Books in the The Library of Second Temple Studies series

An examination of the Testament of Job from a narratological perspective.

A collection of essays examining the period of transition between Persian and Greek rule of Judah, ca 400-200 BCE. This volume covers subjects such as the archaeology of Maresha/Marisa, Jewish identity, Hellenization/Hellenism, Ptolemaic administration in Judah, the Samaritans in the transition period, and Greek foundations in Palestine.

A study of the interrelationships between the formulary traditions of the legal documents of the Jewish colony of Elephantine and the legal formulary traditions of their Egyptian counterparts.

Discusses the central rule documents, called "Serek" texts, produced by a Jewish community of the Essenes that lived at Qumran by the Dead Sea. The texts describe the life of an ascetic group that had rejected the hellenistic mainstream Jewish culture and had withdrawn into the desert to live a life of perfect obedience to the Torah.

Introduces the reader to a genre of writings that retell biblical narratives in various ways. They reflect the concerns and methods of early Jewish interpreters of Scripture. This book traces continuity and discontinuity with other Jewish and Christian traditions, and reflects on the significance of these texts for the status of Scripture.

Includes ten studies, most of which were presented at the 14th World Congress of Jewish Studies, held in Jerusalem in 2005. These studies deal with the changes that occurred in the Land of Israel during the Persian and early Hellenistic periods, from the 6th through the 4th centuries BCE.

Explores the theme of the determinism as articulated in the Rule of the Community and the Fourth Gospel with the aim of uncovering the relevance of petitionary prayer within the framework of the determinism of each book.

A collection of essays that builds upon the growing interest in manuscripts as artifacts and witnesses to early stages in Jewish and Christian understanding of sacred scripture. It focuses on the important questions touching the emergence of canon consciousness and written communication in the early centuries of the Christian church.

Zechariah 1-6 is unlike most of the prophets in the Hebrew Bible. He conveys his message mostly with visions. These observations have led to scholarly disagreements as to how one should understand his role. The author mediates this disagreement by triangulating the relationship of Zechariah's visionary mode of expression, his message.

Did authors of "Second Temple texts" concern themselves with 'salvation'? If so, on what terms? What does one need 'salvation' from? And are the parameters of who is included in or excluded from 'salvation' defined?

This is an assessment of dualistic thinking in the Qumran material written by leading contributors in the light of two decades of Qumran research. The importance of dualistic thinking within the Dead Sea Scrolls has always been emphasised in Qumran Studies . Nevertheless, in the last two decades the research on Qumran dualism seems to have been on the margins of scholarly interest. The main result of contemporary research in this area is support for the conviction that one cannot postulate compelling doctrines in the ''theology of Qumran'' - the group did not want to develop a sophisticated doctrinal system; rather, they collected and mediated various aspects of the theology of their times. Since virtually all the Qumran material has been published, it is now apposite to evaluate several oft-debated topics of scholarly research. The theme of ''dualism in Qumran'' is one such area in need of fresh investigation. The contributors of the present volume begin this work and open up new fields that might stimulate further reflection on the problem, assessing such issues as: the origin of Qumran''s dualism; the literary growth of the passages in question; and the social/ideological setting of the dualistic passages within the Qumran Library. The Library of Second Temple Studies is a premier book series that offers cutting-edge work for a readership of scholars, teachers, postgraduate students and advanced undergraduates in the field of Second Temple studies. All the many and diverse aspects of Second Temple study are represented and promoted, including innovative work from historical perspectives, studies using social-scientific and literary theory, and developing theological, cultural and contextual approaches.

History reveals that colonizers effectively made use of education as a device to propagate their cultural values, ethos and lifestyle among the colonized. This title explores the role of the colonial education system in ancient times and the more recent British colonial era in India through diverse texts and numerous critical lenses.

This book is open access and available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. It is funded by Knowledge Unlatched.Jewish and early Christian authors discussed Abraham in numerous and diverse ways, adapting his Old Testament narratives and using Abrahamic imagery in their works. However, while some areas of study in Abrahamic texts have received much scholarly attention, other areas remain nearly untouched. Beginning with a perspective on how Abraham was used within Jewish literature, this collection of essays follows the impact of Abraham across biblical texts-including Pseudigraphic and Apocryphal texts - into early Greek, Latin and Gnostic literature.These essays build upon existing Abraham scholarship, by discussing Abraham in less explored areas such as rewritten scripture, Philo of Alexandria, Josephus, the Apostolic Fathers and contemporary Greek and Latin authors. Through the presentation of a more thorough outline of the impact of the figure and stories of Abraham, the contributors to this volume create a concise and complete idea of how his narrative was employed throughout the centuries, and how ancient authors adopted and adapted received traditions.

Scribes and Their Remains begins with an introductory essay by Stanley Porter which addresses the principal theme of the book: the text as artifact. The rest of the volume is then split into two major sections. In the first, five studies appear on the theme of ''Scribes, Letters, and Literacy.'' In the first of these Craig A. Evans offers a lengthy piece that argues that the archaeological, artifactual, and historical evidence suggests that New Testament autographs and first copies may well have remained in circulation for one century or more, having the effect of stabilizing the text. Other pieces in the section address literacy, orality and paleography of early Christian papyri. In the second section there are five pieces on ''Writing, Reading, and Abbreviating Christian Scripture.'' These range across numerous topics, including an examination of the stauros (cross) as a nomen sacrum. The volume concludes with reflections by co-editor Peter Arzt-Grabner incorporating his longstanding expertise in the study of documentary papyri, especially as these ancient documents relate to New Testament research. From the perspective of a papyrologist, Arzt-Grabner discusses how New Testament scholars use documentary papyri today and recommends some future directions.

A study of two metaphors, 'an eternal planting' and 'a house of holiness', which were used extensively by the DSS Community in expression of their self-understanding. These two metaphors appear to be quite distinct at first sight, but on closer examination they are seen to convey many complementary theological ideas.

Constitutes an examination of key sobriquets found among the Qumran Dead Sea Scrolls. This book focuses on the function of the sobriquets as labels utilised positively or negatively within the sectarian compositions. It examines the differing form and function of the sobriquets across the range of texts in which they appear.

The importance of dualistic thinking within the "Dead Sea Scrolls" has always been emphasised in "Qumran Studies". This volume assesses issues such as: the origin of Qumran's dualism; the literary growth of the passages in question; and the social/ideological setting of the dualistic passages within the Qumran Library.

For 2000 years, Judaism and Christianity have been at odds with one another. The problem at the heart of the division is the concept of messiah. This title looks at the concept of messiah from an historical perspective and examines its roots in ancient Jewish literature, and its development within the Christian tradition.

Surveys ten Jewish literary works composed in Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek between the 8th and the mid-2nd century BCE, and shows that each deals with major problems of the Jewish populations in the Land of Israel or in the dispersions. This title provides insightful explorations of the purpose behind these texts.

Provides an approach to the book of "Tobit" from a range of disciplines: literary, feminist, anthropological, imagination, theological, textual and historical. This book considers some Latin manuscripts, encompassing an article introducing a print of the Ceriani Latin text, and includes an overview of the Old Latin textual tradition and context.

Written by one of the world's leading authorities on the Dead Sea Scrolls, these groundbreaking essays explore the significance of the scrolls for our understanding of the New Testament and Christian Origins.