[pt] O presente estudo exegético trata da restauração de Judá-Jerusalém descrita em Jl 4,18-21. A partir de uma concepção unitária dos oráculos do yôm YHWH no livro de Joel, como um anúncio de juízo com duplo efeito, e da estrutura geral do livro como uma lamentação nacional (cf. Jl 1,1–2,18) seguida da resposta de YHWH (cf. Jl 2,19–4,21), compreende-se que a restauração de Judá-Jerusalém é o resultado previsto pelo juízo definitivo no yôm YHWH, consequência da presença salvífica de YHWH no templo e Sua resposta favorável à liturgia de lamentação suplicante realizada pela comunidade dos filhos de Judá. A unidade literária Jl 4,18-21 é apresentada como um oráculo salvífico com duplo anúncio. Nela, a restauração de Judá-Jerusalém é descrita como restauração escatológica da terra eleita e do povo eleito. Através de palavras chave , Jl 4,18-21 responde aos problemas retratados no livro: uma catástrofe agrícola (cf. Jl 1,2–2,27) e uma catástrofe política (cf. Jl 3,1–4,17). Além disso, sua estrutura formal reflete as duas etapas da resposta de YHWH a ambos os problemas: a restauração da terra (cf. Jl 2,18-27) e a restauração da nação (cf. Jl 3,1–4,17). Desse modo, pode-se compreender a densidade temática de Jl 4,18-21 e sua função conclusiva, retomando, sintetizando e finalizando as principais linhas temáticas do livro, e levando ao ponto mais alto a argumentação desenvolvida no livro inteiro. / [en] The following exegetical study presents the restoration of Judah and Jerusalem described in the passage Joel 4,18-21. Through a unitary conception from yôm YHWH s oracles on Joel s book, as a double effected judgment announcement, as well the general structure of the book as a national lament (cf. Joel 1,1–2,18) followed by the YHWH s answer (cf. Joel 2,19–4,21), it can be inferred that the restoration of Judah and Jerusalem is the expected result by the decisive judgment in yôm YHWH and consequence of the saviour presence of YHWH in the temple and his favourable reply to the Liturgy of Lament made by the community of the Judah sons. The literary unity Joel 4,18-21 is presented as a saviour oracle by the dual announcement: it describes the restoration of Judah and Jerusalem as an eschatological restoration of selected land and people. The passage Joel 4,18-21 answers the issues described on Joel s book through keywords: such as an agricultural disaster (cf. Joel 1,2–2,27) and a political failure (cf. Joel 3,1–4,17). Moreover, the formal structure of the passage reflects the two stages of YHWH s answer to both problems: the land s restoration (cf. Joel 2,18-27) and the people s restoration (cf. Joel 3,1–4,17). Thereby, it can be understood the diversity and complexity of themes in the passage Joel 4,18-21 and its conclusive function as it resumes, synthesizes and finalizes the main themes of Joel s book, furthermore, it raises the argumentation developed on the whole book.

Despite its chequered interpretational history, the book of Shîr ha-Shîrîm (Song of Songs) in the Hebrew Bible and Christian Old Testament has still not come to its fullest religious potential. The reason is that it has mainly served relatively closed religious traditions defined by the exclusion of those that have reacted against it. As the text of Song of Songs itself does not explicitly testify to any religiosity, these communities have understood it religiously by projecting their own predetermined needs and beliefs onto it. The text does, however, suggest several layers in the history of its formation, representing different levels of consciousness and stages of religiosity. In the postmodern globalising context where the importance of interfaith understanding is increasingly realised and the nature of human religiosity is constantly redefined in terms of ever-broadening horizons, the religiosity of the book has been stretched as wide as possible by also taking into consideration the ancient contextual influences which could have left their traces on the unconscious mind of its author(s) and redactor(s). To this end, the transpersonal psychological theory of Kenneth Wilber as interpreted by Michael Washburn has been used. Wilber’s inclusive view of religiosity respects all its forms as developmentally appropriate expressions of experiences of the divine which should all be taken seriously. The explicit “absence” of the divine in Song of Songs has been so conspicuous that it has ironically made it more present and led to a greater search for the Ineffable whose whispering and footprints are discernible in relation to the level of consciousness. Exploring the religiosity of Song of Songs in this way then becomes an exercise in being more sensitive to the presence of the divine in all other areas of life as well. Traditional polarities such as sexuality and religiosity are dissolved at the same time and proven to coincide as two aspects of the same experience. Not only does erotic love open one’s eyes to the divine in nature as the body of God, but one also encounters the divine in the body. / Biblical and Ancient Studies / D. Th. (Old Testament)

There is a popular misconception in the world that Jehovah is too severe on occasion while Jesus Christ is always kind and merciful. The Latter-day Saint belief that Jehovah and Jesus are the same person presents a supposed conflict. There has not been much written on this subject by either non-Latter-day Saints or Latter-day Saints, thus, this thesis represents a unique contribution to a common perception prevalent in many Christian circles. The research of this thesis shows that the misconception is based on three problems: first, a misinterpretation of biblical stories in both the Old and New Testament; second, a lack of understanding biblical context and culture; and third, a lack of applying modern revelation to this subject. The research of this thesis focuses on these three areas in an effort to resolve this false perception. This thesis takes a deeper look into the acts of Jehovah and Jesus Christ as found in the Old and New Testaments respectively. Next, it looks as several doctrines related to this subject that have been revealed through latter-day prophets and incorporates them into the Old Testament. This analysis paints a broader picture of the Lord and illustrates that He was, indeed, merciful in the Old Testament but, at times, severe in the New Testament. Lastly, this thesis takes four of the most difficult Old Testament stories that seem to represent Jehovah as harsh, capricious, and unyielding, and puts them in their cultural setting. Though not every act can be completely explained, there is a high degree of similarity between Jehovah and Jesus. The study concludes, therefore, that much of the problem lies with perception and not with reality.

Scholars have proposed that Jude and 2 Peter are literarily dependent. However, there is no definitive conclusion among scholars concerning which one is literarily dependent on the other. There are arguments for and against each of the literary dependency theories. It is difficult to define what is meant by literary dependency and how to measure it. By utilizing Lemke’s notion of intertextuality, this study examines the thematic formations, axiological stance, and rhetorical formations of Jude and 2 Peter. This study demonstrates that there are significant intertextual relations that can account for the similarities between these two texts. There is substantial evidence which suggests that their differences are significant. Jude and 2 Peter do not provide essential intertextual background information to understand each other. Through the analysis of other intertexts, this study reveals a significant number of intertexts, like the LXX, Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, and contemporary literature, that can account for the meaning formation of the two books. These texts can be considered as more significant intertexts for Jude and 2 Peter.

English speakers use the concept of "darkness" in a number of metaphors to portray a wide variety of experiences from evil to fear to ignorance. These metaphorical connections or entailments are so natural that we can see an image of a dark-clad person in a film or book and usually be correct in assuming that they are at best questionably moral and at worst a villain. The Old Testament (OT) also employs dark images and dark imagery to various effects. From Job's description of the underworld in Job 3 to Isaiah 's description of the coming light that will dispel the darkness in Isa 8- 9, to the dark paths the wicked trod in Eccl 2:14, the OT uses a number of metaphors of darkness. For most of these examples, it would be easy to assume that the ancient Hebrew writers of the OT were working with the same concepts of darkness that we do today and thus interpret these passages along the same lines as our own modem English metaphors. But such assumptions can and have led to a number of misunderstandings and conflicting interpretations of passages that employ dark images. These miscommunications are most apparent in passages where God's presence is indicated by darkness like at the Sinai and Temple theophanies (Exod 20:19-20 and 1 Kgs 8:12, respectively) as well as later poetry about God (Ps 97:2). By combining the theoretical framework of Cognitive Metaphor Theory (CMT), and the methodology of Conceptual Blending (CB), this study will work toward a clearer understanding of how the writers of the OT understood darkness and how that shaped their use of it in their images and imagery of death, captivity, the unknowable, and God. It will be shown that the ancient Hebrew conception and use of darkness centres around three key recurring metaphors - Death is Darkness, Captivity is Darkness, and the Unknown is Darkness - while the metaphor Evil is Darkness is foreign to the OT. These findings serve to provide greater clarity in interpreting those OT passages that portray God as having a penchant for darkness.

This essay studies the historical phenomenon of dog-headed men (cynocephaly) andSaint Christopher who is in eastern-orthodox iconography depicted as a dog headedman. The study argues that a symbolic and phenomenological perspective is preferredto understand mythical figures with “unnatural” depictions. In order to reach aconclusion about the symbolic meaning behind dog-headed men and SaintChristopher, the human experience of dogs and their role in our world is examined indetail to construct a theory concerning their symbolism. The theory is then applied todepictions of dogs and dog-headed men in religious stories and images as well ashistorical accounts to see if the theory fits the facts.The study concludes that dog-headed men and Saint Christopher symbolize a kind of“guardian of the border”. What it means to guard the border has different implicationsdepending on if the dog-headed man is depicted in a Christian or non-Christiancontext. When reading the story of Saint Christopher with this pattern in mind, thereason for his legendary depiction is revealed. The conclusion is supported bycomparing Saint Christopher to stories from the bible which symbolize “the rolewhich the border can play as a part of the whole”. The dog-headed men of history, thesaint and the biblical stories all reinforce the symbolism of each other, revealing thedeeper meaning behind the wild, peripheral side of Christianity.

Text in German / An drei Stellen im Römerbrief verweist Paulus auf die Vergangenheit Israels: auf Abraham in Röm 4,1–25, auf Abrahams Nachkommen, Mose und Pharao in Röm 9,6–18 und auf Elija in Röm 11,1–10. Gegenstand der Untersuchung ist die Bedeutung dieser Verweise auf die Vergangenheit Israels für die Argumentation des Römerbriefs. Nach der Analyse der rhetorischen Situation und der Einordnung der relevanten Stellen in die rhetorische Makrostruktur des Briefs werden alttestamentlicher Kontext und frühjüdische Rezeption der rezipierten Ereignisse untersucht. Auf diesem Hintergrund werden die drei Passagen detailliert betrachtet, indem der Argumentationsgang untersucht und die mögliche rhetorische Wirkung auf die Adressaten aus sechs unterschiedlichen Perspektiven analysiert wird: mit hoher Schriftkenntnis, mit geringer Schriftkenntnis, aus jüdischer, nichtjüdischer, christlicher und stadtrömischer Perspektive. Auf diese Weise können unterschiedliche Aspekte der leserseitigen Rezeption differenziert wahrgenommen werden, bevor sie zu einem Gesamtbild zusammengeführt werden. / New Testament

Text in German / An drei Stellen im Römerbrief verweist Paulus auf die Vergangenheit Israels: auf Abraham in Röm 4,1–25, auf Abrahams Nachkommen, Mose und Pharao in Röm 9,6–18 und auf Elija in Röm 11,1–10. Gegenstand der Untersuchung ist die Bedeutung dieser Verweise auf die Vergangenheit Israels für die Argumentation des Römerbriefs. Nach der Analyse der rhetorischen Situation und der Einordnung der relevanten Stellen in die rhetorische Makrostruktur des Briefs werden alttestamentlicher Kontext und frühjüdische Rezeption der rezipierten Ereignisse untersucht. Auf diesem Hintergrund werden die drei Passagen detailliert betrachtet, indem der Argumentationsgang untersucht und die mögliche rhetorische Wirkung auf die Adressaten aus sechs unterschiedlichen Perspektiven analysiert wird: mit hoher Schriftkenntnis, mit geringer Schriftkenntnis, aus jüdischer, nichtjüdischer, christlicher und stadtrömischer Perspektive. Auf diese Weise können unterschiedliche Aspekte der leserseitigen Rezeption differenziert wahrgenommen werden, bevor sie zu einem Gesamtbild zusammengeführt werden. / New Testament

There is no consensus regarding the interpretation of the "Spirit like a dove" comparison in Jesus' baptism (Mk 1:10). Although scholars have proposed at least fifty different interpretations of the dove comparison, no study appears to have considered Isaiah's three dove texts as the background for the Markan dove (cf. Is 38:14; 59:11; 60:8). This neglect is surprising considering the abundance of Isaianic allusions in Mark's Prologue (Mk 1:1-15), and the growing awareness that Isaiah is the hermeneutical key for both the Markan Prologue and Jesus' baptism within it. Indeed, Mark connects the dove image inseparably to the Spirit's "descent" from heaven, which alludes to Yahweh's descent in a New Exodus deliverance in Isaiah 63:19 [MT]. Furthermore, each Isaianic dove text uses the same simile, "like a dove" or "like doves," which appears in Mark 1:10, and shares the theme of lament and restoration which fits the context of Mark's baptism account. This study therefore argues that the dove image in Mark 1:10 is a symbol which evokes metonymically Isaiah's three dove texts. So the Spirit is "like a dove" not because any quality of the Spirit resembles that of a dove, but because the dove recalls the Isaianic theme of lament and restoration associated with doves in this Scriptural tradition. After discussing the Markan dove in terms of simile, symbol, and metonymy, the study examines the Isaianic dove texts in the MT and LXX and argues that they form a single motif. Next, later Jewish references to the Isaianic dove texts are considered, while an Appendix examines further dove references in Jewish and Greco-Roman literature. Finally, the study argues that the Markan dove coheres in function with the Isaianic dove motif and symbolizes the Spirit's effect upon and through Jesus by evoking metonymically the Isaianic dove texts.

This paper investigates Leviticus 18:22 and 20:13 from the perspective of the hermeneutical implications of their historical context appropriated into a modern contextual understanding and possible application. To do this, four prominent historical theories (relating the ban to procreation, idolatry, against nature/the order of creation, and Canaanite practices) of the origin of the verses, and the ban therein, are chosen to be analysed. The analysis will be based on a theoretical framework which is modelled to present a theory of how historical knowledge and its derived hermeneutical implications enables a dynamically equivalent cultural appropriation. The investigation poses two questions – (1) what are the hermeneutical implications, and (2) what might a dynamically equivalent cultural appropriation into a modern context look like? In answering these question, it is found that when understanding the historical context as giving clues to the cultural world of the author and first reader(s), the four theories produce different results, but in none of them is it said to be either impossible or always possible to apply the ban. Further, even the group of people that are concerned by the ban differs. There is also a note of warning given, as these theories and others on the matter are very hard, if not impossible, to choose between, and therefore one has to motivate quite well why one selects one over the other in creating an interpretation and appropriation, since such a choice might, but should not, be more based on preference than on facts. Questions are in this paper sometimes posed but not answered, which runs in line with the overarching goal to rather draw some lines of interpretation than to hold an interpretation to be certain, while still exemplifying a transparent and theoretically well founded way to appropriate these verses. / Denna uppsats undersöker Leviticus 18:22 och 20:13 med fokus på den historiska kontextens hermeneutiska implikationer approprierade till en modern förståelse och eventuell applikation av verserna. För att göra detta kommer fyra vanligt förekommande historiska teorier till varför verserna med deras förbud finns (teorier som relaterar förbudet till fortplantning, avgudadyrkan, en handling mot naturen/skapelsens ordning, och kananeiska sedvänjor) analyseras. Analysen tar sin grund i ett teoretiskt ramverk som utformas för att visa hur en historisk kontext och dess hermeneutiska implikationer möjliggör en dynamiskt ekvivalent kulturell appropriering. Uppsatsen ställer två frågor: (1) Vilka är de hermeneutiska implikationerna, och (2) hur skulle en dynamiskt ekvivalent kulturell appropriering till en modern kontext kunna se ut? Dessa frågor besvaras utifrån ett perspektiv på den historiska kontexten som bidragande till att förstå författarens (eller författarnas) och de första läsarnas kulturella värld, och de fyra teorierna producerar ganska olika resultat. Det kan dock sägas att i inget av fallen blir slutsatsen att förbudet inte går att använda, eller att det alltid kan användas. Vidare framgår det att till och med vilka som berörs av förbudet skiftar beroende på anledningen till att förbudet finns. Ett varningens finger lyfts också för att påpeka att det är svårt, om inte omöjligt, att välja en av dessa teorier (eller de många andra som finns) som bättre. Därför måste sådana val, vilka sedan ligger till grund för tolkningar och tillämpningar, vara väl motiverade. Det finns annars en risk att sådana val kan ske mer baserat på preferens än fakta. Vidare ställs det frågor som inte alltid besvaras, vilket ligger i linje med viljan att snarare påvisa några tolkningsramar än att se en tolkning som korrekt, samtidigt som ett teoretiskt välgrundat och genomskinligt sätt att appropriera dessa verser exemplifieras.