Allison Festschrift (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

“To Recover What Has Been Lost”: Essays on Eschatology, Intertextuality, and Reception History in Honor of Dale C. Allison Jr.

Series: Novum Testamentum, Supplements, Volume: 183

Editors: Tucker Ferda, Daniel Frayer-Griggs, and Nathan C. Johnson

Over the course of his career, Dale Allison has enriched our understanding of Jewish and Christian hopes about the end of history, advanced nuanced readings of ancient texts in light of their scriptural and cultural conversation partners, and deepened our knowledge of the history of biblical interpretation throughout the ages. In all of these ways, he has sought, in the words of T.S. Eliot, “to recover what has been lost.”

In “To Recover What Has Been Lost”: Essays on Eschatology, Intertextuality, and Reception History in Honor of Dale C. Allison Jr., leading biblical scholars and historians offer ground-breaking studies on Jewish and Christian eschatology, intertextuality, and reception history—three areas particularly evident in Allison’s scholarship. These essays reconstruct the past, advance fresh readings, and reclaim overlooked exegetical insights. In so doing, they too recover what has been lost.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €132.00$159.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44401-0
Publication Date: 30 Nov 2020

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44350-1
Publication Date: 26 Nov 2020

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Henze & Werline, Early Judaism and Its Modern Interpreters (SBL)

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Early Judaism and Its Modern Interpreters
Matthias Henze (Editor), Rodney A. Werline (Editor)

ISBN 9781628372960
Status Available
Price: $45.00
Binding Paperback
Publication Date December 2020

An essential resource for scholars and students

Since the publication of the first edition of Early Judaism and Its Modern Interpreters in 1986, the field of early Judaism has exploded with new data, the publication of additional texts, and the adoption of new methods. This new edition of the classic resource honors the spirit of the earlier volume and focuses on the scholarly advances in the past four decades that have led to the study of early Judaism becoming an academic discipline in its own right. Essays written by leading scholars in the study of early Judaism fall into four sections: historical and social settings; methods, manuscripts, and materials; early Jewish literatures; and the afterlife of early Judaism.

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Dueling dualists

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: When the dualists argued. Notice of a New Book: Ruani, Flavia & Mihaela Timus (eds.). 2020. Quand les dualistes polémiquaient: Zoroastriens et manichéens (Orient & Méditerranée, 34). Leuven: Peeters.

Cross-file under Manichean (Manichaean) Watch.

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Deuterocanonical and Cognate Literature Studies

THE AWOL BLOG: (Partial) Open Access Monograph Series: Deuterocanonical and Cognate Literature Studies. From De Gruyter.

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Schiffman on the sources for the Hanukkah story

PROFESSOR LAWRENCE H. SCHIFFMAN: PUTTING TOGETHER THE STORY OF CHANUKAH. THE ANCIENT SOURCES THAT TELL THE STORY OF THE CHASHMONA’IM. Professor Schiffman has posted a reprint of his recent article in Ami Magazine. It introduces 1-2 Maccabees and the much later Megillat Antiochus and Sefer Yosippon.

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

On Matthew's Magi

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: We Three Kings of Orient Are? The Magi who recognized baby Jesus as lord, how many there were, and where they traveled from (Mary Joan Winn Leith). It's a trick question of course. There weren't any kings. This essay is an excellent overview of Matthew's Magi tradition and its history of interpretation.

For many PaleoJudaica posts on Matthew's Magi etc., start here and follow the links. Cross-file under 'Tis the Season.

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Inscriptions of Roman Cyrenaica

THE AWOL BLOG: Inscriptions of Roman Cyrenaica 2020. Roman Cyrenaica (in North Africa) was one of the sites of the "Kitos War," the Jewish revolt of 115-117 CE. The revolt is poorly documented and we know little about it. Some of the inscriptions in this corpus pertain to the Jewish community of Cyrenaica both before and after the revolt. Background here and here.

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Charles (ed.), Paul and Matthew Among Jews and Gentiles (T&T Clark)

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Paul and Matthew Among Jews and Gentiles
Essays in Honour of Terence L. Donaldson

Editor(s): Ronald Charles

Published: 12-10-2020
Format: EPUB/MOBI eBook (Watermarked)
Edition: 1st
Extent: 208
ISBN: 9780567694119
Imprint: T&T Clark
Series: The Library of New Testament Studies
Illustrations: 1 bw illusv List price: $103.50
Online price: $82.80
Save $20.70 (20%)

About Paul and Matthew Among Jews and Gentiles

Terence L. Donaldson's scholarship in the field of New Testament studies is vital, as he has pressed scholars to pay closer attention to the complex relations between early Christ-followers-who were mostly non-Jews-and the Jewish matrix from which the narrative of the Christian proclamation comes from. This volume allows prominent New Testament scholars to engage Donaldson's contributions, both to sharpen some of his conclusions and to honour him for his work.

These essays are located at the intersections of three bodies of literature-Matthew, Paul and Second Temple Jewish Literature-and themes and questions that have been central to Donaldson's work: Christian Judaism and the Parting of the Ways; Gentiles in Judaism and early Christianity; Anti-Judaism in early Christianity. With contributions ranging from remapping Paul within Jewish ideologies, and Paul among friends and enemies, to socio-cultural readings of Matthew, and construction of Christian Identity through stereotypes of the Scribes and Pharisees, this book provides a multi-scholar tribute to Donaldson's accomplishments.

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Antiochus IV Epiphanes - forgotten villain?

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Antiochus Epiphanes—The Bible’s Most Notoriously Forgotten Villain. Hanukah is the story of the Jewish revolt against Antiochus (John Gregory Drummond). His name is mostly forgotten, but he provides the background villainy for Hanukkah. In Christianity he was absorbed anonymously (along with the Emperor Nero) into the Antichrist persona via the Book of Revelation.

For a revisionist view of Antiochus IV, see here. And some other PaleoJudaica posts on him are here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

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

Christmas star 2020

'TIS THE SEASON, ASTRONOMICAL EDITION: 'Great conjunction' of Jupiter and Saturn will form a 'Christmas Star' on the winter solstice. Jupiter and Saturn will have their closest encounter in almost 400 years on the solstice (Dec. 21) (Doris Elin Urrutia, Space.com).

No one is suggesting that this event tells us anything about what may or may not have happened in the sky at the time of the birth of Jesus. But the timing is cool nonetheless. I can just see the two planets on the horizon in the evening from my back garden. I hope we have clear weather on the 21st.

For many PaleoJudaica posts on the the Star of Bethlehem, which I think was probably a midrashic legend rather than an astronomical event, start here and follow the links.

UPDATE (21 December) with a correction here.

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Schiffman Festschrift

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

From Scrolls to Traditions

A Festschrift Honoring Lawrence H. Schiffman

Series: The Brill Reference Library of Judaism, Volume: 63

Editors: Stuart S. Miller, Michael D. Swartz, Steven Fine, Naomi Grunhaus, and Alex P. Jassen

This Festschrift in honor of Professor Lawrence H. Schiffman, a renowned authority on the Dead Sea Scrolls and Rabbinic Judaism, includes contributions by twenty of his former doctoral students, now colleagues. The volume is divided into two sections, the “Biblical and Second Temple Period” and “Rabbis, Other Jews, and Neighboring Cultures.” The diverse topics covered and the wide range of interdisciplinary approaches employed reflect Professor Schiffman’s success in cultivating a school of scholars who are making unique contributions to the study of the Jews and Judaism.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €185.00 / $222.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44389-1
Publication Date: 26 Oct 2020

Hardback
Availability: Publishedv ISBN: 978-90-04-44388-4
Publication Date: 29 Oct 2020

Congratulations to Professor Schiffman on this well-deserved honor!

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Review of Bader, Josephus Latinus. De Bello Iudaico Buch 1

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Josephus Latinus. De Bello Iudaico Buch 1.

Bernd Bader, Josephus Latinus. De Bello Iudaico Buch 1. Palingenesia, 119. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 2019. Pp. 256. ISBN 9783515124300 €54,00.

Review by Shoni Ben Lavie-Driver, Jesus College, Cambridge. sbl31@cam.ac.uk

Many scholars would be surprised to learn that we possess no fewer than three different Latin versions of works of Josephus, dating from the fourth to the sixth centuries AD. One is a translation of the Jewish Antiquities and the Against Apion in 22 books realised under the direction of Cassiodorus, and there are also two separate versions of the Jewish War. One is a Christianising reworking and appropriation of Josephus known as pseudo-Hegesippus; it is more an original work than a translation. The other version, pseudo-Rufinus, translates Josephus much more directly. ...

This book is a new edition of the pseudo-Rufinus translation of book 1 of the Jewish War.

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Queen Salome Alexandra

HISTORY: Jewish Queen Alexandra: Forgotten Ruler who Altered Jewish History (Howard Zik, Jewish Press).

For a scholarly monograph on Queen Salome Alexandra, see here. And for an essay on her by the same scholar (Kenneth Atkinson), see the link here.

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Les délimitations éditoriales des Écritures des bibles anciennes ... (ed. Bady & Korpel) (Peeters)

NEW BOOK FROM PEETERS:

Les délimitations éditoriales des Écritures des bibles anciennes aux lectures modernes
Editorial Delimitations of the Scriptures from Ancient Bibles to Modern Readings

SERIES:
Pericope, 11

EDITORS:
Bady G., Korpel M.C.A.

YEAR: 2020
ISBN: 9789042943759
E-ISBN: 9789042943766
PAGES: X-276 p.
PRICE: 90 euro

SUMMARY:
From time immemorial scribes provided their manuscripts with visual markings guiding the reader to the interpretation they deemed correct. Colour, punctuation and empty spaces were their first distinctive layout markers. Later on elaborate ornaments, capitals and headers adorned the beginning of books, chapters and paragraphs.
All these helpful pointers are also present in manuscripts and prints of the Bible. Their influence is evident in the reception history of the Scriptures as codified in translations and commentaries. Strangely enough, however, they are almost totally ignored in modern biblical scholarship.
To remedy this gap Pericope series was started twenty years ago. The present volume provides insight in what has been achieved in the relatively young discipline of delimitation criticism up till now. Through a dozen contributions, the biblical and patristic corpuses are investigated in several directions: How were the texts delimited in Antiquity? What intentions can be discerned behind delimitations in Hebrew, Greek, Latin and Syriac Bibles? What transformation of meaning do the divisions of textual units bring about in certain modern translations compared to ancient documents? What are the nature and signification of the divisions and titles in the Psalms, Greek and Syriac? How did some Greek authors refer to a specific biblical text? What can we learn from the Greek "synopses"? And what profit for this kind of research has a digital tool like Biblindex to offer?
These are, without a doubt, the first milestones for new investigations to come.

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Ganzel & Holtz (eds.), Contextualizing Jewish Temples (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Contextualizing Jewish Temples

Series: The Brill Reference Library of Judaism, Volume: 64

Editors: Tova Ganzel and Shalom E. Holtz

Jewish temples stood in Jerusalem for nearly one thousand years and were a dominant feature in the life of the ancient Judeans throughout antiquity. This volume strives to obtain a diachronic and topical cross-section of central features of the varied aspects of the Jewish temples that stood in Jerusalem, one that draws on and incorporates different disciplinary and methodological viewpoints. Ten contributions are included in this volume by: Gary A. Anderson; Simeon Chavel; Avraham Faust; Paul M. Joyce; Yuval Levavi; Risa Levitt; Eyal Regev; Lawrence H. Schiffman; Jeffrey Stackert; Caroline Waerzeggers, edited by Tova Ganzel and Shalom E. Holtz.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €109.00 / $131.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44479-9
Publication Date: 23 Nov 2020

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44478-2
Publication Date: 26 Nov 2020

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Did Joseph's dreams come true?

DR. MORDECAI DAVID ROSEN: Joseph Dreams that the Sun, Moon and Stars Bow to Him – Does It Come True? (TheTorah.com).

Jacob berates Joseph when he hears his second dream: “Are we to come, I and your mother and your brothers, and bow to you?” (Gen 37:10) Rachel, his mother, was dead. What then did the dream mean?

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Review of Madsen, Cassius Dio

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Cassius Dio.

Jesper Majbom Madsen, Cassius Dio. Ancients in action. London; New York: Bloomsbury, 2020. Pp. viii, 133. ISBN 9781350033399 $25.95 (pb).

Review by
Adam Kemezis, University of Alberta. kemezis@ualberta.ca

As part of a remarkable recent increase in the volume of scholarship on Cassius Dio, we can now count the first ever English-language study of that author aimed at the non-specialist classically oriented public.[1] Jesper Madsen’s short, inexpensive and accessible book represents an important step toward expanding understanding of Dio as a political and historical analyst. It is a forceful and often persuasive exposition of a particular reading of Dio’s massive history, though a not uncontroversial one among Madsen’s fellow Dio scholars.

[...]

The Roman historian Cassius Dio preserved some important information about Jewish history in Hellenistic-Roman era. Relevant PaleoJudaica posts are here and here.

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

What did the Capernaum synagogue look like inside?

LEEN RITMYER: The Synagogue of Capernaum. A reconstruction of the synagogue’s interior.

For more on the ancient synagoge at Capernaum, see here, here, and here.

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Zoom lecture on ancient Jewish graffiti

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: BASONOVA Writing on the Wall. Graffiti and the Forgotten Jews of Antiquity.

BAF/BASONOVA present
Wednesday, December 23, 2020 at 8 pm EST
Writing on the Wall: Graffiti and the Forgotten Jews of Antiquity
Karen Stern, State University of New York, Brooklyn

Requires payment to access. Further details and access options are at the link.

For more on Karen Stern's work on ancient Jewish graffiti, see here and follow the links.

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

Two oil lamp workshops

CERAMICS: One of Largest Ever Ancient Oil Lamp Workshops Discovered in Beit Shemesh (David Israel, Jewish Press).

“The Beit Nattif oil-lamp cistern has been brought back to life,” said the archaeologists, adding, “We are extremely excited since this is not just an important archaeological discovery in its own right, but also tangible evidence of archaeological history.”

Another, somewhat later, oil lamp workshop is also in the news: Ancient oil lamp workshop, now at Israel Museum, shows the way we once lit. Rare assemblage of lamp molds, kiln and unused oil lamps found under rubble from Tiberias earthquake of 1033 sheds light on craftsmanship in early Islamic period (Amanda Borschel-Dan, Times of Israel).

It's oil lamps galore for Hanukkah!

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New areas of Herodium opened

ARCHAEOLOGY ON DISPLAY: New parts of Herod’s palace unveiled, including 300-seat personal theater. Judean king’s arched stairway, foyer exposed at Herodium, along with majestic room in which he hosted Marcus Agrippa, the second-in-command to Caesar Augustus, in 15 BCE (Jonah Mandel, AFP/Times of Israel).

For many PaleoJudaica posts on Herodium and its excavation, start here and follow the links.

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

Want to read the Scroll of Antiochus?

PROFESSOR JOHN REEVES has posted an English translation of Megillat Antiochus ("The Scroll of Antiochus") at the link.

HT Simcha Gross on Twitter. Background on the Megillat Antiochus and its relation to Hanukkah is here and links.

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Zoom lecture on the synagogue of Dura-Europos

CLASSICAL ASSOCIATION OF SCOTLAND: An even more unexpected find' – The synagogue of Dura-Europos and its place in local society (Talk by Professor Ted Kaizer [Durham University]).

Time & Location

16 Dec, 18:00 GMT
via Zoom

About the Event

Ever since its discovery in 1932, the painted synagogue of Dura-Europos has occupied a central place in scholarship, as arguably the main Jewish cycle from antiquity and in any case the only set of surviving wall paintings rather than floor mosaics, and has contributed to the reputation of Dura-Europos as a rather untypical town. It could be argued, however, that - although it is surprising that the many finds at the Euphrates stronghold are so well preserved and combine to create an unprecedented window onto local society - the finds themselves, including the synagogue, are not necessarily considered surprising. The unprecedented illustration of the Hebrew scriptures (in sharp contrast of course to the prescription of the Ten Commandments) in the form of uniquely preserved wall painting can be seen as evidence that Jewish communities living in the periphery of the Roman world, far away from their homeland, had much more leeway in the way they gave expression to their religion than the notion of an orthodox Judaism would suggest. This papers aims to locate what has recently been referred to (by Tessa Rajak) as “images of a competitive community” in their local and regional context.

The lecture is free, but requires advance registration. See the information at the link.

HT Joseph Lauer and the Bible Places Blog. For many PaleoJudaica posts on the site of Dura-Europos, its late antique synagogue, and that synogogue's remarkable murals, see here and links.

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

Hasmonean-era oil lamp found on Pilgrimage Road

ARCHAEOLOGY: 2000-Year-Old Oil Lamp Discovered in the City of David (Jewish Press). With video in English and Hebrew. The potential Hanukkah connection to the discovery of a Hasmonean-era oil lamp is not neglected.

For more on the Jerusalem Pilgrimage Road/Pilgrims' Path, see here and links.

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Collier Prize in Ancient Numismatics

NUMISMATICS: American Numismatic Society Announces New Prize in Ancient Numismatics (CoinWeek).

The American Numismatic Society (ANS) is pleased to announce the Collier Prize in Ancient Numismatics, given in memory of the late Professor James M. Collier. The Collier Prize in Ancient Numismatics is a substantial monetary prize that will be awarded biennially to the best single- or multi-authored book, catalog, or online digital work in the field of ancient numismatics (650 BCE–300 CE).

[...]

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van Oort (ed.), Manichaeism and Early Christianity (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Manichaeism and Early Christianity

Selected Papers from the 2019 Pretoria Congress and Consultation

Series: Nag Hammadi and Manichaean Studies, Volume: 99

Volume Editor: Johannes van Oort

Manichaeism and Early Christianity comprises the selected papers from the 2019 Pretoria Congress and Consultation. The sixteen chapters focus on where and how Gnostic Manichaeism interfered not only with other forms of Gnosticism, but above all with the writings and representatives of mainstream Christianity during the early centuries of our era. Key texts dealt with are a number of Nag Hammadi writings (including the Gospel of Thomas) as well as figures such as Marcion, Tatian, Ephrem the Syrian, Chrysostom, Pelagius and—not least—Augustine and his pupil Evodius.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €132.00 / $159.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44546-8
Publication Date: 07 Dec 2020

Hardback
Availability: Not Yet Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44545-1
Publication Date: 10 Dec 2020

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Zevit replies regarding Adam's penis bone

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Concerning Gen 2:21, Retrodiagnosis, and Methodology in Scriptural Study: A Response to Hector Avalos

If Hebrew ṣēlā‘ is interpreted as “rib,” a different explanation has to be provided for the etiological statement in Gen 2:21. None is provided or mentioned by Avalos.

See: A Penis Bone in Genesis 2:21? Retrodiagnosis as a Methodological Problem in Scriptural Studies

See Also: Ziony Zevit. What Really Happened in the Garden of Eden? Yale University Press; Illustrated edition, 2013.

Click here for chapter 12.

Click here for notes.

“Chapter 12 reproduced by permission of Yale University Press.”

By Ziony Zevit
American Jewish University
December 2020

I noted Professor Avalos's article here.

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