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Isaiah 8:1-2 is an elusive text, in regard to both its interpretation and its import. In these verses, YHWH commands Isaiah to write [phrase omitted] on a large [phrase omitted] with a [phrase omitted]. The writing surface, writing tool, and message are obscure and contested. However, I argue that the puzzle of Isaiah's writing materials has not yet been persuasively solved, as scholarship has failed to consider Judah's Egyptian scribal heritage. With this context, the prophet's writing surface ([phrase omitted]) can be correctly understood as a section of papyrus, and his tool ([phrase omitted]) can be read as a red rush pen. These proposed identifications of Isaiah's tools harmonize with comparative, etymological, epigraphic, and art- historical evidence for scribalism in the Levant and Egypt. Moreover, they illuminate the purpose and genre of YHWH's message. It appears that Isaiah was borrowing the format and tropes of royal decrees, which were transcribed on large pieces of papyrus in front of witnesses. The use of red ink also hints at the text's significance. The scene described in Isa 8:1-2 thus indicates that prophecy had taken on the garb of written record. The word of God was becoming not just an oral message but an authoritative document., There are only a few texts in the Hebrew Bible that allow the reader to glimpse how its words were put to 'paper' Among our few examples are Habakkuk's tablets [...]

In Rom 16:2, Paul refers to Phoebe in Cenchreae as "a patron [[phrase omitted]] ofmany and of myself." After considering the various proposals regarding the nature of Phoebe's "patronage" toward Paul, I advance a hypothesis mentioned by Origen and some modern commentators in passing--that Phoebe was a [phrase omitted] in that she provided hospitality services, such as accommodation and advocacy, to Paul and other Christian travelers. To support this interpretation, I bring to bear two types of evidence: epigraphic data regarding [phrase omitted] and Paul's sociorhetorical purposes in Rom 16:2. Epigraphic evidence establishes that hospitality was a common aspect of being a [phrase omitted] as the term commonly defined [phrase omitted] ("public friend-hosts"). In terms of rhetoric, Paul refers to Phoebe as a mpooTOTi? in his commendation of her to the recipients in Rome (Rom 16:1-2), indicating that Phoebe's past hospitality as a [phrase omitted] makes her deserving of the Romans' future hospitality., In Rom 16:2, Paul states that a certain Phoebe "has been a [phrase omitted] of many and of myself as well" ([phrase omitted]). (1) The translation and interpretation of the [...]

The discursive labeling of Miriam as prophet constructs her drumming, dancing, and singing as prophetic acts; her actions simultaneously reshape the prophetic role as participatory, creative, and relational. A theoretical frame drawn from dance studies and the new materialist philosophy of Karen Barad supports the argument that the drumming, dancing, and singing of Miriam and the women of Israel in Exod 15:20-21 are a prophetic performance that gives shape and expression to the subjectivity and agency of God and people after the moment of transition between the victory at the Reed Sea and the journey to Sinai. The collaborative prophetic activity of drumming, dance, and song celebrates divine dynamism and responsiveness, enacts healing for a traumatized people, and entrains their bodies for life in covenant community., Dancing, of all human art and cultural forms, is arguably the most bodied, the most mind-body integrative. Dancing is the body. --Sam Gill (1) If I could say it, I [...]

In this article, I explore the concept of [phrase omitted] in Gal 3:15-18 in terms of"bequest and its execution." In this light, I argue that, in the context of a will, the verb [phrase omitted] in 3:15 should be interpreted as referring to "execution" rather than "ratification," contrary to previous interpretations. I also examine the fact that in antiquity a bequest was irrevocable after its execution or the transfer of ownership. In accordance with a Jewish tradition, Paul may be alluding to the irrevocability of the bequest in 3:15-18, taking into account that God has already granted ([phrase omitted]) an inheritance to Abraham (3:18b). Thus, Paul arguably envisaged that Abraham had already acquired a "bequeathed estate" ([phrase omitted]) from God (Gen 15), and so the Abrahamic covenant ([phrase omitted]) cannot be altered by adding stipulations (i.e., the law) because the [phrase omitted] has already come into effect (Gal 3:18b)., I. INTERPRETATIONS OF [phrase omitted] IN GALATIANS 3:15 Exegetes have long debated whether the term [phrase omitted] in Gal 3:15 means a "will" or a "covenant." (1) Paul's mention of [...]

Biblical scholars who reject the application of the terms rape and rape culture in the study of the Hebrew Bible stress the Sitz im Leben of biblical texts and the need for neutrality and objectivity in interpreting ancient sources. Some scholars argue that, because there is no lexical equivalent for the word rape in Biblical Hebrew and consent is immaterial to its authors, applying the terms rape and rape culture to biblical texts is anachronistic. Others acknowledge the prevalence of sexual violence in the Bible--particularly against female characters--and suggest that biblical authors indeed possessed a "concept of rape." In this article, I describe how rape and rape culture emerged as salient terms in feminist discourse and biblical scholarship. I then present three forms of Sitz im Leben arguments that reject the terms rape and rape culture outright or qualify their use, demonstrating that each argument unwittingly aligns with harmful ideologies of the Hebrew Bible and reveals the retrojection of troubling assumptions grounded in contemporary hegemonic masculinities and today's rape cultures. I conclude that interrogating the literary culture of the Hebrew Bible as a rape culture is both an ethical and a necessary academic project., Historians face a knotty methodological issue: To what extent may they import current thinking into their study of the past? Biblical scholars who draw on gender theory, for example, are [...]

In his Letter to the Galatians, Paul says that Peter ate with [phrase omitted] in Antioch (2:12). In this context, the majority of commentators read the phrase [phrase omitted] as a reference to gentiles who believe in Christ, departing from its predominant usage in Paul's writings. However, this widespread and consequential assumption that Peter ate only with Christ-believing gentiles is not compelling. In fact, such an understanding is mainly based on prior scholarship that assumed that Jews, even in the diaspora, lived in isolated contexts and could not have eaten with non-Jews. In contrast, I argue that there are neither linguistic nor contextual reasons in Gal 2 for limiting the people with whom Peter eats to Christ-believing gentiles. Instead, historical studies suggest that the expression [phrase omitted] refers to Peter eating with different kinds of gentiles, which also includes non-Christ-believing gentiles at everyday occasions such as private dinner gatherings. This changes our understanding of the context of Peter's commensality as well as Peter's position itself., I. GALATIANS 2:12 IN CURRENT RESEARCH In Gal 2:12, Paul speaks generally of Peter's having eaten with [phrase omitted] in Antioch. In the commentary literature, [phrase omitted] in Gal 2 [...]

In Joshua 8:30-35 (MT), Joshua builds an altar to YHWH and inscribes the stones of the altar with a copy of the torn of Moses. This episode's earliest position among Hebrew and Greek text traditions remains a topic of debate. Several overlooked parallels between Joshua's conquest of Ai (Josh 8:1-29) and Assyrian royal inscriptions indicate that the text of Josh 8 draws more heavily on Assyrian literary warfare traditions than previously assumed. Importantly, the narrated conquest in Josh 8, Assyrian campaign reports, and several Levantine inscriptions conclude their narrations of warfare with the building of an inscribed monument. Striking similarities between the royal annals of Assurnasirpal II and Josh 8:1-29 evince the influence of Neo-Assyrian narrations of warfare upon later Northwest Semitic literary traditions. The MT position of the Mount Ebal altar episode, I argue, is the earliest extant textual location of this pericope because it is the only location of the Mount Ebal altar narrative that satisfies the text's connection with Deuteronomy and the narrative expectations created by the preceding conquest account in 8:1-29., Joshua 8:1-35 (MT) narrates the conquest of Ai and a ritual at Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim. (1) The Ai conquest spans 8:1-29, but the ritual at the two mountains [...]

The renewed interest in the relationship between the Gospel of Mark and the apostle Paul has led to more nuanced arguments for Paul's influence on Mark based on refined methodologies. In this article, I critically evaluate the current state of the argument, concluding that it depends on too many variables and expects too much of our sparse evidence to make a convincing argument that Mark is distinctly Pauline. Therefore, the Gospel of Mark should be read independently of Paul so that its unique features might be first understood within its own narrative world, rather than interpreted through a Pauline lens., The relationship between the Gospel of Mark and the apostle Paul has received enormous scholarly attention over the past few decades. For much of the twentieth century, Martin Werner's 1923 [...]

In this article, I argue that the Gospel of Thomas and the Book of Thomas were composed in Alexandria, Egypt. For the Gospel of Thomas, I examine the manuscript attestation and quotations of the gospel from known Alexandrian figures (e.g., Julius Cassianus, Basilideans) and texts (the Gospel according to the Egyptians), and from texts that are arguably Alexandrian (e.g., the Testimony of Truth, Excerpts from Theodotus, and the Naassene discourse). With respect to the Book of Thomas, I examine the treatise's use of the tradent Matthias, the Philonic paradigm of the spiritual athlete, the use of the Alexandrian Apocalypse of Peter, and distinctive overlaps with other Alexandrian figures and texts. Determining the provenance of anonymous ancient texts is hypothetical, but the most reliable and precise evidence for the Gospel and Book of Thomas supports a composition in Alexandria more so than it does the regions of Edessa, Jerusalem, or Antioch., The Syrian--and specifically Edessene--provenance of the Gospel of Thomas has come under heavy fire in recent decades. (1) It is not my purpose to repeat or add to these arguments. [...]

The male lover portrayed in Song 1:2-4 was once ubiquitously considered to be a king. Recent interpreters, however, have understood the word 'king' to be either a hypocorism (a nickname of affection) or an epithet for a 'bridegroom.' Earlier interpretation also recognized a group of women in the opening scene, but this too is disappearing today. To address these exclusions, I present a close analysis of the grammar and offer an alternative perspective to what is identified as enallage (a substitution of one grammatical form for another) but which also inadvertently suppresses the women's presence. Next, I investigate how the Song's 'king' became denuded of his royal meaning, including through a reliance on some dubious interpretations of Akkadian poetry. I also explore literary themes in the Hebrew Bible--women's celebratory praise and a hitherto undiscovered case of subtle soundplay called 'hidden paronomasia'--to show why the Song's 'king' should be understood as a royal personage. Finally, by comparing this scene in the Song to the Sumerian love poem Dumuzi-lnanna G, I show how the Song opens with a prominent ancient Near Eastern motif of love literature--the entrance or bringing of the royal consort into the palace, lauded by a group of rejoicing women., The inaugural verses of the Song of Songs appear to portray the male lover as a king. Even if we set aside the Solomonic nature of the inscription in the [...]

Mother Earth is home to an unprecedented number of translations of the Bible, making it the most widely translated book in the world. The pages of this book have traversed a variety of physical and metaphorical borders, navigating diverse geographical, political, economic, cultural, linguistic, and religious intersections. Across space, time, and cultures, millions of readers have found various reasons to read it through diverse lenses. The Bible was frequently translated and brought to the colonized territories with colonial movements. Regrettably, it was often utilized as a tool for subjugation and dominance. However, the colonized people also used this resource for their own goals. Do contemporary biblical studies have the courage to look upon the tomes and tons of translated Bibles lying upon the surface of Mother Earth? What responsibilities and opportunities does the Global Translated Bible(s) lay upon academic biblical studies? What research questions, challenges, and opportunities for collaboration does it open? What are the pedagogical obligations and implications of acknowledging the Global Translated Bible(s)? In other words, what does faithfulness and unfaithfulness to the translated biblical corpus entail, imply, and demand? This lecture proposes and emphasizes the imperative of mainstreaming the Global Translated Bible(s) into academic biblical studies., I. TRANSLATED BIBLES: SCATTERING THE SEED My first encounter with a printed Bible was a translated Bible. It was my mother's Ndebele Bible. Every Saturday she would call it quits [...]