Goodacre, The Fourth Synoptic Gospel (Eerdmans, forthcoming)

THE NT BLOG: The Fourth Synoptic Gospel. Everything is the Synoptic Gospels!

Congratulations to Mark Goodacre on his forthcoming book.

The Fourth Synoptic Gospel
John’s Knowledge of Matthew, Mark, and Luke

by Mark Goodacre

Imprint: Eerdmans

205 Pages, 6.00 x 9.00 in

PAPERBACK
9780802875136
Publication Date: September 16, 2025
$29.99
£22.99

EBOOK
9781467462716
Publication Date: September 16, 2025
$29.99
£22.99

DESCRIPTION

A bold reassessment of John’s Gospel and its relationship to the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke

Generations ago in biblical studies, it was taken for granted that John wrote with full knowledge of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. But this consensus was overturned in the 1930s and since then, there has been no agreement on the issue. Today many scholars view the problem as unsolvable or impossibly complex. Mark Goodacre, however, takes a different view. In his galvanizing new book, Goodacre synthesizes long-neglected data with newer perspectives to make a strong case for John’s familiarity with all three Synoptic Gospels.

Writing in a clear and accessible style, Goodacre takes a systematic, step by step approach to showing that John knew and used the narratives of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Goodacre identifies key points of agreement that range from diagnostic shards to shared structures. He also analyzes key differences; in his telling, John dramatically transforms the Synoptics and develops their Christology while adding a beloved disciple of Jesus, who is himself a Synoptic character. To make his argument accessible to a broad audience, Goodacre minimizes the use of scholarly citations and translates all Greek words. Just as importantly, he illustrates his claims with clear, simple charts so that readers can see for themselves the evidence that John knew and used the Synoptics.

The Fourth Synoptic Gospel is sure to spark lively discussions among biblical scholars. Given that John’s relationship to the Synoptics is a fundamental issue in New Testament studies, Goodacre’s book is also a must read for students and professors alike.

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

More on those bronze lion-head discs

THERIOMORPHIC ICONOGRAPHIC ARTIFACTS: Lion-head Bronzes in Grave in Israel May Reveal Zoroastrian Influence on Rome. Bronze discs found in rare intact grave were handles of a coffin that may have contained a Roman dignitary worshiping Mithra, the archaeologists deduce (Ruth Schuster, Haaretz).

As an aside, I love the stone relief of Gilgamesh and the lion in the illustration. I know it says he is "subduing" it. But it looks to me as though Gilgamesh, who was eleven cubits tall (almost 18 feet) and who appears as a giant in the Book of Giants, is cuddling his pet lion. And in his other hand he is holding a cat play toy. But I am not an Assyriological iconographer, so receive my interpretation with caution.

Enigmatic bronze lion heads found in 1,900-year-old tomb in central Israel. Discovered near Kfar Saba, the ornate coffin fittings may hint at ties to pagan cults — or a Roman soldier’s final journey (Rossella Tercatin, Times of Israel).

With HT to Ancient Origins, I noted this story and the underlying 'Atiqot article a couple of months ago. I'm not sure why everyone is suddenly noticing it now (also here, here, here, and here). But I'm glad to see these artifacts getting more attention.

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Review of McCarter, Women in power

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Women in power: classical myths and stories, from the Amazons to Cleopatra.

Stephanie A. McCarter, Women in power: classical myths and stories, from the Amazons to Cleopatra. New York: Penguin Classics, 2024. Pp. 352. ISBN 9780143136361.

Review by
Francesca Rohr, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice. rohr@unive.it

This book aims to illustrate, through a selection of ancient sources, how certain elite women exercised considerable power and influence in the public sphere and the way ancient historiography and literature represented women when they held positions of power.

[...]

Notwithstanding the "Classical" focus, this book deals with many ancient women of interest to PaleoJudaica, including Semiramis, legendary queen of Babylon (and actual Assyrian queen), Dido, legendary queen of Carthage, Salome Alexandra, queen of Judea, Cleopatra VII, queen of Egypt, Boudicca, queen of the Iceni, and Zenobia, regent (and de facto empress) of Palmyra.

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

A library without scrolls and scrolls without a library

SOME ANCIENT ARCHIVES STUFF:

2,000 Year Old Library Discovered at Ancient City of Stratonikeia in Turkey (Nisha Zahid, Greek Reporter).

Archaeologists have uncovered the remains of a rare Greco-Roman library in the ancient Greek city of Stratonikeia (Greek: Στρατoνικεια) in southwest Turkey, revealing new insights into the architectural and cultural legacy of one of antiquity’s largest marble cities.

[...]

Spoiler: all the books were checked out. And are overdue. But there are some inscriptions that name the architect who designed it. And it's nice to have the floor plan of a substantial Greco-Roman-era library.

The Forgotten Archive of the Scribe of the Temple of Crocodile God in Egypt is Recovered, Containing Sent and Received Letters and Questions to the Oracle (Guillermo Carvajal, LBV).

Carolin Arlt holds a doctorate in Egyptology. After studying Egyptology, Ancient History, and Classical Archaeology at the Julius-Maximilians University of Würzburg (JMU), she earned her doctorate at the same institution. She later worked at universities in Cologne, Berkeley, and Jerusalem before returning to JMU in 2009 as a researcher on a project focused on a temple in Egypt’s Fayum region.

She is now starting a new research project based on another temple in Fayum, a Ptolemaic archive from the temple of Soknopaiu Nesos. Her research will focus on 75 documents from this temple, written on papyrus in Demotic over 2,200 years ago by Tesenuphis, son of Marres, who referred to himself as the “scribe of the priests.”

Unfortunately, these documents were looted from said temple (or somewhere) in the nineteenth century, so their archaeological context is lost. But I suppose we're lucky to have them at all.

Neither story is directly relevant to ancient Judaism. But I offer them as a reminder that there are still plenty of ancient archives waiting to be uncovered, some even with texts still in them.

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

Jerusalem's ancient aqueduct tunnel was longer than any in Rome?

ANCIENT INFRASTRUCTURE: Jerusalem aqueduct tunnel surpassed Rome’s in length, study reveals. Wadi el Biyar’s 2.8-kilometer water tunnel is longer than any Roman equivalent. (Jerusalem Post).

A recently published study has revealed that ancient Jerusalem’s water infrastructure included a tunnel longer than any known from the Roman Empire. The finding appears in the June 2025 issue of the journal Groundwater and was authored by David Deming of the University of Oklahoma.

[...]

The underlying article is open access:

The Aqueducts and Water Supply of Ancient Jerusalem

David Deming
First published: 23 June 2025 https://doi.org/10.1111/gwat.70000

Article impact statement: Describes the importance of groundwater to the history of the city of Jerusalem and links the utilization of groundwater with religious and cultural history.

Abstract

Jerusalem, a city held sacred by three of the world's great religions, is located in a semi-arid climate, and its occupation through the millennia has only been made possible by the construction of an extensive and ingenious water supply infrastructure. The settlement of Jerusalem was first made possible by water from the Gihon Spring. Over the centuries, the inhabitants of Jerusalem added several pools and reservoirs to collect and store water. Nearly all buildings, both private and public, also had extensive storage capacity in the form of cisterns. To support a burgeoning population and pilgrim growth during the late Second Temple Period, four aqueducts were constructed to bring additional water into Jerusalem. Much work remains to identify, date, classify, and restore the ancient water works of this great city.

For PaleoJudaica posts on Jerusalem's ancient water supply, substantial parts of which have been rediscovered only in this century, start here and follow the links.

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

Did ancient rabbis know Septuagint variants?

PROF. RABBI HERBERT BASSER: Septuagint Variants in Midrash and the Haggadah (TheTorah.com).

Why does Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba question whether the word “good” appears in the first version of the Decalogue—when the Masoretic Text (MT) clearly omits it? Why do some midrashim speak of God dividing the nations among seventy angels—though Deuteronomy 32:8 says nothing of angels? These phrasings align with the Septuagint (LXX), as do the Haggadah’s emphasis on God’s sole role in the exodus, the wise son’s inclusive phrasing, and the image of God’s outstretched arm.

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

McGrath on scholarship and skepticism

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Scholarship is Not Merely Skepticism

Skepticism, not simply accepting what a source claims, is a crucial element of critical thinking and thus central to the academic endeavor. Yet unlimited targeted doubt serves the interests of various denialisms that run counter to and seek to undermine academic conclusions. This article represents one academic’s journey out of denialisms into academia, and his effort to find the right balance that avoids a pendulum swing into an opposite yet otherwise similar denialism at the other end of the spectrum.

See also Christmaker: A Life of John the Baptist (Eerdmans, 2024).

By James F. McGrath
Clarence L. Goodwin Chair in New Testament Language and Literature
Butler University
June 2025

Being appropriately skeptical is an important tool in the toolbox of the academic, but scholarship is not merely skepticism. Let me explain.

[...]

Some sensible observations on how historians should approach miracle stories in the Bible and other ancient texts.

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

Shaghaghi Zarghamee, Myth and History in Ancient Persia (Edinburgh University)

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: Myth and History in Ancient Persia. Notice of a new book: Shaghaghi Zarghamee, Reza. 2025. Myth and History in Ancient Persia: The Achaemenids in the Iranian Tradition. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.

What a good idea! I'm surprised that no one had thought to compare the traditional Iranian accounts of the Achaemenids to the Classical accounts of them. But now someone has.

Follow the link for a description and a link to the publisher's page.

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

Babylonian Chronographic Texts from the Hellenistic Period (SBL)

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Babylonian Chronographic Texts from the Hellenistic Period

R. J. van der Spek, Irving L. Finkel, Reinhard Pirngruber, Kathryn Stevens

ISBN 9781628375879
Volume WAW 44
Status Available
Publication Date May 2025

eBook $100.00
Hardback $120.00
Paperback $100.00

A comprehensive edition of Akkadian chronographic texts from the fourth to the first centuries BCE

Babylonian Chronographic Texts from the Hellenistic Period gathers in a single volume previously unpublished tablets together with those that have appeared before, including the Babylonian chronicles, the historical sections of the Astronomical Diaries, the Babylonian and Uruk King Lists, and the Antiochus Cylinder from Borsippa. The volume offers new descriptions, transliterations, and translations of each tablet, together with full linguistic and historical commentary. This comprehensive collection brings these important historiographic tools to a broader audience of scholars of history, biblical studies, and the ancient world. An appendix with entries on political institutions, temples, important persons, and Babylonian and Greek words makes this an indispensable tool for students.

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

Tigchelaar Festschrift (Brill)

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Missing Pieces: Essays in Honour of Eibert J. C. Tigchelaar

Series:
Studies on the Texts of the Desert of Judah, Volume: 152

Volume Editors: Arjen F. Bakker, George J. Brooke, Bärry Hartog, Hindy Najman, and Pierre Van Hecke

This collection of essays is dedicated to Eibert Tigchelaar. Individual studies engage with new approaches to materiality, hermeneutics, digital humanities, and philology in the context of biblical research. The articles reflect on reading practices, methodological innovation, textual criticism, and ancient fragments. Particular attention has been given to new approaches to the material aspects of ancient manuscripts. There are also extensive treatments of translations and reconstructions across Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic biblical traditions. Overall, the essays honour the work of Eibert Tigchelaar in the ways they build on his incisive insights and exemplary contributions.

Copyright Year: 2025

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-72729-8
Publication: 19 Jun 2025
EUR €166.00

Congratulations to Professor Tigchelaar! A well-deserved honor.

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

The tomb of Zachariah or Absalom?

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

When Absalom Encounters NT Zachariah, the Father of John the Baptist, Chaos Ensues, All in the Valley of He Who Judges

Newly unearthed epigraphic evidence, including tau crosses, has prompted a reassessment of a prominent ancient Jerusalem tomb. Archaeological and epigraphic evidence indicates that the “Tomb of Absalom” constitutes the earliest Judeo-Christian pilgrimage site in the Holy Land.

See also J. Zias, “The ‘Tomb of Absalom’: The Earliest Judeo-Christian Place of Pilgrimage in Jerusalem,” The Ancient Near East Today 11.3 (March, 2023). https://anetoday.org/zias-tomb-absalom.

By Joe Zias
Emeritus Curator of Archaeology and Anthropology,
Israel Antiquities Authority
June 2025

I noted the ANE Today essay, with links and comments, here.

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

A Phoenician temple bath at Tel Dan?

ABLUTIONARY ARCHAEOLOGY: Ancient Temple in Israel Reveals Phoenician Bathing Rituals (Abdul Moeed, Greek Reporter).

Archaeologists in northern Israel have uncovered evidence that bathing played a role in ancient Phoenician religious practices. A study by Dr. Levana Tsfania-Zias, published in Levant, details how ritual bathing was likely part of worship at the sacred site of Tel Dan, where Phoenician traditions continued for nearly 500 years. The findings shed light on how ritual, water, and faith intertwined in ancient communities.

The most compelling discovery is a small bathing facility built during the reconstruction of the temple after the Seleucid conquest. ...

The underlying article in Levant is behind the subscription wall:

Ritual purity among the Phoenicians in the sacred precinct at Tel Dan in the Hellenistic and Roman periods
Levana Tsfania-Zias
Pages 79-100 | Published online: 22 May 2025
Cite this article https://doi.org/10.1080/00758914.2025.2498295

Abstract

Excavations in the sacred precinct at Tel Dan revealed two water facilities from different phases — a ritual bathing unit from the Hellenistic period (beginning of the 2nd century BCE) and a fountain house from the Late Roman period (beginning of the 3rd–4th centuries CE). This paper presents and analyses the architectural and spatial development of the Tel Dan sanctuary in these periods, highlighting the hydraulic installations as integral components in the precinct’s public spaces and rituals. The presence of these water installations, together with other elements in the sacred precinct’s material culture, suggest a Phoenician religious and social praxis.

Cross file under Phoenician Watch.

Tel Dan is best known for the fragmentary, Aramaic, ninth-century BCE Tel Dan Stele excavated there. Follow the link for many posts.

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

More on AI Enoch's dating of the DSS

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Can AI Date the Dead Sea Scrolls? Scholars debate results of new scroll study (Nathan Steinmeyer).

First discovered in 1947, the Dead Sea Scrolls are one of the most important collections of ancient texts ever found in the lands of the Bible. Despite decades of research, however, scroll scholars still struggle to conclusively answer some basic questions, such as when exactly the scrolls were written. Publishing in the journal PLOS One, an international research team proposes a new method for dating individual scrolls using artificial intelligence. According to the team, this analysis reveals that many of the scrolls are likely older than previously thought. However, not all scholars are convinced.

[...]

I have already noted and commented on this story here. This BDH essay has a good summary with responses from some other scholars.

I always want to hear what Professor Rollston thinks about epigraphic matters. But one of his quoted arguments needs some nuancing:

However, as Rollston points out, some of Enoch’s proposed dates are demonstrably too high based on the available historical and textual evidence. For example, Rollston said, “Enoch’s calibrated date range for 4Q114 is: 230–160 BCE. This manuscript contains portions of Daniel 8–11. Chapters 7–12 of Daniel reference the desecration of the Jerusalem Temple by Antiochus IV Epiphanes (r. 175–164 BCE), something which occurred in 167 BCE. Therefore, it has been recognized for centuries that this block of Daniel cannot be dated prior to 167.

First, the possible date range that "Enoch" gives includes the generally accepted date for Daniel 8-11, so its results still fall within the correct range. C-14 dating of a couple of thousand years ago is not all that precise. It's true that it is imprecise tilting very early in this case.

Second, no, the fact that the Book of Daniel refers to supposedly future events does not prove that it was written after those events. It says it was a miracle. Arguments that miracles can't happen always involve circular reasoning. And there's nothing in the laws of physics that precludes transmission of information from the future to the past. We just don't know how to do it.

But, yes, I agree that Daniel was written after most of its predicted events—because at a certain point the supposed predictions go wildly wrong, as predictions of the future generally do. I have commented on this question in more detail here.

When this issue comes up, I perhaps make a nuisance of myself about what may seem like a fine point, especially since I am a late-dater of Daniel too. But I like to keep my metaphysical house in order. Ideological materialism need not be mistaken for objectivity.

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

Manuscripts of Josephus' Jewish War

VARIANT READINGS: Manuscripts of The Jewish War by Josephus (Brent Nongbri). It's good to know these things.

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Hirshman, ... Aspects of Rabbinic Culture in its Late Antique Context (OUP)

NEW BOOK FROM OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS:

Grounded Spirituality

Aspects of Rabbinic Culture in its Late Antique Context

Marc Hirshman

£64.00

Hardback
Published: 26 May 2025
152 Pages
210x140mm
ISBN: 9780197660584

Also Available As:
E-book

Description

Grounded Spirituality: Aspects of Rabbinic Culture in its Late Antique Context examines a series of themes engaged by rabbinic literature, including the primacy of learning, the fading of universalism, the place of love, a unique rhetoric of charity and good deeds, and rabbinic attitudes to philosophy and mysticism. Particularly, it focuses on the formative period of rabbinic religion, from 1-500 C.E., which roughly parallels what classical historians call late antiquity.

Each chapter focuses on a central text from the rabbinic corpus drawn from Mishna, Tosefta, Midrash and Talmud. After carefully explicating the text, Marc Hirshman explores the themes emerging from the central text and other —often differing and opposing— views in rabbinic literature. An exploration of possible influences or polemics with the regnant cultures and religions of the region will be included in most chapters. The book is both a primer for a critical reading of rabbinic texts, as well as an exploration of the development of rabbinic thought and religiosity.

In the final chapter, Hirshman explores the implications of the study of classical rabbinic literature of antiquity for contemporary humanities and religion. What lessons are to be learned from rabbinic discourse, and what place should their unique cultural approaches have on the development of religion and the humanities in the twenty-first century?

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