20:16\u201318); and second, the report at the beginning of Judges that the Jews do not actually succeed in dispossessing the Canaanites (esp. Judg. 1:27\u201336; cf. Exod. 34:11\u201316 with Judg. 3:5\u20136).
\n25:10. We have committed adultery Adultery is specified as one of the sins endemic in the Canaanite people (see Lev. 18:20, 24).
\nseven golden idols The Bible occasionally refers to idols and icons made of gold (e.g., Exod. 32:31; 1 Sam. 6:4; 1 Kings 12:28; cf. Rev. 9:20).
\n25:11. Seven sinful men The seven men correspond to the seven idols. Contrast the seven pious men at L.A.B. 38:1.
\nprecious stones \u2026 from the land of Havilah Note the reference to Gen. 2:11\u201312. That Havilah was also known for its gold may be relevant here, since the simulacra (7 golden idols) are made of gold.
\n25:12. the light of a lamp was not necessary A precious jewel (or jewels) that supernaturally provides enough light to make any routine source of light (whether natural or artificial) unnecessary occurs in several contexts in Rabbinic literature. Perhaps the most familiar is that of Noah\u2019s ark, of which we are told that one or several precious stones provided illumination for its inhabitants.
\n25:13. We desired \u2026 to see whether God had really written what was in it Such criminal thoughts are attributed by the Midrash to Korah. At J. Sanh. 10:1 (28a) he is said to declare, \u201cThe Torah does not have divine origin,\u201d while at Tanhuma (Buber) 4:43b, Korah accuses Moses of inventing injunctions on his own, rather than having received them from God (cf. Num. 16:28). This sin builds upon the rationale provided for the previous one in L.A.B. 25:13 (\u201cto find out,\u201d etc.). Both then fundamentally question the authority and truth of the Bible.
\n26:1. Take the men \u2026 and all their possessions The language derives from Num. 16:31\u201333, in which the destruction of Korah and his followers is described.
\n26:2. If God takes anything \u2026 what will man do? God must set an example for us. This is the other side of the principle of imitatio Dei. We must imitate God\u2019s ways, but this also means that God must take pains to set a good example for us. For a nice illustration, see Der. Er. Rab. 5.
\n26:3. Books Having not heard of the \u201cbooks\u201d in L.A.B. 25:9 (probably because of a lacuna in our manuscripts), we are unable to say why they should have the supernatural properties here attributed to them. Whether the mysterious books that are associated with Enoch and Noah have any relevance here is impossible to say.
\nAfterward Why must the writing be removed from the books before they can be destroyed? Possibly the writing is considered holy in some way such that destroying it along with the books would be profane. If this is so, the books would then stand parallel to the stones, in that they were once sacred (or at least special in some positive way) and have been corrupted by the Amorites. As for the notion of deleting the writing before destroying the books, one thinks of the midrashic expansion of the story of Moses\u2019s breaking the tablets: that the writing first disappeared, and only then did Moses smash them (e.g., L.A.B. 19:7).
\n26:3. I will send my lightning This is fulfilled at 26:8 in the form of an angel.
\n26:4. the depths of the sea Cf. the story of Adam\u2019s book of secrets that is taken from him by the angels and thrown into the sea (e.g., Hagoren 9, p. 39).
\nthey have been defiled by the idols of the Amorites Here is perhaps the central point of the story. The stones were special\u2014indeed they must be replaced by stones of the very same provenance, to be used for sacred and distinguished purposes\u2014yet by their contact with the objects of idolatry they have been polluted and rendered unusable. This is in keeping with the emphatic and repeated Rabbinic prohibition against objects that have been used in\u2014or even intended for use in\u2014idol worship. Thus, the mishnaic tractate on idolatry (M. Avod. Zar.) deals far more with the question of Jews using items related to the practice of idolatry than with the practice of idolatry itself.
\ntwelve stones The difference in number emphasizes the difference in purpose. The 7 stones were intended for idolatry (the \u201cseven nymphs\u201d); the 12 stones will correspond to the 12 tribes of Israel and the 12 stones in the breastplate.
\n26:5. All the people answered, \u201cAmen, Amen\u201d This is the formulaic response to the ritualistic curse. L.A.B. quotes verbatim Deut. 27:15. The doubled Amen is L.A.B.\u2019s unconscious recollection of the same words at Neh. 8:6.
\n26:6. Cenaz wished to test A remarkable section. God has already told Cenaz (L.A.B. 26:3) that the stones and books are indestructible, yet Cenaz proceeds to test them to determine if this is indeed the case. How does this differ from several of the sins of the tribes previously described, sins that amount to testing God out of lack of faith? The tribe of Levi tests the Tabernacle to see whether it is really holy. Zebulun practices cannibalism to see whether God really cares about the children. Similar is the behavior of Ephraim. True, Cenaz does nothing that is in essence sinful. But his underlying motivation is much the same as theirs. That L.A.B.\u2019s author probably modeled this event loosely on the life of the judge Gideon (as he did with so much in his account of Cenaz) may explain why he does not interpret Cenaz\u2019 behavior as sinful. When God\u2019s angel comes to commission Gideon, the distrustful hero requests a miraculous sign and is given one (Judg. 6:17\u201322). But even this is not enough, for later on he sets not one but two tests for God before undertaking battle (6:36\u201340). So blatant a testing of God by Gideon will have allowed L.A.B. to invent such behavior for Cenaz.
\nBlessed be God, who has done such great wonders for the sons of men Remarkably similar to some Rabbinic blessings; for example, \u201cBlessed is God who has given of his wisdom to flesh and blood\u201d (B. Ber. 58a).
\n26:8. Dew from the ice of paradise \u201cCelestial\u201d dew is common in Rabbinic and pseudepigraphic texts (e.g., B. Hag. 12b, 1 En. 36:1). Whether that is also the purport of \u201cparadisiacal\u201d dew is not clear. The supernatural quality of such dew is occasionally noted (e.g., B. Hag. 12b). What ice is doing in paradise is not explained, nor is how dew comes from ice.
\nan angel \u2026 Another angel \u2026 Another angel Multiple angels, on the Rabbinic principle that angels perform only one task apiece (see at L.A.B. 27:10).
\n26:9. as if the forms of eyes were portrayed on them The author of L.A.B. does not spell out the function or the significance of the engraved eyes; perhaps he neither knew nor cared. But parallels exist: at Zech. 3:9, a stone is said to have seven eyes engraved thereon; no explanation is provided or obvious. There are also amulets with eyes engraved thereon that are clearly apotropaic in nature. Apotropaic eyes are familiar on Attic vases as well.
\n26:11. Mount Ophir The land of Ophir was famous for its gold, but we are also told that it was a source of precious stones (1 Kings 10:11). Ophir in the Bible is not described as a mountain, but the phrase \u201cMount Ophir\u201d is understandable in L.A.B.\u2019s context of mining.
\nfrom the Lebanon The Lebanon is famous for its trees, not its stones. Perhaps its association with stones here is no more than the result of its being a mountain.
\nthe height of Zion The phrase \u201cMount Zion\u201d means the Temple Mount in 1 Maccabees (cf., e.g., Isa. 4:5), though not always in Josephus.
\n26:12. put them in the ark Traditionally, within the ark (or adjacent to it) were the two tablets, the vessel containing manna, and the staff of Aaron (Deut. 10:5; Exod. 16:33\u201334; Num. 17:25; cf. Heb. 9:4); also a copy of the Torah (Deut. 31:26). See especially B. BB 14a\u2013b. L.A.B. places only the tablets therein and is thereby in accord with the narrowest interpretation of the relevant biblical verses. As for the author\u2019s idiosyncratic placement of the stones in the ark, there is a remarkable parallel of sorts. Tertullian says (Marc. 4.13.4) that the 12 stones taken by Joshua from the Jordan were stored in the Holy Ark. This story has no basis in the biblical narrative (Josh. 4) nor in any midrashic exegesis, but certainly seems connected in some way to L.A.B.\u2019s placement of these 12 stones in the ark.
\nuntil Jahel will arise to build a house for my name Without doubt, Solomon is meant here; note the exact quotation of 2 Sam. 7:12\u201313: \u201cI will raise up your offspring \u2026 He shall build a house for My name.\u201d
\n26:13. When the sins of my people have reached full measure Whether intentional or not, the echo here of Gen. 15:16 is striking and powerful in its effect. Here it is not used for the Amorites, but for the Jews, much as Jesus chastises the Pharisees with the same language (Matt. 23:32). At B. Arak. 15a, the Rabbis reject the possibility that such a principle could be operative for the Jewish nation. This rejection is especially emphatic at 2 Macc. 6:12\u201316. The principle may be present with reference to the \u201cfour kingdoms\u201d at Dan. 8:23.
\nthe former stones There may be here a small but valuable clue to the date of L.A.B., which says that when the Temple will fall both the miraculous new stones and the old ones (of the priestly breastplate) will be removed by God and will not be restored until eschatological times. But if L.A.B. were writing while the Second Temple was still standing, it is unlikely that he would declare that the priestly stones were taken by God at the time of the destruction of the First Temple, not to be returned until the end-time. For he (and his audience) would have been aware that the priestly stones were in fact intact and in place during the Second Temple, though they no longer functioned as of old. Such is, at all events, the accepted scholarly opinion (see too Tosafot\u2019s brief comments at Yoma 21b) and is supported by passages like Josephus\u2019s Ant. 3.218; Let. Aris. 97; T. Sot. 13:2.
\nI will put them back The account in L.A.B. is connected to the familiar story in which the holy vessels are concealed at the time of the destruction of the Second Temple (e.g., 2 Macc. 2:4\u20135)\u2014but note that versions of this story do not usually include the priestly stones among the hidden objects. One exception is the version at 2 Bar. 6:7\u201310.
\nwhich the eye has not seen nor has the ear heard This expression ultimately goes back to Isa. 64:3.
\n26:15. as if the light of the sun The language is similar to that in Pesik. Rab. 32, about the precious stones that will illuminate Jerusalem in the end-time: \u201call of Lod lit up from their light.\u201d
\nCenaz put them in the ark Cenaz\u2019s act builds upon Moses\u2019s (Deut. 10:5).
\n27:1. He smote on the first day The war is described as going through presumably inconclusive battles on the first and second days, then culminating in a decisive victory on the third day. This is precisely the pattern in the war of the tribes against Benjamin in Judg. 20. The consultation of the divine oracle before entering battle (Judg. 20:18) is also similar to L.A.B. 25:1.
\n27:5. Choose from my young men three hundred The use of only 300 men in the battle is one of several elements adopted by L.A.B. in this episode from the story of Gideon at Judg. 7.
\n27:6. by night The nighttime attack, as in Judg. 7.
\nbegan to go down The descent too is from Gideon\u2019s story (Judg. 7:9\u201311).
\nWhen he drew near There is clear, but presumably unconscious, influence at this point in the narrative from Gen. 22. When Abraham gets in sight of the appointed place, he speaks to his servants, va-yomer el ne\u2019arav, exactly L.A.B.\u2019s words here, \u201che said to his young men.\u201d He orders them to stay put, while he and Isaac go alone. This is exactly Cenaz\u2019s instructions to his servants, \u201cstay here, I will go alone\u201d (cf. Gen. 22:4\u20135).
\n27:7. He prayed The opening of Cenaz\u2019s prayer is closely modeled on Moses\u2019s at Deut. 3:23\u20134.
\nhe will not destroy his portion Here we see the author\u2019s customary optimistic view that, no matter how bad things are, in the final analysis God will not destroy his people.
\n27:8. our sacred virgins are there with them The notion that the Amorite idols\u2019 presence among the Jews will be disadvantageous to the latter may be adapted from the story at 1 Sam. 5\u20136, where the presence of the captive Holy Ark amongst the Philistines causes them great problems.
\n27:10. When Cenaz heard their words This too comes from the Gideon story, in exactly the same context (Judg. 7:15).
\nhe was clothed with the spirit of power A metaphor likely based on Isa. 51:9; 52:1. The words here probably mean simply that when Cenaz heard their words and recognized the fulfillment of his omen, he grew mightily encouraged.
\nIngethel smote the Amorites with blindness Angels striking the wicked with blindness must at some level be derived from Gen. 19:11.
\nZeruel, the angel Why the need for two angels? The author of L.A.B. appears to follow the Rabbinic principle that angels do only one mission each (e.g., Tanhuma [Buber] 1:48b). Thus, since two tasks were required here (the blinding of the Amorites and the supporting of Cenaz\u2019s arms), so were two angels.
\n27:11. the Amorites are cunning That the Amorites were skilled at magic is well known. See, for example, B. Shab. 67a\u2013b; L.A.B. 25:12; 2 Bar. 60:1. The author of L.A.B. seems to have no qualms about having Cenaz inquire after and then adopt the practice of the Amorites here. Perhaps this is related to the Rabbinic position that an Amorite practice that has curative value is not forbidden (B. Shab. 67a).
\n27:12. He threw himself into the river This could be either for cleaning himself from the gore of battle or some form of ritualistic purification from the bloodshed and contact with the dead. Washing as a means of ritual purification is common in the Bible (e.g., Num. 19:19).
\nHe \u2026 returned to his young men This story began (L.A.B. 27:6) with echoes of the Akedah tale and ends with this verbatim quote of Gen. 22:19a: \u201cAbraham then returned to his servants. \u201c
\n27:14. Now we know that when the LORD decides to give victory This type of statement, acknowledging God\u2019s power after an unexpected or miraculous event, has biblical roots. See especially Jethro at Exod. 18:11.
\n27:15. We will not die for this sin \u2026 but for that previous one The notion that condemnation for a present trespass may in fact be only deserved punishment for an earlier sin is biblical. See the story of Joseph\u2019s brethren, especially Gen. 42:22 and 44:16; also the interesting midrashic apologetic expansion of the biblical story at Num. Rab. 13:17.
\nwe assented to their sins Most likely this means that they were aware of the acts taking place and did not report them. Indeed, the Bible enjoins that one who witnesses an act must give testimony (Lev. 5:1), though neither biblical nor Rabbinic law indicate that failure to do so is punishable by execution.
\n28:1. the two prophets The midrashic literature asserted that two prophets (named Eldad and Medad) were among the elders who lived on after the death of Joshua (Num. Rab. 3:7).
\nJabis No such prophet is known.
\nPhinehas Phinehas the priest was sometimes identified with Elijah the prophet (including at L.A.B. 48:1). Internal evidence argues against such identification here, but possibly this identification has somehow produced here a prophet Phinehas independent of the priest.
\n28:3. Does anyone speak before the priest The Talmud discusses at B. Git. 59b the various priorities that belong to the priest.
\nwho guards the commandments of the LORD For the priest as the guardian and teacher of the Law, see Deut. 17:9\u201312; 33:9\u201310; Mal. 2.
\n28:4. your father before you This is Aaron.
\nwhen I said, \u201cLet the world be created\u201d The point is clear. It was through an act of speech that God created the world. So the psalmist at 33:6, 9; and 148:5. See too Wis. 9:1; Jdt. 16:14.
\nthose who come into it will praise me For the notion that God created the world and its creatures for the purpose of praising him, see, for example, Exod. Rab. 17:1; Midr. Alpha-Beta (Jellinek, 3.12\u201313).
\nfrom it I will choose a plant Here Israel is seen not as the vineyard, but as a plant (i.e., a vine) selected by God from his vineyard (presumably all of creation, or all of humankind). For other instances of Israel viewed narrowly as a vine, see Ps. 80:9; Jer. 2:21; Ezek. 17:6. Cf. especially Exod. Rab. 44:1. For God\u2019s selecting Israel as his chosen vine out of various vines or trees, see 4 Esd. 5:23.
\nI will \u2026 call it by my name Cf. Isa. 43:7 (usually understood to refer to Israel); also Jer. 14:9; Dan. 9:19. This means that Israel is called \u201cGod\u2019s people\u201d (e.g. Num. 11:29; 2 Sam. 1:12).
\nit will be mine forever The author of L.A.B. often stresses that God\u2019s relation with Israel is eternal.
\nwill ruin its fruit The metaphor is found in the Midrash. When the people (God\u2019s vine) sin, they are compared to a vine that produces sour grapes (Exod. Rab. 43:9). The language is perhaps influenced by Mal. 3:11.
\n28:6. the holy spirit came upon Cenaz A biblical expression. Several times divine inspiration is described in the following terms: va-titzlah alav ruah hashem, in which the meaning of the verb tz-l-h is unclear. Different Bible translations have interpreted it variously as \u201ccame mightily upon him\u201d (KJV), \u201cgripped him\u201d (NJPS), \u201cseized him\u201d (NEB). But in antiquity the verb was widely interpreted as \u201cleap, jump.\u201d
\nhe began to prophesy References to prophesying are often preceded by the statement that the spirit of God came upon the person (e.g. Num. 11:26; 1 Sam. 10:10; 19:20).
\n28:8. From the flame \u2026 from that spring \u2026 into another foundation In this murky passage, L.A.B.\u2019s author seems to describe the creation of two things he calls foundations, one from the spark of fire, the other from the source of water. The words of Gen. 1:1 (\u201cWhen God began to create heaven and earth\u2014\u201d) together with L.A.B.\u2019s declaration that humankind appears and occupies the space between these two foundations indicate that they must be heaven and earth.
\na spark Sparks of fire play a role in God\u2019s creation in the Zohar (86b\u201387a ad Gen. 14:18).
\n28:10. He however did not know what he had spoken or what he had seen The notion of the inspired seer who remembers nothing of his words or vision during the period of his inspiration is common. The Midrash tells us that with the exception of Moses and Isaiah (and possibly Elijah), the prophets did not know what they prophesied (Midr. Ps. at 90:1 [Buber] 194a\u2013b).
\nIf such is the repose of the just The implication is that Cenaz has in effect been asleep during his whole speech, that is, that God has been speaking through him. This accords with the language at L.A.B. 28:6. The general notion that sleep and death are in some sense two sides of the same coin is old and common. Hesiod calls sleep and death brothers (Theog. 756).
\nit is proper for them to die \u2026 so as not to see sins This bears some resemblance to God\u2019s decision to have Moses die before reaching the Promised Land so as to be spared the sight of his people\u2019s corruption when they get there (L.A.B. 19:7).
\nThe people mourned him thirty days Thirty days of mourning, as for Moses and Aaron (Num. 20:29; Deut. 34:8).
\n29:1. the people appointed over themselves as leader Zebul The section on Zebul raises some of the same questions as that on Cenaz. In both we have a judge who has apparently been invented by L.A.B.\u2019s author. Like Cenaz, who is mentioned in the book of Judges, but is not himself a judge or a major figure, so too Zebul is mentioned in the book of Judges (9:28\u201341), but is a minor figure. Further, the narrative about Zebul seems pieced together from a variety of episodes in the Bible.
\nif he had sons, they should have ruled the people The implications of this statement are interesting: if God chooses to elect a woman as leader of the people, he may (as at L.A.B. 30:2, 5), but the people are not free to do so.
\nsince daughters survive This episode is loosely derived from the story of the daughters of Zelophehad at Num. 27:3\u20136.
\n29:2. all that was around the land of palms \u2026 the olive grove \u2026 the tilled lands Among the half dozen or so agricultural products that the Bible regularly counts as special to the Land of Israel, three of them are date-honey, olives, and grain, the items alluded to here.
\n29:3. Zebul established a treasury for the LORD That Zebul establishes a treasury for God is L.A.B.\u2019s author\u2019s significant innovation in this section. The notion of a treasury for God occurs at Josh. 6:19, 24 where we are told that the precious metals taken from Jericho are deposited in God\u2019s treasury.
\nand said to the people This whole section, from Zebul\u2019s call for voluntary contributions to the description of the people\u2019s donations, is influenced by Moses\u2019s call for contributions for building the sanctuary and the ensuing events at Exod. 35.
\nto the treasury of the LORD in Shiloh That the divine treasury will be in or close to the sanctuary (in Shiloh) is natural and was of course the case with Solomon\u2019s Temple (e.g., 1 Kings 7:51).
\nlet no one That the instruments of idolatry should be prohibited as offerings to God is obvious. Even lesser \u201cabominations\u201d were prohibited (e.g., Exod. 13:13; Deut. 23:19). The Rabbis went much further than what is explicit in L.A.B., prohibiting Jews from deriving any benefit from many things associated with idol worship.
\n29:4. Zebul judged The regular phraseology for the leaders of the book of Judges (e.g., 3:10). cf. L.A.B. 30:1: \u201cjudge\u201d).
\nhe was buried in the tomb of his father A common ending (see, e.g., Judg. 8:32; 16:31; 2 Sam. 2:32).
\n30:1. they went astray after the daughters of the Amorites and served their gods Cf. Num. 25:1\u20132 and Judg. 2:17. But this passage should be especially connected to Judg. 3:5\u20136 where the intermarriage with Canaanite peoples is mentioned and followed by \u201cthey worshiped their gods.\u201d
\n30:2. The LORD \u2026 sent his angel There is no such angel in the biblical Deborah narrative. But the appearance of angels is common in the book of Judges (e.g., 6:11; 13:3). This particular passage is influenced by the appearance of the angel at Judg. 2:1\u20134, wherein the angel\u2019s words combine a brief look back at Jewish history and a forecast of punishment for Israel because of its lack of loyalty to God.
\nthat my glory should abide in this world with it Cf. Exod. 40:34. For the immanence of God\u2019s glory, see Pirke R. El. 10. This is probably no different from God\u2019s Shekhinah which is often interchangeable with his glory (cf., e.g., the two passages at Mek. Bahodesh 4 and B. Suk. 5a, both of which discuss God\u2019s descent on Sinai: in the one the term Shekhinah is used, in the other kavod is used). The notion that God\u2019s Shekhinah abides only with Israel is Rabbinic (see, e.g., B. Ber. 7a).
\nI sent to them Moses my servant A recollection of Ps. 105:26: \u201cHe sent his servant Moses.\u201d Cf. Josh. 24:5.
\nThen all the people will say This is based on the passage at Deut. 31, which predicts the people\u2019s abandonment of God, God\u2019s anger and punishment, and their realization (in a first-person quotation, as here) of their guilt in the matter.
\nenlighten them Deborah is reported in the Bible to be \u201cthe wife of Lappidoth\u201d (Judg. 4:4). The Heb. word lapid means \u201ctorch, flame\u201d; the Midrash takes the phrase \u201cwife of Lappidoth\u201d to mean something like \u201ca woman of flame\u201d and builds upon this. Thus at B. Meg. 14a we are told that Deborah made candlewicks for the sanctuary. In this regard we read at Yal. Shimoni 2:42 that God said to Deborah, \u201cjust as you increase my light, so I will increase yours.\u201d Similarly, L.A.B.\u2019s author built upon the same foundation to make his Deborah an \u201cilluminator.\u201d
\nfor forty years Although the Bible does not explicitly cite the duration of Deborah\u2019s leadership, it does conclude the Deborah episode with the bare statement, \u201cAnd the land was tranquil forty years\u201d (Judg. 5:31). Seder Olam Rabbah 12, like L.A.B. here and at 32:18, specifically puts Deborah\u2019s tenure at 40 years.
\n30:4. gathered together The assemblage of the people in Judges takes place at Deborah\u2019s initiative (4:6) and is for the purpose of battle. This entire section on the people\u2019s assemblage to confess, repent, fast, and so on has no parallel in the Bible\u2019s account and is typical of L.A.B. The author of L.A.B. probably concocted it out of the brief retrospective hint at 1 Sam. 12:10, where Samuel refers to the subjugation under Sisera and says, \u201cThey cried to the LORD, \u2018We are guilty, for we have forsaken the LORD and worshiped the Baalim \u2026 deliver us from our enemies and we will serve You.\u2019 \u201d
\nblessed beyond the other nations Cf. Deut. 33:29; Ps. 144:15; Bar. 4:4. The general tenor of the lament, for the change from a state of greatness and good fortune to submission and helplessness, is the tone and the language of the book of Lamentations.
\nwho has done all these things to us The question, \u201cwhy has Israel suffered so much?\u201d followed by the answer \u201cbecause of their own sins\u201d comes from Deut. 29:23\u201324.
\nbecause we have forsaken the LORD of our fathers In our context this is a near quotation of Deut. 29:24.
\nlet us fast for seven days For a communal fast of seven days, see 1 Sam. 31:13 (on the occasion of Saul\u2019s death). Individuals fast for seven days at (for example) 4. Esd. 5:20; 6:35; 2 Bar. 9:2; 12:5. For a fast of repentance, see Jon. 3:5\u201310.
\ninfant and suckling Very young children (generally defined as under the age of nine: e.g., B. Yoma 82a) do not usually take part in Jewish fasts, though Jon. 3:5 indicates that the children of the city of Nineveh participated in the general fast.
\n30:5. sitting in sackcloth The wearing of sackcloth to demonstrate mourning or repentance is common. See e.g. 1 Kings 21:27; Jer. 6:26; Esther 4:1.
\nCan the sheep The rhetoric is reminiscent of Isaiah\u2019s words at 29:16 and 45:9.
\nthe sheep that is to be slaughtered For the metaphor of the sheep led to the slaughter, see, for example, Jer. 51:40; Ps. 44:23; 4 Ezra 15:10. But the major influence here is from Isa. 53:7, which also includes the theme of the victim\u2019s silence. For Israel\u2019s silence in the face of God\u2019s punishment, see, for example, Midr. Ps. at 29:1 (Buber) 116a.
\nAnd now you became a flock before our LORD The leader reviews for the people their history, as does Joshua at Josh. 24:2; Samuel at 1 Sam. 12:8\u201313, and the Levites at Neh. 9:7\u201337.
\nhe commanded the luminaries and they stood still An allusion to the events at Josh. 10:12\u201315.
\nwhen your enemies came against you The author of L.A.B. radically alters the biblical narration to enhance the role of God\u2019s miraculous intervention. In the Bible, the Israelites had come upon the enemy unawares and the hailstones rained down upon them while they were in flight.
\n30:6. You became like iron The Rabbis occasionally used the tempering process in similes, for example at B. Shab. 41a; Avot R. Nat. A.16. The latter bears striking similarity to L.A.B.\u2019s use: it too uses the simile to correspond to moral delinquency and considers the period of morality and proper behavior to coincide with the time the metal is in the fire.
\nit reverts to its hardness \u201cHardness\u201d as the equivalent of moral intransigence has its roots in the Bible, where we often hear of \u201chard-hearted\u201d and \u201chard-necked\u201d people, for example at Exod. 32:9; Deut. 2:30.
\n30:7. not because of you That God acts kindly toward Israel not because of their meritorious behavior (in fact, they do not deserve such good treatment), but rather to keep faith with his covenant and the oath he swore to the patriarchs, is a biblical theme. See, for example, Deut. 9:5; 2 Kings 13:23.
\nnot to abandon you forever A theme common in both the Bible (e.g., Lam. 3:31, almost verbatim) and L.A.B.
\n31:1. gird your loins like a man These words are a verbatim quotation of Job 38:3; 40:7, but no obvious reason exists for making a connection between Job and Barak.
\npreparing for battle on our side That the stars fought on the Israelites\u2019 side against Sisera is the explicit assertion of the Bible (Judg. 5:20). Rabbinic texts explain and embellish the bare statement.
\nthat cannot be moved from their courses Alluding to the common ancient belief that most stars were \u201cfixed\u201d in their revolutionary courses, L.A.B.\u2019s author declares that the stars abandoned their normally fixed courses to fight for Israel.
\nI will divide their spoils This boast comes from both the Egyptians at Exod. 15:9 and Sisera\u2019s mother at Judg. 5:30.
\nOn account of this There are three points here: First, because Sisera boasted of his mighty arm, he shall be defeated by the arm of a woman; second, because he boasted of taking spoils for his young men, young women shall take spoils from him; and third, because he boasted of taking captive women as concubines, a woman shall kill him. Thus, L.A.B.\u2019s author gives a threefold \u201cmeasure for measure\u201d punishment for Sisera. Rabbinic texts also emphasize that Sisera was punished \u201cmeasure for measure,\u201d though the details vary from those in L.A.B. See, for example, T. Sot. 3:14; Mek. Shirta 2.
\n31:2. burned up their enemies That the stars burned up Sisera\u2019s army is midrashic (see, e.g., AG [Buber] 14a; cf. Sib. Or. 5:158\u201359).
\n31:3. adorned herself with her adornments Here and elsewhere in the ensuing narrative there are parallels in the story of Judith (e.g., Jdt. 12:15).
\nSeeing him \u2026 I will send This brief encounter, wherein Jael sees Sisera and invites him to eat, sleep, and then depart, is an elaborate expansion of Jael\u2019s words in the Bible: \u201ccome in, my lord, come in, don\u2019t be afraid\u201d (Judg. 4:18). The author of L.A.B. is remembering passages like Gen. 18:2\u20135; 19:1\u20132. Cf. also Judg. 19:5\u20139.
\nroses scattered on the bed In erotic contexts the scattering of roses was common, as was lying on beds of roses. Thus, the sight of roses on the bed spurs Sisera\u2019s erotic expectations.
\n31:4. because I am exhausted The biblical Sisera says, \u201cPlease let me have some water; I am thirsty\u201d (Judg. 4:19). The author of L.A.B. has changed this by conflating two passages here: that of the biblical Sisera and a second concerning Esau, who comes in from the field and says to his brother Jacob, \u201cgive me some of that red stew, for I am exhausted\u201d (Gen. 25:30; NEB).
\n31:5. Jael went out to the flock and got milk The Judges narrative merely has her open a skin of milk that is at hand (Judg. 4:19).
\nexcept to the ram Rabbinic texts occasionally liken Israel to a ram, but not (to my knowledge) in the same way that L.A.B.\u2019s author does here. See, for example, Midr. Ps. 29:1, 8 (Buber) 116a\u2013b; J. Ta\u2019an. 2:4 (65d).
\nThis will be the sign that you will perform for me This whole maneuver is based on the scene at Gen. 24 involving Rebecca and the servant of Abraham. He too asks for a sign from God, indicating that if it comes true \u201cthereby shall I know\u201d (v. 14; cf. L.A.B.\u2019s \u201cthen I know\u201d) that God has granted the desired outcome. Jael\u2019s sign here is that Sisera will say, \u201cGive me water to drink,\u201d while the servant\u2019s sign is that Rebecca will say, \u201cDrink, and I will also water your camels.\u201d
\n31:6. Jael took wine and mixed it with milk The Midrash records that Sisera drank and became drunk (Midr. Hag. at Gen. 23:1).
\n31:7. If God will perform this sign for me, I know that The earlier omen that she requested has already been fulfilled. More than one biblical hero needs several signs before being assured (e.g., Exod. 4:1\u20139; Judg. 6:36\u201340).
\nJael said to him At Jdt. 13:15, Judith\u2014like Jael here\u2014gloats over her enemy that he has been killed by a woman.
\n31:9. He cut off Sisera\u2019s head and sent it to his mother and gave a message Tormenting a mother with the decapitated head of her son is not uncommon in classical literature. Most famous is the end of Euripides\u2019s Bacchae (esp. 1280\u20131301). Cf. also Virgil, Aen. 9.477\u2013502.
\n32:1. Then Deborah \u2026 sang to the LORD \u2026 saying The contents of Deborah\u2019s song in L.A.B. has virtually nothing in common with Deborah\u2019s song in Judg. 5. The version in L.A.B. is yet again a sort of review of Jewish history, with particular emphasis on two or three events. Its central theme is the manifestation of God\u2019s intervention in human affairs from the celestial regions (as in the cases of Babel, the Akedah, Sinai, Joshua at Gibeon, and Sisera).
\nfrom on high This probably alludes to the heavenly aid rendered by the stars in the battle against Sisera.
\nhe sent forth his voice That the sound of God\u2019s voice causes things to happen is a biblical theme. in his late old age Abraham was 100 at Isaac\u2019s birth (Gen. 21:5).
\n32:2. what has been given to you by me God requests the return of Isaac, who was an unexpected present given to Abraham. For other possible instances of this theme, see the Akedah accounts in Josephus (Ant. 1.229) and Philo (Unchangeable 4).
\nAbraham \u2026 set out immediately The account in L.A.B. emphasizes Abraham\u2019s immediate obedience, which\u2014although not highlighted this clearly in the biblical narrative (Gen. 22:3: \u201cSo early next morning, Abraham saddled\u201d)\u2014is also stressed in midrashic versions.
\nI am offering you In the Bible, Abraham never explicitly tells Isaac that he is going to sacrifice him. Contrast Sefer ha-Yashar 78.
\n32:3. Now my blessedness will be above that of all men Like L.A.B. (note also L.A.B. 40:2), midrashic and targumic sources often emphasize the willingness, even happiness, on Isaac\u2019s part on the occasion of the Akedah.
\na lamb of the flock The allusion to an se here will recall the hint in the biblical narrative that Isaac is the se, a point made explicitly in midrashic exegesis of the verse (e.g., Pirke R. El. 31: \u201cyou are the lamb, my son\u201d).
\nfor the sins of men animals are appointed to be killed Alludes to the specific offerings brought to atone for various sins (see, e.g., Lev. 4\u20135).
\nWhat if I had not been born Josephus (Ant. 1.232) puts a similar sentiment into Isaac\u2019s mouth: \u201che did not deserve to have been born at all were he to reject God and his father\u2019s decision.\u201d
\nthere will be no other This may testify to the author\u2019s awareness of Christian claims that Jesus\u2019s atonement was efficacious for all men. The author of L.A.B. seems to be saying that Isaac is the only case of human sacrifice recognized by God; there is no other (i.e., Jesus).
\n32:4. the LORD hastened The same theme is present in the Midrash, that God (or his angel) had to hasten to prevent the slaying of Isaac (e.g., Tanh. Tsav 13).
\nYour memory will be before me always That God will always remember the Akedah and the devotion shown by Abraham is a midrashic theme (e.g., Tanhuma [Buber] 1:58a), though unlike the Midrash, L.A.B. does not indicate what benefits may accrue to the descendants of Isaac and Abraham.
\n32:5. nor will any female so boast The notion of a long-barren woman glorying in the birth of children may recall Hannah (1 Sam. 2:1\u20139).
\n32:7. brought them to Mount Sinai The reviews of Jewish history at Deut. 26 and Josh. 24 do not contain references to the Revelation at Sinai. The elaborate account here grows out of Deborah\u2019s brief allusion to the events at Sinai at Judg. 5:4\u20135. The Midrash and Targum also expand upon these verses.
\nbrought forth for them the foundation of understanding Refers to the giving of the Torah.
\nhe had prepared from the creation That God had the Torah prepared for the Jewish people long before the Revelation at Sinai is a common midrashic theme. But the Midrash goes well beyond what L.A.B. says, for it commonly reports that the Torah was created long before the creation of the world.
\nwinds sounded from their storehouses The notion of \u201cstorehouses\u201d or \u201crepositories\u201d or \u201cchambers\u201d for the winds goes back to the Bible (Jer. 10:13; Ps. 135:7; probably Job 37:9).
\nso that it would not consume the world The Midrash contains several different traditions involving the possibility or the fear that the world will be destroyed at the Revelation (e.g., Pesik. Rab. 21; Mek. d\u2019Rashbi at Exod. 18:1, with the notion of destruction by fire).
\n32:8. giving off the scent of its fruit The Midrash reports that a fragrance filled the world at the time of Revelation (e.g., B. Shab. 88b). Also relevant here is the tradition that at the time of the offering of the paschal lamb in Egypt, fragrances from paradise wafted to the place of sacrifice (Exod. Rab. 19:5).
\nEverything the LORD said, he kept Meaning that God has fulfilled all his promises with respect to the covenant.
\n32:9. witnesses This is a variation on the Rabbinic view that one reason the heavens and earth are chosen as witnesses is that they can ultimately become enforcers of the reward or punishment (e.g., Sifre Deut. 306).
\n32:11. so that they may know my power It is a common biblical notion that God acts in ways that cause the nations of the world to recognize him or his powers.
\n32:13. in the chambers of their souls For the notion of \u201cchambers\u201d in which abide the souls of the dead, see, for example, 4 Esd. 4:35, 41; 7:32.
\nhe will indeed do, even if the person dies God\u2019s promises will in time be fulfilled, even if the person to whom the promise was made is by then dead; for unlike human beings, God lives forever. In our context this refers to promises made to the patriarchs, but only fulfilled much later.
\n32:14. it will call upon those witnesses along with their servants Based on L.A.B. 32:9\u201310, \u201cwitnesses\u201d must mean \u201cthe heaven\u201d and \u201cthe earth,\u201d while \u201ctheir servants\u201d refers to \u201cthe sun and the moon and the stars.\u201d
\nthey will perform an embassy to the Most High The heaven, earth, sun, moon, and stars will serve as intermediaries between Israel and God. Israel calls upon them, and they intervene before God on Israel\u2019s behalf.
\n32:15. Not unjustly did God take the rib We may have here traditional polemic. Non-Jews argued that the Jewish God was a thief, having stolen Adam\u2019s rib. Jews responded by defending God\u2019s action (e.g., B. Sanh. 39a; Avot R. Nat. B. 8).
\nknowing that \u2026 Israel would be born A slight variation on the Rabbinic theme that God created the world ultimately for the sake of Israel\u2019s existence. The creation of Eve from Adam\u2019s rib will eventually lead to the birth of Israel.
\n32:17. at the renewal of creation The eschatological new world is regularly described in such terms (e.g., L.A.B. 16:3; 4 Esd. 7:75; B. Sanh. 97b).
\n32:18. She judged Israel forty years The Bible gives no indication as to the length of Deborah\u2019s tenure. But the last verse of the Deborah narrative (Judg. 5:31) says, \u201cAnd the land was tranquil forty years.\u201d The author of L.A.B. says the same thing at 30:2, and one tradition holds that Deborah and Barak led the people 40 years (S. Olam Rab. 12; Ant. 5.209, explicitly of Barak).
\n33:1. She assembled all the people and said to them As usual, L.A.B.\u2019s author introduces a valedictory address for the leader of the people. Nothing like this occurs in the biblical account of Deborah.
\nwoman of God Apparently the counterpart to \u201cman of God\u201d (e.g., Deut. 33:1).
\nas people who will also die Deborah addresses the people in this manner because the speech she is about to make concerns the mortality of human beings.
\n33:2. after your death \u2026 you cannot repent For Rabbinic parallels to this theme, see, for example, Midr. Eccles. 1:15; cf. also the Targum on Eccles. 1:15.
\n33:3. years have returned their deposit The notion that life is merely a \u201cdeposit\u201d is not unusual (see, e.g., Num. Rab. 9:2; Tanh. Shofetim 12; Heir 103\u2013107, esp. 106).
\nthe desire for sinning will cease and the evil inclination will lose its power Some scholars hold that it is unique to L.A.B. that the \u201cevil inclination\u201d will cease immediately after death (rather than in the Messianic era), but passages like Exod. Rab. 41:7 and Tanh. Ekev 11, which speak of the \u201cevil inclination\u201d losing its efficacy, may be referring to the afterlife immediately following death. At all events, the anecdote related at B. BB 58a indicates that the \u201cevil inclination\u201d does not exist after one dies.
\nthe underworld too will not restore In combination with the first sentence of L.A.B. 33:3, this would appear to mean: God puts human life on earth as a \u201cdeposit,\u201d but after a certain appointed time he claims the deposit and transfers it to the underworld\u2014again as a \u201cdeposit\u201d\u2014where it will remain until he chooses to reclaim it again.
\nthe light of the Law For the phrase \u201cthe light of the Torah,\u201d see, for example, B. Ber. 17a; B. Ket. 111b; Sifre Num. 41; cf. Wis. 18:4; T. Levi 14:4.
\n33:5. While a man is still alive Jewish texts sometimes support the notion of the dead interceding upon behalf of the living, but sometimes deny the possibility. The author of L.A.B. here adopts the latter view.
\ndo not put trust in your fathers Coupled with his earlier assertion that repentance after death is not possible, L.A.B.\u2019s author is clearly emphasizing the importance of one\u2019s personal responsibility for one\u2019s own behavior and fate in the here and now.
\nunless you are found to be like them This can have two senses. On one hand, your ancestors can be helpful to you by serving as role models. On the other hand, the Rabbis held that if one were pious and the descendant of pious ancestors, then one received credit not merely for one\u2019s own good deeds, but also for those of one\u2019s ancestors (e.g., B. Yev. 64a).
\nyou will appear like the stars of the heaven The Sifre (Deut. 10) says that in the future world the faces of the righteous will shine like seven things, and included are the sun, the heavens, and the stars.
\n33:6. She strengthened the fence This could well be metaphorical, but possibly the words are meant almost literally, for one Rabbinic tradition holds that Deborah restored and fortified cities that had been laid waste (e.g., Midr. Ps. 3:1 [Buber] 18b\u201319a; cf. the Targum at Judg. 5:7).
\n34:1. there came up one of the priests of Midian Aod A Midianite by the name of Aod is otherwise unknown.
\nhe was a magician, and he spoke Judges 6:1 reports that Israel acted badly, whereupon God gave them into the hands of Midian. The author of L.A.B. takes this brief notice and explains how it came about in detail. He builds upon the tradition that Midianites were adept in the magical arts (see, e.g., Num. 22:7; Tanhuma [Buber] 4:68a).
\nCome, I will show you The author of L.A.B. has constructed this episode on the basis of the Bible\u2019s hypothetical portrait at Deut. 13:2 of the prophet or dreamer who seeks to lead the people away from God on the basis of signs and portents. These sections of Deuteronomy and L.A.B. both assert that God uses such an event to test the people.
\nWhat will you show us that our Law does not have? This could be an allusion to the Rabbinic notion that everything is contained in the Torah (M. Avot 5:22).
\nthe sun by night Allusions to this phenomenon can be found in Egyptian, Jewish, Mithraic, and Greco-Roman texts (see, e.g., 4 Ezra 5:4). Usually the theme is found in other-worldly or eschatological contexts.
\n34:2. the angels who were in charge of magic Given that ancient doctrines regarding angels identified angel overlords for nearly every type of activity, angelic supervision of magic in L.A.B. is not surprising.
\n34:3. before they were judged For the \u201cjudging of angels,\u201d see, for example, 1 En. 14:4; probably also Thanksgiving Hymns 10:34\u201336.
\n35:1 The author of L.A.B. has elaborated and occasionally altered the biblical narrative in this scene, using as a model the episode of Elijah\u2019s flight at 1 Kings 19:3. As a result, the version of Gideon and the angel in L.A.B. and the Elijah story in 1 Kings have certain things in common: the hero in flight, his despair and death wish, the appearance of an angel who encourages and instructs him, divine interrogation, the mountain locale, the justification of God and the condemnation of Israel\u2019s ways, and divine signs.
\n35:3. You have not been delivered up without reason In the biblical narrative, the angel effectively ignores Gideon\u2019s theological question. The author of L.A.B. puts into the angel\u2019s mouth the traditional biblical explanation for the sufferings of Israel.
\non account of those who are asleep Apparently an allusion to the concept of \u201cmerits of the patriarchs.\u201d The language is somewhat similar at 2 Macc. 8:15.
\n35:4. Even if Israel is not just \u2026 I will take vengeance upon the Midianites This theme is essentially biblical. The People Israel are sinners, but the sinfulness of other nations is so much greater that God acts to punish these nations and to benefit Israel, even though that means overlooking the guilt of Israel (see Deut. 9:4\u20136).
\n35:5. men look to worldly glory and riches, but God to that which is upright In the context of divine choice of a leader, the contrast between the ways of human beings and God has a model at 1 Sam. 16:7, where Samuel is reminded that humankind uses one set of criteria (external appearance), while God uses a different one (spiritual qualities).
\n35:6. Moses \u2026 asked the LORD for a sign The author of L.A.B. is using the encounter between God and Moses in Exod. 3\u20134 as a model for his scene here.
\n36:1. mother along with children An echo of Gen. 32:12, implying total destruction.
\nour sins have reached full measure A common theme in Rabbinic texts and L.A.B., based on Gen. 15:16.
\nas even our own gods have shown us A rather remarkable statement, which (notwithstanding the fact that it is spoken by a Midianite) almost seems to assign authority and credibility to pagan deities.
\n36:3. idols The biblical narrative speaks of a relatively neutral \u201cephod\u201d (Judg. 8:27). The author of L.A.B. seeks to represent Gideon\u2019s actions in the worst light.
\nworshiped them The Bible says nothing of the sort. Why is Gideon treated so severely in L.A.B.? Probably because L.A.B.\u2019s author is concerned to combat the practice of idolatry and the Bible makes clear that, even if Gideon had nothing pernicious in mind, his act led to the people adopting idolatrous practices (Judg. 8:27). The author was not alone in his condemnation; see, for example, Ber. Rabbati at Gen. 37:8.
\n36:4. they will say God acts pointedly to forestall the possibility of the nations drawing false conclusions about his power and actions (and those of pagan deities). There is a parallel at Pesik. Rab. 6, where David seeks to avoid the use of pagan booty in building the Temple, lest (upon the destruction of the Temple) the nations claim that their gods had destroyed the Temple as an act of revenge.
\nAnd so The author needs to explain why Gideon, if he indeed sinned, suffered no punishment. Some Rabbis, who saw in his making of the ephod an undesirable act (though not as intensely as does L.A.B.\u2019s author), also felt the need to explain why he was not punished. They assert that his intention was good, for he made the ephod to be part of the service of God (Yal. Shimoni 2:64).
\nI will chastise him once and for all Presumably a reference to punishment in the next world.
\n37:2. Then there came together \u2026 all the trees of the field The Bible reports an allegorical fable in the mouth of Jotham addressed to the citizens of Sechem, calculated to make them aware of the risks inherent in their behavior toward Abimelech. In L.A.B. the story about the trees is presented as fact; that is, it is simply part of the ongoing narrative.
\nWas I born for kingship The refusals of the trees in L.A.B. have an explicitly teleological focus. Each tree indicates that it was not created for the purpose of ruling, but rather for other distinct ends. No such explicit dimension exists in the biblical account (Judg. 9:7\u201315).
\nAbimelech will not get continuance for his rule The Midrash too makes a point of stressing that, as punishment for his acts, Abimelech\u2019s reign was short (Tanhuma [Buber] 1:51b).
\nfrom you The reference must be to the citizens of Sechem, who are represented in the parable by the trees.
\nAbimelech will die by stoning Note the rhetorical effect achieved in the responses of the trees. The first declares that Abimelech will not rule long, the second that his blood will be hunted, the third that he will be killed\u2014creating in effect an ascending tricolon.
\n37:3. When the first-formed was condemned to death This represents postbiblical interpretation and has its parallels in Rabbinic sources. The Bible\u2019s account is not clear as to whether Adam is created immortal and only becomes subject to death after he sins. For a Rabbinic text that holds the view espoused in L.A.B. (that Adam\u2019s sin condemned him to death), see, for example, Sifre Deut. 339. For the opposite view (that Adam was created mortal), see, for example, S. Eli. Zuta 3.
\ntruth shone forth \u2026 truth enlightened The association of light with truth and revelation is commonplace (cf. B. Meg. 16b; Philo, Migration 76; Moses 2.271). The Talmud reports (of a different revelation) that Moses \u201csaw truth\u201d (B. Sanh. 111a, with reference to Exod. 34:6).
\n37:5. a woman threw down upon him from a wall half a millstone This description of Abimelech\u2019s death from a wall has no support in Judges; rather, L.A.B.\u2019s author is clearly echoing 2 Sam. 11:21.
\n38:1\u20134 The elaborate story about Jair found here has no basis in the Bible. Judges gives him three verses (10:3\u20135) and tells us virtually nothing about his activities. Particularly noteworthy is that the Bible merely describes Jair as a judge of the people (Josephus speaks briefly but positively of him at Ant. 5.254), whereas L.A.B.\u2019s author turns him into a villain, a judge who becomes corrupt and in turn corrupts the people.
\nbuilt an altar to Baal This is the first of several parallels in L.A.B.\u2019s story of Jair to the story of Ahab and Elijah in 1 Kings 16\u201318 (cf. here 16:32). Note especially the themes of the silent Baal, a select group of pious men who refuse to worship Baal, the mass slaying of the devotees of Baal, and the role of (divine) fire.
\n38:2. Deborah our mother commanded us, saying Neither in the Bible nor in L.A.B. does Deborah ever say anything like this (L.A.B. 33:2 is the closest).
\n38:3. Nathaniel, the angel who was in charge of fire Nathaniel is not identified outside of L.A.B. as the angel of fire.
\nburned the servants of Jair Exactly as at L.A.B. 6:17 and Dan. 3:21, the fire is miraculously deflected from the hero and destroys the villains.
\nnone of the people saw them, because he had struck the people with blindness The miraculous inflicting of blindness by an angel in order to aid the righteous also occurs at L.A.B. 27:10 and Gen. 19:11.
\n38:4. the place of Jair Likely an allusion to Num. 32:41, in which the villages conquered by Jair were named after him.
\nI \u2026 made you leader over my people Probably a verbatim quotation of 1 Kings 16:2.
\na living fire The context indicates that the fire is creative or regenerative, which is not a common notion in Jewish texts. But see, for example, B. Hag. 14a where angels are said to be created daily from a river of fire; and B. BK 60B, on the rebuilding of Zion with fire.
\nin the fire \u2026 you will have a dwelling place For the notion that in the afterlife, sinners will reside in fire, see, for example, 2 Bar. 44:15; for Gehinnom as fire, see, for example, B. Pes. 54a; Mark 9:42.
\n39:4. If the God of our fathers \u2026 why do you, a mortal man The argument is based on the common Rabbinic principle that human beings should imitate the ways of God.
\n39:5. God can be Jephthah disputes the premise that human beings should imitate the ways of God, for humankind is fundamentally unlike God. Although the specific objection raised by Jephthah does not seem to have a parallel elsewhere in Jewish literature, the general objection can be exemplified (e.g., Lev. Rab. 24:9).
\nhe has the time and place Presumably the sense is that God, being immortal, has no need to hurry to take action. God will always have the opportunity and so can afford to be long-suffering. But humans, being short-lived, know that if they do not act now or soon, they may never get the chance. Thus, they cannot afford to be long-suffering.
\nthe dove to which Israel has been compared The comparison of Israel to a dove is common in Rabbinic and pseudepigraphic texts. See comment on L.A.B. 21:6, the house of Israel will be like a dove.
\nwhen her young are taken away Shir ha-Shirim Rab. 1:63, in its comparison of Israel to a dove, parallels L.A.B. in saying that the mother dove will not leave her cote even if her young are snatched away.
\n39:6. Ammon and his sons If our text is correct, then \u201cAmmon\u201d here must refer to the eponymous ancestor of the Ammonites rather than to the tribe as a whole, even though the Bible never mentions such a person.
\nthey served strange gods That the Jews turned to the worship of Ammonite deities is mentioned at Judg. 10:6.
\nNow therefore set your hearts Jephthah\u2019s concern for the people\u2019s devotion to God is entirely absent from the biblical narrative. Nor does it appear to have any place in the Rabbis\u2019 treatments of this tale. The author of L.A.B. has added this twist to the story.
\nhe will not deliver us up forever For the sentiment, cf. Lam. 3:31 (\u201cFor the LORD does not Reject forever\u201d).
\nAlthough our sins be abundant That sins of humans are many, but God\u2019s mercy is great, is a not uncommon theme. The best example and closest parallel to L.A.B. is found in the Confessional Liturgy for Yom Kippur, where God is addressed: \u201cWe are full of sins, but you are full of mercy.\u201d
\n39:7. do not destroy the vine The common theme of Israel as God\u2019s vine. The language and general context recall Deut. 9:26.
\nwhich you have had from the beginning If \u201cfrom the beginning\u201d here means, \u201cfrom the beginning of time,\u201d \u201cfrom creation,\u201d or some such notion, then this alludes to the Rabbinic themes on the antiquity of Israel, that Israel preceded the creation of the world (e.g., Gen. Rab. 1:4, Yal. Shimoni 1:766).
\nyour enemies That Israel\u2019s enemies are God\u2019s enemies is commonplace. See, for example, Judg. 5:31; Ps. 83:3; cf. the statement at Exod. 23:22.
\n39:7\u20138. Jephthah \u2026 said, Why are you troublesome to our land Remarkably, L.A.B.\u2019s author has turned the basic dispute on its head. In the Bible, it is the king of Ammon who demands his territory back from the Jews; in L.A.B., it is the Jews who demand their cities back from the king of Ammon.
\n39:8. Getal the king The Ammonite king is not named in the biblical narrative.
\n39:9. For they are not gods The author is\u2014not surprisingly\u2014contradicting and combating the express statement of Jephthah in the biblical narrative that acknowledges the existence of a Canaanite god Chemosh (Judg. 11:24).
\n39:11. Now if a dog should meet Jephthah first This is essentially the same condemnation of Jephthah that the Talmud makes at B. Ta\u2019an. 4a.
\n40:1. women came out to meet him with dances The Bible has only one girl here, the daughter of Jephthah. Clearly, L.A.B.\u2019s author is influenced by the similar language and theme of Exod. 15:20. Judges 11:34 has \u201cthere was his daughter coming out to meet him, with timbrel and dance!\u201d while Exod. 15:20 has \u201call the women went out after her in dance with timbrels.\u201d
\nout of the house The author incorporates into the narrative the critical words of Jephthah\u2019s oath (Judg. 11:31; cf. \u201chis house\u201d at 11:34).
\nSeila The name probably means \u201cshe who was demanded.\u201d The daughter of Jephthah is not named in the Bible; nor is she named elsewhere in ancient or medieval sources. Possibly, though, the name means \u201cshe who has been borrowed,\u201d that is, that God has lent Jephthah his daughter and now reclaims the loan.
\nwho will put my heart in the balance The image of weighing souls is familiar from Egyptian, Greek, and Jewish sources (e.g., B. Sanh. 103b; T. Ab. 12:13). In general, this becomes the notion of weighing good versus bad deeds for the purpose of divine judgment.
\n40:2. who is there who would be sad to die The author of L.A.B. presents Jephthah\u2019s daughter as a willing, indeed happy, martyr. This essentially echoes the portrait presented in the biblical account (Judg. 11:36), followed also by Josephus (Ant. 5.265). Thus, it is interesting to note that the Rabbis presented a very different picture, representing the daughter as pleading and arguing with her father not to sacrifice her (e.g., Tanhuma [Buber] 3:57a).
\n40:3. The trees of the field will weep for me That nature mourns for human suffering is a common Greco-Roman theme, but rare in Jewish texts. Even when the Midrash reports that the trees and plants went into mourning on the death of Abel (see introduction to Tanhuma [Buber] 1:79b), one could explain this unusual story on the grounds that aside from his parents Adam and Eve, no other human beings exist yet, to grieve for Abel. But one good parallel to L.A.B. occurs at Pesik. Rav Kah. app. 6.
\nIf I will not offer myself willingly \u2026 I fear my death would not be acceptable Perhaps Seila fears that because her death will constitute a human sacrifice, it may be unacceptable in God\u2019s eyes, even though she is willing. Her visit to the elders may be her attempt to get an answer to this question.
\n40:4. reported to the wise men of the people, and no one could respond Midrashic sources also report that Jephthah\u2019s daughter went to the elders (i.e., the court), to no avail (e.g., Tanhuma [Buber] 3:57a\u2013b).
\nto Mount Telag This may be Mount Hermon.
\nthat my word be fulfilled This seems to refer to God\u2019s words at L.A.B. 39:11. If so, the girl\u2019s death is then an integral part of God\u2019s plan. This would suit the tendency of L.A.B.\u2019s author to make tragic and catastrophic events that befall Jews part of God\u2019s prearranged scheme.
\nher death will be precious before me This is a near quotation of Ps. 116:15. The context here suggests that L.A.B.\u2019s author understood the verse as did the Rabbis: that God saw the death of the pious as a desirable thing, either because it enabled them to receive the rewards of the next world or because their presence enhanced the quality of the heavenly kingdom (see, e.g., Midr. Ps. 116:15 [Buber] 239a\u2013b). The notion that a martyr\u2019s suffering and death render him beloved to God is explicit at Mek. Ba-hodesh 6.
\n40:5. Hear \u2026 and behold \u2026 the tears of my eyes Cf. the similar language in the evening Yom Kippur prayer Omnam ken, \u201chear my prayer and behold the tear of my eye.\u201d
\nbe witnesses, you rocks For the invocation of natural objects as witnesses, see, for example, Sifre Deut. 306.
\nMay my words go forth to the heavens The notion that prayers (and the like) ascend to heaven is common, though usually implicit rather than explicit (e.g., 1 Kings 8:33\u201334). It is however often explicit in the liturgy, as in the holiday prayer Ya\u2019aleh V\u2019yavo (see also Soferim 19:5) and in the evening Yom Kippur prayer Ya\u2019aleh, in which it is the fundamental theme.
\nmay my tears be written before the firmament The author of L.A.B. may be influenced by Ps. 56:9, which is understood by some commentators to mean that God records tears in his book.
\n40:6. garlands of my wedding For the use of bridal wreaths at Jewish weddings, see, for example, B. Sot. 49a\u2013b.
\nI was not clothed in splendor The metaphor and language are biblical (e.g., Prov. 31:25 about a woman, Job 40:10 about a human being, Ps. 104:1 about God).
\nthe underworld has become my bridal chamber The theme of a bridal chamber becoming a tomb is common in Greek literature, going back most famously to Sophocles\u2019s Antigone 891, but found even earlier.
\nLet the moth consume For the picture of the moth eating clothing, see, for example, Isa. 50:9 Vulg.: tinea comedet eos, \u201cthe moth will consume them.\u201d
\n40:7. trees, bow down your branches It is not uncommon to hear of nature rejoicing in the Bible (e.g. Isa. 44:23). The invocation of natural forces to lament is Greek (e.g., Epitaph. Bion. 1\u201318; cf. Ecl. 10.13\u201315). But nature is also depicted as lamenting in Rabbinic texts (e.g., Pesik. Rav Kah. 6).
\nIn Hellenistic, Roman, and Byzantine texts, trees routinely drop their leaves (or fruit) as a sign of mourning. However, a Rabbinic text may be even closer to L.A.B. at Mo\u2019ed Qat. 25b, trees are called upon to bend their heads in mourning.
\n40:8. in that month on the fourteenth day The most natural way to interpret the text is that it indicates an annual four-day period of mourning from the 14th to the 17th. Nothing corresponds to this in the known Jewish calendar. The combination of ritualized lamenting by women with an emphasis on pastoral and rustic themes makes one wonder whether underlying L.A.B.\u2019s version may be the myth of Tammuz, the deity of vegetation who dies in the summer and is lamented by women (see Ezek. 8:14). If we then put the mourning ritual in the month of Tammuz, the fourth and final day of the ritual will be the traditional day of mourning, the 17th of Tammuz, which suggests vestiges of some very intriguing syncretistic tradition.
\nThey named her tomb \u2026 Seila No other evidence for such a site exists.
\n41:1. Abdon \u2026 arose as judge in Israel The Bible provides some information on Abdon\u2019s family but otherwise says nothing about him.
\nnow restore them Having turned the biblical Jephthah narrative on its head, making Jephthah demand the return of cities from Ammon rather than vice-versa, L.A.B.\u2019s author now creates an episode for the little-known Abdon on the basis of that biblical Jephthah episode. Here, though, he follows it closely, making the enemy king demand the return of cities from the Israelite judge (Judg. 11:13).
\nunless perhaps the sins of Moab have reached full measure The theme of \u201cfullness of sins\u201d recurs in L.A.B. Abdon guesses that Moab has been unable to learn a lesson from the fate of the Ammonites because the destined time of punishment for the Moabites is now at hand.
\n41:2. Elon The Bible provides virtually no information about Elon except the length of his tenure (Judg. 12:11\u201312).
\n42:1. a man from the tribe of Dan whose name was Manoah, son of Edoc The Bible tells us nothing of Manoah\u2019s lineage, except that he was a Danite. The author of L.A.B. likes genealogies.
\na wife whose name was Eluma Manoah\u2019s wife is not named in the Bible, though Rabbinic texts give her a name (e.g., B. BB 91a). But only L.A.B.\u2019s author calls her Eluma.
\nshe was sterile The account of John the Baptist\u2019s birth at Luke 1 bears similarities to L.A.B.\u2019s narrative here.
\nher husband would say \u2026 she would say That Manoah and his wife argued about who bore the responsibility for their barrenness is a midrashic tradition (e.g., Num. Rab. 10:5).
\nIt is not me \u2026 but you She is, as we learn shortly, mistaken. But her remarks may reflect an awareness that a barren woman can tell whether she or her husband is responsible (see, e.g., Midr. Hag. at Gen. 16:2; B. Yev. 65a).
\n42:2. One night The reference to nighttime may be more than incidental. Nighttime is often considered particularly suitable for personal prayer. See, for example, Ps. 88:2; 119:62. The Midrash reports that Jacob stayed awake at night reciting Psalms (Midr. Ps. 124:1 [Buber] 255a\u2013b).
\nthe wife went up to the upper chamber For the solarium (i.e., an upper room or the roof) as a place of prayer, see especially Dan. 6:11; also B. Ber. 34b.
\n42:3. now the LORD has heard The angel tells Eluma that God has heeded her, she will conceive and have a child, and she should name him Samson. This is clearly based on the account at Judg. 13:3\u20135, with one sentence apparently a direct quotation. But the angel\u2019s assertion that God has heard her and his instructions for naming the baby are additions to the biblical narrative.
\n42:4. I put my hand over my mouth For this symbolic gesture, see, for example, Judg. 18:19; Mic. 7:16; Job 21:5; 40:4.
\nEluma, you are sterile In L.A.B., Eluma reveals that the angel has indicated that she is the party \u201cat fault,\u201d while the Midrash explicitly says that she refrained from telling this to Manoah (Num. Rab. 10:5).
\n42:5. Manoah did not believe his wife The Bible\u2019s narrative gives not even a hint that Manoah does not believe her (Judg. 13:8). But the Midrash says exactly what L.A.B. does, that indeed he did not (and adds that the reason was that he did not consider women trustworthy). See Num. Rab. 10:5.
\n42:8. eat bread with me Manoah\u2019s invitation to the angel at Judg. 13:15 does not mention \u201ceating bread.\u201d The author of L.A.B. has invented this on the basis of the angel\u2019s response at 13:16, \u201cI shall not eat your bread\u201d (KJV).
\n42:9. Manoah built an altar The Bible simply has Manoah offer the sacrifice on a rock (Judg. 13:19), though it is afterward called an altar (13:20).
\n42:10. they \u2026 said, We will die In the Bible only Manoah says this. His wife then refutes his anxieties (13:22\u201323).
\nwas named Fadahel The Bible does not give the angel a name; in the words \u201cmy name is peli,\u201d peli is not a name, but means \u201ca mystery.\u201d The Midrash does however sometimes interpret peli as the name of the angel (e.g., Num. Rab. 10:5, end).
\n43:1. When he \u2026 sought to fight against the Philistines, he took for himself a wife from the Philistines This is the author\u2019s interpretation\u2014or misinterpretation\u2014of Judg. 14:4. The Bible asserts that Samson\u2019s marriage to the Philistine woman was God\u2019s way of causing the Philistines to take action that would stir Samson to battle against them. The author of L.A.B. makes it Samson\u2019s plan.
\nthey had been badly humiliated by Samson It is not clear whether L.A.B.\u2019s author simply takes for granted the actions of Samson described in Judg. 14\u201315 or whether he means that the Philistines were upset by the marriage of one of their women to an Israelite. At Judg. 14:3, it is Samson\u2019s parents who are upset by his selection of a Philistine bride.
\n43:2. When Samson arose at night and saw The author of L.A.B. heavily embellishes the brief biblical account at Judg. 11:3. In particular, he turns the biblical tale\u2014which is nothing more than an account of astounding strength\u2014into a battle between Samson and the Philistines.
\n43:4. the lion \u2026 the jawbone \u2026 the bonds \u2026 the foxes The author refers to four of Samson\u2019s exploits from the biblical narrative.
\n43:5. to Gerar The Philistine city Gerar has no place in any of the biblical Samson episodes. Perhaps L.A.B.\u2019s author thought of it as a place of particularly loose sexual mores. Cf. Gen. 20:1\u201311; 26:6\u201311.
\na harlot Josephus also made Delilah a prostitute (Ant. 5.306).
\ntook her to himself for a wife Samson does not marry Delilah in the Bible.
\nhas been led astray through his eyes \u201cSamson went astray after his eyes and so the Philistines put out his eyes,\u201d according to M. Sot. 1:8. It seems likely that L.A.B. is making the same point here.
\nhas not paid attention to Joseph This alludes to the tale of Joseph and Potiphar\u2019s wife (Gen. 39). Joseph is commonly considered a paragon of sexual virtue in Rabbinic texts (e.g., Lev. Rab. 23:10; B. Yoma 35b [\u201cJoseph the righteous one\u201d]).
\nwho was in a foreign land Cf. Exod. 2:22; 18:3. The point seems to be that even though Joseph was far from home and in a foreign land and culture, he still maintained his virtue and his values. The same point is made by the Rabbis of the Jews during their slavery in Egypt, that is, they did not change their names, they did not abandon the Hebrew language, and they maintained sexual morality (Mek. Bo 5).
\nI will remember him The repeated theme in L.A.B., here extended from the people as a whole to their suffering leader.
\n43:6. She got him drunk Here, L.A.B. shows the influence of stories like Judith\u2019s (Jdt. 12:20\u201313:2) and Jael\u2019s (Judg. 4:19, though the soporific there is milk). In the case of Samson, the element of drunkenness is doubly damning, since he was a Nazirite.
\n43:7. On the day of their banquet The Bible tells of a great festival in honor of the Philistine god Dagon (Judg. 16:23\u201324).
\nto mock him The Bible does not say this explicitly, but it is implicit in the narrative.
\nHe \u2026 prayed The author of L.A.B. leaves out the regrowth of Samson\u2019s hair (Judg. 16:22), thus placing all the emphasis on Samson\u2019s prayer and God\u2019s role.
\nGo forth, my soul An address to one\u2019s soul when death is imminent is reminiscent of Hadrian\u2019s famous poem \u201cAnimula, vagula, blandula\u201d (frag. 3).
\n43:8. 40,000 men The Bible says that there were about 3,000 men and women on the roof (Judg. 16:27). The sum total of the dead is not mentioned (16:30).
\n44:2. Micah the son of Delilah Micah\u2019s mother plays an important role in Judg. 17, but is never identified. The targumic addition at Judg. 17:2 makes the same identification as L.A.B.
\nthe mother of Heliu Why L.A.B.\u2019s author reports that Delilah is the mother of Heliu is not clear; nor does he clarify who Heliu is.
\nyou will make a name for yourself This is the same motivation that inspires the builders of the tower of Babel (Gen. 11:4; L.A.B. 6:1).
\nTake that gold and melt it down In the Bible, Micah hires a smith to fashion the idol (Judg. 17:4).
\nthey will serve as gods for you The Talmud debates whether the mentions of God in the biblical tale of Micah refer to God or to pagan deities (e.g., B. Shevu. 35b). The author of L.A.B. clearly casts his vote for the latter interpretation.
\nyou will be their priest In the Bible, Micah does not himself become the attending priest but rather first appoints his son (Judg. 17:5), later a Levite (17:12\u201313).
\n44:3. Whoever wishes to ask anything Although in the biblical narrative Micah does not set up his shrine as an oracle, eventually it comes to serve this purpose (Judg. 18:5).
\nThere will be an altar The biblical account of Micah makes no mention of an altar or offerings. But the Midrash takes for granted that these were part of Micah\u2019s sanctuary, since it refers to incense and smoke that were present (see, e.g., B. Sanh. 103b; Pesik. Rab. 29).
\n44:5. images The author\u2019s account here of the varied icons is based both on his familiarity with biblical texts and on his knowledge of idolatry in the world around him, both amongst Jews and non-Jews.
\nIf a person wished to ask \u2026 he would ask by means of Some of the correspondences here between a person\u2019s wish and the image consulted are obvious, such as asking the image of boys for sons, or that of a lion for strength; others are less so. That the people consult specific icons for specific requests reflects the author\u2019s awareness of the pagan practice of identifying individual gods with particular realms and addressing pertinent prayers to the appropriate deity. Thus, for example, one would pray to Apollo to heal the sick (e.g., Paus. Descr. 8.41.8), and to Demeter for good crops (e.g., Hes. Op. 465\u201366).
\nby means of the dove The relevance of doves to marriage is attested in both Jewish and pagan sources. The dove is often praised in Rabbinic texts for its faithful monogamy (e.g., B. Er. 100b). Doves were familiar in cults of Aphrodite. We are even told explicitly of widows praying to Aphrodite for a new husband (Paus. Descr. 10.38.12). As for icons of doves, they were common in the Near East, including in Israel. An image of a dove was worshiped on Mount Gerizim in the 2nd century (B. Hul. 6a).
\nby the images of the boys Icons of boys, or boylike figures\u2014for example, images or sculptures of the Erotes were common, especially since they were sometimes associated with cherubim.
\nthrough the likeness of the eagle Representations of eagles were frequently associated with the cults of Zeus and Jupiter.
\nfor courage, through the image of the lion Lions have been linked with strength since antiquity (see, e.g., Prov. 30:30). Representations of lions were prominent in the cult of Cybele.
\nfor length of days \u2026 by the image of the dragon The snake was commonly a symbol of longevity because of its length and its apparent regeneration through molting. Cultic images of snakes were common in the Near East, as well as generally in cults of Dionysus and Asclepius. Recall too the use of the copper snake for idolatrous purposes in Israel (2 Kings 18:4).
\n44:6. I showed myself \u2026 in a storm The presence of storms at Sinai was also indicated at L.A.B. 11:5.
\nthey should not make idols The Second Commandment (Exod. 20:3). The remaining commandments follow in the biblical order, with the exception of \u201cdo not steal.\u201d The author of L.A.B. connects Micah\u2019s acts with the violation of the Decalogue. This is also explicit (if less elaborate) in the Midrash, where we read that Micah violated the First Commandment (Pesik. Rab. 21).
\nthey agreed In L.A.B., a variation of this response follows nearly all of the commandments, though the Bible reports only a collective assent to the entire Decalogue (Exod. 24:7; Deut. 5:24). A midrashic tradition has exactly the same thing as L.A.B., reporting that the Jews proclaimed their assent after each commandment (Midr. Ps. 8:3 [Buber] 39a).
\nto keep the day of the Sabbath As in Deut. 5:12 (contrast Exod. 20:8).
\n44:6\u20137 In this passage God, planning to seriously punish the Jewish people, enumerates the Ten Commandments and asserts, one by one, that each has been violated by them. This is exactly what we have at Pesik. Rav Kah. 13, where God contemplates destroying the Temple because of the sins of the people.
\nthey took my name in vain and they have given my name to graven images The prohibition against taking God\u2019s name in vain is regularly taken as a prohibition against false oaths. At Wis. 14:21, the people are condemned for assigning the name of God to wood and stone. What exactly does L.A.B. (and indeed Wisdom) mean? Either that the generic title god belongs only to God and may not be assigned elsewhere, or that the specific name of God is worshiped through these idols (i.e., the individual believes he is worshiping God but is doing so in a totally unacceptable way. This is clearly the case in the biblical account of Micah).
\nAs for my telling them to honor father and mother, they have dishonored me Relating the commandment to respect one\u2019s parents to the reverence of God is common in Jewish sources. Thus, Philo (Decalogue 51) notes that in the first set of five commandments, the first deals with God, the parent of everything, while the last deals with mother and father, the parents of individual creations. The Midrash likes to point out that reverence for one\u2019s parents is the equivalent of reverence for God.
\nthey kill those whom they seduce This probably means that by inducing others to practice idolatry, they are killing them (either by morally destroying them or by rendering them subject to death at God\u2019s hands). Tertullian makes the same point when he remarks that the idolater commits murder, that is, he kills himself (de Idolatria 1, CSEL 20, p. 30). Cf. Wis. 1:11, where lying is said to destroy the soul. For the general notion that the wicked are considered dead even when alive, see B. Ber. 18b.
\nthey accepted false testimony from those whom they destroyed Possibly meaning that the Jews accepted the \u201ctestimony\u201d of the local peoples about their gods (see L.A.B. 34:1\u20134) and so worshiped them.
\n44:8. I abhor the race of men This clearly means all humanity. But this follows the account of Israel\u2019s violations of the Ten Commandments and proceeds with explicit references to Israel and more allusion to their violation of the Decalogue. The author may be thinking of the Rabbinic notion that the world\u2019s existence is contingent on that of Israel (see, e.g., Exod. Rab. 2:5; AG 3 [Buber] 12b).
\nI cannot totally destroy This not only accords with the narrative of Judg. 20, wherein a small remnant of Benjamin survives, but also recalls the common biblical theme that although God punishes Israel, he will not totally destroy them (e.g., Isa. 6:11\u201313; Jer. 23:2\u20133).
\nIsrael will not go unpunished That is, not only will Benjamin be severely punished, but the rest of Israel will be punished too. Presumably the author of L.A.B. is alluding to the defeats suffered by the Israelite army in Judg. 20.
\n44:9. His mother will be rotting away That is, what usually happens to the body after death (cf. Job 21:26; Sir. 10:1) will happen to her while still alive.
\nYou have done greater wickedness The author cleverly makes this dialogue between mother and son parallel the earlier one (L.A.B. 44:3\u20134). There, the mother had said that the son would gain a reputation, to which he responded that she would be even more famous. Here, the mother chastises her son for his sin; the son responds by saying that her sins are even greater.
\nthe dove that he made will be for putting out his eyes Birds as an instrument for punishing sinners is familiar (particularly in the afterworld). Cf. the Greek legends of Prometheus and Tityos; also the Hell of the Apocalypse of Peter. It is usually ravens that peck out the eyes of corpses (see Prov. 30:17, elaborated at Tanhuma [Buber] 5:9a). Aristophanes jokingly refers to the possibility of one knocking out the eye of a living human being (Ach. 92\u20133).
\nfor scratching his sides This punishment probably refers to flaying, a type of torture familiar from Plato\u2019s picture of the underworld (Resp. 10.616a) and evidently much in favor in Asia. At Num. 33:55 and Josh. 23:13, tormenters are described metaphorically as \u201cthorns [nails, scourges] in your side [eyes].\u201d This may be relevant, since it goes along with violent damage to the eyes (as here in L.A.B.).
\n44:10. in whatever sin he shall have sinned, with this he will be judged This is a common theme, found in Jubilees, Wisdom, Rabbinic texts, and elsewhere. An excellent example is the Egyptians, who tried to destroy the Jewish people through water and were ultimately themselves destroyed by water (Jub. 48:14; Mek. Besh. 6).
\nIf they have lied \u2026 it will deny them rain Proverbs 25:14 makes an analogy between a man who promises gifts but fails to give them and a cloudy sky that produces no rain. The Midrash creates a causal relationship, taking this to mean that if a man makes a public vow and fails to keep it, then the heavens withhold their rain. Note too the language at B. Ta\u2019an. 9b, in its characterization of Babylonians as liars: \u201cjust as the Babylonians lie, so too their rains lie\u201d (i.e., fail to fall when expected).
\nIf a man will covet the property of his neighbor The sinner desires the property of his neighbor and therefore loses his most valued property, namely, his children. A talmudic text is pertinent: \u201cwhoever casts his eye upon that which does not belong to him, will have taken from him that which he does possess\u201d (B. Sot. 9a\u2013b).
\nWhen the soul is separated from the body The notion that the soul (spirit) separates from the body at the time of death may occur in the Bible (Eccles. 12:7). In Rabbinic texts, see B. Yoma 20b (end); Pirke R. El. 34.
\n45:1. To Gibeah The author of L.A.B. makes one drastic change in this episode. According to the Bible, the rape and murder of the concubine take place at Gibeah. In L.A.B., the couple comes to Gibeah but then proceeds from there to Nob, where the crimes take place. Why L.A.B.\u2019s author chooses to exonerate Gibeah (relatively speaking; he merely says that they refused to let the couple enter their city) and attribute the heinous crime to the residents of Nob is not obvious. Perhaps he does this for \u201cmoral\u201d reasons. At 1 Sam. 22:19, the inhabitants of Nob are brutally murdered for a favor they did for David. The author of L.A.B. may be suggesting that the destruction of the citizenry of Nob was in fact justified, being punishment for their deed here. Cf. L.A.B. 45:3, where the author justifies the murder of the concubine. (See also Ant. 5.136\u201349; 6.255\u201361.)
\n45:2. a certain Levite The welcoming man is not identified as a Levite at Judg. 19:16, nor is he given a name.
\n45:3. we will burn in the fire both you and them No such threat appears in either the concubine or the Sodom episodes in the Bible. But L.A.B.\u2019s author may be influenced by a similar threat in the Samson narrative, at Judg. 14:15.
\nIt has never happened that strangers give orders to the local inhabitants The sentiment is drawn by L.A.B.\u2019s author from the Sodomites\u2019 angry remark to Lot at Gen. 19:9.
\nby force No violence is committed by the inhabitants at this point in the Judges story. Again, L.A.B.\u2019s author is using material from Gen. 19:9, in which the Sodomites attempt to break down the door.
\nThey \u2026 dragged him and his concubine off The author of L.A.B. exonerates both Bethac and Beel. In the biblical narrative the host offers the concubine (and his own daughter) to the local villains (Judg. 19:24), and the guest gives her to them (19:25). But nothing of the sort occurs in L.A.B. The two men are entirely innocent victims. Josephus\u2019s version is similar to L.A.B., and the townspeople seize the concubine (Ant. 5.146).
\nshe had strayed The author of L.A.B. moralizes her fate as justified punishment.
\n45:4. he \u2026 came to Kedesh This is the biblical \u201cKedesh\u201d (e.g., Josh. 12:22), not \u201cKadesh.\u201d
\nHe \u2026 sent it \u2026 saying, These things were done to me In the biblical account, the dismembered corpse is dispatched, but we are not told of any accompanying message. Only later (Judg. 20:4\u20137) does the Levite report these events, and he does so in person.
\n45:5. they gathered together in Shiloh The biblical account puts the assembly first at Mizpah, and later at Bethel (Judg. 20:1, 18, 26). The author of L.A.B. may have also been influenced by his recollection of the language at Josh. 18:1 and 22:12, \u201cthe whole community of the Israelites assembled at Shiloh.\u201d
\n45:6. The LORD said to the adversary This must refer to Satan, although we are probably not dealing with a \u201cdevil\u201d or \u201cdemon\u201d so much as an \u201cadversary\u201d or \u201caccuser.\u201d It is strange that the \u201cadversary\u201d simply listens, while God does the condemning. The author wants to emphasize that God (not the silent and passive Satan) is in charge and responsible for Israel\u2019s suffering, and that he has a good reason in so acting.
\nthey were not zealous then God will punish Israel because the murder of the concubine upsets them, but they were not similarly disturbed by the idolatrous practices of Micah\u2014a viewpoint asserted also in the Midrash at Pirke R. El. 38 and B. Sanh. 103b.
\n46:1. Let us \u2026 investigate the sin The author of L.A.B. is evidently thinking of the biblical injunctions to investigate reports of grievous sins (e.g., idolatry) before taking action. The passage at Deut. 17:2\u20137 ends, as does this sentence in L.A.B., with the exhortation to eliminate evil from among the people.
\nLet us first ask the LORD Here, L.A.B.\u2019s author changes the biblical account in a remarkable way. Judges reports that before the first battle, the Israelites ask God which tribe should lead the way, and God responds (Judg. 20:18). Before the second battle, they inquire whether they should continue to fight, and God says yes (20:23). Thus, God does not in fact tell them that they will be victorious until the third battle (20:28), as the Talmud takes pains to remind us (see B. Yoma 73b). Josephus was sufficiently uncomfortable with the biblical narrative that he does not represent the Israelites as consulting God at all until after the two defeats (Ant. 5.151\u201359). But L.A.B.\u2019s author actually goes in the reverse direction, making it completely explicit and unambiguous that God deliberately deceives the people so as to punish them.
\nLet us bring out the Urim and Tummim The biblical narrative does not explicitly mention the \u201cUrim and Tummim,\u201d but this is a natural inference since Phinehas the high priest is brought (Judg. 20:28). The Talmud too, when alluding to this episode, takes for granted the use of the \u201cUrim and Tummim\u201d (B. Yoma 73b).
\nso that he might fulfill his words \u201cHis words\u201d must refer to God\u2019s words at L.A.B. 45:6. We thus have the paradox that God lies in order that his words may be true (fulfilled).
\n46:3. they will be delivered into your hands Once again, contrary to the biblical account (Judg. 20:23), God explicitly deceives the Israelites.
\n46:4. they said Although the narrative at Judg. 20 reports that the Jews weep, lament, and fast, they do not say anything other than to repeat their question as to whether they should wage battle. The introduction of such explicit puzzlement in L.A.B. comes from Josh. 7:7\u20139.
\nthat the innocent \u2026 should fall The problem is why those who did not share in the rape-murder crime should be punished as well as the sinners themselves. This question is also raised with regard to the events at Ai, though not in the biblical account but rather in the Talmud (Sanh. 44a).
\n47:1. hear my voice An echo of the psalmist (Ps. 27:7; 130:2, with Vulg. via LXX).
\nboth of them This refers to Zambri and Cozbi (Num. 25:14\u201315). The author of L.A.B. takes for granted his audience\u2019s familiarity with the story. Till now there has been no mention of a second sinner.
\nI hoisted both of them up on my spear This is a Rabbinic tradition. Thus, Tg. Jon. at Num. 25:8 elaborates, \u201cPhinehas impaled the two on his spear and carried them about through the camp\u201d (perhaps implicit also at Sifre Num. 131).
\nyou smote of them twenty-four thousand men Here, L.A.B.\u2019s author has seriously altered the biblical narrative. In the latter, 24,000 Israelites die in a plague (Num. 25:9); Phinehas then kills the two public sinners, whereupon the plague ends. The author of L.A.B. represents the plague (in the form of an angel) as taking place after Phinehas\u2019s bold deed. Josephus does the same (Ant. 4.154\u201355). In addition, the notion that Phinehas\u2019s act arouses hostility and even a threat upon his life has no basis in the Bible, but is found in Rabbinic elaborations. It is implied in Tg. Jon. at Num. 25:8, where we read that Phinehas held the bodies up before their kin, but they were unable to harm him. Num. Rab. 20:25 duplicates what we have in L.A.B. almost exactly: \u201cthe members of Zambri\u2019s tribe wanted to attack Phinehas, but an angel smote them\u201d (a milder version of this appears at Sifre Num. 131).
\n47:3. say to the people, \u2018Stand and hear the word of the LORD.\u2019 This does not mean that God will directly address the people. Rather, Phinehas is to assemble the people and relate the parable in the name of God.
\n47:4. There was a mighty lion No substantial parallel to L.A.B.\u2019s fable occurs in Jewish literature or folklore, although some of its individual themes are traditional. Genesis Rabbah 64:10 tells the story of how an eminent Rabbi dissuaded the people from taking ill-advised action by relating to them a lion-fable.
\n47:10. men and women That Benjaminite women were also slain is explicit at Judg. 21:16.
\nthey took their plunder The Judges narrative makes no reference to booty. Again, L.A.B.\u2019s author is drawing from Josh. 8:27.
\n47:11. the first family The author of L.A.B. apparently allots six chieftains to each family. Since there are ten families consisting of 600 men, each family can be presumed to have 60 men, and so it appears that the author has concocted his chieftains on the biblical principle of the sare asarot \u201cchiefs of \u2026 tens\u201d (Exod. 18:21).
\n48:1. that have been established for every man The traditional post-Flood life span limit of 120 years (Gen. 6:3). See especially Ant. 1.75, 152.
\nrise up and go from here In this episode, L.A.B.\u2019s author identifies Phinehas with Elijah, thereby echoing a Rabbinic tradition. We must recognize that for L.A.B.\u2019s author, Phinehas and Elijah are not merely cut from the same mold but are identical, one and the same person.
\ngo from here These words come from the Elijah narrative (1 Kings 17:3).
\non the mountain All this implies is that Phinehas will live far removed from the Israelites, perhaps a kind of hermit\u2019s existence. For the early Christians, Elijah was the archetypal and paradigmatic hermit (cf. especially the original Carmelites).
\nmany years The long residence of Phinehas in Daneben (L.A.B. 48:1; see Latin text) is thus not to explain his absence during the period of the judges, but rather to account for his absence from the end of the book of Judges until the middle of 1 Kings (in the form of Elijah).
\nmy eagle Eagles are occasionally associated with God in the Bible, but in rather loose ways (e.g., Exod. 19:4; cf. As. Mos. 10:8). \u201cMy eagle\u201d would be more familiar in the mouth of Zeus.
\nyou will shut up the heaven, and by your mouth it will be opened up This refers to Elijah\u2019s stopping the rain and then bringing it (1 Kings 17:1; 18:45)
\nyou will be raised up A reference to Elijah\u2019s translation at 2 Kings 2:11.
\nwhere those who were before you were raised up The only personage in the Bible of whom this can reasonably be said, other than Elijah, is Enoch (Gen. 5:24). But the Midrash and pseudepigraphic literature speak of others who also were translated without dying (e.g., Der. Er. Zut. 1:18).
\nuntil I remember the world An expression L.A.B.\u2019s author likes to use in end-time contexts (cf. L.A.B. 16:3; 26:13).
\n48:2. Phinehas went up Most likely, this refers to his ascension of the mountain.
\nhe anointed him For the \u201canointment\u201d of the priests, see, for example, Exod. 40:13\u201315.
\n48:3. celebrating Passover The biblical narrative refers only to an \u201cannual feast\u201d (Judg. 21:19).
\nthey instructed the children of Benjamin The author of L.A.B. leaves out the episode of Yavesh-Gil-ead (Judg. 21:8\u201314), where a first group of wives is acquired for the Benjaminites.
\nGabaon According to the Bible, Gabaon was already a Benjaminite city by the end of Joshua\u2019s tenure (Josh. 21:17; cf. 1 Chron. 9:35). Did L.A.B.\u2019s author forget? Perhaps he means, \u201cthey rebuilt Gabaon.\u201d The Bible (Judg. 21:23) simply says \u201cbuilt their towns.\u201d
\n48:4. were at rest in the meantime A paraphrase of the repeated theme in Judges that, from time to time, a period of calm occurred in the land of Israel (e.g., 3:11, 30; cf. L.A.B. 33:6).
\n48:5. These are the commandments \u2026 given in the days of the judges This is meant to be a sort of formulaic conclusion to L.A.B.\u2019s version of the book of Judges. Cf. the final verse of the book of Numbers (36:13): \u201cThese are the commandments and regulations that the LORD enjoined upon the Israelites.\u201d L.A.B.\u2019s author uses the formula even though his own re-creation of Judges has not included many commandments.
\n49:1. Let all of us cast lots The basic structure of this narrative is probably borrowed from the story of Achan at Josh. 7:14, where the selection by lot proceeds in several stages, but L.A.B.\u2019s author innovates by introducing initial stages wherein God does not respond at all in order to emphasize God\u2019s displeasure with the people. We cannot take this to be a \u201ccasting of lots\u201d in the usual manner. For in that case (with a lot drawn or shaken from an urn), it seems impossible to fail to receive a response. Thus, we need to think of some inherently supernatural fashion of lottery, such as that described for the apportionment of the Land of Israel in Rabbinic writings (e.g., Yal. Shimoni 1:773, in which the lots themselves speak and announce the portions) In such cases, it is possible to envision no response whatsoever. Perhaps, however, L.A.B.\u2019s author is referring not to lots in an urn\u2014or at any rate, not only to lots in an urn\u2014but rather to the Urim and Tummim. We have instances both in the Bible and Talmud where the Urim and Tummim were consulted, but no response was forthcoming (e.g., 1 Sam. 14:37; 28:6; B. Sot. 48b).
\n49:2. God is reconciled by a large group The point is that the initial lottery was targeted at individuals; this one will be directed toward a group (the tribe). The notion that God will be more responsive when a group rather than individuals are involved may reflect the talmudic statement that \u201cGod does not reject the prayer of the multitude\u201d (B. Ber. 8a).
\n49:3. A man \u2026 answered The author of L.A.B. reiterates his (and the Bible\u2019s) common theme of the lone voice who calls the people back to God.
\nGod will not reject us forever The central theme in L.A.B. Cf. Lam. 3:31.
\n49:5. except Elkanah As the subsequent narrative makes explicit, the selection of Elkanah is really the selection of his unborn son Samuel (L.A.B. 49:7). Thus, the author goes one step further than the biblical narrative, which foretells only the birth of a child to Hannah (1 Sam. 1:17), who as he grows up matures into a prophet of the LORD (3:19\u201321). When L.A.B.\u2019s author has God foretell the role of Samuel well before his birth, he models Samuel after Jeremiah (Jer. 1:5). His purpose was probably to elevate the stature of Samuel.
\nI cannot be a leader The common biblical theme of the reluctant chosen leader or prophet. One thinks especially of Moses, Gideon, and Jeremiah. Of course, in our case the apparent designated leader is not in fact the real one. Interestingly, Rabbinic texts occasionally do give Elkanah something of an elevated status, for example in Tg. Jon. at 1 Sam. 1:1, which makes him a disciple of the prophets.
\nso that you will not defile me Here, Elkanah seems to recognize that he is a sinner, but only moderately so. His election puts him in a position to substantially worsen his sinner\u2019s status, either through close association with the sinful people or because his position as ruler brings with it responsibility for the people\u2019s sins (cf. Exod. Rab. 27:9, which asserts that appointment to the position of leader entails being held responsible\u2014and indeed being punished\u2014for the sins of the people). Faced with this prospect, Elkanah prefers death in his moderate state of sinfulness. Cf. perhaps the midrashic tradition that God ended Enoch\u2019s life on earth so as to prevent him from being further corrupted by his society (Gen. Rab. 25:1).
\nbear the burden of the people The expression may recall Moses at Num. 11:11. Moses prefers to die rather than to bear the burden of leadership of the people. Cf. to Moses\u2019s words at Num. 11:14\u201315; Deut. 1:9, 12.
\n49:7. what am I to do? God declares that if he were to behave toward Israel as they deserve, he would pay no heed to their prayers. But this he cannot do, because of his special relation with them.
\nfor my name has come to be called upon you That God refuses to treat Israel according to their deserts is a common theme. That he so acts out of regard for the fact that Israel is called after his name is already explicit at Dan. 9:18\u201319. Indeed, it may be the point at 1 Sam 12:22.
\nbut rather his son \u2026 will rule Certainly an echo, possibly a significant one, of God\u2019s words to David at 1 Kings 8:19 (\u201cyou shall not build the House yourself; instead, your son, the issue of your loins, shall\u201d). Other apparent allusions to David and his line in the following narrative suggest that the echo of this verse in L.A.B. is more than a casual verbal reminiscence.
\na ruler will not be lacking From Gen. 49:10. Particularly noteworthy is that this verse from Genesis is commonly taken by the Rabbis as a reference to the dynasty of David (including the messiah).
\n49:8. Elkanah has ten sons The Bible tells us only that Peninnah had children (1 Sam. 1:2). At 1 Sam. 1:8, Elkanah says to Hannah, \u201cAm I not better for you than ten sons?\u201d This however does not mean that he had 10 sons. The account in L.A.B. is an inference from the biblical verse and is paralleled in midrashic texts (e.g., Pesik. Rab. 43).
\nWhich of them will rule and prophesy? The problem of choosing one son out of many to be leader also derives from the biblical tale of the selection of David. God tells Samuel to anoint one of the sons of Jesse as king; Samuel has problems in choosing the correct one. In the end, as here, the youngest is chosen (in L.A.B., still unborn). See 1 Sam. 16:1\u201313.
\nwhom I gave to him as a wife Again, L.A.B.\u2019s author emphasizes the divine hand in the birth and role of Samuel.
\nI will love him as I loved Isaac The comparison of Samuel to Isaac is due to the similar contexts of their births, both being born to a beloved wife long sterile. The Midrash also makes comparisons between the two; for example, like Sarah, the sterile Hannah gives her husband another woman to produce children for him (Pesik. Rab. 43); or both Sarah and Hannah become pregnant on New Year\u2019s day (B. RH 11a).
\n50:1. you are a dry tree An echo of Isa. 56:3. In Isaiah too the expression is a metaphor for human sterility.
\nstanding around him like a plantation of olive trees A clear recollection of Ps. 128:3. That L.A.B.\u2019s author should choose to apply this verse in the story of Hannah is not surprising, since the preceding part of the verse (\u201cyour wife shall be like a fruitful vine\u201d) was used by the Rabbis of Sarah (Tanhuma [Buber] 1:52b), and possibly of Hannah herself (Midr. Sam. 2 [Buber] 24b).
\n50:2. she would mock her daily The Bible is not quite so extreme, indicating that Peninnah\u2019s taunts were an annual affair (1 Sam. 1:7). But the Midrash also emphasizes the daily and repeated nature of her taunts.
\nshe was God-fearing from her youth The Bible says nothing of Hannah\u2019s piety or character in general. The Hannah in L.A.B. may remind us of Judith, who is also described as \u201cGod-fearing\u201d (Jdt. 8:29: \u201cYou are holy and God-fearing\u201d; my translation). The Midrash uses the same language of Hannah, calling her one of those who feared God (Pesik. Rab. 43).
\nThe holiday of Passover The Bible merely indicates that the occasion was an annual holiday (1 Sam. 1:3). The Midrash gives differing opinions as to the specific holiday, suggesting Passover (Ag. Ber. 29:60) or Shavuot (Midr. Sam. 1 [Buber] 23b).
\nher beauty The biblical narrative gives no indication that Hannah was prettier than Peninnah. The author of L.A.B. adopts the motif from another pair of wives, a barren but beloved one, and a fertile but unloved one. The former, Rachel, is described as prettier (Gen. 29:17). Rachel is explicitly mentioned as Hannah\u2019s parallel several lines below.
\nlet her glory when she sees her offspring This recalls the talmudic opinion that a childless person is as good as dead (B. Ned. 64b).
\n50:3. Is not your character worth more than the ten sons To emphasize Hannah\u2019s piety, the author of L.A.B. significantly revises his biblical source (1 Sam. 1:8b), in which Elkanah says, \u201cAm I not better for you than ten sons?\u201d L.A.B. is concerned to emphasize Hannah\u2019s piety. Nearly the same point is made by Sirach when he asserts that one son who fears God and does God\u2019s will is better than many children (Sir. 16:2\u20133).
\n50:4. Did you not, LORD, examine the heart of all generations before you formed the world? That God\u2019s foreknowledge was complete even before he created the world is a common theme.
\nlet my prayer ascend In spite of the frequency with which people extend their hands or direct their eyes heavenward when in prayer, texts that speak explicitly of prayer \u201cascending\u201d are not as common. For an example, see Exod. 2:23 (with Sifre Deut. 26). See also the comment on L.A.B. 40:5, May my words go forth to the heavens.
\n50:5. Where is your God in whom you trust? The traditional jibe of Israel\u2019s enemies, here brought down to the level of the pious individual.
\nneither is the woman who has many sons rich The theme that piety, rather than many children, is what really matters, is also played on by Sirach (16:1\u20134).
\nIf anyone will know \u2026 he will blaspheme The end result of her praying out loud\u2014if her prayer goes unanswered\u2014could be the maligning of God. Hannah avoids doing something that may bring discredit upon God. The notion of hillul ha-Shem, the profanation of God\u2019s name, is common in Rabbinic literature but already present in the Bible (e.g., 2 Sam. 12:14).
\nmy tears also will be Perhaps meaning that, since Hannah wants to avoid anyone hearing her prayer, she will pray silently and thus her soul will be the only witness to her prayer, and her tears the only evidence.
\ntears that are the ministers of my prayers With no spoken words to convey Hannah\u2019s prayers, they are transmitted, so to speak, through her tears. The association of tears and prayer is common (e.g., Ps. 39:13), including the notion of unspoken prayer expressed through tears.
\n50:7. Tell me of your shame In contrast to L.A.B., the Bible never mentions prayer or the nature of Hannah\u2019s problem in the dialogue between Hannah and Eli.
\nI am the wife of Elkanah The biblical Hannah does not identify herself. Of particular note here is that she identifies herself not by her own name but as her husband\u2019s wife.
\nI do not go forth to him The language is striking and unexpected. The author of L.A.B. presumably alludes to the idea that the soul or the spirit returns to God upon the demise of the person (Eccles. 12:7; cf. Pirke R. El. 34, where Ecclesiastes\u2019s \u201cspirit, breath\u201d becomes \u201csoul\u201d; cf. also 4 Ezra 7:78).
\n51:1. in accord with what God had called his name Since Hannah did not know of God\u2019s prophecy, we must assume\u2014if we wish to be logical\u2014that someone (e.g., Eli) told her after the birth of the child that God had already given him a name. That God had already named the child in his prophecies does not accord with L.A.B.\u2019s narrative at 49:7\u20138, but is found in the Midrash (see Midr. Sam. 3 [Buber] 26b).
\nuntil he was two years old The Midrash too says that Samuel was two years old when his mother brought him to Shiloh (Midr. Sam. 3 [Buber] 27a).
\nThe child was very handsome, and the LORD was with him The Bible says nothing about the young Samuel\u2019s physical appearance, although at 1 Sam. 3:19, we learn that \u201cthe LORD was with him.\u201d Since this same expression is used of David (1 Sam. 16:18) and Joseph (Gen. 39:3) L.A.B.\u2019s author was probably influenced by the descriptions of David and Joseph\u2019s appearance to add physical beauty to Samuel\u2019s traits.
\n51:2. your womb has been privileged A variation on a talmudic theme in which Hannah complains that, if she has no child, the breasts that God gave her are purposeless (B. Ber. 31b). The author of L.A.B. uses womb rather than breast.
\nthe milk of your breasts as a fountain Cf. the Midrash\u2019s interpretation of \u201ctwo breasts\u201d (Cant. 4:5) as referring to Moses and Aaron, whose milk was the Torah that they provided to Israel (Shir. Rab. 4:12). The metaphorical use of fountains and springs is common (e.g., Isa. 66:12; Jer. 2:13).
\n51:3. Hannah prayed Hannah\u2019s hymn in L.A.B. has little to do with her hymn at 1 Sam. 2.
\nDrip, my breasts, and relate your testimonies Perhaps meaning that Hannah\u2019s unexpected status as a nursing mother is a testimony to God\u2019s goodness and power.
\nhis horn will be very much exalted The expression \u201cexalted horn\u201d is regular in the Bible. It is in fact used of David, God\u2019s anointed one (Ps. 89:21, 25). Here, however, it is taken from Hannah\u2019s biblical hymn, where it is used once of Hannah herself (1 Sam. 2:1, lit. \u201cMy horn is high\u201d), and once of \u201cHis anointed one\u201d (1 Sam. 2:10, lit. \u201cHe will give power to His king \/And will raise the horn of His anointed one; cf. L.A.B. 51:6). But nothing in the adaptation by L.A.B.\u2019s author suggests anything other than that he refers here to Samuel in his prophetic role.
\n51:4. all men will find the truth Not necessarily implying the universal recognition of God. The \u201ctruth\u201d of which Hannah speaks may refer simply to her ensuing remarks, that is, that money does not constitute true wealth, that God punishes the wicked, and so on.
\nthe light from which wisdom will be born The association of \u201clight\u201d and \u201cwisdom\u201d is common. Biblical texts already provide the foundation (Prov. 6:23; Eccles. 2:13). See also Wis. 7:29\u201330; 18:4. Philo calls wisdom \u201cshining\u201d (e.g., at Planting 40).
\n51:5. the LORD kills Here L.A.B.\u2019s author expands the brief mentions of God as wielder of life and death, and his relation to the good and the wicked at 1 Sam. 2:6, 9 into an account of the afterlife. The targum\u2019s expansion of Hannah\u2019s song also introduces material of this sort (see 2:6, 8\u20139).
\nthe unjust exist in this world If the text is correct, the point must be that the wicked have a real existence only in this world, in contrast to the righteous, who will enjoy the fruits of another world and another life.
\nThe unjust he will shut up in darkness That the wicked ultimately suffer darkness, in contrast to the righteous, is a common idea in extrabiblical sources as well (cf., e.g., Sifre Num. 40, where the \u201cdarkness\u201d at 1 Sam. 2:9 is taken to refer to Hell).
\nfor the just he saves his light That light, which is God\u2019s reward for the righteous, goes back to Ps. 97:11.
\n51:6. daughter of Batuel Hannah\u2019s father is not elsewhere mentioned.
\nfor Asaph prophesied in the wilderness The mysterious Asaph is mentioned in the book of Psalms several times as the author of a number of the psalms. But Ps. 99, which the author of L.A.B. proceeds to quote here as the words of Asaph, is not one of them. Several elements will have conspired here. First, L.A.B.\u2019s author wants to enhance Samuel\u2019s stature by having his existence and role foretold many centuries earlier and documented in a biblical text. Second, some of the psalms attributed to Asaph treat events of the desert (Ps. 77; 78). Third, at 2 Chron. 29:30, Asaph is called a prophet. Gathering all these threads together, L.A.B.\u2019s author could manufacture an Asaph who lived at the time of the desert wanderings and foretold the life of Samuel. The Midrash too contains a view that Asaph lived at the time of the desert wanderings (Shir. Rab. 4:3).
\nSamuel was among them Samuel is not a priest in the book of Samuel.
\nThese words will endure Apparently meaning that Samuel\u2019s leadership of the people will continue until the coronation of Saul.
\nuntil the horn is given to his anointed one Some strands of midrashic exegesis take the biblical verse on which this is based (1 Sam. 2:10) to refer to a historical king (David or Solomon: see Exod. Rab. 1:17; 27:4). The author of L.A.B. seems to be referring to Saul, though David is possible.
\nhis anointed one This expression (\u201cGod\u2019s anointed one\u201d) is used of both Saul (e.g., 1 Sam. 24:7) and David (2 Sam. 19:22).
\n51:7. They departed thence This lengthy section is similar to and probably derived from the account of Solomon\u2019s coronation at 1 Kings 1:33\u201340.
\nThey \u2026 anointed him The notion of anointing a prophet is unusual, but the Bible contains at least one good parallel (1 Kings 19:16, of Elijah\u2019s anointing Elisha as his successor).
\n52:2. I received this position from Phinehas as a pledge We are dealing with an elaborate metaphor. The priesthood is a deposit, a pledge that is entrusted to the individual (or the family) by God. The individual has an obligation to preserve it well, for it does not really belong to him; he is its guardian. God has the right to expect that it will be maintained in its pristine condition. Otherwise, he may take it back and punish the delinquent guardian. The Rabbis occasionally made use of \u201cdeposit\u201d metaphors, particularly of the soul.
\nhe who entrusted it More than likely the reference is to God, not to Phinehas. He has been gone for some time (48:1\u20133).
\nDid the staff of Aaron flower in vain The author is alluding to the episode where Aaron is selected by the trial of the rods (Num. 17:17\u201326).
\n52:3. the men against whom you have sinned will pray for you That the fate of the sinner depends to some extent upon the person against whom he sins is a biblical notion (see, e.g., Exod. 22:26; Deut. 24:15). But the Rabbinic treatment is closer to L.A.B.\u2019s, emphasizing that a sin committed against a fellow human being can only be atoned for through forgiveness on the latter\u2019s part (e.g., M. Yoma 8:9).
\n52:4. When we grow old, then we will turn away The Talmud holds that one who says \u201cI will sin and later repent\u201d is not given the opportunity to repent (B. Yoma 85b). Other exegetes, like the author of L.A.B., attempted to understand why the biblical text asserts that God desired to kill Eli\u2019s sons (1 Sam. 2:25). In L.A.B., the author attributes to the sons this unacceptable attitude about sin and repentance; the Rabbis chose alternative explanations (e.g., Sifre Num. 42).
\nThe LORD was angry at Eli Nothing before this suggests any reason for God\u2019s anger with Eli, nor does L.A.B.\u2019s author follow it up in any way.
\n53:1. He was eight years old The claim that Samuel first received God\u2019s word at age eight seems to be unique to L.A.B.
\n53:2. Moses saw the fire first, and his heart was afraid The Rabbis used the same theme in their treatment of God\u2019s initial encounter with Moses, namely, that he took pains to reveal himself to Moses in a way that would not terrify him (Exod. Rab. 3:1).
\na voice will come to him like that of a man This is pretty much the strategy of God with Moses at Exod. Rab. 3:1.
\n53:3. Father Samuel calls Eli \u201cFather,\u201d corresponding to Eli\u2019s referring to Samuel as \u201cmy son.\u201d The latter is biblical (1 Sam. 3:6, 16).
\nan impure spirit The notions of \u201cspirit of impurity\u201d and \u201cevil spirit\u201d go back to the Bible (e.g., Zech. 13:2; 1 Sam. 16:14). They appear rather frequently in Rabbinic texts, the pseudepigrapha, and the New Testament (e.g., Mark 1:26; Rev. 18:2).
\n53:4. if one should call \u2026 twice One can detect here the not uncommon belief that odd numbers are lucky, even numbers unlucky; see, for example, Virgil, Ecl. 8.75; B. Pes. 109b\u2013110b. In the latter lengthy disquisition, the king of the demons is said to be in charge of even numbers (110a).
\n53:5. Then Eli understood Eli\u2019s realization does not come in the biblical narrative until the third time (1 Sam. 3:8). Thus, while the Bible has four occasions where God calls on Samuel, L.A.B. has only three (see L.A.B. 53:7). Perhaps this has to do with the lucky nature of the number three, as noted above.
\n53:6. right ear \u2026 left ear This passage on the right and left ears is mysterious, but the most illuminating clue to its origin comes from the realm of magic. In a magical text that gives instructions on how to receive prophecy, the individual is told to prepare a certain kind of ink and then to put a little of it into his right ear as he speaks his invocation.
\n53:7. turned on his other side Once again, this probably has to do with magic. A magical papyrus instructs the person who seeks to receive a prophecy to lie on his right side.
\n53:8. God said to him God\u2019s speech to Samuel is built upon God\u2019s words (through his emissary) to Eli at 1 Sam. 2:27, wherein God looks back to the captivity in Egypt and tells of his choice of the priestly line.
\n53:9. When tribe rose up against tribe The author refers here to the episode of Korah and its aftermath in Num. 16\u201317.
\nI did not want to destroy them In the biblical narrative, God is on the verge of destroying the people, but Moses and Aaron prevent this from happening (Num. 16:20\u201322; 17:9\u201315).
\nthat his family be established all the days The flowering of the rod reveals that Aaron and his line have been chosen for the priesthood.
\n53:10. them who transgress the word that I commanded L.A.B. is not the only text that apparently connects Eli\u2019s sons with the law of Deut. 22:6 (\u201cdo not take the mother together with her young\u201d). In the introductory sections of Midr. Sam. 7 (Buber) 33a, immediately preceding the treatment of the sins of Eli\u2019s sons and Eli\u2019s rebuke of them, there is a discussion of the law of the bird\u2019s nest and that of filial devotion. Although the connection is not made explicit, the discussion is surely tied to the disobedience of Eli\u2019s sons. Whether L.A.B.\u2019s author means the reference to the transgression to be taken literally of Eli\u2019s sons is not clear.
\nmothers will die with daughters and fathers will perish with sons The second clause may be taken as referring to the death of Eli and his two sons on the same day (1 Sam. 4:17\u201318). The first clause presumably serves to provide the necessary basis for the second, since the nest injunction is about the mother bird. There is no mother-daughter (or mother-son) death in the Eli episode (though Eli\u2019s daughter-in-law dies in childbirth on the same day: 1 Sam. 4:20; L.A.B. 54:6).
\n53:12. what will be born from you will be a son for me The language is taken from God\u2019s words to David about his future son Solomon (2 Sam. 7:12\u201314).
\n53:13. Samuel was afraid The text in L.A.B. echoes the biblical phrasing (1 Sam. 3:15) in precisely the opposite context, for the biblical text connects Samuel\u2019s fear to his reluctance to tell Eli, while L.A.B.\u2019s author makes it his motivation for telling Eli.
\n54:2. the LORD thundered and said The Midrash also introduces an angry speech by God when the ark is conveyed to the battlefield (S. Eli. Rab. 12).
\nwhich occurred in the wilderness This must allude to Num. 14:39\u201345. But in Numbers precisely the opposite occurs: the ark does not go out to the battlefield, but is explicitly said to remain behind in the camp. Nonetheless, Rabbinic exegesis enables us to understand the version in L.A.B. The Rabbis asserted that there were actually two arks in the desert, one that would always remain in the camp, the other that would go out before the people in campaigns (T. Sot. 7:18; J. Shek. 6:1, 49c). Indeed, the talmudic text appears to imply that the events in Num. 14 were an example of this. The author of L.A.B. has then created an embellished version in which the first ark remains in the tent (as at Num. 14:44), while the second is taken out to the battlefield against God\u2019s will.
\nI will destroy the enemies of my people Even when the People Israel sin and God punishes them for their sins, the punishment becomes an avenue to effect the destruction of their enemies. Here, L.A.B.\u2019s author refers to the events of 1 Sam. 5.
\n54:3. Goliath the Philistine The introduction of Goliath and Saul into this episode is midrashic (Midr. Sam. 11 [Buber] 39b).
\nwith his left hand Clearly so as to leave his right hand available to kill the two men.
\n54:4. the priests have been killed by the sword Although the biblical text says nothing of the manner of their death, the LXX and the Qumran text at 1 Sam. 2:33 (the prophecy to Eli) both say that the priests will fall \u201cby the sword of men.\u201d
\n54:5. prophesied about my sons The contrast between Eli\u2019s reception of the report about his sons and that concerning the Ark, while implicit in the Bible, is made explicit in L.A.B., as in Josephus (Ant. 5.358\u201359).
\n54:6. Ichabod Meaning \u201cthere is no glory\u201d (1 Sam. 4:21).
\n55:1. three days before the battle God had sent him off This entire brief episode, with no basis in the biblical narrative, has a remarkable parallel in a midrashic story about Jeremiah: God concocts a pretext to send Jeremiah out of Jerusalem to his hometown and then proceeds to destroy the city. When the prophet discovers the truth, he complains to God (Pesik. Rav Kah. 13; Pesik. Rab. 26). Here God sends Samuel from Shiloh to his hometown and in his absence causes the army to be defeated and the Ark taken into captivity.
\nGod had sent him off This recalls God\u2019s motivation in L.A.B. for keeping Moses out of the Promised Land, namely, that he not witness the moral corruption of Israel (19:6). Samuel is removed from this scene so as not to witness the physical destruction of Israel.
\n55:2. even if you do take vengeance As elsewhere in L.A.B., the issue of God\u2019s long-term justice is confronted by the shortness of human life (e.g., L.A.B. 39:5).
\n55:3. when they had come to inquire of Dagon concerning their fate The biblical account gives no explanation for the Philistines\u2019 presence in the temple in the morning. Josephus has them come to worship (Ant. 6.1). The author\u2019s strange innovation in L.A.B. may reflect his awareness of the oracular reputation of Philistine deities (see 2 Kings 1:2; cf. Isa. 2:6).
\nthey crucified his priests No punishment is inflicted upon Dagon\u2019s priests in the biblical narrative.
\n55:4. will destroy pregnant women Here and at L.A.B. 55:6 we are told that the plague (of crawling creatures) afflicts pregnant and nursing women and their infants. This is remarkable. The biblical account reports three things: widespread death among the Philistines, young and old (1 Sam. 5:9, 11); a symptom called \u201ctumors\u201d (1 Sam. 5:6, 12); and mice who were ravaging the land (1 Sam. 6:5). These are pretty much absent in L.A.B. On the other hand, L.A.B.\u2019s emphasis on pregnant women and nursing mothers is absent in the Bible.
\n55:6. If the cows \u2026 we will know This is not spelled out in the biblical narrative, but must be the underlying rationale.
\nthe time of ruin has come upon us This makes clear what is slightly ambiguous at L.A.B. 55:5 and 55:7, namely, that in the Philistines\u2019 minds the worse of the two possibilities is that God and his Ark are not responsible for their troubles. The author\u2019s innovation here is remarkable, for it completely reverses the presentation in the Bible, where the Philistines show much less anxiety over this possibility (1 Sam. 6:9). Yet the version in L.A.B. is understandable. If their suffering is God\u2019s doing, the Philistines recognize that they can end it by returning the Ark and making atonement to God. That is why they rejoice (L.A.B. 55:9) when they see that the cows do head for Judaea. If the cows had refused to go forward, indicating that the afflictions did not come from God, the Philistines would have no explanation for their suffering and no means to end it.
\n55:7. the head of the three roads Josephus (Ant. 6.11) also sets the scene at a triple fork in the road. The choice of a crossroads for this sort of trial is not surprising (cf. Ezek. 21:26), since in the popular imagination crossroads were felt to have magical powers.
\nright-hand one to Judaea, and the left-hand one to Samaria The traditional orientation, with \u201cleft\u201d meaning north and \u201cright\u201d south (e.g., Gen. 13:9).
\nto Samaria While this may not be anti-Samaritan polemic, it surely reflects the anachronistic (from the perspective of the biblical narrative) viewpoint of one for whom Samaria was no longer a Jewish region.
\n55:9. the Philistines gathered together While the Bible reports that, in the joy of the moment, the Jews offer the cows as a sacrifice (1 Sam. 6:14), a Rabbinic opinion holds that it was actually the Philistine leaders, who accompanied the Ark all the way back into Judaea, who made the offering (J. Avod. Zar. 2:1, p. 40c).
\nTo Shiloh It is not surprising that L.A.B. has the Ark return to Shiloh, since it has come from there. But this does not jibe with his earlier (L.A.B. 55:8) statement that the cart goes to Judaea. Further, in the Bible the Ark does not go to Shiloh nor is it ever returned there.
\n55:10. the land was quiet for seven years Nothing like this is in the biblical narrative.
\n56:1. must be fulfilled The people interpret the biblical text at Deut. 17:15 as a commandment, exactly as some of the Rabbis did (see, e.g., T. Sanh. 4:5; Sifre Deut. 156), rather than as a contingent possibility.
\n56:3. The LORD said to him by night In L.A.B., the revelation to the prophet occurs at night, as is traditional. Josephus (Ant. 6.37\u201338) also places it at night. The biblical account may imply the daytime (1 Sam. 9:15\u201316).
\nI will send them a king who will destroy them Thus, in characteristic fashion, L.A.B.\u2019s author establishes clearly that all the ills that befall the people during the reign of Saul are part of God\u2019s plan. This is particularly striking given the biblical version of God\u2019s prophecy to Samuel of the coming of Saul, in which God emphasizes that Saul will be the savior of the people (1 Sam. 9:16).
\nat the sixth hour Around noon. The Bible specifies no time, other than that Saul will appear 24 hours after God\u2019s prophecy (which is obviously not the case in L.A.B.). See 1 Sam. 9:16.
\n56:5. be aware that the LORD has chosen you as ruler Here, L.A.B.\u2019s author has conflated two separate scenes. The Bible represents Samuel as explicitly telling Saul on the second day that Saul has been chosen by God to lead the people (1 Sam. 10:1). The text of L.A.B. follows this. But the Bible has Saul\u2019s profession of modesty take place on the first day (1 Sam. 9:21)\u2014an event that L.A.B. attaches to the second day (L.A.B. 56:6).
\n56:6. may your word endure forever The allusion is unclear, but it may be a reference to the humility exemplified by Saul\u2019s words.
\n57:2. my master Moses In Samuel\u2019s mouth the allusion must be to Moses\u2019s status as the master of all the prophets who succeeded him (Pesik. Rab. 31).
\nrose up against him Here the author represents Korah as rebelling against Moses, to parallel the people\u2019s rebellion against Samuel. But at L.A.B. 16, he told the story of Korah as a revolt against God.
\nthey lied then and said, \u201cyou did take.\u201d Neither the Bible nor L.A.B.\u2019s account at chapter 16 represents the rebels as accusing Moses of theft. But one midrashic account has them charge Moses with an indirect form of thievery (Midr. Ag. [Buber] 117; cf. also Midr. Ps. [Buber] 14); this account concludes with the statement, \u201cthey [Moses and Aaron] seek to take for themselves the property of Israel.\u201d
\n57:4. Long live Samuel the prophet The people honor the prophet with the traditional proclamation for the king, as for Saul at 1 Sam. 10:24.
\n58:2. I will show you hidden treasures The Bible simply says that Saul spared Agag, but gives no reason (1 Sam. 15:8\u20139). According to Josephus (Ant. 6.137), Saul spared him because of his handsome appearance. Since the biblical narrative suggests that Saul spared the high-quality herds out of greed (1 Sam. 15:9; cf. 15:19), L.A.B.\u2019s author may have chosen to represent his sparing of Agag as motivated by greed also.
\nbrought him to Ramathaim The Bible has these events taking place in Gilgal. It is not clear whether L.A.B. has just slipped or has deliberately chosen to make the events take place in Samuel\u2019s town.
\n58:3. he let the king of Amalek and his wife live Agag\u2019s wife is not mentioned in the biblical account. The author of L.A.B. needs her survival for the point he intends to make.
\nlet them be L.A.B. could have represented Saul as killed by Agag\u2019s son simply by having a living son escape the battlefield. But (in typical fashion) he wants to emphasize in the clearest and most striking way that the death of Saul is the result of God\u2019s plan (cf. L.A.B. 65:4).
\ntonight The author cleverly exploits the biblical narrative\u2019s implication that one night intervened between Saul\u2019s deed and Samuel\u2019s confrontation with him (1 Sam. 15:11\u201312).
\nHe who will be born from her will become a stumbling block for Saul The notion that a descendant of Agag \u201cwill cause ruin to the Jews\u201d is connected to the Rabbinic view that Haman was a descendant of the Amalekites. Moreover, some midrashic texts imply, like L.A.B., that Saul\u2019s sparing of Agag for that one night enabled him to have intercourse with his wife, with the result that she conceived a son\u2014who then became the ancestor of Haman. One source cites a proverb, \u201cHe who respects his enemy will in the end die at his hands\u201d (Alphabet Ben-Sira [Eisenstein, p. 40]). The author of L.A.B. appears to have applied this more immediately than the Midrash, making Saul the direct victim rather than later Jews who suffered at Haman\u2019s hands.
\nSaul\u2019s sin is written before me That God keeps written records about the lives of human beings is already a biblical notion (e.g., Exod. 32:32\u201333; Isa. 65:6; Mal. 3:16). It becomes commonplace in Rabbinic writings (e.g., B. RH 16b).
\n58:4. with a sword The Bible does not tell us what weapon Samuel used. The verb used in the biblical passage (1 Sam. 15:33) occurs only here in the Bible. The author of L.A.B. probably chose a sword not only because a sword might have seemed most likely and efficient in the context, but also because of the implications of Samuel\u2019s words to Agag: \u201cAs your sword has bereaved women, \/So shall your mother be bereaved among women\u201d (1 Sam. 15:33). The correlative (\u201cjust as \u2026 so too\u201d) will be easily interpreted to imply that Samuel uses a sword.
\n59:2. Are you not the one who said The Midrash also views Samuel\u2019s failure to properly evaluate Eliab as a punishment from God for his arrogant statement \u201cI am the seer\u201d (1 Sam. 9:19). Indeed, L.A.B.\u2019s words here are almost exactly what Sifre Deut. 17 has: \u201cDidn\u2019t you say, \u2018I am the seer\u2019?\u201d
\nSeek out \u2026 and anoint him As often in L.A.B., God\u2019s role is amplified. In the Bible, after the initial lapse with regard to Eliab, Samuel proceeds to review six more brothers and reject them all. He then, on his own initiative, inquires whether there are any more. Only after David is presented to him does God say, \u201cAnoint him.\u201d All this is absent in L.A.B., whose author simply has God tell Samuel virtually at the outset to seek out the youngest and anoint him.
\n59:3\u20134. The LORD was with him \u2026 Then David undertook to sing this song The author of L.A.B. may be making a connection here: David\u2019s poetic ability was the result of God\u2019s inspiration from this point on. This is exactly what Kimhi asserts at 1 Sam. 16:13 and is also remarked by Pseudo-Jerome.
\n59:4. Then David undertook to sing \u2026 and he said, From the ends of the earth I will give praise Noncanonical \u201cPsalms of David\u201d circulated in the late Second Temple period; some were found among the Qumran writings. It is worth noting that the Talmud attributes part of a psalm to the occasion of Samuel\u2019s anointing of David (B. Pes. 119a).
\nAbel at the beginning I am unaware of any connections made between Abel and David outside of L.A.B.
\nhis brother was jealous of him One etymology of Cain\u2019s name derives it from k-n-a (\u201cto be jealous\u201d), and some who have followed this etymology assert that Cain\u2019s murder of Abel was the result of envy on the former\u2019s part.
\nmy brothers were jealous of me This is a strong echo, virtually a quotation, of Gen. 37:11 (NEB; concerning Joseph and his brothers). The author of L.A.B. may be making a significant association between Joseph and David. The Midrash explicitly compares David and Joseph, noting that both of them retained their fine character even after being elevated to greatness (Sifre Deut. 334).
\nmy father and my mother abandoned me An echo of Ps. 27:10. But it is no mere echo when L.A.B. puts into David\u2019s mouth words of the psalmist. Rather, it is a case of L.A.B.\u2019s author utilizing Psalms as an autobiographical source for David.
\n59:5. a fierce lion The battle with the lion and bear is reported by David himself at 1 Sam. 17:34\u201336. The Bible gives no indication that the episode took place at the time of Samuel\u2019s anointing of David.
\nthis will be a sign for me That is, David\u2019s fight against the wild animals will foretell his success in human warfare. The Midrash also sees David\u2019s victory over the animals as a sign of his future triumph over Goliath (see Mek. Amalek 2).
\n60:1. by night Not specified in the Bible. The author of L.A.B. reasonably assumes that Saul\u2019s depression will manifest itself in his inability to sleep at night. Indeed, at 1 Sam. 19:10 it is evident that such is the case.
\n60:2. Some elements of the psalm sung here by David show Gnostic influence. But exorcism was commonplace in the world of L.A.B.\u2019s author, and Jews were not immune. Thus, even Rabbinic literature offers an antidemon incantation (B. Pes. 112a), an exorcism performed by the Rabbis (B. Me\u2019ila 17b), and a story at Tanhuma (Buber) 4:59b that displays Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai\u2019s familiarity with exorcism\u2019s procedures. Further, it is not hard to see the Bible\u2019s story of David and Saul as an instance of exorcism. Josephus certainly thought it was such (Ant. 6.166).
\nDarkness and silence were before the world was made This psalm consists essentially of two interwoven themes. The first is an account of Creation, the second is the exorcism proper. The latter derives naturally from the biblical episode. The former may reflect the Rabbis\u2019 belief that David was himself particularly interested in and expert at ma\u2019ase bereshit, matters pertaining to God\u2019s creation of the world. See, for example, Exod. Rab. 15:22, where we are told that Moses\u2019s account of the Creation (in Genesis) was not always clear and so David in his Psalms took it upon himself to clarify such obscurities.
\nDarkness and Silence were before the world was made At least one midrashic text puts it as explicitly as L.A.B., that darkness existed before God\u2019s creation of the world (Tanh. Va-yak\u2019hel 6).
\nThe upper part was commanded Here, L.A.B.\u2019s author follows the teleological thrust of Gen. 1:29\u201330.
\n60:3. Tartarus Tartarus is commonly used in Jewish Greek texts for the underworld (e.g., Philo, Rewards 152; Sib. Or. 4:186).
\nyour brood was created There is a pointed and significant contrast here between the spirit\u2019s lineage and David\u2019s. The exorcist\u2019s is superior to the demon\u2019s; probably an important factor in predicting the likelihood of a successful exorcism.
\nthe new womb An allusion to the familiar apocalyptic notion of a \u201cnew age.\u201d
\none will be born \u2026 and will rule This may refer to Solomon, who was famous for his power over demons (see, e.g., Ant. 8:45), or to a messianic figure (though L.A.B.\u2019s author in general has little interest in the messiah), who is sometimes said to conquer evil spirits (e.g., T. Levi 18:12; 1 En. 69:28).
\n61:1. The Midianites happened upon him The Bible reports no encounter between David and the Midianites, nor indeed any battle between David and human forces prior to his battle with Goliath.
\n61:2. he looked upon Saul and Israel The Bible does not yet introduce Saul at this point in the narrative (1 Sam. 17:8), but Josephus has exactly what L.A.B. does, \u201cto Saul and the Jews\u201d (Ant. 6.172).
\nthat fled before me when I took the ark The supplement-Targum at 1 Sam. 17:8 also has Goliath mention his capture of the Ark and killing of Eli\u2019s sons.
\ncome down like a man Goliath\u2019s challenge in the Bible is general in scope (1 Sam. 17:8\u201310). In L.A.B., Goliath addresses it directly to Saul. But the supplement-Targum at 1 Sam. 17:8 has Goliath challenge Saul, just as in L.A.B.
\nmake your people serve our gods An interesting change wrought by L.A.B.\u2019s author. The Bible\u2019s Goliath speaks merely of enslaving the Israelites (1 Sam. 17:9). Here again, L.A.B.\u2019s author is concerned with the issue of Jews worshiping strange deities.
\nIn accord with the number of days \u2026 forty days The language is closely modeled on Num. 14:34. The Talmud also draws a connection between the 40 days at Sinai and the 40 days of Goliath\u2019s taunts (B. Sot. 42b).
\n61:5. he took seven stones and wrote The Bible says \u201cfive.\u201d The version in L.A.B. appears to be the only one that specifies seven stones.
\nwrote on them the names of his fathers At Ezek. 37:16, the prophet is directed to write names on pieces of wood. And, of course, the names of the tribes are inscribed on the priestly gems (Exod. 28:9\u201312).
\n61:6. Were not the two women \u2026 sisters? The Rabbis concocted a kinship between David and Goliath by asserting that Ruth and Orpah were sisters (see Yal. Shimoni 2:42; Ruth Rab. 2:9).
\nYour mother was Orpah, and my mother Ruth The Midrash identifies Harapha, the parent or ancestor of a Philistine Goliath (2 Sam. 21:19\u201322), with Orpah, Ruth\u2019s sister-in-law.
\n61:7. Hurry and kill me, and rejoice The doomed warrior directs his victorious enemy to kill him. This is a theme in Greco-Roman heroic epic literature (e.g. Virgil, Aen. 10.900), but also occurs in the Bible (e.g., Judg. 8:21; cf. 1 Sam. 15:32).
\n61:8. The Philistine \u2026 saw the angel The reference is to Zervihel, mentioned at L.A.B. 61:5. The Midrash also introduces an angel who assists in David\u2019s slaying of Goliath (Midr. Ps. 18:32 [Buber] 80b).
\n61:9. The angel \u2026 changed David\u2019s appearance, and no one recognized him This is the author\u2019s way of coping with Saul\u2019s failure to recognize David at 1 Sam. 17:55. The Rabbis found other ways to explain this too.
\n62:2. Go to your place Saul is pursuing David so as to kill him; the prophetic voice tells him to go back home. This may recall Saul\u2019s decision not to hunt David at 1 Sam. 26:23\u201325, which concludes, \u201cSaul returned to his place\u201d (KJV).
\n62:4. Though I killed Goliath The reference to David\u2019s slaying of Goliath as a favor to Saul derives from Jonathan\u2019s words at 1 Sam. 19:4\u20135.
\nhe has marked out my father\u2019s house for destruction The Bible gives no indication that Saul has any such malevolent intentions against David\u2019s family.
\nso that the assemblage of wise men might hear of his resolution \u201cHis resolution\u201d refers to a vow made by Saul. Our text then refers to a court assembled to hear of Saul\u2019s vow and possibly to annul it. According to Rabbinic law, a court could effectively initiate such annulment proceedings when the oath itself violated biblical law (see, e.g., M. Ned. 9:4). One might recall the story of Jephthah\u2019s oath that led to the killing of his daughter, about which the Rabbis wrote that the high priest should have gone to Jephthah and annulled the vow (Tanhuma [Buber] 3:57a).
\n62:5. on my account lose his own life The Midrash too represents David as noting that, should his enemies kill him (and the context indicates that Saul is included), they will die for violating the biblical commandment of murder (Midr. Ps. 54:3 [Buber] 145b).
\nthe righteousness of my father helps me The Midrash tells of Jesse\u2019s great righteousness (e.g., B. BB 17a).
\n62:6. if God forgives wicked deeds, how much more should your father A variation on the Rabbinic principle that \u201cjust as God is merciful and kind, so too should you be merciful and kind\u201d (e.g., Mek. Sirata 3).
\nwho is flesh and blood A common postbiblical expression signifying \u201ca mere human being\u201d (e.g., Sir. 14:18; Sifre Num. 84).
\nlike a bird who flees before the hawk The same simile is used in the Midrash about the Israelites trapped at Sea of Reeds, \u201clike a pigeon fleeing from a hawk\u201d (Mek. Besh. 2).
\n62:7. Michal, your sister This is the first we have heard of Michal in L.A.B. In the Bible she is also David\u2019s wife (1 Sam. 18:27).
\n62:8. It would have been better A variation on David\u2019s words to Jonathan at 1 Sam. 20:8, where he indicates that he would rather be slain by Jonathan than fall into Saul\u2019s hands.
\n62:9. Our sins have caused this What these sins are is not indicated. The author of L.A.B. appears to be assuming that if they are suffering, they must have sinned.
\nyour kingdom is in this world The notion of a twofold reign\u2014one in this world, another in the world to come\u2014is also found in midrashic texts. Thus, at Midr. Ps. 57:3 (Buber) 149b, we are told that David\u2019s kingdom will be in both this world and the next.
\n62:10. let us collect our tears into one vessel The biblical source for placing tears in a vessel is Ps. 56:9, interestingly with reference to David, perhaps in the context of his flight from Saul. The vessel however is God\u2019s. The uniting of their tears in the vessel is a symbolic enactment of the covenant between Jonathan and David. In our context where the friends are separating, the mingling of their tears will also symbolize their continuing closeness and unity in spite of their physical separation.
\n62:11. you will reign The biblical Jonathan also recognizes that David, not he, will rule (1 Sam. 23:17).
\nremember the table at which we ate together An allusion to David\u2019s customary feasting with Saul and Jonathan. See 1 Sam. 20:18\u201334.
\nthe jealousy with which he was evilly jealous of you Apparently a reference to 1 Sam. 18:7\u20139. The Midrash also explicitly speaks of Saul\u2019s \u201cenvy\u201d of David. See, for example, Midr. Ps. 52:5 (Buber) 143a.
\n63:1. The priests \u2026 were profaning the holy things The author\u2019s assertion that the priests were corrupt is intended to justify their horrible end, but seems a bit inconsistent with L.A.B. 63:3, where the murder of the priests is viewed as a heinous crime.
\n63:2. Abimelech the priest takes counsel with David This paranoid view of Saul\u2019s is based on Saul\u2019s words at 1 Sam. 22:13.
\n63:3. Now \u2026 they are silent This is the same sort of argument that God uses earlier, namely, that the Jews are energetic in acting when offenses again humans are involved, but lax when it comes to defending God\u2019s interests (L.A.B. 45:6; cf. 47:8).
\nwith their king The Midrash agrees with L.A.B.\u2019s author in saying that Saul\u2019s death is his punishment for killing the priests of Nob. See Tanhuma (Buber) 3:23a.
\n63:4. into his tongue Doeg has sinned with his tongue and so is appropriately punished in his tongue.
\ninextinguishable fire The notion of fire that is not extinguished goes back to Isa. 66:24.
\n64:1. to make a name for himself The same goal that partially motivated the builders of the tower of Babel (Gen. 11:4). Cf. also L.A.B.\u2019s Micah (44:2).
\nhe has no prophets At 1 Sam. 28:6, the Bible says that there were prophets, but that God did not send any to help Saul. See also L.A.B. 64:3. Josephus\u2019s version is similar (Ant. 6.328\u201329).
\n64:2. Behold Samuel the prophet is dead, and who prays for Israel? The death (or prospective death) of the Jewish leader elsewhere in L.A.B. produces anxiety among the Jews as to who will pray on their behalf (L.A.B. 19:3; cf. 33:4\u20135). Here the motif is turned on its head and used by the enemies of Israel as a source of advantage to them.
\n64:3. He sought prophets, but none appeared Presumably this means that Saul had banished the prophets or they had fled, and now he was unable to find them (see comment on 64:1, he has no prophets).
\nSaul said to the people In L.A.B., the people as a whole are implicated in Saul\u2019s sin, whereas in the Bible, only Saul\u2019s ministers are involved in the plan (1 Sam. 28:7). By implicating everyone, L.A.B.\u2019s author justifies the rout of the whole people in the battle (1 Sam. 28:19; 31:1).
\nThere is a woman, Sedecla The witch of Endor does not appear to be so named elsewhere. Indeed, she is rarely named at all. She may be called Zephania (or something like this) at Pirke R. El. 33.
\n64:4. Saul put on ordinary clothing 1 Samuel 28:8 says that he donned different clothing. The author of L.A.B. presumably means something like the Midrash, that he put on ordinary garb rather than royal regalia (see Midr. Sam. 24:1 [Buber] 59b).
\nmy appearance has changed, and the glory of my kingship has passed from me Likely an allusion to the notion that the face of a king shone (see, e.g., Pirke R. El. 16). Saul means that the radiance that had marked his face is no longer present. As this radiance is said to be of celestial origin (see, e.g., Pesik. Rab. 20), Saul recognizes that he has lost God\u2019s favor.
\n64:5. Behold you are Saul Neither L.A.B.\u2019s author nor the Bible indicates clearly how the witch comes to recognize Saul. The Rabbis offered several suggestions. Josephus explicitly asserts that Samuel informed her (Ant. 6:332).
\n64:6. white robe with a mantle \u201cWhite\u201d is probably a reference to the custom of burial in a white shroud. The Rabbis believed that the dead will rise in the garments they were buried in (Samuel was buried in his robe: see Tanhuma [Buber] 3:41b).
\n64:7. I thought that the time of payment for my deeds had arrived The Midrash also indicates that Samuel thought he was being brought up to face the final judgment.
\nsinned now a second time Presumably this refers to Saul\u2019s visit to the witch, while the first sin would be his failure to wipe out Amalek. This appears to be the view at 1 Chron. 10:13, and is made explicit at Pirke R. El. 33.
\n64:8. what is yours will be taken from you This looks like a measure-for-measure punishment: one who envies what another has will in the end lose what he possesses. The Talmud enunciates this principle in virtually the same words: \u201cWho desires what does not belong to him \u2026 loses what he has\u201d (see B. Sot. 9a\u2013b).
\n64:9. I go to die with my sons Saul\u2019s acceptance of his fate and willingness to go to his death are in no way indicated in the biblical narrative, but they are stressed in Josephus (Ant. 6.344\u201345) and the Midrash (e.g., Tanhuma [Buber] 3:42a).
\nmy destruction will be an atonement for my wickedness The Midrash too makes Saul\u2019s death his atonement for his sins (see Pirke R. El. 33).
\n65:4. Edabus, son of Agag The Bible merely identifies him as an Amalekite (2 Sam. 1:8, 13).
\n65:5. So says Saul The story of Saul in L.A.B. thus ends with the fulfillment of a divine prophecy, the anticipation of David\u2019s kingship, and a plea for forgiveness and reconciliation.
\nDo not remember my hatred and my injustice Saul\u2019s final words echo those of Jonathan to David at L.A.B. 62:11. Thus, L.A.B.\u2019s author chooses to conclude his work on a conciliatory note. He may have been influenced by the custom of the synagogue not to end a scriptural reading with a sentiment of catastrophe; for example, the prophetic reading on \u201cThe Great Sabbath\u201d repeats Mal. 3:23 at the end so as not to conclude with the final words of verse 24. The desire to end on a positive note is also characteristic of the Rabbis\u2019 public sermons. Saul\u2019s recognition of the injustice of his behavior toward David has its roots in the Bible, as does the accompanying apology and request for generosity on David\u2019s part (1 Sam. 24:18\u201323; 26:21). The language, however, recalls that of another repentant enemy of David\u2019s (Shimei son of Gera, at 2 Sam. 19:20): \u201cdo not remember the wrong your servant committed.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pseudo-Daniel<\/p>\n
John J. Collins<\/p>\n
In 1956, J. T. Milik published several fragments of three manuscripts, all written in Aramaic, that mention the name of Daniel. Two of these manuscripts (4Q243 and 4Q244, or Pseudo-Daniela and Pseudo-Danielb) share some language and content, and certainly belong to the same text. The third, 4Q245 (or Pseudo-Danielc), appears to belong to a different text. We have, then, two different Pseudo-Daniel texts. The manuscripts date to the 1st century CE.<\/p>\n
SUGGESTED READING<\/p>\n
Collins, J. J. \u201cPseudo-Daniel Revisited.\u201d RevQ 17 (1996): 111\u201336.
\nCollins, J. J., and P. W. Flint. \u201c243\u201345. 4Qpseudo-Daniela\u2013c ar.\u201d In Qumran Cave 4.XVII: Parabiblical Texts, Part 3, by G. Brooke et al., 95\u2013164. Discoveries in the Judaean Desert 22. Oxford: Clarendon, 1996.
\nDiTommaso, L. \u201c4Qpseudo-Daniela\u2013b (4Q243\u20134Q244) and the Book of Daniel.\u201d DSD 12 (2005): 101\u201333.
\nFlint, P. W. \u201c4Qpseudo-Daniel arc (4Q425) and the Restoration of the Priesthood.\u201d RevQ 17 (1996): 137\u201350.
\nMilik, J. T. \u201c \u2018Pri\u00e8re de Nabonide\u2019 et autres \u00e9crits d\u2019un cycle de Daniel.\u201d RB 63 (1956): 407\u201315.
\nWise, M. O. \u201c4Q425 (PsDanc ar) and the High Priesthood of Judas Maccabaeus.\u201d DSD 12 (2005): 313\u201362.<\/p>\n
COMMENTARY<\/p>\n
4Q243 2 2. Belshazzar Son of the last king of Babylon, Nabonidus; Belshazzar ruled in his father\u2019s absence. Inaccurately called \u201cKing\u201d in Dan. 5:1; 8:1.
\n4Q244 1 1. the Assyrians They do not appear in the book of Daniel.
\n4Q243 6 2. and in it was written The reference is apparently to a writing that includes both past and future history, as noted in the introductory comments to Pseudo-Daniela\u2013b above.
\n4Q243 9 1. Enoch His name here could indicate that he is the supposed author of the writing referred to in the last comment, or a figure in the narrative.
\n4Q244 8 3. Lubar A mountain of Ararat where the ark ran aground. It is not mentioned in Genesis, but is found in Jub. 5:28; 7:1, 17; 10:15, Gen. Ap. 12:13 and 6Q8 26:1. See also The Book of Giants.
\n4Q243 10 2\u20133 Compare Gen. 11:5, where the LORD comes down to see the Tower of Babel.
\n4Q244 13 1. he scattered them The builders of the tower (Gen. 11:8).
\n4Q243 35 1. his reward This word is used with reference to Abraham in Tg. Onk. at Gen. 15:1.
\n4Q243 11 ii 1\u20133 The juxtaposition of \u201cEgypt\u201d and \u201crule (or: dominion) in the land\u201d suggests the story of Joseph.
\n4Q243 12 1. four hundred years The duration of the captivity in Egypt (Gen. 5:13; Jub. 14:13). Exodus 12:40\u201341 gives 430 years.
\n4Q243 28 1. Qahat Second son of Levi, father of Amram, grandfather of Moses and Aaron (Exod. 6:18; Num. 3:19). Transliterated as \u201cKohath\u201d in NJPS.
\n28 2. Phinehas, Abishua Phinehas was the son of Aaron (Num. 25:11); Abishua, the son of Phinehas (1 Chron. 5:30).
\n4Q243 34 1. the tabernacle See Exod. 35\u201340.
\n4Q243 13+244 12 These four lines make the point that the exile was a punishment for demon worship (see Ps. 106:37, 40\u201341).
\nTo give them into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar Compare the Damascus Document, CD 1:6, where the same phrase is used as a way of referring to the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE. In the Damascus Document, this serves as the starting point of a period of 390 years of punishment, after which the elect group emerged.
\n4Q243 14 2. hundred kings The placement of this fragment is tentative. The reference is to some period of Gentile domination, possibly the exile.
\n4Q243 7 2. Chaldaeans Mention of the Chaldeans implies an exilic setting.
\n4Q243 7 3. the way of truth This phrase may refer to the formation of a remnant, as in CD 1.
\n4Q243 8 2. from Israel, men Compare the remnant from Aaron and Israel in CD 1:7: he visited them and caused to sprout from Israel and from Aaron a shoot of planting in order to possess his land.
\n4Q243 8 3. which is not to be changed Compare Dan. 6:9, where the reference is to a decree of the Persian king. The reference here is obscure.
\n4Q243 21 2. Balakros A relatively common Hellenistic name, borne by three officers of Alexander the Great.
\n4Q243 19 The four lines of this fragment contain the endings of two Greek names (-rhos;-os) that cannot be restored.
\n4Q243 16 1. seventy This number is not certain as the reading is partially restored. Milik assumed it referred to the duration of the exile, but 70 is mentioned twice in 4Q390 (1 2; 2 i 6) with reference to other periods.
\n16 2. with his great hand and he will save them Compare the Exodus, but the verb is imperfect and probably refers to salvation at the end-time.
\n16 4. holy Only the first letter of \u201choly\u201d survives. Milik restored the word as \u201cfirst,\u201d (Aramaic: qdmyt\u2019) assuming a reference to four kingdoms.
\n4Q243 25 3\u20134. the land will be filled \u2026 all their decayed carcasses Presumably those of the fallen enemy. Compare Ezek. 38\u201339; Rev. 19.
\n4Q243 24 2. the elect Literally, \u201cthe called.\u201d Compare those \u201ccalled by name\u201d in CD 2:11.
\n4Q243 26 2. without number The number of the elect. Compare Rev. 7:4\u20139.
\n4Q245 1 i 5 Levi can be safely restored as father of Qahat (Gen. 46:11). Much of this list from Bukki to Hilkiah (lines 6\u20138) is drawn from 1 Chron. 5:27\u201341 (NJPS and other Hebrew translations; in other English translations: 1 Chron. 6:1\u201315).
\n4Q245 1 i 6. Bukki, Uzzi Compare 1 Chron. 6:5 (In NJPS, it is 1 Chron. 5:31, in the geneology of the sons of Aaron, repeated in NJPS 1 Chron. 6:36.)
\n4Q245 1 i 7. Zadok, Abiathar The two main priests under David (2 Sam. 15:24, 29, 35; 1 Chron. 15:11). Abiathar was not a Zadokite and is not included in the descendants of Levi in 1 Chronicles.
\n4Q245 1 i 8. Hilkiah The high priest at the time of Josiah\u2019s reform (1 Kings 22:4).
\n4Q245 1 i 9. Onias There is not enough space for all high priests of the post-exilic period, so the list resumes after a gap. Onias could be Onias I (ca. 300 BCE), Onias II (ca. 250 BCE), or Onias III (ca. 190\u2013175 BCE).
\n4Q245 1 i 10. Jonathan, Simon These can only be the Maccabees.
\n4Q245 1 i 11. David, Solomon The list of priests is followed by the kings of united Israel and Judah. The two lists may imply that the offices of priest and king should be distinct, and implicitly criticize the combination of these offices in one person by the later Hasmoneans.
\n4Q425 2 3. they have gone astray The Aramaic for this phrase could also be read as a noun, \u201cerror.\u201d The text on this fragment apparently poses a contrast between two groups, possibly between righteous and wicked priests and kings or between the elect and the wicked in the end-time.
\n4Q245 2 4. these then will arise Milik thought this was a reference to resurrection, but this is not necessarily so. It may simply mean that a group will arise, or come into being.
\n4Q245 2 5. and they will return The verb could be read as \u201crestore.\u201d In any case, a restoration is implied.<\/p>\n
Son of God<\/p>\n
John J. Collins<\/p>\n
The fragmentary Aramaic text 4Q246 is variously known as \u201cthe Son of God text,\u201d the Aramaic Apocalypse, or the Aramaic Apocryphon of Daniel. While identifying a text by a single motif is not very satisfactory, the first of these titles may be the least problematic. Since the beginning and end are missing, it is difficult to be sure of the genre, although this text is apocalyptic in character. Least satisfactory is the title, Apocryphon of Daniel (4QapocrDan ar). Daniel is not named in 4Q246, although the text has several points of affinity to the book of Daniel.
\nThe text consists of two columns, of which the first is torn down the middle so that only the second half of each line survives. The second column is virtually intact but ends with a construct form, which means that it does not contain the end of the text. The first column introduces a prophetic speech by an individual in the presence of a king, apparently interpreting a vision. He speaks of distress and carnage on earth. At the end of the first column a figure is introduced, who will be great on earth, and at the beginning of the second column he is called \u201cson of God\u201d and \u201cson of the Most High.\u201d Upheavals will continue \u201cuntil the people of God arise.\u201d Then there will be a lasting kingdom, and war will cease.
\nThere has been considerable controversy over the identity of the figure, who will be called \u201cson of God.\u201d Milik suggests that he was a Syrian king, and a number of scholars have rallied to that position. They appeal especially to two considerations: he is said to be called (rather than just to be) Son of God, and there is an indentation in the text before the rise of the people of God. This is taken to indicate a turning point in the text, so that all that precedes it is negative. Neither of these considerations is sound. Nothing in the text itself suggests that the titles are inappropriate, and since this kind of literature is notoriously repetitive, it is simplistic to suggest that everything before the alleged turning point must be negative. The closest parallels are found in Luke 1:32\u201335: \u201cHe will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the LORD God will give to him the throne of his ancestor David \u2026 he will be called Son of God.\u201d The titles are clearly messianic in Luke, and they are most plausibly understood to refer to the Davidic messiah also in 4Q246.<\/p>\n
Authorship and History<\/p>\n
The manuscript dates from the late 1st century BCE. It is not clearly sectarian; that is, it is not clearly a product of a group such as the one described in the Damascus Document or in Rule of the Community from Qumran. It was acquired in 1958 and entrusted to J. T. Milik, who lectured on it at Harvard in December 1972. It was partially published by J. A. Fitzmyer in 1974, on the basis of Milik\u2019s handout. It was eventually published in full by Emile Puech in 1992 and again in the Discoveries in the Judaean Desert series in 1996.<\/p>\n
SUGGESTED READING<\/p>\n
Collins, J. J. The Scepter and the Star: The Messiahs of the Dead Sea Scrolls and Other Ancient Literature, 154\u201372. Anchor Bible Reference Library. New York: Doubleday, 1995; revised edition: Grand Rapids MI: Erdmans, 2010, pp. 171\u201390.
\n\u2014\u2014\u2014. \u201cThe Background of the \u2018Son of God\u2019 Text.\u201d BBR 7 (1997): 51\u201362.
\nCook, E. M. \u201c4Q246.\u201d BBR 5 (1995): 43\u201366.
\nCross, F. M. \u201cThe Structure of the Apocalypse of \u2018Son of God\u2019 (4Q246).\u201d In Emanuel: Studies in Hebrew Bible, Septuagint, and Dead Sea Scrolls in Honor of Emanuel Tov, edited by Shalom M. Paul, Robert A. Kraft, Lawrence H. Schiffman, and Weston W. Fields, with the assistance of Eva Ben-David, 151\u201358. Supplements to Vetus Testamentum 94. Leiden: Brill, 2003.
\nFitzmyer, J. A. \u201cThe Contribution of Qumran Aramaic to the Study of the New Testament.\u201d NTS 20 (1973\u201374): 382\u2013407. Reprinted in A Wandering Aramean: Collected Aramaic Essays, by Joseph A. Fitzmyer, edited by Leander E. Keck, 85\u2013113. Society of Biblical Literature Monograph Series 25. Chico CA: Scholars Press, 1979.
\n\u2014\u2014\u2014. \u201c4Q246: The \u2018Son of God\u2019 Document from Qumran.\u201d Bib 74 (1993): 153\u201374.
\nGarc\u00eda Mart\u00ednez, F. \u201cThe Eschatological Figure of 4Q246.\u201d In Qumran and Apocalyptic: Studies on the Aramaic Texts from Qumran, by F. Garc\u00eda Mart\u00ednez, 162\u201379. Studies on the Texts of the Desert of Judah 9. Leiden: Brill, 1992.
\nPuech, E. \u201cFragment d\u2019une Apocalypse en Aram\u00e9en (4Q246=pseudo-Dand).\u201d RB 99 (1992): 98\u2013131.
\n\u2014\u2014\u2014. \u201c246. 4Qapocryphe de Daniel ar.\u201d In Qumran Cave 4.XVII: Parabiblical Texts, Part 3, edited by G. Brooke, et al., 165\u201384. DJD 22. Oxford: Clarendon, 1996.
\nZimmermann, J. \u201cMessianische Texte aus Qumran,\u201d 128\u201370. Wissenschlaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 2\/104. T\u00fcbingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1998.<\/p>\n
COMMENTARY<\/p>\n
1:1. settled on him Probably \u201cthe spirit of God came upon him.\u201d The prophetic figure is before a royal throne, as in Dan. 2.
\n1:2. O King, forever Probably \u201cLive, O King, forever.\u201d Cf. Dan. 2:4; 3:9; 5:10; 6:7, 22.
\nWrath is coming The Aramaic word for \u201ccoming\u201d is spelled like the second person masculine pronoun in Hebrew (atah), and many scholars translate this phrase as \u201cyou are angry.\u201d Hebrew elements may be present in the text, but it is safer to translate it as Aramaic.
\n1:3. your vision \u2026 forever Evidently the king has had a vision that relates to future history.
\n1:4. great \u2026 distress Probably meaning war, famine, and pestilence, which are perennial subjects of prophecy.
\n1:5. carnage The word for \u201ccarnage,\u201d nachshir, is a Persian loanword, also found in the War Scroll.
\n1:6 Some have suggested that the king of Assyria (Syria) and Egypt must be Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who briefly ruled Egypt, but historians dispute whether he was ever king of Egypt. The singular \u201cking\u201d could be distributive (cf. \u201cking of Sodom and Gomorrah\u201d in Gen. 14:10, where the reference is to two kings), and it is even possible that \u201cEgypt\u201d begins a new sentence.
\n1:7 The subject is not preserved, but cf. Luke 1:32 (\u201cHe will be great, and \u2026\u201d where the subject is Jesus).
\n1:9 he Refers to the figure who is called \u201cSon of God\u201d at 4Q246 2:1.
\nby his name he shall be named The easiest inference here is that it is by God\u2019s name that he will be called, although \u201che\u201d may possibly refer to a king with the same name as his father (e.g., Antiochus).
\n2:1. Son of God he will be called Cf. Luke 1:32\u201335. For the Davidic king as Son of God, see Ps. 2:7; 2 Sam. 7:14. Cf. also 4Q174 (Florilegium) 1 i 11, which applies 2 Sam. 7:14 to the messianic \u201cBranch of David.\u201d God refers to the messiah as \u201cmy son\u201d in 4 Ezra 7:28; 13:32; B. Suk. 52A; and Midr. Teh 2:9\u201310. While Seleucid kings often claimed to be \u201cgod\u201d (theos) or \u201cgod made manifest\u201d (Theos Epiphan\u0113s), the title \u201cson of God,\u201d or even \u201cson of (a specific) god\u201d (Zeus or Apollo) never appears on their coins. One king, Alexander Balas, claimed to be theopator, \u201cson of a divine father,\u201d but the \u201cdivine father\u201d in question was Antiochus Epiphanes, not Zeus. The Roman emperor Augustus was called divi filius, \u201cson of God\u201d (i.e., son of the divinized Julius Caesar).
\n2:1\u20132. Like comets \u2026 so shall their kingdom be That is, they shall pass rapidly.
\n2:3. trample Cf. the fourth beast in Dan. 7.
\nPeople shall trample people Cf. Mark 13:8; 4 Ezra 13:31.
\n2:4. until the people of God arise This line is indented, marking the transition to the climax of the prophecy. This does not necessarily mean that the \u201cSon of God\u201d is a negative figure, over whom the people of God triumphs. More plausibly, he represents the people of God as their king. (It is possible to read \u201cuntil the people of God arise\u201d as \u201cuntil he raises up the kingdom of God,\u201d taking either God or the \u201cSon of God\u201d as the subject.) The fact that conflict continues for a time after his appearance is not surprising. In Dan. 12, there is a time of anguish after Michael arises. In 4 Ezra 13, the advent of the man from the sea is followed by the assault of the nations.
\n2:5. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom Cf. Dan. 3:33 (NRSV 4:3), where the reference is to God. Some scholars read \u201cits kingdom,\u201d taking the \u201cpeople of God\u201d as the antecedent, but the statements that follow are more easily applied to an individual messianic figure.
\n2:7. The great God will be his help Cf. Pss. Sol. 17:34, 39: \u201cThe LORD himself is his king, the hope of him who is strong in the hope of God \u2026 His hope is upon the LORD: who then can prevail against him.\u201d
\n2:8 The role of the messiah is to defeat the Gentiles by the power of God. This is already implicit in Ps. 2. The same theme is found in other texts found at Qumran. Cf. 1QS 5:23\u201329; 4QpIsaa 8\u201310, 18\u201322; 4Q285 5.
\n2:9. His dominion is an everlasting dominion Cf. Dan. 4:31; 7:14, where the reference is to God.<\/p>\n
Pesher Nahum<\/p>\n
Shani Berrin Tzoref<\/p>\n
Pesher Nahum (4Q169)\u2014one of the Dead Sea Scrolls found at Qumran\u2014is a commentary upon the short biblical book of Nahum, one of the 12 minor prophets in the Hebrew Bible. Like the other \u201ccontinuous pesharim\u201d from Qumran, this composition adapts a biblical prophet\u2019s message about divine retribution to circumstances in the Hasmonean era. \u201cContinuous pesharim\u201d such as Pesher Nahum consist of a series of sequential biblical citations, each followed by a formulaic phrase that includes the word pesher (interpretation): \u201cits pesher concerns.\u201d This linking phrase introduces an interpretation in which the text is applied to the author\u2019s own historical context, which is presumed to be situated in the end-time.
\nThe biblical book of Nahum predicts the impending downfall of mighty Assyria as punishment for Assyrian oppression. The author of this pesher indicates that the true message of Nahum\u2019s prophecies is the triumph of his present-day community over its evil opponents, which include groups termed \u201cthe Kittim,\u201d \u201cEphraim,\u201d and \u201cManasseh.\u201d The author perceives that these prophecies have begun to be fulfilled in events of the recent past, and anticipates the total eradication of his adversaries and the imminent salvation of his community.<\/p>\n
Authorship and History<\/p>\n
As with all known continuous pesharim from Qumran, the Pesher Nahum has been preserved in a single Hebrew copy. The manuscript is dated by its script to the latter half of the 1st century BCE. The six surviving columns of the pesher contain comments upon all three chapters of Nahum. The scroll employs many expressions that are typical of the polemical compositions of the Qumran community. The author is unknown.<\/p>\n
Significance<\/p>\n
Qumran pesher compositions provide information about the transmission of biblical texts, about techniques of early biblical interpretation, and about ideology, historical events, and socioreligious realities of the Second Temple period.
\nThe biblical citations in Pesher Nahum are quite similar to those of the Masoretic Text (MT), but there are some minor differences. Some of these reflect typical Qumran spelling, pronunciation, or grammar, while others appear to be simply the result of scribal error. There is some debate over whether pesherists adapted biblical citations to better accommodate pesher interpretations. Thus, for example, the Heb. keura (translated as \u201cdespicable\u201d) in 4Q169 3\u20134 iii 1 differs from the Heb. kerei (meaning, perhaps, \u201clike excrement,\u201d or, as taken by the Septuagint, \u201cas a spectacle\u201d) in the MT of Nah. 3:6. This could reflect the pesherist\u2019s dependence upon a variant text, or a scribal error, or perhaps an intentional emendation of the difficult word in the MT.
\nThe pesher\u2019s citations and comments upon biblical texts indicate the authoritative nature of the prophetic texts for the Qumran community. The use of identifying formulas, wordplay, and recontextualization show some affinity with Rabbinic midrash. For example, in column 3, the biblical metaphor concerning the \u201cexposure\u201d of Assyria is recast as portraying the anticipated \u201cexposure\u201d of the doctrinal falsehoods of the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things, one of the enemy groups identified in the scroll (see comment on 4Q169 3\u20134 iii 8\u201312).
\nAn unusual feature of the Pesher Nahum is that it explicitly names historical figures\u2014the Greek kings Demetrius and Antiochus\u2014in addition to relying upon the more typical pesherist use of oblique epithets. In general, the indirect references to historical figures and events found in pesher compositions do not enable the modern reader to uncover new historical data, but they do allow for an enhanced picture of information already known from other sources, especially Josephus and Rabbinic writings. Since the historical events are described in veiled terms, modern researchers differ in their interpretations of the specific historical contexts. Most scholars agree that the Pesher Nahum includes references to the reign of the Hasmonean king Alexander Jannaeus (ruled 103\u201376 BCE) and that of his wife and successor Salome Alexandra (76\u201367 BCE), and to the civil war between their sons that led to the Roman takeover of Judea under Pompey (63 BCE).
\nIn descriptions of sectarian conflict, the Rabbis focus on halakhic disputes, and Josephus emphasizes philosophy and politics. The Dead Sea Scrolls reflect both theological and political spheres of discord, and also illustrate social realities and the extent of the enmity between various groups. The Pesher Nahum provides a firsthand perspective of an \u201cout-group\u201d that is persuaded of its own inherent superiority even as it is aware of its sociopolitical inferiority. Two key, interrelated mechanisms for dealing with this potential identity crisis are found in the scroll\u2014the contrast between hidden and revealed reality, and the belief in eschatological salvation. One example of the implementation of these mechanisms in the Pesher Nahum is the recurring polemic against a group termed, cryptically, \u201cthe Seekers-after-Smooth-Things,\u201d an epithet derived from biblical characterizations of false prophets (e.g., in Isa. 30:10). The pesherist understands the true meaning of the biblical text of Nahum to be a prediction of the catastrophic downfall for this influential group. If the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things represent the Pharisees, as most scholars believe, then the Pesher Nahum corroborates images of the Pharisees as having enjoyed the following of the masses. This depiction emerges in the works of Josephus and Rabbinic writings, but its accuracy has been challenged in recent years. The association of the pesherist\u2019s opponents with hypocrisy and deception also matches descriptions of Pharisees in Josephus, the Talmud, and the New Testament.
\nThe most controversial portion of the pesher is the reference to hanging \u201cpeople alive\u201d (4Q169 3\u20134 i 7). Prior to the initial publication of the scroll, its original editor, J. M. Allegro, reported that the Pesher Nahum described the crucifixion of the Teacher of Righteousness in a manner prefiguring the death of Jesus. This claim does not appear in his official publications, and his subsequent attribution of the \u201changings\u201d to Alexander Jannaeus has been generally accepted (cf. Ant. 13.380; J.W. 1.97). Much debate has persisted about whether the pesher\u2019s author approves or condemns Jannaeus\u2019s crucifixion of his Jewish opponents. Some crucial words of the pesher are missing, so that the phrase describing the event, \u201c[\u2026] in Israel aforetimes,\u201d has been restored in two opposite manners: (1) \u201cas was the law in Israel aforetimes\u201d or (2) \u201cas was not done in Israel aforetimes.\u201d Of course, the underlying scholarly concern is whether crucifixion was ever viewed as a valid form of capital punishment in ancient Judaism. However, the pesher does not seem to have any implications for evaluating the historicity or significance of the Christian Passion narrative. Most likely the pesher expresses approval of the executions mentioned, but this does not signal approval of the means of execution, nor of the executioner. The point of the pesher is the fulfillment of Nahum\u2019s predictions of retribution.<\/p>\n
GUIDE TO READING<\/p>\n
Pesher compositions have often been described as \u201catomizing,\u201d that is, commenting on individual words or phrases in isolation from their original context. Although such a tendency is discernible, the overall structure of this pesher does in fact follow the framework of its biblical base-text, Nahum. Three main sections may be discerned in the preserved portions of the composition: a single column of text is preserved in fragments 1\u20132; this is the first section. Four columns of text are preserved in fragments 3\u20134; of these four columns, column i of fragments 3\u20134 constitutes a second literary unit, and the third unit is found in columns ii\u2013iv of fragments 3\u20134.
\nThe first surviving column of the composition is not in good condition. Bits of comments (lines 1\u201311) upon Nah. 1:3\u20136 remain. The prophet\u2019s vivid predictions about the divine punishment of Nineveh are applied by the pesherist to his own contemporary opponents. Regrettably, the names of these opponents have not survived. The \u201cElect\u201d of the author\u2019s community are pitted against a \u201cwicked\u201d group or groups then in power. It is unclear whether the author here refers to the Roman rulers, or to rival Jewish groups, or to both.
\nThe four well-preserved columns of fragments 3\u20134 polemicize against Jewish opponents of the author:<\/p>\n
Column i (lines 1\u201312) comments upon Nahum 2:12\u201314, in which Assyria is compared to a mighty lion. The pesherist applies the biblical message of this extended metaphor\u2014essentially, \u201cthe bigger they are, the harder they fall\u201d to the Jerusalem establishment.
\nColumns ii\u2013iv comment upon Nah. 3:1\u201312. Verses 1\u20135 of Nah. 3 are a vivid description of Nineveh\u2019s culpability and downfall. Verses 6\u201311 compare Nineveh to Thebes, which had fallen earlier. The pesher describes the guilt and downfall of \u201cEphraim,\u201d alluding to the earlier defeat of \u201cManasseh,\u201d probably representing the Pharisees and Sadducees respectively.
\nFragment 5 (lines 1\u20133) is a small fragment containing only part of Nah. 3:12, and a few words of the preceding pesher interpretation.<\/p>\n
SUGGESTED READING<\/p>\n
Allegro, John M. Qumr\u00e2n Cave 4.I (4Q158\u20134Q186). DJD 5. Oxford: Clarendon, 1968.
\nBerrin, Shani L. The Pesher Nahum Scroll from Qumran: An Exegetical Study of 4Q169. Studies on the Texts of the Desert of Judah 53. Leiden: Brill, 2004.
\nDoudna, Gregory L. 4Q Pesher Nahum: A Critical Edition. JSPSup 35. Copenhagen International Series 8. London: Sheffield Academic Press, 2001.
\nHorgan, Maurya P. Pesharim: Qumran Interpretations of Biblical Books. CBQMS 8. Washington: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 1979.
\n\u2014\u2014\u2014. \u201cPesharim.\u201d In The Dead Sea Scrolls: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek Texts with English Translations, Vol. 6B, Pesharim, Other Commentaries, and Related Documents, edited by James H. Charlesworth, et al. T\u00fcbingen: Mohr Siebeck; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2002.
\nKnibb, Michael. \u201cThe Commentary on Nahum.\u201d In The Qumran Community. Cambridge Commentaries on Writings of the Jewish and Christian World 200 bc to ad 200. Vol. 2. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
\nLim, Timothy. Pesharim. Companion to the Dead Sea Scrolls 3. London: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002.
\nParry, Donald W., and Emanuel Tov, The Dead Sea Scrolls Reader, Vol. 2: Exegetical Texts. Leiden: Brill, 2004.
\nYadin, Yigael. \u201cPesher Nahum (4QpNahum) Reconsidered.\u201d IEJl 21 (1971): 1\u201312.<\/p>\n
COMMENTARY<\/p>\n
Fragments 1\u20132<\/p>\n
2. his heavens and his earth The theme of God\u2019s manifestation in nature is common in biblical imagery of punishment and in ancient Near Eastern descriptions of power in general. The pesher has not been fully preserved but seems to be a brief paraphrase of the poetic biblical text. The words \u201cheaven and earth\u201d may refer to activity in the heavenly realm or may simply spell out a concrete expression of the poetic storm clouds and dust clouds in the biblical verse.
\n1:4. to exe[cute] judgment \u2026 and to destroy The pesherist explains the prophet\u2019s metaphorical reference to the drying up of the sea as the total destruction of the wicked. He also specifies that this is an act of punishment, the execution of divine judgment. The enemy is not named here, but many scholars have proposed the Kittim (named in 4Q169 3\u20134 i 3). The term Kittim represents Gentile enemies in a number of early Jewish writings and may refer variously to Greeks or Romans. Similar language and imagery for the utter eradication of wicked opponents appears in column 14 of the cave 1 copy of the Qumran War Scroll.
\n1:5a. with [\u2026] their [ru]lers, that their dominion will end These words were not originally included by the scribe, but were added later between lines 4 and 5, presumably to correct the omission of a citation and interpretation of the second half of Nah. 1:4. Lines 3 and 4 describe the destruction of an opponent represented by the \u201csea\u201d; the pesherist extends the metaphor here, identifying the \u201crivers\u201d of the biblical verse with the leaders of this opposing group.
\n1:5. Bashan and Carmel \u2026 and \u2026 Lebanon By using these flourishing regions as examples, the biblical text indicates that even the most fertile lands can be withered by divine wrath. The pesherist probably applied this general observation to a specific opponent, but the identification has not survived.
\n1:7. Lebanon This epithet is used elsewhere in the Dead Sea Scrolls in two distinct manners: it symbolizes either the community itself or the dreaded Kittim. The latter function is probably more suitable here, as in 4Q161 7:1\u201314. A similar dual tradition is found in Rabbinic writings, in which Lebanon is taken to refer either to the Temple or to powerful individuals or groups, including Gentile kings.
\n1:8. Elect Refers to member of the author\u2019s Qumran community, which perceived itself as the only legitimate segment of Israel, God\u2019s chosen nation. The pesherist expects that his group will not only witness and survive the divine judgment, but also play an active role in its implementation.
\n1:9\u201311 All that remains in these lines is the quotation of Nah. 1:5\u20136. None of the pesher has survived. The restoration \u201c[rises]\u201d follows the MT and the traditional reading, but the consonants of the MT might alternatively be rendered as \u201cis laid to waste.\u201d
\n1:9. a]ll the inhabitants of the world There is no obvious basis for this phrase in the preceding biblical citation, but \u201cworld\u201d and \u201cinhabitants\u201d appear in the subsequent citation of Nah. 1:5 in 4Q169 1\u20132:10. The author may allude here to Ps. 98, which describes the uproar of the world\u2019s inhabitants at the time of divine judgment.<\/p>\n
Fragments 3\u20134<\/p>\n
1:1. a dwelling-place The fragmentary interpretation probably refers to Jerusalem. In the biblical text, Assyria is the subject of the metaphor in Nah. 2:12a: \u201cWhat has become of the lions\u2019 lair, which was a pasture for the young lions?\u201d The prophet Nahum describes Assyria as a mighty superpower, evil but seemingly invincible. The pesherist views Assyria as a sort of code for the Jerusalem establishment, the powerful entity that he opposes.
\nWhere lion and lion\u2019s breed walked, and lion\u2019s cub Alternatively, \u201cwhither the lion went to bring the lion\u2019s cub\u201d, or \u201cwhere the lion went to enter, and the lion\u2019s cub\u201d; Some translators include reference to a \u201clioness,\u201d but this is an inaccurate rendering of both the biblical text and its citation in the pesher.
\n1:2. Deme]trius King of Greece The text is restored here with confidence, as the kings of the Seleucid Greek dynasty were all named Antiochus, Seleucus, or Demetrius. The king mentioned here is probably Demetrius III Eukairos (ruled 94\u201388 BCE), who battled the Hasmonean king Alexander Jannaeus in 88 BCE in response to an appeal by a disaffected Jewish faction (as described by Josephus in Ant. 13.372\u2013416; J.W. 1.90\u201398). Others have suggested that this figure is Demetrius I Soter, who ruled at the end of the Maccabean revolt and during its aftermath (162\u2013150 BCE).
\nSeekers-after-Smooth-Things This epithet, dorshei hahalaqot in Hebrew, probably refers to the Pharisees or an associated group. Josephus does not explicitly designate the anti-Jannaeus faction as Pharisaic, but his description points in that direction. The Talmud does specify the Pharisees as the persecuted opponents of Jannaeus, especially in B. Kid. 66a. Others have suggested that this epithet refers to a faction of Hellenizing Jews in the period of Demetrius I. The term appears elsewhere at Qumran to denote religious opponents of the community, depicted as having great influence over the populace through demagoguery and deception. A biblical basis for the epithet is found in Isa. 30:10, which describes the people of Israel as rejecting legitimate prophets, turning instead to those who \u201cspeak smooth things (halaqot)\u201d and offer comforting delusions.
\n1:3. \u2026] yd the kings of Greece The missing text is generally restored as \u201cand he did not enter for the LORD did not give her into the ha]nd of the kings of Greece,\u201d which indicates that Demetrius did not achieve his aim in his attempted invasion of Jerusalem.
\nAntiochus Whether this refers to Antiochus III or Antiochus IV, the point being made is that Jerusalem had not fallen to foreigners during a particular period. The pesherist adapts the biblical description in Nahum 12 of the invulnerability of Assyria prior to its final downfall.
\nKittim This epithet for Gentile enemies appears frequently in the Pesher Habakkuk; there as well as here and in Dan. 11:30, it probably refers to the Romans, though elsewhere it denotes the Seleucids (e.g., 1 Macc 1:1; 8:5; War Scroll.)
\nafterward will be trampled A prediction of a future invasion of Jerusalem, perhaps that by Pompey, in contrast to the city\u2019s relative security since the time of Antiochus.
\n1:4. [\u2026] The lion tears at his cubs, and strangles his lionesses for prey Alternatively, \u201cthe lion tears [prey] for his cubs, and strangles prey for his lionesses.\u201d
\n1:5. the Young Lion of Wrath Probably Alexander Jannaeus. Alternative proposals have focused upon Gentile rulers, including Antiochus IV, Titus, or Pompey. The epithet may derive from Prov. 19:12 (\u201cThe rage of a king is like the roar of a young lion\u201d); 20:2 (\u201cThe terror of a king is like the roar of a young lion\u201d). Jannaeus seems to have been the first Hasmonean ruler to have designated himself \u201cking\u201d as well as \u201chigh priest\u201d on his coins. \u201cThe Young Lion of Wrath\u201d also appears in a Qumran composition Pesher Hosea, along with the epithet \u201cthe Last Priest,\u201d in a similar context about opposition to \u201cEphraim.\u201d The Qumran Prayer for King Jonathan (4Q448) has been associated by some with Alexander Jannaeus, though this is not definitive.
\nwho will smite his great ones, and the men of his counsel Because of the ambiguity of the pronouns and Hebrew syntax, and the missing text at the beginning of line 5, it is not clear whether the Lion of Wrath is depicted as smiting an opponent here, or being smitten by one. The context is likely the attack of Demetrius III upon Jannaeus, or its aftermath.
\n1:7. \u2026]mwt Missing text is probably either \u201cdeath\u201d or \u201cvengeance.\u201d
\nhang people alive Josephus describes Jannaeus\u2019s crucifixion of his opponents following the withdrawal of Demetrius from Judea (Ant. 13.380). He states that Jannaeus executed these men, along with their wives and children, in a festive atmosphere, as he and his royal consorts watched triumphantly. The \u201clionesses\u201d at 4Q169 3\u20134 i 4 may refer to the adult female victims or the royal consorts.
\n1:8. for of one hanged alive upo[n the tree is to be re]ad: \u2018Behold I am against [you]\u2019 The pesher views the execution of Jannaeus\u2019s opponents as fulfillment of the divine retribution promised in Nah. 2:14. The pesher may allude to Deut. 21:22\u201323, which mandates some sort of hanging for certain cases of capital punishment. The Rabbis and Josephus understand this verse as indicating postmortem exposure of certain executed criminals, rather than execution by a form of hanging.
\n1:9\u20132:1. you]r [multitude] \u2026 your young lions \u2026 p]rey \u2026 his messengers The pesher may describe the downfall of Jannaeus, or of his opponent. Note how the pronouns change when the elements are restated in the pesher (\u201chis young lions,\u201d \u201chis prey,\u201d \u201chis messengers\u201d), which would accommodate either interpretation. Beginning with Jonathan, the first Maccabean high priest, the Hasmoneans expanded their military aims beyond their initial objective of securing self-determination. Jannaeus waged numerous military campaigns, maintained diplomatic contacts, and managed conquered territories.
\n1:11. the [\u2026 weal]th Perhaps we could restore this as \u201cthat is the wealth that the [prie]sts of Jerusalem have amas[sed,\u201d on the basis of the Pesher Habakkuk (9:4\u20136), which states that the priests of Jerusalem gather wealth from Gentile nations, and asserts that at the end-time, this plunder will be given into the hands of the Kittim.
\n1:12. Ephraim This epithet appears below together with the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things, who are generally identified with Pharisees. \u201cEphraim\u201d is either an alternative equivalent epithet, or represents a subset of the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things. The use of this term to delegitimize opponents may have some roots in anti-Samaritan polemic; cf. 4Q372, Narrative and Poetic Composition.
\n2:2. city of Ephraim Jerusalem; in particular the Pharisaic establishment. The Dead Sea Scrolls, and especially the pesharim, often use metaphors pertaining to building to represent communities and sectarian factions.
\nthe end of days The subject matter of pesharim is generally eschatological, but the explicit phrase may signal that this section refers to a later period than the previous columns, specifically, the period of civil war between Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II, described by Josephus (Ant. 14; J.W. 1).
\ndeception and falsehoo[ds] A common accusation in Qumran polemic, especially against the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things and in the epithets \u201cMan of Lies\u201d or \u201cDripper of Lies.\u201d
\n2:3. There will not cease predation In the masoretic verse division, this phrase completes the previous verse, describing Assyria\u2019s culpability. The pesherist has attached the phrase forward, so that it begins the list of punishments from which Assyria will suffer.
\nFlame Or \u201cblade.\u201d The MT reads \u201cflame or sword.\u201d Since \u201csword\u201d appears in the pesher, the omission of the word in the citation is probably a scribal error.
\n2:4. the dominion of the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things May allude to the reign of Salome Alexandra, wife of Alexander Jannaeus, who is said to have yielded control to the Pharisees (Ant. 13.408\u201310; J.W. 112). The pesher here concerns not the dominance of the Pharisees, but their ignominious defeat.
\n2:5\u20136. the sword of Gentiles The list of horrors depicts the suffering of the nation after the Pharisees\u2019 fall from power, during the civil war between Hyrcanus II and Aristobulus II, which led to Pompey\u2019s bloody takeover of Judea in 63 BCE. Similar terms are used to describe the aftermath of the predicted desecration of the Temple by the Kittim in Dan. 11:32\u201335 (\u201cHe will flatter with smooth words \u2026 and for a while they shall fall by sword and flame, suffer captivity and spoliation.\u201d)
\n2:5. fever Or \u201cheated strife,\u201d as the word is used in later Hebrew. In the Hebrew Bible, the word appears only in Deut. 28:22, in a list of curses to befall the nation if they violate the covenant.
\nexile from fear of the enemy If this is the period of the civil war, then it is noteworthy that Josephus disparagingly refers to Hyrcanus\u2019s supporters as \u201csome fugitives\u201d (Ant. 14.32), and in his story of \u201cHoni the Circle-Drawer\u201d (Ant. 14.22\u201324) he records that Honi had gone into hiding because of the hostilities.
\n2:6. in their days This phrase highlights the author\u2019s concern with the time of fulfillment.
\nguilty corpses \u2026 guilty counsel A close paraphrase of the biblical text, but the addition of \u201cguilty\u201d supports a theological view of punishment based on fault.
\n2:7\u201310 The pesher adapts the metaphor of harlotry, employed to depict Assyrian culpability in Nah. 3:4, to Pharisaic seduction of the populace and leadership of Judea. Links between sexual offenses and sorcery are found also in Mal. 3:5, and 2 Kings 9:22 (in reference to Jezebel). This stereotype is further developed in 1 En. 7, in the story of the Watchers.
\n2:7. betrays Or perhaps \u201centraps\u201d; the Hebrew differs from the MT, so the reading and translation are uncertain.
\n2:8. their false teaching \u2026 lying tongue \u2026 deceitful lip The expressions used to describe the false speech of \u201cEphraim\u201d are similar to other descriptions of religious opponents of the community found in Rule of the Community (1QS 4:11; 10:21\u201323), the Damascus Document (CD 5:11), and the Thanksgiving Hymns (1QHa 10:19; 12:16; 13:13\u201314, 27).
\nteaching Hebrew talmud. The choice of this late Hebrew word to designate the oral teaching of the author\u2019s opponents may provide another clue that those opponents were Pharisees. Of course, the Pesher Nahum was written centuries before the compilation of any Rabbinic corpus that might have been called \u201cTalmud,\u201d but the term may nonetheless be significant.
\n2:10\u201312 In Nah. 3:5, the punishment for Nineveh\u2019s harlotry is exposure, a common practice in the ancient Near East, both for the punishing of harlots and the humiliation of defeated enemies. The pesher is poorly preserved.
\n3:1\u20135 The pesher plays with the idea of \u201cexposing.\u201d In the biblical text, Nah. 3:6\u20137 continues God\u2019s threats concerning the degradation of the harlot\/Nineveh. In the Pesher Nahum, the pesherist applies those threats to the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things, predicting that their iniquity will be revealed \u201cat the end of time,\u201d to the triumph of the author\u2019s community.
\n3:3. their evil deeds will be revealed May refer generally to the leadership\u2019s corruption, but probably also indicates the pesherist\u2019s contempt for his opponents\u2019 halakhic rulings. The motif of eschatological revelation occurs in many early Jewish writings. In the Dead Sea Scrolls, divine revelation of nistarot (hidden things) and of the raz nihiyeh (\u201cmystery of being\u201d) to the members of the community is both a sign of their election and a means to further salvation in the end-time (cf. 1QS 5:11\u201312; CD 3:12\u201314). A similar view of revelation as both means to and result of salvation appears in Jub. 23. In Rabbinic literature, the most familiar expression of this idea is in cases of halakhic disputes that remain open-ended \u201cuntil Elijah will come\u201d and resolve the matter. Some of the expressions in this interpretation are similar to Dan. 11.
\n3:4. despise them The Hebrew repeats the form of the word as it appears in the citation, \u201cdespicable,\u201d as a variant from the difficult form in the MT, meaning perhaps \u201cspectacle\u201d or \u201cexcrement.\u201d
\nAnd upon the revelation of the glory of Judah The term \u201cJudah\u201d in the Dead Sea Scrolls sometimes seems to refer to the community, in part or as a whole (CD 4:11; Pesher Habakkuk 8:1); and at other times to the entire Jewish nation or to the geographic region of Judea. Most likely, this pesher means that the glory of the community will be revealed to the rest of the nation.
\n3:5. the simple ones Simplicity may be a virtue or a vice. In this context, it seems to denote the neutral masses who had been swayed by the demagoguery of the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things, but will now reject their former leaders and embrace the author\u2019s community.
\n3:5\u20138 Nahum 3:7 is phrased as a rhetorical question in direct address to Nineveh. The pesher does not adopt this literary device, but rather seems to respond again to the previous citation, recapitulating the assertion that the \u201csimple ones\u201d will abandon the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things in favor of the pesherist\u2019s community.
\n3:7. assembly The word keneset is a late Hebrew term. Although the term signifies \u201csynagogue\u201d in mishnaic Hebrew, earlier suggestions relating this term to the Pharisees do not seem warranted. In the Pesher Genesis (4Q252), the word refers to the leadership of the Qumran community.
\n3:8\u201311 Nahum 3:8\u201310 describes the fate of \u201cAmon\u201d (or perhaps \u201cNo-Amon\u201d), the once-mighty city of Thebes, which serves as an example for Assyria of its imminent downfall. Here, the pesherist draws a parallel between Amon and a group that he designates with the sobriquet \u201cManasseh.\u201d The fate predicted for \u201cManasseh\u201d\u2014which is generally viewed as the decline of the Sadducees and defeat of Aristobulus II\u2014foreshadows that of a group designated as \u201cEphraim\u201d\u2014the anticipated eradication of Hyrcanus II and the Pharisees.
\n3:9. \u201cAmon\u201d \u2026 Manasseh The association between these terms is supported by their similar sound and contexts. Scholars identify Manasseh as the Sadducees based upon Josephus\u2019s statements that ancient Judaism was made up of three major Jewish sects: Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes (J.W. 2.119). The conventional identification of the Qumran community as Essenes, and the Seekers-after-Smooth-Things as Pharisees, led to a default identification of Manasseh as the Sadducees. Both the dominant theory identifying the Qumran Community with the Essenes and the simple three-sect model have been challenged in recent years, but the association of Manasseh with Sadducees and Aristobulus retains wide acceptance.
\n3:10. rampart The physical \u201cdefenses\u201d of the city in the biblical citation are interpreted in the pesher as the human defenders of a particular faction. The identification is facilitated through wordplay in the Heb. h-y-l, which can mean army as well as fortress.
\n4:1. P]ut and the [Libyans In Nah. 3:9, additional allies of No-Amon are introduced. In the pesher, these are taken to represent the House of Peleg, allies of Manasseh; wordplay with the initial letters of \u201cPut\u201d and \u201cLibya\u201d is likely. The term \u201cPeleg\u201d denotes separation and evokes the figure of Peleg in Gen. 10:25, who was named for the dispersion of humanity upon the earth. Here, \u201cthe House of Peleg\u201d seems to designate defectors from the community. The phrase appears as well in CD 20:22, but it is not clear whether the term refers to a particular group or functions as a more generic term for backsliders.
\n4:1\u20134 The pesherist applies the description of the defeat and exile of No-Amon and its allies in Nah. 3:10 to the downfall of Manasseh.
\n4:3. at the final age when his kingdom will be brought low The term \u201cfinal age\u201d seems to indicate yet another shift forward in time, though it is unclear whether these are current events for the author, or anticipated ones. Because the future tense is the natural expression for pesher\u2014which presents itself as a recasting of biblical prophecy and retains forward-looking expressions even for past events\u2014its use here does not necessarily indicate prediction.
\n4:4\u20136. cup This word choice is grounded in the reference to drunkenness in the biblical citation, but its effectiveness derives from the common biblical metaphor of the \u201ccup of wrath\u201d to describe divine vengeance.
\n4:6\u20138 The few words that survive of this pesher echo the citation of Nah. 3:11b as it appears in this manuscript. The words \u201cin the city\u201d in the quotation do not appear in the MT.
\n4:8\u20139 No interpretation has survived for the citation of Nah. 3:12.<\/p>\n
Pesher Habakkuk<\/p>\n
Bilhah Nitzan<\/p>\n
Pesher Habakkuk from Qumran (scroll 1QpHab) is a verse-by-verse commentary on the first two chapters of the biblical book of Habakkuk. The commentary shows how the events foretold by the prophet have come to pass in the time and life of the Qumran community. The scroll holds 13 columns, written in Herodian script dating from the second half of the 1st century BCE. The text is well preserved except for columns 1 and 2. The right half of column 1 was lost, and column 2 was torn into two separate pieces and damaged along its center; in addition, damage occurred to the two bottom lines (16\u201317) of columns 1\u201312.
\nThe Qumran pesharim present interpretations of the mysteries hidden in prophetic and other biblical texts concerning events that occurred during the Second Temple period (the \u201cpresent age\u201d of the Qumran community), as well as events that are expected to happen at the end-time (1QpHab 2:7\u201310; 7:4\u20135).
\nThe author of Pesher Habakkuk uses homiletic techniques to reveal these mysteries. Habakkuk\u2019s prophecies referring to treachery are applied to the rivalry between the different Jewish congregations, especially between the Qumran community (the Essenes, called the yahad in the scrolls) and the Pharisees (1:16\u20132:10; 5:8\u201312; 10:5\u201313). His pronouncements concerning the intimidating offensive of the Chaldeans are applied to the Kittim, which refers here to the Romans (2:10\u20134:15; 5:12\u20136:12). Verses that mention robbery and assassination are referring to actions taken by Hasmonean priests and rulers (8:3\u201310:5; 11:2\u201310). Thus the scroll reflects the political and religious criticism directed by the Qumran community against both regional and worldwide political events during the Hasmonean era.<\/p>\n
Significance<\/p>\n
The main figures dealt with in the pesharim are designated by sobriquets, which makes their exact historical identification difficult. These are the Teacher of Righteousness (the leader of the yahad), the Man of the Lie (seemingly a leader of the Pharisees), and especially the Wicked Priest (a Hasmonean ruler or rulers). Probably this last sobriquet refers to the Hasmonean rulers in power from 152 BCE (Jonathan) through 76 BCE (Alexander Jannaeus), before the Roman occupation of Judea in 63 BCE: Roman occupation of other nations is described in Pesher Habakkuk (2:10\u20134:14; 6:5\u201312), along with a prediction of ultimate Roman domination over the Hasmonean rulers (9:6\u20137). The rivalry between the Qumran community and its opponents persisted during this period, as is clear from pesharim on other biblical books. For example, in Pesher Nahum 3\u20134 iv 1\u20135 Menashe is a sobriquet of the Sadducees, and Ephraim is a sobriquet of the Pharisees.
\nIdeologically, the historical events are discussed in light of the deterministic-dualistic philosophy of the Qumran community. Both the righteous (the members of the yahad, who observe the Torah) and the wicked (of Israel, along with the Gentiles) are expected to stand trial before God, who will judge them righteously at the end-time. The author expresses this expectation in many comments. However, the Qumran community was clearly bothered by the postponement of the Messianic Era beyond the time expected by apocalyptic calculations (cf. Dan. 9:24) (see the comments on Hab. 2:3 in 1QpHab 7:7\u20138). The pesher reflects the author\u2019s acknowledgment that not all the mysteries of God are revealed to human beings. However, he reassures the community\u2019s members that \u201call of God\u2019s periods will come according to their fixed order, as he decreed\u201d (7:13).
\nThe wording of the pesharim retains some wordings of the biblical verses for verifying the connection between the biblical verse and its pesher. Such interpretive techniques became traditional in other Jewish homiletic biblical interpretation.<\/p>\n
SUGGESTED READING<\/p>\n
Bernstein, Moshe J. \u201cIntroductory Formulas for Citation and Re-citation of Biblical Verses in the Qumran Pesharim: Observations on a Pesher Technique.\u201d Dead Sea Discoveries 1 (1994): 30\u201370.
\n\u2014\u2014\u2014. \u201cPesher Habakkuk.\u201d In Encyclopedia of the Dead Sea Scrolls, edited by L. H. Schiffman and J. C. VanderKam, 647\u201350. New York: Oxford University Press, 2000.
\nBrooke, George J. \u201cThe Kittim in the Qumran Commentaries.\u201d In Images of Empire, edited by L. C. Alexander, 135\u201359. Journal for the Study of the New Testament: Supplement Series 122. Sheffield: JSOT, 1991.
\nBrownlee, William H. The Midrash Pesher of Habakkuk: Text, Translation, Exposition with an Introduction. Society of Biblical Literature Monograph Series 24. Missoula MT: Scholars Press, 1979.
\nElliger, Karl. Studien zum Habakuk-Kommentar vom Toten Meer. Beitr\u00e4ge zur historischen Theologie 15. T\u00fcbingen: Mohr (Siebeck), 1953.
\nFlusser, David. \u201cThe Roman Empire in Hasmonean and Essene Eyes.\u201d In his Judaism of the Second Temple Period, translated by Azzan Yadin, 175\u2013206. Grand Rapids MI: Hebrew University Magnes Press, 2007.
\nHorgan, Maurya P. Pesharim: Qumran Interpretations of Biblical Books. Catholic Biblical Quarterly Monograph Series 8. Washington DC: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 1979.
\nLim, Timothy H. Pesharim. Companion to the Qumran Scrolls 3. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2002.
\nNitzan Bilhah. Pesher Habakkuk: A Scroll from the Wilderness of Judaea (1QpHab). [In Hebrew.] Jerusalem: The Bialik Institute, 1986.
\nRabinowitz, I. \u201c \u2018Pessher\/Pittaron\u2019: Its Biblical Meaning and Its Significance in the Qumran Literature.\u201d Revue de Qumran 8 (1973): 219\u201332.<\/p>\n
COMMENTARY<\/p>\n
1:1\u201315 Only the left side of column 1 remains. The width of the column is based on line 11, for which the reconstruction seems quite certain. The fragmented pesharim in the biblical passages are restored by conjecture. Therefore just a few terms, which appear and are interpreted elsewhere in the scroll, are referred to briefly in the comments.
\n1:2\u20133. the generation of [the last days] Cf. 1QpHab 2:7; 7:2; see also the comment on 2:6\u20138.
\n1:5. [the violence] See 8:11; 12:9\u201310; see also the comments on 8:11\u201312 and 12:9\u201310.
\n1:6. [who rebelled against] God See 8:11 and the comment on 8:11\u201312.
\n1:11. That they rejected the Torah of God See 5:11\u201312 and the comment on 5:10\u201312.
\n1:13. [the Wicked Priest] See 8:8, 16; 9:9; 11:4, 12; 12:2; see also the comments that mention the Wicket Priest.
\nThe Teacher of Righteousness See 2:2; 5:10; 7:4; 8:3; see also the comments on 5:10\u201312; 7:4\u20135; 8:2\u20133.
\n1:14. The judgment Hab. 1:4b.
\n1:16\u20132:10 This section presents a three-part pesher on Hab. 1:5 (1QpHab 2:1\u20133, 3\u20134, 5\u201310), focused on the noun \u201ctraitors\u201d and the verb \u201cbelieve.\u201d The different parts of the pesher may refer to different classes of opponents of the Qumran community from the time of its founding leader, the Teacher of Righteousness, until the time of the author of Pesher Habakkuk.
\n1:16. [Look O traitors] The Masoretic Text (MT) reads here \u201clook at the nations.\u201d The phrase \u201cO traitors\u201d seems to be based on a different Hebrew version, which was also the basis for the Old Greek (OG) and Syriac translations.
\n2:1\u20132. the traitors together with the Man of the Lie These are probably members of the Pharisees\u2019 congregation, led by the figure called the Man of the Lie (cf. 10:9\u201313).
\n2:2\u20133. for [they did] not [hearken to the words of] the Teacher of Righteousness (which were) from the mouth of God This is the transgression of the aforementioned \u201ctraitors.\u201d The phrase \u201c[they did] not [hearken]\u201d (lo shame\u2019u) is restored here as a synonym for those who did not believe the words of God as spoken by a human being. The opposite is told in the Damascus Document (CD 20:28, 32) to describe the yahad members, who listened to the voice of the Teacher of Righteousness.
\nfrom the mouth of God Cf. 1QpHab 2:7\u20138; 7:4\u20135.
\n2:3. And it concerns the trai[tors to] the new [covenant] These are members of the yahad who betrayed its rules by joining the congregation led by the Man of the Lie (cf. 5:8\u201312). The appellation \u201cNew Covenant,\u201d based on Jer. 31:30\u201331, designates the system of Torah commandments and Community rules that the yahad members are obligated to observe.
\n2:3\u20134. f[o]r they were not faithful to the covenant of God, [and they profaned] his holy name This concept is based on Lev. 22:31\u201332.
\n2:5\u20136. Likewise \u2026 [concerns the trai]tors at the end of days. They are the ruthless [ones of the coven]ant According to 4QpPsa 1\u20132 ii 13\u201314 (a pesher on Psalm 37), the ruthless are those who plot to destroy the members of the yahad. They will be punished at the end-time (see 1QpHab 12:2\u20136).
\n2:6c\u20138. who will not believe when they hear all that is going to co[me up]on the last generation from the mouth of the priest Specifies in more detail the transgression referred to in 2:2. \u201cThe priest\u201d is the Teacher of Righteousness (see 4QpPsa 3\u20134 iii 15\u201316). According to the deterministic outlook of the yahad, the term \u201clast generation\u201d defines the last historical generation before the fulfillment of the prophetic eschatological time of salvation (see 1QpHab 7:2, 7, 12; cf. CD 1:12).
\n2:8\u201310. to whom God gave into [his heart insig]ht to interpret \u2026 and up[on the nations] God inspired the Teacher of Righteousness with the faculty of understanding how the events recorded in the words of the biblical prophets on Israel and the nations were to be fulfilled (cf. 1QpHab 7:4\u20135). For the restoration of \u201cup[on the nations],\u201d cf. 3:4\u20135. The phrase may allude to the MT version of Hab. 1:5, which was not cited in the text.
\n2:10\u20133:17 The pesharim on Hab. 1:6\u201311 recorded in 1QpHab 2:10\u20134:14 illustrate the imperialistic aims of the Romans (Kittim) and the military power they use to achieve these aims. In 1QpHab 2:10\u20133:17, their threat to all the nations is described.
\n2:12\u201313. the Kittim, wh[o ar]e swift and strong in battle The threat posed by the Chaldeans, recorded in Hab. 1:6 and reflecting the historical situation of the prophet\u2019s time, is to be fulfilled in the last generation by the Kittim. The sobriquet Kittim is used in Gen. 10:4 for descendants of Japhet who settled in the islands (cf. Ant. 1.128). In Pesher Habakkuk these are the Romans (see 1QpHab 4:10\u201313; 6:3\u20135), the superpower that had intimidated the nations of the Middle East since the defeat of Antiochus III at Magnesia in 189 BCE (1 Macc. 8:6\u20137), and the expulsion of Antiochus IV from Egypt in 168 BCE. The identification of the Kittim as the superpower of the last generation is probably based on Num. 24:24. The phrase \u201cstrong in battle\u201d is related to the word \u201cbitter\u201d in Hab. 1:6; Zeph. 1:14 characterizes the eschatological fight of God against the nations in the great day of the LORD. Brownlee and Horgan both suggest that this phrase is also reflected in the OG version tous chaldaious tous machetos.
\n2:13\u201315 If the restoration of this part of the pesher on Hab 1:6 is correct, it may reflect the idea that God would use the Romans in order to destroy the wicked nations, such as those of the Seleucid empire (see 1QpHab 4:1\u20139), and the wicked of Israel (see 9:3\u20137).
\n2:13. against For the Hebrew preposition b\u2014with the meaning of \u201cagainst.\u201d
\n3:1. and by (way of) the level plain they come Meaning, figuratively, that the Kittim come unhindered or unimpeded (cf. Isa. 40:4).
\n3:1\u20132. to smite and to loot the cities of the land.\u2026 To take possession of dwelling places not their own Habakkuk 1:6 is interpreted as predicting the aims of the Romans, and is cited again to confirm the correctness of the pesher. This literary formula of confirmation appears also in 1QpHab 3:13\u201314; 5:6.
\n3:3. guile The translation of the word she\u2019eto as \u201cguile\u201d is based on the Heb. stem n-sh-a\u2019. See the comment on 1QpHab 3:5\u20136, with cunning and deceit they shall deal with all the peoples.
\n3:4\u20135. the Kittim, fear and dread of whom are upon all the nations The pesherist interprets the \u201cfearful and terrible\u201d Chaldeans (Hab. 1:7) as referring to the Romans, feared by all the nations.
\n3:5. in the council their whole plan is to do evil The phrase \u201ctheir judgment and guile\u201d in Hab. 1:7 is interpreted as an imperial decision reached through consultation and plotting (cf. Prov. 20:18; 24:8; 1 Chron. 12:20). On the Romans\u2019 reputation for military and political plotting, see Sallust, Hist. 4.67.5\u20137, 20.
\ncunning and deceit Based on the word she\u2019eto in Hab. 1:7 (see the comment on 1QpHab 3:3) and its parallel root n-ch-l (see Num. 25:18).
\n3:7. They paw the ground, and their riders spread out The scroll\u2019s version of Hab. 1:8b has two verbs: \u201cpaw\u201d (related to the horses) and \u201cspread out\u201d (related to their riders), as in the Old Greek version of the passage. The MT version uses the verbs \u201cgallop,\u201d \u201cspread,\u201d \u201ccome flying,\u201d and \u201crushing,\u201d and repeats the noun \u201ctheir steeds.\u201d
\n3:9\u201310. the Kittim, who trample the earth with [their] horses and with their beasts The pesher on Hab. 1:8a concentrates on how the Roman horsemen ruin? the conquered lands with their horses. The verb \u201ctrample\u201d interprets the verb \u201cthey will paw\u201d (wupasu) of Hab. 1:8 in association with Jer. 50:11, where the verbs \u201cpaw\u201d (push) and \u201ctrample\u201d (dush) are used to describe the damage done by the Chaldeans. The menace, which is described as fiercer than the evening wolves, is interpreted along the lines of Dan. 7\u2019s description of the deeds of the Fourth Kingdom, which has \u201cgreat iron teeth\u2014that devoured and crushed, and stamped the remains with its feet\u201d (Dan. 7:7 NJPS; see also Dan. 7:19). The author of Pesher Habakkuk considers the Romans, the imperial kingdom of his time, as the last historical kingdom described in the apocalyptic vision of Daniel.
\n3:10\u201311. And from a distance they come, from the islands of the sea This interpretation of Hab. 1:8b reflects the MT\u2019s phrasing (NJPS: \u201ctheir steeds \/ Come flying from afar\u201d), rather than the form of the verse cited by the pesherist. The islands of the Kittim are mentioned in Jer. 2:10; Ezek. 27:6. Their distant location is mentioned in Jer. 31:9\/10.
\n3:11\u201312. to devour all the peoples like an eagle, and there is no satiety The eagle stands metaphorically for the Romans. The phrase \u201call the peoples\u201d is an addition of the author, who atomized the word kulo (\u201cthey all\u201d) of Hab. 1:9, interpreting the word kol (all) as the eagles\u2019 prey, and using the waw of kulo for a conjunction, \u201cand,\u201d to the phrase there is no satiety to the eagerness of spoiling. Cf. Hab. 2:5.
\n3:12\u201314. And with rage [they] gr[ow hot, and with] burning anger.\u2026 The horro[r of their faces is an east wind] Where the MT version of Hab. 1:9 reads kadimah, \u201cforward,\u201d the author of Pesher Habakkuk reads kadim, \u201ca hot wind that comes from the east,\u201d which he interprets metaphorically as burning anger. The reading kadim reflects a Hebrew version that underlies the Aramaic, Greek, and Latin biblical translations.
\n3:17b\u20134:16a The pesharim on Hab. 1:10\u201311 illustrate the demeaning attitude of the Romans toward the leaders of their conquered countries, their military strategy of easy conquest, and the arrangement of their government in these countries when they become Roman provinces.
\n4:2\u20133. they mock great ones \u2026 they scoff at a great people The author\u2019s interpretation of Hab. 1:10a, constructed in perfect chiastic parallelism. For the Heb. rabbim with the meaning of \u201cgreat ones,\u201d see Ps. 48:3: \u201cthe city of the great king.\u201d For the humiliation of kings and other honored people by the Romans, see Pesher Nahum 3\u20134 iv 2\u20134; J.W. 2.357. The surrender of great and strong kingdoms under the Romans is illustrated in 1 Macc. 8:2\u201310;, J.W. 2.358\u201361.
\n4:4. they heap up earth to capture it \u201cEarth\u201d (aphar) is interpreted allegorically in the pesher on this verse as \u201cmany people.\u201d See also the comment on 1QpHab 4:7\u20138.
\n4:5. the rulers of the Kittim These are commanders of the Roman army who were nominated to be promagistrates, cum imperio (\u201cgovernors and proconsuls\u201d) to rule the provinces (cf. 1QpHab 4:10\u201313a).
\n4:5\u20136. who despise the fortifications of the peoples and laugh with derision at them The Romans, who used equipment for breaching walls, could easily overcome their enemies\u2019 defenses.
\n4:7\u20138. and with many (people) they surround them to capture them. And with terror and dread they are given into their hand This pesher interprets the strategy of war described in Hab. 1:10b. For such a strategy of the Romans see J.W. 3.65\u201369; 116\u201329, 146; and Kimchi on Hab. 1:10. See also the comment on 1QpHab 4:4.
\n4:8\u20139. and they tear them down, because of the guilt of those who dwell in them This explanation may refer to the Roman practice of punishing peoples for resisting them, thereby \u201ccompelling\u201d the Romans to conquer them with excessive force. Alternatively it is an apocalyptic explanation, regarding Rome as the empire established by God for punishing those peoples that tormented Israel, such as the Seleucids, whose empire the Romans conquered.
\n4:9. laid waste Heb. we-yashem. Cf. the Latin translation. The MT has we-ashem, \u201cincur guilt\u201d (Hab. 1:11 NJPS). See the next two comments for the interpretation of both text versions.
\n4:10\u201312. the rulers of the Kittim who, according to the decision of [their] guilty house, pass one before the other This pesher responds to the MT version of Hab. 1:11, which includes we-ashem, \u201cincur guilt\u201d (see the previous comment). It refers here probably to the Roman senate, of whose guilty decision the Roman nominated rulers (see 4:5), who ruined the conquered lands (cf. 6:6\u20138a), were removed, each from before his successor. On \u201cpass one before the other,\u201d see also B. Ket. 17a; T. BK 2:10.
\n4:12\u201313. [Their] rulers come [on]e after another to ruin the l[and]. This pesher interprets the scroll\u2019s version of Hab. 1:11, which reads we-yashem, \u201claid waste\u201d\u2014referring to the way the Roman commanders desolated the conquered lands through their wars and plundering (see also Plutarch, Lives 12.3\u20134; 31.4; Ant. 13.421), and to the heavy taxes collected by the Roman rulers from the inhabitants of the conquered lands (Cf. 6:6\u20138a; 1 Macc. 8:4b).
\n4:16b\u20135:8 The issue raised in Hab. 1:12\u201313a\u2014that God seems to have established an unjust people in order to punish other peoples\u201d\u2014is resolved in its pesharim (1QpHab 5:3\u20138) by regarding the activity of the Kittim as the first stage of eschatological judgment against the wicked. Ultimately, God will give final judgment of all the pagan peoples (including the Kittim) and the wicked of Israel \u201cinto the hand of\u201d his chosen community\u2014the yahad\u2014whose members did not go astray after false commandments.
\n5:3. God will not destroy his people by the hand of the nations The interpreter resolves Habakkuk\u2019s complaint (Hab. 1:12) with a reassuring response (see the introductory comments under \u201cSignificance\u201d).
\n5:4. but into the hand of his chosen ones God will give the judgment of all the nations The final stage of God\u2019s judgment against the wicked, including the Kittim, will be carried out by his chosen ones, the members of the yahad (see The War Scroll). The Heb. spelling behirw, and not behiryw, refers here to \u201chis chosen ones,\u201d as is clear from the subsequent phrase \u201cby means of their rebuke\u201d and other cases of such spelling in the scrolls.
\n5:4\u20136a. And by means of their rebuke all the wicked ones of his people will be convicted (by those) who have kept his commandments in their distress This pesher may be regarded as a theological alteration of the messianic idea, by giving the task of rebuking all the wicked to a collective group, the yahad (cf. 1QS 8:4b\u20137a, 10b), instead of the shoot of David (Isa. 11:3\u20134) or the servant of God (Isa. 42:1\u20134). Its members are fit for this mission thanks to their observance of God\u2019s commandments during the \u201ctime of wickedness,\u201d as the pesherist notes below (1QpHab 5:7\u20138).
\n5:7\u20138a. they did not whore after their own eyes in the time of wickedness This pesher transforms the biblical subject of Hab. 1:13a from God into the chosen ones of the Qumran community. It explains that they are considered pure because they did not reject the commandment of Num. 15:39 (NJPS: \u201crecall all the commandments of the LORD and observe them, so that you do not follow your heart and eyes in your lustful urge\u201d) despite the suffering they endured at the hand of their enemies (1QpHab 5:5\u20136) during the present period of wickedness (see 1QS 1:16\u201318).
\n5:8b\u201312a The pesherist addresses the issue raised in Hab. 1:13b\u2014how can God stand by silently while a wicked person harms one who is more worthy?\u2014by citing a case that involved treachery among the yahad.
\n5:9\u201310. the House of Absalom and the men of their council A group that betrayed the doctrine of the yahad is therefore titled after the name of Absalom, who betrayed David, his father (2 Sam. 15:10\u201313). For mention of a similar treachery by another group, the House of Peleg, see CD 20:22\u201324; 4QpNah 3\u20134 iv 1.
\n5:10\u201312a. who were silent at the rebuke of the Teacher of Righteousness Heb. nadamw \u201cbe silent,\u201d is here interpreted in the sense of avoiding any action (cf. Exod. 14:14; 1 Sam. 10:27). Namely, this group did not intervene to support the Teacher of Righteousness during his halakhic debate with the Man of the Lie (see 1QpHab 2:1\u20133a). This man\u2014who is accused here of hurting (devouring) one more righteous than he by preaching falsely (cf. CD 1:14\u201315) in the presence of the yahad\u2014caused a rift within the sect.
\n5:12b\u20136:12a Hab. 1:14\u201317 relays the economic harm done to the conquered nations by the Kittim, and notes their cruelty as a people. Here, Hab. 1:14\u201316 is cited in its entirety at the end of column 5 and interpreted as a whole; Hab. 1:16 and 17 are then cited separately for interpretation.
\n5:14\u201315. Therefore he sacrifices to his net; therefore he is glad [and shouts for jo]y, [and he burns incense to his fishing net] In this version, the content of Hab. 1:16d MT precedes that of 1:15a MT. This ordering of the text is also found in two Greek versions (Lucian i and ii).
\n6:1. the Kittim The end of a missing clause that interprets Hab. 1:14\u201315a.
\n6:1\u20132. and they increase their wealth with all their booty like the fish of the sea The image used in Hab. 1:14\u2014that God has made humankind as plentiful as the \u201cfish of the sea\u201d\u2014is applied to the Romans, whose plundering makes their riches similarly plentiful.
\n6:3\u20135. they sacrifice to their standards, and their weapons of war are the objects of their reverence Habakkuk 1:16a is interpreted here based on the cult of the standards customary in the Roman army. This pesher provides the ultimate proof for the identification of the Kittim as Romans. The parallelism of \u201cnet\u201d and \u201cseine\u201d in this verse justifies interpretation regarding the military arms, held by the Roman corps that encircle their enemy. Thus these corps became integrated with the famous characteristic cult of their standards (cf. the Targum to Hab. 1:16).
\n6:6\u20137. they divide up their yoke and their tribute\u2014their food\u2014upon all the peoples year by year The pesherist interprets the words \u201cportion\u201d and \u201cfood\u201d of Hab. 1:16b metaphorically as the heavy tax burden laid by the Romans on the citizens of their provinces year by year. Compare the metaphor in Jer. 50:17.
\n6:8. to lay waste many lands Compare the pesher of Hab. 1:11 concerning the \u201crulers of the Kittim who \u2026 come one after another to ruin the land\u201d (1QpHab 4:10\u201313).
\n6:10\u201312a Habakkuk 1:17 is interpreted based on the many victims of the Romans. The list opens with men (in ascending age) and closes with women and children (in descending age). Isaiah 13:18 demonstrates similarly the cruelty of the eschatological enemy.
\n6:12b\u20137:5a This section interprets the message told to Habakkuk at the beginning of Chapter 2 concerning the reader chosen by God to interpret the mysteries of the prophetic words.
\n6:15\u201316. he \u2026 who reads it Note the difference here between Hab. 2:2 MT (NRSV): \u201ca reader\u201d; and the scroll\u2019s version: \u201che who reads\u201d (cf. 7:3). The interpreter understood the definite article to point prophetically to the Teacher of Righteousness (see 7:4\u20135a).
\n7:1\u20132. and God told Habakkuk to write down the things that are going to come upon the last generation; but the fulfillment of the end-time he did not make known to him The pesher of Hab. 2:2 distinguishes between the tasks of the prophet and the designated reader of his words. The task of the prophet is to foretell eschatological events (see 2:9\u201310). But the prophetic words do not explicitly reveal the time and circumstances of their fulfillment.
\n7:4\u20135a. the Teacher of Righteousness, to whom God made known all the mysteries of the words of his servants the prophets The problem raised above\u2014that God has not revealed everything to Habakkuk\u2014is resolved with the advent of the Teacher of Righteousness, the chosen reader of the prophetic vision, to whom God has given the ability to decipher the messages hidden within the prophetic words\u2014namely, their pesher (cf. 2:7\u201310).
\n7:5b\u20138:3 The pesher on Hab. 2:2\u20133 encourages the yahad members not to fall into despair even though the \u201clast generation\u201d before the end-time is lasting longer than was foretold by the prophets. According to God\u2019s predetermined plan, the final judgment will be realized in its appointed time to bring about justice, by punishing the wicked and redeeming the righteous.
\n7:7\u20138. the last period will be prolonged, and it will be greater than anything of which the prophets spoke Based on the Heb. verb yapyh, \u201cspeak\u201d (cf. Prov. 12:17), the pesherist reveals that the vision of Hab 2:3 testifies to the prolonging of the last historical generation. (For more on prolonging of days, cf. Ezek. 12:22; Targum to Hab. 2:3; and see the pesher at 1QpHab 7:12.) Historically this revelation became relevant because of the prolonged subjugation of the land of Israel to foreign empires (see Dan. 9:24).
\n7:8. for the mysteries of God are awesome The duration of the last historical generation is considered one of the awesome mysteries of God\u2019s plans and deeds, which are beyond human understanding (see 1QS 3:23; 4:18), even that of the prophets (cf. 1QpHab 7:1\u20132).
\n7:10\u201311. the men of truth, those who observe the Torah The \u201cmen of truth (emet)\u201d is a sobriquet for the members of the yahad, who observe the Torah according to the halakhic interpretation of the Qumran community. The term \u201cobserving of the Torah\u201d (\u2018wose ha-torah), appears in 1QpHab 8:1; 12:4\u20135. The halakhic interpretations of the Torah are identified as ma\u2019ase ha-torah in 4Q398 14\u201317 ii 3 (= 4QMMT). These terms first appear in literature from the Second Temple period.
\n7:11b\u201312. whose hands do not grow slack in the service of the truth, when the last period is drawn out for them The members of the yahad wait for the end-time by strengthening themselves in observing the Torah, despite the prolonged duration of the last generation (cf. 1QpHab 5:5b\u20136a). In this respect they are different from those who are \u201cslack in the service of justice\u201d (1QS 4:9), and from those who try to terrify them into abandoning the service of God (1QHa 10:37\u201338[2]:35\u201336).
\n7:12\u201314. for all of God\u2019s periods will come according to their fixed order, as he decreed for them in the mysteries of his prudence This pesher on Hab. 2:3b expresses the deterministic outlook of the yahad and other apocalyptic circles regarding the length and order of historical periods. Therefore, in their view, the period of evil will end at an exact, predetermined time (cf. 1QS 4:18\u201319). See also the comment on 1QpHab 7:8, for the mysteries of God are awesome.
\n7:15. [their sins] will be doubled upon them Based on the biblical antithesis of the wicked and the righteous found in Hab. 2:4, the pesher on the eschatological judgment of the wicked interprets the word \u201cheap up\u201d (\u2018upplah), as \u201cwill be doubled\u201d (kuplah, but in the imperfect nifal), referring here to the sins of the wicked. Cf. Isa. 40:2 NJPS: \u201cSpeak tenderly to Jerusalem, \/ \u2026 For she has received at the hand of the LORD \/Double for all her sins.\u201d
\n8:1. all those who observe the Torah The members of the yahad (cf. 1QpHab 7:10\u201311) are identified as the \u201crighteous man\u201d of Hab. 2:4b, who is destined to live according to Lev. 18:5. The \u201crighteous\u201d is interpreted in plural form in the Targum to Hab. 2:4.
\nthe House of Judah A sobriquet of the yahad that symbolizes the historical kingdom of Judah (CD 7:10\u201313). \u201cHouse of Absalom\u201d symbolizes a sect in 1QpHab 5:9.
\n8:1\u20132. whom God will save from the house of judgment The pesherist interprets the phrase \u201cwill live\u201d in Hab. 2:4b to mean that the members of the yahad will be delivered from the eschatological tribulation by which the wicked will be punished (see 1QpHab 10:3, 5, 12\u201313; 13:3\u20134).
\n8:2\u20133. on account of their tribulation and their fidelity to the Teacher of Righteousness A pesher on \u201chis faithfulness\u201d of Hab. 2:4b. Loyalty to the doctrine of the Teacher of Righteousness (see also 1QpHab 2:2, 6\u20138; 7:4\u20135) will bring life to the members of the yahad despite their affliction during the time of wickedness (cf. 1QS 1:17\u201318)\u2014or because of it.
\n8:3b\u20139:7 The interpretations of Hab. 2:5\u20138a (1QpHab 8:8\u20139:2) deal with a Hasmonean ruler, labeled as the Wicked Priest, and distinguish two different periods of his reign: a righteous one and a wicked one, and his punishment. The second pesher on Hab. 2:8a (1QpHab 9:3\u20137) refers similar wickedness to the last Hasmonean rulers, and foresees their eschatological punishment.
\n8:3. wealth betrays Heb. hon yibgod. This seems to be a deliberate alteration of Hab. 2:5 MT, which holds that \u201cwine betrays\u201d (hayayin boged) an arrogant man. See its pesher at 1QpHab 8:10\u201312.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
20:16\u201318); and second, the report at the beginning of Judges that the Jews do not actually succeed in dispossessing the Canaanites (esp. Judg. 1:27\u201336; cf. Exod. 34:11\u201316 with Judg. 3:5\u20136). 25:10. We have committed adultery Adultery is specified as one of the sins endemic in the Canaanite people (see Lev. 18:20, 24). seven golden idols … <\/p>\n