Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Noam Eitan <noameitan AT yahoo.com>]

If you ask about what I believe, I believe the Bible contains a lot of 
historical information that is just as accurate as sitting in a trial and 
listening to the D.A. marshal  evidence and present opening and closing 
arguments against an innocent defendant (i.e., practitioners of religious 
syncretism, a.k.a. idolatry) without hearing the defendant or his assigned 
defense counsel at all.

 

I would like to use your question as an excuse to bring up a hypothetical 
example of the “historical events” the Bible may be concealing from us. 
WARNING: the following contains unbridled speculations.

 

Following the “discovery” of the “Book of the Law” in the Temple, King Josiah 
launched an intense puritan reform to eradicate “idolatrous” rites (2 Kings, 
parts of 22 and of 23.)  The prophet Jeremiah started his practice during his 
reign, the only one towards which the dyspeptic prophet was well-disposed (2 
Chronicles 35:25.)

 

 

King Josiah died in Battle in 609 BCE while trying to stop the advance of 
King of Egypt, Necho II (2 Kings 23:29; 2 Chronicles 35: 20-27). Would a 
Near-Eastern ruler go to battle without consulting his god first? And who 
would the righteous King Josiah consult other than the Yahwist clique, headed 
most likely by Baruch the scribe (son of Neriah) and his puppet Jeremiah (see 
Jeremiah 45: 5 and more bluntly 43:3 as to who was the dominant partner in 
this liaison)? Since King Josiah went ahead to battle (more according to 
Chronicles than to Kings), he most likely got the green light from Jeremiah, 
maybe even quoting from the “newly discovered” scroll regarding the rewards 
of faithfully observing Yahwe’s commandments :”Yahweh will conquer your 
enemies when they attack you” (Deuteronomy 28:7.) The results are documented 
in the Bible. 

 

Now, let’s fast forward to the amazing chapter 44 in Jeremiah. The prophet 
was addressing congregations exiled to Egypt after the fall of Jerusalem, 
ranting the usual Yahwist propaganda. This is one of the rare instances where 
the text (put down by Baruch?) describes the audience’s response (probably to 
illustrate their intransigence.) One wonders throughout the book of Jeremiah 
how his listeners put up with him for so long (probably because they feared 
his god), but here they finally have had enough: “We will not listen to your 
messages in the name of Yahweh, we will do whatever we want! We will burn 
incense to the Queen of Heaven and sacrifice to her just as much as we like – 
just as we and our ancestors did before us, and as our kings and princes have 
always done in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem. FOR IN 
THOSE DAYS WE HAD PLENTY TO EAT AND WE WERE WELL OFF AND HAD NO TROUBLES! BUT 
EVER SINCE WE QUIT BURNING INCENSE TO THE QUEEN OF HEAVEN AND STOPPED 
WORSHIPPING
 HER WE HAVE BEEN IN GREAT TROUBLE AND HAVE SUFFERED THE EFFECTS OF WAR AND 
FAMINE” (Jeremiah 44:15-18) In other words, the men and good wives of the 
Judeans living in Pathros expressed the widespread sentiment that things 
started to go downhill for Judeans ever since the “idolatrous” cults were 
suppressed by King Josiah, whose death was divine retribution for angering so 
many ancestral gods. 

 

 

Baruch/Jeremiah’s bitterness stems from their downfall from being in the 
center of political power during King Josiah’s time to the status of 
outcasts. The people of Israel made a practical observation that turning 
their back to the ancestral gods just got them (and King Josiah) in trouble. 
This may explain why Jeremiah’s relatives were trying to pressure him to stop 
prophesying in the name of Jahweh. Lastly, if Jeremiah/Baruch indeed 
prophesized success to King Josiah against Necho II, this can explain why 
Jeremiah/Baruch’s admonitions were tolerated (reluctantly) rather than heeded 
to, and more significantly, that the book of Jeremiah documents 
Jeremiah/Baruch’s about-face. The death of King Josiah signified to him a 
change in Yahweh’s plan, and he therefore changed his direction and preached 
political servitude like no other prophet. I wonder if there is any example 
in ancient literature of a man of god trying so hard to convince his audience 
and their king to give themselves over
 the enemy. 

 

 

Noam Eitan, Brooklyn, NY (requesting your indulgence, or better, a referral 
to the appropriate group for discussing events in the Bible from a historical 
perspective, free from interests of currently existing religions)

 

>Noam:

 

>Are you claiming that because the Bible is a biased document that it 

>can’t be accurate?

 

>While I acknowledge that it is propaganda (arguing for a particular 

>viewpoint), it is at the same time an accurate record of the events 

>portrayed.

 

>Karl W. Randolph.

 

----- Original Message -----

From: Noam Eitan <noameitan AT yahoo.com>

 

>

>  I believe every word in the Hebrew Bible is there to promote a 

Yahwist-cult-agenda. There is no evidence its writers were even able to 

grasp the concept of unbiased reporting of the “truth”, i.e., historical 

facts; they were trying to assert “THE” (Yahwist) truth. There is plenty 

of evidence they weren’t even able to entertain alternative viewpoints 

– when such are mentioned it is in derision.…

> 

>  Noam Eitan, Brooklyn,

 

 


                
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From: Noam Eitan <noameitan AT yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Names (was: variant pronunciation)
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Another example is how references in the text to the “Queen of Heaven” 
(mele'kheth ha-shamayim, or maybe even malkat ha-shamayim) were corrupted by 
the punctuation to “the host of heaven” (melekheth ha-shamayim). (Jeremiah 
7:18; 44:17-19,25)

 

 

(Regarding meanings of the sons’ names in the Book of Ruth, in my very humble 
opinion, or my feeling of that text, the reading of Mahlon and Kilion as 
Sickness and Death is pretty straightforward, not contrived like other 
rabbinical name-midrashim, which, as Yigal points out, were meant to be taken 
with a grain of salt. Orpah is a borderline case.)

 

Noam Eitan, Brooklyn, NY

 

>Dear Yigal:

 

>I suspect your answer #2 below is more important than you originally 

>thought.

 

>>For example, I was taught that the false god Molech was given the 

>points he has in Tanakh to deride him, but in Biblical times the name >may 

>have been pronounced as Melech or Malech. Similarly I suspect the 

>Philistine god Dagon was connected with harvest, hence his name, not >fish.

 

>In the book of Ruth, the meanings of the sons’ names is very likely 

>rabbinical, not original. Machlon may have been connected with >softness or 

>gentleness, while Kilion with completeness in the sense of perfection, 

>and Orpah very likely connected with firmness or strength, turning her 

>back on Naomi having nothing to do with the name.

 

>Karl W. Randolph.

 

----- Original Message -----

From: "Yigal Levin" <leviny1 AT mail.biu.ac.il>

> Dear Noam,

> 

> 1. Of course (some of) the biblical authors employed humor and word 

play.

> Have a look at Gary Rendsburg's article in Puns and Pundits - Word 

Play in

 


                
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Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 10:06:49 -0500
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From: "Harold R. Holmyard III" <hholmyard AT ont.com>
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Names (was: variant pronunciation)
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Dear Noam,

The first post does not seem a B-Hebrew topic,=20
since this site, I believe, deals mostly with=20
language, not theological reconstructions of=20
events. I will respond off-list to it. I will=20
respond on-list to your second comment:

>Another example is how references in the text to=20
>the =ECQueen of Heaven=EE (mele'kheth ha-shamayim,=20
>or maybe even malkat ha-shamayim) were corrupted=20
>by the punctuation to =ECthe host of heaven=EE=20
>(melekheth ha-shamayim). (Jeremiah 7:18;=20
>44:17-19,25)

HH: My lexicons say that the form in the text of=20
BHS, MeLeKeT, is an unusual form meaning queen,=20
not host. You must be speaking of the variant=20
forms. I am not even sure that ML)KT means=20
"host." You yourself seem to be saying that ML)KT=20
means "queen.": "=ECQueen of Heaven=EE (mele'kheth=20
ha-shamayim)." The LXX here has STRATIA, which=20
means "host." I don't know how the LXX derived=20
STRATIA, but it may be that they took the variant=20
ML)KT to represent MeLa)KaH, meaning workmanship=20
or property, from L)K, and translated it loosely=20
as "host."

                                Yours,
                                Harold Holmyard