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Papers by Jonathan Darby, PhD
Advances in Ancient Biblical and Near Eastern Research, 2022
This essay highlights two long-standing and persisting methodological problems attending scholarl... more This essay highlights two long-standing and persisting methodological problems attending scholarly discussion of liturgical texts found at Qumran, presenting a range of insights drawn from genre theory as means by which these problems can be overcome. A close examination of a definition of prayer which has been operative in this sub-field of Qumran scholarship for over a quarter of a century reveals the inadequacy of current methods, in particular an over-reliance on static definitions and adherence to overly rigid categorisations on the basis of formal characteristics. A survey of engagement with modern genre theory at once highlights the shortcomings of these approaches and suggests constructive avenues for future research. An emphasis on the analysis of intertextual relationships through comparison of material, textual and literary features is advocated, and this approach is illustrated through a study of 4Q381 15 and Psalms 86 and 89, as attested in 1Q10, 4Q87 and 4Q98g.
This project explores the role of singing and music within the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice, as... more This project explores the role of singing and music within the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice, as part of a wider thesis concerned with singing and textual transmission in the Dead Sea Scrolls. The overarching aim is to explore the role that singing as a performative medium may have played within processes of textual production and transmission in the late Second Temple Period, and The Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice constitute a major case study within thIS remit. Attention will be given to questions surrounding the liturgical performance of the Songs, close linguistic analysis of key terms associated with music and singing, and consideration of material characteristics that may offer hints as to function. These issues will be considered within the context of the self-understanding of communities associated with the Scrolls, and in particular concepts of angelic communion, revelation, and transcendent experience. These liturgical experiences are presented as influential factors within scribal culture, which may play a role in shaping the composition, interpretation and variation of texts.
Conference Presentations by Jonathan Darby, PhD
Revelation 19:11-21 presents a vision of eschatological conflict and judgement, initiated by a ri... more Revelation 19:11-21 presents a vision of eschatological conflict and judgement, initiated by a rider on a white horse who "judges and wages war" wearing a "robe dipped in blood." Commentators vary in identifying the blood on the robe either as that of Christ, that of his enemies, or that of the martyrs. This particular exegetical choice depends largely upon two factors: interpretation of the intertextual relationship between Revelation 19 and Isaiah 63:1-6; and interpretation of the larger theological and literary themes of Revelation in light of Jewish traditions of Holy War and eschatological conflict. Scholars that identify the blood as belonging either to Christ or the martyrs advocate for a reading of Revelation as a reinterpretation or even reversal of Jewish expectations concerning eschatological warfare.
The proposed research addresses the question: how can individual scribes of multiple Dead Sea Scr... more The proposed research addresses the question: how can individual scribes of multiple Dead Sea Scrolls be confidently identified, and what insights does the analysis of individual scribal practices contribute to our knowledge and understanding of scribal culture in Second Temple Judaism? This task requires an assessment of current methodologies for the identification of scribes of Dead Sea Scrolls, namely: paleography, comparison of orthography, morphology, scribal and codicological features, and advances in digital paleography. The process of identification itself, therefore, consists of the analysis of scribal practices, but with the goal that new groups of texts copied by an individual scribe can then be subjected to internal comparison. Part one of the study will consist of an assessment of current methodologies and existing scribal identifications, and part two will comprise the analysis and internal comparison of a newly established set of texts originating from a single scribe. Rationale Scholars have long acknowledged that it is possible to identify an individual scribal hand at work in multiple manuscripts among the Dead Sea Scrolls. To date, however, only very limited identifications have been made, and with varying degrees of confidence. The earliest such connection seems to have been tentatively proposed by Malachi Martin, in his study on The Scribal Character of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1958, little more than a decade after the
The Great Psalms Scroll from Qumran (11QPs a /11Q5) contains three Psalms previously known only i... more The Great Psalms Scroll from Qumran (11QPs a /11Q5) contains three Psalms previously known only in Syriac recension and preserved in the Nestorian tradition. The Psalm makes explicit reference to the liturgical practice of corporate sung praise, and I argue that this theme runs throughout and characterises the Psalm as a whole. This paper explores the nature and function of corporate singing within the community as envisaged in this text, and on the basis of my analysis I argue that singing is presented as a prominent and habitual liturgical practice which was considered to be as acceptable to God as sacrificial offerings of animals and incense. These observations indicate that the liturgical practice of corporate singing was considered to be of prime importance as part of the regular cycle of communal religious life. Its role in Torah-instruction and meditation also renders it a primary mode of the interpretation and transmission of sacred texts. For members of communities that possess low to non-existent levels of literacy, singing becomes a vital means of receiving, internalising and passing on sacred texts. Equally, trained and training scribes would be shaped as participants and agents of the same liturgical practices. In these ways, the prominent and habitual practice of communal singing must be considered an influential factor upon processes of oral and textual transmission within Second Temple Judaism.
Talks by Jonathan Darby, PhD
The proposed research addresses the question: how can individual scribes of multiple Dead Sea Scr... more The proposed research addresses the question: how can individual scribes of multiple Dead Sea Scrolls be confidently identified, and what insights does the analysis of individual scribal practices contribute to our knowledge and understanding of scribal culture in Second Temple Judaism? This task requires an assessment of current methodologies for the identification of scribes, namely: palaeography, comparison of orthographical, morphological, scribal and codicological features, and advances in digital palaeography. The process of identification itself, therefore, consists of the analysis of scribal practices, but with the goal that newly identified groups of texts copied by an individual scribe can then be subjected to internal comparison. Part one of the study will consist of an assessment of current methodologies and scribal identifications, and part two will comprise the analysis and internal comparison of a newly established set of texts originating from a single scribe.
Advances in Ancient Biblical and Near Eastern Research, 2022
This essay highlights two long-standing and persisting methodological problems attending scholarl... more This essay highlights two long-standing and persisting methodological problems attending scholarly discussion of liturgical texts found at Qumran, presenting a range of insights drawn from genre theory as means by which these problems can be overcome. A close examination of a definition of prayer which has been operative in this sub-field of Qumran scholarship for over a quarter of a century reveals the inadequacy of current methods, in particular an over-reliance on static definitions and adherence to overly rigid categorisations on the basis of formal characteristics. A survey of engagement with modern genre theory at once highlights the shortcomings of these approaches and suggests constructive avenues for future research. An emphasis on the analysis of intertextual relationships through comparison of material, textual and literary features is advocated, and this approach is illustrated through a study of 4Q381 15 and Psalms 86 and 89, as attested in 1Q10, 4Q87 and 4Q98g.
This project explores the role of singing and music within the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice, as... more This project explores the role of singing and music within the Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice, as part of a wider thesis concerned with singing and textual transmission in the Dead Sea Scrolls. The overarching aim is to explore the role that singing as a performative medium may have played within processes of textual production and transmission in the late Second Temple Period, and The Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice constitute a major case study within thIS remit. Attention will be given to questions surrounding the liturgical performance of the Songs, close linguistic analysis of key terms associated with music and singing, and consideration of material characteristics that may offer hints as to function. These issues will be considered within the context of the self-understanding of communities associated with the Scrolls, and in particular concepts of angelic communion, revelation, and transcendent experience. These liturgical experiences are presented as influential factors within scribal culture, which may play a role in shaping the composition, interpretation and variation of texts.
Revelation 19:11-21 presents a vision of eschatological conflict and judgement, initiated by a ri... more Revelation 19:11-21 presents a vision of eschatological conflict and judgement, initiated by a rider on a white horse who "judges and wages war" wearing a "robe dipped in blood." Commentators vary in identifying the blood on the robe either as that of Christ, that of his enemies, or that of the martyrs. This particular exegetical choice depends largely upon two factors: interpretation of the intertextual relationship between Revelation 19 and Isaiah 63:1-6; and interpretation of the larger theological and literary themes of Revelation in light of Jewish traditions of Holy War and eschatological conflict. Scholars that identify the blood as belonging either to Christ or the martyrs advocate for a reading of Revelation as a reinterpretation or even reversal of Jewish expectations concerning eschatological warfare.
The proposed research addresses the question: how can individual scribes of multiple Dead Sea Scr... more The proposed research addresses the question: how can individual scribes of multiple Dead Sea Scrolls be confidently identified, and what insights does the analysis of individual scribal practices contribute to our knowledge and understanding of scribal culture in Second Temple Judaism? This task requires an assessment of current methodologies for the identification of scribes of Dead Sea Scrolls, namely: paleography, comparison of orthography, morphology, scribal and codicological features, and advances in digital paleography. The process of identification itself, therefore, consists of the analysis of scribal practices, but with the goal that new groups of texts copied by an individual scribe can then be subjected to internal comparison. Part one of the study will consist of an assessment of current methodologies and existing scribal identifications, and part two will comprise the analysis and internal comparison of a newly established set of texts originating from a single scribe. Rationale Scholars have long acknowledged that it is possible to identify an individual scribal hand at work in multiple manuscripts among the Dead Sea Scrolls. To date, however, only very limited identifications have been made, and with varying degrees of confidence. The earliest such connection seems to have been tentatively proposed by Malachi Martin, in his study on The Scribal Character of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1958, little more than a decade after the
The Great Psalms Scroll from Qumran (11QPs a /11Q5) contains three Psalms previously known only i... more The Great Psalms Scroll from Qumran (11QPs a /11Q5) contains three Psalms previously known only in Syriac recension and preserved in the Nestorian tradition. The Psalm makes explicit reference to the liturgical practice of corporate sung praise, and I argue that this theme runs throughout and characterises the Psalm as a whole. This paper explores the nature and function of corporate singing within the community as envisaged in this text, and on the basis of my analysis I argue that singing is presented as a prominent and habitual liturgical practice which was considered to be as acceptable to God as sacrificial offerings of animals and incense. These observations indicate that the liturgical practice of corporate singing was considered to be of prime importance as part of the regular cycle of communal religious life. Its role in Torah-instruction and meditation also renders it a primary mode of the interpretation and transmission of sacred texts. For members of communities that possess low to non-existent levels of literacy, singing becomes a vital means of receiving, internalising and passing on sacred texts. Equally, trained and training scribes would be shaped as participants and agents of the same liturgical practices. In these ways, the prominent and habitual practice of communal singing must be considered an influential factor upon processes of oral and textual transmission within Second Temple Judaism.
The proposed research addresses the question: how can individual scribes of multiple Dead Sea Scr... more The proposed research addresses the question: how can individual scribes of multiple Dead Sea Scrolls be confidently identified, and what insights does the analysis of individual scribal practices contribute to our knowledge and understanding of scribal culture in Second Temple Judaism? This task requires an assessment of current methodologies for the identification of scribes, namely: palaeography, comparison of orthographical, morphological, scribal and codicological features, and advances in digital palaeography. The process of identification itself, therefore, consists of the analysis of scribal practices, but with the goal that newly identified groups of texts copied by an individual scribe can then be subjected to internal comparison. Part one of the study will consist of an assessment of current methodologies and scribal identifications, and part two will comprise the analysis and internal comparison of a newly established set of texts originating from a single scribe.