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  • From: Harold Holmyard <hholmyard AT ont.com>
  • To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] daughters jacob never spoke of
  • Date: Wed, 21 Jun 2006 14:33:04 -0500

Dear Shoshanna,

"coloring the truth" - my words, not Rashi's or Abraham's, I could have used different phrases but - I thought this was a list about semantics in Hebrew, not English.

The point being, that for whatever reasons Avraham thought he needed to "lie" (which is not the point of this discussion, but we can cite that, too...commentaries explain that in verse 2) - he did his best to remain as close to the truth as possible.



HH: You see, I have always been taught and find more credible, in terms of the narrative, that Sarah was Abraham's half-sister. This was before God prohibited marriages within families, and we know that Adam's children had to marry within the family. Here is part of an online article:
http://www.studylight.org/enc/isb/view.cgi?word=Sarah&search.x=28&search.y=14&search=Lookup&action=Lookup


The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia


SARAH; SARAI

sa'-ra, sa'-ri:

(skip)


We are introduced to Sarai in Genesis 11:29. She is here mentioned as the wife that Abraham "took," while still in Ur of the Chaldees, that is, while among his kindred. It is immediately added that "Sarai was barren; she had no child." By this simple remark in the overture of his narrative, the writer sounds the motif that is to be developed in all the sequel. When the migration to Haran occurs, Sarai is named along with Abram and Lot as accompanying Terah. It has been held that the author (or authors) of Genesis 11 knew nothing of the relationship announced in 20:12. But there can be no proof of such ignorance, even on the assumption of diversity of authorship in the two passages.

Sarai's career as described in Genesis 11 was not dependent on her being the daughter of Terah. Terah had other descendants who did not accompany him. Her movements were determined by her being Abram's wife. It appears, however, that she was a daughter of Terah by a different mother from the mother of Abram. The language of 20:12 would indeed admit of her being Abram's niece, but the fact that there was but 10 years' difference between his age and hers (Genesis 17:17) renders this hypothesis less probable. Marriage with half-sisters seems to have been not uncommon in antiquity (even in the Old Testament compare 2 Samuel 13:13).

This double relationship suggested to Abraham the expedient that he twice used when he lacked faith in God to protect his life and in cowardice sought his own safety at the price of his wife's honor.

Yours,
Harold Holmyard






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