What can you learn from the stories of the Patriarchs?

Answer 1

A:The biblical stories of the Patriarchs can be studied at various levels and in several contexts. Extrabiblical sourcesThere is no archaeological evidence for the for Hebrew Patriarchs. This, by itself, does not mean they did not exist, but it means that we must rely on The Bible and Jewish midrash for their story. The most important of the Patriarchs is Abraham, of whom Bruce Feiler (Abraham) says that probably less than one per cent of the stories told about Abraham appear in the Bible, with an explosion of detail beginning to appear in Jewish tradition from the third century BCE onwards. TraditionalThe basic lesson from reading about the patriarchs is their role in the Hebrew religion and history. Many believe that Abraham was the first monotheist, but the Bible never actually credits him with monotheism. FolkA well known Jewish midrash has it that Abraham, while still a young boy, realised that his father's idols had no power, and perceived that there is but one God. He smashed all his father's idols except one, telling his father that the remaining idol had done it. His father refused to believe this, as the idols were only made from wood; thus Abraham proved that the idols represented false gods. Of course, if we give this legend any credence, we should be surprised that it was left to a young boy to reveal the truth about God, in the face of such overwhelming evidence as the Flood and the reliable, still living witnesses to that event. HistoryA careful study of the stories of the patriarchs shows that they are not based on history. Just one example is that Abraham is said to have walked to the land of the Philistines, yet the Philistines were a sea-people who only arrived in Palestine around 1250 BCE. The stories of the Patriarchs are not a resource for learning history. CultureNumerology: It is evident that the culture of the Hebrew people at the time these stories evolved included the study of numerology. This is evident in the lifespans allotted to the Patriarchs:

1. Abraham lived to 175 (5X5 X 7)
2. Isaac lived to 180 (6X6 X 5)
3. Jacob lived to 147 (7X7 X 3)

• Each lifespan involves a perfect square (5, 6, then 7 in a numeric series),
• the third factor also forms a series (7, 5, 3)
• in each case the sum of the factors is 17.

Joseph is sometimes thought of as the fourth Patriarch. His lifespan of 110 years is linked to those of his three biblical ancestors, because 110 = 5X5 + 6X6 + 7X7.

Human sacrifice: The story of the intended sacrifice by Abraham of his son Isaac suggests that early Israelites did indeed offer human sacrifices, although this story can be interpreted as saying that God no longer wants human sacrifices. Other biblical evidence for this includes the passage in which Jephthah sacrificed his daughter to God (Judges 11:31ff). Whereas the story of Abraham and Isaac was given a happy ending, this was probably allowed to remain intact because the victim was only female. Another example is King Ahaz of Judah being criticised in 2 Chronicles 28:1-3 because he sacrificed his children. So, Abraham's promise to sacrifice Isaac was not an isolated incident where God was merely testing Abraham, but part of an established Hebrew tradition.

Moon worshipKeel and Uehlinger (Gods, Goddesses, and Images of God: In Ancient Israel) describe thousands of artefacts found in Palestine from the Middle Bronze Age down to the time of the Babylonian Exile, many of which demonstrate that the Israelites worshipped the moon god. Keel and Uehlinger cite Lang, who says of Israelite and Jewish beliefs prior to the Babylonian Exile:

"In the four and a half centuries during which there were one or two Israelite monarchies (ca. 1020-586 B.C.), there was a dominant, polytheistic religion that was indistinguishable from that of neighboring peoples. Insofar as there were differences between the Ammonite, Moabite, Edomite, Tyrian, etc. versions of religion, these beliefs stayed within the framework of Near Eastern polytheism, and each should be interpreted as a local variant of the same basic pattern. The Israelites . . . venerated their own protector god who was there to provide for health and family. But they venerated Yahweh [God] as well, the regional and national god, whose special domain dealt with war and peace issues. Finally, they worshiped gods who performed specific functions, those that were responsible for various special needs: weather, rain, women's fertility, etc."This is relevant because there is tantalising evidence in the stories of the Patriarchs that they were originally worshipped as manifestations of the moon god, before their role evolved into that of human ancestors. This is a complex field of study.

Answer 2

Because Hebrews believed in monotheism and ethical behavior and these practices and beliefs became Judaism, the religion of the Jewish people.

Answer 2:

The Oral Torah contains a principle which states that everything that happened to the Patriarchs and their wives, and everything they did, is a portent for the Israelite people.

Answer 3

Because the Patriarchs were the ancestors of the Israelites, around whom the Tanakh (Jewish Bible) is centered.

Answer 4

The Oral Torah contains a principle which states that everything that happened to the Patriarchs and their wives, and everything they did, is a portent for the Israelite people.