Baden, The Literary History of the Pentateuch (Mohr Siebeck)

NEW BOOK FROM MOHR SIEBECK:

Joel S. Baden

The Literary History of the Pentateuch

Collected Essays

[Die Literaturgeschichte des Pentateuch. Gesammelte Aufsätze.]
2025. XII, 298 pages.
Forschungen zum Alten Testament (FAT) 187

€139.00
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978-3-16-163468-0

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eBook PDF €139.00

Summary

In these collected essays, Joel Baden explores the history of the Pentateuch's literary composition. Including detailed analyses of specific passages as well as broad theoretical and methodological reflections, these essays offer a glimpse of both the mechanisms by which the Pentateuch came into being and the scholarly frameworks through which the Pentateuch is viewed. Spanning the first fifteen years of his career, this volume also represents a record of the recent trends in pentateuchal scholarship, especially the growth of the neo-documentary hypothesis.

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Simulations of late-antique viticulture in the Negev

ALGORITHMIC ARCHAEOBOTANY: New study finds secrets behind Byzantine wine economy in Israeli desert. Farmers in the Byzantine-period Negev developed a flourishing wine industry using advanced rainwater harvesting techniques, with new study showing high vulnerability to droughts (Ynet News).

Farmers in the Negev Desert during the Byzantine period, from the 4th to 7th centuries, developed a flourishing wine industry despite the region’s arid conditions, relying heavily on sophisticated rainwater collection systems — according to a new study from the University of Haifa.

The new study published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE, reveals how these farmers achieved remarkable success and why their industry eventually collapsed. Using an innovative computational model, researchers reconstructed the scale of wine production, the conditions behind its prosperity and the vulnerabilities that led to its decline.

[...]

Unhelpfully, the article does not link to that underlying open-access PLOS ONE article. Here it is:

Wine economy in Byzantine Shivta (Negev, Israel): Exploring the role of runoff agriculture and droughts through Agent-Based Modeling

Barak Garty , Gil Gambash, Sharona T. Levy, Guy Bar-Oz
Published: July 10, 2025 https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0325204

Abstract

Viticulture was a vital agricultural and economic activity during the Byzantine period, also in marginal regions like the Negev Desert. Innovative dryland farming techniques, such as runoff harvesting systems, terraces, and pigeon towers, enabled intensive grape cultivation and a thriving wine export economy. This study focuses on the resilience and adaptability of viticulture in the hinterland of Shivta, analyzing how climatic challenges like aridification and drought tested Byzantine water management strategies. The AGENTS model, developed in NetLogo, integrates various components to simulate viticulture dynamics in the Zetan watershed, calculating water availability, crop yields, and labor costs. The results show that higher runoff ratios improve yield efficiency, while excessive runoff ratios diminish productivity. Prolonged droughts significantly decrease wine production and extend recovery times beyond a decade. Wetter climatic scenarios slightly enhance yield efficiency but do not overcome structural limitations, highlighting the fragile nature of viticulture in the Negev desert. Overall, this study highlights the importance of effective water management in sustaining agriculture and the constraints that limited resilience in Shivta’s agricultural system. The modeling approach offers insights applicable to other regions and historical contexts facing environmental challenges.

For lots more on the archaeology of Shivta, including its viticulture, see here and links.

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Longacre on Hornkohl on linguistic dating of biblical Hebrew

THE OTTC BLOG: Diachronic Diversity in Classical Biblical Hebrew.

I just saw that Aaron Hornkohl has published an open-access book on Diachronic Diversity in Classical Biblical Hebrew, where he argues that we can see diachronic indications even within the corpus of Classical Biblical Hebrew. He suggests that, on balance, the Pentateuch reflects an earlier stage of Hebrew than the early prophets et al.

[...]

Drew Longacre offers some text-critical thoughts about this recent book.

Background here.

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Reordering an Aramaic ostracon that may mention Passover?

ARAMAIC EPIGRAPHY: Reading Berlin P. 10679 Inside Out

Gad Barnea

Tel Aviv
Journal of the Institute of Archaeology of Tel Aviv University

Pages 85-106 | Published online: 12 Jul 2025 https://doi.org/10.1080/03344355.2025.2479279

Abstract

Ostracon Berlin P. 10679 (TADAE D7.24) was first published in 1908 and has since attracted attention mostly due to its use of the term (b)psḥʾ—cognate with the Hebrew psḥ known from the Hebrew Bible in relation to the Passover. The text itself has generally been considered opaque and unclear. However, as shown in this article, the ostracon has thus far been read in the wrong order. It should be read convex-to-concave (cv > cc) rather than concave-to-convex (cc > cv)—a conclusion based upon philological and epigraphic analyses. The new interpretation provides a much improved reading, adding greater clarity and consistency to the text. The article cautions against presupposing a cc > cv flow of writing on ostraca and suggests that other confusing cases could benefit from a reevaluation. Unfortunately, the term (b)psḥʾ remains as obscure in the newly assembled context as it has always been.

Not to be confused with the Elephantine "Passover Papyrus,"—which does not actually have the word "Passover" in the surviving text.

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On linguistic dating of biblical Hebrew

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Isn’t It Time to Break Up with Linguistic Dating? Rethinking Hornkohl’s Method—and What Comes Next

In the end, Hornkohl’s work represents a well-argued example of an older paradigm trying to survive in a new era. His case studies are meticulously done and worthy of attention. But until we reckon fully with the compositional and textual realities of the Hebrew Bible, linguistic dating will remain, at best, a hopeful guess—and at worst, a circular exercise in self-confirmation.

By Robert Rezetko
Independent Researcher
Research Affiliate of the Universities of Arizona, Copenhagen, and Sydney

By Ian Young
Professor of Biblical Studies and Ancient Languages
Faculty of Theology and Philosophy
Australian Catholic University

By Martin Ehrensvärd
Associate Professor of Biblical Exegesis
Faculty of Theologyv University of Copenhagen

By Martijn Naaijer
Postdoctoral Researcher
Faculty of Theology and Religious Studies
University of Zurich
July 2025

A critique of an open-access New Book published by OpenBook Publishers which I have not yet mentioned:

Diachronic Diversity in Classical Biblical Hebrew

Aaron D. Hornkohl (author)

According to the standard periodisation of ancient Hebrew, the division of Biblical Hebrew as reflected in the Masoretic tradition is basically dichotomous: pre-exilic Classical Biblical Hebrew (CBH) versus post-Restoration Late Biblical Hebrew (LBH). Within this paradigm, the chronolectal unity of CBH is rarely questioned—this despite the reasonable expectation that the language of a corpus encompassing traditions of various ages and comprising works composed, edited, and transmitted over the course of centuries would show signs of diachronic development. From the perspective of historical evolution, CBH is remarkably homogenous. Within this apparent uniformity, however, there are indeed signs of historical development, sets of alternant features whose respective concentrations seem to divide CBH into two sub-chronolects. The most conspicuous typological division that emerges is between the CBH of the Pentateuch and that of the relevant Prophets and Writings. The present volume investigates a series of features that distinguish the two ostensible CBH sub-chronolects, weighs alternative explanations for distribution patterns that appear to have chronological significance, and considers broader implications for Hebrew diachrony and periodisation and for the composition of the Torah.

For earlier installments of this debate, see here and links.

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Archaeological dating methods

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Dating Game: How Archaeologists Date the Biblical Past (Yoav Vaknin, Biblical Archaeology Review, Summer 2025 issue).

Here, I briefly review the uses (and limitations) of several dating methods, including my own specialty, archaeomagnetism, which I believe can significantly improve our understanding of Iron Age chronology.

Unusually, but welcome, the full text of this BAR article is available for free.

HT Bible History Daily, which summarizes.

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Nir, The Tales of the Sages in Late Midrash (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

The Tales of the Sages in Late Midrash

A Curtain Set with Jewels

Series: The Brill Reference Library of Judaism, Volume: 79

Author: Sivan Nir

How should we read tales about rabbinic sages unique to post-Talmudic works? What theological, poetic, and social changes do they hide? Who could have authored them? The Tales of the Sages in Late Midrash, reveals these narratives’ hypertextuality. Their characters, phrasings, and themes only invert, expand, and mimic other tales. In their own words, they are mosaics of cherished stories set into new narrative tapestries– What Acher thought of R. Akiva’s death? How was Akiva buried? Who was Resh Laqish before he met R. Yochanan? Analyzing twenty little-known such stories from fourteen compositions and discussing many others, Sivan Nir shows how medieval scholars use their stories to explore tensions between rabbis and laypersons, men and women, God and history, medieval culture and the Talmudic past.

Copyright Year: 2025

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-73470-8
Publication: 16 Jun 2025
EUR €119.00

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-54721-6
Publication: 26 Jun 2025
EUR €119.00

Incidentally, here's a tip for choosing a title for your book.

This book has a good title. It tells you up front what it's about and makes a subtitle of the cute quotation. Lots of books put the subtitle first. That means that social media post titles need either to cut out the title and give the subtitle, or else give the title and leave readers without a clue what your book is actually about.

If the latter, they may not bother to click on that link.

Have your title give the subject of your book. Save any quotes or creative lines for the subtitle.

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On working out naked in Jason's Jerusaelm

CULTURAL CLASH: Jewish priests wrestling naked: How sports shook ancient Judean society. In Jerusalem before the Hasmonean Revolt, priests shocked their community by abandoning Temple duties to wrestle nude at the gymnasion; this vivid clash between Greek athleticism and Jewish tradition exposed deep cultural and religious fault lines (Shmuel Munitz, Ynet News).

“The gymnasion symbolized Jerusalem’s transformation into a Hellenistic city, with even priests engaging in a foreign culture,” said Dr. Haim Kaufman, an expert in Hebrew sports history who taught for years at the Levinsky-Wingate Academic Center. After Alexander the Great’s conquests, a wave of Hellenization swept through occupied territories, blending local and Greek cultures.

In the second century BCE, under the Seleucid Empire, founded by King Seleucus I, a Hellenized high priest named Jason (originally Yehoshua or Yeshua) spearheaded reforms, culminating in the establishment of a gymnasion in Jerusalem, infuriating traditional Jews.

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More on the redating of 4QDanielc

How redating the Dead Sea Scrolls puts new spin on the apocalyptic visions of Daniel (Ian Young, Gareth Wearne and Evan Caddy, ABC Australia).

One manuscript stands out among the new 14C dates — a copy of part of the book of Daniel, conventionally identified as 4Q114 or 4QDanc. The 14C results for that manuscript indicate that it was most likely composed between the years 355–285 BCE or 230–160 BCE. Significantly, the latter of these ranges seems to corroborate the widely held theory that the book of Daniel was completed sometime in the 160s BCE.

The fact that scholars are so excited that a Daniel manuscript seems to date from near the time of composition of the book of Daniel in the 160s BCE may need explanation. A first perusal of the book would appear to indicate that Daniel received these prophecies of the far future in his historical setting of the sixth century BCE. Why second century, then?

This article has a quite good discussion of the implications of the redating of this manuscript of the Book of Daniel.

Background here and here with my own commentary.

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Review of Murphy, Deification in classical Greek philosophy and the Bible

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Deification in classical Greek philosophy and the Bible.

James Bernard Murphy, Deification in classical Greek philosophy and the Bible. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2024. Pp. 378. ISBN 9781009392921.

Review by
Zachary T. Hedges, Trinity College of Florida.
zachary.hedges@trinitycollege.edu

... Murphy’s project, then, is to recover a sense of this interconnectedness between philosophy and religion, as it shapes the approaches to deification expressed in (1) archaic Greek religion, (2) the teachings of the three major classical philosophers (Socrates, Plato, Aristotle), and (3) the collective witness of the biblical canon. ...

Sounds like an interesting book. But any discussion of deification in the Bible is going to be incomplete and misleading unless it steps outside the major canons and includes the apocalypses in the book of 1 Enoch.

Some other deification-related thoughts pertaining to the classical and biblical worlds are here and links.

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Syriac department opens in Kurdish university

SYRIAC WATCH: Syriac Language Department opens at Nohadra University (unattributes, SyriacPress).

NOHADRA (DOHUK), Kurdistan Region of Iraq — The Ministry of Higher Education in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq has approved the opening of a Syriac Language Department, in its Eastern dialect (Sureth), at the College of Education at Nohadra (Dohuk) University, starting from the current academic year.

[...]

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Archaic Hebrew poetry in the Torah

PROF. TANIA NOTARIUS: Remnants of Archaic Hebrew Poetry Embedded in the Torah.

The poems in the Torah are stylistically, theologically, and linguistically different from the prose narratives surrounding them. They include traces of earlier dialects of Hebrew, Ancient Near Eastern mythical motifs, and resemble an 8th century B.C.E. poetic fragment from Kuntillet Ajrud—all of which suggest that they are ancient remnants of earlier Israelite literature.

A good discussion of archaic Hebrew poetry in the Pentateuch.

Elsewhere in the Hebrew Bible I would include at least Judges 5, 2 Samuel 1, Psalm 29, and a few other bits and pieces as archaic poetry. And there is a good case for Habakkuk 3 and some other passages.

Visit PaleoJudaica daily for the latest news on ancient Judaism and the biblical world.

Review of Wander, Flavius Josephus and artwork of Roman antiquity and the early Middle Ages

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Flavius Josephus and artwork of Roman antiquity and the early Middle Ages.

Steven H. Wander, Flavius Josephus and artwork of Roman antiquity and the early Middle Ages. Wiesbaden: Reichert Verlag, 2024. Pp. 238. ISBN 9783752007916.

Review by
Honora Chapman, California State University, Fresno.
hchapman@csufresno.edu

Though there is copious recent scholarship on Josephus’ historiography, art historian Steven Wander focuses in his new volume upon Josephus’ “influence on artworks from Roman Antiquity and the early Middle Ages” (p. 19), ranging from the Arch of Titus to the Paris Psalter.[1] This is, indeed, very welcome, since it is the first book-length study of this important topic and is supported by beautiful illustrations throughout.[2] Wander’s detailed yet lucid observations “connecting word and image” (p. 21), found in the 56 mostly color illustrations (listed on pp. 11–16), make it an absolute pleasure to read.

[...]

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Another tomb from the Abgar dynasty excavated at Urfu?

SYRIAC WATCH: Archaeological discovery in Urhoy possibly tomb belonging to Syriac Abgar dynasty (unattributed, Syriac Press).

The brief underlying article in Anatolian Archaeology is open access:

WRITTEN BY LEMAN ALTUNTAŞJULY 6, 2025

Ancient Tomb Discovered at Urfa Castle: Could It Belong to the Abgar Dynasty?

ANATOLIAN NEWS . SOUTHEASTERN ANATOLIA ARTICLE

Archaeological excavations at the historic Urfa Castle in southeastern Türkiye have led to a remarkable discovery that may shed new light on the region’s ancient past. A rock-cut tomb dating back to Late Antiquity has been uncovered on Dambak Hill, just south of the iconic Balıklıgöl. Experts believe the tomb may be linked to the ancient Kingdom of Osroene—also known as the Abgar Dynasty.

[...]

Orhoy and Urfa are both names of the modern city in Turkey that was known as Edessa in antiquity. The Edessen dialect of Aramaic became Syriac, the language of the Eastern Church.

I noted the discovery of some other rock-cut tombs at Urfa Castle which may be associated with the Abgar dynasty back in 2016. But it sounds like this is a new find. In that same year some mosaics of Abgar V, the subject of apocryphal Syriac correspondence with Jesus, were also discovered. See here and here.

And for more PaleoJudaica posts on the Agbarid dynasty and the apocryphal Syriac correspondence between King Abgar V and Jesus, as well as on ancient Edessa, follow the links collected here.

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Religion and War from Antiquity to Early Modernity (Bloomsbury)

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY:

Religion and War from Antiquity to Early Modernity

Irene Polinskaya (Anthology Editor) , Alan James (Anthology Editor) , Ioannis Papadogiannakis (Anthology Editor)

Hardback $190.00 $171.00

Ebook (Epub & Mobi) $171.00 $136.80

Ebook (PDF) $171.00 $136.80

Product details

Published Nov 28 2024
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Extent 512
ISBN 9780567697783
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Illustrations 3 bw illus
Dimensions 10 x 7 inches
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

Description

Responding to the profound challenges of our times, this book provides a comparative and cross-cultural exploration of the role of religion in war in a long historical perspective, from the second millennium BCE, and even earlier, up to early modernity.

Individual chapters focus on the ancient Near East, the Mediterranean basin, Europe and North Africa. Widely diverse case studies explore the historic link between the conduct of war and the growing complexity of human society conditioned by the ownership of ideological authority. The book explores how in most historical societies this authority was religious.

Written by experts from different disciplinary perspectives, the volume challenges common assumptions about the historical relationship between religion and war and extends our understanding of the dangers and complexities of today's world.

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