Emosies en die uitdrukking van emosies in die Ou Testament

Abstract

The subject of emotion is a largely neglected topic in biblical studies and deserves extensive treatment. If one glances, for example, through the indexes and tables of contents of Old Testament encyclopedias and monographs on its theology, one searches in vain for a contribution on “emotion/emotional expressions”. Emotions are, however, such fundamental characteristics of human nature that no culture, including that of the Hebrew Bible, can be fully comprehended without also taking cognisance of this central feature of humankind. This contribution (1) surveys and evaluates some of the studies that have been published up to now on this subject field. It furthermore illustrates (2) what interesting results may be gained when emotions such as shame and distress (depression) are approached in terms of certain insights from the disciplines of cross-cultural psychology and fear from the perspective of cognitive anthropology.