Even the donkey and the ox know (Isaiah 1:2-3):

an appeal to the significance of natural law in biblical interpretation

Abstract

This article analyses Isaiah 1:2-3 from the perspective of natural law. It argues that natural law, as a theological-ethical concept, is introduced in Isaiah 1:2-3. As such it theorises that natural law can be incorporated as a hermeneutical lens for the theological-ethical interpretation of some Old Testament texts without jeopardising the integrity of theological discourse. This hermeneutical lens, I will argue, is significant for some interpretive communities in Africa. The Tangale ethnic group’s traditional beliefs and practices are used as a point of departure for the discourse to argue that moral and ethical values informed by these traditional beliefs are reflections of natural law. Thus, showing heuristic potentials thereof in understanding some of the theology and ethics of the Old Testament.