Volume 16, Issue 1, 2024
Articles published in the latest issue of Studia Biblica Slovaca
Critical Exegesis of the Books of Kings in the Light of the Concept of Inspiration
volume 16, issue 1, 2024, pages 1-21
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsAJKM4515
Abstract
The focus of this article is to create a dialogue between the historical critical methodology and the concept of inspiration. Firstly, I advance a proposal on the composition of the Books of Kings and based on this proposal I will argue that a single concept of inspiration cannot explain different stages of the formation of the Books of Kings. Consequently, the article proposes different models of inspiration for different phases of the formation of the Books of Kings.
Who Can Judge a Manslayer? The Recontextualization of the Legislation about the Cities
volume 16, issue 1, 2024, pages 22-49
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsAJMZ4722
Abstract
The legislative texts that are repeated in the Pentateuch were explored from the perspective of literary and communicative strategy. James W. Watts (1999) suggested that the laws that are intended for public reading not only emphasized instruction and persuasion, but that their repetition also had an impact on the very formation of these laws. Therefore, by examining the hermeneutics of the formation of parallel laws, a refinement of biblical logic can be uncovered. Though Josh 20 is out of the Pentateuchal legislature, nevertheless it is a concrete example of the repetition of the juridical regulations concerning the cities of refuge (Exod 21:12-14; Num 35:9-34; Deut 19:1-13). They have become the subject of research both in redactional studies and literary studies. In Josh 20, the motif of the legal attitude towards the intentional manslayer dominates and our interest will be on the role of the authorities towards him. We compare the roles of the authorities involved in the handling of an innocent manslayer’s asylum application in each of the parallel regulations. Though the repeated law in Josh 20 is simpler than the Pentateuchal sources, interestingly the role of the authorities is more elaborated especially in vv. 4-5. Moreover, its Hebrew version is considerably longer than the Greek, suggesting a deliberate compositional innovation that may have arisen because of recontextualization.
Ioudaïsmos through the Lens of Remembering. Exploration of the Semantic Shift of the Term from Maccabees to the Early Second Century CE
volume 16, issue 1, 2024, pages 50-76
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsAKHH7983
Abstract
An important aspect of memory studies regarding Jewish religious tradition is that memory and faith are interconnected and as such represent its basic character. Besides an essential function of memory, which is to describe and analyze how the past was shaped to make a common identity of the community in the present, remembering is also, as Simon Butticaz and Enrico Norelli have aptly remarked on this interdependency, a semantic category with significant theological implications. It is a typical character of Jewishness that confirms this fact. The goal of this paper is to explore the conceptualization of the term Ioudaïsmos during the Second Temple period, from Maccabees through Paul the Apostle, up to nascent Christianity in the early Second Century CE, including its impact on the self-conception of the groups of non-Jewish Jesus followers. The findings of this investigation confirm that applying this approach to the topic enables us to understand this term, including its semantic shift historically and contextually, without bias and traditional (anti-Jewish) stereotypes.
Why Did Jesus Turn Around? The Multivalence of Jesus’ Physical Turning in the Synoptic Gospels
volume 16, issue 1, 2024, pages 77-102
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsALBP9629
Abstract
The subject of the study is the turnings of Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels. First, the semantic field of Greek terms that express Jesus’ turning (ἐπιστςέφω and στςέφω) is defined. Two related Greek terms have evolved with respect to their use for Jesus’ turnings. From an overall view of individual mentions, we move on to an examination of Jesus’ turnings within each synoptic separately. This examination within each synoptic gospel is concluded with a brief summary. Mark and Matthew mentioned two turnings of Jesus, in the same events of the healing of the sick woman and in the admonition of Peter. But there were also differences in StBiSl 16 (1/2024) 102 Prečo sa Ježiš obrátil? the perception of Jesus’ turning. Luke elaborated on the topic, which is evidenced by the seven occurrences of Jesus’ turning, but in different events from Mark and Matthew. Based on the summaries, an observation is made that examines the characteristic features of Jesus’ turnings in intersynoptic relations. At the end, observations are made that show the common synoptic features of Jesus’ turnings. The synoptic mentions of Jesus’ turnings converge with the mention of Peter and women.
Did Peter Really Become a “Catcher of People” in Lk 5:10? On the Semantics of the Verb ζωγρέω
volume 16, issue 1, 2024, pages 103-115
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsANBL4727
Abstract
The verb ζωγρέω most frequently appear in the context of war, with the object of inimical soldiers who are “caught alive”, i.e. they were captured, not killed. This meaning is in accordance with the verbʼs obvious etymology. The meaning “preserve alive, save life” (in any context), though less frequent, has been attested since the earliest period, and in the Septuagint it dominates. When translating ἀνθρώπους ἔσῃ ζωγρῶν in Luke 5:10, there is no reason to insist on the meaning of “catching” found in the majority of translations. The correct meaning in this context is “save (peopleʼs) lives”. On the basis of the synonymity with the verb ζωοποιέω, there is a possibility of a semantic shift towards “bring (people) to a (better) life”.
Casneda, Alessandra: John 20. A Narrative Study (Analecta biblica 241), Roma: GBPress, 2023. 426 pp. ISBN 979-12-598-6021-7.
volume 16, issue 1, 2024, pages 116-128
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsANTV1182
New Testament in the Greco-Roman Context. 22–26 January 2024, Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome
volume 16, issue 1, 2024, pages 129-130
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsAOCO1334
Bible, Language and Context. Recontextualization of the Hebrew Bible in Antiquity. 26–28 February 2024, České Budějovice
volume 16, issue 1, 2024, pages 130-131
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64438/sbsAOUV9273