(1) The name forGod is ' Elohim ' O'^^S). The sacred name nin^, according to E. was first revealetl to Moses. Accordingly it is not emploved by E until after Ex 3**. Other names are also employed by him, as ' El' '?N (Gn 88">8.5'40') and 'Adonai' 'Jlst (Gn 20»).
The name •tiacob' is preferred by E, even after the narrative in Gn 32 with its account of the origiL- of the name Israel.
(2) Use of icords and phrases—
r"T'N"'?2Gn 21".".
pDN Gn 42*. »> 442».
nnS, not TinB-.;', Gu 20" 21"'. ". •'. 30» 31".
SpD (vb. and noun) Gn 203.
Sj'^r Gn 4.')'i 47'= M'-K
3 jS Gn 20». » 31»«. Archaic words preserved in E — njDN Gn 20".
I=,'subst. = ' position.' Gn 40" 41". ad). = • lionest,' Gn 42". ■». "-». C'r::'Gn3F. ". ■vf? Gn4ll''. »41». ».
(3) Grammatical ut,ages —
(a) A markeil preference for the use of nt* with the pronom. suttix instead of attaching the sutR.x to the verb.
(6) Rare uses of the Intinitive — n-1-i for .17.?., Gn 4(V.
v;:'j nu'jj. Gn si** 502».
" .■ns-i' Gn 4S".
(c) The connexion of loosely attached passages by such phrases as n^-NT 2'-\3in -iriN <n'l Gn 22' 40' 4S>.
And the colioijuial and somewhat redundant phrases prefixed to the interchange of speech, e.ff. 'And . . . said (or, called), and he answered. Here am 1,' etc.. Gn 22*. '. " etc.
The chief portions of the narrative a.ssigned to E are the following (and it will be observed that they are first to be identified in the story of Abra- ham) ; 15 (portions, according to some scholars), e.ri. parts of vv. ' 2 '■^ 20'-'" 218-^= 22'-'*- ''■' 28"-'^- 17." 18. 2i>-22 201- 15-18 ,30 (portlous), 31-- *-•■• <"«''• '*•" 323. "ti>-22
335b. lSb-20 351-S. 16-2.1 372b-n. H«. 18. 10. 22-24. 2Sa. 28o-30. 3«
40 (showing simie influence of J) 41i-»-''. 5o-i7 42'-*^
451_405 481.'2. 8-'22 oO'^^.
That E represents an Ephraimitic tradition is the generally accepted opinion. This is based upon the prominence given in its narrative to places and persons with which tradition in the Xortliern kiii'gdom would presumably be closer in •sympathy than tradition in the Southern. Joseph, tiie father of Ephraiiu, is the most conspicuous per.sonage in the narrative ; and Reuben, not .ludah, is the foremost of liis brethren. ISethel and Shechein, both .sacred places in the Northern kingdom, are ])artieularly mentioned in E. The sojourn of Abraham is not at Hebron, but at IJeersheba and tJerar ; that of Jacob, at Beersheba and Shechem.
(d) The work of combining JE and P is attri- buted to the redactor or redactors (K), who 'cho.se from his sources what was most suited to the i>lan of his work.' His method is thus a<hiiirably and succinctly described by S])urrell : • Snnietiiiies he merely takes small extracts from (Uie document {/•.(I. 41'--' 111-' 30-''--'-, merely small jiorlionsof fuller accounts), or notices individual points {e.g. IV^ Jiska mentioned ; '20'- the relationship between
IG
GENESIS
GENESIS
Abiam and Sarai, c£. 28-- [see oo"] 48--). At other times the portions taken from tlie documents are quoted in full, and for the most part are verbally transferred from the original {e.g. the narratives in V up to 11-''), and sometimes, ajiain, whole passages from one document are omitted, possibly because they were at variance with the accounts given by the others (see in P the brief accounts in ir-"^-^'- ; the omission of the introduction to the history of Abram, previous to ch. 12 ; of the divine manifestation to Isaac, see 35^^ ; of the so- journ of Jacob in Paddan-aram ; of all the his- tory of .loseph prior to Jacob's arrival in ICi^ypt). Frecjucntly extracts from .1 arc given in an abridged form, in order that P may be reported more fully (cf. ^'f- 4^''-, the Story of Creation, and the Table of Nations, J), and IG'^f 21-'i'- 25'"-, 32< 3o=sf- P. Else- where, however, in the story of the patriarchs the extracts from J are abridged in favour of E. With the exception of the history of Joseph, E contains (from ch. 20 onwards) fewer jiassages which are verbally reported. Usually the i)orlions in K are expanded by notices from J, or anything worth recording in E is incorporateil into the narrative of .1. When combining his sources, the compiler, as far as possible, or as far as he deemed necessary, appears to have taken the narrative verbally from each and inserted both in his book (cf. ch. 2 f. .side by siilc with 1, ch. 27 side by side with 2Q^'- and 28'-'J; 48''-' side by side with 48'--'2). Else- where, as. for examiile, where tlic event need only be ipioted from one document {e.g. the birth or death of any person), he selects hLs account from one source, even though the same event be recorded in more than one document. In other cases the compiler found two accounts in the documents before him, agreeing in the main but differing in details; he would then weave one account into the other, omitting from each what could not be reconciled, and choosing from both what, best suited tlie plan of his work (cf. chs. 7f. 10. 16. 2.'). 27-37. 39-.')0). It was not always possible, without further revi-sion. to place side by side or to weld together the individual extracts from two or three sources. So it was necessary to clinnnate what was contradictory from one or other of the docimients {f.g. 21'"i'' explanation of Ishmael's name, 32' of Mahanaim, 33" of Peniel, cf. 31-°), or to insert here and there small additions or remarks in order to fill up gaps and remove contradictions. So 4-» 10^^ 21" 2()ii>- '^- « 3.5' 37''i'- »!>. 3!)i- -" 43'-' 4(5'. To the desire to produce a readable whole, may be attributed the accommodation necessary to preserve consistency iu the use of the names Abram an<l Sarai in all ])assages previous to ch. 17, of the double name Yahweh- Elohim in chs. 2-3 ; also the change of Elohim into Yahweh in 17' 21'. Another expedient was frequently employed with the same object in view, viz. transposing entire portions of the narrative (so ll'-9 12'"-=o 2o»f- '"> 25-'"r- iV"-«), or of brief notices (so 2"- 31**-'''' 37-'' etc.), con.sequently R was obliged to insert all kinds of small additions ; cf. 1' 9'* 13'- ^'- 24*'-. In other passages the sources are loosely combined {e.g. T^-'>-''- lo"- 31*'f-, ch. 36. 46*--'^), the compiler now and then making additions of his own to bring the documents into harmony {e.g. 21^* 27" 3.5^ 46'2-ii). Explanatory glosses are also found {e.g. 20'* 31^' 3-5''', and ch. 14, where they are numerous), some of which may be due to a later corrector. All kinds of little additions occur, which are probably not derived from the sources themselves, but were inserted, either when the sources were welded together into one work, or some time after this. These inser- tions were added partly to explain the object of the narrative (Io'^-'b 22''5-'s 26'^i'-^), partly to make it harmonize with statements occurring elsewhere