The Historicity of the Patriarchal Narratives: The Quest for the Historical Abraham

404 Pages·2016·22.473 MB·English

by  Thomas L. Thompson

Thomas L. Thompson
The Historicity of the Patriarchal Narratives

Thomas L. Thompson
The Historicity
of the Patriarchal Narratives
The Quest for the Historical Abraham
w
DE
G
Walter clé Gruyter • Berlin • New York
1974
Beiheft zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
Herausgegeben von Georg Fohrer
133
©
ISBN 3 11 004096 4
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 72—76042
1974
by Walter de Gruyter & Co., vormals G.J. Göschen'sche Verlagshandlung—J. Guttentag,
Verlagsbuchhandlung — Georg Reimer — Karl J. Trübner — Veit & Comp., Berlin 30
Alle Rechte des Nachdrucks, der photomechanischen Wiedergabe,
der Ubersetzung, der Herstellung von Mikrofilmen und Photokopien,
auch auszugsweise, vorbehalten.
Printed in Germany
Satz und Druck: Walter de Gruyter & Co.
to
Professor D. Dr. Kurt Galling

Preface
The manuscript for the following study was written between May
1969 and June 1971. Since then some alterations and corrections have
been made. The text, however, has been revised to include a discussion
of the most recent literature only in those cases where this literature
is seen to differ substantially from earlier publications.
Since this work attempts a synthetic treatment of the inter-
dependent interpretations of historical materials scattered through
several quite distinct academic fields, I am specially grateful for the
advice and detailed criticism I have received from many people of
greater experience than mine. In this respect, I want particularly to
thank the following: Professor Dr. Hellmut Brunner, Professor Dr.
Herbert Haag, Dr. Dorothy Irvin, Dr. John Landgraf, Professor Dr.
Wolfgang Rollig, and Professor Dr. Hans Peter Riiger.
To Professor D. Dr. Kurt Galling, to whom this book is dedicated,
I am permanently indebted, for his interest, his encouragement, and
his constant support since my first semester in Tubingen in 1963.
I wish also to thank the Gressmann Stiftung for their generous
financial aid in helping to meet the publication costs of this volume,
and Professor D. Dr. Georg Fohrer for accepting this book as a Bei-
heft for the Zeitschrift fur die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft.
Tübingen, October, 1973

Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction
A. Archaeology or Biblical Criticism ? 1
B. The Biblical Chronologies for the Patriarchal Period 9
Chapter 2: The Names of the Patriarchs and the "Patriarchal
Period"
A. Statement of the Problem 17
B. The Names in Context: Abraham 22
C. Isaac, Israel, and Jacob 36
Chapter 3: Mari and the Patriarchs
A. "Littera gesta docet, quid credas allegoria ..." 52
B. "Benjamin" at Mari 58
Chapter 4: The Early West Semites of Mesopotamia and the
"Patriarchal Period"
A. The "Amorites" of Ur III and Mari 67
B. Proto-Aramaeans 75
C. The Early West Semitic "Migration" from Ur to Harran 79
Chapter 5: The Early West Semites in Palestine and Syria
A. The "Patriarchal Period" 89
B. The Linguistic Material for Palestine from the Early Second Millenium 91
C. The Execration Texts and their Historical Setting 98
D. The Dating of the Execration Texts 106
E. The Execration Texts and the Political Organization of Palestine at the
End of the Twelfth Dynasty 113
Chapter 6: Egypt and the Amorite Question
A. The Incursion of the Amorites into the Eastern Delta 118
B. The 'smw and the Amurru 121
C. The "Asiatics" of the Eastern Desert 123
D. Sinai and the Delta in Old and Middle Kingdom Records 134
E. The Incursion of the 'smw into Egypt during the First Intermediate
Period 137
Chapter 7: EB IV/MB I: A Period of Amorite Semi-Nomadic In-
vasions ?
A. The Influence of the Amorite Hypothesis on Archaeological Interpretation 144
B. The Evidence for an Invasion from the North 159
C. The So-called Nomadic Character of EB IV/MB I 165
X Table of Contents
Chapter 8: Abraham as a Caravaneer
A. The Thesis of C. H. Gordon and W. F. Albright 172
B. Some Chronological Notes on EB IV/MB I 175
C. Abraham the Caravaneer, and EB IV/MB I 180
D. Abraham and the Hapini Caravans 184
Chapter 9: The Problem of Historicity and Genesis 14 187
Chapter 10: Nuzi and the Patriarchal Narratives
A. The Discovery of the Texts and their Dating 196
B. Nuzi Family Customs and the Historicity of the Patriarchal Narratives 199
C. Gen 15 2-4 203
D. Gen 1129 230
E. Gen 12 10-20 20l-l8 and 26 6-11 234
F. Gen 24 248
G. Gen 16 21l-21 and 29 31 — 30 24 252
H. Gen 29 9-30 and 3025 — 31 54 269
J. Gen 25 29-34 280
K. Gen 27l-45 285
L. Conclusion to Chapter 10 294
Chapter 11: Genesis 1110 — 12 9 and the Wanderings of Abraham
A. The Patriarchs and the Aramaeans 298
B. The Editorial Construction of the Wanderings of Abraham 308
C. Some Notes on the Structure of Genealogies and Sagas in Antiquity . . 311
Chapter 12: Summary and Conclusions
A. The Historical Background of the Patriarchal Narratives 315
B. Historical and Christian Faith 326
Abbreviations 330
Bibliography 336
Index 379