Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-19-2024

Abstract

This Master of Theological Studies thesis analyzes the conceptualization and theological significance of blood within the Pentateuch. While the thesis does attend to various anthropological concerns (i.e., the sociocultural understandings of blood that inform the text), it is more chiefly concerned with how such understandings of blood contribute to the broader theology of the Pentateuch. Using a canonical interpretive approach that respects both the diachronic nature of the text and the theological unity intended by its final redactors, the thesis primarily explores the two principal contexts in which blood appears in the Pentateuch: Israel’s cultus and instances of bloodshed. Because of the complexity of the sacrificial system and the centrality of blood within it, the cultus is accorded an exceptional degree of attention.

Chapter 1 introduces the thesis topic, clarifies the goals of the study, and describes the general methodological approach of the study. Chapter 2 provides an introduction to the priestly system and a methodology for interpreting cultic rituals. This information is then used to determine the meaning of sacrifice, blood manipulation, and atonement in the Pentateuch. Chapter 3 considers the nature of bloodshed in light of creation theology, and examines the theological implications of the various homicide and asylum laws given throughout the Pentateuch. Chapter 4 offers a summative review and provides practical theological application.

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