To: "b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org" <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] ] A VISUAL EXPRESSION OF A THEOLOGICAL IDEA OF THESKY/HEAVEN ( Rolf's Response 4)
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2012 21:32:05 +0000
Sorry, Ted, but that's taking your own definition and expectation of what
should and shouldn't be classified as 'THE' beginning, and using that as the
measure; or it is assuming that the writer of Gen 1 had your definitions.
Either way, this is a backward method, I'm afraid. The question is what the
writer thought he/she was doing. This is not a theological question that
seeks to answer the question through what other biblical writers may have
expressed, but rather a literary question: what does the author of
specifically Gen 1 want to convey?
GEORGE ATHAS
Dean of Research,
Moore Theological College (moore.edu.au)
Sydney, Australia
Whether Gen 1 describes creation ex niliho depends on the vowel under the
initial bet in v.1. If we read BA it's ex niliho. If we read Be (shva) it's
not.