Biblical Hebrew Forum

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

What is also interesting about these verses is the
writer's understanding of what the Glory is.
The Glory went out of Israel when the Ark was taken,
the Glory was the Ark! The Ark was the idol, the hypostasis,
of YHWH, or indeed, YHWH himself.
Liz

> -----Original Message-----
> From: David Stabnow [mailto:dstabno AT lifeway.com]
> Sent: Monday, May 14, 2001 9:22 AM
> To: Biblical Hebrew
> Subject: Re: Who named Ichabod? 1 Sam. 4:19-22
>
>
>
> On 5/12 at 8:11 pm Don A. Elbourne Jr. wrote:
>
> << Who named Ichabod in 1 Sam. 4:19-22? Most interpret the text
> to mean the
> mother gave the child his name before she died. But the text does not seem
> to be clear. The first word of verse 21, "she called," could refer either
> to the mother or the woman standing beside her. Since the last
> two verbs of
> the previous verse indicates that the mother is incoherent and
> unresponsive, it would seem more likely that the woman standing beside her
> did the naming. Is this possible? What do you think? >>
>
> In verse 20 she was not "incoherent."  It only says that she did
> not answer
> and she didn't care or didn't pay attention (see 2 Sam 18:3; Isa
> 42:25; Job
> 7:17; see KB sub _LB_ "heart" #7; and Jenni-Westermann sub _LB_ #3e, and
> sub _NTN_ #3c).  The women tried to encourage her, but she refused to be
> encouraged.
>
> Naming a child was often the prerogative of the mother in the OT
> (Gen 4:25;
> 19:37; 29:32; 30:8ff; 35:18; 38:4; Exod 2:10; Judg 13:24; 1 Sam
> 1:20; 2 Sam
> 12:24 Qere; 1 Chr 4:17; Exceptions: Gen 4:26; 5:3, 29; 16:15; 21:3; 25:26;
> 38:3, 29; 41:51; Exod 2:22; Judg 6:23; 2 Sam 12:24 Kethiv; Job
> 42:14; 1 Chr
> 7:23).  Had this prerogative been usurped it probably would have been made
> explicit (Ruth 4:17), not ambiguous, as you have perceived this to be.
>
> Also, it says "she" called him Ichabod because the glory had departed from
> Israel, and because of "her" father-in-law and "her" husband.  To whom
> could the latter two pronouns refer but the mother?  And if the latter
> pronouns refer to the mother, it is likely that the first does as well.
>
> This passage raises another question.  Did she say "the glory has departed
> from Israel" twice, once in v. 21 and once in v. 22?  This seems unlikely.
> Or should we translate v. 21, "She named him Ichabod, intending thereby to
> communicate that the glory had departed from Israel."  If this is true, it
> would inform our translation of other naming formulae with *lemor* (Gen
> 5:29; 30:24; Judg 6:23).  The name itself is intended to communicate the
> content of what follows *lemor*; the one giving the name speaks only the
> name, not the intention of the meaning.
>
> Dave Stabnow
>
>
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