THE ROLE AND POSITION OF JEWISH WOMEN BETWEEN 200 BCE - 200 CE by HELENE RHONA LIEF submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS in the subject JUDAICA at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA SUPERVISOR: ORA HE ASHER NOVEMBER 1997 This dissertation is dedicated to my husband, Stanley, whose faith in my ability to complete the task was a constant source of inspiration to me. Sincere thanks and appreciation to my supervisor, Dr Adele Asher, for her encouragement and invaluable advice during the preparation of this dissertation. I would also like to express my gratitude to Dr Max Resnik who gave so generously of his time and knowledge and who explained the rabbinic point of view so eloquently. I want to thank Barbara Buck who so willingly spent endless hours at the computer setting out and processing this assignment. 909.04924082 LIEF \\111111\llll\I 0001708262 Student Number 543-008-9 I declare that The Role and Position of Jewish Women between 200 BCE - 200 CE is my own work and that all the sources that I have used or quoted have been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete references. ··~······· November 1997 SUMMARY This dissertation examines the role and position of Jewish women in the Near East between 200 BCE - 200 CE. This was a very important period in Jewish legal and cultural history. The redaction of the Mishnah, the oldest extant body of Jewish law, was completed at approximately the end of the time under review, and was to have a lasting influence on the Jewish people. No society exists in a vacuum. During these years the Jews lived within the Graeco­ Roman Empire and this reflected on their attitudes towards women. To appreciate this it has been necessary to go back in time to the Hebrew Bible and to trace any attitudinal changes which occurred over the centuries. Although the Mishnah has been regarded as the terminus ad quern of this investigation, brief mention is also made of prevailing attitudes affecting women in present day Jewish society. KEY TERMS Biblical women; Apocryphal writings relating to women; Pseudepigraphal writings reflecting attitudes to women; Mishnaic attitude to women; Women in the Graeco­ Roman world; Josephus and his attitudes to women; Philo's assessment of women; Women leaders in the ancient synagogues, Feminism 11 ABBREVIATIONS HEBREW BIBLE Genesis Gen Exodus Ex Leviticus Lev Numbers Num Deuteronomy Deut Joshua Josh Judges Judg I Samuel I Sam II Samuel II Sam II Chronicles II Chron Psalms Ps Proverbs Prov NEW TESTAMENT Matthew Mt Mark Mk APOCRYPHA & PSEUDEPIGRAPHA Ben Sirach Sir Judith Jdt Susanna Sus Tobit Tob Wisdom of Solomon Wis Jubilees Jub IV Maccabees IV Mac Testament of Job TJob PHILO De Legatione ad Gaium Leg De Specialibus Legibus Spec Leg lll JOSEPHUS Antiquities Judaicae Ant Bellum Judaicae BJ Contra Apionem ConAp Vita Vit MISHNAH & TALMUD Babylonian Talmud TB/b Jerusalem Talmud TJ/a Abot Ab BabaBathra BB Berakhot Ber Bikkurim Bikk Gittin Gitt Ketuboth Ket Kid du shin Kidd Megillah Meg Nazir Naz Niddah Nid Sanhedrin Sanh Shabbath Shab Sotah Sot Sukkoth Suk Genesis Rabbah GenR Tosefta Megilla TosMeg Tosefta Tosef Yoma Yorn Yebamoth Yeb JOURNAL ABBREVIATIONS Biblical Archaeologist BA Catholic Biblical Commentary CBC Catholic Biblical Quarterly CBQ Journal of American Academy of Religion JAAR Journal of Jewish Studies JJS Lexington Theological Quarterly LTQ Society of Biblical Literature SBL Encyclopaedia Judaica EJ IV MAPS AND CHARTS Page • THE JEWISH DIASPORA IN BABYLONIA, ASIA MINOR AND GREECE - The Macmillan Bible Atlas (p 117) . 34A • PALESTINE UNDER THE MACCABEES - Hammond's Atlas of Bible Lands (pB23) .. .. .. .. 72A • THE HOUSE OF MACCABEES AND HASMONEANS - Hammond's Atlas of Bible Lands (pB41) ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 84A • THE ROMAN WORLD - Hammond's Atlas of Bible Lands (ppB24-25) . ... 139A v CONTENTS Page SUMMARY ABBREVIATIONS 11-111 MAPS AND CHARTS lV CHAPTER! INTRODUCTION . 1 1.1 AIMS ............................................................ 1 1.2 l\1ETHOD . 1 1.3 CHAPTER 2 - WOJ\1EN IN BIBLICAL LITERATURE 2 1.4 CHAPTERS 3 AND 4 - WOJ\1EN IN APOCRYPHAL AND PSEUDEPIGRAPHAL WRITINGS . 3 1.5 CHAPTER 5 - JEWISH WOJ\1EN IN THE GRAECO­ ROMAN PERIOD (THIRD CENTURY BCE) . .. 4 1.6 CHAPTER 6 - POSITION OF WOJ\1EN IN RABBINIC JlJDAISM ...................................................... 4 1. 7 CHAPTER 7 - CONCLUSION . .. 4 CHAPTER2 WOJ\1EN IN BIBLICAL LITERATURE . 6 2.1 INTRODUCTION . 6 2.1.1 Geographic and climatic conditions . 6 2.1.2 Social units . .. 7 2.1.3 Dating of Patriarchal period . 7 2.1. 4 Inhabitants in the land of Canaan . 8 2.1.5 Biblical literature . 9 2.2 THE STORY OF CREATION . 11 2.3 THE MATRIARCHS . 13 2.3.1 Sarah . 13 2.3.2 Rebecca . .. ... .. ... .. ... 14 2.3.3 Rachel and Leah . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 14 2.4 DESIRABILITY OF MALE OFFSPRING . 15 2.5 WOJ\1EN'S RIGHTS . ... .. .. .. .. .. ... .. ... 18 2.6 WOJ\1EN PARTICIPATING IN SOCIAL LIFE . .. ... ... 20 2.7 WISE WOJ\1EN IN BIBLICAL LITERATURE ... ... ... 21 2.7.1 TheWiseWomanofTekoah ....................... 21 2.7.2 The Wise Woman of Abel ... ... ... ... ... ... ........ 22 2. 7.3 Abigail . 23 Vl Page 2.8 PROPHETESSES ...... ......... ......... ............ ... ..... 24 2.8.1 Miriam . .. 24 2.8.2 Deborah . 24 2.8.3 Huldah . .. 25 2.9 RUTHANDNAOMI ....................................... 26 2.10 ESTHER . 27 2.11 PROVERBS . .. 28 2.12 INFLUENTIAL MOTHERS IN BIBLICAL NARRA- TIVE ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .... 30 2.12.1 Samson's mother . .. ... .. 30 2.12.2 Hannah ... .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 31 2.12.3 Bathsheba . .. 31 2.13 CONCLUSION . .. .. .. 32 CHAPTER3 WOMEN IN APOCRYPHAL LITERATURE ............................ 35 3.1 INTRODUCTION ... ........................... ............. 35 3.2 THE BOOK OF nIDITH . .. .. .. .. .. 37 3 .2.1 Similarities between stories of Judith, Deborah and Jael .. ... .. .. ... ... ... ... ... .. ... ... ... ... ...... 39 3.2.2. Characterisation of Judith by various scholars ... 45 3 .2.3 Judith as the perfect androgen . 46 3 .3 ECCLESIASTICUS OR THE WISDOM OF BEN SIRACH ........................................................ 48 3.3.1 Woman as mother ... ... ... ... ... ... ......... ... ... ... 49 3.3.2 Woman as good wife and widow ... ... ... ... ... ... 50 3.3.3 The daughter . .. ... .. .. .. .... 52 3.3.4 The bad wife ... .. .. .. .. ... 53 3.3.5 The adulteress and prostitute .. .. .. 54 3.4 SUSANNA . .. .. .. .. .. ... 57 3.5 TOBIT .. .. .. .. .. ... .. .. .. .. .... 58 3.5.1 Marriage . .. .. .. .. .. ... .. .. 58 3.5.2 Religious life - Prayer . 60 3.5.2.1 Charity .. 61 3.5.2.2 Burial of the dead .. ... .. .. .. .. 61 3.5.2.3 Religious instruction . .. 62 3.6 THE WISDOM OF SOLOMON . 62 3.7 CONCLUSION . .. ... .. ... ... ... .. ... .. .. ... .. .. 64 CHAPTER4 WOMEN IN PSEUDEPIGRAPHAL WRITINGS . 67 4.1 INTRODUCTION . 67 4.2 THE BOOK OF JUBILEES . .. 69 4.2.1 The Role of Rebecca in The Book of Jubilees . 70 Vll Page 4.3 THE FOURTH BOOK OF MACCABEES . 73 4.3. l The role of the mother . 74 4.4 THE TEST AMENT OF JOB . 77 4.4.1 Women in negative roles . 77 4.4.2 Women in positive roles . .. 79 4.5 CONCLUSION . .. 81 CHAPTERS JEWISH WOMEN IN THE GRAECO-ROMAN PERIOD (THIRD - FIRST CENTURY BCE) IN PALESTINE AND THE DIASPORA AS DEPICTED IN LITERATURE BEYOND APOCRYPHAL AND PSEUDEPIGRAPHAL WRITINGS . 82 5.1 INTRODUCTION ...... ......... ... ...... ...... .............. 82 5 .2 JOSEPHUS . 84 5.2.1 Background . 84 5.2.2 Josephus' attitude to women . .. 85 5.2.3 Biblical women as portrayed in a favourable light by Josephus . 88 5 .2.3 .1 Sarah . .. .. 88 5.2.3.2 Rebecca . .. 90 5.2.3.3 Rachel .. .. .. .. ... 91 5.2.4 Josephus' villainesses . .. 91 5.3 PHILO OF ALEXANDRIA . .. .. .. 92 5.3.1 Philo's attitude to women . 93 5.4 JEWISH GROUPS . .. 97 5 .4 .1 The Sadducees . ..