The Hybrid Story of Balaam (Numbers 22â24): Theology for the Diaspora in the Torah
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Abstract
The strange character of Numbers 22â24 as a story about foreigners and their attempts to rule YHWH can successfully be read with Homi Bhabha's concept of hybridity and Gayatri Spivak's subaltern. Focusing on the characters' relationships in this text, Balak is the hegemon and Balaam the subaltern, and this constitutes much of their communicational failures. The donkey's episode serves as a lesson for the reader as well as for Balaam who is the hegemon in this case: he learnsâas Balak does notâthat God is the real worldly and 'wordly' hegemon. This monotheistic message is explained to the Judaean readers/listeners through non-Judean protagonists. Many details point to an origin of the final text in a reception of the deuteronomistic YHWH/Assur/Israel constellation and theology in Persian times.
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| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 487 | 55 | 6 |
| Full Text Views | 163 | 5 | 3 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 133 | 11 | 8 |
The Hybrid Story of Balaam (Numbers 22â24): Theology for the Diaspora in the Torah
In: Biblical InterpretationSearch for other papers by Ulrike Sals in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Abstract
The strange character of Numbers 22â24 as a story about foreigners and their attempts to rule YHWH can successfully be read with Homi Bhabha's concept of hybridity and Gayatri Spivak's subaltern. Focusing on the characters' relationships in this text, Balak is the hegemon and Balaam the subaltern, and this constitutes much of their communicational failures. The donkey's episode serves as a lesson for the reader as well as for Balaam who is the hegemon in this case: he learnsâas Balak does notâthat God is the real worldly and 'wordly' hegemon. This monotheistic message is explained to the Judaean readers/listeners through non-Judean protagonists. Many details point to an origin of the final text in a reception of the deuteronomistic YHWH/Assur/Israel constellation and theology in Persian times.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 487 | 55 | 6 |
| Full Text Views | 163 | 5 | 3 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 133 | 11 | 8 |
