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Document Details :

Title: Gott und die Gier
Subtitle: Altorientalisch-alttestamentliche Erkundungen eines aktuellen Begriffs
Author(s): DÖHLING, Jan-Dirk
Journal: Biblica
Volume: 94    Issue: 2   Date: 2013   
Pages: 161-185
DOI: 10.2143/BIB.94.2.3186146

Abstract :
The greed motif is found in biblical and in ANE texts. The Baal Cycle characterizes Mot, the god of death and drought, as a destroyer of life. With in Ugarit’s polytheistic system, Mot is nonetheless essential for agricultural growth. Mot’s greed is, thus, a terrible, yet inevitable, factor. The analysis of בלע (to devour, swallow) in the Hebrew Bible reveals a significant alteration. In the Old Testament, 'greed' is a negative human attitude in socio-economic conflicts. In opposing greed the God of Israel addresses those who practice it and those who suffer from it as human beings.


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