Date of Award
2025
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
College
Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary
Program
Religion, Old Testament Studies PhD
First Advisor
Richard M. Davidson
Second Advisor
Randall W. Younker
Third Advisor
Paul Z. Gregor
Abstract
The aim of this study is to undertake a fresh look into the concept of Israel in the Old Testament and its divine purpose in the context of the overarching theology of the Hebrew Bible. The working method used in this research is a theological and exegetical analysis of relevant Hebrew text along with incorporating historical and socio-archaeological background studies.
The conclusion that is reached is that Old Testament Israel was a cosmopolitan community of people connected through biological links, intermarriage relationships, and political alliances. In a spiritual sense, the term Israel served as a characterizing title granted to Jacob first, to his descendants next, and then to all who accepted Yahweh as their God and demonstrated a genuine change in their moral lives according to His statutes.
Subject Area
Israel, Bible. Old Testament--Criticism, interpretation, etc.; Bible. Old Testament--Theology
Recommended Citation
Arutyunyan, Gregory, "The Concept of Israel in the Old Testament and its Divine Purpose: an Exegetical and Theological Analysis" (2025). Dissertations. 1861.
https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations/1861
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