Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Niels Peter Lemche <npl AT teol.ku.dk>]

There is plenty of linguistic similafrity and plenty of difference. Take
e.g. the consecutive forms, so characteristic of HV prose and see where you
find it in the Mesha inscription. It also has some other archaic traits like
feminimun forms. 

I would consider it Moabite late Amorite, not Palestinian late Amorite. We
also have Phonician and Ammonite, again with a lot of imilarity and a lot of
differences of the said kind. So what's the deal?

But now, late here, only a remark about Moshe Schulman's methodology. He
certainly has a point in his ideas about logic. We may excuse him that his
method will be of little help for the scholar of say 3004 who wants to date
'The Name of the Rose', but his problem is that he does not realize that his
proposal for a procedure has been followed for more than a 150 years, and
with rather limited success. If he takes my Prelude to Israel's Past (Die
Vorgschichte Israels), he will see how I present several different scenarios
for the dating of the Yahwist, but also that it is damned hard to choose. He
is right so far as inner textual evidence is much more decisive than an
alleged historical background that can only be proved by applying the
hermeneutical circle, but he is wrong if he thinks that we are not aware of
this problem.

NPL


> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jim West [SMTP:jwest AT highland.net]
> Sent: Thursday, 30 December, 1999 00:31
> To:   Biblical Hebrew
> Subject:      re: historiography
> 
> Peter, Moshe, et al.,
> The Mesha inscription shows that the DH is early?  You're kidding right?
> You think that a fragmentary inscription, brief, and of limited
> vocabulary,
> is capable of bearing the comparative linguistic weight you have heaved
> onto
> it?  I disagree.  You are truly comparing apples with oranges.
> And Moshe, i couldn't care less about mathematics vis a vis biblical
> historiography.  
> 
> In short I think our problem is one of communication.  You are talking
> about
> one thing and I another.  You are talking about math and I am simply
> suggesting that you actually take the time to read NPL's stuff.  So I have
> a
> simple question- so that we are all on the same page- Moshe- have you read
> any of Niels' stuff?  Peter?
> 
> best,
> 
> Jim
> 
> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> 
> Jim West, ThD
> jwest AT highland.net
> http://web.infoave.net/~jwest
> 
> 
> 
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