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The Polemical Cosmogony in the Doxologies of Amos (4:13; 5:8; 9:5–6)

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The Polemical Cosmogony In The Doxologies Of Amos

In 1875, the esteemed German scholar Bernhard Duhm made a significant observation regarding Amos 4:13; 5:8–9; and 9:5–6.1 He pointed out that these units deviate from their context in terms of literary, syntactic, and lexical features. At the same time, they share common elements, such as ...

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Vetus Testamentum (2024) 1–22
Vetus
Testamentum
brill.com/vt

The Polemical Cosmogony in the Doxologies
of Amos (4:13; 5:8; 9:5–6)

Noga Ayali-Darshan | ORCID: 0000-0001-6163-737X
Department of Hebrew and Semitic Languages, Bar-Ilan University,
Ramat-Gan, Israel

Published online 8 April 2024

Abstract

The paper explores the doxologies in the book of Amos, arguing that they articulate
a polemical viewpoint distinct from prevailing biblical and ancient Near Eastern
notions about the formation of the sea, mountains, wind, and God’s abode. Central
to the comprehension of this cosmogony is the recurring phrase in Amos 5:8d and
6:9c, “(He) who summons the waters of the sea and pours them on the surface of the
earth.” While previous scholars have understood this phrase as referring to the prime-
val Flood, a tsunami event, or Levantine torrential rain, the present paper suggests
a cosmogonic interpretation, in line with its context. Subsequent elements in the
same series of texts are interlinked with this portrayal, emphasizing the unified—and
polemical—perspective of the doxologies. This new explanation also has ramifica-
tions for the dating and composition of the doxologies in the book of Amos.

Keywords

doxologies – Amos – cosmogony – polemical approach

Published with license by Koninklijke Brill bV | doi:10.1163/15685330-bja10164
© Noga Ayali-Darshan, 2024 | ISSN: 0042-4935 (print) 1568-5330 (online)
This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the CC BY 4.0 license.

,2 Ayali-Darshan

In 1875, the esteemed German scholar Bernhard Duhm made a significant
observation regarding Amos 4:13; 5:8–9; and 9:5–6.1 He pointed out that these
units deviate from their context in terms of literary, syntactic, and lexical fea-
tures. At the same time, they share common elements, such as cosmogonic
themes and the use of participial phrases concluding with the statement “his
name is YHWH.” Because of their hymnic nature, these units have come to be
known as “the doxologies of/in Amos.” Over time, scholars have identified edi-
torial intervention within these units, resulting from intentional or accidental
scribal modifications. The following presents the doxologies of Amos, exclud-
ing such modifications:2

4:133
(He) who forms the mountains and creates ‫רּוח‬
ַ ‫יֹוצר ָה ִרים ּוב ֵֹרא‬
ֵ
the wind,
And has told man what his wish is,4 ‫ּומּגִ יד ְל ָא ָדם ַמה ֵּׂשחֹו‬ַ
(Who) makes the blackness daybreak,5 ‫יפה‬
ָ ‫ע ֵֹׂשה ַׁש ַחר ֵע‬
And treads upon the back of earth6— ‫וְ ד ֵֹרְך ַעל ָּב ֳמ ֵתי ָא ֶרץ‬
His name is YHWH, the God of Hosts. .‫ֹלהי ְצ ָבאֹות ְׁשמֹו‬ ֵ ‫יהוה ֱא‬

1 Duhm, Die Theologie der Propheten, 119 n. 1. For extensive research of these units in subse-
quent years, see discussions and history of research in Horst, “Die Doxologien”; Koch, “Die
Rolle”; Crenshaw, Hymnic Affirmation; Foresti, “Funzione semantica”; Weiss, Amos, 2:212–218;
Paas, Creation, 209–214, as well as the commentaries on the book of Amos. The main disputes
revolve around the date and authorship of the doxologies, their unity, their original Sitz im
Leben, and the purpose of their integration into Amos’ prophecies. The conclusions below
address some of these issues.
2 These include the first two words of 4:13 which are not considered part of the doxologies;
they serve as a link between the preceding prophecy and the doxologies. The stich 9:5c–d
(“And it arose like the Nile, and subsided like the Nile of Egypt”), which repeats 8:8c–d, using
the verbs in the qatal form, appears to be an error resulting from homoioteleuton. In addi-
tion, 5:9, which follows the concluding part “YHWH, lord of hosts,” seems to be a later addi-
tion. Alternatively, some scholars include extra verses in the doxologies that were not part of
Duhm’s original list. For a discussion, see the references in n. 1 above.
3 The translation of the biblical text follows the NJPS with my modifications.
4 The traditional translation of ‫ שחו‬is “wish” or “thought,” interpreted as a hapax by-form of
‫שיח‬. See, e.g., HALOT s.v. ‫*ש ֹח‬. For a new suggestion, see below, n. 56.
5 An alternative translation would be “(He, who) makes the daybreak blackness.”
6 The traditional translation, following LXX, is “heights of the earth.” For further discussion, see
below, section 2.

10.1163/15685330-bja10164 | Vetus Testamentum (2024) 1–22

, The Polemical Cosmogony in the Doxologies of Amos 3

5:8
(He) who makes the Pleiades and Orion,7 ‫ּוכ ִסיל‬ ְ ‫ימה‬ ָ ‫ע ֵֹׂשה ִכ‬
And turns deep darkness into morning, ‫וְ ה ֵֹפְך ַלּב ֶֹקר ַצ ְל ָמוֶ ת‬
And darkens day into night, ‫וְ יֹום ַליְ ָלה ֶה ְח ִׁשיְך‬
Who summons the waters of the sea and ‫ּקֹורא ְל ֵמי ַהּיָ ם וַ ּיִ ְׁש ְּפ ֵכם ַעל‬ֵ ‫ַה‬
pours them on the surface of the earth— ‫ְּפנֵ י ָה ָא ֶרץ‬
His name is YHWH. .‫יהוה ְׁשמֹו‬

9:5–6
It is my lord, YHWH of Hosts, who touches ‫וַ אד ֹנָ י יהוה ַה ְּצ ָבאֹות ַהּנֹוגֵ ַע ָּב ָא ֶרץ‬
the earth, and it trembles, and all who ‫יֹוׁש ֵבי ָבה‬ ְ ‫וַ ָּתמֹוג וְ ָא ְבלּו ָּכל‬
dwell on it mourn;8
(He) who builds his lofts in heaven, ‫לֹותו‬
ָ ‫ַהּבֹונֶ ה ַב ָּׁש ַמיִם ַמ ֲע‬
And founds his vault on the earth, ‫וַ ֲאגֻ ָּדתֹו ַעל ֶא ֶרץ יְ ָס ָדּה‬
Who summons the waters of the sea and ‫ַהּק ֵֹרא ְל ֵמי ַהּיָ ם וַ ּיִ ְׁש ְּפ ֵכם ַעל‬
pours them on the surface of the earth9— ‫ְּפנֵ י ָה ָא ֶרץ‬
His name is YHWH. .‫יהוה ְׁשמֹו‬

7 Identifying Kimah with the Pleiades and Kesil with Orion follows LXX and other early trans-
lations. Among these, only the connection between Kimah and the Pleiades finds support
elsewhere, namely in Eblaite and Amorite texts (see George and Krebernik, “Two Remark-
able Vocabularies,” 119). Some scholars have suggested that this verse refers to Kimah and
Kesil because they represent the changing seasons, while others conclude that it exhibits
a polemic against Babylonian astronomy (for the former interpretation, see e.g., Koch, “Die
Rolle,” 517–520; for the latter, see e.g., Berg, Hymnenfragmente, 294–295. Jeremias, Amos,
91, considers both interpretations). However, both these interpretations lack a philological
basis, especially in light of Job 9:8–9; see the discussion below, section 2.
8 Gaster (“An Ancient Hymn”) suggested omitting this verse from the doxologies, probably due
to its diverse content in relation to the other units of the doxologies. I tend to agree with him.
9 Most commentators (such as Gaster, “An Ancient Hymn,” 24; Watts, Amos, 55–56; Crüsemann,
Formgeschichte, 100, 103; Crenshaw, Hymnic Affirmation, 73–74; Berg, Hymnenfragmente,
102, 115–116) assume that this stich was originally located in 9:6, for various reasons. The most
plausible reason, in my opinion, is the fact that the participial forms in 9:5–6 are all defi-
nite, including the current stich, while those in 5:8 are indefinite, excluding the present stich.
However, if indeed the original location of the stich was in 9:6, it is difficult to determine
why it was copied again in 5:8. Therefore, that phrase might have instead served as a refrain,
copied at the end of each original stanza. Alternatively, a few commentators (such as Wolff,
Joel and Amos, 216) suggest that the original location of the stich was in 5:8. For further dis-
cussion, see Weiss, Amos, 2:274 n. 54.

Vetus Testamentum (2024) 1–22 | 10.1163/15685330-bja10164

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