Law and Life: Leviticus 18.5 in the Literary Framework of ... - Clover

278 Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 3 1.3 (2007)
chs. 8-1 1, but then returns in ch. 43. The 'dumbness' motif is pronounced
in 3.22-27, reiterated in 24.26-27 and lifted in 33.22. The 'mountains of
Israel', which receive a prophecy ofjudgment in Ezek. 6.1-14, become a
recurrent theme in Ezekiel's program of restoration in chs. 3348 (especially
36.1-15).1° The watchman motif first announced in 3.17-21 is
summarized once again in 33.1-9, as is the repentance of the wicked man
in 18.21-32 and in 33.10-20, thus creating an envelope to the first half of
the book." All this shows that there is a careful structure in Ezekiel
marked by repetition of themes to the extent that no part can be fully
understood in isolation from the rest of the narrative.12 Therefore, as
T. Boadt says, this 'forces the commentator to come to grips with the
planned unity of the present book as it stands. No part can be simply set
aside as extraneous and foreign to the concerns of the exilic prophet and
his pe~ple."~
What scholars have not noticed, however, is that the language contained
in the Lev. 18.5 allusions ('the person who does these things [the
statutes and ordinances] will live by them') exhibits a similar phenomenon
within the structure of the book. The priestly phrase often connected
to the Leviticus allusion-that is, 'walking in my statutes and observing
my judgmentsy--occurs frequently in the earlier oracle of judgment
(5.6-7; 11.12,20) and displays a particular density in chs. 18 (vv. 9, 17,
19; cf. 21) and 20 (vv. 11, 13, 18, 19,21; cf. 25). This formula does not
occur again until 36.27, where God causes Israel to 'walk in my statutes
and observe my judgments', and finally in 37.24, where the Davidic king
enables Israel to 'walk in my statutes.. .' and so on. A similar trend is
exhibited with Ezekiel's use of 'life' language. Again, the verb 7'n, which
is frequent in the first part of the book (3.18,21; 13.19,22; 16.6), is most
numerous in chs. 18 (vv. 9, 13, 17, 19,21,22,23,24,27,28,32) and 20
(1 1, 13,21,25). The verb does not occur again until the transitional section
33.10-20 (vv. 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 19) and in the vision of the dry
bones in 37.1-14. The significance of this framework is this: there is a
composition connection between the unfulfilled 'statutes and ordinances'
10. On this point, see T. Boadt, 'Rhetorical Strategies in Ezekiel's Oracles of
Judgment', in Lust (ed.), Ezekiel andHis Book, pp. 182-200 (esp. 190-93).
1 1. See M. Fishbane, 'Sin and Judgment in the Prophecies of Ezekiel', Inr 38 (1984),
pp. 13 1-50 (1 32-33).
12. As Rendtorff states: '[Nlicht nur Texte nach bestimmten Gesichtspunkten gesammelt
worden sind, sondern daR manche Texte schon im Blick auf den kompositorischen
Zusammenhang formuliert worden sind.. .' ('Ez 20 und 36,16ff, p. 263).
13. Boadt, 'Rhetorical Strategies', p. 199.
SPRINKLE Law and Life 279
in chs. 18 and 20 with their fulfilment in 36.25 and 37.24; likewise, there
is a connection with the 'life' unattained by Israel in chs. 18'20 and 33
and their new 'life' in 37.1-14. Here in the vision of the dry bones, the
'life' language is vividly used once again (vv. 3,5,6,9,10,14) and thus
the 'life' that was anticipated in the earlier portions of Ezekiel comes to
dramatic fulfilment in Ezekiel 37 as God's breathes 'life' into the nation.
Thus, as the motif of the 'glory of the LORD' receives a dramatic reversal
in ch. 43, so I will argue that the covenant obligation marked by the
'statutes and judgments' formula, and the life therein, is clearly unfulfilled
in Ezekiel 1-24 but receives a dramatic (or divine) reversal in
Ezekiel 36-37, and that the text of Lev. 18.5, and the language therein,
was used by the prophet to summarize these covenant obligations. The
general connection can been seen as follows:
unfulfilled in Ezek. 5; 1 1 ;
and especially 18; 20; cf.
unfulfilled in Ezek. 18;
20; 33
fulfilled through divine
36.27 and 37.24
through divine causation
in Ezek. 37.1-14
The relationship between the 'statutes and judgments' formula and the
potential life therein is conveniently summarized in Lev. 18.5, a text
referred to explicitly in Ezekiel 20 and implicitly in ch. 18 (cf. 33.10-20).
Thus, even where Lev. 18.5 is not directly referred to, it is probable that
this text had some import on the both the 'life' language and 'statutes and
judgments' formula that occurs throughout the book.
Statutes and Ordinances in H and Ezekiel
H contains many summary-like statements (e.g. 'walk in my statutes and
keep my judgments') that summarize the obligation for Israel to obey
their covenant stipulations. For example:
Lev. 18.3-5:
...y ou shall not walk in their statutes (D;r'ni)i731). You are to perform my
judgments ('E39tUn) and keep my statutes ('npn), to walk in them; I am
Yahweh your God. So you shall keep my statutes ('npn) and my judgments
('t39[tP3), by which a man may live if he does them; I am Yahweh.