The Way to Zion in Isaiah 40-55: Beyond New Exodus or Metaphor
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Entering into a longstanding debate in Isaiah research on ‘way’ language in chapters 40–55 comes The Way to Zion in Isaiah 40–55. This discussion concerns whether the ‘way’ is best understood as a new exodus of the exiles from Babylon or instead as a metaphor signifying the transformation of Jerusalem from a place of judgement to a place of redemption.
Entering into a longstanding debate in Isaiah research on ‘way’ language in chapters 40–55 comes The Way to Zion in Isaiah 40–55. This discussion concerns whether the ‘way’ is best understood as a new exodus of the exiles from Babylon or instead as a metaphor signifying the transformation of Jerusalem from a place of judgement to a place of redemption.
Caleb Gundlach’s study contributes to this debate by arguing that the pilgrimage to Zion becomes a prevalent aspect of the ‘way’ theme in Isaiah 40–55 and influences how the homecoming is envisioned in these chapters. Firstly, it lays out criteria for recognizing the pilgrimage to Zion as the predominant journey type in Isaiah 49–55. It then explores the relationship of this pilgrimage journey to the major theme of Zion’s restoration within Isaiah 40–55, a theme also emphasized by metaphorical interpretations of the ‘way’.
Resituating the homecoming material within the perspective of pilgrimage to Zion sheds light on other interpretive debates on Isaiah 40–55, including:
– the Babylonian or Judahite provenance for the text;
– emphasis on either the text’s compositional stages or its thematic coherence;
– thematic tensions, such as between Zion’s restoration and the Servant’s mission to the nations.
Reconsidering Isaiah’s ‘way’ imagery under the paradigm of the pilgrimage to Zion provides new avenues for negotiating these issues and takes a further step towards understanding how Isaiah 40–55 coheres as a meaningful and complex unity.
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| table of contents | Introduction 1. Past Research 2. Thesis 3. Legitimation of the Study and its Particular Scope Chapter 1 Literary Methodology 1. Establishing Literary Criteria a. The Problem of Distinguishing Journey Types b. Establishing Criteria c. Pilgrimage as a Literary Paradigm 2. Demonstration of Literary Criteria a. New Exodus Type Journey b. New Exodus Type Journey with Pilgrimage Elements: Ezekiel 20.33-44 c. Pilgrimage Type Journey with Exodus Elements: Jeremiah 31.2-14 d. Conclusion Chapter 2 Pilgrimage as a Literary Paradigm in Isaiah 48–52 1. Complex Unity in Isaiah 40–55 a. Issues in the Larger DI Structure: Isaiah 40–55 b. Complex Unity in Isaiah 51–52 2. Application of Literary Criteria in Isaiah 48–52 a. The New Exodus from Babylon (48.20-21) b. The Pilgrimage to Zion (51.3, 11) c. Creative Amalgamation of Exodus and Pilgrimage Paradigms (52.11-12) 3. Conclusion Chapter 3 The Pilgrimage Paradigm and Literary Development in Isaiah 51–52 1. General Introduction to Chapters 3–5 2. Diachronic Issues in Isaiah 51.1-8 and Isaiah 51.9–52.12 a. Issues in Isaiah 51.3 and the Great Isaiah Redaction Hypothesis b. Irresolvable Tensions Surrounding Isaiah 51.11 3. The Question of the Origin and Compositional Function of 51.11 Chapter 4 Conceptual Relationships between the Pilgrimage Paradigm and Isaiah 40.1–52.12 1. Conceptual Relationship of 51.11 to 51.9-16: The Restoration of Zion a. Addressees and Provenance of the Imperative Poem b. Emphasis of 51.9-16: A New Exodus or the Restoration of Zion? c. Isaiah 51.11 and the Context of 51.9-16 2. Conceptual Relationship of 51.11 to the Theme of Doxological Renewal in Isaiah 40–52 a. Context and Eschatological Meaning of Isaiah 52.7-10 b. Isaiah 52.7-10 and the Enthronement Psalms c. Isaiah 52.7-10 and the New Things of Isaiah 40–52 d. The Eschatological Framework of Isaiah 40–52 and its Relationship to Isaiah 51.11 Chapter 5 Re-envisioning the Homecoming and the Way: The Composition of Isaiah 51.11 1. Composition of Isaiah 51.11 as a Process of Allusion a. Isaiah 51.11 and Jeremiah 31.1-14 b. The Question of Jeremiah Influence 2. Compositional Function of 51.11 a. Connects 51.1-8 and 51.9–52.12 b. Anticipates 52.11-12 through the Lens of Pilgrimage c. Isaiah 51.11 as a Revision of the DI Context 3. Conclusion Chapter 6 The Significance of the Pilgrimage Paradigm to Isaiah 52.13–55.12 1. Issues in Isaiah 52.13–55.12 2. Excursus on Identifying the Servant 3. The Significance of the Pilgrimage Paradigm for the Placement of the Fourth Servant Song a. Return as Reconciliation in Isaiah 49.1-13 b. Reconciliation in Isaiah 51.11 and 52.11-12 c. Reconciliation in the Fourth Servant Song 4. The Significance of the Pilgrimage Paradigm for the Alternating Geographical Perspectives in Isaiah 49–55 a. Perspective Shifts: The Concern for all Israel in Isaiah 49–54 b. The Pilgrimage Paradigm in Isaiah 55: Israel’s Worship as Witnessing Act for the Nations Conclusion Bibliography Index of References Index of Authors |
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