Baruch and the Epistle of Jeremiah Septuagint Commentary Series Editors Stanley E. Porter Richard S. Hess John Jarick The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/sept Baruch and the Epistle of Jeremiah A Commentary Based on the Texts in Codex Vaticanus By Sean A. Adams leiden | boston Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Adams, Sean A. Baruch and the Epistle of Jeremiah : a commentary based on the texts in Codex Vaticanus / by Sean A. Adams. pages cm. – (Septuagint commentary series, ISSN 1572-3755) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-90-04-27733-5 (hardback : alk. paper) – ISBN 978-90-04-27849-3 (e-book) 1. Bible. Apocrypha. Baruch–Criticism, Textual. 2. Bible. Apocrypha. Epistle of Jeremiah–Criticism, Textual. 3. Bible. Apocrypha. Baruch–Versions. 4. Bible. Apocrypha. Epistle of Jeremiah–Versions. 5. Codex Vaticanus Lat. 3773. 6. Bible. Apocrypha. Baruch–Commentaries. 7. Bible. Apocrypha. Epistle of Jeremiah–Commentaries. I. Title. 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Contents Acknowledgements ix List of Tables x Abbreviations xi 1 Introduction to Baruch 1 1 Texts of Baruch 1 1.1 Greek Codices 1 1.2 Hebrew Texts 2 1.3 Other Editions 2 2 Dating, Provenance, Purpose, and Unity of Baruch 4 2.1 Dating of Baruch 4 2.2 Provenance of Baruch 6 2.3 Purpose of Baruch 6 2.4 Unity of Baruch 7 3 Baruch and Scripture 8 3.1 Baruch and the Jeremianic Corpus 8 3.2 Baruch and Jeremiah 9 3.3 Baruch’s Use of Scripture 9 3.4 The Person of Baruch and His Other Attributed Writings 9 4 Language and Grammar of Baruch 11 4.1 The Original Language of Baruch 11 4.2 Conjunctions in Baruch 12 4.3 Verbs in Baruch 12 4.4 Prepositions in Baruch 15 5 Baruch’s Literary Influence 16 5.1 Baruch in the New Testament 16 5.2 Baruch in Early Church Writings 17 5.3 Baruch in Jewish Writings 18 5.4 Baruch in Modern Church Traditions 19 6 Baruch’s Sense-Unit Delineations in Greek and Coptic Codices 20 6.1 Codex Vaticanus (B) 21 6.2 Codex Alexandrinus (A) 21 6.3 Codex Marchalianus (Q) 21 6.4 Codex Venetus (V) 22 6.5 Coptic Codex 822 (P.Bod. 22) 22 vi contents 7 The Greek Text and Translation in This Commentary 26 7.1 The Greek Text 26 7.2 The Names of God in Vaticanus Baruch 28 7.2.1 Nomina Sacra 28 7.2.2 The Characteristics and Names for God in Baruch 30 7.3 English Translation 31 2 The Text and Translation of Baruch 33 3 Commentary on Baruch 50 1 Narrative Setting (1.1–13) 50 2 Penitential Prayer (1.14–3.8) 60 2.1 Admission of Guilt (1.14–2.10) 61 2.2 First Petition (2.11–35) 77 2.3 Second Petition (3.1–8) 90 3 Wisdom Poem (3.9–4.4) 94 3.1 Wisdom is Not Among the Nations (3.9–23) 96 3.2 God’s Relationship with Wisdom (3.24–4.4) 106 4 Jerusalem and the Return of Her Children (4.5–5.9) 117 4.1 Personification of Jerusalem and Her Address to Her Neighbours (4.5–18) 119 4.2 Jerusalem Addresses Her Children (4.19–29) 128 4.3 Address to Jerusalem (4.30–5.9) 136 4 Introduction to the Epistle of Jeremiah 147 1 Texts of the Epistle of Jeremiah 147 1.1 Greek Codices and Texts 147 1.2 Hebrew Texts 147 1.3 Other Editions 147 2 Dating, Provenance, and Purpose of the Epistle of Jeremiah 148 2.1 The Date of the Epistle of Jeremiah 148 2.2 The Provenance of the Epistle of Jeremiah 149 2.3 The Purpose of the Epistle of Jeremiah 150 3 The Language and Grammar of the Epistle of Jeremiah 150 3.1 The Original Language of the Epistle of Jeremiah 150 3.2 Verbs in Vaticanus Epistle of Jeremiah 151 3.3 Conjunctions in Vaticanus Epistle of Jeremiah 153 3.4 Greek Grammatical Constructions in Vaticanus Epistle of Jeremiah 155 contents vii 4 Epistle of Jeremiah and Scripture 155 5 Epistle of Jeremiah’s Literary Influence 156 5.1 Epistle of Jeremiah in the New Testament and Jewish Writings 156 5.2 Epistle of Jeremiah in Early Church Writings 156 6 Epistle of Jeremiah’s Sense-Unit Delineations in Greek and Coptic Codices 157 6.1 Codex Vaticanus (B) 158 6.2 Codex Alexandrinus (A) 158 6.3 Codex Marchalianus (Q) 158 6.4 Codex Venetus (V) 159 6.5 Coptic Codex 822 (P.Bod. 22) 159 7 The Greek Text and Translation in This Commentary 161 7.1 The Greek Text 161 7.2 Nomina Sacra 162 7.3 English Translation 162 5 The Text and Translation of the Epistle of Jeremiah 165 6 Commentary on the Epistle of Jeremiah 174 1 Narrative Setting and Introduction (Preface–14a) 174 2 The Uselessness of False Gods (vv. 14b–27) 181 3 The Corruption of Their Priests (vv. 28–38) 187 4 Bel Worship and Idol Makers (vv. 39–50) 190 5 The Inability of the Gods (vv. 51–63) 194 6 Conclusion (vv. 64–72) 199 Appendix 1: Church Fathers’s Citations of Baruch 205 Appendix 2: Folio Columns of Baruch and Epistle of Jeremiah in Greek Manuscripts 207 Bibliography 211 Greek Word Index 228 Modern Author Index 231 Scripture Index 234 Acknowledgements Anyone writing a book becomes indebted to a number of people along the way. I am grateful for my colleagues at the University of Edinburgh, who make this institution an enjoyable place to work. Moreover, I would like to thank the New College Library staff at the University of Edinburgh for their assistance in gathering manuscripts and for making them available throughout this project. Sadly, their deeds are often unsung, although they are involved in many writing projects. Financial support has come from the British Academy, the gift of which has allowed me the time to write. I am very grateful to them. I would like to thank Stanley E. Porter, who has been a mentor to me throughout my studies and career. I am thankful for his invitation to contribute to this series as well as his helpful suggestions and feedback. Thanks also are due to the staff at Brill, who have made this volume and series possible. I have benefited greatly from my conversations with Seth M. Ehorn, who has been a regular sounding board and a constant encouragement throughout this project. Julia Snyder has also been invaluable. Her reading of the final draft saved me from many errors. Thanks are also due to Andrew Kelley who assisted in the indexing. Finally, special thanks are due to my family. First, my wife Megan has sup- ported me throughout this project and it is with great joy that we celebrate the birth of our first child, William James Adams. My parents also have been of great support and it is to them that I dedicate this book. Sean A. Adams Edinburgh, uk List of Tables 1 Suggestions for the final compilation date of Baruch 5 2 Finite tense-form verbs in Baruch 13 3 Imperatives in Baruch 14 4 Infinitives in Baruch 14 5 Participles in Baruch 15 6 Prepositions in Baruch 16 7 Baruch’s sense divisions in Greek and Coptic manuscripts 22 8 Finite verb mood-forms in the Epistle of Jeremiah 152 9 Tense-form distribution of indicative verbs in the Epistle of Jeremiah 152 10 Participles in the Epistle of Jeremiah 153 11 Conjunctions in Vaticanus Epistle of Jeremiah 154 12 Sense divisions in the Epistle of Jeremiah in Greek and Coptic manuscripts 159 Abbreviations All abbreviations in this book are taken from Patrick H. Alexander, et al., Thesbl Handbook of Style: For Ancient Near Eastern, Biblical, and Early Christian Studies (Peabody, ma: Hendrickson, 1999). chapter 1 Introduction to Baruch The book of Baruch is understudied and has been given little attention over the past century. Although this practice is beginning to change, research to date is still insufficient for the interpretive possibilities afforded by this work. As Septuagint scholarship continues to develop and interest in Second Temple Judaism burgeons, it is my hope that Baruch will be recognised as an important example of Jewish exegetical practice in the Hellenistic era. 1 Texts of Baruch 1.1 Greek Codices The Greek text of Baruch is found in two of the three great codices, Alexan- There are .(א) drinus (A) and Vaticanus (B), but is missing from Sinaiticus few textual differences between the two uncial manuscripts, most of which are negligible.