A Dying and Rising Josephite Messiah in 4Q372

Abstract

This article draws attention to difficulties in the prevailing interpretation of 4Q372, which sees the text as referring to the fall of the historical northern kingdom. This study suggests the Joseph figure of 4Q372 appears to be a righteous king or `eschatological patriarch' who quotes in his death-throes Psalms 89 and 22, like the suffering Ephraim Messiah of Pesikta Rabbati 36-37. This study therefore argues that the genre of 4Q372 is not history but prophecy, a view supported by its verbal forms. Such an interpretation has implications for the dating of the Josephite Messiah.