Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-rcrh6 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-24T01:00:06.593Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

2 - The Primary Narrative (Genesis through 2 Kings)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 March 2020

By
Thomas L. Brodie
Edited by
Calum Carmichael
Calum Carmichael
Affiliation:
Cornell University, New York
Get access

Summary

Genesis-Kings stands amid three key approaches to the Bible: quest for symbolic/allegorical meaning (Philo to Middle Ages); quest for factual history (Luther to ca. 1970s and “the collapse of history”); quest for literary artistry/meaning (esp. since James Muilenburg, 1968). Gen-Kgs emerges as a narrative with historical components, and triple focus: (i) human origins, (ii) Israel and Judah, a narrative matching that of other nations, and (iii) primarily a narrative of the human heart. Following literary convention, explicit emphasis on the heart occurs at the beginning (hearts estranged, Gen 6:5-6; 8:21), middle (listen with total heart, Deuteronomy, esp. 6:4-6), and end (Josiah’s total heart, 2 Kgs 23:25). Biblical accounts present diverse human dimensions, whether, for instance, God-like (Gen 1) or made of clay (Gen 2). Both are necessary. Abraham is more God-like than Jacob; Elijah more than Elisha. The first five books (Gen-Deut) build up towards the need to choose. The other books (Josh-Kgs) show pairs of contrasting choices: Joshua/Judges; Samuel/Saul; David/Solomon; prophets/kings; Hezekiah/Manasseh; Josiah/other kings.

Keywords

Genesis-Kingshistory of interpretationfour-source theoryform criticismDeuteronomic historynarrativeheart as interpretive keyprophetsElijah-Elisha
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Companion to the Bible and Literature , pp. 26 - 47
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Further Reading

Finkelberg, Margalit and Stroumsa, Guy G., Homer, the Bible and Beyond: Literary and Religious Canons in the Ancient World (Leiden, 2003).CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goldhill, Simon, The Invention of Prose (Oxford, 2002).Google Scholar
Grabbe, Lester, ed., Did Moses Speak Attic? Jewish Historiography and Scripture in the Hellenistic Period (Sheffield, 2001).Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×