Hello Robert and Stephen,
Thank you very much for your replies, it’s great to hear what you think about her and the book:) I’ve looked at buying some of her work in the past but they were super-expensive, I think one or two were made as part of her doctorate. One was on King Manasseh and Child Sacrifice.
This one seems to be more about how God has been seen throughout the ages to more modern times, it should be really interesting:)
Thank you for the link to the interview:)
Hi, I am reading the book as well. The main point seems to be that many interpreted the verses about physical parts of God as metaphorical. But she argues that actually Jews really believed God had a physical body. I fail to see her argumentation for it, because many verses indeed can be read metaphorically isn’t it? Like Moses seeing the face of God (Exodus 33:11). I see verses that are harder to explain, such as Jacob wrestling with God. But does anybody know what the main arguments are for the point of Stavrakopoulou that God was seen as having a physical body, besides archeological finding of statues?
many verses indeed can be read metaphorically . . . I see verses that are harder to explain, such as Jacob wrestling with God.
I won’t try to summarize her argument, as I have only a passing familiarity with her work, but wouldn’t the very fact that there are some verses that can’t so easily be read metaphorically speak directly to the point that they thought of God as having a body?
Further, wouldn’t the fact that some verses can’t be read metaphorically also suggest that perhaps a non-metaphorical reading of the other verses (which could be read either way) is correct? I mean, if there are verses that speak of God in bodily terms that seem to demand a literal reading, that suggests that the author thought of God as having an actual body. And if they thought God has an actual body, then why think the verses that might sustain a metaphorical reading shouldn’t be read literally?
Another argument could be made from the pervasive and consistent use of the metaphor. If someone uses the same metaphor consistently and frequently, at some point it seems one could question whether such language is actually metaphorical at all. In other words, simply documenting how frequently the early Hebrew scriptures speak of God as corporeal would suggest that the authors actually meant what they wrote. At some point one has to wonder whether taking the passages metaphorically isn’t just us imposing our understanding on the text rather than just letting the text speak for itself.
Thank you. I fully agree with you, but I think people could point out that at least some verses actually are metaphorical. Like certain beings with three heads, of which the head of an eagle points to the heavenly sphere whereas the bull and lion point to more earthly spheres? Or like God breathing into the nose of Adam? Although I know that there are gods in Greek mythology (I think) that do this, I still can’t imagine people literally believing this?
The hard thing is maybe that we now read with modern eyes, and then think, well that can’t be meant seriously, so back then they must also have been talking metaphorical…
Or like God breathing into the nose of Adam? Although I know that there are gods in Greek mythology (I think) that do this, I still can’t imagine people literally believing this?
The hard thing is maybe that we now read with modern eyes, and then think, well that can’t be meant seriously, so back then they must also have been talking metaphorical…
I suspect that is her point.
The ancients thought quite concretely. The dichotomy between the “metaphorical” and the “literal” is largely a modern conception. For example, it a mistake to take an overly abstract reading of Gen 1:27. Stavrakopoulou’s book is terrific if a bit sensationalistic at times. A scholarly discussion of Yahweh’s johnson is guaranteed to sell books. If you want an ‘old school’ scholarly assessment of the way god’s “body” is depicted in the Hebrew bible allow me to recommend Mark S Smith’s –
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And hooray! Reasonably priced. You can snag a used copy for 10 bucks American.
I know this reply is a few years late – oh well.
I read and really enjoyed Francesca’s book. She uses both the OT and other ancient writings to demonstrate conceptions of gods, i.e. they were hyper-tropes of humans with anatomy.
Francesca is a legitimate scholar. She agrees with many other legitimate scholars that the OT, particularly the Pentateuch is creative myth intended to build a foundation for Jewish/Hebrew culture, uniqueness, separation from other peoples and the Jewish identification with Yahweh.
I’ll mention another scholar and book, Thomas L Thompson: The Mythic Past, which presents solid scholarly evidence of this Jewish/Hebrew theme.
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