Texts in Conversation
David's declaration at the threshing floor in 1 Chronicles mirrors Jacob's awestruck cry at Bethel in Genesis 28. The Chronicler links Jerusalem's temple site to Jacob's sacred encounter, merging two holy places into one.
Share:
2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Genesis 28:17
Hebrew Bible
16 Then Jacob woke up and thought, “Surely the Lord is in this place, but I did not realize it!” 17 He was afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! This is nothing else than the house of God! This is the gate of heaven!” 18 Early in the morning Jacob took the stone he had placed near his head and set it up as a sacred stone. Then he poured oil on top of it. 19 He called that place Bethel, although the former name of the town was Luz.
1 Chronicles 22:1
Hebrew Bible
1 David then said, “This is the place where the temple of the Lord God will be, along with the altar for burnt sacrifices for Israel.” 2 David ordered the resident foreigners in the land of Israel to be called together. He appointed some of them to be stonecutters to chisel stones for the building of God’s temple. 3 David supplied a large amount of iron for the nails of the doors of the gates and for braces, more bronze than could be weighed,
Search:
Notes and References
"... In the later version of the story, the version in 1 Chronicles, a verse was added that is not found in 2 Samuel: "David said, 'This is the House of the Lord God [beit 'adonai ha-'elohim] and this is the altar of burnt offerings for Israel'" (1 Chronicles 22:1). In both the story of Jacob's dream and the Chronicles version of the threshing floor story, the speaker's response is one of fear — Jacob says, "How terrifying is this place" (Genesis 28:17), and David "was scared by the sword of the angel of the Lord" (1 Chronicles 21:30). The verse in 1 Chronicles appears to have been purposefully fashioned according to the form of the other (compare David's words in 1 Chronicles 22:1 with Jacob's proclamation in Genesis — "This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate to heaven" [28:17]), conveying the notion that Jerusalem and Bethel, two cultic centers, are but alternative names for the same location. ..."
Shinan, Avigdor and Yair Zakovitch
From Gods to God: How the Bible Debunked, Suppressed, or Changed Ancient Myths and Legends
(pp. 84-85) The Jewish Publication Society, 2012
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
Your Feedback:
Leave a Comment
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.