What does the Ox Know in Isa 1:3a?
In: Vetus TestamentumSearch for other papers by Joshua Berman in
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Many modern expositors of the image of the knowing ox in Isa 1:3a do not address the pastoral reality that animates the image. Drawing from the glosses of two medieval rabbinic exegetes and from studies of bovine ethology this study explores the suggestions that have been raised concerning this reality. The study probes the implications of each suggestion for a fuller understanding of the oracle of Isa 1:2-3 and its place at the beginning of the book of Isaiah.
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1
Clements, Isaiah 1-39, p. 28; Williamson, Isaiah 1-27, pp. 8-10.
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7
See B. Butt, “Seasonal Space-time Dynamics of Cattle Behavior and Mobility among Maasai Pastoralists in Semi-arid Kenya”, Journal of Arid Environments 74:3 (2010), pp. 403-413; B. Butt, A. Shortridge, P. Winkler, “Pastoral Herd Management, Drought Coping Strategies, and Cattle Mobility in Southern Kenya”, Annals of the Association of American Geographers 99 (2009), pp. 309–334. Studies of bovine spatial memory discuss the affinity that cattle have for their homes, even across great distances. One study cites rangeland and livestock managers that “have observed that when animals are moved from a ‘home’ pasture to a new pasture they congregate in and explore areas that are in the direction of the pasture they were moved from. This has been observed in cases where many miles of rough terrain separate the pastures”. See L. D. Howery, D. W. Bailey, and E. A. Laca, “Impact of Spatial Memory on Habitat Use”, in K. D. Sanders and J. C. Mosley (eds.) Grazing Behaviour of Livestock and Wildlife (Moscow, id, 1999), p. 92.
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What does the Ox Know in Isa 1:3a?
In: Vetus TestamentumSearch for other papers by Joshua Berman in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Many modern expositors of the image of the knowing ox in Isa 1:3a do not address the pastoral reality that animates the image. Drawing from the glosses of two medieval rabbinic exegetes and from studies of bovine ethology this study explores the suggestions that have been raised concerning this reality. The study probes the implications of each suggestion for a fuller understanding of the oracle of Isa 1:2-3 and its place at the beginning of the book of Isaiah.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 239 | 23 | 1 |
| Full Text Views | 177 | 1 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 49 | 4 | 0 |