----- Original Message ----- 
From: <Dea5315@...>
> David: I don't know where you get this from.  I just checked the word and
it's "pecel" and it means, idol, image, graven, carved. I think you're adding
a bit to the defintion to suit your purpose.

No, I'm not adding anything.  You haven't gone far enough.  Pesel "has the
connotation of "an object of worship through which one has fellowship with the
deity represented by the image."  Every time the word is used in the
scriptures it has to do with making an image for use in worship.  Thus pesel
(graven image) is a synonym for idol.

Good exegesis isn't just about the denotation (grammar) but connotation
(biblical theology).  In fact, exegesis isn't exegesis without connotation
(biblical theology).  To make "graven image" to be anything carved from wood
or metal is saying something the text isn't telling us because its
overwhelming use in the OT is concerned with idol-making.

Chad Bresson
Xenia, OH


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