"Breaking a Dog’s Neck" as a Metaphor for Oppressing the Weak. An Exegetical-Historical Analysis of the Expression ערף כלב (Isa 66:3)
Andrzej Łukasz Jędrzejczak
Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań , Polandhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-8892-3632
Abstract
This paper analyses Isa 66:3 and presents a new interpretation of the expression ערף כלב “breaks a dog’s neck.” There are various proposals to explain this enigmatic expression. One points, for example, to a possible ritual in which dogs were to be sacrificed by breaking their necks. This ritual was supposed to have been practised in the ancient Levant, including the Israelites/Judahites. This explanation is called into question in this article. It is pointed out that the phrase can be understood as a metaphor for people who impinge on the dignity of others. The exegesis of biblical texts, the examples cited from ancient Near Eastern literature, and the analysis of archaeological material indicate that this expression may have a different meaning from that hitherto accepted.
Keywords:
Trito-Isaiah, dog, servant, metaphor, ritualReferences
Attia, A., “Disease and Healing in the Book of Tobit and in Mesopotamian Medicine,” Mesopotamian Medicine and Magic. Studies in Honor of Markham J. Geller (eds. S.V. Panayotov – L. Vacin) (Ancient Magic and Divination 14; Leiden: Brill 2018) 36–68 . (Crossref)
Baer, D.A., When We All Go Home. Translation and Theology in LXX Isaiah 56–66 ( Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplements Series 318; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press 2001).
Basson, A., “Dog Imagery in Ancient Israel and the Ancient Near East,” Journal for Semitics 15/1 (2006) 92–106.
Bennet Jr., W.J. – Blakely, J.A., Tell el-Hesi. The Persian Period (Stratum V) (Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns 1989).
Berges, U.F., The Book of Isaiah. Its Composition and Final Form (Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press 2012).
Biblia Sacra Vulgata, https://www.die-bibel.de/en/bible/VUL/ISA.66 [access: 9.08.2024].
Blenkinsopp, J., Isaiah 56–66: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (The Anchor Bible 19; New York: Doubleday 2003). (Crossref)
Blenkinsopp, J., Opening the Sealed Book. Interpretations of the Book of Isaiah in Late Antiquity (Forschungen zum Alten Testament; Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans 2006).
Blenkinsopp, J., “The Servant and the Servants in Isaiah and the Formation of the Book,” Essays on the Book of Isaiah (Forshungen zum Alten Testament 128; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck 2019) 12–24. (Crossref)
Botterweck, G.J., “ כלב ,” Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament (eds. G.J. Botterweck – H. Ringgren – H.-J. Fabry) (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans 1995) VII, 146–157. (Crossref)
Breier, I., “Man’s Best Friend: The Comradeship between Man and Dog in the Lands of the Bible,” Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society of Columbia University 34/1 (2020) 1–21.
Breier, I., “Representations of the Dog in Seventh-Century BCE Assyrian Letters,” Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages 39/2 (2013) 19–36.
Breier, I., “‘Who Is This Dog?’: The Negative Images of Canines in the Lands of Bible,” Ancient Near Eastern Studies 54 (2017) 47–62.
Burns, J.B., “Devotee or Deviate. The ‘Dog’ (keleb) in Ancient Israel as a Symbol of Male Passivity and Perversion,” Journal of Religion & Society 2 (2000) 1–10.
Çakirlar, C. et al., “Persian Period Dog Burials in the Levant: New Evidence from Tell El-Burak (Lebanon) and a Reconsideration of the Phenomenon,” Archaeozoology of the Near East X. Proceedings of the Tenth International Symposium on the Archaeozoology of South-Western Asia and Adjacent Areas (eds. B. De Cupere – V. Linseele – S. Hamilton-Dyer) (Ancient Near Eastern Studies Supplement 44 ; Leuven: Peeters 2013) 243–264.
Chilton, B.D., The Isaiah Targum. Introduction, Translation, Apparatus and Notes (The Aramaic Bible 11; Wilmington, DE: Glazier 1987).
Clines, D.J.A., The Dictionary of Classical Hebrew. VI. ס—פ (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press 2011).
Cole, S.W. – Machinist, P., Letters from Priests to the Kings Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal (State Archives of Assyria XIII; Helsinki: Helsinki University Press 1998).
Collins, B.J., “The Puppy in Hittite Ritual,” Journal of Cuneiform Studies 42/2 (1990) 211–226. (Crossref)
Cotton, H.M. et al., Corpus Inscriptionum Iudaeae/Palaestinae. A Multi-Lingual Corpus of the Inscriptions from Alexander to Muhammad. I. Jerusalem (Berlin: De Gruyter 2010) [part 1. 1–704].
Cotton, H.M. et al., Corpus Inscriptionum Iudaeae/Palaestinae. A Multi-Lingual Corpus of the Inscriptions from Alexander to Muhammad. IV. Iudaea/Idumaea (Berlin: De Gruyter 2018) [part 2. 3325–3978].
Dim, E.U., The Eschatological Implications of Isa 65 and 66 as the Conclusions of the Book of Isaiah (Bern: Lang 2005).
Dirbas, H., Animal Names in Semitic Name-Giving (Alter Orient und Altes Testament 464; Münster: Ugarit-Verlag 2019).
Dixon, H., “Late 1st-Millenium B.C.E. Levantine Dog Burials as an Extension of Human Mortuary Behavior,” Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 379 (2018) 19–41. (Crossref)
Edrey, M., “Dog Cult in Persian Period Judea,” A Jew’s Best Friend? The Image of the Dog through Jewish History (eds. P. Ackerman-Lieberman – R. Zalashik) (Brighton – Portland – Toronto: Sussex Academic Press 2013) 12–35. (Crossref)
Edrey, M., “The Dog Burials at Achaemenid Ashkelon Revisited,” Tel Aviv 35/2 (2008) 267–282. (Crossref)
Fink, A.S., “Why Did ‘yrḫ’ Play the Dog,” Aula Orientalis 21 (2003) 35–61.
Fretz, M.J. – Panitz, R.I., “Caleb,” Anchor Bible Dictionary (ed. D.N. Freedman) (New York: Doubleday 1992) 1214–1215.
Gardner, A.E., “Isaiah 66:1–4: Condemnation of Temple and Sacrifice or Contrast Between the Arrogant and the Humble?,” Revue Biblique 113/4 (2006) 506–528.
Gärtner, J., “The Kabod of JHWH. A Key Isaianic Theme from the Assyrian Empire to the Eschaton,” The History of Isaiah. The Formation of the Book and Its Presentation of the Past (eds. J. Stromberg – J. Todd Hibbard) (Forschungen zum Alten Testament 150; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck 2021) 431–446.
Gesenius, G. (ed.), Hebräisches und aramäisches Handwörterbuch über das Alte Testament (Berlin: Springer 1962) .
Goldingay, J., Isaiah 56–66: A Critical and Exegetical Commentary (International Critical Commentary; London: Bloomsbury Academic 2014).
Gurtner, D.M., Exodus. A Commentary on the Greek Text of Codex Vaticanus (Septuagint Commentary Series; Leiden – Boston, MA: Brill 2013). (Crossref)
Hanson, P.D., Isaiah 40—66 (Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching; Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox 1995).
Hrobon, B., Ethical Dimension of Cult in the Book of Isaiah (Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft 418; Berlin – New York: De Gruyter 2010). (Crossref)
Hutton, J.M., “‘Abdi-Aširta, the Slave, the Dog’: Self-Abasement and Invective in the Amarna Letters, the Lachish Letters, and 2 Sm 3:8,” Zeitschrift für Assyriologie 15/16 (2003) 2–18.
Jacobs, N.S.S., “‘What about the Dog?’ Tobit’s Mysterious Canine Revisited,” Canonicity, Setting, Wisdom in the Deuterocanonicals. Papers of the Jubilee Meeting of the International Conference on the Deuterocanonical Books (eds. G.G. Xeravits – J. Zsengellér) (Berlin: De Gruyter 2014) 221–246. (Crossref)
Kitagawa, C., “Tomb of the Dogs in Gebel Asyut Al.-Gharbi (Middle Egypt, Late to Ptolemaic/Roman Period): Preliminary Result on the Canid Remains,” Archaeozoology of the Near East X. Proceedings of the Tenth International Symposium on the Archaeozoology of South-Western Asia and Adjacent Areas (eds. B. De Cupere – V. Linseele – S. Hamilton-Dyer) (Ancient Near Eastern Studies Supplement Series 44 ; Leuven: Peeters 2013).
Knight, G.A.F., The New Israel. A Commentary of the Book of Isaiah 56–66 (International Theological Commentary 5; Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans 1985). (Crossref)
Lemaire, A., Inscriptions hébraïques. I. Les ostraca. Introduction, traduction, commentaire (Paris: Les Éditions du Cerf 1977).
Lemański, J., Księga Wyjścia. Wstęp-Przekład z oryginału-komentarz (Nowy Komentarz Biblijny 2; Częstochowa: Edycja Świętego Pawła 2009).
Lemański, J., “Negatywny obraz psa w Biblii,” Colloquia Theologica Ottoniana 1 (2011) 51–96.
Liddell, H. G. – Scott, R., “αποκτεινω,” A Greek-English Lexicon (Oxford: Clarendon 1996) X, 205.
Liddell, H.G. – Scott, R. – Jones, H.S., A Greek-English Lexicon (Oxford: Clarendon 1996).
Lindenberger, J.M. (ed.), Ancient Aramaic and Hebrew Letters (Atlanta, GA: Society of Biblical Literature 2003).
Lukko, M., The Correspondence of Tiglath-Pileser III and Sargon II. From Calah/Nimrud (State Archives of Assyria XIX; Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns 2012).
Ma, W., Until the Spirit Comes. The Spirit of God in the Book of Isaiah ( Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Supplement Series 271; Sheffield: Sheffield Academy Press 1999).
Margalith, O., “Keleb: Homonym or Metaphor?,” Vetus Testamentum 3/4 (1983) 491–495. (Crossref)
Menache, S., “Dogs: God’s Worst Enemies?,” Society & Animals 5/1 (1997) 23–44. (Crossref)
Miller, G.D., “Attitudes toward Dogs in Ancient Israel: A Reassessment,” Journal for the Study of the Old Testament 32/4 (2008) 487–500. (Crossref)
Motyer, J.A., The Prophecy of Isaiah. An Introduction & Commentary (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity 1993).
Nanos, M.D., “Paul’s Reversal of Jews Calling Gentiles ‘Dogs’ (Philippians 3:2): 1600 Years of an Ideological Tale Wagging an Exegetical Dog?,” Biblical Interpretation 17 (2009) 448–482. (Crossref)
Nett, S., “The Dogs of the Healing Goddess Gula in the Archaeological and Textual Record of Ancient Mesopotamia,” Fierce Lions, Angry Mice and Fat-tailed Sheep. Animal Encounters in the Ancient Near East (eds. L. Recht – C. Tsouparopoulou) (Cambridge: McDonald Institute for Archaeological Research 2021) 55–62.
Nikzad, M. –Rezaie, I. –Khalili, M., “Dog Burials in Ancient Iran,” Iranica Antiqua 55 (2020) 49–72.
Niskanen, P.V., Isaiah 56–66 (Berit Olam. Studies in Hebrew Narrative and Poetry; Collegeville, PA: Liturgical Press 2014).
Oswalt, J.N., The Book of Isaiah, Chapters 40–66 (New International Commentary on the Old Testament; Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans 1998). (Crossref)
Parpola, S., Letters from Assyrian and Babylonian Scholarship (State Archives of Assyria X; Helsinki: Helsinki University Press 1993).
Price, M. – Meier, J. – Arbuckle, B., “Canine Economies of the Ancient Near East and Eastern Mediterranean,” Journal of Field Archaeology 46/2 (2021) 81–92. (Crossref)
Reider, J. – Turner, N. (eds.), An Index to Aquila. Greek-Hebrew, Hebrew-Greek, Latin-Hebrew with the Syriac and Armenian Evidence (VTSup 12; Leiden: Brill 1966). (Crossref)
Sasson, J.M., “Isaiah LXVI 3–4a,” Vetus Testamentum 26/2 (1976) 199–207. (Crossref)
Schwartz, J., “Dogs in Jewish Society in the Second Temple Period and in the Time of the Mishnah and Talmud,” Journal of Jewish Studies 55/2 (2004) 246–277. (Crossref)
Scrolls from Qumran Cave 1. The Great Isaiah Scroll. The Order of the Community. The Pesher of Habakkuk (eds. J.C. Trever – F.M. Cross) ( Jerusalem: The Albright Institute of Archaeological Research and The Shrine of the Book 1972).
Septuaginta, https://www.die-bibel.de/en/bible/LXX/ISA.66 [access: 9.08.2024].
Sergis, M., “Dog Sacrifice in Ancient and Modern Greece: From the Sacrifice Ritual to Dog Torture (kynomartyrion),” Folklore 45 (2010) 61–88. (Crossref)
Smith, A.M., “The Ashkelon Dog Cemetery Conundrum,” Journal of Semitics 24/1 (2015) 93–108. (Crossref)
Smith, G.V., Isaiah 40–66 (New American Commentary 15B; Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman 2009).
Smith, P.A., Rhetoric and Redaction in Trito-Isaiah. The Structure, Growth and Authorship of Isaiah 56–66 (Supplements to Vetus Testamentum 62; Leiden: Brill 1995). (Crossref)
Sweeney, M.A., Isaiah 40–66 (Forms of the Old Testament Literature 19; Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans 2016).
Sweeney, M.A., “Prophetic Exegesis in Isaiah 65–66,” Writing and Reading the Scroll of Isaiah. Studies of an Interpretive
Tradition (eds. C.C. Broyles – C.A. Evans) (Supplements to Vetus Testamentum 70; Leiden: Brill 1997) 455–474.
The Great Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaa). A New Edition (eds. D. Parry – E. Qimron) (Studies on the Texts of the Desert of Judah 32; Leiden: Brill 1999).
Thomas, D.W., “Kelebh ‘dog’: Its Origin and Some Usages of It in the Old Testament,” Vetus Testamentum 10/4 (1960) 410–427. (Crossref)
Watanabe, C.E., “Association of the Dog with Healing Power in Mesopotamia,” At the Dawn of History. Ancient Near Eastern Studies in Honour of J.N. Postgate (eds. Y. Heffron – A. Stone – M. Worthington) (Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns 2017) I, 689–697. (Crossref)
Watts, J.D.W., Isaiah 34–66 (World Biblical Commentary 25; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan 2005).
Webster, E.C., “A Rhetorical Study of Isaiah 66,” Journal of Study of the Old Testament 34 (1986) 93–108. (Crossref)
Westermann, C., Isaiah 40–66. A Commentary (Old Testament Library; Philadelphia, PA: Westminster 1969).
Wevers, J.W., LXX. Notes on the Greek Text of Exodus (Septuagint and Cognate Study Series 30; Atlanta, GA: Scholar Press 1990).
Wygnańska, Z., “Equid and Dog Burials in the Ritual Landscapes of Bronze Age Syria and Mesopotamia,” Aram 29/1 (2017) 141–160.
Zawadzki, A., “Sprawiedliwy ginie, a nikt się tym nie przejmuje (Iz 57,10) – obraz judejskiej elity w inwektywach Trito-Izajasza (Iz 56–57). Kryzys przywództwa w prowincji Jehud w połowie V wieku przed Chr.,” The Biblical Annals 13/2 (2023) 251–295. (Crossref)
Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8892-3632
License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
- Pursuant to the Act on Copyright and Related Rights of February 4, 1994, the Author of the publication grants to the Publisher of the journal „The Biblical Annals” e a non-exclusive and royalty-free license to use the Work submitted for publication, without time and territorial restrictions in the following fields of use:
a) record the Work and copy it by means of any technique (including printing and electronic recording) on all known data carriers (including IT, electronic and polygraphic), and in all IT systems (in particular those available online);
b) enter the Work into computer memory, disseminate the Work and its copies, as well as market the Work and its copies;
c) publicly perform, replay, display and screen the Work, as well as lend, rent and lease the Work and its copies;
d) make available, market and disseminate the Work and its copies via IT networks, and in particular via the Internet, including the promotion or advertising of the Work, the journal or the Publisher. - The Author shall further grant his/her consent for the Publisher to use and dispose of derivative works.
- The Publisher may sublicense the work.
- Third parties may use the articles and other materials containing the Works, or developed on the basis of the Works in line with the model Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (also referred to as CC BY 4.0).