A Passover furlough at Elephantine?

PASSOVER IS COMING: The Passover Papyrus Orders a Religious Furlough for Judean Soldiers (Prof. RabbiTamara Cohn Eskenazi, TheTorah.com).

The real reason Persia’s King Darius II sent a letter to the governor of Egypt that Judean soldiers in Elephantine should keep the festival of Matzot.

Past Paleojudaica posts involving the Elephantine Passover Papyrus are here, here, and here. And for many other posts on Elephantine Island in Egypt and on the Elephantine Aramaic papyri, start here and follow the links.

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New German translation of Philo of Alexandria, De Abrahamo

NEW BOOK FROM MOHR SIEBECK: Das Leben des Weisen. Philon v. Alexandria, De Abrahamo. Eingel., übers. u. m. interpretierenden Essays vers. v. Matthias Adrian, Maximilian Forschner, Daniel Lanzinger, Heinz-Günther Nesselrath, Maren R. Niehoff, Friederike Oertelt, Simone Seibert u. Nicolai Sinai. Hrsg. v. Daniel Lanzinger. 2020. XIII, 334 pages. Scripta Antiquitatis Posterioris ad Ethicam REligionemque pertinentia XXXVI. 84,00 € including VAT. cloth ISBN 978-3-16-157537-2. Published in German. Description not yet available.

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Review of Baird, Dura-Europos

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Dura-Europos..

Jennifer A. Baird, Dura-Europos. Archaeological histories. New York: Bloomsbury Academic, 2018. xvi, 221 p.. ISBN 9781472530875 $26.95 (pb).

Review by
Ted Kaizer, Durham University. ted.kaizer@durham.ac.uk

This book provides an overview of the archaeological history of Dura-Europos, the small town situated on the Middle Euphrates that lived through Hellenistic, Parthian and Roman periods until its capture by the Sasanians. As an overview, this outstanding book has no equal. Baird, who in 2014 published an important monograph on the houses of Dura-Europos,[1] brings to her scholarship experience in both fieldwork at the site itself and in extensive ‘digging’ through the rich archives of the Yale University Art Gallery.

[...]

For many past posts on Dura Europos, start here and follow the links. Posts on Dr. Baird's work on Dura Europos are here and here.

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Jesus and the Unworthy Shepherd?

THE ANXIOUS BENCH: Jesus, Robert Graves, and the Mount of Olives (Philip Jenkins). Some fun speculation involving a novel by Robert Graves, some passages in Second Zechariah, and the ministry of Jesus.

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The Seventh Seal

READING ACTS: The Seventh Seal – Silence in Heaven – Revelation 8:1. Phil Long continues his blog series on the seven seals of the Book of Revelation.

I noted the earlier posts in the series here.

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Review of Trebilco, Outsider Designations and Boundary Construction in the New Testament

ANCIENT JEW REVIEW: Book Note | Outsider Designations and Boundary Construction in the New Testament (Peter Z. Fraser-Morris).

Paul Trebilco. Outsider Designations and Boundary Construction in the New Testament. Cambridge University Press, 2017

Excerpt:

The bulk of the study is a consideration of five common words for outsiders in the New Testament. Trebilco chooses “unbelievers,” “outsiders,” “sinners,” “gentiles,” and “Ioudaioi” (44-207). The author selected these terms partly because of their importance, or for how they differ in meaning and use from common Jewish, Greco-Roman, or LXX outsider designations (27-43). I found this part of Trebilco’s book to contain some of the most useful and helpful content, often beyond the scope of the book’s stated purpose. ...

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Cyrus and silver and gold

PROF. HAVA SHALOM-GUY: Giving Israel Gold and Silver, Cyrus Improves on a Biblical Motif (TheTorah.com).

Abraham, Jacob, and the Israelites in Egypt acquire wealth from foreign peoples in morally ambiguous ways. In contrast, the Judeans' return from exile, depicted as a second exodus, is accomplished with the blessing of the gentile king, and the wealth obtained in exile is entirely untainted.

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"Passover in the Time of Pandemic"

THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST TODAY: Passover in the Time of Pandemic (Alex Joffe).

At the Passover Seder Jews recount the story of the Exodus. The dramatic core is the Ten Plagues sent by God to afflict the Egyptians and that motivate Pharaoh to free the Israelite slaves who then begin their journey to Canaan. The plagues are a dividing line between two epochs.

But the literal meaning of the Hebrew word for plagues, מכות, blows or lashes, captures more viscerally the effect of these divinely created phenomena. Though from a pre-scientific world, the word מכות–blows– has considerable relevance for today. So, too, does an examination of pandemics in the past, including in the ancient Near East.

[...]

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Biblical Studies Carnival 169 (or thereabouts)

BRENT NIEDERGALL: Biblical Studies Carnival 169 for March 2020.

Observant readers may wonder if "169" is a typo. It is not. Phil Long explains. And Phil is still looking for a carnival host for next month. If you have extra time on your hands, think about volunteering.

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Easter in Jerusalem in the pandemic

NEGOTIATIONS CONTINUE: Holy Land custodian urges Israel to let clerics celebrate Easter in Holy Sepulchre (Stephen Farrell, Reuters).

Who knows what the situation will be in ten days' time?

Background here. Cross file under the Church of the Holy Sepulcher

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More Waqf excavations on the Temple Mount?

TEMPLE MOUNT WATCH: Islamic Waqf Takes Advantage of Temple Mount Closure to Conduct Illegal Digs (David Israel, JNS).

In the past the Waqf has undertaken substantial illicit excavations on the Temple Mount. The Temple Mount Sifting Project (also here and many links) is devoted to undoing what damage can be done.

Still, I am not inclined to make a lot out of this current report.

The two photos look like the could involve just replacing a pipe, which could be necessary maintenance. In the absence of more evidence, I am not drawing any conclusions from them.

I note the story for information. I blog, you decide.

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They were still excavating Oxyrhynchus in 2020.

OXYRHYNCHUS WATCH: New findings in Oxyrhynchus archaeological site (University of Barcelona press release).

The archaeological mission returned this March to the ancient city of Oxyrhynchus in Egypt. The work had to finish early due to the COVID-19 epidemics, although the campaign could focus on the study of architectonic structures and funerary rituals from the Saite Period (corresponding to the Late Period of Egypt, which started in the 7th century BC) until the Christian-Byzantine period.

[...]

And they are still finding inscribed materials:

They highlighted the remains of a papyrus with a Greek carved text, which is under study, and a gravestone with an engraved text in Coptic.

The phrase "Greek carved text" is "una inscripció en grec" in the Catalan release: "a Greek inscription."

For earlier substantive PaleoJudaica posts on the Oxyrhynchus papyri, see here links, and also the blog archive. For the recent scandal of the missing Oxyrhynchus papyri, see here and links.

UPDATE: I have adjusted my title to make clear that the excavation has been suspended due to the coronavirus crisis.

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Series on the Seven Seals

AT READING ACTS, Phil Long is posting an ongoing series on the Seven Seals in the Book of Revelation:

A Rider on a White Horse – Revelation 6:1*

A Rider on a Red Horse – Revelation 6:3-4

A Rider on a Black Horse – Revelation 6:5-6

A Rider on a Pale Horse – Revelation 6:7-8

The Fifth Seal: Martyrs in Heaven – Revelation 6:9-11

The Sixth Seal – Revelation 6:12-17

Who Are The 144,000 in Revelation 7?

*Pardon me - I missed the link to this post from two years ago, which was in the post on Rev 6:3-4 linked to above. Thanks to reader Robert Schwartz for pointing it out.

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Holy Fire ceremony in Jerusalem is still on

IN THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY SEPULCHER (HOLY SEPULCHRE): Holy Week ceremonies in Jerusalem to proceed in limited format. Eastern Orthodox churches will still receive Holy Fire from Jerusalem (Lahav Harkov, Jerusalem Post).

One of the most complex ceremonies in Holy Week is the Holy Fire, to take place on the night of April 18 this year.

Orthodox Christians describe Holy Fire as a miracle, which happens the day before Easter each year. Before heading into Jesus’ tomb in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, the Greet Orthodox Patriarch is checked that he does not have any way to produce fire. Then, he goes into the tomb by himself and comes out with fire. Normally, the fire is distributed among the thousands of people people gathered at the church.

This ceremony has taken place since the year 867, with evidence that it has happened annually, uninterrupted for six to seven centuries.

Then, some of the fire is put into special containers and brought to Ben-Gurion Airport to planes waiting to distributed it to Eastern Christendom via churches in Greece, Russia, Ukraine, Serbia, Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania and other countries.

The flights are arranged, although the other details are not yet set. We'll see what happens.

The article is not clear whether the Palm Sunday parade in Jerusalem will happen this year, but it won't include the normal large crowd of people.

Ramadan begins this year on 23 April. Whether the Temple Mount will be open that soon remains to be seen.

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Passover in a pandemic: the latest

PASSOVER IS COMING, a week from tomorrow evening. Here are a couple more updates on how world Jewry is making adjustments.

Israel’s chief rabbis say Passover Seder can’t be held via videoconference. David Lau and Yitzhak Yosef dismiss previous ruling that green-lighted tech option, while two rabbis behind it stick to their guns (MICHAEL BACHNER, Times of Israel). To be quite clear, no one involved in this halakhic dispute advocates any relaxation of the rules for quarantine or social distancing.

Jews allowed relax Passover rules in unprecedented intervention by Chief Rabbi. The Chief Rabbi has issued new guidance for Jewish families to celebrate Passover by gathering virtually on social media (Gabriella Swerling, The Telegraph). This refers to Rabbi Pinchas Goldschmidt, " the Chief Rabbi of Moscow and President of the Conference of European Rabbis." The article also mentions the guidance from the British Chief Rabbi, Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis.

The Telegraphic article requires either free registration or a paid subscription for full access. But the visible excerpt gives you the key information.

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de Ward on Jeremiah 52

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Jeremiah 52 in the Context of the Book of Jeremiah

Jeremiah 52, the final chapter of the Book of Jeremiah, is very similar to the end of the Book of Kings. The first part of the chapter gives an extensive account of the 587 BC fall of Jerusalem (52:1–30; cf. 2 Kgs 24:18–25:21), while the second part briefly narrates the release of King Jehoiachin from a prison in Babylon some decades later (52:31–34; cf. 2 Kgs 25:27–30). The style and contents of the text indicate that, in the first instance, it was written as the conclusion of Kings. At a later moment, an editor of the Book of Jeremiah considered it appropriate to reuse the material at the end of his own work. Why would he have done so? What could have been his purpose with this final chapter in which the prophet Jeremiah and his words are left unmentioned?

See Also: Jeremiah 52 in the Context of the Book of Jeremiah (VTSup 183. Leiden: Brill, 2020)

By Henk de Waard
Theologische Universiteit Apeldoorn
The Netherlands
April 2020

I noted the publication of the book here.

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JNES 79.1 (2020)

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: Journal of Near Eastern Studies. There is an article in the current issue on Daniel chapter 5. There are also book reviews dealing with Aramaic studies and with the Seleucid empire.

Requires a personal or institutional subscription for full access.

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Passover during a pandemic

PASSOVER IS COMING in just over a week. Special preparations are underway across the world. Here are some of the many articles.

Western Wall stones disinfected, prayer notes removed in advance of Passover holiday. Operation carried out by workers in protective gloves and using disposable implements (Arutz Sheva; cross-file under Temple Mount Watch.)

The Power of Passover During a Plague. Most Jews in history have not been free, whether from murderous regimes, famines or pandemics like this one. What we have been is devoted to the idea that we deserve to be. (Alana Newhouse, New York Times)

‘Everyone’s talking about the plagues:’ Making haggadahs for a Passover unlike any before (Irene Connelly, The Forward)

Passover in a Pandemic (Ben Sales, JTA).

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Current BAR issue now available online for free

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: We Have Opened the Current Issue to Read Online. Explore Biblical Archaeology Review's content while you are practicing social distancing. For you, special deal!

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Steve Green is returning 11,500 artifacts

UNPROVENANCED ARTIFACTS: Amid Scrutiny, the Museum of the Bible’s Founder Will Return a Staggering 11,500 Artifacts of Dubious Origin to the Middle East. Hobby Lobby tycoon Steve Green founded the museum (Sarah Cascone, artnet news).

Green is now returning an additional 5,000 ancient papyrus scraps and 6,500 ancient clay pieces because their provenance cannot be verified, prompting concerns that they could be looted or stolen.

The museum is hoping that its curators will continue to have scholarly access to the works—only one of which, a clay tablet imprinted with the Babylonian epic of Gilgamesh, was ever displayed at the institution—upon their return.

For more on the fake Dead Sea Scroll-like fragments owned by the Museum of the Bible, see here and links. I see that I mentioned the Gilgamesh fragment here, but I don't know anything more about it. For more on the scandal of the missing Oxyrhynchus papyri, see here and links. Many other PaleoJudaica posts on the Museum of the Bible and the Green Collection are here and here and links.

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

Upcoming online lecture by Lawrence Schiffman

PROFESSOR LAWRENCE H. SCHIFFMAN: OLD LEATHER, NEW INK: FORGERY AND THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS.

Online lecture, Wednesday, April 1, 2020, 9:00 PM EDT
Old Leather, New Ink: Forgery and the Dead Sea Scrolls
with Professor Lawrence Schiffman

The lecture will be on Zoom. Follow the link for the access link. (HT Joseph Lauer.)

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Timely Talmudic reflections

TALMUD WATCH: In quarantine, daily Talmud study is keeping me afloat (Ilana Kurshan, The Forward).

Cross-file under Daf Yomi. For more on Ilana Kurshan and her book, If All the Seas Were Ink, start here and follow the links.

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Review of Alstola, Judeans in Babylonia

THE CSST BLOG: DID THEY WEEP? A NEW BOOK ON JUDEANS IN BABYLONIA (Rick Bonnie).

This is a review of the open-access book: Alstola, Tero. 2020. Judeans in Babylonia: A Study of Deportees in the Sixth and Fifth Centuries BCE. Culture and History of the Ancient Near East 109. Leiden: Brill.

Cross-file under New Book.

For many PaleoJudaica posts on the (unprovenanced) Babylonian-Jewish cuneiform archive of Al-Yahudu, see here and links.

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

On the true cost of museum fakes

HYPERALLERGIC: The True Cost of Museum Fakes. The Museum of the Bible recently admitted all of its Dead Sea Scroll fragments are forgeries. But when fake antiquities are donated to museums, taxpayers lose (Erin L. Thompson).

Background here and links.

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Coptic dialects

THE COPTIC MAGICAL PAPYRI BLOG: Looking at the Coptic Magical Papyri XII: Coptic Dialects. Because you should know these things.

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Estes, The Tree of Life

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

The Tree of Life

Series: Themes in Biblical Narrative, Volume: 27

Editor: Douglas Estes

The tree of life is an iconic visual symbol at the edge of religious thought over the last several millennia. As a show of its significance, the tree bookends the Christian canon; yet scholarship has paid it minimal attention in the modern era. In The Tree of Life a team of scholars explore the origin, development, meaning, reception, and theology of this consequential yet obscure symbol. The fourteen essays trek from the origins of the tree in the texts and material culture of the ancient Near East, to its notable roles in biblical literature, to its expansion by early church fathers and Gnostics, to its rebirth in medieval art and culture, and to its place in modern theological thought.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €248.00 / $298.00

E-Book
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-42375-6
Publication Date: 17 Mar 2020

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-42373-2
Publication Date: 19 Mar 2020

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