Other Writings/Traditions

Abstract

Other Writings/Traditions Christopher T. Begg, Rory K. Pitstick, Michael W. Duggan, William J. Urbrock, Joseph E. Jensen, and Joel M. LeMon 2312. [Revelation] Garrick V. Allen, "Son of God in the Book of Revelation and Apocalyptic Literature," Son of God, 53-71 [see #2361]. In his essay, A. situates the concept of the NT Book of Revelation in relation to various "sonship traditions" in Jewish and Christian literature. He begins by surveying the usage of the phrase in the Hebrew Bible, suggesting that the expression "son(s) of God" there frequently refers to angels or Israelite royalty. He then highlights common features shared by Jesus as son of God in Revelation and the various figures referred to as "sons" in apocalyptic literature roughly contemporaneous with Revelation. Here A. argues that the connotations of the title "son of God" in Revelation are not always coterminous with comparable figures in apocalyptic literature and seeks to demonstrate the elasticity of the title in its reference to servants, angels, messiahs, and messengers. The Book of Revelation, in A.'s view, thus functions as a medial ground for tracing the diachronic development of sonship traditions in ancient apocalypses. The title is fungible across literatures, but especially so in the apocalyptic tradition. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.] 2313. Nathanael Andrade, "The Jewish Tetragrammaton: Secrecy, Community, and Prestige among Greek-Writing Jews of the Early Roman Empire," JSJ 46 (2015) 198-223. In his retelling of Exod 3:14-16 in Ant. 2.275-276, Josephus presents the Tetragrammaton as a name known only to Jews and one that Jews are not to intone or disclose to foreigners. His statement on the matter reflects a practice that certain Jews cultivated regarding the nondisclosure of the divine name. The Jews' practice in this matter preserved the sanctity of the name and expressed acknowledgment of its ineffable character. At the same time, certain Jews, such as Josephus and Philo, also promoted among both fellow Jews and outsiders the supposition that knowledge of the divine name was a characteristic prerogative of Jews of which non-Jews were unaware. Moreover, these authors framed knowledge of the name as being restricted to a subgroup of privileged Jews, who safeguarded its sanctity. In this way, such Jews circulated and bolstered the Tetragrammaton's association with secrecy. Intriguingly, Greek and Latin authors of the Roman Empire appear to corroborate these claims. Even as the divine name underwent increased circulation among non-Jews, such authors still conceived of the Jewish divinity as having a name that Jews did not disclose. Such was the Tetragrammaton's reputation for secrecy, a reputation that certain Jews actively cultivated and amplified. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.] 2314. [2 Baruch; 1 Enoch] Jeff S. Anderson, "Kidron and Hebron," Hen 37 (2015) 261-75. Performative speech acts derive their potency from the fact of their being uttered in exacting social contexts. Spatial demarcations in 2 Baruch and 1 Enoch combine performative speech and imagined space in such a way as to endow their respective messages [End Page 763] with illocutionary force. In 2 Baruch, the author presents the respected scribal protagonist receiving revelations and making proclamations in several distinct geographical contexts, in particular in two notoriously ambivalent burial and cultic sites, i.e., Kidron and Hebron. Revelatory trees figure prominently in the oracles delivered by Baruch at both locations. Unlike 1 Enoch, which graphically depicts Kidron and the surrounding locale as cursed (see 1 Enoch 26:1–27:5), 2 Baruch constructs an imagined space for the righteous at Kidron, the consummate "exit threshold" demarcating the boundary zone outside Zion. Like Kidron, also Hebron was an ambivalent site in the Second Temple period, known for the presence of the tombs of Israel's revered ancestors but also as a venue for pagan practices, this ambivalence serving to make the site another consummate "entry threshold" in the Hebrew Bible that as such gives it the character of a metaphor for a new era of restoration. [Adapted from published abstract—C.T.B.] 2315. [Enochism; Qumran] Luca Arcari, "Autodefînizione sacerdotale e polemica contro i detentori del culto templare nel...