This work aims to provide a thematic typology for Old Babylonian divination apodoses, predictions known from early lists of omens and models from Ancient Mesopotamia and the Levant. The primary objective of this study is to present the Old Babylonian divination apodoses as a system, placing each prediction in its appropriate context, together with thematically related material from other compendia. There are altogether 272 reported Old Babylonian compendium-tablets and inscribed clay models, dedicated to thirteen different divinatory practices, of which 157 are examined in this work. Methodologically, the work combines elements of a traditional Assyriological edition and a motif index. The typology is to provide a systematic approach to the study of the apodosis from the perspective of the problem it was meant to answer. Such an approach would lead to a better understanding of the apodosis as an element of a comprehensive system of beliefs, shed light on the early development of the Mesopotamian divinatory written tradition, and help bring to clearer order the imprints of hopes and fears of the Old Babylonian society, that apodoses bear. As a part of the Old Babylonian divination corpus remained beyond the scope of this study, the choice of material has regard to tablets published solely in copies, as well as older editions that can be improved and extended. The bulk of the edited texts were also newly examined and subjected to philological analysis. This approach has yielded a solid number of new reading and interpretations, included in this study. Philological commentaries, together with brief notes on peculiarities of script and language are likewise a crucial part of this research. The introduction starts with a synopsis of the research in the field and offers an overview of the sources. Some basic components of the apodosis, such as problem, motif, outcome, and other elements, important for the classification are also explored here. Additionally, this part of the work examines incidental aspects of space and time, as well as involved characters. The typology itself has 2,367 entries in total, which amount to 2,675 attestations of full apodoses or 3,362 attestations of simple apodoses and parts of compound apodoses counted altogether. The classification of the material is developed on three levels. The twenty-eight sections define the sphere of interest in general. Subsections address particular problems or aspects within the wider topic. The lowest level of the classification, the motif formula, constitutes an exact prediction in terms of motif, involved characters, and other peculiarities. In addition, the work includes a catalog of Old Babylonian compendia and a concordance of predictions in the relevant manuscripts. The thematically organized catalog of predictions is to benefit future theoretical studies on Mesopotamian divination, culture, and realia, as well as to assist textological work on divination-related cuneiform materials.

An investigation of the Beatitudes of Matthew: Between oral tradition and Greek text investigates the Beatitudes in the Gospel of Matthew. It starts with the Greek text as it is known today and works backwards to uncover the different stages of tradition. Each beatitude is reconstructed in both Hebrew and Aramaic in order to ascertain the oral tradition which gave rise to the Greek text and, ultimately, to suggest a theoretical rendering of the original words of Jesus. The results indicate that the original Beatitudes were given in Aramaic. They were subsequently translated into Hebrew and it is this Hebrew version which is the antecedent for the Greek text (which itself underwent successive modifications) known today. The value of the results of this investigation is a more accurate understanding of the words of Jesus, having obvious implications for Bible translations and commentaries. The results further give a glimpse into how the Beatitudes were understood at the different stages of tradition and assess their modern interpretation in the light of their history. / Thesis (DLitt (Ancient Languages))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Ancient Languages / unrestricted