singkat, peristiwa panggilan dan penolakan Musa telah diawetkan sebagai suatu peristiwa yang akan terus dikenang. Tulisan ini mengkaji kitab Keluaran dengan pendekatan sastra narasi yang sederhana. Selain itu, tulisan ini juga melakukan analisis terhadap teks kunci yang menunjukan inti narasi. Berdasarkan analisis narasi, menegaskan bahwa Musa telah salah memahami panggilannya. Dia menolak karena berfokus pada dirinya, bukan kepada TUHAN yang memiliki program penyelamatan bagi Israel.Moses was a charismatic leader for Israel. The Bible has high regard for Moses as a gentle leader for Israel. Many Bible scholars interpret the book of Exodus to focus on the character of Moses. The problem, however, is that most commentaries take only a small part of the narrative literature of Exodus. In fact, there are many interpretations that are framed with the topic of leadership so that they forget the theological meaning of the book of Exodus. The book of Exodus is a narrative that records the narrative of Israel's journey that was preserved by God through a leader. This paper describes the narrative analysis of Moses' call and rejection of God's call. Despite the brief narrative, the events of Moses' call and rejection have been preserved as an event that will be remembered forever. This paper examines the book of Exodus with a simple narrative literary approach. In addition, this paper also analyzes key texts that show the core of the narrative. Based on narrative analysis, confirms that Moses had misunderstood his calling. He refused because he focused on himself, not on God who had a program of salvation for Israel.

Abstract Postivist historiography has always maintained an impermeable boundary between history and literature. But positivism is itself a historical sediment whose time is now past. Recent literary theory and historiography emphasize the continuities between history and literature. Under the domination of historiography by a positivist epistemology (from about 1880 to 1960), history attempted to free itself from its literary heritage; more recently theorists from a number of disciplines have recognized that history, both ancient and modern, has been informed by literary motifs, themes, and strategies. The repetition of the exodus literary pattern, for example, through the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and Christian history does nothing to bring into question the historical status of the events. The exodus patterns evident in Mosiah do not force the Book of Mormon to surrender historical claims just because they also happen to be literary.

Abstract Ancient texts are too often approached using modern assumptions. Among those assumptions obstructing an understanding of ancient texts is the modern emphasis on originality and on writing as intellectual property. Ancient writers relished repetition—stories that were repeated in succeeding generations—over originality. The Bible is full of repeated or allusive stories, and the Book of Mormon often reinscribes this biblical emphasis on repetition. One such biblical reverberation in the Book of Mormon is Nephi’s ocean voyage, which evokes biblical stories of origination: creation, deluge, and exodus. These three stories of beginnings are carefully alluded to in Nephi’s own foundational story, exactly as we would expect an ancient Hebraic text to do.

AbstractThe sumptuous Sephardic haggadot produced in the fourteenth century include a prefatory cycle of full-page miniatures depicting events from the book of Exodus, sometimes with additional episodes from Genesis. Scenes depicting preparations for the feast and the ritual ceremony of Passover were placed at the end of the biblical episodes. This paper considers the cycles as historiographical sequences, beginning in the biblical past and concluding with fourteenth century Jews celebrating the Passover. As I shall argue, these sequences may have been designed as a response to anti-Jewish polemic, in a local version defined by the Catalan Dominican friar Raymond Martin. By comparing the Hebrew examples to Christian devotional books, we shall show how despite their polemical intention, these cycles also point to the deep integration of the Jewish designers and patrons within local Christian culture and society.

The present thesis offers a reading of the book of Exodus as a literary artifact. This is accomplished through the investigation of its main literary characters Yhwh, Moses and Israel. The text is understood to be part of a communicative situation between author and reader. This hermeneutical claim and the nature of Exodus itself entail certain consequences with regard to the method of enquiry. The method applied is a modified form of rhetorical criticism, which is understood to provide an interpretive perspective on the text. The particular focus is on the functional aspects of the text which direct the reading process and thus guide the reader. Given the difficulties in determining the circumstances of the origin of Exodus and the paucity of secured knowledge about early Israelite history, the `implied reader' is introduced as a key-term. It is assumed that this implied reader informed the inventio and dispositio of the book. Because of the book's central themes - identity and relationship -a careful investigation of the characters is a worthy avenue to pursue. Three characters have been chosen on account of their continuous involvement in the plot. The introduction of each character into the plot receives special attention. The developing portrayal of each character is closely linked to its paradigmatic qualities and to its influence on the reader. First, the portrait of God is discussed, especially in relation to the contributions of the narrative, poetic and legal parts of Exodus. The very important but often neglected legal characterisation of Yhwh in Exodus is a topic of special interest. Although the legal collections say much about their recipients, they also reveal deep insights into the law-giver's nature and concerns. Yhwh is identified as the king who justly claims obedience and service. A further focus is the possibility of the relationship between Israel and their king, Yhwh. Second, with regard to Moses there is a significant difference between his first appearance in Exod 2-5 and his later development. This remarkable tension in the Mosaic portrayal reveals interesting insights into the implied reader's preconceptions. Here we trace closely the argumentative strategy of the author in his attempts to convince this reader. Furthermore, it is necessary to discuss the paradigmatic qualities of the character Moses. Third, reader-identification is at the heart of the construction of Israel. Here the historical gulf between the Israel of the narrative and the one of the implied reader is bridged. The complexity of Israel is a central aspect of Exodus' rhetoric, urging its readers to comply with the ideal which the author sought to communicate in his book. The results of this study provide insights into the specific poetics of Exodus and its management of the reading process. Because of the proposed unity of form and content, it is possible to specify the message of the entire book by taking into account its intriguing mixture of different genres. An abstraction from modern reading-conventions in the encounter of ancient Hebrew texts is shown, and the possibility of reading the text on its own terms is explored.

Thesis (MTh (Old and New Testament))--University of Stellenbosch, 2006.
The aim of this thesis is to explore the trends that are found in commentaries on the book of Exodus and their appropriateness in the African context. The study also seeks to move from a socio-political understanding of Exodus as liberation theology to the cultural understanding of Exodus as African theology. The following three trends are found in modern commentaries on Exodus as explored by this thesis: • Historical-critical approach – dealing with the world behind the text or author centred criticism. Commentaries found under this group include those of M Noth (1962), TE Fretheim (1990), N Sarna (1991), B S Childs (1977) and WHC Propp (1999). • Literary-critical approach – this deals with the text itself or it is text centred. Commentaries found in this category include: W Brueggemann (1994), J G Janzen (1997) and C Houtman (1993). • Theological-critical approach – deals with the world in front of the text. Commentaries of GV Pixley (1987), J Durham (1987) and G Ashby (1998) are good examples of the latter named approach. Exploration into the study of the above listed three trends and their corresponding modern commentaries show that the commentaries are not fully appropriate in the context of Africa (except Ashby). This is so because the above modern commentaries have not directly addressed the ongoing issues of poverty, political, economic, oppression, marginalization, HIV / AIDS, cultural and social issues, famine, racial and sex discrimination, religious crises, and other epidemics and natural disasters prominently found in Africa - particularly among the third world countries. The modern commentaries mentioned above are indirectly relevant for Africa since the topics which they address, resonate with the readers and interpreters of Exodus in Africa. This resonance is possible if readers and interpreters of Exodus in Africa find similarities between modern commentaries and their own current context. The study also shows that the three trends found in modern commentaries on Exodus are dependent on one another to bring forth a meaningful interpretation. Based on this working relationship between the three trends mentioned above, it is suggested that the three trends should be considered in close connection with one another. Biblical interpretation in Africa must do justice to the literary, historical and theological aspects of the Bible to be meaningful and appropriate in Africa.

The wilderness is an unlikely place for Yahweh to appear; yet some of the most profound encounters between Yahweh and ancient Israel occur in this isolated, barren, arid and marginal landscape. Thus, via John A. Beck's narrative-geography method, which prioritises the role of the geographical setting of the biblical narrative, the question of 'why does Yahweh choose to appear in the wilderness?' is examined in reference to four Exodus theophanic passages (Exodus 3:1-4:17, 19:1-20:21, 24:9-18 and 33: 18-34). First, a biblical working definition of the wilderness is developed, and the specific geographic elements in each passage discussed. Subsequently, the characterisation of Yahweh's appearances is investigated, via the signs Yahweh used to appear, the words Yahweh speaks and the human experience of Yahweh in the wilderness space. In sum, five reasons for why Yahweh appears in the wilderness were considered significant. The wilderness setting allows Yahweh to be (I) actively present and intimately engaged, (2) separate and holy, (3) paradoxically creative, (4) speak transfomative and visionary words and (5) free, risky, and provoking. Finally, the implications of these findings provide new insights to theological considerations of Yahweh. Overall, Yahweh is portrayed as a wild God in the wilderness.

Thesis (DTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2006
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: One of the most striking literary phenomena in the entire Old Testament, Ezekiel's recognition formula is repeated over seventy times. According to S. R. Driver that refrain, "You shall know that I am Yahweh," strikes the keynote of the prophecy. Though one might expect to find many monographs and journal articles treating at length the formula's literary and theological function in Ezekiel, the only substantial work on the subject comes from Walther Zimmerli and is nearly fifty years old. More recent scholarly discussion has tended to be oblique, occasional, or subordinate to other interests. Brevard Childs has suggested that Ezekiel shows a "preoccupation with Scripture." Applying this insight, the dissertation at hand argues the thesis that the seventy-odd recognition formulae in Ezekiel mark a theological nexus and intertextual relationship between the prophecy and the book of Exodus (in some recensional form), and that those formulae are best interpreted alongside the numerous recognition formulae in Exodus. Interpreted intertextually, Ezekiel's formula points readers of the oracles to know Yahweh as the God of the Exodus, who still acts, in covenant, to judge and to deliver. Here the term intertextuality is used in a broader sense to include both a more diachronic "intertextuality of production" (Ellen van Wolde), in which a text can only be written in relationship to other texts, and a more synchronic "intertextuality of reception," in which a text can be read only in relationship to other texts. With regard to methodology, the approach of innerbiblical interpretation is employed to explore the text-production angle and the questions which emerge concerning the re-use and re-presentation of Scriptural "traditions." Also appropriate is a synchronic intertextual approach which inquires how Exodus and Ezekiel texts-in particular the recognition formulae-may be read together from a text-reception angle. Both approaches used together reveal a large number of parallels between Exodus and Ezekiel and indicate how well the recognition formulae may be read together. This study contributes to scholarship by offering an extensive review of past scholarship on the formula; a fresh exegetical research of the formula's use in Ezekiel and in other Bible books, with comparisons drawn; a study of the socio-historical and religious context addressed by Ezekiel's oracles and the formula; and a theological interpretation of the recognition formulae in Ezekiel alongside those in Exodus. There are many strong conjunctions (or continuities) between the formulae in Ezekiel and Exodus: a covenant stress; no positive use of the formula when spoken to the nations; an unbreakable link to announcements of Yahweh's mighty acts in history; etc. Yet there is also a jarring disjunction (or discontinuity) between the formulae in Ezekiel and Exodus: the prophecy repeatedly declares that Israel "shall know that I am Yahweh" in judgment. This is "a radical inversion of its former usage" (Carley); elsewhere in Scripture the formula always sounds a positive note when spoken to Israel.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Een van die mees opvallende .literere kenmerke van die hele Ou Testament, is Esegiel se gebruikmaking van die erkenningsformule - meer as 70 maal! Volgens S.R. Driver vorm hierdie refrein, "JulIe sal weet dat Ek Jahwe is", die kern van die profesie. Hoewel 'n mens sou verwag dat talle monografiee en tydskrifartikels aan hierdie formule gewy sou word, is dit slegs Walther Zimmerli wat byna 50 jaar gelede grondige navorsing in die verband gedoen het. Meer onlangse navorsing was ondeursigtig en ondergeskik aan ander oorwegings. Brevard Childs het voorgestel dat Esegiel 'n "preoccupation with Scripture" vertoon. Teen hierdie agtergrond argumenteer hierdie proefskrif dat die erkenningsformules in die boek Esegiel die teologiese kern aandui en dat daar 'n intertekstuele verb and tussen die profesie van Esegiel en die Eksodusboek bestaan. Wanneer die erkenningsformule in Esegiel intertekstueel verstaan word, dan ontstaan daar 'n verband tussen die godsprake en Jahwe as die God van die Eksodus, wie steeds binne verbondsverband as Regter en Redder optree. In die verband word die begrip "intertekstualiteit" in 'n bree sin verstaan en dit sluit in 'n meer diakroniese "intertextuality of production" (Ellen van Wolde). Hiervolgens kan 'n teks slegs in verhouding tot ander tekste geskryf word. In dieselfde asem moet daar ook na die meer sinkroniese "intertextuality of reception" verwys word, waarvolgens 'n teks slegs gelees kan word in verband met ander tekste. Op metodologiese vlak word "innerbiblical interpretation" benut om ondersoek in te stel na teksproduksie en die vrae wat ontstaan na aanleiding van die hergebruik en hervoorstelling van Bybelse "tradisies". Dit is verder ook van toepassing om 'n sinkroniese intertekstuele benadering te gebruik wat vrae stel oor hoe Eksodus en Esegiel (veral die erkenningsformules) in samehang gelees kan word indien dit vanuit 'n teksresepsie hoek benader word.. Beide benaderings kan deur saam gebruik te word, 'n groot aantal parallele tussen Eksodus en Esegiel ontdek en aantoon hoe die erkenningsformules saam gelees kan word. Hierdie proefskrif se bydrae tot die vakgebied behels 'n omvattende oorsig van bestaande navorsing oor die erkenningsformule; 'n vars eksegetiese ondersoek en vergelyking van die erkenningsformule se gebruik in Esegiel en in ander boeke van die Bybel; 'n studie van die sosio-historiese en godsdienstige konteks wat deur die godsprake en erkenningsformule in Esegiel aangespreek word; asook 'n teologiese interpretasie van die erkenningsformules in Esegiel en in samehang met die formules in Eksodus. Daar is opvallende voorbeelde van sterk verbande tussen die formules in Esegiel en Eksodus: die klem op die verbond; geen positiewe gebruik van die formules wanneer dit met die vreemde nasies in verband gebring word nie; 'n onlosmaaklike band met die aankondigings van Jahwe se magtige dade in die geskiedenis; ens. Tog is daar ook 'n mate van steurende diskontinu'iteit tussen die formules in Esegiel en Eksodus: die profesiee wat telkens herhaal dat Israel juis binne die oordeel "sal weet dat Ek Jahwe is". Dit behels 'n radikale omkeer van die bestaande gebruik (Carley); omdat daar elders in die Bybel slegs voorbeelde is waar die erkenningsformules in 'n positiewe manier ten opsigte van Israel uitgespreek word.

YHWH’s statement to Moses, אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה , has been much discussed by biblical scholars and theologians. For much of the last century this discussion related to matters of etymology or history of religion, or the precise grammar of the text. However, recently there has been renewed interest in understanding the statement in its present context as part of the book of Exodus, and in particular its role in the call of Moses. My thesis seeks to deepen understanding of the implications of this statement through a close reading of the dialogues between Moses and YHWH. My close reading of individual dialogues involves three steps: first investigation of the way in which the narrator portrays the actions of the characters, then the manner in which the narrator portrays individual speech of the characters and finally the way in which an analysis of the dialogues utilising principles from the socio-linguistic field of Conversation Analysis adds to an understanding of the characters. Through this close reading I show that the phrase אֶהְיֶה אֲשֶׁר אֶהְיֶה is best understood as linking the meaning of the name YHWH to the verb “to be” and in particular God’s promise to “be with” Moses in 3:12. The phrase affirms both YHWH’s presence with Moses and his freedom to be present in the manner he chooses and the implications of this affirmation of presence and freedom are worked out more fully in the narrative of Exodus. In the thesis my reading of the dialogues in Exodus 3-4 shows that YHWH transforms Moses into the means by which YHWH delivers his people from Egypt and also by which YHWH is present with his people. My examination of the dialogues in Exodus 5-7 demonstrates that YHWH’s plans are accomplished by his speech which re-designates and reshapes those with and about whom he is speaking. My analysis of Exodus 19-24 finds that the dialogues demonstrate YHWH’s freedom to be present as he chooses to different people at different points. Exodus 32:7-33:11 gives further meaning and significance to the divine name in terms of YHWH’s withdrawal in response to the idolatry of the people. From the final section of dialogue, Exodus 33:12-34:35, I show that the intercession of Moses is critical to the demonstration of YHWH’s mercy and compassion. My analysis of each of these dialogues demonstrates that a key means by which YHWH is present to his people is in and through Moses.

Thesis (MTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2011.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This research aims to trace the exodus motif in the book of Revelation in general and Rev. 12-20 in particular, and to examine the socio-rhetorical function of the use of the exodus motif. Our hypothesis is that Rev. 12-20 constitutes a coherent unit in terms of narratology and that the exodus motif plays a significant role in forming the structure and the message of the book of Revelation, specifically of Revelation 12-20. Significantly, the song of Moses and the Lamb in Rev. 15 plays a pivotal role in the development of the thread of the chapter 12-20 as a plot. In the chapter 2, an overview of the history of interpretation of Revelation is provided and also the limitation of current studies of the song of Moses is highlighted. In addition, a new approach to the song of Moses in Revelation is suggested. The main goal of the chapter 3 is to examine Rev. 12-20 according to four narrative elements and from which Rev 12-20 can be deduced as a discrete literary unit constituting a plot. It will be argued that Rev. 12-20, as a plot, is highly stylized in the chiastic structure which has the song of Moses and the Lamb at the centre. Chapter 4 investigates Exod. 1-15 as a coherent story and explains how the author of Revelation adopts the exodus motifs in forming both the theme and the structure of Revelation. Moreover, it will be argued that the exodus motif generated certain sociorhetorical meanings to the audiences or the readers who were assimilated into the Roman Empire. For understanding the socio-rhetorical meanings, we examine the socio-rhetorical context, namely Asia Minor as part of the Roman Empire, and deal with the socio-rhetorical role of the exodus motif in the book of Revelation. In the chapter 5, firstly, drawing on the theoretical assumptions from social psychology, we build up a framework in which we can deal with Rev. 12-20 in terms of identity issues. Then, the covenantal identity based on the covenant in the book of Exodus will be suggested as an alternative identity. Thus, the exodus motif in Rev. 12-20 challenges the assimilated identity of the audiences or the readers to be renewed in the covenantal identity, so that they may be holy apart from the culture and the structure of the Roman Empire. The song of Moses and the Lamb reinforces the covenantal identity.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie navorsing ondersoek die gebruik van die eksodus-motief in Openbaring in die algemeen en in Op 12-12 in die besonder, terwyl dit ook die sosio-retoriese funksie van hierdie motief bestudeer. Die hipotese is dat Op 12-20 in terme van narratologiese analise ‘n koherente eenheid beslaan, en dat die eksodus-motief ‘n betekenisvolle rol speel in die struktuur en boodskap van Openabring, en Op 12-20 in besonder. Verder is dit betekenisvol dat die Lied van Moses en die Lam in Op 15 ‘n kernrol speel in die deurlopende lyn van Op 12-20 as plot. In hoofstuk 2 word ‘n oorsig oor die interpretasiegeskiedenis van Openbaring aangebied en beperkinge ten opsigte van huidige studies oor die Lied van Moses beklemtoon. In aanvulling daarby word ‘n nuwe benadering ten opsigte van die Lied van Moses in Openbaring voorgestel. Die hoofdoel van hoofstuk 3 is om Op 12-20 aan die hand van vier naratiewe elemente te ondersoek. As resultaat kan Op 12-20 as diskrete literêre eenheid sowel as die plot van Openbaring beskou word. As plot vertoon Op 12-20 ‘n noukeurige styl, met chiastiese strukture waarvan die Lied van Moses en die Lam die middelpunt vorm. Hoofstuk 4 ondersoek Eks 1-15 as koherente narratief en verduidelik hoe die outeur van Openbaring die eksodus-motief in die vorming van beide die tema en struktuur van die boek ingespan het. Die eksodus motief sou ook sekere sosio-retoriese betekenisse onder die gehore of lesers wat met die Romeinse Ryk geassimileer was, gegenereer het. Twv die beter verstaan van sulke sosio-retoriese betekenisse, word die sosio-historiese konteks naamlik Klein-Asië as deel van die Romeinse Ryk bestudeer. Vervolgens word die sosio-retoriese rol van die eksodus-motief in die boek van Openbaring behandel. In hoofstuk 5 word eerstens van teoretiese uitgangspunte binne die sosiale sielkunde gebruik te maak vir die konstruering van ‘n raamwerk om identiteitsake in Opn 12-20 te hanteer. Vervolgens word verbondsidentiteit soos dit voortvloei uit die verbond in Eksodus as alternatiewe identiteit voorgestel. Die eksodus motief in Op 12-20 daag die gehore of lesers van die boek uit om hul verbondsidentiteit te hernu, sodat hulle heilig en dus anders as die kultuur en strukture van die Romeinse Ryk kan wees. Die Lied van Moses en die Lam versterk Openbaring se gehore of lesers se verbondsidentiteit.

This thesis suggests a new approach to studying the Hebrew-language Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS) containing Exodus. After surveying the history of research, Longacre suggests applying a contextualized approach to the study of these scrolls, which seeks to understand them first as individual material artefacts and then in comparison to other manuscripts which are most closely contextually connected to them. Each manuscript is only subsequently compared with increasingly contextually distant manuscripts according to a hierarchy of contextual proximity. A network of close contextual connections between the Hebrew DSS containing Exodus warrant the isolation of this corpus as a test case for application of a contextualized approach. Based on new transcriptions and reconstructions of each of the included manuscripts (1Q2 2Q2 2Q3 2Q4 4Q1 4Q11 4Q13 4Q14 4Q17 4Q18 4Q19 4Q20 4Q21 4Q22 4Q158 4Q364 4Q365 4Q366 Mur1), Longacre then analyzes patterns that emerge from a comparison of the characteristics of each of these manuscripts. Finally, from a close examination of textual overlaps from a wide variety of qualitative and quantitative perspectives, Longacre suggests several specific groups and clusters of texts and synthesizes them to provide clearer insight into the documented Hebrew-language textual history of the book of Exodus.

The research in this thesis attempts to select texts from the African American Spirituals and the Bible that are appropriate for secondary language arts instruction, specifically for grades 9-12. The paper first gives an overview of legal justifications and educational reasons for teaching religious literature in public schools. Then, relevant educational standards are discussed, and, using the standards as an initial guide, I identify common themes within the Spirituals and Bible, which, from my analysis of various literatures, are slavery, chosenness, and coded language. Next, I describe my systematic effort to choose texts from the Spirituals and the Bible. To help accomplish this, I draw primarily from two tomes: Go Down Moses: Celebrating the African-American Spiritual and Biblical Literacy: The Essential Bible Stories Everyone Needs to Know. After I describe the research process of selecting texts, I form judgments about which biblical passages and African American Spirituals are particularly worthy of study, along with their applicable and mutual themes.

Abstract This chapter focuses on the Book of Exodus in the history of African American Christians. It begins by examining the biblical exodus as one of the core events in the entire Jewish tradition—God’s deliverance of the Israelites from Egyptian oppression. It then takes up the exodus theme in America, first, from the perspective of the Puritans, then, by contrast, the various African American understandings and expressions of exodus themes in the context of slavery (particularly slave spirituals and slave revolts), emancipation, migration, the civil rights movement, black liberation theology, womanist theology, and the future prospects of the exodus theme.

In this chapter, I explore the function of dress in its wider social context, informed by anthropological and sociological approaches to the body. I consider the role of clothing as a disguise in the stories of Pughat, from the Ugaritic epic of Aqhat, and Tamar, from the book of Genesis. These stories reveal the gendered dimensions of clothing. At the same time, as something which can be changed at will, clothing allows these female characters to adopt and discard various personas, and in so doing to affect a change in their social status and positioning. Moving from female bodies to male bodies, I then consider the dress of the High Priest prescribed by the book of Exodus. The elaborate and ornate clothing worn by the High Priest manifests his liturgical power. But beyond this, these garments are what mark individuals as priests, granting them privileged access to the divine. We will see that clothing is central to the construction of identity—and the articulation of power.

This chapter introduces the story of the Golden Calf, comparing the biblical version found in the book of Exodus and the presentation of the episode in the Qur’an. It argues for the importance of conceiving of qur’anic and Islamic retellings of ancient Israelite narratives as part of a broader biblical tradition, of equal value and legitimacy to the canonical and paracanonical biblical literature of Jews and Christians. In support of this argument, it examines the contribution complex processes of acculturation and scripturalization made to the formation of the Qur’an in Late Antiquity; calls for the abandonment of a one-dimensional concept of “influence” of Jewish traditions on the Qur’an in favor of a conception of the Qur’an as actively engaging a variety of traditions in circulation in its environment; and suggests that this engagement was part of a larger discourse of contestation, polemic, and dispute between communities. In Late Antiquity, Jews, Christians, and Muslims were all committed to their particular visions of the legacy of ancient Israel and its significance for their community’s claims of divine favor. Scriptural rewriting and exegesis thus provided a major arena for demarcating boundaries and defining self and other through reinterpretation of episodes from Israel’s history.

This chapter interprets the Golden Calf narrative in the Qur’an as a profound, subtle, and intentional engagement with the version of the story known from the book of Exodus, reshaped according to exegetical predispositions anticipated by older late antique Jewish and Christian approaches to the story. It discusses the findings of the previous chapter in the context of both the Qur’an’s relationship to its literary precursors and the Calf narrative’s particular points of resonance with other themes and topoi in the qur’anic corpus. Though the term is a problematic one, the Qur’an’s novel treatment of the Calf story will be considered as an example of “rewritten Bible” here—a reshaping of an older scriptural story that is not only a reimagining but in some ways a re-revelation of a narrative with a considerably freighted history in previous scriptural tradition. This chapter also considers a possible context for the qur’anic presentation of the Calf narrative, particularly its subordination of Aaron as priest to Moses as prophet, in the conflict that traditional Muslim sources describe between Muḥammad and the Jews of Medina after the hijrah. At the same time, the chapter also takes into account the significance of central themes of the story such as transgression, repentance, and authority for the Qur’an’s original audience at a transformative moment in their history.