The fragmentary Ugaritic text RS 16.266 contains a number of lexical and other problems exacerbated by the state of the tablet and difficulties in defining the plot and characters involved in the text. One of these lexical issues involves the analysis of two verbs that appear to be from the root √trp. In the present paper, I survey previous hypotheses as to the etymology and semantics of this verb and contrast the deficiencies of these with the merits of identifying a (...) thus far unrecognized cognate set in lexemes from the root √trp in later Aramaic dialects, i.e., Syriac, Jewish Babylonian Aramaic, and Mandaic. The verbs in this cognate set have the semantics ‘to strike ’, and thus clarify both the activity and morphology of the fearsome dragon described in RS 16.266. (shrink)

The biblical book of Job contains more extensive discussion of the cosmos and God’s role in it than any other book in the Bible with the possible exception of Psalms. The main issue of the book is God’s justice towards the sorely tried protagonist, Job. The major distinction between the book of Job and the thinking of the general ancient Near Eastern culture is the role of God’s justice and wisdom in the operations of the cosmos. This paper will focus (...) on the key passages about the cosmos in Job in order to define the specific message of the book concerning the relations of God and men to the world, and determine how the book of Job views a control of the world in the overall context of the book. First, we will consider the context and structure of the book. Then the passages about the cosmos and creation themselves will be summarized in an attempt to determine what they are communicating, especially in regard to God’s control of the world. Finally, we will draw conclusions about the overall role that biblical creation imagery plays in the drama of Job. (shrink)

Notions of uniform and gradual evolution have been replaced in some circles by biological and paleontological models that postulate that periods of rapid change punctuate long periods of evolutionary stasis. This new theory, called punctuated equilibria (or PE for short), may have implications for paradigms in scholarly disciplines other than the sciences. Whereas old evolutionary models exerted great influence upon historians, sociologists, anthropologists, and students of religion for more than a century, the new model may provide heuristic paradigms for research (...) that correlate more adequately with the current observations of scholars. We therefore provide suggestions for deployment of this new scientific paradigm in history and anthropology. In particular, this model can explain the rise of the Israelite state and the religious ethos in the Hebrew Bible, two major concerns of today's socioscientific study of biblical materials. Thus the possibility of an overarching paradigm for the social sciences is entertained. (shrink)