Christoph Berner

Die eherne Schlange

The narrative in Num 21,4b–9 is a late post-Priestly creation which is intended to demonstrate how YHWH becomes active as Israel’s healer, in accordance with his presentation of himself in Ex 15,26. For this purpose a threat from snake-bite was dramatised in the light of Deut 8,15 and Jer 8,17. For its cure YHWH commanded the making of the bronze serpent, which a person had only to look at to be healed. This conception of the bronze serpent, which is unique in the history of religion, might alsready have been devised to outdo the staff of Asclepius, but it owes its specific form and mode of operation to a combination of the warning and memorial signs which were introduced in Num 17,1–5.25f. with the altar covering of Eleazar and Aaron’s rod. The bronze serpent is therefore ultimately a literary construct, which already in II Reg 18,4b is transformed theologically and turned, under the influence of Ex 32, into an illicit object of worship. Le récit de Nb. 21,4b–9 est une formation post-sacerdotale tardive, dont le but est d’illustrer comment Yhwh – selon son auto-présentation en Ex. 15,26 – agit en tant que médecin d’Israël. A cet effet est introduite la menace de morsures de serpents, à la lumière de Dtn. 8,15 et Jér. 8,17; pour s’en défendre, Yhwh ordonne la confection du serpent d’airain, qu’il suffit de contempler pour être guéri. Cette conception du serpent d’airain, singulière dans l’histoire des religions, pourrait indiquer la suprémation sur le symbole d’Asclépios, mais doit son aspect et son mode d’action spécifiques à une contamination avec Nb. 17,1–5.25 s., le revêtement de l’autel dû à Eléazar et les signes d’avertissement et de mémoire concentrés dans le »bâton d’Aaron«. Le serpent d’airain est ainsi dès l’origine une construction littéraire, qui a été transformée au plan théologique déjà en 2 Rois 18,4b, puis en objet cultuel illégitime sous l’influence d’Ex. 32. Die Erzählung in Num 21,4b–9 ist eine späte nachpriesterschriftliche Bildung, die verdeutlichen soll, wie JHWH gemäß seiner Selbstvorstellung in Ex 15,26 als Arzt Israels tätig wird. Zu diesem Zweck wurde im Licht von Dtn 8,15 und Jer 8,17 eine Bedrohung durch Schlangenbisse inszeniert, zu deren Abwehr JHWH die Anfertigung der ehernen Schlange anordnet, die man nur anzublicken hat, um zu genesen. Diese religionsgeschichtlich singuläre Konzeption der ehernen Schlange könnte bereits auf eine Überbietung des Asklepiosstabes hin angelegt sein, verdankt ihre spezifische Gestalt und Wirkweise allerdings einer Verschmelzung der in Num 17,1–5.25f. mit dem Altarüberzug Eleazars und dem Aaronstab eingeführten Warn- und Erinnerungszeichen. Die eherne Schlange ist damit von Anfang an ein literarisches Konstrukt, das in II Reg 18,4b bereits theologisch transformiert wurde und sich unter dem Eindruck von Ex 32 zu einem illegitimen Kultobjekt wandelte.

The Gibeonite Deception: Reflections on the Interplay between Law and Narrative in Josh 9

ABSTRACT The paper relates the redaction history of Josh 9 to the development of legal concepts in Deuteronomy and beyond. It shows that the earliest version of the text provided an impartial portrayal of a peace treaty between Gibeon and Israel, which prepared for the events recounted in Josh 10. After the emergence of the law of ḥērem (Deut 20,15-18), this original version of Josh 9 implied an open contradiction to Deuteronomy’s warfare legislation. As a result, a first Deuteronomistic editor (D 1) introduced the idea that the Gibeonites had tricked the Israelites into making a covenant and thus saved their lives with deceit. At this stage of the literary development, the prohibition of making a covenant with the inhabitants of the land (e.g. Deut 7,2) was not in view yet. Compared to the ḥērem, the respective prohibition represents a later stage in the development of the legal material (perhaps triggered by the D 1 version of Josh 9). It is only reflected in a second Deuteronomistic layer (D 2) of the chapter, which should afterwards receive one more major editorial reworking by a priestly hand.

Der Sabbat in der Mannaerzählung Ex 16 und in den priesterlichen Partien des Pentateuch

Abstract The analysis of Ex 16 and Gen 1:1–2:4a shows that the Sabbath played no part in the early literary strata of the priestly text (P 1). Both the seven-day-pattern of the creation account and the priestly portions of the Manna story belong to a late priestly editorial layer (P 2). In Ex 16, this priestly editor has reworked a late dtr Grundbestand, which had already established a connection between the Manna and the Sabbath and can be linked with the Sabbath commandment in Ex 20:8–10. In contrast, the earliest priestly references to the Sabbath belong to the Holiness Code (Lev 17–26), while the priestly Sabbath texts in the books of Gen and Ex are entirely of late priestly origin (P 2).

Jacob or Levi—Who Is the Officiating Priest in Jubilees 30–32?*

The study proposes a new, redaction-critical explanation for the strikingly ambiguous portrayal of Jacob and Levi in Jubilees 30–32. It argues that the original version of the chapters only referred to Jacob, who was pictured as the officiating priest of his generation. In contrast, all references to Levi belong to later editorial stages of the text, which claimed the respective role for Levi. While Levis rise to the ancestral priestly figure par excellence is still reflected in the literary growth of Jubilees 30–32, the ALD represents a later stage in the development of the Levi tradition, when the patriarchs prominent priestly role was already established.

The Exodus Narrative Between History and Literary Fiction: The Portrayal of the Egyptian Burden as a Test Case

It is beyond dispute that the Exodus Narrative (Exod 1–15) provides a detailed account of the Egyptian bondage and the circumstances of the Israelites’ liberation. At the same time, it is obvious that these details do not form a coherent picture, but often stand in tension with, if not in flat contradiction to each other. The paper argues that the complexity of the account is best understood as the result of a continuous process of literary expansions (Fortschreibungen) by which the Exodus Narrative gradually took shape. Taking the references to the Israelites’ forced labor as a test case, the paper suggests that substantial parts of the narrative did not exist prior to the earliest priestly layer (P 1), but belong to an extensive post-priestly stage of development. As a result, the Exodus Narrative reveals only little about the historical circumstances of the Exodus events, yet all the more about how different generations of postexilic scribes imagined these circumstances and took their share in the literary development of the biblical account.

The Reception of Biblical War Legislation in Narrative Contexts

In the Hebrew Bible, war is a prominent topic which is dealt with in both legal and narrative texts. So far, the interplay between the two areas has received only little attention. This volume explores the impact of biblical war legislation on war accounts in the Hebrew Bible and in Early Jewish Literature. It provides case studies which show the importance of the topic and shed new light on redaction- and reception-historical developments.

Das Wasserwunder von Rephidim (Ex 17,1-7) als Schlüsseltext eines nachpriesterschriftlichen Mosebildes

AbstractContrary to a still widespread belief, the story of Moses miraculously procuring water from the rock in Ex 17:1-7 is not of pre-Priestly origin. Rather, already the basic stratum of the text (Ex 17:1bβ, 3aβb, 4-6) proves to be a post-Priestly composition. It is part of what I label the ‘Stabbearbeitung’ which is first attested in Ex 4:17, 20b and has moreover left its traces in form of a set of additions to the first plague (Ex 7:15b, 17*, 20*) which is now presented as a miracle performed by Moses using his staff in front of an Egyptian audience. Together with the water miracle performed with the same staff in front of the elders (Ex 17:5-6), the ‘Stabbearbeitung’ prepares for Deut 34:11-12 where Moses is presented as a unique miracle worker. This late picture of Moses is further elaborated in subsequent post-Priestly expansions (Ex 15:23-26; 17:2, 3aα, 7* and 17:7-13, 15 [16a?]) through which the narrative sequence between the events at the sea of reeds and the arrival at the mountain of revelation gradually reached its present form.

Was bleibt vom Mythos Mose

Zusammenfassung Die Pentateuchkritik hat sich in den vergangenen Jahrzehnten dramatisch verändert. Nicht mehr der Versuch einer Rekonstruktion der alten Quellen bestimmt das Bild, sondern das Interesse gilt verstärkt der vorliegenden Textgestalt und den redaktionsgeschichtlichen Prozessen, aus denen sie hervorgegangen ist. Zugleich hat sich die Erkenntnis durchgesetzt, dass die Überlieferungen von Erzvätern und Exodus zunächst unabhängig voneinander verschriftet und tradiert wurden. Die älteste literarische Fassung der Exodusüberlieferung stammt aus dem 7. Jh. v. Chr. und enthält lediglich vage Angaben über Israels Aufenthalt in Ägypten und die Gestalt des Mose. Was wir über Mose und den Exodus ‚wissen‘, verdankt sich der einer späteren Traditionsbildung, die sich im literarischen Werden des Exodusbuches vollzog und von einem steten Ringen um die Aktualität der überkommenen religiösen Überlieferung bestimmt war.