DREAM-VISIONS IN THE ARAMAIC DEAD SEA SCROLLS DREAM-VISIONS IN THE ARAMAIC DEAD SEA SCROLLS: SHARED COMPOSITIONAL PATTERNS AND CONCERNS By ANDREW B. PERRIN, B.A., M.A. A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy McMaster University © Copyright by Andrew B. Perrin, September 2013 McMaster University DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (2013) Hamilton, Ontario (Religious Studies) TITLE: Dream-Visions in the Aramaic Dead Sea Scrolls: Shared Compositional Patterns and Concerns AUTHOR: Andrew B. Perrin, B.A. (Rocky Mountain College), M.A. (Trinity Western University) SUPERVISOR: Professor Daniel A. Machiela NUMBER OF PAGES: xii + 291 ii Abstract Twenty-nine of the some 900 fragmentary Scrolls recovered from the caves off the northwest shores of the Dead Sea were penned in the Aramaic language. It is generally agreed that this cross-section of Aramaic literature among the predominantly Hebrew collection derives from before and beyond the scribal community that lived at Qumran. Whether or not the Aramaic texts constitute a cohesive collection, however, is an ongoing debate. While their compositional origins are unknown, this dissertation avers that enough common traits exist among the Aramaic Dead Sea Scrolls to indicate an inherent unity in the group. Paramount among these traits is the pervasive usage of the dream-vision in a constellation of at least nineteen Aramaic writings. This study advances our understanding of the Aramaic texts by exploring the dream-vision as a literary convention from two interrelated perspectives. Part One maps out the major compositional patterns of dream-vision episodes across the collection. Special attention is paid to recurring literary-philological features (e.g., motifs, images, phrases, idioms, etc.), which suggest that pairs or clusters of texts are affiliated intertextually, tradition-historically, or originated in scribal circles in close proximity. Part Two articulates three predominant concerns advanced or addressed by dream-vision revelation. It is argued that the authors of these materials utilized the dream-vision (i) for scriptural exegesis of the patriarchal traditions, (ii) to endorse particular understandings of the origins and functions of the priesthood, and (iii) for historiography by creating ex eventu revelations of aspects or all of world history. In tandem these two components affirm the centrality of the dream-vision to the thought world of the Aramaic texts as well as demonstrate that this revelatory topos was deployed using a shared stock of language in order to introduce a closely defined set of concerns. iii Acknowledgements I was first introduced to the Aramaic language and invited into the world of the Aramaic Dead Sea Scrolls in a doctoral seminar facilitated by Prof. Daniel Machiela in 2010. Since then I have had the great pleasure of researching and writing this project under his guidance. I was also fortunate to have Prof. Eileen Schuller and Prof. Stephen Westerholm serve on my advisory committee. I cannot imagine a more genuine, accomplished, and insightful trio of teachers to oversee this dissertation. Their work and wisdom challenged my thinking and shaped me as a young scholar. Special thanks also go to Prof. Loren Stuckenbruck, who critiqued and commented on the project as an external reader, and to Prof. Anders Runesson, who stepped in at the eleventh hour to serve as the internal-external reader for the defence. My studies at McMaster were made possible through the generous financial support of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and the Harry Lyman Hooker Senior Fellowship. My dissertation research was enhanced by my time as the George A. Barton Fellow at the Albright Institute of Archaeological Research in Jerusalem in the fall of 2012. This trip was also supported by a doctoral travel scholarship from the Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion. Much of chapters two through four were crafted in the libraries of the Albright Institute and École biblique et archéologique française de Jérusalem. I am grateful to both Dr. Adolfo Roitman of the Shrine of the Book at the Israel Museum and Pnina Shor of the Israel Antiquities Authority for granting me the invaluable experience of working with the Aramaic Scrolls in their care. Joseph Angel and John Collins graciously shared unpublished articles that served as welcome sparring partners when finalizing chapters six and seven. Esther Eshel, Peter Flint, Dorothy Peters, Eugene Ulrich, and the participants in the 2012 Graduate Enoch Seminar at the University of Notre Dame reflected on the topic at hand in various ways. Closer to home, I should thank Ian Koiter, Andrew Krause, Anthony Meyer, John Screnock, and Matthew Walsh for regularly pointing out the best and worst of my ideas. My academic life would not be as enriching were it not for the family members who have journeyed with me throughout my post-secondary years. From my enrollment as an undergraduate to dissertation defence, my parents Daryl and Rosanne Perrin have supported me in more ways than I care to admit. To my young children Emma and Jude, I am grateful for the energy and warmth with which you fill our home each day. To my wife Tanya, I cannot offer enough thanks. You are the truest of friends, a faithful companion on this adventure, and make every place we find ourselves feel like home. Andrew B. Perrin September 17, 2013 Hamilton, Ontario, Canada iv Table of Contents CHAPTER ONE: ENTERING THE WORLD OF THE ARAMAIC DEAD SEA SCROLLS 1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 1 2 A corpus or collection? Dream-visions and the (dis)unity of the Aramaic Scrolls .... 8 3 Plan of this study ...................................................................................................... 16 PART ONE: SHARED COMPOSITIONAL PATTERNS CHAPTER TWO: A PROSPECTUS OF DREAMS AND DREAMERS IN THE ARAMAIC SCROLLS 1 Introduction .............................................................................................................. 19 2 Compositions featuring dream-visions ..................................................................... 20 2.1 1 Enoch ................................................................................................................ 20 2.1.1 The Book of Watchers (1 En. 1-36) ..................................................................... 21 2.1.2 The Book of the Luminaries (1 En. 72-82) .......................................................... 23 2.1.3 The Book of Dreams (1 En. 83-91) ...................................................................... 25 2.1.4 The Epistle of Enoch (1 En. 92-105) ................................................................... 26 2.1.5 The Birth of Noah (1 En. 106-107) ...................................................................... 27 2.2 The Book of Giants .............................................................................................. 28 2.3 4QWords of Michael ............................................................................................ 31 2.4 The Genesis Apocryphon ..................................................................................... 33 2.5 4QTestament of Jacob? ....................................................................................... 40 2.6 The New Jerusalem text ....................................................................................... 41 2.7 The Aramaic Levi Document ............................................................................... 44 2.8 4Qapocryphon of Levib? ...................................................................................... 49 2.9 4QVisions of Amram ............................................................................................ 51 2.10 Daniel 2-7 ............................................................................................................ 54 2.11 4QAramaic Apocalypse ....................................................................................... 57 2.12 4QFour Kingdoms ............................................................................................... 59 3 Fragmentary texts exhibiting dream-vision features ................................................ 60 v 3.1 4QVisiona ............................................................................................................. 60 3.2 4QpapVisionb ....................................................................................................... 61 3.3 4QVisiond ............................................................................................................. 62 3.4 4QpapApocalypse ................................................................................................ 63 4 Texts not directly associated with dream-vision revelation ..................................... 63 4.1 Tobit ..................................................................................................................... 64 4.2 4QPseudo Daniela-c ............................................................................................. 65 4.3 4QExorcism ......................................................................................................... 66 4.4 4QJews in the Persian Court ............................................................................... 67 4.5 4QVisionc? ..........................................................................................................