more; i.e., a means whereby God is reminded of the covenant. According
to Kraetzschmar, it is both a sign and a constituent of the
covenant, forming the condition on which the covenant is entered into.
The truth seems to lie somewhere between two extremes. The Bĕrîth is
neither a simple divine promise to which no obligation on man's part is
attached (as in 1518), nor is it a mutual contract in the sense that the
failure of one party dissolves the relation. It is an immutable determination
of God's purpose, which no unfaithfulness of man can invalidate;
but it carries conditions, the neglect of which will exclude the individual
from its benefits. It is perhaps an over-refinement when Kraetzschmar
(l.c. 201) infers from the expressions (
Hebrew characters) and (Hebrew characters) that for P there
is only one eternal divine Bĕrîth, immutably established by God and
progressively revealed to man.
Ch. XVIII. The Theophany at Hebron: Abraham's Intercession for Sodom (J).
Under the terebinths of Mamre, Abraham hospitably entertains three mysterious visitors (1-8), and is rewarded by the promise of a son to be born to Sarah in her old age (9-15). The three 'men,' whose true nature had been disclosed by their supernatural knowledge of Sarah's thoughts, then turn towards Sodom, accompanied by Abraham (16), who, on learning Yahwe's purpose to destroy that city (17-21), intercedes eloquently on its behalf (22-33).
The first half of the chapter (1-16) shows at its best the picturesque,
lucid, and flexible narrative style of J, and contains many expressions
characteristic of that document: (Hebrew characters), 1. 13. 14; (Hebrew characters), 2 (only in J 2417
2913 334); (Hebrew characters), 3; (Hebrew characters), 3. 4; (Hebrew characters) (for 1st per.), 3. 5; (Hebrew characters), 5; (Hebrew characters), 13;
(Hebrew characters), 16. The latter part (17-33) is also Yahwistic ((Hebrew characters), 20. 22. 26. 33; (Hebrew characters),
27. 30ff.; (Hebrew characters), 25; (Hebrew characters), 32), but contains two expansions of later date than
the primary narrative. We. (Comp.2 27 f.) appears to have proved that the
original connexion between 1815 and 191 consists of 16. 20-22a. 33b; and that
17-19. 22b-33a are editorial insertions reflecting theological ideas proper to
a more advanced stage of thought (see below). A more comprehensive
analysis is attempted by Kraetzschmar in ZATW, xvii. 81 ff., prompted
by the perplexing alternation of the sing. ([(Hebrew characters)] 1. 3. 10. 13. 14. 15. 17-21. 22b-33)
and pl. (2. 4. 5. 8. 9. 16. 22a)[1] in the dialogue between Abraham and his
guests. The theory will repay a closer examination than can be given
to it here; but I agree with Gu. in thinking that the texture of 1-16 is too
homogeneous to admit of decomposition, and that some other explana-
- ↑ It is important, however, to observe that in [E](if we except the introductory 1a) the sing. does not appear till 10, but after that regularly up to 15.
