Review of Alter's book on Bible translation

THE JERUSALEM POST: BOOK REVIEW: AN UNCOMPROMISING BIBLE TRANSLATION. Robert Altar [That's "Alter!" - JRD] pushes back against modern translations, which he thinks interpret too much and translate too little (Neville Teller).

In The Art of Bible Translation, Alter provides an intriguing insight into the complexities he faced in producing, single-handed, his translation of the Hebrew Bible. It makes fascinating reading.

This review too has some good examples of specific biblical texts.

For past reviews of this book and of Professor Alter's translation of the Hebrew Bible, start here and follow the many links.

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Frey et al. (eds.), Between Canonical and Apocryphal Texts

NEW BOOK FROM MOHR SIEBECK: Between Canonical and Apocryphal Texts.
Processes of Reception, Rewriting, and Interpretation in Early Judaism and Early Christianity. Ed. by Jörg Frey, Claire Clivaz, and Tobias Nicklas, in collaboration with Jörg Röder. 2019. IX, 490 pages. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 419. 149,00 € including VAT. cloth ISBN 978-3-16-153927-5.

Published in English.
The present volume aims at a comparative study of the processes of reception, rewriting and interpretation between canonical and apocryphal texts in early Jewish and early Christian literature. A closer look at the respective developments in both corpora of literature can open up new perspectives for understanding the developments and changes between texts that were already considered authoritative, and their reception in new, 'parabiblical' or 'apocryphal' compositions. The way of reception may also influence the perspective on canonical texts. The range of texts considered includes the LXX, Targumim and Pesharim, books such as Jubilees, the Genesis Apocryphon, the Gospel of Thomas, and Apocryphal Acts, traditions about Esther, Ezra, Manasseh, Peter and Paul, depictions of hell from Enoch to the Apocalypse of Paul, and the development of miracle stories.

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On myth and metaphor in the Hebrew Bible

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Myth as Story and Metaphor in the Hebrew Bible

Myth constitutes a vital part of the Hebrew Bible; it powerfully shapes the contours of biblical language, its various narratives, and theologies. That is, myth deeply defines what we might call the biblical world – populates the landscape with mythic monsters and deities and animates that world in which the God of Israel rises against forces of evil and, through victorious battle, creates order, erects his temple, and establishes his kingship.

See Also: Myth, History, and Metaphor in the Hebrew Bible (Cambridge University Press, 2019).

By Paul K.-K. Cho
Wesley Theological Seminary
June 2019

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JJMJS Issue 6 (2019)

A NEW ISSUE (NO. 6, 2019) OF THE JOURNAL OF THE JESUS MOVEMENT IN ITS JEWISH SETTING IS OUT. Follow the link (for now) for a detailed description of the issue. A permanent link to Issues 1-6 is here.

HT AJR.

All articles are available online for free. Background on the journal is here and here and links

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Biblical Studies Carnival 162

MY DIGITAL SEMINARY: JULY BIBLICAL STUDIES CARNIVAL (162) (Lindsay Kennedy).

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On fire pans

MATERIAL CULTURE: Fire Pans in the Bible and Archaeology (Dr. Raz Kletter, TheTorah.com).

Fire pans (maḥtot) are listed as part of the Tabernacle’s accessories for the menorah and the altar. They also play an important role in the stories of Korah’s rebellion and the death of Nadav and Avihu as incense censors. Archaeological excavations have uncovered what these items were and how they functioned.

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Ecclesiastes in the Göttingen LXX

THE ETC BLOG: New Critical Edition: Ecclesiastes for Gӧttingen Septuaginta Series (John Meade).

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On the high-tech future of archaeology

TECHNOLOGY WATCH: The High-Tech Future of the Ancient Science of Archaeology. Emerging technologies could soon allow archaeologists to virtually excavate an entire site within an hour (Sarah Parcak, OneZero).

This is an excellent article about the technological future of archaeology. I have been saying similar things for years. My only criticism is that the projections are very cautious and conservative. I expect archaeology to achieve this level of technology before 2050. By 2100, and probably well before, archaeologists will be carrying out a molecular scan of the earth's entire surface.

For more on Professor Parcak's work on technological archaeology (using drones and satellite imagery), see here and links. I have some related comments and links in my 2016 post, On curating the past.

Cross-file under The Singularity is Near.

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Frey and Rupschu (eds.), Frauen im antiken Judentum und frühen Christentum

NEW BOOK FROM MOHR SIEBECK: Frauen im antiken Judentum und frühen Christentum. Hrsg. v. Jörg Frey u. Nicole Rupschus. [Women in Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity.] 2019. VIII, 320 pages. Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 2. Reihe 489. 99,00 € including VAT sewn paper ISBN 978-3-16-154290-9.

Published in German.
In a wide historical framework, the present volume discusses the legal and social roles and positions of women in ancient Judaism, early Christianity, and the surrounding Greco-Roman world. Sources investigated are documentary texts from Egypt and the Judaean desert, selected writings from the Dead Sea and texts from the Hellenistic-Jewish, early Christian, and Rabbinic traditions. The essays discuss issues of the liturgical function of women, their legal position with regard to marriage and property, piety and purity issues as well as the problems of daily life, but also narrative images, role models and clichés. The combination of historical source analysis and the approaches of gender studies leads to a more precise perception of the construction of those images and patterns and their effects in the various ancient cultures.

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Review of Hartog, Pesher and Hypomnema

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Pieter B. Hartog, Pesher and Hypomnema: A Comparison of Two Commentary Traditions from the Hellenistic-Roman Period. Studies on the Texts of the Desert of Judah, 121. Leiden: Brill, 2017. Pp. xv, 356. ISBN 9789004353541. €132,00. Reviewed by Andrew M. King V, University of Notre Dame (aking8@nd.edu).

This monograph is a revision of the author’s dissertation completed at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven in 2015, which evaluates the similarities and differences between two commentary traditions developed in the Hellenistic world: the hypomnemata (ὑπόμνημα) and the pesharim (פשר). ...

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Fixed-term OT/HB post at the University of St Andrews

ANNOUNCEMENT: Lecturer (Education Focused) in Old Testament/Hebrew Bible - AOAC1295MXSB University of St Andrews - School of Divinity.

I'm late in linking to this, but the deadline is 12 August. So there is still time to apply.

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Diesel still teasing us with "Hannibal" movie

PUNIC WATCH: Vin Diesel Reveals His Birthday Present: The Riddick 4: Furya Script (Jorge Arenas, Bounding into Comics). I hope Mr. Diesel had a nice birthday and I congratulate him on his new script. But PaleoJudaica's interest in this article comes from an aside toward the end:

Hannibal of Carthage

Not only did Vin Diesel reveal the script to Riddick 4, but he also indicated he continues to practice the “archaic arts” of archery and bolas because there is interest in Diesel playing the legendary general of Carthage, Hannibal.

Hannibal was the leading commander of the Carthage forces during the Second Punic War. THe famously led his forces into Italy by crossing the Alps with African elephants. Hannibal would defeat the Romans in a succession of battles. In fact, he would occupy most of southern Italy for 15 years. However, the Romans led by Fabius Maximus avoided confrontation and thus prevented Hannibal from defeating them. He would eventually be defeated at the Battle of Zama by Scipio Africanus, who led a counter invasion of North Africa and forced Hannibal to return to Carthage.

I'm glad to hear that Mr. Diesel is still thinking about this movie, but I hope he gets on with it. We've been waiting almost as long as Hannibal campaigned in Italy.

Background here and links.

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Worth your weight in gold (or onions)

LAST WEEK'S DAF YOMI COLUMN BY ADAM KIRSCH IN TABLET: Your Weight in Onions. This week’s ‘Daf Yomi’ Talmud study explores many ways to pay off a divine debt: in gold, silver, pitch, vegetables—or limbs.

In Chapter 5 of this brief tractate [Arakhin], the focus turns to other kinds of pledges that a person can make based on his own person. For instance, the mishna in Arakhin 19a refers to one who says “it is incumbent upon me to donate my weight.” Perhaps such a vow might be taken on recovery from a serious illness, when a person wanted to express that he owes his entire bodily existence to God. With a vow according to weight, one would ordinarily specify the material to be donated: “if silver silver, and if gold gold.” For a full-grown person, donating one’s body weight in gold could turn out to be quite an expensive proposition.

Yes. The valuation in gold by weight for a person weighing 70 kilograms would be (by the current price of gold) nearly $3,200,000.

Earlier Daf Yomi columns are noted here and links.

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