Noncanonical scriptures in the Enlightenment

THE ANXIOUS BENCH: How The Enlightenment Discovered The Alternative Scriptures (Philip Jenkins).

I have long worked on what we might call alternative Christianities and especially the scriptures they produced. In the modern world, we are well used to the idea of early systems that get labeled heresies, but which actually (many believe) conveyed many of the authentic teachings of the early church. As we known from the work of Elaine Pagels, Bart Ehrman, Karen King, and so many others, there were whole gospels that somehow got excluded from the emerging canon. Based on my own readings, I think that process of discovery started much earlier than we usually suppose, closer to 1900 than to 2000. But increasingly, I am finding much deeper roots, which are not well known or discussed. Today’s blog concerns what I find a startling wave of discoveries that happened still earlier, in the Enlightenment years around 1700, which look far more modern than we might ever have thought. Much of the main work came from clergy themselves, usually situated within the established churches. Even then, some people claimed to find whole new gospels.

[...]

Johann Albert Fabricius and I go way back. We dedicated the 2013 MOTP1 volume to him and tho R. H. Charles on the respective three hundredth and one hundredth anniversaries of the publication of their Old Testament Pseudepigrapha collections.

The post above is a continuation of Professor Jenkins's Lost and Found Scriptures series. For earlier posts, see here and links.

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The journey of the Great Isaiah Scroll

BECAUSE YOU SHOULD KNOW THESE THINGS: The remarkable 12,000 mile journey of the Isaiah scroll from Qumran to Jerusalem (Jo Elizabeth, Israel National News).

The Isaiah Scroll, the most complete and important of the Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in Qumran, is currently on display at the Israel Museum for the first time since 1968.

Although the distance from Qumran to Jerusalem is a mere 23 kilometers (14 miles), the manuscript has traveled thousands of miles on an epic journey since its discovery in 1947.

[...]

This is a great story that is worth retelling. This article is substantially accurate, although Kando was a Syrian Orthodox Christian, not a Bedouin. That's not an insignficant point, since it explains why he consulted with the Syriac Orthodox Church.

For more on the current exhibition of the Great Isaiah Scroll in the Israel Museum, see here and links.

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Ritual boundaries in late-antique magic

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Shared Symbols and Religious Boundaries in Late Antiquity: A View from Personal Experience and Late Antique Magic

Shared religious symbols do not necessarily mean weak or blurred religious boundaries. Christian ritual texts that combine anti-Jewish rhetoric with names for God often labeled “Jewish” show that cultural sharing and sharp religious differentiation could coexist. This calls for more care in how scholars interpret religious identity, boundaries, and “mixing” in late antique lived religion.

See also Ritual Boundaries: Magic and Differentiation in Late Antique Christianity (University of California Press, 2024; open access).

By Joseph E. Sanzo
Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
Center for the Study of Lived Religion
July 2026

Ritual boundaries are complicated. Rituals mean something by their actions. They are often open to quite different interpretations depending on their framing. The meaning of ritual "magic" is especially elusive and provocative.

For more on the book and the author's work, see here and here.

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Assyrian religious-themed seal excavated at Yavneh

ANCIENT MATERIAL MULTI-CULTURE: Ancient Seal Found in Israel Reveals Moon and Star Worship 2,600 Years Ago (Abdul Moeed, Greek Reporter).

Archaeologists have found an ancient seal in Israel that shows a man worshipping the moon and stars, offering new evidence of religious practices from more than 2,600 years ago.

The small stone object turned up at a large pottery-making site near Tel Yavne, on Israel’s southern coastal plain, about 15 kilometers (9.3 miles) from Ashdod. Researchers date the find to the 7th century BC, a period when the Assyrian Empire controlled much of the region. ...

... Its flat base shows a bearded man facing left with one arm raised.

He appears to be gesturing toward a cult stand, a crescent moon, and an eight-pointed star, which researchers say represents the planet, Venus. A cypress-like tree stands behind him.

The moon and star symbols point to worship of a moon god and a major female deity, according to the study. ...

The study in the journal Tel Aviv is open access:

An ‘Assyro-Levantine’ Stamp Seal with a Worship Scene Found near Tel Yavne

Christoph Uehlinger, Pablo Betzer, Revital Golding-Meir, Daniel Varga & Gunnar Lehmann
Published online: 03 Jul 2026
Cite this article https://doi.org/10.1080/03344355.2026.2637186

Abstract

The city of Yavne is located in the southern Coastal Plain, ca. 15 km from Ashdod and ca. 40 km from Ashkelon. During an extensive archaeological excavation conducted approximately 200 m east of Tel Yavne, a large-scale pottery-production site was uncovered within layers dating to the Iron IIC (7th century BCE). A limestone seal depicting a human figure alongside symbols of worship was discovered on a working surface. This paper analyses the religio-historical significance of this finding while situating Yavne’s settlement within the geopolitical landscape of the Assyrian imperial period.

Now ask the next question. Why does someone living at Yavneh in the seventh century BCE own a seal depicting an Assyrian religious ritual? (Not just Yavneh. Lots of similar ones have been found in the Levant.) That leads to other questions. Who owned the seal? What did they seal with it? Using it was clearly a statement. What did it mean?

I can't see any of these questions addressed in the article. Of course we may not know the answers, but let's discuss the possibilities.

For many other archaeological discoveries from many periods at Yavneh (Yavhe), see here and links, here, and here.

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Secrets of Huqoq at the Yigal Allon Center Museum

EXHIBITION: Secrets of Huqoq revealed: New exhibition provides first glimpse of ancient Jewish village. New artifact and photographic exhibition housed on the shores of the Sea of Galilee and overlooking the Horvat Huqoq site showcases site's original Samson floor mosaic, alongside a bronze coin cache’s premier public display (Israel National News).

Horvat Huqoq, visible from the museum’s windows, is best known for the impressive ancient synagogue uncovered by the Huqoq expedition excavations, led by Professor Jodi Magness of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Extraordinary in their beauty and narrative richness, including rare biblical and extra-biblical scenes, the range of the Huqoq mosaics are unequalled by any other synagogue in Israel.

For many posts on the remarkable discoveries at the site of Huqoq, see here and here and follow the links.

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SOTS Booklist 2026

IN THE MAIL:

Samuel Hildebrandt (ed.) with Kengoro Goto, Society for Old Testament Study Book List 2026 (= JSOT 50.5; London: Sage, 2026).

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Tervanotko & Stökl, Text as Revelation (T&T Clark)

RECENT BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Text as Revelation

Hanna Tervanotko (Anthology Editor) , Jonathan Stökl (Anthology Editor)

Paperback
$39.95 $35.95

Hardback
$120.00 $108.00

Ebook (PDF)
$35.95 $28.76

Ebook (Epub & Mobi)
$35.95 $28.76

Product details

Published Dec 28 2023
Format Ebook (PDF)
Edition 1st
Pages 168
ISBN 9780567689733
Imprint T&T Clark
Series The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

Description

Text as Revelation analyses the shift of revelatory experiences from oral to written that is described in ancient Jewish literature, including rabbinic texts. The individual essays seek to understand how, why, and for whom texts became the locus of revelation.

While the majority of the contributors analyze ancient Jewish literature for depictions of oral and written revelation, such as the Hebrew Bible and the literature of the Second Temple era, a number of articles also investigate textualization of revelation in cognate cultures, analyzing Egyptian, Mesopotamian and Greek sources. With subjects ranging from Ancient Egyptian and Sibylline oracles to Hellenistic writings and the books of Isaiah, Deuteronomy and Jeremiah, the studies in this volume bring together established and new voices reflecting on the issues raised by the interplay between writing and (divinatory) revelation.

This came out a couple of years ago, but I missed it. Here it is now.

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Does the Bible say a husband inherits from his wife's estate? Should it?

PROF. RABBI MARTY LOCKSHIN: Husbands Inherit, Wives Do Not: A Legitimate Biblical Exegesis? (TheTorah.com).

Sons, and then daughters, brothers, and paternal uncles all inherit, but the Bible is silent about spouses. The Talmud, in a midrashic reading of the laws of inheritance (Numbers 27:8–11) that the sages themselves admit is not what the verses say, adds that husbands are first to inherit from wives, but wives do not inherit from their husbands. Rashi and Ibn Ezra differ on whether a biblical verse can support both midrashic and peshat interpretations.

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More on the Vitruvius basilica in Fano, Italy

ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE: New Details Emerge About the Basilica of Vitruvius: Initial Investigations in Fano Have Been Completed (Finestre sull'Arte).

The first phase of the archaeological excavations in Piazza Andrea Costa in Fano has come to a close, but the project to restore the Basilica of Vitruvius is entering a new phase. New funding and discoveries are giving new impetus to the study of the site.

... “Today is a great day for Fano,” said Mayor Serfilippi, “because we are finally beginning to see important findings. They are not yet conclusive, but they represent fundamental elements for defining with greater precision what we believe to be Vitruvius’s Basilica and for understanding the transformations this building has undergone over time, confirming its long history of continuous use. Archaeological investigations have made it possible to reconstruct shapes, dimensions, and structures, including those parts that Vitruvius does not explicitly describe in his text but which he clearly implies were present.”...

The article continues with additional details of the new findings. It also notes that the project has received new funding, but that additional funding wouldn't hurt any. There is a technical article forthcoming in the autumn.

In the first century BCE, Vitruvius wrote the only comprehensive treatise on architecture that survives from Classical antiquity. His On Architecture was rediscovered during the Renaissance and became massively influential well into the Enlightenment. The basilica at Fano (ancient Fanum Fortunae) is the only known remnant of a building that Vitruvius designed and built.

I noted the discovery of that basilica here. And yes, since then I have read that translation of On Architecture.

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Review of Dalton, How Rabbis Became Experts

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: How Rabbis Became Experts. New book explores rise of the rabbinic movement.

How Rabbis Became Experts
Social Circles and Donor Networks in Jewish Late Antiquity
By Krista N. Dalton
(Princeton: Princeton Univ. Press, 2025), 264 pp.; $39.95 (hardback), $27.97 (eBook)

Reviewed by Elizabeth Shanks Alexander

... So, much like modern academics, ancient rabbis gained and maintained expertise not only by participating in intellectual exchange but also by embedding their intellectual prowess in a larger social performance supported by donor networks. That dependency brought its own set of complications. Though the precise content of rabbinic expertise (e.g., knowledge of Torah and halakhic rulings) may have remained inaccessible to the donor class, wealthy donors created the platform that produced rabbinic expertise. Ironically, the rabbis could not have achieved their authority without the support of wealthy, non-rabbinic donors who may have had little vested interest in the technical details of rabbinic teachings.

I noted the publication of the book and an essay on it by the author here.

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What does Jesus say in the Gospel of Thomas, and is it "gnostic?"

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: The Sayings of Jesus in the Gospel of Thomas. Simon Gathercole examines the enigmatic Gospel of Thomas (Robin Ngo).

Is the Gospel of Thomas “Gnostic”? Were these sayings of Jesus attributed to a religious group—“the Gnostics”—who offered an alternate view of early Christianity?

This BHD essay summarizes and quotes from a 2015 article by Simon Gathercole, which remains behind the subscription wall.

As to the question "Is the Gospel of Thomas gnostic?"—It depends on what you mean by gnostic. As Prof. Gathercole points out, it does not promote the demiurgic myth—the idea that the God of the Bible is an imperfect emanation of the True God and that this imperfect god (the "demiurge" or "creator") made the imperfect world we live in. So in that sense, no.

At the same time, it does promote the idea that Jesus taught secret knowledge (gnosis—sayings 1-2, 49) reserved for his followers which gives them an already-realized immortality. In that sense it is gnostic, but a gnosticism closer to (for example) Hermetic gnosticism—with Jesus instead of Hermes as the teacher—than to the Christian demiurgic variety.

That's a broad generalization that specialists may want to pick apart, but I stand by it as a generalization.

This BHD essay has been around for a while, but it's just been reposted and this is my first link to it. Also reposted is a translation of the Gospel of Thomas, which I did link to already here.

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The first Hannibal movie

PUNIC WATCH MET CINEMA IN 1959: Hannibal (IMDB).

Denzel Washington's prospective Hannibal movie has been in the news for some time, but the project seems now to have been terminated. Too bad. But let's not forget that another Hannibal movie, with Victor Mature playing Hannibal, came out in 1959. You can watch the trailer at the link.

It was not a great hit. You can read more about it at the Wikipedia page. The full movie is available on YouTube, but I'm not sure of its copyright status.

Hannibal's romantic interest, Sylvia, is entirely fictional. Her supposed uncle, Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus, was a real senator and general, who had significant involvement in the Second Punic War.

There are, of course, two other "Hannibal" films starring Anthony Hopkins. But they are about a different Hannibal.

Vin Diesel, looks like Hannibal Barca's cinematic fate is back in your hands.

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On John the Baptist and his priestly family

ALL ISRAEL NEWS has a new series on Real People of the New Covenant.

This article is part of Real People of the New Covenant: Lives Behind the Names, a new series by ALL ISRAEL NEWS contextualizing the historical figures of the biblical narrative. Exploring the history and archaeology of the Land offers an objective framework for reading the text, grounding distant figures within their concrete environment.

Two articles present a take on the historical and cultural background on John the Baptist and his family.

Zeḥaryah and Elisheva in the Book of Luke reveal Temple-era priestly life. Part One: The real people of the New Covenant: Lives behind the names (Anne Carter)

This installment focuses on Zeḥaryah and Elisheva (Zechariah and Elizabeth), a priestly couple introduced in the Gospel of Luke and positioned at the heart of Temple life in Jerusalem. Their story offers a window into the priestly order, daily Temple service, and the social and religious dynamics of Judea in the late Second Temple period, while also marking the opening moments of the New Testament narrative.

[...]

Yoḥanan the Baptist – the dissident of the priestly elite. Part Two: The real people of the New Covenant: Lives behind the names (Anne Carter)

Analyzing Yoḥanan within his authentic socio-cultural context shifts the understanding of his historical role. He was not a marginalized outsider with nothing to lose; he was an elite insider who voluntarily relinquished a life of physical comfort and institutional prestige in Jerusalem to operate on the geographic and political periphery.

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Byzantine-era city discovered in Egypt

EGYPTIAN ARCHAEOLOGY: Archaeologists uncover ancient Byzantine city in Egypt’s western desert. Well-preserved fourth-century quarters reveal details of daily life, urban development and economic activities (Nadeem Badshah, The Guardian).

Archaeologists in Egypt have uncovered a well-preserved Byzantine-era city in the western desert.

The fourth-century quarters had residential and religious structures, including a basilica-style church in the Dakhla oasis. Archaeologists also found coins, pottery fragments and tools.

Separately, 18 ancient tombs were discovered at Marina el-Alamein, near Alexandria, which includes rock-cut and limestone tombs, pottery and a granite sarcophagus.

[...]

The discoveries include Latin inscriptions and hundreds of inscribed ostraca, languague unspecified. This is the early Coptic period, but there is no specific mention of any Coptic writing. Several of the tombs contained mummies with golden tongues.

I look forward to hearing more about the findings.

Yet another lost city recovered in Egypt.

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Hannibal R.I.P.?

CINEMA AND PUNIC WATCH FAIL? Antoine Fuqua and Denzel Washington’s Netflix ‘Hannibal’ Epic Is “Dead” Due to $200M Budget Concerns (Jordan Ruimy, World of Reel).

Last month, Netflix had a change of heart when it came to Antoine Fuqua’s General Hannibal biopic starring Denzel Washington. Pre-production had been halted by the streamer. The film was scheduled to shoot this summer in Italy but was “put on pause” due to budget concerns—the rumored price tag for Fuqua’s film was over $200M.

Cinematographer Robert Richardson is telling The Playlist that the project is now “effectively dead.” ...

It's not a good sign when your cinematographer says that your film is "effectively dead." But did Richardson actually say that? If you click on the link in the quote above, you will see that the introduction to the Playlist interview says "Oh, and he also noted that the Antoine Fuqua “Hannibal” epic with Denzel Washington at Netflix he was meant to shoot is effectively dead ..." while linking to an earlier article on the film's pre-production being paused. However, the interview itself, which "has been edited for length and clarity," doesn't mention the Hannibal film, Washington, or Fuqua at all. Whatever he said or didn't say about wasn't important enough to keep in the final edit.

It doesn't look good for the film, but there is not yet a definitive announcement about its fate. We'll see.

Background here and links.

UPDATE (7 July): Deadline has published an interview with Mr. Richardson in which the subject of the Hannibal film comes up again:

DEADLINE: So, to bring us up to date, what are you working at the moment?

RICHARDSON: I just did Madden, with David O. Russell, and I was going to make Hannibal with Antoine and Denzel Washington for Netflix — Hannibal Barca being the general in Carthage — but it fell through just two weeks ago. I was on it for 10 or 12 weeks.

That sounds decisive. Hannibal R.I.P.

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Cover, Philo of Alexandria, On the Change of Names (SBL/Brill)

NEW PAPERBACK FROM SBL PRESS:

Philo of Alexandria, On the Change of Names: Introduction, Translation, and Commentary
Michael B. Cover

ISBN 9781628377972
Volume 8
Status Available
Publication Date February 2026

Paperback $95.00

In this eighth volume of the Philo of Alexandria Commentary Series, originally published by Brill in hardcover, Michael B. Cover translates and provides commentary on Philo of Alexandria’s treatise On the Change of Names. Taking a cue from Platonist interpreters of Homer’s Odyssey, Philo reads the story of Abraham as an account of the soul’s progress and perfection. Responding to contemporary critics who mocked Genesis 17 as uninspired, Philo finds instead a hidden philosophical reflection on the ineffability of the transcendent God, the transformation of souls that recognize their mortal nothingness, the possibility of human faith enabled by the peerless faithfulness of God, and the fruit of moral perfection: the joy divine, prefigured in the birth of Isaac.

As the blurb says, this volume was published by Brill (in 2024), but it looks like I missed it then.

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Independence Day 2026

HAPPY 250TH INDEPENDENCE DAY TO THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!

I can remember the Bicentennial celebrations. Wow.

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Knight-Messenger, The Place of Court Tales in the Hebrew Bible and Early Jewish Literature (T&T Clark)

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

The Place of Court Tales in the Hebrew Bible and Early Jewish Literature

Form, Development, and Function

Andrew Knight-Messenger (Author)

Hardback
$120.00 $108.00

Ebook (Epub & Mobi)
$108.00 $86.40

Ebook (PDF)
$108.00 $86.40

Product details

Published May 14 2026
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Pages 240
ISBN 9781666980936 Imprint T&T Clark
Illustrations 12 tables
Dimensions 9 x 6 inches
Series The Library of Second Temple Studies
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

Description

A groundbreaking reassessment of the Jewish court tale, a genre that shaped Second Temple literature and theology. Andrew D. Knight-Messenger brings fresh insight to narratives featuring Jewish figures navigating foreign royal courts, from Daniel and Esther to lesser-known stories preserved in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Far from being historical curiosities, these tales emerge as literary and theological responses to exile, exploring themes of divine sovereignty, identity, and restoration.

Knight-Messenger demonstrates how court tales challenge traditional views of exile as punishment, reframing it as a setting for divine action and renewal. His analysis uncovers links to apocalyptic motifs and the development of Jewish eschatology, situating these narratives within broader currents of ancient Near Eastern and Mediterranean traditions.

Combining close literary reading with historical context, this volume traces the rise, evolution, and decline of the genre, offering comparative insights and revealing its enduring significance for understanding Jewish thought in the Second Temple period.

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