ABSTRACT

Many childbirth narratives in the Hebrew Bible present obstetrical difficulties: twin births, a high age of the mother, difficult and complicated birth scenarios occasionally resulting in the death of the mother. This article will investigate the obstetrical knowledge hidden in these descriptions both in light of what is known about the obstetrical knowledge in Israel and in the surrounding cultures. It will ask whether the divine granting of offspring functions similarly as the divine granting of food in the Hebrew Bible, namely that continued faithfulness to God or a radical return to God are rewarded by divine abundance.