Biblical Theology Bulletin: A Journal of Bible and Theology, 1998
The current article examines the use of horticultural metaphor in detailing lust between the two ... more The current article examines the use of horticultural metaphor in detailing lust between the two lovers in the Song of Songs. It suggests that the metaphor's vehicle, that is, the image used, has to be grasped before the possibilities of its tenor, i.e., what that image can represent, become apparent. Once the metaphor's vehicle is properly understood, its aptness for
The article explores the presence of animals' silent voices in Wisdom literature. It draws on rec... more The article explores the presence of animals' silent voices in Wisdom literature. It draws on recent ecological exegesis to "un-mute" the creaturely wisdom surrounding Job and post-exilic Israel. It argues that human speech about God in Job gives way to biophilic attainment to the world.
evaluates Walter Brueggemann’s treatment of Wisdom literature as dispute testimony, and argues th... more evaluates Walter Brueggemann’s treatment of Wisdom literature as dispute testimony, and argues that this category is particularly useful for biblical theology in a postmodern context. The paper first engages Brueggemann’s treatment of the “hiddenness of YHWH” and contrasts it with earlier, Christian treatments in the theologies of Gerhard von Rad and Brevard Childs, and the contemporary Jewish theology of Michael Fishbane. Second, it demonstrates how dispute testimony provides a site for confronting atheisms old and new, and suggests that ruptures in understanding the divine, while frightening, also pose a unique opportunity for a fragile opening into a mystical sense of God in the Wisdom literature. Third, it argues that biblical countertestimony as understood by Brueggemann supports textual uncertainty as a postmodern exegetical opportunity inclusive of both Jewish and Christian interpreters.
Divine presence in Exodus is vigorous, decisive, and variable. The Burning Bush, the ten plagues,... more Divine presence in Exodus is vigorous, decisive, and variable. The Burning Bush, the ten plagues, the parting of the Sea, and the covenant atop Mt. Sinai all portray providence as interventionist in nature. Yet, after the Sinai theophany, divine potency downshifts and becomes manifest as “a pillar of cloud and of fire” and a cloud surrounding the desert sanctuary. This shift in theophany toward ephemeral imagery signals, not an attenuation of divine power, but the increased role of the people in discerning divine presence via the cult. The present essay first examines the relationship between the Sinai theophany (19–20) as a potential source of the cloud and fire elements for the pillar. Then, it discusses the imagery of a pillar of cloud as a new form of theophany that links divine guidance to constituting Israel in the desert journey via instruction and the cult. A final section argues that the pillar of cloud image served at least a dual agenda for the priestly redactors: one theological, built on divine ineffability within Israel’s aniconic tradition; and one prescriptive, for participation in worship.
Biblical Theology Bulletin: A Journal of Bible and Theology, 1998
The current article examines the use of horticultural metaphor in detailing lust between the two ... more The current article examines the use of horticultural metaphor in detailing lust between the two lovers in the Song of Songs. It suggests that the metaphor's vehicle, that is, the image used, has to be grasped before the possibilities of its tenor, i.e., what that image can represent, become apparent. Once the metaphor's vehicle is properly understood, its aptness for
The article explores the presence of animals' silent voices in Wisdom literature. It draws on rec... more The article explores the presence of animals' silent voices in Wisdom literature. It draws on recent ecological exegesis to "un-mute" the creaturely wisdom surrounding Job and post-exilic Israel. It argues that human speech about God in Job gives way to biophilic attainment to the world.
evaluates Walter Brueggemann’s treatment of Wisdom literature as dispute testimony, and argues th... more evaluates Walter Brueggemann’s treatment of Wisdom literature as dispute testimony, and argues that this category is particularly useful for biblical theology in a postmodern context. The paper first engages Brueggemann’s treatment of the “hiddenness of YHWH” and contrasts it with earlier, Christian treatments in the theologies of Gerhard von Rad and Brevard Childs, and the contemporary Jewish theology of Michael Fishbane. Second, it demonstrates how dispute testimony provides a site for confronting atheisms old and new, and suggests that ruptures in understanding the divine, while frightening, also pose a unique opportunity for a fragile opening into a mystical sense of God in the Wisdom literature. Third, it argues that biblical countertestimony as understood by Brueggemann supports textual uncertainty as a postmodern exegetical opportunity inclusive of both Jewish and Christian interpreters.
Divine presence in Exodus is vigorous, decisive, and variable. The Burning Bush, the ten plagues,... more Divine presence in Exodus is vigorous, decisive, and variable. The Burning Bush, the ten plagues, the parting of the Sea, and the covenant atop Mt. Sinai all portray providence as interventionist in nature. Yet, after the Sinai theophany, divine potency downshifts and becomes manifest as “a pillar of cloud and of fire” and a cloud surrounding the desert sanctuary. This shift in theophany toward ephemeral imagery signals, not an attenuation of divine power, but the increased role of the people in discerning divine presence via the cult. The present essay first examines the relationship between the Sinai theophany (19–20) as a potential source of the cloud and fire elements for the pillar. Then, it discusses the imagery of a pillar of cloud as a new form of theophany that links divine guidance to constituting Israel in the desert journey via instruction and the cult. A final section argues that the pillar of cloud image served at least a dual agenda for the priestly redactors: one theological, built on divine ineffability within Israel’s aniconic tradition; and one prescriptive, for participation in worship.
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of the Sea, and the covenant atop Mt. Sinai all portray providence as interventionist in nature. Yet, after the Sinai
theophany, divine potency downshifts and becomes manifest as “a pillar of cloud and of fire” and a cloud surrounding
the desert sanctuary. This shift in theophany toward ephemeral imagery signals, not an attenuation of divine
power, but the increased role of the people in discerning divine presence via the cult. The present essay first examines
the relationship between the Sinai theophany (19–20) as a potential source of the cloud and fire elements for
the pillar. Then, it discusses the imagery of a pillar of cloud as a new form of theophany that links divine guidance
to constituting Israel in the desert journey via instruction and the cult. A final section argues that the pillar of cloud
image served at least a dual agenda for the priestly redactors: one theological, built on divine ineffability within
Israel’s aniconic tradition; and one prescriptive, for participation in worship.
of the Sea, and the covenant atop Mt. Sinai all portray providence as interventionist in nature. Yet, after the Sinai
theophany, divine potency downshifts and becomes manifest as “a pillar of cloud and of fire” and a cloud surrounding
the desert sanctuary. This shift in theophany toward ephemeral imagery signals, not an attenuation of divine
power, but the increased role of the people in discerning divine presence via the cult. The present essay first examines
the relationship between the Sinai theophany (19–20) as a potential source of the cloud and fire elements for
the pillar. Then, it discusses the imagery of a pillar of cloud as a new form of theophany that links divine guidance
to constituting Israel in the desert journey via instruction and the cult. A final section argues that the pillar of cloud
image served at least a dual agenda for the priestly redactors: one theological, built on divine ineffability within
Israel’s aniconic tradition; and one prescriptive, for participation in worship.