Midterm 1 Essays

Question 1

Gender

Answer 1

Positives: influential women (Rebekah tricking Isaac, Zipporah cutting foreskin, Tamar tricking Judah, Miriam against Moses); 5th commandment: honor father and mother; Nazirite: male or female

Negatives: eve–> sexism, common to give husband your slave, rachel and Leah like property, lot offers up daughters, Leviticus laws kind of sexist

Question 2

Sacrifice

Answer 2

Very ritualistic
  Pure animals
  At altar
  Priests
  Cannot mess up
Gods way of testing
  Ie, Isaac and Abraham
  People keep worshipping molek w/ child sacrifice

Question 3

Moses (strengths, weaknesses, changes, constants, leadership, with God, with people)

Answer 3

Strengths: humble (humblest man on earth), good

Question 4

Role of God and humans

Answer 4

-1st: God is very direct
Walks in garden w/ Adam and Eve, makes their clothes, comes to talk w/ C and A, closes Noah’s ark
-human are first like children
A and E don’t do anything, rebellion w/ babel, Noah doesn’t talk
-start to see disagreement with Abraham arguing against destroying sodom
-God and Moses: very personal
Moses rejects prophecy, asks to die, God hardens pharaohs heart, Moses sees God
-Wilderness: closest generation to God with miracles and all

Question 5

Covenant

Answer 5

Noahic: between God and Noah
  -universe is secure
  -sign: rainbow
  -name: Elohim=noun for God
  -special bc w/ 1 man
Abrahamic: between God and Abrahams descendants
  -promises sacred land and many nations
  -sign: circumcision
  -name: el shadday (God almighty)
Israelite: between God and all Israelites
  -promises blessing
  -sign sabbath
  -name: YHWH (real name)
Patterns:
  -gods name becomes more true
  -promises become more precise
  -Audience becomes more broad
  -sign becomes more demanding