The interpreting angel motif in prophetic and apocalyptic literature
By: David P. Melvin
Series: Emerging scholars; Emerging scholars (Minneapolis, MN : Fortress Press)
Publisher: Fortress Press
Published: 2013
Place of publication: Minneapolis, MN
Language: eng
Number of pages: 225
ISBN-13: 9781451465600; 9781451469660
Subjects: Bible; Ethiopic book of Enoch; Criticism, interpretation; Christianity; Biblical teaching; Angels
Description: "Melvin traces the emergence and development of the motif of angelic interpretation of visions from late prophetic literature (Ezekiel 40-48; Zechariah 16) into early apocalyptic literature (1 Enoch 17-36; 72-82; Daniel 7-8). Examining how the historical and socio-political context of exilic and post-exilic Judaism and the broader religious and cultural environment shaped Jewish angelology in general, Melvin concludes that the motif of the interpreting angel served a particular function. Building upon the work of Susan Niditch, Melvin concludes that the interpreting angel motif served a polemical function in repudiating divination as a means of predicting the future, while at the same time elevating the authority of the visionary revelation. The literary effect is to reimagine God as an imperial monarch who rules and communicates through intermediariesa reimagination that profoundly influenced subsequent Jewish and Christian tradition" -- Publisher description.
Notes: Revision of the author's thesis (Ph. D.) -- Baylor University, 2012.

Includes bibliographical reference (pages 187-210) and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction; title: A mysterious man : the interpreting angel in Ezekiel 40-48; title: The angel who spoke with me : the interpreting angel in Zechariah 1-6; title: Angelic bystanders and a man named Gabriel : interpreting angels in The Book of Luminaries (1 Enoch 72-82), The Book of Watchers (1 Enoch 17-36), and Daniel 7-8; title: Conclusion.