elohim=sanctuary?

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Sebastian Walter
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu Oct 10, 2013 3:06 am

elohim=sanctuary?

Post by Sebastian Walter »

Yesterday, I came across Arnold B. Ehrlich's Exegesis of Ps 138:1. Instead of "before gods", he translates "in the house of God" and comments: ""Before God" or "in the presence of God" means "in his house, in his temple"."
I continued searching and found this in the dictionary of Siegmund/Stade:" elohim=sanctuary. lipnê ha'elohim; nagad 'elohim in the holy place. Jos 24:1; Ps 138:1."
So I continued searching and found (Translations: NIV):

Jos 24:1: Then Joshua assembled all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summoned the elders, leaders, judges and officials of Israel, and they presented themselves lipnê ha'elohim. (cf. V. 26: holy place.)

Jdg 21:2: The people went to Bethel, where they sat lipnê ha'elohim until evening, raising their voices and weeping bitterly.

1 Sam 10:3: Three men going up el ha'elohim at Bethel will meet you there.

1Chr 13:8,10: 7 They moved the ark of God from Abinadab's house on a new cart, with Uzzah and Ahio guiding it. 8 David and all the Israelites were celebrating with all their might lipnê ha'elohim, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, cymbals and trumpets. 9 When they came to the threshing floor of Kidon, Uzzah reached out his hand to steady the ark, because the oxen stumbled. 10 The LORD's anger burned against Uzzah, and he struck him down because he had put his hand on the ark. So he died there lipnê ha'elohim.

1 Chr 16:1: They brought the ark of God and set it inside the tent that David had pitched for it, and they presented burnt offerings and fellowship offerings lipnê ha'elohim.

Ps 138:1: neged elohim I will sing your praise. / 2 I will bow down toward your holy temple.

Cf. also Ps 84, where sanctuary, jhwh and elohim are used nearly substitutable.

Can elohim mean "sanctuary"? This would be new to me.

Best regards,
Sebastian
jacob
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 7:39 am
Location: Jamaica

Re: elohim=sanctuary?

Post by jacob »

shalom Sebastian,

Your observation brings to light the use of substitutionary phrases to represent given words within a particular discourse. The phrase must not be confused with words that fall within the semantic range of the given word (The word sanctuary in the English language does not fall into the semantic range of the Hebrew word Elohim).
Lascelles James
Jamaica
Sebastian Walter
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu Oct 10, 2013 3:06 am

Re: elohim=sanctuary?

Post by Sebastian Walter »

Yes; I should have asked more accurately: Can the phrase "before God" refer to "at the sanctuary"? Especially, could it be that Ehrlich is right (The phrase in Ps 138:1 is a crux interpretum)?

Best regards,
Sebastian
jacob
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Oct 18, 2013 7:39 am
Location: Jamaica

Re: elohim=sanctuary?

Post by jacob »

Sebastian

The Psalmist definitely indicates this by using them interchangeably. However this may not be literally true for all the Tanakh writers as in the case of those who wrote in times when the Shekinah glory departed from the physical house of god in Israel.
Lascelles James
Jamaica
Isaac Fried
Posts: 1783
Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2013 8:32 pm

Re: elohim=sanctuary?

Post by Isaac Fried »

To my understanding, the Hebrew uni-literal root L designates elevation, loftiness, superiority, and hence the word EL. I suspect that the AL in בעל BAAL is of the same meaning.

Isaac Fried, Boston University
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