[CS-FSLUG] A Bible-study question

[Ed Hurst]

On Fri, 31 Aug 2007, Tim Young wrote:

> The one that intrigues me, however, was Jacob, who became "Israel."  The
> reason this intrigues me is that Jacob is still referred to as "Jacob"
> at times after his re-naming.  There are times when he is referred to
> Jacob and others when he is referred to as Israel.  My suspicion is that
> it has something to do with the promise that "Israel" reflects.
> Sometimes "Israel" refers to the individual, some times to the nation.
> I was just wondering if anyone has any thoughts as to if there is a
> reason one is used over the other?  (I have some pretty neat examples
> for when God's many manes are used in the Bible.  Which name was used
> when adds a little bit of spice to reading the Bible)

1. The name was changed through an ancient Eastern feudal practice. A
lord's power was expressed in the right to give a new name,
particularly when vesting someone with increased authority. Lyrically,
new names were awarded heroes who overcame great challenges. It was
equivalent to a public legal name change, but in private use any
nickname might appear (Esau = Edom), including one's former names.

2. Different writers contributed to the material used in the OT.
Genesis was edited by Moses, not wholly composed from scratch. There
are stories there clearly of a much higher literary character (story of
Joseph) than others. Thus, one writer is rather pedantic about a
changed name; another is more flexible.

3. Hebrew parallelism, especially in poetic expression: A particular
idea is expressed at least twice, using different words. In longer
poetic works, characters and symbolic characters may run through a
dozen labels.

Ed Hurst
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