Papers by Raleigh Heth
NABU 2024/2 (Note 46), 2024
Patterns of Vocabulary Usage Across Time in Assyrian Royal Inscriptions-The ever-increasing digit... more Patterns of Vocabulary Usage Across Time in Assyrian Royal Inscriptions-The ever-increasing digital availability of primary materials from the ancient Near Eastern world-particularly those coming from the Sargonid period of the Assyrian Empire-is an invaluable resource for modern Assyriological research. These digital tools, such as ORACC and the eBL, allow scholars to assess large amounts of data from a broader perspective than was possible in previous generations. In preparing an upcoming volume dealing with the frequency of terminology in Assyrian Royal Inscriptions (ARIs) from the Old-Akkadian to Neo-Assyrian (NA) periods, the authors of this note were able to analyze the occurrences of lexemes across these various time periods 1). In doing so, we recognized several different patterns in the data that are worth pursuing in more detailed studies. Within the expansive corpus of ARIs, a total of 4,027 lexemes (excluding proper nouns) occur across the approximately 1,821 extant inscriptions. Organized by period, the following table (Figure 1) illustrates the general trends in lexemes and inscriptions:
NABU 2022/3 (Note 112), 2022
on a different system. The kinds of deviations, however, rather seem to point at scribal mistakes... more on a different system. The kinds of deviations, however, rather seem to point at scribal mistakes that were later copied strictly following the canon of not changing the text of the exemplar without recalculating the numbers. Day 30: After reading the last traces of that line [… GU]B, source A is restored from the corresponding entry in EAE Table A, saying "[Day 30], the god stands at day(time)". Source B has a different wording: "[Day 30, the god] is at the (day) sky". Both are expressions for the invisibility of the moon at new moon. Catchline (source A 17'): "If the moon is early and is eclipsed in the evening watch" is the incipit of EAE 15, the first lunar eclipse omen tablet of the EAE, as is given in the Uruk catalogue of the series (see Weidner 1941-44: 186-89, Tafel I-II). For the lunar eclipse omen section of EAE see Rochberg-Halton 1988. Colophon of B (4'-5'): "[Acco]rding [to its exemplar] written and collated: made(!). [...]. Bēl-aba-uṣur, son of Nabû-balāt-su-iqbī." Steele and Brack-Bersen 2008: 257 read the first element of the father's name d EN, and Frahm 2011: 143 corrected this to d AG ! , suggesting that the father might be identical with Nabû-balāssu-iqbī descendent of Egibi who lived towards the end of the second century BCE. Collations of the tablet show a very shallow d AG, and an emendation is not necessary. For the writing LA.A as a mistake for AG.A (uppuš) see already Eleanor Robson in Steele and Brack-Bernsen 2008: 259. For the sequence šaṭir-ma bari uppuš, see Hunger 1968: 3b.
Vetus Testamentum, 2022
Scholars have used the regnal formulae in Kings to reconstruct at least three successive editions... more Scholars have used the regnal formulae in Kings to reconstruct at least three successive editions at work-a Hezekian version of Kings, a Josianic redaction, and an exilic redaction. Nevertheless, there have only rarely been examinations of how the evaluation of a particular king interacts with the narrative account of that king's tenure. This paper will examine the ways in which Ahaz's evaluation is at odds with the narrative depiction of his reign. By analyzing each element of his evaluation, this paper argues that there is evidence that a Josianic or later redactor modified an originally positive evaluation of this king. When taken on its own terms, the narrative account of Ahaz presents a king who rescued his nation, installed a large altar for public use, and removed iconography from the Jerusalem temple. Given this analysis, Ahaz should be understood as a precursor to, rather than a foil of, Hezekiah's reform program.
Biblica, 2021
This paper explores the manner in which narratives of child sacrifice were received in Israelite ... more This paper explores the manner in which narratives of child sacrifice were received in Israelite and Greek literature through an examination of the binding of Isaac in Genesis 22 and the sacrifice of Iphigenia in early Greek epic and the plays of Euripides. In both cases, there is evidence for an increasing discomfort with the notion of child sacrifice. Our analysis suggests that Israel and Greece shared a distinctive eastern Mediterranean perspective with regards to child sacrifice that can be contrasted with that of Mesopotamia.
Books by Raleigh Heth
Studies in the History of Exegesis, 2021
Der vorliegende Band befasst sich mit der Geschichte der Bibelauslegung und ihrer fortdauernden B... more Der vorliegende Band befasst sich mit der Geschichte der Bibelauslegung und ihrer fortdauernden Bedeutung im Lichte kultureller und materieller Ansätze zur Schriftauslegung. Im Mittelpunkt der Beiträge stehen die Bandbreite und Vielfalt der Erkenntnisse, die sich aus einer Vielzahl von Schlüsselmomenten in der Geschichte der Bibelauslegung ergeben, sowie die Art und Weise, wie die Auslegungsgeschichte nahe am Wort des biblischen Textes bleibt und ihn gleichzeitig im Lichte der Botschaft und der Bedürfnisse der Kirche in verschiedenen Epochen auslegt.
Encyclopedia Entries by Raleigh Heth
ILLYRIANS ( Ἰλλυριοί, οἱ)
The Herodotus Encyclopedia, 2021
Encyclopedia entry for Illyrians in The Herodotus Encyclopedia (Wiley Blackwell, 2021).
Book Reviews by Raleigh Heth
Review of "Scribal Tools in Ancient Israel: A Study of Biblical Hebrew Terms for Writing Materials and Implements" by P. Zhakevich
Catholic Bible Quarterly 84.2, 2022
Review of Biblical Literature, 2021
Reading Religion, 2019
In Memory in a Time of Prose, Daniel Pioske attempts to answer the nebulous question of the origi... more In Memory in a Time of Prose, Daniel Pioske attempts to answer the nebulous question of the origins of the narratives within the Hebrew Bible. The authorial anonymity of the biblical text poses an obvious problem to such an endeavor, evidenced by the unending debates concerning biblical sources which have raged for the better part of the last century. Pioske attempts to breathe fresh air into this stale corner of scholarship through his focus on Hebrew scribalism, memory and epistemology, and recent finds within the archaeological record of the southern Levant. The result is a work which recognizes the giants on whose shoulders it stands , while still providing an innovative-and, more importantly, interesting-study of those responsible for the composition of the texts within the Hebrew Bible.
Reviews in Religion and Theology, 2018
Reviews In Religion and Theology, 2017
As one might be able to gather from this rather terse overview of this volume, its target audienc... more As one might be able to gather from this rather terse overview of this volume, its target audience is rather restricted. Indeed, my inclination is that this work will enjoy a quite limited reception. It is too advanced for anyone other than the most interested and trained of individuals. But more than this, the editors and contributors of this volume seem quite worried that ours is an age in which we do not quite know how to do theology or even how theology should inform our living. To my mind, this concept is present almost exclusively in the ivory towers of the university. Certainly for most religious people in the world, theology remains the queen of the sciences to which all other disciplines are subservient. Perhaps, it truly is indicative of our age that 'it is not at all clear we currently know what theology is or how it should be done' (p. vii).
Uploads
Papers by Raleigh Heth
Books by Raleigh Heth
Encyclopedia Entries by Raleigh Heth
Book Reviews by Raleigh Heth