Second Temple Judaism

“Locating 4 Ezra: A Consideration of Its Social Setting and Functions,” Journal for the Study of Judaism 28 (1997): 271-93

by Bruce Longenecker

The most likely scenario for the social setting of 4 Ezra is Yavneh, the author being a scribe who gravitated there... more The most likely scenario for the social setting of 4 Ezra is Yavneh, the author being a scribe who gravitated there after a.d. 70. He wrote his apocalypse in the hope of influencing rabbinic leaders who sought to reconsider Jewish piety and practice without recourse to the Temple. He was concerned that (1) the people's confidence in God should be reinforced, despite their sorrow; (2) the people should be instructed in the Law and encouraged to observe it strenuously; and (3) the people should be discouraged from active insurrection and militant revolt, often animated by eschatological speculation.--D.J.H. Abstract Number: NTA42-1998-2-1398

“The Wilderness and Jewish Revolutionary Fervour in First-Century Palestine: A Response to D.P. Schwartz and J. Marcus,” Journal for the Study of Judaism 29 (1998): 322-36.

by Bruce Longenecker

According to Schwartz and Marcus, Isa 40:3 had instructive, programmatic force in leading Jewish revolutionaries out... more According to Schwartz and Marcus, Isa 40:3 had instructive, programmatic force in leading Jewish revolutionaries out into the wilderness where they prepared themselves for the invading procession of Israel's God against Israel's enemies. But examination of relevant passages from Josephus' writings and the Dead Sea scrolls indicates that the evidence for the revolutionary interpretation of Isa 40:3 is relatively sparse and unimpressive. Instead, the narrative of the Hebrews' wilderness trek and conquest of the land under Moses and Joshua has far more to commend itself as the narrative precursor to the revolutionaries' retreat into the wilderness.--D.J.H. Abstract Number: NTA43-1999-1-634

• "The Distinction between Holy and Profane in Targum Onkelos" (Hebrew), Megadim 43 (2005), pp. 73–86.

by Nili Samet

Spanish Scholarship on Second Temple Judaism and Christian Origins: An Overview, 1478-2012/13

by Carlos Segovia

1. Overview
1.1. The beginnings: from the mid-15th to the mid-20th century
1.2. Looking back at the 20th... more 1. Overview
1.1. The beginnings: from the mid-15th to the mid-20th century
1.2. Looking back at the 20th century: chief developments from the 1950s to the 1990s
2. Spanish scholarship over the centuries
2.1. Spanish scholarship (15th century)
2.2. Spanish scholarship (16th century)
2.3. Spanish scholarship (17th century)
2.4. Spanish scholarship (18th century)
2.5. Spanish scholarship (19th century)
2.6. Spanish scholarship (1910s)
2.7. Spanish scholarship (1920s)
2.8. Spanish scholarship (1930s)
2.9. Spanish scholarship (1940s)
2.10. Spanish scholarship (1950s)
2.11. Spanish scholarship (1960s)
2.12. Spanish scholarship (1970s)
2.13. Spanish scholarship (1980s)
2.14. Spanish scholarship (1990s)
2.15. Spanish scholarship (2000s)
2.16. Spanish scholarship (2010s)
3. General statistics
4. Leading Spanish institutions of higher education, centres for scholarly research, learned societies, publishers, academic journals, and librairies in the field
4.1. Institutions of higher education
4.2. Centres for scholarly research
4.3. Learned societies
4.4. Piblishers
4.5. Academic journals
4.6. Librairies
4.7. Major manuscripts

The Ritual Baths Near the Temple Mount and Extra-Purification Before Entering the Temple Courts: A Reply to Eyal Regev

by Yonatan Adler

Published in: Israel Exploration Journal 56 (2006), pp. 209–215

Reassessing Paul's Jewishness: Israel, the Nations, and the Radical New Perspective on Paul (Spanish)

by Carlos Segovia

"Pablo de Tarso, Israel y los gentiles: El nuevo enfoque radical sobre Pablo y el cariz judío de su mensaje." To be published in: Bandue. Revista de la Sociedad Española de Ciencias de las Religiones. Forthcoming.

Traditionally, Paul has been understood as the founder of a new religion, Christianity, different from and opposed to... more Traditionally, Paul has been understood as the founder of a new religion, Christianity, different from and opposed to Judaism. Yet in the mid-20th century William David Davies and Johannes Munck challenged this view. Drawing upon Munck's insights, Krister Stendahl was the first to set forth in the 1960s and the 1970s a radical new imterpretation of Paul's message and mission. According to Stendahl, Paul did not imtend to replace Judaism but to bring the Gentiles into YHWH's allegiance. Lloyd Gaston, John Gager, Neil Elliot, William Campbell, Mark Nanos, Pamela Eisenbaum, Caroline Johnson Hodge, and Paula Fredriksen have contributed to further develop this interpretative line—which contrasts both with the traditional understanding of Paul and with the claims made by James Dunn, Tom Wright, and Daniel Boyarin that Paul tried to reform Judaism from within—in the past thirty years. This brief study summarises the results of their groundbreaking research, analyses their at times contrasting proposals, and reflects upon their fascinating implications.

Tradicionalmente, Pablo ha sido interpretado como el fundador de una nueva religión, el cristianismo, diferente de y, en rigor, opuesta al judaísmo. William David Davies y Johannes Munck cuestionaron a mediados del siglo XX, sin embargo, semejante interpretación. Basándose en los trabajos de Munck, Krister Stendahl fue el primero que propuso en los años 60 y 70 del siglo pasado una nueva interpretación radical del mensaje paulino. Según Stendahl, Pablo no se propuso superar el judaísmo sino, únicamente, integrar a los gentiles en Israel por medio de Cristo. En los últimos treinta años, Lloyd Gaston, John Gager, Neil Elliot, William Campbell, Mark Nanos, Pamela Eisenbaum, Caroline Johnson Hodge y Paula Fredriksen han contribuido a desarrollar esta línea interpretativa, que contrasta tanto con la interpretación tradicional de Pablo como con la pretensión de que éste se habría propuesto reformar el judaísmo, defendida por James Dunn, Tom Wright y Daniel Boyarin. Este breve estudio resume los resultados de dicha investigación, analiza los matices que ella presenta de un autor a otro y reflexiona sobre sus, a decir verdad, novedosas y fascinantes implicaciones.

Which Theologies in Conflict? Some Suggestions for a Symptomatic Rereading of 4 Ezra in Light of P. Sacchi's and E.P. Sanders' Contributions to the Study of Early Judaism, with a Final Note on the Hodayot from Qumran and Paul

by Carlos Segovia

Presented at the 6th Enoch Seminar: 2 Baruch - 4 Ezra: 1st Century Jewish Apocalypticism -- Milan, June 26 - July 1, 2011.

4 Ezra sets forth a kind of dialogical retextualization of the idea that salvation is unconditionally granted by God... more 4 Ezra sets forth a kind of dialogical retextualization of the idea that salvation is unconditionally granted by God to his chosen people in order, first, to discuss its accuracy and, second, to dismiss it together with the opposing view according to which salvation in only granted to, even if not self-achieved by, those who have good deeds to their credit. A comparison between 2 Sam 7; 1 Kgs 8:22-26; and 1 Kgs 2:1-4 and 2 Chron 6:12-17 shows that these two competing views--or theologies--can be traced back to the Hebrew Bible. I will also argue that they may be further clarified through a cross-reading of P. Sacchi's and E.P. Sanders' studies. And that the first view can be found again, to one extent or another, in several post-Biblical Jewish texts such as the Hodayot from Qumran and Paul's letters.Yet my main point will be to suggest that, in spite of their different purposes, the author of 4 Ezra might have had in mind Paul's controversial reuse of such view, since 4 Ezra 8:32, 36 seemingly echoes Rom 4:5.

Isaiah 66:19, 21 and Paul's Gentile Mission: A Contribution to the Contemporary Rereading of Paul as a Jewish Author

by Carlos Segovia

To be published in: Paul and Scripture, ed. Stanley E. Porter and Gregory P. Fewster. Pauline Studies. Leiden: E. J. Brill. Forthcoming in 2015.

Isa 66:18-21 has often been pointed out as a possible subtext for Rom 15:16 (so e.g. Aus and Riesner). In order to... more Isa 66:18-21 has often been pointed out as a possible subtext for Rom 15:16 (so e.g. Aus and Riesner). In order to confirm this, however, ton ethnon in Rom 15:16 must be read as an objective, rather than subjective, genitive, as in fact most scholars (from Michel to Hultgren) do. In my view, those who interpret ton ethnon as a subjective genitive (Denis, Downs) fail to notice the connection between Rom 15:16 and 15:18, where Paul clearly states that Gentiles are the object of his offering, since he has been commissioned to bring them through Christ into God's allegiance. The contention that Isa 66:18-21 deals instead with Gentiles bringing Jews (Donaldson) proves equally misguiding if we take Isa 66:20 to be an interpolation (Westermann) intended to correct the claim (made in vv. 19 and 21) that a mission to the Gentiles will precede Israel's restoration and that priests and Levites will be recruited from converts to the Jewish faith (Blenkinsopp). I will suggest, furthermore, that reading Rom 15:16, 18 in light of Isa 66:19, 21 (a text which, albeit not addressing an unexpectable issue, goes well beyond any claims made in the Second Temple period regarding Gentile inclusion) may shed new light upon the contemporary reading of Paul as a Jewish author---a reading set forth, amidst other scholars, by Stendahl, Gaston, Gager, Stowers, Nanos, and, more recently, Eisenbaum, Johnson Hodge, and Fredriksen.

Beyond the Myth: Rereading Ezek 28:11-19 and Gen 2:15-3:24 Politically

by Carlos Segovia

Co-authored with Olga M. Pérez. Forthcoming.

1 Enoch and the Contemporary Study of Jewish Apocalypticism: A Conversation with Gabriele Boccaccini (Spanish)

by Carlos Segovia

"1 Henoc y el estudio contemporáneo de la apocalíptica judía: Una conversación con Gabriele Boccaccini," EPIMELEIA 35-36 (2009) 7-28.

Noah as Eschatoligical Mediator Transposed: From 2 Enoch 71-72 to the Christological Echoes of 1 Enoch 106:3 in the Qur'an

by Carlos Segovia

in: Henoch 33.1 (2011) 129-44.

1. Introduction: Mediatorial figures in Second Temple Judaism
2. The Noah story in 1 Enoch, 1QapGen, 4Q534-36,... more 1. Introduction: Mediatorial figures in Second Temple Judaism
2. The Noah story in 1 Enoch, 1QapGen, 4Q534-36, and 1Q19-19bis
- Excursus A: A brief re-examination of the differences between the Noah traditions, Noah's role in 1 Enoch, and the Apocalypse of Noah
3. The Noah story transposed, from 2 Enoch to the Qur'an
- Excursus B: The Noah/Melchizedek story in 2 Enoch and the Fifth Enoch Seminar: Some preliminary observations
- Excursus C: 1 Enoch and the Qur'an
4. Postscriptum: A few final remarks in dialogue with Daniel Assefa, Andreas Bedenbender, Harold Ellens, Emmanouela Grypeou, Basil Lourié and Pierluigi Piovanelli

2012 4Q541, Fragment 24 Reconsidered

by Edward Cook

From "Puzzling Out the Past: Studies in Northwest Semitic Languages and Literatures in Honor of Bruce Zuckerman" (ed. Marilyn Lundberg, Steven Fine, and Wayne Pitard; Brill 2012).

"The Use of Greek at Qumran: Manuscript and Epigraphic Evidence for a Marginalized Language"

by Matthew Richey

Dead Sea Discoveries 19.2 (2012)    [Forthcoming]

Treatments of language use at Qumran have tended to marginalize the evidence for Greek language use among the... more Treatments of language use at Qumran have tended to marginalize the evidence for Greek language use among the Covenanters, on the basis of the observation that far more of the surviving texts are written in Hebrew or Aramaic. This paper examines the meager evidence for Greek use at the site – including the sole Greek documentary text, 4Q350, recently published epigraphic evidence, and the enigmatic Greek letters of the Copper Scroll (3Q15) – in an attempt to recognize the importance of Greek for everyday intramural business and for maintaining economic contact with exterior communities. Manuscript and epigraphic survivals demonstrate that the Covenanters’ use of Greek can be characterized as primarily occurring in the context of day-to-day economic transactions, business, and trade. The evidence suggests that, like the Bar Kokhba rebels, the Covenanters attempted to “purify” their discourse and way of life, but economic realities nevertheless encouraged periodic communication in the Greek language.

Keywords: Palestinian Greek, 4Q350, Qumran epigraphy, Copper Scroll, ancient sociolinguistics

Elio Jucci, "L'ambiguità degli arconti tra giudaismo e gnosticismo"

by Elio Jucci

Elio Jucci, "L'ambiguità degli arconti tra giudaismo e gnosticismo", in: Claudio Bonvecchio e Teresa Tonchia (a cura di) “Gli arconti di questo mondo. Gnosi: politica e diritto. Profili di simbolica politico-giuridica”, Trieste, EUT Edizioni Università di Trieste, 2000, pp. 283-307.

Abstract: Si delineano alcuni punti di contatto e linee di sviluppo esistenti fra gli arconti e figure analoghe della... more Abstract: Si delineano alcuni punti di contatto e linee di sviluppo esistenti fra gli arconti e figure analoghe della tradizione ebraica vetero- e neotestamentaria. L’esame delle fonti e della letteratura secondaria rivela caratteri comuni, fra cui l’ambiguità fra natura angelica o demoniaca degli arconti, inquadrabile, in contesto veterotestamentario, nel problema delle relazioni fra Dio e le nazioni del mondo. L’ambiguità (sincronica e diacronica) è interpretabile come rapporto dialettico fra la dottrina e la visione del mondo e del rapporto fra uomo e società.

Iranian Details in the Book of Heavenly Luminaries (1 Enoch 72-82)"

by Jason M. Silverman

JNES (forthcoming)

The Book of Luminaries contains two enigmatic details which can be compared to Iranian ideas—the concept of... more The Book of Luminaries contains two enigmatic details which can be compared to Iranian ideas—the concept of astronomical solar ‘gates’ and a sevenfold mythical geography in chapter
77. Although the document overall is highly indebted to Mesopotamian traditions, the source of these two details can potentially be explained as Iranian. The ultimate Mesopotamian origin of the astronomy cannot be gainsaid, but the exact formulations of some of the details found in the extant book may have been in dialogue with or shaped by Iranian scholarship. If so, further work on what this means for the interaction of systems and communities in the ANE which includes
things Persian may be justified.

"What Do the Nations Have To Do With 'All Israel'? A Fresh Look at Romans 11:25-26"

by Jason Staples

Journal of Biblical Literature 130.2 (2011): 371–90

Paper available here: Paper available here: http://www.jasonstaples.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/Staples-All-Israel-JBL.pdf

On the Exegetical Function of the Abraham/Ravens Tradition in Jubilees 11

by Cory Crawford

Harvard Theological Review 97 (2004): 91-97.

Pinhas und Anti-Pinhas? Priestertum und Gewalt im 1Makk und 1QM. In: Berlejung, Angelika; Heckl, Raik (Hg.): Ex oriente Lux. Studien zur Theologie des Alten Testaments (Festschrift für Rüdiger Lux zum 65. Geburtstag), ABG 39, Leipzig 2012, 199-224.

by Tobias Funke

‘The Book of the Words of [Insert Name Here]’: On the Literary Convention of the Incipit as a Pseudepigraphic Mechanism in the Aramaic Scrolls

by Andrew Perrin

Read at the McMaster-Toronto 2012 Scrollery Colloquium; also at the 'Lost Texts' Graduate Conference at the Jewish Theological Seminary, New York.

It is widely recognized that the authors of the Aramaic Dead Sea Scrolls typically shrouded their tales in... more It is widely recognized that the authors of the Aramaic Dead Sea Scrolls typically shrouded their tales in pseudepigraphic garb and exhibited a perennial interest in the production and transmission of ancestral booklore. The present study explores the literary convention of the incipit in light of these wider concerns. Throughout the Aramaic Scrolls incipits introduce entire compositions as well as putative ‘texts’ within narratives. Comparative philological analysis of this literary convention reveals that the incipits of the Aramaic Scrolls feature strikingly similar literary-linguistic idioms. However, it is equally apparent that that these seeming common elements were uniquely patterned by individual authors to achieve various levels of pseudepigraphic authority for their ‘new’ works. It is suggested that the commonalities in this literary convention should inform how we conceive of the scribal milieu(s) from which the Aramaic Scrolls emerged. In light of these findings, the article concludes with a revised proposal of the literary function of the title “A Copy of the Writing of the Words of Noah” in 1QapGen 5:29.

"See My Hands and My Feet: Fresh Light on a Johannine Midrash"

by Jeffrey Garcia

John, Jesus, and History, Volume 2: Aspects of Historicity in the Fourth Gospel (Early Christianity and Its Literature; Atlanta: SBL, 2009)