...overall focus and hero of these stories. He is the protagonist, Satin is the antagonist, and God’s people are the agonist. Over the years it’s been observed that Christians have read and interpreted Old Testament narratives very poorly. This overall abysmal interpretation of Old Testament narratives and the Old Testament in general has resulted in a lack of comprehension of very important messages of the narrator. Some reasons for the problematic interpretation of Old Testament narratives are allegorizing, decontextualizing, selectivity, and moralizing “Allegorizing is concentrating on the clear meaning of the narrative, people relegate the text to merely reflecting another meaning beyond the text.” (Fee & Stuart, 2003, page 103). Decontextualizing is ignoring the full historical and literary context, and often the individual narrative, people concentrate on small units only and thus miss interpretational clues. If you take things out of context enough, you can make almost any part of Scripture say anything you want it to. Selectivity is cherry picking your choice of words and phrases while ignoring or overall narrative. Moralizing is simply a person’s assumption that principles can be extracted from every single scripture and passage. A moralizing reader may ask his or her self, “What is the moral of this story?” (Fee & Stuart, 2003, page 103). Allegorizing, decontextualizing, selectivity, and moralizing are some reasons readers of Old Testament narratives...
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...Scrolls? They gave us a much older collection of Old Testament manuscripts 3. According to the readings the Old Testament canon was completed after the time of Ezra and Nehemiah. 4. Old Testament narrative normally does not directly teach a doctrine. True 5. In our readings this week the Bible is described in part as, "the Word of God given in human words in history". True 6. The Modern View of the Bible approaches biblical documents as highly reliable. False 7. Until just after World War II the oldest OT manuscripts we had dated from about 200 B.C. / False 8. According to Fee and Stuart's analysis they think most people do a very good job of handling Old Testament narrative passages /False 9. The focus of the ___________ is on Jesus and his claim to be the Messiah. 10. Which of the following are not among the common causes people misinterpret biblical narratives mentioned in the text? 11. According to Fee and Stuart's analysis God is the hero of all biblical narratives/true 12. According to Fee and Stuart what is the antidote to bad interpretation? Good interpretation, based upon common sense guidelines 13. What do Fee and Stuart say is the "only proper control for hermeneutics"? 14. What three languages were the 66 books of the Protestant Bible originally written? Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek 15. According to our Fee and Stuart readings in their experience they believe that Old Testament Narratives are among the most correctly interpreted...
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...Havrelock Associate Professor Department of English raheleh@uic.edu Office 1909 University Hall Office Hours: Monday, Wednesday and Friday 1:00-2:00 pm Professor Scott Grunow Lecturer Department of English Cobelli@aol.com Course Description This introductory class presents a literary perspective on the Bible. Texts from the Bible stand at the center of analysis, while accompanying textbooks help us to contexualize biblical materials within history. Each week revolves around a particular theme with one lecture on the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament and one on the New Testament. Themes include creation, birth, the hero, the mountain, the community, the Temple, suffering, and the end of time. As we place biblical texts in their historical contexts, we will consider the Bible as a literary work with distinct genres, themes and conventions. The thematic connections between the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament will be explored at the same time that differences in their style and message are investigated. While reading the Bible, we will develop a vocabulary for discussing literary texts as well as a vocabulary specific to texts from the ancient world. This lively and pluralistic course provides a thorough introduction to the literature of the Bible. Course Objectives The Bible is a central text that has influenced literature, history, and global politics. This course instructs students in reading and interpreting the Bible according to its structure and...
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...Introduction The Bible is our source of information about God—who He is and what He has done for us. The Bible is an exposure of man—his character, history, and divine needs. The Bible also tells us about God’s plan of redemption, which provides forgiveness and renewal for man in his sinful situation. The Bible reveals what God’s standards of right and wrong are and what His will is for His men. Unlike other books, the Bible was written by about forty authors who lived during a 1,500-year period beginning with Moses in the fifteenth century B.C.E. The Bible was written in two major languages—Hebrew and Greek, with a few parts of the Old Testament written in Aramaic. No other book has ever been composed in quite the same way as the Bible. Moses, who wrote the first five books of the Old Testament, was probably the most educated man of his day, having studied under tutors in the royal palace of Egypt. The human authors also included those who were great leaders, such as Joshua, and those who were chosen of God to be prophets, such as Samuel, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. Some of the authors were like David, who began as a shepherd but became king of Israel. David wrote many of the Psalms, forming a rich poetic background for much of the biblical truth. Some of the writers were farmers, some were warriors, some were fishermen. There was little that tied them together except that they all wrote a portion of the biblical truth as said in the Bible. The Epic of Gilgamesh and...
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...the few to see in Job, what is involved in coming to live before the only God we cannot construct. Sees the flawlessness of Jobs life as a depiction of Job as the ‘perfect moral businessman’, who knows how to succeed at the reward game, with life and with God. “All this bewilderment and outrage couldn’t be so intense if Job didn’t truly love God. He senses that in spite of appearances there is somewhere, an ultimate justice, but he doesn’t know where. He is like a nobler Othello who has been brought conclusive evidence that his wife has betrayed him:his honesty won’t allow him to disbelieve it, but his love won’t allow him to believe it. The voice is saying “What is all this foolish chatter about good and evil...about battles between a hero-God and some cosmic opponent? Don’t you understand that there is no one else in here?” David Robertson-Draws our attention to Job’s speech in chapter 9, in which Job predicts what would happen if he summoned God to a face-to-face encounter. “If it is a contest of strength,behold him”-Job. When God finally does appear, Job’s prediction comes true “So God’s rhetoric (in chapters 38-41) because Job has warned us against it, convinces us that he is a charlatan God, one who has the power and skill of God , but is a fake at the truly divine task of governing with justice and love”. Modern Readers- Will miss the comic dimension unless they are willing to accept the deeply stylized character of the events. They are, to borrow Mitchell’s term...
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...Myth and Scripture resources for Biblical Study Susan ackerman, Old testament/hebrew Bible editor number 78 Myth and Scripture conteMporary perSpectiveS on religion, language, and iMagination Edited by dexter e. callender Jr. SBl press atlanta copyright © 2014 by SBl press all rights reserved. no part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by means of any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 copyright act or in writing from the publisher. requests for permission should be addressed in writing to the rights and permissions office, Society of Biblical literature, 825 houston Mill road, atlanta, ga 30329 uSa. library of congress cataloging-in-publication data Myth and scripture : contemporary perspectives on religion, language, and imagination / Dexter E. Callender, Jr., editor. p. cm. — (Society of Biblical literature resources for biblical study ; number 78) includes bibliographical references and index. iSBn 978-1-58983-961-8 (paper binding : alk. paper) — iSBn 978-1-58983-962-5 (electronic format) — iSBn 978-1-58983-963-2 (hardcover binding : alk. paper) 1. Myth in the Bible. 2. Bible. old testament—criticism, interpretation, etc. i. callender, dexter e., 1962– editor of compilation. ii. callender, dexter e., 1962– author. Myth and Scripture : dissonance and convergence.. BS520.5.M98 2014 220.6'8—dc23 2014002897...
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...Bible Observation After reading Genesis 1-10 my observation of the reading was that this was one of the beginning stories of man. In addition this was when God created the heavens and the earth including the light, water, land, and creatures. It took God six days to make the earth, and on the seventh day God rested. In addition Adam and Eve were the first two humans that God had created they were the first couple, and first to sin. Adam recognized that Eve was his wife by marriage, and has verse 24 suggested this is the basis for marriages today in the present. In the Garden, the myth tells of how God places a serpent within Eden. The serpent knows that God has given all the fruits of the trees except one. The Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. This particular tree is forbidden to be eaten by man. The serpent is crafty though and gets Eve to think she will be as knowledgeable as God by eating this fruit. She falls into temptation and eats of the tree. She then convinces Adam to also eat. He follows and the result is the final and horrible downfall of man. After Adam and Eve committed the first Sin this was a disobeying by God, and that’s why they had become ashamed of showing their bodies. The serpent is forced to travel on in belly which explains why they were not created with legs. To women, the explanation of child birth and the extremely horrible pains of labor are answered. Woman is also given a place in society as now having to be under the control of man. Women...
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...story in human history that is over 4000 years old. The story introduces “the first hero” ever known. A cruel Sumerian king who ruled the city of Uruk and did not care for his people but himself, he thought too highly of himself because he was half god, very strong, and had never found an equal. Although no one could defeat him, the people and gods were tired of his selfishness and decided to end his cruelty. They created a human named Enkidu who was as strong as him and both fought a fiercely battle where Gilgamesh had defeated Enkidu but realized that he had finally found an equal. The story follows Gilgamesh on a quest with Enkidu who becomes his friend. They both go out and fight different obstacles to save the world but before they can do that Enkidu dies in a battle leaving Gilgamesh with great sorrow, and seeks on a new quest to find eternal life for him and to bring his friend back to life. His selfishness to gain immortality leaves him with nothing but to realize that eternal life is not just given that easy. This old story continues to influence modern storytelling. There are different connections to this story like the Bible’s Old Testament and Greek mythology that still have a role in today’s society. The Bible’s Old Testament has many stories in common with the Epic of Gilgamesh. Since there are many followers of the Bible, it is very interesting to know how people would react to the similarities that both these very old stories have. One of the stories in the Bible...
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...individual that changed the course of history without politics or government affiliation (Wilson, 2007, p. 34). Luther believed that anyone who possessed a bible should be able to read it and guide his own religion. He thought the Church corrupt for selling absolution, thereby releasing sinners from punishment in the afterlife. This took power away from the church. He was so convicted in this thought that he translated the Bible into German and had the New Testament printed in 1522 and the Old Testament in 1534. By challenging the Pope and the Holy Roman Empire, he in fact challenged political authority. By giving lay people access to the Bible, learning became something they could treasure. In 1524 Luther urged authorities in Germany to establish schools for all children. This social change became evident in 1580 when half the parishes in Electoral Saxony had elementary schools for boys. Ten percent had even made similar provisions for girls (Wilson, 2007, p. 37). “Indeed, no one more than Martin Luther resembles the flawed hero of which the sacred text affords so many examples”(Wilson, 2007, p. 39). Martin Luther was a significant mechanism in social and political changes in the 16th Century and beyond. Susan B. Anthony (1820-1906) was an American teacher, activist and lecturer. She brought about social and political change through hard work advocating policy changes and changing the mindset of the people. The two most significant changes were Education Reform and Women’s Rights...
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...THE BIBLE’S INFLUENCE ON ENGLISH-AMERICAN LITERATURE by Zhang Lanlan June, 2007 Xiaogan University Abstract As the sutra of the Christianity, the Bible has a great influence on both English and American literature and offers an eternal theme of their literary creation .English and American writers use stories of the Bible by three main methods. First, they quote person's names or stories of the Bible as the characters' names or plots of the creations from the Bible directly. Sometimes they make some changes on the original stories. Sometimes they quote stories directly from the Bible as the writing materials. Second, they make use of symbolic meaning of the Bible by some technical such as simile, metaphor and symbolism, so that the stories could exert a great influence on contrasting with the new products. Third, they merge the plots of the Bible to give connotative efforts to the readers. Exploring the methods helps us know the western culture and consciousness, have a good appreciation and study for the English-American literature. key words: English-American literature ; the Bible; methods 《圣经》在英美文学作品中的影响 摘要 作为基督教的经典，《圣经》对英美文化影响深远，为英美文化创作提供了永恒的母题。英美作家化用《圣经》故事的主要方法有：直接引用《圣经》中的人名作为作品的人物名称，或直接引用《圣经》故事或对原型故事进行变形或处理，作为创作素材；通过比喻，隐喻或象征等手法，把《圣经》故事的寓意融汇到作品情节中或人物性格里，使这些故事发挥有力的陪衬作用；使作品中的人物，故事和情节与《圣经》故事大体对应，让《圣经》能穿越时空的限制，从而发挥隐含的参照作用。 探讨英美作家化用《圣经》的方法，有助于我们了解英美文化的思想意识，更好的学习，欣赏乃至研究英美文学作品。 关键词：英美文学；《圣经》；方式 ...
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...the Old Testament Submitted to Dr. Homer Heater, Professor of Biblical Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the completion of OBST 515 –D11 Old Testament Orientation I by Wuan D. Miller November 29, 2014 Introduction Christopher J. H. Right, author Knowing Jesus Through the Old Testament, is an Anglican clergyman and an Old Testament scholar. A Ph.D. graduate of Cambridge, he currently is the Director of International Ministries for the Langham Partnership International. Wright records at least ten years prior to the release of this work, three things inspired him to research this topic; his students at Union Biblical Seminary who listened to his initial thoughts; John Goldiway’s articles related to the Old Testament and Christian faith; and a friend, Jim Punton, who personally requested that he write a book on how the Old Testament influenced Jesus. Thus, Wright explores the connection between Jesus and the Old Testament with the intention of showing how his identity, mission, and values are interwoven within its metanarrative. In doing so, he prefaces this work with his conviction that “the deeper you go into understanding the Old Testament, the closer you come to the heart of Jesus.”[1] While there is much to be gained from Wright’s work, a critical examination of the underlying themes will reveal a need for further evaluation of critical theological foundations for understanding Jesus in the context of the Old Testament. Summary ...
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...Old Testament Bible Dictionary Project: Deuteronomy The book of Deuteronomy was authored by Moses and contains three speeches by him which include the “Song of Moses, the blessing fo Moses and the transition of leadership to Joshua.” Ed Hindson & Elmer L. Towns, Illustrated Bible Survey 81 (2013) As the final book of the Law, Deuteronomy completes the Torah scrolls written around “1405 BC at the end of the wilderness wanderings.” Hindson & Towns, supra 83 Within Deuteronomy there are some “narrative material” as well as “legal material,” but it is primarily of a “sermonic” writing of the law. Deuteronomy is divided into three divisions of past, preset and future where the beginning tells Israel’s history proceeding to the present where Israel’s laws are recorded into principles, priorities and practice. In the end the writings conclude with Israel’s destiny where their covenant was ratified and community was prepared. “Moses begins with his first sermon as a covenant renewal for the second generation who were born of the wilderness.” Hindson & Towns, supra 85 Through the recording of Israel’s laws, Moses’ second sermon “articulates the covenant law and its application.” Hindson & Towns, supra 85 The principles speak of loving God, which emphasizes a “matter of the heart.” Loving God was not just a ritual nor was it required, but it was and still is of “spiritual devotion” that would ultimately result in giving the “Israelites the land of Canaan...
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...STUDY GUIDE: MODULE 1 Fee and Stuart. 1. Know: Hermeneutics is the art and science, or as some would say the theory and practice, of interpretation. 2. What do they say is the aim of a good interpretation? What is not the aim? The aim of good interpretation is not uniqueness; one is not trying to discover what no one else has ever seen before. 3. According to Fee and Stuart, what is the antidote to bad interpretation? Is not no interpretation but good interpretation, based on commonsense guidlelines. 4. They define “The Bible” in part as… The Bible is not a series of… propositions and imperatives; it is not simply a collection of “sayings from chairman God,” as though he looked down on us from heaven and said: “hey you down there, learn these truths. Number 1, there is no God but One, and I am he. Number 2, I am the Creator of all things, including humankind” – and so on, all the way through proposition number 7,777 and imperative number 7777. 5. Know the kinds of “communication” mentioned that God uses to convey his Word. Narrative history, genealogies, chronicles, laws of all kinds, poetry of all kinds, proverbs, prophetic oracles, riddles, drama, biographical sketches, parables, letters, sermons, and apocalypses. 6. “To interpret properly the “then and there” of the biblical texts, you must…” not only know some general rules that apply to all the words of the Bible, but you also need to learn the special rules that apply to each of...
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...the word “myth,” It is hard to connect it with the Bible in any way. The definition of a Myth is; “a traditional or legendary story, usually concerning some being or hero or event, with or without a determinable basis of fact or a natural explanation, especially one that is concerned with deities or demigods and explains some practice, rite, or phenomenon of nature.” [] The Bible is in no way a myth. It is the Holy Spirit inspired, infallible Word of God and if any part of the Bible were to be false or a myth it would shake the very foundation of Christian faith to its core. The Bibles beginning has no association with human understanding other than the authors who were human but, driven by the very Spirit of God. Throughout the Bible, the Holy Spirit clarifies and teaches wisdom and knowledge to us. 1Corinthians 2:13 says “This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words.” [] In order for someone to understand the spiritual truths in the Bible, one has to have God’s Spirit inside of them. Scientists and those out to prove that the Bible is full of myths are carnal minded people and will not understand the things of the Spirit Romans 8:5-7. Intellectuals and Liberal Theologians claim that the Old Testament is just a bunch of stories. Their belief is that the Bible has been proven wrong, but the truths and...
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...Bibl 104 Quiz 1 Question 1 3 out of 3 points According to the readings the Old Testament canon was completed after the time of Ezra and Nehemiah. Answer Selected Answer: True Question 2 3 out of 3 points According to Fee and Stuart's analysis God is the hero of all biblical narratives. Answer Selected Answer: True Question 3 3 out of 3 points What percentage of the literary genre in the Old Testament is narrative? Answer Selected Answer: 40% Question 4 0 out of 3 points The two types of 'context' Fee and Stuart discussed in this week's reading were… Answer Selected Answer: present and past Question 5 3 out of 3 points In our readings this week the Bible is described in part as, "the Word of God given in human words in history". Answer Selected Answer: True Question 6 0 out of 3 points The focus of the ___________ is on Jesus and his claim to be the Messiah. Answer Selected Answer: All of the above Question 7 0 out of 3 points "To interpret properly the "then and there" of the biblical texts you need to" Answer Selected Answer: both a and c Question 8 3 out of 3 points What is the significance of the Dead Sea Scrolls? Answer Selected Answer: They gave us a much older collection of Old Testament manuscripts. Question 9 3 out of 3 points At the end of Old Testament narratives we are always told whether the events spoken of were "good or bad". We are not expected to be able to judge for ourselves based upon...
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