Sectarian Literature of Ancient Judah

Over the past fifty years, archaeological excavations in Israel have unearthed about half a dozen ancient synagogues that were in use at different points in time between the first century BCE through the outbreak of the Bar-Kochba rebellion early in the second century of the Common Era.  In close proximity to each of these synagogues, a mikveh (ritual bath) has been discovered.  In contrast, no mikvaot have been discovered adjacent to any of the dozens of later synagogues that have been excavated and studied, with only one or two possible exceptions. 
At this point it is impossible to determine exactly when mikvaot ceased to be built in connection with synagogues, as the archaeological record reports very little about synagogues of the late second - early third century CE.  From an archaeological perspective, it is clear that at least from the second half of the third century, synagogues began to be built without regard for proximity to mikvaot.
Talmudic sources make no mention of a requirement to build mikvaot adjacent to synagogues. To date, no satisfactory explanation has been given for the evident connection between the synagogue and the mikveh in the early period, and the disappearance of such a connection in later periods of synagogue history. The objective of this paper is to present and explore a possible interpretation of this puzzling phenomenon.
  During the Second Temple and Mishnaic Periods, a rabbinical enactment was in effect requiring mikveh ablutions prior to engagement in Torah study and prayer for individuals who had experienced seminal emission. Careful study of the Talmudic sources reveals that this enactment was nullified early in the Amoraic Period, sometime during the second quarter of the third century CE.
It would appear that the mikvaot built adjacent to the earlier synagogues were intended for this precise function, serving visitors to the synagogue who required ritual ablutions prior to Torah study and prayer.  Once the rabbinical enactment regarding these ablutions was nullified, there was no longer need for such mikvaot, and hence the absence of mikvaot in proximity to the later synagogues.

In diesem Artikel werden zunächst die Gruppenbezeichnungen sowie die inhaltlichen Hinweise zum Zelotentum innerhalb der Schriften des Flavius Josephus untersucht. Die hieraus gewonnenen Grundmuster dieser gewaltsam-revolutionären Strömung werden dann auf latente, grundsätzlich nur schwach erkennbare Andeutungen innerhalb der neutestamentlichen Schriften angewandt und eine entsprechende zelotische „Atmosphäre“ der jeweiligen Situation hervorgehoben. Abschließend werden Schnittmengen sowie Gegensätze zwischen den zelotischen Anklängen und der neutestamentlich-christlichen Geisteshaltung herausgestellt.

It is not often that the three disciplines of archaeology, ancient history and epigraphy come together to illuminate a particular event.  But this is precisely what happens in the case of Masada.  The desert fortress built by Herod the Great is still surrounded by the remains of Roman siegeworks built at the end of Rome’s first Jewish War. And, while Josephus provides the historical narrative, a detailed military career inscription brings Masada’s Roman captor to life.

This is an extract from my new book, Messiah ben Joseph. It's the largest book ever written—and the first ever in English—on Messiah ben Joseph, the slain messiah of Rabbinic Judaism. It traces Messiah ben Joseph, from his origins in the Book of Genesis, through the Pentateuch, the Prophets, the Psalms, the Pseudepigrapha, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Targums, the New Testament and Church Fathers, the Talmud, the homiletic, exegetic, and apocalyptic midrashim, the Zohar, and the medieval rabbis, down to modern times.
This journey to the roots of messianism has profound implications for Jewish-Christian debate and fresh insights for all who love the Bible.
Foreword by Robert Gordon.

RE: Facades, illusions & ideological concepts created & promoted by ancient royalty out of necessity; effective creation of an alternate version of reality. It is only by knowing this information that the true nature of ancient texts may be understood correctly. Not knowing, means making incorrect assumptions & conclusions. Important!

Ritual baths (miqwa’ot) built adjacent to winepresses and olive-presses have been unearthed at about twenty sites dating to the Second Temple period, most of them in Judea and the environs of Jerusalem. While much has been written in recent years on the form and function of ancient ritual baths in general, little scholarly attention has been paid to miqwa’ot found in agricultural contexts.
The presence of these miqwa’ot suggests that the ritual purity of the wine and olive oil processed in these installations was of particular importance. The fact that these ritual baths were situated adjacent to winepresses and olive-presses suggests that agricultural laborers made use of these miqwa’ot immediately prior to commencing work in these installations, a practice which accords with the Pharisaic concept of tevul yom. These finds thus provide rare archaeological evidence for the observance of ritual purity laws based on the Pharisaic system of halakhah.

The myth of he Two United Kingdoms of Israel and Judah, and the more interesting case of urban and military development on the periphery of the hill country. A land of many religions. The beginnings of states in the hill country under the influence of Phoenicia and Philistia. The effects of the Sea Peoples on state development.

The article focuses on the author's research on the chronographical background of the Zodiac Mosaic Calendar in Synagogue at Hammath-Tiberias. He researched to find the origin of mosaic decoration, the twelve zodiac sign, the four seasons, and Helios, which was found in synagogues in two parts of Palestine, Galilee and Judah. The chronograph of the mosaic art was extensively debated. The author further studied the history of Palestine Jews in the 4th century. Most of the work was done during the period of Hillel II.
The author concludes that the mosaic from the Stratum IIa synagogue with the Zodiac Calendar was executed in the time of Hillel II, who said to have died around 365 CE. He proposes the new date of the execution of the Zodiac Mosaic from Hammat-Tiberia (Stratum IIa) after the earthquake in 363, that is, in 364 or 365.

Almost throughout its development and duration, the Jewish revolt was approached by the Roman administration with an attitude completely opposed to that generally witnessed in the subjugation of other provincial revolts. Various aspects of this different Roman treatment of the Jews – whether in Judea and Galilee or in Diaspora communities – have been noticed and analyzed by scholars. But there is a twofold risk in over-emphasizing only the differences; if we neglect to notice that the case of the Jews did not exist in complete isolation in the Roman world, we are liable to come to extreme conclusions regarding Jewish uniqueness on the one hand, and Roman innovation on the other. In fact, the relevant Roman actions can hardly be considered as unprecedented, if we only shift our perspective – as the Roman government must have done – to regard the rebelling Jews as foreign enemies of the Roman empire. Cestius Gallus, Syria’s governor, came to Jerusalem in 66 to subjugate the revolt in its early stages, and was humiliatingly defeated by the rebels. After this event, the long and generally friendly relationship of Rome with the Jews was put on a hold, as were all prospects for a prompt renewal of mutual trust in the region. Instead, the next campaign was prepared, executed, and later commemorated in the same manner as, for example, the invasion of Britain in 43. Most measures turned against the rebelling population stemmed naturally from Rome’s habitual policy in the case of foreign wars, and not from invention in the face of some perceived exceptionality in Judaism or the Jews.

A lo largo de su historia el Imperio romano tuvo que hacer frente a numerosas revueltas, debido al enorme territorio que controlaba. De entre los pueblos que las protagonizaron, los hebreos se contaban entre los que con mayor insistencia lucharon por recuperar su independencia. En cuanto a los diversos conflictos que enfrentaron a judíos y romanos, la que, a la postre, seria recordada como la Primera Guerra Judeo-romana (66-73 d.C.) pasó a la historia como el más importante de todos. Ello se debe tanto a que requirió de la participación de dos futuros emperadores al mando de las tropas romanas que debían restablecer la paz en la provincia de Judea, Vespasiano y su hijo Tito, como al hecho de que la ciudad de Jerusalén y el Gran Templo que albergaba acabaron completamente destruidos.

En el año 66 d.C. numerosos factores se unieron al odio que sectores radicales hebreos sentían hacia sus conquistadores romanos, provocando la caída del procurador de Judea, Gesio Floro, y la derrota del Legado de Siria, Cestio Galo, en Beth Horón, quien acudió con sus tropas a pacificar la región sin conseguirlo. El movimiento fue cobrando fuerza tras estos éxitos, y Jerusalén se convirtió en el epicentro del independentismo judío. Roma no podía permanecer pasiva ante estos acontecimientos y Nerón envió allí a Vespasiano, un general experimentado, para acabar de una vez por todas con el problema. La resistencia implacable que demostraron los rebeldes y los problemas políticos que, durante ese tiempo, se produjeron en Roma, provocaron que la conquista final quedara en manos de su capaz hijo Tito quien, a la postre, consiguió conquistar Jerusalén y acabar con la revuelta. El gran triunfo que se celebró en Roma para conmemorar la victoria era lo que la nueva dinastía Flavia necesitaba para afianzar su poder. Sin embargo, la campaña no finalizó hasta el año 73 d.C., tras la toma de la fortaleza de Masada, donde los últimos insurrectos prefirieron suicidarse antes de ser derrotados. El enfrentamiento se saldaría con una enorme pérdida de vidas, tanto entre los soldados romanos como entre los insurrectos judíos y la población civil. Gracias a la obra de Flavio Josefo, podemos reconstruir lo sucedido para poder así conocer con detalle uno de los grandes episodios de la Historia Antigua.

La prima guerra giudaica coinvolse l'Impero Romano fra il 66 e il 70 d.C., durante l'impero di Nerone. La rivolta si scatenò nel 66 a Cesarea, dapprima per dissapori religiosi fra la comunità greca e quella giudaica in Palestina, crescendo a causa della protesta contro le tasse, finendo per prendere di mira i cittadini Romani. il presente contributo narra in modo didattico l'assedio della fortezza di Masada da parte delle forze romane.

Intensive concern for the proper observance of the Levitical purity laws was characteristic of various Jewish groups living in Judea during the late Second Temple period. The purity laws, concentrated in the Priestly Code (mostly in Lev 11–15 and Num 19), describe numerous sources of ritual impurity (e.g. dead swarming creatures, male and female genital discharges, human corpses etc.), venues whereby impurity is transferred from one object or person to another, and methods for purifying people, clothing and vessels that have become impure. Rigorous interest in the Levitical purity laws is evidenced in the literature of the period, including the Biblical apocrypha and pseudepigrapha, the Dead Sea Scrolls, the New Testament, and the works of Josephus Flavius. Continued interest in ritual purity law, at least within the rabbinic academy, is evidenced by the copious early rabbinic literature devoted to the topic; these laws are the focus of an entire order of the Mishnah and Tosefta (Ṭeharot; lit., “Purities”), and are the topic of many rabbinic pericopes interspersed throughout the Talmudic literature of the Roman and Early Byzantine periods.

Of late, the literary sources have been supplemented by a plethora of archaeological finds which provide evidence for the centrality of ritual purity observance in the daily lives of Jews in Judea during the Roman period. Chief amongst these finds are stepped water installations which served as ritual baths (miqwāʾôt) for the purificatory immersion of ritually impure people, clothing and vessels. Another important archaeological phenomenon which indicates observance of ritual purity laws is the widespread use of chalkstone vessels, as stone was regarded to be a material impervious to ritual impurity. Additionally, a marked absence of imported pottery at most Jewish sites throughout the Early Roman period has been explained by numerous scholars as a reflection of concern over the ritual impurity of ceramic vessels produced outside the borders of the Land of Israel.

In order to describe the origin of the sectarian movement in the Dead Sea Scrolls, it is necessary to distinguish between writings that have been adopted by the movement and writings that have their origin within the movement. Obviously not all texts in this impressive collection derive from the movement itself. This is why the distinction between sectarian and non-sectarian literature was introduced early on in research on the Dead Sea Scrolls. Over the course of decades this distinction was further elaborated and methodically clarified by different scholars working on different writings (e.g., Devorah Dimant, Carol Newsom, Armin Lange). In recent years, however, the distinction has come under criticism due to a more elaborated consideration of authoritative texts in the formation of this movement and new insights in the social structure (cf. Florentino García Martínez), so that both the practicality and benefit of this distinction are currently the subject of controversial debate. In this paper, I describe the complexity of this methodological discussion in the history of research.

This unpublished draft serves as a preparation for my article in John  J. Collins/ Ananda Geyser Fouché (ed.), Emerging Sectarianism in the Dead Sea Scrolls, STDJ 141, Leiden: Brill, 2022,  in which I propose some clarifications concerning the distinction of sectarian and non-sectarian literature, and apply them to the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice (4/11QShirShabb).

Ephrem, one of the earliest Syriac Christian writers, lived on the eastern outskirts of the Roman Empire during the fourth century. Although he wrote polemical works against Jews and pagans, and identified with post-Nicene Christianity, his writings are also replete with parallels with Jewish traditions and he is the leading figure in an ongoing debate about the Jewish character of Syriac Christianity. This book focuses on early ideas about betrothal, marriage, and sexual relations, including their theological and legal implications, and positions Ephrem at a precise intersection between his Semitic origin and his Christian commitment. Alongside his adoption of customs and legal stances drawn from his Greco-Roman and Christian surroundings, Ephrem sometimes reveals unique legal concepts which are closer to early Palestinian, sectarian positions than to the Roman or Jewish worlds. The book therefore explains naturalistic legal thought in Christian literature and sheds light on the rise of Syriac Christianity.

The incomplete phrase ] פרשנו מרוב הע [ from 4QMMT is often read as פרשנו מרוב העם . Translated as “we have separated ourselves from the multitude/majority of the people,” this line stands at the heart of many discussions concerning the composition of 4QMMT and is allegedly the Qumran community’s
self-perception of their relationship with the other Jewish fractions, specifically referring to their schism with the rest of the nation.
Based on a philological study of the components of this line I propose the following alternative reading: פרשנו מרוב הע[מים [. I argue that considering the intertextual relationships between 4QMMT with the relevant passages from Deuteronomy and Ezra, and examining the uses of the root פרש in the relevant contexts in the Targumin and in rabbinic texts that this alternative
reading should be the default one, or at least as plausible as the common one. Consequently, I examine how this reading should influence our understanding of the nature of 4QMMT.

A Toseftan story tells of Baba ben Buta, a disciple of the house of Shammai, intervening in the logistical execution of sacrificial rituals to achieve a practical legal outcome according to the position of Beit Hillel. This article lends texture to this narrative by reading into both the doubling of the story in the text and a series of editorial interruptions in the narration. These features combine with similar editorial interruptions in the famous adjacent passage about the temple era legal system to tell a story of editorial resistance to the original story and its assumptions about law and jurisprudence. This example demonstrates that Jewish law as a unified consistent entity was already being contested in the tannaitic period.

This foreword to the re-issuing of "The Book of Acts in History" by Henry J. Cadbury (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2004--first published in 1955) describes the historiographic contribution of the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament against Jewish and Greco-Roman backdrops.