The Threat of Annihilation of Israel in the Desert: An Independent Tradition within Two Stories
In this article I examine the biblical myth of the divine threat of Israel's annihilation during their wandering in the desert. I explore two main instances in the Pentateuch—the story of the spies (Numbers 13–14) and the story of the golden calf (Exodus 32), exposing logical and substantive di...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2016
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| In: |
The catholic biblical quarterly
Year: 2016, Volume: 78, Issue: 4, Pages: 632-647 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Parallel Edition: | Non-electronic
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| Summary: | In this article I examine the biblical myth of the divine threat of Israel's annihilation during their wandering in the desert. I explore two main instances in the Pentateuch—the story of the spies (Numbers 13–14) and the story of the golden calf (Exodus 32), exposing logical and substantive difficulties in them. The study reveals the secondary nature of the annihilation-threat myth in the non-Priestly context of each narrative while indicating a lack of direct dependence between them. This independent myth is proved to be later than Psalm 78, where the implied comment about God's intention to destroy the people (v. 38) is taken to predate Jeroboam I. Adding the myth to the pentateuchal narrative contexts painted the events in religious colors through demonstrating the people's sin and presenting a complex image of God. |
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| ISSN: | 2163-2529 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: The catholic biblical quarterly
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