Social Network Analysis of the Covenant Code and Its Comparison with the Holiness Code
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7146/hn.v11i1.166300Keywords:
Covenant Code, Holiness Code, social network analysis, comparative analysisAbstract
This study applies social network analysis (SNA) to the Covenant Code (Exod 20:22–23:33) to examine its depiction of social structure and compare it with the Holiness Code (Lev 17–26). Building on the methodology developed by Christian Canu Højgaard for Leviticus, a manually constructed dataset of semantic triplets was analyzed using standard SNA metrics like cohesion, centrality, clustering, and multidimensional scaling. The Covenant Code network reveals a steep, two-tier hierarchy dominated by YHWH and the singular addressee (2MSg), while all other participants remain peripheral. Compared with the Holiness Code, the Covenant Code is less dense and less integrated, though it exhibits greater diversity of participants’ roles. Clustering analysis also highlights specific patterns, such as the proximity of “fellow” (רֵעַ) to “an Israelite,” suggesting its function solely as a referent to the second participant in an interaction.
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