Economic and Non-Economic Interpretations of God in the Old Testament

Abstract

The very presence of the idea ‘God’ in the Old Testament does not automatically imply that the Old Testament were a metaphysical, holy or purely religious text. The purpose of the following is to enter an enlightened discussion regarding our understanding of God in the Old Testament, especially regarding secular meanings. In this way, the following reconstructs the idea of God in rational, scientific terms. Here, the present study departs from the religious economics of Brams (2002, 1980), Gordon (1994, 1989), Meeks (1989) or Paris (1998) and more so from theology (e.g. Wildavsky 1994; Noth 1966; also Westermann 1987), which subscribe to a metaphysical concept of a personal, omnipotent God and non-economic cooperation principles. For example, Childs (1985: Chapter 3) interprets ‘God’ as creator who reveals himself through godly wisdom, through Israel’s history and through his very name. In general, the idea of revelation plays a crucial role in theology when the notion of God is discussed.

Then the Lord said to Moses, ‘Go down, because your people … have become corrupt. They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf.’

(Exodus 32: 7–8)