Islam
insh’allah, 221–22
monotheism, 153
number of Muslims today, 153
Israel (Jacob’s other name). See Jacob
Israel, Northern Kingdom of
Assyria threatened, 72–73, 332
Hebrew dialect of, 132
map of, xi
Israel, people of
aniconic worship in, 103–4
Balaam’s attempted curse, 111–12
in Canaan, 33, 181–82, 228–29, 364 n43, 383 n13, 386 n20
distinction from Canaanites, 157
divine kingship in, 376 n26
encounter with God at Mount Sinai, xiv, 12, 96, 164, 166, 177–78, 338, 368 n45
exodus from Egypt, 139, 226–27
geopolitical reality, 340, 409–10 nn 2–4
as God’s own, 160, 384 n14
Iron Age religions, 363 n27
literacy in, 248, 395 n48
monolatry and monotheism in, 136, 157, 159–61, 379 n4
no police force in, 247
shock at nakedness of Adam and Eve, 61, 356 n4
worship of other gods, 73–75, 83–84, 136
Israelites. See Israel, people of
J
J (Pentateuchal strand), 366 n10, 368 n43
Jacob
dream at Bethel, 13–14, 349 n17
encounter with God, xv, 13–14, 15, 164, 338, 369 n45
and Esau, 279–80, 407 n5
fight with angel, 10, 348 n10
guidance by Wisdom, 381 n19
Israel, new name for, 10
journey to Egypt, 23
mourned for Joseph, 270
and Rebekah (mother), 229, 279–80
Jacob, sons of. See also Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs
avenged Dinah’s rape, 260–61, 397 n7
Joseph and his brothers, 22–26, 28–30, 350 n5
last wills, 37–56
as patriarchs, 37, 37 n
Jacobsen, Thorkild, 376 n26
Jael, 226
James, William, 353 n17, 361 n14
Jamnia (Yavneh), 405 n32
Jaspers, Karl, 409 n6
Jaynes, Julian, 387 n7, 410 n7
Jebel al-Aqra’ (Mount Saphon), 363 n35
Jehoiachin, King, ix, 249
Jehoiakim, King, 114–15, 249, 318
Jehoram, King, 217, 261–62
Jephthah, 192, 382 n33
Jereboam, 367 n34, 368 n44
Jeremiah (prophet)
angelic intermediary, 238
attacked King Jehoiakim, 114–15, 318
audience reaction to, 120–21, 122–23, 373 n36
chosen before birth, 114, 373 n38
on convoluted human mind, 123, 373 n41
laments of, 121–23
legitimacy as prophet, 230
life of, 113–15, 120–22
predecessors, 113–14
prophecies, 31, 114–15, 121–24
reproving Israelites, 184
on restoration of Israel, 252
revelatory state of mind, 127–28
temple sermon, 121, 373 nn 35–36
as unhappy man, 121–23, 268–69, 284
Jeremiah, book of, 114, 371 n21
influence on book of Isaiah, 249, 269, 398 n22
Jerusalem
fall to Babylonians, ix, 28, 30–31, 113, 263, 296, 332
Jerusalem temple
collective worship, 306 n
destruction by Romans, 234 n, 310–11, 334, 402 n1
empty-space iconography, 367 n40
God present in, 169
heavenly temple comparisons, 401 n13
Holy of Holies, 93, 104, 169, 367 n41, 381 n30, 401 n13
Jeremiah’s speech at, 121, 373 nn 35–36
mikdash (holy place), 93
pilgrimage festivals, 401 n1
prayer in, 377 n30
prayer room, 402 n8
rededication, 234 n, 235–36
scroll of laws found in, 183
Second Temple period, 306, 306 n
tamid sacrifices, 305–6, 310, 404 n21, 404 n26
Jesus
crucifixion, 334
heavenly ascent, 295
as prophetic figure, 393 n13
as social reformer, 369 n2
Jewish Antiquities (Josephus), 55–56, 356 n48
Jezebel, Queen, 155, 167, 261
Job, book of, 112, 269–78, 284, 398 n25
John Hyrcanus, 233
John of Patmos (prophet), 238, 250–51, 295, 393 n13, 396 nn 53–54
John the Baptist, 331, 393 n13
Jonah, xiv, 319, 391 n19
Joseph (son of Jacob). See also Jacob, sons of
versus Abraham, 33–36
character, 23, 24–25, 34
as dream interpreter, 22, 34, 204, 254, 351 n10
famine, 22–23, 25
God as cold and impersonal, 140
and his brothers, 22–26, 28–30, 39, 350 n5
imprisonment, 22, 283, 399 n39
Jacob relating encounter with God to, xv, 164
and Pharaoh, 22, 34, 351 n10
and Potiphar’s wife, 22, 281–83, 350 n8
spirit of God dwelling within, 34, 351 n10
Joseph and Aseneth (Hellenistic novella), 284
Josephus
on Abraham’s near-sacrifice of Isaac, 281
on Cain and Abel, 174–75, 174 n
on Enoch’s heavenly ascent, 291
on Essene sect, 305, 403 n12
on heroes and heroines, 399 n40
Jewish Antiquities, 55–56, 174, 281, 356 n48
as prophet, 233, 392 n7
on prophets, 233–34, 392 n7
on Shema recitation, 327
on Solomon, 242
Joshua, viii, 15–16, 20, 107, 339
Joshua ben Levi, Rabbi, 404 n26
Josiah, King, viii, ix, 113, 183–84, 221, 395 n47
jubilee (unit of 49 years)
counting, 30–33
length of, 32, 33, 252, 396 n57
Jubilees, Book of
angelic narrator, 239
authorship, 253, 255
biblical rules, 384 n15
Cain and Abel, 173–74
chronology, 244
dating of, 173
dictated to Moses, 243, 255
Genesis narratives, retelling of, 278–80, 399 n35
human evil, cause of, 39–40, 42–43, 351 n4, 352 n12
judgment of God, 329
longue durée, 332, 408 n17
Moses’s opening prayer, 42–43
in Qumran caves, 315
Rebekah in, 278–80, 399 n35
Sabbath laws, 324
thanksgiving in, 229
on timeline, ix
units of time in, 32–33
women, role of, 399 n34
Judah (Essene), 392 n7
Judah (son of Jacob), 20–22, 30. See also Jacob, sons of
and Tamar, 20–22
Judah, Kingdom of
dialect, 132
divided polity, 409 n4
divine favor, 243–44
fall to Babylonians, 113
Hasmonean priests, 400 n11
history, 243–44
and Israel, 157
literacy, 395 n48
scroll of laws, 183–84
on timeline, viii–ix
Judaism, rabbinic, 92, 141, 162, 210, 234, 331
divine omnipresence, 170
on end of prophecy, 232, 235
heavenly temple, 401 n13
keeping God’s laws, 337
kingship of God, 334–36, 409 n20
love of neighbor, 325–26
prayer as substitute for sacrifice, 311
psalms in, 131
reward and punishment, 409 n24
Sabbath laws, 324–25
Shekhinah, 403 n16
Song of Songs, 300
soul, 188
source of human sinfulness, 352 n8, 352 n10, 389 n29, 390 n34<
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statutory prayers, 403 n9, 403 n11, 404 n26
synagogue in, 92, 364 n6, 404 n1, 405 n34
thanksgiving as duty, 228, 229
Judas (prophet), 393 n13
Judea
Alexander’s conquest of, 201, 332
map of, xi
occupying forces, 332–33
in Persian Empire, 274
Judeans. See also Israel, people of exile to Babylon, 30–31, 113, 124, 132, 134, 312, 365 n10
K
kabod (“glory,” visible divine body), 96, 165 n, 365 n10
Kaddish prayer, 335
kami (Shinto deity), 360 n6
Karaites, 407 n8
Karatepe Inscription, 215
katadesma (“binding spells”), 48, 355 n33
Kaufmann, Y., 379 n4
kelei kodesh (vessels of holiness), 93
Kenite Hypothesis, 383 n13
Kenya, human ancestors, 356 n7, 357 n18
kidneys, God’s penetration of, 145–46
Kilamuwa, King (Anatolia), 214–15
kingdom of heaven. See God of Israel, kingship of
kingship, as basis of civilization, 178, 383 n1, 408 n14
kingship of God. See God of Israel, kingship of
knowledge, as revealed by gods, 52–54
kohanim. See priests and priesthood
Kohathites, 366 n12
Koheleth. See also Ecclesiastes, book of
autobiography, 275–77
contradictions in, 277–78
on futility of life, 275, 276, 284
identity of author, 274–76
reasoning, 399 n30
strange dialect, 274
Kohut, Heinz, 354 n20
Kuntillat Ajrud (site), 88, 383 n13
L
Laban, 402 n3
Lamashtu (malevolent spirit), 81–82
Lambek, Michael, 46
Langer, Susanne K., 362 n24
language, neural processing, 66, 358 n21
Lascaux, France, 76
launching events, 69, 359 n30
laws. See also Ten Commandments
“cry of the victim,” 138–40, 139 n
divine lawgiver, 177–78
as exemplary, not prescriptive, 385 n17
obedience to, as serving God, 185
in Pentateuch, 184–85, 385 n18
and prophets’ authority, 384 n17
religion of laws, 181–86
a sacred agreement, 177–86
vassal treaties, 178–82, 383 n7, 383 nn 10–11
learned psalmody, 399 n1
Leibowitz, Yeshayahu, 333
Lenin, V. I., 251
Levi (son of Jacob). See also Jacob, sons of
avenged sister’s rape, 260–61, 397 n7
heavenly ascent, 291–93, 307, 400 n11
prayer, 351 n6
Lévi-Strauss, Claude, 78, 358 n29
Levites, 93, 134, 366 n12, 401 n1
Leviticus, book of, 134, 185
Licht, Jacob, 387 n9
Lienhardt, Godfrey, 49–50, 78
life after death, 328–30
Life of Adam and Eve, 284
Lindblom, Johannes, 18, 127–28
literacy, 248, 395 n48
loans, biblical laws concerning, 138
Lomekwi 3 (site), Kenya, 357 n18
Lord, Albert, 369 n3
Lord’s Prayer, 335
Lot, 54, 381 n19
Louvin Brothers (gospel duo), 389 n29
love of neighbor (Lev 19:18), 325–26, 407 nn 5–6
Lower Paleolithic period, 79
Lowth, Robert, 370 n5, 396 n51
Lucius of Cyrene (prophet), 393 n13
Ludlul bēl nēmeqi (Akkadian poem), 398 n25
Luke, Gospel of, 393 n13
M
ma’at (Egyptian concept), 350 n3
Maccabees, ix, 332
Macedonia, Sesklo culture, 360 n5
magic. See enchanted world
mal’akh (angel), 9. See also angels
malkhut shamayim (kingship of God), 335, 408 n18
Mamre, 5
“Man and His God” (Sumerian composition), 398 n25
Manoah, 11–12, 15, 107, 165, 348 n3
Manoah, wife of, 10–12, 15, 107, 165, 338
marauding spirits, 38–40, 47
Marduk (Mesopotamian god), 85, 88–89, 98–99, 101, 339
martyrs, resurrection of, 408 n12
Mastema (wicked angel), 38 n
Mauss, Marcel, 266
Mayakovski, Vladimir, 251
Mayotte (island), spirit possession, 46
Mbiti, John, 372 n29
Mbuti (Bambuti) pygmies, 357 n14
McGinn, Colin, 377 n34
mediums, consultation with, 82
Melqart (Phoenician god of Tyre), 363 n35
Menahem (Essene), 392 n7
mental illness
and shamanism, 374 n47
sufferers as divine messengers, 374 n47
and voice hearing, 115–16, 117–18, 121, 126
merisms (extremes), 64 n, 327, 407 n7
Merrill, James, 370 n4
Mesha, King (Moab), 217–18
Mesopotamian religion
and an ancient sense of self, 106
deities, as kings, 376 n26
deities, fluidity of, 85–87, 338–39, 403 n16
deities, interaction of, 88–89
enchanted world, 81–82
prophet-like figures in, 114, 371 n19
temple offerings, 99–100
temples and shrines, 94, 105, 364 n1
ziqqurats, 103
Messiah, 333–34
Micah (prophet), viii, 113, 127 n, 402 n3
Micaiah (prophet), 193, 400 n9
Michael (angel), 162, 206, 207, 239–40, 380 n18
Midianite Hypothesis, 383 n13
Midianites, 7–8, 9
mikdash (temple, holy place), 93
Miller, Maxwell, 217
Milton, John, 369 n4
mind, human. See also brain; “theory of mind”
as semipermeable, 43–47, 145–46
sense of self, 44
“mind-body” problem, 148, 379 n42
mishkan (wilderness tabernacle), 95–96, 97, 366 n24. See also tabernacle
Moab
battle against Israelites, 217–18
destruction of, prophesied, 112–13
king of, 111–13, 217–18
monolatry, 136, 155, 157–58, 380 n8
monotheism, gradual emergence of, 153–161, 163–176
Abraham as first monotheist, 55
dating of, 136
Elijah at Mount Carmel, 155–57
God’s helpers, 162–63
God’s physical body and, 163–66
as Israel’s gift to the world, 153
and monolatry, 155–59
new remoteness of God, 175–76
no other gods, 153–55
still, small voice, 166–69
three omni’s, 169–75
true monotheism, 159–61
Moses
at the burning bush, 6–7, 9, 15, 239
face disfigured, 165, 381 n24
as heavenly traveler, 401 n15
mistake in striking rock, 212–14
prayer in Book of Jubilees, 42–43
and “Song of the Sea,” 226–27, 241
Scripture interpretations concerning, 320
and Ten Commandments, 178, 184, 320, 393 n13
water from rock, 211–14, 390 nn 2–3
Wisdom entered mind of, 380 n19
and Zelophehad’s daughters, 384 n17
mourning rituals, 270–71
Muslims. See Islam
mysterians, 147–49, 378 n37
mysterium tremendum et fascinans (mystery that frightens and fascinates), 91, 364 n3, 401 n17
N
Nabateans, 104, 104 n
Naboth, 261–62
Nabu (god), 85
Nadab (Aaron’s son),
12, 95–97, 100
Nagel, Thomas, 149–50, 379 nn 41–42
Nagy, G., 370 n7
Nahum (prophet), 113
name theology, 366 n10
“Nariokotome” (Homo erectus/Homo ergaster), 356 n8
Nathan (prophet), 183, 262, 318, 344
natural phenomena, as evidence of the divine, 91
Nazi Holocaust, 333
Nazirites, 11 n, 144 n
Neandertals, 61–62, 62 n, 67–68, 357 n12
Nebuchadnezzar (Babylonian king), 28, 244–45, 254
nefesh (“me,” self, soul). See also neshamah; ruaḥ
became a foreign implant, 201
eventual immortality of, 202–3
gradual change, 194–96, 199, 204, 306, 342
and new interiority, 201
original meaning, 190–91
in Psalm 119, 197–98
in Thanksgiving Hymns, 199
translation of, 190–91, 194–96, 195 n, 387 n9
neighbor, love of, 325–26, 407 nn 5–6
Neolithic period, 79, 358 n25, 360 n5
Nergal (god), 85
Nero (Roman emperor), 233–34
neshamah (lifebreath), 189–91, 200–201, 306, 387 n5, 387 n9. See also nefesh; ruaḥ
neuroscience. See also brain
and hidden causers, 77–80
sense of self, 44–45, 148, 354 nn 21–22, 377 n34
New English Bible, 133 n
New Jewish Publication Society (NJPS), xvi, 347 n1, 387 n5
New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), xvi, 133 n, 347 n1, 387 n5
New Testament
prophets, 234, 393 n13
thanksgiving in, 229
Nineveh (Mosul), Iraq, 97
Ninurta (god), 85–86, 87
Nissinen, M., 371 n21
NJPS. See New Jewish Publication Society
Noah, 39–40, 291, 381 n19
Nob, slaughter of, 397 n10
noos (mind/thought), 201, 389 n30
Northern Kingdom. See Israel, Northern Kingdom of
Noth, Martin, 406 n37
NRSV. See New Revised Standard Version
Numbers, book of, 111–13, 185
O
O’Connor, Flannery, 101, 343–44
Old Greek Psalter, 133 n
Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania, 356 n6
omnipotence, divine
Greek influence on, 382 n37
and monotheism, transformation to, 169–75
problem of the stone, 170 n
omnipresence, divine
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