Teleportation archaeology?

TECHNOLOGY WATCH: How are archaeologists using hi-tech during the coronavirus era? Archaeologists from Haifa and San Diego had to get creative to work on their collaborative excavation without actually travelling due to quarantines (Hannah Brown, Jerusalem Post).

So they were able to work around the disadvantages of the virus restrictions using photogrammetry, where photography and technology create 3D models in a lab. The Israeli divers would record all they did with GoPro cameras and would scan the artifacts they collected at the end of each day and then send these scans to San Diego. The researchers there would then create the objects in the lab, using 3D printers.

“When they take artifacts back to the university, they scan them, send us the objects, and we can just print the object. What’s cool is that I get the object here printed in 3D, so I can hold it in my hands,” said Levy. “Even a 3D image in virtual reality is not the same as holding it in your hand.”

Beam me up, Scotty!

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Where did the Levitical choir sing?

TEMPLE MOUNT WATCH: Music in the Temple. The Location of the Music Chamber in the Court of the Women (Leen Ritmeyer). This post is the follow-up to one noted here.

Cross-file under Ancient Architecture.

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Scroll reconstruction again

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: The Puzzling Limits of Models. An analysis suggests an established technique used on the Dead Sea Scrolls is not as reliable as previously thought (Jonathan Laden). Models are useful, but should be used with caution. Map is not territory.

Background here.

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Finitsis (ed.), Dress and Clothing in the Hebrew Bible

RECENT BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Dress and Clothing in the Hebrew Bible
“For All Her Household Are Clothed in Crimson”

Editor(s): Antonios Finitsis

Published: 08-08-2019
Format: Hardback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 208
ISBN: 9780567686404
Imprint: T&T Clark
Series: The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies
Volume: 679
Illustrations: 8 bw illus
Dimensions: 6 1/8" x 9 1/4"
List price: $114.00
Online price: $79.80
Save $34.20 (30%)

About Dress and Clothing in the Hebrew Bible

Built upon the flourishing study of costume, this book analyses sartorial evidence provided both by texts of the ancient Near East and the Hebrew Bible. The essays within lend clarity to the link between material and ideological, examining the tradition of dress, the different types of literature that reference the tradition of garments, and the people for whom such literature was written.

The contributors explore sources that illuminate the social, psychological, aesthetic, ideological and symbolic meanings of clothing. The topics covered range from the relationship between clothing, kingship and power, to the symbolic significance of the high priestly regalia and the concept of garments as deception and defiance, while also considering the tendency to omit or ignore descriptions of YHWH's clothing. Following a historical sequence, the essays cross-reference with each other to create a milestone in biblical sartorial study.

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Independent Isaac assimilated to Abraham?

DR. RABBI DAVID FRANKEL: Isaac before He Was Abraham’s Son (TheTorah.com).

Abraham and Isaac each dig a well in Beersheba and make a treaty with King Abimelech. Which story came first?

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

Review of Biblia Sacra vulgata: Lateinisch-deutsch (5 vols.)

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Hieronymus. Biblia Sacra vulgata: Lateinisch-deutsch.

Andreas Beriger, Widu-Wolfgang Ehlers, Hieronymus. Biblia Sacra vulgata: Lateinisch-deutsch Band 1, Genesis - Exodus - Leviticus - Numeri - Deuteronomium. Sammlung Tusculum. Berlin; Boston: De Gruyter, 2018. Pp. 889. ISBN 9783110440447

Plus four more volumes covering the rest of the Latin Vulgate.

Review by
Matthew Kraus, University of Cincinnati. krausma@ucmail.uc.edu

Not surprisingly, the review is long and thorough. Here's a brief excerpt:

The Vulgata Verein has produced a fine German translation that enables readers to encounter a 4th/5th CE century translator. Despite its limitations, the work demonstrates the need for this kind of close reading of the Latin Bible and will hopefully spawn more monographs and commentaries. This new German translation along with its various annotations advances the study of the Vulgate and Jerome as products and producers of Late Antique society.

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Gold-water, poop-bread, cake-concentrate, and more!

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: The 10 Strangest Foods in the Bible (David Moster). Ranging from Sublime to Amazing to "What?" to "Yuck!" to Horrifying.

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Perrin & Stuckenbruck (eds.), Four Kingdom Motifs ...

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Four Kingdom Motifs before and beyond the Book of Daniel

Series: Themes in Biblical Narrative, Volume: 28

Volume Editors: Andrew Perrin and Loren T. Stuckenbruck

The four kingdoms motif enabled writers of various cultures, times, and places, to periodize history as the staged succession of empires barrelling towards an utopian age. The motif provided order to lived experiences under empire (the present), in view of ancestral traditions and cultural heritage (the past), and inspired outlooks assuring hope, deliverance, and restoration (the future). Four Kingdom Motifs before and beyond the Book of Daniel includes thirteen essays that explore the reach and redeployment of the motif in classical and ancient Near Eastern writings, Jewish and Christian scriptures, texts among the Dead Sea Scrolls, Apocrypha and pseudepigrapha, depictions in European architecture and cartography, as well as patristic, rabbinic, Islamic, and African writings from antiquity through the Mediaeval eras.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €163.00 / $196.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44328-0
Publication Date: 23 Nov 2020

Hardback
Availability: Not Yet Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44279-5
Publication Date: 26 Nov 2020

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More on Hegra and the Nabateans

NABATEAN (NABATAEAN) WATCH: HEGRA, AN ANCIENT CITY IN SAUDI ARABIA UNTOUCHED FOR MILLENNIA, MAKES ITS PUBLIC DEBUT. The archaeological site, now open to tourists, offers clues about the mysterious empire that built it and its more famous sister city of Petra in Jordan (LAUREN KEITH, Smithsonian Magazine).

Once a thriving international trade hub, the archeological site of Hegra (also known as Madain Saleh) has been left practically undisturbed for almost 2,000 years. But now for the first time, Saudi Arabia has opened the site to tourists. Astute visitors will notice that the rock-cut constructions at Hegra look similar to its more famous sister site of Petra, a few hundred miles to the north in Jordan. Hegra was the second city of the Nabataean kingdom, but Hegra does much more than simply play second fiddle to Petra: it could hold the key to unlocking the secrets of an almost-forgotten ancient civilization.

A long, informative, and well illustrated article on one of the most important archaeological sites in Saudi Arabia. It is a major source of information on the ancient Nabateans, still relatively untapped. The Nabateans spoke Arabic, but wrote in Aramaic for commercial, government, and diplomatic purposes.

PaleoJudaica posts on Hegra (Madain Saleh), "Saudi Arabia's answer to Petra," are collected here. For many posts on Petra and the Nabateans and their language, see here and links (cf. here).

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Maiden, Cognitive Science and Ancient Israelite Religion

NEW BOOK FROM CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS:

Cognitive Science and Ancient Israelite Religion
New Perspectives on Texts, Artifacts, and Culture

Part of Society for Old Testament Study Monographs

AUTHOR: Brett E. Maiden, Emory University, Atlanta
DATE PUBLISHED: October 2020
AVAILABILITY: Available
FORMAT: Hardback
ISBN: 9781108487788

$ 99.99 (C) Hardback

Description

In this book, Brett Maiden employs the tools, research, and theories from the cognitive science of religion to explore religious thought and behavior in ancient Israel. His study focuses on a key set of distinctions between intuitive and reflective types of cognitive processing, implicit and explicit concepts, and cognitively optimal and costly religious traditions. Through a series of case studies, Maiden examines a range of topics including popular and official religion, Deuteronomic theology, hybrid monsters in ancient iconography, divine cult statues in ancient Mesopotamia and the biblical idol polemics, and the Day of Atonement ritual in Leviticus 16. The range of media, including ancient texts, art, and archaeological data from ancient Israel, as well theoretical perspectives demonstrates how a dialogue between biblical scholars and cognitive researchers can be fostered.

• Offers an accessible introduction to the current state of the cognitive study of religion, especially for biblical scholars and historians of religion
• Provides theoretical discussion and concrete examples, in the form of case studies, of interdisciplinary scholarship in action
• Examines different interrelated topics in the study Israelite religion, including theoretical, artistic, and textual

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The house that Jesus grew up in?

'TIS THE SEASON, ANCIENT ARCHITECTURE EDITION: Is this the childhood home of Jesus Christ? British archaeologist excavates domestic dwelling under ruins of the Sisters of Nazareth Convent (Jonathan Chadwic, Daily Mail).

It could be. I noted the story here back in 2015. I was skeptical then and remain so today. It is clear that when a church was built over the site in the fourth century, there was a tradition that this was Jesus' house. But a lot of legends can start up in two or three hundred years.

Professor Dark has done much good archaeological work on ancient Nazareth, as I have noted here and links. I doubt that we will ever know if he is right on this specific point. But who knows? Conclusive proof might show up someday.

Whatever the merits of the claim, this article has many good photos of the site.

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Van Hecke, The Song of Songs in its Context

NEW BOOK FROM PEETERS:

The Song of Songs in its Context. Words for Love, Love for Words

SERIES:
Bibliotheca Ephemeridum Theologicarum Lovaniensium, 310

EDITOR:
Van Hecke P.

YEAR: 2020
ISBN: 9789042942394
E-ISBN: 9789042942400
PAGES: XXXIV-643 p.
PRICE: 95 euro

SUMMARY:
Ever since its composition, the Song of Songs has fascinated generation upon generation of readers. The words for love expressed in the book have captivated the imagination and have inspired many, in each time and age, to interpret its meaning. Also the Song’s love for words – its intricate poetry and its rich and often daring imagery – has caught the attention of its readership. After two centuries of diminished interest in the book, the last two decades have witnessed a remarkable return of scholarly attention for the Song of Songs. In this volume, twenty-nine papers read at the 67th Colloquium Biblicum Lovaniense (Leuven, July 25-27, 2018), not only bring together the current state of the art, but also sketch new perspectives and future avenues for the study of this shortest but most fascinating book in the Hebrew Bible. Attention is paid, by established and emerging scholars alike, to the Song’s origin and development, to its poetic features and metaphors, and to its rich and complex reception history.

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Lecture on Israelite Aramaic in Egypt

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: BASONOVA—Wandering Arameans in Egypt. New light on the Samarian and Judean diaspora.

Wednesday, December 2, 2020 at 8 pm EST via Zoom
Wandering Arameans in Egypt: New Light on the Samarian and Judean Diaspora
Tawny Holm, Penn State University

The more I look into Papyrus Amherst 63, the more fascinating it becomes. It is a collection of Aramaic and Canaanite(?) texts written in Egyptian Demotic Script. They have Israelite, Samaritan, and Babylonian-Aramaic connections. Arguably the document has some connection with the fifth-century Aramaic-speaking Judeans at Elephantine, Egypt as well.

Professor Holm has been working on a translation of this remarkable text. I believe it is near publication.

For lots of PaleoJudaica posts on Papyrus Amherst 63 is here and links.

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

Review of The Hellenistic court (ed. Erskine et al.)

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: The Hellenistic court: monarchic power and elite society from Alexander to Cleopatra.

Andrew Erskine, Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones, Shane Wallace, The Hellenistic court: monarchic power and elite society from Alexander to Cleopatra. Swansea: Classical Press of Wales, 2017. Pp. 473. ISBN 9781910589625 £60.00.

Review by
Monica D'Agostini, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Milano. dagostini.monica@gmail.com

Only one of the essays deals with Jews in the Hellenistic court ("Deserving the Court’s Trust: Jews in Ptolemaic Egypt," by Livia Capponi). But the book looks full of information on the Seleucid and Ptolemaic monarchies during the Second Temple period.

For more on the Seleucid era and its importance for biblical and ancient Jewish studies, see here and links (cf. here). Likewise for the Ptolemaic era here and here and links.

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Dura-Europos exhibition catalogue

THE AWOL BLOG: Dura-Europos: Crossroad of Antiquity. With links to the cataloge and e-book for this 2011 exhibition at the Boston College McMullen Museum of Art. The catalogue price is a little steep ("from $1,935.96"), but the e-book is free.

For PaleoJudaica posts on the McMullen Museum exhibition, see here and links. The NYU/ISAW exhibition on Dura-Europos was also in 2011. And the World between Empires exibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 2019 also involved Dura-Europos. Follow that last link for many other posts on this important Syrian site known particularly for its late-antique synagogue murals.

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T&T Clark Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism (2 vols.)

RECENT BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

T&T Clark Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism Volumes I and II

Editor(s): Loren T. Stuckenbruck, Daniel M. Gurtner

Published: 12-26-2019
Format: Hardback
Edition: 1st
ISBN: 9780567661449
Imprint: T&T Clark
Illustrations: 16 color maps and 192 bw illus
List price: $440.00

About T&T Clark Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism Volumes I and II

The T&T Clark Encyclopedia of Second Temple Judaism provides a comprehensive reference resource of over 600 scholarly articles aimed at those studying Judaism in the Second Temple Period, and the numerous texts and artefacts related to it.

The work is split into four parts across two volumes.

Part One locates the discipline in relation to other relevant fields (for example the Hebrew Bible, Rabbinics, Christian Origins) and provides an orientation to the discipline's distinctive nomenclatures and debates. The history of research in the area is also presented in full.

Part Two presents an overview of respective contexts of the discipline set within the broad framework of historical chronology. Social/cultural, literary, linguistic, geographical, political, and religious contexts are all explained, from the time period of the conquests of Alexander the Great (332 B.C.E.) through to the reign of Hadrian (135 C.E.).

Part Three focuses specifically on the literature of the Second Temple period, summarizing the content of key texts, and examining their similarities and differences with other texts of the period. This section includes surveys of scholarship on date, provenance, location, language(s), and interpretative issues. The reception history of texts is considered.

Part Four addresses topics, specifically those relevant to Second Temple literature such as places, practices, historical figures and artefacts. v The volumes include 14 specially created color maps and over 60 charts and illustrations.

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Ancient silver counterfeiting?

METAL MONEY MISCHIEF: Dirty old money: Researchers reveal Iron Age silver forgery. "It is likely that they used money that was already in the area from previous periods, to which they added the copper from the Timna area" (Hannah Brown, Jerusalem Post).

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Harland & Last, Group Survival in the Ancient Mediterranean

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Group Survival in the Ancient Mediterranean
Rethinking Material Conditions in the Landscape of Jews and Christians

By: Philip A. Harland, Richard Last

Published: 04-16-2020
Format: Hardback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 240
ISBN: 9780567657480
Imprint: T&T Clark
Illustrations: 17 bw illus
Dimensions: 6 1/8" x 9 1/4"
List price: $115.00
Online price: $80.50
Save $34.50 (30%)

About Group Survival in the Ancient Mediterranean

Philip A. Harland and Richard Last consider the economics of early Christian group life within its social, cultural and economic contexts, by drawing on extensive epigraphic and archaeological evidence. In exploring the informal associations, immigrant groups, and guilds that dotted the world of the early Christians, Harland and Last provide fresh perspective on the question of how Christian assemblies and Judean/Jewish gatherings gained necessary resources to pursue their social, religious, and additional aims. By considering both neglected archaeological discoveries and literary evidence, the authors analyse financial and material aspects of group life, both sources of income and various areas of expenditure. Harland and Last then turn to the use of material resources for mutual support of members in various groups, including the importance of burial and the practice of interest-free loans. Christian and Judean evidence is explored throughout this book, culminating in a discussion of texts detailing the internal financial life of Christian assemblies as seen in first and second century sources, including Paul, the Didache, Justin Martyr, and Tertullian. In shedding new light on early Christian financial organisation, this volume aids further understanding of how some Christian groups survived and developed in the Greco-Roman world.

More on Philip Harland's work is here and links.

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Baker et al. (eds.), Exploring the Composition of the Pentateuch

NEW BOOK FROM EISENBRAUNS:

Exploring the Composition of the Pentateuch

Edited by L. S. Baker Jr., Kenneth Bergland, Felipe A. Masotti, and A. Rahel Wells

$89.95 | Hardcover Edition
ISBN: 978-1-57506-985-2

314 pages
6" × 9"
3 b&w illustrations
2020

Bulletin for Biblical Research Supplement

Description

For many years, the historical-critical quest for a reconstruction of the origin(s) and development of the Pentateuch or Hexateuch has been dominated by the documentary hypothesis, the heuristic power of which has produced a consensus so strong that an interpreter who did not operate within its framework was hardly regarded as a scholar. However, the relentless march of research on this topic has continued to yield new and refined analyses, data, methodological tools, and criticism. In this spirit, the contributions to this volume investigate new ideas about the composition of the Pentateuch arising from careful analysis of the biblical text against its ancient Near Eastern background.

Covering a wide spectrum of topics and diverging perspectives, the chapters in this book are grouped into two parts. The first is primarily concerned with the history of scholarship and alternative approaches to the development of the Pentateuch. The second focuses on the exegesis of particular texts relevant to the composition of the Torah. The aim of the project is to foster investigation and collegial dialogue in a spirit of humility and frankness, without imposing uniformity.

In addition to the editors, the contributors include Tiago Arrais, Richard E. Averbeck, John S. Bergsma, Joshua A. Berman, Daniel I. Block, Richard Davidson, Roy E. Gane, Duane A. Garrett, Richard S. Hess, Benjamin Kilchör, Michael LeFebvre, Jiří Moskala, and Christian Vogel.

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Barbu & Deutsch, Toledot Yeshu in Context

NEW BOOK FROM MOHR SIEBECK: Toledot Yeshu in Context. The Jewish »Life of Jesus« in Ancient, Medieval, and Modern History. Edited by Daniel Barbu and Yaacov Deutsch. 2020. VIII, 358 pages. Texts and Studies in Ancient Judaism 182. 144,00 € including VAT. cloth ISBN 978-3-16-159300-0.

Published in English.
The Jewish »Life of Jesus« or Toledot Yeshu provides one of the most extraordinary accounts of the beginnings of Christianity. The narrative describes Jesus as child born of adultery, a charlatan, and a false prophet who performed would-be miracles through the use of magic. Throughout the centuries, the story aroused the ire of anti-Jewish polemicists, delighted anti-clerical authors, and was viewed by Jewish scholars as a subject of embarrassment. Toledot Yeshu presents us with a formidable counter-history of the origins of Christianity. In the eighteenth century, Voltaire went so far as to proclaim that Toledot Yeshu, however extravagant, was perhaps more truthful than the Christian gospels. The object of this volume is to consider this narrative as an object of history, to question its transmission, reception and function within the various historical settings in which it circulated, and seek to understand its meaning for both Jews and non-Jews from antiquity to the modern era.

For more on Toledot Yeshu, see here, here, and here.

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Lentz, Crainte de Dieu

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Crainte de Dieu, Sagesse et Loi: Aspects théologiques à partir de Si 10,19-11,6
Katharina Lentz

$35.00 – $49.00

Series: Septuagint and Cognate Studies
Volume: 72

Publisher: SBL Press
Publication Date: 2020
ISBN: 9781628372564

Description

Few specific studies have been devoted to Ben Sira 10:19–11:6. Lentz examines the text in Hebrew, Greek, Syriac, and Latin, trying to identify the major differences between these versions and their respective fundamental orientations. In this pericope she reveals three important themes: the fear of God, wisdom, and the law. Taking as a point of departure the theme of the fear of God in Deuteronomy, Psalms, and Proverbs, Job, and Qoheleth, in addition to Ben Sira, Lentz examines the relationship of this theme with wisdom and the law. The close relationship between the fear of God, wisdom, and the law should lead scholars to ask if these do not represent three aspects of the same reality.

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Review of Paturel, Baalbek-Heliopolis, the Bekaa, and Berytus from 100 BCE to 400 CE

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Baalbek-Heliopolis, the Bekaa, and Berytus from 100 BCE to 400 CE: a landscape transformed.

Simone Eid Paturel, Baalbek-Heliopolis, the Bekaa, and Berytus from 100 BCE to 400 CE: a landscape transformed. Mnemosyne supplements. History and archaeology of classical antiquity, volume 426. Leiden: Brill, 2019. Pp. xiv, 343. ISBN 9789004400580 €160,00.

Review by
Winfried Held, Philipps-Universität Marburg, Archäologisches Seminar. heldw@uni-marburg.de

The book offers a valuable overview of the history and archaeology of Berytus (modern Beirut) and the northern Bekaa, which in the Roman imperial period formed the Colonia Iulia Augusta Felix Berytus. ...

Herod the Great makes an appearance.

Cross-file under (Late) Phoenician Watch.

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Watson & Parkhouse, Telling the Christian Story Differently

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Telling the Christian Story Differently
Counter-Narratives from Nag Hammadi and Beyond

Editor(s): Francis Watson, Sarah Parkhouse

Published: 07-23-2020
Format: Hardback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 208
ISBN: 9780567679529
Imprint: T&T Clark
Series: The Reception of Jesus in the First Three Centuries
Volume: 4
Dimensions: 6 1/8" x 9 1/4"
List price: $115.00
Online price: $80.50
Save $34.50 (30%)

About Telling the Christian Story Differently

This volume examines the 'counter-narratives' of the core Christian story, proposed by texts from Nag Hammadi and elsewhere. A noteworthy body of highly respected scholars examine material that is sometimes difficult and often overlooked, contributing to the ongoing effort to integrate Nag Hammadi and related literature into the mainstream of New Testament and early Christian studies. By retracing the major elements of the Christian story in sequence, they are able to discuss how and why each aspect was disputed on inner-Christian grounds, and to reflect on the different accounts of Christian identity underlying these disputes.

Together the essays in this book address a central issue: towards the end of the second century, Irenaeus could claim that the overwhelming majority of Christians throughout the world were agreed on a version of the core Christian story which is still recognisable today. Yet, as Irenaeus concedes and as the Nag Hammadi texts have confirmed, there were many who wished to tell the core Christian story differently. Those who criticized and rejected the standard story did so not because they were adherents of another religion, 'Gnosticism', but because they were Christians who believed that the standard account was wrong at point after point. Ranging from the Gospels of Judas and Mary to Galatians and Ptolemy's Letter to Flora, this volume provides a fascinating analysis of how the Christian story as we know it today developed against counter-readings from other early Christian traditions.

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De Moor, Micah

NEW BOOK FROM PEETERS:

Micah

SERIES:
Historical Commentary on the Old Testament AUTHOR:
De Moor J.C.

YEAR: 2020
ISBN: 9789042943636
E-ISBN: 9789042943643
PAGES: XII-454 p.
PRICE: 76 euro

SUMMARY:
The book of Micah provides insight into the struggle of a prophet with his vocation in an extremely difficult time. The aggressive policies of Neo-Assyrian kings which involved large-scale destruction, deportation and resettlement upturned existing social structures everywhere. Kings of Judah like Ahaz and Hezekiah had to compromise with the enemy to retain their position. Micah denounced their overindulgence. Initially, the results of his efforts were disappointing and one may certainly say that Micah was a tragic figure who towards the end of his life felt he had been a failed prophet.

It is no coincidence that in the Hebrew Bible Micah 3:12 occupies the middle of the whole book of the Twelve “Minor” Prophets. In this verse Micah courageously announced the destruction of the temple on Zion because of Jerusalem’s sins - more than a hundred years before it actually happened. His contemporaries had ridiculed him because they did not believe God would ever allow the destruction of his holy abode. Whistleblowers are never popular and it is possible that Micah has had to pay with his life for his scathing criticism of the authorities. However, history proved him right and Micah’s impressive sermons inspired later generations to complement them with consoling messages of forgiveness and hope. Prophecy, also prophecy outside Israel, was always open to future expansion. In this way the book of Micah became a cherished source of messianic expectations among both Jews and Christians.

Modern research into the book of Micah denies him the authorship of more than half of the chapters attributed to him. On the basis of new textual and archaeological data from the entire Ancient Near East this commentary argues that much more can be regarded as actual fire-and-brimstone preaching of the historical prophet Micah. This conclusion was achieved among other things by collating more than a hundred Hebrew manuscripts of the book of Micah. The commentary devotes also much attention to geology, climate, flora, fauna, agriculture and art. Fifty illustrations elucidate these realia.

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Hays, The Origins of Isaiah 24–27

RECENT BOOK FROM CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS:

The Origins of Isaiah 24–27
Josiah's Festival Scroll for the Fall of Assyria

AUTHOR: Christopher B. Hays, Fuller Theological Seminary, California
DATE PUBLISHED: August 2019
AVAILABILITY: In stock
FORMAT: Hardback
ISBN: 9781108471848

$ 99.99 (C)
Hardback

Description

Isaiah 24-27 has been an enduring mystery and a hotly contested text for biblical scholars. Early scholarship linked its references to the dead rising to the New Testament. These theories have remained influential even as common opinion moderated over the course of the twentieth century. In this volume, Christopher B. Hays situates Isaiah 24-27 within its historical and cultural contexts. He methodically demonstrates that it is not apocalyptic; that its imagery of divine feasting and conquering death have ancient cognates; and that its Hebrew language does not reflect a late composition date. He also shows how the passage celebrates the receding of Assyrian power from Judah, and especially from the citadel at Ramat Rahel near Jerusalem, in the late seventh century. This was the time of King Josiah and his scribes, who saw a political opportunity and issued a peace overture to the former northern kingdom. Using comparative, archaeological, linguistic, and literary tools, Hays' volume changes the study of Isaiah, arguing for a different historical setting than that of traditional scholarship.

• Demonstrates that Isaiah 24-27 it is not apocalyptic, that its imagery of divine feasting and conquering death have ancient cognates, and that its Hebrew language does not reflect a late composition date
• Uses comparative, archaeological, linguistic, and literary tools to argue for an alternative historical setting for the biblical passage
• Explores the context of King Josiah and his scribes, who saw a political opportunity and issued a peace overture to the former northern kingdom

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Samson, Jesus, Gilgamesh, and ... Superman?

THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST TODAY: Biblical Interpretation in the Age of Superheroes (Nicholaus Pumphrey). With reference to Professor Pumphrey's recent book: Superman and the Bible: How the Idea of Superheroes Affects the Reading of Scripture (McFarland, 2019).

For more on Professor Pumphrey's work see here. And follow the links from there for more on superhero Jesus.

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

Why did Esau become a baddie?

DR. BARRY DOV WALFISH: The Denigration of Esau (TheTorah.com).

Why does Esau in Jewish tradition come to be known as עשו הרשע “Esau the Wicked”? The answer has to do with the history of Judea’s relationship with Esau’s eponymous descendants, the Edomites, and the connection Jews made between them, Rome, and Christianity. The negative view of Esau is expressed nowhere more forcefully than in Rashi’s commentary.

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Muraoka, Why Read the Bible in the Original Languages?

NEW BOOK FROM PEETERS:

Why Read the Bible in the Original Languages?

AUTHOR:
Muraoka T.

YEAR: 2020
ISBN: 9789042942004
E-ISBN: 9789042942011
PAGES: 111 p.
PRICE: 19 euro

SUMMARY:
A comparison of multiple translations of the Bible in any language shows that they differ at hundreds of places, pointing to the continuing disagreement among Bible scholars and translators in their analysis and understanding of those places. To learn Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, the original languages of the Bible, is admittedly not everybody’s cup of tea. Knowledge of them does not necessarily provide a solution to these difficulties. However, there are not a few things in the biblical text which can be missed out if it is read only in translation. A range of linguistic issues touching on the three original languages are discussed in the light of actual examples. Matters of culture and rhetoric are also taken up. A special chapter is devoted to the Septuagint as a bridge between the two Testaments. The book is written in a non-technical style, hence easily readable by non-specialists, but specialists may also find things of interest. No Hebrew or Greek alphabet is used.

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

Happy World Toilet Day!

COMMODE COMMEMORATION: Lifting the lid on Israel’s best ancient toilets. From a toilet found inside an ancient temple to Roman public latrines and Ottoman-era outhouses, Israel is awash with fascinating old loos. Join us on World Toilet Day, for a look (Naama Barak, Israel21c).

For the desecration toilet at Lachish, see here. The article missed the ancient toilet near Qumran.

For other PaleoJudaica posts on ancient latrines, see here and here. And I wrote about a Roman-era latrine at Hadrian's wall here.

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

Covert religious innovation in 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch?

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Religious Innovation and Sacred Scriptures in 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch

How did ancient Judaism resolve the conflict between the notion of divinely authored scriptures that are fixed in writing, on the one hand, and the inevitable need to adapt to new circumstances of the community, on the other? A good case study of religious revision in ancient Israel is afforded by the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 CE. Both 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch were written as the Jewish response to a national and religious crisis. Using pseudonyms of Israel’s past heroes from the destruction of the First Temple, both authors promulgated an eschatological vision as the solution, yet called for a return to the Mosaic Torah. In both apocalypses, religious innovation is carried out covertly rather than explicitly. The “new” is presented as a discovery of and return to the “old.”. There are, however, also differences: whereas in 2 Baruch innovation is through eschatological exegesis of the Deuteronomic tradition, in 4 Ezra it has to be through an expansion of divinely revealed scriptures.

See also: When Judaism Lost the Temple: Crisis and Response in 4 Ezra and 2 Baruch. Studia Antiqua Australiensia 10 (Turnhout: Brepols, 2020).

By Lydia Gore-Jones
St Andrew’s Greek Orthodox Theological College
Sydney College of Divinity, Australia
November 2020

Cross-file under New Book.

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Ancient geography galore!

THE AWOL BLOG: Roundup of Resources on Ancient Geography. Something for everyone!

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

Muraoka, A Syntax of Qumran Hebrew

NEW BOOK FROM PEETERS:

A Syntax of Qumran Hebrew

AUTHOR:
Muraoka T.

YEAR: 2020
ISBN: 9789042940253
E-ISBN: 9789042940260
PAGES: LX-387 p.
PRICE: 95 euro

SUMMARY:
This is the first, comprehensive description of the syntax of Qumran Hebrew, a language in which the Hebrew documents discovered in the eleven Qumran caves and at some sites in the Judaean desert are written. Features described include, for instance, the values and functions of the status constructus, tense, aspect and mood of the verb, the word order, the grammatical agreement or lack of it in gender and number, the concord or concatenation, the government of the verb. Comparison is constantly made with Biblical Hebrew and Mishnaic - Rabbinic Hebrew. This is important to see the position of Qumran Hebrew in the history of Hebrew. Copiously cited original texts are provided with an English translation by the author. That knowledge of the syntax of this Hebrew is important and has implications for textual criticism of these texts and other compartments such as orthography, phonology, morphology, lexicography, and stylistics is shown with concrete examples.

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Cool artifacts in the Bible Lands Museum

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: 10 Great Biblical Artifacts at the Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem. Artifacts and the Bible (David Moster). An impressive collection!

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

Henning, Matthew’s Non-Messianic Mapping of Messianic Texts

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Matthew’s Non-Messianic Mapping of Messianic Texts

Evidences of a Broadly Eschatological Hermeneutic

Series: Biblical Interpretation Series, Volume: 188

Author: Bruce Henning

Scholars often explain Matthew’s practice of applying non-messianic texts to the messiah by postulating a Christological hermeneutic. In Matthew’s Non-Messianic Mapping of Messianic texts, Bruce Henning raises the question of how Matthew applies messianic texts to non-messianic figures. This neglected category challenges the popular view by stretching Matthew’s paradigm to a broadly eschatological one in which disciples share in the mission of Jesus so as to fulfill Scriptural hopes. Using Cognitive Linguistics, this volume explores four case studies to demonstrate Matthew’s non-messianic mapping scheme: the eschatological shepherd, the vineyard care-giver, temple construction imagery, and the Isaian herald. These reveal how Matthew’s theology of discipleship as participating in Jesus’ own vocation extends even to his hermeneutical paradigm of fulfillment.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €99.00 / $119.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44418-8
Publication Date: 16 Nov 2020

Hardback
Availability: Not Yet Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44416-4
Publication Date: 19 Nov 2020

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

Jenson, Graded Holiness

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Graded Holiness

A Key to the Priestly Conception of the World

By: Philip Peter Jenson

Published: 10-29-2020
Format: Paperback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 290
ISBN: 9780567697547
Imprint: T&T Clark
Series: The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies
Dimensions: 6 1/8" x 9 1/4"
List price: $39.95
Online price: $27.96
Save $11.98 (30%)

About Graded Holiness

This wide-ranging investigation of the priestly cultic texts from Exodus 25 onwards explores the coherence and theology of the priestly writing, utilizing insights from anthropology and recent biblical scholarship. Through a carefully worked out set of laws and institutions, the priestly authors sought to order Israel's life before God in a sustainable and satisfying way. This is a valuable contribution to the growing number of studies concerned to understand and recover this neglected part of the Bible.

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McAllister (ed.), The Cambridge Companion to Apocalyptic Literature

NEW BOOK FROM CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS:

The Cambridge Companion to Apocalyptic Literature

Part of Cambridge Companions to Religion

EDITOR: Colin McAllister, University of Colorado, Colorado Springs
DATE PUBLISHED: April 2020
AVAILABILITY: In stock
FORMAT: Paperbakc
ISBN: 9781108436892

$ 29.99 (P)
Paperback

Description

Jewish and Christian apocalypses have captivated theologians, writers, artists, and the general public for centuries, and have had a profound influence on world history from their initial production by persecuted Jews during the second century BCE, to the birth of Christianity - through the demise of the Western Roman Empire and the medieval period, and continuing into modernity. Far from being an outlier concern, or an academic one that may be relegated to the dustbin of history, apocalyptic thinking is ubiquitous and continues to inform nearly all aspects of modern-day life. It addresses universal human concerns: the search for identity and belonging, speculation about the future, and (for some) a blueprint that provides meaning and structure to a seemingly chaotic world. The Cambridge Companion to Apocalyptic Literature brings together a field of leading experts to provide a comprehensive overview of the subject.

• Brings together an international collective of leading experts who have written on various aspects of apocalyptic literature
• Covers apocalyptic literature from the second century BCE to the present, and includes discussions of the apocalypses themselves, reception history, politics, contemporary Islam, and how apocalypticism functions in contemporary society
• Incorporates issues much larger than just apocalytic literature, including the concept of time, music, visual art, geopolitics and popular culture

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How many magi?

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: The Three Magi. Were they bringing sacred gifts or simply medicine? 'Tis the Season already?!

For many PaleoJudaica posts on Matthew's magi and related matters, see here and links.

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

Schumann, Gelübde im antiken Judentum und frühesten Christentum

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Gelübde im antiken Judentum und frühesten Christentum

Series: Ancient Judaism and Early Christianity, Volume: 111
Author: Daniel Schumann

In Gelübde im antiken Judentum und frühesten Christentum Daniel Schumann aims to trace the earliest discourses on vows, as they are recorded in ancient Jewish and early Christian sources from the time of the Second Temple. He also shows how Judaism and Christianity have participated in ancient forms of vow-making since late antiquity and how they also have developed these discourses further. By presenting these discourses on the basis of a broad range of sources, he reveals how in Jewish as well as in Christian perception, voices of esteem but also of reservation have been raised throughout the centuries. After all, vows are a cult-practical exercise in which well-being and disaster are in closer proximity than in most other acts of devotion.

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

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44183-5
Publication Date: 04 Nov 2020

Hardback
Availability: Not Yet Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-44184-2
Publication Date: 12 Nov 2020

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Taylor & Hay, Philo of Alexandria: On the Contemplative Life

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Philo of Alexandria: On the Contemplative Life

Introduction, Translation and Commentary

Series: Philo of Alexandria Commentary Series, Volume: 7

Authors: Joan E. Taylor and David M. Hay

On the Contemplative Life is known for its depiction of a philosophical group of Jewish men and women known as the ‘Therapeutae’. Yet the reasons for their depiction have been little understood. In the first commentary on the treatise in English for over 100 years, the social, cultural and political background of the times in which Philo lived are shown to be crucial in understanding Philo’s purposes. As Alexandrian Jews were vilified and attacked, Philo went to Rome to present the case for his community, faced with intense opposition. Side-stepping direct confrontation, Philo here cleverly presents the Therapeutae as the pinnacle of excellence, most especially in their communal meal, while ridiculing his accusers in a stinging parody of a festive banquet.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €155.00 / $187.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-43923-8
Publication Date: 09 Nov 2020

Hardback
Availability: Not Yet Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-43814-9
Publication Date: 19 Nov 2020

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Burt, Encounters in the Dark

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Encounters in the Dark: Identity Formation in the Jacob Story
Noel Forlini Burt

$23.10 – $37.10

Series: Semeia Studies
Volume: 96

Publisher: SBL Press
Publication Date: 2020
ISBN: 9781628372847

Description

Encounters in the Dark: Identity Formation in the Jacob Story traces the many moments of darkness in the life of Jacob from the darkness of his mother’s womb to the triumphant scene of wrestling God by the Jabbok River. Through an exploration of key moments in Jacob’s story, Noel Forlini Burt follows his journey from home, to exile, and back home again. Jacob’s story symbolizes the larger story of the Israel’s own wrestling with God in the darkness of exile and return.

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Russell, Poets, Heroes, and their Dragons

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: Poets, Heroes, and their Dragons: Armenian And Iranian Studies. Notice of a New Book: Russell, James R. 2020. Poets, Heroes, and their Dragons: Armenian And Iranian Studies (Ancient Iran Series 13, 1-2). 2 vols. Irvine, CA: Jordan Center for Persian Studies, University of California, Irvine.

A number of the articles involve or are of interest for ancient Judaism.

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Sigd in the pandemic

FESTIVAL CONSTRAINTS: COVID-19 restrictions threaten role of Ethiopian Jewish holiday in Israel. Sigd is being observed in a scaled-down fashion this year (TARA KAVALER/THE MEDIA LINE, Jerusalem Post).

Sigd, the holiday that Ethiopian Jews brought to Israel that marks a renewal of the covenant with God and has become a force that unites these immigrants with other Israelis, is being observed in a scaled-down fashion this year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The holiday, which started at sundown on Sunday and ends Monday evening, became an official part of the Israeli calendar in 2008 and is observed 50 days after Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

[...]

For more on Sigd, see here.

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More on the Saqqara necropolis

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Egypt Unveils 100 Sarcophagi. Massive find of painted coffins, many with mummies inside, establishes Saqqara as primary burial ground of 26th Dynasty (Jonathan Laden).

I noted the recent discovery of numerous mummies at Saqqara here. This BHD essay outlines the importance of the 26th Egyptian dynasty for biblical studies.

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

NEW BOOK FROM CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS:

The Future of Rome
Roman, Greek, Jewish and Christian Visions

EDITORS:
Jonathan J. Price, Tel-Aviv University
Katell Berthelot, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Paris

DATE PUBLISHED: October 2020
AVAILABILITY: Available
FORMAT: Hardback
ISBN: 9781108494816

$ 99.99 (C)
Hardback

Description

How was the future of Rome, both near and distant in time, imagined by different populations living under the Roman Empire? It emerges from this collection of essays by a distinguished international team of scholars that Romans, Greeks, Jews and Christians had strikingly different answers to that question, revealing profound differences in their conceptions of history and historical time, the purpose of history, the meaning of written words and oral traditions. It is also argued that practically no one living under Rome's rule, including the Romans themselves, did not think about the question in one form or another.

• A cutting-edge volume on a topic never before systematically explored
• Reveals profound differences between the views of the different peoples living under the Roman Empire on the same fundamental question
• Explores concepts of historical time and other modes of time

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Daly, Sacrifice in Pagan and Christian Antiquity

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Sacrifice in Pagan and Christian Antiquity
By: Robert J. Daly

Published: 08-22-2019
Format: Hardback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 168
ISBN: 9780567687050
Imprint: T&T Clark
Dimensions: 6 1/8" x 9 1/4"
List price: $115.00
Online price: $80.50
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About Sacrifice in Pagan and Christian Antiquity

Robert J. Daly S.J. examines the concept of sacrifice in the ancient Mediterranean world, and discusses how the rise of bloodless Christian sacrifice, and the use of sacrificial language in reference to highly spiritualized Christian lives, would have seemed unsettling and radically challenging to the pagan mind.

Acknowledging the difficulties posed by an overwhelmingly Christian scholarly narrative around the topic of sacrifice, Daly specifically sets out to tell the non-Christian side of this story. He first outlines the pagan trajectory, and then the Jewish-Christian trajectory, before concluding with a representative series of comparisons and contrasts. Covering the concept of sacrifice in relation to prayer, ethics and morality, the rhetoric and economics of sacrificial ceremonies, and heroes and saints, Daly finishes with an estimation of how this study might inform further study of sacrifice.

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Is commentary necessary?

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

Commentary – Why We Need It and the Price We Pay for Having It

If Moses interceded for any of the commandments, did he act as a secretary taking dictation or did he introduce a human dimension into the divinely revealed content? The traditional answer is that he served as a secretary, copying every word exactly as God spoke it. This suggests that revelation was an auditory phenomenon and thus implies an anthropomorphic interpretation of “God spoke.”

By Kenneth Seeskin
Department of Philosophy and Department of Religious Studies
Northwestern University
November 2020

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Cranz, Royal Illness and Kingship Ideology in the Hebrew Bible

NEW BOOK FROM CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS:

Royal Illness and Kingship Ideology in the Hebrew Bible

Part of Society for Old Testament Study Monographs

AUTHOR: Isabel Cranz, University of Pennsylvania
DATE PUBLISHED: October 2020
AVAILABILITY: Available
FORMAT: Hardback
ISBN: 9781108830492

$ 99.99 (C)
Hardback

Description

In this book, Isabel Cranz offers the first systematic study of royal illness in the Books of Samuel, Kings and Chronicles. Applying a diachronic approach, she compares and contrasts how the different views concerning kingship and illness are developed in the larger trajectory of the Hebrew Bible. As such, she demonstrates how a framework of meaning is constructed around the motif of illness, which is expanded in several redactional steps. This development takes different forms and relates to issues such as problems with kingship, the cultic, and moral conduct of individual kings, or the evaluation of dynasties. Significantly, Cranz shows how the scribes living in post-monarchic Judah expanded the interpretive framework of royal illness until it included a message of destruction and a critique of kingship. The physical and mental integrity of the king, therefore, becomes closely tied to his nation and the political system he represents.

• Presents a comprehensive study of royal illness in the Books of Samuel, Kings and Chronicles
• Applies a diachronic approach in combination with medical humanities and disability studies
• Demonstrates how the motif of the sick king functions both symbolically and pragmatically, while being adapted to different ideological frameworks

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Noegel, “Wordplay” in Ancient Near Eastern Texts

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

“Wordplay” in Ancient Near Eastern Texts
Scott B. Noegel

$44.80 – $58.80
Series: Ancient Near East Monographs
Volume: 26

Publisher: SBL Press
Publication Date: 2020
ISBN: 9781628372939

Description

This book from Scott B. Noegel offers a comparative, in-depth study of “wordplay” in ancient Near Eastern texts. Noegel establishes comprehensive taxonomies for the many kinds of devices that scholars label as wordplay and for their proposed functions. The consistent terminology proposed offers students and scholars of Sumerian, Akkadian, Egyptian, Ugaritic, Hebrew, and Aramaic a useful template for documenting and understanding the devices they discover and for comparing them across languages for a rich interdisciplinary dialogue.

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Cowan, The Writings of Luke and the Jewish Roots of the Christian Way

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

The Writings of Luke and the Jewish Roots of the Christian Way An Examination of the Aims of the First Christian Historian in the Light of Ancient Politics, Ethnography, and Historiography
By: J. Andrew Cowan

Published: 08-20-2020

Format: Paperback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 232
ISBN: 9780567696144
Imprint: T&T Clark
Series: The Library of New Testament Studies
Dimensions: 6 1/8" x 9 1/4"
List price: $39.95
Online price: $27.96
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About The Writings of Luke and the Jewish Roots of the Christian Way

J. Andrew Cowan challenges the popular theory that Luke sought to boost the cultural status of the early Christian movement by emphasising its Jewish roots – associating the new church with an ancient and therefore respected heritage. Cowan instead argues that Luke draws upon the traditions of the Old Testament and its supporting texts as a reassurance to Christians, promising that Jesus' life, his works and the church that follow legitimately provide fulfilment of God's salvific plan.

Cowan's argument compares Luke's writings to two near-contemporaries, Dionysius of Halicarnassus and T. Flavius Josephus, both of whom emphasized the ancient heritage of a people with cultural or political aims in view, exploring how the writings of Luke do not reflect the same cultural values or pursue the same ends. Challenging assumptions on Luke's supposed attempts to assuage political concerns, capitalize on antiquity, and present Christianity as an inner-Jewish sect, Cowan counters with arguments for Luke being critical of over-valuing tradition and defining the Jewish people as resistant to God and His messages. Cowan concludes with the argument that the apostle does not strive for legitimisation of the new church by previous cultural standards, but instead provides theological reassurance to Christians that God's plan has been fulfilled, with implications for broader debate.

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Reception of the Apocryphal Acts of Thomas

ANCIENT JEW REVIEW: Retelling Thomas’ Story: Reception of the Apocryphal Acts of Thomas in the Synaxarion of the Liturgical Thomas-Feast (Cosmin Pricop).

The indisputable presence of information from the Apocryphal Acts of Thomas in the Synaxarion of the Thomas-Feast (concerning especially the beginning of the Thomasine mission in India and his martyrdom there) proves the liturgical functionality of the reception of this apocryphal text. At the same time, it reveals the fact that this complex process (which is to be understood also as retelling stories) continued not only beyond the canon of New Testament writings, but also beyond the canon of what we typically think of as apocryphal literature.

Is that meta-apocrypha then?

Cross-file under New Testament Apocrypha Watch.

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The mission of BAR

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: First Person: A Magazine, Not a Journal. A statement from Bob Cargill, the chief editor of Biblical Archaeology Review.

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Udjahorresnet

BIBLIOGRAPHIA IRANICA: Udjahorresnet and His World. The open-access Journal of Ancient Egyptian Interconnections takes a deep dive into the life of an Egyptian official with close royal connections in the Achaemenid era.

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Roskovec & Hušek, Interactions in Interpretation

NEW BOOK FROM BRILL:

Interactions in Interpretation

The Pilgrimage of Meaning through Biblical Texts and Contexts

Series: Biblical Interpretation Series, Volume: 185

Volume Editors: Jan Roskovec and Vít Hušek

The concept of intertextuality was originally coined as an instrument in answering the question of how meaning is communicated through texts. The Interactions in Interpretation discusses various aspects of how the world of the Bible (seen as a world of a certain language: a complex of ideas, notions, images, idioms, stories, that are shared and referred to) communicates with other worlds in both directions. The collection of studies follows three types of interactions with marked bearing on understanding: (1) interactions with a particular motif of dream, (2) interactions with a particular text of Isa 6:9–10, (3) intertextuality in changing contexts.

Prices from (excl. VAT): €105.00 / $126.00

E-Book (PDF)
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-43982-5
Publication Date: 04 Nov 2020

Hardback
Availability: Published
ISBN: 978-90-04-42963-5
Publication Date: 05 Nov 2020

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Bathsheba's psyop and Solomon's kingship?

PROF. CARL S. EHRLICH: Bathsheba the Kingmaker (TheTorah.com).

Bathsheba first appears as the object of David’s lust, then as the mother of Solomon, who pleads with the king to make her son his heir. And yet, a close look at her actions shows her to be someone with agency, able to manipulate her husband and even her son to ensure Solomon’s safety and rule.

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Machaerus in history and art

GYÖZÖ VÖRÖS, the director of the Machaerus excavation, has two essay on the site in Bible History Daily:

Machaerus Through the Ages. Timeline of Events at Machaerus.

Artistic Representations of Herod’s Royal Throne. The Bible site of the beheading of John the Baptist has inspired many artists.

For many PaleoJudaica posts on Machaerus and its excavation, start here (cf. here) and follow the links.

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

Verde, Conquered Conquerors

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Conquered Conquerors: Love and War in the Song of Songs
Danilo Verde

$28.00 – $42.00

Series: Ancient Israel and Its Literature
Volume: 41

Publisher: SBL Press
Publication Date: 2020
ISBN: 9781628372892

Description

Danilo Verde explores the Song of Songs’ use of military language to describe both love and lovers from the perspective of cognitive metaphor theory. love is war is one of the main recurring themes of the Song, and the poem’s representations of love/rs using military imagery thematically connects the poem, providing the reader with a coherent and conceptually unified understanding of the Song. Additionally, this book investigates how the Song conceptualizes the female and the male, revealing their tight interconnection in the poem. By exploring one of the Song’s most overlooked images, Conquered Conquerors provides fresh insights into the Song’s figurative language and the conceptualization of gender in biblical literature.

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Social media and saving the Mar Benham manuscripts

THE DIGITAL ORIENTALIST: Social Media and the Distribution of Knowledge about Missing Syriac Manuscripts (Ephrem A. Ishac).

PaleoJudaica was among the social media that followed the story of the Mar Benham manuscripts as it was happening. See here and links. Cross-file under Syriac Watch.

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Did Hagar have a nickname or did she die?

PROF. RABBI REUVEN FIRESTONE: Abraham Visits Ishmael and His Wives: Between Jewish and Islamic Tradition (TheTorah.com).

Abraham banishes Ishmael as a lad, and the break between them seems final. To reconcile father and son, Jewish and Islamic traditions tell a story about Abraham going to visit Ishmael and meet his wives. Despite being similar, the two stories are used for different purposes.

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An Iron-Age fortress in the Golan

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: Geshurite Fort Excavated. Iron Age Building belonged to the Geshurites, the people of Maachah, who, in the Biblical account, married King David and bore Absalom and Tamar (Jonathan Laden). The headline is more confident than the story. There is some circumstantial evidence that could associate the fortress with the Geshurites. That seems likely enough. But so far there is no inscription that says, "Welcome to the Fortress of the Geshurites."

(Story first brought to my attention by reader David Schottenfels.)

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Leuchter (ed.), Scribes and Scribalism

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Scribes and Scribalism
Editor(s): Mark Leuchter

Published: 11-12-2020
Format: Hardback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 200
ISBN: 9780567659743
Imprint: T&T Clark
Series: The Hebrew Bible in Social Perspective
Illustrations: 1 B&W illus
Dimensions: 6 5/8" x 9 5/8"
List price: $115.00
Online price: $103.50
Save $11.50 (10%)

About Scribes and Scribalism

This volume is a concentrated examination of the varied roles of scribes and scribal practices in ancient Israel and Judah, shedding light on the social world of the Hebrew Bible. Divided into discussion of three key aspects, the book begins by assessing praxis and materiality, looking at the tools and materials used by scribes, where they came from and how they worked in specific contexts. The contributors then move to observe the power and status of scribal cultures, and how scribes functioned within their broader social world. Finally, the volume offers perspectives that examine ideological issues at play in both antiquity and the modern context(s) of biblical scholarship. Taken together, these essays demonstrate that no text is produced in a void, and no writer functions without a network of resources.

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Schellenberg & Kruger, Sounding Sensory Profiles in The Ancient Near East

RECENT BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Sounding Sensory Profiles in The Ancient Near East
Annette Schellenberg (Editor), Thomas Kruger (Editor)

ISBN 9781628372410
Status Available
Price: $59.95
Binding Paperback
Publication Date July 2019

An interdisciplinary essay collection from an international group of experts

For several decades sociologists and cultural anthropologists have intensively researched the role of the senses in a variety of cultures, and their studies show how diverse cultures understand and evaluate the five or more senses differently. In this collection of eighteen essays, biblical and ancient Near Eastern scholars, as well as cultural anthropologists, apply the questions and methods from anthropological and sociological studies to Israel, Mesopotamia, and Egypt. Experts offer insights into the meaning of the senses in the ancient world, examining the classical senses (seeing, hearing, touching, smelling, tasting) as well as other senses (such as kinesthesis and the sense of balance) and sense-related issues (such as disgust, sensory imagination, and disabilities). This collection provides a stimulus and a basis for students and scholars to explore the senses in the ancient Near East.

Features

• Exploration of the relationship between sensory experience and reasoning
• Assessments of how theory and practice of the senses relate to each other
• Essays examining connections between emotions and senses

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Mis-retro-diagnosing Adam's penis-bone?

THE BIBLE AND INTERPRETATION:

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

Ziony Zevit is the Distinguished Professor in Bible and Northwest Semitic Languages in the Ziegler School of Rabbinic Studies at the American Jewish University. He has done widely respected work on the religion of ancient Israel. However, Zevit makes a claim that is difficult to accept or understand linguistically, exegetically, and medically. In so doing, he is engaging in “retrodiagnosis.” Typically, such approaches seek to diagnose a condition mentioned in the Bible in precise modern medical terms.

Zevit specifically asserts that the Hebrew word sela (צֵלָע) in Genesis 2:21 refers to a penis bone (os baculum), not a rib, in speaking of the creation of Eve. This essay will show that none of the arguments adduced by Zevit, including those drawn from Alan Dundes’ research on the practice known as couvade, will yield the results he asserts for Genesis 2:21.

By Hector Avalos
Professor of Religious Studies,
Iowa State University
November 2020

PaleoJudaica posts on Professor Zevit's hypothesis about Adam's penis-bone are here and here.

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Studies in Mediterranean Antiquity and Classics

THE AWOL BLOG: Open Access Journal: Studies in Mediterranean antiquity and classics. Includes some articles on the Hebrew Bible and ancient Judaism.

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

Avioz, Legal Exegesis of Scripture in the Works of Josephus

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

Legal Exegesis of Scripture in the Works of Josephus
By: Michael Avioz

Published: 11-12-2020
Format: Hardback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 192
ISBN: 9780567681157
Imprint: T&T Clark
Series: The Library of Second Temple Studies
Volume: 97
Dimensions: 6 1/8" x 9 1/4"
List price: $115.00
Online price: $103.50
Save $11.50 (10%)

About Legal Exegesis of Scripture in the Works of Josephus

Michael Avioz builds upon his earlier work on Josephus as an exegete, providing a comprehensive study of Josephus' contribution to the crystallization of the Halakha which focuses on the similarities (and dissimilarities) between his work and the tannaitic sources, as well as contemporary Second Temple sources.

Avioz begins by providing a clear definition of Halakha, and offering an explanation of methodology and sources. He then examines the structure and contents of the Pentateuch in Josephus' writing, before moving on to more specific coverage of the Decalogue in the work of Josephus and its relation to other laws in the Pentateuch. Further analysis is applied to the laws in the books of Leviticus-Deuteronomy and on laws that appear outside the Pentateuch. Throughout, Avioz makes close comparisons between biblical laws and Josephus' rewriting of them, in order to consider the reasons behind this rewriting and the origins of the texts that Josephus may have had access to in his exegetical work. Avioz is consequently able to draw clear conclusions about the interpretative traditions that Josephus had access to and worked within, and about how he used them in his writing.

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How well does scroll reconstruction really work?

PLOS ONE: The length of a scroll: Quantitative evaluation of material reconstructions (Eshbal Ratzon , Nachum Dershowitz). Published: October 21, 2020https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239831.

Abstract

Scholars have used mathematical models to estimate the missing length of deteriorated scrolls from ancient Egypt, Qumran, Herculaneum, and elsewhere. Based on such estimations, the content of ancient literature as well as the process of its composition is deduced. Though theoretically reasonable, many practical problems interfere with the method. In the current study, the empirical validity of these mathematical models is examined, showing that highly significant errors are quite frequent. When applied to comparatively intact scrolls, the largest contribution to errors is the subjectivity inherent in measuring patterns of damaged areas. In less well preserved scrolls, deterioration and deformation are more central causes of errors. Another factor is the quality of imaging. Hence, even after maximal reduction of interfering factors, one should only use these estimation methods in conjunction with other supporting considerations. Accordingly, past uses of this approach should be reevaluated, which may have substantial implications for the study of antiquity.

Stegemann's method of scroll reconstruction has been influential and widely used, notably for the Dead Sea Scrolls. If it is less reliable than we thought, that could indeed have substantial implications. Let's keep an eye on how this article is received.

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Beyond the Canon?

ANCIENT JEW REVIEW: Manuscripts Beyond the Canon ( Garrick V. Allen).

In anticipation of the upcoming annual meeting of #sblaar20, Ancient Jew Review will host a series of articles from a panel organized by Janet Spittler and Lily Vuong, chairs of the Christian Apocrypha Section. For the next two weeks, we will publish essays from a session celebrating the work of Tobias Nicklas and the "Beyond Canon: Heterotopias of Religious Authority in Ancient Christianity” project of the Universität Regensburg.

From Dr. Allen's essay:

What I want to do in this discussion is more specific: to gesture toward the importance of manuscripts, even manuscripts that preserve “biblical” works, as vectors for researching beyond the canon. The manuscript evidence demonstrates that there is often no hard and fast bibliographic distinction between canonical and non-canonical material and that, in certain circumstances, it is the very presence of non-canonical material that defines the canonical as such. ...

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Review of Stray et al., Liddell and Scott (history, methodology, languages)

BRYN MAYR CLASSICAL REVIEW: Liddell and Scott: the history, methodology, and languages of the world’s leading lexicon of Ancient Greek.

Christopher Stray, Michael Clarke, Joshua Timothy Katz, Liddell and Scott: the history, methodology, and languages of the world's leading lexicon of Ancient Greek. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2019. Pp. xviii, 453. ISBN 9780198810803 $115.00.

... Liddell and Scott, edited by Christopher Stray, a sociologist, Michael Clarke, a literary critic, and Joshua Katz, an expert in linguistics, aims to look at the LSJ as cultural and intellectual product—with Stray leading on the history of the book; Clarke, the methodology and literary implications; and Katz, the philology and linguistics. It is a book that is fascinating—full of detailed and intelligent appraisal and analysis—and frustrating, for the questions not broached and the avenues not pursued. ...

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Sappho's German officer found?

VARIANT READINGS: Further Revelations from Sampson’s Article: The Sappho Papyrus and the German Officer (Brent Nongbri).

One seemingly intractable mystery that Sampson has (to my mind, anyway) solved involves one of the first provenance stories associated with the Sappho papyrus. Early on, it was claimed that the papyrus had originated in mummy cartonnage that had once been owned by “a high-ranking German officer.” This provenance story quickly evaporated and was never explained. A little background will help to illuminate Sampson’s discovery.

For more on C. Michael Sampson's recent article on the provenance of the Sappho Papyrus, see here. And follow the links from there for many past posts with background on and ramifications of the Sappho papyrus and, more broadly, the missing papyri scandal.

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Choi, The Use and Function of Scripture in 1 Maccabees

NEW BOOK FROM BLOOMSBURY/T&T CLARK:

The Use and Function of Scripture in 1 Maccabees
By: Dongbin Choi

Published: 10-15-2020
Format: Hardback
Edition: 1st
Extent: 288
ISBN: 9780567695420
Imprint: T&T Clark
Series: The Library of Second Temple Studies
Volume: 98v Dimensions: 6 1/8" x 9 1/4"
List price: $120.00
Online price: $84.00
Save $36.00 (30%)

About The Use and Function of Scripture in 1 Maccabees

Dongbin Choi offers a philological and thematic analysis on the scriptural language in the book of 1 Maccabees, a text that is written with a linguistic technique that utilizes earlier Jewish texts in order to promote the religiopolitical agendas of its author. Choi engages in the dialogue between the traditional view that treats 1 Maccabees as a religious writing, and the radical view that considers it as political propaganda.

Choi suggests that the author of 1 Maccabees deploys scriptural language in such a nuanced way that he both promotes the legitimacy of the Hasmonean rule in Judea under John Hyrcanus I, and shows his appreciation of conservative Jewish sensitivity toward their traditions relating to Deuteronomic covenant, biblical judges, and Jewish messianism. By discussing past scholarly literature on the use and function of Scripture in 1 Maccabees, analyzing various literary, political, and cultural aspects that influenced the creation of the text, and finally exploring philological and conceptual parallels between Scripture and 1 Maccabees and the use of Scripture in the eulogies of the Hasmoneans, Choi has created a singular reinterpretation of both text and author.

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More on Khirbet Kafr Murr

SALVAGE ARCHAEOLOGY: Beit El settlement expansion threatens to bury Jewish Second Temple heritage. As apartment towers rise in West Bank town, remains of Jewish village conquered by Romans fight the elements — and population boom — for a chance at preservation in planned park (Amanda Borschel-Dan, Times of Israel).

Despite the obvious investment taking place to document and preserve it, Khirbet Kafr Murr is not a classically “important” site: The archaeological surveys and excavations point to a small agricultural settlement spanning from the 8th century BCE to 749 CE. At its peak during the Jewish Revolt against the Romans, some 100 Jews would have taken a final stand here. Today, just one of the many towering apartment buildings encroaching upon the excavation site holds many more.

As with every salvage excavation, the question looms over how much will be done to preserve and present the findings for the public. And while concrete plans are discussed in the local regional council and COGAT to establish a modest archaeological park in the heart of the new neighborhood, other sections have already been documented, carefully covered, and are now buried under the cement foundations of the new apartment towers.

A long, informative article on an impressive off-the-main-road site.

I noted the discovery of Second Temple-era remains at Khirbet Kafr Murr (Khirbet Kafr Mer) back in 2006. For recent notice of that pottery found there in a cistern, see here.

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Another cuneiform algorithm

TECHNOLOGY WATCH: Israeli Scientists Use AI to Reconstruct Broken Babylonian Tablets. Gaps in ancient text are so frustrating. Now artificial intelligence can be trained to plausibly restore missing cuneiform signs in ancient Babylonian texts, Israeli historian demonstrates (Ruth Schuster, Haaretz).

Understanding texts written using an unknown system in a tongue that’s been dead for thousands of years is quite the challenge. Reconstructing missing bits of the ancient text is even harder – though admittedly, if one gets it wrong, who’s to know?

Filling in missing text starts with being able to read and understand the original text. That requires much donkey work. Now an Israeli team led by Shai Gordin at Ariel University in the West Bank has reinvented the donkey in digital form, harnessing artificial intelligence to help complete fragmented Akkadian cuneiform tablets.

[...]

Ms. Schuster links to the underlying article in PNAS: Restoration of fragmentary Babylonian texts using recurrent neural networks (Ethan Fetaya, Yonatan Lifshitz, Elad Aaron, and Shai Gordin). The article is behind a subscription wall, but you can read the abstract.

The algorithm looks like a useful tool, but it still (for now!) requires a good bit of human intervention to operate. For other posts on algorithms being applied to cuneiform studies, archaeology, paleography, and epigraphy, see here and links, here, here, and here.

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Leviticus on taboo tattoos

BIBLE HISTORY DAILY: What Does the Bible Say About Tattoos? Taboo tattoos (Megan Sauter). This BHD essay is based on a 2015 BAR article by Mark Chavalas which is behind the subscription wall. But it has some details that might interest you.

For many PaleoJudaica posts on tattoos involving ancient languages, start here and follow the links. Some are disasters, most are amusing.

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Sonia, Caring for the Dead in Ancient Israel

NEW BOOK FROM SBL PRESS:

Caring for the Dead in Ancient Israel
Kerry M. Sonia

ISBN 9781628372854
Status Available
Price: $38.00
Binding Paperback
Publication Date November 2020

A new reconstruction of cultic practices surrounding death in ancient Israel

In Caring for the Dead in Ancient Israel, Kerry M. Sonia examines the commemoration and care for the dead in ancient Israel against the broader cultural backdrop of West Asia. This cult of dead kin, often referred to as ancestor cult, comprised a range of ritual practices in which the living provided food and drink offerings, constructed commemorative monuments, invoked the names of the dead, and protected their remains. This ritual care negotiated the ongoing relationships between the living and the dead and, in so doing, helped construct social, political, and religious landscapes in relationship to the past. Sonia explores the nature of this cult of dead kin in ancient Israel, focusing on its role within the family and household as well as its relationship to Israel’s national deity and the Jerusalem temple.

Features:

• A reevaluation of whether burial and necromantic rituals were part of the cult of dead kin
• A portrait of the various roles Israelite women played in the cult of dead kin
• A reassessment of biblical writers’ attitudes toward the cult of dead kin

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Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, 1948-2020

SAD NEWS: Lord Jonathan Sacks, former chief rabbi, dies aged 72 (BBC). I met Rabbi Lord Sacks several years ago when he gave a Templeton Lecture in St. Andrews.

May hs memory be for a blessing.

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Schmidtkunz, Das Moselied des Deuteronomiums

NEW BOOK FROM MOHR SIEBECK: Petra Schmidtkunz. Das Moselied des Deuteronomiums Untersuchungen zu Text und Theologie von Dtn 32,1–43. [The Song of Moses in Deuteronomy. Studies on the Text and Theology of Deut 32:1–43.] 2020. XVIII, 451 pages. Forschungen zum Alten Testament 2. Reihe 124. 109,00 € including VAT. sewn paper ISBN 978-3-16-158293-6.

Published in German.
In her analysis of the »Song of Moses« (Deut. 32:1–43), Petra Schmidtkunz combines classical exegesis with an enquiry into the textual pragmatics of the composition. As a result, the Song can be characterised as a religious exhortation, addressing the community of YHWH's followers in Persian-period Yehud (fifth century BC).

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Palmyre

THE FRENCH MINISTRY OF CULTURE has antiquities websites that have just come to my attention. Here is the one on Palmyra.

The oasis of Palmyra is in northwest Syria. The city stood at the meeting point of several routes across the desert steppe. It came to prominence in Roman times and was later closely associated with Queen Zenobia.

It has an excellent collection of photos and commentary on every aspect of the history and architecture of Palmyra. The link is to the English version of the website.

For many PaleoJudaica posts on Palmyra, its history, the ancient Aramaic dialect spoken there (Palmyrene), and the city's tragic reversals of fortune, which more recently seem to have been trending for the better, start here and follow the links.

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