JEHOIACHIN AND HIS ORACLE: THE SHAPHANIDE LITERARY FRAMEWORK FOR THE END OF THE DEUTERONOMISTIC HISTORY A Dissertation Submitted to the Temple University Graduate Board in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY By Melvin L. Sensenig May 2013 Advisor: Dr. Mark Leuchter (Religion) Committee Members: Dr. Jeremy Schipper (Religion), Dr. Vasiliki Limberis (Religion), External Reader Dr. Daniel O’Hara (English) Religion Department Chair: Dr. Laura Levitt Abstract Jehoiachin and His Oracle: The Shaphanide Literary Framework for the End of the Deuteronomistic History Melvin L. Sensenig Doctor of Philosophy Temple University, 2013 Advisor: Mark Leuchter Ph.D. Four oracles appear in Jeremiah 21:11-23:8 detailing the failure and future of the final kings in Judah, also known as the King Collection. The final oracle against Jehoiachin (he also appears with the names Coniah / Jeconiah) precedes the announcement of the unnamed new Davidide, the Branch. The oracle against Jehoiachin appears to be unique, involving no stipulations of covenant wrongdoing, a feature of Deuteronomistic criticism of the kingship since Solomon. He is one of the most unremarkable kings in Israelite history. Yet, he is the concluding figure in both the Greek (Septuagint or LXX) and Hebrew (Masoretic Text or MT) versions of Jeremiah’s King Collection, a significant change from the accounts in Kings and Chronicles. He occupies an important place in Josephus’s attempts to sketch the ideal Israelite king, respectful of Roman rule. He is important to the rabbis in developing an atonement theory of the exile. In the New Testament, he appears in Matthew’s genealogy of Jesus, while the other kings from the King Collection disappear. The Epistle to the Hebrews may adopt similar ideas in developing the analogy of Melchizedek, another insignificant king in Israel’s history, as a precursor to Jesus. Ideas developed from the flow of the oracle in the text of Jeremiah, shaped by the polemics of i exile, appear in the Acts of the Apostles’ casting of Jesus’ spiritual kingship on the world’s stage. Precritical Jewish and Christian exegesis adopted a harmonizing approach to the oracle, importing reasons from the Deuteronomistic History and the Chronicler for its harsh judgment. Yet discussion of the oracle and its significance in the construction of the figure of Jehoiachin in Jeremiah has all but disappeared from critical scholarship following the groundbreaking work of Bernhard Duhm. Early critical scholarship, while correcting many of the mistakes of precritical exegetes, followed the new Protestant confessionalism of the 19th century. Michel Foucault locates the loss of the theology of the cross as this decisive turn in interpretive methodology. This turn caused modern Protestant interpreters, who are mainly responsible for the foundations of modern critical studies in Jeremiah, to devalue disempowered kings in Israel’s history, one of the most important hermeneutical categories in classical Jewish literature, according to Yair Lorberbaum. Thus, Bernhard Duhm, and later scholarship that builds on his work, missed the significance of this oracle in the textual function of the book of Jeremiah and its polemical significance in the debates between post-exile groups of Judeans. Gerhard von Rad, in his revision of Martin Noth’s theory of the Deuteronomistic History, saw the importance of Jehoiachin as a source of hope for a renewed Israel. Jack Lundbom most recently observed the development of an oracular frame moving from the center outward in which the oracle against Jehoiachin appears. Yet, to date, little work has appeared on the way the canonical form of Jeremiah frames Jehoiachin and its effect on Jeremiah’s end to the DtrH. ii To make sense of it, we must account for what appears to be an unfulfilled prophecy in Jeremiah 22, as recorded by Jehoiachin’s treatment in Jeremiah 52 where, against the expectation of the oracle, the Jewish king again appears on the world stage. Mark Roncace has written extensively on how this type of prophecy functions in the book of Jeremiah. Speech-act theory, as proposed originally by J. L. Austin, and refined by his protégé, John Searle, provides further insight into this issue. Building on the scholarship of von Rad, Lundbom, Mark Leuchter and several other scholars of the sociopolitical forces in the production of biblical texts in exile, we will reconstruct the remarkably adaptable prophetic frame developed in exile around Jehoiachin and his oracle, which set the stage for a return of a Jewish king to the world stage. iii Acknowledgments First, I must thank my advisor, Prof. Mark Leuchter, who has been an unflagging supporter of this project since I first presented it to him and his colleague, Prof. Jeremy Schipper, in my first semester at Temple. Mark has also been an honest critic, always with the intent of making my work better. Further, his pleasant and cheerful personality makes working with him a true joy. I must also thank Prof. Leuchter’s colleague, Prof. Schipper, who also has shown support, suggested additional avenues for research and provided numerous helpful editorial comments and has a great sense of humor. Mark and he make an outstanding, positive team in Hebrew Bible. All the work I did for them had a profound effect on the pages that follow. Professor Vasiliki Limberis supported and encouraged my efforts to trace the links between Jeremiah’s and Acts’ portrayals of the Israelite kingship. She also presented invaluable suggestions for potential effects this research may have had on New Testament and patristic studies. Prof. Daniel O’Hara in the English department was of great help in exploring the philosophical, cultural and religious milieu in which Bernhard Duhm, the father of all critical Jeremiah studies, labored. Prof. Joseph Margolis in the philosophy department always had engaging, critical input for my investigations of the application of Gadamerian hermeneutics and speech-act theory to Jeremiah studies. Although my work with the following professors does not appear in this dissertation, their input was invaluable in helping me understand the position of Jeremiah vis-à-vis other religions. Prof. Zain Abdullah graciously encouraged me to pursue potential parallels between the often-stormy relationship between Jeremiah and Israelite royalty and the prophetic stance of the Qu’ran vis-à-vis rulers. Prof. Julius Tsai, former iv professor of Chinese religions, encouraged me to explore possible parallels between Jeremiah and Confucius, first suggested by Old Testament scholar H. H. Rowley. I am grateful to Prof. Tremper Longman of Westmont College, whose course on Jeremiah and Lamentations as a visiting professor at Westminster Theological Seminary in the winter of 2008 first piqued my interest in Jeremiah studies in general and this issue in particular. Prof. Longman’s colleagues Doug Green, Pete Enns and Dan McCartney also provided much encouragement. Finally, my strongest early catalyst for the study of the Hebrew Bible came during my years at Yale Divinity School (1994-1997) under the tutelage of my late and beloved advisor, Prof. Brevard Childs. He never tired of my questions, understood the critical issues thoroughly and taught me that the canonical layer of the text is not a dead husk, but an integral part in arranging confused and cacophonous voices into something resembling a symphony. Of course, none of these scholars bears any responsibility for any mistakes or flaws, which are mine alone. My three daughters (ages 20, 19, and 11) and my son (age 17) have been unfailingly supportive, never asking, “Dad, when will you be done?” Rather, their only question was, “How soon can we call you Dr.?” Finally, I owe a profound measure of gratitude to Cindy, my wife. Without her full support from the beginning, this work would not have been possible. She and I know this is no truism. From the beginning of this exacting process, she encouraged and supported me, even taking time off from her own graduate studies so I could concentrate on this dissertation. Who can find a virtuous and capable wife? She is more precious than rubies. Her husband can trust her, and she will greatly enrich his life. She brings him good, not harm, all the days of her life… (Proverbs 31) v Table of Contents Abstract .............................................................................................................. i Acknowledgments............................................................................................ iv List of Tables ................................................................................................. viii Introduction ...................................................................................................... ix The Oracle and the King ................................................................................ ix Constructing Jehoiachin and His Oracle ..................................................... xxv A Word on Method ........................................................................................ xl CHAPTER 1: A HISTORY – AND THEOLOGY – OF SCHOLARSHIP .............. 1 Precritical Rabbinic Approaches ..................................................................... 3 Josephus .......................................................................................................... 8 Pre-Critical Christian Interpretations ............................................................ 11 Laying a Critical Foundation .......................................................................