{"id":10362,"date":"2026-04-20T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362"},"modified":"2025-10-25T09:42:03","modified_gmt":"2025-10-25T09:42:03","slug":"looking-at-john-h-waltons-book-2025-new-explorations-in-the-lost-world-of-genesis-part-10-of-20","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362","title":{"rendered":"Looking at John H. Walton’s Book (2025) “New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis”\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

0098 Perhaps, the above figure may not offer a proper introduction to the way that semiotics gets entangled in the way that the appearance of a solid dome<\/em> (SV) stands for the word, “firmament”<\/em> (SO), in regards to the semiotic way that things can be pictured or pointed to<\/em> (SI).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Semiotic way (SI)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appearance of the thing <\/em>(the sky, SV) as matter<\/em> is objectified by a spoken word, “firmament”<\/em> (SO), as form,<\/em> as if the spoken word<\/em> pictures or points to the thing itself<\/em> (SI).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key point is “as if”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0099 In terms of existence, the sky comes first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, the person notices that the sky has the appearance of a dome.  Plus, that dome looks solid, even though the air… does not seem solid at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now comes the label, “firmament”, which is the form<\/em> that is substantiated by the matter of the solidity of the dome<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, what<\/em> is the basis of that substantiation?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

0100 The normal context3<\/sub> of mediation3<\/sub> and the potentials1<\/sub> of design1<\/sub> and intention1<\/sub> are off screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, if they were on screen, I imagine that the mediation3<\/sub><\/em> is something like the establishment of the natural order of things3<\/sub><\/em> and the design1<\/sub><\/em> would be a solid dome<\/em> with the intention1<\/sub><\/em> of a structure to hang those shiny little stars, plus the planets, which are moving stars1<\/sub><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is to say, the sign-interpretant (SI) is picture… or an indicator… or a symbol of the mediation3<\/sub> and its potential1<\/sub>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0101 With that said, I claim that what I imagine as an image, a pointing or a label<\/em> may be regarded as one of the three types of the natural sign: icon, index and symbol<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this instance, the solid dome as matter<\/em> [substantiates] the term, “firmament”, as form<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plus, this thing<\/em> entangles an iconic natural sign-relation,<\/em> where the solidity of the dome <\/em>(SV) portrays the design and intention<\/em> (SI) of a sign-object,<\/em> a spoken word, “firmament”<\/em> (SO), in regards to God’s establishment of the natural order of things<\/em> (SI).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

0102 How crazy is that?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the spoken words<\/em> (as forms) of the Israelites and the people of the ANE civilizations<\/em> entangle a sign-relation as matter,<\/em> as if it is perfectly routine, then we have a problem with spoken words.  Spoken words<\/em> do not refer to things<\/em>. Spoken words are forms in confoundings<\/em>.  Plus, we already know that confoundings are dangerous.  Okay, they also may be enriching.  But, this looks unhinged.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe, all that I need to do is tighten the screws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0103 If I proceed to turn in the same direction, the reference of the solidity of the dome as esse_ce<\/em> affirms the form of the spoken word, “firmament” as essence,<\/em> on the basis that… um… spoken words picture and point to things?… no, it cannot be that…. appearances?… convention?… habits?… or maybe we can consult the breakthrough 20th century linguist, Ferdinand de Saussure and say, “arbitrary relations”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If a thing as matter<\/em> [substantiates] a spoken word as form,<\/em> then the only way that the substance works<\/em> is when a mediation3<\/sub>, formal design1<\/sub> and a final cause1<\/sub><\/em> are present as entangled matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, they are not directly entangled.  They are entangled by way of a natural sign-relation.  An icon, index or symbol corresponds to the entangled matter<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0104 Yes, that sounds perfectly logical and completely screwed up at the same time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0105 To me, the entanglement of a sign-relation as matter<\/em> demonstrates that there is more to Walton’s terms, reference<\/em>and affirmation,<\/em> than meets the eye.  They do not actually2<\/sub> work without a normal context3<\/sub> and potential1<\/sub>.  The normal context3<\/sub> is mediation3<\/sub>.  The potential1<\/sub> include formal design1<\/sub> and final attributes1<\/sub>.  These elements of the category-based nested form are off-screen.  A natural sign-relation brings them on-screen in a confounding manner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0106 I ask, “What is Walton doing in his Lost World Inquiry?”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, let me switch matter and form around and present the entangled matter<\/em> as a sign-relation<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The spoken word<\/em> goes from form to matter.  The solidity of the dome<\/em> goes from matter to form.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The “firmament” as matter<\/em> [substantiates] the solidity of the dome as form<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Does the correspond to what Walton proposes <\/em>concerning how the spoken word operates?<\/em>  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The term “firmament”, as a sign-vehicle (SV) [substantiates] the solid dome, as a sign-object (SO).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am turning in the same direction, aren’t I?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0107 Matter is the entangled SV.  Form is the entangled SO.  Some sort of natural picture, indicator or representation of the corresponding mediation3<\/sub> and its potentials1<\/sub> is the SI.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The spoken word as matter<\/em> is the SV.  If the solid dome as form<\/em> is the SO, then an originating natural sign<\/em>… dare I call it relation?… maybe, “connection”, will do… is the SI.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is a picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

0108 What Walton is doing<\/em> is in green.  The entanglement<\/em> is in purple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0109 First, what is Walton’s thing?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Walton’s thing<\/em> is a hylomorphe<\/em> that takes the shape of a sign-vehicle <\/em>(as originating matter) and sign-object<\/em> (as form) when entangled with semiotic matter<\/em> (as a sign-interpretant).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0110 According to Ferdinand de Saussure, a spoken word (parole)<\/em> is arbitrarily related to its corresponding thought (langue)<\/em>.  Consequently, each spoken word (parole)<\/em> exists in a system of differences.   So does its corresponding thought (langue)<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0111 Perhaps, Walton does not endorse semiology or structuralism, but I suspect that he regards the word, “firmament”<\/em>(or whatever the Hebrew word is) as matter<\/em> (SV) that stands for a solid dome<\/em> as form<\/em> (SO) in regards to the way people think in ancient civilizations<\/em> (SI).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

0111 Uh oh.  The Lost World Inquiry<\/em> is supposed to recover the way people think in ancient civilizations!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plus, as already noted, people in the ancient civilizations of the Near East <\/em>apparently turn the screw<\/em> the other way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The solidity of the dome as matter<\/em> [substantiates] the term, “firmament”, as form<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

0098 Perhaps, the above figure may not offer a proper introduction to the way that semiotics gets entangled in the way that the appearance of a solid dome (SV) stands for the word, “firmament” (SO), in regards to the semiotic way that things can be pictured or pointed to (SI). Semiotic way (SI)? The appearance of the thing (the sky, SV) as matter is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[417],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10362","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-review"],"yoast_head":"\nLooking at John H. Walton's Book (2025) "New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis"\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20) - An Archaeology of the Fall<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Looking at John H. Walton's Book (2025) "New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis"\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20) - An Archaeology of the Fall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"0098 Perhaps, the above figure may not offer a proper introduction to the way that semiotics gets entangled in the way that the appearance of a solid dome (SV) stands for the word, “firmament” (SO), in regards to the semiotic way that things can be pictured or pointed to (SI). Semiotic way (SI)? The appearance of the thing (the sky, SV) as matter is […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"An Archaeology of the Fall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-20T08:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ad695f570ebd1b2a6f85c4ac5badcd04\"},\"headline\":\"Looking at John H. Walton’s Book (2025) “New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis”\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20)\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-20T08:00:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362\"},\"wordCount\":1155,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"Book Review\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362\",\"name\":\"Looking at John H. Walton's Book (2025) \\\"New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis\\\"\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20) - An Archaeology of the Fall\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-20T08:00:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ad695f570ebd1b2a6f85c4ac5badcd04\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Looking at John H. Walton’s Book (2025) “New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis”\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20)\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"An Archaeology of the Fall\",\"description\":\"A Horror Story by Razie Mah\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ad695f570ebd1b2a6f85c4ac5badcd04\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13f66383028a15bc9f1f6f30c43ce372a5a073cb8ec7f9069fa5158a183efe4d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13f66383028a15bc9f1f6f30c43ce372a5a073cb8ec7f9069fa5158a183efe4d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Looking at John H. Walton's Book (2025) \"New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis\"\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20) - An Archaeology of the Fall","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Looking at John H. Walton's Book (2025) \"New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis\"\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20) - An Archaeology of the Fall","og_description":"0098 Perhaps, the above figure may not offer a proper introduction to the way that semiotics gets entangled in the way that the appearance of a solid dome (SV) stands for the word, “firmament” (SO), in regards to the semiotic way that things can be pictured or pointed to (SI). Semiotic way (SI)? The appearance of the thing (the sky, SV) as matter is […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362","og_site_name":"An Archaeology of the Fall","article_published_time":"2026-04-20T08:00:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":600,"height":400,"url":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ad695f570ebd1b2a6f85c4ac5badcd04"},"headline":"Looking at John H. Walton’s Book (2025) “New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis”\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20)","datePublished":"2026-04-20T08:00:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362"},"wordCount":1155,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png","articleSection":["Book Review"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362","url":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362","name":"Looking at John H. Walton's Book (2025) \"New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis\"\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20) - An Archaeology of the Fall","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png","datePublished":"2026-04-20T08:00:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ad695f570ebd1b2a6f85c4ac5badcd04"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Slide22-5.png"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?p=10362#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Looking at John H. Walton’s Book (2025) “New Explorations in the Lost World of Genesis”\u00a0\u00a0(Part 10 of 20)"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/","name":"An Archaeology of the Fall","description":"A Horror Story by Razie Mah","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/ad695f570ebd1b2a6f85c4ac5badcd04","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13f66383028a15bc9f1f6f30c43ce372a5a073cb8ec7f9069fa5158a183efe4d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/13f66383028a15bc9f1f6f30c43ce372a5a073cb8ec7f9069fa5158a183efe4d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"url":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10362","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10362"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10362\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10365,"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10362\/revisions\/10365"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10362"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10362"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.raziemah.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10362"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}