Saturday, June 29, 2024

Glas, Flavius Josephus' Self-Characterisation in First-Century Rome (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:
Flavius Josephus' Self-Characterisation in First-Century Rome

A Historiographical Analysis of Autobiographical Discourse in the Judaean War

Series:
Historiography of Rome and Its Empire, Volume: 19

Author: Eelco Glas

The Jewish War describes the history of the First Jewish Revolt against Rome (66-70 CE). This study deals with one of this work's most intriguing features: why and how Flavius Josephus, its author, describes his own actions in the context of this conflict in such detail. Glas traces the thematic and rhetorical aspects of autobiographical discourse in War and uses contextual evidence to situate Josephus’ self-characterisation in a Flavian Roman setting. In doing so, he sheds new light on this Jewish writer’s historiographical methods and his deep knowledge and creative use of Graeco-Roman culture.

Copyright Year: 2024

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-69764-5
Publication: 03 Jun 2024
EUR €108.00

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-69763-8
Publication: 30 May 2024
EUR €108.00

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Friday, June 28, 2024

Eerdmans interviews James McGrath

THE EERDWORD BLOG: Interview with the Author—James F. McGrath.
Meet the real John the Baptist.

For many, John the Baptist is a footnote in the gospels—Jesus’s unkempt forerunner. But if we look closer, John emerges as a fascinating and influential religious leader in his own right. James F. McGrath turns his critical eye to overlooked details in Scripture and long-neglected sources to flesh out John’s life story and his far-reaching influence on the history of religion. This fresh look at the life of John the Baptist will fascinate any reader interested in John, Jesus, and their dynamic world.

Read below for an exclusive interview with James and gain further insight into his upcoming book, Christmaker: A Life of John the Baptist.

For background on Professor McGrath's new and forthcoming books on John the Baptist, see here and links.

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The Berenike buddha, pet cemetery, papyri, and more!

EGYTPTIAN ARCHAEOLOGY: A Buried Ancient Egyptian Port Reveals the Hidden Connections Between Distant Civilizations. At the site of Berenike, in the desert sands along the Red Sea, archaeologists are uncovering wondrous new finds that challenge old ideas about the makings of the modern world (Jo Marchant, Smithsonian Magazine).

I first noticed the site of the ancient Egyptian port Berenike Trogodytika five years ago. I was interested, as I said at the time, because the city was named after the Ptolemaic queen Berenice I. She was the wife of Ptolemy I. He is mentioned as "the king of the south" in Daniel 11:5.

Since then the site has continued to produce remarkable discoveries, including the Berenike Buddha, the pet cemetery, and important epigraphic finds in a trash dump. For all my Berenike posts, see the links collected in that last post.

This long and thorough Smithsonian article has the most detailed coverage of the excavation I have seen. A couple of excerpts:

From Berenike, cargoes were carried by camel caravan to Coptos, on the Nile, shipped down the river to Alexandria, and from there to Rome and the rest of the Mediterranean world. Excavations are now confirming the wealth and breadth of the goods passing through Berenike in both directions, yielding pottery from Spain and Morocco; frankincense and resin from South Arabia; beads from Thailand or Vietnam and even Java. And “just tons” of Indian material, says Sidebotham, including gems and pearls, woven mats and baskets, as well as rice and a jar containing more than 16 pounds of peppercorns, the largest such cache from antiquity ever found.

At the same time, the archaeologists are discovering what the literary sources don’t describe: the mechanics of life in an ancient intercontinental port. Around the main harbor they have found the remains of planking from ships built on both sides of the ocean (cedar from Lebanon, teak from Kerala); workshops and storehouses; and huge ropes and torn sails. ...

Perhaps the most prominent feature of the town, though, is a profusion of shrines. “You stumble from one religious institution to another,” Sidebotham jokes. There’s the northern complex, which featured chapels of various cults built over the centuries, including one that contained the remains of 15 falcons. Elsewhere, there’s a third-century A.D. shrine dedicated to deities from Palmyra, Syria, and a Christian church, dating to the fifth century, in which archaeologists found a lamp inscribed with the message “Jesus, forgive me.”

Just about the only thing not found so far is a direct connection to the Hebrew Bible or ancient Judaism. But I do note the presence of cedar from Lebanon, which is another indirect connection. Still, I wouldn't be surprised if something direct turns up.

Meanwhile, Berenike Trogodytika continues to give us new knowledge about real day-to-day life in a Ptolemaic and late antique Egyptian port.

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

Another Millard obituary

IN MEMORIAM: The archaeologist and the teacher: life and ministry of Alan Millard. One emphasis Millard made in his talks is that archaeology provides valuable information that can be used to deepen our knowledge of the Bible (Arturo Terrazas, Evangelical Focus).

Background here and links.

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

Thursday, June 27, 2024

Review of Crellin, The semantics of word division in northwest Semitic writing systems

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: The semantics of word division in northwest Semitic writing systems: Ugaritic, Phoenician, Hebrew, Moabite and Greek.
Robert S.D. Crellin, The semantics of word division in northwest Semitic writing systems: Ugaritic, Phoenician, Hebrew, Moabite and Greek. Contexts of and relations between early writing systems (CREWS) . Oxford: Oxbow Books, 2022. Pp. 256. ISBN 9781789256772.

Review by
Joseph Lam, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. jclam@email.unc.edu

In this highly technical monograph, Robert Crellin surveys the phenomenon of so-called “word dividers” in Northwest Semitic epigraphic texts in an effort to discern what principles, if any, might guide their distribution. ...

The history of word divisions in writing sometimes makes me wonder when people first noticed that their language had words and wasn't just the flow of their thoughts. Perhaps this came later than we might think.

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

Interview with Jody Magness on the DSS

PODCAST: The Dead Sea Scrolls (National Review).
John J. Miller is joined by Jodi Magness of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to discuss the Dead Sea Scrolls.
I don't have time to listen to this right now. But if you do, Jody Magness is always good.

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

Wednesday, June 26, 2024

ToI on the new Infancy Gospel of Thomas fragment

NEW TESTAMENT APOCRYPHA WATCH: 1,600-year-old papyrus fragment contains earliest account of Jesus’ childhood. Scrap from extra-biblical Infancy Gospel of Thomas discovered in German archive contains story of young Jesus bringing clay birds to life on the Sabbath (Gavriel Fiske, Times of Israel).
A small, 1,600-year-old papyrus fragment discovered in a German archive has been revealed to contain the earliest known copy of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas, an early Christian text describing the childhood of Jesus that once enjoyed enormous popularity but was not canonized into the New Testament.

[...]

A good article that covers the issues. It interviews Dr. Lajos Berkes, one of the publishers of the fragment, and also Prof. Tony Burke, who has published recent editions of the Greek and Syriac versions of the Infancy Gospel of Thomas.

Background here.

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

AI translates Aramaic. Sort of.

RELIGION PROF: ChatGPT Writes Sermons, Translates Aramaic.

James McGrath set ChatGPT to translating some Syriac. As is usual with AI, the results can be useful, as long as you have a human check it to filter out gibberish.

I will leave the part about sermons for others to comment on.

Cross-file under Algorith Watch and Syriac Watch.

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

Review of Friesen, Acting gods, playing heroes ...

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Acting gods, playing heroes, and the interaction between Judaism, Christianity, and Greek drama in the early common era.
Courtney J. P. Friesen, Acting gods, playing heroes, and the interaction between Judaism, Christianity, and Greek drama in the early common era. Abingdon; New York: Routledge, 2023. Pp. 180. ISBN 9781032491028.

Review by
Edward Creedy, King's College London. edward.creedy@kcl.ac.uk

In Acting Gods, Playing Heroes Courtney Friesen argues that the development of Jewish and Christian thought and practice in the early Common Era was heavily influenced by the diversity of dramatic performance and literary reproductions popular across the ancient world. ...

I noted the publication of the book here.

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Tuesday, June 25, 2024

... Documentary Papyri and the New Testament (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:
Everyday Life in Graeco-Roman Times

Documentary Papyri and the New Testament

Series:
Studies in Cultural Contexts of the Bible, Volume: 16

Editors: Christina M. Kreinecker, John S. Kloppenborg, and James R. Harrison

Everyday life in Graeco-Roman times has fascinated generations of scholars, students, and people interested in the New Testament alike. One of the most unique sources to access ancient everyday affairs are documentary papyri because they provide access to the ancient world both before and while it was shaped into one in which Christianity began to predominate. These textual sources allow the modern reader to meet everyday people from the past through their own writings and in texts about their daily affairs, joys, and sorrows. Documentary papyri provide an abundance of information to contextualize the New Testament and its authors, and to better understand its stories and messages. This volume aims at highlighting some of these contexts and to shed new papyrological light on the New Testament. The essays in this volume have been written in honour of Peter Arzt-Grabner, who has illuminated the New Testament through documentary papyri for more than three decades.

Copyright Year: 2024

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Not Yet Published
ISBN: 978-3-657-79463-8
Publication: 11 Mar 2024
EUR €120.56

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-3-506-79463-5
Publication: 08 Mar 2024
EUR €120.56

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Monday, June 24, 2024

Tri-partite temples at Tell Tayinat in Turkey

HOLY LAND PHOTOS' BLOG: Tell Tayinat and the Judean Temple — Design and Placing the Treaty/Covenant Document in the Holy of Holies (Carl Rasmussen).
I wanted to visit Tell Tayinat because it was an important center during the Early Bronze Age and during the Iron II Period. It is especially interesting because of two tripartite temples that seem to have affinities with the Tabernacle and Solomonic Temple as described in the Bible. In addition, a bit-hilani palace was discovered here—similar in design to Solomon’s Palace in Jerusalem and a palace found at Megiddo (in Israel). In addition, numerous reliefs, statues, cuneiform tablets, etc. have come to light during the excavations! Tell Tayinat may have been Kunula, the capital of the Neo-Hittite Kingdom of Patina (ca. 950–725 B.C.).

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

The Nuzi archive

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: The Nuzi Tablets. Bronze Age records from the time of the Patriarchs (Philippe Bohström).

An informative, balanced account of the discovery of the Nuzi tablets, their importance for ancient Near Eastern (Hurrian) history, and their possible (but highly debated) relevance for biblical studies.

A few PaleoJudaica posts involving the Nuzi tablets are here, here, and here.

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Brazil, Jesus and YHWH-Texts in the Synoptic Gospels (T&T Clark)

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:
Jesus and YHWH-Texts in the Synoptic Gospels

Scott Brazil (Author)

Hardback
$115.00 $103.50

Ebook (PDF)
$103.50 $82.80

Ebook (Epub & Mobi)
$103.50 $82.80

Product details

Published Mar 21 2024
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Extent 248
ISBN 9780567713957
Imprint T&T Clark
Dimensions 9 x 6 inches
Series The Library of New Testament Studies
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

Description

Scott Brazil examines the frequent practice of applying Old Testament YHWH-texts to Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels. He argues that this YHWH-text phenomenon evidences a high Christology in the primitive church that traces back to Jesus himself. He thus finds in this Synoptic practice a stinging contradiction against the modern critical theory that a high Christology took many decades to develop in the early church and exists only in John among the canonical Gospels.
Brazil surveys the Synoptic Gospels in canonical order, exegeting dozens of passages in which OT texts originally referring to YHWH are either clearly or most probably applied to Jesus. He observes the frequency, diversity, and ubiquity of the practice, as well as its wide range of OT source material and its parallel to the NT practice of applying OT messianic texts to Jesus. And from the data he offers several ramifications, including the early deliberate employment of YHWH-texts to Jesus, the likelihood that Jesus is the source of the practice, the high Christology of the Synoptics, and the redemptive-historical metanarrative that Jesus is the divine interpreter and central figure of the Jewish Scriptures.
Ultimately, Brazil argues that understanding the prolific application of OT YHWH-texts to Jesus in the Synoptic Gospels cannot be neglected without truncating genuine NT Christology.

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Sunday, June 23, 2024

Social Memory Theory and Conceptions of Afterlife in Jewish and Christian Antiquity (Brill)

RECENT BOOK FROM BRILL:
Social Memory Theory and Conceptions of Afterlife in Jewish and Christian Antiquity

Series:
Studies in Cultural Contexts of the Bible, Volume: 8

Editors: Thomas R. Hatina and Jiří Lukeš
Contributors: Thomas R. Hatina, Jiří Lukeš, Christian Handschuh, Frederick S. Tappenden, Jiri Janak, David Cielontko, Michael Sommer, Zeba Crook, Tobias Nicklas, Anthony Le Donne, Brad Anderson, Stu Talane, Sandra Huebenthal, Kyle Parsons, and Craig C. Broyles

Why are conceptions of afterlife so diverse in both Jewish and Christian antiquity? This collection of essays offers explanations for this diversity through the lens of social memory theory. The contributors attempt to understand how and why received traditions about the afterlife needed to be altered, invented and even forgotten if they were to have relevance in the present. Select ancient texts conveying the hopes and fears of the afterlife are viewed as products of transmission processes that appropriated the past in conformity with identity constructs of each community. The range of literature in this collection spans from the earliest receptions of Israelite traditions within early Judaism to the Patristic/Rabbinic period.

Copyright Year: 2023

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-3-657-79621-2
Publication: 07 Nov 2022
EUR €101.87

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-3-506-79621-9
Publication: 02 Dec 2022
EUR €101.87

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