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Exodus 15 calls God a man of war. Rabbinic tradition in the Mekhilta draws on this to explain that God looked like a young warrior at the sea but an old man full of mercy at Sinai, insisting these are one God and not two powers in heaven.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Exodus 15:3
Hebrew Bible
2 The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation. This is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him. 3 The Lord is a man of war10— the Lord is his name. 4 The chariots of Pharaoh and his army he has thrown into the sea, and his chosen officers were drowned in the Red Sea.
Mekhilta d'Rabbi Ishmael 15:3
Halakhic Midrash
Rabbinic
It is, therefore, written "The L rd is a man of war; the L rd is His name. It is with His name that He wars, and not with any of these appurtenances. Why, then, need each of them be singled out? For if Israel requires it, He makes war for them. And woe to the nations what they hear with their ears, that He who spoke and brought the world into being is destined to make war with them! "the L rd is a man of war': What is the intent of this? Because He revealed Himself at the sea as a hero waging war — "The L rd is a man of war" — and He revealed Himself at Sinai as an elder full of mercy, viz. (Exodus 24:10) "And they saw the G d of Israel … and under His feet as the work of a sapphire brick and as the appearance of the heavens in brightness" [[ see Rashi], and (Daniel 7:9) "I watched as thrones were set up, and the Ancient of Days sat … (10) A stream of fire was flowing forth from before Him, etc." — So as not to give a pretext to the peoples of the world to say that there are two (i.e., numerous) deities,
Date: 135 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
... I am YHWH your God: Why is this said? Because When He appeared to them at the sea, He appeared to them as a mighty hero making war. As it is said, YHWH is a man of war. He appeared at Sinai like an old man, full of mercy, as it is said: And they saw the God of Israel ... I beheld ‘til thrones were set down (Daniel 7:9) ... Scripture would not give an opportunity to the nations of the world to say ‘there are two powers’ but declares I am YHWH your God. (Exodus 20:2). ...
Segal, Alan F.
Two Powers in Heaven: Early Rabbinic Reports About Christianity and Gnosticism
(p. 33) Brill, 1977
* 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.
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