The Battle of Gibeah Reconsidered (Judges 20:29-48)

In this article I discuss the episode of the Israelite-Benjaminite battle at Gibeah (Judges 20:29-48). The battle account suffers from many inconsistencies, and to date no satisfactory solution was suggested for its composition. I posit that the battle story has a unified framework (vv. 29-31a and 4...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Naʾaman, Nadav 1939- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Brill 2018
In: Vetus Testamentum
Year: 2018, Volume: 68, Issue: 1, Pages: 102-110
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Bible. Judge 20,29-48 / Rise of
IxTheo Classification:HB Old Testament
Further subjects:B Battle of Gibeah Benjaminites Israelites strategy synchronic and diachronic solutions
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Parallel Edition:Non-electronic
Description
Summary:In this article I discuss the episode of the Israelite-Benjaminite battle at Gibeah (Judges 20:29-48). The battle account suffers from many inconsistencies, and to date no satisfactory solution was suggested for its composition. I posit that the battle story has a unified framework (vv. 29-31a and 47-48), and this framework embraces two complete alternative accounts of the battle, each describing a different version of the event (vv. 31b-36a and 36b-46). Following a translation of the two accounts, I analyze each account seeking to show how it describes the related event. I then examine the diachronic and synchronic solutions offered for the way the text has emerged, seeking to clarify how it might have reached its garbled final form.
ISSN:1568-5330
Contains:In: Vetus Testamentum
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1163/15685330-12341309