Old Testament Cosmology and Divine Accommodation: A Relevance Theory Approach

by John W. Hilber

In order to reconcile the discrepancies between ancient and modern cosmology, confessional scholars from every viewpoint on the interpretation of the early chapters of Genesis agree that God accommodated language to finite human understanding. But in the history of interpretation, no consensus has emerged regarding what accommodation entails at the linguistic level. More precise consideration of how the ancient cognitive environment functions in the informative intention of the divine and human authors is necessary. Not only does relevance theory validate interpretative options that are inherently most probable within the primary communication situation, but the application of relevance theory can also help disentangle the complexities of dual authorship inherent in any model of accommodation. The results also make a salutary contribution to the theological reading of Scripture.

Genres: Biblical Studies

232 pages, Paperback

Published April 3, 2020

Reviews

[Rick Mcgarry]

This book is for a select audience.
1. They believe or at least admit the possibility of divine authorship of the Old Testament.
2. They care enough about the mechanics of interpretation to do a fairly deep dive into communication theory.

But if you are someone who cares about intellectual integrity and is at least somewhat dissatisfied with grammatical-cultural-historical-literary approaches to interpretation, this is a significant and arguably helpful perspective.

This book does not contain very many heart warming devotional passages, and unless you are already well-versed in relevance theory will prove challenging, but when I look back on the quarantine of 2020, I will be proud to tell my grandchildren that one of the things I did while I was restricted was to purchase and read this book.

[Connor Brooks]

Very insightful and helpful.

Such a fascinating read. Contextualizes much of the creation account and breaks it down into thoughts that are absorbable to laypeople. Very well written and engaging. Would recommend to anyone who wants to understand what Genesis is and isn’t teaching.

[Ryan Riley]

I was not familiar with relevance theory but greatly appreciated its application. I was a little surprised by Dr. Hilber's conclusions, but I also really appreciated the thoroughness of his evaluation.

[Philip Taylor]

One of those books that sparks so many thoughts. I’m going to have to read it again. What I would love is for the author to now take the approach and write a commentary on Genesis 1-11 or something like that.

[David Couch]

Helpful for thinking about speech-act theory, relevance theory and Genesis 1-2.

[Evan]

this is my new opinion. not that my former opinion was all too different.

[Darryl L. Rowe]

Another great read suggested by Dr. Heiser.

We were covering Gen 1:1-3 in a bit more Hebrew language detail which the book was discussing from the Relevance theory side.