DOCSLIB.ORG

Judeans of Egypt in the Persian Period

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Judeans of Egypt in the Persian Period Department of Biblical Studies University of Helsinki 2017 Judeans of Egypt in the Persian period (539-332 BCE) in light of the Aramaic Documents Esko Siljanen Academic dissertation to be publicly discussed, by due permission of the Faculty of Theology at the University of Helsinki in the Main Building, Auditorium XIV, on the 31th of March 2017 at 10 a.m. Author Esko Siljanen Pielestie 7, 50190 Mikkeli Finland e-mail:[email protected] Supervisor Professor Martti Nissinen Old Testament Studies University of Helsinki Pre-examiners Professor Antti Laato Gammaltestamentlig exegetik med judaistik Åbo Akademie Professor Emeritus Bob Becking Biblical Studies Utrecht University Opponent Professor Antti Laato Gammaltestamentlig exegetik med judaistik Åbo Akademie Cover pictures Front: Ferry boat on Blue Nile in Ethiopia (© Esko Siljanen 2015) Back: Author on Blue Nile (© Samuel Siljanen 2015) ISBN 978-951-51-3019-8 (paperback) ISBN 978-951-51-3020-4 (PDF) Unigrafia Helsinki 2017 ABSTRACT Siljanen Esko: Judeans of Egypt in the Persian Period (539-332 BCE) in Light of the Aramaic Documents This study aims at finding out what kind of picture the Aramaic documents found from Egypt present about Judeans of Egypt in the Persian period (539-332 BCE). The main research ques- tions are: (1) What picture do the Aramaic documents discovered from Persian-period Egypt pro- vide about the Judean settlement of Egypt during the same period in question? (2) How do these documents present the religion of the Judeans of Egypt? (3) Did the Judeans of Egypt have any knowledge of the texts and traditions included in the Hebrew Bible, especially in the Torah? (4) What kind of picture do these Aramaic documents provide about the administration, military and economic organization of the Persian Empire in Egypt? The data consists of the 1,042 Aramaic documents dating from the Persian period, found from Egypt and published up through the year 2013. Historical analysis is implemented in three phases: source criticism to verify the reliability and validity of the sources, content analysis to analyze the data and interpretative dialogue to un- derstand the findings in relation to the research questions. The vast data complements the picture provided by previous research placing the Judeans of Egypt in the historical context of the Per- sian Empire. The findings, in relation to the research questions, show that: (1) the Judeans were settled in Egypt mainly in the areas of Elephantine in the South as well as in the region of Memphis in the North. Through this research the picture of the Judean settlement in Egypt in general and of the Judean military garrison in Elephantine in particular becomes clearer. The research confirms the previously suggested theory that the Judean settlement of Egypt was rather old, most proba- bly dating back to the end of the 7th and beginning of the 6th century BCE. Judeans served as loy- al subjects of the Persian Empire in the positions of regular soldiers and professional Aramaic scribes. (2) They possessed a religious group identity that was mainly Yahwistic; however, clear evidence also exists to prove their partial religious acculturation, especially with the Arameans. (3) The Judeans of Egypt drew from the same source of religious tradition as the texts of the He- brew Bible; however, their knowledge of the traditions known from the Torah was limited. They maintained good relationships with the High Priest of Jerusalem, although they did not know about the centralization of the cult in Jerusalem. No copy of the texts of the Hebrew Bible has been found from Egypt. Thus, it is very probable that the religious tradition was passed down to the Judeans of Egypt in oral form. In addition, this study (4) enhances the current understanding of well-organized Persian Imperial administration with an effective economic system, and power- ful army that was present and active in Egypt during the first Persian period (525-404 BCE). Its greatest challenges were the peripheral location of Egypt from the heartland of the Empire and the evident corruption of its officials. Since the end of the 5th century BCE, the Persian rule in Egypt began fading, and also the Judeans of Egypt disappeared from the scene. This study enriches recent understanding of the Judean settlement of Egypt through its vast data of Aramaic documents that have been systematically examined. The findings confirm that Judeans had families with them in Egypt, a fact which indicates the long age of their settle- ment. A novel finding in this study is the fact that the Judeans occupied mainly the positions of regular soldier and professional Aramaic scribe. This research shows that the Judean community of Egypt mainly had a Yahwistic group identity. The greatest token of this identity was their temple of Yahu in Elephantine. Yahwistic names were also still highly preserved by the Judeans of Egypt during the Persian period. Keywords: Judeans of Egypt, Persian period, Aramaic documents, Elephantine. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS My interest in Biblical studies, Hebrew language and Jewish history awakened when I en- rolled in the University of Helsinki for theological studies in 1974. Since then, I have been privileged to conduct research in three continents: Africa, Europe and the Middle East. I want to express my warm gratitude to all those people who have encouraged and helped me during the long study process that produced this dissertation. I am grateful to Prof. Tapani Harviainen who was the first to lead me into the inter- esting world of the Hebrew language. I am in debt of gratitude also to late Prof. Timo Veijola who guided me into the process of doctoral studies. I would like to thank Professors Risto Lauha and Anneli Aejmelaeus who encouraged me to proceed in the study process after the sudden loss of Prof. Veijola. My special thanks belong to Prof. Martti Nissinen who has carried the greatest burden of advising me through the study process to the final goal. His wise advice and patient attitude have always been a great source of encouragement for me. Both of us coming from the Land of Savo has provided us with a common language. I would also like to express my thanks to Dr. Juha Pakkala who kindly has acted as my sec- ond adviser. Mrs. Brenda Stelle deserves my special and warm thanks for correcting the English language of the dissertation. She did this in the middle of the jungle of Africa. I thank the pre-examiners of my dissertation, Prof. Antti Laato from Åbo Akademie and Prof. Emeritus Bob Becking from Utrecht University. Their constructive comments have been valuable and provided important new aspects to the dissertation. I am in debt of gratitude to the Rothberg School of the Hebrew University of Jerusa- lem for facilitating my studies of Semitic languages in 2000-2003. I was honored to be able to study topics related to the Persian period in the guidance of Professors Ephraim Stern and Wayne Horowitz, as well as under the mentorship of Mr. Yehuda Kaplan, Curator of the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem. I thank École Biblique et Archéologique Franҫaise in Jerusalem for hosting me several times in 2008 while collecting the data of my research. I would also like to express my gratitude to Mekane Yesus Seminary in Addis Ababa Ethio- pia for letting me be part of its inspiring faculty during the years 2013-2016. Particularly I want to raise the name of my late Superior Gideon Adugna who left us a legacy to continue theological studies in spite of all the difficulties on the way. Having written the research principally along a full-time job makes me very grateful to the Finnish Cultural Foundation, South Savo Regional fund which by its grant enabled me to take a one year study leave for the research work. I am also grateful to the Golda Meir Fellowship Fund that enabled me to study at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In addi- tion, I would like to express my warm thanks to the Finnish Middle East Society for its sup- port to my study. Thanks also to the Finnish Lutheran Mission for supporting the academic study of Jewish history, and specifically this research. I would like to thank all my friends and colleagues who have encouraged and sup- ported this research with their wise advice, comments and other means. Thanks to my for- mer Superior, Rev. Simo S. Salo, for his encouragement and support, thanks to Dr. Kirsi Valkama and doctoral student Tero Alstola for their comments and advice, special thanks to Dr. Marjatta Tolvanen-Ojutkangas for her academic and personal support, thanks to Mr. Joel Ahola for his skillful help with the map of Egypt. Last but not least, from the bottom of my heart I want to express my sincere and lov- ing gratefulness to my dear wife Tuula and our children Eeva-Maria, Samuel and his wife Lotta, and Mikael. This research process would never have been completed without your support. Thank you for allowing me to be occupied with this research so many years and carry the heavy books in our luggage between different continents! Thank you for your pa- tience and love. I want to thank my children for their contribution in improving the English language of this dissertation as well as in solving some technical problems related to it. Dear Dr. Tuula, thank you for your constant encouragement, support, and practical help. Your patience is greater than what you ever have imagined! I thank you for your un- failing love and prayers that have carried me through this study process! To you I dedicate this work. Sola Gratia ‒ Soli Deo Gloria! Jerusalem, February 2017 Esko Siljanen ABBREVIATIONS AfO Archiv für Orientforschung Akk.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Ancient Iranian Nomads in Western Central Asia
    ISBN 978-92-3-102846-5 ANCIENT IRANIAN NOMADS IN. 1 ANCIENT IRANIAN NOMADS IN WESTERN CENTRAL ASIA* A. Abetekov and H. Yusupov Contents Literary sources on the ancient Iranian nomads of Central Asia ............ 25 Society and economy of the Iranian nomads of Central Asia .............. 26 Culture of the Iranian nomads of Central Asia ..................... 29 The territory of Central Asia, which consists of vast expanses of steppe-land, desert and semi-desert with fine seasonal pastures, was destined by nature for the development of nomadic cattle-breeding. Between the seventh and third centuries b.c. it was inhabited by a large number of tribes, called Scythians by the Greeks, and Sakas by the Persians. The history of the Central Asian nomads is inseparable from that of the nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples of the Eurasian steppe zone. Their political and economic life was closely linked, and their material culture had much in common. It should also be noted that, despite their distinctive qualities, the nomadic tribes were closely connected with the agricultural population of Central Asia. In fact, the history and movements of these nomadic tribes and the settled population cannot be considered in isolation; each had its impact on the other, and this interdependence must be properly understood. * See Map 1. 24 ISBN 978-92-3-102846-5 Literary sources on the ancient Iranian. Literary sources on the ancient Iranian nomads of Central Asia The term ‘Tura’¯ 1 is the name by which the Central Asian nomadic tribes were in one of the earliest parts of the Avesta. The Turas¯ are portrayed as enemies of the sedentary Iranians and described, in Yašt XVII (prayer to the goddess Aši), 55–6, as possessing fleet-footed horses.2 As early as 641 or 640 b.c.
    [Show full text]
  • Celebrating Pesach in the Land of the Pharaohs Dr
    Celebrating Pesach in the Land of the Pharaohs Dr. Jill Katz Lecturer in Archaeology and Anthropology, Yeshiva University The story of Pesach and the Land of Egypt are inextricably linked. In our recounting, Egypt is always the place we escaped from. We do not really concern ourselves with what happened to Egypt subsequent to our leaving it. Of course, King Shlomo did marry an Egyptian princess and subsequent Israelite and Judahite kings engaged diplomatically with Egyptian leaders. But overall, from the time of the Exodus (yetziat Mitzraim) to near the end of First Temple times, the people of Judah and Israel seemed to have had little interest in returning to the land of their enslavement. However, this changed towards the end of the First Temple period, probably as a result of warming relations brought on by the common threat of the Assyrian Empire. When Egyptian Pharaoh Psamtik (26th Dynasty; 664-610 BCE), needed extra troops to protect Egypt’s southern border from the Nubians, it is quite possible that the king of Judah, Menashe (687-642 BCE), responded favorably. Whatever the origins, we know from written records that by the time the Persians reached Egypt under the leadership of Cyrus’ son and successor Cambyses (525 BCE), a Jewish colony with its own temple was already flourishing in southern Egypt, at a place called Elephantine. Here, Jewish mercenaries were part of a large, Aramaic-speaking community. Within this multi-ethnic context the Jews succeeded in maintaining their distinct religious identity, bolstered by on-going relations with the Jewish communities of Jerusalem and Samaria.
    [Show full text]
  • Ethnic Identity in Graeco-Roman Egypt Instructor
    Egypt after the Pharaohs: Ethnic Identity in Graeco-Roman Egypt Instructor: Rachel Mairs [email protected] 401-863-2306 Office hours: Rhode Island Hall 202. Tues 2-3pm, Thurs 11am-12pm, or by appointment. Course Description Egypt under Greek and Roman rule (from c. 332 BC) was a diverse place, its population including Egyptians, Greeks, Jews, Romans, Nubians, Arabs, and even Indians. This course will explore the sometimes controversial subject of ethnic identity and its manifestations in the material and textual record from Graeco-Roman Egypt, through a series of case studies involving individual people and communities. Topics will include multilingualism, ethnic conflict and discrimination, legal systems, and gender, using evidence from contemporary texts on papyrus as well as recent archaeological excavations and field survey projects. Course Objectives By the end of the course, participants should understand and be able to articulate: • how Graeco-Roman Egypt functioned as a diverse multiethnic, multilingual society. • the legal and political frameworks within which this diversity was organised and negotiated. • how research in the social sciences on multilingualism and ethnic identity can be utilised to provide productive and interesting approaches to the textual and archaeological evidence from Graeco-Roman Egypt. Students will also gain a broad overview of Egypt’s history from its conquest by Alexander the Great, through its rule by the Ptolemies, to the defeat of Cleopatra and Mark Antony and its integration into the Roman Empire, to the rise of Christianity. Course Requirements Attendance and participation (10%); assignments (2 short essays of 4-5 pages) and quizzes/map exercises (50%); extended essay on individual topics to be decided in consultation with me (c.
    [Show full text]
  • The Satrap of Western Anatolia and the Greeks
    University of Pennsylvania ScholarlyCommons Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations 2017 The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks Eyal Meyer University of Pennsylvania, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations Part of the Ancient History, Greek and Roman through Late Antiquity Commons Recommended Citation Meyer, Eyal, "The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks" (2017). Publicly Accessible Penn Dissertations. 2473. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2473 This paper is posted at ScholarlyCommons. https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/2473 For more information, please contact [email protected]. The aS trap Of Western Anatolia And The Greeks Abstract This dissertation explores the extent to which Persian policies in the western satrapies originated from the provincial capitals in the Anatolian periphery rather than from the royal centers in the Persian heartland in the fifth ec ntury BC. I begin by establishing that the Persian administrative apparatus was a product of a grand reform initiated by Darius I, which was aimed at producing a more uniform and centralized administrative infrastructure. In the following chapter I show that the provincial administration was embedded with chancellors, scribes, secretaries and military personnel of royal status and that the satrapies were periodically inspected by the Persian King or his loyal agents, which allowed to central authorities to monitory the provinces. In chapter three I delineate the extent of satrapal authority, responsibility and resources, and conclude that the satraps were supplied with considerable resources which enabled to fulfill the duties of their office. After the power dynamic between the Great Persian King and his provincial governors and the nature of the office of satrap has been analyzed, I begin a diachronic scrutiny of Greco-Persian interactions in the fifth century BC.
    [Show full text]
  • The History of Ancient Egypt “Passionate, Erudite, Living Legend Lecturers
    “Pure intellectual stimulation that can be popped into Topic Subtopic the [audio or video player] anytime.” History Ancient History —Harvard Magazine The History of Ancient Egypt “Passionate, erudite, living legend lecturers. Academia’s best lecturers are being captured on tape.” —The Los Angeles Times The History “A serious force in American education.” —The Wall Street Journal of Ancient Egypt Course Guidebook Professor Bob Brier Long Island University Professor Bob Brier is an Egyptologist and Professor of Philosophy at the C. W. Post Campus of Long Island University. He is renowned for his insights into ancient Egypt. He hosts The Learning Channel’s popular Great Egyptians series, and his research was the subject of the National Geographic television special Mr. Mummy. A dynamic instructor, Professor Brier has received Long Island University’s David Newton Award for Teaching Excellence. THE GREAT COURSES® Corporate Headquarters 4840 Westfields Boulevard, Suite 500 Chantilly, VA 20151-2299 Guidebook USA Phone: 1-800-832-2412 www.thegreatcourses.com Cover Image: © Hemera/Thinkstock. Course No. 350 © 1999 The Teaching Company. PB350A PUBLISHED BY: THE GREAT COURSES Corporate Headquarters 4840 Westfi elds Boulevard, Suite 500 Chantilly, Virginia 20151-2299 Phone: 1-800-TEACH-12 Fax: 703-378-3819 www.thegreatcourses.com Copyright © The Teaching Company, 1999 Printed in the United States of America This book is in copyright. All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of The Teaching Company.
    [Show full text]
  • 2 the Assyrian Empire, the Conquest of Israel, and the Colonization of Judah 37 I
    ISRAEL AND EMPIRE ii ISRAEL AND EMPIRE A Postcolonial History of Israel and Early Judaism Leo G. Perdue and Warren Carter Edited by Coleman A. Baker LONDON • NEW DELHI • NEW YORK • SYDNEY 1 Bloomsbury T&T Clark An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc Imprint previously known as T&T Clark 50 Bedford Square 1385 Broadway London New York WC1B 3DP NY 10018 UK USA www.bloomsbury.com Bloomsbury, T&T Clark and the Diana logo are trademarks of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc First published 2015 © Leo G. Perdue, Warren Carter and Coleman A. Baker, 2015 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publishers. Leo G. Perdue, Warren Carter and Coleman A. Baker have asserted their rights under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as Authors of this work. No responsibility for loss caused to any individual or organization acting on or refraining from action as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by Bloomsbury or the authors. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN: HB: 978-0-56705-409-8 PB: 978-0-56724-328-7 ePDF: 978-0-56728-051-0 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Typeset by Forthcoming Publications (www.forthpub.com) 1 Contents Abbreviations vii Preface ix Introduction: Empires, Colonies, and Postcolonial Interpretation 1 I.
    [Show full text]
  • Seeing Oursel Es in the Xenoi – Plato's Warning to the Greeks
    Akropolis 3 (2019) 129-149 Marina Marren* Seeing Ourseles in the Xenoi – Plato’s Warning to the Greeks Abstract: In this essay about the story of Atlantis in Plato’s Timaeus, we focus on the crucial political message that the Atlantis tale contains. More precisely, we seek to respond to a question that may evade a completely satisfactory answer. The question is: Could Plato’s story of the rise and fall of Atlantis, in the Timaeus, be a warning tale to the Greeks of his own time? In order to root the inves- tigation prompted by this question in solid textual ground, we pay close attention to the framing of the Atlantis tale. In what follows, we analyze the series of substitutions (between mythical, ancient, and historical cities, i.e., Atlantis, Athens, and Sais) that Plato uses as he seeks to bring his readers to a point from which we can assess the politics of ancient Athens – a city that in Plato’s time stands on the brink of repeating the political blunders of the formerly glorious empire of the East. Introduction In the spirit of the tradition that takes Plato’s dialogues to be both works of literary genius and of philosophy, we pay careful attention to Plato’s narrative frames and to his choice of interlocutors in order to tease out the philosoph- ical and political recommendations that Plato has for his ancient readers and that his dialogues offer to us. To that end, in Section II, we focus on providing philosophically pertinent details related to the identity and ambitions of Critias IV who, on our interpretation, is the narrator of the Atlantis story.
    [Show full text]
  • Map 1. European Greece and Western Asia Minor
    Map 1. European Greece and Western Asia Minor Western Map 1.European Greeceand DARDANIA BLACK SEA Lissus THRACE Bosporus Epidamnus MACEDONIA Maronea SEA OF Aenus MARMARA Pella Amphipolis Abdera Lysimacheia Cius ORESTIS Thessalonica Apollonia Chersonnese Pydna Lampsacus Oricum Abydus P PERRHAEBIA LEMNOS in Tempe Ilium d Hellespont u s Phoenice M N E Phaloria Larissa Alexandria Troas P ts Atrax I . R CORCYRA U Cynoscephalae S THESSALY Pharsalus Demetrias Ambracia AEGEAN Pergamum DOLOPIA SEA LESBOS Lamia Oreus A A Magnesia-ad-Sipylum C E EU A TO Thermopylae Nicaea BO R L CIS E N IA O A PH Smyrna A LOC Delphi Chalcis N Naupactus RIS Thebes Eretria CHIOS I Te o s A Thespiae ADRIATIC Oropus SEA Leuctra Plataea Marathon Myonnesus Ephesus Aegium Eleusis Carystus Sicyon Athens SAMOS Magnesia Elis Corinth Megara ACHAEA CARIA Argos Miletus Cleitor Lade Stratonicaea Megalopolis Delos Bargylia Messene Sellasia Caunus Sparta Pylos 0 30 60 mi Rhodes 0 50 100 km Map 2. The HellenisticKingdoms Map 2. IA AN RD GAULS OF DA A E I AEON TYLIS Byzantium P E BLACK SEA P I A O N C I D A Chalcedon E Amphipolis R R H R. Sangarius C Pella T Sinope U (Se Tios A Abdera leucid) P S CASPIAN M O Lysimacheia Cius Heraclea l N SEA e PA n Ambracia Cyzicus PHLAGONIA n BIT A T a Delphi HYNI a h Demetrias S aly U C . H Trapezus i R S bo Pergamum G A Uz Athens Sardes L A T I A E ARMENIA IA Apamea IA Sparta LYD P H C RY G I A ADO (to Egypt) Miletus CAPP tes L.
    [Show full text]
  • Cyrus the Great As a “King of the City of Anshan”*
    ANTIGONI ZOURNATZI Cyrus the Great as a “King of the City of Anshan”* The Anshanite dynastic title of Cyrus the Great and current interpretations Since its discovery in the ruins of Babylon in 1879, the inscribed Cylinder of Cyrus the Great (fig. 1)1 has had a powerful impact on modern perceptions of the founder of the Persian empire. Composed following Cyrus’ conquest of Babylon in 539 BC and stressing above all his care for the Babylonian people and his acts of social and religious restoration, the Akkadian text of the Cylin- der occupies a central place in modern discussions of Cyrus’ imperial policy.2 This famous document is also at the heart of a lively scholarly controversy concerning the background of Cyrus’ dynastic line. The Persian monarch Darius I –who rose to the throne approximately a decade after the death of Cyrus the Great and who founded the ruling dynasty * This paper was initially presented in the First International Conference Iran and the Silk Road (National Museum of Iran, 12-14 February 2011). A pre-publication ver- sion was kindly hosted by Pierre Briant on Achemenet (Zournatzi 2011, prompting the similar reflections of Stronach 2013). The author wishes to express her appreciation to Daryoosh Akbarzadeh and the other organizers of the Tehran conference for the opportunity to participate in a meeting that opened up important new vistas on the complex interactions along the paths of the Silk Road, for their hospitality, as well as for their most gracious permission for both the preliminary and the present final publication. Thanks are equally due to Judith Lerner for a useful discussion concerning the possible wider currency of Cyrus’ Anshanite title outside the Babylonian domain, and to Michael Roaf, David Stronach, and the two reviewers of the article for helpful comments and bibliographical references.
    [Show full text]
  • Alexander and the 'Defeat' of the Sogdianian Revolt
    Alexander the Great and the “Defeat” of the Sogdianian Revolt* Salvatore Vacante “A victory is twice itself when the achiever brings home full numbers” (W. Shakespeare, Much Ado About Nothing, Act I, Scene I) (i) At the beginning of 329,1 the flight of the satrap Bessus towards the northeastern borders of the former Persian Empire gave Alexander the Great the timely opportunity for the invasion of Sogdiana.2 This ancient region was located between the Oxus (present Amu-Darya) and Iaxartes (Syr-Darya) Rivers, where we now find the modern Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, bordering on the South with ancient Bactria (present Afghanistan). According to literary sources, the Macedonians rapidly occupied this large area with its “capital” Maracanda3 and also built, along the Iaxartes, the famous Alexandria Eschate, “the Farthermost.”4 However, during the same year, the Sogdianian nobles Spitamenes and Catanes5 were able to create a coalition of Sogdianians, Bactrians and Scythians, who created serious problems for Macedonian power in the region, forcing Alexander to return for the winter of 329/8 to the largest city of Bactria, Zariaspa-Bactra.6 The chiefs of the revolt were those who had *An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Conflict Archaeology Postgraduate Conference organized by the Centre for Battlefield Archaeology of the University of Glasgow on October 7th – 9th 2011. 1 Except where differently indicated, all the dates are BCE. 2 Arr. 3.28.10-29.6. 3 Arr. 3.30.6; Curt. 7.6.10: modern Samarkand. According to Curtius, the city was surrounded by long walls (70 stades, i.e.
    [Show full text]
  • THRESHING FLOORS AS SACRED SPACES in the HEBREW BIBLE by Jaime L. Waters a Dissertation Submitted to the Johns Hopkins Universit
    THRESHING FLOORS AS SACRED SPACES IN THE HEBREW BIBLE by Jaime L. Waters A dissertation submitted to The Johns Hopkins University in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Baltimore, Maryland August 2013 © 2013 Jaime L. Waters All Rights Reserved ABSTRACT Vital to an agrarian community’s survival, threshing floors are agricultural spaces where crops are threshed and winnowed. As an agrarian society, ancient Israel used threshing floors to perform these necessary activities of food processing, but the Hebrew Bible includes very few references to these actions happening on threshing floors. Instead, several cultic activities including mourning rites, divination rituals, cultic processions, and sacrifices occur on these agricultural spaces. Moreover, the Solomonic temple was built on a threshing floor. Though seemingly ordinary agricultural spaces, the Hebrew Bible situates a variety of extraordinary cultic activities on these locations. In examining references to threshing floors in the Hebrew Bible, this dissertation will show that these agricultural spaces are also sacred spaces connected to Yahweh. Three chapters will explore different aspects of this connection. Divine control of threshing floors will be demonstrated as Yahweh exhibits power to curse, bless, and save threshing floors from foreign attacks. Accessibility and divine manifestation of Yahweh will be demonstrated in passages that narrate cultic activities on threshing floors. Cultic laws will reveal the links between threshing floors, divine offerings and blessings. One chapter will also address the sociological features of threshing floors with particular attention given to the social actors involved in cultic activities and temple construction. By studying references to threshing floors as a collection, a research project that has not been done previously, the close relationship between threshing floors and the divine will be visible, and a more nuanced understanding of these spaces will be achieved.
    [Show full text]
  • CALENDRICAL CALCULATIONS the Ultimate Edition an Invaluable
    Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-05762-3 — Calendrical Calculations 4th Edition Frontmatter More Information CALENDRICAL CALCULATIONS The Ultimate Edition An invaluable resource for working programmers, as well as a fount of useful algorithmic tools for computer scientists, astronomers, and other calendar enthu- siasts, the Ultimate Edition updates and expands the previous edition to achieve more accurate results and present new calendar variants. The book now includes algorithmic descriptions of nearly forty calendars: the Gregorian, ISO, Icelandic, Egyptian, Armenian, Julian, Coptic, Ethiopic, Akan, Islamic (arithmetic and astro- nomical forms), Saudi Arabian, Persian (arithmetic and astronomical), Bahá’í (arithmetic and astronomical), French Revolutionary (arithmetic and astronomical), Babylonian, Hebrew (arithmetic and astronomical), Samaritan, Mayan (long count, haab, and tzolkin), Aztec (xihuitl and tonalpohualli), Balinese Pawukon, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Hindu (old arithmetic and medieval astronomical, both solar and lunisolar), and Tibetan Phug-lugs. It also includes information on major holidays and on different methods of keeping time. The necessary astronom- ical functions have been rewritten to produce more accurate results and to include calculations of moonrise and moonset. The authors frame the calendars of the world in a completely algorithmic form, allowing easy conversion among these calendars and the determination of secular and religious holidays. Lisp code for all the algorithms is available in machine- readable form. Edward M. Reingold is Professor of Computer Science at the Illinois Institute of Technology. Nachum Dershowitz is Professor of Computational Logic and Chair of Computer Science at Tel Aviv University. © in this web service Cambridge University Press www.cambridge.org Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-05762-3 — Calendrical Calculations 4th Edition Frontmatter More Information About the Authors Edward M.
    [Show full text]