(Note: it seems that Jaderis made some incorrect assumptions about my position. There seems to be a common misconception here on EvC Forum that all serious Christians are young-earth creationist "biblical literalists". I am an evangelical Christian, but certainly NOT a young-earth creationist.)
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My question to kbertsche is:
If you believe that the chronologies are only there to "establish descendency" and would therefore only be relevant to the Hebrews in order to provide legitimacy for their kings, then why would any of the OT be relevant to or even be describing any actual human history besides that of the Hebrews?
Why do you (presumably and if not you, then any biblical literalists, creationists, etc can feel free to answer me) then assume that any of the other events in the Old Testament (Adam and Eve, Noah's Flood, the Tower of Babel) have any correlation to any of the other civilizations that we know existed?
For example, could not Adam and Eve be the first humans that the Hebrew God appointed to be his "chosen people" and the descriptions of their life in Eden and banishment be just so stories for the human condition?
Good questions. Yes, this is possible. I have evangelical Christian friends who would take exactly the positions that you suggest.
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Could not Noah's flood be a local flood?
It could certainly have been a local flood. (BTW, I am convinced that it was NOT a global flood, because of conflict with the geologic record.)
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If not, why do you take the chronologies to be only relevant to establish a bloodline when it seems clear from the text that it shows a direct timeline from the first man ever to have existed up to knowable historical events (and from there until now)?
I believe this "seems clear" only to a modern, western mind. I don't believe this is how the original audience or the neighboring, contemporary cultures would have seen it.
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Also, why should the chronologies be read "in the context of the day," but not the rest of it?
Why are you willing to compare the chronologies to the Sumerian kings list, but comparing the mythology in the OT to those of other peoples that surrounded them and deducing that it is, indeed, mythology is a big no-no?
I believe ALL of the OT accounts should be read in the context of the day! An understanding of the neighboring cultures can only help us to better understand the Bible properly (i.e. to understand what was originally meant by the authors).
There are numerous books and articles that explore this. Below are a few from an evangelical Christian perspective:
Peter Enns,
Inspiration and Incarnation: Evangelicals and the Problem of the Old Testament (Baker, 2005)
Richard James Fischer,
Historical Genesis: from Adam to Abraham (University Press of America, 2008)
K. A. Kitchen,
The Bible in Its World: The Bible and Archaeology Today (Wipf & Stock, 2004)
K. A. Kitchen,
On the Reliability of the Old Testament (Eerdmans, 2006)
Paul H. Seely, "The Firmament and the Water Above: Part I: The Meaning of raqia' in Gen 1:6-8"
Westminster Theological Journal 53 (1991) 227-240.
Paul H. Seely, "The Firmament and the Water Above: Part II: The Meaning of "The Water above the Firmament" in Gen 1:6-8"
Westminster Theological Journal 54 (1992) 47-63.
Paul H. Seely, "The Geographical Meaning of "Earth" and "Seas" in Genesis 1:10"
Westminster Theological Journal 59 (1997) 231-55.
Paul H. Seely, "The Date of the Tower of Babel and Some Theological Implications"
Westminster Theological Journal 63 (2001) 15-38.
Paul H. Seely, "Noah's Flood: Its Date, Extent, and Divine Accommodation"
Westminster Theological Journal 66 (2004) 291-311.
Kenton L. Sparks,
Ancient Texts For The Study Of The Hebrew Bible: A Guide To The Background Literature (Hendrickson, 2005)
Kenton L. Sparks,
God's Word in Human Words: An Evangelical Appropriation of Critical Biblical Scholarship (Baker, 2008)
John H. Walton,
Ancient Near Eastern Thought and the Old Testament: Introducing the Conceptual World of the Hebrew Bible (Baker, 2006)
Edited by kbertsche, : Added Fischer book and Seely references.
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