Dalley, The City of Babylon (CUP)

NEW BOOK FROM CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS:

The City of Babylon
A History, c. 2000 BC – AD 116

Stephanie Dalley, University of Oxford

Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Online publication date: June 2021
Print publication year: 2021
Online ISBN: 9781316479728
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781316479728

Subjects: Ancient History, Classical Studies v Book description

The 2000-year story of Babylon sees it moving from a city-state to the centre of a great empire of the ancient world. It remained a centre of kingship under the empires of Assyria, Nebuchadnezzar, Darius, Alexander the Great, the Seleucids and the Parthians. Its city walls were declared to be a Wonder of the World while its ziggurat won fame as the Tower of Babel. Visitors to Berlin can admire its Ishtar Gate, and the supposed location of its elusive Hanging Garden is explained. Worship of its patron god Marduk spread widely while its well-trained scholars communicated legal, administrative and literary works throughout the ancient world, some of which provide a backdrop to Old Testament and Hittite texts. Its science also laid the foundations for Greek and Arab astronomy through a millennium of continuous astronomical observations. This accessible and up-to-date account is by one of the world's leading authorities.

HT Bibliographia Iranica.

I have noted other recent books on the city of Babylon here and here.

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Women and the Sabbath

PROF. HAGITH SIVAN: Women’s Connection to Shabbat (TheTorah.com).

Israelite women are conspicuously absent from the Decalogue’s Shabbat law. Three stories in the Prophets featuring female characters—Rahab the prostitute, the great woman of Shunem, and Queen Athalya—each tie to Shabbat in some unconventional way.

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Who Was Jesus’ Biological Father?

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Who Was Jesus’ Biological Father? Examining the nativity stories in Matthew and Luke. This essay summarized a 2014 BAR article by Andrew Lincoln. The article itself is behind the subscription wall.

For those interested in the problem of the Gospel infancy narratives, Pieter Craffert's framing of the issue in his book, The Life of a Galilean Shaman, is worth reading. He argues that shamanic figures like Jesus often acquired a story of their special birth, so it is not surprising that such stories are associated with him. Craffert covers many of the same issues discussed in the essay above. For more on his book, see here and here.

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The HMML manuscript School

THE AWOL BLOG: HMML School.

HMML School teaches about scripts and manuscripts, introducing learners to the sciences of paleography and codicology. Choose a manuscript culture and follow the development of scripts through the centuries!

I have posted many times about the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library and about Fr. Columba Stewart, the "School Concept, Project Director and Editor." For both, start here and follow the links. But this is the first I've heard of the Library's School website. It has lessons on Arabic, Latin, and Syriac manuscripts and paleography.

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

Tu B'Av 2021

THE FESTIVAL OF TU B'AV begins this evening at sundown. Best wishes to all those celebrating.

Tu B'Av (which just means the 15th day of the month of Av) is an ancient matchmaking festival. Its first mention is in the Mishnah (Ta’anit 4). It has been revived in recent years as a kind of Jewish Valentine's Day. For past posts on it, see here and here and links.

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

Nabonidus inscription found in Saudi Arabia

AKKADIAN CUNEIFORM: Cuneiform inscription from last king of Babylon discovered in Saudi Arabia. It's the longest such inscription in Saudi Arabia (Owen Jarus, Live Science).

We know that Nabonidus spent ten years in Teima (Tayma) in North Arabia during his reign, so it isn't a big surprise that he left an inscription in Saudi Arabia. That said, al-Hait looks to be about 275 kilometers southeast of Tayma. I am surprised that the inscription is so far away from it.

Nabonidus does not appear in the Bible, although the story of Nebuchadnezzar's madness in Daniel 4 may be a confused legend about him. The legend appear in a form closer to historical events in the Aramaic Prayer of Nabonidus found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. For more on all of that, see here and links, here, and here.

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

Bekken, Paul’s Negotiation of Abraham in Galatians 3 in the Jewish Context (De Gruyter)

NEW BOOK FROM DE GRUYTER:

Paul’s Negotiation of Abraham in Galatians 3 in the Jewish Context
The Galatian Converts — Lineal Descendants of Abraham and Heirs of the Promise

Per Jarle Bekken

Volume 248. In the series Beihefte zur Zeitschrift für die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110722109

About this book

This work offers a fresh reading of Paul’s appropriation of Abraham in Gal 3:6–29 against the background of Jewish data, especially drawn from the writings of Philo of Alexandria. Philo’s negotiation on Abraham as the model proselyte and the founder of the Jewish nation based on his trust in God's promise relative to the Law of Moses provides a Jewish context for a corresponding debate reflected in Galatians, and suggests that there were Jewish antecedents that came close to Paul’s reasoning in his own time. This volume incorporates a number of new arguments in the context of scholarly discussion of both Galatian 3 and some of the Philonic texts, and demonstrates how the works of Philo can be applied responsibly in New Testament scholarship.

eBookv Published: July 5, 2021
ISBN: 9783110722109

Hardcover
Published: July 5, 2021
ISBN: 9783110721928

De Gruyter's new and improved website doesn't appear to include prices. At least I can't fine them.

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Dorfmann-Lazarev (ed.), Apocryphal and Esoteric Sources in the Development of Christianity and Judaism (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Apocryphal and Esoteric Sources in the Development of Christianity and Judaism

The Eastern Mediterranean, the Near East, and Beyond

Series: Texts and Studies in Eastern Christianity, Volume: 21

Volume Editor: Igor Dorfmann-Lazarev

Apocryphal traditions, often shared by Jews and Christians, have played a significant role in the history of both religions. The 26 essays in this volume examine regional and linguistic developments in Ethiopia, Egypt, Syria, Armenia, the Balkans, and Italy. Dissenting groups, such as the Samaritans, followers of John the Baptist, and mediæval dualists are also discussed. Furthermore, the book looks at interactions of Judaism and Christianity with the religions of Iran. Seldom verified or authorized, and frequently rejected by Churches, apocryphal texts had their own process of development, undergoing significant transformations. The book shows how apocryphal accounts could become a medium of literary and artistic elaboration and mythological creativity. Local adaptations of Biblical stories indicate that copyists, authors and artists conceived of themselves as living not in a post-Biblical era, but in direct continuity with Biblical personages.

Copyright Year: 2021

Prices from (excl. VAT): €220.00 / $265.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44592-5
Publication Date: 17 Jun 2021

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44593-2
Publication Date: 17 Jun 2021

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

Yogev, The Rephaim (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

The Rephaim

Sons of the Gods

Series: Culture and History of the Ancient Near East, Volume: 121

Author: Jonathan Yogev

In The Rephaim: Sons of the Gods, Jonathan Yogev provides a new theory regarding the mysterious characters, known as "Rephaim," in Biblical and ancient Near Eastern literature. The Rephaim are associated with concepts such as death and the afterlife, divinity, healing, giants and monarchy among others. They appear in Ugaritic, Phoenician and Biblical texts, yet it is difficult to pinpoint their exact function and meaning. This study offers a different perspective, along with full texts, detailed epigraphic analysis and commentary for all of the texts that mention the Rephaim, in order to determine their specific importance in societies of the ancient Levant.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €118.00 / $142.00

Copyright Year: 2021

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-46086-7
Publication Date: 12 Apr 2021

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-46085-0
Publication Date: 08 Apr 2021

For PaleoJudaica posts pertaining to the Rephaim, see here and here and follow the links.

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

Memorial to Steven Ring

SAD NEWS: Some memories of Steven Ring, Syriacist Extraordinaire (Roger Pearse).

Yesterday I learned by accident of the death of Steven Ring, one of the first enthusiasts online to promote Syriac studies. He died on March 28th 2021 of cancer. He had been ill for the previous four years, during which time he undertook and completed a PhD at SOAS.

[...]

Dr. Ring was a longstanding and active member of the Hygoye List. I have mentioned his name a few times in connection with it.

Requiescat in Pace. And cross-file under Syriac Watch.

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The Archaeology and Bible Series (Mohr Siebeck)

THE AWOL BLOG: (Partially) Open Access Monograph Series: Archaeology and Bible (Chuck Jones). This is a series with Mohr Siebeck publishers. I have noted most, but not all of the volumes in previous posts.

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

Uusimäki, Lived Wisdom in Jewish Antiquity (Bloomsbury)

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY:

Lived Wisdom in Jewish Antiquity

Studies in Exercise and Exemplarity

Elisa Uusimäki (Author)

Hardback
$115.00

Ebook (PDF)
$103.50

Ebook (Epub & Mobi)
$103.50

Published Jul 01 2021
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Extent 240
ISBN 9780567697950
Imprint Bloomsbury Academic
Dimensions 9 x 6 inches
Series Education, Literary Culture, and Religious Practice in the Ancient World
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

Description

Moving away from focusing on wisdom as a literary genre, this book delves into the lived, embodied and formative dimensions of wisdom as they are delineated in Jewish sources from the Persian, Hellenistic and early Roman eras. Considering a diverse body of texts beyond later canonical boundaries, the book demonstrates that wisdom features not as an abstract quality, but as something to be performed and exercised at both the individual and community level.

The analysis specifically concentrates on notions of a 'wise' person, including the rise of the sage as an exemplary figure. It also looks at how ancestral figures and contemporary teachers are imagined to manifest and practice wisdom, and considers communal portraits of a wise and virtuous life. In so doing, the author demonstrates that the previous focus on wisdom as a category of literature has overshadowed significant questions related to wisdom, behaviour and social life. Jewish wisdom is also contextualized in relation to its wider ancient Mediterranean milieu, making the book valuable for biblical scholars, classicists, scholars of religion and the ancient Near East and theologians.

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Ancient Hebrew love poetry on YouTube

MUSIC: Ancient Hebrew love poetry finds new audiences on YouTube. ’12 Tribes,’ a new channel for singers specializing in ancient Hebrew tunes, launching on Tu B’Av, the Jewish festival of love (Jessica Steinberg, Times of Israel). They are good!

The ancient festival of Tu B'Av, recently revived as a kind of Jewish Valentine's Day, begins on Friday at sundown.

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

Upcoming: Bible & Archaeology

THE AWOL BLOG: Coming Soon: Bible & Archaeology. This is a new publication edited by Robert Cargill, former chief editor of Biblical Archaeology Review. You can subscribe for updates at the link.

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

Review of Hawk, Apocrypha For Beginners

RELIGION PROF: Brandon Hawk, Apocrypha For Beginners. James McGrath reviews a new book by Brandon Hawk. This is the first I recall hearing of it. The full reference is:

Brandon W. Hawk, Apocrypha for Beginners: A Guide to Understanding and Exploring Scriptures Beyond the Bible (Rockridge Press, 2021)

Professor Hark introduces the book on his blog here.

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

Numada, John and Anti-Judaism (Pickwick)

NEW BOOK FROM WIPF AND STOCK:

John and Anti-Judaism
Reading the Gospel in Light of Greco-Roman Culture

McMaster Biblical Studies Series

by Jonathan Numada
Imprint: Pickwick Publications
302 Pages, 6.00 x 9.00 x 0.60 in

Paperback
9781725298163
Published: June 2021
$35.00 / £26.00 / AU$47.00

Hardcover
9781725298170
Published: June 2021
$55.00 / £40.00 / AU$73.00

eBook
9781725298187
Published: June 2021
$35.00 / £26.00 / AU$47.00

DESCRIPTION

This study argues that the Gospel of John's anti-Judaism can be well understood from the perspective of trends apparent within the context of broader Greco-Roman culture. It uses the paradigm of collective memory and aspects of social identity theory and self-categorization theory to explore the theological and narrative functions of the Johannine Jews. Relying upon a diverse range of historical testimony drawn from Greco-Roman literature, inscriptions, and papyri, this work attempts to understand the social identities and social locations of Diaspora Jews as a first step in reading John's Gospel in the context of the political and social instability of the first century CE. It then attempts to understand John's theology, its portrayal of Jewish social identity, and the narrative and theological functions of "the Jews" as a group character in light of this historical context. This work attempts to demonstrate that while John's treatment of Jews and Judaism is multivalent at both social and theological levels, it is primarily focused upon strengthening a Christologically centered Christian identity while attempting to mitigate the attractiveness of Judaism as a religious competitor.

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

On the siege of Yodfat

THE GREAT REVOLT: Yodfat: The Masada You Don’t Know About. In the autumn of 66 CE, Jews came together in the ancient city of Jerusalem and rebelled against the mighty Roman Empire. Little did they know that they had initiated a chain of events… (Joshua Beylinson, HonestReporting). Also relevant for Tisha B'Av, which was observed over the weekend.

The siege of Masada is well known, but other important sieges during the Great Revolt, including those of Gamla and Yodfat (Jotapata) much less so.

Naturally, PaleoJudaica readers are better informed. I have posted on the siege of Jotapata/Yodfat with reference to the Josephus Problem, the little algorithm tha Josephus claimed he used to escape having to commit suicide as the Romans approached.

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

Bible Places on the "Jerubbaal" jug

THE BIBLE PLACES BLOG: Inscription of Jerubbaal Found. Todd Bolen has a good summary of the discovery. He weighs up the pros and cons (mostly cons) of the possibility that it refers to the biblical Gideon.

Background here, here, and here.

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

Dura-Europos exhibition volume (open access)

THE AWOL BLOG: Dura-Europos : crossroads of antiquity (Chuck Jones).

I tracked the Dura-Europos: Crossroads of Antiquity Exhibition at the McMullen Museum of Art at Boston College back when it was showing in 2011 (see here, here, and here). This is the first I've heard that the informative and well-illustrated exhibition volume is available at archive.org.

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

Anniversary of discovery of the Rosetta Stone

EGYPTIAN MILESTONE: July 19 marks discovery of Egypt’s Rosetta Stone 222 years ago (State Information Service, Egypt).

For more on Champollion's decipherment of hieroglyphic Egyptian using the Rosetta Stone, see here.

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

New movie on the Great Revolt

CINEMA: New film portrays Jewish revolt against Romans in vivid, gripping detail. ‘Legend of Destruction’ is filmmaker Gidi Dar’s latest masterpiece, an eight-year project, now in theaters for Tisha B’Av (Jessica Steinberg, Times of Israel).

“Legend of Destruction” is filmmaker Gidi Dar’s latest creation. Made entirely of still drawings, the movie was written by Dar and actor Shuli Rand, and drawn by Michael Faust and David Polonsky of “Waltz with Bashir” fame. Actors Moni Moshonov, Yael Abecassis, Igal Naor and Amos Tamam also provide voices in the film.

The 90-minute film tells the story of the Jewish revolt against Rome in 70 CE, from the perspective of Ben Batiach, a good-hearted scholar who turns zealot, leading to the Roman siege on the city and the destruction of the Second Temple.

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

Review of Price & Berthelot (eds.), The Future of Rome

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: The future of Rome: Roman, Greek, Jewish and Christian visions

Jonathan Price, Katell Berthelot, The future of Rome: Roman, Greek, Jewish and Christian visions. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2020. Pp. ix, 315. ISBN 9781108494816 $99.99.

Review by
Michael Girardin, Université du Littoral – Côte d’Opale. michael.girardin@univ-littoral.fr

I noted the publication of the volume here.

The volume itself is in English, but the review is in French.

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

More on that unbreached wall in Jerusalem

THE BIBLE PLACE BLOG: Ancient City Wall Discovered in Jerusalem. Todd Bolen summarizes the story. He also offers a detailed refutation of the suggestion that the discovery contradicts the account in 2 Kings of the Babylonian destruction of the wall.

Background here and here.

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

Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History 8 (2021)

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History (vol. 8).

Volume 8 of Journal of Ancient Near Eastern History (2021) is just published. This is a special issue entitled “Scholars, Priests, and Temples: Babylonian and Egyptian Science in Context.” It consists a handful of papers falling in the scope of ancient Iran.

There are lots of other papers in the volume too. Many are of background interest to ancient Judaism. One involves Talmudic traditions directly.

You can read the abstracts for free. Most of the articles are behind a subscription wall.

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

The Newark holy stones are on display

NEW WORLD HEBREW FORGERY (OR SOMETHING) WATCH: Bush: The battle over the Newark holy stones' story (Jennifer Bush, The Newark Advocate via MSN).

For more than 160 years people have disagreed over whether the Newark Holy Stones are authentic. These carved stones engraved with Hebrew letters were found in and near the Newark Earthworks in the 1860s. Two of the Stones are in the collections of the Johnson-Humrickhouse Museum in Coshocton.

[...]

No specialist argues today that the Newark Stones are genuine ancient artifacts. They may have been created in the mid-nineteenth century as emancipationist propaganda aimed at preventing a civil war. It has also been suggested that they are stolen European medieval Jewish artifacts. To my knowledge, no peer-reviewed study has been published defending either hypothesis.

In any case, they are remarkable objects. They are on display at present at the Johnson-Humrickhouse Museum in Coshocton, Ohio. If you happen to be in the vicinity, do go and have a look.

For PaleoJudaica posts that go over this ground in much more detail, start here and follow the links.

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

So many open-access journals!

THE AWOL BLOG: Active Open Access Journals (Chuck Jones). This is a long list.

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

Judging a scroll by its cover?

OVER AT VARIANT READINGS, Brent Nongbri continues to explore the ancient vocabulary pertaining to scrolls.

More Papyrus Roll Vocabulary: frons, cornua, umbilicus. The terms seem to refer, respectively, to the decorated top and bottom borders of a scroll and the wooden rod the scroll was wrapped around.

Stands for Holding Open Papyrus Rolls? The title is self-explanatory.

I noted an earlier post in this series here.

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

Virtual Madaba

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: A Virtual Visit to the “City of Mosaics.” New project brings biblical Madaba to life (Nathan Steinmeyer).

Madaba is, of course, the home of the famous late-antique Madaba Map mosaic of the Holy Land. More on it here and links.

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