Picturing the Cosmos through Legal Metaphors – חקק as a Case Study

Abstract This article examines the Hebrew Bible’s use of legal metaphors in its depiction of the material cosmos (exemplified by the use of חקק ) and compares it with the same phenomena in Mesopotamian texts (exemplified by the use of kittu ). This study shows that the two metaphors are of two different types: the one around חקק is »legislative«, in which the creator-legislator imposes laws on the cosmos to ensure the regularity in its working; the one around kittu is »judicial«, in which the divine judge reveals his decision over divinatory cases truthfully through cosmic phenomena.