Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Pastor Mark Eddy" <markeddy AT adams.net>]

Dear Liz,

Though I'm not Dave, may I chime in? I had never heard your understanding of 
the Rabshakeh's words. Why do
you assume that he means that the Israelites will comsume their waste after 
death? Standard operating
procedure for a siege was to surround the city until the food and/or water 
supply ran out, and the
defenders would be in a weakened condition. So 2 Kings 18:27 is a threat to 
starve them out if they don't
give up. No food will be left in the city, so they will have to eat their 
dung and drink their urine. If
they give up, he will let them eat their own food and water (verse 31) until 
he comes back to deport them
to one of the Assyrian provinces (v. 32). One way or the other they were 
going to be deported, not
necessarily killed. The choice was "surrender now or surrender later." So I 
don't see any reference to
Sheol and what people eat there. I agree that people in Bible times from many 
ages and cultures pictured
our existence in the afterlife as corporeal. (Jesus' story about the rich man 
and poor Lazarus does the
same thing, and Luke 16 nowhere says that this is a parable.) But 2 Kings 
doesn't say anything to support
this.

Mark Eddy

----- Original Message -----
From: "Lisbeth S. Fried" <lizfried AT umich.edu>
To: <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Sent: Friday, February 07, 2003 4:36 PM
Subject: RE: [b-hebrew] [b-hebrew nefarious nefesh


> OK, Dave,
> What about the speech of the rabshekah that those
> sitting on the wall will be eating their dung and drinking their
> urine? Isn't the presumption there that it will be after their
> deaths, in Sheol?
> Liz
>
>
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