Aunque los contemplativos valoran la experiencia de silencio que conduce a un encuentro con la di... more Aunque los contemplativos valoran la experiencia de silencio que conduce a un encuentro con la divinidad, raras veces se habla del opuesto: el silencio de Dios que conduce a un encuentro con la humanidad. Este artículo examina el ejemplo de un silencio divino positivo que posibilita tanto el encuentro como la comunicación con un ser humano. Sin embargo, primero hay que resolver una dificultad de traducción, y dar una explicación sobre por qué la tradicional "brisa suave" o "voz tenue" de la teofanía de Elías en 1 Reyes 19 es de hecho un "sonido de silencio", y cómo se podría entender el significado de este silencio divino. El artículo, entonces, desafía tanto la traducción convencional de un pasaje popular (1 R 19,12) como nuestro concepto teológico de lo que significa para Dios-y para nosotros-callar. PALABRAS CLAVES: Silencio. Teofanía. Traducciones bíblicas. La escucha. Elías.
ABSTRACT: Although contemplatives value the experience of silence that leads to an encounter with the divine, rarely are the tables turned, with God’s silence described as leading to an encounter with humanity. This article examines one example of a positive divine silence that enables both encounter and communication with a human being. First, however, a thorny translation issue must be dealt with, and an explanation given for why the traditional “soft breeze” or “small voice” of Elijah’s theophany in 1 Kings 19 is actually a “sound of silence”, and how we might understand the significance of this divine silence. The article thus challenges both the conventional translation of a popular passage (1 Kings 19:12) and our theological conceptions of what it means for God – and for us – to be silent. KEYWORDS: Silence. Theophany. Biblical Translations. Listening. Elijah.
The image of the silence of God is frequently understood negatively, as absence or abandonment. D... more The image of the silence of God is frequently understood negatively, as absence or abandonment. Divine silence in Old Testament texts, however, has many distinct nuances and can represent merciful presence rather than cruel absence. This article examines the divine silence in Zephaniah 3,17, which demonstrates the positive interpretation of silence as divine mercy. In order to understand this image, we must first turn to a semantic study of the Hebrew verb that expresses silence in this verse: yaḥărîš.
In this article I present my findings from work done with the medieval and later dictionaries sto... more In this article I present my findings from work done with the medieval and later dictionaries stored in the Oxford Bodleian and Christ Church libraries. In brief, I discovered that the given dictionary meaning of a certain word changed with the introduction of Arabic and other Semitic languages into dictionaries of biblical Hebrew.
Although the contents of the 7th-century BCE letter found on ostraca fragments at Meṣad Ḥashavyah... more Although the contents of the 7th-century BCE letter found on ostraca fragments at Meṣad Ḥashavyahu are relatively well understood, the proposed interpretation of one word has been too quickly accepted and should be challenged. This is the interpretation of ,תדהם in line 14, as a form of ,דום which is said to mean 'be silent'. The association with דום is not a foregone conclusion, however, and a survey of the biblical corpus demonstrates that a connection between II-ה and II-ו roots is exceptional rather than the norm. Furthermore, the existence of the root דום is itself uncertain, and the claim that it means 'be silent' is questionable rather than established. Finally, the only biblical use of the root ,דהם in Jeremiah 14:9, seems to have similar connotations and should be used to help interpret דהם in the letter.
1 Samuel 7:8 records a request made by the people of Israel to Samuel, asking him to pray to God ... more 1 Samuel 7:8 records a request made by the people of Israel to Samuel, asking him to pray to God for them. Although the aim of their request is made clear from the context, some aspects of the Hebrew syntax and word meanings do not easily fit the contextu-ally understood meaning and are therefore often disregarded in the process of translation. The Hiphil verb ,חרשׁ for example, which normally means 'be silent' , is often translated as 'cease' and sometimes as 'be deaf'. In addition, the preposition ,מן 'from' , is often translated as 'for' and is understood to indicate the beneficiary of the verb it precedes rather than function as the prepositional object of the verb it follows, as would be expected. I suggest that a very simple adjustment to the interpretation of this preposition may allow for a more straightforward reading and translation of the verse.
This book is a semantic study of words used in biblical Hebrew to refer to being silent. I examin... more This book is a semantic study of words used in biblical Hebrew to refer to being silent. I examine words from 7 roots and how they are used in biblical texts, Dead Sea Scrolls, and Ben Sira, as well as how they are interpreted by the early versions, modern translations, and standard dictionaries. The result is that there is no single concept of silence in the biblical world that maps onto our own; rather, it spans multiple semantic fields.
Aunque los contemplativos valoran la experiencia de silencio que conduce a un encuentro con la di... more Aunque los contemplativos valoran la experiencia de silencio que conduce a un encuentro con la divinidad, raras veces se habla del opuesto: el silencio de Dios que conduce a un encuentro con la humanidad. Este artículo examina el ejemplo de un silencio divino positivo que posibilita tanto el encuentro como la comunicación con un ser humano. Sin embargo, primero hay que resolver una dificultad de traducción, y dar una explicación sobre por qué la tradicional "brisa suave" o "voz tenue" de la teofanía de Elías en 1 Reyes 19 es de hecho un "sonido de silencio", y cómo se podría entender el significado de este silencio divino. El artículo, entonces, desafía tanto la traducción convencional de un pasaje popular (1 R 19,12) como nuestro concepto teológico de lo que significa para Dios-y para nosotros-callar. PALABRAS CLAVES: Silencio. Teofanía. Traducciones bíblicas. La escucha. Elías.
ABSTRACT: Although contemplatives value the experience of silence that leads to an encounter with the divine, rarely are the tables turned, with God’s silence described as leading to an encounter with humanity. This article examines one example of a positive divine silence that enables both encounter and communication with a human being. First, however, a thorny translation issue must be dealt with, and an explanation given for why the traditional “soft breeze” or “small voice” of Elijah’s theophany in 1 Kings 19 is actually a “sound of silence”, and how we might understand the significance of this divine silence. The article thus challenges both the conventional translation of a popular passage (1 Kings 19:12) and our theological conceptions of what it means for God – and for us – to be silent. KEYWORDS: Silence. Theophany. Biblical Translations. Listening. Elijah.
The image of the silence of God is frequently understood negatively, as absence or abandonment. D... more The image of the silence of God is frequently understood negatively, as absence or abandonment. Divine silence in Old Testament texts, however, has many distinct nuances and can represent merciful presence rather than cruel absence. This article examines the divine silence in Zephaniah 3,17, which demonstrates the positive interpretation of silence as divine mercy. In order to understand this image, we must first turn to a semantic study of the Hebrew verb that expresses silence in this verse: yaḥărîš.
In this article I present my findings from work done with the medieval and later dictionaries sto... more In this article I present my findings from work done with the medieval and later dictionaries stored in the Oxford Bodleian and Christ Church libraries. In brief, I discovered that the given dictionary meaning of a certain word changed with the introduction of Arabic and other Semitic languages into dictionaries of biblical Hebrew.
Although the contents of the 7th-century BCE letter found on ostraca fragments at Meṣad Ḥashavyah... more Although the contents of the 7th-century BCE letter found on ostraca fragments at Meṣad Ḥashavyahu are relatively well understood, the proposed interpretation of one word has been too quickly accepted and should be challenged. This is the interpretation of ,תדהם in line 14, as a form of ,דום which is said to mean 'be silent'. The association with דום is not a foregone conclusion, however, and a survey of the biblical corpus demonstrates that a connection between II-ה and II-ו roots is exceptional rather than the norm. Furthermore, the existence of the root דום is itself uncertain, and the claim that it means 'be silent' is questionable rather than established. Finally, the only biblical use of the root ,דהם in Jeremiah 14:9, seems to have similar connotations and should be used to help interpret דהם in the letter.
1 Samuel 7:8 records a request made by the people of Israel to Samuel, asking him to pray to God ... more 1 Samuel 7:8 records a request made by the people of Israel to Samuel, asking him to pray to God for them. Although the aim of their request is made clear from the context, some aspects of the Hebrew syntax and word meanings do not easily fit the contextu-ally understood meaning and are therefore often disregarded in the process of translation. The Hiphil verb ,חרשׁ for example, which normally means 'be silent' , is often translated as 'cease' and sometimes as 'be deaf'. In addition, the preposition ,מן 'from' , is often translated as 'for' and is understood to indicate the beneficiary of the verb it precedes rather than function as the prepositional object of the verb it follows, as would be expected. I suggest that a very simple adjustment to the interpretation of this preposition may allow for a more straightforward reading and translation of the verse.
This book is a semantic study of words used in biblical Hebrew to refer to being silent. I examin... more This book is a semantic study of words used in biblical Hebrew to refer to being silent. I examine words from 7 roots and how they are used in biblical texts, Dead Sea Scrolls, and Ben Sira, as well as how they are interpreted by the early versions, modern translations, and standard dictionaries. The result is that there is no single concept of silence in the biblical world that maps onto our own; rather, it spans multiple semantic fields.
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Papers by Sonja Noll
PALABRAS CLAVES: Silencio. Teofanía. Traducciones bíblicas. La escucha. Elías.
ABSTRACT: Although contemplatives value the experience of silence that leads to an encounter with the divine, rarely are the tables turned, with God’s silence described as leading to an encounter with humanity. This article examines one example of a positive divine silence that enables both encounter and communication with a human being. First, however, a thorny translation issue must be dealt with, and an explanation given for why the traditional “soft breeze” or “small voice” of Elijah’s theophany in 1 Kings 19 is actually a “sound of silence”, and how we might understand the significance of this divine silence. The article thus challenges both the conventional translation of a popular passage (1 Kings 19:12) and our theological conceptions of what it means for God – and for us – to be silent.
KEYWORDS: Silence. Theophany. Biblical Translations. Listening. Elijah.
Conference Presentations by Sonja Noll
Books by Sonja Noll
PALABRAS CLAVES: Silencio. Teofanía. Traducciones bíblicas. La escucha. Elías.
ABSTRACT: Although contemplatives value the experience of silence that leads to an encounter with the divine, rarely are the tables turned, with God’s silence described as leading to an encounter with humanity. This article examines one example of a positive divine silence that enables both encounter and communication with a human being. First, however, a thorny translation issue must be dealt with, and an explanation given for why the traditional “soft breeze” or “small voice” of Elijah’s theophany in 1 Kings 19 is actually a “sound of silence”, and how we might understand the significance of this divine silence. The article thus challenges both the conventional translation of a popular passage (1 Kings 19:12) and our theological conceptions of what it means for God – and for us – to be silent.
KEYWORDS: Silence. Theophany. Biblical Translations. Listening. Elijah.