RT Article
T1 Adultery, Shame, and Sexual Pollution in Ancient Israel and in Hosea: A Response to Joshua Moon
JF Journal for the study of the Old Testament
VO 41
IS 2
SP 221
OP 236
A1 Chadžiev, Chavdar Stojanov 1971-
LA English
PB Sage
YR 2016
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/155636234X
AB The idea that a wife's marital unfaithfulness brought disgrace upon her husband is not clearly attested in the Hebrew Bible. Indeed, as this article shows, the passages dealing with adultery are more interested in the pollution that results from it, rather than in the honour of the cheated husband. Such pollution is the consequence of actions that undermine the order of the world and bring disaster upon the community. It is therefore unwise to read the ‘Mediterranean notion’ of shame and honour into biblical texts. This also applies to J. Moon's recent proposal (in issue 39 of this journal [2015]) about ‘Hosea's marriages’. It is argued in this article that Moon's idea that Israel's adultery in Hosea 1-3 undermines the honour of Yahweh who is thereby portrayed as willingly embracing humiliation cannot stand under closer scrutiny.
K1 Honour
K1 Shame
K1 Pollution
K1 Adultery
K1 Hosea
DO 10.1177/0309089215628421