Away From the Father's House: The Social Location of na'ar and na'arah in Ancient Israel
Building
on the biblical narrative and on social world analysis, Leeb argues
that the terms NA'AR and NA'ARAH refer to persons displaced from the
father's house (BET 'AB), usually as a result of debt slavery. Hence,
rather than working his father's land, and becoming in turn the head of
his own household, the NA'AR, as a domestic or military servant, helps
build the household of another. Less frequently, the weakness or absence
of the father leads to the same, or a similar, predicament. Any woman
venturing from her own household is also likely to acquire the status of
a NA'ARAH. This is a novel and challenging study in ancient Israelite
social structure.
Dead, I'm afraid.
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