Author: Scriptural Research Institute

Publisher: Scriptural Research Institute

Published: 2020-01-12

Total Pages: 62

ISBN-13: 1989604943

In the early Christian era, many Testaments of the Patriarchs circulated in Jewish and Christian communities. The Testaments of Job and Solomon was used by the Christian Montanist sect, and the Gnostic Valentinian sect in the 2nd century. The Testament of Solomon was widely used by Christian and Gnostic astrologers in the first few centuries of the Christian era, however, clearly began as a pre-Christian prophetic text, predicting the coming of Emmanuel, the Israelite Messiah whose Gematria value would be 644, which is not the Gematria value of Jesus. While references to Jesus' life and crucifixion are present in this testament, the predictions are believed to have been added later, likely before the year 200 AD. The second half of the Testament of Solomon is largely drawn from ancient Egyptian astrology, which divided the circle of the Zodiac into 36 decans, or small-constellations. These later decans formed the basis of Indian astrology, who called it 'Greek' astrology, beginning with Sphujidhvaja's Yavanajātaka, published around 150 AD. The content of the testament places its origin sometime before the time of Jesus, however, unlike most Jewish texts from the time, it treats the Jewish priesthood in the Second Temple with disdain, and refer to the priesthoods established by Ezra and Nehemiah under Persian authority as a corruption. This means it could not have been a Pharisee or Sadducee work, however, does not clarify if it was a Samaritan work, or the work of another Jewish sect, such as the Tobian Jews (Τουβιανοὺς Ιουδαίους) mentioned in 2nd Maccabees, who lived in Seleucid controlled regions. The attack on Ezra would be equally valid for Samaritans or the followers of the High Priest Tobiah, who Ezra kicked out of the Temple in Jerusalem in the Septuagint's 1st Ezra. The apocalyptic message seems to point to it originating in the same sect as the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, Testament of Job, and Testament of Moses, as well as the books of Enoch, Tobit, Jubilees, and Job, which were likely the work of the Tobian Jews. However, as the Tobian Jews were described as living in Bashan (southern modern Syria), and this was not part of Judah, but rather part of the Tribe of Manasseh's territory, therefore this testament strongly implies that the Tobian Jews were Samaritans, which would explain why most of their texts were never accepted by Rabbinical Jews.