Comments on: More on Dominions and Domination http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=110 A Blog about Words and Language(s) from alphaDictionary.com Tue, 16 Apr 2013 09:00:36 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.6 By: casmo Griffiths http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=110&cpage=1#comment-467916 casmo Griffiths Sat, 03 Mar 2012 10:18:31 +0000 http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=110#comment-467916 This has been well said,in clear statements more relating to our concept of caring for human beings as well as the environment. Who would have thought that the word justice spoken so often in scriptures would some how connect with dominion. Where as words can change over time,it is clear that its our responsibility to attend to the anawin. For the more fortunate to distance selves from the needs of the less fortunate is seen in the story of Cain answering am I my brother's keeper. In light of this meaning,it is man loosing it hold on personal responsibilities. This has been well said,in clear statements more relating to our concept of caring for human beings as well as the environment. Who would have thought that the word justice spoken so often in scriptures would some how connect with dominion. Where as words can change over time,it is clear that its our responsibility to attend to the anawin. For the more fortunate to distance selves from the needs of the less fortunate is seen in the story of Cain answering am I my brother’s keeper. In light of this meaning,it is man loosing it hold on personal responsibilities.

]]> By: Tom Peters http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=110&cpage=1#comment-42196 Tom Peters Tue, 17 Jul 2007 02:10:19 +0000 http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=110#comment-42196 I agree with both interpretations and add another compatible perspective. There are many linguistic and exegetical justifications elsewhere in the Old Testament for seeing God as "justice". Some scholarly interpretaions have gone as far as to say that He can only be known by "doing justice". He revealed himself to an oppressed people as and for "justice" on their behalf. Thus, the way that kings were always judged in the Old Testament was by how they cared for the "anawin", the widows, orphans and strangers (those who had no property or rights to property - the land). "Kingship" and "dominion" go hand in hand and so the best interpreatation for dominion is "benevolent and intelligent rule". Add to this the logical dependencies of the order of creation. Remove man and all before him lives, remove any day before man and man dies. Man depends upon what was created before him for his life. How would one care for that upon which his life depends? The other Hebrew interpretation for "subdue" is "till" which, in light of the number of times this word is used in the subsequent story of creation, seems to be the most appropriate interpretation. If one wishes to go further afield, then the "trod" interpretation of "dominion" when combined with "till" could point to the two, even dualistic, ways in which man would choose to exercise his dominion and survival - those being as a hunter/gather sheperd, "trodding" where God has provided food or as the farmer, staying in one place and "tilling" the ground for his food. These alternatives are reinforced in Cain and Abel, the Hebrew for Cain being, "acquisition" which is, in fact, what farmers must do to stay in one place as opposed to wandering as the hunter/gatherer/sheperd. Finally, the Naochic covenant formed by God is clearly with all of His creation and not just with man, once again acknowledging their co-dependence, including man's role as the thinker to make sure that what God has given him is stewarded properly. I agree with both interpretations and add another compatible perspective. There are many linguistic and exegetical justifications elsewhere in the Old Testament for seeing God as “justice”. Some scholarly interpretaions have gone as far as to say that He can only be known by “doing justice”. He revealed himself to an oppressed people as and for “justice” on their behalf.

Thus, the way that kings were always judged in the Old Testament was by how they cared for the “anawin”, the widows, orphans and strangers (those who had no property or rights to property – the land). “Kingship” and “dominion” go hand in hand and so the best interpreatation for dominion is “benevolent and intelligent rule”.

Add to this the logical dependencies of the order of creation. Remove man and all before him lives, remove any day before man and man dies. Man depends upon what was created before him for his life. How would one care for that upon which his life depends?

The other Hebrew interpretation for “subdue” is “till” which, in light of the number of times this word is used in the subsequent story of creation, seems to be the most appropriate interpretation. If one wishes to go further afield, then the “trod” interpretation of “dominion” when combined with “till” could point to the two, even dualistic, ways in which man would choose to exercise his dominion and survival – those being as a hunter/gather sheperd, “trodding” where God has provided food or as the farmer, staying in one place and “tilling” the ground for his food.

These alternatives are reinforced in Cain and Abel, the Hebrew for Cain being, “acquisition” which is, in fact, what farmers must do to stay in one place as opposed to wandering as the hunter/gatherer/sheperd. Finally, the Naochic covenant formed by God is clearly with all of His creation and not just with man, once again acknowledging their co-dependence, including man’s role as the thinker to make sure that what God has given him is stewarded properly.

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