Urim and Thummim
Urim and Thummim ( Hebrew אורים ותמים) are (presumably) lot and oracle stones of the high priest of the Israelites after Exodus 28:30. In Hebrew, the words mean 'lights and perfections'. Other translations are: 'the ends of light and those who mediate' ( Buber / Rosenzweig ) or 'light and law' ( Luther ).
Bible
In the Hebrew Bible , the Urim and Thummim appear in the following places: 2 Mos 28.30 EU , 3 Mos 8.8 EU , 5 Mos 33.8 EU , Esra 2.63 EU , Neh 7.65 EU . In addition, the Urim (without the Thummim ) are mentioned in 4 Mos 27.21 EU , 1 Sam 14.41 EU and 1 Sam 28.6 EU . These are the only source texts. They say that the Urim and Thummim should serve to resolve problems and answer questions to God.
According to popular belief, there were two stones with differently colored sides, which were fastened in the loose pocket on the efod , through which the high priest could learn the will of God ( Numbers 27:21). How the drawing of lots was carried out is not recorded. After the Babylonian exile , these stones were no longer used (cf. Nehemiah 7:65 and 2 Maccabees 2: 1-7). According to another opinion, it was the twelve precious stones that were on the breastplate of the Efod. This contradicts the fact that when Aaron was appointed as a priest, the finished breastplate with 12 stones was put on. Then the loose stones were placed in the breast pocket ( 3 Mos 8.8 EU ).
Talmud
In the Talmud there are already several, quite different speculations about the nature of the Urim and Thummim ; therefore it can be assumed that the ritual was no longer known at the time the Talmud was written.
Book of Mormon
Also of Joseph Smith , the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ( " Mormon ") as a prophet to recognize the will by its own account to translate the Book of Mormon stones have been used that name. According to tradition, he received these stones from the angel Moroni , who appeared to him and gave them to him to translate the Book of Mormon. The stones were, according to him, crystals. According to Mormon doctrine, the Urim and Thummim consist of two stones fastened in silver brackets, which are sometimes used with a breast shield (piece of clothing that the high priest wore in the law of Moses, see 2 Mos 28.15–30 EU ). The Urim and Thummim are therefore a God-prepared tool to help people obtain revelation and translate languages. According to this teaching, only a prophet, seer and revelator can use the Urim and Thummim .
Other uses
The term Urim and Thummim is also used as a motto or leitmotif, in both Hebrew and Latin (lux et veritas) , e.g. B. from Yale University in Connecticut , USA.
Web links
- Bible Lexicon: Urim and Thummim ; accessed on November 6, 2013
Individual evidence
- ↑ Source: Soncino Bible, Pentateuch and Haftorahs, London 1965, p. 342