Re: HYER'S ARTICLE IN THE JASA, 1984

Keith Miller wrote:

> Graham E. Morbey wrote:
>
> Reading the Creation story of Genesis as anti-idolatry polemic is certainly valid, in my estimation. But it is not the whole story because literary genre and structure need also to get their due. For this, let me suggest an article by Rikki E. Watts, "On the Edge of the Millennium: Making Sense of Genesis 1" from Hans Boersma, ed., Living in the Lamblight, (Vancouver: Regent College Publishing, 2001). p. 129-151. Watts is quite persuasive in showing that the Egyptian influence on Genesis is more important than either the Babylonian or Sumerian. He states, " Surprisingly, although Israel had just spent 400 years in Egypt, relatively little attention has been given to Egyptian creation accounts which one might otherwise expect to provide the dominant background against which Genesis 1 was heard or read.. And considering that Genesis is traditionally described as one of the books of Moses, from a literary standpoint it seems right to read it in the light of Israel's
> exodus." (pp. 138-139).
>
> The chapter "What says the scripture?" by John H. Stek in the book by "Portraits of Creation" also discusses the Egyptian creation mythology. I agree that more emphasis on the Egyptian cosmology would seem warranted.
>
> Keith
>

I do not disagree with Keith, but I point out that if Genesis 1 is a Priestly story to be dated in the time of the Exile or thereabouts then one should expect a closer correspondence with Mesopotamian cosmology than with Egyptian cosmology. I am not an expert on this subject, but from what I have read on the subject I get the impression that there is indeed a closer correspondence -- and that is something that would agree with the dating.
Don Nield
Received on Fri Feb 20 15:54:08 2004