ezekiel’s hierarchical world Symposium Series Christopher R. Matthews, Editor Number 31 ezekiel’s hierarchical World Wrestling with a Tiered Reality edited by Stephen L. Cook and Corrine L. Patton ezekiel’s hierarchical World Wrestling with a Tiered Reality edited by Stephen L. Cook and Corrine L. Patton Society of Biblical Literature Atlanta ezekiel’s hierarchical World Wrestling with a Tiered Reality Copyright © 2004 by the Society of Biblical Literature All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by means of any information storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted by the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing from the publisher. Requests for permission should be addressed in writing to the Rights and Permissions Office, Society of Biblical Literature, 825 Houston Mill Road, Atlanta, GA 30333-0399, USA. Cover photo of Pesher Habakkuk, Qumran, courtesy of the D. Samuel and Jeane H. Gottes- man Center for Biblical Manuscripts, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Ezekiel’s hierarchical world: wrestling with a tiered reality / edited by Stephen L. Cook and Corrine L. Patton. p. cm.—(Society of Biblical Literature symposium series ; no. 31) Includes bibliographical references and indexes. ISBN 1-58983-136-5 (paper binding : alk. paper) 1. Bible. O.T. Ezekiel—Criticism, interpretation, etc. 2. Social stratification—Biblical teaching. 3. Hierarchies—Biblical teaching. 4. Priests, Jewish. I. Cook, Stephen L., 1962– II. Patton, Corrine, 1958– III. Series: Symposium series (Society of Biblical Literature) ; no. 31. BS1545.6.S59E94 2004b 224'.406—dc22 2004020862 121110090807060504 54321 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free, recycled paper conforming to ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (R1997) and ISO 9706:1994 standards for paper permanence. Table of Contents Preface . .vii Contributors . .ix Abbreviations . .xi Introduction: Hierarchical Thinking and Theology in Ezekiel’s Book Stephen L. Cook and Corrine L. Patton . .1 Essays Priesthood in Exile according to the Book of Ezekiel Friedrich Fechter . .27 Putting Priests in Their Place: Ezekiel’s Contribution to the History of the Old Testament Priesthood Iain M. Duguid . .43 A Priest Out of Place: Reconsidering Ezekiel’s Role in the History of the Israelite Priesthood Baruch J. Schwartz . .61 Priest, Prophet, and Exile: Ezekiel as a Literary Construct Corrine L. Patton . .73 God’s Land and Mine: Creation as Property in the Book of Ezekiel Julie Galambush . .91 From Harshness to Hope: The Implications for Earth of Hierarchy in Ezekiel Keith Carley . .109 v vi table of contents The Silence of the Lands: The Ecojustice Implications of Ezekiel’s Judgment Oracles Norman Habel . .127 Ezekiel in Abu Ghraib: Rereading Ezekiel 16:37–39 in the Context of Imperial Conquest Daniel L. Smith-Christopher . .141 ‘With a Mighty Hand and an Outstretched Arm’: The Prophet and the Torah in Ezekiel 20 Risa Levitt Kohn . .159 Creation and Hierarchy in Ezekiel: Methodological Perspectives and Theological Prospects David L. Petersen . .169 Cosmos, Kabod, and Cherub: Ontological and Epistemological Hierarchy in Ezekiel Stephen L. Cook . .179 Proverb Performance and Transgenerational Retribution in Ezekiel 18 Katheryn Pfisterer Darr . .199 Responses In Search of Theological Meaning: Ezekiel Scholarship at the Turn of the Millennium Daniel I. Block . .227 Contemporary Studies of Ezekiel: A New Tide Rising Steven Shawn Tuell . .241 Selected Bibliography . .255 Index of Modern Authors . .261 Index of Primary Sources . .267 Subject Index . .283 Preface This book bears witness to the current vitality of Ezekiel studies, particularly as evinced in the continuing work of the Seminar on Theological Perspectives on the Book of Ezekiel, which meets at each SBL Annual Meeting. Corrine L. Patton and Dexter E. Callender Jr. currently chair the seminar, which has continued to be a place of innovation and discovery, lively scholarly interchange, and warm collegial- ity since it arose out of the Ezekiel Consultation of the SBL chaired by Katheryn Pfisterer Darr from 1993 to 1995. The editors express their gratitude to the seminar for entrusting them with the honor and responsibility of preparing this volume. This focus of the volume, Ezekiel’s hierarchical thinking, almost forced itself upon us. Even as the chosen topics of our seminar shifted in recent sessions from creation, to priesthood, to land, a consistent, vocal concern has been Ezekiel’s unusually pronounced hierarchical dimensions. Many contemporary readers experi- ence these dimensions as oppressive, and some have suggested that Ezekiel no longer be read (presumably as a canonical book, authoritative for religious communities). The need is pressing, we realized through this repeat experience, to address the meaning and import of Ezekiel’s hierarchical theology in a probing, wide-ranging, and balanced manner. This is the challenge that the editors posed to those we invited to contribute to this collection. Twelve essayists and two respondents accepted the challenge of participating in this project. The considerable diversity of backgrounds, stances, methods, and per- spectives they represent means that this volume has no single thesis or pointed argument. What it offers, rather, is a powerful contemporary sampling of energetic, skillful studies of Ezekiel that directly or indirectly illuminate the ancient and modern meanings and implications of hierarchy in that difficult and engrossing book of Scripture. Many people provided us with assistance and support as we labored over sev- eral years to produce this volume. Chris Matthews, series editor, provided solid advice and feedback as we first conceived this collection and unstinting support as we forged it into a book. Bob Buller, Editorial Director at the SBL, worked tirelessly with us, shepherding the project through its multiple stages of production. Stephen would like gratefully to acknowledge the support of his institution, Virginia Theological Seminary, and especially the help during his recent sabbatical vii viii preface of Karen Madigan, public services librarian at the school’s Bishop Payne Library, Dr. Mitzi J. Budde, head librarian. Also, Kevin Seaver, M.Div., a former student of Stephen’s and recent graduate of the seminary, assisted with the work of bibliogra- phies and indexes. Corrine would like to thank her institution, the University of St. Thomas, espe- cially the Aquinas Foundation, which provided funding to her for a course release, and the department of information technology for all of its technical support. In addition, this volume would never have been a possibility without the hard work of the co-chairs and advisory board of the seminar under whose sponsorship many of these papers were first presented; special mention goes to John Strong, John Kutsko, and Maggie Odell, who provided their expert advice in the earliest stages of this project. Stephen L. Cook, Virginia Theological Seminary Corrine L. Patton, University of St. Thomas Editors Contributors Daniel I. Block John R. Sampey Professor of Old Testament Interpretation Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Louisville, Kentucky Keith Carley Lecturer in First Testament Studies St. John’s College Auckland, New Zealand Stephen L. Cook Associate Professor of Old Testament Virginia Theological Seminary Alexandria, Virginia Katheryn Pfisterer Darr Associate Professor of Hebrew Bible Boston University School of Theology Boston, Massachusetts Iain M. Duguid Associate Professor of Old Testament Westminster Theological Seminary Escondido, California Friedrich Fechter Lecturer in Old Testament Friedrich-Alexander Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Germany ix x contributors Julie Galambush Associate Professor of Religious Studies The College of William and Mary Williamsburg, Virginia Norman C. Habel Professorial Fellow Flinders University Bellevue Heights, Australia Risa Levitt Kohn Associate Professor of Religious Studies San Diego State University San Diego, California Corrine L. Patton Associate Professor of Theology University of St. Thomas St. Paul, Minnesota David L. Petersen Professor of Old Testament Candler School of Theology, Emory University Atlanta, Georgia Baruch J. Schwartz Senior Lecturer of Bible Hebrew University Jerusalem, Israel Daniel L. Smith-Christopher Professor of Theological Studies Loyola Marymount University Los Angeles, California Steven S. Tuell Associate Professor and Chair of Religious Studies Randolph-Macon College Ashland, Virginia Abbreviations AB Anchor Bible ABD Anchor Bible Dictionary. Edited by D. N. Freedman. 6 vols. New York, 1992 AJSL American Journal of Semitic Languages and Literatures AnBib Analecta biblica ANEP The Ancient Near East in Pictures Relating to the Old Testament. Edited by J. B. Pritchard. Princeton, 1954 ANET Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament. Edited by J. B. Pritchard. 3d ed. Princeton, 1969 ATD Das Alte Testament Deutsch BBB Bonner biblische Beiträge BETL Bibliotheca ephemeridum theologicarum lovaniensium BHT Beiträge zur historischen Theologie Bib Biblica BibInt Biblical Interpretation BibInt Biblical Interpretation BJRL Bulletin of the John Rylands University Library of Manchester BKAT Biblischer Kommentar, Altes Testament. Edited by M. Noth and H. W. Wolff BT The Bible Translator BZAW Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft CBQ Catholic Biblical Quarterly