JE
 | It has been suggested that this article be merged into Documentary hypothesis. (Discuss) Proposed since March 2010. |
JE is a hypothetical intermediate source text of the Torah postulated by the DH. It is a combination and redaction of the Jahwist (J) and Elohist (E) source texts. According to this hypothesis, J was composed c. 950 BC, E was composed c. 850 BC, and the two were combined into JE c. 750 BC. JE was combined into the Torah c. 400 BC.
Nature of the JE source
The JE source is believed to make up parts of Genesis, Exodus, and Numbers. It is primarily identified as different from the Priestly source (P) in those texts and uses an older form of Hebrew.
JE treats God as a human-like figure, capable of regret, and appearing in person at events. JE makes use of supernatural creatures such as angels as intermediaries, as well as mystical talking creatures, and supernatural objects to display purity and evil combined. In JE, God is shown as merciful and capable of being persuaded to change his mind.
The Redactor of JE
JE was created when J and E were combined and edited together, by an unidentified redactor, referred to as RJE. The DH asserts that this occurred c. 750 BC, after the destruction of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. According to this theory, refugees from the Northern Kingdom who held the E text, came into Judah which held the J text. The two sources were subsequently unified, in order to preserve both traditions, yet still hold by one book of Moses.[1] RJE seems to have omitted parts of E, and perhaps some of J in the process; though he may have had a fragmentary E source to begin with. [2]
Since the majority of each text was composed of traditions about events and people associated only with one or other part of the nation (Israel or Judah), combining them would not cause conflict. However, where they differ, (for example one refers to the holy mountain as Sinai, and the other as Horeb), neither text could be suppressed, and the differences had to be kept in order that the resulting text was generally acceptable to an audience of both groups.
It is considered unknown how much of the two texts was cut to produce JE. J is the only source used in JE for the stories of the creation, flood, and genealogies. E starts abruptly with the appearance of Abraham and Sarah in Genesis 20, which makes it appear that some of it was left out.[3]
The Redactor of JE is believed to have added very little to the two sources. Only a few phrases to remove serious contradictions and continue the flow of the story in Genesis and Exodus appear to be from the JE redactor. The primary exception is the story of Abraham binding Isaac for sacrifice in Genesis 22 (from E), where the JE redactor is believed to have added an angel stopping Abraham from sacrificing Isaac and replacing the boy with a ram. If this is the case, the original E source had Abraham carry through with the sacrifice of Isaac.[4]
During the Babylonian exile, JE was unified with P and D by a different redactor (R), probably Ezra, with the encouragement of Cyrus the Great, who was interested in unifying the Jewish exiles by redacting the holy texts.
Notes
References
- Richard Elliott Friedman, The Bible with Sources Revealed. Harper San Francisco, 2003.
- Richard Elliott Friedman, Who Wrote the Bible?. Harper San Francisco, 1987.
- Ephraim Avigdor Speiser, Genesis: Introduction, Translation and Notes (The Anchor Bible). Doubleday New York, 1964.