Show notes
This is our third episode discussing the Biblical theme of exile. In this show Tim and Jon breakdown famous Old Testament stories and how the exile theme is often an overlooked aspect of many Bible stories.In part 1 (0-Tim’s point is that the writers of Genesis 1 and 2 placed Eden and Zion as their idea of paradise which directly competed with their pagan neighbors religious ideas.In part 2 (Tim outlines the history behind the two trees placed in the Garden of Eden, the Tree of Life and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. After Adam and Eve eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they are banished to the East of the garden. Tim says this is the first use of exile language in the Bible. They are exiled to the East, which is later the direction where Babylon is placed. Then in the next story, Cain is also banished/exiled to the East after he kills his brother Able. In Genesis 11, all of humanity is depicted as migrating to the East, and then scattered from there.Tim’s point is that the biblical authors are intentionally developing a theme that humanity is banished/exiled to the East. Tim quotes from Joseph Blenkinsopp saying that biblical authors intentionally placed humanity’s story of fall from the paradise of Eden as a foreshadowing of the coming fall of Israel.In part 3 (Tim explains that Abraham only owns one plot of land in the Bible when his wife Sarah dies and he buys a burial plot. Abraham refuses to be gifted the land and buys it outright. In the story, Abraham uses the phrase “I am a stranger and sojourner in this land among you.” That phrase is adopted in Psalm 31 and 1 Peter to describe the human experience of living in exile. The story of Abraham becomes an archetype that other biblical authors use to say that humanity is rightful home, meaning we are supposed to live on the earth, but it is not in its promised state of existence.In part 4 (Resources:Joseph Blenkinsopp - ExileShow Music:Take Off With Me: JGivensSo Fly: JGivensFaherenheit 99: JGivensDefender Instrumental: Rosasharn MusicProduced by:Dan Gummel. Jon Collins. Matthew Halbert-Howen.