Vocabulary for Life Exam 1
Terms
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- casuistic
- also known as case law it is a law that follows a pattern. "If a person does this particular thing....then the person recieves this punishment"
- Deuteronomic History
- the name used to desingate the book of Deuteronomy as well as the section of the Hebrew Bible known as the Former Prophets (Joshua, Judges, 1-2 Samuel, 1-2 Kings). Many scholars understand the DH to be a single literary unit that has been edited or shaped with the themes and concerns of the book of Deuteronomy in mind
- messianic secret
- a feature found in the gospels, especially Mark, whereby, Jesus is portrayed as trying to maintain an element of secrecy about himself and his work
- aramaism
- A hebrew word or phrase which reflects the influence of the Aramaic language upon Hebrew. This is usually indicitive of a late stage of written Hebrew
- theodicy
- the attempt to explain divine justice in the face of experiences like innocent suffering which appear to indicate God's indifference or even hostility toward virtuous people
- cuneiform
- from the latin for, "wedge-shaped" the term describes writing systems in which signs were rapidly impressed with a read stylus on a soft writing surface. The most common material used as a surface was clay. Cuneiform writing systems were used beginning around 3100 BCE in various parts of ancient Near East and Mediterranean
- inclusio
- a literary device whereby a theme, phrase or key word is mentioned at the beginning of a book or section and repeated at its end. This creates a bookends effect which hgihlights a theme or issue that is centrall to the work.
- parallelism
- the most promient feature in ancient Near Easter poetry. It refers to the repetition of the same or related ideas and or grammatical structure in consecutive lines or verses. An example can be seen in Pslam 103:10 Line A "Not accroding to our sins did he deal with us" Line B- "And not according to our trangressions did he requite us"
- pentateuch
- the first five books of the Hebrew Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy
- vaticinium ex eventu
- the latin term literally means "prediction after the event". It refers to texts and statements that predict events that have already come to pass. An example: the Yankees will win all three World Series in 1998-2000
- suzerain
- a suzerain covenant is a treaty between an overlord, or suzerain and the small nations either conquered by him or forced to cooperate out of fear of being taken over by him. The overlord usually does not bind himself to any particular dutiese other than being kindly or protective, but he spells out a series of demands for the vassal to faithfully perform
- nazirite
- from a Hebrew word that means "dedicated, consecreted," the term refers to a man or woman who enteres a consercrated state upon their own or a parent's vow. The conditions of this vow are found in Number 6 1-7
- seer
- one who is given divine revelation in the form of visions which need to be interpreted to be understood
- angel
- a heavenly being whose purprose it is to serve God and execute God's will. One of the most common functions of angels in the biblical material is to serve as messengers or envoys between the diety and humans
- pseudepigrapha
- a greek term meaning "writings and false superscriptors" They are called this because the person with whom they are indentified is not the true author. They are a group of about 65 non biblical writings that were composed in the period of 300 BCE to 200 CE. Their authorship is most often (falsely) associated with patriarchs of the Hebrew Bible like Abraham and Moses.
- anthropomorphism
- the use of human qualities or traits to describe or talk about God, An example can be seen in texts that describe God as having eyes or ears
- Zion
- an ancient name for various parts of Jerusalem of Judah and all the land. It is also sometimes used as a metaphor for the people of God, at various periods, from biblical times to the modern day
- theogony
- an account of the origin and descent of the gods
- hermeneutics
- the methods and techniques used to interpret written texts like the Bible. It is primarily concerned with the theory or theories of interpretation and in this way, can be distinguished from exegesis which is the practice application of hermeneutical principles. The term comes from a Greek verb that means "to interpret"
- apology
- an attempt to defend or explain the actions or status of an individual
- exogamy
- the custom of marrying outside one's own group
- diaspora
- a term describes the situation of people who are settled far from their ancestral homeland
- primeval history
- a modern label applied to Gensis 1-11 and literature like it. The term refers to writings that attemtp to describe events between the creation of the world and the point at which historical memory begins. It is commonly of a speculative and mythological nature.
- Covenant Code
- the set of laws found in Exodus 20:22-23:19 which legistlates activity and behavior in a number of social contexts
- synoptic problem
- the word "synoptic" comes from a Greek word meaning "seen together". The gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke are called synoptic because they share many similarities. Beyond this thought they differ in some significant ways. The term "synoptic problem" refers to the difficulties in trying to understand and determine the precise historical and literary relationships among these three gospels
- myth
- a story that has been trasnmitted usually orally within a communal setting which deals with a character or characters who are more than human and treats events in remote antiquity
- cosmogony
- an account of the origin of the world or universe
- exegesis
- the process of careful, analytical study of bliblical passages undertaken in order to produce useful interpretations of those passages. The term comes from a Greek verbs that means "to take out"
- parable
- an extended metaphor or simile that often becomes a brief narrative. They were usually used in biblical texts for teaching purposes
- Davidic Covenant
- the promise God makes to David in 2 Samuel 7 which guarantees the future and success of David's family line
- parity
- a parity covenant is a treaty between equal kings. Each side agrees to mutual responsibilities because they have equal status and neither can force the other to carry out their obligations
- endogamy
- the custom of marrying only within one's groupl, such as a clan, tribe, etc.
- saga
- a heroic tale often having legendary features that serve to build up the fearless hero almost bigger than real life
- etiology
- a story that tries to explain the origin of something. Among other things, it might seek to explain why a place or person has a particular name, or why a group of people engages in a certain practice
- acrostic
- a device employed in poetry whereby the initial letters of each line read downward, constitute a name, sentence or alphabetic pattern. In the acrostic poem of Proverbs 31 the pattern of the intial letters of the 22 lines presetns the letters of the Hebrew language in alphabetical order
- gematria
- a system found in some languages, like Hebrew and Greek, by which letters can represent numbers and a combination of letters can yield a numerical total when added up
- kabod
- a technical term in the P tradition for the mysterious manifestation of the divine presence in worship. It comes from a Hewbrew root tha refers to weight or heaviness
- fulfillment citations
- gospel tests which attempt to see events associated with Jesus' life as being the fulfillement of other texts found in the prophets of the Hebrew Bible. They are typically found in the form, "This happened in order to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet X..." Among the four canonical gospels, these texts are predominantly found in Matthew
- seraph
- From a Hebrew word meaning "fiery one" refers to being of supernatural origin. They are emissaries of divine judgement and guardians of the divine throne who are often depicted in serpent form.
- Holiness Code
- a block of laws found in Leviticus 17-26 generally taken to be from the P sources. These laws are primarily concerned with ritual and cultic matters.
- christology
- the study of the titles, concepts, themes, and patterns by which the New Testament authors expressed their faith in Jesus as the Christ
- covenant
- an agreement between two parties in which one or both make promises under oath to perform or refrain from certain actions stipulated in advance. In the Bible, covenant is the major metaphor used to describe the relationship between God and the people
- herem
- a Hebrew term that can mean "ban" "doom" or "holy war". In the stories of the entry into the land it refers to the divine command to kill all the occupants of a town and give the accumulated treasures to God. It was dedication of their victories as a sacrifice to God
- Sea Peoples
- A group of people who entered Egypt and other parts of the eastern Mediterranean, including Canaan, during the 12th and 13th centuries BCE. They came in large numbers by ships from Crete, Greece and western Turkey. Some of those who were expelled from Egypt settled in coastal cities in Canaan.
- eschatology
- from a Greek word meaning "last" or "final" eschatology is taching about the end of the world. It refers to a time in the future when the course of history will be changed and an entirely new starte of reality will commence
- canon
- a body of scriptural writings that is considered authoritative and standard for a particular community, and helps to define proper religious beliefs and practices. Books not considered authoratitve are usually called "noncanocial" or "extracanonical" The term comes from a Greek word that means "measuring stick"
- anachronism
- a person, event, object, or idea that is chronologically out of place and doesnt belong in the text
- eisgesis
- the process of reading something into a biblical text that is not there. This is a serious mistake that offers a distorted sense of the meaning of a passage. The term comes from a Greek verb that means "to put in"
- Syro- Ephraimite War
- An international crisis that occured in 734 that pitted the kingdom of Judah against a coalition comprised of Damascus (Syria) and Israel (Ephraim). The purpose of the war was to dispose of Ahaz, king of Judah, and to pressure Judah into joining Damascus and Israel in opposition to the expanding Assyrian empire
- remnant
- within the Bible, the term refers to what is left of a community after it undergoes a castastrophe. The concept is most often used in reference to Israel/ Judah. It often has a negative connontation; the catastrophe is so great that only an insignificant remnant survives. Sometimes it has a positive sense: despite the catastrophe, a remnant survives as the basis for a renewed community.
- oracle
- infromation transmitted from a deity to humans, usually either answers to important questions or revelations about present situations and future events
- eponymy
- an eponym is a person whose name, and sometimes whose actions, represents a much larger group of people. Biblical examples include the names of Jacob and his sons as representing Israel and its tribes.
- apodictic
- a law for which a precise penalty is not stated. It makes a strong demand on the hearer that it should be followed and suggests that disobedience will be serverly dealt with
- lex talionis
- a latin term meaning, "law of retaliation" that refers to any legislation in which the guility party suffers the same harm as that experienced by the injured party.