Shavuot 2019

THE FESTIVAL OF SHAVUOT (Weeks, Pentecost) begins tonight at sundown. Best wishes to all those celebrating. For biblical background see the links here.

For posts on the haftarah reading for the first day of Shavuot (Ezekiel 1) see here and links.

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Review of Monerie, L'économie de la Babylonie à l'époque hellénistique

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Julien Monerie, L'économie de la Babylonie à l'époque hellénistique. Studies in Ancient Near Eastern records, 14​. Berlin; Boston: De Gruyter, 2018. Pp. xvii, 577. ISBN 9781501510670. €189,95. Reviewed by R.J. van der Spek, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (robartus.vanderspek@gmail.com).

In the past, the arrival of Alexander the Great has been seen as a deep rupture in the history of Greece as well as in the history of the Near East. In Greece it would have marked the end of the independent city-state, in the Near East the end of the former Mesopotamian civilizations. Most textbooks on the history of the Near East end with Alexander the Great. In a more recent past this picture has changed. It was observed that Alexander the Great left many institutions unchanged and the Seleucid empire was considered a direct successor to the former Assyrian, Babylonian and Persian empires. Monerie correctly takes now a more nuanced stance. Although there is a lot of continuity, changes are considerable. Monerie points to the introduction of money, the foundation of many cities and the political innovations in existing cities, the shift of the gravity of Babylonia from the Euphrates (Babylon) to the Tigris and Diyala area (Seleucia); the gradual weakening of the temples; the reduction of royal domain in favor of cities.

I noted the publication of the book here.

I am glad to see that good use is increasing being made of the many thousands of economic cuneiform tablets. They are boring individually, but collectively they have much to tell us about ancient Mesopotamian society in all periods.

Likewise, the neglected history of Babylonia in the Persian and Hellenistic periods has been receiving increasing interest from scholars. This book is another example. For some past posts, see here and links. This history is of no little interest for Judaism of the Second Temple Period.

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On Ezekiel's chariot vision

PROF. CARL S. ERLICH: Ezekiel’s Vision of God and the Chariot (TheTorah.com).

How are we to understand Ezekiel’s bizarre vision of the chariot in its historical context? What makes it theologically so dangerous in the eyes of the rabbis?

Regular readers are aware that Ezekiel's Merkavah vision is one of my favorite things.

Ezekiel chapter one is read on the first day of Shavuot, which this year is 8-9 June (i.e., starts tomorrow!). The traditional date of his vision is the fifth of Tammuz (see here and here), which this year is on July 8-9. Follow those links for much more on Ezekiel one and its history of interpretation.

For more on goofy Erich von Däniken, see here and links. For more on the history of the interpretation of the "terrible ice" of Ezekiel 1:22, see here. For more on the cherubim, see here and here.

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

Orlov receives research award

CONGRATULATIONS TO PROFESSOR ORLOV! Marquette theology professor honored with fellowship award. Dr. Andrei Orlov has studied Jewish apocalyptic texts, with a focus on materials preserved in Slavonic, for the past 25 years (Marquette University/Urban Milwaukee).

The Way Klingler fellowship will allow Orlov to translate an important text that has remained unreachable for international scholarship for over a century. Orlov plans to complete the three-volume edition of the Slavonic historical compendium, the Palaea Interpretata. It represents the most extensive and important collection of Jewish pseudepigraphic texts and fragments that have survived the Slavonic environment. The collection remains untranslated into any European language and is virtually unknown to contemporary biblical scholarship.

Cross-file under Old Testament Pseudepigrapha Watch.

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

The Talmud on theodicy

A RECENT DAF YOMI COLUMN BY ADAM KIRSCH IN TABLET: Nesting Habits. This week’s ‘Daf Yomi’ tackles the eternal problem of theodicy: If God is both good and omnipotent, why is there evil in the world?

For some past posts on Acher (Aher, "the Other One," i.e., Elijah ben Avuyah) see here and links.

Other Daf Yomi columns are noted here and links.

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

Hasmonean-era coin found at Shiloh

NUMISMATICS: ANCIENT COIN DISCOVERED DURING BRAZILIAN VISIT TO SHILOH. Elected officials from Brazil just happened to be visiting the archaeological excavation in the Benjamin Region when the coin was discovered (Jerusalem Post).

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Amy-Jill Levine lecturing in St. Andrews today

THIS AFTERNOON AT THE UNIVERSITY OF ST. ANDREWS:

Understanding Jesus means understanding Judaism.
1:00 pm - 4:30 pm Parliament Hall

Biblical scholar, Amy-Jill Levine, will present a paper: ‘Understanding Jesus means Understanding Judaism’. This will be moderated by Madhavi Nevader.

Following her paper there will be a tea and coffee break and a fireside chat in the same location.

If you happen to be in St. Andrews today, this is very worth attending.

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

Who decided what went into the Hebrew Bible and when?

CANONICAL QUESTIONS: Who Decided What Books the Hebrew Bible Would Contain? The canonization of the Hebrew Bible into its final 24 books was a process that lasted centuries, and was only completed well after the time of Josephus (Elon Gilad, Haaretz Premium). This is basically a good article that covers the topic in detail.

One could debate this or that point in it. For example, the final break between Judaism and Samaritanism may have come considerably later than the fourth century. And Josephus and 4 Ezra may have had the same canon of literature in mind, but divided into books slightly differently, giving the respective number of 22 and 24 books for the same collection.

Also, it's worth mentioning again that arguably the written Torah of Nehemiah and Ezra contained material not found in our Pentateuch.

But overall the article is good.

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

Seleucid fortress found off coast of Dor

MARITIME ARCHAEOLOGY: Ancient Fortress Discovered Off Israel's Northern Coast Solves a Seleucid Mystery. Dozens of meters wide, at least two stories high, 2,200 years after it was built, the Kingdom of Tryphon's first line of defense has been found underwater (Nir Hasson, Haaretz Premium).

Regarding the history:

Trying to follow the political and military developments in the waning days of the Hasmonean Kingdom in the second century B.C.E. is like trying to keep track of the plot of “Game of Thrones.”

Regarding the archaeology:

Until recently, scholars believed that the massive wall that surrounded Tel Dor and the city in the northern part of the bay was the line of defense for Tryphon and his troops. Arrowheads and slingshots from that battle were also discovered there. Some of the stones are etched with a lightning bolt, the symbol of Zeus, and others bear the inscription “victory over Tryphon.”

But three months ago, researchers discovered underwater, on the southern side of the port, an area where no structures from any period had been found, the remnants of a large fortification. Its similarity to another fortification on land and other artifacts led researchers to date this fortification to the Hellenistic Period. Now it appears that this fortification – situated in the sea – was likely Tryphon’s first line of defense, and the northern sea wall his second line of defense.

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

Balak in the Mesha Stele?

NORTHWEST SEMITIC EPIGRAPHY: Smashed Ancient Tablet Suggests Biblical King Was Real. But Not Everyone Agrees (Laura Geggel, Live Science).

It seems that while I was away, Israel Finkelstein and colleagues have argued that the Mesha Stele (Moabite Stone) inscription mentioned the biblical king Balak. Balak appears in association with the pagan prophet Balaam in Numbers 22-24.

The argument is based on restoring a broken word that began with the letter Bet (B). It looks speculative to me. But this article tells you more and it links to the article by Finkelstein, Na’aman, and Römer. Have a look and see what you think.

For many past posts on the Mesha Stele, start here and follow the links.

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PaleoJudaica is resuming

DEAR READERS AND FRIENDS,

Thank you for your patience and your many messages of support.

I would not have wished the last six weeks on anyone, but we are through them. I'm not going into specifics. For obvious reasons, I don't want to share private matters in a public venue.

Things are going to remain very difficult for a long time, but I am trying slowly to get back to a more normal schedule. That includes blogging. From today, I will blog again as I have the time and energy. (I am well. I'm just tired.)

It will be a while, possibly a long while, before blogging is daily and at my normal volume. I have a lot of catching up to do, and of course there are always new stories. But I'm getting started.

Best wishes to you all.

Jim

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

The Ketef Hinnom Archeological Garden

RENOVATION: Where the ancients left their dead: A walk through history in downtown Jerusalem. Newly opened urban park Ketef Hinnom and its surroundings combine history, nature and stunning views in the heart of the capital (Aviva and Shmuel Bar-Am, Times of Israel).

Over half a dozen rock-hewn burial caves that served Jerusalemites during the First Temple Period and for some time after the temple’s destruction in 586 BCE are located on the main road that once passed between Bethlehem and Jerusalem. Today found behind the Menachem Begin Heritage Center, at the beginning of David Remez Street, the caves are the site of one of this country’s most important archeological finds: the earliest biblical text ever discovered.

For many past PaleoJudaica posts on the silver amulets excavated at Ketef Hinnom, start here (cf. here) and follow the links. It is good to hear that the site is now being well maintained as a park. It was not always so.

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

Interview with Matthias Henze

ANCIENT JUDAISM: Jesus the (Second Temple-era) Jew. “If we don’t understand the Judaism of Jesus’ time, how can we understand him and his message?” David Heim interviews Matthias Henze (The Christian Century). Excerpt:

The Jewish writings produced in the centuries just before Jesus—books like First Enoch or Jubilees—are little known by Christians. Does that matter?

If Christians want to understand Jesus and those who first wrote about him, we need to have at least a rudimentary knowledge of Jesus’ Judaism. If we don’t understand early Judaism, how can we understand Jesus and his message?

Cross-file under Old Testament Pseudepigrapha Watch.

For another interview with Professor Henze about his work on Second Temple Judaism, see here.

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

The Talmud and the am haaretz

THIS WEEK'S DAF YOMI COLUMN BY ADAM KIRSCH IN TABLET: Shalom Chaver! In this week’s ‘Daf Yomi’ Talmud study, how Jewish conceptions of friendship and trust are tied up in ritual purity and levels of religious observance.

Since I began the Daf Yomi cycle, I’ve been wondering how accurately the Talmud reflects the actual practices of the Jews of its time. The rabbis in the Talmudic academies spent their lives learning the complex laws governing everything from Sabbath boundaries to ritual sacrifices, and even they often disagree on the exact scope of those laws. How could the average Jewish farmhand or wagon driver be expected to know all the details, much less to observe them? The question is especially interesting for modern American Jews, who generally don’t observe Jewish law very carefully, but still see themselves as part of a Jewish community. Was it the same for our ancestors in ancient Babylonia?

The question is impossible to answer fully, but the Talmud offers some hints. ...

Earlier Daf Yomi columns are noted here and links. An earlier column that also deals with the am haaretz (am ha-aretz), the "people of the land," was noted here

I am currently well behind on these columns. I will catch up as time permits.

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

A female Jewish convert in ancient Rome

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Women of the Ancient Near East: Beturia Paulina. A Roman convert to Judaism (Carly Silver).

Perhaps most intriguingly of all, Beturia Paulina received the title of “mater synagogarum Campi et Volumni,” or “mother of the synagogues at Campus and V/[B]olumn[i]us.” This terminology is multi-faceted. ...

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