Book
Melchizedek, King of Sodom: how scribes invented the biblical priest-king
Oxford scholarship online, Oxford University Press
2019
DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780190946968.001.0001
Abstract
The biblical figure Melchizedek appears just twice in the Hebrew Bible, and once more in the Christian New Testament. Cited as both the king of Shalem - understood by most scholars to be Jerusalem - and as an eternal priest without ancestry, Melchizedek's appearances become textual justification for the establishment of the kingship of David in Jerusalem and the Christian priesthood. But what if the text was manipulated? Robert R. Cargill explores the Hebrew and Greek texts concerning, Melchizedek's encounter with Abraham in Genesis as a basis to unravel the biblical mystery of this character's origins.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Melchizedek, King of Sodom: how scribes invented the biblical priest-king
- Creators
- Robert R Cargill - University of Iowa, Classics
- Resource Type
- Book
- Table of contents
- The Positive Perception of Sodom in Genesis 14; The Structure of the Narrative; Grammatical Evidence for the Interruption of Continuity of Gen. 14:17–24; 7. The Tithes That Bind: Seeking Precedent for Tithing to the Jerusalem Priesthood; Deut. 27:4: Mt. Gerizim and Mt. Ebal; Index; “In Every Place I Will Cause” versus “In the Place I Caused” My Name to Be Remembered; Making Shalem Shiloh: Jeremiah 41:5 (Shechem, Shiloh/Shalem, and Samaria); The Place YHWH “Will Choose” versus “Chose”; The “Valley of Shaveh” as Jerusalem; Appendix I: All Hifʿil Verbs in Gen. 14 in Relation to Preceding Qal Verbs; Appendix N: Copper Scroll (3Q15) 7:11–9:3 and Translation; Lev. 26:31: A Single Sanctuary; Copyright page; Note on the Principle of Lectio Difficilior; Melchizedek, King of Sodaom; Gen. 14:10: The Fate of Beraʿ, King of Sodom; Gen. 22: From Moreh to Moriah to Jerusalem: The Jewish Polemical Counterclaim to Shechem; Appendix K: The LXX’s Translation of Instances of Moreh/Moriah; On tithes to Temples Versus Texes to Kings; Abbreviations; Shalem in Ps. 76; Exod. 20 and Deut. 5: The Samaritan Tenth Commandment; Conclusion; The Problem of Tithing to a Canaanite Priest-King; Appendix D: Select Semitic Theophoric Names in the Bible and Other ANE Sources; Psalm 110:4; 4. From ʾEl ʿElyon to YHWH: Conflating Deities and Monotheistic Apologetics; Psalm 110:3; 2. Melchizedek the Man in the Context of Gen. 14; Making Shalem “Peacefully”: Gen. 33:18–19 (Shalem, a City of Shechem); 8. Psalm 110; Was Ṣedeq Worshiped in Jerusalem and throughout Canaan?; Who is ʾEl ʿElyon? The Deity/Deities in; Appendix F: Kings by Name and Dominion in Gen. 14; Psalm 110:1; Appendix C: Structural Similarities between Gen. 14:11 and 14:12; The Name Malki-Ṣedeq (Melchizedek); Contents; Appendix J: References to Sodom in the Hebrew Bible; Introduction; Dedication; Does מעשר in Gen. 14:20 Mean “Tithe”; Examples of Priest-Kings in the Ancient Near East and Ancient Israel; History of Scholarly Research; 6. From Shalem to Jerusalem: Sectarian Relocation via Redaction; Appendix G: V-S-O and S-V-O Grammatical Structure in Genesis 14; Gen. 14:17: Melchizedek as Son of Beraʿ; 1. History of Interpretation of Melchizedek; The Text under Examination; Index of Verses; Appendix M: 1QapGen (1Q20): Genesis Apocryphon 21:23–22:26; “He Gave Him”: Who Tithed What to Whom?; The Discontinuity in Narrative Caused by a Separate Appearance of Melchizedek; From ʾEl ʿElyon to YHWH: The Gloss in Gen. 14:22; Melchizedek, King of Sodom; Appendix O: All Verbs and Subjects in Gen. 14; 5. Evidence of Sectarian Redaction in the Samaritan Pentateuch and the Masoretic Text; Appendix H: Waw Consecutive (w.c.)/Past Narrative Verbs in Genesis 14:7–22; Proposed Original Text of Gen. 14:17–24; Linguistic Evidence: The Play on עשר in Gen. 14:20 and Abram’s Oath in Gen. 14:23; Preface; Notes; The Significance of Shalem; Appendix E: Theophoric Names Containing the Root Ṣ-D-Q in the Eastern Mediterranean; 9. Conclusion; Shalem Was Never the Early Name of Jerusalem—Jerusalem’s Name Was Always Lengthy; The Priestly Effort to Identify Shalem with Jerusalem; Creator of Heaven and Earth; Shalem, a City in Samaria; Appendix P: Every היא / הוא (Hu/Hî) Relative Clause That Appears in; Appendix A: The Masoretic Hebrew Text of Gen. 14; Cover; Appendix L: Jerusalem’s Early Names; 3. From Sodom to Shalem: Polishing the Patriarch; Appendix B: English Translation of the Masoretic Hebrew Text of Gen. 14; Bibliography; Mechanics of the Literary Redaction; 6. From Shalem to Jerusalem: Sectarian Relocation via Redaction -- Shalem Was Never the Early Name of Jerusalem-Jerusalem's Name Was Always Lengthy -- Shalem, a City in Samaria -- Shalem in Ps. 76 -- Making Shalem "Peacefully": Gen. 33:18-19 (Shalem, a City of Shechem) -- Making Shalem Shiloh: Jeremiah 41:5 (Shechem, Shiloh/Shalem, and Samaria) -- The Priestly Effort to Identify Shalem with Jerusalem -- The "Valley of Shaveh" as Jerusalem -- Conclusion -- 7. The Tithes That Bind: Seeking Precedent for Tithing to the Jerusalem Priesthood -- On tithes to Temples Versus Texes to Kings -- The Problem of Tithing to a Canaanite Priest-King -- Does מעשר in Gen. 14:20 Mean "Tithe" -- "He Gave Him": Who Tithed What to Whom? -- Conclusion -- 8. Psalm 110 -- Psalm 110:1 -- Psalm 110:3 -- Psalm 110:4 -- Conclusion -- 9. Conclusion -- Appendix A: The Masoretic Hebrew Text of Gen. 14 -- Appendix B: English Translation of the Masoretic Hebrew Text of Gen. 14 -- Appendix C: Structural Similarities between Gen. 14:11 and 14:12 -- Appendix D: Select Semitic Theophoric Names in the Bible and Other ANE Sources -- Appendix E: Theophoric Names Containing the Root Ṣ-D-Q in the Eastern Mediterranean -- Appendix F: Kings by Name and Dominion in Gen. 14 -- Appendix G: V-S-O and S-V-O Grammatical Structure in Genesis 14 -- Appendix H: Waw Consecutive (w.c.)/Past Narrative Verbs in Genesis 14:7-22 -- Appendix I: All Hifʿil Verbs in Gen. 14 in Relation to Preceding Qal Verbs -- Appendix J: References to Sodom in the Hebrew Bible -- Appendix K: The LXX's Translation of Instances of Moreh/Moriah -- Appendix L: Jerusalem's Early Names -- Appendix M: 1QapGen (1Q20): Genesis Apocryphon 21:23-22:26 -- Appendix N: Copper Scroll (3Q15) 7:11-9:3 and Translation -- Appendix O: All Verbs and Subjects in Gen. 14; Cover -- Melchizedek, King of Sodom -- Copyright page -- Dedication -- Contents -- Preface -- Abbreviations -- Melchizedek, King of Sodaom -- Introduction -- 1. History of Interpretation of Melchizedek -- History of Scholarly Research -- 2. Melchizedek the Man in the Context of Gen. 14 -- The Structure of the Narrative -- The Name Malki-Ṣedeq (Melchizedek) -- Was Ṣedeq Worshiped in Jerusalem and throughout Canaan? -- Examples of Priest-Kings in the Ancient Near East and Ancient Israel -- Conclusion -- 3. From Sodom to Shalem: Polishing the Patriarch -- The Text under Examination -- Note on the Principle of Lectio Difficilior -- Mechanics of the Literary Redaction -- Gen. 14:10: The Fate of Beraʿ, King of Sodom -- Gen. 14:17: Melchizedek as Son of Beraʿ -- Proposed Original Text of Gen. 14:17-24 -- The Discontinuity in Narrative Caused by a Separate Appearance of Melchizedek -- Grammatical Evidence for the Interruption of Continuity of Gen. 14:17-24 -- Linguistic Evidence: The Play on עשר in Gen. 14:20 and Abram's Oath in Gen. 14:23 -- The Positive Perception of Sodom in Genesis 14 -- The Significance of Shalem -- Conclusion -- 4. From ʾEl ʿElyon to YHWH: Conflating Deities and Monotheistic Apologetics -- Who is ʾEl ʿElyon? The Deity/Deities in -- "Creator of Heaven and Earth" -- From ʾEl ʿElyon to YHWH: The Gloss in Gen. 14:22 -- Conclusion -- 5. Evidence of Sectarian Redaction in the Samaritan Pentateuch and the Masoretic Text -- The Place YHWH "Will Choose" versus "Chose" -- "In Every Place I Will Cause" versus "In the Place I Caused" My Name to Be Remembered -- Lev. 26:31: A Single Sanctuary -- Exod. 20 and Deut. 5: The Samaritan Tenth Commandment -- Deut. 27:4: Mt. Gerizim and Mt. Ebal -- Gen. 22: From Moreh to Moriah to Jerusalem: The Jewish Polemical Counterclaim to Shechem -- Conclusion; Appendix P: Every היא / הוא (Hu/Hî) Relative Clause That Appears in -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index of Verses -- Index
- Series
- Oxford scholarship online
- DOI
- 10.1093/oso/9780190946968.001.0001
- ISBN
- 9780190946999; 0190946997; 0190946962; 9780190946968
- eISBN
- 0190946970; 9780190946975; 9780190946999; 0190946997
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press; New York, NY
- Number of pages
- xiii, 185 pages
- Alternative title
- Old Testament
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 2019
- Academic Unit
- Classics; Religious Studies
- Record Identifier
- 9983870792002771
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