马里先知及其预言初探

An Initial Study of Prophets and Prophecies in Mari

本文通过分析马里皇家档案中的五十余封先知预言信函,及其他与先知活动相关的行政档案、祭祀记录和文学文本,尝试呈现马里先知的类型、活动范围、社会联系,以及先知预言的主要方式;同时对马里先知预言的典型文本予以较详细的解读,揭示出它的三个重要主题。最后指出,研究古代马里先知及其预言对于深入了解希伯来圣经先知,乃至古代近东文明圈先知预言现象的意义。

This paper examines the 50 or so letters that record the prophecies given to the kings of Mari: the administrative documents,records of rituals, and a literary text that are found in Archives Royales de Mari. It shows the various types of prophets in Mari, their most frequent appearances in society, their social connections, and their major ways of prophecy..This paper also engages in a close reading of some typical prophetic texts and delineates the three typical themes in Mari prophecies. Finally, the paper points out that a clear understanding of the prophets and their prophecies in Mari can enable a better understanding of the prophets and their prophecies widely extant in the Hebrew Bible and ancient Near Eastern civilization.