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The narrative function of the Song of Moses in the contexts of Deuteronomy and Genesis-Kings

The Song of Moses is acknowledged to be one of the most difficult texts to interpret within the book of Deuteronomy. Substantial effort has been put in to determine the Song's origin in terms of its dating and reason for composition. But more scholars are now seeing the need to relate the Song to its immediate context. However, the recent contributions to this topic show the need for a closer examination of the Song's narrative function, not only in Deuteronomy but also in its larger context in Genesis-Kings. Understanding the Song's function in this large corpus necessitates the way in which it relates to Deuteronomic themes such as the YHWHIsrael relationship, Torah, worship, and kingship. This thesis examines the theological and hermeneutical function of the Song in Deuteronomy and GenesisKings in their final forms. As a prophetic criticism of Israel, it focuses its audiences' attention on the central command of the Torah, the moral issue of covenant-keeping, and Israel's vocation as witness to the nations, resulting in a theology of history for all nations. With reference to Deuteronomy, the Song expresses the heart of the book. With reference to Genesis-Kings, it gives us a sense of beginning and closure to the history of the people of YHWH in terms of Israel's primeval past and future hope respectively.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:542003
Date January 2010
CreatorsLee, Boon-Hui A.
ContributorsMcconville, Gordon
PublisherUniversity of Gloucestershire
Source SetsEthos UK
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation
Sourcehttp://eprints.glos.ac.uk/2123/

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