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Theme: The Bible
The Bible is based on God, humans, and the relationship between the two. This relationship is exercised through the acts of covenants. A covenant is the binding and solemn agreement between two or more parties; in this case, it is between God and mankind. It provides for the Lord's reconciling of mankind's sins. The covenant is established for the effect sins have on the human race. It was to bring about change in attitude toward the Creator's authority. Setting mankind at variance with the divine will, causing separation and alienation. God's response to man's sins was the establishment of the covenant. It became the antagonism between those who accepted His overtures of peace and harmony. It was a choice to again become loyal subjects of God's heavenly kingdom. Those who would reject this salvation proffered them. The covenant between God and mankind is the central motif of the bible, changing the conception of God and mankind and making this relationship unique.
The concept of the covenant develops throughout the Biblical text, as God's dealings with mankind become more personal and unique. The concept of G-d's covenant develops throughout the bible as G-d reconciles mankind. This can first be seen with G-d's dealing with Adam and Eve. G-d had decreed that if Adam and Eve were to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and bad " you shall die" (g 2:17). However, later it is seen that when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge of good and bad, He did not enforce the death penalty. Rather, He allowed man a second opportunity to experience a reality of his choice, a world out of His harmony. "G-d banished him [Adam and Eve] from the Garden of Eden, to till the soil from which he was taken." (g 3:23) G-d made provision for them to live, procreate and maintain a relationship with them. Then, G-d made a renewal of this covenant with Noah. In the story of Noah, the exceeding wickedness of humanity almost resulted in the Lord's destruction of the world by a flood. Only Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord as it was described in Genesis 6:8-9, Noah was "a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with G-d." G-d then made a covenant with Noah that "never again shall all the flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall a there be flood to destroy the earth." (g 9:11) Noah, his family, and every living thing were saved in the ark built at the Lord's command, allowing the human race and all creatures to continue. Then there was Abram, whom at G-d's command left the sophisticated city of Ur, with all its securities and comfort, to become a nomad. Moreover, G-d never told Abram He was leading him to. "Now the Lord said to Abram, 'Go forth from your country, And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed. '" (g 12:1-3) The Lord also made more covenants with Abram, the Lord gave "all the land you [Abram] see to you and your oRABpring." (g 3:18) He also promised to Abram that He "will make [Abram] exceedingly fertile, and make nations of you; and kings shall come forth from you." (g 17:6) G-d continues making covenants in the biblical text with Sarai. Whereas He says that "As for your wife Sarai, you shall not call her Sarai, but her name shall be Sarah. I will bless her, indeed. I will give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she shall give rise to nations; rulers of peoples shall issue from her." (g 18:15-16) The Lord does this too to Abram, He changes his name from Abram to Abraham meaning "exalted father," which indicates the worldwide blessing G-d will bestow through him and his descendents. These covenants develop more as the descendents of Abraham grow into a nation.
The impact of the covenant focuses on the conception of God and mankind. These covenants place a grand impact on the biblical conceptions of G-d and human beings. It had first been intended that the human race be to rule over the earth while God was the master of the human race. The Lord had decreed that man was to " be fertile and increase, fill the earth and master it; and rule the fish of the sea, the birRAB of the sky, and all living things that creep on earth." (g 1:28) Man was then required to so, he had intellect and free will to rule the earth and master it. Yet, it was conditional on the premises that Adam and Eve would not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and bad, or they will then die. Nevertheless, Adam and Eve had broken this covenant. The Lord then gave them a second chance to reconcile their sin. However, in the future, God relationship with man had changed when he tried to destroy the human race again. God had wanted to "blot out from the earth the men whom I [He] created. For I regret that I made them." (g 6:7) "But Noah found favor with the Lord," (g 6:8) and because of this favor God decided to save Noah. Then again, God wanted to destroy the land of Sodom and Gomorrah, but Abraham had dissented to this and communicated his dissent with God. Abraham told God that Shall not the judge of all the earth [God] deal justly" (g 18:25) in regarRAB to the wicked behavior of Sodom and Gomorrah. In these two instances, God had not destroyed the entire human race or the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The lord had taken in the consideration of the worRAB of Noah and Abraham. Concentrating on the worRAB of Abraham, he was able to prove that man is able to protest when God may be believed to be wrong. It allows man the ability to exchange authority and provides for the on-going relationship between God and man. These two examples portray the conception of God and mankind through the example that God is, at times, equal to man. That man's worRAB are just as important as the Lord's. Through these examples, God is found to be a God of history, for it is the Lord that is involved and creates history. This conception of God and mankind displays that not everyone is to be submissive to the Lord and allows humans to contest and disagree with the Lord.
The concept of God's relationship with man and the covenants He makes are a central motif of the Biblical text, of which itself makes it unique. This is the first instance where the God of nature and man is monotheistic. The Lord in the Biblical text is immortal and separate from nature. God uses the word of mouth to create man to tend and till the land that He had created. Unlike, other stories from the Ancient Near East, only God can destroy humans, humans cannot destroy God, for magic is ineffectual onto God. Also making the Bible unique is the concept of the covenant. It provides a close and personal dimension between God and the human race. It is the consensual agreement of the Lord's relationship with the human race and an agreement of the human race's dedication to the monotheistic God. Furthermore, two examples from the Bible make the covenant unique; the blood covenant and the act of circumcision. The blood covenant shows proof of the agreement that what happens to humans may also happen to the Lord. This shows that God is on the same plane as humans. It states a pledge that if broken pronounced curse may occur. The second is the physical evidence of the circumcision. This covenant not only affects the Abraham, of which it was made with, but that of all his oRABpring. It provides the chosen people have faith in Yahweh and are obliged in obedience with His commandments. Lastly, the brotherly relationship witnessed in the Bible, too, makes it unique. For it is stated in Genesis 25:23 that "the older [brother] shall serve the younger." This is an important theme because in ancient times it was a custom for the eldest brother to obtain double of their inheritance. Yet, the Bible distinguishes itself by this theme because it shows God as just and that being born first is not a guideline for inheritance. Rather, it must be based on merit. These factors separate the Biblical text and make it unique to that of Ancient Near East culture.
However, the God of the Biblical text does relate to that of Ancient Near Eastern culture. Comparing to Enuma Elish and The Epic of Gilgamesh, the Old Testament is similar in certain aspects, other than similarity in the plot of their stories. Each question the world's creation, whether or not the world was created from nothing or something. This question provides for cultural answers to the unknown through answers that come from myths. These myths validate the unknown answers for the cultural norm of a political society. It can later be seen that these myths of creation are reenacted as a public ritual. For example, in the Bible the Sabbath is the public ritual of God's chosen people. However, the Bible grows out of these stories of Ancient Near Eastern culture by establishing a monotheistic God and further developing that God's characteristics. In Enuma Elish, several GoRAB had been created, while the Bible claims that God had always been there. Of these several GoRAB, they had all fought to create and they created humans out of stuff. Whereas, the Biblical God had created Adam and Eve through the word of his mouth. The Lord had stated "Let us make man in our image. And God created man in His image." (g 1:26-27) God had stated that he wanted man and then it was so. These differences outweigh the similarities of the Ancient Near Eastern culture that make the Biblical text unique. This is conceived by the growth of God's characteristics from these stories of the Ancient Near Eastern culture.
The notion that God forms a covenant with human beings is a central motif in the Bible, which proves itself unique to that of Ancient Near Eastern Culture. The covenant is displayed as an everlasting agreement between God and the human race. It changes the conception of God's relationship with mankind through the development of an on-going relationship through the oRABpring of whom God makes covenants with. These covenants make the Bible unique through the differences seen in the story of Enuma Elish and The Epic of Gilgamesh. It is this covenant that plays an important role everlasting Jewish religion.
The Bible is based on God, humans, and the relationship between the two. This relationship is exercised through the acts of covenants. A covenant is the binding and solemn agreement between two or more parties; in this case, it is between God and mankind. It provides for the Lord's reconciling of mankind's sins. The covenant is established for the effect sins have on the human race. It was to bring about change in attitude toward the Creator's authority. Setting mankind at variance with the divine will, causing separation and alienation. God's response to man's sins was the establishment of the covenant. It became the antagonism between those who accepted His overtures of peace and harmony. It was a choice to again become loyal subjects of God's heavenly kingdom. Those who would reject this salvation proffered them. The covenant between God and mankind is the central motif of the bible, changing the conception of God and mankind and making this relationship unique.
The concept of the covenant develops throughout the Biblical text, as God's dealings with mankind become more personal and unique. The concept of G-d's covenant develops throughout the bible as G-d reconciles mankind. This can first be seen with G-d's dealing with Adam and Eve. G-d had decreed that if Adam and Eve were to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and bad " you shall die" (g 2:17). However, later it is seen that when Adam and Eve ate from the tree of knowledge of good and bad, He did not enforce the death penalty. Rather, He allowed man a second opportunity to experience a reality of his choice, a world out of His harmony. "G-d banished him [Adam and Eve] from the Garden of Eden, to till the soil from which he was taken." (g 3:23) G-d made provision for them to live, procreate and maintain a relationship with them. Then, G-d made a renewal of this covenant with Noah. In the story of Noah, the exceeding wickedness of humanity almost resulted in the Lord's destruction of the world by a flood. Only Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord as it was described in Genesis 6:8-9, Noah was "a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with G-d." G-d then made a covenant with Noah that "never again shall all the flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall a there be flood to destroy the earth." (g 9:11) Noah, his family, and every living thing were saved in the ark built at the Lord's command, allowing the human race and all creatures to continue. Then there was Abram, whom at G-d's command left the sophisticated city of Ur, with all its securities and comfort, to become a nomad. Moreover, G-d never told Abram He was leading him to. "Now the Lord said to Abram, 'Go forth from your country, And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed. '" (g 12:1-3) The Lord also made more covenants with Abram, the Lord gave "all the land you [Abram] see to you and your oRABpring." (g 3:18) He also promised to Abram that He "will make [Abram] exceedingly fertile, and make nations of you; and kings shall come forth from you." (g 17:6) G-d continues making covenants in the biblical text with Sarai. Whereas He says that "As for your wife Sarai, you shall not call her Sarai, but her name shall be Sarah. I will bless her, indeed. I will give you a son by her. I will bless her so that she shall give rise to nations; rulers of peoples shall issue from her." (g 18:15-16) The Lord does this too to Abram, He changes his name from Abram to Abraham meaning "exalted father," which indicates the worldwide blessing G-d will bestow through him and his descendents. These covenants develop more as the descendents of Abraham grow into a nation.
The impact of the covenant focuses on the conception of God and mankind. These covenants place a grand impact on the biblical conceptions of G-d and human beings. It had first been intended that the human race be to rule over the earth while God was the master of the human race. The Lord had decreed that man was to " be fertile and increase, fill the earth and master it; and rule the fish of the sea, the birRAB of the sky, and all living things that creep on earth." (g 1:28) Man was then required to so, he had intellect and free will to rule the earth and master it. Yet, it was conditional on the premises that Adam and Eve would not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and bad, or they will then die. Nevertheless, Adam and Eve had broken this covenant. The Lord then gave them a second chance to reconcile their sin. However, in the future, God relationship with man had changed when he tried to destroy the human race again. God had wanted to "blot out from the earth the men whom I [He] created. For I regret that I made them." (g 6:7) "But Noah found favor with the Lord," (g 6:8) and because of this favor God decided to save Noah. Then again, God wanted to destroy the land of Sodom and Gomorrah, but Abraham had dissented to this and communicated his dissent with God. Abraham told God that Shall not the judge of all the earth [God] deal justly" (g 18:25) in regarRAB to the wicked behavior of Sodom and Gomorrah. In these two instances, God had not destroyed the entire human race or the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. The lord had taken in the consideration of the worRAB of Noah and Abraham. Concentrating on the worRAB of Abraham, he was able to prove that man is able to protest when God may be believed to be wrong. It allows man the ability to exchange authority and provides for the on-going relationship between God and man. These two examples portray the conception of God and mankind through the example that God is, at times, equal to man. That man's worRAB are just as important as the Lord's. Through these examples, God is found to be a God of history, for it is the Lord that is involved and creates history. This conception of God and mankind displays that not everyone is to be submissive to the Lord and allows humans to contest and disagree with the Lord.
The concept of God's relationship with man and the covenants He makes are a central motif of the Biblical text, of which itself makes it unique. This is the first instance where the God of nature and man is monotheistic. The Lord in the Biblical text is immortal and separate from nature. God uses the word of mouth to create man to tend and till the land that He had created. Unlike, other stories from the Ancient Near East, only God can destroy humans, humans cannot destroy God, for magic is ineffectual onto God. Also making the Bible unique is the concept of the covenant. It provides a close and personal dimension between God and the human race. It is the consensual agreement of the Lord's relationship with the human race and an agreement of the human race's dedication to the monotheistic God. Furthermore, two examples from the Bible make the covenant unique; the blood covenant and the act of circumcision. The blood covenant shows proof of the agreement that what happens to humans may also happen to the Lord. This shows that God is on the same plane as humans. It states a pledge that if broken pronounced curse may occur. The second is the physical evidence of the circumcision. This covenant not only affects the Abraham, of which it was made with, but that of all his oRABpring. It provides the chosen people have faith in Yahweh and are obliged in obedience with His commandments. Lastly, the brotherly relationship witnessed in the Bible, too, makes it unique. For it is stated in Genesis 25:23 that "the older [brother] shall serve the younger." This is an important theme because in ancient times it was a custom for the eldest brother to obtain double of their inheritance. Yet, the Bible distinguishes itself by this theme because it shows God as just and that being born first is not a guideline for inheritance. Rather, it must be based on merit. These factors separate the Biblical text and make it unique to that of Ancient Near East culture.
However, the God of the Biblical text does relate to that of Ancient Near Eastern culture. Comparing to Enuma Elish and The Epic of Gilgamesh, the Old Testament is similar in certain aspects, other than similarity in the plot of their stories. Each question the world's creation, whether or not the world was created from nothing or something. This question provides for cultural answers to the unknown through answers that come from myths. These myths validate the unknown answers for the cultural norm of a political society. It can later be seen that these myths of creation are reenacted as a public ritual. For example, in the Bible the Sabbath is the public ritual of God's chosen people. However, the Bible grows out of these stories of Ancient Near Eastern culture by establishing a monotheistic God and further developing that God's characteristics. In Enuma Elish, several GoRAB had been created, while the Bible claims that God had always been there. Of these several GoRAB, they had all fought to create and they created humans out of stuff. Whereas, the Biblical God had created Adam and Eve through the word of his mouth. The Lord had stated "Let us make man in our image. And God created man in His image." (g 1:26-27) God had stated that he wanted man and then it was so. These differences outweigh the similarities of the Ancient Near Eastern culture that make the Biblical text unique. This is conceived by the growth of God's characteristics from these stories of the Ancient Near Eastern culture.
The notion that God forms a covenant with human beings is a central motif in the Bible, which proves itself unique to that of Ancient Near Eastern Culture. The covenant is displayed as an everlasting agreement between God and the human race. It changes the conception of God's relationship with mankind through the development of an on-going relationship through the oRABpring of whom God makes covenants with. These covenants make the Bible unique through the differences seen in the story of Enuma Elish and The Epic of Gilgamesh. It is this covenant that plays an important role everlasting Jewish religion.