Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Peter Kirk <peterkirk AT qaya.org>]

On 01/02/2004 06:39, Karl Randolph wrote:

> Dora:
>
> Practically all the we know about David comes from one source document. As I 
> pointed out in a previous missive, that document clearly points out that 
> David’s 600 men were brought by him to Ziklag, not chosen while in Ziklag. 
> Unless Halpern has newly discovered documentation, that makes his statements 
> contradicting that one source document pure speculation based on his personal 
> presuppositions.
>
>  
True. Well, in principle he could have archaeological evidence, but if 
so, what?

> As for the Philistine religion, they were not followers of YHWH, rather they 
> had other gods like Dagon. The events surrounding the Philistine capture of 
> the ark of YHWH and the destruction of Shiloh led both Israelis and 
> Philistines to fear it. While Saul was king, the memory of those events was 
> still fresh, so it was unlikely that he would touch it.
>
> The only indication that Saul turned to worshiping Baal is that his one son, 
> usually called )Y$ B$T, was twice listed in 1 Chronicles as )$B(L. All other 
> indications are that he, at least outwardly, worshipped YHWH.
>
>  
Also Saul's grandson MPYB#T (Mephibosheth) is elsewhere called MRYB B(L 
or MRY B(L. But the commonest explanation of these names is that at the 
time B(L "master" was an acceptable title for YHWH, which was only later 
rejected because it became increasingly the proper name of the Canaanite 
god. (Cf. the modern debate over whether the Arabic word for God, 
"Allah", should be used of the true God by Christians - in some contexts 
the word is considered as the Islamic proper name of the God.)

> As for Israelis’ religious syncretism, that was a constant theme from Judges 
> through the end of 2 Kings. It was also repeated condemned. The two golden 
> calves made after Israel rebelled from the Davidic kingdom, however, were 
> Egyptian, not Canaanite, in origin.
>
> As for our source document, from its language and content, it appears post 
> exilic, but that the author(s) (possibly Ezra?) consulted, concatenated and 
> condensed at that time still extant original documents.
>
>  
Which document are you talking about? The major source, the books of 
Samuel (and 1 Kings 1-2 which probably originally went with Samuel), are 
dated by many scholars as pre-exilic although perhaps with later 
redaction. Chronicles, which is post-exilic (and traditionally linked to 
Ezra), is mostly secondary. Other sources which tell us something of 
David include the Psalms, and some snippets in the prophetic books and 
in Ruth.


--
Peter Kirk
peter AT qaya.org (personal)
peterkirk AT qaya.org (work)
http://www.qaya.org/