Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Yigal Levin <leviny1 AT mail.biu.ac.il>]

From: <JimStinehart AT aol.com>
> Yitzhak  Sapir:
> I asked you a very simple question, and we  are all awaiting an answer. 
> For
> your convenience, I will repeat my question  verbatim:
> Please point out at least one  story in the Patriarchal narratives which, 
> in
> your view, reflects the 1st millennium BCE, and does  not reflect the
> mid-2nd millennium  BCE.
> Jim  Stinehart
> Evanston, Illinois

Dear Jim,

I'll give you two:

1. The story of the "treaty" between Jacob and Laban the Aramean at Gilead 
in Gen. 31, is an obvious reflection of the Israel-Aram frontier in the same 
area in the 9-8 centuries BCE.

2. The story of Joseph's imprisonment of Benjamin and the latter's "release" 
by Judah is a reflection of the struggle between the two kingdoms over the 
Benjamin territory in between them in the late 10 and early 9th centuries - 
see my "Joseph, Judah and the 'Benjamin Conundrum'", Zeitschrift für 
Alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 116 (2004), 223-241.

Yigal Levin