3.1 Names of God in the O.T.

1
3.1 Names of God in the O.T.

• BIB566 OTTheology

2
3.1.0.1 The Significance of Names in the Biblical
World

• 1. Name and Reality Gen 2.19 Enuma Elish and
  the before of things named.
• 2. Name and Personality 1 Sam 25.25 (Nabal) Gen
  27.36 (Jacob) I know you by name (Ex 33.17)
  Ps 30.27 20.1.
• 3. Name and Presence Ex 20.24, Deut 4.7 (Where
  God's name is proclaim, God is said to be
  present.)?
• 4. Pronouncing Names as a Legal Act Psa
  49.1112 Isa 4.1 Jer 15.16 I Kgs 8.43 Amos
  9.12

3
3.1.0.1 The Significance of Names in the Biblical
World

• ". . . it is a common-place of Hebrew thought
  that a name may say something about the character
  of its bearer. It is therefore inherently likely
  that the use of the name of God was, at least
  sometimes, a significant theological issue for
  the writers of the Pentateuch. It is also
  unsurprising that a study of the name of God,
  together with various other designations and
  titles, has been much used down the centuries by
  Jew and Christians alike as a traditional method
  of considering theological questions about the
  character and nature of God." Moberly

4
3.1.0.1 Names not Enough?

• ". . . the biblical God is rendered as a
  character and his acts are represented as part of
  a dramatic setting which enlists the reader's
  participation." Patrick
• "In spite of a certain reluctance to engage him
  as such, God is, I assert, the most compelling
  character in the book. . . . I propose a reading
  in which we center our attention on the character
  God as he emerges from our engagement with the
  text of Genesis. . . . we do not engage him as
  someone in our world other than as we construct
  him from what we find in the story-world of the
  narrative" Humphreys

5
3.1.0.2 Exodus 6.2-3 3.14-15

• A I am Yahweh.
• B And I made myself known to Abraham, to Isaac,
  and to Jacob as El Shaddai.
• A' And my name is Yahweh.
• B' Did I not make myself known to them?
• "I am the God of your fathers, God of Abraham,
  God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob."

6
3.1.0.2 Exodus 6.2-3 3.14-15

• "First, as in Exod 3.13-15, a distinction is made
  between what God says to Moses and what Moses is
  to say to the people of Israel." Moberly
• "Second, the thrust of God's reassurance to Moses
  is to give him reasons for the past to trust in
  God in the present. . . . the cumulative effect
  of God's appeal to what God has done in the past,
  that is, the continuity of the making and
  remembering of the covenant (64-5) with the
  divine self-revelation as El Shaddai (63a)."
  Moberly

7
3.1.0.2 Joshua 2414

• Now therefore, fear Yahweh and serve Him in
  integrity and truth. Put away the gods which your
  fathers served beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt
  and serve Yahweh.
• "Taken together these passages do suggest that a
  genuinely new name of God, Yahweh, was vouchsafed
  to Moses. And this is the way the ancient
  translators took it." Wenham

8
Preliminary Observation

• 1. "In the patriarchal narratives a number of
  names of persons and places are mentioned that
  have long attracted scholarly interest Abram,
  Sarai, Jacob, Laban, Serug, Nahor, and Terah . .
  . ." Mettinger

9
Preliminary Observation

• 2. "...the matter of the ethnic origins of the
  patriarchs. There is a well-established tradition
  that associates the patriarchs with the Arameans
  and that also manifests itself in the texts about
  Jacob, since he is said to be related to the
  Arameans through his mother, Rebecca. Rebecca was
  the daughter of the Aramean Bethuel and the
  sister of Laban, likewise referred to as Aramean
  (cf. Gen 25.20 28.5 31.20, 24). A text from the
  D-literature records that a wandering Aramean
  was my father and he went down into Egypt (Deut
  26.5)." Mettinger

10
Preliminary Observation

• 3. Although Jerusalem and Zion played a major
  role in the cult during the monarchy there is no
  evidence of either in these pre-monarchical
  period texts. There is also no major evidence in
  this literature that points to the later conflict
  with the worship of the Canaanite Baal and
  depicted in the monarchical period.

11
Wenham's Chart
12
Wenham's Chart

• "According to Genesis God revealed himself to the
  patriarchs under various different names, and the
  patriarchs used a variety of divine epithets in
  their prayers. Abraham knew of Yahweh, Elohim, El
  Elyon, El Shaddai, El Roi, and El Olam. Isaac
  knew of Yahweh, Elohim and El Shaddai. Jacob knew
  of Yahweh, Elohim, El Bethel, Padah Yishaq (Fear
  or relative of Isaac and El Shaddai." Wenham

13
Wenham's Chart

• "First, in all three cycles El Shaddai only
  occurs in the dialogue, never in the narrative
  framework of the stories. This suggests that at
  least this term is an early element in the
  tradition."
• "Secondly, in the Joseph cycle Yahweh is used
  only in the narrative framework, never in the
  speeches within the story. There, El Shaddai or
  Elohim is consistently used. . . ."
• "Thirdly, and this apparently contradicts the
  second point, in the Abraham cycles Yahweh and
  Elohim are found both in the narrative framework
  and in the dialogue. . . ."

14
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 1. The God of my father Gen 31.5, 42 Ex 15.2
  18.4
• 2. The God of your(2ms) father Gen 46.3
  49.25 50.17 Ex 3.6
• 3. The God of your(2mp) father" Gen 31.29
  43.23
• 4. The God of their father Gen 31.53
• 5. The God of your fathers Ex 3.13, 15, 16
• 6. The God of their fathers Ex 4.5
• 7. The God of Abraham Gen 24.12, 27, 42, 48
  26.24 28.13 31.53
• 8. The God of Isaac Gen 46.1

15
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 9. The God of Abraham, your father, and the God
  of Isaac Gen 28.13
• 10. The God of my father Abraham and the God of
  my father Isaac Gen 32.910
• 11. The God of your father(s), and God of
  Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob Ex 3.6, 15, 16 4.5

16
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• Albrecht Alt, Gott der Vater gt The God of the
  Fathers, Essays on Old Testament History and
  Religion
• 1. Nameless First, he noted that the type of
  divine designation itself is strange. It seems as
  if we have a nameless god, a god who had no
  proper name as such. This god is instead referred
  to in terms that speak of a connection to a given
  individual my father's God, Abrahams God,
  and so forth. . . . The emphasis of the name is
  one the connection between this deity and some
  individual mortal, whom Alt assumed was the head
  of the family or tribal group." Mettinger

17
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• Later scholars like Lewy and F. M. Cross have
  argued that the patriarchal gods were not really
  anonymous.
• "Cross maintains that the patriarchs worshipped
  the high god of Canaan, namely El. In other words
  the passages which call the God of the
  patriarchs, El Shaddai, El Elyon, El Olam, etc.,
  are not secondary later elements . . . . Phrases
  like 'the God of Abraham' . . . to bring out the
  special relationship that existed between the
  Abraham and his God, El Shaddai." Wenham

18
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 2. Siteless Second, unlike so many deities, the
  God of the fathers is not bound to the locality
  where his temple is situated. . . . he is also,
  in a manner of speaking, siteless - not bound
  to any given locality. . . . If this presumption
  is correct, then we would have in the God the
  fathers an example of interplay between way of
  life and understanding of God. . . . The
  patriarchal way of life was characterized by the
  nomadic lifestyle for the nomads it was a
  feature of their existence that God was not
  confined to any particular geographic location.
  Their god was a god who went with his own.
  Mettinger

19
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• Characteristic Features of the God of the
  Patriarchs
• 1. Preliminary Observations
•   1.1 The non-cultic character is predominant.
  Therefore sacred places are not too important.
•   1.2 Focus is on the peaceful presence of God
  in contrast to the Divine Warrior image of the
  Exodus, Conquest and Monarchical period.
• 1.3 The divine promises that are given to the
  patriarchs are unconditional in nature.
•   1.4 There is a general lack of interest on the
  subject of sin. The connection between sin and
  guilt/punishment is almost wholly absent.

20
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 2. The Personal God
•  2.1 Ortsgebundenkeit (local connections of
  ancient religions)
•   2.1.1The gods of the ancient Near East were,
  to a large extent, associated with particular
  places and temples. Marduk was worshiped in
  Babylon and Sin, in Haran. Mettinger
•   2.1.2 Early Israelite fears reflected in Ex
  17.7 may indicate that they carried this same
  baggage. Even Moses needs to be assured in this
  light (Ex 33.14-15).

21
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 2.2 Personal Names with theophoric elements
• 2.2.1 ????, father ?????, brother ???,
  uncle
• 2.2.2 A-ram gt Jeho-ram Abi-melech gt Eli-melech
  Abi-ezer gt Eli-ezer
• 2.2.3 Tigay Fowler have argued that from the
  time of David YHWH is used in theophoric names in
  non-biblical artifacts, but De Moor has argued
  that the pre-Davidic biblical material tends to
  focus on El.
• 2.2.4 See also Mark S. Smith who cautions on the
  use of theophanic name evidence.

22
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 2.3 Special Designations of the God of the
  fathers
• 2.3.1 The Mighty One of Jacob ryba bqy Gen
  49.24 Isa 49.26 60.16 Ps 132.2, 5 and in Isa
  1.24 the ryba of Israel
• 2.3.2 The Fear of Isaac dxp bqy Gen 31.42, 53
  Note The name means approximately the fear of
  Isaac, although this is hardly a fear
  experienced by Isaac, but rather a panic sent out
  by the God of the fathers to strike Isaac's
  enemies. The God of the fathers protects Isaac
  and his group.

23
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 2.3.3 These names, Jacobs ryba and Isaacs
  dxp have one major feature in common they speak
  of God in terms of a personal association with
  the chief of the tribal group he is a god who
  protects the group of his faithful." Mettinger

24
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 3. The Guarantor of the Promise
• 3.1 Recent scholarly discussions
•  3.1.1 Some prefer to, regard the promise texts
  as literary compositions the intention of which
  is to link disparate tradition complexes
  together. It has of course been observed that the
  promise of a great and numerous people arches all
  the way from Gen 12.1-2 to 46.3-4, connecting all
  that falls within its compass. Mettinger n.b.
  Westermann Rendtorff
•  

25
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

•  3.1.2 Alt and Westermann argue that, it cannot
  be proved that the promise texts are an original
  element in the oldest tradition, but the promises
  deal with matters that would have been both
  appropriate and fitting for nomads of the
  patriarchal type. Mettinger

26
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 3.2 The Promise of Progeny (Son Gen 15.2-4
  16.11 17.15, 16, 19, 21 18.10, 14 21.1-2)?
• 3.2.1 In Gen 18 it is the core of the text.
• 3.2.2 The narrative of the promise of a son to
  Abraham and Sarah belongs to the substance of the
  Abraham stories which began by saying that Sarah
  was childless (11.30). Abraham saw a future only
  in the continuation of the family in a son....
  Westermann, Genesis 12-36, 282

27
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 3.2.3 In Gen 12-50 the promise of a son is
  confined to the Abraham stories, where it
  dominates accounts. Westermann, Promise to the
  Patriarchs, IDBSup
• 3.2.4 In short, the promise is immediately
  relevant, and its fulfillment does not lie in the
  distant future. This supports the conclusion of
  the historical nature of the promise of a son.
  Mettinger

28
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 3.3 The Promise of the Land (12.1-3 13.14-17
  15.7-21)?
• 3.3.1 Gen 15.7-21 In this passage Abraham is
  depicted solely as the recipient of the pact God
  solemnly pronounces his promise concerning the
  land, and the promise is accorded special
  emphasis via the ancient rite. Moreover, this
  rite states that God is willing to jeopardize his
  own existence in the event he should fail to keep
  his promise. With paradoxical sharpness the
  narrative describes God as the guarantor of his
  promise. Mettinger 

29
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 3.3.2The promise that Jacob would gain
  possession of the land is seen as a renewal of
  the promise to Abraham (Gen 26.3, 4 28.4 35.12
  50.24). Westermann, Promises to the
  Patriarchs, IDBSup
•  3.3.3 In twenty-one passages in Deuteronomy the
  promise of the land is formulated as an oath and
  has the function of legitimizing the occupation
  of the land by the tribes. Westermann,
  Promises to the Patriarchs, IDBSup

30
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 3.4 The Promise of God's Presence (Gen 26.3, 24
  28.15 20 31.3 46.3 48.15, 21 50.24)?
•  3.4.1 This promise is found only in chaps 26-50
  (sic). In 26.3, 24 it is made to Isaac, and
  elsewhere to Jacob. Just as the promise of a son
  is the dominant motif in chaps 12-25, this
  promise is dominant in chaps 26-50. Westermann,
  Promises to the Patriarchs, IDBSup
•  Note however that Mettinger states, it also
  occurs in the Abraham stories (Gen 21.22) . . .
  . Mettinger
•  

31
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 3.4.2 The Jacob cycle is set off by two nocturnal
  revelations in which the promise of God's
  presence I am with you, is central (Gen 28.15
  at Bethel en route from Beer-Sheba to Haran and
  Gen 46.3-4 at Beer-Sheba en route to Egypt)?
•  3.4.3 Deus absconditus
•  Gen 12.1 the land which I show you...
•  Gen 20.13 when God caused me to wander from my
  fathers house i.e., ?????? being H-stem
  therefore rendered when God led me astray.

32
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 4. The Source of Blessing
•  4.1 rb
•  4.1.1 ...the semantic field of the notion of
  blessing is comprehended in Hebrew by a number
  of words, all of which are derived from the
  Hebrew root b-r-k. In the patriarchal narratives
  these words occur no less than eighty-two times.
  Mettinger
•  4.1.2 The distinctive nature of the promise. An
  independent pronouncement of blessing has been
  preserved only in Gen 12.1-3. Here all the other
  promises are subordinated to that of blessing,
  while in all other passages the promise of
  blessing is made specific in, or is more fully
  developed by the promise of posterity.
  Westermann, Promises to the Patriarchs, IDBSup

33
3.1.1 The God of the Fathers

• 4.2 In the Jacob narrative the blessing serves
  as a leimotiv. Mettinger
• 4.2.1 Gen 27 the stolen blessing.
• 4.2.2 Gen 31 blessing manifested as a shepherd
  working for his father-in-law.
• 4.2.3 Gen 30.27 Laban to Jacob I have learned
  by divination that the Lord has blessed me
  because of you.
• 4.2.4 Gen 32.26 Jacob says, I will not let you
  go unless you bless me.
• 4.2.5 Gen 48 Jacob passes blessing to Josephs
  two sons. 

34
Wenham's Contrast with later Israelite Practices

• "First, there is the use of the term El instead
  of Yahweh in divine revelation. From Mosaic times
  onward Yahweh was the characteristic
  self-designation of God. But in Genesis God
  usually reveals himself as E. . . . The
  exclusiveness, holiness, and strictness of the
  God of Exodus is absent from Genesis."

35
Wenham's Contrast with later Israelite Practices

• "Secondly, the complete absence of Baal from the
  patriarchal tradition points to its antiquity. In
  the second half of the second millennium B.C.
  Baal took over from El as the leading god in the
  west Semitic pantheon, yet he is never mentioned
  in Genesis."
• "A third feature distinguishing patriarchal
  religion is its unmediatedness. God spoke to the
  patriarchs directly in visions and dreams, and
  not through prophets."
• "The final striking difference between the
  patriarchal period and the first-millennium scene
  is the non-mention of Jerusalem."