The monograph considers the relationships of ethical systems in the ancient Near East through a study of warfare in Judah, Israel and Assyria in the eighth and seventh centuries BCE. It argues that a common cosmological and ideological outlook generated similarities in ethical thinking. In all three societies, the mythological traditions surrounding creation reflect a strong connection between war, kingship and the establishment of order. Human kings' military activities are legitimated through their identification with this cosmic struggle against chaos, begun by the divine king at creation. Military violence is thereby cast not only as morally tolerable but as morally imperative. Deviations from this point of view reflect two phenomena: the preservation of variable social perspectives and the impact of historical changes on ethical thinking. The research begins the discussion of ancient Near Eastern ethics outside of Israel and Judah and fills a scholarly void by placing Israelite and Judahite ethics within this context, as well as contributing methodologically to future research in historical and comparative ethics.

Christianson uses a variety of methods from art criticism to Todorov''s actantial model to sketch a compr ehensive picture of some hitherto neglected narrative elemen ts in Qoheleth''s text. '

The series Beihefte zur Zeitschrift fur die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft (BZAW) covers all areas of research into the Old Testament, focusing on the Hebrew Bible, its early and later forms in Ancient Judaism, as well as its branching into many neighboring cultures of the Ancient Near East and the Greco-Roman world. BZAW welcomes submissions that make an original and significant contribution to the field; demonstrate sophisticated engagement with the relevant secondary literature; and are written in readable, logical, and engaging prose.

The present volume is one of the first to concentrate on a specific theme of biblical interpretation in the Dead Sea Scrolls, namely the book of Genesis. In particular the volume is concerned with the links displayed by the Qumranic biblical interpetation to the inner-biblical interpretation and the final shaping of the Hebrew scriptures. Moshe Bar-Asher studies cases of such inner biblical interpretative comments; Michael Segal deals with the Garden of Eden story in the scrolls and other contemporary Jewish sources; Reinhard Kratz analizes the story of the Flood as preamble for the lives of the Patriarchs in the Hebrew Bible; Devorah Dimant examines this theme in the Qumran scrolls; Roman Viehlhauer explores the story of Sodom and Gomorrah; George Brooke and Atar Livneh discuss aspects of Jacob's career; Harald Samuel review the career of Levi; Liora Goldman examines the Aramaic work the Visions of Amram; Lawrence Schiffman and Aharon Shemesh discuss halakhic aspects of stories about the Patriarchs; Moshe Bernstein provides an overview of the references to the Patriarchs in the Qumran scrolls.

Covering over a thousand years of history (from the Assyrian exile in the eighth century BCE to late Roman times), this book makes an important contribution to the fields of Jewish studies, biblical studies, ancient Near Eastern studies, Samaritan Studies, and early Christian history by challenging the oppositional paradigm that has traditionally characterized the historical relations between Jews and Samaritans. The approach is multi-disciplinary, engaging exciting new discoveries in archaeology, such as the site surveys of ancient Samaria and the major excavations at the holy site of Mt. Gerizim in central Israel; new discoveries in epigraphy, such as the publication of the Samaria papyri dating to the late-Persian period (375-335 BCE), the publication of hundreds of late-Persian period Samarian coins, and the publication of hundreds of fragmentary Mt. Gerizim inscriptions (dating mostly to the late-third and early-second centuries BCE); as well as new discoveries in biblical studies, such as the diverse collection of Pentateuchal manuscripts found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. Only by recognizing the close ties that developed between Samaria and Judah during the much of the first millennium BCE can one explain how the two communities became so similar in belief and practice, even sharing a common set of foundational scriptures (the Pentateuch). Paradoxically, accounting for how two such similar groups as the Samaritans and Jews became alienated from one another during the Maccabean and Roman periods involves explaining how the two were so closely related in the first place. The solution to this puzzle is to be found in earlier Israelite history.

This volume of the Jerusalem Talmud publishes four tractates of the Second Order, Seqalim, Sukkah, Ros Hassanah, and Yom Tov. These tractates deal with financial issues concerning the Temple service, with the festival of Tabernacles, the observations at New Year, as well as with holiday observation in general. The tractates are vocalized by the rules of Rabbinic Hebrew accompanied by an English translation and an extensive commentary.

The Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America houses the largest and most comprehensive collection of Judaica and Hebraica in the Western Hemisphere; since its establishment one hundred years ago, seekers of knowledge throughtout the world have availed themselves of its vast resources. It was not through mere chance, hoever, that this magnificent collection of manuscripts and rare books came into being. Its existence is owed to the efforts of farsighted Seminary presidents, diligent librarians and supportive members of the community. Leaders such as Solomon Schechter, Cyrus Adler, Louis Finkelstein and Gershon D. Cohen understood that without an adequate library no teaching program of higher Jewish learning could proceed. In turn, they attracted edicated librarian-scholars such as Alexander Marx, Nahum Sarna and Menaham Schmelzer, who diligently organized the Library's officail treasures, making them available not only to faculty and students, but to the general public as well. Moreover, the tradition of concerned philanthropy established in the past by Jacob Schiff, Louis Marshall, Felix Warburg and Judge Mayer Sulzberger, is now being carried on by generous friends of the Library. As we stand on the threshold of the Library's second century, its objectives are as clear today as they were one hundredyears ago; to enable men and women to study, teach and observe the tenets of their Faith.

This volume concludes the edition, translation, and commentary of the first order of the "Jerusalem Talmud". It contains four small but important tractates. The first, Ma'aser Seni, deals with Second Tithe (Deut. 14:22-27) and the fourth-year fruit of a newly planted tree (Lev. 19:24). This is sanctified food, to be consumed by the laity at the holy precinct, for which redemption is expressly authorized. The tractate deals in large part with the problems of redemption of dedicated food. In addition, there is a long section on the interpretation of dreams, and a detailed description of the ceremony of presentation of the tithe in the Temple. The second tractate, Hallah, details the application of the general rules of heave to the Cohen's part of any bread dough. The third tractate, 'Orlah, the fruit of a newly planted tree during the first three years (Lev. 19:23), treats this as paradigm for all food whose usufruct is forbidden, and most of the tractate discusses the problems that may arise if any such food is not immediately disposed of. The last tractate, Bikkurim, describes the rules for selection and presentation of First Fruits in the Temple on or after Pentecost. The rite is given in detail, with an excursus on the honor due elders. A first appendix shows the position of the Tosephta as intermediary between Yerushalmi and Babli tradition, with a distinct slant towards Babylonian positions. A second appendix tries to identify the main authors of the tractates of this first order.

The book investigates Ben Sira's attitudes toward all matters pertaining to sexuality in the context of family relations and gender issues. The author's seemingly negative attitude to women, the anxiety expressed in the discussions of marital and extramarital relations, and the disciplining of children can lead to the assumption that the work has a negative attitude toward sexuality. Ben Sira's book is a combination of carefully composed wisdom poems and of teachings on everyday issues, including marriage, family life, self-control, desires, and sexual promiscuity. The sage dedicates a greater number of passages than other wisdom books to the discussion of social relations especially in regard to family. In so doing his regular point of departure seems to be what benefits or damages these relations mean, and whether they bring disgrace to a person, especially through sexuality. In addition, we have to make a distinction between the attitudes of the writer of the original Hebrew text of the book and that of the Greek translator. The two texts, produced in different social settings, times and places, differ at times in regard to sexuality. This book examines the wisdom poems, some characterized by openness about issues of eroticism, and all sayings that concern matters pertaining to sexuality found in discussions of passions, family relations and gender issues, and warnings against sexual wrongdoing. All this is done with a special regard to the differences between the Hebrew original text and the Greek translation.

Atgues that, rightly practiced, the Psalms of Israel make available an evangelical world of Yahweh's sovereignty a world marked by justice, righteousness, mercy, peace, and compassion.

The book of Numbers in Hebrew, Bemidbar, In the Wilderness is a key text for our time. It is among the most searching, self-critical books in all of literature about what Nelson Mandela called the long walk to freedom. Its message is that there is no shortcut to liberty. Numbers is not an easy book to read, nor is it an optimistic one. It is a sober warning set in the midst of a text the Hebrew Bible that remains the West s master narrative of hope.

The Mosaic books, especially Exodus and Numbers, are about the journey from slavery to freedom and from oppression to law-governed liberty. On the map, the distance from Egypt to the Promised Land is not far. But the message of Numbers is that it always takes longer than you think. For the journey is not just physical, a walk across the desert. It is psychological, moral, and spiritual. It takes as long as the time needed for human beings to change....

You cannot arrive at freedom merely by escaping from slavery. It is won only when a nation takes upon itself the responsibilities of self-restraint, courage, and patience. Without that, a journey of a few hundred miles can take forty years. Even then, it has only just begun.

In this study Jurgen Becker presents a new historically grounded explanation of the phrases "kingdom of God" and "God's reign" - the central terms of Jesus' proclamation. He draws on a range of sources to trace Jesus'special position within early Judaism. At the same time, he retains his focus on Jesus' ministry, viewed as the beginning of the history of early Christianity. The proclamation of the kingdom is thus seen by Becker as the founding moment of a distinct community of faith.

Winner of the Association for Jewish Libraries 2012 Judaica Bibliography Award This is the first comprehensive bibliography on the Karaites and Karaism. Including over 8,000 items in twenty languages, this bibliography, with its extensive annotations, thoroughly documents the present state of Karaite Studies and provides a solid foundation for future research. Special attention has been given to the organizational structure of the bibliography. A detailed table of contents and a complete set of indices enable the reader to easily navigate through the material. Translations of items from non-Western languages increase the bibliography s utility for the English-speaking reader. Especially noteworthy are the listings of obscure eastern European publications and the analysis of many periodical publications which enable unprecedented access to this material. It is an essential reference tool for Karaite and Jewish Studies. This is an essential guide to any serious study of Karaism or of medieval (and to a large extent, also modern) Jewry. "Shaul Stampfer, Hebrew University of Jerusalem" ""Bibliographia Karaitica" is a major reference work that will remain of great use for Jewish studies scholars working in many areas of specialization long into the future." "Fred Astren, San Francisco State University"

This is the fourth volume of the hard-copy edition of a journal that has been published online (www.jgrchj.net) since 2000. Volume 1 was for 2000, Volume 2 was for 2001-2005, Volume 3 is for 2006, and Volume 4 for 2007. As they appear, the hardcopy editions will replace the online materials. The scope of JGRChJ is the texts, language and cultures of the Graeco-Roman world of early Christianity and Judaism.The papers published in JGRChJ are designed to pay special attention to the 'larger picture' of politics, culture, religion and language, engaging as well with modern theoretical approaches.

This volume presents a critical edition of the Judaeo-Arabic translation and commentary on the book of Esther by Saadia Gaon (882-942). This edition, accompanied by an introduction and extensively annotated English translation, affords access to the first-known personalized, rationalistic Jewish commentary on this biblical book. Saadia innovatively organizes the biblical narrative-and his commentary thereon-according to seven "guidelines" that provide a practical blueprint by which Israel can live as an abased people under Gentile dominion. Saadia's prodigious acumen and sense of communal solicitude find vivid expression throughout his commentary in his carefully-defined structural and linguistic analyses, his elucidative references to a broad range of contemporary socio-religious and vocational realia, his anti-Karaite polemics, and his attention to various issues, both psychological and practical, attending Jewish-Gentile conviviality in a 10th-century Islamicate milieu.

In Polish Jews in Israel: Polish-Language Press, Culture, and Politics Elzbieta Kossewska presents a study of the political history of Polish Jews in Israel and their cultural and intellectual achievements, with particular emphasis on the Polish-language press. The book describes Polish immigrants' adaptation in Israeli society after World War II, and shows the shifting of emigrants' attitudes and viewpoints against the backdrop of the Israeli political system. The book contains numerous testimonies, memoirs, and personal documents from Polish journalists and writers that have never been published before. These anecdotes, biographical curiosities, and fascinating details create an evocative and colorful picture of the lives of key figures of post-war Polish life in Israel.

Books and writing, according to Jacques Derrida, are always concerned with questions of life and death. Nowhere is this more true than regarding the heavenly book motif, which plays an important role in early Judeo-Christian literature, and particularly in apocalypses. This book identifies four sub-types of the motif the books of life, deeds, fate, and action and examines their development and function primarily in Jewish and Christian apocalypses. It argues that the overarching function of the motif is to signify life and death for those inscribed: earthly life and death in its early appearances and eternal destiny in later texts. The first full-length analysis of the heavenly book motif in English, this study highlights a vital element of the genre apocalypse.

Providing a discussion of the Jewish experience in Mediterranean and Western societies over the last 2000 years, these papers concentrate on the doctrinal substance of the Jewish-Christian dispute in the order that it developed. The contributors include David Flusser, Wayne A.Meeks, S.G.F.Brandon, Marcel Simon, Rosemary Radford Ruether, B.Blumenkranz, Solomon Grayzel, H.Liebeschutz, Lester K.Little, Cecil Roth, Mark U.Edwards, Salo W.Baron, Kenneth R.Stow, Lawrence H.Schiffman, Jacob Katz, Ivan G.Marcus, David Berger, and David B.Ruderman. Jeremy Cohen is the author of "The Friars and the Jews: the Evolution of Anti-Judaism" (1982) which received the US National Jewish Book Award for Scholarship.

In 1896, Rabbi Solomon Schechter of Cambridge University stepped into the attic of the Ben Ezra Synagogue in Cairo and there found the largest treasure trove of mediaeval and early manuscripts ever discovered. He had entered the synagogue's genizah - its repository for damaged and destroyed Jewish texts - which held nearly 300,000 individual documents, many of which were over 1,000 years old.

aIn this ground-breaking work, Nurit Stadler accomplishes the seemingly impossible by penetrating the exclusive male enclave of the ultra-orthodox yeshiva. Her methods are not merely innovative, but truly inspired. The results are remarkable.a
--Shaul Kelner, Vanderbilt University

The ultra-Orthodox yeshiva, or Jewish seminary, is a space reserved for men, and for a focus on religious ideals. Fundamentalist forms of piety are usually believed to be quite resistant to change. In Yeshiva Fundamentalism, Nurit Stadler uncovers surprising evidence that firmly religious and pious young men of this community are seeking to change their institutions to incorporate several key dimensions of the secular world: a redefinition of masculinity along with a transformation of the family, and participation in civic society through the labor market, the army, and the construction of organizations that aid terror victims. In their private thoughts and sometimes public actions, they are resisting the demands placed on them to reject all aspects of the secular world.

Because women are not allowed in the yeshiva setting, Stadleras research methods had to be creative. She invented a way to simulate yeshiva learning with young yeshiva men by first studying with an informant to learn key religious texts, often having to do with family life, sexuality, or participation in the larger society. This informant then invited students over to discuss these texts with Stadler and himself outside of the yeshiva setting. This strategy enabled Stadler to gain access to aspects of yeshiva life in which a woman is usually unable to participate, and to hear aunofficiala thoughts and reactions which would have beensuppressed had the interviews taken place within the yeshiva.

Yeshiva Fundamentalism provides an intriguing -- and at times surprising -- glimpse inside the all-male world of the ultra-orthodox yeshivas in Israel, while providing insights relevant to the larger context of transformations of fundamentalism worldwide. While there has been much research into how contemporary feminism has influenced the study of fundamentalist groups worldwide, little work has focused on ultra-Orthodox menas desires to change, as Stadler does here, showing how fundamentalist men are themselves involved in the formulation of new meanings of piety, gender, modernity and relations with the Israeli state.

Dov Fedler was a "laatlammetjie", born and bred in Johannesburg in 1940 just as Hitler was getting into his stride. A third child was not on his parents' "want-list". It was hard enough supporting two much older children and a printing business struggling to exist.

When Dov was about three his mother had a "nervous breakdown" which is when he remembers seeing his first pencil and knowing precisely what it was that he wanted to do with his life. There are no coincidences in Dov's life. He believes that a hand of destiny has steered his path towards becoming a leading South African cartoonist for more than 45 years. Many dramatic encounters (not with aliens or spirits, but with everyday people) have shaped him and he wouldn't have missed any of it.

Dov's story is intensely personal and honest, with a powerful combination of humour, emotion and community history. OUt Of Line attempts to do a few short things. It is an autobiography but it is also an attempt to capture a particular history of a specific generation; that of the Jewish baby boomers who descended from mainly Lithuanian stock.

This sweeping survey of the history of Kabbalah in Italy represents a major contribution from one of the world's foremost Kabbalah scholars. The first to focus attention on a specific center of Kabbalah, Moshe Idel charts the ways that Kabbalistic thought and literature developed in Italy and how its unique geographical situation facilitated the arrival of both Spanish and Byzantine Kabbalah.
Idel analyzes the work of three major Kabbalists--Abraham Abulafia, Menahem Recanati, and Yohanan Alemanno--who represent diverse schools of thought: the ecstatic, the theosophical-theurgical, and the astromagical. Directing special attention to the interactions and tensions among these forms of Jewish Kabbalah and the nascent Christian Kabbalah, Idel brings to light the rich history of Kabbalah in Italy and the powerful influence of this important center on the emergence of Christian Kabbalah and European occultism in general.