What is it about?
1. Most scholars say that biblical encounters with angels are mysterious and bewildering to the persons involved. This article shows why 2 famous stories make more sense when we read them as if the angels are recognized right away. 2. On a more technical level, this study validates the notion that the noun אִישׁ (ʾîš) can denote an “agent” in agency situations.
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Why is it important?
1. Israel’s deity, who (according to the typical interpretations of these stories) had seemed enigmatic and even cruel, can instead be construed as loyal and supportive. 2. The plain sense of the biblical text seems to be more coherent and informative than many scholars have given it credit for. 3. This study provides strong evidence that אִישׁ (which is one of the most frequently occurring nouns in the Hebrew Bible) functions rather differently than it is usually given credit for.
Perspectives
I worked on this piece (on and off) for 13 years. Yes, it's rather long, but that's because it brings together several interlocking pieces of a BIG puzzle. I'm so pleased that my recent study of cognitive linguistics gave me a way to put those pieces together!
David Stein
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Cognitive Factors as a Key to Plain-Sense Biblical Interpretation: Resolving Cruxes in Gen 18:1–15 and 32:23–33, Open Theology, November 2018, De Gruyter,
DOI: 10.1515/opth-2018-0043.
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