Semantics and ‘Spirit’

rwḥ and Humanity in Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Job

Series: 

רוח is vital to the Hebrew Bible’s understanding of God, the world, and humanity. However, the word defies easy categorisation or casual analysis, especially when referring to humans and their experiences.
Integrating insights from several sub-fields of Cognitive Linguistics with detailed exegesis, this book examines each anthropological use of רוח in Proverbs, Job, and Ecclesiastes, demonstrating how even complicated words in difficult passages can be fruitfully understood. As well as furthering the application of contemporary linguistics to ancient texts, this study sheds new light on the Hebrew Bible’s understanding of humanity and their relationship to the world and to the divine.
Copyright Year:
2023
E-Book (PDF)
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Published
ISBN:
978-90-04-52539-9
Publication:
31 Oct 2022
Hardback
Availability:
Published
ISBN:
978-90-04-52538-2
Publication:
03 Nov 2022
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Joel A. J. Atwood, Ph.D. (2021), Moore Theological College, works with CMS Australia as national director of the Gud Nius Yunivesiti Felosip, Vanuatu, and as adjunct lecturer at Talua Theological Training Institute. As well as his work on exegesis and cognitive linguistics, he has published articles and chapters on missiology, contact languages, biblical poetry, and is working on a commentary on the book of Isaiah.
Contents
Acknowledgements
Conventions
 Typographical Conventions
 Nomenclature
 Sigla
List of Tables and Figures
Abbreviations
 Ancient Sources
 Secondary Sources

1 The Elusive רוּחַ—Introductions
 1 “Chasing after רוּחַ”
 2 Previous Studies of רוּחַ and the Human Person

2 The Recondite רוּחַ—Cognitive Linguistics and Ancient Languages
 1 Linguistics and Ancient Languages
 2 Introducing Cognitive Linguistics
 3 Meaning ‘Beyond’ the Gloss: Cognitive Semantics
 4 Meaning ‘Beyond’ the Word: Construction Grammar
 5 Meaning ‘Beyond’ the Literal: Conceptual Metaphor Theory and Its Kin
 6 Meaning ‘Beyond’ the Obvious: Relevance Theory
 7 Conclusion
 8 ‘Wisdom’ Texts and רוּחַ
 9 Elucidating the Recondite רוּחַ

3 The Protean רוּחַ—Proverbs
 1 Orientation to Proverbs
 2 Analysis of Proverbs
 3 רוּחַ in Proverbs: Preliminary Observations
 4 Summary of Proverbs

4 The Liminal רוּחַ—Ecclesiastes
 1 Orientation to Ecclesiastes
 2 Analysis of Ecclesiastes
 3 רוּחַ in Ecclesiastes: Preliminary Observations
 4 Summary of Ecclesiastes

5 The Exhausted רוּחַ—Job
 1 Orientation to Job
 2 Analysis of Job
 3 רוּחַ in Job: Preliminary Observations
 4 Summary of Job

6 The Path of the רוּחַ—Conclusions
 1 The Elusive רוּחַ Once More
 2 Charting Our Course: Cognitive Linguistics and רוּחַ
 3 Sketching Our ‘Map’: An Outline of the Lexical and Conceptual Data of רוּחַ
 4 The Territory Ahead: Limits and Possibilities for Further Study of רוּחַ
 5 The End of the Road
Bibliography
Index
This book will interest scholars, higher-level students, and researchers in the fields of Hebrew Bible studies (especially ‘wisdom’ texts), cognitive linguistics, and especially cognitive semantics of Classical Hebrew. It will also be highly relevant to those studying the anthropology and anthropological language of the Hebrew Bible.
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