[DOWNLOAD] "Jewish Identity Under Foreign Rule: Daniel 2 As a Reconfiguration of Genesis 41 (Critical Essay)" by Journal of Biblical Literature " eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Jewish Identity Under Foreign Rule: Daniel 2 As a Reconfiguration of Genesis 41 (Critical Essay)
- Author : Journal of Biblical Literature
- Release Date : January 22, 2010
- Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines,Books,Professional & Technical,Education,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 242 KB
Description
This article explores the various ways in which Daniel 2 reconfigures Genesis 41. Though many scholars have noted similarities between these two texts, such observations have not generated significant advances in our understanding of Daniel 2. (1) John J. Collins lists some of the similarities between Daniel and Joseph, yet he downplays any significant relationship between the two texts. (2) Though I agree with Collins that Daniel "has its own new hero in a different situation," I do not see why such a statement necessarily precludes reading Daniel 2 as an attempt to reconfigure the character of Joseph. (3) Although C. L. Seow recognizes points of contact between Daniel 2 and Genesis 41, he neglects to draw any substantive conclusions from the similarities he observes. (4) While Aaron Wildavsky recognizes the importance of the Joseph story for Daniel, he tends to stretch the boundaries of cogent exegesis. (5) Robert K. Gnuse and C. G. Labonte provide two of the most detailed comparisons of Daniel 2 and Genesis 41. (6) Similarities between the two narratives listed by Gnuse include observations of other commentators as well as his own. (7) Yet many of the parallels he cites from other scholars concern not Daniel 2 but other chapters of the book, (8) and two of the fifteen similarities noted by Gnuse also rely on material outside of Daniel 2. He cites Dan 4:8-9 to show that in each case the ruler "recognizes the 'spirit of God' in the hero," and he refers to Dan 1:6 to demonstrate that Daniel receives a "new courtly name." (9) Another of his alleged similarities, that the "deity of the Jewish boy is recognized as the true God" unfairly renders Dan 2:47 ("your God is God of gods and Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries"). (10) Regardless, Gnuse and I differ in the scope of our comparative work; he is interested in parallels between Genesis 41 and any aspect of Daniel, whereas I restrict my comparison to Daniel 2. More importantly, Gnuse does not acknowledge the consistent ways in which Daniel 2 contrasts the character of Daniel with Joseph. His lack of attention to such contrasts flattens the disparate ways in which Joseph and Daniel are characterized. (11)