In-Conclusion

Abstract

Abstract This chapter provides an overview of the book, discussing both the metanarrative and its insistent subversion. It is concerned with the transition from the Davidic polity to its aftermath, and from male to female figurations of God. It proposes a multi-levelled conception of YHWH in Isaiah, as a persona, a symbol of Israelite values and identity, and an ultimate reality. The chapter concludes with a methodological postscript, which concerns the relation of historical criticism to literary analysis; the value of psychoanalysis; and the critical task—both to judge and to be self-aware—which correlates with Isaiah’s own critical responsibility. It is a deconstructive work—always critical—which is nonetheless a kind of faith, a willingness to respond to whatever the text has to tell us.