Eckart Otto’s contribution to the question of the composition of the Sinai pericope: An appreciation

Abstract

The composition of the Sinai pericope presents the reader with several literary problems, with specific reference to the incoherence of the text caused by textual irregularities in the sense of time, genre and theological issues. The chronological issues have led to the proposal that the legal codes (The Decalogue and Covenant Code) were interpolated into a broader narrative framework. Several scholars have attempted to unravel the Sinai pericope with diachronic or synchronic tools. This article investigates several solutions in order to understand Eckart Otto’s contribution to the current debate.

Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This article engages literary criticism and hermeneutics to evaluate Eckart Otto’s solution in the broader framework of the history of research.