The Patriarchal Narratives as Background for Understanding the Term "My People, ʿAmî" in the Book of Exodus (3:7): A Theological Aspect

The Patriarchal Narratives as Background for Understanding the Term "My People" (ʿami) in Exodus 3:7: A Theological Aspect

The context of chapters 15 and 17 in the Book of Genesis deals with God's promise to Abram of innumerable offspring. The scene in Genesis 15:9–15 serves as a covenant established between God and Abram, which is later explicitly expressed in Genesis 17:7–9: God will be worshipped as their own God, and Abraham's offspring will be recognized by God as His own people.

At the beginning of the Book of Exodus, the term bene Yisrael is identified with Abraham's offspring and also signifies the blood relationship among them.

Within the same context, the expression ʿam bene Yisrael in Exodus 1:9 acquires a demographic and political meaning in Pharaoh's words. In Exodus 3:7, the term ʿami ("my people") acquires a soteriological and theological significance because God Himself recognizes Jacob's offspring as His own people.

Through textual examination, it becomes evident that the term ʿami, within the theological contexts of Genesis and Exodus, develops different dimensions of meaning while retaining its fundamental identity.

Alexandra V. Palantza, PhD, is Associate Professor of Biblical Theology in the Department of Theology at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, where she is a member of the Hermeneutical Section. Her teaching and research focus on biblical theology, Old Testament theology, biblical interpretation, the theological reception of Scripture, and the relationship between biblical texts and the Greek Orthodox interpretive tradition.

She received both her undergraduate degree and her PhD from the Department of Theology of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, completing her doctorate in 2003. Following her theological studies, she undertook advanced work in Biblical Theology under Professors Savvas Agourides and Georgios Galitis. She subsequently received scholarships from the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the Old Catholic Church of Switzerland, enabling her to pursue postgraduate study at the Universities of Tübingen and Bern.

Palantza has participated extensively in conferences devoted to biblical studies in Greece and internationally and is a member of the Hellenic Society of Biblical Theologians. She teaches Biblical Theology at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Her scholarship engages the Hebrew Bible / Old Testament, New Testament reception of Old Testament traditions, biblical anthropology, creation theology, biblical figures and narratives, and the reception of Scripture in patristic and later Orthodox Christian thought.

Her work is characterized by a particular interest in tracing theological continuities between Old and New Testament texts. This can be seen in her studies of manna in Exodus and the Gospel of John, Moses and Elijah in the Synoptic Transfiguration narratives and Revelation, Gideon's fleece and its later Christian interpretation, Old Testament figures in the teachings of St Kosmas Aitolos, and the theological significance of creation narratives in modern Western and Greek Orthodox biblical scholarship.

A further strand of her research concerns biblical anthropology and the theology of creation, including the biblical concept of humanity created in the image of God and comparative approaches to Genesis within Western and Orthodox theological traditions.

Her scholarship also encompasses the theology of Ruth, prophetic traditions, Maccabean literature, Pauline and Lukan theology, and the history of biblical interpretation. Her doctoral research was devoted to the figure of the eschatological prophet, while later monographs have examined the theology of the Book of Ruth and the concepts of martyrdom and witness in 4 Maccabees.

Alongside her research and teaching, Palantza has undertaken academic administrative responsibilities within the Department of Theology. She served as scientific coordinator of the Department's Practical Training Programme from 2021 to 2025 and participated in the Department's evaluation team, first as a member from 2021 to 2023 and subsequently as its coordinator from 2023 to 2025.

She is also a member of the Editorial Board of the European Hebrew Journal, contributing expertise in Biblical Theology, Hebrew Bible studies, biblical hermeneutics, and the reception history of Scripture.

The study is grounded particularly in the martyrdom narratives of 2 Maccabees 6–7 and their theological development in 4 Maccabees.

Among the principal issues examined are:

• the relationship between 2 Maccabees and 4 Maccabees;
• the linguistic and rhetorical characteristics associated with the post-classical Greek period;
• the reception of the theological ideas of 4 Maccabees within early Christianity;
• the interpretation of the Maccabean martyrs as models of faithfulness and witness;
• the reception of these traditions by Church Fathers as a theological bridge between the Old Testament and the New Testament era;
• the meaning of persecution, witness, faithfulness to God, and martyrdom within early Christian interpretation.

The Maccabean martyrs consequently became important examples for early Christians facing persecution and for later Christian theological reflection on witness and martyrdom.