NO GODS NAMED ON THE FOURTH DAY

In a message dated 2/20/04 1:04:01 PM, TDavis@messiah.edu writes:

> I find the point about no names on the fourth day for the chief gods of the
> ancient near east (sun, moon, and stars) quite strong, by itself.  When
> combined with other puzzling features--features that are puzzling, that is,
> if one takes this story as historical and or scientific--it makes a powerful
> case (IMO) for seeing the relevant genre as something like a hymn to the
> creator.
>
> ted
>

Ted,

I'm not quite sure what you mean by your first sentence. "Quite strong" for
what? But with regard to the fourth day not mentioning the names of any gods,
The Jerusalem Bible makes this point in a footnote to the text:

"The names are omitted deliberately: Sun and Moon, deified by all the
neighboring peoples, are here no more than lamps that light the earth and regulate
the calendar."

I take that to mean that the sun and moon gods of the neighboring people were
too numerous and too insignificant to name.

Bob
Received on Mon Feb 23 17:02:14 2004