Le Roux, J.H. (Jurie Hendrik), 1944-2015-11-262015-11-262015-10-15Le Roux, J., 2015, ‘Reliving the past’, HTS TeologieseStudies/Theological Studies 71(1), Art. #3058, 6 pages. http://dx.DOI.org/ 10.4102/hts.v71i1.3058.0259-9422 (print)2072-8050 (online)10.4102/hts.v71i1.3058http://hdl.handle.net/2263/50922The awareness of the historical nature of our human existence had a profound influence on Old Testament scholarship. The historical nature of the Hebrew Bible was also realised and historical criticism was the result, but in the 20th century there was resistance against this method. This article is an attempt to emphasise the importance of historical understanding as a means of reliving the experiences of others in the present. To illustrate this we focus on the work of Eckart Otto and his exposition of the golden calf narrative in Deuteronomy 9:9–21; 10:1–5*. The importance of his work for us lies in his blending of synchrony and diachrony in the study of the book of Deuteronomy.en© 2015. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS OpenJournals. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.Old Testament scholarshipHuman existenceHebrew BibleSouth African biblical scholarshipResistanceSynchronyDiachronyPast can give hopePast becomes presentTheology articles SDG-04SDG-04: Quality educationTheology articles SDG-11SDG-11: Sustainable cities and communitiesTheology articles SDG-16SDG-16: Peace, justice and strong institutionsArticle