Abraham, the Nations, and the Hagarites Part 2
ed noort
directly to Abraham (Gal :, ). In this essay the role of Abraham is
highlighted from a “diachronic” perspective. No less important, however,
is the relationship of Abraham and his descendants to the neighbouring
peoples, a “synchronic” perspective. They are addressed either in the
final chapter of the Abraham-Lot composition (Gen :– Moab and
Ammon) or in the Ishmael/Hagar narratives (Gen ; :– Isaac and
Ishmael).
The abrupt -
-
(“Go”) to Abraham4 in Gen : introduces the
divine commandment to him to sever his bonds to country, clan, and
father’s house.5 Abraham then starts his journey “to the country that I
shall show you.” However, Abraham’s wanderings in Palestine and Egypt
are nothing in comparison to the virtual travels he has experienced at the
hands of the scholarly community. Moreover, the exegetical presentation
of the figure of Abraham clearly demonstrates which tendencies in exe-
gesis were fashionable during a certain period. The figure of Abraham is
a genuine mirror of the changes in exegetical preferences.6
Chronologically, the dating of the patriarchs along a timeline from
bce to the post-exilic period went into free fall, occurring within a
short period of forty years.7 Van Seters and Thompson successfully con-
tested the trustworthiness and relevance of the extra-biblical evidence
4 I neglect the differences in the naming of Abraham before and after Gen .
5 M. Köckert, Vätergott und Väterverheissung: Eine Auseinandersetzung mit Albrecht
Alt und seinen Erben (FRLANT ; Göttingen ), and Idem, “Die Geschichte der
Abrahamsüberlieferung,” in Congress Volume Leiden (ed. A. Lemaire; VTSup ;
Leiden ), –, has once again pointed out that Gen :– presupposes the
priestly (“the genealogies of Terah”). With J.L. Ska, “L’appel d’Abraham et l’acte
de naissance d’Israël: Genèse ,–a,” in Deuteronomy and Deuteronomic Literature:
Festschrift C.H.W. Brekelmans (ed. M. Vervenne and J. Lust; BETL ; Leuven ),
, , he decides that :–a is a later interpolation added to the related :–;
:b– and argues against the proposal that :– was written as an introductory
passage to :–a. 6 For an overview of the history of research from Wellhausen to Alt, see H. Weid-
mann, Die Patriarchen und ihre Religion im Licht der Forschung seit Julius Wellhausen
(FRLANT ; Göttingen ). 7 These developments can be best detected in the summaries of standard works.
R. Martin-Achard, “Abraham I,” TRE /:– grounds the patriarchs in the eigh-
teenth and nineteenth centuries bce. Twenty years later “bleibt die Gestalt Abrahams dem
historischen Zugriff entzogen” (E. Blum, “Abraham,” RGG4 :). See however, A.R. Mil-
lard, “Abraham,” ABD, :–: “To place Abraham at the beginning of the nd millen-
nium bc is . . . sustainable. The extra-biblical information . . . does not demand such a
date, (but) it certainly allows it” (). Cf. L.L. Grabbe, Ancient Israel: What Do We Know
and How Do We Know It? (London ), –.
abraham andthe nations
and Van Seters dated the patriarchal stories to exilic times.8 Alt’s influen-
tial religio-historical thesis that behind the “God of the Fathers”9 of the
patriarchal narratives there is a pre-Israelite type of semi-nomadic reli-
gion was successfully criticized by Köckert.10 However, even more influ-
ential were the renewed debates on source criticism itself,11 the date of the
Yahwist,12 the compositional structure of the narratives,13 and the dating
of the divine promises.14 Finally, the renewed debate on the growth of the
Pentateuch15 also concerns Abraham.
Against this background of Abraham’s travels in the scholarly world, I
will first look at the figure of Abraham outside Gen ,discussing the
other parts of the Hebrew Bible in which he plays a role.The next step will
be to return to the Abraham cycle itself, studying the oldest narratives
that focus on the relationship between Abraham and the neighbouring
nations: Abraham and Lot; as well as Abraham, Hagar, and Ishmael.
Finally, I will turn to Gen , paying special attention to the crucial
v. .
. Outside the Abraham Cycle
Outside Gen Abraham is mentioned in the priestly geneal-
ogy of Isaac and Ishmael , in the divine speeches to Isaac in
the Gerar scene , with a reference to Abraham’s oath ,
and the renewal of the promise of land, offspring, and blessing because—
in clear post-Deuteronomistic wording—Abraham obeyed God’s voice
(
) and kept God’s charge, commandments, statutes, and laws
8 T.L. Thompson, The Historicity of the Patriarchal Narratives: The Quest for the
Historical Abraham (BZAW ; Berlin ); J. Van Seters, Abraham in History and
Tradition (New Haven ). 9 A. Alt, Der Gott der Väter (BWANT .; Stuttgart ); repr. In Idem, Kleine
Schriften zur Geschichte des Volkes Israel (ed. M. Noth; vols.; München ), :–. 10 Köckert, Vätergott und Väterverheissung. 11 R. Rendtorff, Das überlieferungsgeschichtliche Problem des Pentateuch (BZAW ;
Berlin ). 12 C. Levin, Der Jahwist (FRLANT ; Göttingen ). 13 E. Blum, Die Komposition der Vätergeschichte (WMANT ; Neukirchen-Vluyn
). 14 Ska, “L’appel d’Abraham,” –. 15 T.C. Römer, “Recherches actuelles sur le Cycle d’Abraham,” in Studies in the Book of
Genesis: Literature, Redaction and History (ed. A. Wénin; BETL ; Leuven ), –
; T.B. Dozeman and K. Schmid, eds., A Farewell to the Yahwist? The Composition of
the Pentateuch in Recent European Interpretation (SSSBL ; Atlanta ).
