Jonas Greenfield was one of the foremost epigraphers and biblical scholars of this generation. This volume, dedicated to Professor Greenfield by his students, colleagues, and friends, reflects the broad spectrum of academic interests he pursued: Bible, Qumran, epigraphy, and Semitics.
Professor Maurice Gilbert SJ is widely acknowledged as one of the leading authorities on biblical wisdom literature, in particular the Book of Ben Sira and the Wisdom of Solomon, on which he has produced many publications. This Festschrift, the third one in his honor, brings together twenty-four essays written by both established scholars who are friends and colleagues of Professor Gilbert and younger members of the field who wrote their doctoral dissertation under his guidance at the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome. There he was rector (1978–1984) and full professor until his retirement (1975–2011). The volume is divided into six main sections, focusing respectively on Proverbs, Job, Qoheleth, Sirach, Wisdom of Solomon, and Psalms. Some essays display rigorous attention to textual and linguistic issues, whereas others deal with more theological questions (fear before God, joy in Qoheleth, arguments for justice in Wisdom of Solomon) or focus on the comparison between two books (for instance, Qoheleth and Sirach, Sirach and Genesis, Sirach and Tobit).
In 1901, the Reverend Charles B. Huleatt acquired three pieces of a New Testament manuscript on the murky antiquities market of Luxor, Egypt. He donated these papyrus fragments to his alma mater, Magdalen College in Oxford, England, where they sat in a display case and drew very little attention. Nearly a century later, the fragments--part of the Gospel of Matthew and thought to date from a.d. 180-200--were reevaluated by scholar Carsten Peter Thiede. His research showed the bits of papyrus to be significantly older, written about a.d. 60. But what is all the fuss about? How can three ancient papyrus fragments be so significant? How did Thiede arrive at this radical early dating? And what does it mean to the average Christian? Now readers have authoritative answers to these pivotal questions, in a book written by Thiede himself and by Times of London journalist Matthew d'Ancona, who originally broke the story to the public. Indeed, the Magdalen Papyrus corroborates three traditions: Saint Matthew actually wrote the Gospel bearing his name; he wrote it within a generation of Jesus' death; and the Gospel stories about Jesus are true. Some will vehemently deny Thiede's claims, others will embrace them, but nobody can ignore THE JESUS PAPYRUS.
Transforming Literature into Scripture examines how the early textual traditions of ancient Israel - stories, laws, and rituals - were transformed into sacred writings. By comparing evidence from two key collections from antiquity - the royal library at Nineveh and the biblical manuscripts from the Dead Sea Scrolls - the book traces the stabilisation of textual traditions in the ancient Near East towards fixed literary prototypes. The study presents a new methodology which enables the quantification, categorisation and statistical analysis of texts from different languages, writing systems, and media. The methodology is tested on wide range of text genres from the cuneiform and biblical traditions in order to determine which texts tend towards stabilised forms. Transforming Literature into Scripture reveals how authoritative literary collections metamorphosed into fixed ritualised texts and will be of interest to scholars across Biblical, Judaic and Literary Studies.
Bernstein's rich analysis focuses on the nineteenth-century Judeo-Arabic manuscript The Story of Our Master Joseph—a Jewish text taking its form from an Islamic prototype (itself largely based on midrashic, Hellenistic, and Near Eastern material) extending back to the earliest human stories of parental favoritism, sibling rivalry, separtism from loved ones, sexual mores, and the struggles for a continued communal existence outside the homeland.
Write That They May Read is a collection of essays written in honor of our mentor, friend, and fellow scholar, Professor Alan R. Millard. Respectful of his contribution to our understanding of writing and literacy in the ancient biblical world, all the essays deal with some aspect of this issue, ranging in scope from archeological artifacts that need to be "read," to early evidence of writing in Israel's world, to the significance of reading and writing in the Bible, including God's own literacy, to the production of books in the ancient world, and the significance of metaphorical branding of God's people with his name. The contributors are distributed among Professor Millard's peers and colleagues in a variety of institutions, his own students, and students of his students. They represent a variety of disciplines including biblical archeology, Egyptology, Assyriology, Hebrew and other Northwest Semitic texts, and the literature of the Bible, and reside in North America, Japan, the United Kingdom, Denmark, and Germany. Write That They May Read contains contributions by: Section 1: Artifacts and Minimalist Literacy 1. "See That You May Understand": Artifact Literacy--The Twin-cup Libation Vessels from Khirbet Qeiyafa Gerald Klingbeil, Research Professor of Old Testament and Ancient Near Eastern Studies, Andrews University Martin Klingbeil, Professor of Biblical Studies and Archaeology, and Associate Director, Institute of Archaeology Southern Adventist University 2. Ketiv-Qere: The Writing and Reading of EA 256 and Its Place in Reflecting the Realia of Power and Polity in the LBA-IA Golan and Peripheries Timothy M. Crow, Senior Lecturer in History, University of Akron; Professional Fellow Old Testament, Ashland Theological Seminary 3. Another Inscribed Arrowhead in the British Museum Terrence C. Mitchell†. Former Keeper of Western Asiatic Antiquities, The British Museum, London, England 4. Earliest Literary Allusions to Homer and the Pentateuch from Ischia in Italy and Jerusalem Paul J. N. Lawrence, Translation Consultant, Summer Institute of Linguistics International 5. The Etymology of Hebrew lōg and the Identity of Shavsha the Scribe Yoshiyuki Muchiki, Professor of Biblical Theology, Japan Bible Seminary, Tokyo Section 2: Artifacts and Official Literacy 6. The Writing/Reading of the Stone Tablet Covenant in the Light of the Writing/Reading/Hearing of the Silver Tablet Treaty Gordon Johnston, Professor of Old Testament, Dallas Theological Seminary 7. For Whose Eyes? The Divine Origins and Function of the Two Tablets of the Israelite Covenant Daniel I. Block, Gunther H. Knoedler Professor Emeritus of Old Testament, Wheaton College 8. Write That They May Judge? Applying Written Law in Biblical Israel Jonathan Burnside, Professor of Biblical Law, Law School, University of Bristol. 9. "And Samuel Wrote in the Book" (1 Samuel 10:25) and His Apology in First Samuel 1-15 Wolfgang Ertl, Dozent am Bibelseminar Bonn, Bornheim/Germany; Associate Professor of Old Testament, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary 10. "For the one who will read it aloud will be able to run with it" (Habakkuk 2:2c) David Toshio Tsumura, Professor of Old Testament, Japan Bible Seminar Section 3: The Rise of Literary Literacy 11. The History and Pre-History of the Hebrew Language in the West Semitic Literary Tradition Richard E. Averbeck, Professor of Old Testament and Semitic Languages, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School 12. Divine Action in the Hebrew Bible: "Borrowing" from Ancient Near Eastern Cultures and "Inspiration" C. John Collins, Professor of Old Testament, Covenant Theological Seminary 13. Encoding and Decoding Culture Jens Bruun Kofoed, Professor of Old Testament, Fjellhaug International University College, 14. No Books, No Authors: Literary Production in a Hearing-Dominant Culture John H. Walton, Professor of Old Testament, Wheaton College 15. The Discovery of the Book of the Law in 2 Kings 22:8-10 in the Light of the Literary Renaissance of the Eighth to Seventh Centuries in the Ancient Near East James K. Hoffmeier, Emeritus Professor of Old Testament and Near Eastern Archaeology, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School 16. "Read This Torah" (Deuteronomy 31:11): The Importance and Function of Israel's Primary Scripture in Early Spiritual Growth David C. Deuel, Academic Dean Emeritus, The Master's Academy International 17. What is a "Messianic Text"? The Uruk Prophecy and the Old Testament Ernest C. Lucas, Vice-Principal Emeritus, Bristol Baptist College, UK 18. "Joshua 24 and Psalm 81 as Intertexts" Cheryl Eaton, PhD Candidate, Trinity College, Bristol 19. "Much Study is a Weariness of the Flesh": To Read or not to Read in Ecclesiastes 12:11-12 Knut Heim, Professor of Old Testament, Denver Seminary Section 4: Metaphorical Literacy 20. Belonging to YHWH: Real and Imagined Inscribed Seals in Biblical Tradition Carmen Joy Imes, Associate Professor of Old Testament, Prairie College, Three Hills, Alberta 21. Reading the Eye: Optic Metaphorical Agency in Deuteronomic Law A. Rahel Wells, Associate Professor of Biblical Studies, Andrews University 5. Epilogue 22. Literacy and Postmodern Fallacies Richard S. Hess, Distinguished Professor of Old Testament and Semitic Languages, Denver Seminary Abstract: 23. In Praise of a Venerable Scribe: A Tribute to Alan R. Millard Edwin M. Yamauchi, Professor of History Emeritus, Miami University, Oxford, Ohio [with contributions from Daniel I. Block and Paul J. N. Lawrence]
This study considers the maritime economy of ancient Cyprus from 1450 BC to 295 BC, combining, for the first time, three distinct disciplines, that is History, Archaeology and Economic theory. The principles of New Institutional Economics are used to trace the island’s institutions and their continuity and to reconstruct its maritime history.
Many today find the Old Testament a closed book. The cultural issues seem insurmountable and we are easily baffled by that which seems obscure. Furthermore, without knowledge of the ancient culture we can easily impose our own culture on the text, potentially distorting it. This series invites you to enter the Old Testament with a company of guides, experts that will give new insights into these cherished writings. Features include • Over 2000 photographs, drawings, maps, diagrams and charts provide a visual feast that breathes fresh life into the text. • Passage-by-passage commentary presents archaeological findings, historical explanations, geographic insights, notes on manners and customs, and more. • Analysis into the literature of the ancient Near East will open your eyes to new depths of understanding both familiar and unfamiliar passages. • Written by an international team of 30 specialists, all top scholars in background studies.
This volume contains a bibliography of the research on the Dead Sea Scrolls published during the last 25 years. All entries are alphabetically listed, provided with an identification number, and systematically classified by topics and key words as well as by manuscripts numbers and title of the compositions.