Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Harold Holmyard <hholmyard3 AT earthlink.net>]

John,
> Thanks for all the answers, gang.
>
> What about the use of BRK in 1 Kings 21:10.  Parkhurst and others have argued that it 
> means "bless" in this context, and that the blasphemy committed involved 
> blessing false gods (elohim) and Molech.  Does this interpretation have any merit?
>   

HH: As the text stands, with the Masoretic pointing, it is "blessed God 
and king." Since "blessed" is inappropriate, it is a scribal emendation 
for the same reason as in Job, to avoid the offensive idea of cursing 
God. Also, there is no mention of false gods in the context, so elohim 
should have its normal reference to the Lord. And since Molech is a 
false god, it would be redundant to say that Naboth blessed false gods 
and Molech. Since the critical apparatus offers nothing different for 
"king," the idea that the pointing should indicate Molech is based on 
speculation about a pre-Masoretic text.

Yours,
Harold Holmyard
>