Blood Expiation in Hittite and Biblical Ritual: Origins, COntext, and Meaning (Writings from the Ancient World Supplements)

This pioneering study examines the use of blood to purge the effects of sin and impurity in Hittite and biblical ritual. The idea that blood atones for sins holds a prominent place in both Jewish and Christian traditions. The author traces this notion back to its earliest documentation in the fourteenth- and thirteenth-century B.C.E. texts from Hittite Anatolia, in which the smearing of blood is used as a means of expiation, purification, and consecration. This rite parallels, in both its procedure and goals, the biblical sin offering. The author argues that this practice stems from a common tradition manifested in both cultures. In addition, this book aims to decipher and elucidate the symbolism of the practice of blood smearing by seeking to identify the sociocultural context in which the expiatory significance of blood originated. Thus, it is essential reading for anyone interested in the meaning and efficacy of ritual, the origins of Jewish and Christian notions of sin and atonement, and the origin of the biblical blood rite. Contents 6 Acknowledgments 8 Abbreviations 10 Introduction 14 Part 1 18 The Hurro-Hittite zurki Rite 20 The Biblical Sin Offering 48 The Question of a Historical Connection 128 Part 2 158 Rituals, Signs and Meaning: Theoretical Foundations 160 The Blood of the Sin Offering: Origins, Context, and Meaning 180 The zurki Rite: Origins, Context, and Meaning 222 Tracking the Blood Rite Tradition: Origins, Translation, and Transformation 256 Conclusion 274 Bibliography 286 Glossary 304 Subject Index 306 Source Index 308 Author Index 318