Eldad and Medad
Encyclopedia
Eldad and Medad are mentioned in the Book of Numbers
, and are described as having prophesied among the Israelites, despite the fact that they had remained in the camp, while 70 elders had gone to the tabernacle outside the camp to receive the ability to prophecy from God
. According to the narrative, Joshua
asked Moses
to forbid Eldad and Medad from prophecy, but Moses argued that it was a good thing that others could prophesy, and that ideally all the Israelites would prophesy.
In rabbinical tradition, Eldad and Medad are said to have predicted a war with Gog
and Magog
, with the king from Magog uniting the non-Jews and launching war in Palestine against the Jews, but these non-Jews being defeated and slain by fire from God
's throne
. Some classical rabbinical literature argues that the non-Jews would be at the mercy of the Jewish Messiah
; such Messianic connections of Eldad and Medad also circulated among early Christian
groups, and a particularly popular discussion of such prophecy was even quoted in the deutero- canonical
Shepherd of Hermas.
According to biblical scholars
, the real purpose of the story was to indicate that prophecy was not restricted to a select few people. However, the text states that Eldad and Medad were of them that were written down, making them less representative of the general population, although some textual scholars
believe that this is a gloss
added to the original Elohist
account, by a later editor who objected to the idea that anyone could become a prophet. The names themselves are hence unimportant to the point of the story, and may have been chosen simply for the sake of assonance
; they seem to refer to dad, suggesting polytheism
and/or a non-Israelite origin:
Book of Numbers
The Book of Numbers is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch....
, and are described as having prophesied among the Israelites, despite the fact that they had remained in the camp, while 70 elders had gone to the tabernacle outside the camp to receive the ability to prophecy from God
Tetragrammaton
The term Tetragrammaton refers to the name of the God of Israel YHWH used in the Hebrew Bible.-Hebrew Bible:...
. According to the narrative, Joshua
Joshua
Joshua , is a minor figure in the Torah, being one of the spies for Israel and in few passages as Moses's assistant. He turns to be the central character in the Hebrew Bible's Book of Joshua...
asked Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
to forbid Eldad and Medad from prophecy, but Moses argued that it was a good thing that others could prophesy, and that ideally all the Israelites would prophesy.
In rabbinical tradition, Eldad and Medad are said to have predicted a war with Gog
Gog
Gog, Gogg or Gogs may refer to:Biblical:* Gog and MagogPeople:* Anikó Góg, Hungarian triathlete* Gog or "gogledd", a person from North Wales from the Welsh word for "north"...
and Magog
Magog (Bible)
Magog, Hebrew מגוג, Greek Μαγωγ, [ ma'gog ], is the second of the seven sons of Japheth mentioned in the Table of Nations in Genesis 10. It may represent Hebrew for "from Gog", though this is far from certain....
, with the king from Magog uniting the non-Jews and launching war in Palestine against the Jews, but these non-Jews being defeated and slain by fire from God
Tetragrammaton
The term Tetragrammaton refers to the name of the God of Israel YHWH used in the Hebrew Bible.-Hebrew Bible:...
's throne
Throne
A throne is the official chair or seat upon which a monarch is seated on state or ceremonial occasions. "Throne" in an abstract sense can also refer to the monarchy or the Crown itself, an instance of metonymy, and is also used in many expressions such as "the power behind the...
. Some classical rabbinical literature argues that the non-Jews would be at the mercy of the Jewish Messiah
Jewish Messiah
Messiah, ; mashiah, moshiah, mashiach, or moshiach, is a term used in the Hebrew Bible to describe priests and kings, who were traditionally anointed with holy anointing oil as described in Exodus 30:22-25...
; such Messianic connections of Eldad and Medad also circulated among early Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
groups, and a particularly popular discussion of such prophecy was even quoted in the deutero- canonical
Biblical canon
A biblical canon, or canon of scripture, is a list of books considered to be authoritative as scripture by a particular religious community. The term itself was first coined by Christians, but the idea is found in Jewish sources. The internal wording of the text can also be specified, for example...
Shepherd of Hermas.
According to biblical scholars
Biblical criticism
Biblical criticism is the scholarly "study and investigation of Biblical writings that seeks to make discerning judgments about these writings." It asks when and where a particular text originated; how, why, by whom, for whom, and in what circumstances it was produced; what influences were at work...
, the real purpose of the story was to indicate that prophecy was not restricted to a select few people. However, the text states that Eldad and Medad were of them that were written down, making them less representative of the general population, although some textual scholars
Textual criticism
Textual criticism is a branch of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification and removal of transcription errors in the texts of manuscripts...
believe that this is a gloss
Gloss
A gloss is a brief notation of the meaning of a word or wording in a text. It may be in the language of the text, or in the reader's language if that is different....
added to the original Elohist
Elohist
The Elohist is one of four sources of the Torah described by the Documentary Hypothesis. Its name comes from the term it uses for God: Elohim; it is characterised by, among other things, an abstract view of God, using "Horeb" instead of "Sinai" for the mountain where Moses received the laws of...
account, by a later editor who objected to the idea that anyone could become a prophet. The names themselves are hence unimportant to the point of the story, and may have been chosen simply for the sake of assonance
Assonance
Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds to create internal rhyming within phrases or sentences, and together with alliteration and consonance serves as one of the building blocks of verse. For example, in the phrase "Do you like blue?", the is repeated within the sentence and is...
; they seem to refer to dad, suggesting polytheism
Polytheism
Polytheism is the belief of multiple deities also usually assembled into a pantheon of gods and goddesses, along with their own mythologies and rituals....
and/or a non-Israelite origin:
- if the names are HebrewHebrew languageHebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
, then dad could mean paternal uncle, with Eldad thus meaning God is the brother of my father or ElEl (god)is a Northwest Semitic word meaning "deity", cognate to Akkadian and then to Hebrew : Eli and Arabic )....
is the brother of my father, and Medad meaning (one who is) of my father's brother - if the names are AssyriaAssyriaAssyria was a Semitic Akkadian kingdom, extant as a nation state from the mid–23rd century BC to 608 BC centred on the Upper Tigris river, in northern Mesopotamia , that came to rule regional empires a number of times through history. It was named for its original capital, the ancient city of Assur...
n, then dad could be a corruption of daddu, meaning beloved, with Eldad thus meaning God is beloved or El is beloved, and Medad meaning object of affection - if the names are AkkadianAkkadian languageAkkadian is an extinct Semitic language that was spoken in ancient Mesopotamia. The earliest attested Semitic language, it used the cuneiform writing system derived ultimately from ancient Sumerian, an unrelated language isolate...
, then dad could be a corruption of AdadAdadAdad in Akkadian and Ishkur in Sumerian and Hadad in Aramaic are the names of the storm-god in the Babylonian-Assyrian pantheon. All three are usually written by the logogram dIM...
, the name of a deity known to the AramaeansAramaeansThe Aramaeans, also Arameans , were a Northwest Semitic semi-nomadic and pastoralist people who originated in what is now modern Syria during the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age...
as HadadHadadHaddad was a northwest Semitic storm and rain god, cognate in name and origin with the Akkadian god Adad. Hadad was often called simply Ba‘al , but this title was also used for other gods. The bull was the symbolic animal of Hadad. He appeared as a bearded deity, often shown as holding a club and...
, with Eldad thus meaning El is Hadad or Hadad is God, and Medad meaning (one who is) of Hadad