The radical idea of the priesthood of foreigners : understanding the inclusivism in Isaiah 56:1-8.

This dissertation examines how the radical idea of the priesthood of foreigners in Isa 56:1-8 (and 66:18-24) developed in the Persian period by investigating Isa 56:1-8 in relation to its literary context in Isa 56-66 and in relation to contemporary texts that advocate for the exclusion of foreigners (Ezek 44:6-16; Ezra 9-10; Neh 13). Isaiah 56:1-8 and 66:18-24 reflect some of the most inclusive perspectives on foreigners by claiming that Yahweh will include foreigners within his people and even select some of them as priests and Levites. Because of their verbal and thematic connections, scholars propose close relationships between Isa 56 and Ezek 44 as well as between Isa 56 and Ezra-Nehemiah. While not contemporary with Isa 56:1-8, scholars see a connection with Deut 23:2-9 on account of its engagement with foreigners and eunuchs together. Although several studies demonstrate relationships among Isa 56:1-8, Deut 23:2-9, Ezek 44:6-16, and Ezra-Nehemiah, questions about dating and the direction of influence remain. This dissertation advances the scholarly understanding of the relationships among Isa 56:1-8, Deut 23:2-9, Ezek 44:6-16, and the earliest compositions of Ezra-Nehemiah (Ezra 9-10; Neh 13) by illustrating their verbal, thematic, and socio-historical connections. Although the final form of Ezra-Nehemiah dates to the Hellenistic or even to the Maccabean periods, Ezra 9-10 and Neh 13 provide a window into the socio-historical circumstances of the second half of the 5th century BCE. This dissertation argues that Isa 56:1-8 was not just an oracle of eschatological hope for the inclusion of foreigners, but that it was written during the second half of the 5th century BCE as a polemic against the exclusion of foreigners both from their priestly positions in the temple (Ezek 44) and from the community of Yahweh’s people (Ezra 9-10; Neh 13). The priesthood of foreigners in Isa 56:1-8 and 66:18-24 not only emerged out of the eschatological imagination of a prophetic writer but also developed as a reaction against the exclusive atmosphere of the community in the second half of the 5th century BCE.