Isaiah 1-39 uses the unique term ??????-usually translated as "idols"- more than anywhere else in the Hebrew Bible. Using this linguistic phenomenon as a point of departure, Matthew J. Lynch reexamines the rhetorical strategies of First Isaiah, revealing a stronger monotheizing rhetoric than previously recognized.
Standard accounts of Israelite religion frequently insist that monotheism reached its apex during the exile, and especially in Deutero-Isaiah. By contrast, Lynch's study brings to light an equally potent mode of monotheizing in First Isaiah. Lynch identifies three related rhetorical tendencies that emphasize yhwh's supreme uniqueness: a rhetoric of avoidance, referring to other deities as idols (??????) to avoid conferring on them the status of gods (??????); a rhetoric of exaltation, emphasizing yhwh's truly exalted status in opposition to all that which exalted itself; and a rhetoric of abasement, fully subjugating all other claimants to absolute power-whether human or divine-before the divine king.
Succinctly and persuasively argued, Lynch's book will change how biblical scholars understand the nature and development of Israelite monotheism.
| ISBN: | 9781575068398 |
| Publication date: | 5th May 2021 |
| Author: | Matthew Lynch |
| Publisher: | Eisenbrauns an imprint of Penn State University Press |
| Format: | Paperback |
| Pagination: | 144 pages |
| Series: | Critical Studies in the Hebrew Bible |
| Genres: |
Criticism and exegesis of sacred texts |