The Rhetoric of the Book of Judges

572 Pages·1997·54.071 MB·English

by  Robert H. O'Connell

THE RHETORIC OF
THE BOOK OF JUDGES
SUPPLEMENTS
TO
VETUS TESTAMENTUM
EDITEDBY
THE BOARD OF THE QUARTERLY
JA. EMERTON - PHYLLIS A. BIRD - W.L. HOLLADAY
A. VAN DER KOOij - A. LEMAIRE - B. OTZEN - R. SMEND
JA. SOGGIN - Je. v ANDERKAM - M. WEINFELD
H.G.M. WILLIAMSON
VOLUME LXIII
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THE RHETORIC OF
'THE BOOK OF JUDGES
BY
ROBERT H. O'CONNELL
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EJ. BRILL
LEIDEN· NEW YORK' KÖLN
1996
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability of the Committee
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ISSN 0083-5889
ISBN 90 04 10 104 7
© Copyright 1996 by E.J. BriU, Leiden, 7k Netherlands
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J. A. EMERTON

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preface
Xl
Abbreviations . .
Xlll
Text-Critical Sigla xxi
INTRODUCTION. • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •• 1
A. Rhetorical Concems of Judges' Tribal-Political and
Deuteronomic Schemata. . . . . . . . . . . 1
B. Rhetorical Concems of Judges as a Literary Form 2
C. The Rhetorical Strategy of Judges. . . . . 6
D. The Rhetorical Situation Implied by Judges . 8
E. The Excursuses and Appendix of This Study . 9
I. RHETORICAL CONCERNS OF JUDGES' TRIBAL-POLITICAL
AND DEUTERONOMIC SCHEMATA • • • • • • • 10
A. Concems of Judges' Tribal-Political Schema 12
B. Concems ofJudges' Deuteronomic Schema. 19
11. RHETORICAL CONCERNS OF JUDGES AS A LITERARY
FORM •••••••••••••••••• 58
A. Judges' Double Prologue . . . . . . . . . 58
§1. Prologue-A (1:1-2:5): The Dependence ofLand
Occupation upon Cultic Loyalty. . . . . .. 59
§2. Prologue-B (2:6-3:6): The Dependence of Cultic
Loyalty upon Land Occupation . . . . . 72
§3. Complementarity between Prologue-A and
Prologue-B . . . . . . . . . 80
B. Judges' Deliverer Accounts . . . . 80
§1. The Account of Othniel (3:7-11) . 81
§2. The Account ofEhud (3:12-30) . 84
§3. The Account of Deborah/Barak/Jael
(4:1-5:31) . . . . . . . . . . 101
§4. The Account of GideonlA bimelech (6: 1-9:57) 139
§5. The Account of Jephthah (10:6-12:7). 171
§6. The Account ofSamson (13:1-16:31). . .. 203
viii TABLE OF CONTENTS
C. Judges' Double Denouement. . . . . . . . .. 229
§1. Denouement-A (17:1-18:31): Failure to Oeeupy
the Land Promotes Cultic Disloyalty 231
§1.1. Failure to Oeeupy the Land. . . . .. 241
§1.2. Cultic Disloyalty . . . . . . . . .. 241
§2. Denouement-B (19: 1-21 :25): Failure of Intertribai
Covenant Loyalty Promotes Covenant (Social)
Injustiee . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
§2.1. Intertribal Covenant Disloyalty . .. 258
§2.2. Covenant (Social) Injustice . . . .. 261
§3. Complementarity between Denouement-A and
Denouement-B. 264
D. Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 266
III. THE RHETORICAL STRATEGY OF JUDGES • • • 268
A. Explieit Monarehiealism in Judges' Double
Denouement . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
B. Implicit Monarehicalism in Judges' Tribal-Political
Coneerns . . . . . . . . . . . . 270
§1. The King as the Divine Eleet . . . . . .. 271
§2. The King as Representative of Judah . . .. 272
C. Implieit Monarehicalism in Judges' Deuteronomie
Coneerns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 272
§ 1. The King as Holy-Wa rrior par excellence .. 273
§2. The King as Exeeutor of Intertribai Covenant
Loyalty . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277
§3. The King as Patron of the Cult . . . . 278
§4. The King as Arbiter of Covenant (Social)
Justiee. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280
D. Implieit Monarehicalism Aehieved through Narrative
Analogy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 281
§1. Analogy to Prologue-A (1:1-2:5) . . . . 282
§2. Analogy to the Aecount ofOthniel (3:7-11) 283
§3. Analogy to the Account ofEhud (3:12-30). 284
§4. Analogy to the Account of Deborah/Barak/Jael
(4:1-5:31) . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 285
§5. Analogy to the Account of Gideon/ Abimelech
(6: 1-9:57) . . . . . . . . . . 286
§6. Analogy to the Account of Jephthah
(10:6-12:7) ......... 293