Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Liz Fried" <lizfried AT umich.edu>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jim West :
> >The point is that the snake was right,
> >not God. Their eyes were opened (3:7), and they did not die
> >on the day they ate it as God said they would (2:17).
>
> they died in the spiritual sense however.  their relationship with god
> ended.  the multi-layered intentionality of the story shouldn't be choked
> into a one leveled universe.
Jim, if you don't mind my saying so, this is a very Christian, Pauline,
view. In what sense can you say their relationship with God ended????
Or that they died in a "spiritual" sense. I don't even know what that means.
God had them leave the garden, but they didn't leave *him*.
Eve says, after leaving the garden, "I have acquired a man from(?) YHWH."
YHWH is intimately involved with the doings of their sons.
When Cain kills Abel, YHWH put a mark on Cain, a mark of God's protection,
so that whoever killed Cain would suffer a 7-fold vengeance.
There is no way the relationship with God ended.
To view it this way is a Christological, Pauline, reading, imo.
It creates a problem, and then brings in the death of Christ to
repair the problem.
The story really is meant to show that God has a sustaining loving
relationship with you even tho you are not in your promised land.
It probably stems from the Babylonian exile.
People sin, are exiled, but God puts his mark on you,
sustains you, provides progeny.
This was also the message of Ezekiel:
God sustains you, cares for you, even in a strange new land.

Best,
Liz
>
> jim
>
>
> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
>
> "going around stirring up apathy "
>
> Jim West, ThD
> http://web.infoave.net/~jwest
>
>
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