Review of Korytko, Death of the Covenant Code

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Death of the Covenant Code: capital punishment in old Greek Exodus in light of Greco-Egyptian law.

Joel Korytko, Death of the Covenant Code: capital punishment in old Greek Exodus in light of Greco-Egyptian law. Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism, 211. Leiden; Boston: Brill, 2023. Pp. xii, 362. ISBN 9789004682030.

Review by
Dries De Crom, Tilburg University. d.j.l.a.decrom@tilburguniversity.edu

This monograph focuses on laws prescribing the death penalty in Exodus 21-22, a section of the book of Exodus also known as the “Book of the Covenant” or the “Covenant Code”. The main thesis of this study can be summarized as follows. The author argues that the Old Greek translation of Exodus subtly alters and/or excises references to the death penalty in Ex 21-22, while maintaining “superficial semantic fidelity” (pp. 2-4) to the source text. ...

I noted the publication of the book here.

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