“Too Much to Grasp” : : Exodus 3:13–15 and the Reality of God / / Andrea D. Saner.

• Superior document: Title is part of eBook package: De Gruyter Penn State University Press Complete eBook-Package 2014-2015
• VerfasserIn: Saner, Andrea D.,
• Place / Publishing House: University Park, PA : : Penn State University Press, , [2015]; ©2015
• Year of Publication: 2015
• Language: English
• Series: Journal of Theological Interpretation Supplements ; 11
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (280 p.)

Few phrases in Scripture have occasioned as much discussion as has the “I am who I am” of Exodus 3:14. What does this phrase mean? How does it relate to the divine name, YHWH? Is it an answer to Moses’ question (v. 13), or an evasion of an answer?The trend in late-nineteenth- and twentieth-century scholarly interpretations of this verse was to superimpose later Christian interpretations, which built on Greek and Latin translations, on the Hebrew text. According to such views, the text presents an etymology of the divine name that suggests God’s active presence with Israel or what God will accomplish for Israel; the text does not address the nature or being of God. However, this trend presents challenges to theological interpretation, which seeks to consider critically the value pre-modern Christian readings have for faithful appropriations of Scripture today.In “Too Much to Grasp”: Exodus 3:13?15 and the Reality of God, Andrea Saner argues for an alternative way forward for twenty-first century readings of the passage, using Augustine of Hippo as representative of the misunderstood interpretive tradition. Read within the literary contexts of the received form of the book of Exodus and the Pentateuch as a whole, the literal sense of Exodus 3:13–15 addresses both who God is as well as God’s action. The “I am who I am” of v. 14a expresses indefiniteness; while God reveals himself as YHWH and offers this name for the Israelites to call upon him, God is not exhausted by this revelation but rather remains beyond human comprehension and control.

Table of Contents

Frontmatter -- Table of Contents -- Introduction -- Part 1. Clearing the Ground for Theological Interpretation of Exodus 3:13–15 -- Chapter 1. Reading Exodus 3:13–15 from von Rad to Childs and Beyond -- Chapter 2. Augustine’s Literal-Sense Reading of Exodus 3:14–15 -- Part 2. Rebuilding Theological Interpretation of Exodus 3:13–15 -- Chapter 3. The Divine Name in the Book of Exodus -- Chapter 4. Moses as Covenant Mediator -- Chapter 5. Exodus 3:13–15 and Trinitarian Doctrine -- Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Index of Scripture -- Index of Authors and Subjec