Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH

This article suggests that Genesis 1 and Psalms 8, 18 and 89 reflect a mythological tradition which described the creation of the human king as YHWH’s counterpart in the divine battle against chaos. The residual royal features of the narrative of the creation of אדם in Genesis 1—the creation of the...

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Main Author: Crouch, C.L.
Format: Article
Published: Brill 2016
Subjects:
Online Access:https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43282/
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author Crouch, C.L.
author_facet Crouch, C.L.
author_sort Crouch, C.L.
building Nottingham Research Data Repository
collection Online Access
description This article suggests that Genesis 1 and Psalms 8, 18 and 89 reflect a mythological tradition which described the creation of the human king as YHWH’s counterpart in the divine battle against chaos. The residual royal features of the narrative of the creation of אדם in Genesis 1—the creation of the אדם in the image of god, to exercise dominion—appear in a context of a polemical revision of YHWH’s Chaoskampf and are suggestive of the older tradition’s inclusion of the king’s commissioning as YHWH’s representative and earthly counterpart in these activities. Psalm 8 similarly associates the creation of a royal figure with the exertion of authority and dominion over chaos, using the same image of god language as Genesis 1 to describe this figure and to articulate his special relationship with YHWH. Psalm 18 and especially Psalm 89 affirm the location of the king’s Chaoskampf commission in the midst of YHWH’s own Chaoskampf activities, with the latter’s use of parental language echoing the image of god language in Genesis 1.
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spelling nottingham-432822020-05-04T17:57:44Z https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43282/ Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH Crouch, C.L. This article suggests that Genesis 1 and Psalms 8, 18 and 89 reflect a mythological tradition which described the creation of the human king as YHWH’s counterpart in the divine battle against chaos. The residual royal features of the narrative of the creation of אדם in Genesis 1—the creation of the אדם in the image of god, to exercise dominion—appear in a context of a polemical revision of YHWH’s Chaoskampf and are suggestive of the older tradition’s inclusion of the king’s commissioning as YHWH’s representative and earthly counterpart in these activities. Psalm 8 similarly associates the creation of a royal figure with the exertion of authority and dominion over chaos, using the same image of god language as Genesis 1 to describe this figure and to articulate his special relationship with YHWH. Psalm 18 and especially Psalm 89 affirm the location of the king’s Chaoskampf commission in the midst of YHWH’s own Chaoskampf activities, with the latter’s use of parental language echoing the image of god language in Genesis 1. Brill 2016-06-04 Article PeerReviewed Crouch, C.L. (2016) Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH. Journal of Ancient Near Eastern Religions, 16 (1). pp. 1-21. ISSN 1569-2124 Image of God; Genesis; Chaoskampf; Psalms; Kingship http://booksandjournals.brillonline.com/content/journals/10.1163/15692124-12341277 doi:10.1163/15692124-12341277 doi:10.1163/15692124-12341277
spellingShingle Image of God; Genesis; Chaoskampf; Psalms; Kingship
Crouch, C.L.
Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH
title Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH
title_full Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH
title_fullStr Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH
title_full_unstemmed Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH
title_short Made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of YHWH
title_sort made in the image of god: the creation of אדם: the commissioning of the king and the chaoskampf of yhwh
topic Image of God; Genesis; Chaoskampf; Psalms; Kingship
url https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43282/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43282/
https://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/43282/