Seminary Flotsam (II): As Yahweh Lives

Paper: As Yahweh Lives: The Anti-Baal Polemic of the Elijah Narrative

Overview: This paper presents a close-reading of the Elijah narrative in 1 Kings 17-19, tracing the theme of Yahweh's supremacy over Ba'al, and setting this theme within its original Ancient Near Eastern context.

Thesis: The Elijah narrative presents an argument in favor of Yahweh and against Baal on the basis of Yahweh’s transcendence of the mythic framework in which Baal was believed to operate. In his transcendence over the fertility cycles that underlie the Baal myth and ultimately in his transcendence over the power of death, Yahweh reveals himself as supreme. In contrast to Baal’s claim on the hearts of Israel—a claim based on an aesthetically satisfying explanation of how the cosmos functioned that promised political power and prosperity to the people—Elijah asserts Yahweh’s claim on his people—a claim based on his sovereign covenant with the nation.

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