This study is an attempt to define more clearly the Sabbath institution as it is presented in Exodus 20:8-11. It begins by describing the big-picture contours of the Sabbath institution as it has been depicted by various scholars during the last century. Many of these studies focus on delineating what proper Sabbath observance entails or describing how Sabbath rest mirrors God’s rest on the seventh day of creation. However, little investigation has been conducted into the relationship between the fourth commandment in Exodus 20 and the shape of humanity’s task and relationship with God on the seventh day. The study then examines the nature of God’s rest in the first creation account, describing what “rest” entailed for God, and the work from which he rested. It suggests that this “rest” is from the creational activity of the first six days and that it continues on into the present. It also discusses the relationship between the concept of rest offered by the first creation account and the concept of rest in the understanding of the Ancient Near East and Israel. Humanity’s role in the created order is also examined. While humans share some qualities with other creatures, such as an embodied existence, they are also distinct from the rest of creation. Only humans are created in the image of God. As such, they are given tasks unique to their status: subduing the earth, exercising dominion over the creatures of the earth, and expanding the borders of the garden as they multiply and fill the earth. These form the heart of their God-given task that they will carry out as God enjoys his seventh-day rest. Next, the study investigates the particulars of Exodus 20:8-11 and suggests a reading of these particulars against the backdrop of the seventh day as it is described in chapters 3-4. While the rationale for the Sabbath commandment is grounded in the events of the first creation account, the commandment itself also needs to be understood in the context of the Decalogue and, in turn, in the context of the law’s reception at Sinai. The law, and hence the fourth commandment, are central to the calling and purpose of Israel. As Israel fulfils its mandate to be a light to the nations, it will reflect the ideals of the seventh day as they are encapsulated in the law. Far from simply mirroring God’s rest, the fourth commandment reflects the relationship between God and humanity and humanity’s role on the seventh day of creation. The study concludes by drawing together various pieces of the argument and makes suggestions for further research. / MTh (Old Testament), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

Thesis (MTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This research aims to trace the exodus motif in the book of Revelation in general and Rev. 12-20 in particular, and to examine the socio-rhetorical function of the use of the exodus motif. Our hypothesis is that Rev. 12-20 constitutes a coherent unit in terms of narratology and that the exodus motif plays a significant role in forming the structure and the message of the book of Revelation, specifically of Revelation 12-20. Significantly, the song of Moses and the Lamb in Rev. 15 plays a pivotal role in the development of the thread of the chapter 12-20 as a plot. In the chapter 2, an overview of the history of interpretation of Revelation is provided and also the limitation of current studies of the song of Moses is highlighted. In addition, a new approach to the song of Moses in Revelation is suggested. The main goal of the chapter 3 is to examine Rev. 12-20 according to four narrative elements and from which Rev 12-20 can be deduced as a discrete literary unit constituting a plot. It will be argued that Rev. 12-20, as a plot, is highly stylized in the chiastic structure which has the song of Moses and the Lamb at the centre. Chapter 4 investigates Exod. 1-15 as a coherent story and explains how the author of Revelation adopts the exodus motifs in forming both the theme and the structure of Revelation. Moreover, it will be argued that the exodus motif generated certain sociorhetorical meanings to the audiences or the readers who were assimilated into the Roman Empire. For understanding the socio-rhetorical meanings, we examine the socio-rhetorical context, namely Asia Minor as part of the Roman Empire, and deal with the socio-rhetorical role of the exodus motif in the book of Revelation. In the chapter 5, firstly, drawing on the theoretical assumptions from social psychology, we build up a framework in which we can deal with Rev. 12-20 in terms of identity issues. Then, the covenantal identity based on the covenant in the book of Exodus will be suggested as an alternative identity. Thus, the exodus motif in Rev. 12-20 challenges the assimilated identity of the audiences or the readers to be renewed in the covenantal identity, so that they may be holy apart from the culture and the structure of the Roman Empire. The song of Moses and the Lamb reinforces the covenantal identity. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie navorsing ondersoek die gebruik van die eksodus-motief in Openbaring in die algemeen en in Op 12-12 in die besonder, terwyl dit ook die sosio-retoriese funksie van hierdie motief bestudeer. Die hipotese is dat Op 12-20 in terme van narratologiese analise ‘n koherente eenheid beslaan, en dat die eksodus-motief ‘n betekenisvolle rol speel in die struktuur en boodskap van Openabring, en Op 12-20 in besonder. Verder is dit betekenisvol dat die Lied van Moses en die Lam in Op 15 ‘n kernrol speel in die deurlopende lyn van Op 12-20 as plot. In hoofstuk 2 word ‘n oorsig oor die interpretasiegeskiedenis van Openbaring aangebied en beperkinge ten opsigte van huidige studies oor die Lied van Moses beklemtoon. In aanvulling daarby word ‘n nuwe benadering ten opsigte van die Lied van Moses in Openbaring voorgestel. Die hoofdoel van hoofstuk 3 is om Op 12-20 aan die hand van vier naratiewe elemente te ondersoek. As resultaat kan Op 12-20 as diskrete literêre eenheid sowel as die plot van Openbaring beskou word. As plot vertoon Op 12-20 ‘n noukeurige styl, met chiastiese strukture waarvan die Lied van Moses en die Lam die middelpunt vorm. Hoofstuk 4 ondersoek Eks 1-15 as koherente narratief en verduidelik hoe die outeur van Openbaring die eksodus-motief in die vorming van beide die tema en struktuur van die boek ingespan het. Die eksodus motief sou ook sekere sosio-retoriese betekenisse onder die gehore of lesers wat met die Romeinse Ryk geassimileer was, gegenereer het. Twv die beter verstaan van sulke sosio-retoriese betekenisse, word die sosio-historiese konteks naamlik Klein-Asië as deel van die Romeinse Ryk bestudeer. Vervolgens word die sosio-retoriese rol van die eksodus-motief in die boek van Openbaring behandel. In hoofstuk 5 word eerstens van teoretiese uitgangspunte binne die sosiale sielkunde gebruik te maak vir die konstruering van ‘n raamwerk om identiteitsake in Opn 12-20 te hanteer. Vervolgens word verbondsidentiteit soos dit voortvloei uit die verbond in Eksodus as alternatiewe identiteit voorgestel. Die eksodus motief in Op 12-20 daag die gehore of lesers van die boek uit om hul verbondsidentiteit te hernu, sodat hulle heilig en dus anders as die kultuur en strukture van die Romeinse Ryk kan wees. Die Lied van Moses en die Lam versterk Openbaring se gehore of lesers se verbondsidentiteit.

This study is about Moses, charismatic leadership, and the beginnings of Israel's religion. At a time when traditional and time-honoured customs were revered and preserved, but proved inadequate, Moses, a charismatically endowed leader, arose and overthrew the old order, and in its place proffered the new in the form of mono-Yahwism, which ultimately became the national Israelite religion. This claim is analysed and discussed in four chapters. Chapter 1 is a preliminary to the thesis and deals with the reason for, and aim of this study, methodological considerations, and has a section presenting, very briefly, the debate on the historicity of Moses. Chapter 2 was composed using literary principles and narrative literature in the book of Exodus, to glean a description of the character of Moses. The next two chapters form the main thrust of this study. Chapter 3 examined Weber's typology of leadership, providing the groundwork for the understanding and contextualization of charismatic leadership. The aim of chapter 4 was to show the characteristics of the charismatic leader, Moses, and how they were instrumental in his formulation of mono-Yahwism. The main points discussed were: Moses' personality, and the social context as a source of his charismatic leadership; the recognition of the charismatic leader and his message; the importance of charisma in Moses' achievements; and some factors that drive the charismatic person. The main methodological thrust is socio-religious, within which Max Weber's interpretative framework of charismatic leadership is employed. The work shows that Moses has the traits of a charismatic leader, and that, through the effect of his personality, he influenced the beginnings of Israelite religion. / Prof. J.H. Coetzee

This thesis "I will harden his heart, that he shall not let the people go" (Exod 4:21b) deals with the hardening of Pharaoh's heart in the first part of the book of Exodus (Exod 1-15). It seeks to answer the questions of what it means "harden heart", who, when, how and why hardened Pharaoh's heart, what are the implications for Pharaoh (especially whether the Pharaoh could freely change his decision and implement it) and what is God who hardens someone's heart (whether he is not only sovereign and powerful, but also a good, wise and righteous). This thesis includes my own translation, lexical, grammatical, diachronic and synchronic analysis, examination of the text in the context of the Old and New Testament and history of interpretation. Emphasis is placed on the most accurate translation (distinction of three different Hebrew verbs and their semantic nuances, distinction of different verb stems of stative verbs and distinction of description of the condition and change of the condition etc.). The main conclusion of this work is that God not limit Pharaoh's freedom to freely make decisions by "hardening" of his heart, but that he strengthened him that he would be able to freely decide whether to obey the Lord despite increasing pressure of "plagues", and in order to show whether his verbally...

Made available in DSpace on 2016-07-27T13:46:24Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Claude Valentin Rene Detienne.pdf: 4514864 bytes, checksum: e39f016281cb94ecdccb782fb5742974 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-10-11 / The present thesis aims to study the relationship of the triad text-author-interpreter in the history of the exegesis of the third chapter of the book of Exodus, through the concepts of intentio auctoris, intentio operis and intentio lectoris as evidenced by Umberto Eco. The study of the commentaries of Midrash Rabbah, Cyril of Alexandria, Theodoret of Cyrrhus, Brevard Springs Childs and Jorge Pixley shows the difficulty of distinguishing the three intentiones evidenced by Umberto Eco, and defining criteria to distinguish the correct and wrong interpretations, both on theoretical level and in the hermeneutical practice of the exegetes. The thesis seeks to confirm that the absence of clear boundary between the three intentiones is due to the fact that the intentio lectoris always ends up dominating the other ones and sees in the consciousness of this fact an important tool for fighting dogmatism and the exclusivity claims that have always threatened biblical exegesis. / Esta tese tem por objetivo estudar a articulação da tríade autor-texto-intérprete na história da exegese do capitulo 3 do livro do Êxodo, através dos conceitos de intentio auctoris, intentio operis e intentio lectoris evidenciados por Umberto Eco. O estudo dos comentários do Midrash Rabbah, de Cirilo de Alexandria, de Teodoreto de Cirro, de Brevard Springs Childs e de Jorge Pixley evidencia a grande dificuldade de distinguir as três intentiones, assim como a definição de critérios para distinguir entre interpretação correta e interpretação errada, tanto no plano teórico, quanto na prática hermenêutica dos exegetas. A tese busca confirmar que a ausência de limite claro entre as três intentiones se deve ao fato de que a intentio lectoris sempre acaba se sobrepondo às outras e vê na consciência desse fato um instrumento importante na luta contra o dogmatismo e a pretensão à exclusividade que sempre ameaçaram a exegese bíblica.

O período de quarenta anos em que os Filhos de Israel saíram do Egito e entraram na terra de Canaã foi um período de grandes milagres e maravilhas. Toda a sobrevivência foi milagrosa, distante das cidades, em lugares que dificultam a sobrevivência do homem, como desertos áridos e inóspitos. A escolha da rota para esta jornada não foi aleatória. Esta escolha parece estar apoiada em fatores geográficos, ambientais, estratégicos e de segurança. Os quarenta e dois acampamentos, ou estações, não parecem objetivos em si, mas meros estágios intermediários da grande jornada à terra de Canaã. Apesar disto, cada um destes lugares tem uma história e um significado, e aparenta ser parte integrante de um plano Divino. Todo o período de jornadas pelo deserto, então, configura-se como uma provação necessária para a geração que as vivenciou, uma vez que um grupo de escravos tornou-se uma nação, com unidade nacional, leis e um sentido de existência. Esta é a história do nascimento de um povo. O ponto alto desta jornada, a ser destacado, é o recebimento da Torá no Monte Sinai, que marcou de forma única e definitiva a existência e a história de Israel. / The forty-year period in which the children of Israel left Egypt and entered the land of Canaan was a period of miracles and wonders. Being far from the cities, in places where human survival was extremely difficult and challenging, such as in dry and inhospitable deserts, survival was a miracle. The choice of the route for this journey was anything but random. It appears to be contingent upon geographic, environmental, strategic and security factors. The forty two stops or stations dont seem to be the final destinations in themselves, but rather mere intermediate stages of the long journey to the land of Canaan. In despite of this, each one of these locations has a history and a meaning and seems to be a part of a Divine plan. Thus, the whole period of the wanderings through the desert seems to be a necessary test for that generation. It transformed a group of slaves into a nation, with a national unity, laws and a sense of existence. It is the history of the birth of a nation. The climax of this journey is the reception of the Torah in the Mount Sinai, which marked in a unique and final way the history of Israel.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-29T14:27:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Maria Jilvaneide dos Santos.pdf: 810439 bytes, checksum: cf4d45023b8ccddb9ff658710fa0325a (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-10-28 / Freedom is part of the very essence of God. Thus, due to this attribute, He is interested in everybody s freedom. This study aims to show how the people who were previously oppressed, once freed, they want to celebrate freedom with singing and dancing, in recognition of the greatness of their God who was the only hero in the fight against of the oppressive power. This study also highlights the importance of the female figure in the update of the saving action of God as expressed in the celebrative dimension of these songs. Therefore, it is an exegetical analysis that used the synchronic method but did not neglect the diachronic contribution of renowned scholars of the Exodus. The research process emphasized the beauty of literature as a means of facilitating the understanding of historical and theological dimensions of the text. The commentary style was used, verse by verse / A liberdade faz parte da essência de Deus e, por causa disso, Ele se interessa pela liberdade de todos. Esta dissertação quer mostrar como o povo dos anteriormente oprimidos, uma vez libertados, quer celebrar esta liberdade com canto e dança, no reconhecimento da magnificência do Seu Deus, o qual foi o único herói na luta contra o poder opressor. O estudo destaca também a relevância da figura feminina na atualização da ação salvífica de Deus expressa na dimensão celebrativa destes cantos. Portanto, trata-se de uma análise exegética que se utilizou do método sincrônico, mas que não negligenciou a contribuição diacrônica de renomados estudiosos do Êxodo. Tal processo de pesquisa valorizou a beleza literária como uma forma de facilitar a compreensão das dimensões histórico-teológicas do texto. Adotou-se o estilo comentário, versículo por versículo

A presente tese visa analisar algumas passagens bíblicas do livro de Êxodo, situadas especialmente entre os capítulos 4 a 14, a partir do referencial teórico do simbolismo mágico-religioso. Para alcançar esse propósito, dividiremos a nossa pesquisa em quatro partes. Em primeiro lugar, buscaremos compreender o significado do símbolo, bem como a sua importância para a Bíblia Hebraica como um todo e, especialmente, para o livro de Êxodo. Em segundo lugar, dissertaremos sobre o significado da magia e da religião, percorreremos as principais teorias antropológicas e sociológicas a esse respeito e, então, justificaremos o emprego do termo composto mágico-religioso em nossa pesquisa. Em terceiro lugar, discorreremos sobre o fenômeno do mágico-religioso na Bíblia Hebraica. Por fim, em quarto e último lugar, com o auxílio do instrumental simbólico mágico-religioso previamente construído, apresentaremos a nossa tradução e respectiva exegese de alguns trechos do livro de Êxodo, compreendidos entre os capítulos 4 a 14. Para isso, nos basearemos no texto hebraico massorético presente na edição crítica padrão do Tanakh, isto é, a Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, editada por Karl Elliger e Wilhelm Rudolph, a qual encontrase atualmente em sua quinta edição revisada. Com esse trabalho pretendemos contribuir para os estudos concernentes à Bíblia Hebraica e, sobretudo, ao livro de Êxodo. / This thesis aims to analyze some biblical passages of the book of Exodus, especially situated between chapters 4-14, from the theoretical framework of magicreligious symbolism. To achieve this purpose, we will divide our research into four parts. First, we will seek to understand the meaning of the symbol, as well as its importance to the Hebrew Bible as a whole and especially to the book of Exodus. Second, we will discourse about the meaning of magic and religion, we will cover the main anthropological and sociological theories about it and then we justify the use of the compound term magical-religious in our research. Third, we will discuss on the phenomenon of the magical-religious in the Hebrew Bible. Finally, in fourth and last place, with the help of magical-religious symbolic instrumental previously constructed, we will present our translation and its exegesis of some excerpts from the book of Exodus, ranging from chapters 4 to 14. For this, we will base on the Hebrew Masoretic text present in the standard critical edition of the Tanakh, that is, the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, edited by Karl Elliger and Wilhelm Rudolph, which is currently in its fifth edition revised. With this work we intend to contribute to the studies concerning the Hebrew Bible and especially the book of Exodus.

A presente tese visa analisar algumas passagens bíblicas do livro de Êxodo, situadas especialmente entre os capítulos 4 a 14, a partir do referencial teórico do simbolismo mágico-religioso. Para alcançar esse propósito, dividiremos a nossa pesquisa em quatro partes. Em primeiro lugar, buscaremos compreender o significado do símbolo, bem como a sua importância para a Bíblia Hebraica como um todo e, especialmente, para o livro de Êxodo. Em segundo lugar, dissertaremos sobre o significado da magia e da religião, percorreremos as principais teorias antropológicas e sociológicas a esse respeito e, então, justificaremos o emprego do termo composto mágico-religioso em nossa pesquisa. Em terceiro lugar, discorreremos sobre o fenômeno do mágico-religioso na Bíblia Hebraica. Por fim, em quarto e último lugar, com o auxílio do instrumental simbólico mágico-religioso previamente construído, apresentaremos a nossa tradução e respectiva exegese de alguns trechos do livro de Êxodo, compreendidos entre os capítulos 4 a 14. Para isso, nos basearemos no texto hebraico massorético presente na edição crítica padrão do Tanakh, isto é, a Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, editada por Karl Elliger e Wilhelm Rudolph, a qual encontrase atualmente em sua quinta edição revisada. Com esse trabalho pretendemos contribuir para os estudos concernentes à Bíblia Hebraica e, sobretudo, ao livro de Êxodo. / This thesis aims to analyze some biblical passages of the book of Exodus, especially situated between chapters 4-14, from the theoretical framework of magicreligious symbolism. To achieve this purpose, we will divide our research into four parts. First, we will seek to understand the meaning of the symbol, as well as its importance to the Hebrew Bible as a whole and especially to the book of Exodus. Second, we will discourse about the meaning of magic and religion, we will cover the main anthropological and sociological theories about it and then we justify the use of the compound term magical-religious in our research. Third, we will discuss on the phenomenon of the magical-religious in the Hebrew Bible. Finally, in fourth and last place, with the help of magical-religious symbolic instrumental previously constructed, we will present our translation and its exegesis of some excerpts from the book of Exodus, ranging from chapters 4 to 14. For this, we will base on the Hebrew Masoretic text present in the standard critical edition of the Tanakh, that is, the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, edited by Karl Elliger and Wilhelm Rudolph, which is currently in its fifth edition revised. With this work we intend to contribute to the studies concerning the Hebrew Bible and especially the book of Exodus.

My dissertation takes a translation studies approach to four medieval works that are both translations and depictions of translation in metaphorical senses (namely, migration and spiritual transformation/conversion): the Exodus of the Old English Illustrated Hexateuch, the Old English verse Exodus, Chaucer’s Man of Law’s Tale, and the Exodus of the Middle English Metrical Paraphrase of the Old Testament. I approach these narratives through a lens of modern translation theory, while at the same time, I investigate the texts with an eye toward classical and medieval theories of translation as espoused by Jerome, Augustine, and King Alfred. By examining these works through a diachronical lens of translation, I show how understanding medieval translation practice can inform our understanding of how the English conceived of themselves in the Middle Ages. The origins of England, or of English Christianity, were a recurring theme throughout the Middle Ages, and the texts in this dissertation all materially touch on narratives related to those origins. The two Old English Exodus translations participate in an early English literary trend that deploys the Exodus narrative as part of a fantasy of re-casting the English takeover of Britain as establishing a new chosen people. This populus israhel mythos, as Andrew Scheil terms it, served as a common thread in Anglo-Saxon self-mythology. In the Middle English period, Chaucer’s revisits the origins of English Christianity in the Man of Law’s Tale, a tale that involves numerous sea-crossings and the unveiling of the hidden inclination toward Christianity among the people of England. Meanwhile, the Exodus of the Middle English Metrical Paraphrase of the Old Testament touches less on English origins and reveals more the emerging English sense of whiteness as a racial category. By exploring the nascent notions of whiteness and its (in)applicability to Moses and Jews at large in the text, I examine how the poet of the Paraphrase was able to call upon contemporary concerns about race and participate in establishing, through difference to the Jews, the idea of English whiteness. Translation was a major component of the development of English literary sensibility and thus the emerging sense of what Englishness is. It is particularly important that these translations narrate versions of the past because the ability to re-shape the past for a present need allowed the English to take ownership of history, just as Augustine’s image of the Israelites taking ownership of the Egyptian treasure after the crossing of the Red Sea sees the Egyptian past superseded by the Hebrews (and the Hebrews superseded by Christianity, following Augustine’s argument). By taking up the treasures of the past on the shoreline of the present, English translators assumed a right of ownership over history and how to use it. Through representations of the past in translation, the English developed a sense of English-ness that they would then export globally. I demonstrate that by translating texts that deal with migrations, conversion, and the origins of the Israelites and of the peoples of the British Isles, the English crafted for themselves an image, a history, a literature that grows and thrives to this day.