Dr. Alice C. Linsley
According to rabbinic tradition Rahab was a harlot and Ruth converted to Judaism before she married Boaz. However, there is nothing in the canonical texts to substantiate this assertion about Rahab, and Judaism did not exist when Ruth lived.
Rabbinic Judaism inaccurately claims Abraham as its founder. The Bible states that Abraham was Hebrew (Gen. 14:13), and his religious beliefs were largely set aside by Judaism. Prominent Jews admit this.
Rabbi Stephen F. Wise, former Chief Rabbi of the United States, wrote: "The return from Babylon and the introduction of the Babylonian Talmud mark the end of Hebrewism and the beginning of Judaism." This break came at least 1400 years after Abraham.
Many Jewish accounts of biblical persons do not align with the biblical data. They are the product of midrash, the rabbinic method of interpreting events that took place thousands of years before Judaism's early emergence c.580 B.C.
Rabbi Stephen F. Wise, former Chief Rabbi of the United States, wrote: "The return from Babylon and the introduction of the Babylonian Talmud mark the end of Hebrewism and the beginning of Judaism." This break came at least 1400 years after Abraham.
Many Jewish accounts of biblical persons do not align with the biblical data. They are the product of midrash, the rabbinic method of interpreting events that took place thousands of years before Judaism's early emergence c.580 B.C.
Certain literary devices are used to develop the Jewish narrative. One is the claim of famines that drive the Hebrew people into other lands. Abraham and Jacob go down to Egypt to avoid famine in Caanan. The family of Naomi left Bethlehem and went to Moab to avoid famine in Judah. While famines were a common problem in the Ancient Near East, they do not explain the wide dispersion of the early Hebrew. Hebrew people lived in the Nile Valley, Mesopotamia, Moab, Canaan, and Anatolia before the Israelites left Egypt. The Moabite Hebrew were kin to Abraham. They share a common ancestor in Terah, Abraham’s father and the great grandfather of Moab, Lot’s son.
Another device is jealousy among brothers. Though the Genesis story does not explain why Cain killed Abel, midrash supplies the explanation that he was jealous. Likewise, Joseph’s treatment by his brothers is explained as an act motivated by jealousy. In Joseph's case this is the best way to explain how he ends up a high official in the court of the Egyptian King. Analysis of the kinship and social structure of the early Hebrew, however, suggests that he was sent to Egypt to serve Potiphar, his maternal uncle. This happened with Jacob who was sent to serve his maternal uncle Laban.
Jewish writers often use the device of twins to obfuscate the two-wife marriage pattern of the biblical Hebrew. By this means a wife is excluded from the narrative. Isaac's sons Esau and Jacob were likely the firstborn sons of two different wives, but that reality would be a great inconvenience if the writer wishes to focus attention only on Rebekah. Likewise, Tamar's twin sons were probably Judah's sons by two different wives.
The device of levirate marriage is also used to obfuscate the birth order and lineage of Hebrew sons. The story of Tamar exemplifies this. The biblical data suggests that she was Judah's second wife. (Just Genesis: Was Tamar Judah's Wife?)
Midrashim often employ the device of slavery to explain why a prominent Hebrew is not living in the land of Israel or has left Canaan. It is used to explain why Joseph was in Egypt, why Daniel was in Babylon, and why Mordecai and Esther were in Persia. In the sixth century B.C., Judean noblemen were taken as captives to Babylon, and Babylon was conquered by the Persians who took captives to Susa. These events have been historically verified. Midrash embroiders historical events to convey a theological message.
Midrashim often employ the device of slavery to explain why a prominent Hebrew is not living in the land of Israel or has left Canaan. It is used to explain why Joseph was in Egypt, why Daniel was in Babylon, and why Mordecai and Esther were in Persia. In the sixth century B.C., Judean noblemen were taken as captives to Babylon, and Babylon was conquered by the Persians who took captives to Susa. These events have been historically verified. Midrash embroiders historical events to convey a theological message.
Incest is another a literary device of midrashim to denigrate the descendants of a Hebrew clan. This is the case with Lot and his daughters by which the Ammonites and the Moabites were to be excluded from the promises made to their common Hebrew ancestors. The late Michael Heiser noted that to "uncover the nakedness" of a male relative is to have sex with his wife (Lev. 18:7, 14, 20:20-21). Thus, Noah's son Ham is accused of incest with his father's wife. That woman was not necessarily Ham's mother because the early Hebrew rulers had two wives. Reuben, Jacob's firstborn son by Leah, is dismissed as Jacob's proper's heir because he slept with one of Jacob's concubines (Gen. 35:27). Likewise, David's son Absalom is dismissed as David's heir because he slept with his father's concubines (2 Sam. 16:22).
Reuben probably did sleep with Bilhah, his father's concubine. That was a way to usurp Jacob's authority. This is described
in Genesis 49:3-4: “Reuben, you are my firstborn, my might, and the first
fruits of my strength, preeminent in dignity and preeminent in power. Unstable
as water, you shall not have preeminence, because you went up to your father’s
bed; then you defiled it—he went up to my couch!”
Another example is Mordecai’s declaration to Esther: “Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king's house, more than all the Jews. For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:12-14)
Countless sermons draw on Jewish interpretations to make theological points about God, covenants, and biblical archetypes. Therefore, those who attend church and synagogue are familiar with the Jewish narratives. When the earlier contexts of the widely dispersed Hebrew clans are presented, many become confused, resistant to new information, or even outraged. Nevertheless, understanding the social structure and historical contexts of the biblical Hebrew clarifies relationships and events that are obfuscated by Jewish explanations coming long after the time of the early Hebrew (4200-2000 BC). For example, as the firstborn son of Rachel, Jacob’s cousin wife, Joseph would have been sent to serve his maternal uncle. This is a feature of the marriage and ascendancy pattern of the Biblical Hebrew. That explains why Joseph was in the household of Potiphar in Egypt. In Genesis 41, Joseph is described as 'ebed. The word is derived from the verb ʿbd, meaning "to work” and it can apply to a slave, a servant, and a nephew who serves his uncle. Jacob, the son of Isaac's cousin wife, also went to serve his maternal uncle.
It is hoped that the readers of this blog will pursue the historical realities that are presented in the canonical texts. Understanding the social structure and historical contexts of the biblical Hebrew clarifies relationships and events that are often muddled by Jewish explanations coming long after the early Hebrew (4200-2000 B.C.).
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