Studies in the Second Temple Period (19 vols.)

by G. W. Lorein; Lorenzo DiTommaso; Bruce Norman Fisk; Benedikt Otzen

and

16 more

Publishers:

T&T Clark; Sheffield Academic Press

, 1995–2004

Overview

The Second Temple Period Collection culls select academic work from a variety of disciplines in order to fully reveal the importance of this era’s literary output and history. It features titles dedicated to the exposition of single topics, comprehensive histories, and commentaries on specific apocryphal and pseudepigraphal works that were composed during the Second Temple Period.

The Second Temple Period spans from roughly 515 B.C. to 70 A.D. (from the rebuilding of the Temple after the Babylonian exile to the destruction of the Temple by the Romans). This period of time covers both the span between the Old and New Testaments and the time during which nearly all the New Testament events took place. Studying the Second Temple Period, and the literature it produced, is therefore of paramount importance to understanding the cultural and historical background to the Christian scriptures.

The Second Temple Period Collection also includes Lorenzo DiTommaso's A Bibliography of Pseudepigrapha Research 1850-1999. This substantial volume covers nearly all secondary literature on pseudepigrapha research. A reference work without peer in English, and an invaluable resource for all those interested in the Pseudepigrapha.

Product Details

• Title: Second Temple Period Collection (19 vols.)
• Volumes: 19
• Pages: 4,994

The History of the Second Temple Period

• Author: Paolo Sacchi
• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Publication Date: 2004
• Pages: 534

Table of Contents: 1 | 2 | 3

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

This book represents the fruit of a long process of study and reflection, a powerful but subtle synthesis, by one of the most eminent scholars of Second Temple Judaism. Far from a conventional narrative history, it is organized around themes and seeks to uncover the essence of Hebraic/Jewish religious thinking while confronting the phenomenon of its division into several “parties” and traditions. Drawing also on recent studies of Christianity as a “Judaism,” Sacchi provides a stimulating perspective on the nature of ancient Oriental and Occidental thought and the intellectual and spiritual heritage of European civilization.

Paolo Sacchi was formerly Professor of Biblical Philology, Department of Oriental Studies, University of Turin, Italy until his retirement in 1999. He also teaches Intertestamental Literature at the Faculty of Theology of Central Italy, Florence.

The Septuagint as Christian Scripture: Its Prehistory and the Problem of Its Canon

• Author: Martin Hengel
• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Publication Date: 2004
• Pages: 153

Table of Contents: 1 | 2

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

The Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Old Testament, was the 'Bible' of the early Christian Church. This is a comprehensive introduction to the issues surrounding the translation and development of the Septuagint. Professor Hengel first traces the history of the Septuagint. He explores the controversial discussion between Jews and Christians regarding its reliability, examining particularly the views of the church fathers relating to its authority, its inspiration, and its canon.

Martin Hengel is Emeritus Professor of New Testament and Ancient Judaism, University of Tübingen, Germany.

How the Temple Thinks: Identity and Social Cohesion in Ancient Judaism

• Author: Francis Schmidt
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 2001
• Pages: 312

Table of Contents: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

Beyond the political elites and the scribes, among the anonymous and unranked, the Jerusalem Temple provided the necessary social cohesion for Judaism and the Jewish people. It acted not only as edifice but also as system of thought, with its categories of pure and impure, of sacred and profane, extending beyond the sanctuary to the Land of Israel, from the sacrificial altar to the daily tables. The Temple was already an idea more than a reality in the Dead Sea Scrolls, and it came to an end in 70 CE. Yet even beyond this end, when Rabbinic Judaism takes shape, there remains the 'Thinking of the Temple'.

Francis Schmidt is Director of Studies and Professor of History of Judaism in the Hellenistic and Roman Periods at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes (Sciences Religieuses).

Sirach

• Author: Richard Coggins
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 1997
• Pages: 112

Table of Contents: 1 | 2

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

Sirach is a book that raises a very distinctive set of problems. What should we call it (Sirach, Ecclesiasticus, Ben Sira)? What is the relation between the traditional Greek text and the recently rediscovered Hebrew parts of the book? Where did it stand in relation to Jewish tradition and the Hellenism that was sweeping the Mediterranean world?

In this guide, these and other issues are discussed, including the use the author made of Scripture, and the scholarly placing of the book in the Wisdom tradition. The author's attitude to women is also considered. The volume ends with an examination of some of the chief theological themes of Sirach.

Richard Coggins was formerly Senior Lecturer in Old Testament at King's College, London

1 Maccabees

• Author: John R. Bartlett
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 1997
• Pages: 112

Table of Contents: 1

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

This is a work for anyone interested in the political and cultural results of the entry of the small state of Judah and its capital Jerusalem into the wider Hellenistic world in the second century BCE. In particular it forms a helpful introduction to the biblical writing called 1 Maccabees, which is preserved in the Apocrypha.

1 Maccabees is a history of the rebellion of the Jews against their Syrian rulers in the 160s BCE. The rebellion's leader was Judas Maccabee, and from his family and its success sprang a dynasty that ruled Judah for the century before the arrival of Herod the Great. The author of 1 Maccabees was a keen supporter of that dynasty, and saw their early rulers as made in the mould of the early kings of Israel. The present volume introduces the student to modern scholarly research on 1 Maccabees and its author.

John R. Bartlett is Principal, Church of Ireland Theological College and Emeritus Fellow, Trinity College, Dublin.

The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs

• Author: Robert Kugler
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 2001
• Pages: 128

Table of Contents: 1 | 2

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

The Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs is of especial interest to students of early Judaism and Christianity, though this importance is not always recognized. This collection preserves extra-biblical traditions about the sons of Jacob, it reflects a moral worldview of Jews and Christians around the turn of the era, and it casts light on its authors' eschatological imagination.

Robert A. Kugler introduces the student to the Testaments' contents, their relationship to other texts of the era, textual witnesses and sources, and rehearses the debate regarding authorship, compositional history and purpose. He also examines the Testaments from the fresh perspective of rhetorical strategy, asking what sort of theological notions the Testaments would have conjured in the minds of early Jewish and Christian listeners or readers.

Robert Kugler is Professor of Christian Studies, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, OR.

Life of Adam and Eve and Related Literature

• Authors: Marinus de Jonge and Johannes Tromp
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 1997
• Pages: 104

Table of Contents: 1

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

The Life of Adam and Eve once belonged to the most popular literature in the Christian world. Retelling the Genesis 3 story, it gives an elaborate description of Adam's death and his assumption to Paradise in the third heaven. His continued existence, as well as his future resurrection, are as much a paradigm for humanity as his transgression, condemnation and death.

For a long time attention was focused on the Greek and Latin versions only. More recently, editions of Georgian and Armenian versions have become available, occupying a middle position between the Greek and the Latin. This new material now makes it necessary to sort out the relationships between no less than five clearly related but in many respects different documents. Taken together they present a complex but interesting mosaic of reflections on the human plight, inspired by the Genesis story.

Marinus de Jonge is Emeritus Professor of New Testament and Early Christian Literature at the University of Leiden.

Johannes Tromp is Lecturer in Literature and History of Judaism (200 BCE-200 CE), at the University of Leiden.

The Book of Jubilees

• Author: James VanderKam
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 2001
• Pages: 168

Table of Contents: 1

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

The Book of Jubilees, a Jewish retelling of Genesis and the first half of Exodus, was an important work for the community of the Dead Sea Scrolls. This Guide gives an introduction to Jubilees that covers its dating, its textual history and its purpose. It also provides a survey of its theological teachings and themes, and a section-by-section commentary that includes a comparison of its divergences from Genesis and the meaning and emphasis of each section. Written by the leading authority on Jubilees, this volume provides the very best introduction for the student and scholar to one of the most important texts of Early Judaism.

James VanderKam is John A. O'Brien Professor of Hebrew Scriptures, Department of Theology, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, USA.

The Ascension of Isaiah

• Author: Jonathan Knight
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 1995
• Pages: 105

Table of Contents: 1

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

The Ascension of Isaiah is an important but neglected apocalypse from the early second century CE. Its author wrote at a time when charismatic prophecy was falling into decline and when the experience of oppression from the Roman government was causing deep problems for pious Christians. He responded by providing assurance about the promised parousia and also by offering theoretical attempt to explain how the heavenly Christ had defeated the cosmic powers who inspired hatred of the Christians.

The Ascension of Isaiah gives a badly-needed insight into the state of Syrian Christianity just after the death of Ignatius and it shows an early knowledge of some of the New Testament writings. This Sheffield guide examines the life-setting of the apocalypse and also offers a commentary on the complete text.

Jonathan Knight is Priest-in-Charge at Holywell-cum-Needingorth in the Diocese of Ely, and Tutor in New Testament at Westcott House, Cambridge.

2 Esdras

• Author: Bruce Longenecker
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 1995
• Pages: 128

Table of Contents: 1

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

Some of the greatest moments of religious history have occurred when a poignant experience or event flies in the face of the traditional theological worldview cherished by an individual or society. A fascinating case study of one such occurrence lies open in the text of 4 Ezra (2 Esdras 3-14), wherein a learned Jewish scribe of the first century CE rethinks his inherited theological views concerning a transcendent creator who is powerful, loving and just.

This guide introduces the reader in a non-technical but informed manner to the text of 4 Ezra, locating it in its historical, theological and social setting, reviewing interpretive approaches, and demonstrating how the author boldly struggles to understand God's grand reputation in the light of a world out of joint. The guide also examines 4 Ezra's influence within the Christian Church, and introduces the historical situations and theologies of the Christian texts, 5 Ezra (2 Esdras 1-2) and 6 Ezra (2 Esdras 15-16).

Bruce Longenecker is Lecturer in New Testament Studies at St Andrews University, Scotland.

Tobit and Judith

• Author: Benedikt Otzen
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 2002
• Pages: 162

Table of Contents: 1 | 2

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

The two apochryphal books, Tobit and Judith, are Jewish legends presumably created in the 3rd or 2nd century BCE. The first was composed in the Eastern Diaspora, the other in Palestine. The events related are placed in the Assyrian epoch in the 7th century BCE.

This volume discusses the problems between real history and historical fiction, the genres and purposes of the two books, and the literary and religious motives of the tales. Also dealt with are textual problems such as the Greek text in the Septuagint vs. Hebrew and Aramaic Tobit-fragments from Qumran.

Benedikt Otzen is Professor of Old Testament Exegesis, University of Aarhus, Denmark.

Joseph and Aseneth

• Author: Edith M. Humphrey
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 2000
• Pages: 128

Table of Contents: 1

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

This volume is a comprehensive but accessible guide to the major questions raised by the Hellenistic Jewish work, Joseph and Aseneth. Joseph and Aseneth is an excellent example of the controverted issues of text, dating and Sitz im Leben, when such decisions must be largely based on internal evidence. It provides an introduction into the vexed question of genre, given the numerous literary links that have been suggested for it. Its mysterious but engaging plot, and its female protagonist, evoke ongoing sociological and feminist debate. It is thus strongly commended for careful study to students and scholars of Judaism, New Testament, sociology and narratology. Intended as a sound basis for such exploration, this guide also offers a fresh narrative reading in which the revelatory character of Joseph and Aseneth is brought to the forefront.

Edith M. Humphrey is Professor of Scripture, Augustine College, Ottawa and lecturer at Carleton University and St Paul University, Ottawa.

The Antichrist Theme in the Intertestamental Period

• Author: G. W. Lorein
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 2003
• Pages: 272

Table of Contents: 1 | 2

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

What are the antecedents of the “Antichrist” figure and its associated themes in Jewish literature prior to the New Testament? Lorein offers the texts and translations of all the relevant passages, together with a discussion of their meaning and significance. He concludes that the “Antichrist” theme arises in different currents within this literature, but has its sources in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible.

In its scope and detail, as well as in many of its conclusions and its general synthesis, this book surpasses previous scholarship on a very important aspect of New Testament and early Christian thought.

G. W. Lorein is Free Researcher at the Ancient Near East section of the Catholic University, Leuven, Belgium.

A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period, Vol. 1: Yehud: A History of the Persian Province of Judah

• Author: Lester Grabbe
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 2004
• Pages: 480

Table of Contents: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6| 7

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

In this volume, Lester Grabbe presents a comprehensive history of Judah (Aramaic Yehud) during the Persian Period. Among the many crucial questions he addresses are: What are the sources for this period and how do we evaluate them? And how do we make them “speak” to us through the fog of centuries?

Grabbe argues that there is a danger of seeing everything from a Judaeo-centric point of view, or using the biblical texts and out-of-date secondary material to provide the main perspective in understanding history, whereas any scholar writing about this period should be familiar with the classical historians and the Near Eastern sources as well. This study brings together and analyzes the original sources, sifts and evaluates the secondary sources, develops a substantial historical synthesis, and points to areas where further research is needed.

Yehud: A History of the Persian Province of Judah offers the most up to date and comprehensive examination of the political and administrative structures; the society and economy; the religion, temple and cult; the developments in thought and literature; and the major political events.

Lester Grabbe, MA(Pasadena), PhD(Claremont), DD(Hull), is Professor Hebrew Bible and Early Judaism at the University of Hull. He is the author of Did Moses Speak Attic? and Can a ‘History of Israel’ be Written?

Of Scribes and Sages: Early Jewish Interpretation and Transmission of Scripture, Vols. 1 and 2

• Editor: Craig A. Evans
• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Publication Date: 2004
• Pages: 464

Table of Contents, Vol. 1: 1

Sample pages, Vol. 1: 1 | 2 | 3

Table of Contents, Vol. 2: 1 | 2

Sample pages, Vol. 2: 1 | 2 | 3

Of Scribes and Sages focuses primarily on early interpretation of Scripture, including the emergence of Scripture as Scripture in its various versions and contexts. It examines recent research into the relationship of the Old Testament to the New and how sacred Scripture was interpreted during New Testament times. It also provides stimulating examples to students, scholars, and clergy in how the task of interpretation is to be done.

Craig A. Evans (Ph.D., Claremont) is Payzant Distinguished Professor of New Testament, Acadia Divinity College Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada.

Do You Not Remember?: Scriptures, Story and Exegesis in the Rewritten Bible of Pseudo-Philo

• Author: Bruce Fisk
• Publisher: Sheffield Academic Press
• Publication Date: 2001
• Pages: 376

Table of Contents: 1 | 2

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

The Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum, a 'rewritten Bible' that follows the broad contours of Genesis to Samuel, includes numerous secondary, or out-of-sequence, episodes, and frequently juxtaposes unrelated biblical characters. The subtlety and significance of these inner-biblical linkages has up to now not been fully appreciated.

Building on recent studies in intertextuality, Fisk shows how Pseudo-Philo is often guided by intertextual links and themes present within the canonical precursor, that he is heavily indebted to post-biblical midrashic traditions, and that 'secondary scripture' is a strategic means by which Israel's traditions are reconfigured in this enigmatic text.

Bruce Fisk is Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Westmont College, Santa Barbara, California.

Memory in Jewish, Pagan and Christian Societies of the Graeco-Roman World: Fragmented Memory – Comprehensive Memory – Collective Memory

• Author: Doron Mendels
• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Publication Date: 2004
• Pages: 184

Table of Contents: 1 | 2

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

The ten studies in this book explore the phenomenon of public memory in societies of the Graeco-Roman period. Mendels begins with a concise discussion of the historical canon that emerged in Late Antiquity and brought with it the (distorted) memory of ancient history in Western culture. The following nine chapters each focus on a different source of collective memory in order to demonstrate the patchy and incomplete associations ancient societies had with their past. Included are discussions of Plato’s Politeia, a “site of memory” of the early church, and the dichotomy between the reality of the land of Israel in the Second Temple period and memories of it.

Throughout the book, Mendels shows that since the societies of Antiquity had associations with only bits and pieces of their past, these associations could be slippery and problematic, constantly changing, multiplying and submerging. Memories, true and false, oral and inscribed, provide good evidence for this fluidity.

Doron Mendels is Max and Sophie Mydans Professor in the Humanities at the Department of History at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel. His recent publications include: Identity, Religion and Historiography and The Media Revolution of Early Christianity.

A Bibliography of Pseudepigrapha Research 1850-1999

• Author: Lorenzo DiTommaso
• Publisher: T&T Clark
• Publication Date: 2001
• Pages: 1,072

Table of Contents: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

Sample pages: 1 | 2 | 3

This comprehensive bibliography of research on the Pseudepigrapha and cognate literature covers the period from 1850 to 1999 - thus encompassing almost all the secondary literature on this topic. A reference work designed for both institutions and individual scholars, it systematically presents a structured bibliography for each ancient text, highlighting elements such as 'Texts and Textual Issues', 'Translations', 'General Studies', and 'Specific Studies'.

In addition, this book covers a host of topics related to the context and content of the classic pseudepigrapha, providing an indispensable reference tool for anyone, scholar or student, engaged on, or interested in, research in the Pseudepigrapha.

Lorenzo DiTommaso is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Theology at Concordia University, Montreal. He is the author of several books, most recently The Dead Sea New Jerusalem Text, and The Book of Daniel and the Apocryphal Daniel Literature.