Biblical Hebrew Forum

[lorencrow AT earthling.net (Loren Crow)]

At 6:37 PM 1/15/99, Peter_Kirk AT SIL.ORG wrote:
>If Loren defines "monotheism" as a philosophical position, it would be
>most consistent to define "henotheism", "polytheism" etc as
>alternative philosophical positions. In that case I might well
>conclude that there is also no henotheism or polytheism described in
>the Hebrew Bible, either in Israel or amongst her neighbours. For I
>don't find any philosophical positions in the text, and I would not
>expect to as the whole idea is anachronistic: Hebrew thinking was not
>about philosophy but about practical realities.

Right.  That's exactly why I don't think we have monotheism -- or any other
"-ism" -- in the HB.  It's simply not like that.

>I do find texts which clearly express a world-view consisting of a
>single eternal creator God YHWH transcendent over the whole earth and
>no other beings more powerful than humans, e.g. Isaiah 40:12-26. If
>Loren want to find something more philosophical than that, I suggest
>he reads Greek authors rather than Hebrew ones.

Well I don't restrict myself to Hebrew authors, that much is certain.  And
I do often enjoy reading Greek philosophy.  Be that as it may, I do not
find Isaiah 40 to be monotheistic, primarily because very similar things
are said of Marduk once he's done defeating Tiamat and Kingu.  The gods
pronounce over him the 50 names, and one could substitute YHWH for Marduk
and end up with something very similar to this.  The idea of
"transcendence" and "singularity" in Isaiah 40 is the language of divine
kingship, not the language of monotheism as such.

Now, please pardon me while I go read a little Aristotle...  ;-)

Loren


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Even God cannot change the past.
               - Agathon (quoted by Aristotle, NE 6:2,1139)