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Northern Kingdom

The Book of Jonah: A Parody of the Northern Prophet Jonah Son of Amittai

The post-exilic book of Jonah opposes the chest-thumping that was prevalent during the northern kingdom’s resurgence under Jeroboam II, as displayed by the historical Jonah of Gath-hepher (2 Kings 14:25). It insists that YHWH is a universal god and that Israel must reconcile itself to living in a world where all penitents, regardless of nationality, are pardoned.

Prof.

Mordechai Cogan

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The Decalogue’s Opening Laws, Written in Response to the Golden Calf

Originally, the golden calf story was just one among many incidents in which the Israelites sin and antagonize YHWH in the wilderness. Later scribes expanded the story as a critique of northern worship sites and also added the Decalogue, with the first few laws being composed as a point-by-point response to Israel’s sin.

Dr.

Gili Kugler

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The Golden Calf: Bull-El Worship

Northern Israel worshipped El/YHWH in the form of a golden bull. The Bible mocks this graven representation of the divinity by describing it as a calf.

Prof.

Rami Arav

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Rachel’s Teraphim: A Critique of the Northern Kingdom

Rachel steals teraphim from her father Laban; Michal uses them to save her husband David from her father Saul; Micah includes them in the shrine he builds on his property. What are they and how do they function in these stories?

Prof.

Erin D. Darby

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The Depiction of Jeroboam and Hadad as Moses-like Saviors

Set against the Pharaonic Solomon, Jeroboam frees Israel from servitude and founds the Northern Kingdom. Hadad plays a similar role on behalf of the Edomites. Why are these two “rebels” depicted as heroes?

Dr.

Tzvi Novick

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Hosea: Loving God Erotically

A biblical metaphor for God’s relationship with Israel.

Prof.

Carl S. Ehrlich

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Mount Gerizim and the Polemic Against the Samaritans

Mount Gerizim appears in the Pentateuch as the mountain of blessing and plays a prominent role in Samaritan tradition, but the Jewish tradition sidelines this mountain and the Samaritans themselves in a polemic that began more than two and half thousand years ago.

Dr.

Eyal Baruch

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How Do We Conceive the Divine?

Prof.

Marvin A. Sweeney

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Amos’ Puns in the Northern (Israelite) Dialect

And what they reveal about his identity

Dr.

Tania Notarius

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Dancing Erotically with the Golden Calf

And Moses’ decision to break the tablets

Dr.

David Ben-Gad HaCohen

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The Northern Tribal Tradition of Settling the Land

Dr. Rabbi

Tzemah Yoreh

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Encountering the Documentary Hypothesis in the Joseph Story

The Joseph story provides a compelling case for the use of source-critical methods for unraveling intertwined stories in the biblical text.

Ben Sandler

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A Tale of Twelve Brothers

The historical symbolism of the twelve tribes and the geographical significance of the tribe of Benjamin.

Prof.

Yigal Levin

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The Good Land of Israel

What are the favorable qualities of the land of Israel, and what is God’s relationship to it?

Prof. Rabbi

David Frankel

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For Whom Does Rachel Weep?

Before the destruction of Judah in 586 BCE, Jeremiah wrote a series of oracles consoling his northern brethren. After the destruction of Judah, a supplementary layer was added to console the southern Judahites as well.

Prof.

Marvin A. Sweeney

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