Numbers 5:11–31 as the Old Testament Background for Revelation 8:11
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Date
2024
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Wydawnictwo KUL
Abstract
The article examines possible links between the ritual of bitter water, described in Numbers 5:11–31, and one of the aspects of the plague, described as the event following the third trumpet in the Book of Revelation (Rev 8:11). Such a connection has not been analysed by scholars so far. The ritual described in Numbers 5 not only has a legal meaning but it is also the starting point for a theological tradition of understanding adultery as a metaphor for Israel’s unfaithfulness to YHWH. The prophetic texts of the OT use motifs taken from Num 5 to depict the lawsuit that YHWH brings against the unfaithful people. According to the author of this article, the use of the motif of drinking bitter water in Rev 8:11 falls into a similar pattern. This is a ritual performed to reveal the guilt of the sinners described in Rev as hoi anthrōpoi.
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Keywords
Revelation of John, Book of Numbers, Sotah ritual, bitter water, idolatry, adultery
Citation
"The Biblical Annals", 2024, T. 14, nr 1, s. 93-113