Richard Elliott

Why did the writer of E picture the Levites as acting in bloody zeal? He was a Levite

The story thus denigrates the ancestory of the Jerusalem priests while praising the rest of the Levites

The E writer therefore was adding to the golden calf story an element of praise for a northern hero who was associated in the tradition with the capital city and the preeminent tribe. The dissociation of Joshua from the golden calf heresy also explained why Joshua later becomes Moses’ successor