Thesis (DTh (Old and New Testament))--University of Stellenbosch, 2011. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: This study takes as its point of departure the contributions of the Dead Sea scrolls to the discipline of Old Testament textual criticism. It deals with a particular approach to this discipline and its application to the four Lamentations manuscripts from Qumran (3QLam, 4QLam, 5QLam a and 5QLam b ). The approach to Old Testament textual criticism followed in the study treats the Qumran manuscripts of Lamentations, the Masoretic text and the ancient translations as witnesses to the content of the book and not merely as witnesses to earlier forms of its Hebrew wording. The unique readings in 3QLam, 4QLam, 5QLam a and 5QLam b and their difficult or ambiguous readings are subjected to a comparative text-critical analysis. This analysis focuses on how the variant readings in the Qumran manuscripts were created by scribes during the process of copying. It therefore examines the influence that the scribal transmission exercised on the wordings of the passages from Lamentations that are preserved in 3QLam, 4QLam, 5QLam a and 5QLam b The analysis also considers whether comparative philology and/or the ancient . Greek, Syriac, Latin and Aramaic translations can shed light on the textual problems which the Hebrew wordings of the Lamentations manuscripts from Qumran share with the Masoretic text. The aims of this study are to establish, by means of this text-critical analysis, how the Lamentations manuscripts from Qumran present the content of the book and thereby gain a better understanding of these manuscripts as textual witnesses. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Hierdie studie neem die bydraes van die Dooie See rolle tot die dissipline van Ou Testament tekstekritiek as uitgangspunt. Dit handel oor ’n bepaalde benadering tot die dissipline en die toepassing daarvan op die vier Klaagliederemanuskripte wat by Qumran gevind is (3QLam, 4QLam, 5QLam a en 5QLam b ). Die benadering tot Ou Testament tekstekritiek wat in die studie toegepas word, hanteer die Qumranmanuskripte van Klaagliedere, die Masoretiese teks en die antieke vertalings as getuies van die boek se inhoud en nie slegs as getuies van vroeëre vorms van die boek se Hebreeuse bewoording nie. Die unieke lesings in 3QLam, 4QLam, 5QLam a en 5QLam b en die moeilike of dubbelsinnige lesings word onderwerp aan ’n vergelykende tekstekritiese analise. Die analise fokus op die wyses waarop die wisselvorme in die manuskripte geskep is gedurende die proses van kopiëring. Die analise ondersoek dus die invloed wat die oorleweringsproses uitgeoefen het op die bewoording van die gedeeltes uit Klaagliedere wat in 3QLam, 4QLam, 5QLam a en 5QLam b behoue gebly het. Die analise stel ook vas tot hoe ’n mate vergelykende filologie en/of antieke Griekse, Siriese, Latynse en Aramese vertalings lig kan werp op die tekstuele probleme wat die Hebreeuse bewoording van die Klaagliederemanuskripte van Qumran met die Masoretiese teks in gemeen het. Die doel van die studie is om deur middel van ’n tekstekritiese analise vas te stel hoe die Klaagliederemanuskripte van Qumran die inhoud van die boek weergee en sodoende ’n beter verstaan van hierdie manuskripte as teksgetuies te bekom.

Desde sua construção no tempo do rei Salomão, o Templo de Jerusalém foi pedra angular do Javismo do Sul e, por conseguinte, do Judaísmo do Segundo Templo. O Pensamento do Templo, baseado nas regras de pureza e impureza dentro do espaço e tempo sagrados com as quais se orientava a vida sacerdotal, expandir-se-á de modo vigoroso nesse período com o crescimento da importância e centralidade do santuário hierosolimita na sociedade pós-exílica. Ao mesmo tempo, a valorização do sacerdócio estava em seu auge. O sumo sacerdote foi, desde o retorno de Babilônia, o chefe religioso e político da nação judaica até a ascensão de Salomé Alexandra ao trono no primeiro século a.C., função que lhe seria restituída com a queda da dinastia herodiana na Judéia. Por volta do século II a.C., uma comunidade fundada e liderada por sacerdotes, conhecida atualmente como Comunidade de Qumran, isolou-se da sociedade circundante, objetivando seguir uma estrita observância das regras sacerdotais de pureza. Em seu centro no deserto da Judéia, na região de Qumran próxima ao Mar Morto, seus membros produziram e guardaram manuscritos através dos quais basearam e constituíram sua organização peculiar. Esses manuscritos são denominados Manuscritos do Mar Morto ou, mais especificamente, Manuscritos de Qumran. Entre eles estão o Rolo (ou Pergaminho) do Templo, a Regra da Comunidade e o Documento de Damasco, fontes de interpretação bíblica e de normas comunitárias que os guiaram, enquanto aguardavam o tempo do fim, quando os sacerdotes da Comunidade seriam finalmente reinvestidos de seu poder no Templo purificado. E é baseando-nos nesses três documentos que elaboramos nossa tese ao analisar os discursos veiculados pela liderança comunal, os quais visavam à constituição de uma sociedade sacerdotal, moldada em uma interpretação radical das Escrituras e do mundo. / Since its construction in the time of king Salomon, the Jerusalem Temple was the corner stone of the Southern Javism and, from then on, of the Second Temple Judaism. The so-called Temple Thought, based on the rules of pure and impure inside the sacred place and time which governed the priestly life, will expand vigorously in this period due to the growth in importance and centrality of the Jerusalemite sanctuary inside the post-exilic society. At the same time, the high value of the priesthood was in its peak. The high priest was, from the return from the Babylonian exile on, the religious and political head of the Jewish nation until Salome Alexandras ascension to the throne in the first century B.C., function that was restituted after the fall of the Herodian dynasty. Around the second century B.C., a community founded and leaded by priests, presently known as the Qumran Community, isolated itself from the surrounding society, aiming at following the strict observance of the priestly rules of purity. In its centre in the Judean desert, in the region of Qumran near the Dead Sea, its members produced and kept manuscripts by which they based and constituted their peculiar organization. Those manuscripts are named Dead Sea Scrolls, or, more specifically, Qumran Scrolls. Among them we can find the Temple Scroll, the Rule of Community and the Damascus Document, sources of biblical interpretation and of community rules that guided them while they expected the end of times, when the priests of the Community would, eventually, be reinvested of their power in the purified Temple. Basing ourselves on these three documents we elaborated our dissertation by analyzing the discourse produced by the communal leadership, whose goal was the constitution of a priestly society, shaped in its radical interpretation of the Scriptures and of the world.

1 Summary Starověká teologie Samaritánů: specifická funkce interpolací, duplikací a dalších textových změn v Samaritánském pentateuchu Ancient Theology of the Samaritans: Specific Interpolation, Duplication, and Other Text Changes in the Samaritan Pentateuch Klára Verzichová This thesis focuses primarily on the development of the Ten Commandments in the Samaritan Pentateuch, which is relatively neglected in the Czech Republic. The Samaritan Pentateuch belongs to fascinating text witnesses like the Qumran texts, whose discovery has been a major shift in the theories of biblical texts. A specific feature of the Samaritan Ten Command is the addition of the 10th commandment, which is the compilation of several verses from Deuteronomy. Who and when added the 10th commandment is still the subject of speculation. The aim of the dissertation was to concentrate all relevant text witnesses from the Qumran texts, to analyze them, to provide a probable translation (due to fragmentary form of many of them) and then to compare each other with the Samaritan and Masoretic texts. The aim is, therefore, a biography of the Decalogue - the reconstruction of the textual development of the Samaritan Decalogue and its transformation over time. The text of the work also deals with the general introduction of the Samaritan...

This thesis challenges the position that the serek texts are primarily prescriptive and legal, as they have been customarily defined. It argues that the term serek should be reconceptualized according to descriptive analysis, with the purpose of creating what C. Newsom terms a ‘Gestalt structure.’ In order to achieve this, four serek texts (M, S, Sa, and D) will be analyzed at three literary levels—semantic, textual and hypertextual—explaining how the elements at these levels interact as cohesive wholes, thus serving to create a more complete picture of this group of texts as a literary unity. Thus, while the separate, constituent semantic, textual and hypertextual parts must be analysed as separate elements, the fundamental questions posed regarding these elements will be different in a Gestalt paradigm as compared to a traditional, definitional analysis. Going from the micro to the macro, the first chapter will look at the serek texts through the ‘microscope’ of close philological analysis, examining how the term serek functions atomistically within the Dead Sea Scrolls. Building upon these results, the second chapter will more broadly analyse the structure, themes and narrative apparent in the serek texts, thus creating a fuller understanding of how the serek texts relate to one another and respond to circumstances in community life. Finally, the last chapter seeks yet more broadly to understand the serek texts in the wider literary milieu of the Second Temple Period. Here, a scribal technique present in the serek texts will be compared to a similar technique used in the Book of Isaiah—arguably the most important prophetic work for the Qumran sectarians.

This thesis challenges the position that the serek texts are primarily prescriptive and legal, as they have been customarily defined. It argues that the term serek should be reconceptualized according to descriptive analysis, with the purpose of creating what C. Newsom terms a ‘Gestalt structure.’ In order to achieve this, four serek texts (M, S, Sa, and D) will be analyzed at three literary levels—semantic, textual and hypertextual—explaining how the elements at these levels interact as cohesive wholes, thus serving to create a more complete picture of this group of texts as a literary unity. Thus, while the separate, constituent semantic, textual and hypertextual parts must be analysed as separate elements, the fundamental questions posed regarding these elements will be different in a Gestalt paradigm as compared to a traditional, definitional analysis. Going from the micro to the macro, the first chapter will look at the serek texts through the ‘microscope’ of close philological analysis, examining how the term serek functions atomistically within the Dead Sea Scrolls. Building upon these results, the second chapter will more broadly analyse the structure, themes and narrative apparent in the serek texts, thus creating a fuller understanding of how the serek texts relate to one another and respond to circumstances in community life. Finally, the last chapter seeks yet more broadly to understand the serek texts in the wider literary milieu of the Second Temple Period. Here, a scribal technique present in the serek texts will be compared to a similar technique used in the Book of Isaiah—arguably the most important prophetic work for the Qumran sectarians.

Desde sua construção no tempo do rei Salomão, o Templo de Jerusalém foi pedra angular do Javismo do Sul e, por conseguinte, do Judaísmo do Segundo Templo. O Pensamento do Templo, baseado nas regras de pureza e impureza dentro do espaço e tempo sagrados com as quais se orientava a vida sacerdotal, expandir-se-á de modo vigoroso nesse período com o crescimento da importância e centralidade do santuário hierosolimita na sociedade pós-exílica. Ao mesmo tempo, a valorização do sacerdócio estava em seu auge. O sumo sacerdote foi, desde o retorno de Babilônia, o chefe religioso e político da nação judaica até a ascensão de Salomé Alexandra ao trono no primeiro século a.C., função que lhe seria restituída com a queda da dinastia herodiana na Judéia. Por volta do século II a.C., uma comunidade fundada e liderada por sacerdotes, conhecida atualmente como Comunidade de Qumran, isolou-se da sociedade circundante, objetivando seguir uma estrita observância das regras sacerdotais de pureza. Em seu centro no deserto da Judéia, na região de Qumran próxima ao Mar Morto, seus membros produziram e guardaram manuscritos através dos quais basearam e constituíram sua organização peculiar. Esses manuscritos são denominados Manuscritos do Mar Morto ou, mais especificamente, Manuscritos de Qumran. Entre eles estão o Rolo (ou Pergaminho) do Templo, a Regra da Comunidade e o Documento de Damasco, fontes de interpretação bíblica e de normas comunitárias que os guiaram, enquanto aguardavam o tempo do fim, quando os sacerdotes da Comunidade seriam finalmente reinvestidos de seu poder no Templo purificado. E é baseando-nos nesses três documentos que elaboramos nossa tese ao analisar os discursos veiculados pela liderança comunal, os quais visavam à constituição de uma sociedade sacerdotal, moldada em uma interpretação radical das Escrituras e do mundo. / Since its construction in the time of king Salomon, the Jerusalem Temple was the corner stone of the Southern Javism and, from then on, of the Second Temple Judaism. The so-called Temple Thought, based on the rules of pure and impure inside the sacred place and time which governed the priestly life, will expand vigorously in this period due to the growth in importance and centrality of the Jerusalemite sanctuary inside the post-exilic society. At the same time, the high value of the priesthood was in its peak. The high priest was, from the return from the Babylonian exile on, the religious and political head of the Jewish nation until Salome Alexandras ascension to the throne in the first century B.C., function that was restituted after the fall of the Herodian dynasty. Around the second century B.C., a community founded and leaded by priests, presently known as the Qumran Community, isolated itself from the surrounding society, aiming at following the strict observance of the priestly rules of purity. In its centre in the Judean desert, in the region of Qumran near the Dead Sea, its members produced and kept manuscripts by which they based and constituted their peculiar organization. Those manuscripts are named Dead Sea Scrolls, or, more specifically, Qumran Scrolls. Among them we can find the Temple Scroll, the Rule of Community and the Damascus Document, sources of biblical interpretation and of community rules that guided them while they expected the end of times, when the priests of the Community would, eventually, be reinvested of their power in the purified Temple. Basing ourselves on these three documents we elaborated our dissertation by analyzing the discourse produced by the communal leadership, whose goal was the constitution of a priestly society, shaped in its radical interpretation of the Scriptures and of the world.

Since the advent of the Dead Sea Scrolls, four biblical textual scholars have emerged at the forefront of the dialogue concerning textual evolution. They are: Frank Moore Cross, Emanuel Tov, Shemaryahu Talmon and Eugene Ulrich. Though there is some overlap in their hypotheses, each scholar has put forth a framework of biblical textual development in light of these new discoveries.If a new biblical text were discovered today, how would each scholar approach it? This thesis evaluates each scholars' views and concludes that Emanuel Tov's criteria for judging a newly discovered text is the most thorough and explanatory. Tov's views provide for texts that appear to have evolved away from other known biblical texts. His descriptive categories for discovered texts recognize the possibility that a discovered text could be unaligned with any text known thus far to the scholarly world. He terms this category "non- aligned." The other scholars do not provide for such a category. They assume that all texts are closely related in "families," or "literary editions" and that all texts evolved in relative close proximity to one other with either occasional or frequent contact.Book of Mormon Isaiah was removed from the biblical textual evolutionary process that was talking place in Palestine ca. 600 B.C. Where does it fit into this process as put forth by scholars? Is it a text closely related to any of the families described by these four scholars? This thesis evaluates the textual variants between Book of Mormon Isaiah and Isaiah in the Septuagint, the Masoretic Text, and Qumran's Isaiah scrolls. Of the 433 verses of Isaiah in the Book of Mormon, 216 (50%) contain 370 variants. 119 of these are related to italicized words in the King James Version. 76 variants appear to agree with the Septuagint, 28 agree with Isaiah at Qumran, 52 are supported by the Masoretic Text, and 150 variants are non-aligned. These facts are accurately predicted and explained by Emanuel Tov's theories. Of the four, he is the only scholar that conceives of the idea of a text not closely aligned with any other extant text. Book of Mormon Isaiah contains approximately 1/3 of the chapters in the Masoretic text. Using Tov's theories, when 433 verses contain 370 variants, this fits the criteria of an "independent" or "non-aligned text." Book of Mormon Isaiah is a proof text for his theories.

The common elements which emerge from this study are: Melchizedek was a priest-king, ruling a small city-state and presiding over the cult. He lived among a people far advanced from the primitive. There is no consensus among scholars concerning the meaning of his name but "Sedeq (a name for God) is my King" is a possible translation. Melchizedek's city-state was named Salem and of the four plausible geographical locations postulated, the Salem-Shechem theory leaves fewer problems. Abraham and Melchizedek worshiped the same God who was known by several names, among which were 'El 'elyon, God Most High and Yahweh. All of these names point to a superlative god above all others. Jewish traditions identify Melchizedek with Shem and Salem with Jerusalem. They also subordinate Melchizedek to Abraham and see the priesthood lost by Melchizedek and passing to Abraham. The Christians claimed Melchizedek as the type for Christ and his priesthood, and thus forged their own link to antiquity. Joseph Smith's teachings parallel the early Christian traditions of Melchizedek as a type of Christ and other traditions on priestly kingship and ritual. He also defines orders in the priesthood.

My dissertation analyzes the status of mixed offspring in the Hebrew Bible and Second Temple texts to understand the diverse ways children from intermarried couples were presented in pre-Mishnaic Jewish literature. Prior to the Mishnah (m. Qidd 3:12), there is no evidence of a monolithic ruling to regulate the status of mixed progeny. My goal, therefore, is to examine the different ways mixed offspring were treated, and to better understand whether they endured any social repercussions due to their mixed lineage. In turn, I explore the diverse ways Jewish identity was constructed in antiquity, and how matters like gender, lineage, and geography were used to establish social boundaries. Within contemporary scholarship, the study of mixed progeny in antiquity has been incidental to other research topics, including the expulsion narrative in Ezra 9–10, genealogical purity, and the matrilineal principle in Judaism. To date, no comprehensive approach has been undertaken to trace the status of mixed progeny in pre-Mishnaic Jewish literature. My dissertation seeks to fill this lacuna. Following a brief introduction in chapter 1, my subsequent chapters are divided into four time periods: the pre-Persian period (chapter 2); the Persian period (chapter 3); the Hellenistic period (chapter 4); and the early Roman period (chapter 5). Within each chapter, I analyze texts generally dated to those eras that include some information about mixed offspring. In my concluding chapter, I reveal three main factors that impacted the status of mixed progeny in antiquity: genealogy, residential location, and piety. I also provide a heuristic framework to categorize my findings of mixed offspring. While there were two main responses towards mixed progeny in antiquity (accepted or rejected), not every case fits nicely into these two classifications. Therefore, the treatment of mixed progeny must be understood on a spectrum to better appreciate the nuance within each text. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Literary tales about the lives and vicissitudes of officials serving in the courts of powerful kings are attested throughout the writings of the ancient Near East. Such ‘court tales’ were a popular literary form during the Jewish Second Temple period (515 BCE-70 CE). With the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of previously unknown ancient Jewish court tales was discovered, along with others preserved in their original languages. The discovery of these texts has expanded our corpus of extant Jewish court tales. Research on these texts has yet to be systematically integrated into broader analyses of the Jewish court tales. This dissertation addresses this desideratum and integrates the court tale evidence from the Dead Sea Scrolls into research on the already extant Jewish court tales, with a focus on the themes of punishment, exile, and restoration. Chapter One outlines the history of scholarship on the Jewish court tales. Chapter Two examines the literary themes and concerns of other ancient Near Eastern and Mediterranean court tale traditions. Chapters Three and Four analyze the themes of punishment, exile, and restoration within the Jewish court tales, and highlight their uniqueness to the Jewish tales. Chapter Five discusses the development and decline of the Jewish court tales. In doing this, I demonstrate that a major purpose of the Jewish adoption of the court tale tradition was to upend earlier convictions that exilic life was solely a form of punishment, with the purpose of demonstrating the benefits of exilic life and God’s sovereignty over foreign political actors. My examination of the court tales contributes to discussions about the origins of Jewish apocalyptic literature, with the court tales employing eschatological terminology to address the theme of restoration. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)