George J. Brooke

4Q500 1 and the Use of Scripture in the Parable of the Vineyard

Seven fragments have been assigned to the papyrus manuscript 4Q500.1 Of these seven fragments six are very small and have preserved on each of them only two or three letters. Fragment 1 is more substantial, with parts of seven lines of writing preserved. The purpose of this study is to set 4Q500 frag. 1 alongside the Parable of the Vineyard2 (Matt. 21:33-45; Mark 12:1-12; Luke 20:9-18) to suggest that it may now provide both more suitable and more contemporary Jewish information for the better understanding of the parable than the Jewish materials commonly adduced by New Testament commentators.

Genre Theory, Rewritten Bible and Pesher

This article considers how the wide range of compositions from the Second Temple period that represent or depend implicitly or explicitly on some form of authoritative Jewish scripture should be suitably described and categorized. Three broad sets of issues are addressed. The first concerns how the “authority” of texts or textual traditions within particular groups of texts should be articulated suitably, particularly in relation to the respective roles for form, content and function in such articulations. The second concerns the role that should be played by reflections on the hierarchy of genres, generic instability, and evolutionary models of genre construction in how it is appropriate to distinguish earlier from later, or authoritative from dependent, primary from secondary compositions. The third concerns what labels might suitably be imposed on this broad range of literature, a breadth of literary compositions that seldom makes plain how it understands itself. The questions are addressed by the open-ended definition of the corpus to be studied, by consideration of the problems surrounding the criteria for generic definition, by reviewing the perspectives derived from thinking about the evolution of genres, and by giving some place to the need for cross-cultural analogies. A concluding section asks diachronic and synchronic questions about anthologies of authoritative texts and their interpretations.

The Pesharim and the Origins of the Dead Sea Scrolls

This paper addresses once again how the pesharim, especially the Habakkuk Commentary (lQpHab), should be suitably read. Ever since their publication, the pesharim have been the focus of controversy concerning the history which they may describe. The purpose of this paper is to attempt to describe something of their literary character to clarify their purpose and to put various uses and abuses of these texts in a proper methodological perspective. As always, we must begin with the primary evidence, the texts themselves. Datable to the turn of the era, give or take a generation, they are made up of explicit quotations of scriptural texts and commentary. They are grouped together as a distinct corpus because of the use of the term 1WD in various formulae which introduce the interpretation proper. The way that the scriptural text is cited has resulted in these texts being roughly classified in two groups, those that cite the scriptural extracts in the running order of the scriptural text itself, and those which are arranged in some other selective fashion (see most recently, Dimant 1992). The basis of this broad classification is very important and often forgotten. These texts are dependent on the text of Scripture in some way. Too often scholars have paid scant attention to the way the scriptural text is cited and its treatment by the interpreter, preferring rather to jump directly to their own conclusions about the significance of the commentary by itself, usually imposing on it some kind of historical reconstruction based on their own prejudices about events in some particular period fiom the second century B.C.E. (ea., Wacholder 1983:185-199) to the fall of the Temple (70 c.E.) (eg. , Eisenman 1986). A textual commentary in any age is a mixture on the one hand of the base text (sometimes very slightly modified) and on the other of the circumstances, exegetical techniques (Brooke 1985:166-169; Feltes 1986:205-229; Brewer 1992:189-190) and inherited traditions of the commentator. Apart fiom the actual choice of prophetic text, there is something very distinctive about the continuous pesharim, including lQpHab: the scriptural text takes priority. However many other similarities there may be in matters of content, the form

Book Review: Prolonging the Life of a Workhorse: Ellis R. Brotzman and Eric J. Tully, Old Testament Textual Criticism: A Practical IntroductionBrotzmanEllis R.TullyEric J., Old Testament Textual Criticism: A Practical Introduction, second edition (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2016.

This book is an anthology of various literary texts whose common denominator is the theme of mercy. All the texts have been taken from works of 20th and 21st century prominent Christian writers, predominantly Roman Catholic. These authors and have been grouped in six thematic parts: I. Pope Francis’ Call to Mercy: This part contains two texts authored by Pope Francis and an excerpt from Cardinal Walter Kasper’s book: Pope Francis’ Revolution of Tenderness and Love. II. Jesus and the Ethic of Love and Mercy: In this part, reflections of Leonardo Boff taken from his book Christianity in a Nutshell and reflections of Jim Forest from The Ladder of Beatitudes are presented. III. A Church of Mercy: We find here an excerpt from Jon Sobrino’s book The Principle of Mercy: Taking the Crucified People from the Cross as well as a fragment of Thomas Merton’s writings about the climate of mercy. IV. The Works of Mercy: This part contains James F. Keenan’s explanation of the biblical and patristic roots of the corporal and spiritual works of mercy, Dorothy Day’s short article ‘The Scandal of the Works of Mercy’ and an excerpt of Sidney Callahan’s book, With All Our Heart and Mind: The Spiritual Works of Mercy in a Psychological Age. V. Living Mercy: In this part, we find a fragment of Joan Chittister’s book, God’s Tender Mercy: Reflections on Forgiveness and Elaine M. Prevallet’s article ‘Living in the Mercy’. VI. Praying Mercy: This final part contains two short reflections of Joyce Rupp, a poem Kyrie by R.S. Thomas and Pope Francis’ Prayer for Jubilee Year of Mercy which closes the whole anthology. As is usually the case in anthologies, the texts selected for this book differ with regard to their readability and quality of theological thought. Moreover, given the fact that the theme of mercy is important for all Christians, regardless of their denomination, it seems that the anthology could have greater ecumenical impact if more quality texts of non-Catholic authors were included. Nevertheless, in spite of these remarks, Bochen’s anthology contains many profound theological and spiritual insights, thereby being a worthwhile read for all who want to deepen their understanding of mercy from a Christian viewpoint.

24.00. pp. xv + 255. ISBN: 978-0-8010-9753-9).

The collection as a whole cannot but sensitize the reader to the multiple issues at stake whenever an ancient text is read. Such sensitivity is certainly a necessary part of the skill set required by readers and users of sacred texts and it is salutary that even experienced interpreters of such texts are not always explicit or honest about their presuppositions. Several of the contributions here read as having a rather negative agenda, mostly exposing the assumptions of others. But on a more positive note, just how should ancient sacred texts be read and used? Of course, there is no one straightforward answer to that question, but it would be helpful to know from the contributors what criteria might be offered for a ‘good’ reading, even if those were only that all readers should always be as honest as possible about what motivates them, that they should be concerned with difficult details in texts as much as with general principles to be derived from them, and that they should be rigorous in indicating differences as well as similarities between antiquity and the modern world.

Book Review: Now You See Them, Now You Don’t: Brian Doak, Phoenician Aniconism in its Mediterranean and Ancient Near Eastern ContextsDoakBrian, Phoenician Aniconism in its Mediterranean and Ancient Near Eastern Contexts, Archaeology and Biblical Studies 21 (Atlanta GA: Society of Biblical Literature2015.

This article places the contributions of the thematic volume in the larger research context where the Dead Sea Scrolls and early Christian source texts have been juxtaposed and compared with each other. Whereas earlier scholarship was keen on identifying direct links and dependencies or, alternatively, underlining dissimilarities between the Scrolls’ Judaean priestly movement and the Galilean non-elite Jesus movement and its diaspora follow-up, this thematic volume represents more nuanced attempts to contextualise the similarities and differences in appropriate ways and find new ways of thinking that illuminate both textual corpora.

27.95. pp. xxii + 182. ISBN: 978-0-88414-099-3).

The Damascus Document ’s position about relations to Gentiles in various ways echoes, paraphrases, cites, and elaborates on Biblical tradition. D’s perspective appears the more stringent in its restrictions about contacts with and proximity to Gentiles in the Sabbath laws and it further elaborates stipulations with regard to that which blemishes priestly service by the sons of Aaron. The sectarian worldview of the Damascus Document does comprise “tension with the world” in terms of anti-establishment polemics coupled with separation from the way of the people. Critique of the Judaean leadership joins a perspective of judgement and vengeance carried out by Gentiles against wicked ways of this leadership. D’s counter-discourse picks up features of biblical tradition that in several sections are also concerned with broader social settings. D’s counter-discourse picks up features of biblical tradition that in several sections are also concerned with broader social settings. Keywords:Aaron; anti-establishment polemics; Biblical tradition; Damascus Document ; Gentiles; Judaean leadership; Sabbath laws

New Perspectives on the Significance of the Scrolls for the New Testament and Early Christian Literature

What do the Dead Sea Scrolls tell us about the forms, transmission, canonization, and interpretation of authoritative scriptures.

Relations to Gentiles in the Damascus Document and Biblical Tradition

This brief exposition raises some of the key issues around the theme of the seventh meeting of the International Organization for Qumran Studies. An important task concerns the need to convince the guild of biblical scholars more widely that unless they take all this material from the caves into account, both in terms of individual textual matters but also in terms of the wider issues that the body of texts raises about the transmission of scriptural traditions in the late Second Temple period, they will never do an adequate job on whatever task they set themselves. Within the framework, outlined in this essay, this volume of studies contributes in a limited but significant way to the better understanding of a range of topics from considerations of canon and text, to matters of legal, poetic, liturgical and homiletic interpretation. Keywords:biblical scholars; canon; homiletic interpretation; International Organization for Qumran Studies; liturgical interpretation; scriptural tradition; Second Temple period

The Scrolls and Biblical Traditions

are found. Not that the author demurely conceals his own views, or dissolves the study into relativism. For him, Paul is the ’man mountain’, and we can appreciate why he says that. He covers the period from Jesus to Paul, indicating the problem of using Acts for the study of Paul and considering the earliest house churches and the spread of the Gospel to Gentiles. Paul’s life is then considered both before and after his cataclysmic experience on the Damascus Road. Other themes include Paul the letter-writer and theologian, and in particular the continuity and discontinuity between Paul’s Jewish and Christian understanding (Kdsemann, Sanders, Dunn and others). The survey of ’new approaches’ to understanding Paul focuses on social-scientific studies, including those of Theissen and Meeks (and challenges to them), and feminist studies (in particular the work of E. Schussler Fiorenza). There is a chapter on Paul’s legacy and a final one on ’Why study Paul today?’ In short, it would be hard to find a more useful concise introduction to the study of Paul than that presented in this book. It also provides