The Southern Home of YHWH and Pre-Priestly Patriarchal/Exodus Traditions from a Southern Perspective

Abstract

The southern arid regions of the Levant were central for the development of the ancient traditions of Israel and Judah. Their history is inextricably linked with the history of settlement, contacts and trade of the Negev, Sinai and Edom during the Late Bronze/Iron Ages. This article will investigate the configuration of the varied desert cultic practices during this period that may have contributed to the emergence of the Yahwistic cult and to the development of the Patriarchal and Exodus narratives. It adopts an interdisciplinary methodology that draws from the biblical and extra-biblical data. This investigation has the aim of analyzing large historical questions concerning the historical memory of Israel and Judah, particularly how religious experiences were shaped by the interactions between the desert cultic traditions and the Israelite/Judaeans sanctuary cults that penetrated from the agricultural lands. The study will also contribute to the much wider debate of the role played by trade and cultural interconnections in the diffusion of religious ideas.