One Voice or Many? The Identity of the Narrators in Noah’s Birth Story (1QapGen 1–5.27) and in the ‘Book of the Words of Noah’ (1QapGen 5.29–18.23)

Abstract

The present article explores the puzzling variety of narrative voices in the so-called Genesis Apocryphon from Qumran Cave 1. Lamech, Noah, and Abram in turn act as first person narrator, and all three of these stories also include third person narration. Focusing on the columns preceding the Abram story, it is shown that both the account of Noah’s birth (1–5.27) and the ‘Book of the Words of Noah’ (5.29–18.23) are basically narrated in the first person by Lamech and Noah, respectively. It is concluded that the rare shifts to third person narration are not unusual in ancient Jewish literature.