Temple Vessels Speaking for a Silent God: Notes on Divine Presence in the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah

Abstract

This chapter refers to the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. They speak about God, and God is introduced as the speaker. Accepting the communication and presence of the silent God in the witness of the temple vessels imply living according to the social code in times of economic breakdown as well as keeping the Sabbath in the correct way. This concept is very useful in describing phenomena of an ancient culture or a religion from olden times. It is a middle way between realism and scepticism. The cultic vessels for the temple symbolise continuity with the period before the Babylonian conquest of Jerusalem. The vessels need to be construed as iconic representations of the divine and hence as silent witness to the inscrutable presence of God. Cultic vessels are mute, they do not speak for themselves, they communicate the silent God, and people are invited to hear the subtext. Keywords: Babylonian; Ezra; God; Jerusalem; Nehemiah; Sabbath; temple vessels