Tuesday, September 11, 2007

THE JOURNAL FOR THE STUDY OF THE PSEUDEPIGRAPHA has a new issue (May 2007) out. Table of contents and abstracts:
Vered Hillel
Naphtali, a Proto-Joseph in the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs
Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha 2007 16: 171-201.
The Greek Testament of Naphtali (TNaph) 1.7, 8 states that Joseph, as a result of Rachel's prayer for a son like Naphtali from her own womb, was like (ยต{iota}{varsigma}) Naphtali in all things. Naphtali's association with Joseph, as well as developed Naphtali traditions stemming from the period of the Second Temple and reworked and remodeled in the Middle Ages, is well known from non-biblical traditions. Naphtali traditions are preserved in four different works 4QTestament of Naphtali (4QTNaph), the Greek Testament of Naphtali (TNaph), the Medieval Hebrew Testament of Naphtali (Heb. Naph.) and Midrash bereshit rabbati (BR). However, the writer of TNaph develops the comparison between Naphtali and Joseph beyond any known biblical or non-biblical tradition. For example, by equating Naphtali with Joseph, TNaph enhances the prestige of the 'Naphtali traditions'. As a result, the figure of Naphtali emerges as a type of Joseph, or, as a so-called proto-Joseph. This article seeks to demonstrate that such an understanding of Naphtali is borne out by an examination of the character of Naphtali as portrayed in TNaph and the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs (TPatr) as a whole and by the manner in which the author adopted and adapted traditional material.
Sarah L. Schwarz
Reconsidering the Testament of Solomon
Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha 2007 16: 203-237.
The Testament of Solomon (TSol) as translated in modern editions comes from a body of Greek sources which integrate the tale of Solomon's construction of the Jerusalem Temple aided by demons with an encyclopedic collection of recipes for use in dealing with the demons in question. While the title suggests a relatively fixed text, the situation is in fact far more complex. This study argues that the text (or texts) in fullest form, as represented in late medieval manuscripts, is actually quite a late development in this tradition's history, and that most of the elements which eventually come together under the title TSol (and the like) circulated independently during the late antique period.
Lorenzo DiTommaso
Book Review: CHAZON, ESTHER G., DAVID SATRAN, and Ruth A. CLEMENTS (eds.). Things Revealed: Studies in Early Jewish and Christian Literature in Honor of Michael E. Stone. Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism 89. Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2004. Cloth, xxvi + 405 pp. 144.00 Euros, 194.00 USD. ISBN 9004138854
Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha 2007 16: 239-240.

Erratum
Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha 2007 16: 240.
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