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Reinterpreting the Meaning of Abraham's Faith in Yahweh's Promise of the Land - Metacommenting on the Interpretation of Hebrews 11: 8-10

Kim, Sang-Lae 1

1삼육대학교

Candidate

ABSTRACT

This paper explores a reinterpretation, i.e. metacommentary of Hebrews 11:8-10 which is already an interpretation of the faith of Abraham in Yahweh's promise of the land. To do this, the Abraham narrative in Genesis will be analyzed on the grounds of the given textual interpreta- tion, then conversely the interpretation of Hebrews 11:8-10 will also be reinterpreted in the light of the Abraham story in the book of Genesis as if Hebrews 11:8-10 did not exist. Through this inquiry, the following conclusions are drawn. Firstly, the text "By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going" (NIV, Heb 11:8) must be interpreted as “Abraham went to the land of Canaan by faith without knowing what kind of place it was, even though he hesitated and was worried about his father and nephew whom he would abandon when he was called to leave his country, kindred and his father's house". This case shows the need to reinterpret the interpretation in the book of Hebrews based on the original textual information of the book of Genesis. Secondly, the text "By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise" (NIV, Heb 11:9) provides a basis for understanding the easily-overlooked 'the life dwelling in the tent' in the book of Genesis. This instance of applying a New Testament interpretation to understand the original text in the Old Testament may become an interpretational guide. Thirdly, the text "For he was looking forward to the city with founda- tions, whose architect and builder is God (NIV Heb 11:10)" is a creative vertical-eschatological interpretation in Hebrews, which cannot be found anywhere in the book of Genesis.

Citation status

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