compelling reasons,” says Hasel, “for departing from normal usage before one could be reasonably sure that a meaning other than the common one should be chosen.”28 There does not seem to be any compelling reason in this text. “Sleeping” (yāšēn) is used here of death as in Job 3:13; Psalm 13:3 and Jeremiah 51:39 of death. This is parallel to John 11:11 where Jesus says “Lazarus is sleeping” and three verses further on he explains that Lazarus is in fact dead. “Dusty earth” or “land of dust” (’admaṯʿaphār)