"It will not let the destroying [one] enter" : the mezuzah as an apotropaic device according to biblical and rabbinic sources

The Hebrew Bible as well as the early rabbinic literature supports the notion of the apotropaic function played by a mezuzah. This topic has so far been adequately investigated in scholarly literature and currently there are no doubts with regards to the protective purpose of this artefact. The state of research is the point of departure for the present study which offers that (1) a mezuzah is not only an apotropaic device but more importantly, (2) it is Yahveh himself who is repelled by its power. The following sources shall be analysed in support of this interpretation: Deuteronomy 6, 11, Exodus 12, Mekhilta de-rabbi Ishmael 7,12, BT Menahot 33b, 43b.