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Document Details :

Title: Freeing the Burden of Prophecy
Subtitle: Maśśā' and the Legitimacy of Prophecy in Zech 9-14
Author(s): BODA, Mark J.
Journal: Biblica
Volume: 87    Issue: 3   Date: 2006   
Pages: 338-357
DOI: 10.2143/BIB.87.3.3189051

Abstract :
Prior to the 1980’s the definition of the Hebrew term maśśā' as a reference to prophetic speech or literature, was largely dominated by etymological argumentation. However, Richard Weis, in his 1986 Claremont dissertation leveraged form-critical categories and evidence to argue that this term was a formal tag defining a particular type of literature, an argument that has been applied and developed by the subsequent work of Marvin Sweeney (Isaiah, FOTL; Book of the Twelve, Berit Olam) and Michael Floyd (JBL 12.1 [2002] 401-422). This paper offers a critical review of this history of research with a view to its impact on the interpretation of Zechariah 9-14. A new proposal is put forward for the use of this term in Zechariah 9-14, one that reveals the influence of Jeremianic tradition and highlights concern over certain prophetic streams in the community that produced these texts.

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