Helen R . Jacobus | The University of Manchester (original) (raw)

Books by Helen R . Jacobus

Helen R. Jacobus demonstrates mathematically that the Aramaic calendar texts from Qumran were des... more Helen R. Jacobus demonstrates mathematically that the Aramaic calendar texts from Qumran were designed to show the position of the sun and moon in the zodiac for each day of the month forever

Gorgias Press, Biblical Intersections , Jun 11, 2013

This collection of essays by participants in the Magic and Divination in the Biblical World resea... more This collection of essays by participants in the Magic and Divination in the Biblical World research group of the European Association of Biblical Studies represents a wide ranging, analytical, and often unconventional approach to a relatively neglected area within Biblical Studies. These original articles by new and established scholars include Mesopotamian demonology, Akkadian literary influences, exorcism, healing, calendars, astrology, bibliomancy, dreams, ritual magic, priestly divination, prophecy, magic in the Christian Apocrypha and the New Testament, magic in rabbinic literature, and Jewish Aramaic magic bowls. See Gorgias Press website link for Table of Contents.
https://www.gorgiaspress.com/studies-on-magic-and-divination-in-the-biblical-world
https://www.academia.edu/4873364/Introduction_to_Studies_on_Magic_and_Divination_in_the_Biblical_World
(For the Introduction, see under "Chapters", below)

Book Chapters by Helen R . Jacobus

Science in Qumran Aramaic Texts, ed. Ida Fröhlich (Ancient Cultures of Science and Knowledge 1), Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck., 2022

In light of the existing research on the Aramaic calendars from Qumran, the development of 4QAstr... more In light of the existing research on the Aramaic calendars from Qumran, the development of 4QAstronomical Enocha-b (4Q208–209) is further explored in relation to a group of Late Babylonian magical, astrological and witchcraft texts.
Previously, I reconstructed the calendar of 4Q208–209 and argued that each day corresponds to a position in the zodiac within the context of an adapted schematic calendar of 12 ideal 30-day months, similar to schemes that developed from the third millennium in Mesopotamia until the Late Babylonian period.
It is here proposed that the model is comparable to the Late Babylonian magical text BRM IV, 19 and related texts. It is shown that 4Q208–209 and BRM IV, 19 and related texts are probably descended from common astrological-magical sources from Mesopotamia.

Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception (EBR, 2021

Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception, ed. Constance Furey, et al. vol. 19 (Berlin: De Gru... more Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception, ed. Constance Furey, et al. vol. 19 (Berlin: De Gruyter, 2021), pp. 957-61. The contribution covers the representation of the moon astronomically, in calendars, and poetically in Second Temple and Hellenistic Jewish texts. (Qumran, Septuagint, Ben Sira), with a bibliography.
The "Moon" entry appears under IV. Judaism. A. Second Temple and Hellenistic Judaism.

Fountains of Wisdom: In Conversation with James H. Charlesworth. Edited by Gerbern S. Oegema, Henry W. Morisada Rietz, and Loren Stuckenbruck. London: Bloomsbury T & T Clark. [Chapter 30], pages 455-66 , 2022

It is proposed that Mary Shelley knew of the Nephilim from the forthcoming translation by Richard... more It is proposed that Mary Shelley knew of the Nephilim from the forthcoming translation by Richard Laurence of 'The Book of Enoch the Prophet' (1821) and used these ideas in 'Frankenstein' (1818).
https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/fountains-of-wisdom-9780567701275/
The following text is a slightly abbreviated version of the short conference paper summarizing the above chapter in “Celebrating 40 Years of Research on the Pseudepigrapha and the Dead Sea Scrolls and Its Impact on Biblical Studies through the Contributions of Prof. James H. Charlesworth,” at McGill University, Montreal, and online, 3–5 April, 2022.

T&T Clark Companion to the Dead Sea Scrolls, edited by George J. Brooke and Charlotte Hempel, Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2018

The article is a summary of the different types of Hebrew (including 'cryptic') calendars and fes... more The article is a summary of the different types of Hebrew (including 'cryptic') calendars and festival calendars, and the Aramaic calendars at Qumran. (Scan from the hard copy)

(I can send you a pre-print if you send me an email address).

Prognostication in History, 2021

The main focus of this chapter is research on the proposed calendrical cycles of the Aramaic cale... more The main focus of this chapter is research on the proposed calendrical cycles of the Aramaic calendars from Qumran, which, it is suggested, could be used to construct a form of astrology using only the sun, the moon and the zodiac. The paper shows, using extant fragments, how these texts could function as ephemerides. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the ideal calendars may have been intercalated in accordance with a 19-year ('Metonic') cycle.
https://brill.com/view/book/9789004445703/BP000003.xml
https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004445703_004

Preprint available (send me your email address).

Institute of Jewish Studies. Studies in Judaica , 2021

This is a book chapter illustrating the proposal that there are two types of zodiacs in Jewish th... more This is a book chapter illustrating the proposal that there are two types of zodiacs in Jewish thought. These are the "earthly" in which the 12 signs of the zodiac are represented by terrestrial imagery and the literal meaning of the sign-name itself, without any nudity, and the "heavenly," in which the iconography draws on Greco-Roman and Mesopotamian illustrations of the sign-name. The paper argues that the two schemes were transmitted largely unchanged in the medieval and early modern periods, co-existing in some "mixed" zodiacs. The perspective covers the rich use of the Jewish zodiacs over hundreds of years in Jewish liturgical and calendrical books, manuscripts, marriage contracts and artefacts, the history of the Jewish attitude to astrology from ancient Jewish literature to Maimonides, the traditions of the zodiac and the 12 tribes, bloodletting. It highlights the need to catalogue this enormous but neglected area of Jewish thought in a systematic way.

Dead Sea Scrolls, Revise and Repeat. New Methods and Perspectives, edited by Carmen Palmer, Andrew R. Krause, Eileen Schuller, and John Screnock. Early Judaism and Its Literature 52. Atlanta: SBL Press. Pages: 199-250., 2020

The article consists of two main parts: an explanatory summary of the different types of calenda... more The article consists of two main parts: an explanatory summary of the different types of calendars from Qumran in Hebrew, Aramaic and a Hebrew cryptic script with reference to use of the sun and moon in these calendars.
Having outlined their differences, the contribution discusses the relationships between the calendars, their similarities, divergencies and interconnections.
The Qumran calendars are part of ancient Near Eastern and Greek and Mesopotamian Hellenistic cultures where calendrical plurality was the norm during this period. The multiplicity of calendars at Qumran further suggests that in Second Temple Judaism, priests were mathematically creative and had contact with current astronomical culture in the region. It is likely that the calendars had different purposes.
This is the manuscript version of the chapter and includes Fig. 1, an image using the astronomical online program Stellarium which could not be printed in the book for technical reasons.

Hellenistic Astronomy: The Science in its Contexts. Edited by Alan C. Bowen and Francesca Rochberg. Brill's Companions to Classical Studies. Leiden: Brill. Pp. 539–550., 2020

Abstract It is demonstrated textually from the fragments that 4QAstronomical Enocha-b (4Q208–4Q2... more Abstract
It is demonstrated textually from the fragments that 4QAstronomical Enocha-b (4Q208–4Q209) is a zodiacal calendar related to that of 4QZodiac Calendar (4Q318 iv, vii-viii, 1–6).
Both calendars use a fixed 19-year cycle, known from fifth century BCE Mesopotamia and Greece. In addition to the Aramaic zodiacal calendars, the contribution discusses the question of whether astrology was of interest to the groups responsible for collecting and compiling the Dead Sea Scrolls taking on board the presence at Qumran of physiognomic texts, and Wisdom and Mystery texts containing some possible astrological terms.

“Astral Divination in the Dead Sea Scrolls” in Hellenistic Astronomy: The Science in its Contexts. Edited by Alan C. Bowen and Francesca Rochberg. Brill’s Companions to Classical Studies. Leiden: Brill, 2020. 539–550. (Available through institutional log-in)

https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004400566_044

(See also “Back Matter” for summary of the calendrical cycle (“Judean”): Historical Glossary of Important Terms in Hellenistic Astronomy”: under “Calendar,” pp. 631–652, at pp. 367–369. Open access:
https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789004400566/back-1.xml)

“Strangers to the ‘Biblical Scrolls’: Balaam’s Fourth Oracle (Num 24:15-19) and Its Links to Othe... more “Strangers to the ‘Biblical Scrolls’: Balaam’s Fourth Oracle (Num 24:15-19) and Its Links to Other Unique Excerpted Texts” in Is There a Text in this Cave? Studies in the Textuality of the Dead Sea Scrolls in Honour of George J. Brooke., eds., A. Feldman, M. Cioată, C. Hempel (Leiden: Brill, 2017), 226-257.

“rāqîa‘ רָקִיע” (“firmament,” “vault” in the Dead Sea Scrolls”) in eds., H-J. Fabry, U. Dahmen. T... more “rāqîa‘ רָקִיע” (“firmament,” “vault” in the Dead Sea Scrolls”) in eds., H-J. Fabry, U. Dahmen. Theological Dictionary of the Qumran Texts III= Theologisches Wörterbuch zu den Qumrantexten III (ThWQ III) (Stuttgart: Kohlhammer, 2016), 720-722.

Astrology in Time and Place: Cross-Cultural Questions in the History of Astrology, 2015

Using lunar zodiac data from Francesca Rochberg's 'Babylonian Horoscopes' (Philadelphia, 1998), t... more Using lunar zodiac data from Francesca Rochberg's 'Babylonian Horoscopes' (Philadelphia, 1998), this article suggests that the Qumran zodiacial calendar in 4Q318 is a variant version of the Babylonian calendar found in cuneiform horoscopes. (In 'Astrology in Time and Place: Cross-Cultural Questions in the History of Astrology,' eds,. Nicholas Campion and Dorian Gieseler Greenbaum (Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2015), pp. 217-244. (Original of pp. 99-115 in Zodiac Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls, Leiden: Brill, 2014).

An exposition of the Jewish reception of the "Star of Balaam" in the Dead Sea Scrolls and in text... more An exposition of the Jewish reception of the "Star of Balaam" in the Dead Sea Scrolls and in texts related to Bar Kokhba The paper examines the question of whether the 'Star of Bethlehem'; in Matthew 2:9 references the messianic prophecy of Num 24:17, and in turn whether Num 24:17 was also known by the Bar Kokhba movement. Based on its repeated use in the Dead Sea Scrolls as an excerpted text, it is argued that writer of the Gospel of Matthew would have been aware of the importance of Num 24:15-19 in Second Temple Judaism. Furthermore, claims in early Christian and rabbinical sources that Bar Kokhba was regarded as a false, self-proclaimed messiah contain some support from documents excavated from the Judean desert. The ancient sources suggested that the Bar Kokhba movement was also aware of Num 24:17 and that it regarded Jesus as a rival messianic movement. Hence the prophetic interpretation of the biblical passage is implicit in the 'Star of Bethlehem' narrative.

The essay examines the modern classification of calendars at Qumran (based on available literatur... more The essay examines the modern classification of calendars at Qumran (based on available literature from 2002 and 2009). It shows that contemporary scholars differ in their perception of how the calendars should be grouped. The study argues that the calendars in the collection are connected and that they should not be artificially separated by classifying them according to a "sectarian"-based model.

Studies on Magic and Divination in the Biblical World. Edited by Helen R. Jacobus, Anne Katrine de Hemmer Gudme and Philippe Guillaume. Biblical Intersections 11. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias Press, Jun 14, 2013

This paper explores the flood chronology in 4Q252 (4QCommentary on Genesis A) and re-examines 4Q2... more This paper explores the flood chronology in 4Q252 (4QCommentary on Genesis A) and re-examines 4Q254a (4QCommentary on Genesis D) in the light of the Septuagint and Ancient Near East Texts. Particular attention is paid to the omission of the raven in the calendar of deluge in 4Q252

Studies on Magic and Divination in the Biblical World, Jun 14, 2013

"Abstract Calendars in the Book of Esther: Purim, Festivals, Cosmology This paper suggests ... more "Abstract

Calendars in the Book of Esther: Purim, Festivals, Cosmology

This paper suggests that Esther added an extra month and a day to the king’s
calendar to thwart the date chosen by Haman for the annihilation of the Jews. The result was that the Jews in the provinces were preparing and celebrating Passover when the Jews of Sushan, who had the benefit of additional time, were fighting then feasting. Esther’s
intervention is related to Babylonian apotropaic calendar manipulation and the text indicates how a 354-day lunar calendar and a 360-day calendar might work. The analysis includes dates for Shavuot followed by different groups in Second Temple Judaism, one of which is reflected in a 364-day calendar scheme that is also attested at Qumran.
"

Leviticus and Numbers (series: Texts@Contexts), Mar 1, 2013

The essay contends that biblical narratives were composed in the knowledge that audiences were fa... more The essay contends that biblical narratives were composed in the knowledge that audiences were familiar with ancient Near Eastern and biblical legal codes, and that they are interlinked. (I also suggest that this idea applies to Greek dramas). The sub-texts are enhanced by this knowledge. Attention is paid to family laws and sexual relationships. The story-lines analysed include, Reuben and Bilhah, Judah and Tamar, Hagar and Ishmael, and David and Michal.
(The Prologue and Epilogue are connected to the series' theme of contextual reading).

Gorgias Press, Biblical Intersections , Jun 11, 2013

Science in Qumran Aramaic Texts, ed. Ida Fröhlich (Ancient Cultures of Science and Knowledge 1), Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck., 2022

Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception (EBR, 2021

T&T Clark Companion to the Dead Sea Scrolls, edited by George J. Brooke and Charlotte Hempel, Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2018

(I can send you a pre-print if you send me an email address).

Prognostication in History, 2021

Preprint available (send me your email address).

Institute of Jewish Studies. Studies in Judaica , 2021

Hellenistic Astronomy: The Science in its Contexts. Edited by Alan C. Bowen and Francesca Rochberg. Brill's Companions to Classical Studies. Leiden: Brill. Pp. 539–550., 2020

https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004400566_044

Astrology in Time and Place: Cross-Cultural Questions in the History of Astrology, 2015

Studies on Magic and Divination in the Biblical World, Jun 14, 2013

"Abstract Calendars in the Book of Esther: Purim, Festivals, Cosmology This paper suggests ... more "Abstract

Calendars in the Book of Esther: Purim, Festivals, Cosmology

Leviticus and Numbers (series: Texts@Contexts), Mar 1, 2013

The zodiology 4QZodiology and Brontology ar (4Q318) 1 has been recognised as a calendar by severa... more The zodiology 4QZodiology and Brontology ar (4Q318) 1 has been recognised as a calendar by several scholars. However, its method of functioning has hitherto been relatively unexplored, in contrast to the scholarship on the 364-day calendar traditions. 2 This paper will explain how the zodiology, or selenodromion, described as a "zodiacal calendar" by the official editors 3 and "a different calendrical system" by E. Tov, 4 is an intricate calendar, astronomically. We shall show that it is a working, schematic calendar that is related directly to the Jewish calendar in use today. The relationship between the zodiology and the brontologion will also be reassessed, based on new evidence. We shall also trace and identify the historical and cultural background of 4QZodiology and Brontology ar (4Q318) across the Classical world. The place of the Qumran zodiac calendar in the discourse on sectarianism is not discussed in depth in this essay.

Cosmologies. Proceedings of the Seventh Annual Sophia Centre Conference.

The Polish Journal of Biblical Research, 2023

The difference in the chronology of Passion Week between the Synoptics and in the Gospel of John ... more The difference in the chronology of Passion Week between the Synoptics and in the Gospel of John is often the focus of scholarly attention. In the Synoptics Jesus dies on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, on the first day following the Passover meal in the evening. In John, Jesus dies on the "Day of Preparation" prior to the Passover sacrifice and meal. By factoring in biblical festivals named in calendrical texts from Qumran, and the law on the Second Passover (Num 9:6-14), which is named "the Second Passover" ‫השני‬ ‫פסח‬ in the Qumran calendars of the priestly courses (mišmarot), I argue that the Johannine writers describe a different timeline of the Passion Week to that of the Synoptics. This study examines the question of whether Jesus was corpse contaminated at Passover (John 11:55), and his attitude to the law of Num 9:6-14 with respect to the narrative of Lazarus. It concludes that Jesus died on the day of the Second Passover which began that evening (John 12-19). The authors of the Fourth Gospel thereby preserve an interest in Jewish festivals after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE.

PJoBR 22 (2023): 73-112

ISSN 1641-7224
Print only

Also see article in the Church Times, "Easter, One Month Later" April 19, 2024:
https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2024/19-april/faith/faith-features/easter-one-month-later

Revue de Qumran, 2019

This study mathematically reconstructs 4QAstronomical Enoch a-b ar (4Q208-4Q209) in detail. The f... more This study mathematically reconstructs 4QAstronomical Enoch a-b ar (4Q208-4Q209) in detail. The findings challenge the recently proposed reconstruction of 4Q209 by Eshbal Ratzon as a full triennial cycle (with a synchronized lunar and solar year), known from the Judean Hebrew calendrical texts found in Qumran (in contrast to Milik's proposal that the texts represented the first year of a triennial cycle). This reconstruction demonstrates that the Ara-maic fragments more accurately match one single synchronized year which is not connected with a triennial cycle. It identifies the placement of certain fragments containing relevant data according to a scheme founded on contempo-raneous ancient astronomy in the region and that of another Qumran Aramaic calendrical text. The study finds that the Aramaic calendar of 4Q208-4Q209 should be analyzed on its own terms.

Clarification to "Noah's Flood Calendar (Gen 7:10-8:19) in the Septuagint" Henoch 36 (2014): 283-296

It is proposed that the different dates and chronology in the sequence of events in the account o... more It is proposed that the different dates and chronology in the sequence of events in the account of Noah’s Flood in the Septuagint (LXX) are dates in a calendar that can be reconstructed from the data. In the LXX the rains begin and the ark comes to rest on the 27th of the months in question. This differs from the Masoretic Text /Samaritan Pentateuch and the Dead Sea Scrolls (4Q252 and 4Q254a) where these events take place on the 17th of the months concerned. In the LXX the mountain peaks appear in the 11th month and in the MT/ SP and 4Q252 the mountain tops are visible in the 10th month.

Henoch 36 (2/2014): 283-296

It is demonstrated that the Greco-Roman zodiac sundials that flourished in Greece and Italy from ... more It is demonstrated that the Greco-Roman zodiac sundials that flourished in Greece and Italy from about the early second century BCE to the second century CE were related to the zodiac calendar in the Dead Sea Scrolls, in the Aramaic Astronomical Book (4Q208-4Q209).
Mediterraneann Archaeology and Archeometry 14.3 (2014): 68-81

ARAM Periodical 24/2 (2012): 311-331, Dec 1, 2012

The Aramaic zodiac in the Dead Sea Scrolls, contained in 4Q318 Zodiac Calendar ar and Brontologio... more The Aramaic zodiac in the Dead Sea Scrolls, contained in 4Q318 Zodiac Calendar ar and Brontologion, found in Cave 4 at Qumran, has similarities and differences to Babylonian and Hellenistic zodiacs. This information may help to identify the cultural influences in the Aramaic version in the Dead Sea Scrolls, the only extant such zodiac from an ancient primary source. This paper will show how 4Q318 Zodiac Calendar functions both in relation to the Jewish calendar and to the Babylonian calendar. Using data from Rochberg's Babylonian Horoscopes, it will demonstrate empirically why the text should be regarded not as Mesopotamian or Hellenistic, but as a Jewish zodiac calendar.

Henoch, Dec 4, 2013

This study examined 48 secular, civil, legal documents from different caves in the Dead Sea area ... more This study examined 48 secular, civil, legal documents from different caves in the Dead Sea area from before the time of the First Revolt from about 55 CE, to the last documents of the Second Revolt, in about 135 CE. The research suggests that the Aramaic and Hebrew legal documents may contain the earliest examples of the lunar, Babylonian calendar used for Jewish civil purposes and that further study is needed to investigate possible Jewish interest in the hemerologies or an interest in particular days of the month by lay people and rebels.

Journal of Ancient Judaism , Sep 1, 2013

This paper re-examines 4QcryptA Lunisolar Calendar (4Q317), a scroll from Qumran in an esoteric H... more This paper re-examines 4QcryptA Lunisolar Calendar (4Q317), a scroll from Qumran in an esoteric Hebrew script with many emendations that aligns the moon’s daily waxing and waning to a 364-day calendar. It seeks to ascertain whether the calendar may be exegetically related to the Creation and also discusses the text’s arithmetical relationships with the cycles of the priestly courses from Qumran, possible intertextual allusions to other lunar calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls (4QDaily Prayers [4Q503], 4QAstronomical Enocha-bar [4Q208–4Q209]), biblical passages, and parallels with another Mesopotamian calendar text. The first transcription of the largest fragments using a Cryptic A font is here published with a commentary (in the Appendix), focusing on the text’s unusual scribal features. A reconsideration of the calendar’s structure with a new arrangement of its dates is presented. [Please note there is a Hebrew transcription error in the Appendix, p.87 at 4Q317 frags 1+1a, line 9: the penultimate letter is cryptic waw, not a tav]

Revue de Qumran , Jun 1, 2013

This paper responds to the theory that information, known as “X” and “dwq” in some of the manuscr... more This paper responds to the theory that information, known as “X” and “dwq” in some of the manuscripts of the calendars of the priestly courses, 4Q320, 4Q321a and 4Q321, is related to a group of techniques itemised in Babylonian astronomical texts, called the Lunar Three. It is suggested that a direct comparison is problematic and that possible Greek influences may be discerned in the calendars of the priestly courses as well as in parts of the Aramaic Astronomical Book of Enoch, 4Q208–4Q209. The essay concludes that a new theoretical basis for researching the calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls in a comparative context is needed.

The paper suggests that The Book of Esther contains astronomical and chronological information as... more The paper suggests that The Book of Esther contains astronomical and chronological information associated with the reign of Artaxerxes II. It further investigates a play on dates concerning an intercalary 12 th Hebrew month and the eve of Passover, and possible mathematical references to Ancient Near Eastern and Jewish calendars.

Dead Sea Discoveries, 2023

This is a book review assessing Libor Malek’s study of Balaam’s Fourth Oracle (Num 24: 15- 19) ... more This is a book review assessing Libor Malek’s study of Balaam’s Fourth Oracle (Num 24: 15- 19) in the Qumran manuscripts where it appears as an excerpted text in various forms. Balaam was a non-Israelite prophet who was sent to curse the Israelites towards the end of their journey through the wilderness, but God makes him bless them instead. The study is a useful source on the Balaam’s Fourth Oracle in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Based on the texts themselves, the review questions Malek’s use of the Masoretic text as the main source for the excerpts of the prophecy in scrolls. Nonetheless the monograph contains some interesting insights, particularly on its reception. Malek observes that while Balaam is perceived negatively in early Jewish and Christian sources, including elsewhere in the Bible, the fourth oracle is used positively [the third oracle is used in synagogue liturgy]. (open access)

(DM with an email address for a copy if there is a problem downloading it).

Aestimatio NS 2:1, 2021

English translation by Brian McNeil and Alexander Johannes Edmonds Open Access: CC BY-NC-ND Lic... more English translation by Brian McNeil and Alexander Johannes Edmonds

Open Access: CC BY-NC-ND License
ISSN online: 1549-4497
ISSN print: 1549-4470

Journal of Semitic Studies, 2019

Book review, JSS vol 64, issue 1, pp. 300-303

Journal of Semitic Studies, Mar 22, 2014

The author has produced the first complete critical edition of the entire four Qumran manuscripts... more The author has produced the first complete critical edition of the entire four Qumran manuscripts that comprise 4QAstronomical Enoch a-d (4Q208-4Q211) in one volume.

Review of Biblical Literature, Jan 4, 2013

reviews 192 authoritative, pre-existing Priestly narrative, with the intent of raising the import... more reviews 192 authoritative, pre-existing Priestly narrative, with the intent of raising the importance of such violations when they occur on the sabbath. in a similar manner, Kamionkowski sees the injection of a legal issue over the use of the divine name as a reflection of the difference between P and H. 'while P locates the place of connection in the sancta, H locates it in the Name' (p. 82). she concludes that H's name theology is designed to provide another point of access between God and the people of israel, but that greater intimacy also requires greater respect for the divine name.

Bible and Interpretation.com, 2018

This an online essay in the Dead Sea Scrolls section of the website The Bible and Interpretation... more This an online essay in the Dead Sea Scrolls section of the website The Bible and Interpretation (https://bibleinterp.arizona.edu/).
It includes a proposed calendrical reconstruction of 4Q208-4Q209 based on data from surviving fragments. This is an extension of the chapter on the Aramaic Astronomical Book of Enoch from Qumran in the author's monograph, Zodiac Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Their Reception (Leiden: Brill, 2014)
(Originally uploaded July 2015; PDF. revised December 2017, uploaded 2018; uploaded again in October 2021 because the URL changed)
https://bibleinterp.arizona.edu/search/node?keys=astronomical+artefact

Corrections last added 21 October, 2017.

Zodiac Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Their Reception, 2014

This publication has been typeset in the multilingual "Brill" typeface. With over 5,100 character... more This publication has been typeset in the multilingual "Brill" typeface. With over 5,100 characters covering Latin, IPA, Greek, and Cyrillic, this typeface is especially suitable for use in the humanities. For more information, please see www.brill.com/brill-typeface.

Zodiac Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Their Reception, 2014

This essay reassesses the suggestion that the reason the raven is missing from the flood chronolo... more This essay reassesses the suggestion that the reason the raven is missing from the flood chronology of 4Q252 (Commentary on Genesis A) may be due to scribal error. I expand on the idea that the raven was deliberately excised for calendrical purposes. Furthermore, other deluge traditions concerning the birds of the ark are explored and it is claimed that these can be identified in both 4Q252 and 4Q254a (Commentary on Genesis D)

Dead Sea Scrolls, Revise and Repeat, 2020

The article consists of two main parts: an explanatory summary of the different types of calendar... more The article consists of two main parts: an explanatory summary of the different types of calendars from Qumran in Hebrew, Aramaic and a Hebrew cryptic script with reference to use of the sun and moon in these calendars. Having outlined their differences, the contribution discusses the relationships between the calendars, their similarities, divergencies and interconnections. The Qumran calendars are part of ancient Near Eastern and Greek and Mesopotamian Hellenistic cultures where calendrical plurality was the norm during this period. The multiplicity of calendars at Qumran further suggests that in Second Temple Judaism, priests were mathematically creative and had contact with current astronomical culture in the region. It is likely that the calendars had different purposes. This is the manuscript version of the chapter and includes Fig. 1, an image using the astronomical online program Stellarium which could not be printed in the book for technical reasons.

The chapter shows how 4QZodiac Calendar from Qumran works in relation to data in the Babylonian c... more The chapter shows how 4QZodiac Calendar from Qumran works in relation to data in the Babylonian calendar. Using lunar data from Francesca Rochberg's Babylonian Horoscopes (Philadelphia, 1988), it suggests that the Qumran zodiac calendar is a similar version of the Babylonian calendar found in cuneiform horoscopes. The chapter is reproduced from the author' s monogragh, Zodiac Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Their Reception: Ancient Astronomy and Astrology in Early Judaism (Leiden: Brill, 2014), 99-114, with permission.

This collection of essays by participants in the Magic and Divination in the Biblical World resea... more This collection of essays by participants in the Magic and Divination in the Biblical World research group of the European Association of Biblical Studies represents a wide ranging, analytical, and often unconventional approach to a relatively neglected area within biblical studies. The original articles by new and established scholars include Mesopotamian demonology, Akkadian literary influences, exorcism, healing, calendars, astrology, bibliomancy, dreams, ritual magic, priestly divination, prophecy, magic in the Christian Apocrypha and the New Testament, magic in rabbinic literature, and Jewish biblical magic bowls.

Is There a Text in this Cave? Studies in the Textuality of the Dead Sea Scrolls in Honour of George J. Brooke, 2017

The essay examines excerpts from Num 24:15-19 in the non-biblical scrolls that do not exist in th... more The essay examines excerpts from Num 24:15-19 in the non-biblical scrolls that do not exist in the biblical scrolls. It also touches on linking biblical extracts and sectarian references that appear in a related scrolls. It argues that the excerpted biblical extracts and variant versions of biblical citations in the non-biblical scrolls should be included in the critical apparatus to the biblical scrolls because they are also witnesses to formation of the Bible. The focus is on 4Q175, 1QM:11, CD:7, and also 4Q174, 4Q177, 4Q158, 4Q379 and other intersecting biblical extracts in these scrolls.

The Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran and the Concept of a Library, 2016

The essay examines the modern classification of calendars at Qumran (based on available literatur... more The essay examines the modern classification of calendars at Qumran (based on available literature from 2002 and 2009). The thin literature review shows that contemporary scholars differ in their perception of how the calendars should be grouped. The study argues that the calendars in the collection are connected and that they should not be artificially separated by classifying them according to a "sectarian"-based model.

Studies on Magic and Divination in the Biblical World, 2013

&amp;quot;&amp;quot;Abstract Calendars in the Book of Esther: Purim, Festivals, C... more &amp;quot;&amp;quot;Abstract Calendars in the Book of Esther: Purim, Festivals, Cosmology This paper suggests that Esther added an extra month and a day to the king’s calendar to thwart the date chosen by Haman for the annihilation of the Jews. The result was that the Jews in the provinces were preparing and celebrating Passover when the Jews of Sushan, who had the benefit of additional time, were fighting then feasting. Esther’s intervention is related to Babylonian apotropaic calendar manipulation and the text indicates how a 354-day lunar calendar and a 360-day calendar might work. The analysis includes dates for Shavuot followed by different groups in Second Temple Judaism, one of which is reflected in a 364-day calendar scheme that is also attested at Qumran. &amp;quot;&amp;quot;

Fountains of Wisdom, 2022

It is proposed that Mary Shelley knew of the Nephilim from the forthcoming translation by Richard... more It is proposed that Mary Shelley knew of the Nephilim from the forthcoming translation by Richard Laurence of 'The Book of Enoch the Prophet' (1821) and used these ideas in 'Frankenstein' (1818). https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/fountains-of-wisdom-9780567701275/ The following text is a slightly abbreviated version of the short conference paper summarizing the above chapter in “Celebrating 40 Years of Research on the Pseudepigrapha and the Dead Sea Scrolls and Its Impact on Biblical Studies through the Contributions of Prof. James H. Charlesworth,” at McGill University, Montreal, and online, 3–5 April, 2022.

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This paper proposes that the Greco-Roman zodiac sundials that flourished in Greece and Italy from... more This paper proposes that the Greco-Roman zodiac sundials that flourished in Greece and Italy from about the second century BCE to the second century CE were related to a probable zodiac calendar found in astronomical Aramaic manuscript fragments in the Dead Sea Scrolls from Qumran, dated about c. 2,000 years BP and c. 2,170 years BP. I demonstrate that in the Ethiopic Book of Luminaries the zodiac signs have been substituted by numbered gates of heaven and that this codified model can be traced back to the Qumran texts. Furthermore, that this same pattern is evident in Greco-Roman sundials in an unencrypted form. I conclude that the paradigms in the proposed Qumran zodiac calendar and the Greco-Roman zodiac sundials are the same, making it likely that the Aramaic fragments contain a zodiac calendar.

This paper reports the preliminary findings of the examination of dates in legal documents of the... more This paper reports the preliminary findings of the examination of dates in legal documents of the First and Second (Bar Kokhba) Revolts, the Babatha archive, the Salome Komaise archive, and other civil documents from lay Jewish communities found in the Cave Letters in Nahiiial Hiiiever, Wadi Murabba‛ât and other sites. It is proposed that a pattern of dates that occurs in the documents may indicate an interest in fortunate days to sign legal contracts. These apparent repetitions occur in secular and religious (marriage-related) legal documents written in Hebrew and Aramaic in the mid and late first century, and in Greek under the Roman administration in the early second century. They seem to occur irrespective of the different calendars used. After testing the hypothesis of “lucky days” by examining the dates in some marriage contracts the paper suggests that more research is needed to investigate possible Jewish interest in hemerologies, and the belief by lay people and rebels alik...

Hellenistic Astronomy, 2020

Abstract It is demonstrated textually from the fragments that 4QAstronomical Enocha-b (4Q208–4Q20... more Abstract It is demonstrated textually from the fragments that 4QAstronomical Enocha-b (4Q208–4Q209) is a zodiacal calendar related to that of 4QZodiac Calendar (4Q318 iv, vii-viii, 1–6). Both calendars use a fixed 19-year cycle, known from fifth century BCE Mesopotamia and Greece. In addition to the Aramaic zodiacal calendars, the contribution discusses the question of whether astrology was of interest to the groups responsible for collecting and compiling the Dead Sea Scrolls taking on board the presence at Qumran of physiognomic texts, and Wisdom and Mystery texts containing some possible astrological terms. “Astral Divination in the Dead Sea Scrolls” in Hellenistic Astronomy: The Science in its Contexts. Edited by Alan C. Bowen and Francesca Rochberg. Brill’s Companions to Classical Studies. Leiden: Brill, 2020. 539–550. (Available through institutional log-in) https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004400566_044 (See also “Back Matter” for summary of the calendrical cycle (“Judean”): Historical Glossary of Important Terms in Hellenistic Astronomy”: under “Calendar,” pp. 631–652, at pp. 367–369. Open access: https://brill.com/view/book/edcoll/9789004400566/back-1.xml)

Representing Jewish Thought, 2021

The Catholic Biblical Quarterly, 2019

Journal of Ancient Judaism, 2013

This paper re-examines 4QcryptA Lunisolar Calendar (4Q317), a scroll from Qumran in an esoteric H... more This paper re-examines 4QcryptA Lunisolar Calendar (4Q317), a scroll from Qumran in an esoteric Hebrew script with many emendations that aligns the moon’s daily waxing and waning to a 364-day calendar. It seeks to ascertain whether the calendar may be exegetically related to the Creation and also discusses the text’s arithmetical relationships with the cycles of the priestly courses from Qumran, possible intertextual allusions to other lunar calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls (4QDaily Prayers [4Q503], 4QAstronomical Enocha–bar [4Q208–4Q209]), biblical passages, and parallels with another Mesopotamian calendar text. The first transcription of the largest fragments using a Cryptic A font is here published with a commentary (in the Appendix), focusing on the text’s unusual scribal features. A reconsideration of the calendar’s structure with a new arrangement of its dates is presented.