Page 4 - Pemahaman teks Hakim-hakim 6-8

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God does in the narrative that we gain a picture of who God is.l3 One
should note that the reader does not start reading Judges 6-8 without
any knowledge of God. If one takes into regard the context of the canon,
the reader has by this point read many stories from which to form a
picture of God. The emerging characterization of God in Judges 6-8
might either correspond to or differ from this picture.l4
For the purposes of the following literary reading of the Gideon nar-
rative, a revised division from Barry Webb will be followed. Accordingly,
the narrative is divided into three narrative movements, which are framed
by an introduction and a conclusion. 15 Each narrative movement will be
subdivided into a number of scenes.

13 Gunn and Fewell, Narrative, 79.
14 Gunn and Fewell note that in reconstructing YHWH, one has one of two options.
First, one may treat the different biblical stories separately so that there are many different
characters of God. Second, the canonical shape of the Bible may urge one to look for God
as a single character who is quite complex in nature (Gunn and Fewell, Narrative, 89). I
argue that although one may primarily focus on a singular narrative, it is quite difficult to
keep all previous encounters with God in the biblical narratives out of one's mind.
1,5Dennis T. Olson, "Judges: Introduction, Commentary, Reflection" in The New
Interpreter's Bible (ed. Leander E. Keck et. al.; Vol. 2; Nashville: Abingdon, 1998), 804-
805, and Webb, Judges, 146-147. This narrative movement division uses as its basis the
following proposal by Barry Webb. Webb argues that the Gideon narrative consists of two
main narrative movements. The first movement starts in 6:11 in Gideon's hometown,
Orphah. In view of the other Judges narratives, one would expect that after the external
threat is removed, the narrative should end with the formula "and the land rested for x
years. But a whole new narrative development ensues when Gideon and his men cross the
Jordan in 8:4. This second movement ends in 8:27, again in Gideon's hometown, Orphah.
Olson has revised Webb's proposal and argues for a third narrative movement. He argues
that the second narrative movement (7:15-8:3) is an intermediary stage in which the focus
falls on both Gideon and God.