SUMMARY OF CRITICAL INTRODUCTION TO OLD TESTAMENT

SUMMARY OF CRITICAL INTRODUCTION TO OLD TESTAMENT

1.      Method used in the interpretation of the Bible

Because the authorship of the Bible is not only divine, but also human, hence its contents  came from a context and represent a world view in many ways different from ours. Thus,  any scriptural test is better understood if one knows something about the context out of which it came, how it was shaped, the kind of literature it is, the literary style and devices its author used, and how it was used by those who preserved it. The method employs in achieving this Hebrew Biblical  research is known as criticism.

What is criticism? The word criticism is derived from the Greek word krinein meaning to ‘separate’, ‘distinguish and ‘judge’. Criticism as used in the study of the scripture means a careful analysis, which aim at arriving at the original text and interpretation of the scriptures as much as possible. This is because, the human authors of the scriptures, although they were inspired, they were not exempted from human errors that are outside the sole purpose of the scripture, that is, the message of salvation. So, in this sense criticism has no negative connotation.

Generally we can approach biblical study diachronically or synchronically. The diachronic approach using the historical- critical method is the study of a biblical text in its historical setting. The origin and development of the text is the concern of the exegete who uses the diachronic approach. The study of a biblical text synchronically using the literary-critical method means dealing with the text in its present mode without asking anything about its past. Synchronic method studies the Bible as a single whole.

The various steps of the historic-critical method are the following:

1.      Textual Criticism: the quest for the original wording. Textual criticism is the skill by which OT scholars attempt to search and discover all the errors and alterations that have occurred in the process of transmitting the text of the Bible and to achieve on the basis of scholarly principles a text providing a solid foundation upon which higher criticism, exegesis, etc., can build. The goal of textual criticism is editing a text which has the greatest degree of probable authenticity or originality based on the review of the textual witnesses and the scholarly principles of textual criticism. It has threefold aim namely, first, to determine the process by which a text has been transmitted and has come to exist in variant forms. Second, to establish the original wording when this is seen possible or feasible. Third, to determine the best form and wording of the text which the modern reader should use. A Bible exegete will encounter variant readings for the same passage (cf. Gen. 10:5; Mic. 1:5’ Acts 8: 37). It is important to note that none of the original manuscripts of any biblical writing has been preserved. Those survived are copies of copies handwritten by scribes. A textual critic begins with a particular instance, accumulates all the evidence possible, both internal and external, then examines and assesses the problem with his own informed judgement and creative insight.

2.      Historical criticism: the setting in time and space. It tries to learn two sets of situations: the situations described in the text itself and the situations which gave rise to the document, that is, history in the text and the history of the text. Historical criticism seeks to overcome the historical and cultural gaps in interpreting ancient documents as well as the third-party perspective of the interpreter. According to experts, an exegete should research the historical background, the social setting and the geographical setting of the passage and date of the text in the process of historical criticism. Hence, reference to  tools like dictionaries, encyclopaedias, histories of Israel and of early Christianity, Bible atlases, geographies and comparative non-biblical literature are recommended. More so, an exegete should explore the situation out of which the text arose or the situation of the author and the audience. Lastly, an exegete should chech whether the text under consideration is an older biblical material re-presented and re-interpreted. E.g. gospels of Mathew and Luke use materials from Mark.

3.      Grammatical criticism: the language of the text.

4.      Literary criticism: the composition, structure, and rhetorical style of the text. It investigate the following regarding the text: its authorship, historical setting, and the various aspects of the language of the text. Strictly speaking, it pays attention only to the text: its composition, structure and mood.

5.      Form criticism: the genre and function of the text. it is known as genre analysis. It examines the form, content, and function of a particular unit and asks whether these are definitive and typical enough that the unit can be considered a literary genre in its own right. This criticism concentrates more on the individual literary sub-units or periscopes. It is also concerned with determining the Sitz im Leben (situation in life) that was instrumental in producing, shaping, or utilizing the particular genres. Form criticism points to the sociological and liturgical and liturgical dimensions underneath individual texts. Its steps is as follow: identify the general literary type, identify the specific literary type, look for specific categories, suggest a life setting, analyze the completeness of the form and be alert to partial and broken forms.

6.      Tradition criticism: the stages behind the text.

7.      Redaction criticism: the final and canonical viewpoint and theology. It refers to that stage of interpretation whose primary focus is the final written form of the passage. It has to do with gathering and editing the earlier scripture or text to suit a particular purpose or audience. A synopsis is one of the indispensable tools for doing redaction criticism of the Gospels. Using a synopsis an exegete can examine a story or saying of Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels and pinpoint the precise ways in which Matthew and Luke have redacted Mark’s version of the story. A redaction critic recognizes the distinction between what is being said in the text and what is being said through the text. It stresses the theological perspective of the unit in light of the whole. Redaction Criticism of the OT is sometimes known as “Canonical Criticism” or “ Canonical Analysis” because it focuses on the final form of the text showing less interest in the pre-history of the text.

8.      Source Criticism: this is the study of the sources the author may have used in writing his text. by source critical study, JEDP(i.e. Yahistic, Elohistic, Deuteronomistic and Priestly traditions) were suggested as the sources of the Pentateuch. This methodology tries to get behind a work as it now stands to the sources out of which it is composed. Source Criticism studies the specific problem of whether there are written documents behind our present text. Source critics showed the contradictory styles of writing that appeared side by side in a single book, for example, calling the covenant mountain “Sinai” in one line and “Horeb” in the next.