JACOB of SERUGH's VERSE HOMILY on TAMAR (Gen. 38) Two

JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38)

In Memoriam Yousif Habbi 23 xii 1938-15 x 2000

Two of the first European scholars to show an interest in, and appre- ciation of, Jacob of Serugh's poetry were Pius Zingerle (1801-1881) and his nephew Joseph Zingerle (1831-1891), and among the latter's publi- cations was an edition of Jacob's Memra on Tamar (Gen. 38)1. Since this Memra is a particularly fine example of Jacob’s artistry, and since Zingerle's edition is hard of access, the text is republished here, accompanied by an annotated English translation. The Memra also happens to be of considerable exegetical interest2. J. Zingerle published the text on the basis of Vatican sir. 117, a three- columned manuscript of the 12th/13th century containing a large number of Jacob's Memre. He also notes that the same text is in “cod.Nitr.XIV”, now Vat. sir. 252, but that he had not had the opportunity to consult this manuscript. These two manuscripts still appear to be the only two surviving witnesses3. Examination of Vat. sir. 252 will quickly indicate that it is one of the manuscripts which had the misfor- tune to fall into the Nile on its journey from Egypt to Italy; as a conse- quence much of it is virtually illegible, and this applies in particular to the folios (beginning 28r) on which the Memra on Tamar is to be found. The manuscript is written in a small estrangelo hand which can almost certainly be dated to the sixth century, thus giving very early evidence

1 J. ZINGERLE, S. Jacobi Sarugensis Sermo de Tamar, Oeniponti, 1871. I take the opportunity to thank Dana Miller for a xerox copy of the text. For attitudes to Jacob’s poetry in European scholarship see F. RILLIET, Une victime du tournant des études syriaques à la fin du XIXe siècle, in Aram, 5 (1993), p. 465-480. 2 In the commentary I use the following abbreviations for the main relevant studies of the early exegesis of this chapter: BOTHA = P.J. BOTHA, Ephrem the Syrian's treatment of Tamar in comparison to that in Jewish sources, in Acta Patristica et Byzantina, 6 (1995), p. 15-26; KRONHOLM = T. KRONHOLM, Holy Adultery. The interpretation of the story of Judah and Tamar (Gen. 38) in the genuine hymns of Ephraem Syrus, in Orientalia Suecana, 40 (1991), p. 149-163; MENN = E.M. MENN, Judah and Tamar (Genesis 38) in Ancient Jewish Exegesis. Studies in Literary Form and Hermeneutics (Suppl. to the Jour- nal for the Study of Judaism, 51), Leiden, 1997 [on Testament of Judah, Targum Neofiti, and Bereshit Rabbah]; PETIT = M. PETIT, Exploitations non bibliques des thèmes de Tamar et de Genèse 38: Philon d’Alexandrie; textes et traditions juives jusqu’aux Talmudim, in Alexandrina. Mélanges offerts à Claude Mondésert S.J., Paris, 1987, p. 77- 115. 3 To judge by the indexes in A. VÖÖBUS, Handschriftliche Überlieferung der Memre- Dichtung des Ja‘qob von Serug, I-IV (C.S.C.O., 344-345, 421-422; Subs., 39-40, 60-61), Leuven, 1973, 1980. 280 S. BROCK

for Jacob as the author of the poem (the title “On Tamar, composed by Mar Jacob” is fortunately legible). Like Vat. sir. 117, the manuscript is in three columns. The condition of Vat. sir. 252 (= A) renders any proper collation of it impossible, but on the basis of those passages that are legible it is possible to state that its text is very close to that of Vat. sir. 117 (= B), the differences being almost all confined to orthography. Owing to the illegibility of Vat. sir. 252, the re-edition of the text below is based again in Vat. sir. 117; on the whole, Zingerle represented the text of the manuscript accurately, and it is only in a few places that it has re- quired correcting4.

Text

A = Vatican sir. 252, f. 28r-30v; 6th century. B = Vatican sir. 117, f. 19r-21r; 12th/13th century (= text).

A B

B f. 19 r. 3 (A f. 28 r. 1) 10 19 v. 1

4 Small corrections to his text, on the basis of B, will be found in lines 20, 23, 35, 38, 45, 77, 107, 124, 162, 207, 221, 224, 243, 256, 273, 276, 289, 318, 335, 350, 364, 365, 393, 407 (italicized numbers are instances Zingerle already noted in his Corrigenda, p. 21). JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 281

20 30 40 19 v. 2 50 282 S. BROCK

60 70 19 v. 3 80 JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 283

90 100 20 r. 1 110 120 284 S. BROCK

130 140 20 r. 2 150 JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 285

160 170 20 r. 3 180 190 286 S. BROCK

200 210 20 v. 1 220 JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 287

230 240 20 v. 2 250 260 288 S. BROCK

270 280 20 v. 3 290 JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 289

300 310 21 r. 1 320 330 290 S. BROCK

340 21 r. 2 350 360 JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 291

370 380 21 r. 3 390 400 292 S. BROCK

410 420

Apparatus

26 = A; B 61 = A; B 80, 90, 97, 98, 110 B has the later orthography for the 3 f. pl. perf., with final yodh. 95 B ! 99 = A; B 116 with Zingerle; B 153 with Zingerle; AB “place” 240 = A; B 400 ; Zingerle suggests

Greek words

âgÉn 242 âqljtßv 362 ârrabÉn 376 bßrullov 147 JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 293 gár 55, 157, 167 génov 183, 197, 220 diaqßkj 172 kairóv 274 katßgwr 'etqa†rag 276 q†irgana 349 mílion 38 nómov 327, 331(bis) pe⁄sai 213 pórov pursa 215, 324 ‘etparras 101 próswpon 239 sx±ma 102, 228, 235 túpov 364

Translation

On Tamar, [compo]sed by Mar Jacob (A); On Tamar and on the symbol of the Church, by the blessed Mar Jacob (B).

Come to me, Lord, and bring the mercy of Your kindness; sprinkle it on my strings, and let them extol You with their songs. Come, my Lord and my God, and blow in me as into an empty reed so that I may give forth sounds with a stirring of love, without confusion. Come, O Lord, and grant me fair utterance that is filled with beauty 5 so that I may speak thereby, as I worship in great wonder. Come, You who are not distant in giving each day all kinds of good things to the person who seeks to receive freely the wealth that comes from You. You are close by, O Son of God, You are close at hand to grant each day all kinds of requests for those who ask. 10 You are close by, and here You are, with us, Emmanuel: You have wearied Yourself by bringing blessings and riches for the entire world. You were with us, and like us too, all for our sakes, and now heights and depths worship You in their domains. The height sent You, and the depth received You in great wonder, 15 and look, height and depth are filled by You, for You are boundless. You came to the world — and the heights were not emptied of You, You resided in the Virgin — and the heaven (remained) full of Your glory. All the heights, in their domains, are not sufficient for You, and see how all the depths, and those who dwell in them hold You in honour. 20 You came from the Father, You shone out from a mother, You became an infant. Mercy mingled You with humanity, so that You might save it. You scattered Your treasures over the poor and made them rich, the dead came to life in You, and the world, that had become corrupted, was set in order. You became the Daytime, and the whole earth became light from You: 25 294 S. BROCK night fled away, for all creation had been submerged in it. You came down like rain upon the lands that lay waste, You made them like Paradise full of blessings. You shone out as the Sun of righteousness over the entire earth, and Your Dawn dissipated the darkness from every region. 30 You are the Bread of Life, for the dead consumed You and were resurrected in You. You are the good wine, for by You all who mourn are comforted. With oil, You consigned to oblivion the wickedness of Adam who had been smitten; You applied wine to his wounds, seeing that he had been wounded; with living water You cleansed away his filth, for he had become sullied, 35 and he was renewed in You, and returned to Eden which he had lost. O Son of God, exalted in Your highway and full of blessings, set out upon it are the milestones of peace for him who travels on it. You, Lord, are the Light; You are Life, Lord; You are the Resurrection. You are the great Treasure Store by whose treasures the poor have become rich. 40 When Your compassionate Father fashioned Adam in His image it was You He depicted in him, for in You the dust that had multiplied would be adorned. He gave to Adam Your likeness when He created him, so that he might put it on and by it reign over all created things and acquire them. With a breath (of life) did Christ make him when he made him, 45 so that he might keep (His) place in the world until He would come. Your were hidden in Your Father, and He revealed You in Adam when He created him: He depicted in him the likeness of Your bodily existence and Your revelation. The depiction of the King travelled down all the generations, transmitted mysteriously over the lineages. 50 So that God Himself might be mingled amongst humanity He gave His image from the very beginning (of Creation) so that (human beings) might be made in it, for He was preparing to send His Son, the Only-Begotten; and in this same fashion He came into the open, in bodily form: for in the likeness of the Only-Begotten of the Godhead 55 He depicted Adam when He fashioned him, in a great mystery. He (then) came back and took the likeness of His servant from within the womb, and became like it while He was delivering it from the Rebel. He came to His nativity, He took up His likeness, He delivered His image. He commenced and He completed in accordance with His will in great love. 60 The upright throughout the generations held His likeness in honour, and for this reason the remembrance of them became resplendent. The fair Seth, who resembles his father, delineated Him, so that the world might see that the Son of God resembled him. Noah the just in that Ark which performed mysteries 65 depicted an image for Him, in that he was rescued from the Flood. JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 295

To Abraham the Father spoke in revelation, (saying) that all the peoples would be blessed in his elect seed. And because of this the Son of God was expected, for the world had become aware that He would come in a mysterious way. 70 All the upright were desirous to see His day and were expecting He would shine forth on earth in their own days. In various places women were yearning for the choice seed — that from them He who was expected to come to earth might shine forth: Leah and Rachel, straightforward women of integrity, 75 were contending over Him in the land of Aram. They had heard that in the seed of the House of Abraham all the peoples were going to be blessed — and fire fell upon their minds! For this reason there befell a dispute between the two of them, and, as if over some treasure, they fought over a righteous man. 80 They performed an action that was most hateful to chaste women: one desired, and one asked, impudently; they acted without restraint, showing no shame, because they were aware of what wealth was concealed in the godly man. Rachel, importunate and like a prostitute, demanded of him, 85 saying “Give me children, otherwise I will die”. Leah, like someone infatuated and loving adultery, hired him, and she was not ashamed to plunder the wealth that she so desired. It was not with the lust of adulterous women that they were fired, but it was for the seed of their weighty man that they longed. 90 Ruth too acted in like fashion over Boaz, going out in the night like a thief to despoil so that she might steal from him the great wealth that was hidden within him. She was not ashamed, chaste woman that she was, to seize hold of his legs. She went out to the threshing floor to steal away the seed of the House of Abraham. 95 In her vigilance she stole it, just as she had wanted, in an impudent way. When and how have women so run after men as these women who contended over the Medicine of Life? The divine plan, mistress of mysteries, incited these women with love of the Only-Begotten before He had ever come. 100 It was because of Him that they acted without restraint and schemed, putting on the outward guise of wanton women, despising female modesty and nobility, not being ashamed as they panted for men. Someone who wants to get hold of a treasure, if he could, 105 would perform a murder in order to gain the gold he so desired. These women, while running after men, were yearning for the Son of God's great Epiphany, and they struggled for the seed of the House of Abraham, since they had learnt that in it the peoples of the earth would be blessed. 110 It was not harlotry in the case of these sincere women, but love for the blessed seed that incited them. As though it was gold, and as though it was great riches, they seized the fair seed from the farmers of renown. 296 S. BROCK

Like a prostitute or flighty woman, Ruth went out 115 to the aged (Boaz), without his being aware, but she remained chaste. It was a desire filled with faith that stirred the aged man to take a wife at an unexpected time, and (so) the faith of her who had sought him was not disappointed, and just as she had asked, the pearl was granted to her, 120 and she conceived and gave birth to the father of Jesse, the man from Ephra- tha; and it was from him that David, the godly king, sprouted forth. So, in the case of Leah who had hired (Jacob), the great wealth for which she had yearned was thus acquired for her. But what should I say concerning Tamar, who is filled with mysteries? 125 For the wonder that fills her case surpasses that of her companions: this woman openly became a wanton-hearted prostitute, she went out and sat by the crossroads to ensnare a man! It was for You, O Son of God, that she was gazing out, (waiting for) You to come to her, and it was because of You that she despised women's nobility. 130 She went out after You like an infatuated woman in the streets, for she was wanting You to sprinkle sanctity on her limbs. Now Tamar saw that if she sat like an honourable woman she would not ensnare the wealth after which she had gone out. Therefore she dressed like a prostitute, went out and sat there, 135 to fall in with a merchant on the road, like some impudent woman. In the case of all the mystery-filled narratives of the Only-Begotten it is right to listen with great love, O discerning (reader), for if love does not open the gate of your ear then there is no passage to your hearing for the words. 140 In the case of the story of Tamar, unless a mind that has faith listens to it, the discerning woman will seem worthy of reproach, whereas if an intellect that loves to listen to the mysteries should hear (this) tale, it will render back in return for it praise. All the words that the Spirit of God has placed in Scripture 145 are filled with riches, like treasures, hidden in the (different) books. Moses the scribe set the story of Tamar like a jewel in his Book so that its beauty might shine out amongst its lections. Why would he have written of a woman who sat like a prostitute by the crossroads had she not been filled with some mystery? 150 Why did Moses, who drove away all prostitutes from his people, extol this one who had adorned herself like a prostitute? Her action would have been wrong had there not been some mystery there, and it would not have been successful had it been something hateful to God. Her action was (indeed) ugly, but her faith made it beautiful, 155 and it was resplendent and dear because of the Mystery that was performed in her. Moses, who was the mediator of the Law laid reproof and a curse on the man who was the cause of fornication, whereas in the case of Judah he did not reprove or lay a curse on him, nor did he reproach him, for he knew that there was some mystery there. 160 Maybe you will say that he was not aware that she was his daughter-in-law, JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 297 but then I will say to you, he knew very well that she was a prostitute, and yet Moses did not reproach him (saying), Why did he go to a prostitute? Instead, he put him there amongst the readings, without reproving him. Tamar's faith was beautiful to God, 165 and this is what set aright an ugly (affair) that (would otherwise) have been corrupt. For had her faith not been filled with mysteries, Moses would not have reserved a (portrait) of beauty for a woman who played the prostitute; nor would Judah have escaped from blame, seeing that his path to the prostitute resembled that of a debauched man. 170 When Jacob his father was dying, he wrote as follows in his Testament, that all his brothers should laud him, and Moses blessed him, and no mention was made of any lapse. Both Moses and Jacob described him as an upright man. We should accordingly say that even though he committed fornication, 175 the (divine) economy compelled him, out of love for the faith. Tamar's prayer, together with her faith, bent down the exalted mystery so that it bent itself down to great dishonour. Therefore listen now in a discerning way concerning Tamar, look at the radiant woman, filled with all the beauty of faith. 180 This woman entered Judah's household and became a daughter-in-law, while faith in the house of Abraham was burning within her. She took pride in the blessed seed of the great race and held in expectation that from her the Messiah would shine forth when he came. While she was fired with faith, her husband died. 185 She trembled and felt diminished: her heart was shattered, (deprived) of her expectation. His brother — a cunning man — took her, although he did not want to, not thinking of the good, he disappointed her of the seed, refusing to give it her; but the upright Lord gave judgement on him and slew him as well. She sat in mourning — a field left without any farmers: 190 the first had died, having sown without any crops, the second had died, having disappointed the field by failing to sow it. The bride who was filled with exalted beauty and sagacity was rejected: she buried her husbands, and gave herself to thought. She sat down, setting her gaze on a child from the family of Judah, 195 whether there might be one, waiting for him in her sagacity. It was for the clan of the house of Abraham that she was yearning, and she felt under compulsion (to wait) for a Saviour to shine forth from her. But because the family of Judah had rejected this sage woman (saying), “Because she has buried two (husbands), let her not go on to bury a third!”, 200 they regarded her as being like a field full of thorns which smothers the seedlings and fails to provide a crop to every farmer. So they neglected it and abandoned it to become wild ground, uncultivated: there was not a single farmer who was not afraid to approach it. She was treated unjustly, humiliated and put to shame, 205 298 S. BROCK she was pained, broken and afflicted, and because the family of Judah had cut her off from them entirely yet the woman was burning with a desire for fruit, what should she do? A ray of light from the (hidden) mysteries shone forth strongly in her soul, and she set off at a run in the direction of the Only-Begotten. 210 Were she to sit down quietly and in modesty stay at home they would not think of her and she would be deprived of her hope. In order to urge them to provide a husband to be with her she holds herself contemptible, while they scorn her and have nothing to do with her. So she felt constrained to begin to seek out how she might find a way 215 of stealing the blessed seed, and so be comforted by it. With an idea that was full of hope and faith she set a trap to enmesh Judah himself and (so) from the very treasure store to bring out the treasure that is full of riches, from which there would shine forth great wealth for the entire world. 220 So it was from God that she asked in prayer that He would give her the treasure she wanted from the clan of upright men. She peered out and looked how he came and went so that she might spread out the snares and the nets in his path. When she had learnt in what direction his path took him 225 she set her face to the action that she intended: straight away she stripped off chastity and nobility and took to the road in the garb of loose women. She took off and laid aside the garments of mourning that she had been wearing and, like a prostitute, she put on the clothes of flighty women 230 and hurriedly she set out; she sat down and kept her eyes on the road for when that merchant might pass by — to be plundered by her. The soul, heart and eyes of Tamar, so full of beauty, were raised up to God as she supplicated Him: while from the outside she was clothed in the garb of loose women, 235 within, she was filled with the beauty of holy chastity. From the exterior, a prostitute, vexed and full of faults, but within, a soul which was radiant with the (future) shining forth of the Only-Begotten. Suffering was in her heart, but with merriment shed over her face. She was both praying and laughing: her soul groaned out to God, 240 her eyes' gaze intent, on her tongue every kind of request: she was struggling how she might lay hold of the great crown. Judah came along; he reached (her) and was going to pass by her but in her faith Tamar stood up and stopped him. He stood gazing at her, whether he liked it or not; 245 he examined her, how she was both chaste and loose: she was hiding her face, and was seen only under a veil. She stole a glance, as though she was not looking, out of her modesty; She incited him to look at her face, (to see) how fair it was, but she was covered up, so that he might think that she really was modest. 250 JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 299

So, while she was covered up, her beauty was peeping out through her veil — so that this was a snare in which the ‘Lion's whelp' would get entangled. By means of two kinds of beauty did she contend with the mighty man — with the face's beauty, and with the modesty which he saw in her. Once (he had given up his plan) to pass by, so as not to associate with a prostitute, 255 he had stopped to look at her to see how modest she was, he approached her. She was covered up, so that Judah should not recognise who she was, while he was amazed at her, imagining to himself that this was out of modesty. Now because God's providence was involved in that affair, Judah was not able to win: 260 Tamar's prayer, and her intention, so full of beauty, caused the heart of that upright man to turn aside to the prostitute. God saw how much she was longing for the Epiphany of His Son, and because she was worthy, He granted her to find what she wanted. Her heart rejoiced at intercourse with the upright man, 265 for she had snatched wealth from the merchant, and he then passed on. The Lord granted to her, because He saw her faith, that she should give birth to two (sons), seeing that she had buried two husbands. The upright Lord, because He had taken her husbands away from her, granted to her children, and so provided the reward for her faith. 270 Tamar was exultant, for she had set (a snare) and made a catch, as she had asked, and she began to ask for her wages, in insolence, like a prostitute: she took the man's ring and staff, and a scarf too, three witnesses to be at hand for her at (a time) of great peril. He gave (them as) pledges, not knowing what he was doing: 275 he had been robbed and plundered, yet he provided witnesses so that he might be accused! He gave pledges, as you have heard, and returned to his journey. The affair was accomplished, faith having brought it about. The field had received the blessed seed for which it had been yearning. (Tamar) turned back and entered (her house); she took the garments of mourning and put them on. 280 No one saw what she had done by the crossroads apart from the Fashioner alone, who fashioned in her the infants. It was the Lord who kept her secret in that whole affair, for she did not reveal what she was doing to anyone except Him. Mysteriously, and in a hidden way, He fashioned in her 285 two fair images, causing them to grow in a hidden way for that sage woman. Tamar maintained the mourning for her husbands while she was pregnant. Though she was rejoicing, she was seen to be in mourning: her heart was exultant at the beloved fruit with which her womb was filled. Like a widow, and one who had lost her children, she was dressed in mourning, 290 but she was radiant at the staff, at the ring and at the scarf, cherishing them like children and heirs. The secret remained hidden from the farmer, who was unaware 300 S. BROCK that seed had dropped from him, and the field had caught it up from him. Tamar felt pride, being encouraged and confident 295 that, once the affair had come to light, she would not be overcome: She had three witnesses, (carefully) guarded, to win her cause. She was not afraid if she was numbered among adulterous women. Once the blessed seedling had grown and turned into a sheaf, her belly made it known to people that Tamar was pregnant. 300 The woman is modest, her head bowed down, in her mourning garb, yet (her) womb is with child — so what were people to say about the wretched woman? She sits there in modesty, like a widow full of grief, but the fact is that she is pregnant: what is one to say? What should one ask? The neighbours will testify to her modesty and noble character, 305 her barren and lowly state in which she was sitting, but Tamar's belly openly testifies to anyone who sees her that she has seen some man, and all her actions are full of deceit. Word went out amongst the entire tribe that Tamar was pregnant — a source of grief and great pain to her dear ones and friends. 310 Judah's whole household bristled with threats and denouncements, along with numerous insults to the outcast woman. But Tamar sat there, serene and silent, unperturbed, for she was confident, feeling no shame over the matter. Word quickly reached the ear of Judah, and it shattered him: 315 he was upset and aggrieved, just man that he was, at the vile deed, and like an upright judge he was stirred up by what she had done. He enquired to learn whether it was true that Tamar was pregnant; he then gave sentence, upright man that he was, according to his sense of right: “Take her out to be burnt, in view of the adultery that she has despicably committed”. 320 Look, discerning (reader), how resplendent that Hebrew was: he did not provide an opportunity for foul adultery to be performed, yet he himself was aware of what he had fallen into at the hands of Tamar. Providence had instructed him, because of the strategem: he was not lax, and did not act as an adulterer or fornicator, 325 but as an upright man who abhors adultery and holds it in check. And so, when he had learnt that she was pregnant, against the law, he decreed (burning by) fire for the adulteress, and sent her off to be burnt. He sat there judging her: he sentenced her and handed her over to the flame, just as Moses too was to burn the adulteresses in the fire. 330 Even before the Lawgiving, the upright Judah laid down the law that a woman who is discovered having committed adultery should be burnt by fire. And so this sentence of the upright Judah received its fulfilment. They rushed off to bring the bereaved woman to the place of burning; they grab her and rebuke her as they tear at her, 335 they drive her off to go to be food for the fire. While the avengers surrounded Tamar on every side she dashed off for the pledges, in order to show them — JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 301 the ring and the staff, and also the scarf she took up — these secrets — and sent them to the just judge, for him to see. 340 “My lord judge, I have witnesses: summon them and let them attend: look at them, and if they are genuine, accept them. Ask the staff and the scarf about the affair; take a look at the ring, whose seal-stone it is: it will not deceive. That you are upright and just everyone knows. 345 Investigate the case, look at the witnesses, and then give your sentence. Why should I burn when I have witnesses who will show me to be innocent? Son of Israel, judge a bereaved woman justly". Judah saw the accusing objects, (and realised) that they were his; the upright man shook, for guilt had suddenly seized him. 350 The staff indicated to him “I am yours: leave off judgement”. the scarf cried out “Hold back the fire from the wretched woman” while the ring says “I am inscribed, and have been kept in tact; my master knows me, and if I get lost, his name will testify for me. Stop the conflagration; remove the fire from this freeborn woman. 355 Take the pledges, abandon the case, and pronounce innocence". The just judge saw his own witnesses from inside his own house; he rushed to remove the condemnation, so that Tamar should come out of it innocent. His anger abated, his fire was quenched, he hung his head, acknowledging openly that “She is more innocent than I; let her not be abused”. 360 The conflagration died down, the fire was put out, and Tamar was proved innocent. Like an athlete who had won in the arena, she received a crown: “Well done, Tamar, so full of beauty; I am full of wonder at you. Your entire story runs its course accompanied by parables and types. Christ the Sun was conveyed over the generations 365 and by (His) Epiphany that will descend from you the entire creation will be illumined. You are a widow, a prostitute, a woman of noble birth (all in one), who acts furtively, but is filled with the beauty of righteousness". To tell of Tamar's pledges is a source of astonishment, how they were secretly kept by her in order to rescue her. 370 Whom did she resemble as she was travelling by the crossroads, what image did she portray there, sage woman that she was? For it was for the Saviour that both the Church and Tamar were yearning, and Tamar trod out the way for the Church, thus instructing her to seek for the Saviour of the Ages by the crossroads, 375 and to take three sureties from the Saviour, once she had found Him, then a ring, a staff and also a scarf she should take from Him and keep with her for they would effect her innocence: Faith, Baptism and the Cross of Light, the three witnesses which will deliver her from Gehenna. 380 The upright Judah, when he went to see his sheep found Tamar by the wayside and he turned aside to her, and the Son of God, in order to visit the sheep — humankind — 302 S. BROCK came down from His home, and the Church fell in love with Him, wanting to be His. She took as pledges from Him, the Saviour, 385 Faith, Baptism and the Cross of Light, and they are preserved and kept by her intact, for by them she will overcome the flames of the great judgement, when the awesome Judge takes His seat on the mighty tribunal and all peoples and ages will enter before Him for judgement. 390 He will give sentence against the wicked and the evil-doers, exacting judgement on the rebellious by means of fierce flames, but if He summons the Church, to judge her with the fire she will produce and show the three witnesses she has kept safe: she will show forth the staff — the Cross — at which the fire will feel shame, 395 and Baptism, which quenches the flame. Faith is the king's signet ring at which Judgement's fire feels awe when it is kindled against the audacious. The ring for Tamar, for the Daughter of the Peoples Faith quenches amidst the fire the burning flame; 400 the staff for Tamar, for the Daughter of the Peoples the Cross stands by to save her from the flames, so that she is not burnt. If the scarf, because she had kept it, showed that Tamar was innocent, how much more will the Bride of Light prove innocent? O Church, persevere, and take care of these three pledges, 405 then they will establish your innocence at the great Judgement. Preserve with great care Faith in the Son of God; in purity (preserve) Baptism, full of life. Take hold of the Cross if He summons you to the flames: show these, and they will rescue from burning. 410 O soul who, like a prostitute, loves the world, supplicate Christ by the wayside, and once you have found Him take refuge in Faith that is filled with light. Clothe yourself in Baptism, as the armour of righteousness, and hang the Cross of Light around your neck, as a necklace; 415 then you will have confidence that the flame will not touch you. Let Tamar serve as a mirror for the entire world: let everyone preserve his faith and his baptism, and when the fire of judgement is revealed in this life, blessed is He who rescues from the flame the person who loves Him. 420

Structure

1-51 Proem, addressed to Christ: 1-7 opening invocation to Christ 7-36 paradigms of Christ's actions 37-51 Adam's creation in the image of Christ (Gen. 1, 26-27). 52-72 The role of the image in the divine dispensation, and the expectation for the Son. JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 303

67-72 the promise to Abraham (Gen. 22, 18, cfr 18, 18; Gal. 3, 16). 73-124 Biblical women who shared in the expectation for the ‘seed’: 75-90 Leah and Rachel (Gen. 30) 91-97 Ruth (Ruth 3) 98-124 their motivation was love for the ‘seed’ promised to Abraham. 125-136 Christ is again addressed: ‘It was for You that Tamar was looking out’. 137-146 The discerning reader/audience is addressed: narratives such as that of Tamar, which contain hidden mysteries, need to be approached with faith and love in order to understand them. 147-178 Moses' narrative, with the absence of any condemnation of the actions of Tamar and Judah, points to the presence of a mystery. 179-320 The story is narrated (Gen. 38): 181-185 Tamar's first husband (Gen. 38, 6-7) 186-189 Tamar's second husband (Gen. 38, 8-10) 190-208 Tamar's dejection; she hopes to marry Judah's third son (Gen. 38, 11), but his family reject her as ‘a field full of thorns’ 209-242 Tamar's plan of action (Gen. 38, 13-14) 243-277 Her encounter with Judah (Gen. 38, 15-18) 277-298 She returns home (Gen. 38, 19) full of confidence 299-320 Her pregnancy becomes apparent (Gen. 38, 24a); Judah, on being told, gives sentence that she be burnt (Gen. 38, 24b). 321-332 Apostrophe to the reader/audience. 333-361 The narrative continues: 333-340 Tamar is taken off to be burnt; she produces the pledges (Gen. 38, 25) 341-348 She addresses Judah, ‘the just judge’ 349-350 Judah's reaction on seeing the pledges 351-356 the three pledges address Judah 357-361 Judah rescinds the order and acknowledges that Tamar is more innocent than he (Gen. 38, 26). 362-368 Tamar is addressed directly and congratulated on receiving the crown. 369-404 Comparisons are made between Tamar and the Church, and (briefly) between Judah and Christ. Tamar's three pledges correspond to faith, baptism and the cross of light, these being the three pledges that the Church will produce at the Last Judgement. 405-410 Apostrophe addressed to the Church. 411-420 Apostrophe addressed to the soul. 304 S. BROCK

Commentary5

Introduction For commentators certain passages in the biblical text offer prob- lems — or perhaps one should say, a challenge to explore the text more deeply — and one of these is Genesis 38 which presents Tamar dressing as a prostitute and seducing her father-in-law Judah, an action for which, according to the Law (Lev. 20, 12) both parties should have been put to death, whereas the biblical narrative utters no reproach of either. Jacob, along with other ancient exegetes sees in this very silence an indication that there is some deeper meaning in the text (lines 163-170). The key for him (lines 67-68) is the promise to Abraham, that all peoples of the earth would be blessed “in his seed” (Gen. 22, 18, based on Gen. 18, 18), “the seed” being Christ (cfr Gal. 3, 16): Tamar's action is thus motivated by a love for Christ, “the seed” who is hidden in the lineage of Judah. In this, Jacob is following the exegesis of Ephrem (BOTHA, p. 20), who refers to the episode on a number of occasions, among them H. de Nativitate, I, 12: Since the King was hidden in Judah, Tamar stole Him from his loins; today has shone forth the splendor of the beauty whose hidden form she loved. (tr. K. McVey) For Christian writers, the specific mention of Tamar in the genealogy of Matthew (1, 3 — but not in the corresponding Luc. 3, 33) could be said to draw direct attention to the narrative of Genesis 386, while for Jewish commentators the inclusion of the gentile Tamar in the Davidic line (I Chron. 2, 4) had the same effect. Already in the first century AD the author of the Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum explained concerning Tamar's action “non fuit consilium eius in fornicatione, se nolens recedere de filiis Israel recogitavit et dixit: Melius mihi est socero me commixte mori, quam gentibus commisceri” (IX, 5)7. The late B. Rab-

5 For abbreviations of the main modern studies cited, see note 2. For parallels in Jacob’s other works, B (+ volume and page) = P. BEDJAN, Homiliae Selectae Mar-Jacobi Sarugensis, I-V, Paris/Leipzig, 1905-1910; BS (+ page) = P. BEDJAN, Martyrii qui et Sahdona quae supersunt omnia, Paris/Leipzig, 1902. 6 Severus provides a soteriological reason for her presence in Christ’s ancestry: “Christ accepted consanguinity of our nature that had committed adultery (he has just mentioned Tamar and Bathsheba) so as to heal and raise up what had fallen”, Homily 94 in P.O., 25, p. 54; an excerpt with the Greek original was published by F. NAU, in Revue de l’Orient Chrétien, 27 (1929/30), p. 24. 7 For the portrait of Tamar in this work see P.W. VAN DER HORST, Tamar in Pseudo- Philo’s Biblical History, in A. BRENNER (ed.), A Feminist Companion to the Bible. Gen- esis, Sheffield, 1993, p. 300-304. Compare Ephrem, Commentary on Genesis, XXXIV, 3, where Tamar says “It is for what is hidden in the Hebrews that I thirst”. JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 305 bathi 180 (on Gen. 38, 14) specifically notes that thus “she was privi- leged to become the ancestor of the Messiah”8, and another late Midrash says that R. Judah commented, “Out of the daring of one righteous woman so much good issued into the world”, while R. Abba said “We have learnt: What reason did this righteous woman see to act thus? In truth she learned in her father-in-law's house the ways of the Holy One, blessed is He, how He manages this world with its people; and because she knew this, the Holy One realized this matter through her”9. The Hebrew poet Yannai, who was probably a younger contemporary of Jacob of Serugh10, portrays Tamar in a similar positive light, but instead of employing an extended narrative, he preferred to put the matter in succinct epigrammatic form: Holy Tamar sanctified the Name (qiddeshah Shem Tamar ha-qedoshah) when she yearned for the consecrated seed (zera‘ qedushshah). She dissembled and made herself a consecrated woman (qedeshah)11, and her Holy One (Qedoshah) made her course successful12. The concluding words of a long addition to Gen. 38, 25 (Judah’s confession) in Targum Neofiti would have met with the approval of Jacob and other Patristic authors, as well as that of their Jewish contemporaries: “A Bath Qol issued from heaven, saying, Both are justified: the matter originates from the presence of the Lord”.

8 Quoted in M.A. KASHER, Encyclopedia of Biblical Interpretation, Genesis, V, New York, 1962, p. 68 (hereafter: KASHER, Encyclopedia). This volume provides a convenient anthology of Rabbinic comments arranged according to the sequence of the biblical text. A similar collection of exegetical sources, this time in the original and just for Gen. 38, can also be found in A. SHINAN and Y. ZAKOVITCH, The Story of Judah and Tamar. Gen- esis 38 in the Bible, the Old Versions and the Ancient Jewish Literature [in Hebrew], Jerusalem, 1992, p. 1-206. 9 Quoted in KASHER, Encyclopedia, V, p. 85; or as Bereshit Rabbah LXXXV, 1 put it, “The Holy One, blessed be He, was creating the light of the Messiah”. Similarly the Midrash ha-Gadol has “The Spirit of Holiness said: Neither has Tamar incited to fornication, nor has Judah sought to fornicate; it is from me that the matter originates, since the King Messiah will arise from Judah” (ed. M. MARGULIES, Midrash ha-Gadol, Sefer Bereshit, Jerusalem, 1947, p. 655); BOTHA, p. 18. 10 See, for example, W.J. VAN BEKKUM, The Classical Period of the Piyyut: the Paytan Yannay (sixth century AD), in Jaarboek Ex Oriente Lux, 27 (1981-1982), p. 120- 140. 11 This is the Hebrew word used in Gen. 38, 21, where it has the sense of “temple prostitute” (on this, see J. GOODNICK, Tamar, qedesha, qadishtu, and sacred prostitution in Mesopotamia, in Harvard Theological Review, 82 (1989), p. 245-265, and E. SALM, Juda und Tamar: eine exegetische Studie zu Gen. 38, Würzburg, 1996, p. 121-130), whereas the Peshitta renders zanitha, in conformity with verse 15; it is intriguing that Ephrem uses the term mqaddashta of Tamar, as if reflecting a more literal rendering of the Hebrew in verse 21 (H. de Nativitate, IX, 11). 12 Z.M. RABINOVITZ, MaÌzor Piyyu†e Rabbi Yannay la-Torah wla-Mo‘adim, I, Jerusa- lem, 1985, p. 226. 306 S. BROCK

As often in his Memre, Jacob makes dramatic use of direct discourse; thus we find words put into the mouths, not only of Judah (320, 360) and Tamar (341-348), but also of Judah’s family (200) and even his ring, staff and scarf (351-356). Jacob also addresses the “discerning” reader/ audience on two occasions (138, 321) and even gives an objection his hearers might put (161), together with some words that Moses did not in fact say (163); then, towards the end he addresses Tamar directly (363- 368)13, as well as the Church (405-410) and the individual soul (411- 416).

1 Come to me, Lord (ta mar[y] li): the first two words are almost certainly a deliberate play on Tamar's name. Jacob is in fact simply following Ephrem's example in this: Let Tamar rejoice that her Lord has come, for her name announced the Son of her Lord, and her appellation called You to come to her14. Liturgical invocations with “Come, Lord,” are to be found in several of the prayers in the Acts of Thomas, and probably have their basis in the New Testament phrase Marana tha, “our Lord, come”15; they are later altered to the third person, with the Holy Spirit (rather than the spirit of Christ) as subject, in many Syriac Anaphoras, and in the Greek Ana- phora of St Basil. 4 A stirring of love: similarly B III, 227 (but plural). 6 In great wonder: one of Jacob's many formulaic phrases, cfr line 15; B I, 185, 552, 589; III, 195, 571, 596; IV, 145 etc. 11 Emmanuel: the play on the etymology of the name would have been obvious to Syriac readers/hearers. 18 Resided (shra): even though this term is not used in any of the Syriac versions of Luc. 1, 35 (they use aggen instead16), it is regularly found in

13 Addressing biblical characters directly is a technique already used with effect by Ephrem in his Commentary on Genesis (e.g. III, 8, where Cain is addressed reproach- fully). 14 H. de Nativitate, IX, 12, tr. K. MCVEY, Ephrem the Syrian. Hymns, New York, 1989, p. 127, with her note 276. 15 See my Towards a typology of the epicleses in the West Syrian Anaphoras, in H.-J. FEULNER, E. VELKOVSKA and R.F. TAFT (eds.), Crossroad of Cultures. Studies in Lit- urgy and Patristics in Honor of Gabriele Winkler (O.C.A., 260), Rome, 2000, p. 173-192, esp. 179-180 with references. 16 On this term, see my From Annunciation to Pentecost: the travels of a technical term, in E. CARR and others (eds.), Eulogema: Studies in Honour of Robert F. Taft S.J. (Studia Anselmiana, 110), Rome, 1993, p. 71-91. JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 307 early Syriac writers and clearly must have very archaic roots, possibly going back to the earliest oral kerygma in Syriac17. 22 Mingled: cfr 51. This verb (Ìla†, Ìalle†) is frequently used in the context of the Incarnation in Ephrem and other early Syriac writers (and some Greek), though it later fell out of favour in some quarters as being too imprecise; Jacob, however, is still happy to employ it on many occasions (e.g B II, 496 shqal demwatan wa-Ìla† ‘amman w-’etdammi lan, 785 metÌalla† ba-bnaynasha). 25 Daytime (’imama): similarly Ephrem, H. de Nativitate, IV, 119, 2; elsewhere in Jacob, e.g. B III, 565, 567, 572; BS 820. 27 Like rain: perhaps suggested by Is. 55, 10. 29 Sun of Righteousness: Mal. 4, 2. This had became a common title of Christ by the time of Jacob, but it does not yet feature in Ephrem (H. de Epiphania, I, 9 is unlikely to be by Ephrem); elsewhere in Jacob, e.g. B III, 570, 616; BS 800, 811. 31 Bread of Life: Ioh. 6, 35, 48. Elsewhere in Jacob, e.g. B V, 465; BS 796. 32-36 Jacob alludes to the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luc. 10, 25- 37), taking the traveller who is attacked as representing Adam/humanity, and the Samaritan as Christ; in this he follows Ephrem who, at the end of H. de Ecclesia, XXXIII, 3 where he comments on the Parable, ex- claims: “Praise to Him who bent down to wounded (humanity), and His mercy bound it with wine and oil”18. Reference to the “good wine” car- ries with it a resonance of Ioh. 2, 10 (the Marriage at Cana), as well as to Luc. 10, 34. 35 Living water: Jacob has in mind the christological interpretation of Ioh. 7, 3819, read in conjunction with Ioh. 19, 34, so that ‘the living water’ is the water (of baptism) that issues from the wounded side of Christ. 38 Milestones (mile) of peace: Jacob uses this phrase on other occasions, too, e.g. B III, 532, 547; the phrase forms part of his general

17 See my The lost Old Syriac at Luke 1:35 and the earliest Syriac terms for the In- carnation, in W.L. PETERSEN (ed.), Gospel Traditions in the Second Century, Notre Dame, 1989, p. 117-131. 18 Cfr K.A. VALAVANOLICKAL, The Use of the Gospel Parables in the Writings of Aphrahat and Ephrem, Frankfurt am Main, 1996, p. 249. This became the standard interpretation of the Parable among patristic writers, for which see W. MONSELEWSKI, Das Barmherziger Samariter. Eine auslegungsgeschichtliche Untersuchung zu Lukas 10, 25- 37, Tübingen, 1967. 19 For this, see R. MURRAY, Symbols of Church and Kingdom. A Study in Early Syriac Tradition, Cambridge, 1975, p. 213 with note 1 (hereafter: MURRAY, Symbols of Church and Kingdom), and my The Epiklesis in the Antiochene baptismal Ordines, in [I] Sympo- sium Syriacum (O.C.A., 197), Rome, 1974, p. 211 (with further references). 308 S. BROCK predilection for using the metaphor of the road in a soteriological con- text20. 39 Cfr Ioh. 11, 25. 40 Treasure Store: compare Ephrem, H. de Fide, 9, 12, where Christ is a “Treasury of symbols” (gazza d-raze). For the image of Christ as Treas- ure in Jacob, see T. BOU MANSOUR, La théologie de Jacques de Saroug, I (Bibliothèque de l’Université Saint-Esprit, 36), Kaslik, 1993, p. 105- 213; II, p. 95-101. 41 Cfr Gen. 1, 26-7. For the theme of the image in Jacob21, see e.g. B III, 590: He gave to Adam the likeness of the Only-Begotten Son and when He fashioned him, He became related to him in that He gave him His image; as someone belonging to the same family (bar †uhma) He descended and resided in her (sc. Mary) so that He might deliver His image.

In line 41 ’bwk is evidently to be read as a monosyllable. 43 Put it (sc. the image) on: Jacob here reverses the metaphor of Christ putting on our image (lbesh Òalman) at the Incarnation, found several times in Ephrem, H. de Fide, XXXII, 10, H. de Nativ., XXIII, 4, Carmina Nisibena, LXIX, 10-11. 44 Cfr Gen. 1, 28. 45 Cfr Gen 2, 7. 57 Cfr Phil. 2, 7. 58 Rebel (maroda): this term for Satan (perhaps based on II Thess. 3, 3) is occasionally found in Jacob22 but becomes common in many later Syriac writers; the usage is not found in Aphrahat or (as far as I have noticed) in Ephrem23 (though in H. de Virginitate, XXXVII, 1 Satan is described as mrad ‘al kul, “having rebelled against all”). An isolated early example can be found in the Liber Graduum, XXI, 17.

20 On this, see F. RILLIET, La métaphore du chemin dans la sotériologie de Jacques de Saroug, in Studia Patristica, XXV, 1993, p. 324-341; T. BOU MANSOUR, La théologie de Jacques de Saroug, II (Bibliothèque de l’Université Saint-Esprit, 40), Kaslik, 2000, p. 59- 71 (hereafter: BOU MANSOUR, La théologie de Jacques de Saroug); and T. KOLLAM- PARAMPIL, Salvation in Christ according to Jacob of Serugh, Bangalore, 2001, p. 398-405 (hereafter: KOLLAMPARAMPIL, Salvation in Christ). 21 On this topic, see B. SONY, L’anthropologie de Jacques de Saroug, in Parole de l’Orient, 12 (1984-1985), p. 153-185, esp. 171-178; BOU MANSOUR, La théologie de Jacques de Saroug, I, p. 68-134; and KOLLAMPARAMPIL, Salvation in Christ, p. 196-198. 22 According to the list of terms for Satan given by BOU MANSOUR, La théologie de Jacques de Saroug, I, p. 98-100, maroda occurs in B I, 266; III, 126; and IV, 619 (to which 676-7 and BS 782 can be added). 23 It is not to be found in the list in T. KRONHOLM, Motifs from Genesis 1-11 in the Genuine Hymns of Ephrem the Syrian, Lund, 1978, p. 86-94 (hereafter: KRONHOLM, Mo- tifs). JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 309

63 Fair Seth: cfr Gen 4, 25, upon which the epithet is based (Jacob uses it elsewhere too, e.g. B IV, 6; V, 52 etc.). For Jacob, as for all Syriac writers, Seth's descendants were identified with the “sons of God” of Gen. 6, 4 who mingled with the “daughters of men”, identified with the descendants of Cain. The themes is dealt with at length by Jacob in his Homily on Noah and the Flood, B IV, 5-1124. 65 Noah the just (zaddiqa): a common attribute of Noah in Jacob, cfr B IV, 5, 18, 23 etc. According to Papoutsakis25 justice is the attribute of Noah that Jacob emphasizes most. 68 All peoples…: cfr Gen. 22, 18 (in the narrative of the Aqedah, but reflecting Gen. 18, 18, where, however, “seed” is not mentioned). The identification of “the seed” with Christ is already found in Gal. 3, 16. 71 Desirous…: cfr Matth. 13, 17. 75 Leah and Rachel: cfr Gen. 29-30, esp. 30, 15. 82 Cfr Gen. 30, 17. 86 Cfr Gen. 30, 1. 87 Cfr Gen. 30, 16. 91 Cfr Ruth 3; Ephrem also links Ruth and Tamar in H. de Nativ., IX, 7; she too features in the genealogy of Matth. 1, 5 (but is not mentioned in that of I Chron. 2, 12). 93 So that she might steal: in line 216 Tamar is likewise described as “stealing” the seed, following Ephrem, who already speaks of Tamar “stealing” from Judah, H. de Nativ., I, 12; IX, 8, 13; XVI, 14. 94 Cfr Ruth 3, 7-8. 95 Cfr Ruth 3, 6. 98 Medicine of Life: this is already a common title of Christ in Ephrem, H. de Nativ., I, 13, 52; IV, 24, 33; XXIV, 7; in H. de Eccl., XI, 10 “Tamar fell on the merchant (Judah) at the crossroads and stole from him the Medicine of Life that was hidden in him” (“fell on” will be an ironic allusion to Luc. 10, 30, the man upon whom bandits fell in the Parable of the Good Samaritan). Jacob not infrequently uses the phrase, e.g. B III, 616, 617. Its roots go back to ancient Mesopotamia and the Akkadian phrase sam bala†i, “Medicine of life”. 101 They acted without restraint: based on Ephrem, H. de Nativitate, IX, 13.

24 On this homily see E. PAPOUTSAKIS, Jacob of Serugh, The Homily on the Deluge (lines 1-210): Introduction, translation, and detailed commentary, unpublished D.Phil. thesis, Oxford, 2000 (for other examples of “fair Seth”, see p. 201-202), (hereafter: PAPOUTSAKIS, Jacob of Serugh). For Ephrem on the topic of the Sethites and Cainites, see KRONHOLM, Motifs, p. 163-171 (Ephrem does not yet use the epithet “fair” with Seth). 25 PAPOUTSAKIS, Jacob of Serugh, p. 84 (where he gives a list of other passages in Jacob with the epithet). 310 S. BROCK

114 See on line 190. 118 Cfr Ruth 4, 10. 120 Cfr Ruth 4, 13, 17. Crossroads (beth ’urÌata): Jacob alters the rare word in the Peshitta of Gen. 38, 14, palshat ’urÌatâ; in this he follows the example of Ephrem, H. de Nativ., IX, 13. 138 O discerning (reader): similarly 321; Jacob not infrequently addresses the reader in this way, e.g. B IV, 155; V, 148 etc. (for other examples, see PAPOUTSAKIS, p. 123). 139 Gate of your ear: the metaphor is common in Syriac poetry; in Jacob, e.g. B I, 553; III, 591, BS 739 “gate of the ears”. 141 Unless a mind that has faith…: that faith and love are prerequisites for a true understanding of the biblical text is something that Jacob stresses on many occasions26. 148 Lections: the statement in the Mishnah (Megillah IV, 10) that “the episode of Tamar should be read out and interpreted” suggests that there was a controversy over whether or not Gen. 38 should be read in syna- gogue27 (Josephus, in his Antiquities, had passed over it in complete silence). It is striking that the chapter does not feature in any of the lec- tionary systems of the different Syriac Churches; in the West Syriac tradition, where Gen. 37 and 39 are read on Tuesday and Wednesday in the Fourth Week of Lent, the omission in the sequence of Gen. 38 stands out clearly28. It is unclear whether Jacob's wording implies the presence of a lection with Gen. 38 in his day. 149-150 Cfr Gen. 38, 14-15. 151 Cfr Num. 25; Deut. 23, 17-18. 153 Some mystery: I follow Zingerle’s emendation; both manuscripts have “place”, which is hard to make good sense of. 159 According to Lev. 20, 12, if a person has intercourse with his daughter-in-law, both are to be put to death. 172 Gen. 49, 8. 177 Prayer: also mentioned in 119, 234, 261. No prayer is mentioned in the biblical narrative, but Ephrem provides one in his Commentary on Genesis (XXXIV, 3). The motivation to introduce a prayer by Tamar at this point was seen by some rabbis to be present in the Hebrew text of Gen. 38, 14, where Tamar sits at Pethah ‘Enayim, and according to Bereshit Rabba LXXXV, 7 (cfr BOTHA, p. 18):

26 See BOU MANSOUR, La théologie de Jacques de Saroug, II, p. 414-416. 27 See on this MENN, p. 284-285. 28 See P. VERMEULEN, Péricopes bibliques des Églises de langue syriaque, in L’Orient Syrien, 12 (1967), p. 226-227. JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 311

Rabbi (sc. Judah the Prince) said, We have searched through the whole of Scripture and found no place called Pethah Enayim. What then is the purport of Pethah Enayim? It teaches that she lifted up her eyes to the gate (pethaÌ) to which all eyes (‘enayim) are directed and prayed: May it be Thy will that I do not leave this house with nothing. (tr. H. FREEDMAN, slightly adapted).

In the Peshitta, however, Pethah Enayim is rendered palshat ’urÌata (see on line 128), and so Ephrem's and Jacob's introduction of Tamar's prayer here is probably due to the fact that, given their approach, a prayer was appropriate at this point, rather than because of any aware- ness of this Rabbinic exegetical tradition. In the Palestinian Targum tradition (Neofiti, Ps-Jonathan) a prayer is put in Tamar's mouth at a later stage, when she was being led out to be burnt. 181 Gen. 38, 6. 185 Gen. 38, 7. 187-189 Gen. 38, 8-10. 190 A field left without any farmers: similar imagery in lines 114, 201f., 279, 293. The sexual metaphor of ploughing a field is familiar in both Classical and Biblical literature, and can also be found in Ephrem (a striking example is in H. de Virginitate, XXXIV, 6). In the context of Gen. 38 it features in Rabbinic literature in Midrash ha-Gadol (ad loc.), “He (Er) left alone the field (ha-sadeh) and ploughed on the roofs”. 195 Gen. 38, 11a. Cfr Theodoret, Quaest. in Gen., 97: she acted paidopoiíav xárin kaì oû filjdoníav. 200 Gen. 38, 11b. 202 Cfr Parable of the sower, Matth. 13, 3-8, and parallels. 216 Stealing the seed: see above, on line 93. 225 Cfr Gen. 38, 13. 227-230 Cfr Gen. 38, 14. 231 Hurriedly: see C. BROCKELMANN, Lexicon Syriacum, Halle, 1928, s.v. pwÌ, and B I, 156. 232 That merchant: Judah is also described as a merchant in Ephrem, H. de Ecclesia, XI, 10. Cfr Gen. 38, 15-16. The statement that Judah was going to pass by her (cfr 255) is not to be found in Genesis, but was no doubt introduced to help his reputation. Thus in Ephrem, it is Tamar's prayer that turned him aside, “contrary to his usual habit” (Comm. Genesis, XXXIV, 4), while in Bereshit Rabbah (LXXXV, 8), when Judah at first pays no attention to her, the angel “who is in charge of desire” has to intervene, saying to 312 S. BROCK him, “Where are you going, Judah? Whence then are kings to arise, whence are redeemers to arise?" — whereupon he turns aside to her “in despite of himself and against his wish"29. 245 Whether he liked it or not: compare the end of the quotation from Bereshit Rabbah, just cited. 252 Gen. 49, 9. 256 To see how modest she was: compare Bereshit Rabbah LXXXV, 8, “Since she covered her face he reasoned, If she were a harlot, would she actually cover her face?” Cfr BOTHA, p. 19. 268 Gen. 38, 27; cfr line 286. 272f Gen. 38, 17-18. 273 Scarf (shushepha): so Peshitta, though the exact meaning of the term is not clear, for it translates several different Hebrew words (the Hebrew text has “cord”)30; for most Syriac readers the word would be most familiar from Exodus 34, on Moses’ veil. 275 As pledges: cfr Ephrem, H. de Virginitate, XXII, 19-20. 280 Gen. 38, 19. 282 The Fashioner… who fashioned: Jacob will have in mind the common title of Christ as “Fashioner of babes” (Òa’ar ‘ule), first found in the Syriac Acts of John (ed. WRIGHT, p. 37), and in Ephrem, e.g. H. de Nativitate, IV, 161, 170. In Jacob it is found, e.g. in B I, 283, 489, 828; II, 428; III, 350; V, 447; BS 733, 743, 759, 807. It also occurs at least once in Narsai (e.g. ed. MCLEOD in P.O. 40: I, line 385). 286 Two fair images: cfr Gen. 38, 27, the twins Perez and Zerah. Jacob may have in mind Ephrem's use of this phrase in a different context (H. de Nativitate, XVI, 4), where Mary is referring to her son's hidden and revealed images (i.e. his divinity and his humanity). The term “two images” also indicates a sign of the Zodiac (the Twins, also called t’ome). 327 Against the law: cfr Lev. 21, 9, where a priest's daughter who has become a prostitute is to be burnt. On the basis of this verse, according to one strand of Rabbinic tradition Tamar was identified as the daughter of Shem (e.g. Genesis Rabbah LXXXV, 10), since Shem was frequently identified as Melkizedek31, who is specifically called a priest in Gen. 14, 18. Had she not been a priest's daughter, the expectation would be that she would simply have been put to death, in accordance with Lev. 20, 12 (where Targum Ps.Jonathan identifies the mode of punishment as by stoning, which seems to be what Satan is suggesting in Ephrem's treat-

29 See also the discussion in MENN, p. 305-307. 30 For a discussion, see PETIT, p. 113-115. 31 This is possible according to the chronology in the Masoretic Text and in the Peshitta, but not according to that of the Septuagint. JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 313 ment of the episode in H. de Nativitate, IX, 9). Whether or not Jacob was aware of these traditions is unclear. That the Law was instinctively followed by the Patriarchs prior to the Lawgiving on Sinai was a widely held view in both Jewish and Christian writings. 333 dyhwd’ is evidently to be treated as two syllables (the same applies in line 381). 337 Dashed off for the pledges: contrast the tradition in the Palestinian Targum tradition and elsewhere (e.g. Bereshit Rabbah LXXXV, 11) that she loses them, and only finds them again (or God replaces them miracu- lously) after prayer32. For Jacob, by contrast, the fact that she has preserved them is important, for typological reasons (see his final exhorta- tion in lines 405-419). 373 It was for the Saviour that both the Church and Tamar were yearning: Tamar as a type of the Church is first found in Hippolytus and Origen33. 374 Trod out the way: for this phrase (not of biblical origin) in early Syriac writers, see R. MURRAY, Symbols of Church and Kingdom, Cam- bridge, 1975, p. 299-301. 379 Cross of Light: the phrase already occurs in the Acts of Thomas (ed. WRIGHT, p. 282), and in Ephrem, H. de Fide, XVIII, 11; H. de Virginitate, XXIV, 3, XXVIII, 4; Carmina Nisibena, LXIX, 21; elsewhere in Jacob, e.g. B II, 238, 633; B III, 629, 656. It is also known from Manichaean texts34. Light is associated with Constantine’s vision of the Cross in Eusebius, Life of Constantine, I, 28, 2. 380 Gen. 38, 12. 386 Faith, Baptism, Cross of Light: the three pledges are also given symbolic interpretations in Rabbinic tradition. Bereshit Rabba LXXXV, 9 attributes to R.Hunia the following: signet — royalty; cord — the Sanhedrin; the staff — the King Messiah. Other interpretations include the three Temples (First and Second Temple, and the Temple still to be built); or conjugal rights, raiment, and food. Much earlier, Philo had already seen the seal as a representing faith (de Mutatione Nominum, 135;

32 For this, see especially MENN, p. 222-232. 33 H. ACHELIS, Hippolyts kleinere exegetische und homiletische Schriften (G.C.S., Hippolytus 1), Berlin, 1897, p. 97, “Thamar nun ist der Typus der heiligen Gemeinde, und Juda der Typus Christi” (the excerpt is preserved only in an Arabic Catena); and W.A. BAEHRENS, Homilien zu Samuel 1, zum Hohelied und zu den Propheten; Kommen- tar zum Hohelied (G.C.S., Origenes 8), Berlin, 1925, p. 156: quod mysterium non omni- bus patet. Intelligitur per hoc quod Christus ecclesiae, quam ex multorum dogmatum prostitutione collegerat, futurae perfectionis haec dedit pignora. 34 See E. ROSE, Die manichäische Christologie, Wiesbaden, 1979, p. 99-103; the phrase has, however, been given a different sense. 314 S. BROCK de Fuga et Inventione, 150; discussion in PETIT, p. 83-84). As an example of the later Syriac commentary tradition, the following passage in Isho‘dad of Merv's Commentary on Genesis can serve: That it was not in a corrupt fashion that Tamar acted, but because she was desirous to partake of the blessed seed, the things which happened at the birth of her sons testify, as do the types in the pledges she took, which were finally interpreted: in the staff, the cross, and the staff from Sion and from the shoot of Jesse; and in the ring, the pledge (rahbona) of our inheritance; and in the scarf, the robe of the righteous (ed. C. VAN DEN EYNDE [C.S.C.O., 126; Scr. Syri, 67], 1950, p. 201). It is interesting to find that the parallelism seen between Tamar and the Church is still reflected in the Syrian Orthodox marriage, where a Qolo has the following35: With a ring was the holy Church betrothed to Christ, and she received His body and holy blood; with a ring was Tamar rescued from death, and with a ring may our debts and sins be forgiven. A very similar text is already found in two tenth/eleventh-century liturgical manuscripts with the marriage service, British Library Add. 14499, f. 53v and Add.14500, f. 77r; the former reads36: This is the ring with which the Church of the Peoples was betrothed, and she received the Body and Blood for forgiveness of sins; …..; this is the ring which delivered Tamar, and she received all blessings; this is the ring by which all betrothed women are betrothed. 389 Mighty tribunal (bi’m rabbta): the Greek loan word is regularly treated as feminine, and (surprisingly) is quite often left in the absolute (thus in II Cor. 5, 10). 399 Daughter of the Peoples: the contrast between the (Jewish) People and the (Gentile) Peoples is pervasive in early Syriac writers37. 404 Bride of Light: this title for the Church is not uncommon in Jacob, e.g. B I, 173, 186; II, 374, 588; III, 549; V, 483. It does not seem to occur in Ephrem, who uses instead kallat qudsha (H. de Nativ., VIII, 18) or kallat malka (H. de Ieiunio, V, 1; de Resurrectione, III, 1). 414 Armour of righteousness: for “armour” in the context of baptism, see my Baptismal themes in the writings of Jacob of Serugh, in II Sym- posium Syriacum (O.C.A., 205), Rome, 1978, p. 337.

35 Ed. A. KONAT, Tekso d-Zuwogo, Pampakuda, 1979, p. 66; the verse in question does not feature in the corresponding Qolo in the edition by Mor ATHANASIUS SAMUEL, Hackensack, 1974. A second Qolo (ed. KONAT, p. 76), again refers to Tamar: “With the ring, staff and scarf did Tamar receive victory”. 36 An edition of the Services of blessing of rings (betrothal) and crowning (marriage) in these two early manuscripts (and in a third) is in preparation. 37 See MURRAY, Symbols of Church and Kingdom, p. 41-68. JACOB OF SERUGH'S VERSE HOMILY ON TAMAR (Gen. 38) 315

417 Let Tamar serve as a mirror for the whole world: the emphasis laid here in Tamar's guarding of the three pledges as a model for the Church and the individual Christian contrasts with the model for imitation that Rabbinic tradition accords to Jacob's confession (Gen. 38, 26)38.

Epilogue

Jacob’s Memra on Tamar can justly claim to be the most successful treatment of the episode in Late Antiquity: not only does he provide — in common with most other exegetes of this period — a justification for Tamar’s seemingly immoral action, but he also succeeds in presenting her as a role model for both the Church and for the individual soul, in that she carefully preserved the pledges that Judah had given her. It may be noted, furthermore, that Jacob (following hints already in Ephrem) has also managed to anticipate, by a millennium and a half, several modern feminist writers in his presentation of Tamar as the heroine of the whole episode39, (though of course their approach is fundamentally very different). Finally, it is worth recording that Jacob is one of the surprisingly few authors to have provided a specifically literary treatment of Genesis 38 (the theme does not seem to have been taken up, for example, in the seventeenth century by the Jesuits in their many dramatiza- tions of biblical episodes40, and the drama La Venganza de Tamar, by the Spanish playright Tirso De Molina (d. 1648) concerns the other biblical Tamar, in II Sam. 13). In fact it seems that it was not until the twen- tieth century that the theme was taken up again in literature, in a “Novel in Drama” by the Jewish author Izak Goller (1891-1939)41.

The Oriental Institute Sebastian BROCK Pusey Lane Oxford OX1 2LE U.K.

38 See, for example, bSotah 10b, “Judah, who sanctified the heavenly name in public (i.e. Gen. 38, 26), merited that the whole of his name should be called after the name of the Holy One, blessed be He” (that is, since YHWDH incorporates the tetragrammaton YHWH). 39 E.g. Ph.A. BIRD, Harlot as Heroine: narrative art and social presupposition in three Old Testament texts, in Semeia, 46 (1989), p. 119-139, esp. 122-126; F. VAN DIJK- HEMMES, Tamar and the limits of patriarchy: between rape and seduction, in M. BAL (ed.), Anti-Covenant: Counter-reading women’s lives in the Hebrew Bible, Sheffield, 1989, p. 135-156, esp. 146-155. 40 To judge from the index in vol. IV of E.M. SZAROTA, Das Jesuiten-Drama, München, 1987. 41 I. GOLLER, Judah and Tamar. A Novel in Drama reconstructing Genesis 38, 11-26, London, 1931.