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Balak Or Balaam? a Text Linguistic and Literary Study of Numbers 22–24

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Balak Or Balaam? a Text Linguistic and Literary Study of Numbers 22–24 Who is the True Seer Driven by God: Balak or Balaam? A Text Linguistic and Literary Study of Numbers 22–24 by Junhee Lee A Thesis submitted to the Faculty of Knox College and the Graduate Centre for Theological Studies of the Toronto School of Theology In partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Theology awarded by the University of St. Michael’s College Ó Copyright by Junhee Lee 2019 Who is the True Seer Driven by God: Balak or Balaam? A Text Linguistic and Literary Study of Numbers 22–24 Junhee Lee Doctor of Philosophy in Theology University of St. Michael’s College 2019 Abstract Traditional readings of the Balaam story found in Num 22–24 have not provided resolutions to the many textual and hermeneutical problems found in this passage. This deficiency results in the lack of understanding surrounding the purpose of the story. To date, a text linguistic approach has also not been able to decode the passage. Therefore, in this study, I will employ a combined text linguistic and literary study of Num 22–24. More specifically I will combine a modified form of Heimerdinger’s theory with my own literary approach to the text and argue for the following: (1) that Balaam is a mere tool for delivering God’s message; (2) that there is unity between Num 22:2–21 and Num 22:22–40; (3) that topical congruency exists between the prose sections and the poetic collections; and (4) that the purpose of the Balaam story in Num 22–24 is to show God’s blessing towards the Israelites. ii Acknowledgements I am heartily thankful to my supervisor, Dr. Glen Taylor, whose encouragement, guidance, patient support and careful reading of my work made possible the completion of this dissertation. I also would like to express my deepest gratitude to the members of my committee, Dr. Marion Taylor, Dr. Brian Irwin, Dr. Sarianna Metso, and Dr. Dennis Olson, for their support and encouragement throughout my doctoral studies and dissertation. My special thanks go to ForWord which is my family-like community. In this community, my family and I were able to go through a long and difficult journey of my study by their prayers and encouragement. I also thank TaeHwan Kim family for their financial support and prayers. Finally, I am indebted to my loving wife Hyejin Lee and my two children, Elliott and Claire, who embarked with me on a journey of faith, love and hope during my study. I would not have been able to complete this dissertation without their everlasting love, encouragement, sacrifice, and patience. I also would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to my parents Sangcheol Lee, Sukja Hwang, Yong Hui Kang, and Heung Tae Ko for their unfailing love and supports. iii Table of Contents Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..1 1. Background……………………………………………………………………………………1 2. Methodology…………………………………………………………………………………..5 3. Procedure……………………………………………………………………………………...8 Chapter 1 – A Survey of Studies on the Balaam Story in Num 22-24……………………………..11 1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………..11 2. Studies on Balaam’s Character………………………………………..………………………21 2.1. Positive Evaluations of the Character of Balaam….…………...…………..………..21 2.2. Negative Evaluations of the Character of Balaam……………..………………...….24 2.3. Neutral Evaluations of the Character of Balaam………………...…………………..25 3. Studies on the Features of the Narrative and the Oracles in the Balaam Story……………..….28 4. Studies on the Relationship Between the Prose and Poetic Sections of the Balaam Story…….32 5. Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………... 33 Chapter 2 – Methodology for the Study and Its Application to the Analysis of the Balaam Text of Num 22-24……………………………………………………………….....35 1. Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………..35 2. Methodology………………………………………………………………….……………....36 2.1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………...36 2.2. The Exegetical Viewpoint………………………………………….……………….39 2.3. Appraisal of the Traditional Theory of the Role of Vayyiqtol……...……………….40 2.4. On the Terms of Topic and Topicality……………………………..………………..41 2.5. The Importance of Verb ………………………………………….………………...45 2.6. The Topical Verb(s)……………………………………………….………………..47 2.6.1. The Heading of Topic Framework in a Text….…………...…………...….47 2.6.2. The Topical Verb(s) in the Heading of the Topic Frame in a Text…….…..48 2.6.3. The Combination of the Topical Verb + Noun (Subject/Character)…...….52 2.6.4. The Use of the Topical Verb(s) in Other Texts of the OT……………...….52 2.6.4.1. The Pentateuch (Gen 22:1-19)……………………………….....52 2.6.4.2. Historical Books (2Sam 11:1-12:25)…………..……………..…54 2.6.4.3. Conclusion…………………………………………………...…56 2.7. The Topical Verb(s) and the Development of Topicality in a Text……………….....56 2.7.1. Sub-topical Verb(s)…………………………………………………….…56 2.7.2. The Topical Verb(s) and Repetition/Pattern/Structure (the Topically- Related Verbs) in a Text……………………………………….………....57 2.7.3. The Topical Verb(s) and the Main Characters in the Balaam Story of Num 22-24……………………………………………………………….59 2.8. Conclusion………………………………………………………………….………62 3. An Analysis of the Text of the Balaam Story in Num 22-24…………………………...…...…63 3.1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………...63 3.2. Delimitation of the Text of the Balaam Story in Num 22-24………………...…...…63 iv 3.2.1. Introduction………………………………………………………………63 3.2.2. The Textual Tradition of Masorah………………………………..……….64 3.2.3. The Division of Paragraphs by the Literary/Linguistic features……..…....66 3.3. The Hebrew Text of the Balaam Story………………………………………..…….67 3.4. The English Text of the Balaam Story by the Episodes with the Textual Footnotes (Num 22:2-24:25)…………………………………………………….....77 3.5. The Verbs of the Balaam Story in Num 22-24………………………………...….…86 3.5.1. Introduction………………………………………………………...…….86 3.5.2. Analysis of the Verbal Forms in the Balaam Story………………......……87 3.5.2.1. The Occurrences of the Specific Verbal Forms in the Narratives and Poetic Sections of the Balaam Story……………87 3.5.2.2. Verses Beginning the Sentence without the Vayyiqtol Verb...…88 3.5.2.3. All Verbal Forms in the Balaam Story in Detail According to the Genres and the Episodes……………………………………88 3.5.2.4. Verbal Forms of the Seven Poetry Parts (r¡Amaø¥yÅw wäølDvVm a¶DÚcˆ¥yÅw [And He Took up His Discourse and Said]) in the Balaam Story……………………………………………………........…89 3.5.2.5. Conclusion……………………………………………………...90 3.5.3. The Topical Verb, the Sub-Topical Verbs, and the Topically-Related Verbs……………………………………………………………………..90 3.5.3.1. The Topical Verb…………………………………………….....90 3.5.3.2. The Sub-Topical Verbs…………………………….…………...93 3.5.3.3. The Topically-Related Verbs……………………….…………..96 3.5.3.3.1. The Verbs of “Speaking/Doing”: “Speaking/Doing only the Word That the Lord Tells”……….………….96 3.5.3.3.2. The Verbs of “Blessing and Cursing”……..…………98 3.5.3.3.3. The Verb “Slay/Slaughter/Die/Sacrifice”….………..101 3.5.3.4. The Topical and Sub-Topical Verbs in the Sentences: the Subjects and Objects with the Verbs in Differing Genres (Prose, Poetry and Direct Speech)………………………….…107 3.5.4. Conclusion………………………………………………….…………...113 3.6. The Composition of the Balaam Text According to Sections and Episodes: The Topical Verb, Sub-Topical Verbs, Topically-Related Verbs, Topically-Related Main Characters, Topically-Related Repetition and Patterns, and the Main Topic in Each Episode………………………………………………………...…..114 3.6.1. Introduction………………………………………………………….….114 3.6.2. The Composition of the Text……………………………..……………...114 3.6.3. Conclusion……………………………………………….……………...129 3.7. The Structures of the Balaam Story………………………………..……………....131 3.7.1. The Chiastic Structure of the Balaam Story (Episodes)……...…………..132 3.7.2. The Concentric Symmetry Structure of Episodes with the Issue of ‘Curse/Bless’: Episodes 1, 2, 3, 7, 8 and 9…………………..…………..134 3.7.3. The Diagram in the Balaam Story on the Aspect of the Tensional Relationship Among the Main Topical Characters, Balaam, Balak and the Lord………………………………………………………….….137 3.8. Conclusion…………………………………………………………….………..…140 v Chapter 3 – Synthetic Propositions and the Message, Intention and Theological Implications of the Balaam Story……………………………………………………………..…141 1. Introduction………………………………………………………………………………....141 2. Synthetic Propositions………………………………………………….…………………...141 2.1. The Role of Balaam in the Balaam Story of Num 22-24: Balaam as a Mere Tool for Delivering God’s Message………………………………………………………...142 2.2. The Relationship between Section 1 (Num 22:2-21) and Section 2 (22:22-40): The Unity between the Two Narratives……………………………….…………………...144 2.3. Relationship Between Section 1 and 2 (Prosaic Parts), and Section 3 (Poetic Collections): The Topical Congruency between the Two Genres in the Balaam Story…………………………………………………………………………………..150 2.4. The Message, Intention and Theological Implications of the Balaam Story…..……....153 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………..….162 Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………...….163 vi List of Tables Table 1. The Occurrences of the Verbal Forms of the Balaam Story Table 2. Verses Beginning the Sentence without the Vayyiqtol Verb Table 3. All Verbal Forms in the Balaam Story Table 4. Verbal Forms of the Seven Poetry Parts in the Balaam Story Table 5. The Occurrence of the Topical Verb, har (to See), in the Balaam Story Table 6. The Occurrence of the Sub-Topical Verbs in the Balaam Story Table 7. The Occurrence of the Topically-Related Verbs (rbd: to Speak, dgn: to Tell, hco: to Do) Table 8. The Occurrence of the Topically-Related Verb (Krb: to Bless) Table 9. The Occurrence of the Topically-Related Verbs (rra/bbq: to Curse) Table 10. The Occurrence of the Topically-Related Verbs (grh: to Slay, jbz: to Slaughter, twm: to Die, hlo: to Sacrifice) Table 11. The Verbal Parallels between the Balaam Story and the Story of Gen 22 Table 12. The Topical and Sub-Topical Verbs with the Subjects and Objects Table 13. The Concentric Symmetry Structure of Episodes 1 and 9 Table 14. The Concentric Symmetry Structure of Episodes 2 and 8 Table 15. The Concentric Symmetry Structure of Episodes 3 and 7 Table 16. Verbal Chiasm in Num 22-24 vii List of Diagram Diagram 1.
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