made positive by jos. xxiv. 5 (E). Vs. 14b accordingly, whose connection with the context is at least loose, if not disturbing, 27, and 28, whose connection with 27 is closer than with 29, may be reckoned fragments of E's parallel to the main account in vv. 14ff.

A much easier analysis of iv. 13-17, 27-31 is that advocated by so excellent an authority as Cornill, who settles the whole difficulty by the sweeping declaration,* “iv. 13-16 and 27, 28 are manifestly interpolated, and 29, 30 worked over, by Rp." But we have strong prejudices against a wholesale process of this kind. Rp is admittedly not a composer but a compiler, extremely averse to composition on his own account, and not disposed to alter JE except where it comes in contact and conflict with P. There is no trace of P2 in chh. iii-v and no motive for Rp to interpolate. Rje might have been tempted to insert something to introduce Aaron before ch. v; but Rp had this whole story in a much better form and better place for his purposes in vi. 10–12, 28ff. (P2). Moreover the motive of iv. 13-16 is not redactional. It is not a patch applied for the purpose of holding together more or less discrepant material nor has it a didactic motive. It manifests the religious archæological motive of J. Whence comes the idea that Moses is not a speaker, and hence must have an interpreter to the people?" Manifestly" it serves to account for the interpretative function of the priesthood. “The priest's lips keep the Torah," they are the authorized custodians and interpreters of the law (cf. Dt. xxiv. 8; xxxiii. 10; Mal. ii. 7). The association of “Aaron the Levite" with Moses as his "spokesman to the people" is J's ætiology of this institution. The relation of vi. 10-12, 28ff. to iv. 13ff. is unmistakable. They cannot be independent. But assuredly iv. 13ff. is not derived from vi. 1off.! P2 did not originate an ætiological explanation of a priestly function, and of his own motive attribute "uncircumcision of lip" to Moses. Then he found it in JE (cf. vi. 12-vii. 2, where the datum of iv. 10 is taken without regard to its ætiological significance, as a mere historical fact). Rje again did not originate it, for he does not add new traits, but simply adjusts his material. E has a different account of the institution, committing the law to “judges." Only J remains, and J is just the one of whom, because of his semipriestly interest (cf. xix. 22 J) and his ætiological method, we should expect it.

Finally iv. 10 is universally admitted to be positively J's. For what purpose then is the statement there made of Moses' incapacity for speech, unless the writer was intending to introduce the story of Aaron as

*Einleitung, Freiburg, 1892, p. 84.

"spokesman to the people?" Vv. 13ff. are therefore indispensable to Ioff.

The passage is an important one, as by its rejection it becomes possible to suggest as a probability * that_the North Israelite character of Aaron is unknown to J. But we may expect the same fate for this suggestion as for the similar, but now rejected idea of Meyer and Stade in regard to the character of Joshua.

(E) Now Moses was keeping the flock of 'Jethro his 3 father-in-law, the priest of Midian,† and he led the flock to the back of the wilderness, and came to the mountain of God, (J) unto 'Horeb. And the angel of Yahweh appeared 2 unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. And Moses 3 said, I will turn aside now, and see this great sight, why the bush is not burnt. And when Yahweh saw 4 (E) that he turned aside to see, "God called unto him out of the midst of the bushf and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, (J) Here am I. And he said, Draw not nigh hither: 5

1Ct 2:18; Nu. 10:29; Jud. 4:11. 17:6; 33:6; 4:27; 18: 5. 18; Dt. 33 16. Jud. 148. 5Gen. 22: 1, 7, 11; 46: 2; ch. 19: 3.

*Cornill, Einleitung, p. 51.

Gen. 15:17; ch. 19: Jos. 5:15.

For the discussion of the names given to Moses' father-in-law, see above (note on ii. 18). As the "priest of Midian" only appears twice in E, and in both cases in a context worked over by Rje, it seems more probable that it is a harmonistic interpolation of Rje than that Moses' father-in-law should have been "priest of Midian" in both J and E. In thus identifying Jethro with the priest of ii. 16ff. he would of course remove the discrepant name "Hobab" in ii. 16, though he let it stand in Num. x. 19 and Jud. iv. 11.

The clause "out of the midst of the bush" might be a fragment of J, but is more likely to have been inserted by Rje to make vs. 4 correspond with vs. 2a. It is superfluous in either J or E. In this verse it should be observed that the Hebrew has, "And Yahweh saw . . . and God called "; not, "when Yahweh saw," etc. So in vs. 6" moreover" is simply supplied by the translators to avoid the awkwardness of the two consecutive beginnings "And he said." Throughout the book allowance must be made for the looseness of Hebrew construction which readily lends itself to the style of compilation discovered by critics.

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put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground.

(E) Moreover he said. I am the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. And Moses hid his face; for he was afraid to look upon God. 7 (J)[. . .]And Yahweh said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and I have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I 8 know their sorrows; and I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, (Rd)unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite.*

9

(E) "And now, behold, the cry of the children of Israel is come unto me: moreover I have seen the oppression 10 wherewith the Egyptians oppress them. Come now therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh, that thou mayest bring forth my people the children of Israel out of Egypt. II 12And Moses said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and that I should bring forth the children of 12 Israel out of Egypt? And he said, Certainly I will be with thee; and this shall be the token unto thee, that I have sent thee when thou hast brought forth the people out of Egypt, 13 1ye shall serve God upon this mountain. And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, 15The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? 14 what shall I say unto them? And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the chil

10vs. 17; 13: 5; 126: 12. 13 Gen. 28: 20; 46; 4.

7Vs. 13. 81 11f. Vs. 17; 4: 31; Gen. 16: 11; 29: 32. Gen. 11:5; 18: 21. 333; Num. 13: 27; 14:8; 16: 14; Jos. 5: 6. 11Cf. 6: 2ff.

145: 1; 24: 5. 15ys. 6.

* A common form of interpolation is the enlargement or introduction of the list of seven Canaanite peoples. It seems to be later than the union of J and E (cf. Gen. x. 16 ff; xv. 19 ff; Ex. xxiii. 23 and references above) and is probably from the hand of Rd. It is recognizable as an interpolation by its frequent interruption of the connection.

*

And God 15

(Rd) dren of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is 16my memorial unto all generations.†

(J) "Go, and gather the elders of Israel together, 16 and say unto them, Yahweh the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, hath appeared unto me, saying, I have surely visited you, and [seen] that which is done to you in Egypt: and I 17 have said, I will bring you up out of the affliction of (Rd) Egypt unto the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the (J) Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite,‡ unto a land flowing with milk and honey. 18 And they shall 18 hearken to thy voice: 19and thou shalt come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the king of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, "Yahweh, the God of the Hebrews, hath met with us: and now let us go, we pray thee, three days' journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to Yahweh our God.

(E) And I know that the king of Egypt will not give 19 you leave to go, no, not by a mighty hand. 24 And I will put 20

1612 42; 13:9. 17 Vs. 7f; 4: 29ff. 184: 31; ct. 6:9. 1953. 205:3;7:16; 9: 1, 13; 10: 3. 219: 30. 22Gen. 20: 6; 31: 7; Nu. 20: 21; 22: 13. 25 Ct. 6:1; 13: 9. 24 11:1; Dt. 34; 11f. *From this point on the name Yahweh, which has of course hitherto been avoided in the document E, is freely employed by the Ephraimite writer. However, the criterion is by no means wholly lost; for in the most obviously original and archaic parts of the document, and particularly in stereotyped expressions like "rod of God," "mount of God," "angel of God," the use of Elohim and ha-Elohim is still continued. The facts can scarcely be accounted for on any other supposition than that Elohim or ha-Elohim was the divine name habitually employed in E's source, which E of course left as he found it previous to Ex. iii. and usually left as he found it thereafter. But when writing de suo, or freely reproducing his source, he employs Yahweh. In these portions of the E document henceforth the divine name ceases to be a criterion. The larger part, however, is still Elohistic in the strict sense.

† Vs. 15 is generally attributed to Rd. Its linguistic features ("generations"), its superfluous, reiterative character, and its solicitude for the instruction of posterity (cf. xii. 24, 26; xiii. 8f, etc.), support this view.

See note on vs. 8.

forth my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you 21 go.* 25 And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, 22 ye shall not go empty: but every woman shall ask of her neighbor, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye 4 (J) shall spoil the Egyptians. And Moses answered and said, 'But, behold, they will not believe me, nor hearken unto my voice: for they will say, Yahweh hath not appeared unto thee. And Yahweh said unto 2 him, What is that in thine hand? And he said, A 3 rod. And he said, Cast it on the ground. And he cast it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Moses fled from before it. And Yahweh said unto 4 Moses, Put forth thine hand, and take it by the tail: (and he put forth his hand, and laid hold of it, and it became a rod in his hand:) that they may believe that 5 Yahweh the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, hath 6 5appeared unto thee. And Yahweh said furthermore unto him, Put now thine hand into thy bosom. And he put his hand into his bosom: and when he took it out, behold, his hand was 'leprous, as [white as] 7 snow. And he said, Put thine hand into thy bosom again. (And he put his hand into his bosom again; and when he took it out of his bosom, behold, it was 8 turned again as his [other] flesh.) And it shall come to pass, if they will not believe thee, neither hearken to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe. 9 the voice of the latter sign. And it shall come to

25 11:2f; 12:35f. 13: 18; 14:31. 28:26. 3Ct. 7: 9ff. 43: 16. 3:2. Nu. 12: 10; II. Kgs. 5 27. 7ii Kgs. 5 10, 14. *Vs. 19b contradicts vi. I and xiii. 9 and is therefore treated as a gloss. We may however (with Ewald) conjecture im-lo instead of we-lo (so LXX. and Vulg.), "except " instead of no, not," or even, with Jül. and others, reject vv. 19f. in toto, as an anticipatory interpolation; cf. iv. 21–23.

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