Biblical Hebrew Forum

[K Randolph <kwrandolph AT gmail.com>]

Jerry:

On Fri, Aug 24, 2012 at 4:15 PM, Jerry Shepherd <jshepherd53 AT gmail.com>wrote:

> Hi Karl,
>
> Two things:
>
> (1) I, as well as many others, do not treat Gen 1 as creation ex nihilo.  I
> believe that v. 1 is either a titular or summary statement for the entire
> chapter, that v. 2 is the background setting for the creation account, and
> that v. 3 is the first act of creation.  Alternatively, v. 1 could be seen
> as a dependent clause, and either v. 2 or v. 3 as the first main clause (as
> in NRSV and Tanakh).  In either case, I don't believe the chapter is giving
> an ex nihilo account.
>

There was a very ancient literary style in which the titular or summary
statement was at the end of a chapter or document, not the beginning. I’m
not the only one, but others, too, have noted that Genesis can be broken up
into several such chapters, with the summary “This is the bringing forth…”
as the closing statement. That makes the summary, titular verse of Genesis
1 to be Genesis 2:4.

Others have noted the same, which would make Moses more of an editor
and concatenater of several, older documents rather than the originator of
Genesis. But in choosing which documents, and where to divide them, he is
still the author.

>
> (2) With regard to Ecc 1:5, what I presented was not eisegetical at all,
> but simply a representation of the actual text:
>
> (a) the sun rises
> (b) the sun sets
> (c) and hurries (lit. "pants") to return to the place from where it will
> rise again
>

I question this translation.

Is שואף from שאף to sniff, smell, as an animal sniffs around and follows a
scent to what it wants, used metaphorically to refer to enemies “sniffing
around” to find reasons to destroy, and to hunt down their quarry?

I don’t think so. It doesn’t feel right.

>
> With regard to (c), how does it get back to this place without us seeing
> it?  By traveling under the earth during the night, as most of the ancients
> believed was the case.
>

That is what is eisegesis.

>
> Blessings,
>
> Jerry Shepherd
> Taylor Seminary
> Edmonton, Alberta
>
> jshepherd53 AT gmail.com
>
> Karl W. Randolph.