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Trusting YHWH. Lorne E. Weaver
Читать онлайн.Название Trusting YHWH
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isbn 9781498290449
Автор произведения Lorne E. Weaver
Жанр Религия: прочее
Издательство Ingram
James Muilenburg’s observation made a half century ago, still remains an accurate assessment of ancient Israel’s uniqueness: The way of Israel is historical. It is historical to a maximum degree because its history belongs to God. History is God’s gift to Israel and to the world.34 That יהוה will one day come to be recognized by all as the God of all the earth is attested in Psalm 83:18–Let them know that you alone, whose name is יהוה, are עליון (elyon) over all the earth.
. . . it is important to note the close association between the idea of Yahweh’s incomparability and the idea that not only Israel, but also the heathen had to acknowledge Yahweh as God . . . it cannot be denied that, at least to a certain extent, the concept shows trends of universalism . . . in connection with the idea of [His] incomparability it means that other peoples will recognize not only this, but also [His] uniqueness. Should universalism be seen as one of the requirements for pure monotheism, then this confession undoubtedly met this requirement, for right from the beginning it transcended national limitation in showing a universalistic trend.35
The identity and the universality of Israel’s God is firmly rooted in the prophets, particularly Isaiah: Only in יהוה it shall be said of me, are righteousness and strength; all who were incensed against him shall come to him and be ashamed. In יהוה all the offspring of Israel shall triumph and glory (Is 45:24, NRSV). The broad parameter of the use of the divine names is illustrated abundantly throughout the book of Praises. Israel’s very existence bears witness to the promises of the covenant which she entered into with יהוה. Israel’s conversation with יהוה is Israel’s gift to us. Here we witness the mighty deeds of יהוה, Israel’s words to God, and God’s words to Israel. This is, theologically speaking, a new horizon in Israel’s faith development. When meditating on the Psalter we too may step into the historic stream -this remarkable legacy of trusting יהוה in faith—whether in times of lamentation and desolation or times of celebration and praise. The unique and primary locus of these hymns of praise in the Hebrew Bible is found in the Psalter.
In the LXX the word psalm is derived from the Greek (ψαλμοῖς, psalmois) which in turn translates the Hebrew מזמור (mizmor, root meaning to pluck) and is the most common title. It is used in the superscriptions of 57 psalms.36 מזמור (mizmor) refers to a song accompanied by a stringed instrument.
The term Psalter is derived from the Latin, psalterium, or stringed instrument. Many of the psalms that have come down to us clearly denote musical accompaniment (lyre and harp, zither, trumpets, tambourines and drums) in a particular liturgical setting—but reaching anything like exact dates when these titles were first appropriated is only ill-advised speculation.
. . . there is the attempt to place various psalms on a continuum according to their theological perspective. The interpretation of the Old Testament has been plagued by this necessity to argue from the development of religious thought to history and from historical context to the date of the literature. For this reason, all judgments about the relative dates of biblical texts are hazardous. Naturally, this approach assumes that religious ideas progressed ever more in ancient Israel, and the purest teachings necessarily came later than others less refined. Of course, we know that societies do not evolve in this fashion and pockets of a culture invariably preserve older values.37
The LXX remains an immensely important translation and has served as an invaluable resource to all subsequent studies of the Hebrew Scriptures for more than two millennia. Since the LXX is a translation, scholars speculate as to what degree it accurately reflects the Hebrew text of the third-century BCE. On closer examination of both the LXX and the ninth-century CE Masoretic Text (MT) there do occur, understandably, some variations. Were these due to errors in translation, transcription, or are the LXX and MT based on two different Hebrew manuscripts? The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls has certainly helped shed light on some of these questions.
The inhabitants of Judea and Israel in the time of the monarchy were constantly tempted to forsake יהוה and to engage in the ancient cults of the neighboring nature deities. Israel’s God, by any name, is holy and awe-filled. But it was the constant allurement of the prolific nature deities of Canaan that remained a continuing enticement to Israel to abandon the worship of “יהוה alone.” The influence of Canaanite religion played a significant role in these developments. Our knowledge of the religions of Canaan has been much advanced by archaeological discoveries of documents and potsherds, especially from Ugarit (Ras Shamra) which date from the middle of the second millennium, ca.1420 BCE.
These Bronze Age religions had a powerful impact on the Iron Age Israelites, particularly during the time of the divided kingdom and they gained entry into Israel’s life especially under the program and policies of Jeroboam I, the first king of the northern kingdom (Israel). But it was later, under Ahaz and his Sidonian princess wife Jezebel, that a particularly noxious and virulent strain of Canaanite religion was introduced in the north and was practiced openly.38 This threatened the very future of Yahwism in both North and South. The early prophets of the north, Elijah and Elisha in the ninth century BCE, continually castigated the northern kings for their polytheism. The eighth-century BCE prophets railed against these cultural accretions, particularly Amos and Hosea in the north, beginning in the mid-eighth century. Somewhat later in the century, in the south, Micah–and still later on, Jeremiah in the late seventh and early sixth-centuries BCE continued to warn the southern kingdom of Judah of impending disaster.
The contrast and movement from polytheism and henotheism to monotheism run like a continuous thread through ancient Israel’s history.39 Israel never arrived at a pure monotheism easily. There is no evidence for this transition from henotheism to monotheism having occurred abruptly. Rather, it appears to have been a lengthy process that continued through much of pre-exilic Israel’s life.
The arrival of a belief in the form of a distinct monotheism as central to ancient Israel’s life, is thus postulated as having arrived in the post-exilic years. Psalm 82 is frequently cited as marking the moment that Israel adopted a thorough-going monotheism.
A comparison between Psalm 91:1, 2 and Psalm 18:1–3 and its hymnic praise to יהוה by heaping metaphor upon metaphor underscores the centrality of the “יהוה alone movement” as it may be tracked throughout the Psalter. It may be said that metaphorical monotheism characterizes much of the these psalms. But the worship of יהוה did not mean that Israel was immediately transformed into a monotheistic culture. This process would take centuries. The form and fact of henotheism weaves a pattern throughout Israel’s history and is the subject of the constant judgment of יהוה on the people of God. Israel’s God, יהוה, is a jealous God. Much of this language may be found throughout the Psalter.
Many scholars understand monotheism as a solely post-exilic phenomenon which began to flourish during the “Babylonian Captivity.” In exile, Israel–or Judah—was forced to come to terms with her recent debasement and central to this core belief was the recognition that יהוה was the One God of All, having chosen Israel’s’ oppressors as instruments of correction to call the people back to the true meaning of their life as the people of God. This radical movement took root during the seventy years the people were in exile. It was to be the harbinger of new life that infused the exiled community, upon their return, to begin to understand the universal meaning of their