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Jerusalem and Its Parallels Five Cities Paired with Jerusalem in the Bible

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Jerusalem and Its Parallels Five Cities Paired with Jerusalem in the Bible Abr-Nahrain 32 (1994) 80-95 JERUSALEM AND ITS PARALLELS FIVE CITIES PAIRED WITH JERUSALEM IN THE BIBLE BY AMOS FRISCH Jerusalem is unique among the cities mentioned in the Bible. However, it is not always presented by itself. Sometimes it is mentioned along with another city of either equal or inferior stature in the particular context. In contrast with word pairs within verses that have merited considerable attention in research1, city pairs have not been studied extensively2. In a single paper we cannot include all the cities paired with Jerusalem in the Bible. We will limit ourselves to a discussion of five cities each of which is mentioned together with Jerusalem in different Biblical contexts, tracing the varied usage of these city pairs. We will present the cities paired with Jerusalem in the following order: the first is Sodom, which is highlighted in the Biblical description of Abraham's period; Shiloh, the religious centre in the days of Joshua and the Judges; Gibeon, which became important after the destruction of Shiloh (and Nob), and which was apparently associated with Saul; Hebron, which assumed great political importance in David's time (also mentioned frequently in narratives about the Patriarchs, but without connection with Jerusalem); and finally Samaria, the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel since the days of Omri. A. Sodom - Jerusalem At the core of the narrative about the meeting between the king of Sodom and Abram, after the latter had conquered the great kings, two verses appear that relate to the encounter between Abram and Melchizedek, king of Salem3 1 See Y. Avishur, Stylistic Studies of Word-Pairs in Biblical and Semitic Literatures (AOAT, 210; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Butzon & Berker, Kevelaer and Neukirchener Verlag, 1984). For a review of the literature, see pp. 6-47. 2 Noteworthy in this respect is Professor Samuel Abramsky, who has commented on pairing of different cities with Jerusalem in several of his studies (see below, n. 6 and n. 13). 3 The word jlw is generally viewed as a poetic term for Jerusalem. Support for this is found in Ps. 76:3 [EVV: 2]: ‘In Salem also is set His tabernacle, and His dwelling-place in Zion’. For other views, see S. Abramsky, “Melchizedek King of Salem (Literary Embroidery and Historical Curtain)”, Oz Le-David [Ben Gurion volume] (Publications of the Society for Biblical Research, 15; Jerusalem: Kiryat Sefer, 1964), p. 146 n. 14 (Hebrew). JERUSALEM AND ITS PARALLELS 81 (Gen. 14:18-19). This interposition within the description of Abram's meeting with the king of Sodom invites the reader to compare the king of Salem with the king of Sodom and to examine the contrast between them. This contrast is further emphasized by repetition of the root aèoi (‘the king of Sodom went out [aoiv] …’ vs. ‘And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth [aiove] bread and wine’). The king of Salem, who had not benefited from the victory, goes forth to Abram, blessing him and serving him bread and wine, whereas the king of Sodom, whose men and property Abram had delivered from captivity, does not offer food to the warriors who return exhausted from battle. His first words are, ‘Give me the persons’ (and then adds, ‘and take the goods to thyself’)4. The kings of these cities are con- trasted in this story even by their names: qdo-iklm, king of Salem as opposed to yrb, king of Sodom, the accomplice of ywrb, king of Gomorrah (v. 2). This contrast appears to be between the two individuals, but given the multiple repetitions of the title ‘king of Sodom’ as well as the symbolic significance concealed in the names of the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah, it seems that Sodom, rather than any particular king, is the real point. The contrast is actually between two cities5: Sodom as opposed to Salem, i.e., Jerusalem6. The character of Sodom, alluded to in this story by the king's name, is depicted in the previous chapter: ‘Now the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners against the Lord exceedingly’ (Gen. 13:13). Even before the fate of Sodom is sealed, God declares, ‘The outrage of Sodom and Gomorrah is so great, and their sin so grave!’ (18:20). Abram, to whom God reveals His plan to destroy Sodom, who is characterized by the verse, ‘that he may instruct his children and his posterity to keep the way of the Lord by doing 4 See R. Hayyim ben Atar, Or Hahayyim on Gen. 14:18; Nehama Leibowitz, Studies in Bereshit (Genesis) (trans. A. Newman; 4th edn., Jerusalem: World Zionist Organization – Department for Torah Education and Culture, 1981), pp. 131-32. See also D. Elgavish, “Abram and Melchizedek King of Salem”, Mahkerei Hag 4 (1992), pp. 9-11 (Hebrew). The disrespectful behaviour of the king of Sodom according to the Biblical story may be demon- strated by comparing it with the description of an encounter in Jubilees 13:28, according to which the king of Sodom bows down to Abram and addresses him by the title ‘Our Lord’. 5 Regarding location as ‘hero’ in the Biblical story, see Y. Amit, “The Function of Topo- graphical Indications in the Biblical Story”, Shnaton – Annual for Biblical and Ancient Near Eastern Studies 9 (1985), pp. 25-27 (Hebrew). 6 Abramsky, loc. cit. (n. 3), pp. 164, 147-48. It is noteworthy that U.M.D. Cassuto (“jirhbe fib hirb”, Encyclopaedia Biblica, II [Jerusalem: Bialik Institute, 1954], col. 353) (Hebrew) finds another allusion to Jerusalem in Genesis 15, whose subject is the Covenant between the Pieces: ‘The last in the series of nations living in Israel mentioned here is the Jebusite, possessor of Jerusalem, whose conquest would be the crowning achievement of conquering the Land’. 82 A. FRISCH what is just and right’ (v. 19), expresses by his actions the opposite of the way of Sodom: doing justice and righteousness as contrasted with sin and outrage. The contrasts presented here allude to the parallel between Abraham and Jerusalem (which exists in a positive sense as well, through their mutual commitment to justice and righteousness). The other narrative in Genesis that alludes to Jerusalem is the story of the binding of Isaac (Gen. 22)7. As Abraham draws near to the mountain designated for carrying out the sacrifice, it is said of him, ‘Abraham looked up and saw the place from afar’ (v. 4)8, and then he parts from his servants to ascend with his only son toward the awsome encounter with the Divine. The very opposite may be seen in the story of Lot, who departs from Abram and chooses to descend to settle in Sodom, noting its material abundance. The same formula appears here as well: ‘Lot looked up and saw how well watered was the whole plain of Jordan, all of it – this was before the Lord had destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah…’ (Gen. 13:10). Sodom's inferiority vis-à-vis Jerusalem (even when inhabited by gentiles) is alluded to in a different way in the story of the concubine in Gibeah. The Levite does not wish to lodge in Jebusite Jerusalem, since it was a ‘town of aliens, who are not of Israel’ (Judg. 19:12), preferring to lodge in the Israelite Gibeah of Benjamin. But what takes place there is clearly reminiscent of Sodom, casting an ironic light on the Levite's preference9. Comparison of Jerusalem with Sodom also accurs in prophetic literature. When the prophet Isaiah describes the great miracle of Jerusalem's deliver- ance (probably referring to the siege of Sennacherib), he asserts that by God's mercy its destiny had not become that of Sodom and Gomorrah (Isa. 1:9)10. In the following verse, which introduces a new section of prophecy, this pair of cities is used again, but this time it refers to the gravity of sin: ‘Hear the word of the Lord, you chieftains of Sodom; Give ear to our God's instruction, you folk of Gomorrah!’ (v. 10). This double 7 The Binding was to be done on ‘one of the mountains’ in ‘the land of Moriah’ (v. 2), and 2 Chron. 3:1 explains that the location of the Temple is ‘on Mount Moriah’. 8 This is the first occurrence in the story of the frequently repeated verb ear. According to Cassuto (“Jerusalem in the Pentateuch” [1951], Biblical and Oriental Studies – Selected Writings, I: Biblical Studies [trans. I. Abrahams; Jerusalem: Magnes, 1973], pp. 75-76), it is the midrashic interpretation of ‘Moriah’. 9 Cf. U Simon, “Minor Characters in Biblical Narrative”, JSOT 46 (1990), p. 16. 10 An earlier reference to Sodom may be discovered in v. 7: ‘A wasteland as overthrown by strangers’. In light of the appearance of ‘Sodom’ in all other phrases where the word ‘hkpem’ (‘overthrown’) serves as the construct state noun (Deut. 29:22; Isa. 13:19; Jer. 49:18; 50:40; Amos 4:11), the term ‘strangers’ may also be understood as referring to Sodom, whether based on commentary (R. Judah ibn Bal'am and Radak) or through emendation (proposed by Ewald). JERUSALEM AND ITS PARALLELS 83 use of comparison with Sodom sharpens the ingratitude of which the people of Judah and Jerusalem stand accused. The often repeated references in this prophecy concerning Jerusalem as a former city of righteousness (vv. 21, 26)11 may also be intended as a contrast with Sodom as a symbol of evil and injustice. In another prophecy the prophet cries out against Judah and Jerusalem: ‘They avow their sins like Sodom, they do not conceal them’ (Isa. 3:9), i.e., sin has been publicly legitimated.
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