eBook
Available on Compatible NOOK devices, the free NOOK App and in My Digital Library.
Related collections and offers
Overview
Product Details
| ISBN-13: | 9780300172737 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Yale University Press |
| Publication date: | 08/25/2015 |
| Series: | Anchor Yale Bible Commentary Series |
| Sold by: | Barnes & Noble |
| Format: | eBook |
| Pages: | 656 |
| File size: | 22 MB |
| Note: | This product may take a few minutes to download. |
About the Author
Thomas B. Dozeman is professor of Hebrew Bible at United Theological Seminary in Ohio. His previous books include God at War and Methods for Exodus. He lives in Chicago, IL.
Read an Excerpt
Joshua 1â?"12
A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary
By Thomas B. Dozeman
Yale UNIVERSITY PRESS
Copyright © 2015 Thomas B. DozemanAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-0-300-17273-7
INTRODUCTION
Overview
The book of Joshua recounts the Israelite invasion of the promised land under the leadership of Joshua, the servant of Moses. The book is intended to be the conclusion to the story of the exodus and the wilderness journey, when Moses leads the Israelites from Egypt to the eastern bank of the Jordan River, as recounted in the books of Exodus–Deuteronomy. The author portrays the invasion of the promised land as the completion of the journey. But the invasion is not an account of conquest, in which the Israelites subdue the indigenous population and take over their cities. Rather, it is a story about the execution of kings, the destruction of their royal cities, and the extermination of the urban population through the implementation of the ban — a form of warfare in which all men, women, and children are killed. The slaughter of the indigenous people is a sacrifice to Yahweh that prepares the promised land for the Israelite tribes, who will live a more rural life, free of kings and their royal cities. Joshua 1-12 narrates the destruction of the kings, royal cities, and indigenous population, while Josh 13-24 describes the redistribution of the land to the tribes.
The invasion of the promised land in Josh 1–12 begins with the commission of Joshua in Josh 1, which functions as the prologue to the book. The prologue establishes the central themes of the story: Joshua is the commissioned successor of Moses; the Israelites are not indigenous to the land; yet Yahweh promises the land to them as a place of rest. The divine promise must be realized through a courageous act of holy war, which fulfills the Torah of Moses. The invasion in Josh 2–12 takes place in two stages. The first, Josh 2–8, focuses on the procession of the ark from Shittim, on the east side of the Jordan River, to its resting place at the mountains of Ebal and Gerizim, near Shechem, on the west side of the Jordan. The second stage, Josh 9–12, recounts the wars of Joshua against the northern and southern coalitions of kings, resulting in rest from war in the land (11:23).
The procession of the ark in Josh 2–8 signifies Yahweh's claim to the promised land. The confession of Rahab, in Josh 2, that "Yahweh has given Israel the land" functions as an introduction to the procession of the ark in Josh 3–8 by focusing the narrative on Yahweh as the one who is able to give the land to Israel. The narrative of Josh 3–8 explores the character of Yahweh and the nature of Yahwistic religion, as the ark travels to its cultic site at Shechem. Five locations are associated with the procession of the ark as it leaves Shittim to enter the promised land: the Jordan River, Gilgal, Jericho, Ai, and the mountains of Ebal and Gerizim at Shechem. Each location provides insight into the author's interpretation of Yahwistic religion. The crossing of the Jordan reveals Yahweh as "El, the living," who dwells in the midst of the Israelite people (3:10). At Gilgal, Yahweh discloses that he is the God of the exodus, who is able to remove the disgrace of Egypt from the Israelite people (5:9). The Israelites respond by observing the rituals of circumcision, Passover, and unleavened bread, after which manna ceases and the Israelites eat the crops of the land (5:2–12). At Jericho, Yahweh reveals that he is a divine warrior who opposes kings and royal cities (5:14; 6:16, 26). At Ai, Yahweh demonstrates the exclusive nature of the covenant, which demands that the Israelites remain separate from the dominant culture of the Canaanites. Achan violates this covenant by stealing booty from Jericho, causing the Israelite defeat in battle at Ai and the eventual execution of Achan and his family (7:10–11). Finally, at Ebal, Joshua establishes the central cultic site for worshiping Yahweh. He builds an altar of uncut stones on which is inscribed the book of the Torah of Moses, thus modeling a strict form of aniconic worship that is grounded in a monotheistic worldview (8:30–35).
In Josh 9–12 the focus shifts from the procession of the ark toward its central cultic site at Shechem to the wars of Joshua against the indigenous kings. The narrative branches out to describe the southern and northern boundaries of the land. The two sections of Josh 3–8 and 9–12 are organically related. The procession of the ark in Josh 3–8 provides the religious basis for the war against the indigenous kings and the destruction of their royal cities in Josh 9–12. The wars of Joshua begin in Josh 9 with the Gibeonites, who trick the Israelites into making a covenant of peace in order to save their nation from destruction. The covenant prompts a coalition of southern kings, led by Adoni-zedek of Jerusalem, to attack the Gibeonites, drawing Joshua and the Israelites into the battle in Josh 10. Joshua defeats the army of the southern coalition, executes the kings at the cave of Makkedah, and secures the southern portion of the promised land. In Josh 11, Joshua defeats the coalition of northern kings led by Jabin of Hazor, thus adding this region to the promised land. The wars of Joshua conclude in Josh 12 with a summary of the defeated kings. The result of Joshua's victories is the depopulation of the indigenous nations and the destruction of the royal cities so that "the land had rest from war" (11:23).
The destruction of the kings and their royal cities allows for the repopulation of the promised land in Josh 13–24 as a more rural and tribal society. Joshua 13–19 describes the distribution of the land to the tribes. The process begins in Josh 13 with the tribal regions east of the Jordan River, including the territories of Reuben, Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh, before the focus shifts to the western region in Josh 14–19. The allotment of the western land includes Judah (Josh 15), the two tribes of Joseph, Ephraim and half of Manasseh (Josh 16–17), and the remaining seven tribes of Benjamin, Simeon, Zebulun, Issachar, Asher, Naphtali, and Dan (Josh 18–19). Joshua 20–21 clarifies that the only appropriate cities in the promised land are judicial centers of refuge (Josh 20) and Levitical religious centers (Josh 21), rather than the royal cities of the past indigenous kings. Once the tribal distribution is complete and the cities are established, Josh 22 addresses the topic of ethnic identity by exploring the relationship between the eastern and western tribes. The book concludes with two speeches by Joshua in Josh 23–24. The first is a call for continued social and religious exclusion of the indigenous nations (Josh 23), and the second stresses more the need for the tribes to resist returning to the archaic polytheistic religion of the ancestors and to continue worshiping only Yahweh (Josh 24). The book ends with the burial notices of Joshua and Eleazar, as well as the internment of the bones of Jacob (24:29–33).
Composition
The identification of the author or authors of Joshua has played a central role in the interpretation of the book since the nineteenth century. Interpreters have long noted conflicts in themes and motifs, which suggest a history of composition by different authors. The central theme of the conquest, for example, remains unresolved in the book, with some texts indicating the extermination of the kings, royal cities, and people (11:21–23), and others stating that the indigenous nations remain in the land (Josh 23). The two readings are further coupled with distinct functions of the Torah, as representing success in war (8:30–33; 24:26) or as underscoring the need for obedience as a condition for success (1:7–8; 8:34–35; 22:5; 23:6). The ark, too, is described with a range of words and phrases, including the "ark," the "ark of the covenant," the "ark of Yahweh," and the "ark of the testimony." Central episodes are repeated, such as the establishment of the memorial stones (4:5–7 and 19–24) and the concluding speeches of Joshua (Josh 23; 24). All of these literary problems point to a history of composition in the formation of the book.
The problems of composition are compounded by the literary context of Joshua as the transitional book between the Pentateuch and the Former Prophets. Interpreters have advocated two theories of composition, depending on whether Joshua is read more closely with the former or with the latter. Those who interpret Joshua with the Pentateuch take its literary context to be the Hexateuch, consisting of Genesis through Joshua. Those who focus instead on the setting of the Former Prophets interpret Joshua within the Deuteronomistic History, which includes the books of Deuteronomy through Kings. The two approaches yield different interpretations of the book. As the conclusion to the Hexateuch, Joshua functions in continuity with the literature of the Pentateuch by providing the fulfillment of the divine promise of land. But as the introduction to the Deuteronomistic History, Joshua provides the point of contrast to the decline and fall of the Israelite nation chronicled in Judges, Samuel, and Kings.
The history of research on the composition and the literary context of Joshua can be divided into four stages, with each introducing distinct methodologies that continue into the present time. (1) Nineteenth century: Identification of literary sources in Joshua as the completion of the Pentateuch/Hexateuch. (2) Early twentieth century: Interpretation of Joshua as history through the methodologies of archaeology, historical geography, and tradition history. (3) Late twentieth century: Breakdown of historical models for interpreting the book of Joshua and the prominence of the Deuteronomistic History hypothesis. (4) Twenty-first century: Erosion of the Deuteronomistic History hypothesis and new literary models for interpreting Joshua. The summary of research will lay the foundation for my interpretation of Joshua as an independent book written during the postexilic period from a northern point of view. I also argue that the book of Joshua acquires its present literary context at a late stage in the formation of the Pentateuch and the Former Prophets.
NINETEENTH CENTURY: HEXATEUCH
The nineteenth century is dominated by a literary-critical methodology, in which the composition of the book of Joshua is detached from the historical character of Joshua and the events of the conquest in the premonarchic period. The methodology is focused more on identifying the time of the composition of the book than on critically evaluating the history of the premonarchic period. The rejection of Joshua as the writer introduces a new starting point for interpretation, in which the author is anonymous and writing at a much later time than the premonarchic period. Thus, at the outset of the nineteenth century, W. M. L. de Wette argued that the composition of Joshua could be no earlier than the monarchic period, because of references to Jerusalem (15:63) and the parallel accounts of the curse on the city (6:26; 1 Kgs 16:34); but possibly as late as the postexilic period, because of the developed role of the priests and Levites in the crossing of the Jordan River (1806–1807). The initial insights of de Wette on the identity and social setting of the anonymous author eventually led to a consensus in the later part of the nineteenth century, in which the composition of the book of Joshua was tied closely to the sources of the Pentateuch, as the conclusion to the story of the exodus and the wilderness journey.
The research of A. Kuenen (1828–1891) and J. Wellhausen (1844–1918) illustrates the source-critical consensus in the late nineteenth century. The book of Joshua, according to Kuenen, may be divided between Josh 1–12 and 13–24. Neither half is written by Joshua. Instead, each is a later composition made up of older sources that conflict (e.g., Josh 3; 4; 8). The composition of Joshua, moreover, presupposes the Pentateuch: Deut 34 and Josh 1 function as prophecy and fulfillment, and the cities in Joshua follow those in Num 34 (1865: 79–83). Kuenen noted further signs of multiple authors in Joshua on the basis of conflicting themes and distinct motifs. Wellhausen agreed with the general conclusions of Kuenen, stating that Joshua is a supplement to the Pentateuch, with multiple authors (1899: 118–19).
Kuenen and Wellhausen identified three stages of composition in Joshua: (1) the original narrative ending of the pentateuchal sources, (2) the Deuteronomistic rewriting of Joshua on the basis of law, and (3) the Priestly version of the conquest and division of the land.
The earliest composition, according to Kuenen (1865: 82–89), was the prophetic historical narrative (JE), which provided the conclusion to the promise of land in the Pentateuch. The JE narrative constitutes most of Josh 1–12 and includes only limited episodes of the division of land to the northern tribes (17:14–18; 18:2–6, 8–10). Wellhausen reached a similar conclusion, although he attempted to identify the E source in more detail within selective narratives (e.g., Josh 3; 4; 6) and expanded the presence of P literature in Josh 13–22 (e.g., 16:1–3, 9, 10; 17:5, 8, 9, 10b) (1899: 133).
Kuenen argued that the Deuteronomist rewrote Josh 1–12 (2:10, 11; 3:3, 7; 4:14, 21–24; 5:2, 4–7; 8:1, 2b, 27, 29, 30–35; 9:24, 25, 27b; 10:8, 25, 27, 40–42; 11:10–20, 23b; and perhaps 12) and large portions of Josh 13–24 (13:1b–6, 8–12, 14, 33; 14:6–15; 18:7; 21:41–42; 22:4, 5; 23; 24:1, 9, 13, 31). The aim was to relate Joshua's faithfulness in the conquest to the fulfillment of the law in Deuteronomy (1865: 83–85). Wellhausen followed in general the interpretation of Kuenen but separated the D author of Joshua from the author of the laws in Deuteronomy, while also expanding the role of the Deuteronomist to include all of Josh 1 (1899: 119).
The book of Joshua also contains P literature from the Pentateuch (the Book of Origins), which is concentrated in Josh 13–24 (large sections of Josh 13; 14; 15:1, 20; 16:4–8; 17:1a, 3–6; 18:1, 11a, 20b, 28b; 19; 20; and 21), with only traces of P literature in Josh 1–12 (4:13, 19; 5:10–12; 9:15b, 17–21, 27a). Kuenen identified the P literature as P, the composition that combines the earliest Priestly legislation (Lev 17–24) with later law (e.g., Exod 25–31; 35–40; Lev 1–14; Gen 1:1–2:4) (1865: 103–4). Wellhausen also identified minimal P literature in Josh 1–12 (4:19; 5:10–12; 9:15b, 17–21), with the concentration of the P source in Josh 13–22 (e.g., 13:15–14:5; parts of 15; 16:1–18; 17:1–10; 18:1, 11–25; parts of 19; 20; 21; 22:9–34) (1899: 128–29).
The review of scholarship by E. Noort shows that the source-critical solutions to the composition of Joshua vary far more widely than the research of Kuenen and Wellhausen (1997: 61–98). Yet the overview of Kuenen and Wellhausen identifies three shared presuppositions about the composition, the literary context, and the historicity of the book of Joshua that characterize the broader research of source critics in the nineteenth century.
First, source criticism is focused on the literary composition of Joshua by anonymous authors who write about the conquest in the monarchic period and continue the process of composition into the postexilic period. The authors do not simply compose the story of the conquest, however. Both Kuenen and Wellhausen acknowledged the use of sources in the composition of Joshua. Wellhausen noted that Joshua is likely derived from an old Ephraimite tradition (1994: 360). Kuenen cited the collections of ancient songs in the Book of the Wars of Yahweh (Num 21) and the Book of the Upright (Josh 10); he noted further that "historical reminiscences" in the narratives are orally preserved during a "longer or shorter period" (1886: 34, 38). Yet neither scholar probed the role of oral tradition as part of the formation of the book. Rather, the focus of study was on the literary composition of the conquest story (Kuenen, 1886: 38).
Second, source criticism assumes the literary Hexateuch as the context for interpreting the book of Joshua at all stages of its composition. Thus, Joshua was never an independent book, according to source critics; it was composed to provide a conclusion to the theme of the promise of land in the pentateuchal sources. Joshua presupposes the Pentateuch, according to Wellhausen, in a way that Samuel and Kings do not (1899: 118). Kuenen too stated that the Pentateuch and the book of Joshua must be studied under the common heading of the Hexateuch because "they belong to each other, and their contents form a single whole, and, moreover, they are the final outcome of one and the same literary process" (1886: 3).
(Continues...)
Excerpted from Joshua 1â?"12 by Thomas B. Dozeman. Copyright © 2015 Thomas B. Dozeman. Excerpted by permission of Yale UNIVERSITY PRESS.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Table of Contents
Contents
Preface, xi,Acknowledgments, xiii,
List of Abbreviations, xv,
INTRODUCTION, 1,
Overview, 3,
Composition, 5,
Textual Criticism, 32,
Central Themes and Literary Structure, 43,
Reception History, 77,
BIBLIOGRAPHY, 95,
TRANSLATION, 165,
NOTES AND COMMENTS, 185,
Commission of Joshua (1:1–18), 187,
Rahab, the Trickster (2:1–24), 223,
Crossing the Jordan (3:1–5:12), 250,
Destruction of Jericho (5:13–6:27), 302,
Sacrilege of Achan (7:1–26), 339,
Ambush of Ai and Ritual at Ebal and Gerizim (8:1–35), 362,
Gibeonite Deception (9:1–27), 397,
War Against the Southern Kings (10:1–43), 424,
War Against the Northern Kings (11:1–23), 459,
Defeated Kings of Royal Cities (12:1–24), 482,
Appendix I: Translation of the MT and the LXX, 501,
Appendix II: Geographical Terms in the MT and LXX, 535,
General Index, 557,
Index of Authors, 567,
Index of Ancient Sources, 577,