Pentecost and Sinai The Festival of Weeks As A Celebration of The Sinai Event Library Hebrew Bible Old Testament Studies PDF

For my parents
Copyright© 2008 by Sejin Park
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Park, Sejin.
Pentecost and Sinai :the Festival of Weeks as a celebration of the Sinai event I Sejin Park.
p. em.-- (The library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament studies;# 342)
Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-567-02727-6 (hardcover: alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-567-02727-9 (hardcover: alk. paper) I. Shavuot. 2. Bible. O.T.--Criticism,
interpretation, etc. 3. Judaism--History--To 70 A.D. 4. Book of Jubilees--Criticism,
interpretation, etc. 5. Dead Sea scrolls. 6. Bible. N.T. Luke--Criticism, interpretation, etc.
7. Bible. N.T. Acts--Criticism, interpretation, etc. l. Title. Il. Series.
BM695.S5P38 2008
296.4 '3 809--dc22
06 07 08 09 10 10987654321
CONTENTS
Preface Vll
Abbreviations IX
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 2
THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS IN THE HEBREW BIBLE
AND SECOND TEMPLE JUDAISM 9
Chapter 3
SINAI TRADITIONS AND THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS
IN THE HEBREW BIBLE 47
Chapter4
THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS AND
COVENANT RENEWAL IN JUBILEES 78
Chapter 5
THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS AND COVENANT RENEWAL
IN THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS 128
Chapter 6
PENTECOST AND SINAI IN LUKE-ACTS 176
Chapter 7
CONCLUSION 239
Bibliography 247
Index of References 270
Index of Authors 287
PREFACE
This book was initially a doctoral dissertation that was presented to the
Department of Theology at the University ofNotre Dame in the Spring
of 2006. In revising it for publication, I have updated the bibliography,
revised the text in the interests of clarity, and strengthened the argument
here and there, but in tenns of its basic parameters, contentions, and
conclusions, this study essentially remains the same.
I would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the faculty, staff,
and students of the University of Notre Dame theology department.
Above all, I would like to thank my dissertation advisor James Vander-
Kam, whose guidance and support was crucial in this endeavor. My debt
to his scholarship is abundantly evident in the footnotes of this
dissertation. I would also like to single out the faculty members who
generously gave of their time to serve on my dissertation committee:
Eugene Ulrich, John Meier, and Hugh Page. Their encouragement has
been much appreciated and the questions they raised about my work
have considerably improved the final product. Other teachers at Notre
Dame, such as Hindy Najman, Gregory Sterling, Jerome Neyrey, and
David Aune, as well as many of my fellow students also contributed to
the study in subtler ways in classes and discussions. I thank them all.
Teachers at previous institutions I have attended over these many
years of study have also had an important impact on me in various ways,
and I would like to simply acknowledge some of them by way of roll call
(in roughly reverse chronological order): Craig Evans, Martin Abegg,
James Scott, Peter Flint, Paul Hughes, Craig Broyles, Gordon Fee, Bruce
Waltke, David Diewert, Sven Soderlund, and Roger Stronstad.
I would be remiss if I did not thank all the kind people at T&T Clark
International who worked so diligently to bring this manuscript to
publication. I am gratified that they consider my work worthy of pub-
lication.
Finally, I would like to thank my family, friends, and the congre-
gations of Living Hope Fellowship in Burnaby, BC and the First
Vlll Pentecost and Sinai
Presbyterian Church of South Bend, IN for their encouragement and

fellowship.
Despite all the people who have had a hand in bringing this book to
publication, the customary disclaimer nevertheless, of course, applies:
the inadequacies of the present work are the fault of no one but myself.
ABBREVIATIONS
General
A.D. anno Domini

A.M. annoMundi
ANE Ancient Near East
B.C. before Christ
1/1 Month/Day
LXX Septuagint
MT Masoretic Text
NT New Testament
OT Old Testament
R. Rabbi
SP Samaritan Pentateuch
Text-Critical Sigla
[ 1 Reconstructed text
Gaps in the manuscript
N Somewhat doubtful reading
ii Very doubtful reading
vac(at) An empty space in the manuscript of varying lengths
Apocryphal and Pseudepigraphal Books
I En. I Enoch
1 Esd I Esdras
1 Mace 1 Maccabees
2 En. 2 Enoch
2 Esd 2 Esdras
2Macc 2 Maccabees
3 Mace. 3 Maccabees
4 Mace. 4 Maccabees
AB Astronomical Book
AddEsth Additions to Esther
As. Mos. Assumption of Moses
Bar Baruch
Ezek. Trag. Ezekiel the Tragedian
Jdt Judith
Jub. Jubilees
L.A.B. Liber antiquitatum biblicarum
X Pentecost and Sinai
Sir Sirach
T. Levi Testament ofLevi
Tob Tobit
Dead Sea Scrolls
IQapGen Genesis Apocryphon

IQH" Hodayot, copy a
lQM Milhamah or War Scroll
IQpHab Pesher Habakkuk
lQS Serekh ha-Yahad or Rule of the Community
IQSa Rule of the Congregation
IQSb Rule of the Blessings
4QBer Berakhot
4QDa-f Damascus Document, copies a-ffrom Cave 4
4QEnastr•-d ar Astronomical Book of 1 Enoch, copy a-d in Aramaic from
Cave4
4QMMT Miqsat Ma 'ase ha-Torah
4Qs•-c Serekh ha-Yahad or Rule of the Community, copies a-e from
Cave4
liQPs" Psalms Scroll, copy a
IIQT Temple Scroll
CD Damascus Document, Cairo Genizah copy
Philo
Contempl. De vita contemplative or On the Contemplative Life
Decal. De decalogo or On the Decalogue
Leg. I, 2, 3 Legum allegoriae I, II, III or Allegorical Interpretation I, 2, 3
Mos.], 2 De vita Mosis I, II or On the Life of Moses I, 2
QE 1,2 Quaestiones et solutiones in Exodum I, II or Questions and
Answers on Exodus I, 2
QG 1, 2, 3, 4 Quaestiones et solutiones in Genesin I, lL IlL IV or Questions
and Answers on Genesis I, 2, 3, 4
Somn. 1, 2 De somniis I, II or On Dreams I, 2
Spec. I, 2, 3, 4 De specialibus legibus I, II, III, IV or On the Special Laws l, 2,
3,4
Virt. De virtutibus or On the Virtues
Josephus
Ant. Antiquitates judaicae or Jewish Antiquities
J.W: Bellum judaicum or Jewish War
Tat-gums and Rabbinic Texts
b. Babylonian Talmud
Bab. Bath. BavaBatra
bar. Baraita
Abbreviations xi
Ber. Berakhot
Bik. Bikkurim
Exod. Rab. Exodus Rabbah
Frg. Tg. Pragmenta~y Targum
lfal. Hallah
m. Mishnah
Meg. Megillah
RosHa§. Rosh HaShannah
Sab. Shabbat
Suk. Sukkah
t. Tosefta
Tg. Onq. Targum Onqelos
Tg. Ps.-J. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan
y. Jerusalem Talmud
Bibliographic Citations
AB Anchor Bible
ABD The Anchor Bible Dictionary. Edited by D. N. Freedman. 6 vols.
New York, 1992
ABRL Anchor Bible Reference Library
AGm Arbeiten zur Geschichte des antiken Judentums und des
Urchristentums
ANET Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament.
Edited by J. B. Pritchard. 3d ed. Princeton, 1969
AS7T Annual of the Swedish Theological Institute
ATANT Abhandlungen zur Theologie des A1ten und Neuen Testaments
BA Biblical Archaeologist
BASOR Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research
BECNT Baker Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament
BETL. Bibliotheca ephemeridum theologicarum lovaniensium
BHS Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. Edited by K. Elliger and
W. Rudolph. Stuttgart, 1983
BJS Brown Judaic Studies
BT The Bible Translator
BZAW Beihefte zur Zeitschrift fiir die alttestamentliche Wissenschaft
CahRB Cahiers de Ia Revue biblique
CBQMS Catholic Biblical Quarterly Monograph Series
csco Corpus scriptorum christianorum orientalium. Edited by I. B.
Chabot et a!. Paris, 190-3-
CTJ Calvin Theological Journal
DID Discoveries in the Judaean Desert
DSD Dead Sea Discoveries
ESV English Standard Version
ExpTim Expos_itory Times
GBS Guides to Biblical Scholarship
xii Pentecost and Sinai
HALOT Koehler, L., W. Baumgartner, and J. J. Stamm, The Hebrew

Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament. Translated and edited
under the supervision ofM. E. J. Richardson. 4 vols. Leiden,
1994-99
HSM Harvard Semitic Monographs
HUCA Hebrew Union College Annual
JAOS Journal of the American Oriental Society
JBL Journal ofBiblical Literature
JCS Journal of Cuneiform Studies
JJS Journal ofJewish Studies
JPS Jewish Publication Society
JPTSup Journal of Pentecostal Theology: Supplement Series
JQR Jewish Quarterly Review
JSJ Journal for the Study ofJudaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and
Roman Periods
JSJSup Journal for the Study of Judaism in the Persian, Hellenistic, and
Roman Periods: Supplement Series
JSNTSup Journal for the Study of the New Testament: Supplement Series
JSOT Journal.for the Study of the Old Testament
JSOTMS Journal for the Study of the Old Testament Monograph Series
JSOTSup Journal for the Study of the Old Testament: Supplement Series
JSPSup Journal for the Study of the Pseudepigrapha: Supplement Series
JTS Journal of Theological Studies
LCL Loeb Classical Library
LD Lectio divina
LSJ Liddell, H. G., R. Scott, H. S. Jones, A Greek-English Lexicon.
9th ed. with revised supplement. Oxford; 1996
NASB (1995) New American Standard Version (1995 Update)
NIBC New International Biblical Commentary
NIDOITE New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and
Exegesis. Edited by W. A. VanGemeren. 5 vols. Grand Rapids,
1997
NIGTC New International Greek Testament Commentary
NovTSup Novum Testamentum Supplements
NRSV New Revised Standard Version
NTS New Testament Studies
OBT Overtures to Biblical Theology
OTL Old Testament Library
PTMS Pittsburgh Theological Monograph Series
PTSDSSP Princeton Theological Seminary Dead Sea Scrolls Project
RB Revue biblique
RevQ Revue de Qumran
RHR Revue de I 'histoire des religions
SBL Society of Biblical Literature
SBLDS Society of Biblical Literature Dissertation Series
SBLMS Society of Biblical Literature Monograph Series
SBLSS SoCiety of Biblical Literature Seminar Series
Abbreviations xiii
SBT Studies in Biblical Theology

SJLA Studies in Judaism in Late Antiquity
SJT Scottish Journal of Theology
SNTSMS Society for New Testament Studies Monograph Series
StANT Studien zum Alten und Neuen Testaments
STDJ Studies on the Texts of the Desert of Judah
SWBA Social World of Biblical Antiquity
TDNT Theological DictionQ/y of the New Testament. Edited by
G. Kittel and G. Friedrich. Translated by G. W. Bromiley. 10
vols. Grand Rapids, 1964-76
TDOT Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. Edited by G. J.
Botterweck and H. Ringgren. Translated by J. T. Willis, G. W.
Bromiley, and D. E. Green. 15 vols. Grand Rapids, 1974-
TS Theological Studies
TSAJ Texte und Studien zum antiken Judentum
TynB Tyndale Bulletin
VT Vetus Testamentum
VTSup Vetus Testamentum Supplements
WBC Word Biblical Commentary
WMANT Wissenschaftliche Monographien zum Alten und Neuen
Testament
WTJ Westminster Theological Journal
ZAW Zeitschrift for die alttestamentliche Wissenscha.ft
ZKG Zeitschriftfrir Kirchengeschichte
Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION
Many, if not most Second Temple Jews viewed the events atMt. Sinai to
be the key moment in all of Israelite and (later) Jewish history. They
devoted much exegetical attention to Exod 19-34 in order to understand
and explicate the full significance of the events that took place there. The
account in Exodus does not date the events at Sinai, though, based on
Exod 12:2-6 and especially 19:1, one can surmise thatthe events at Sinai
occurred sometime during the third month. Similarly, the Festival of
Weeks is only vaguely dated to sometime in the third month based on
Lev 23:15-16 andDeut 16:9-10. It was only natural, then, that these two
events eventually came to be associated. It will be argued here that, in
time, many Jews and eventually some Christians came to identify the
Festival ofWeeks with the events at Sinai during the later Second Tem-
ple period and very shortly thereafter. This study will survey and discuss
the relevant Jewish and Christian literature up to approximately the end
of the first century C.E. (with some consideration of rabbinic literature
after that date) in order to examine how various authors and communities
read and understood the connection between the Festival of Weeks, on
the one hand, and the Sinai event and covenant renewal, on the other.
1. Status Quaestionis
There have been several article-length treatments of the association 0f
the Festival of Weeks and the Sinai tradition, but to this point, there have
not been any monograph-length studies devoted entirely to this subject.
To attempt to discuss all the relevant literature would be tedious and
unnecessary. The following review of scholarship discusses some recent
secondary works that treat the issue of the association of the events at
Sinai and the Festival of Weeks. The works discussed below have been
chosen because they are significant studies and/or representative of the
scholarly discussion on this topic.
2 Pentecost and Sinai
In an important study, Annie Jaubert was able to show that the dates in
the Priestly writings of the Hebrew Bible presuppose the 364-day calen-
dar attested in I Enoch, Jubilees, and the Dead Sea Scrolls. 1 First, she
showed that if the Festival of Weeks was to be celebrated on the fifteenth
day of the third month (Jub. 15:1; 16:13; cf. 44:1-5), and if it were to
take place 49 days after the waving of the ,P.V (Lev 23:15-16; Deut
16:9-10), then the 25th day of the first month.must be a Sabbath. This
happens only ifl/1 2 is a Wednesday. She verified this by examining the
days on which patriarchs began and ended their journeys in Jubilees. She
was able to show that the meticulous author of Jubilees does not have
any patriarch travel on the Sabbath, assuming that Ill is a Wednesday.
Next, she extended her analysis to the priestly writings of the Hebrew
Bible, showing that they too presupposed the calendar of Jubilees by
showing that the patriarchs did not travel on the Sabbath. While not all of
her ideas have won general acceptance, her argument that Ill is a
Wednesday in the 364-day calendar, her dating of the Festival of Weeks,
and her theory that the 364-day calendar is presupposed by the priestly
writings of the Hebrew Bible has won acceptance by many scholars,
although there are some notable dissenters. 3
Georg Kretschmar, noting that early Eastern Christian sources reflect a
correlation of the Ascension of Christ and Pentecost-that is, it was cele-
brated on the same day by some Christians (the 50th day after Easter)-
and noting the parallels between Moses' ascent ofMt. Sinai and Jesus'
Ascension as depicted in various New Testament texts (Acts 2:33-35;
John 20:22-23; Eph 4:7-12), argued that this must reflect the fact that
there was an early association between the Festival of Weeks and the
events at Sinai among early Jewish interpreters. 4 This connection even-
tually yielded to the Lukan chronology, which separated the Ascension
and the day of Pentecost.
1. Annie Jaubert, The Date ofthe Last Supper (Staten Island, N.Y.: Alba House,
1965), 15-52. The relevant sections of Jaubert's book are a revision of two earlier
articles: idem, "Le calendrier des Jubiles et de Ia secte de Qumran: Ses origines
bibliques," VT3 (1953): 250-64; idem, "Le calendrier des Jubiles et lesjours litur-
giques de Ia semaine," VT7 (1957): 35-61.
2. The format 1/1 (i.e. Roman numeraVArabic numeral) will be used throughout
this work to indicate month/day.
3. Cf. the reassessment of Jaubert's hypothesis in the light of subsequent studies
by James C. VanderKam: "The Origin, Character, and Early History of the 364-Day
Calendar: A Reassessment of Jaubert's Hypotheses," in From Revelation to Canon:
Studies in the Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Literature (JSPSup 62; Leiden:
Brill, 2000), 81-104.
4. Georg Kretschmar, "Himmelfahrt und Pfingsten," ZK.G 66 (1954-55): 209-53.
1. Introduction 3
Kretschmar's thesis about an early Jewish association between the

Festival of Weeks and the Sinai experience has proved to be influential,
and many other studies have more or less followed this line ofargument. 5
Rather than survey them all, only two of the more prominent studies will
be discussed here. The others will be discussed and addressed in the
relevant sections ofthe study below.
In a monograph-length study of the targums to Exod 19-20 against the
background of early Jewish and rabbinic literature, Jean Potin argues that
Pentecost was already known among the Essenes as the "Festival of the
Covenant" by the beginning of the first century B.C.E., pointing to the
book of Jubilees as evidence. 6 He notes that the rabbinic emphasis
differed in that they connected the Festival of Weeks with the giving of
the Law rather than covenant renewal. Such a significance Potin dated to
around the destruction of the Temple because Philo and Josephus make
no mention of such an association. It was at this time that the Pharisees'
ideas became pre-eminent in Judaism.
James VanderKam, in the first oftwo complementary studies, surveys
the pertinent texts in the Hebrew Bible, Jubilees, Dead Sea Scrolls,
Philo, Josephus, and rabbinic and early Christian literature in order to
show that the Festival of Weeks and the Sinai Event were associated in
early Judaism. 7 He then turns to the account in Acts 2 of the sending of
the Spirit on the day of Pentecost and the surrounding context (the
Ascension in particular) and argues that this association serves as the
5. Roger Le Deaut, "Pentecote et tradition juive," Spiritus 7 (1961): 127-44;

Bent Noack, "The Day of Pentecost in Jubilees, Qumran, and Acts," ASTI 1 (1962):
73-95; Michel Gourgues, "Lecture christologique du Psaume CX et fete de Ia
Pentecote," RB 83 (1976): 5-24; Mathias Delcor, "Das Bundesfest in Qumran und
das Pfingsfest," in Religion d 'Israel et Proche Orient Ancien (Lei den: Brill, 1976),
281-97; Moshe Weinfeld, "Pentecost as the Festival of the Giving of the Law,"
Immanue/8 (1978): 7-18; Jacques Dupont, "The First Christian Pentecost," in The
Salvation ofthe Gentiles (Ramsey, N.J.: Paulist, 1979), 35-59; Joseph A. Fitzmyer,
"The Ascension of Christ and Pentecost," TS 45 (1984): 432-38; Stephen J. Pfann,
"The Essene Yearly Renewal Ceremony and the Baptism of Repentance," in The
Provo International Conference on the Dead Sea Scrolls: Technological Innova-
tions, New Texts, and Reformulated Issues (ed. Donald W. Parry and Eugene C.
Ulrich; Leiden: Brill, 1999), 342-45; cf. Otto Betz, "The Eschatological Interpreta-
tion of the Sinai-Tradition in Qumran and in the New Testament," RevQ 6 (1967):
89-107.
6. Jean Po tin, La Fetejuive de la Pentecote: Etude des textes liturgiques (2 vols;
LD 65a and 65b; Paris: Cerf, 1971), 1:301.
7. James C. VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks and the Story of Pentecost in
Acts 2," in From Prophecy to Testament: The Function ofthe Old Testament in the
New (ed. C. A. Evans; Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 2004), 185-205.
background to this text. In the second study, VanderKam argues that the
Qumran community, by and large following the understanding of the
Sinai events as found in the book of Jubilees, celebrated an annual
covenant renewal ceremony which coincided with the Festival ofWeeks,
observed on III/15 as Jubilees stipulates. 8 VanderKam points to 1QS
I, 16-III, 12 as a model of how the annual covenant renewal ceremony
was observed.
Some scholars take a different stand on the particular issue of the
background of Acts 2. For instance, in his entry on TIEV'CTJKOo-c~ in the
TDNT, E. Lohse argues that it was only with the destruction of the
Temple in 70 C.E. that the Feast of Pentecost was c01mnonly associated
with the covenant on Mt. Sinai and the giving of the Law. 9 Lohse
acknowledges that the book of Jubilees makes the connection already in
the second century B.C.E., but he argues that this understanding only
exerted a significant influence on Judaism after 70 C.E., based on the fact
that Philo and Josephus are not aware of this interpretation. Based on
this, Lohse argues that Acts 2 bears no relation to the Sinai tradition. 10
Similarly, I. H. Marshall argues that the association of the Festival of
Weeks with covenant renewal and the giving of the Law was made only
among certain (i.e. sectarian) Jews and had not yet become the "official"
view of Judaism (cf. the lack of evidence in Philo and Josephus). 11
Marshall denies any link between the account of Acts 2 and the Sinai
tradition, arguing that the basic point for Luke is that the story of Pente-
cost represents the fulfillment of the prophecy after Jesus' resurrection,
that the disciples would receive power when the Spirit came upon them
and would be witnesses to all humankind. 12
R. F. O'Toole takes a different tack. 13 He argues that Luke's Pentecost
account betrays no certain references to the Sinai Covenant or the Law of
Moses. 14 Rather, he sees in the Pentecost speech a focus not on the
covenant made to Moses at Sinai, but on the promises made to David,
especially as recorded in 2 Sam 7:12-16 (cf. Acts 2:30). 15 He discerns
8. James C. VanderKam, "Sinai Revisited," in Biblical lnte1pretation at Qumran

(ed. M. Henze; Studies in the Dead Sea Scrolls and Related Literature; Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005), 49-51.
9. Eduard Lohse, "1TEVT11KOOT~," TDNT 6:44-53 (48-49).
10. Ibid., 49.
11. I. Howard Marshall, "The Significance of Pentecost," SJT 30 (1977): 349.
12. Ibid., 365-67.
13. Robert F. O'Toole, "Acts 2:30 and the Davidic Covenant of Pentecost," JBL
102 (1983): 245-58.
14. Ibid., 245, 246, 257.
15. Ibid., 250.
1. Introduction 5
confirmation of his thesis in Luke's presentation of Moses, Abraham,

and David: in Luke's theology it is David who is the primary recipient of
God's promise, not Moses or Abraham.
These scholars all provide insight into the narrative of Luke-Acts. It is
certainly true that there is little in the way of covenant typology in
Luke's account. 16 However, this is expecting more of the text than is
necessary. It may be that Luke's point is simply comparative: just as the
giving of the law was a momentous event in the life of the Israelite/Jew-
ish nation, so also, the sending of the Spirit is a momentous event in the
life of the fledgling Church. To state it differently, the intended contrast
need not be between old covenant and new as Marshall asserts one would
expect if the Sinai event was lying behind Luke's account ofPentecost. 17
Rather, the contrast may specifically be between Law and Spirit (cf. Rom
8). Moreover, there are some clear literary and verbal allusions to the
Sinai event in Luke's account, as this study hopes to demonstrate. 18
2. The Limits of this Study

It should go without saying that in a study of this scope it would be
impossible fully to discuss Sinai traditions in the Hebrew Bible and
Second Temple Jewish literature. Therefore, as far as possible, Sinai
traditions will only be discussed as they relate to their connections with
the Festival ofWeeks as the occasion for celebrating some aspect of the
Sinai event. On the other hand, since the Festival of Weeks is a much
more manageable topic as compared to Sinai traditions, the Festival of
Weeks will be given more in-depth consideration as a fruitful way to
engage the issue. In other words, this study focuses on the Festival of
Weeks and how it becomes the occasion for a commemoration of the
events at Sinai rather than a study of the entire Sinai traditions that
discusses the Festival of Weeks as an incidental part of it.
3. Methodology
This study will be historical, literary, and theological in nature. Standard
historical-critical tools will be applied where appropriate. Careful atten-
tion to the literary aspects of Second Temple interpretation of biblical
texts will be a key aspect of this study. Of particular interest are the
16. Marshall, "The Significance of Pentecost," 365-66.

17. Ibid.
18. VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks and the Story of Pentecost in Acts 2,"
195-203; Dupont, "The First Christian Pentecost," 35-59.
particular and detailed exegetical moves that readers made in associating

Sinai and the Festival of Weeks. Finally, in a study involving subjects
such as the religious calendar, law, covenant, and spirit, theological dis-
cussion is, of course, unavoidable.
In some important respects, the methodology used in this study will
closely follow the type of reading that James Kugel has demonstrated in
several recent writings. 19 It involves a very careful reading of how
various early Jewish interpreters read the texts in question. One of
Kugel's main observations is that ancient readers read very carefully.
Most of the time their exegesis, while appearing to be without textual
support on a superficial reading, proves upon closer inspection to have
some textual warrant, however slight or forced. Kugel's observation that
ancient readers read texts under the assumption that they were esoteric
and spoke to the contemporary situation sheds light on this phenomenon.
Because many ancient readers took scripture to be fundamentally cryptic,
it was necessary to "read between the lines." Ancient readers almost
invariably searched out the text for some detail, often seemingly insig-
nificant, upon which to justify their interpretation. 20 This study, following
Kugel, will try to explicate how these ancient readers arrived at or
justified their particular interpretations.
19. See especially the following: James L. Kugel and Rowan Greer, Early Bibli-
cal Interpretation (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1986); James L. Kugel, In Potiphar 's
House: The Interpretive Life ofBiblical Texts (San Francisco: Harper Collins, 1990;
2d ed., Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1994); idem, The Bible As It
Was (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1997); idem, Traditions of the
Bible (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1998).
20. Kugel, The Bible As It Was, 1-36. Kugel makes the rather big claim that
"there existed well before the common era a substantial body of standard explana-
tions of various problems and peculiarities in the biblical text. These explanations
were apparently not gathered and passed down in written form, since no such
document has survived or is even alluded to. Instead, they were passed on orally... "
(Kugel, In Potiphar 's House, 266). Kugel therefore seems to assume that all readers
read in this esoteric manner and that there existed a common tradition of interpreta-
tion of various thorny issues that arose in the biblical text (cf. The Bible As It Was,
2-17). Whether all readers read esoterically is impossible to determine, but it is clear
that many did. As for whether a "substantial body of standard explanations of vari-
ous problems and peculiarities in the biblical text" existed in oral form before the
common era, this too is impossible to determine, but clearly Jews were extremely
interested in the proper interpretation of scripture, and there is no doubt it contains
some very problematic passages and texts. It is not unreasonable to assume that
something along what Kugel is suggesting here was practiced, though how wide-
spread and uniform it was is highly questionable.
1. Introduction 7
In many ways, the methodology of this study will also be similar to

what James Sanders calls "comparative midrash." This involves placing
related texts (such as those linked by interpretation of a common biblical
text or tradition) in a continuum from the earliest biblical writings to the
rabbinic literature. 21 The various interpretations of the biblical text by the
assorted writings are compared and contrasted. As the structure and
outline of this study indicates (see below), this approach will serve as the
general organizing principle of this study.
4. Structure
This study will proceed by addressing texts in a roughly chronological
order. In addition to an introduction and conclusion, chapters will be
devoted to the Hebrew Bible, the book of Jubilees, the Dead Sea Scrolls,
and the New Testament. There will be two chapters on the Hebrew Bible,
one on the Festival of Weeks, and another on Sinai and Covenant
Renewal. The chapters on the Hebrew Bible will consist mainly of
interpretation of the relevant texts, including a discussion of historical-
critical issues and a discussion of the textual-critical sources (Septuagint
[LXX], the Dead Sea Scrolls biblical texts, Samaritan Pentateuch, and any
other relevant texts) at the appropriate spots. Included in the first of these
chapters will be a discussion of the textual evidence concerning the
Festival of Weeks in the Second Temple literature.
The chapters devoted to the book of Jubilees, the Dead Sea Scrolls,
and theN ew Testament will each begin with a brief introduction discuss-
ing preliminary matters of· authorship, date, and situation of the writ-
ing(s). These chapters will focus on the identification of the Festival of
Weeks as the occasion for celebrating the Sinai event, whether covenant
renewal or the giving of the Law is specifically in view.
Discussion of the rabbinic literature (which will be particularly promi-
nent in the chapter on the New Testament) will be very selective.
Rabbinic texts that contain interpretations that can be shown to have
some probability ofbeing early and of having some parallels with earlier
texts will be chosen to illustrate how the Festival of Weeks and the Sinai
traditions were associated. Occasionally, rabbinic parallels will be high-
lighted merely to show how certain interpretive traditions present in a
Second Temple text developed later on in rabbinic Judaism or simply to
21. James A. Sanders, From Sacred Story to Sacred Text: Canon as Paradigm
(Philadelphia: Fortress, 1987), 20. See also his earlier works: Torah and Canon
(Philadelphia: Fortress, 1972), and Canon and Community: A Guide to Canonical
Criticism (GBS; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1984).
illustrate a point, without any presumption that the rabbinic text in ques-
tion is early. By drawing attention to such parallels, however, the hope is
to demonstrate that such an interpretation (found in a Second Temple
text) must have become fairly widely known in order to have been later
taken up by the rabbis. Thus, at best, it provides some indirect evidence.
Nevertheless, at no point will any key part of the argument hinge solely
on a rabbinic text since they are often written several centuries after the
last New Testament writing.
Chapter 2
THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS IN THE HEBREW BIBLE

AND SECOND TEMPLE JUDAISM
1. Introduction
The Festival ofWeeks was the second of the three great festivals on the
Israelite calendar.' Harvest festivals such as the Festival of Weeks were
ubiquitous in the ancient world. 2 The completion ofharvest was a natural
opportunity for celebration since it signified divine blessing and material
abundance, and was a natural point in the agricultural cycle to take a
break from work. In the Hebrew Bible, the Festival ofWeeks is referred
to in lists ofcultic festivals (Exod 23:16; 34:22; Lev 23:15-21; Num
28:26-31; Deut 16:9-12; 2 Chr 8:13). Moreover, it is peculiar among
holidays in the Hebrew Bible in that it is never assigned a precise date. 3
1. On festivals in early Israel, se·e Julius Wellhausen, Prolegomena to the History

of Ancient Israel (Gloucester, Mass.: Peter Smith, 1983 [1883]), 83-120; Julius
Morgenstern, "The Three Calendars of Ancient Israel," HUCA 1 (1924): 13-78; 3
(1926): 77-107; 10 (1935): 1-148; Roland de Vaux, Ancient Israel: Its Life and
Institutions (trans. J. McHugh; New York: McGraw-Hill, 1961 [ 1958, 1960]), 468-
74, 484-506; Hans-Joachim Kraus, Worship in Israel: A Cultic History of the Old
Testament (Richmond, Va.: John Knox, 1965); Helmer Ringgren, Israelite Religion
(Philadelphia: Fortress, 1966); Menahem Haran, Temples and Temple Service in
Ancient Israel: An inquiry into the Character ofCult Phenomena and the Historical
Setting ofthe Priestly School (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1985 [ 1978]). On the
Festival of Weeks in particular, see Eduard Lohse, "nEVT11Koorr\," TDNT 6:44-53;
Mark J. Olson, "Pentecost," ABD 5:222-23; James C. VanderKam, "Weeks, Festival
of," ABD 6:895-97; Hendrik L. Bosman, "ni))~o/ liJ," NJDOTTE 4:24-26; MarkS.
Smith, with contributions by Elizabeth M. Bloch-Smith, The Pilgrimage Pattern in
Exodus (JSOTSup 239; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1997), 62-65.
2. On festivals in the ancient near east, see Kraus, Worship in israel, 36--43;
Mark E. Cohen, The Cultic Calendars of the Ancient Near East (Bethesda, Md.:
CDL Press, 1993).
3. The Festival of Unleavened Bread was celebrated on l/15-21 (Lev 23:6-8),
while the Festival of Booths was celebrated on VII/15-22 (Lev 23 :39).
2. The Festival of Weeks in the Hebrew Bible

2.1. Early Law Collections
The respective festival calendars found in the Book of the Covenant
(Exod 23:14-19) and the "Cultic Decalogue" (Exod 34:18-26) exhibit
many similarities as well as differences. There appears to be some
literary dependence (perhaps stemming from the use of a common
original source), given the often close phraseological and structural
similarities between the texts. 4 Exodus 34:18-26 is quite a bit longer than
its counterpart and contains elements that reflect a later date as compared
to its parallel text (cf. Exod 34:24, 25).
Exodus 23:14-19 Exodus 34:18-26
14Three times a year you shall celebrate
a feast to me.
15 You shall observe the Festival of 18 You shall observe the Festival of
Unleavened Bread. Seven days you Unleavened Bread. Seven days you shall
shall eat unleavened bread, just as I eat unleavened bread, as I commanded
commanded you, at the appointed time you, at the appointed time in the month
in the month of Abib, for in it you came of Abib, for in the month of Abib you
out of Egypt. came out of Egypt. 19 The first offspring
of every womb belongs to me, and all
your male livestock, the first offspring of
the cattle and sheep. 20 And you shall
redeem with a sheep the first-born of a
donkey, and if you do not redeem it, you
shall break its neck. You shall redeem all
the first-born of your sons.
And they shall not appear before me And they shall not appear before me
empty-handed. empty-handed.
21 You shall work six days, but on the
seventh day you shall rl(st. During plow-

ing and harvest you shall rest.
16 And the Festival of the Harvest of the 22 And you shall make for yourself the
first-fruits of your labors which you Festival of Weeks; the first-fruits of the
sow in the field; wheat harvest,
4: Kraus, Worship in Israel, 29-30.

2. The Festival of Weeks 11
and the Festival of Ingathering at the and the Festival oflngathering at the turn
end of the year when you gather your of the year.
labors from the field.
17 Three times a year all your males 23 Three times a year all your males are
shall appear before the Lord YHWH. to appear before the Lord YHWH, the
God oflsrael.
24For I will drive out nations from before

you and enlarge your territory, and no
man shall covet your land when you go
up three times a year to appear before
YHWH your God.
IB You shall not offer the blood of my 25 You shall not slaughter the blood of
sacrifice with leavened bread, my sacrifice with leavened bread
and the fat of my feast is not to remain and the .sacrifice of the Festival of the
until morning. Passover is not to remain until morning.
19 .
You shall bring the best of the first- 26 You shall bring the best of the first-
fruits of your soil to the house ofYHWH fruits of your soil to the house of YHWH
your God. your God.
You shall not boil a kid in its mother's You shall not boil a kid in its mother's
milk. milk. 5
2.1.1. Exodus 23: 16a. Some scholars assign the "Book of the Covenant"
(Exod 20:21-23:19) to the E source, while others argue that it was
originally an independent source; however, most scholars agree that it
contains the earliest extant compilation of Israelite laws. 6 The Book of
5. All translations of the Hebrew Bible are my own unless otherwise stated. I
have consulted the NASB and ESV.
6. Cf. Martin Noth, A History of Pentateuchal Traditions (trans. B. W. Ander-
son; Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1972 [1948]), 36 n. 139; Brevard S.
Childs, The Book ofExodus: A Critical, Theological Commentary (OTL; Philadel-
phia: Westminster, 1974), 452; Joseph Blenkinsopp, The Pentateuch: An Introduc-
tion to the First Five Books of the Bible (ABRL; New York: Doubleday, 1992), 197-
200. E still has its defenders as an originally independent narrative, but the trend
in scholarship lately is to view it as a stage on the way to J or as additions to J (how-
ever, see the discussion and defense of the traditional position found in Richard E.
Friedman, "The Recession of Biblical Source Criticism," in The Future ofBiblical
Studies: The Hebrew Scriptures [ed. Richard E. Friedman and Hugh G. M. William-
son; SBL Semeia Studies; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1987], 81-10 I). On the delimita-
tion of the Book of the Covenant (Exod 20:21-23:19), see Blenkinsopp, The
the Covenant derives its name from Exod 24:4, 7 (n'l=;liJ 1;JQ). 7 In the
passage under consideration here (23; 14-17), aside from mentioning the
three major festivals, very few details are given. The order of the fes-
tivals-Unleavened Bread, Weeks, Ingathering-is common to all the
calendars in the Hebrew Bible and follows the agricultural year. In
23:16a the festival in question is referred to as "the festival of the
harvest":
i11o/~ VlTl'l ilp~ ':f'o/P,O 'l1::l~ i'¥i?iJ l!Jl
And the festival of the harvest of the first-fruits of your labor which you
sow in the field. (Exod 23:16a)
This festival, along with the Festival of Booths, is not given a date in this
text. The Festival of Unleavened Bread is given a general date in the
month of Abib (Exod 23:15), which is the first month according to the
new calendar instituted when the Israelites left Egypt (Exod 12:2; 13:4).
The lack of a specific date for the final two festivals is likely due to the
fact that, given the variability of climate, the harvest times would vary
depending on the weather conditions for that particular year and locality. 8
Pentateuch, 169, 189, 197. Blenkinsopp assigns Exod 23:20-33 to D as a sequel to

the Covenant Code, and identifies Exod 20:21-22 as aD introduction to the Law
Book. On the Book of the Covenant as an independent source, see Noth, A History
ofPentateuchal Traditions, 36 n. 139; Childs, Exodus, 452.
7. On the Book of the Covenant in general, see in addition: Shalom M. Paul,
Studies in the Book of the Covenant in the Light of Cuneiform and Biblical Law
(VTSup 18; Leiden: Brill, 1970); Dale Patrick, "The Covenant Code Source," VT27
(1977): 145-57; John Van Seters, "Cultic Laws in the Covenant Code (Exodus
20:22-23:33) and Their Relationship to Deuteronomy and the Holiness Code," in
Studies in the Book of Exodus: Redaction, Reception, Interpretation (ed. Marc
Vervenne; BETL 126; Leuven: Leuven University Press, 1996), 319-45. On the
composition ofExod 19-24 since Noth, see in addition, Robert W. Moberly, At the
Mountain of God: Story and Theology in Exodus 32-34 (JSOTSup 22; Sheffield:
JSOT Press, 1983); John Van Seters, The Life ofMoses: The Yahwistas Historian in
Exodus-Numbers (Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1994); Thomas B. Dozeman,
God on the Mountain: A Study ofRedaction, Theology, and Canon in Exodus 19-24
(SBLMS 37; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1989); Blenkinsopp, Pentateuch, 183-228;
idem, "Structure and Meaning in the Sinai-Horeb Narrative," inA Biblical Itinerary:
In Search ofMethod, Form and Content: Essays in Honor of George W. Coats (ed.
Eugene E. Carpenter; JSOTSup 240; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1997),
I 09-25; T. Desmond Alexander, "The Composition of the Sinai Narrative in Exodus
19:1-24:11," VT49 (1999): 2-20.
8. The vagueness of the date for the Festival of Unleavened Bread (where only
the month is mentioned in this text) also likely points to a period when the appointed
time for this festival was variable depending on climate and location. As time
Thus the date of the Festival of Weeks would necessarily have to be left
open since it would be celebrated at different times from year to year
and place to place. In the exilic and post-exilic period, however, an
attempt was made to fix the dates of all of the festivals (Lev 23; Num
28-29)~
It appears that Exod 23: 18-19 is meant to provide some specific
prescriptions regarding these festivals. In the case of v.19a, it seems
possible that this prescription is specifically or especially linked to the
Festival of Unleavened Bread:
You shall bring the best of the first-fruits of your soil to the house of
YHWH your God. (Exod 23:19a)
The word O'l~:!:J ("first-fruits"), which is also used to describe the

Festival ofWeeks, suggests this connection. This term may, in fact, have
been the reason why this law has found its place here in the text (cf. vv.
15 and 18). However, since all three festivals are linked in some way to
an agricultural crop, it could just as easily apply to any of them,
especially since it refers generically to "first-fruits" and does not specify
a particular crop-that is, wheat.
2 .I. 2. Exodus 34:22 a. Exodus 34 has been a notoriously difficult passage

to interpret because of its murky relationship to chs. 19-24. In Exodus
34, God replaces the two broken tablets (Exod 32:19; cf. 24:12; 31:18;
32:15-16) with new ones (Exod 34:1, 4,28). In Exod 34:28 we are told
that God wrote the Ten Commandments on the tablets. The problem is
that Exod 34: 11-26 does not contain the same commandments that are
found in Exod 20: 1-17. 9 According to W ellhausen' s classic theory,
although Exod 34: 11-26 has been altered by a redactor to make it look
like a covenant renewal, it is really the J counterpart (i.e. "cultic
passed, however, this festival became rooted to a specific historical event (the
Exodus) and the Passover (cf. Deut 16: 1-7; Ezek 45:21; Ezra 6:20-22; 2 Chr 30:2,
5, 13, 15; 35:17 where Passover and Unleavened Bread are combined).
9. This was noticed as early as 1773 by Goethe (Zwo wichtige bisherunerorterte
Fragen; cited by Childs, Exodus, 604). On Exod 34:11-26, seeR. H. Pfeiffer, "The
Oldest Decalogue," JBL 43 (1924): 294-310; Julius Morgenstern, "The Oldest
Document of the Hexateuch," HUCA 4 (1927): 1-138; Hans Kosmala, "The So-
Called Ritual Decalogue," AST/ 1 (1962): 31-61; Dale R. Davis, "Rebellion,
Presence, and Covenant: A Study in Exodus 32-34," WTJ 44 (1982): 71-87;
Moberly, At the Mountain of God, 95-I 0 I, 157-61; Blenkinsopp, Pentateuch, 192-
94; Van Seters, The Life of Moses, 319-60.
Decalogue") to E's "ethical Decalogue." 10 According to Wellhausen

then, J's Decalogue, being the more primitive version, is older thanE's
Decalogue. It has become apparent in recent years, however, that
Wellhausen's thesis is in need of some considerable refinement. One of
the main problems is that Exod 34: 11-26 does not contain a "Decalogue"
at all. There appear to be at least eleven commandments, and possibly
more, depending on how the stipulations are divided up. Attempts to
perform textual surgery on the statutes in order to come up with a
"Decalogue" appear forced and artificial. 11 The most one can conclude
is that various laws, at least some of which are based on the Book of
the Covenant (e.g. the cultic calendar), have been gathered together in
Exod34.
Like its parallel in Exod 23: 16a, very few particular details are given
about the festival itself. It is, however, identified by its better-known
name, the Festival of Weeks, and the occasion for the festival is also
more precisely identified-namely, the wheat harvest:
O'll'IJ 1'~i? ''ll::l:;t "lf7 l1!fP.l:1 n.V~'P llJ1
And you shall make for yourself the Festival of Weeks; the first-fruits of
the wheat harvest. 12 (Exod 34:22a)
The phrase nv;;:t~ lO ("Festival ofWeeks") presupposes ~he formula for

determining the date of the festival such as is explained itf,Deut 16:9-10.
It therefore appears likely that this passage has at the ver} least had some
Deuteronomistic editing, as is evidenced in other passages in Exod
34: 11-26. 13 Paralleling Exod 23:14-17, this festival, along with the
10. Julius Wellhausen, Composition des Hexateuchs und der historischenBiicher

des A/ten Testaments (3d ed.; Skizzen und Arbeiten 2; Be_rlin: Georg Reimer, 1899),
329-31.
11. Kraus, Worship in Israel, 29. Consider for example, Noth (Exodus, 262-63),
who presupposes that the original must have included Ten Commandments, and then
proposes various theories about what the conjectured original must have looked like.
12. LXX reads f!OL where MT and SPread "lf7. The text probably reflects Exod
23:14 where it is explicitly stated that the festivals are to be celebrated for God
(EoprliaatE f!OL, "you shall celebrate a festival for me").
13. Several scholars have argued in recent years that Exod 34 shows evidence of
Deuteronomic redaction and composition. Noth (Exodus, 261-62, 264) identifies vv.
llb-13, 14b-16, and 24 as containing later additions to the J narrative in the
Deuteronomistic style and seems to suggest that this phrase is due to Deuteronomic
editing ("the new expression 'Feast of weeks', which is certainly more recent and
which became current usage at a later period, makes an appearance [for an explana-
tion, cf. the discussion of Deut 16:9 below] ... "). Other scholars seeD permeating
the whole of the passage: Leo Perlitt, Bundestheologie im A/ten Testament
Festival of Booths, is not assigned a date, whereas the Festival of

Unleavened Bread is given an unspecified date in the month of Abib
(Exod 34:18).
2.2. Deuteronomic Texts

2.2.1. Deuteronomy 16:9-12. The festival calendar found in Deut 16:1-
17 exhibits little literary dependence on either Exod 23: 14-17 or 34: 18-
24. However, while Deut 16:1-17 is greatly expanded as compared to its
counterparts in Exodus, there are some broad structural similarities
which at the same time highlight a major change, as the chart below
demonstrates:
Table 1. Comparison ofFestival Passages in Exodus and Deuteronomy

Exod 23:14-17 Exod 34:18-24 Deut 16:1-17
"Three times ... " V.14
Passover (cf. v. 25b; cf. 23:18b)
Unleavened Bread v. 15 vv. 18-21 vv. 1-8
Weeks v. 16a v. 22a vv.9-12
Booths v. l6b v.22b vv. 13-15
"Three times ... " v. 17 vv.23-24 vv. 16-17
The Deuteronomistic program of centralization of worship makes its

mark on this calendar (Deut 16:2, 6-7, 11, 15, 16; cf. v. 5). Passover,
originally a celebration in the home (cf. Exod 12:1-20 [P], 21-23, 27b
[J]), and then at the local sanctuary (Exod 23:14, 17; 34:23-24), is now a
required pilgrimage to a central sanctuary (Deut 16:2, 6-7; cf. v. 5) and
is linked inextricably with the Festival of Unleavened Bread. 14 In fact,
(WMANT 36; Neukirchen: Neukirchen-Vluyn, 1969), 203-32; Hans H. Schmid,

Der sogenannte Jahwist: Beobachtungen und Fragen zur Pentateuchforschung
(Zurich: Theologischer Verlag Zurich, 1976), 112-14; Blenkinsopp, Pentateuch,
191-94. Van Seters (The Life of Moses, 468) argues that J postdates D and, while
heavily influenced by Deuteronomic theology, nevertheless made some important
modifications to D theology especially with respect to the Deuteronomist's restric-
tive nationalism. Van Seters identifies 34:11-26 as J but sees little distinction
between J and D. Alternatively, it is possible that this text merely presupposes a
formula such as is found in Deut 16:9-10 but has not elaborated it on the assumption
that it is well known. In this case, the appellation would not be a case of Deutero-
nomic editing. It is difficult to decide between the two, but given the evidence of a
Deuteronomic hand in the near context, it appears that this is the more likely of the
possibilities.
14. That these festivals were originally celebrated at a local sanctuary is indi-
cated by Judg 21:19, which makes note of a yearly pilgrimage festival at Shiloh.
the Festival of Unleavened Bread is not explicitly mentioned; there are

now just allusions to it here and there (Deut 16:3-4, 8).
Deuteronomy 16:9 provides key information on how the Festival of
Weeks got its name and also somewhat illuminates the date on which it
is to be celebrated:
:nip~~ 1"J);l:;n!> 1!:11?7 71JJ;l 1"19il'~ Ui~ltl 71Ji;J9 n-,~l?T:l nv~~ 1"1);l:t1!>
You shall count for yourself seven weeks; you shall begin to count seven
weeks when you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain. (Deut 16:9)
The date of the festival was calculated by counting seven weeks from the
beginning of the barley harvest, which was originally marked by the
Festival of Unleavened Bread. 15
It is tempting to read Deut 16:9-10 in light of Lev 23:15-16 in
accordance with the old Augustinian practice of reading what is obscure
in light of what is clear. However, it is by no means obvious that the two
formulas are actually compatible. The beginning points for the calcu-
lation are slightly different: in Deuteronomy it begins with the cutting of
the standing grain (i.e. the beginning of barley harvest) whereas in
Leviticus it begins with the waving oftl1e sheaf. Neither is it clear that
the beginning of the barley harvest would necessarily have started on
"the morrow of the sabbath," the day when the waving of the sheaf is to
occur. Moreover, the count in Leviticus is seven complete Sabbaths,
which is explicitly equated to 50 days (cf. Lev 25:8 where seven sab-
baths of years is described as 49 years and the Jubilee is held on the
fiftieth year [v. 1OJ) as opposed to seven w~eks in Deuteronomy (i.e. it is
not exactly clear whether 49 or 50 days is meant). This change in the
formula likely reflects a standardization and ritualization of the begin-
ning of the barley harvest (cf. the exact dates given for the rest of the
events on the festival calendar in Lev 23 and Num 28-29).
Originally, it is likely that the Festival of Unleavened Bread (when it
was still linked to the barley harvest) was celebrated whenever the barley
was ripe. The very fact that the Festival of Weeks is determined by a
formula points to this. A formula of the kind here described is necessary
only if (at least originally) the beginning point (i.e. the barley harvest)
had a floating date. Otherwise, giving the Festival of Weeks a precise
15. Originally, this feast was not celebrated on the day following the Passover,
but on a "morrow after the Sabbath" (cf. Lev 23: 15). Because the barley harvest was
approximately the same date as the traditional date of the Exodus, it was "histori-
cized"; that is, the Festival of Unleavened Bread became associated with a signific-
ant event in Israel's past (Exod 12:29-34, 37-39; cf. 12:15-20; 23:15; 34:18; Deut
16:3).
date on the calendar would be far more natural. This thesis appears to
gain suppo1i from the fact that the Festival of Booths is similarly not
given a firm date but is to be held "when you have gathered from your
threshing floor and your wine press" (Deut 16:13).
At the point in time in which Deut 16:9-10 WllS composed, however,
the Festival of Weeks must have been held on the same day for all of
Judah. We can be certain of this because of the program of cultic cen-
tralization that the Deuteronomists undertook, which required a national
pilgrimage to the Temple (cf. Deut 16:11). Nevertheless, this does not
necessarily mean that the ft!stival had a fixed date every year. Rather, it
may be that the date floated from year to year, but was held on the same
day, in any given year, for all of Judah. Given the fact that variations in
climate and geography lead to different harvest times for different areas,
a question arises: Which region's harvest served as the starting point for
the calculation of the Festival ofWeeks? The most likely answer is Jem-
salem or the area immediately surrounding the city.
Because it was celebrated so close to Passover, the Festival of
Unleavened Bread became associated with Passover and the Exodus. It
was thereby "historicized" and eventually given a precise date (cf. Exod
12:15-20 [P], 29-34, 37-39 [J]; 23: 15; 34:18). This process can even be
discerned in the cultic calendars thus far discussed. The festival calen-
dars of Exod 23:14-17 and 34:18-24 do not mention Passover, though
the exodus from Egypt is mentioned as the reason for the festival. The
general directives found in Exod 23:18-19 and paralleled in Exod 34:25-
26 are rather interesting in this respect. In Exod 23: 18 there are two
general proscriptions related to sacrifice:
:1i?:r1JJ '~o-:~?o l'?:·Nr,l 'D:t!"D"!l'qJ;J-r,lJ n:;~rD·Nr,
You shall not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread, and the
fat of my feast is not to remain until morning. (Exod 23: 18)
In the parallel passage in Exod 34:25, however, the phrase '~D-:J?D ("fat
of my festival") is replaced with the phrasenQ!jliJ .lD n:;q ("sacrifice of the
Festival ofPassover"):
:nQ-?iJ .liJ n:;l! 1j?:J'( !'7;-Nr.,] 'D:t!"D"!l'qJ;l-r,lJ I?IJlf}J:l"Nr,
You shall not slaughter the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread and
the sacrifice of the Festival of Passover is not to remain until morning.
(Exod 34:25)
Exodus 23:18 appears to contain a couple of general injunctions relat-

ing to sacrifice. In Exod 34:25, however, a link between the Festival of
Unleavened Bread and Passover is suggested by a slight change of
phrase. Moreover, the verb n:Ji ("offer") in Exod 23:18 is changed in

Exod 34:25 to t>n'IV ("slaughter") to make clear that the person who
makes the offering is only to slaughter the animal (cf. Exod 12:6, 21; Lev
1:5; 2 Chr 35:11), not actually to lay it on the altar, which was allowed
only to priests. The Festival of Unleavened Bread is thus linked to the
Passover and Exodus. In a similar way, the Festival of Booths is linked
to the wilderness wanderings (Lev 23:43), but the Festival ofWeeks has
no link to a key event in Israel's past. This may have been a contributing
factor in the decline of this festival's importance. The Festival of Booths
was the most popular of the three main festivals, followed by the Festival
of Unleavened Bread.
Jacob Milgrom has argued that the Festival of Unleavened Bread has
nothing to do with the first-fmits (ofbarley). 16 He points to Lev 23:14-
which prohibits the worshipper from eating bread, parched grain, or
newly ripe grain until the grain offering is brought to YHWH-as proof
that the unleavened bread eaten with the paschal sacrifice (Exod 12:8)
and the following day is made from the old grain, not the new barley. 17
This would appear to imply that the Festival of Unleavened Bread was
not the occasion for celebrating the barley harvest-at least by the time
the Priestly laws were compiled in the form that we now have them.
Milgrom appears to have a point. There is nothing in the biblical text
which specifically demands that the Festival of Unleavened Bread be
connected to the first-fruits of barley, at least by the historical stages
represented in the extant texts. 18 First of all, in general, barley does not
ripen by the Festival of Unleavened Bread. In fact, only in the most
favorable climates does it ripen by mid-April. 19 Moreover, taking Deut
16:9-10 by itself, there is no indication that the barley harvest (and
therefore the seven week count) necessarily began d].lfing or immediately
following the Festival of Unleavened Bread.
This is not to deny that originally the Festival of Unleavened Bread
had something to do with the first-fruits of barley, but simply to observe
that by the time this particular calendar was written (i.e. Deut 16), the
Festival of Unleavened Bread had become associated more with the
16. Jacob Milgrom, Leviticus: A New Translation with Introduction and Com-
mentary() vols.; AB 3, 3A, 3B; New York: Doubleday, 1991,2000, 2001), 3:1989.
17. Ibid.
18. This even applies to the Festival of Unleavened Bread as described in Exod
23:15 and 34:18 which already explicitly connect the festival with the exodus from
Egypt. However, at this stage, one may conjecture that the connection to the barley
harvest was still somewhat alive.
19. Milgrom, Leviticus, 3:1983.
2. The Festival ~(Weeks 19
Passover and the Exodus, and the link to the barley harvest was conse-
quently becoming less important. It is for this reason that Deut 16:9 can
start the seven-week count from the beginning of barley harvest, which
from D's perspective began whenever the harvest was ripe. With the
Festival of Unleavened Bread receiving a fixed date and becoming
increasingly associated with Exodus and not barley, and, furthermore,
with the beginning of barley harvest being variable from year to year, a
disjunction between the Festival of Unleavened Bread and the actual
beginning of barley harvest was only natural, and indeed, inevitable.
Compare this with the Priestly laws' fixed date for the waving of the
1/?V ("sheaf') "from the morrow of the sabbath" ( n~WiJ n'11J~I;l, Lev
23:11, 15-16). 20 In this instance, it is rather striking that this ceremony
(Lev 23:9-14) is discussed separately from the Passover and Festival of
Unleavened Bread (Lev 23 :5-8), which implies that by this time at least,
the link between the barley harvest and the Festival ofUnleavened Bread
was lost, as Milgrom argues. 21 In fact, Lev 23:9, which clearly functions
as a separator, contains an introductory formula: "And YHWH spoke to
Moses, saying." 22 Whatever date the troublesome phrase n~!piJ nliJ~I;l
points to, it likely reflects the desire to standardize the date of this rite
and the Festival of Weeks which is dependent on it.
Deuteronomy 16: 10-12 provides some general information about the
occasion and nature of the festival:
~:n~~ i~t9 llJD ;~~ ~~: n:;n~ nt;~~ ~·;:)'7!;! illil''? niv~o/ liJ J;~'i¥~1 '"
:~·ij'7!;! illil:
j~~ '1"?iJ1 ~IJ'?~J ~":9~1 ~IJ:;ll ~pl iiJ;Il:t ~·;:)'7!;! i\li\: ·~~? I;lt;lldo/1 II
~·H'7N mil' ;n:l' illiN oipo:a ~:a;p:a il!iN mo'7Nm oin•m ili\1 ~·;vl!i:a
· . , ' ' -' · ...., ' - . '· ' · ., " ' -" '- ;o\l; ;'ol!i ·-i~iv~
:ii~Nil D'j:mil-nN n•i.VJJll'lirJIZil O'illrJ:a n"il 1:JJJ:':J ;:;,;!; '~
•: "" T " ·~ - "," T " T l T l- T I " T: " I T " T <;' "." " T : - "tl
10 And you shall make the Festival of Weeks for YHWH your God with
the tribute of a free will offering of your hands which you shall give just
as YHWH your God blesses you. 11 And you shall rejoice before YHWH
your God, you and your son and your daughter and your male servant and
your female servant and the Levite who is in your gates, and the stranger
and the orphan and the widow who is among you in the place where YHWH
your God has chosen to establish his name. 12 And you shall remember
that you were servants in Egypt and you shall carefully observe these
statutes. (Deut 16:10-12)
20. See further below.

21. Milgrom, Leviticus, 3:1989.
22. Cf. Erhard Gerstenberger, Leviticus: A Commentary (OTL; Louisville:
Westminster John Knox, 1996), 343-44.
Each of the three times that Israelites are to appear before YHWH (Deut
16:16a; cf. Exod 23:17; 34:23-24), they are not to appear before him
empty-handed (Deut 16:16b; cf. Exod 23:15b; 34:20d). Deuteronomy
16: 10 provides a rationale for the offering: they are to bring a free will
tribute as a response to the blessings which YHWH bestows upon them. 23
It is implied that this offering was to consist of whatever the farmer
could afford as a result of the harvest. As elsewhere in Deuteronomy, the
people are reminded of their experience of slavery in Egypt to motivate
them to include all Israelites-including and especially the disadvan-
taged among them (slave, stranger, orphan, widow)-in the celebration
ofthe festival (Deut 16:11-12; cf. 5:12-15; 15:12-17). 24
2.2.2. Jeremiah 5:24. Jeremiah 5:24 appears to contain an allusion to the

Festival of Weeks in an oracle of judgment against Israel where YHWH
indicts Israel for forsaking him in favor of foreign gods:
i.l'll,l~ u>ip7~~ il")i' OW~ IIJ30 U•v7~ il}il;-ntt N~ N")'~ o:;q7::;1 ~11?~-N'l
:u?-,1?~~ 1'l!i? niptJ niv~~
And they do not say in their heart, "Let us fear YHWH our God the one
who gives rain, both the early rain (autumn) and the latter rain (spring), in
its season, who keeps for us the appointed weeks of the harvest." (Jer 5:24)
The rather strange phrase 1'l;ti? nipQ (lit. "statutes of harvest") indicates
a set pattern or order to the harvest(cf. Jer 31:35; cf. Job 38:33), which is
what the seven week formula for the dating of the Festival ofWeeks also
implies (cf. niV~~ or "weeks"). 25 In ancient Near Eastern mythology, the
god Baal sent rain to guarantee the fertility of the land, but here YHWH is
the one who is said to send the rain and is thus the one to be feared. 26
23. The MT reads "P1::1' whereas SP reads 1::11::1 and LXX reads ,oJ..Oy,crE:v. The SP
and LXX readings indicate more precisely that the blessing for which they are thank-
ful lies in the past, implying that the offering comes at the end of the wheat harvest,
not the beginning.
24. It is unlikely that the prescription to remember their slavery in Egypt is
supposed to serve as the associated event for the Festival of Weeks in the same way
as the Exodus from Egypt is associated with the Festival ofUnleavened Bread or the
wilderness wanderings is associated with the Festival of Booths. It appears to serve
as the moral reasoning for including all Israelites in the celebration; that is, slaves,
orphans, widows, and strangers are to be included in the Israelites' celebrations
because all Israelites were once slaves in Egypt. Cf. Kraus, Worship in Israel, 57.
25. William L. Holladay, Jeremiah 1: A Commentary on the Book ofthe Prophet
Jeremiah Chapters 1-25 (Hermeneia; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986), 193, 197.
26. RobertP. Carroll, Jeremiah: A Commentary (OTL; Philadelphia: Westmin-
ster, 1986), 188; cf. Kraus (Worship in Israel, 57-58) who suggests that the Festival
2.2.3. Did Shavuot Mark the Beginning or the End of Wheat Harvest?
The Gezer Calendar gives us an example of. a harvest calendar of pre-
exilic Israel. It has been dated on paleographical grounds to the second
half of the tenth century B.C.27 It was found at Tell el-Jazari (ancient
Gezer, about 19 miles NW of Jerusalem) by R. Macalister in 1908, and is
approximately 4.5 inches long by 3 inches wide. It appears to be a
student exercise which describes the harvest season in Gezer: 28
His two months are (olive) harvest,
His two months are planting (grain),
His two months are late planting;
His month is hoeing up of flax,
His month is harvest of barley,
His month is harvest and.feasting;29
His two months are vine-tending,
His month is summer fruit. 30
Because the barley harvest occurs in the first month in the biblical
festival calendar, the fact that in the Gezer Calendar the barley harvest
occurs in the eighth month indicates that this calendar had its starting
point in the early autumn. 31 According to this calendar, the barley and
wheat harvest took two months. Since the seven-week count of Deut
16:9 begins with the beginning of the barley harvest, these two calendars
are roughly compatible.n This would imply that the Festival of Weeks
of Weeks, since it was rooted entirely in agrarian rites, .provided an entry for
CaQaanite fertility customs.
27. William F. Albright, "The Gezer Calendar," BASOR 82 (1943): 18.
28. Ibid., 21.
29. The verb here is wgl and the meaning is uncertain. Albright ("The Gezer
Calendar," 25) reads it as related to the verb gyl. He cites lsa 9:2, which describes
rejoicing at the birth and reign of the Prince of Peace in terms of the joy after
harvest, using the verb now and the noun i1J;II?W in a parallel line to ?•l.
30. "The Gezer Calendar," translated by W. F. Albright (ANET, 320).
31. The evidence from the Hebrew Bible is rather mixed. Clearly some texts
from the late pre-exilic to post-exilic periods presume the beginning of the year in
spring (e.g. Exod 21 12:2; Lev 23:5; Num 28:16). However, complicating matters
are hints here and there that there was an autumnal new year (cf. Lev 23:24; Num
29: 1). In Exod 23:16 the phrase i11tf0 nt-t!!:;t ("at the end of the year") and in 34:22
the phrase i11tf0 n;np.t;~ ("the tum of the year") describes the time of year when the
Festival of Booths is to occur (Vll/15-22) and signifies an important point in the
year, perhaps presuming thatthe year began in the autumn according to these texts.
However, this is an agricultural cycle which would in any case naturally end with the
fall harvest.
32. Jeffrey H. Tigay, Deuteronomy (JPS Torah Commentary; Philadelphia:
Jewish Publication Society, 1996), 156.
marks the end of the wheat harvest.3 3 This appears to be consistent with
the story of Ruth, which depicts one continuous season of harvest from
the beginning ofthe barley harvest to the end of the wheat harvest (Ruth
1:22; 2:23).
Jacob Milgrom, however, argues that the Festival ofWeeks marks the
beginning, not the end of the wheat harvest. He notes the following
points. First, the Gezer Calendar only holds true for the Gezer region
(located in the southern Shephelah) where grain could ripen early; other
regions had different harvest times, as the rabbinic literature attests.
Second, the Festival of Weeks is consistently associated with the first-
fruits, not the end of harvest. Third, it appears that the priestly texts
cancelled the pilgrimage (see further below); however, ifthe farmer was
finished with the harvest, Milgrom asks, why would he not be free to
celebrate at the sanctuary? 34
While his points are well taken, none of them is definitive or com-
pelling. First, according to Oded Borowski, the harvest time for wheat as
stated in the Gezer Calendar lines up with modem agricultural practices
in Israel. 35 Furthermore, while some areas would likely have either an
earlier or later wheat harvest depending on elevation and climate, the
same would also hold true for the barley harvest, meaning that the same
relative harvest window of approximately two months or seven weeks
would basically hold true regardless of elevation or climate; that is,
barley would ripen approximately a month before wheat whether in the
lowlands or highlands. 36 Milgrom therefore dismisses the Gezer Calendar
too easily. It is true that this calendar would not necessarily apply to
33. Wellhausen, Prolegomena, 83-92; Tigay, Deuteronomy, 156; Haran, Temples

and Temple Service, 295; Baruch Levine, Leviticus (JPS Torah Commentary;
Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1989), 265.
34. Milgrom, Leviticus, 3:1991-92.
35. Oded Borowski, Agriculture in Iron Age Israel (Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisen-
brauns, 1987), 36-38, 88. Cf. David C. Hopkins (The Highlands of Canaan:
Agricultural Life in the Early Iron Age [SWBA 3; Sheffield: Almond, 1985], 224)
who notes that barley ripens approximately a month before wheat. He also notes that
barley and wheat would have to be harvested together and would have been planted
(e.g. staggered sowing) so that as soon as barley harvest ended, wheat harvesting
could begin, in order to maximize the yield (Hopkins, Highlands of Canaan, 224-
25). Hopkins further argues (pp. 99-1 08) that "the climate of Highland Canaan in
the early Iron Age was not changed from that of today, but only varied around a
mean closely resembling present conditions ... This conclusion grants a considerable
measure of authority to observations that have been made on the basis of contem-
porary data about the climate of the Highlands and its implications for the conduct of
agriculture" (p. I 07).
36. Hopkins, Highlands of Canaan, 224.
other regions of the country. However, if the formula as described in

Deut 16:9-10 and Lev 23:15-16 was not originally anchored to a specific
date, but was a floating date (as Milgrom himself argues), then a harvest
that ends late likely started late, and the harvest time itself would likely
remain about the same length of time-that is, seven weeks or 2
months. 37 Thus, whether the highlands (where the harvest would start and
end late) or lowlands (where the harvest would start early and end early),
the overall length of time between the start ofbarley harvest and the end
of wheat harvest would likely be similar.
However, because this would result in different end points, depending
on one's location and climate, once the Festival of Weeks is appointed a
fixed date, some farmers would find that it starts too early for the wheat
harvest. In some cases, it may even be that the wheat harvest has not
even started, much less finished. However, that is a problem to be
assigned to the fact that an originally free-floating festival has been
appointed a set time based on a formula that was originally designed to
be flexible enough to be applied to any climate or region in Israel and
give various communities a standard by which they could set their
festivals for their own local community at the local sinctuary and
provide some semblance of uniformity throughout Israel (i.e. the same
number of days separated the two festivals). The problem arises when
worship is centralized and pilgrimages to a central sanctuary are
required. This means that a set date must be appointed for the festivals.
Unfortunately, the variation in climate and elevation throughout Israel is
not conducive to such a rigid structure.
Milgrom also cites various examples from the rabbinic literature
indicating the variability of the harvest season, but this evidence
produces mixed results. 38 As Milgrom observes, Ruth Rabbah 5: 11 does
appear to bolster his argument:
R. Samuel b. Nal;lman said: From the beginning of the barley harvest until
the end of the wheat harvest is three months. 39
However, it is possible that the rabbi's chronology is motivated by other

factors. The complete context of this remark is pertinent (Ruth Rab.
5: 11):
"And Ruth the Moabitess said, 'Also, he said to me, You shall keep close
to my male servants [until they have completed all my harvest]'." (2:21)
37. Cf. Milgrom, Leviticus, 3:2059.

38. Ibid., 3:1991.
39. Translation by Harry Freedman and Maurice Simon, Midrash Rabbah (II
vols.; London: Soncino, 1961), 8:69.
Rabbi f:Ianin ben Levi said, "In truth, she was a Moabitess for he said,
'and now you shall keep close to my female servants,' (2:8) and she said,
'with my male servants.'" And she kept close to the female servants of
Boaz." (2:23) Rabbi Samuel b. Nal)man said, "From the beginning of the
barley harvest until the end of the wheat harvest is three months." "And
she dwelt with her mother-in-law and Naomi her mother-in-law said to
her, 'My daughter, shall I not seek rest for you.' 'And now is there not
Boaz our kinsman?"' (2:23-3:2).
In Ruth 2:8, Boaz had said to Ruth to stay '1)'1P,ro~ ("with my female
servants"). However, in 2:21, in Ruth's report of Boaz' s statement, she
says that Boaz told her to stay ''?-i'f,}~ O'l~~iTO~ ("with my male
servants"). The discrepancy leads R. I:Ianin b. Levi to infer that Ruth had
impure thoughts (cf. Gen 19:30-38). R. Samuel b. ~al)man may have
reported the length of the barley and wheat harveSt as three months
because this is roughly the length of time required to make sure Ruth was
not pregnant (cf. Gen 38:24 where Tamar begins to show after three
months and is therefore accused of playing the harlot). 40 In addition, it
should be noted that this evidence comes long after the event, when the
memory of the original free-floating date of the festival had likely long
since been lost. 41
It is true that t. Mena/:1. 10:33 sanctions the use of old wheat for the
first-fruits if new wheat is not available, but this only need imply that in
some highland areas, in some a-typical years when the climate was cooler
and drier than normal, the wheat harvest could be late in coming. At any
rate, this text seems to envision an uncharacteristic occurrence. Further-
more, Milgrom draws a stronger inference from t. Suk. 3: 18 than is
warranted:
40. Freedman and Simon (Midr. Rab. 69 n.4) suggest that the concern is with
Ruth being pregnant by her former husband, but given the context, this seems
unlikely. The concern seems to be rather that Ruth has been impregnated by one of
the male servants (she does, after all, end up seducing Boaz in 3:6-14). Ruth 1:22
indicates that Naomi and Ruth arrived in Bethlehem at the beginning of barley
harvest, and 2:23 indicates that Ruth gleaned with Boaz's maids until the end of the
barley and wheat harvests. Since Ruth's verbal slip happened on the first day, and
furthermore, since we are told that she stayed by Boaz's maids the rest of the har-
vest, the only possible moment she was in moral jeopardy was the first day. Thus the
necessity of showing that Ruth was not pregnant would be satisfied by indicating
that the harvest season was three months.
41. Hermann L. Strack and Gunter Sternberger (Introduction to the Talmud and
Midrash [trans. and ed. Markus Bockmuehl; 2d printing; Minneapolis: Fortress,
I 996], 317) dates it to 500 C. E. in Palestine, though it undoubtedly contains earlier
material.
Rabbi 'Aqiba said, "The Torah says to bring the 'a mer of barley on Pass-
over because it is the season of barley, so that it will be a blessing upon
you when you bring it; to bring the first-fruits of wheat on Pentecost
because it is the season of trees, so that fruit trees will be a blessing upon
you; to bring the water libation on the Festival [of Tabernacles] so that
rain will be a blessing upon you. 42
He argues from this text that "the <omer of barley and the first-fruits of
wheat are to be brought at the beginning of their respective harvests." 43
However, Milgrom misinterprets this text, which explains that the
faithful observance of each festival ensures blessing on the following
harvest. Thus, the <omer of barley ensures a good grain harvest, including
both barley and wheat. We know that this is so because the first-fruits
of wheat on Pentecost ensures a good fruit-not wheat-harvest. This
implies that the wheat harvest is already past, since the first-fruits of the
wheat harvest does not ensure the blessing of the wheat harvest, but on
the next item that is harvested according to the agricultural calendar;
namely, fruit.
Milgrom also cites m.lfal. 4:10 and m. Bik. 1:3, which indicate that in
some very warm areas wheat might ripen before the festival. 44 He infers
from this that most wheat ripened after the festival. However, this
inference is not warranted. These texts merely state that the first-fruits
may not be brought before Pentecost. At any rate, given the fact that the
timing of the festival changed over the years (from an original variable
festival whose timing was based on climate factors to a fixed festival)
and the fact that these rabbinic texts were written so long after the fact,
one cannot put too much weight on any of these texts.
While the Festival ofWeeks celebrates the first-fruits of the harvest,
there is no reason to suppose that the first-fruits could not be offered until
after the harvest was completed. 45 In fact, it would be odd for farmers to
interrupt the harvest to celebratethe Festival ofWeeks and then return to
harvesting afterwards. Milgrom, drawing on the experience of one ofhis
students (D. Stewart) who is a farmer, notes that there is a natural break
between the final stages of ripeness: "fully ripe" and "dead ripe," which
would be a natural moment to take a pilgrimage to a nearby sanctuary. 46
42. All Hebrew citations from the Tosefta will be taken from Saul Lieberman's
The Tosefta (New York: Jewish Theological Seminary of America, 1955-88) where
possible.
43. Milgram, Leviticus, 3:1991 (italics his).
44. Both of these texts refer to Mt. Zeboim (C'Vl:tll101) .
. 45. As noted above, m.lfal. 4:10 and m. Bik. 1:3 state that the first-fruits were
not to be brought to the sanctuary until the Festival of Weeks.
46. Milgram, Leviticus, 3:1996.
On the other hand, Hopkins argues that the ancient Israelites (who did
not have access to modern technology and therefore had different agri-
cultural processes to compensate) would have staggered their sowing in
terms of time and location (e.g. valleys and hillsides) in order to spread
"the maturation of the crops across a temporal window." 47 Since grains
need to be harvested at precisely the right moment (the temporal window
is about 3 weeks), it was important to make sure various stands ripened
at different times so that they would not all have to be harvested at once.
This practice would spread the work out rather evenly, and in effect
would blend the end ofthe barley harvest with the beginning of the wheat
harvest. 48 If Hopkins is right, and his thesis seems eminently reasonable
given the circumstances of the early Israelites, one might legitimately
wonder whether such a natural break as Milgrom describes (no doubt
made possible today by the existence of modern machinery) existed at all
in ancient Israel. 49 One would think not.
The purpose of the first-fruits offering may have been thanksgiving for
a wheat harvest already gathered (cf. the note of joy in Deut 16:10-11),
rather than hope for a bountiful harvest that still lay in the uncertain
future. Furthermore, while it does appear that the priestly writers may
have cancelled the pilgrimage requirement for the Festival of Weeks at
one point, Milgrom' s inference that the only logical reason for this could
be that the farmer still had to harvest the wheat is not convincing (though
in at least some cases this would undoubtedly be true). There are several
reasons why a pilgrimage may have been cancelled. For one thing, the
end of the wheat harvest did not mean the end of work. There are several
steps involved in harvesting, as Hopkins enumerates:
(1) the harvest proper-reaping or picking; (2) collecting the harvested
stalks; (3) transporting the harvest to the threshing floor; (4) drying the
harvest; (5) threshing to disarticulate the spikelets and remove the hulls
(glumes); (6) winnowing and sieving to separate the grain from the chaff
and to clean the grain; (7) measuring and storing. 50
Clearly, much work remained even after the harvest proper. Moreover, it
may have simply been a matter of convenience, especially in view of the
fact that the centralization of worship meant that many Israelites had to
travel long distances to the sanctuary. 51 In addition, there is also the prob-
47. Hopkins, Highlands of Canaan, 224.

48. Ibid., 224.
49. Ibid.
50. Ibid., 225.
51. One must keep in mind that there was a required pilgrimage less than two
months prior at the Festival of Unleavened Bread.
ability that, due to the differing climatic conditions in various regions,

wheat harvest season would be extended beyond the Festival of Weeks
for some farmers, and thus a pilgrimage would represent a hardship for
some.
In Exod 34:22, the LXX reads &pxrw for ~"}~:J:;l, which is unique and
would imply that the Festival of Weeks was celebrated at the beginning
ofwheat harvest. 52 However, it is not hard to see how &px~ might be
taken to denote "first" rather than "beginning". Moreover, there appears
to be at least a partial precedent in Jer 2:3 where the LXX reads &px~ for
MT n~,PN"}, which often essentially has the same meaning as c~'")~::l:;l, as it
does in this particular context (cf. Lev 2: 12; Num 18: 12; Deut 18:4; 26:2,
10 etc.). Furthermore, there is too much evidence to the contrary to take
the LXX seriously as an indication that the Festival of Weeks marked the
beginning of the wheat harvest.
2.3. Priestly Texts

A comparison of the Priestly calendars with the Deuteronomic calendar
shows that the Priestly calendars have been greatly expanded by the
inclusion of a number of religious occasions that do not involve a pil-
grimage.
Table 2. A Comparison of Deuteronomic
and Priestly Festival Calendars
Deuteronomy Leviticus 23 Numbers
16:1-17 [H) 28-29 [P]
Introductory Formula 23:1-2 28:1
General Instructions on Offerings 28:2-8
Sabbath 23:3 28:9-10
Introductory formula for Festivals 23:4
New Moon 28:11-15
Passover (1114) 16:1-2, 5-7 23:5 28:16
Unleavened Bread (II15-21) 16:3-4, 8 23:6-8 28:17-25
Barley Offering (I/?) [16:9] 23:9-14
Festival of Weeks (III/?) 16:9-12 23:15-21 28:26-31
Instructions on Reaping 23:22
Blowing of Trumpets (VIII!) 23:23-25 29:1-6
Day of Atonement (VIIIIO) 23:26-32 29:7-11
Festival of Booths (VIl/15-22) 16:13-15 23:33-36 29:12-38
Summary 16:16-17 23:37-38 29:39
Addendum to Booths 23:39-43
Concluding Formula 23:44 29:40
52. John Wevers, Notes on the Greek Text of Exodus (Atlanta: Scholars Press,
1990), 566.
In Lev 23, the barley and wheat offerings are the only occasions for
which a detailed list of sacrifices is provided. There is no parallel to the
barley offering of Lev 23:9-14 in Num 28-29, though there is a rough
parallel in Deut 26:1-11 (which likely refers to barley since it was the
first of the grains to ripen). Moreover, a close comparison of the
stipulations regarding the Festival of Weeks in the Priestly calendars
shows a number of minor inconsistencies. 53
Leviticus 23:15-21 Numbers 28:26-31
15 "And you shall count for yourselves
from the morrow after the sabbath, from

the day you brought in the sheaf of the
wave-offering; there shall be seven
complete sabbaths. 16 You shall count
fifty days until the morrow of the
seventh sabbath;
then you shall present a new grain 26 "And on the day of first-fruits, when
offering to YHWH. 17 You shall bring you present a new grain offering to
from your dwelling places two loaves of YHWH in your weeks; it shall be for you
bread for a wave-offering, made of two- a holy convocation. 27 And you shall
tenths of an ephah; they shall be of a present a burnt offering as a soothing
fine flour, baked with leaven as first- aroma to YHWH; two bulls from the
fruits to YHWH. 18 And with the bread, herd, one ram, seven male one-year-old
you shall present seven male one-year- lambs, 28 and their grain offering, fine
old lambs without defect, and a bull flour mixed with oil, three-tenths of an
from the herd, and two rams; they shall ephah for each bull, two-tenths for each
be a burnt offering to YHWH, with their ram, 29 one-tenth for each of the seven
grain offering and their libations, by lambs, 30 one male goat to make atone-
fire of a soothing aroma to YHWH. ment for you. 31 Besides the perpetual
19 And you shall offer one male goat for burnt offering and its grain offering,
a sin offering and two male one-year- you shall make their libations and they
old lambs for a sacrifice of peace shall be without defect."
offerings.
20And the priest shall wave them with
the bread of the first-fruits for a wave-
offering before YHWH with two lambs;
they shall be holy to YHWH for the
priest. 21 On this very day you shall
make a proclamation as well; it shall be
a holy convocation for you. You shall
not do any laborious work. It is to be a
perpetual statute in all your dwelling
places throughout your generations."
53. On which, see further below.

2.3 .1. Leviticus 23:9-22 [H). The Holiness Code (Lev 17-26) is
generally thought to be a distinct corpus of ritual law (assigned the sigla
H) originally dating from the late pre-exilic or exilic period, incorporated
into the P source by a redactor (PH). 54 It gets its name from the frequent
54. E.g. Noth, Pentateuchal Traditions, 9. There is a significant minority of

scholars who argue that P is essentially a pre-exilic work and either predates or is
concurrent with Deuteronomy: Yehezkel Kaufmann, The Religion ofisrael from Its
Beginnings to the Babylonian Exile (abr. and trans. Moshe Greenberg; New York:
Schocken, 1960), 175-200; Moshe Weinfeld, Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomic
School (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1972), 178-89; Haran, Temples and
Temple Service, 5-9; idem, "Behind the Scenes of History: Detennining the Date of
the Priestly Source," JBL 100 (1981): 321-33; Milgrom, Leviticus, 1:3-13; Israel
Knohl, The Sanctuary of Silence: The Priestly Torah and the Holiness School
(Minneapolis: Fortress, 1995). There is no reason to doubt that some ofthe Priestly
material drew on pre-exilic traditions; in fact, it would be strange if this did not
happen. However, as Ernest Nicholson notes (The Pentateuch in the Twentieth
Century: The Legacy of Julius Wellhausen [Oxford: Clarendon, 1998], 219), the
problem is that "there is no evidence to suggest that the theocratic and hierocratic
understanding oflsrael as the 'congregation of Yahweh with the distinctive sacral
and cultic institutions so characteristic of P was known in the pre-exilic period."
Frank M. Cross (Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic: Essays in the History of the
Religion ofisrael [Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1973], 293-325)
argues that P was a late exilic work, roughly coeval with Ezekiel's vision of chs. 40-
48, and that it never existed independently as a narrative document. Rather, the
Priestly work framed and systematized JE with Priestly material, and at certain
points greatly supplemented JE. In short, Cross argues that P was a redactional layer
rather than an independent narrative source. However, the older view, that Pis both
a source and a redactional layer appears to make better sense of the evidence. As
sparse as the narrative gets in places, P does have a coherent and more or less
complete (often a merely genealogically oriented) narrative. Knohl (Sanctuary of
Silence, 6; followed in general by Milgrom, Leviticus, 1:13-35) argues that H,
extends beyond Lev 17-26 and that there are two separate Priestly sources, P and H
which are the work of two Priestly schools. The Holiness School post-dates the
Priestly Torah (both of which originated in the pre-exilic period) and was respon-
sible for editing the Priestly Torah and blending it with the non-Priestly sources.
Knohl dates the rise of the Holiness School to the reign ofHezekiah and the Priestly
Torah would then pre-date his reign (pp. 209-12). However, this runs into the
problem that there is little evidence in pre-exilic texts for the rituals prescribed in P
and H. Knohl argues, however, that this can be explained by the fact that "in Israel
before the Babylonian exile-as in other countries of the ancient East-the priests
constituted a closed, isolated social elite and that their work was essentially esoteric"
(pp. 4-5; cf. p. 203). The esoteric nature ofP thereby explains why it left no impres-
sion on popular life of the First Temple period. This is not implausible on its face.
There is no reason to suppose that the priests would necessarily share their ritual
practices with others. On the other hand, there is no evidence for this either.
calls to imitate the holiness of YHWH: "You shall be holy for I YHWH
your God am holy" (Lev 19:2). Leviticus 23 is often considered a
composite, containing several secondary additions. At the very least, vv.
2aj3b, 3, 22, and 39-43 appear to be literary additions. 55 To these we may
probably add vv. 9-21 (cf. Ezek 45:21-25 which omits the Festival of
Weeks from its calendar). 56 It begins with its own introductory fonnula at
v. 9, even though the first-fruits of barley are most likely offered either
during or immediately following the Festival of Unleavened Bread
(vv. 5-8). Another introductory formula at v. 23 sets off the rest of the
festival calendar from this section. Moreover, the first-fruits of barley
and wheat are the only festivals in Lev 23 for which the specific offer-
ings are described in great detail (cf. Lev 23:37-38; Num 28-29),
distinguishing these festivals from the rest.
Leviticus 23 gives finn dates for almost all of the various festivals and
holidays. In this respect, there appears to be a definite move to give all of
the festivals and religious occasions a fixed date on the calendar.
According to Lev 23, the Passover is held on I/14 (23:5), the Festival of
Blenkinsopp (Pentateuch, 224) notes the lack of unity of H and argues that the
various sections which make up H (Lev 17-18; 19-20; 21-22; 23-25; 26) were
never linked together in this fashion before the editor of P put them together.
Blenkinsopp sees traces of both D and Pin the tone and language of the homiletic
conclusions to the five sections (18:24-30; 20:22-26; 22:31-33; 25:18-24; 26:3-
45), indicating a very late date for the redaction of this part of the Sinai pericope.
55. Martin Noth, Leviticus: A Commentary (OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster,
1965), 166-68. Noth sees literary additions only in these three places. He sees the
whole as essentially a literary unity aside from these three additions. He attributes
the apparent disunity of the rest of the passage to its literary pre-history; that is, the
history of the development of the festival traditions in both its pre-historical and
historical (i.e. Exod 23:14-17; 34:18~24; Deut 16:1-17) stages.
56. Cf. John Hartley, Leviticus (WBC 3; Dallas: Word, 1992), 372-74. Knohl
(Sanctuary of Silence, 23-27) argues that in Lev 23 H took an original P festival
calendar and replaced the first-fruits section (vv. 9-22) with H's own version. Noth
(Leviticus, 167), on the other hand, believes that in a pre-literary stage, the festival
calendar oflsrael did not include the Festival of Weeks. He cites Ezek 45:21-25 as
proof, though he does not see any direct connection due to the disparity in details.
Rather, he sees a common cultic tradition, which H has taken and tried to harmonize
with the three-feast tradition found in Deut 16:1-17. This attempt to harmonize two
disparate traditions has led to the rather "peculiar features" of this festival calendar.
In short, Noth also views vv. 9-21 as an addition of sorts, only he would place this
addition at the pre-literary stage. Milgrom (Leviticus, 3:2054-55), on the other hand,
argues that substantial portions ofvv. 9-21 (along with portions ofvv. 39-40) form
the original core (Pre-H 1 [pre-Hezekian stratum]) around which the rest of the
calendar developed.
Unleavened Bread from I/15-21 (23:6-8), the Day of Atonement on

VII/10 (23:27), and the Festival of Booths on VII/15-22 (23:33-36).57
Unfortunately, because of the difficulties concerning the dating of the
waving of the sheaf, the date for the Festival of Weeks is not very clear:
I1ii1:tW v;w <~-9Uf;l;:J 19)ri1~ D?.W:;!Q oi•o I1:tW;:J I111JI?O c~? Dl)l.!;lt?1 "
:<~r;i;\1"1 I1b'oT;1
ci' D'WOQ 1"1-\JI?l'l mr:;n~>D I1:tW;:J I111J90 1.\1 16
15 "And you shall count for yourselves from the morrow after the sabbath,
from the day you brought in the sheaf of the wave-offering; there shall be
seven complete sabbaths. 16' You shall count fifty days until the morrow
of the seventh sabbath." (Lev 23: 15-16a)
The formula is similar to that found in Deut 16:9 but not identical (as
noted above). This shift indicates, at the very least, that there is a move
to stabilize the day ofthe week from which the calculation of the date of
the Festival ofWeeks begins. According to the formula in Deuteronomy,
the count would start from the beginning of the barley harvest, which at
least theoretically could begin on any day of the week. By changing the
starting point of the count, from the beginning of the barley harvest to
the waving of the sheaf (which can be done at any pre-determined point
after the actual harvest has begun), the date of the Festival of Weeks can
be somewhat stabilized.
Given the fact that the other festivals are assigned exact dates on the
calendar, and even though a precise date (i.e. a numbered month and day
as the restofthe festivals in this calendar) is not given for the waving of
the sheaf or the Festival of Weeks, it appears that this calendar implies a
specific date for these occasions as well. This is further supported by the
fact that "sabbath" in the phrase "the morrow of the sabbath" has a
definite article, which would indicate that a specific sabbath is in mind
(cf. v. 14, where ilFJ oi~;:t c~nri~ also implies it). 58 If so, it would be the
first real indicatio~ that the Festival of Weeks was celebrated on a firm,
unchanging date on the calendar.
The stipulations regarding the first-fruits ofbarley in Lev 23 appear to
have only a loose connection (at least literarily) with the Passover and
the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The new introductory formula at v. 9
57. Gerstenberger (Leviticus, 343) notes that according to the lunar calendar the
middle of the month would be the day of the full moon. In this connection, it seems
hardly coincidental that the Festival of Unleavened Bread and the Festival of Booths
both begin on the fifteenth day of their respective months.
58. One hesitates to put too much weight on this one fact alone, yet in
combination with the clear tendency to give precise dates to other festal occasions in
Lev 23, it appears to be a relatively safe conclusion.
indicates that the first-fruits of barley is bound more closely to the first-
fruits of wheat (cf. no introductory formula at v. 15):
:ibN~ i11VI:l-I;IN i11i1' i::li'1 9
c:;,l;l 7nj 'JN i1VN )'iNn-I;IN lN:::m-'::1 cni;IN l'lir.lN1 I;INiiv' ",J::~~I;IN ..;~.;; -,.
,. • ·· =ro~D:LJ~ c~1~¥i?,n'wN119v:n~ c~N~~n ~1;¥i?~r,~ CJ;ll¥~71
:rn~n U!l'J' n::~V:in n;nr:m c:JJil;l;l i11i1' 'Jth ;nvn-nN 'l'Ji11 "
:i1ji1~7 ~'?v~ ;;,~~:1~ C'Q~·~~~·.-;9~-i;J-n~· o?~'~Q c1~:jl Ol)'WP.i 12
1'~ i1~l?~111h'~ 11'! i1)i1'7 nWt:t 19W:;J. n'(1l;l:jl n'{b c'~'l~lJ '~'¥ im;ql;ll"
=1'i"li"l nll':Li
l~'lirn~ C:,?~':;tt] il} i"I!D C1'D C¥lJ-ilJ 11;1:tNn Nl;l 1;19'1:;11 '7~l cry'(j •4
:C:,?'IJ:J.1pl:l t;,:,f C:,?'IJ'l'T7 c?1v niPQ C:,?';::il;l~
9 And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, 10 "Speak to the sons oflsrael, and
say to them, 'You shall enter the land which I am giving to you and you
shall harvest its harvest, and you shall bring in the sheaf of the first-fruits
of your harvest to the priest. 11 And he shall wave the sheaf before YHWH
for your favor; on the morrow of the sabbath the priest shall wave it.
12 And on the day you wave the sheaf, you shall prepare a male one-year-
old lamb without defect as a burnt offering to YHWH. 13 And its grain
offering shall be two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, a fire
offering to YHWH as a soothing aroma, with its libation, a fourth of a hin
of wine. 14 And bread and parched grain and fresh ripe grain you shall not
eat until this very day, until you have brought the offering of your God. It
is to be a perpetual statute throughout your generations in all your
dwelling places."' (Lev 23:9-14)
As noted above, crucial for determining the date of the Festival ofWeeks
(cf. vv. 15-16) is the date on which the sheaf is waved (vv. 11; cf. v. 15).
Unfortunately, the meaning of the key phrase n:t1PO n11JI;IT;l ("the mor-
row of the sabbath") is uncertain. 59 This is because of the uncertainty over
what "sabbath" refers to, since the word can refer to either the weekly
sabbath or any festival day on which rest was prescribed.
In Lev 23:2-3, the sabbath is described as a holy convocation
(W:(jT'~li?T;l; cf. 23:21). Aside from the weekly sabbath, there are seven
holy convocations throughout the year (Lev 23:7, 8, 21, 25, 28, 35, 36).
Two of them fall on the first and last days of the Festival ofUnleavened
Bread. Altogether, therefore, there appear to be five main possibilities
with respect to what "the sabbath" refers: 60 (1) the first day of the festi-
val, which is a day of rest and a holy convocation (v. 7; cf. LXX on Lev
23:11; Philo, Spec. 2.162; Josephus, Ant. 3.250; the Rabbis [b. Menal;.
65a-b]); (2) the weekly sabbath that falls during the festival (cf. the
Boethusians [b. Menal;. 65a-b]); (3) the last day of the festival, which is
59. It may be that this phrase is a secondary addition as Gerstenberger (Leviticus,

343-44) and Milgrom (Leviticus, 3:2059) argue.
60. Adapted from Milgrom, Leviticus, 3:2057.
2. The Festival ~fWeeks 33
also a day of rest and a holy convocation (v. 8); (4) the weekly sabbath
that falls after the festival (cf. Jub. 16:13 [cf. 44:1-5]; 4Q320 4 III1-5);
(5) the first weekly sabbath following the beginning of the harvest. 61
The last possibility appears to be unlikely (though it cannot be entirely
ruled out) due to the definite article on "sabbath" ( n~WiJ), which implies
a definite date. Presumably, the original audience would have known
exactly which day "sabbath" refers to in this context. In the course of
time, however, the original meaning has been lost. It seems unrecovera-
ble at this point as the disagreement evident in the subsequent Second
Temple and rabbinic periods highlights. However, given the fact that the
last day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread (Lev 23:8) is the last date
mentioned in the text that has a likely chance of being the antecedent of
"the morrow ofthe sabbath," it appears to be the most likely candidate. 62
Unlike the rest of the festivals listed in Lev 23, we get here a rather
detailed description of the appropriate sacrifices for this day. Never-
theless, this is certainly not entirely unexpected in a Priestly text:
:mil•? illVin ;,nm on:Jii'ill 16'
ilt~~D yqQ ;,~·;~1'1 n?b o·~'lip~ ·~'l' O'f:l'l' il-9il~ oo~ ';!'.!·=;~~' C:;f'D~~iEQ 17
:illil'? 0'il::l3
o?•Nl 1nN ;p:a-p i!ll ilJW 'l:a oo•r.m o•iV:J::> nv::~w on"';,-?v 'on~;p;,,,·,
... ' .., • ':illil'~ nh·,;-n·;.:, il~N Cil';Oll onnlOl ~-,~~, n?v ·;,~; 'o"·jw
:o•o?w n::~r? nJ1ZI .j:a c;iv::~; ··Jw1 nN~n;· inN o•iv-:,•viv on;wui ;.
;·~~ lVlP o·iP~:p ·i.~~,~ ~lni ·~!;~~ ~~;j~ 0'11J~O OQ~ ?!_,.CJ;lN "ro!ilD··.,;~oi 20
:m!:l? illil'?
;wvn 16 il1!:ll1 n::JN?o"?::> o::~? il'il' lVip-N;po ;,m oi'il ollv:a onN;p; 2'
-· - . -· " ' ' . ., . ., , . :o:;;>'D~~~ o?.;D!:!'l'io·S~~ o~iv niPD
16b "Then you shall present a new grain offering to YHWH. 17 You shall
bring from your dwelling places two loaves of bread for a wave-offering,
made of two-tenths of an ephah; they shall be of a fine flour, baked with
leaven as first-fruits to YHWH. lR And with the bread, you shall present
seven male one-year-old lambs without defect, and a bull from the herd,
and two rams; they shall be a burnt offering to YHWH, with their grain
offering and their libations, a fire offering, a soothing aroma to YHWH. 19
And you shall offer one male goat for a sin offering and two male one-
year-old lambs for a sacrifice of peace offerings. 20 And the priest shall
wave them with the bread of the first-fruits for a wave-offering before
YHWH with two lambs; they shall be holy to YHWH for the priest. 21 On
this very day you shall make a proclamation as well; it shall be a holy
convocation for you. You shall not do any laborious work. It is to be a
perpetual statute in all your dwelling places throughout your genera-
tions." (Lev 23:16b-21)
61. The LXX reads 'U Emx.upwv Tfi~ 11pwnv; ("the morrow of the first day") which
can only refer to the first day of the festival (cf. the use of11pww~ in v. 7).
62. See Gerstenberger, Leviticus, 344.
Aside from the regular offerings (bumt, grain, and libations; cf. Num
28:27-31), the distinctive offering stipulated here is the two loaves of
bread for a wave-offering, made oftwo-tenths of an ephah, made of fine
flour and baked with leaven and offered as first-fruits to God (vv. 17,
20). This offering, along with the two lambs, appears to be for the
priest's own use, rather than bumed on the altar. This is indicated by the
phrase FJ!:l? ("for the priest") at the end of Lev 23:20 and by Lev 2: 11-
16, which offers some more detailed stipulations regarding grain and
first-fruit offerings. Leviticus 2: 11-12 stipulates that the grain offering
may not be made with leaven:
w:;q-?:t1 iNo/-?:t '# rqr; 01iplJJJ N? 01J01'7 1:l'!i?lJ ,W~ 01Q~IiliT?f 11
:01p'7 mP,~ W?T;! n'l?i?JJ-N?
:J")h'~ 11'17 1?!rN? 11~TiiliT?~] 01)01'7 DJ;IN l:l'!i?lJ ri'1!>N1l~li? 12
11 "Any grain offering which you present to YHWH shall not be made with
leaven, for you shall not bum any leaven or any honey to YHWH. 12 You
shall present them to YHWH as an offering of first-fruits, but they shall not
ascend for a soothing aroma on the altar." (Lev 2:11-12)
Since the first-fruits offering is made with leaven (Lev 23: 17) and
therefore was not eligible to be sacrificed on the altar, it was evidently an
offering of first-fruits that went directly to the priest for his own use,
after a token offering of some of the grain was sacrificed on the altar (cf.
Num 18:12-13): 63
n~ :l'ii?lJ ?l?l# ivl~ W~f. 'l?i? ::1':;1~ 01]01'7 D'!l:D~ riiJ~I;! ::l'ii?lJ-0~] 14
:"f'":)l:D~ rllj~l;)
:Nm 01mt::1 m.J? 01'?11 n1::1iv1 Jt::l1z.i 01'?11 nm1 1'
:01J01'7 01~~ nJ;t~!l'r?f ?l! n~I?W.Q1. nifl;~;~· n"~l~l~:.;,~·~o~D·;,~i?;ji 1'
14 "And if you present a grain offering of first-fruits to YHWH, you shall
present ears of grain, parched in the fire, grits of fresh ripe grain as a
grain offering of your first-fruits. 15 And you shall put oil on it and set
incense on it; it is a grain offering. 16 And the priest shall burn as its
memorial portion, some of its grits and some of its oil with all its incense
to YHWH." (Lev 2: 14-16)
Verse 16 recalls Lev 2:2-3, 9-10, which explicitly state that Aaron and
his sons are to receive the remainder of the grain offering.
Leviticus 23:22 appears to be a secondary addition on the model of
Lev 19:9-10 of which it is a close parallel:
63. Milgrom, Leviticus, 3: 1985; cf. Josephus, Ant. 3.250-51.

Leviticus 23:22 Leviticus 19:9-10

22"And when you reap the harvest of 9 "And when you reap the harvest of your
your land, you shall not completely land, you shall not completely harvest to
harvest to the edges of your field, and the edges of your field, and you shall not
you shall not glean the gleanings of glean the gleanings of your harvest; 10
your harvest;
and you shall not glean your vineyard,
and you shall not glean the fallen grapes
of your vineyard;
you shall leave them for the poor and you shall leave them for the poor and the
the stranger. I am YHWH your God." stranger. I am YHWH your God."
The chief difference is that the stipulation is extended to vineyards in

Lev 19: 10, whereas in Lev 23:22 this is unnecessary since the immediate
context concerns the barley and wheat harvests, not the fruit harvest. 64
This concern for the poor and the stranger is echoed in Deut 16:11-12
with its stipulation to include the marginalized people in society in their
celebration. Here, however, the concern is more fundamental: the poor
and the stranger are among the neediest when it comes to food and the
scraps of the harvest are to be left for them to live on.
2.3.2. Numbers 28:26-31 [P]. The commissioning of Joshua in Num

27:12-23 is typically thought to have immediately preceded the account
of Moses' death in the original P narrative (now preserved in Deut
34:laa, 5b, 7-9; cf. Deut 32:48-52). The two accounts have been
separated in our present text by the inclusion of the Deuteronomic law
and other supplementary material. If this theory is correct, then Numbers
28-36 must have been added at a very late stage in the formation of our
present Pentateuch. 65
On a cursory glance this text might appear to present nothing new in
comparison to the other texts:
vJ"!P"Nli?9 O~'lJV:;:l~f. i1ji1'7 i11f!Q i1J;99 o~~'!i?iJf- O'"Jl:.l:;tiJ Oi'~l 26
:livlln N? m!lll n:JN?o-?:.> o:;,? ..,,..,,
i1~9W iJ;I!;t ;,~ o~~~ ,i?~"'J.f- O'!~ ~1;,'7 t!h~~ ~'1~ ;l7iv Cl)~1i?ryl 'z;
: i"lJW 'J::J. O'iv:J.:J
O'J'livll 'JW inNi"l ,gr, O'J'livll i1l!i?1V !Ov.i:J. i"l?l?::J. n~b
. ' ., .. ' ' ., ' . . '" ' ' ., ' . ' '
cnmoi ;,
., :iJ;1~6 ·~·~?
64. The only other difference between the texts is 'lfl¥i?f- (23:22) and ,lli?? (I 9:9).
The SPreads ,lip? in 23:22, apparently in harmonization with Lev I9:9.
65. E.g. see Noth, Pentateuchal Traditions, I 8 n. 61; 81enkinsopp, Pentateuch,
167, 229-32.
:O'W:J~O'l nlJ:JI!h iMNO'l iv:J~? liiVJlJliiVJlJ 29

.. ' - -..:c::J'Sv i!:i::JS ~-nN c'tlJ ,,;ii; '"
:oQ':;JI?~1 o;;>7"1'o;J~ oQ'QJ;J1i»P,B. in-ry~Q1-~'Q~D n~~ ;~~Q "
26 And on the day of first-fruits, when you present a new grain offering to
YHWH in your weeks; it shall be for you a holy convocation. You are to
do no laborious work. 27 And you shall present a burnt offering for a
soothing aroma to YHWH, two bulls from the herd, one ram, seven male
lambs one-year-old, 28 and their grain offering, fine flour mixed with oil,
three-tenths for the one bull, two-tenths for the one ram, 29 one-tenth for
each of the seven lambs, 30 one male goat to make atonement for you. 31
Besides the perpetual burnt offering and its grain offering, you shall make
their libations and they shall be without defect. (Num 28:26-31)
However, there are a few differences both between the- priestly texts
taken together and the other texts, and between the priestly texts them-
selves.
Chief among the differences between the priestly texts and the others
are the different ways of identifying the festival, as the following chart
shows.
Table 3. Appellations for the Festival of Weeks
Text Appellations
Exod23:16 ";f'it,/P,Q '"11~:;1 i'¥~iJ lD festival of harvest of the first-fruits
of your labor
Exod 34:22 i'¥i? '"11~:;1 ... nv~'!l liJ festival of weeks ... first-fruits of
0'\Pt:'l the wheat harvest
Deut 16:9, 10 niV~o/ lD ... nv~o/ O'l~l:;IW seven weeks ... festival of weeks
Lev23:15- ... nb'QJ;I ninfw V~o/ seven complete weeks ...
17, 20 nfl/)i) n"JI;)I?Q i1.J until the morrow of the seventh
n1,J'~o/iJ Sabbath
Oi' 0'1/)Qt) 1i~l?l'l you shall count fifty days
0'11~:;1 first fruits
Num28:26 ... 0'11~:;liJ Oi':t on the day of first-fruits .. .in your
O:;)'IJV~o/::1 weeks
It is important to note that tl1e Priestly texts never call the Festival of
Weeks a llJ ("festival"), whereas the passages from Exodus and Deuter-
onomy do. In fact, Num 28:26 appears deliberately to avoid using l]J in
favor of tJi' ("day"). This is likely related to the fact that a llJ strongly
implies a pilgrimage. 66 It is striking that in both H (i.e. Lev 23) and the
66. Whatever its etymological history is, whether it is related to the noun 11ug
("circle") or the Aramaic root bng (t·UJn) or some other unknown root (Haran
[Temples and Temple Service, 289] argues, citing the judgment ofN6ldeke, that the
only certain meaning that "can be extracted from the word m in the Semitic
addition to P (i.e. Num 28), the term .liJ is used with reference to the
Festival of Unleavened Bread (Lev 23 :6; Num 28: 17) and the Festival of
Booths (Lev 23:34; Num29: 12) but not with the Festival ofWeeks (Lev
23:15-22; Num 28:26-31). It appears that the Festival ofWeeks, while
originally celebrated as a pilgrimage to a central sanctuary (pre-exilic),
was no longer viewed as such by the Priestly writers. The key text is Lev
23:2lb:
:C::?'lJ'1'T'? C::?'lJj1pio-;=J:jl c'?iv njpQ
It is to be an eternal statute in all your settlements throughout your gen-
erations. (Lev 23:21 b)
The clear implication is that the day of the wheat offering was not a
pilgrimage. At least according to this particular text, it appears that the
people were to stay at home while the priests at the sanctuary made the
obligatory offeringsY
This likely reflects a couple of factors. First, the Festival of Weeks
was regarded as less important than the other two festivals (the Festival
of Booths being held in highest esteem and the Festival ofWeeks being
viewed as simply an extension of the festival season begun at Passover
and the Festival of Unleavened Bread), which were both linked to
significant historical events (the Festival of Unleavened Bread with the
Exodus and the Festival of Booths with the wilderness experience).
Second, it may have been considered too inconvenient and impractical
(considering it was only a one day holiday) to expect the Israelites to
make a pilgrimage to the sanctuary (which by the time of the Priestly
texts was at least theoretically the Temple in Jerusalem), given the fact
that the Festival ofWeeks is celebrated relatively close to the Festival of
Unleavened Bread (less than two months after the completion of this
festival) and the likelihood that some of the farmers would still have
some harvesting and related chores to complete. 68 With the Festival of
languages is that of 'festal, joyful gathering'," which includes the "connotation of

making a pilgrimage), a quick perusal of the standard dictionaries shows that the
idea of a pilgrimage to the Temple is central to the meaning of the term (H. L.
Bosman, "llj," NIDOTTE 2:20-21; Benjamin Kedar-Kopfstein and G. Johannes
Botterweck, "m, lln," TDOT 4:201-13). Haran (p. 291) also notes that this term is
only used in relation to the three main festivals.
67. Haran, Temples and Temple Sen,ice, 297; Milgrom, Leviticus, 3:2009. As
Haran notes, this would imply that Ezekiel is posterior to P. If Ezekiel were anterior
toP, it would be difficult to explain why P reinstates the Festival of Weeks as a first-
fruits festival.
68. On a related note, it appears likely that the Festival of Unleavened Bread
required only a one-day pilgrimage originally. Exod 12:14, 17; Lev 23:6; Num
Weeks ceasing to be a pilgrimage festival, the required pilgrimages were

separated by a much more reasonable and manageable six months. 69
This may help explain a curious omission in Ezek 45:18-25. In this
text, the Passover/Festival of Unleavened Bread (45:21-24) and the
Festival of Booths (45:25) are mentioned, but the Festival ofWeeks is
not. It is possible that the Festival of Weeks is not mentioned because by
this time it had lost much of its prestige and may have been largely
celebrated in the settlements rather than at the central sanctuary, while
Ezekiel is exclusively concerned with Temple celebrations. 70 As a
Priestly text, one might have expected Ezekiel to include a list of all the
festivals and appointed times, as we find in,Lev 23 and Num 28-29.
However, most of the appointed festivals and holy days mentioned in
these other Priestly texts are missing in Ezekiel; the only two mentioned
(i.e. the Festivals of Unleavened Bread and Booths) are those that
involved pilgrimages and lasted seven days. 71
28: 17; Deut 16:6-8 all state or imply that a pilgrimage or llj was required on the
first day whereas Exod 13:6 requires a llj on the seventh day. Since Exod 13:6 is
the earliest text, it appears likely t~at this was indeed the day that a pilgrimage
was originally required. Passover was originally separate from the Festival of
Unleavened Bread and observed at home, and did not require a pilgrimage (Exod
12:1-13; cf. Deut 16:5). The first few days of the festival merely required that
unleavened bread be eaten at home (implied by the fact that leaven was to be
completely absent from the home and that work [e.g. harvesting] was permitted on
days other than the first and the seventh day of the festival). The shift to the first day
happened as a result of the centralization of worship and the consequent requirement
to celebrate Passover at the central sanctuary, and the fusion of Passover and the
Festival of Unleavened Bread. Thus the pilgrimage was required for I/14-15 rather
than I/21. Later texts (Ezek 45:21; Ezra 6:22; 2 Chr 30:13, 21; 35:17) required a
pilgrimage for the entire duration of the feast. Cf. Haran, Temples and Temple
Service, 296-97; Milgrom, Leviticus, 3:1975-76.
69. Even then it is impossible that all or even most Israelites made the pilgrimage
to Jerusalem for these festivals every year (on this, see Haran, Temples and Temple
Service, 294).
70. Haran, Temples and Temple Service, 297.
71. Ezek 46:1-15 mentions sabbaths, new moons, and festivals generically but
this is in regard to the functioning of the gates during these festivals, not with respect
to the festivals in and of themselves, as in Ezek 45:21-25. Even the purification of
the altar conforms to this seven-day pattern: Ezek 45: 18-20 describes a ritual for the
purification ofthe altar on 1/1 and I/7, but according to Ezek 43:18-27, this ritual
was to be carried out each day for seven days. Kraus suggests another reason for
Ezekiel's omission, namely, that the Festival of Weeks, which he argues was
adopted from the native Canaanite population, "always provided entry for alien
Canaanite fertility customs which threatened to undermine and destroy the worship
of Israel which was offered i11i1''7" (Worship in Israel, 57-58); cf. also Norman H.
Later editors of the MT evidently were concerned about the fact that
the Festival of Weeks was missing from this list and found a way to
suggest its presence in the list in an ingenious way. Ezekiel45:21 reads:
niv~~ lQ nt?!jlO oi? ;,~ry~ v>"Jh? oi• io/lJ <1lJfl~9 Ji1Vtf1f
:?:;;1~~ niliQ o•Q:
In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, there shall be for
you the Festival of Passover; unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven
days.
The word for "seven" (n.l,':;tW) is vocalized like the word for weeks
(niV?-1?-7). The revocalization makes no sense in context (lit. "weeks of
days';)· and can only have come about due to the felt absence of one of
the three main festivals. 72
There are also some differences between the priestly texts in the
prescribed sacrifices, as the following table illustrates:
Table 4. Comparison ofPriestly Sacrifices
Leviticus 23:15-22 Numbers 28:26-31
Wave/Grain Offering: Grain Offering:
two loaves of bread, made of two- fine flour mixed with oil
tenths (ephah), with fine flour and three-tenths ( ephah) for each bull
baked with leaven as first-fruits to two-tenths. for the ram
YHWH (v. 17, 20) one-tenth each for the seven lambs
(vv. 28-29)
Burnt Offering with Grain Offering Burnt Offerings (v. 27) without defect
and Libations: (v. 31) and Grain Offerings
(cj vv. 28-29) and Libations (v. 31):
seven one-year-old male lambs seven one-year-old male lambs
without defect
one bull from the herd two bulls from the herd
two rams (v. 18) one ram (v. 27)
Sin Offering: Atonement:
one male goat (v. 19) one male goat (v. 30)
Sacrifice of Peace Offerings:
two one-year-old male Iambs
(vv. 19, 20)
Mention of the wave-offering and the peace offering is omitted in Num

28:26-31. Conversely, in Num 28:28-29, the description of the grain
Snaith (The Jewish New Year Festival: Its Origins and Development [London:
Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 1947], 155) who argues that this
festival may have been increasingly associated with the sun (cf. Ezek 8: 14-18).
72. Zimmerli, Ezekiel2, 481,483-84.
offering is greatly expanded as compared to the bare mention of it in Lev

23:18. Furthermore, there is a discrepancy between the two descriptions
of the burnt offerings: in Lev 23:18, it is one bull and two rams, whereas
in Num 28:27, it is two bulls and one ram. The relationship between the
two texts is unclear. In general, Num 28-29lists in detail the appropriate
sacrifices for the various religious occasions, whereas Lev 23 does not.
In the case of the Festival of Weeks, the two lists of sacrifices are in
some ways complementary but in at least one case contradictory.
2.3.3. 2 Chronicles 8:12-16. In the l)euteronomistic History, following

the completion of the temple ( 1 Kgs 7:51; cf. 2 Chr 5: 1) and the
dedicatory ceremony (1 Kgs 8; cf. 2 Chr 6-7), there is a summary
statement about the activities of Solomon in which it is stated that he
offered burnt offerings and peace offerings three times a year on the altar
he built for YHWH (1 Kgs 9:25; 1 Chr 23:31; 2 Chr 2:3).73 Second
Chronicles, following this general narrative thread, expands on 1 Kgs
9:25 in 2 Chr 8:12-16. The following table attempts to highlight the
similarities and differences in the text:
I Kings 9:25 2 Chronicles 8:12-16

And Solomon offered three times a 12 Then Solomon offered burnt offerings
year burnt offerings and peace offer- to YHWH upon the altar of YHWH which
ings upon the altar which he had built he had built before the porch;
for YHWH and burnt incense with them
which was before YHWH
13 and in accordance with the daily rule,
offered up according to the command-

ment of Moses, for the sabbaths, the new
[cf. "three times a year" above] moons, and the assemblies held three
times a year-the Festival of Unleavened
Bread, the Festival of Weeks, and the
Festival of Booths.
14 And according to the ordinance of his
father David, he appointed the divisions

of the priests for their service, and the
Levites for their duties of praise and
ministering before the priests according
to the daily rule, and the gatekeepers in
their divisions at each gate; for thus had
David the man of God commanded. 15
And they did not depart from the com-
mandment of the king concerning the
73. Cf. 2 Chr 31:3 (Hezekiah).

priests and Levites in any thing nor con-

cerning the storehouses. 16 All the work
of Solomon was carried out from the day
of the foundation of the house of the
LORD, and until it was finished;
and he completed the house. the house of the LORD was completed. 74
Obviously, the version in 2 Chr 8:12-16 is much longer than its parallel
in 1 Kgs 9:25. Where 1 Kgs 9:25 mentions "three times a year" (1Zl?o/
i1Jo/~ tl'QlJ~), the Chronicler makes explicit exactly what these three
occasions were: the Festival ofUnleavened Bread, the Festival ofWeeks,
and the Festival of Booths. In this, he is quoting Deut 16:16 precisely.
This mixture of Priestly and Deuteronomistic terminology focusing on
the sacrificial cult probably reflects the actual situation of the Second
Temple. 75
3. The Festival of Weeks in Second Temple Judaism

There are numerous general references in the Apocrypha to all the
festivals celebrated in the Second Temple period. 76 Aside from these
however, there are only two specific references to the Festival of Weeks
in the Apocrypha. In Tobit 1:5-8, the hero of the story, Tobit, establishes
the fact of his piety by recounting how he always went up to Jerusalem
to celebrate the mandated festivals, when the rest of his kin from the
tribe ofNaphtali sacrificed to the calf that Jeroboam oflsrael set up (cf.
1 Kgs 12:28, 30; Hos 13:2). It is no surprise, then, that in Tob 2:1-10,
Tobit celebrates the Festival of Weeks, shortly after which he is blinded
by sparrow droppings after he had buried a body he found (Tobit piously
waits until the festival is over before burying the body [Tob 2:7]) while
searching for poor people to share in the festival with him (cf. Deut
16:11-12)_77
74. The terms in common are given in italics for English. The matches are not
always exact; often Chronicles uses a different form of the word or uses it in a
slightly different way or context.
75. Sara Japhet, I & II Chronicles: A Commentary (OTL; Louisville: West-
minster/John Knox, 1993), 627-28. Cf. Ezra 3:5 (//1 Esd 5:52; cf. Neh 10:34) where
the exiles are said to have re-instituted the festival calendar even before the Temple
has been rebuilt.
76. Cf. Tob 1:6; 2:6; Add Esth 16:22; Jdt 8:6; 10:2; Sir 33:8; 43:7; 47:10; Bar
1:14; I Mace 1:39,45; 10:34; 12:11;2Macc6:6; 1 Esd5:52;2Esd 1:31.
77. On the complex textual history of Tobit, see Joseph Fitzmyer, "Tobit," in
Qumran Cave 4.XIV: Parabiblical Texts, Part 2 (ed. M. Broshi eta!.; DJD XIX;
Oxford: Clarendon, 1995), 1-76; Vincent T. M. Skemp, The Vulgate of Tobit
According to 2 Maccabees, in stark opposition to the suppression of

Jewish practices (including celebrating the appointed festivals) mandated
by Antiochus (2 Mace 6:6)-at which point the Jews were, in fact,
required to celebrate the festival ofDionysus (2 Mace 6:7-8)-Judas and
his army take time out from their battle campaign in the areas east of the
Jordan to celebrate the Festival of Weeks in Jerusalem (2 Mace 12:31-
32). This appears to be at odds with the fact that the Priestly texts do not
require a pilgrimage on the Festival ofWeeks. 78 It appears that at this
time the Priestly texts were interpreted to require a pilgrimage to
Jerusalem for this Festival. At some point, then, the Festival of Weeks
was understood as a pilgrimage festival once again, perhaps occasioned
by the success of the Maccabean revolt and the rededication of the
Temple at that time. 79
There are several references to the Festival of Weeks in Philo,
according to whom the waving of the sheaf occurred on the second day
of the Festival of Unleavened Bread (Spec. 2.162). Philo is apparently
following the LXX on Lev 23:11, which reads: Kal avoLaEL to opayJ.UI
Evavn KupLou OEKtOV UIJ.'i.V t'fl E:naupLOV ti'!c;; npwtnc;; &:voLaEL auto 0 LEpEU<,;
("and he shall raise the sheaf in the presence of the Lord for you [to be]
acceptable; on the morrow of the first [day] the priest shall raise it").
Philo's own formulation employs the same word: ~ IJ.Etoc tTIV npwtnv
EUOuc; ~IJ.Epav ("immediately after the first day"). The LXX reads tf]c;
npwtT)c; ("the first") instead of the MT n~WiJ ("the sabbath"). This appears
to be an elliptical way of indicating that the waving of the sheaf occurs
on the morrow of the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread (cf.
Lev 23:6-7). 80
Compared with Other Ancient Witnesses (SBLDS 180; Atlanta: Society of Biblical
Literature, 2000). In general, the evidence from Qumran is in agreement with the
longer recension found in Sinaiticus. While there are some different readings among
the various texts for Tob 2: I, none adds any significant information with respect to
the Festival of Weeks.
78. Tobit celebrates the Festival of Weeks at home because he is in exile in
Nineveh {Tob 1:2, 10, 22).
79. Or perhaps, some very pious Jews continued the ancient tradition of making
a pilgrimage during the Festival of Weeks despite the fact that the requirement to do
so was dropped.
80. Note that the LXX on Lev 23:7 reads Ka.t ~ ~f!Epa. ~ KATJTIJ ay(a. EO't!l.L
V~-L'i.v ... ("and the first day is a holy convocation for you ... "). John Wevers'
explanation (Notes on the Greek Text ofLeviticus [Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1997]) is
rather improbable. He suggests that "[s]ince the Sabbath is the last day of the week
the morning of the first day would be the 'tomorrow of the Sabbath,' [sic] Possibly
this odd way of putting it simply betrays his Jove for variation" (p. 370). Aside from
the question of how literally LXX translators did or did not translate the text before
Philo derives particular significance from the formula (seven sevens,

fifty days) for determining the date of the festival (Spec. 2.176-78; cf.
Decal. 160). Philo notes that fifty is reckoned "by counting seven sevens,
which are then crowned with the sacred number by the monad, which is
an incorporeal image of God, Whom it resembles because it also stands
alone" (Spec. 2.176). 81 The excellence of the number fifty is also
confirmed by the fact that it is the sum of the squares ofthe primary right
angle triangle (i.e. 52 + 4 2 + 32 =50 [Spec. 2.177; cf. Contempt. 65]).
In Spec. 1.183, Philo comments that by the time of the Festival of
Weeks-which he says was universally observed and a time for
thanksgiving (Somn. 2.75-77; Spec. 1.183-184; 2.185-187)--thewheat
crop in the lowlands had ripened and was being harvested. This would
support the idea that the Festival of Weeks was celebrated at the end of
harvest. Finally, it should be noted that Philo follows the sacrifices as
they are listed inNum 28:27 (i.e. two bulls, one ram, seven lambs [Spec.
1.184]), not Lev 23:18 (one bull, two rams, seven lambs).
There are many references to the Festival of Weeks (consistently
called Pentecost) in Josephus. Like Philo and the LXX, Josephus provides
evidence that the seven week count to determine the date of Pentecost
began on the second day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread or I/16
(Ant. 3.250-52; cf. J. W. 2.42). 82 He writes:
50 'TI 6E 6Eu'I:Epq: 'l:wv a(uf.I.wv ~f.I.Epq: fK'I:TJ 6' ioa,\.v o:\!'1:11 Ko:\. 6EK!hTJ -rwv
KO:p1TWV ou~ E8Ep~oo:v ou y&p ~ljtO:V'I:O 1Tp0'1:Epov O:U'I:WV f.I.E'l:o:AO:f.I.Pavouo~ KO:l

'l:OV 8EOV ~YOUf.I.EVO~ 'l:Lf.I.iiV oLKO:LOV Ei.vo:~ 1TpW'I:OV 1To:p' ou 'I:T;~ E\mop[o:~
'I:Ou'l:wv huxov ,Ct,~ a1ro:px&~ o:un\) 'ii~ Kp~Sii~ iomcj>Epouo~ 'P61Tov wwvwv ...
252 'EPOOf.I.TJ~ 1op6oJ.I.a6o~ 6~o:yEyEVTJf.I.EVTJ~ f.I.Ha 'l:o:U'I:TJV 'l:~V Suolo:v o:um~ 6'
Elo\.v o:L 'l:wv 1op6of.I.a6wv ~f.I.Epo:~ 'I:Eooo:paKov'l:o: Ko:\. EVVEo: ['U 1TEV'I:TJKOo'I:U] ~v
'EPpo:'io~ lioo:p8& Ko:Aouo~ OTJf.I.O:LVH 6E 'I:OU'I:o 1TEV'I:TJKOO'I:~v Ko:8' ~v 1Tpooa-
youo~ n\) 8n\i ap'l:OV aAcj>L'I:WV f.I.EV 1Tup[vwv aooo:pwvo:~ ouo f.I.Ha (Uf.I.TJ~
yqovo'l:wv 8Uf.l.U'I:WV 6E ifpvo:~ ouo
On the second day of unleavened bread, that is to say the sixteenth, our
people partake of the crops which they have reaped and which have not
been touched till then, and esteeming it right first to do homage to God,
them, the problem is that even if the phrase refers to the days of the week and not the
days of the Festival of Unleavened Bread (as Wevers' appears to assume), logically
speaking, "the morrow of the first" is the second day of the week (i.e. Monday),
whereas "the morrow of the Sabbath" would naturally refer to the first day of the
week (i.e. Sunday).
81. Translation is that of F. H. Colson, Philo (LCL 7; Cambridge, Mass.: Har-
vard University Press, 193 7).
82. Probably, like Philo, Josephus is here simply following the plain reading of
the LXX.
to whom they owe the abundance of these gifts, they offer to Him the
first-fruits of the barley in the following wise ... When the seventh week
following this sacrifice has elapsed-these are the forty-nine days of the
(so-called) "Weeks"---Qn the fiftieth day, which the Hebrews call
Asartha, the word denoting "fiftieth," they present to God a loaf of two
assar6ns of flour of wheat made with leaven and, as sacrifice, two lambs.
(Ant. 3.250, 252) 83
Josephus's use of the term Asartha (ocoo:pe&) recalls the rabbinic term
n1:!lV, which became the common way of naming the Festival ofWeeks
in rabbinic literature. It means "assembly" but is also related to a verb
(1:!lV) that means "to close up'' or "to detain". It is in this sense that the
term is typically used of the Festival ofWeeks in rabbinic literature; that
is, it is the concluding festival of the season which began with the
Passover and Festival of Unleavened Bread. 84
Josephus provides a few details regarding the offerings and sacrifices
related to Pentecost that differ in a couple of respects with the biblical
accounts. First, in Josephus's account, one loaf of two assarons of flour
are presented to God (Ant. 3 .252), whereas in Lev 23: 17, it is two loaves.
Second, Josephus says that the whole burnt offerings consist of three
calves, two rams, fourteen lambs, and two kids in atonement for sins
(Ant. 3.253); but this appears to combine the sacrifices ofLev 23:18-19
and Num 28:27, 30, with the exception that Leviticus names two rams
and Numbers one ram, making three rams in total.
In Ant. 13.251-52, Josephus relates a specific occasion during the
reign of John Hyrcanus when "the festival ofPentecost had come round,
following the Sabbath" (Ant. 13.252). It is unfortunate that there is no
indication by Josephus whether Pentecost was regularly celebrated on a
Sunday (cf. Jubilees, Dead Sea Scrolls) or whether it just happened to
fall on Sunday in this particular year. Also in this text, Josephus informs
his readers that warfare was unlawful during Pentecost. However, it is
clear from elsewhere in Josephus that since it was a pilgrimage festival
where large numbers of people would congregate at Jerusalem (Ant.
14.337-38; 17.254; J. W. 1.229, 253; 2.42), it often became an occasion
for wars and tumults (Ant. 14.337-41; 17.254-64; J. W. 1.229-30, 253;
2.42-44).
83. The text is that of Benedict Niese, ed, Flavii Iosephi opera (7 vol.; Berlin:
Weidmann, 1890). All translations of Josephus are from H. St. J. Thackeray et al.,
Josephus (LCL; Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1930-65).
84. See Marcus Jastrow, A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Bab/i,
Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (New York: Judaica, 1971 ), 1103-4. This
understanding of the term is consistent with the hypothesis that the Festival of
Weeks marked the end of the spring harvest season.
In.!. W. 6.288-309, Josephus-in recounting a series of portents and

warnings that God had sent Israel concerning the coming desolation (i.e.
destruction of the Second Temple)-tells of a time during Pentecost
when the priests, on entering the inner court of the Temple at night to
prepare for the large number of sacrifices the next day, heard a
commotion and din and then a voice, like that of a multitude saying "We
are departing hence"(.!. W: 6.299-300).
4. Summary and Conclusion:

The Historical Development of the Festival of Weeks
There are three historical stages in the development of the Festival of
Weeks as found in the Hebrew Bible, corresponding to the three groups
of texts (early law collections, Deuteronomic, and Priestly), plus the
Festival as it was celebrated in the Second Temple period:
1, In the first stage, represented by Exod 23: 16 and 34:22, the
three main festivals originally had free-floating dates depending
on the agricultural calendar and required a pilgrimage to the local
sanctuary. The Festival of Unleavened Bread coincided with the
beginning of the barley harvest, while the Festival of Weeks
roughly coincided with the end of the wheat harvest. These dates
could vary from region to region, and year to year, depending on
the climate.
2. In the second stage, represented by Deut 16:9-12, the Festival of
Unleavened Bread was increasingly being tied to Passover. This
resulted in the loosening of its ties to the barley harvest because
the beginning of barley harvest no longer coincided with the
Festival of Unleavened Bread. In fact, in most areas, the barley
harvest would not begin for at least a couple of weeks after the
Festival of Unleavened Bread. The Festival of Weeks remained a
free-floating festival celebrated seven weeks after the beginning of
barley harvest, as did the Festival of Booths. This was necessary
since both festivals essentially celebrated the end of the grain
(Weeks) and fruit harvests (Booths). The three main festivals now
required a pilgrimage to the central sanctuary which meant that the
Festival ofWeeks, though it still had a free-floating date, had to be
celebrated on the same day each year. In short, the date could vary
from year to year, but not region to region in any given year.
3. In the third stage, represented by Lev 23:15-21 and Num28:26-
31, the Festival of Weeks received a fixed date on the calendar-
namely, seven weeks after the wave-offering. 85 Since this means

that the festival would now occur sometime during the harvest
season, and because, for some, the central sanctuary was very
far away, a pilgrimage to the Temple was impractical and this
requirement was dropped. In part, at least, the pilgrimage require-
ment was probably relaxed to make a virtue out of necessity: more
than likely, the Temple was attracting few farmers to the festival
since most would still be hard at work with the harvesting, thresh-
ing, storing, and other chores associated with the harvest and its
immediate aftermath. As one might expect in a Priestly source, the
emphasis on ritual sacrifice is now much more emphatic.
In the Second Temple period, the Festival of Weeks, along with the
other festivals, became an important symbol in the context of the
Hellenistic threat. In both Tobit and 2 Maccabees, celebration of the
Festival ofWeeks is a sign offaithful observance in the face of the threat
of assimilation. By this time, the festival was once again a pilgrimage
festival, and its date becomes clearer. From the evidence of the LXX (on
Lev 23:11), Philo, and Josephus, it appears that the second day of the
Festival of Unleavened Bread was reckoned "the morrow of the
sabbath," meaning that the Festival of Weeks was celebrated fifty days
after the sixteenth day of the first month.
85. As subsequent controversies show, however, the precise date was still not
very clear. See the discussion in Chapter 3.
Chapter 3
SINAI TRADITIONS AND THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS

IN THE HEBREW BIBLE
1. Introduction: Covenant and Torah in the Hebrew Bible

There are three main elements that constitute the Sinai event: the
theophany (Exod 19: 16-20:21 ), the establishment of a covenant between
YHWH and his new nation Israel (Exod 19:3b-8; 24: 1-8), and the giving
of the Law (Exod 20: 1-17; 20:22-23:33). Dividing the Sinai event into
these three distinct elements is not to imply that there is not an under-
lying unity. Of course, the three elements are intimately related. The
three find their unity in the fact of the centrality of the covenant. The
theophany happens in order to make the establishment of the covenant
possible (and highlight its importance), while the giving of the Law
outlines tl1e responsibilities of the Israelites in upholding their part ofthe
covenant. Each theme will be briefly introduced in tum.
1.1. Mount Sinai/Horeb and Theophany

It is undoubtedly because of their proximity to the heavens that moun-
tains have typically been considered by peoples of many different times
and places to be sacred space. 1 Mount Sinai is one of two mountains with
which Israel's religious identity is especially bound. 2 Whereas Mt. Zion
has the distinction of marking the place· where God maintained his
presence among the Israelites in the land that he gave to his people, Mt.
Sinai is the place where Israel was originally constituted as a nation.
1. On mountains in the ancient Near East and the implications for Israelite
religion, see Richard J. Clifford, The Cosmic Mountain in Canaan and the Old
Testament (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1972). On a comparison of
mounts Sinai and Olympus and their respective roles in their civilizations (along
with much other comparative material), see Joseph P. Schultz and Lois Spatz, Sinai
and Olympus: A Comparative Study (Lanham: University Press of America, 1995).
2. The other, of course, is Mt. Zion. For an interesting and insightful study on the
role of both in Israel's religious history, see Jon D. Levenson, Sinai and Zion: An
Entry into the Jewish Bible (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1985).
Mountains are often the locus of contact with the divine. The Sinai
theophany is the most significant of all the various theophanies recorded
in the Hebrew Bible. 3 It is rather strange for such an important event to
happen on a non-descript mountain in the middle of nowhere. 4 Neverthe-
less, its importance for Israel's subsequent history is undeniable, some-
thing which is confirmed by the fact that the Sinai theophany ·echoes
throughout the Hebrew Bible (and beyond). 5
1.2. Covenant
The covenant between YHWH and Israel is a bilateral relationship that
establishes Israel as YHWH's special people with whom he has a unique
bond. It is the central and unifying element of the three; the raison d 'etre
for the other two elements. It signifies the moment when Israel fonnally
became a nation under YHWH. 6
What is a covenant?? Mendenhall and Herion define it as follows: "A
'covenant' is an agreement enacted between two parties in which one or
both make promises under oath to perform or refrain from certain actions
stipulated in advance. " 8 George Mendenhall and Klaus Baltzer were two
3. On theophanies in the Hebrew Bible, see Jorg Jeremias, Theophanie (Neu-

kirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener, 1965); J. Kenneth Kuntz, The Self-Revelation ofGod
(Philadelphia: Westminster, 1967); Thomas W. Mann, Divine Presence and
Guidance in Israelite Traditions (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1977);
Jeffrey J. Niehaus, God at Sinai: Covenant and Theophany in the Bible and the
Ancient Near East (Studies in Old Testament Biblical Theology; Grand Rapids:
Zondervan, 1995); Martin R. Hauge, The Descent from the Mountain: Narrative
Patterns in Exodus 19-40 (JSOTSup 323; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press,
2001), esp. 97-155.
4. Not just once, but twice (cf. Exod 3-4). For comments on this, see Levenson,
Sinai and Zion, 19-23.
5. For a discussion of how the Sinai theophany is alluded to in various texts
throughout the Hebrew Bible, see Niehaus, God at Sinai, 230-332.
6. Bernard M. Levinson, "The Sinai Covenant: The Argument ofRevelation," in
The Jewish Political Tradition: Authority (ed. Michael Walzer et al.; 4 projected
volumes; New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 2000), 1:23-27.
7. On the subject of covenant, in addition to the literature cited in this section,
see further: Walter Beyerlin, Origins and History of the Oldest Sinaitic Traditions
(Oxford: Blackwell, 1965); Delbert R. Hillers, Covenant (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins
University Press, 1969); Levenson, Sinai and Zion; Dennis J. McCarthy, Old
Testament Covenant: A Survey of Current Opinions (Atlanta: John Knox, 1972);
Ernest W. Nicholson, God and His People: Covenant and Theology in the Old
Testament (Oxford: Clarendon, 1986); Perlitt, Bundestheologie im A/ten Testament;
Rolf Rendtorff, The Covenant Formula: An Exegetical and Theological investi-
gation (trans. Margaret Kohl; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1998).
8. George E. Mendenhall and Gary A. Herion, "Covenant," ABD I: 1179.
3. Sinai Traditions and the Festival of Weeks 49
of the earliest scholars to draw attention to the similarity in structure of

Late Bronze ancient Near Eastern treaties (1500-1200 B.C.E.) with
covenants found in the Hebrew Bible. 9 Mendenhall identified the follow-
ing elements of the covenant formulary:
1. preamble
2. historical prologue
3. stipulations
4. deposition and regular re-reading
5. divine witnesses
6. curses and blessings 10
More recently, Iron Age Assyrian vassal treaties of Esarhaddon have
been discovered (in 1956) that may also parallel covenants in the Hebrew
Bible:
1. preamble
2. designation of Assyrian ruler or successor to whom loyalty is due
3. divine witnesses
4. stipulations
5. curses for non-compliance 11
These literary forms were not rigidly adhered to. Elements were dropped
and rearranged. When applied to the narrative of the Sinai covenant
9. George E. Mendenhall, Law and Covenant in Israel and the Ancient Near East
(Pittsburgh: Presbyterian Board of Colportage, 1955); Klaus Baltzer, The Covenant
Formulary in Old Testament, Jewish, and Early Christian Writings (trans. D. E.
Green; Oxford: Blackwell, 1971 [ 1964]). Mendenhall based his work on the earlier
study by Viktor Korosec, Hethitische Staatsvertrage: Ein Beitrag zu ihrer juris-
tischen Wertung (Leipziger rechtswissenschaftliche Studien. Leipziger Juristen
Fakultat; Leipzig: Verlag von Theodor Weicher, 1931 ).
10. George E. Mendenhall, "Ancient Oriental and Biblical Law," BA 17 (1954):
26---46; idem, "Covenant Forms in Israelite Tradition," BA 17 (1954): 50-76. For an
example of how the Hittite treaty form can illuminate biblical covenants, compare
with Josh 24 (cf. Levenson, Sinai and Zioi1, 32-36). Baltzer's list is almost identical
(The Covenant Formulmy, I 0), and identifies the following elements: (I) preamble;
(2) antecedent history; (3) statement of substance concerning the future relationship;
(4) specific stipulations; (5) invocation of the gods as witnesses; (6) curses and
blessings. ·
I I. Mendenhall and Herion, "Covenant," I I 82; cf. Albert Grayson, "Akkadian
Treaties of the Seventh Century B.C.," JCS 39 (1987): 127-60; Simo Parpola, "Neo-
Assyrian Treaties from the Royal Archives of Nineveh," JCS 39 (1987): 161-89.
· Many scholars have questioned the early dating that the Hittite treaty analogy
implies based on various grounds. Usually at least part of the reason is the view that
Deuteronomy in particular must be a seventh-century B.C. E. product. See Blenkin-
sopp, The Pentateuch, 21; McCarthy, Old Testament Covenant, 69-71.
(focusing in this case on Exod 19:3b-8), some of these elements are

present: in particular, the historical prologue (v. 4), (general) stipulation
(v. 5), and blessing (v. 6). 12
Covenant renewal ceremonies celebrated throughout Israel's history
reflected the need periodically to remind people of the covenant and its
obligations. 13 Psalm 81 appears to reflect a regular liturgical celebration
of covenant renewal (possibly associated with the Festival of Booths). 14
InDeut 5:1-4, Moses tries to impress upon the people oflsrael the ever-
present significance of the covenant at Sinai:
1 And Moses summoned all Israel and said to them, "Hear, 0 Israel, the
statutes and the rules that I speak in your hearing today, and you shall
learn them and be careful to do them. 2 The Lord our God made a covenant
with us in Horeb. 3 Not with our fathers did YHWH our God make this
covenant, but with us, who are all of us here alive today. 4 YHWH spoke
with you face to face at the mountain, out of the midst of the fire. 15
This statement comes forty years after the Sinai event. Jon Levenson,
citing this text, comments:
The concern in this passage is that Israel may come to think of themselves
as obliged in a distant way by the covenant of Sinai/Horeb, but not as
direct partners in it. .. The goal of this speech, as of the covenant renewal
ceremony in which it probably originated, is to induce Israel to step into
the position of the generation of Sinai, in other words, to actualize the past
so that this new generation will become the Israel of the classic covenant
relationship (cf. Deut 30:19-20). Thus, life in covenant is not something
merely granted, but something won anew, rekindled and reconsecrated in
the heart of each Israelite in every generation. 16
12. Cf. Levenson, Sinai and Zion, 30-32. Levenson comments that this text
(Exod l9:3b-8) is not a text of a covenant but "a proclamation to the people
announced through a prophet" (p. 30). Once one makes allowances for the context,
however, the existence of these elements is difficult to deny. In this connection, he
also notes that a summoning of divine witnesses would be inappropriate in this
context given the nature of Israelite religion. Note that the presence of an historical
prologue is typical of Hittite treaties but not Assyrian treaties (cf. Weinfeld,
"Deuteronomy," ABD 2:170; Mendenhall and Herion, "Covenant," 1:1182-83).
Mendenhall and Herion's ("Covenant," I :ll83-85) list of elements of a Hittite
vassal treaty (apparently representing a revision from Mendenhall's earlier work) is
slightly longer and they find more parallels in the Sinai covenant. They focus on the
entire text, whereas Levenson's discussion focuses on a small piece.
13. On covenant renewal in the Hebrew Bible, see the convenient survey by
Baltzer, The Covenant Formulary, 39-88.
14. On this text, see further below.
15. This is the ESV, slightly altered.
16. Levenson, Sinai and Zion, 81.
Covenant renewal was art important concept throughout the Hebrew

Bible and the Second Temple era. Subsequent chapters will deal with
thos.e aspects of covenant renewal found in Second Temple literature that
are related to the Festival ofWeeks.
Most of these covenant renewal ceremonies (in the Hebrew Bible) do
not show any evidence with respect to specific dates or time of year.
King Hezekiah renews the covenant in the first month of his first regnal
year (2 Chr 29:3-11). This leads to the exceptional situation where
Passover is celebrated a month later, on Il/14 (2 Chr 30:2; cf. Num 9:9-
11). King Josiah discovers the book of the Covenant just before Passover
(cf. 2 Kgs 23:21) and the covenant renewal appears to take place just
before this festival (2 Kgs 23 :2-3). The other covenant renewals that are
celebrated in proximity to either the Festival of Weeks or Festival of
Booths will be treated systematically below in order to determine
whether they were regularly associated with any particular holy day.
1.3. Giving of the Law

On the analogy of the ancient Near Eastern vassal treaties, the Sinai
covenant is accompanied by stipulations. These stipulations, to begin
with at least, are represented by the Decalogue (Exod 20: 1-17)_17 Of
course, this original set of prescriptions is greatly expanded immediately
with the "Book of the Covenant" (Exod 20:21-23: 19) and later by large
chunks oflegal material throughout the rest of the Pentateuch. 18 The law
is then that part of the covenant which outlines the responsibilities of the
Israelites with respect to upholding their end of the treaty. 19
17. Mendenhall and Herion, "Covenant," 1:1183-84. On the Decalogue, see the
following: Johann J. Stamm and Maurice E. Andrew, The Ten Commandments in
Recent Research (SBT 2/2; Naperville: Allenson, 1967); Ben Zion Segal and
Gershon Levi, eds., The Ten Commandments in Hist01y and Tradition (Jerusalem:
Magnes, 1990 [1985]); Sigmund Mowinckel, Le Decalogue (Boulevard Saint-
Gennain: Librairie Felix Alcan, 1927).
18. For scholarship on the "Book of the Covenant," see: Hans J. Boecker, Law
and the Administration of Justice in the Old Testament and Ancient East (trans.
J. \VIoiser; Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1980); Jay W. Marshall, Israel and the Book of
the Covenant (SBLDS 140; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1993); Morgenstern, "The Book
of the Covenant"; Paul, Studies in the Book ofthe Covenant; Joe M. Sprinkle, "The
Bookofthe Covenant": A Literary Approach (JSOTSup 174; Sheffield: Sheffield
Academic Press, 1994).
19. On the subject of Law, the secondary literature is endless, but for a sampling,
see: Dale Patrick, Old Testament Law (Atlanta: John Knox, 1985); Albrecht Alt,
"The Origins of Israelite Law," in Essays on Old Testament History and Religion
(trans. R. A. Wilson; Oxford: Blackwell, I 966), 79-132; Paul, Studies in the Book of
The development that is clearly evident in the history of the law in the
Hebrew Bible arises from the changing circumstances of the Israelites
themselves as they moved from a loose organization of tribes to a
centralized monarchy to a people in exile to a people newly returned
from exile-and all the numerous cultural shifts (political, economic,
social, religious, etc.) before, during, and after these stages in Israel's
history. The early law codes (e.g. "the Book of the Covenant") were
modified and supplemented by Deuteronomic and Priestly versions
and/or redactions-(likely) among others-addressing different needs
and concerns as the situation of the Israelites/Jews changed. 20
2. The Sinai Event Associated with the Festival of Weeks

There are two commonly cited texts supporting the idea that the Sinai
event and the Festival ofWeeks were linked together by at least the early
post-exilic era: Exod 19:1 and 2 Chr 15:10-15. 21 In addition, it has been
argued that the Festival ofWeeks forms the liturgical background of Dan
10-12. Each of these texts will be treated in tum.
2.1. The Geographical and Chronological Markers in the Sinai Narrative

The Sinai event is central to the Pentateuch. 22 The narrative tempo of the
Pentateuch, particularly regarding the Sinai narrative, is one of its many
the Covenant; Martin Noth, The Laws in the Pentateuch and Other Studies (trans. D.
R. Ap-Thomas; Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd, 1966).
20. On inner biblical legal exegesis, see esp. Michael Fishbane, Biblical Inter-
pretation in Ancient Israel (Oxford: Clarendon, 1985), 91-277. On the Deutero-
nomic legal tradition, see: Weinfeld, Deuteronomy and the Deuteronomic School;
Bernard M. Levinson, Deuteronomy and the Hermeneutics of Legal Innovation
(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997); Ernest W. Nicholson, Deuteronomy and
Tradition (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1967). On the priestly legal tradition, see: Knohl,
The Sanctuary of Silence; Haran, Temples and Temple Service.
21. See, for example: Le Deaut, "Pentecote et Tradition Juive," 135; Kraus,
Worship in Israel, 56; Moshe Weinfeld, "The Uniqueness of the Decalogue and Its
Place in Jewish Tradition," in Segal and Levi, eds., The Ten Commandments in
History and Tradition, 34-38; Simon J. De Vries, "Festival Ideology in Chronicles,"
in Problems in Biblical Theology: Essays in Honor ofRolfKnierim (ed. H. T. C. Sun
and K. L. Eades, with J. M. Robinson and Garth I. Moller; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans,
1997), 108-9; MarkS. Smith, "Matters of Space and Time in Exodus and Numbers,"
in Theological Exegesis: Essays in Honor ofBrevard S. Childs (ed. C. Seitz and K.
Greene-McCreight; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), 191-92.
22. On Pentateuchal criticism, see the classic formulations by Wellhausen, Die
Composition des Hexateuchs; Noth, A History ofPentateuchal Traditions; Gerhard
von Rad, "The Form-Critical Problem of the Hexateuch," in The Problem of the
noteworthy features. 23 The Sinai narrative (Exod 19: 1-Num 10:28)

represents not even one whole year (11111 [Exod 19:1] to Il/20 of the next
year [Num 10:11]) out of the 2706 years from creation to the death of
Moses, yet the Israelite encampment before Sinai takes up about a third
of the Pentateuchal narrative. 24 Moreover, not only does it represent a
third of the narrative of the Pentateuch, it also occupies the middle third
of the Pentateuch. 25
The itinerary notices are clustered in two groups, both before (Exod
12:37; 13:20; 14:1-2; 15:22; 16:1; 17:1) and after the Sinai event (Num
10: 12; 20: 1, 22; 21: 10-11; 22: 1), and show the progression of the Israel-
ites from Egypt to Sinai and then from Sinai to the plains ofMoab. 26 The
temporal markers in Exodus also foreground the Sinai event.
Hexateuch and Other Essays (trans. E. W. Trueman Dicken; London: Oliver &
Boyd, 1966 [1938]), 1-78. See also the excellent survey of the secondary literature
by Nicholson, The Pentateuch in the Twentieth Century, and an insightful survey of
the content of the Pentateuch by Blenkinsopp, The Pentateuch.' For alternative views
from the standard model of Pentateuchal criticism, see Erhard Blum, Studien zur
Komposition des Pentateuch (BZA W 189; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1990); Rolf Rend-
torff, The Problem ofthe Process ofTransmission in the Pentateuch (JSOTSup 89;
Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1990 [ 1977]); Martin Rose, Deuteronomist und Jahwist:
Untersuchungen zu den Beriihrungspunkten beider Literaturwerke (ATANT 67;
Zurich, 1981 ); Hans H. Schmid, "In Search of New Approaches in Pentateuchal
Research," JSOT3 (1977): 33-42; idem, Der sogenannte Jahwist; John Van Seters,
Prologue to History: The Yahwist as Historian in Genesis (Louisville: Westminster
John Knox, 1992); idem, The Life of Moses; Roger N. Whybray, The Making of the
Pentateuch: A Methodological Study (JSOTSup 53; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1987).
On historical-critical issues related to Exod 19-24, the secondary literature is
massive. For a sampling of recent treatments of the topic, see (aside from the stan-
dard commentaries): Blenkinsopp, The Pentateuch, 183-228; idem, "Structure and
Meaning in the Sinai-Horeb Narrative"; Dozeman, God on the Mountain; Van
Seters, The Life of Moses, 245-360; Alexander, "The Composition of the Sinai
Narrative"; Baruch J. Schwartz, "The Priestly Account of the Theophany and Law-
giving at Sinai," in Texts, Temples, and Traditions: A Tribute to Menahem Haran
(ed. Michael V. Fox et al.; Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1996), I 03-34; Bernard
Renaud, La Theophanie du Sinai': Ex. 19-24 (CahRB 30; Paris: Gabalda, 1991).
23. Blenkinsopp, "Structure and Meaning," 109.
24. Ibid. Blenkinsopp estimates the length ofthe stopover at Sinai as "considera-
bly more than a fifth of the total length of the Pentateuch (Exod 19: I-Nurn I 0:28)."
However, if one counts the pages of text in the BHS, it becomes apparent that Sinai
occupies almost a third of the Pentateuch's total narrative (114 pages of BHStext out
of a total of353 pages).
25. There are II 7 pages of BHS text before Exod 19 and 121 pages of BHS text
after Num 10 to the end of the Pentateuch.
26. Smith, "Matters of Space and Time," 186-88.
Table 5. Chronological Notices in Exodus and Numbers 27
Passage Date Event

Exod 19:1 Year 1, III/1 Arrival at Sinai
Exod40:17 Year 2, Ill Tabernacle set up
Num 1:1 Year 2, II/I Census
Num 7:1 Year 2, Ill Tabernacle consecrated
Num 9:1, 3-5, 11 Year 2, Ill, 1/14, II/14 Passover
Num 10:11-12 Year 2, II/20 Departure from Sinai
As noted, their stay at the foot of the mountain represents almost a full
year. In Exod 19: 1-2a (P), there is a highly significant chronological and
geographical marker:
:'~'t? ;:;qQ 1Nf. il!iJ Oi':;J. 0'l¥Q l'l~9 '?ttw~-'J.f. nN117 'W'7~D W'jh:;J. I
if.lr;l:;l 1lt)~l '~'t;l i:;llQ !Nj,:l 0'1'~19 1))9~1 2'
1 In the third month after the sons oflsraelleft the land of Egypt-on that
very day-they came to the wilderness of Sinai. 28 And they set out from
Rephi dim and they came to the wilderness of Sinai and they encamped in
the wilderness. (Exod 19: l-2a)
The exact day of the month for the giving of the Law (Exod 19: 16-
23:33) and the covenant ceremony (Exod 24:3-8) is not specified, which
presents a problem for those who see in this chronological notice an indi-
cation that the (priestly) editor intended a specific connection between
the Sinai event and the Festival of Weeks. 28 In particular, since the
priestly writer appears to have attempted to pin down a specific date for
the Festival of Weeks (cf. Lev 23:15-16), it seems strange that he was
not more specific concerning the chronology ofthe Sinai event if he did
indeed intend to link it to the Festival of Weeks. 29
27. Ibid., I88-98.

28. See for instance, Weinfeld, "The Uniqueness of the Decalogue," 34-37; R. S.
Hendel, "Sacrifice as a Cultural System: The Ritual Symbolism of Exodus 24,3-8,"
ZA W 101 (1989): 373; Smith, "Matters of Space and Time," 191-92. Gerhard von
Rad ("The Form-Critical Problem of the Hexateuch," 34-35) briefly considered, but
ultimately rejected the theory (based on the Priestly notice in Exod 19:1) that the
Festival of Weeks was the earliest cultic setting for the Sinai tradition, in favor ofthe
Festival of Booths (based on Deut 31: 10-11). This does not, of course, preclude the
possibility that different people or groups at different points in Israel's history had
differing conceptions of what the proper setting for the Sinai event was.
29. This is in contrast to the earlier sources (see discussion in Chapter 2). Even
the Deuteronomist (Deut 16:9-10) does not specify a particular start date for the
seven-week count.
Several possibilities suggest themselves as to why no specific date is

mentioned. First, the editor may have assumed a lunar calendar, which
means that the Festival of Weeks could fall on any one of three separate
days in the month of Sivan (i.e. 5-7). Second, there may not have been
agreement among advocates of the 364-day calendar on the beginning
date for the countdown to the Festival of Weeks, and therefore to the
specific date of the festival. 30 Third, the specific day may have simply
fallen out accidentally in the course of copying. 31 Fourth, of course, the
priestly editor may simply not have intended to specifically connect the
Sinai event with the Festival ofWeeks. 32
In 2 Chr 15:10-15, there is a similar vagueness about the specific date
of King Asa's covenant renewal. In this case, there can be no real doubt
that some link to the Festival of Weeks is intended. 33 It is thus not
unlikely that some link to the Festival of Weeks was intended by the
chronological notice in Exod 19:1 (i.e. both are priestly notices). The
most probable explanation is that there was some disagreement over the
specific date for the beginning of the count to the Festival of Weeks.
There is certainly plenty of evidence in the Second Temple period and
beyond for precisely this type of dispute. 34 Vagueness over the specific
date preserved all the possible dates advocated by the various factions.
The other serious possibility is that the lunar calendar is presupposed.
This is quite possible, but Jaubert's thesis (discussed below) that the
Priestly writers assumed the solar calendar appears to be solid and
explains the evidence of the Priestly strand of the Hebrew Bible quite
well.
The events at the foot of the mountain deserve some comment. As the
table overleaf shows, Moses goes up and down the mountain quite a
number of times as he mediates between God and the Israelites. How-
ever, this does not give a true picture of the complexity of what happens
at Sinai. There are a number of peculiarities in this passage (here focusing
only on Exod 19-24). First, on both days 1 and 3, Moses goes up and
down the mountain two times. Second, on day 3, Moses is told to go
30. On the varying possibilities for the starting point of this count, see Chapter 2.
3 I. Since being non-specific about dates concerning happenings in the third
month and the Festival of Weeks in particular seems to be characteristic of the
Hebrew Bible, the non-specificity of Exod 19: I is not surprising and hence the
argument that it accidentally dropped out is thus unlikely (though it cannot be ruled
out).
32. The first three possibilities are adapted from the arguments of James C.
VanderKam ("The 364-Day Calendar, 89-89).
33. See the next section below.
34. See the discussion in Chapter 2 on this issue.
back down to repeat an instruction already given earlier (Exod 19:20-23;

cf. 19:12-13); moreover, while this instruction is designed to keep the
people away from the mountain, in Exod 20: 18-21, it is discovered that
the problem is not keeping people away from the mountain, but keeping
them from fleeing it. Third, in Exod 19:24 Moses is told to come back up
the mountain with Aaron, but in Exod 20:21 Moses returns alone,
although he does return with Aaron later (Exod 24:9). 35
Table 6. Chronology of Moses and the Israelites at Sinai 36

Chronology Top of the Mount Mid-way Foot of the Mount
III/I 19:1-2
Day 1 19:3-6
19:7-8a
19:8lr-13
19:14-15
Day3 19:16-20a
19:20b-24
19:25-24:3
20:21-24:2
24:3
Day4 24:4-8
24:9-14
[6 days] 24:15-17
[40 days] 24:18-32:6 .
Day 51 32:7-14
32:15-18
32:19-29
Day 52 32:30
32:31-35
33:1-34:3
Day 53 34:4
[40 days] 34:5-28
34:29
35. For even more difficulties, see Blenkinsopp, The Pentateuch, 183; Sprinkle,
"The Book ofthe Covenant," 18-19. Sprinkle makes an interesting argument defend-
ing the literary integrity of this text, suggesting that the Hebrew Bible employs a
technique whereby the text tells a story once and then retells it from a slightly
different perspective (19: 16-25//20:1-23:33//24:1-3a), expanding details and carry-
ing the narrative forward in some respects. One wonders, however, if all the diffi-
culties are truly resolved in this manner (though certainly, whoever the final redactor
was, he/she must have thought that the text made sense as it stands).
36. Daniel C. Arichea, "The Ups and Downs of Moses: Locating Moses in
Exodus 19-33," BT40 (1989):.244-46.
Given this situation, tracing the chronology ofExod 19-24 is an almost

hopeless task. However, at least two things regarding the chronology can
be known with certainty. First, the Israelites arrived in the wilderness of
Sinai on III/1 (Exod 19:1 ), and, second, at least four days elapse between
the arrival of the Israelites at Sinai and Moses' ascension of Mt. Sinai
to receive the two tablets of the testimony ( n1~v nh? '~1fi, 31:18). 37
Unfortunately, there is no indication in the text concerning when the four-
day count begins. This, of course, leaves enough ambiguity to satisfy
either the rabbinic dating of the Festival of Weeks to Sivan 5-7, or the
Jubilean dating ofiii/15. 3R
2.1.1. The Priestly Solar Calendar. Annie Jaubert has argued that the
calendar of the Pentateuch, in particular that of the Priestly Code,
· corresponds to the 364-day solar calendar found in the book ofJubilees. 39
Since the 364-day solar calendar is exactly divisible by seven into 52
weeks, every date of the year would fall on the same week4ay from year
to year. From the book of Jubilees Jaubert determined that Ill had to be
Wednesday. She arrived at this conclusion through the following reason-
ing.40 InJub. 15:1 and 16:13, the Festival ofWeeks is celebrated in the
middle of the third month. The middle of the month is the 15th day,
according to Jub. 44:1-5. Since the Festival of Weeks is supposed to
take place 49 days after the waving of the ,~V (Lev. 23: 15-16 and Dent
16:9-10), I/25 must be a sabbath. Working.back from this assumption,
she determined that Ill must be a Wednesday. Since the sun, moon, and
stars are created on the fourth day of the week (i.e. Wednesday), this all
fits together quite neatly. 4J
37. Annie Jaubert's ("Jesus et le Calendrier de Qumran," NTS 7 [1960--61]: 2)

analysis of the chronology ofExod 19-24 indicates a span of five days (Wednesday
[III/11] to Monday [III/16]), however, she mistakenly adds an extra day of prepa-
ration (Exod 19:10-14).
38. Because of the vagaries of the lunar calendar, the Festival of Weeks could
fall on any one of three days (5-7) in the third month (Sivan) for the rabbis.
39. Jaubert, "Le calendrier des Jubiles et de Ia secte de Qumran"; idem, "Le
- calendrier des Jubih\s et les jours liturgiques de Ia semaine"; idem, The Date ofthe
Last Supper. For a good summary of Jaubert's hypothesis and detailed engagement
with subsequent scholarly work, see VanderKam, "The 364-Day Calendar."
40. Jaubert, "Le calendrier des Jubiles et de Ia secte de Qumran," 251-52.
41. Jaubert begins from the suggestion of Dominique Barthelemy ("Notes en
marge de publications recentes sur les manuscrits de Qumran," RB 59 [1952]: 199-
203) that the year began on Wednesday because the sun, moon, and stars (i.e. the
basis of any calendar) were created on the fourth day.
Jaubert then confirmed this hypothesis by determining whether the

patriarchs were ever depicted as traveling on the Sabbath, 42 making a
detailed listing of the various passages in the book of Jubilees where
dates when patriarchs traveled were either explicit or could be inferred.
Jaubert found that there was only one day of the week when no patriarch
traveled, and logically concluded that this must be the sabbath (Jub.
50:12 prohibits travel on the sabbath). This only worked when Ill was a
Wednesday.
Jaubert's careful examination of the book of Jubilees, then, results in
the following calendrical schema:
Table 7. The Jubilean Calendar43
Weekday IV VII X II V VIII XI Ill VI IX XII
4 Wednesday 8 15 22 29 6 13 20 27 4 11 18 25
5 Thursday 2 9 16 23 30 7 14 21 28 5 12 19 26
6 Friday 3 10 17 24 8 15 22 29 6 13 20 27
7 Saturday 4 11 18 25 2 9 16 23 30 7 14 21 28
I Sunday 5 12 19 26 3 10 17 24 8 15 22 29
2 Monday 6 13 20 27 4 11 18 25 2 9 16 23 30
3 Tuesday 7 14 21 28 5 12 19 26 3 10 17 24 31
Jaubert then investigated the possibility that this calendar predated the
book of Jubilees. Noting that the Priestly source dates events with num-
bered months and days rather than named months (as can be found in
some other biblical passages and later in rabbinic texts), she studied the
travel dates in the Hexateuch presupposing the 364-day solar calendar of
the book of Jubilees. She discovered that no patriarch ever travels on the
sabbath when the dates are reckoned according to the 364-day solar
calendar. This also held true for other books that used numbered months
and days, such as Ezekiel, Haggai, Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah. 44
Jaubert's thesis raises a corollary suggestion that Jubilees' scheme of
assigning the Festival of Weeks to III/15 may also be supported by the
Hebrew Bible. While there is a tantalizing chronological notice in 2 Chr
15:10 involving month (III) and regnal year (15), there is no solid
42. Jaubert, "Le calendrier des Jubiles et de 1a secte de Qumran," 252-53.

43. Jaubert, "Le calendrier des Jubiles," 253.
44. Her thesis is still quite controversial, but calendar matters in the Hebrew
Bible being what they are, this is hardly surprising. See the review of Jaubert's thesis
by VanderKam ("The 364-day Calendar") for an analysis of the literature and a
defense of her thesis that the 364-day calendar was used in the Priestly portions of
the Hebrew Bible.
indication that the Hebrew Bible ever definitively dates the Festival of
Weeks to III/15. 45
Jaubert's thesis has greater repercussions for the history ofJudaism. If
Jaubert is correct, it appears that calendrical systems likely changed more
than once over the history of Israel and Judaism up to the rabbinic era. 46
Given the tumultuous nature of Judaism, with its competing sects and
religious practices, it appears that calendrical differences may have
played a large part in the disagreements among Jews. 47 Certainly a differ-
ence over the calendar would represent a serious rupture within any
conununity that places such importance on holy days. 48 If different Jews
celebrated important religious festivals on different days due to differing
understandings of when such a festival was to be held, then there was a
potential for discord.
It is probable that this was one of the foundational disputes that led the
Qumran community to make a decisive break with the Temple leadership
during the Maccabean era. 49 Specifically, it appears likely that the solar
calendar established early in the Second Temple era as represented by
the Priestly tradition, was replaced by a lunisolar calendar by the Seleu-
cid administration and later kept by the Maccabeans. 50 Since the Essenes
were traditionalists and insisted on adhering to the "traditional" solar
calendar (which ironically was likely an innovation introduced during an
earlier period), they split with the Jerusalem priesthood.
2.2. King Asa 's Covenant Renewal Ceremony: 2 Chronicles 15:8-15

Aside from the chronological note in Exod 19:1, the only other text that
suggests a connection between covenant and the Festival of Weeks is
2 Chr 15:8-15:
C'¥lPWiJ i:;;UJ.~l i'tDJ;1iJ N':;l?iJ i1V m;n:J.~iJ] il~~i;l t:l'!:tiiJ Nl;'l:;ll1bo/:;>] '
' ' n:;no-nN
i11i1'
-' . ., 1/i-:rn'l
.-'- C'i.!lN -.. ;:::~;
." ., ;no -' i11iN
., ., C'il1il"JI:l1
.' ., . Jl:l'J:J.l
;n)n: nim' fiN-;:!Io
C~1N 'J~~ i~~
45. On this, see further below on 2 Chr 15.

46. It appears likely that at varying times in Israel's and Judaea's histories, they
had lunar and solar calendrical systems, including periods when they utilized both
(i.e. cultic solar calendar coupled with a secular lunar calendar).
47. This is indeed the thesis of James C. VanderKam, "2 Maccabees 6,7A and
Calendrical Change in Jerusalem," in VanderKam, ed., From Revelation to Canon,
105-27.
48. Edward P. Sanders, Judaism: Practice and Belief, 63 BCE-66 CE (Phila-
delphia: Trinity Press International, 1992), 352, 360-63.
49. VanderKam, "2 Maccabees 6, 7A," 121-27
50. Ibid.
1?!ll"':;) JiV1:11z.lm i1Wll:l1 0'1!lND Oi1T;Jll 0'1li11 JD'l:ll i1ili1'"':;)"nN y3p'1 9

· • · · · · ., -· · -· ;;iJll ;',;;sN i1;~;~,:;)· onN.,~ ::1~, sN.,lv'D ;;sll
:Nlp~ m:J7T;l7 i11o/!J"W~t) nJ~7 ,1z>;7~iJ iryfi~ q7~1i·: ;~~W'1 '1J
n:P:tW !Nll] niNT;l V:;l~ 1i?~ 1N'=;liJ ??o/iJ"lT;l Nli1iJ Di'~ i1!i1'7 m~r1 11
:O'!l?N
:OW!ll"?:J:J1 O:J:l?-?:J:J 0i1'ni:JN 'ii?N i11i1'-nN Wi11? n'1:J:J lN.J.;1' li
W'~,T;l~- ;;1~-i!Ji ibi?·i~7 nl?l' ?~~~,:;0?~ ,i11~'71Zi'11'·N;·.:,~~ ?:ii 13
:i1111N"ill1
:ni1-9iW:t1 ni1¥!lQ:;I1 i1lJ11J;l=;l1 ?ii1 ?ip~ i1)i1'7 lV~~~1 -14
li1o/i?~ O~iliT\l:t11V~~~ D:t:t7·?:;9 ':;> i1lJ1:lo/iJ"?!1 i11m:-?;> in/?o/'1 15
::l'=;!lpT;l DQ7 i1Ji1: nJ:1 CQ7 N¥1?'1
8 And when Asa heard these words and the prophecy which [Azariah the
son of] 51 Oded the prophet spoke, he took courage and removed the
abominable idols from all the land of Judah and Benjamin and from the
cities which he had captured in the hill country of Ephraim. He then
restored the altar of YHWH which was in front of the porch of YHWH.
9 And he gathered all Judah and Benjamin and those from Ephraim,
Manasseh, and Simeon who resided with them, for many fell away to him
from Israel when they saw that YHWH his God was with him. 10 And they
assembled at Jerusalem in the third month of the fifteenth year of Asa's
reign. 11 And they sacrificed to YHWH that day from the spoil they
brought, 700 oxen and 7000 sheep. 12 And they entered into the covenant
to seek YHWH the God of their fathers with all their heart and with all
their soul; 13 and all who did not seek YHWH the God oflsrael should be
put to death, whether small or great, man or woman. 14 And they swore an
oath to YHWH with a loud voice and with shouting and with trumpets and
with horns. 15 And all Judah rejoiced concerning the oath, for with all
their heart they had sworn, and with all their goodwill they had sought
him, and he was found by them. And YHWH gave them rest on every side.
(2 Chr 15:8-15)
Like the chronological notice in Exod 19:1 which specifies the month but
not the date, Asa's covenant renewal is held in the third month, though
the exact date is not givenY
However, in this case, there can be little doubt that the Festival of
Weeks is implied. In vv. 14-15 there is a pun based on the similarity
between the word for "seven" (V:~11p, i1.V:;t1P), "week, weeks" (~~:11p,
niv~1p), and V:J1V ("to swear"), which is found three times in these
51. Cf. 2 Chr 15: I.

52. In light of the fact that the book of Jubilees assigns the fifteenth day of the
third month as the Festival of Jubilees, it is at least interesting to note that the
fifteenth is mentioned in connection with Asa's covenant renewal, even though it
refers to the regnal year, rather than the date (VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks,"
187-88).
verses. 5 3 It may be that the name of the Festival was seen to derive not
from "week" (l?~:np) or "weeks" (niVtJo/) but "oath" (il~~:lo/) or "oaths"
(niV~:IW). 54 An unpainted text ( n1V:11V .m) would be ambiguous,
allowing for either reading, depending on how it was vocalized (Exod
34:22; Deut 16:10). One could easily see how a connection could be
made between a "Festival of Oaths" and covenant renewal. Indeed, oaths
were a crucial pa1i of the covenant (cf. Exod 19:8; 24:3).
2.3. Daniel
Jan van Goudoever argues that the liturgical backgroundofDan 10-12 is
the counting of the seven weeks to the Festival of Weeks and that the
1335 days of Dan 12:12 relates to this countdown. 55 His suggestion is
based on the idea that the book of Daniel uses the same 364-day solar
calendar that is found in the book of Jubilees.
One of the keys to van Goudoever's argument is the date of Daniel's
vision in Dan 10-12. He notes that based on Jubilees' calendar, 1124
(Dan 10:4) falls on the Friday before the Sunday when the counting to
the Festival of Weeks begins. In order to make his case that the vision of
Dan 10-12 has this seven-week period leading to the Festival of Weeks
as its background, van Goudoever attempts to argue that the contents of
the vision narrated .in chs. 11-12 take place on 1/26. However, his
argument that Dan 10:19 refers to the Sabbath (1125; i.e. the day before
the counting begins) is problematic since there is no indication in the text
that a day has lapsed between vv. 17 and 18. 56 Nor does Dan 10:21
indicate any further date shift to 1126 (Sunday). 57
Even more problematic is van Goudoever's contention that the 1335
days of Dan 12:12 relates to the Festival of Weeks. He argues that the
1290 days mentioned in Dan 12:11 are a reference to the calendar
speculation found at the end of Dan 9. 58 This is certainly plausible.
53. Lohse, TDNT 6:48; Japhet, I & If Chronicles, 724-25; De Vries, "Festival
Ideology in Chronicles," 109. On the difference between oaths and vows, see Tony
W. Cartledge, Vows in the Hebrew BibleandtheAncient Near East (JSOTSup 147;
Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1992), 15-16.
54. Japhet (I & II Chronicles, 725) cites Jub. 6:11, 17 (cf. Gen 9:9-16) as evi-
dence for the connection between oath and the Festival of Weeks.
55. Jan van Goudoever, "Time Indications in Daniel that Reflect the Usage of the
Ancient Theoretical So-called Zadokite Calendar," in The Book of Daniel in the
Light of New Findings (ed. Ad~m S. van der Woude; Leuven: Leuven University
Press, 1993), 533-38.
56. Ibid., 536.
57. Ibid.
58. Ibid., 538.
However, based on the assumption that Daniel agrees with the author of
Jubilees that the Festival of Weeks is held on III/15, he argues that 1335
refers to 1260 days-or, three and a half years (undeniably an important
concept in Daniel)-plus 75 days. 59 If one is to begin the count of the 75
days from I/1 (which he argues is the date on which Daniel began his
fast), 75 days later is III/15, the Festival of Weeks. 60 This would cohere
with the fact that "this apocalypse describes the struggle of the end-time
in terms of a war against the 'holy covenant', because the Feast ofWeeks
is the festival of Covenant par excellence." 61
Van Goudoever's hypothesis is not without its problems, however.
First, it is not at all clear that Daniel begins his fast on Ill. Daniel
receives his vision on I/24 (Dan 10:4), which is three weeks (Dan 10:2-3)
or 21 days (Dan 10: 13) after his period of mourning or fasting. The num-
bers simply do not add up to Ill as the beginning of the fasting period. In
order to arrive at this number, van Goudoever argues that the Sabbaths
should be excluded. 62 This seems rather arbitrary and forced. Second, in
order to make the numbers work, he has to switch calendars. The only
way 1260 days can equal three and a half years is if van Goudoever
abandons the 364-day calendar (364 times 3.5 equals 1274, not 1260;
1260 equals 180 weeks or 3 years and 24 weeks) and uses the luni-solar
calendar of either 354 days (with intercalation allowed for) or a different
solar calendar of 360 days (with no intercalation). It appears that van
Goudoever assumes the latter, but he fails to explain how this all works. 63
Gabriele Boccaccini has a more consistent explanation, arguing that
Daniel used a sabbatical calendar of360 days plus four intercalary times
(i.e. the equinoxes and solstices). 64 He appeals to 1 Enoch, which
59. Ibid., 537, 538.

60. Ibid., 535.
61. Ibid., 538. He cites Dan 11:28, 30, 32 in support.
62. Ibid., 535.
63. Ibid., 538. According to Jack Finegan (Handbook of Biblical Chronology:
Principles of Time Reckoning in the Ancient World and Problems ofChronology in
the Bible [Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1964], 23-24, 68), one ofthe Egyp-
tian calendars (they used three different systems at varying times) had a year of360
days (12 months of 30 days each) as did the Macedonian calendar used in Arabia.
John J. Collins (A Commentary on the Book of Daniel [Hermeneia; Minneapolis:
Fortress, 1993], 400--401) argues that while the method of calculation is uncertain,
the two different numbers are readily explained by the necessity of revising the
original prediction (1290 to 1335 days) when the prophecy did not come true on the
basis of the original calculation.
64. Gabriele Boccaccini, "The Solar Calendars of Daniel and Enoch," in The
Book of Daniel: Composition and Reception (ed. J. J. Collins and P. W. Flint;
VTSup 83; Leiden: Brill, 2001), 2:311-28.
provides some evidence of the use of a 360-day calendar among the

author's contemporaries as the basis of the longer 364-day solar calendar
(I En 74:10-11; 75:1-2). 65 The author of the Astronomical Book (1 En
72-82) was concerned with those who failed to include the four inter-
calary days in the solar year, not those who used the lunar calendar. 66
Apparently, some of the author's contemporaries were not counting the
extra four days of the equinoxes and solstices as "days."67 It is clear that
for the author of Revelation 1260 days implied a year of 360 days
because of the various ways in which he expresses a 3.5 year time
period: "42 months" (Rev 11 :2; 13:5), "1260 days" (11:3; 12:6), and "a
time, two times, and a halftime" (12:14). 68
Boccaccini concludes that "Daniel knew a 360+4 day sabbatical calen-
dar made up of 12 months of 30 days each, plus four intercalary times
(i.e. the equinoxes and solstices) that were added between seasons but
not counted in the reckoning of the days of the year." 69 Daniel's calcula-
tion must have begun on the fall equinox of 167 B.C.E., which marked
the mid-point of the last week of years and the beginning of Antiochus' s
persecution.7° Adding 1335 days (Dan 12:12) from this point, one does
indeed arrive at III/15 of 163 B.C.E. 71 It is indeed an attractive hypothesis,
but one that must remain in the realm of speculation at this point. 72
3. The Sinai Event Associated with the Festival ofBooths

Scholars have often associated covenant renewal with the Festival of
Booths. The reports concerning Solomon and Jeroboam's religious pro-
gram confirm that the Festival of Booths was the principal annmil pilgri-
mage. There are two main theories regarding the character and makeup
of this festival. They are typically associated with one of two labels:
(1) the "enthronement festival," and (2) the "covenant renewal festival."
65. Ibid., 313-20.

66. VanderKam, "2 Maccabees 6:7a," 110; cf. James C. VanderKam, Calendars
in the Dead Sea Scrolls: Measuring Time (London: Routledge, 1998), 25-26.
67. Boccaccini, "Solar Calendars," 315-16.
68. On this, see the comments of David E. Aune, Revelation (WBC 52A-C; 3
vols.; Dallas: Word, 1997, 1998), 2:608-11, 691.
69. Boccaccini, "The Solar Calendars," 325-26.
70. Ibid., 323.
71. Ibid.
Ti. For one thing, the whole scheme assumes that the beginning of the reckoning
of the weeks of years is I/1, something that might plausibly be assumed but is not
explicit in the text.
There are variations within each of these main theories, but the main
elements are sufficiently similar that the bulk of the scholarly discussion
can be classified into one or the other of these main theories.
Sigmund Mowinckel theorized that the Israelites celebrated a New
Year's Day festival in the autumn (VWl-21), the occasion of which was
the enthronement ofYHWH. 73 He suggested that this festival borrowed
from the Babylonian Akitu (New Year) festival and the Canaanite harvest
festival. 74 The separate holidays represented by the Festival of Trumpet
Blasts (VW1), Day of Atonement (VW10), and Festival of Booths
(VII/15-22) were all celebrated together at one time in Israel's history.
At the heart of this festival was a procession involving the ark of the
covenant to dramatize the enthronement of YHWH. The king, as the
leader of the procession, was YHWH's representative on earth. Further-
more, in addition to many other rites and observances, he argued that at
this great autumn festival, the Israelites observed a covenant renewal rite
at the Temple in Jerusalem. 75 The evidence that Mowinckel accumulated
to prove his thesis was largely implicit. Based on form-critical study of
the Psalms and other biblical passages, he identified certain texts as
related to various aspects of the festival. 76
Likewise, Gerhard von Rad discounted the possibility that a covenant
festival was associated with the Festival ofWeeks largely based on Deut
31:10-11 and Neb 8, which associate covenant renewal with the Festival
of Booths. 77 Against Mowinckel, however, von Rad argues that this
73. Sigmund Mowinckel, The Psalms in Israel's Worship (trans. D. R. Ap-

Thomas; 2 vols. in I; The Biblical Seminar 14; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1992; repr. of
Oxford: Blackwell, 1962), 106-92.
74. Ibid., I :30-36, theorized that the Israelites changed the content and spirit of
the festival and made it uniquely their own (1: 136). On the Akitu festival, see Tikva
S. Frymer-Kensky, "The Tribulations of Marduk: The So-called 'Marduk Ordeal
Text,"' JAOS 103 (1983): 131-41; Karel vanderToom, "The Babylonian New Year
Festival: New Insights from the Cuneiform Texts and Their Bearing on Old Testa-
ment Study," in Congress Volume: Leuven, 1989 (ed. J. A. Emerton; VTSup 43;
Leiden: Brill, 1991); Jacob Klein, "Akitu," ABD 1:138-40; Cohen, Cultic Calen-
dars; Allan R. Petersen, The Royal God: Enthronement Festivals in Ancient Israel
and Ugarit? (JSOTSup 259; Copenhagen International Seminar 5; Sheffield: Shef-
field Academic Press, 1998).
75. See especially, Mowinckel, Le decalogue, 121-29.
76. Hermann Gunkel and Joachim Begrich (Introduction to Psalms: The Genres
of the Religious Lyric of Israel [trans. J. D. Nogalski; Mercer Library of Biblical
Studies; Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, 1998]) criticize Mowinckel for not
being rigorous enough in his selection of which psalms belonged to the festival. For
a recent critique of Mowinckel' s theory, see Petersen, The Royal God.
77. Von Rad, "The Form-Critical Problem of the Hexateuch," 33-40.
3, Sinai Traditions and the Festival of Weeks 65
covenant festival was associated with Shechem (cf. Deut 11 :26-32; 27-
28; Josh 8:30-35; 24), not Jerusalem. 7R
Artur Weiser, who similarly dates this covenant ceremony to the New
Year's festival in the autumn, notes that the agriculturally based cultus of
the harvest festivals plays a remarkably small role in the Psalms (cf. Pss
65, 67, 85, 126) and argues that it is therefore illegitimate, as Gunkel
does, to start from these agricultural festivals as their true Sitz im Leben. 79
Rather, Weiser argues, the starting point should be the situation which
prevails in the Psalms, namely, the YHWH tradition, which had its Sitz im
Leben in the covenant festival celebrated by the tribal confederacy of
Israel. 80
Despite disagreements over specifics, all of these scholars note that
there is a strong link between covenant renewal and the Festival of
Booths. This is likely influenced by the fact that the Festival of Booths
was traditionally the most popular and thus the most important of the
three great festivals. There are two texts on which this link is typically
based: Deut 31:10-11 and Neh 7:72b-8:18. Recently, it has been argued
that Pss 50 and 81 show evidence of a link between the Festival ofWeeks
and a covenant renewal festival. Each of these will be treated in tum.
3 .1. Deuteronomy 31:9-13

Deuteronomy 31:10-13 assigns the Festival of Booths as the date ofthe
septennial haqhel ceremony when the whole nation gathers to hear a
communal reading of the Torah:
liit-t-nt-t o•t-tiv.ii1 •1'J 'l:!l D'Ji1::li1-'7t-t i'lll'1'1 nNm i1iini1-nt-t i1WI:l :lh:J'1 •
., ., . . - .. . , .., - ., " -:'7t-tiW".ipr.:'7.,-~tot1 ·.M1i1' n~,:!!.
:nbOi1ln:!l i11!l/JWi1 mu> illl:l:!!. D'lW V:lW fPD.ib.N7 oniN'i1u)l:l' ,~,,·t.
-- 16~· :,~~ -o;p,P~ ~-v~~ ~ii1: ;J~-n~ ·niNl~- 7~1~p~-7~ Ni;~ 11
:DQ'JTl;9 7~)ip~-7f i~~ nNtlJ i1)inlJ-ntt M)i?l'1
!lliJ71 lV/JW' llll:l7 ;'f'illW:!!. iWN ;'fil1 'J'I!li11 0'W~i11 0'WlNi1 Dlli1-ntot 7i1pi1 12
- - ' :n~;~ ~1;rm .:,~~~7:!!:;.;N nii»ll~ ~1nwi o~'i1;N· ~ii1•-nN 1N.,,, -i~n7•
1u>N o•n·~-;; o;·;;~N ·m~·-n·N i1N.;~s mJs,·,voU>· ;},;;-~; ..;-u>N o~·J::~1·~;
., -, ··- :i'l~~;~· i1~~·ri1~;J-n~ o·1~v·o~~ 1w~ i191~v-~~-o·:D .o~J~
9 And Moses wrote this torah and he gave it to the priests, the sons of
Levi who carried the ark of the covenant ofYHWH, and to all the elders of
Israel. 10 And Moses commanded them saying, "At the end of seven years,
at the appointed time of the year of the remission of debts, at the Festival
of Booths, 11 when all Israel comes to appear before YHWH your God in
78. Ibid., 36-40.

79. Artur Weiser, The Psalms: A Commentary (London: SCM Press, 1962
[1959]), 27.
80. Ibid.
the place which he will choose, you shall read this torah in front of all
Israel in their hearing. 12 Assemble the people, the men and the women,
and the children, and your stranger who is in your gates, so that they will
hear and so that they will learn and fear YHWH your God and carefully
observe all the words of this torah. 13 And their children who have not
known will hear and learn to fear YHWH your God all the days which you
live upon the land which you are crossing the Jordan to possess. (Deut
31:9-13)
This indicates that the Festival of Booths was the principal festival and
required a pilgrimage to the central sanctuary.
Because of the requirement to read the Torah publicly every seven
years at the Festival of Booths, some scholars have suggested that this
festival was associated with covenant renewal. 81 Certainly, from the
surrounding context, this is a logical inference. A covenant ceremony in
Moab (Deut 29) and prescriptions concerning a restoration of an interior
covenant (i.e. written on the heart) after exile (Deut 30) immediately
precede this injunction. However, it should be noted that there is no
explicit prescription in this text for a covenant renewal to be held along
with the reading of the Torah at the Festival ofBooths. 82
In Deut 17:18-20 there is a similar injunction to "write" (:J.n:J) and
"read" (N1jJ), only in this case it is not the public that is explicitly in
view, but the king. 83 Given the similarity between these two injunctions,
however, there is certainly a close relationship between the texts.
1!J0-'7ll nl-im ;ninil mwo-mt i'7 :m:n im'7oo N~~ '7ll in::t1V::J il'ill "
.. . - • . . ' . ., . • ' ' . • - ;·0'1'7~ O'J~~·il ,j~~IJ
1b1Z>'7 m7N illil'-nN i1N1''7 10'7' llliJ'7 l"n 'IJ'-'7:::! i::t ·N:,p, i~u ~n;~; i.
· · • ·•· • · :on;;lls ·il'i1N~ O'P~il:nNi. nNtil il,ir.;~ ,,~,.-~~:nN
o'Q: 1!'1~~ nn~? '71NIJo/11~Q:-·~w~;J:lQ ..;1o -,~?~~~ l'Q~G i::~:t~-oi; ·,~~:;~? 2;,
:'7!!t")o/~ :l"]i?:t l'~:tl Nlil in~?/?G-'7.!'
18 "And it shall come about when he sits on the throne of his kingdom, he
shall write for himself a copy of this torah on a scroll in the presence of
the Levitical priests. 19 And it shall be with him, and he shall read it all
the days of his life, that he may learn to fear the YHWH his God, by
carefully observing all the words of this torah and these statutes, 20 that
81. Alt, "The Origins of Israelite Law," 126-27; von Rad "The Form-Critical
Problem of the Hexateuch," 35.
82. Weinfeld, "The Uniqueness ofthe Decalogue," 27. A prescription to read the
Law in and of itself does not necessarily imply a command to renew the covenant.
83. The rabbis called this "the paragraph of the King" (m. Sot. 7:2, 8). It was to
be read every seventh year at the Festival of Booths, explicitly alluding to Deut
31: I 0.
his heart may not be lifted up above his brothers and that he may not tum
aside from the commandment, to the right or the left; in order that he and
his sons may have length of days in his kingdom in the midst of Israel."
(Deut 17: 18-20)
This particular stipulation envisions a future time when the Israelites

have completed the conquest of the Promised Land and will desire to set
a king over themselves (Deut 17:14). When this happens, the king-who
is to be an Israelite-is prohibited from increasing horses, wives, and
money. The reason for this is that power, lust, and greed (which corres-
ponds to horses, wives, and money) have a tendency to divert a king's
attention from what is truly important: fidelity to God. 84
To ensure the king's fidelity to God, then, the king is to write a copy
of the Torah and read it all the days of his life. 85 The king, it seems,
serves as a model Israelite who is depicted as reading the Torah on a
daily basis. The typical Israelite (who is clearly in mind in Deut 31:9-
13), who cannot be expected to live up to this lofty standard (for one
thing, an ordinary Israelite would hardly have the leisure time to read the
Torah daily, much less the ability to read or even the financial where-
withal of owning a copy of the Torah), is nevertheless expected to listen
to the Torah being read out loud every seven years at the Festival of
Booths. After all, if one is to be faithful to the covenant, one must be
continually reminded of just exactly what this entails.
3.2. Nehemiah 8
Nehemiah 7:72b-10:40 is the crux and climax of the entire Ezra-
Nehemiah narrative. 86 This is signaled by the fact that, for the first time,
84. Cf. 1 Kgs 10:1-11:13 where Solomon's heart turns from God because of
horses, wives, and money, which dovetail with the injunctions in Deut 17: 14-20.
85. Jean-Pierre Sonnet (The Book Within the Book: Writing in Deuteronomy
[Biblical Interpretation Series 14; Leiden: Brill, 1997], 73) notes that, like many
royal figures in the ancient Near East, the Israelite king is associated with writing,
but unlike other kings in the ancient Near East, the act of writing in the case of the
Israelite king does not come at his initiative, but as a stipulation enjoined upon him
by God. See also his discussion of the association of writing with kings of the ancient
Near East on pp. 72-73.
86. Michael W. Duggan, The Covenant Renewal in Ezra-Nehemiah (7:72b-
10:40): An Exegetical, Literary, and Theological Study (SBLDS 164; Atlanta: SBL,
2001), 1, 67. As Duggan notes, the concluding section of Ezra-Nehemiah (Neh
12:44-13:31) simply implements the covenant stipulations enumerated in Neh 10:1-
40. Joseph Blenkinsopp (Ezra-Nehemiah: A Commentary [OTL; Philadelphia: West-
minster, 1988], 281) identifies 7:5b--10:40 as the unit, which he views as an inser-
tion. Within this unit, Blenkinsopp also discerns evidence of redaction (pp. 284-86).
the two main figures are mentioned together in this section (Neb 8:9).
The narrative of the covenant renewal represents the defining moment in
the post-exilic community. 87
The reading of the law in Neb 7:72b-8: 18 is decisively influenced by
Deut 31:9-13. 88 In Deut 31:11, YHWH commands the Israelites to read
the Torah during the Festival of Booths. Having completed the wall of
Jerusalem on the 25th ofElul (Neb 6:15), Ezra reads from the Torah
during the length of the Festival of Booths to the first returned exiles
gathered together to celebrate the feast (Neb 8: 18). 89
Table 8. Festivals in Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah 90

Occasion Festival Passage
Dedication of the First Temple Booths 2 Chr 5-7
Completion of Hezekiah's reforms Passover 2 Chr30
Completion of Josiah's reforms Passover 2 Chr 35:1-19
Conclusion of the first return Booths Ezra3:1-4
Completion of the Second Temple Passover Ezra 6:19-22
Completion of Ezra's reforms Booths Neh 8:13-18
On the delimitation of this section, see the arguments of Duggan (Covenant

Renewal, 68-73). James C. V anderKam ("Ezra-Nehemiah or Ezra and Nehemiah?,"
in VanderKam, ed., From Revelation to Canon, 60-80), following Japhet among
others, argues that Ezra and Nehemiah should be considered as separate works. In
the present study a synchronic approach will be adopted, which should not be taken
to mean that the merits of these diachronic arguments are being denied.
87. Duggan, Covenant Renewal, 67. On the possibility that the Pentateuch was
authorized by and fonned under the influence of the Persian Empire, see the collec-
tion of essays edited by James W. Watts, Persia and Torah: The Theory ofimperial
Authorization of the Pentateuch (SBLSS 17; Atlanta: SBL, 2001).
88. Duggan, Covenant Renewal, 98.
89. There is some ambiguity concerning dates in Neh 8. The discovery in the
Torah concerning the Festival of Booths took place on VII/2. The next date identi-
fied in the text is VII/24, where the Israelites gather to confess their sins (Neh 9: 1).
Sometime between these dates, the Israelites take eight days to celebrate the Festival
of Booths, but nowhere is the precise date given. Compare this with the fact that the
earlier sources similarly do not identify a precise dating for this festival (Exod 23: 16;
34:22; Deut 16: 13-15; cf. Lev 23:34, 39; Num 29: 12). Also, the Day of Atonement,
which-according to the Priestly tradition-is supposed to be observed on VII/10
(Lev 16:29; 23:26-32; Num29:7-ll), is not mentioned at all for this period, which
is a bit curious given the fact that in Neh 9 the Israelites make confession for their
sins (on Vll/24).
90. Blenkinsopp, Ezra-Nehemiah, 290.
As Blenkinsopp notes, liturgical occasions such as these are important in

the structure of the history as a whole. Despite the celebration of the
Festival of Booths recorded in 2 Chr 5-7 and Ezra 3:1-4, it is only
dming the celebration recorded in Neh 8:13-18 that the leaders oflsrael
discover that the Israelites are supposed to live in booths during this
festival. This prescription is based on some version of Lev 23:39-43 [H):
UhJ;l flt;li;J n~1::1J;l-n~ C~-\ll(t;l~ 'l,l':;l~;:l W!h'? Ci' '1o/lJ <l~l;lt):;t 'lflct 39
:Jin::llz.i 'J'IJW<l Ci':l1 Jin:J1V JiWN'101 Ci':J C'IJ' 1"11l::IW 01101'-ln-nN
n::t.~J-1>!1 .,j~/1 'c;.,9I;l- nb:;J 11i;il'!' ,:_;-llTiu>t-t.,6 'c;·~. o~? o~t;~~71 :.
:C'I:I' nv::~w C:l'<17N .,,.,, 'Jrl' cnniJi!ll ?m-':J'11ll
'l,l':;l~;:l W'!h:;t C~'IJ'l'17 c?iJ; j,~~ '~~~~ 0'0: n~~~- n!.,,$)6 inN Dl)lD)-· 1
:inN uhn
:n3t:~:J 1::1W' ?N'1iV':J n'"llN<l-?::J C'IJ' 1"11l::IW 1::11Vl'l n3t:~:J ;,
1'1~9 CJ;liN 'W¥i<l~-~lctl~; '~~-;,~ ~l'9W;-~ ni~p:;~. ;:;J o~'D'l'1 1v1; J!'Q~ .,
:C~'DJ~ <1!<1; '~~ C'l¥1;1
39 On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered the
crops of the land, you shall celebrate the festival of YHWH seven days
with a rest on the first day and a rest on the eighth day. 40 And you shall
take for yourselves on the first day, fruit of beautiful trees, palm leaves,
and branches ofleaf)r trees and willows ofthe brook, and you shall rejoice
before YHWH your God for seven days. 41 And you shall celebrate it as a
festival for YHWH seven days in the year. It is a perpetual statute for your
generations. In the seventh month you shall celebrate it. 42 In booths you
shall dwell seven days. All the native Israelites shall dwell in booths 43 so
that your generations may know that I caused the sons oflsrael-when I
brought them out of the land of Egypt-to dwell in booths. I am YHWH
your God. (Lev 23:39-43)
If the injunction is compared with what Ezra and the leaders of Israel
actually have the Israelites carry out, there are some discrepancies.
lN':l<ll '10101 1Nll '1iJN? c?1Vl'1'::11 C<1''11l-?:J:J ?ip l'1'::11l'l 1V'IJW' '1WN1
::llnf:;l n3'p niop'? njlJ l'~ '~~l C'!9J;l 01'Q '7.P,l JI?~-;;~-,7.P,l'n~y--;~P.
;;P,i
And they announced and sent a proclamation to all the cities and Jerusa-
lem, saying, "Go out to the mountains and bring boughs of olive trees and
boughs of oil trees and boughs of myrtle trees and boughs of palm trees
and boughs ofleafy trees to make booths, as it is written." (Neh 8:15)
There are two major discrepancies: 91

1. Leviticus 23 appears to describe two separate rituals that Neh 8
combines, namely, the collection of branches and leaves, and the
dwelling in booths. In Neh 8, it is clear that the branches are
91. Jeffrey L. Rubenstein, The History of Sukkot in the Second Temple and
Rabbinic Periods (BJS 302; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1995), 36.
collected in order to make the booths. This is not what Lev 23:40
prescribes. 92
2. The list of plants and the specific parts of the various plants do not
match in more than half of the details.
It appears likely that while the post-exilic community was generally
familiar with the main elements of the legislation as reflected in Lev
23:39-43, it was using a slightly different version of the Pentateuch. 93
The discrepancies can then be attributed to divergent sources or textual
traditions. 94
Leviticus 23:42-43 identifies the origins of the sukkah as a remem-
brance of the time when the Israelites lived in booths during the wilder-
ness period in the desert (cf. Hos 12:9). 95 Historically, however, the
sukkah probably originated from the booths built in the fields throughout
the harvest and gathering season. 96 That the sukkah is of relatively recent
vintage appears to be indicated by the fact that the author of Nehemiah
states that this ritual had not been observed since the days ofJoshua (Neh
8: 17). 97 At any rate, Lev 23:42-43 represents a historicizing trend that
can also be seen with respect to Passover/Unleavened Bread.
Table 9. Historicization of the Three Main Festivals
Festival Event Passage

Passover/Unleavened Bread Exodus Exodus 12
Weeks (Sinai?) (Exod 19:1)
Booths Wilderness Lev 23:42-43
92. Since one of the things that Lev 23:40 requires an Israelite to collect is "fruit"
('!-\1 ), it seems unlikely that Lev 23:40 has in mind that these materials are to be used
to build the booths described in Lev 23:42-43. See Judson R. Shaver, Torah and the
Chronicler's History Work (BJS 196; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1989), 100-104.
93. Ibid., 103-4.
94. Rubenstein (History ofSukkot, 36-37). He notes that this is likely a variant of
H since only the Holiness Code "mentions the obligation to dwell in sukkot, to
collect species of plants, and to assemble on the eighth day" (p. 36).
95. Alternatively, it is possible that it is a reference to the fact that the Israelites'
first stop on their exodus from Egypt was Sukkoth (ni:np).
96. Rubenstein, History ofSukkot, 25-27. An alternative theory is that the sukkah
originated from the necessity of temporary shelters as pilgrims made their way to the
central sanctuary. The main problem with this interpretation is that there were three
main pilgrimage festivals but only the autumn festival was associated with sukkah.
97. The mention of Joshua is surely meant to draw a comparison with Ezra. Both
were leaders of Israel who were responsible for (re-)establishing their people in the
Promised Land.
There is no such historical tie in evidence in the earlier sources regarding

the Festival of Booths (Exod 23: 16; 34:22; Deut 16: 13-15), which
contrasts with the Festival ofUnleavened Bread, which appears to have
been associated with the Exodus from early on (Exod 23:15; 34:18; Deut
16:1-3).
For Ezra 3:1-4 and Neh 8:13-18, the importance of the Festival of
Booths is associated with the fact that it is the specified time for the
(septennial) reading of the Torah. 98 The importance of the Torah is dem-
onstrated in Neh 8:1-8 where Ezra's reading of the Torah is accompa-
nied by translators/interpreters who translated/explicated the meaning of
the Torah to the people so that they could understand what was being
read out loud. 99
It should be noted that nowhere is covenant renewal specifically
associated with the Festival of Booths in Neh 8. The covenant renewal
proper does not occur until VIl/24 (Neh 10: 1-40; cf. 9: 1), even though
the events ofNeh 7 :72b-1 0:4~ulminating in covenant renewal in Neh
10: 1-40-are certainly related. 100
3.3. Psalms 50 and 81

Recently, Moshe Weinfeld has argued that Pss 50 and 81 reflect the
ceremonies which recall the memory of Sinai, the Covenant, and the
giving of the Torah at the Festival ofWeeks. 101 In this, he builds on the
work of Mowinckel who studied Pss 50 and 81 and concluded that
assemblies in ancient Israel were held to re-enact and celebrate the reve-
lation at Mt. Sinai. 102 However, where Mowinckel associated this cele-
bration with the Festival of Booths, Weinfeld argues that it should be
associated with the Festival ofWeeks.
98. Rubenstein, History ofSukkot, 44.

99. On the importance of Torah in Ezra-Nehemiah and its further implications
for the post-exilic period and beyond, see Sara Japhet, "Law and 'The Law' in Ezra-
Nehemiah," in The Proceedings ofthe Ninth World Congress ofJewish Studies (ed.
D. Asaf; Jerusalem: Magnes, 1985), 99-115; Hindy Najman, "Torah of Moses:
Pseudonymous Attribution in Second Temple Writings," in Scripture in Early
Judaism and Christianity 7 (2000): 202-16; Joseph Blenkinsopp, "Interpretation and
the Tendency to Sectarianism: An Aspect of Second Temple History," in Jewish and
Christian Self-Definition (ed. E. P. Sanders, Albert I. Baumgarten, and Alan
Mendelson; 3 vols.; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1981), 2:1-26,299-309.
100. Duggan, Covenant Renewal, 235-89.
101. Weinfeld, "The Uniqueness of the Decalogue," 21--44.
102. Mowinckel, Le decalogue, 121-29.
To be sure, both of these Psalms do contain language that recalls the

revelation at Sinai. 103 Psalm 50:7 ("I am God, your God") and 81:10-11
("I am the LORD your God," prohibition against worshipping foreign
gods) contain allusions to the first of the Ten Commandments. Psalm
50:5, 16 contain explicit references to the covenant, and Ps 50:18-20
contains references to theft, adultery, and false witness. The lawsuit
motif evident in these Psalms (50:4-7; 81 :9) also indicates a covenantal
background. In addition, Ps 50:5 refers to a covenant sacrifice (cf. 50:7-
15, 23), whereas Ps 81:2-6 refers to a festival of some sort.
However, contra Weinfeld, there is nothing specific in these psalms to
link them to the Festival of Weeks. 104 Weinfeld argues that i1P.+.J in
81 :4-which he takes to refer to the "full moon"-is an indication that
these psalms are linked to the Festival ofWeeks. 105 He cites the book of
Jubilees as evidence that this festival was observed on the 15th of the
month. 106 This is slim evidence, however, since the book of Jubilees was
composed no earlier than about the middle of the second century B.C.E.
There is no hard evidence in the Hebrew Bible itself that the Festival of
Weeks was celebrated on the 15th of the third month (but see the com-
ments on 2 Chr 15:10 above), while, on the other hand, it is known for
certain that the other two main festivals began on the 15th of their
respective months. 107
Furthermore, there are indications within Ps 81 that the Festival of
Booths may be the proper setting for at least this particular psalm:
103. Ibid., 125-26; Weinfeld, "The Uniqueness ofthe Decalogue," 21-22. Weinfeld
notes that the thrust of these psalms is not celebration of covenant renewal but
reprooffor having failed to live up to the stipulations of the covenant (pp. 22-23).
104. There is a reference to wheat (i11f'IJ) in Ps 81:17, but this is meager
evidence.
105. The LXX has ~v EtlO~f.l<¥ for i19~:;1, which, according to LSJ (p. 732), refers
to "of good signs or omens, easily known by signs." It is the only time this word
appears in the LXX (though Theodotion and other unknown sources use the same
word in Prov 7:20). In Prov 7:20, the LXX employs the construction 6t' ~f.lfpwv
IToUwv for ~9~;:1 Oi'?· It seems that the LXX translators did not know what to make
ofi19~·
106. Weinfeld, "The Uniqueness of the Decalogue," 27. He also cites Jaubert's
study, indicating that the calendar of the priestly source corresponds to the solar
calendar of Jubilees. However, this does not necessarily imply that both agreed that
the Festival of Weeks fell on III/15. Because of the peculiar phrasing of the counting
formula, any one of four separate days is possible according to the Priestly scheme,
even assuming the solar calendar (see the discussion in Chapter 2 above).
107. Compare the dates of the Festival of Unleavened Bread (I/15-21) and the
Festival of Booths (VII/15-22).
:UJIJ Oi'7 ;"llf:;):;l i~i1V \V1h:;l ~Vi?l'l

Blow the trumpet on the new moon, on the full moon at the day of our
festival. (Ps 81:4)
The meaning of the two tenus i1Q;J and u.i'}h determines to a large extent
the setting and historical context· of this psalm. As one might suspect, the
interpretation of both terms is disputed. There are basically five main
positions:
1. Graetz argues that since i1Q;J ("full moon") follows the first
term u.i'}h, this latter term cail.not refer to the "new moon" since
this woilld not make any sense. Therefore, he argues that the
phrase u.i'}h:;l must mean something like "in this month." Thus, the
second liri.e further specifies the general time reference in the first
line. 108 This is certainly a plausible interpretation, but since the
context describes the blast of a trumpet, it would appear that a
specific time reference is called for, at least with respect to a
specific month, if not a specific time during the month.
2. Other scholars attempt to explain the text by suggesting alternative
readings of the text. Cheyne reads u.i'}p for u.i'}h and translates the
phrase "in the sanctuary." This wouid resolv~ the seeming refer-
ence to two different time periods and resolve it in favor of the full
moon. 109 Herkenne, on the other hand, reads u.i'}h as "month" and
instead of i19+.l reads ilfP. ("booth"). Thus the lines would refer to
the setting up of the tents on the Festival of Booths (cf. Gen
31 :25): "Schlagt auf im Mouat des Homes, die Hiltte fiir den Tag
unsers Festes." 110 These are quite plausible theories, but conjec-
tural emendations should really only be seriously entertained in
the absence of other reasonable alternatives.
3. Freehof attempts to breathe new life into the traditional rabbinic
position. 111 He argues that both terms are different ways of refer-
ring to the same thing: the new moon. He notes that rabbinic texts
derive the rare term i19+.l from the root i10::! ("to cover, conceal"). 112
108. Heinrich H. Graetz, Kritischer Commentar zu den Psalmen nebst Text und
Uebersetung (2 vols.; Breslau: Schottlaender, 1882-83), 2:475-76.
I 09. Thomas K. Cheyne, The Book of Psalms, vol. 2 (London: Kegan Paul,
Trench & Co., 1904), 34-35; cf. Hans Schmidt, Die Psalmen (Ttibingen: Mohr,
1934), 154.
110. Heinrich Herkenne, Das Buch der Psalmen (Bonn: Hanstein, 1936), 277
(italics original).
Ill. b. Ros Has. 8a-b, Lev. Rab. 29:6.
112. Cf. the evidence that Snaith (The Jewish New Year Festival, 100--102)
gathers. He shows that the rabbinic evidence is mixed.
The term would thus refer to the "dark of the moon," a synonym
for the new moon. 113 Freehof' s solution is attractive for the simple
reason that if his linguistic argument holds, it makes relatively
good sense of the text as is. 114 Certainly his argument that i1P.~
derives from i1C:J seems logical. However, linguistic parallels
from U garitic, Phoenician, Syriac, and Arabic, ultimately deriving
from the Akkadian word kuse)u which refers to the headdress of
the moon-god at the time of the full moon, is strong contrary
evidence against Freehof's thesis. 115 Furthermore, the typical date
for a .ltl was the 15th (cf. Festival of Unleavened Bread and
Booths) or the day of the full moon. Furthermore, in Job 26:9, it
has been conjectured that i1tp=;l ("throne") should really be pointed
i1\?~ ("full moon"):
:il~P, 1'7lJ tl!il.t1 il\i):;l"'~-? tljlt.tl?

He covers the face of the throne/full moon, he spreads over it his
cloud. (Job 26:9)
This would certainly make better sense of the verse than

"throne. " 116 If so, the context makes clear that this would have to
refer to the "full moon" rather than the "new moon" since the
point in this text is that the moon (otherwise visible) is obscured
by clouds. 117
4. Snaith begins by arguing that 1V1h means "new-month day" and
that this originally (pre-exilic) term meant the day of the full
moon, but that after the exile it designated the day of the new
moon. 118 The original Hebrew term for "month" was n1~ which
113. Solomon B. Freehof, "Sound the Shofar-'Ba-Kesse' Psalm 81 :4," JQR 64

(1974): 225-28
114. Freehof's ("Sound the Shofar," 225-28) thesis that the Shofar was blown
on the day of the new moon in order to let people know the correct date of the
festival (by announcing the date of the new moon) seems to be supported by the LXX
(evidence he fails to cite), which reads EUOllf.IO~ ("good sign") instead of ill?~· Freehof
argues that this is indicated by the ; instead of the expected :l before 01' in Psa 81 :4
(cf. 1Z>'!h::;l) and cites m. Ros Ha§. 1:3, which relates how at certain months messen-
gers went forth to tell people what day the new moon was so that they would know
when the festivals began.
115. See HALOT Study Edition, 1:487.
116. The LXX, notably, translates this term with the word for throne: ep6vo~.
117. Mowinckel,Psa/ms, 2:235.
118. Snaith, Jewish New Year, 96-103; cf. also Andre Caquot, "Remarques sur
Ia fete de Ia 'neomenie' dans !'ancien Israel," RHR 68 (1960): 1-18; Henri Cazelles,
"Surles origines du calendrier des Jubiles," Biblica 43 (1962): 205-6.
later gave way to 1V"Jh. The closely related term rrc

means
"moon," which indicates that the month may have indeed origi-
nally begun on the full moon. 119 On this basis, Snaith suggests that
this couplet is a survival from pre-exilic days and that since uryh
means "new month day" (originally referring to the full moon ·in
the pre-exilic period), it is synonymous to ilQ:;;!-both meaning
"the day of the full moon" (i.e. the 15th). 120 However, Snaith's
theory rests on the assumption that the meaning of W1h (lit.
"new") was originally developed on the basis of the idea· of the
renewal of the month rather than the renewal of the moon. 121 This
seems rather unlikely given the fact that in the post-exilic period at
least, W'J.h is clearly linked to the day of the new moon. It seems
much more likely that the meaning of W1h originally developed
based on the idea of the renewal ofthe moon, and that secondarily,
this was linked to the more artificial concept of the month. 122
5. The most common interpretation ofthis word pair is to take Uh.h
as "new moon" and ill?,+.! as "full moon." 123 The mention of a m;w
moon and a full moon implies a 14-day interval and can only refer
to the autumn holiday season which begins on a new moon (711;
cf. Lev 23:24; Num 29:1), runs through the Day of Atonement
(711 0) and the Festival of Booths, which commences at the full
moon (7/15; cf. Lev 23:34; Num 29:12). 124
The 1-9iv> is associated with two predominant emotions: alarm and
joy. The 1-9iv> signals alarm in the context of battle or imminent attack,
which is the most common context. It is also associated with the Sinai
event (Exod 19: 16, 19; 20: 18) where the very loud trumpet blast is asso-
ciated with the fear and trembling on the part of the people. On the other
119. Cf. Mowinckel, Psalms, 2:235-36.

120. Snaith, Jewish New Year, 102. He notes that the most natural interpretation
of this couplet is that the psalmist is referring to the same single day. The sur-
rounding couplets are all synthetic couplets and, furthermore, if the verse was a
climbing parallelism, one would expect a copula, but the two phrases are in
apposition (p. 99).
121. Snaith, Jewish New Year, 96-97; cf. Mowinckel, Psalms, 2:236.
122. Mowinckel, Psalms, 2:236.
123. Friedrich Baethgen, Die Psalmen (Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht,
1904), 254; Mowinckel, Psalms, 1: 124; Bernard Duhm, Die Psalmen (2d ed.;
Tiibingen: Mohr, 1922), 314; Andre Lemaire, "Le sabbat a I' epoque roy ale israel-
ite," RB 80 (1973): 171-72.
124. Cf. Hans-Joachim Kraus, Psalms: A Commentary (trans. H. C. Oswald;
2 vols.; 5th ed.; Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1988, 89 [1961/1978]), 148; Craig C.
Broyles, Psalms (NIBC; Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson, 1999), 333.
hand, the 1~i1V is also associated with various religiously significant

events and signals the joy that the people of God are to feel at these occa-
sions. The 1~i1V is associated with the Day of Atonement in the year of
Jubilee (Lev 25:9) and the Festival of Weeks (2 Chr 15:14) and also
plays a role in the procession of the ark that David leads (2 Sam 6:15//
1 Chr 15:28) as well as various other anonymous cultic contexts (Pss
47:6; 98:6; 150:3). 125 The note of joy is often explicit in these psalms
(2 Chr 15:15; 1 Chr 15:29; Pss 47:2; 98:6) and the remaining texts
strongly imply a joyous occasion (2 Sam 6: 12-23; Ps 150). The Festival
of Booths is to be a joyous occasion (Deut 16:14-15) and in Ps 81:2-3,
the note of joy is unmistakable.
The festival in question, then, is more likely to be the Festival of
Booths, the most important of the festivals. 126 This fits with the evidence
that has been gleaned from Deut 31:9-13 and Neh 8. At the same time,
given the ambiguity of the evidence, it would be foolish to establish any
conclusions on such a slender and disputed basis. The point is, however,
that it is at the very least questionable for Weinfeld to assign Ps 81 (and
probably Ps 50 as well) to a context during the Festival ofWeeks. It must
be admitted that one could make at the very least an equally (if not more)
plausible argument for the Festival of Booths.
4. Conclusion
There is a definite historicizing trend for the main festivals in the Hebrew
Bible. From early on, the Passover/Festival of Unleavened Bread was
associated with the Exodus event. Sometime during or shortly after the
exile, the Festival of Booths was increasingly associated with the wilder-
ness wanderings. The Festival of Weeks is therefore unique in not being
explicitly associated with any historic event. While there are some
indications that the Festival of Booths was associated with Sinai, this is
limited to the reading of the Torah, with no explicit link to covenant
125. According to Lev 23:24 and Num 29:1, the new moon festival on VII/I is
to be accompanied by a i1~l,r;J which can refer to a joyous shout or a signal given by
a wind instrument. This term is sometimes found together with ,~i"IV in a cultic
context (Lev 25:9; 2 Sam 6:15; Ps 47:6; 1 Chr 15:28; 2 Chr 15:14). The Day of
Atonement (Vll/10; Lev 25:9) and the Festival of Weeks (III/?; 2 Chr 15:14) are two
specific occasions on the cultic calendar in which these terms are found together. It
is also often found in a war context (Josh 6:5, 20; Jer4:19; Amos 2:2; Zeph 1:16;
Job 39:25).
126. This is true even if the ,~i"IV is found associated with the Festival of Weeks
(2 Chr 15:14), since the 14-day interval between new moon and full moon can only
refer to the Autumn holy days.
renewal anywhere in evidence. 127 Moreover, the reason for choosing the
Festival of Booths for the reading of the Torah need not have anything to
do with the desire to link the Festival of Booths to the Sinai event (in
terms ofhistoricizing it as a commemoration to this central event). As
the largest and most important festival, it naturally attracted the largest
number of pilgrims, and if the idea of reading out the Law is to instruct
the greatest number of Israelites in the Torah, what better time to do it
than during the feast that attracts the most Israelites?
On the other hand, there are already indications in two key texts that
make it unsurprising that later tradition associated the Sinai event with
the Festival of Weeks-especially considering the fact that the other two
main festivals are already associated with other historical events. First,
Exod 19:1 dates the arrival ofthe Israelites to Sinai on 11111. While the
specifics are unclear, the only possible festival that would be chronologi-
cally appropriate-assuming that one wanted to link a significant event
to a particular festival to commemorate it-is the Festival of Weeks.
Second, in 2 Chr 15 King Asa celebrates a festival where oaths are prom-
inent and the people enter into a covenant with YHWH (2 Chr 15: 10-15).
Given the fact that covenants were typically confirmed by an oath (Gen
21:22-33; Deut 29:9-14; Josh 9:15-20; 2 Kgs 11:4; Ezek 16:8), and that
the terms "weeks" and "seven" (~i:J.tf; pl. niVi:J.1p) are similar (identical
in the consonants) to the term "oath" (i13Ji:llp, i1lJ~'f; pl. niV~\f), a link
between the Sinai event-which has as its center the covenant between
God and the newly constituted nation oflsrael-is natural.
It is important to note, however, that while a trend towards associating
the Sinai event with the Festival of Weeks is readily discernible in some
key texts (particularly in the Priestly tradition), the Sinai event was not
definitively tied to any specific date-at least taking the evidence from
the Hebrew Bible as a whole. It seems that covenant renewals were apt to
be held at any time. 128 They were typically occasioned by the realization
on the part of the king that the children oflsrael had failed to uphold the
law and covenant (e.g. Exod34; 2 Kgs 22-23; Neh 9-10; Pss 50 and 81)
and that repentance and return to the covenant were therefore essential.
That is, the necessity of a covenant renewal was typically felt to be
immediate, and could not wait for some specific holiday which could be
months away. In other words, covenant renewals appear to have been ad
hoc and not regularly tied to any particular festival or date.
127. Even Ps 81 is a psalm of reproof more than a psalm celebrating a covenant

renewal (cf. Weinfeld, "The Uniqueness of the Decalogue," 22-23).
128. Cf. Baltzer, The Covenant Formulary, 60-62.
Chapter4
THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS AND

COVENANT RENEWAL IN JUBILEES
1. Introduction
The book ofJubilees is a retelling of Genesis and the first half of Exodus
by way of addition, omission, and modification of the biblical text. 1
However, it is evident that the author has an intimate knowledge of the
whole Hebrew Bible since he incorporates texts from other parts of the
scriptures into his retelling of Genesis-Exodus. Throughout the book, the
author's attention to detail is unmistakable. 2 The smallest, seemingly
1. On biblical interpretation in Jubilees, see James C. VanderKam, "Biblical

Interpretation in I Enoch and Jubilees," in VanderKam, ed., From Revelation to
Canon, 276-78, 297-304. The entire text of Jubilees is extant only in Ethiopic,
though portions of the text are preserved in Greek, Syriac, Latin, and now-thanks
to the Dead Sea Scrolls-also in Hebrew. According to VanderKam, the original
Hebrew text was originally translated into Greek and possibly Syriac, and then from
Greek into Latin and Ethiopic. Though this makes the Ethiopic text a translation of a
translation, a close comparison of the extant Hebrew fragments shows that for the
most part it is a faithful translation. For a full discussion, see James C. VanderKam,
Textual and Historical Studies in the Book ofJubilees (HSM 14; Missoula, Mont.:
Scholars Press, 1977), 1-95; idem, The Book ofJubilees (2 vols.; CSCO 510-511;
Scriptores aethiopici 87-88; Leuven: Peeters, 1989), 1:ix-xvi, 2:vi-xxxi. For a use-
ful summary, see idem, The Book of Jubilees (Guides to Apocrypha and Pseude-
pigrapha; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 200 I), 13-17. The text (cited as vol.
I) and translation (cited as vol. 2) of the Ethiopic text-along with the versional
evidence-used in the present study will be that of VanderKam, The Book of
Jubilees ( 1989), 2 vols. All citations will be checked against the extant Hebrew text
of Jubilees found at Qumran. The Hebrew texts and translations cited in this study
can be found in the DJD series: VanderKam, "Jubilees," in Qumran Cave 4. VIII:
Parabiblical Texts, Part I (ed. H. Attridge, et a!.; DJD 13; Oxford: Clarendon,
1994), 1-185.
2. James C. VanderKam, "Jubilees' Exegetical Creation of Levi the Priest," in
From Revelation to Canon: Studies in the Hebrew Bible and Second Temple Litera-
ture (JSPSup 62; Leiden: Brill, 2000), 545.
· 4. Jubilees 79
insignificant detail of the Hebrew text can serve as the springboard for a
novel reworking or understanding of a story. 3
The book of Jubilees claims to be divine revelation. It suffices to point
to Jub. 1:27 where God tells the angel of the presence to dictate to Moses
what turns out to be the contents of the book of Jubilees itself. Hindy
Najman notes four modes of self-authorization evident in Jubilees:
Jubilees repeatedly claims that it reproduces material that had been
written long before on the "heavenly tablets," a great corpus of divine
teachings kept in heaven.
The entire content ofthe book of Jubilees was dictated by the angel of the
presence at God's own command. Hence, it is itself the product of divine
revelation.
Jubilees was dictated to Moses, the same Moses to whom the Torah
had been given on Mt. Sinai. Thus, the book of Jubilees is the co-equal
accompaniment of the Torah; both were transmitted by the same true
prophet.
Jubilees claims that its teachings are the true interpretation of the Torah.
Thus, its teachings also derive their authority from that of the Torah; that
its interpretations match the Torah's words and resolve all interpretive
problems further substantiates its veracity. 4
Najman concludes that Jubilees' claim to authority is intimately bound

up with the already authoritative sacred writings ofMoses. 5
An important issue concerns the relationship between Jubilees and
Genesis-Exodus-in particular, whether the book of Jubilees was meant
to be read alongside or instead ofGenesis-Exodus. In general, it is hard
to believe that the author of Jubilees intended his work to replace
Genesis-Exodus for two main reasons. First, the most likely scenario
(though we cannot state this with absolute certainty) is that Genesis and
Exodus were already well established as authoritative books within
Judaism generally. Certainly the sheer number of copies found among
3. For an excellent example, see the discussion ofVanderKam, "Jubilees' Exe-

getical Creation of Levi the Priest," 545-61. In fact, his use of the Hebrew text is
often so precise that the text of Jubilees is a valuable witness to the text of the
Pentateuch (VanderKam, "Jubilees and Hebrew Texts of Genesis-Exodus," in
VanderKam, ed., From Revelation to Canon, 448-61).
4. Najman, "Interpretation as Primordial Writing," 380. See also, Florentino
Garcia Martinez, "The Heavenly Tablets in the Book of Jubilees," in Studies in the
Book ofJubilees (eds. M. Albani, J. Frey, and A. Lange; TSAJ 65; Tiibingen: Mohr
Siebeck, 1997), and James C. VanderKam, "Revealed Literature in the Second
Temple Period," in VanderKam, ed., From Revelation to Canon, 24--26.
5. Najman, "Interpretation as Primordial Writing," 381.
the Dead Sea Scrolls indicates that the Qumran community considered
Genesis and Exodus to be authoritative writings. The fact that this
particular community viewed both Genesis-Exodus and Jubilees as
authoritative indicates that they were read alongside each other in this
community at least, even if the actual author of Jubilees may have
intended otherwise. 6
Second, there are some indications in Jubilees itself that presuppose
Genesis and Exodus. Ben Zion Wacholder argues that there is a
distinction evident inJub. 1 between the Torah-Commandment ("the law
and the commandment") and the Torah-Admonition ("the law and the
testimony"). 7 He argues that this understanding is based on Jubilees'
exegesis of Exod 24 and Deut 31, which imply that there were two
Torahs (esp. Deut 31:9, 24-26).8....According to Wacholder, the former
(Torah-Commandment) refers to the Mosaic Torah as contained in the
Pentateuch, while the latter (Torah-Admonition) refers to the book of
Jubilees. 9
Furthermore, the Angel of the Presence alludes to material in the
Pentateuch with respect to the Festival of Weeks (Jub. 6:22; cf. Lev.
23:15'-21; Num 28:26-31) and the rape of Dinah (Jub. 30:12; cf. Gen
34). 10 In these instances, the book of Jubilees explicitly alludes to the
Pentateuch in order to fill in the details, so to speak, and therefore
strongly implies that Jubilees is meant to be read alongside, not instead
of, Genesis-Exodus.
A related issue is whether Jubilees considered itself to be superior,
inferior, or on par with Genesis-Exodus as far as authoritative status is
concerned~ Wacholder argues that the reconstructed Hebrew original
indicates that Jubilees considered itself to be a superior revelation to the
Pentateuch. 11 Najman argues that Jubilees derives its authority from the
6. See Chapter 5 on the authoritative status of Jubilees at Qumran.

7. Ben Zion Wacholder, "Jubilees as the Super Canon: Torah-Admonition versus
Torah-Commandment," in Legal Texts and Legal Issues: Proceedings ofthe Second
Meeting of the International Organization for Qumran Studies, Cambridge, 1995:
Published in Honour ofJoseph M Baumgarten (ed. M. Bernstein, F. Garcia Marti-
nez, and J. Kampen; STDJ 23; Leiden: Brill, 1997), 195-96,202-11.
8. Ibid., 196, 204-205.
9. Ibid., 196.
10. VanderKam, The Book ofJubilees (2001), 137.
11. Wacholder ("Jubilees as the Super Canon," 196, 205-7) argues that Genesis-
Exodus ("Torah-Commandment") was the public, exoteric copy, while Jubilees
("Torah-Admonition") was the hidden, esoteric copy (compare Deut 31:9, 25-26
andJub. 1:7-16; cf. CD V, 1-5). This implies, then, thatJubilees is a superior, fuller
revelation that supersedes the previously revealed Genesis-Exodus. Cf. 4 Ezra 14:1-
8, 37-48 (approx. 100 C.E.) and its context.
4. Jubilees 81
Pentateuch and that its interpretations clarify and resolve all interpretive
problems, implying thatJubilees' status is at most co-equal to that ofthe
Pentateuch (i.e. it has a supplementary or complementary role).J2 She
contends that Jubilees '"rewrite[s] the Bible' .. .in order to appropriate
the authority of Mosaic Torah for its preferred calendar and practices." 13
This is a difficult issue to resolve. It is most probable that at this point
in Jewish history, the authority of Genesis-Exodus could not be seriously
challenged. 14 However, even if Jubilees does not claim superior status,
by presenting itself as the authoritative lens through which Genesis-
Exodus had to be interpreted (i.e. if one was interested in the putative
real meaning of the text), the author of Jubilees was de facto (perhaps
covertly), uslirping the authority of Genesis-Exodus for his own agenda,
as Najman intimates.
2. The Impact of Hellenism on Second Temple Judaism

Like other literary works in the Jewish tradition, the author of Jubilees is
anonymous. 15 All that can safely be surmised about him from the work
he left behind is that he was a well-educated Palestinian Jew, probably
from the priestly class. 16 The most plausible date for the composition of
the book of Jubilees is sometime in the decade 160-150 B.C.E. 17
12. Najman, "Interpretation as Primordial Writing," 380, 406-9.

13. Ibid., 409.
14. This is not to imply that they were in any sense "canonical"-an anachro-
nistic term (cf. Eugene C. Ulrich, "The Canonical Process, Textual Criticism, and
Latter Stages in the Composition of the Bible," in The Dead Sea Scrolls and the
Origins ofthe Bible [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999], 51-61). However, they do
seem to have enjoyed a widespread level of authority. As Qumran shows us, how-
ever, the text was pluriform, as, for example, in the case of Exodus (cf. Ulrich, "The
Bible in the Making," in The Dead Sea Scrolls, 17-33 [31-33]).
15. VanderKam argues that the text as we have it is substantially unified; cf.
"The Putative Author of the Book of Jubilees," 17-18. See also his "Studies in the
Chronology of the Book of Jubilees" in VanderKam, ed., From Revelation to Canon,
532-40.
16. For further discussion, see VanderKam, The Book ofJubilees (2001), 141-43.
17. This is the date argued for by VanderKam, Textual and Historical Studies in
the Book ofJubilees, 207-85; cf. also the overall argument of his "2 Maccabees 6,
7a," 105-27 (126); also, see the useful summary of this argument in The Book of
Jubilees (2001), 17-21. To summarize VanderKam's argument: the terminus ad
quem for the date of composition is 100 B.C. E. This is fairly certain because of the
paleographical date of 4Q216, which was copied ca. 125-100 B.C. E. and possibly
earlier (that is, if one accepts the legitimacy of such a method of dating). Ifthe book
of Jubilees was in fact an authoritative book revered by the Qumran community, it
Whoever the author of the book of Jubilees was, it is clear that he was
writing in a time of considerable religio-political ferment. In the wake of
Alexander the Great's conquest of much of the ancient Near Eastin the
late fourth century B.C.E., Hellenism had-by the time the author of
Jubilees took up his pen in the middle of the second century B.C.E.-a
deep, pervasive influence on Jewish life. 18 This was particularly true in
the Jewish Diaspora, but also within Palestine itself. 19
1 Maccabees 1: 11-15 highlights the attempt on the part of some
Palestinian Jews to assimilate to Greek culture during the reign of
Antiochus IV:
likely pre-dates the schism that Jed to the founding of the Dead Sea sect, since there
is no hint in the book that the author had separated from the wider Jewish com-
munity as certain Dead Sea Scrolls do. If so, then the terminus ad quem is earlier,
depending on whether Jonathan (152-142 B.C. E.) or Simon(l42-l34 B.C.E.)is to be
identified as the Wicked Priest of the Pesher Habakkuk. The terminus a quo is ca.
175 B.C.E. since there appear to be covert references to the circumstances that led to
the Maccabean revolt. Furthermore, if Jubilees contains allusions to the Maccabean
revolt and the compositions of Enoch (compare Jub. 4:19 and 1 En. 83-90; cf.
VanderKam, Textual and Historical Studies, 217-54), then the terminus a quo is
even later (ca. 161-160).
18. Studies on the impact of Hellenism on Judaism in the Diaspora and in Pales-
tine are legion, but these are some of the more significant monographs and collec-
tions of studies: Martin Hengel, Judaism and Hellenism: Studies in their Encounter
in Palestine during the Early Hellenistic Period (trans. J. Bowden; 2 vols. in one;
Philadelphia: Fortress, 1974 [1973]); idem, The "Hellenization" ofJudaea in the
First Century after Christ (in collaboration with Christoph Markschies; trans.
J. Bowden; London: SCM Press; Philadelphia: Trinity Press International, 1989);
John J. Collins and Gregory E. Sterling, eds., Hellenism in the Land ofIsrael (Chris-
tianity and Judaism in Antiquity Series 13; Notre Dame, Ind.: University of Notre
Dame Press, 200 l ); Victor Tcherikover, Hellenistic Civilization and the Jews (trans.
S. Applebaum; New York: Atheneum, 1959); Elias Bickerman, The God of the
Maccabees: Studies on the Meaning and Origin of the Maccabean Revolt (trans.
H. R Moehring; SJLA 32; Leiden: Brill, 1979 [ 193 7]); idem, The Jews in the Greek
Age (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1988); John J. Collins, Jewish
Wisdom in the Hellenistic Age (OTL; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1997);
idem, Between Athens and Jerusalem: Jewish Identity in the Hellenistic Diaspora
(2d ed.; Biblical Resource Series; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans; Livonia, Mich.: Dove
Booksellers, 2000); John M. G. Barclay, Jews in the Mediterranean Diaspora: From
Alexander to Trajan (323 BCE-117 CE) (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1996); Amalqo
Momigliano, Alien Wisdom: The Limits of Hellenization (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1975).
19. See especially the works of Hengel cited above. Also see his essay: "Judaism
and Hellenism Revisited," in ColJins and Sterling, eds., Hellenism in the Land of
Israel, 6-37.
4. Jubilees 83
11 iov mi.~ ~f.lEpo:t~ EKELVO:L~ E~ftJ..Sov E~ IopO:TJA u1.ot rro:p&vof.LOL KO:L rXVETTHOo:v
rroUou~ J..EyovtE~ rropEU8Wf.lEV Ko:t lito:8wf.LE8o: lito:S~KTJV f.IE'l'tt twv ioevwv twv
KUKACV ~f.IWV on ci<jl' ~~ EXWPL08Tjf.IEV cirr' O:U'l'WV EUpEV ~~-~ii~ KO:KU rroU& 12
o
Ko:l ~yo:9uv9TJ J..6yo~ Ev 6<jl9o:J..f.Lo'i.~ o:utwv u Ko:lrrpoE9Uf.l~9TJoav tLVE~ cirro
'l'OU AO:OU KO:L E110pEU9TjOO:V rrpo~ 'l'OV Po:OLAEO: KO:LEOWKEV O:U'l'OL~ E~OUOLO:V
rrotfioo:t ta litKo:twf.Lo:to: twv kevwv 14 Ko:t ~Koli6f.LTJoo:v ywv&.owv Ev lEpo-
ooJ..uf.Lot~ Ko:ta ta vof.!Lf.IO: twv E9vwv 15 Ko:l iorro(T]oo:v €o:utol.~ riKpopuot(o:~
xo:l rirrEot 11oo:v &rro oto:S~KTJ~ &yta:~ Ko:t E(Euytoe11olx:v tol.~ E9vEotv Ko:l
Errp&.9T]OO:V tou rrotfioo:~ to TTOVT]p6v.
I ( In those days certain renegades came out from Israel'and misled many,
saying, "Let us go and make a covenant with the Gentiles around us, for
since we separated from them many disasters have come upon us." 12 This
proposal pleased them, 13 and some of the people eagerly went to the king,
who authorized them to observe the ordinances of the Gentiles. 14 So they
built a gymnasium in Jerusalem, according to Gentile custom, 15 and
removed the marks of circumcision, and abandoned the holy covenant.
They joined with the Gentiles and sold themselves to do evil. (I Mace
1:11-15) 20
While the description is rather short, the basic outline of what was
happening in this period can be reconstructed with relative certainty.
Certain Jews pointed to a pristine past when there was no distinction
between Jew and Gentile. The subsequent disasters that have befallen the
Jews are the result of this separation. As VanderKam puts it:
Among enlightened Hellenistic thinkers barbarians were criticized for
driving foreigners away (Eratosthenes); the one god had made all for a
common life with all others. Hence isolation was the root of the problem.
The Torah came from a mere man Moses who claimed, like other law-
givers, to be inspired. Either Moses wrote the exclusive laws after the
embittering Egyptian expulsion (Hecateus of Abdera according to Dio-
dorus) or, on another view, the separatist legislation was post-mosaic
([sic] so Strabo). 21
20. NRSV translation.

21. VanderKam, "The Origins and Purposes ofthe Book ofJubilees," inAibani,
Frey, and Lange, eds., Studies in the Book of Jubilees, 21. For examples of Greek
and Roman legislators who were thought to be inspired, see: Plato(?), Minos 319c-
20b (Minos); Livy 1.19 (Numa); Plutarch, Lycurgus 5; Solon 14. The conversation in
Plato's Laws proceeds on the assumption that the legislators of Greek antiquity (in
this case, Solon, Minos, and Lycurgus) may have been neither so inspired nor so
wise, and they end up drawing up legislation that they will attribute to the gods-
thus, employing Plato's "noble lie" (cf. 624a; 634d-635b; 853b-d; cf. Machiavelli,
Discourses on Livy 1.9, 11 who carefully implies that Moses falsely attributes his
Laws to God on the analogy of great Greek and Roman legislators such as Numa,
Solon, and Lycurgus).
The proposed solution, then, was to reintegrate into Greek society by

following their customs and ways. A crucial first step was to abandon the
distinguishing characteristics of Judaism, including circumcision and the
covenant. 22
The book of Jubilees appears to be addressing a Judaism that feels
itself threatened by the inroads of ~ Hellenism of the type cited in 1
Mace 1: 11-15. 23 While the Mace abean revolt was a violent reaction of
the conservative wing of Judaean society at the attempts to Hellenize
Jewish culture by the Seleucid king Antiochus IV-perhaps incited by
certain thoroughly Hellenized Jewish elites-it was unable to eradicate
the threat since it was more than a simple matter of physical warfare: it
was a battle of ideas. 24
In attempting to oppose this radical Hellenizing effort, the author of
Jubilees turns to a close reading of the book of Genesis and the first part
of Exodus to show that the Hellenizers had it exactly backwards. The
Hellenizers were in essence arguing that the covenant represented sepa-
ratist legislation that divided the Jews from the rest of humanity. In
·actual fact, however, according to the author of Jubilees, it was the
covenant of the Jews that was originally universal and it was the other
nations (Greeks included) who in effect separated themselves from the
Jews by neglecting and/or rejecting it.
3. Jubilees 1: Moses on Sinai

The first chapter of Jubilees is the key to the interpretation of the whole
book, since it sets the context for what follows and shapes how the
reader is to understand the main body of the work. As noted above,
Jubilees consists of a retelling of Genesis and parts of the first half of
Exodus. However, the scriptural text does not reveal how it is that
creation and the stories concerning the various patriarchs came to be
recorded.
The first chapter of Jubilees fills this lacuna: the pre-history of the
world up to the Exodu.s is revealed to Moses by God (Jub. 1:27; 2:1)
22. Bickerman, The God of the Maccabees, 83-88; cf. John C. Endres, Biblical
Interpretation in the Book of Jubilees (CBQMS 18; Washington, D.C.: Catholic
Biblical Association of America, 1987), 236-38; VanderKam, "The Origins and
Purposes of the Book of Jubilees," 19-22.
23. See VanderKam, "The Origins and Purposes of the Book of Jubilees," 16-
22; cf. idem, "2 Maccabees 6, 7a and Calendrical Change in Jerusalem," 115-27.
24. Bickerman, The God ofthe Maccabees; cf. Hengel, "Judaism and Hellenism
Revisited," 17.
4. Jubilees 85
when Moses ascends Mt. Sinai after the ratification of the Covenant with
the nation oflsrael (Jub. prologue and 1: 1-4). Here it is discovered that
chs. 2-50 of Jubilees are an earthly copy of the heavenly tablets, dictated
to Moses by the angel of the presence (Jub. 1:27-2: 1). Since the end of
Jubilees brings the narrative back to Mt. Sinai (cf. Jub. 50:2), the events
at Mt. Sinai form an envelope structure around the main narrative,
pointing to the centrality of the Sinai experience for this book. 25 This
introduction to the work serves to highlight the importance of covenant
as a concept in Jubilees and to undergird the authority for the book and
establish it as a reliable and trustworthy account. 26
One of the dominant themes in the first chapter is the issue of fidelity
to the covenant, or, to be precise, lack thereof. In God's conversation
with Moses, God foretells a time when the Israelites will forsake the
covenant and its obligations and follow the gods of the nations (Jub. 1:7-
12). In response, God will send them into exile and disperse them
throughout the nations (Jub. 1: 13-14). But, God promises, this is not the
end oflsrael, for he will gather his people from all the nations:
15 "After this they will return to me from among the nations with all their
minds, all their souls, and all their strength. Then I will gather them 'from
among all the nations, and they will search for me so that I may be found
by them when they have searched for me with all their minds and with all
their souls. I will rightly disclose to them abundant peace. 16 I will trans-
form them into a righteous plant with all my mind and with all my soul.
They will become a blessing, not a curse; they will become the head, not
the tail. 17 I will build my temple among them and will live with them; I
will become their God and they will become my true and righteous
people. 18 I will neither .abandon them nor become alienated from them,
for I am the Lord their God." (Jub. 1:15-18)27
25. As VanderKam ("Covenant and Biblical Interpretation in Jubilees 6," in

The Dead Sea Scrolls Fifty Years after their Discovery: Proceedings ofthe Jerusa-
lem Congress, July 20-25, 1997 [ed. L. H. Schiffman, E. Tov, andJ. C. VanderKam;
Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society, 2000], 93) observes, Moses and his situation
are also repeatedly referenced directly throughout the narrative: 2:1, 26; 6:13, 19,
20, 22, 32, 38; 15:28, 33; 23:32; 28:7; 30:11, 12, 17, 21; 41:26; 49:15, 22; 50:1,
2, 13.
26. For a nuanced discussion of the strategies that the author of Jubilees uses to
obtain authority for his work and some of the resulting implications, see Najman,
"Interpretation as Primordial Writing," 379-410 (briefly discussed above). On how
the authority of Jubilees is bound up with the heavenly tablets, cf. Garcia Martinez,
"The Heavenly Tablets in the Book of Jubilees," 243-60.
27. A small portion of Jub. 1:15 is preserved in 4Q216 II, 17. It does not differ
from the Ethiopic.
This, however, does not appear to describe the situation as it existed

either before or during the lifetime of the author of Jubilees himself. 28
God had not yet gathered all his people from among the nations by the
middle of the second century B.C.E., and obviously abundant peace,
blessing, and righteousness were still works in progress at the time. At
any rate, the author of Jubilees places his own work during the period of
exile:
[mn 8] ••• (3)
[7N ;mvn]i1 i1nJV1 nli'1ll[ IJ 7::>1J 01V'1111' t6 1111N C']'inN cii17N 1nN (4)
1111N 7:J nN 'n1YIJ 7::> nN ln::l111' ']::> 9 nNti1 i111Vnii (5)
[1nN 1::>]7>\ l1Y[N
Ci1'i17]N nN 111:1V'1 c[n!l1n 1nN1 cno]7[::> 1nN]l C'l[li1] (6)
[ t)ll7 Ci17 1'i1'1
['::> :l'1N 1':1] 17!ll1 11::>7' 0[':11 11:1N1 10 111i'11J]7l ['lV]71 1iY71 (7)
['1111i' nN1 'n1n:l111 nN1 ]'n'1:l '[1V11J nN1 'nlYIJ ]nN1 'nlpn [nN 1:1TV] (8)
'n1111i'i1 11!1N ']Wrpf.l[ nN1 'l::l1!11J nN1 C::>1]ib '' 1111'1pi1 ;wN (9)
[11n:l ,,
.•• P111'1 ]l'7V[ 'IJ111 n] N 0'1117 f1Ni1 ( 10)
(3) ... [8 and will turn]
(4) after othe[r] gods [who will not save then1 from any dis]tresses. And
the [testimony] will respond [to]
(5) this testimony. 9 F[or they will forget all my commandments
everything that I] command you-and will fol[low]
(6) [the na]tions, [their impu]ri[ties, and] their [shame]. They will serve
[their] g[ ods and they will become for them an obstacle,]
(7) distress, [affliction,] and a [trap. 10 Man]y [will be destroyed.] They
will be captured and will fall [into the hand of the enemy because]
(8) [they have abandoned] my statutes, [my commandments, the festival]s
of my covenant, [my sabbaths, my holy things]
(9) which they have hallowed for me am[ong them, my tabernacle, and
my] temple [which I sanctified for myself in the middle of]
(10) the land to set [my name] on it [so that it would live (there).
(4Q2161l, 3-10 =Jub. 1:8-10)29
8 theywill turn to foreign gods-to.ones which will not save them from
any of their afflictions. Then this testimony will serve as evidence. 9 For
they will forget all my commandments--everything that I command
them-and will follow the nations, their impurities, and their shame.
28. Cf. VanderKam, "Exile in Jewish Apocalyptic Literature," in Exile: Old

Testament, Jewish, and Christian Perceptions (ed. James M. Scott; Leiden: Brill,
1998), 104.
29. Harold Attridge eta!., Qumran Cave 4, VIJI: Parabiblical Texts, Part I (DJD
13; Oxford: Clarendon, 1994), 8-9. Whenever possible, the extant Qumran textual
evidence will be presented, unless so little of it remains that it is pointless.
4. Jubilees 87
They will serve their gods, and (this) will prove an obstacle for them-an
affliction, a pain, and a trap. 10 Many will be destroyed. They will be
captured and will fall into the enemy's control because they abandoned
my statutes, my commandments, my covenantal festivals, my sabbaths,
my holy things which I have hallowed for myself among them, my taber-
nacle, and my temple which I sanctified for myself in the middle of the
land so that I could set my name on it and that it could live (there).
(Jub. 1:8-10 [Ethiopic]; italics added) 30
"Testimony" is a key word in Jubilees and probably refers to the book of

Jubilees itself, or at least the heavenly tablets, of which Jubilees is
purportedly a copy. 31 If so, then clearly the author of Jubilees intends his
book to serve as an exhortation to his fellow Jews to recommit to their
ancestral covenant with the one true God of Israel. Again, this was
deemed necessary by the author of Jubilees in light of the assimilationist
tendencies found among many Jews of his time.
The book of Jubilees, beginning and ending as it does with an allusion
to the Sinai event, is intended implicitly to bear a hortatory message of
hope for the author's contemporary readers: that God has been faithful to
his people in the past and will continue to be faithful and restore his
people if only they will return to the covenant that was established all
those years ago in the time ofNoah (Jub. 6) of which the Mosaic cove-
nant and accompanying legislation (especially as revealed in Jubilees'
version) are a renewal.
One of the most significant ways that Jubilees' sounds this note of
hope is by way of its chronological system. The book of Jubilees
employs a system of numbering based on years, weeks of years, and the
jubilee (a week of weeks of years, if you will). Sabbath and jubilee are
thus important concepts in the book of Jubilees.J2
30. The italicized portion in the translation of the Ethiopic is partially preserved
in the Qumran scrolls and appears to be slightly different, though the rest ofthe near
context preserves a faithful translation. The Ethiopic appears to be influenced by
Deut 31:21 (cf. v. 19): The meaning is not entirely clear since some of the text is
lost, but the general meaning appears to be similar even if the wording is different, in
that both appeal to the book of Jubilees as a testimony (both texts refer to "this"
testimony) in the face of apostasy.
31. Cf. Wacholder, "Jubilees as the Super Canon," 202-7; VanderKam, The
Book ofJubilees (2001), 26,91-93.
32. Lutz Doering ("The Concept of the Sabbath in the Book of Jubilees," in
Albani, Frey, and Lange, eds., Studies in the Book of Jubilees, 179) notes that the
issue of the Sabbath frames the main body of Jubilees (2:17-33 and 50:6-13).
VanderKam ("Genesis 1 in Jubilees 2," in VanderKam, ed., From Revelation to
Canon, 519-21) argues that the emphasis on Sabbath in Jubilees is designed to
counter the inroads of Hellenism (which was universalist) by underscoring the
The jubilee legislation in Lev 25 forms the backdrop to this chrono-

logical system. 33 In Lev 25, two things happen during the jubilee year
(50th year): the freeing oflsraelite slaves and the returning of ancestral
property. Not coincidentally, the Exodus from Egypt occurs during the
50th jubilee period in Jubilees' chronology (1 week and 2 years of the
50th jubilee, to be exact; cf. Jub. 50:4). Furthermore, the entry into the
Promised Land occurs during the last year of the 50th jubilee (last year
of the 50th jubilee; cf. Jub. 50:4). In other words, according to Jubilees'
chronology, during the jubilee of jubilees (i.e. the fiftieth jubilee), what
happens to the individual Hebrew in Lev 24 is now applied to the entire
nation: the Israelites are freed from slavery in Egypt and reacquire their
ancestral property. 34
The message behind this chronological system appears clear: divine
providence is operational in human history. The Sabbath structure (a
jubilee being a Sabbath of Sabbaths, so to speak) apparent from the very
beginning in the week of creation (Jub. 2) is a pattern that can be seen
throughout Israel's history up to the Exodus from Egypt, the Mosaic
legislation, and the repossession of the ancestral territory. 35
importance of the particularity of the Jewish faith vis-a-vis Sabbath (as well as other.
particular practices such as circumcision and festivals). On the concept of the jubilee
year, see the recent works of Christoph Berner, Jahre, Jahrwochen, und Jubiliien:
Heptadische Geschichtskozeptionen im antiken Judentum (BZA W 363; Berlin: de
Gruyter, 2006), and John S. Bergsma, The Jubilee from Leviticus to Qumran: A
History ofinterpretation (VTSup 115; Leiden: Brill, 2007).
33. See the discussion of James C. VanderKam, "Studies in the Chronology of
the Book of Jubilees," in VanderKam, ed., From Revelation to Canon, 522-44.
34. This is no doubt why there is such an emphasis on the inviolable boundaries
established when Noah apportioned the earth for his three sons (Jub. 9: 14--15). Shem
receives the middle of the earth as his portion (Jub. 8: 12-21), which he then divides
among his sons (9:2-6). Canaan, it should be pointed out, receives as his portion of
land the territory furthest to the west; apparently the north-westernmost portion of
Africa (Jub. 9:1). Canaan's appropriation of territory apportioned to Shem and his
sons (Jub. 10:28-34) is thus a gross violation ofthe oath they took in Jub. 9:14--15.
Concerning the importance of geography in Jubilees, see James C. VanderKam,
"Putting Them in Their Place: Geography as an Evaluative Tool," in VanderKam,
ed., From Revelation to Canon, 476-99; James M. Scott, "The Division of the Earth
in Jubilees 8:11-9:15 and Early Christian Chronography," in Albani, Frey, and
Lange, eds., Studies in the Book of Jubilees, 295-324; idem, Geography in Early
Judaism and Christianity: The Book ofJubilees (SNTSMS 113; Cambridge: Cam-
bridge University Press, 2002), 23-43; Betsy Halpern-Amaru, Rewriting the Bible:
Land and Covenant in Post-Biblical Jewish Literature (Valley Forge, Penn.: Trinity
Press International, 1994), 25-54.
35. On this, see further: VanderKam, "Studies in the Chronology of the Book of
Jubilees," 540-44.
4. Jubilees 89
The chronological scheme in Jubilees encompasses 50 jubilees, but it

appears that the book of Jubilees envisions a continuation of the jubilee
scheme, presumably up to the present (from the author of Jubilees'
perspective) and beyond:
4 For this reason I have arranged for you the weeks of years and the
jubilees-49 jubilees from the time of Adam until today, and one week
and two years. It is still40 years off(for learning the Lord's command-
ments) until the time when he leads (them) across to the land of Canaan,
after they have crossed the Jordan to the west of it. 5 The jubilees will
pass by until Israel is pure of every sexual evil, impurity, contamination,
sin, and error. Then they will live confidently in the entire land. They will
no longer have any satan or any evil person. The land will be pure from
that time until eternity. (Jub. 50:4-5; italics added)
VanderKam notes that the Apocalypse of Weeks, which has some simi-
larities to Jubilees' system, places the reception of the Mosaic legislation
in the middle of its historical scheme (i.e. the fourth week of seven). 36
VanderKam plausibly speculates that the author of Jubilees intended
his readers .to understand that this jubilee structure gives order and
meaning to history and is an indication of God's ultimate faithfulness to
his people. 37 If one compares this to Jub. 1:8, where the author of
Jubilees indicates that this testimony (i.e. the book of Jubilees itself) will
serve as a witness to the future (from the perspective ofMoses) apostasy
and resulting exile of Israel, it is clear that the author has the present
situation of the Jewish people firmly in mind.
This chronological system also encompasses covenant renewal. In
Jubilees, the Festival ofWeeks, which embodies the number 49, becomes
the date on which all the covenants are made, including the one at Sinai.
This consistent pattern is evident right from the beginning of the book of
Jubilees:
[~Ni1Z/' •J.b MNY~[ 01J11Z/Ni01 01J1Z/:l '01'1 ] ... (4)
1Z/i1n~ i1Z/V 011Z/1Z/:l '1Z1']1;>1Z/01V[i1n:l D'illl.) JD] (5)
[~]N 01101' i:li 01l[01
M1n1~ 'J1Z/ MN 1~ JMN1 01 ]'1mi [ '~N 01~V iDN~ 011Z/11.)] (6)
[01];m01 pNn[
... om]'1i[ 01~ •n::tm i1Z/N 011:110011] (7)
(4) [During the first year] of the Isra[elites') exodus
(5) [from Egypt, in] the thi[rd mon]th [-on the sixteenth of] this
[month-] the Lord said t[o]
36. Ibid., 544.

37. Ibid., 544.
(6) [Moses: "Come up to me to] the mountain. [I will give you] the [two]
stone [tablets]-the la[w]
(7) [and the commandment which I have written to t]ea[ch them."]
(4Q216 I, 4-7 =Jub. l:J)3B
During the first year of the Israelites' exodus from Egypt, in the third
month--Qn the sixteenth ofthe month-the Lord said to Moses: "Come
up to me on the mountain. I will give you the two stone tablets of the law
and the commandments which I have written so that you may teach
them." (Jub. 1:1 [Ethiopic]; italics added)
This passage alludes to and combines both Exod 19:1 and 24:12:
:'~'Q ,~lQ ~N~ ilttl oi•~ ~1¥Q l'l~Q ;~1if'~-·~~ nN¥7 'W''?o/tt uryh~
In the third month after the children of Israel had gone out from the land
of Egypt, on that day they entered the wilderness of Sinai. (Exod 19:1;
italics added)
~~~1;1 nh~-n~ ;7 il~T;I~1 o~-il~i!! i11l;lv ·7~ il'?P, il~o-;~ ilJil: ,I?N'1
:o.t;l'1ii17 'T:l:flJ:P ,~to! ill¥1ilt11 i11il'lt11
And the Lord said to Moses: "Come up to me on the mountain and stay
there and I will give to you tablets of stone with the law and the com-
mandment which I have written for their instruction." (Exod 24: 12)
The revelation that Moses receives from God upon ascending Mt. Sinai
begins on lll/16, according to Jubilees. This means that the covenant
agreement described in Exod 24:1-4a must have occurred on III/15. 39
Not coincidentally, this is also the date that the book of Jubilees later
assigns the Festival ofWeeks, the most important festival of the year for
the author.
The author of Jubilees derives his date for the covenant ceremony at
Mt. Sinai from some indications in the text of Exodus itself Exodus 19:1
indicates that the Israelites entered the wilderness of Sinai sometime in
the third month, though the exact date is not specified. 40 There are no
other explicit indications of date in Exod 19-24, although there are the
generic indications of one day ending and another beginning at various
38. Attridge eta!., Qumran Cave 4, VIII, 5-6.

39. This means that the covenant ceremony described in Exod 24:4b-8 occurs on
III/16.
40. James C. VanderKam ("Studies on the Prologue and Jubilees 1," in For a
Later Generation: The Transformation of Tradition in Israel, Early Judaism, and
Early Christianity [Harrisburg, Penn.: Trinity Press International, 2000], 275-76)
discusses some attempts by ancient exegetical sources (esp. rabbinic) to pin down
the date references in Exod 19 and 24. For further discussion of the date ofthe entry
into the wilderness of Sinai, see Chapter 3.
4: Jubilees 91
junctures (e.g. Exod 19:10-11, 16, 24:4). These indicate a time period of
at least four days spent at the foot ofMt. Sinai before Moses ascends the
mountain to receive the tablets from YHWH.
It is common to take the time reference in Exod 19: 1 to refer to the
first of the month, but this is by no means certain. 41 The uncertainty
stems from the fact that Wlh can refer to either "month" or "new moon".
If the former is the intended meaning, then the specific date is indetermi-
nate. VanderKam notes that the Priestly writer elsewhere is far. more
specific when he wants to be. 42 VanderKam cites Exod 16:1, but more
instructive examples, involving the first of a month as in Exod 19:1,
include the following:
wrn? i~ttf 'l'W!J.~
in the tenth month, on the first of the month (Gen 8:5)
W!h? i~tt~ !iWNl~

in the first year on the first day of the month (Gen 8: 13)
W!h? i~ttf n'~V?iO ;q'f:;l!MNl') W!h:;l

in the first month, in the second year, on the first day of the month (Exod
40:17) 43
When the first of a month is indicated, the common practice of the

Priestly writer is explicitly to indicate it by means of the term 1J:lt9 ("on
the first"). 44
On the other hand, Lev 23:41, which concerns the Festival of Booths
and. is celebrated for seven days beginning on the fifteenth day of the
month and therefore certainly does not refer to the first ofthe month, has
a similar construction to Exod 19:1:
in the seventh month (Lev 23 :41)
in the third month (Exod 19:1)
41. See, for instance, Martin Noth, Exodus: A Commentary (trans.J. S. Bowden;
OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster, 1962 [1959]), 155; cf. LXX on Exod 19:1: -roii
6( f!.T]VO~ -roii cpl1:ou .. :riJ ~fJ.fP(/: 1:au1:1J ("And on the third month ... on that day").
Wevers notes that this indicates that the LXX translator took Exodus to mean that the
first day of the month was meant (Notes on the Greek Text of Exodus, 292).
42. VanderKam, "Studies on the Prologue and Jubilees 1," 275.
43. See similarly Lev 23:24; Num 1:18; 29:1; 33:38.
44. See the comments of Childs, The Book ofExodus, 342.
This leaves open the possibility that a specific date was dropped from the
text to allow ancient exegetes to connect the covenant at Sinai with the
Festival of Weeks, which occurs later on in the month. 45 While this
remains a possibility, it not only remains speculative, and one wonders ·
why someone did not just put a more specific date in its place (e.g. three
days before the putative date of the Festival of Weeks) or make a
connection to the Festival of Weeks more explicit in som~ other way. At
any rate, the qualifying phrase i1TiJ ci-~ ("on this day") likely indicates
that the reader is to take the verse. as a whole as indicating the first of the
month. On balance, this is the more likely interpretation.
The author of Jubilees, however, does not reproduce Exod 19:1 in its
original context. Furthermore, it appears that Jubilees offers a slightly
different chronology for the entrance into the wilderness of Sinai. 46 lt can
be safely assumed that Jubilees would not have the Israelites traveling on
a Sabbath (i.e. III/7 and III/14). For the author of Jubilees this rules out
the possibility that Exod 19:1 refers to the beginning of the third month
counting from I/14, which was the date of the exodus, since III/14 was a
Sabbath. 47
Since according to Jubilees, the Festival of Weeks is dated to III/15,
the Israelites could be understood as having entered the wilderness of
Sinai on III/13; this is so because, according to Exod 19:10-11, the
Israelites were to consecrate themselves in preparation for the theophany
on the third day (III/15). This would fit in perfectly with the requirement
that the Israelites do no work on the Sabbath, III/14, since that would be
the second day of the prescribed consecration.
VanderKam, however, suggests that the author of Jubilees has Israel
arrive at the foot ofMt. Sinai on III/12 according to the following logic. 48
It is certain that the author of Jubilees was a very careful reader who paid
attention to what modem readers would consider minutiae. The curious
phrase i1Ti1 C,':J makes it possible that the author of Jubilees took the T
and the second i1 of i1Ti1 to refer to the numbers 7 and 5 respectively. 49
When added together, the phrase could be translated "on the twelfth day"
and would indicate that the Israelites entered the wilderness of Sinai on
III/12. 50 The extra day (i.e. III/12 to III/13) would be required to rest after
45. Childs (The Book ofExodus, 342) cites Biintsch and others as holding to this
view.
46. Cf. VanderKam, "Studies on the Prologue and Jubilees l," 276-79.
47. Ibid., 277.
48. Ibid., 277-78.
49. Ibid. The initial i1 of i1ti1 would remain the definite article.
50. Ibid.
4. Jubilees 93
the journey related in Exod 19: 1, before the events of Exod 19:2-25
occur. 51 In other words, whereas the book of Exodus probably has the
Israelites enter the wilderness of Sinai on III/1, the author of Jubilees has
them arrive on III/12.
Of course, there is no explicit indication in Jubilees that any of this
was in the author's mind as he calculated the date of Moses' ascent of
Mt. Sinai, but it very well may be the basis on which the author came up
with the date of III/16 in Jub. 1:1. After all, gematria of this kind is
hardly surprising for an author that arranges his chronology based on
a Sabbath and jubilee system and, for instance, makes a connection
between the 22 kinds of work during the creation week and the 22
leaders from Adam until Jacob (Jub. 2:23). 52
4. Covenant in Jubilees 6
4.1. Introduction
Covenant is central to the book of Jubilees. 53 As stated above, many
Hellenistic Jews proposed reintegration with Greek customs, arguing that
at one point in time all human beings were unified and that the Mosaic
covenant and accompimying legislation represented the splitting off of
the Jewish nation from this originally unified and harmonious whole. The
author of Jubilees turns the tables on the Hellenizers, arguing that in fact
it is the covenant that the Jews adhere to that was originally the universal
basis for a common humanity.
Of course, the problem for the author of Jubilees is that it could be
argued, based on the Jews' own religious writings (above all, the book of
Exodus), that a particular people (Israel) at a particular time (founding of
the nation) and place (Mt. Sinai) made a covenant with God-not.all of
humankind at the beginning of human history. In addressing this issue,
the author of Jubilees turns to Genesis, and in particular, the story of
Noah.
51. VanderKam (ibid., 277) cites b. Shab. 86b-87a, which allows for rest on the
day of the people's arrival at Sinai because they would be exhausted after all the
traveling depicted in the previous chapters in Exodus.
52. VanderKam (ibid., 278) cites the examples of gematria that Saul J. Lieber-
man mentions ("A Mesopotamian Background for the So-CalledAggadic 'Measures'
of Biblical Hermeneutics?," HUCA 58 [1987]: 157-225), in addition to citing a
couple of his own from the Hebrew Bible.
53. Cf. Annie Jaubert, La Notion d'Alliance dans le Judaisme aux abords de
/'Ere chn?tienne (Patristica Sorbonensia 6; Paris: Seuil, 1963), 95-115.
4.2. The Chronology of the Flood

The story of Noah is significant because it represents a new beginning.
The flood is a return to the pre-creation chaos that characterized the earth
in Gen 1:2. With the population of the earth reduced to one family of
eight people, Noah represents a new Adam, so to speak. As such, the
covenant God makes with Noah in Gen 9 is a universal one, binding on
all humankind.
There are several reasons why the author of Jubilees would associate
the Noachic covenant with the Festival of Weeks. First, the dates
indicated in the biblical text itself favor such an identification. The flood
narrative is perhaps the most chronologically specffi.c event in the entire
Hebrew Bible. For the author ofJubilees, the flood took up the space of a
single, whole year. s4
Table l 0. Chronology of the FloocJS 5
MI' LXX Jubilees 4Q252
Begins 11117 ll/27 11117 11117
Ark on mountain VII/17 VII/27 (VII/17?) VII/17
Great deep closed IV/I III/26
Earth's deep opened Vll/1 Vll/14
Mountains visible X/1 XIII X/1 X/1
Waters dry 1/1 1/1 1/1 1/1
Earth dry Il/27 Il/27 ll/17 ll/17
Exit ark ll/27 Il/27 ll/27 and III/I Il/17
Since, according to the biblical text, the Noachic covenant took place
sometime after II/27, it was natural for the author of Jubilees to link it
with the Festival of Weeks, which-from the evidence available in the
Hebrew Bible itself-is to be celebrated sometime in the first half of the
third month, which is at most within a few weeks ofii/27. 56
54. For a discussion of the wider chronology of the flood narrative in the book of
Jubilees, including a comparison with the biblical text, see VanderK.am, The Book of
Jubilees (200 l ), 96--97; idem, "Covenant and Biblical Interpretation in Jubilees 6,"
94-101; Jacques T. A. G. M. van Ruiten, "The Interpretation of the Flood Story
in the Book of Jubilees," in Interpretations of the Flood (ed. Florentino Garcia
Martinez and Gerard P. Luttikhuizen; Leiden: Brill, 1998), 68-78.
55. Most of the data in this table was adapted from VanderKam, The Book of
Jubilees (2001), 96.
56. Note, however, that there is no specific date in the third month given for the
Noachic covenant in Jub. 6 itself. It must be inferred from the fact that the Festival
of Weeks is said to have been celebrated in the middle of the third month later on in
thetext(e.g.Jub. 14:10).
4. Jubilees 95
Uniquely in the book of Jubilees, the author distinguishes between the

drying of the earth and the exit from the ark, which also takes place in
two stages. 57 The first involves the animals, which leave the ark on II/27
(Jub. 5 :32; cf. Gen 8: 14, 19); the second involves Noah and his family
who do not leave until III/1 (Jub. 6: 1; cf. Gen 8: 14, 18). 58 The reason for
this twofold exit from the ark is clear: Jubilees wants to date the
covenant to the third month. By having Noah and his family wait an
extra four days in the ark, the author makes clear that the covenant takes
place in the third month. In this respect, it is important to note that Jub.
6:1 recalls Exod 19:1, where the Israelites approach Mt. Sinai on III/I.
The flood narrative also contains some suggestive verbal associations
with the Festival of Weeks that might suggest a link with the Noachic
covenant. The Hebrew word for the name of the festival, niV:l'IV, from
the root V:l'IV, is similar to other words that are either found o~'strongly
implied in the context of the flood and its aftermath (Gen 6:9-9:19). The
number "seven" (V~W) appears-in various combinations (i.e. seven,
seventeen, twenty-seven)-numerous times in the flood narrative, with
respect to the number of certain types of animals that Noah took on
board (Gen 7:2 [2x], 3 [2x]) and dates of the key events associated with
the flood (Gen 7:4, 10, 11; 8:4, 10, 12, 14; cf. the ordinal in Gen 8:4).
This is significant because, of course, the Festival ofWeeks is really the
festival of seven weeks, or (to be literal) seven sevens.
The Hebrew word for "oath" (il¥~:lo/) is also very similar to "week,
weeks" (l?~:llp, niV~lp). Although the word for oath is not present in the
biblical account of the covenant between God and Noah in the aftermath
of the flood, the book of Jubilees supplies it since an oath typically
accompanies a covenant. 59 The author of Jubilees had ample precedent
for such an assumption within the Hebrew Scriptures. In fact, elsewhere
57. The MT has the flood last one year and ten days (II/17 to II/27; an inclusive
count would imply eleven days, but then this method would also have to apply to the
LXX as well), whereas according to the LXX the flood lasted exactly one year (11127
to Il/27). Jubilees thus agrees with the LXX on the length of the flood (one year),
but agrees with the MT on the date of the beginning of the flood (II/17). On the possi-
bility that scribal lapses contributed to the difference in dates, see Ronald S. Hendel,
"4Q252 and the Flood Chronology of Genesis 7-8: A Text-Critical Solution," DSD
2 (1995): 76-79; cf. van Ruiten, "The Flood Story in the Book of Jubilees," 69-72.
58. AfewGreekmss.addiov f.I.Lg wii f.l.llVOt; wii -rp[wuattheendofGen8:19
(l?'mg-58-72), leaving open the possibility that the author of Jubilees was relying
on a certain textual tradition for this twofold exit.
59. As it does in ancient Near Eastern treaties; cf. Baltzer, The Covenant
Formulary, 16.
in the book of Genesis itself, Abraham's covenant with Abimelech

(Gen 21:21-34), Isaac's covenant with Abimelech (Gen 26:26-33),
and Laban's covenant with Jacob (Gen 31 :43-54) all involve the swear-
ing of an oath. 60 In 2 Chr 15: 10-15, King As a makes a covenant with the
people of Judah in the third month. 61 This text emphasizes the oaths asso-
ciated with the covenant in a way that is suggestive given the similarity
of the word for "oath" with "weeks" and the fact that this covenant is
made in the third month.
Isa 54:9-10, which recalls the Noachic covenant, states explicitly that
God swore an oath to Noah that he would never send another flood:
'llli?Q '1'1.\'~o/~ p n~;~;T':1P ;;y m-'1;1 jjP.T,J 'T:W~o/~ ,~~ '7 nt-tt t1.i '1;1-':;J •
:-:r:r,¥~7;)11~7¥
t-t':1 '7;li':11p n'!:t11Vm;-t-t':1 11Jl:ll;l '191J1 i1t"\?1r.IJ;l niv:;L~iJJ11Vm; O'!i;1<:;1 ':;J 10
:i11i1; 11;lt)!r,J il;ll;l 011:11)
9"For this is like the days of Noah to me:
as !swore that the waters of Noah
should no more go over the earth,
so I have sworn that I will not be angry with you,
and will not rebuke you.
°
1 For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed,
but my steadfast love shall not depart from you,

and my covenant ofpeace shall not be removed,"
says YHWH, who has compassion on you. (Isa 54:9-10; italics added) 62
Thus, in making explicit mention of an oath in association with the

Noachic covenant, the author of Jubilees rectifies a deficiency-<>r so he
may have seen it-in the biblical text, since nowhere is there an explicit
indication that Noah accepted the terms of the covenant, though it is
probably implied in Gen 9:11-15.63
4.3. The Noachic Covenant (Jubilees 6)

When Noah emerges from the ark on III/1 he makes atonement for the
earth by, offering sacrifices on an altar (Jub. 6: 1-3); in response, God
60. The first two instances take place at Beersheba (V:;J.~ i~~), the "seven wells"
whose etymology is directly linked to oaths in Gen 21:31. The latter two instances
are recounted in Jub. 24:8-27 and 29:5-8.
61. Cf. Targum of Chronicles on this passage, which makes explicit the link with
the Festival of Weeks. See also the discussion in Chapter 3.
62. VanderKam ("Covenant and Biblical Interpretation in Jubilees 6," 96-98)
discusses most ofthese examples along with several others where oaths are linked to
covenants.
63. Ibid., 96.
4. Jubilees 97
promises never to destroy the earth by means of flood waters. 64 Reflect-

ing the fact that it is a new start, there is the command to be fruitful and
multiply (Jub. 6:5-6). Noah is commanded not to eat the blood ofliving
beings and not shed the blood of another human being (Jub. 6:7-14).
This represents the stipulations of the covenant that God makes with
Noah (Jub. 6:10-11).65
The rainbow becomes the sign ofGod's eternal covenant with human-
kind that he would never again flood the emth:
15 He gave Noah and his sons a sign that there would not again be a flood
on the earth. 16 He put his bow in the clouds as a sign of the eternal cove-
nant that there would not henceforth be flood waters on the earth for the
purpose of destroying it throughout all the days of the earth. (Jub. 6: 15-16)
It is for this reason, then, that the Festival of Weeks is to be celebrated:

17 For this reason it has been ordained and written on the heavenly tablets
that they should celebrate the festival of weeks during this month--Qnce a
year-to renew the covenant each and every year. 18 This entire festival
had been celebrated in heaven from the time of creation until the lifetime
of Noah-for 26 jubilees and five weeks of years [= 1309 years]. Then
Noah and his sons kept it for seven jubilees and one week of years until
Noah's death [= 350 years]. From the day of Noah's death his sons
corrupted (it) until Abraham's lifetime and were eating blood. 19 Abraham
alone kept (it), and his sons Isaac and Jacob kept it until your lifetime.
During your lifetime the Israelites had forgotten (it) until I renewed (it) for
them at this mountain. (Jub. 6:17-19; italics added)
While the entire book of Jubilees is a copy of parts of the heavenly

tablets, the angel of the presence explicitly mentions that something is
written on the heavenly tablets only when it represents crucial informa-
tion, especially an important decree.
In the Hebrew Bible this festival is not celebrated until the time of
Moses (cf. Exod 23:16; 34:22; Lev 23:15-21; Num 28:26-31; Deut
16:9-12). However, in the book of Jubilees this festival is celebrated in
the time of Noah. In fact, while Noah is thus the first to celebrate the
Festival of Weeks on earth, the angel of the presence informs us that it
64. The beginning of Jub. 6:2 has "he appeared on" (>astar'aya), but lQapGen
X, 13 (m!l::> NZ,1:J NVIN ;,::>;; "1 atoned for all the whole earth") reflects the less well
attested but similar word, "he atoned for" (>astasraya), used later in the same verse
and attested in two Ethiopic manuscripts (25 and 44). See the discussion in
VanderKam, The Book ofJubilees· (1989), 2:36.
65. As VanderKam ("Covenant and Biblical Interpretation in Jubilees 6," 95)
notes, in Genesis the covenant is not established immediately after the sacrifice as in
Jubilees (cf. Gen 8:21 and 9:11).
has been celebrated by the angels in heaven since the time of creation
(Jub. 6:17-19). The creation of the sun on the fourth day establishes the
basis for the reckoning of the calendar and its various holy days,
including the Festival ofWeeks:
[C'1!11n]71 nird[w]71 [c']D'7 [1'1Nil 7v] 71[1l mN71!1D1!1ilJn'1 9 ... (7)
[C'J1!1il n1.!J1) pn 7:::171 C'7[:J.1'71 C'J1!1il n1)11:J.1!171 C'J1!171 C'1V1D71) (8)
(7) eHe appointed the sun as a gre ]at [sign above the earth] for day[ s],
for [sa]bbaths, for [months,]
(8) [for festivals, for years, for the weeks of years, for jubi]lees, and for
all the cy[cles of the years.] (4Q216 VI, 7-8 =Jub. 2:9) 66
The Lord appointed the sun as a great sign above the earth for days, sab-
baths, months, festivals, years, sabbaths of years, jubilees, and all times
of the years. (Jub. 2:9 [Ethiopic])
With the creation of the sun, then, this crucial festival was celebrated
from the very beginning in accordance with its fixed patterns.
This festival has a twofold character as outlined in the Hebrew Bible,
though it is explicated more fully in the book of Jubilees:
20 Now you command the Israelites to keep this festival during all their
generations as a commandment for them: one day in the year, during this
month, they are to celebrate the festival 21 because it is the festival of
weeks and it is the festival of firstfruits. This festival is twofold and of
two kinds. Celebrate it as it is written and inscribed regarding it. 22 For I
have written (this) in the book of the first law in which I wrote for you
that you should celebrate it at each of its times one day in a year. I have
told you about its sacrifice so that the Israelites may continue to remem-
ber and celebrate it throughout their generations during this month--one
day each year. (Jub. 6:20-22)
Here the angel of the presence appeals to the first law, which refers to
this festival in various terms, most notably the Festival ofWeeks and the
Festival ofFirstfruits (cf. Exod23:16, 34:22; Lev 23:15-22; Num28:26-
31; Deut 16:9-12). For the author of Jubilees, the "Festival of Weeks"
refers specifically to the fact that the date is determined by counting
seven weeks from the morrow of the Sabbath after Passover and the
Festival of Unleavened Bread (i.e. 1/26). More importantly, however, it
signifies the occasion of covenant renewal, probably due to the linguistic
similarity between "weeks" and "oaths." The designation "Festival of
66. Attridge et al., Qumran Cave 4, VIII, 16-17. Note that in line 8 there is
enough space for another word or two somewhere between "sabbaths" (nln:J.1!1) and
"jubilees" (0'7::11').
4. Jubilees 99
Firstfruits," on the other hand, is a recognition that it celebrates the

beginning of the wheat harvest (Jub. 15:1; cf. Exod 23:16; 34:22; Lev
23: 16).
4.4. The Date of the Festival of Weeks

While no specific date in the third month is given in Jub. 6 for the cele-
bration ofthe Festival of Weeks, the date ofthe Festival of Weeks in the
book of Jubilees is certainly III/15. However, this can only be inferred
from various places later in the text that mention the Festival of Weeks:
After these things-in the fourth year of this week [1964], on the first of
the third month-the word of the Lord came to Abram in a dream ... He
got all of these in the middle of the month ... During this night we con-
cluded a covenant with Abram like the covenant which we concluded
during this month with Noah. Abram renewed the festival and the ordi-
nance for himself forever. (Jub. 14:1, 10, 20)
During the fifth year ofthe fourth week of this jubilee-in the third month,
in the middle ofthe month-Abram celebrated the festival ofthe firstfruits
of the wheat harvest. (Jub. 15: l)
She [Sarah] became pregnant and gave birth to a son in the third month; in
the middle of the month, on the day that the Lord had told Abraham---<m
the festival of the firstfruits of the harvest-Isaac was born. (Jub. 16:13)
From these instances it is clear that the Festival of Weeks is celebrated
on the middle day of the third month. Since the third month has 31 days,
one might conclude that the Festival of Weeks is held on 111116.
However, an analysis of Jub. 44:1-5 indicates this is not the case:
1 Israel set out from Hebron, from his house, on the first ofthe third month.
He went by way of the well of the oath and offered a sacrifice to the God
of his father Isaac on the seventh ofthis month. 2 When Jacob remembered
the dream that he had seen in Bethel, he was afraid to go down to Egypt. 3
But as he was thinking about sending word to Joseph that he should come
to him and that he would not go down, he remained there for seven days
on the chance that he would see a vision (about) whether he should remain
or go down. 4 He celebrated the harvest festival-the firstfruits of grain-
with old grain because in all the land of Canaan there was not even a
handful of seed in the land since the famine affected all the animals, the
cattle, the birds, and mankind as well. 5 On the sixteenth the Lord appeared
to him and said to him: "Jacob, Jacob." He said: "Yes?" (italics added)
Since the sixteenth is the day after the festival, the festival must have
been held on the fifteenth of the third month. 67
67. It is just possible that the celebration of the harvest festival also took place on
the 16th, but given the appearance of a chronological marker, the most natural
It is in this context that the author of Jubilees tries to show that certain
aspects of the Mosaic covenant and legislation were already known in
the patriarchal period, beginning with the original covenant with Noah. It
is cmcial to the author of Jubilees to show that the Mosaic covenant was
the capstone of a process that had a long prehistory, in order to demon-
strate that the Mosaic covenant was not unique in the sense that it was a
new beginning, or some kind of decisive break with the past. Many of
the most cmcial aspects of the Mosaic legislation were already revealed
in the patriarchal period. In fact, the Mosaic covenant, according to
Jubilees, simply represents the natural progression of the revelation of
God's will, which was already revealed in part to such noteworthy heroes
from Israel's past as Noah, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
5. Covenant Renewal and the Festival of Weeks in Jubilees

All subsequent covenants in Jubilees are covenant renewals of the
original covenant with Noah. In this, the author of Jubilees is taking the
implications ofGen 9:16 very seriously:
i1'n Ui!:ll-~::J l':ll t:l'i1'~N 1':!1. o~iV n'i:!l. iJT~ i1'n'Nil Pll:!l. nUipi1 i1n'm
·- . . · . · ., . · ·· ·· · =rl~~-~~ ·:,w~ ;~f-~~~
The bow is in the clouds and I look upon it to remember the eternal
covenant between God and between every living being in all flesh which
is upon the earth. (Gen 9: 16; italics added)
The author of Jubilees takes this to mean that Noah's covenant is eternal
and that the other covenants are renewals and extensions of this original
covenant.R 1 Thus, for the author of Jubilees, there is only one covenant,
not several (Abrahamic, Mosaic, Davidic etc.). This is made explicit with
respect to the Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants, and probably intimated
with respect to the Davidic covenant.
5.1. The Covenant of the Pieces (Jubilees 14:1-20)

As Jub. 6:17-19 indicates, Abram is the first to celebrate the Festival of
Weeks in a long time. InJub. 14:1-20 (cf. Gen 15:1-21), the angelofthe
presence makes explicit the fact that the Abrarnic covenant is a renewal
of the Noachic covenant:
1 After these things-in the fourth year of this week [ 1964 A.M.], on th~·
first of the third month-the word of the Lord came to Abram in a

dream .... 10 He got all of these in the middle of the month. He was living
81. VanderKam, "Covenant and Biblical Interpretation in Jubilees 6," 98.

4. Jubilees 107
at the oak ofMamre which is near Hebron .... 18 On that day the Lord con-
cluded a covenant with Abram with these words: "To your descendants I
will give this land from the river of Egypt as far as the great river, the
Euphra~es River.. .. 20 During this night we concluded a covenant with
Abram like the covenant which we concluded during this month with
Noah. Abram renewed the festival and the ordinance for himselfforever.
(Jub. 14:1, 10, 18a, 20; italics added)
This festival, which was the occasion for covenant renewal, is said to
have taken place on the middle of the third month, the Festival ofW eeks.
This is the first time that a more or less specific date in the third month is
identified for this crucial festival-in Jub. 6:17-22 only an unidentified
date in the third month is specified as the time for the Festival of
Weeks. 82
Abram's renewal of the covenant and the festival is the first since
Noah's time (cf. Jub. 6:17-19). Although all covenants are funda-
mentally part of the same everlasting covenant, stipulations and promises
are often appended to the covenant at different stages as they are
renewed. During this particular covenant renewal, for instance, God adds
the promise of a son (Jub. 14:1-7) and prophesies to Abram that his
descendants will be enslaved in a foreign land (Jub. 14: 13-16), but
promises that he will redeem them and give them the land of Canaan
(Jub. 14: 18).
Abram's renewal of the covenant is apparently related to his study of
the books that were handed down from his forefathers:
25 Then the Lord God said to me: "Open his mouth and his ears to hear
and speak with his tongue in the revealed language." For from the day of
the collapse it had disappeared from the mouth(s) of all mankind. 26 I
opened his mouth, ears, and lips and began to speak Hebrew with him-
in the language of the creation. 27 He took his fathers' books (they were
written in Hebrew) and copied them. From that time he began to study
them, while I was telling him everything that he was unable (to under-
stand). He studied them throughout the six rainy months. (Jub. 12:25-27)
Since the plural is used here (>abawihu; "his fathers"), the books Abram
took up and studied not only originated from Terah alone, but his
ancestors. 83
82. According to Jubilees, the word of the Lord came to Abram on III/I (14: I),
but the ceremony did not take place until the middle of the third month (14: 10).
Presumably, this was so that Abram had time to obtain the sacrificial animals God
orders him to gather in 14:9.
83. The singular (>abuhu; "his father") is attested once (ms. 12; cf. >afuhu; "his
mouth" in ms. 38). The text is not extant in any other language, including Hebrew.
12 months of30 days each in this case as well. It appears, then, that the
author of Jubilees has adopted the calendrical system of the Astro-
nomical Book.
4.6. The Festival of Weeks Among the Other Festivals in Jubilees

The Festival of Weeks is the only major festival in the Hebrew Bible that
is not associated with a historical event. The Festival of Unleavened
Bread was early on associated with the Passover and thus the Exodus
from Egypt. The Festival of Booths, was eventually associated with the
wilderness period oflsrael' s wanderings. The Festival ofWeeks, coming
as it does between these two festivals on the sacred calendar, fit
perfectly, chronologically speaking, with the Sinai Event; that is, just as
the Festival of Weeks comes between the Festival of Unleavened Bread
and the Festival of Booths, so also the Sinai event comes between the
Exodus from Egypt and the wilderness wanderings. Thus it is not
surprising that the author of Jubilees makes this connection.
But, for the author of Jubilees, each of these festivals is associated
with a historical event in the patriarchal period, long before the tradi-
tional associations alluded to in the Hebrew Bible. This is because it is
important to him to establish that these festivals belonged to ancient
antiquity, and is associated with his desire to establish the idea that some
parts of the Torah were already enshrined in the patriarchal period. 77
Thus, the Festival of Booths becomes associated with the joyful
celebration of Abraham at the news that Isaac, the promised son of the
covenant has been conceived (Jub. 16:20-31). 78 The Festival ofUnleav-
ened Bread, on the other hand, becomes associated with the aborted
sacrifice oflsaac (Jub. 18: 17-19). Towards the end ofJubilees, the angel
of the presence admonishes the readers to celebrate the Passover and the
Festival of Unleavened Bread together. Since the Passover is celebrated
to commemorate the saving of the firstborn children oflsrael, it is surely
not coincidental that the author of Jubilees links the Festival of
77. See the discussion ofVanderKam, The BookofJubilees(200!), 100-109, for

a general overview of some of the Mosaic legislation that is inserted into the patriar-
chal period. For more detailed discussion of some of the sexual legislation in
Jubilees, see Gary A. Anderson, "The Status of the Torah Before Sinai: The
Retelling ofthe Bible in the Damascus Covenant and the Book of Jubilees," DSD I
(1994): 19-29.
78. In Jub. !6: 12, the reader is told that Sarah actually conceivedin the middle of
the sixth month, making Ill/15 nine months later. The delay of a month to notify
Sarah (Jub. 16: 16-19) allows the celebration to be held on the Festival of Booths
(Vll/15-21). As noted in Chapter 2, joy is a noted feature of this festival (Deut
16:13-15).
4. Jubilees 105
Unleavened Bread with the saving of Abraham's son Isaac, though,

admittedly, Isaac is not his firstborn. This is confirmed when one notes
that Isaac is saved from Mastema (Jub. 17:15-18:13) just as Israel is
saved from the Mastema during the Exodus (Jub. 48: 12-19; 49:2).
· Nonetheless, the Festival of Weeks is the pre-eminent festival in
Jubilees. This is indicated by the prominence accorded the Festival of
Weeks in several ways. It is certainly mentioned much more often than
the other festivals. 79 Furthermore, this festival is associated with the
Noachic Covenant, and therefore is chronologically prior to the other two
festivals which are only first celebrated in the Abrahamic period. In point
of fact, of all the festivals, it is the only one that is said by the angel of
the Presence to have been celebrated in heaven since creation. 80 There is
no comparable account of the angels celebrating the other festivals in
heaven since creation.
The reason for the pre-eminence of the Festival of Weeks becomes
clear from the body of the work itself. The covenant is the over-arching
theme of the book, as evidenced by Jub. 1, which situates the body ofthe
work as the dictation of.Moses on Mt. Sinai, writing down the words of
the angel of the presence at the command of God. Throughout the work,
the covenant and its corresponding stipulations are clearly the over-
whelming concern of the author.
The author of Jubilees tries to show--contrary to the assertions of the
Hellenists that the Mosaic covenant was late and represented a separation
of the Jews from the rest of humanity-that the Mosaic covenant is
simply a renewal of a much earlier covenant, one that was originally
established in Noah's time. Since Noah is the father of all subsequent
humanity, the covenant of the Jews can be said to be the original basis of
piety, justice, and customs. Thus it is the Hellenists who are mistaken in
assuming that it is Greek customs and practices that are the original and
universally valid way' of life. The author of Jubilees attempts to show
that it is in fact the Gentiles that have separated themselves from the true
way of life, represented by the Noachic covenant and especially as
embodied in its fullest expression in the Mosaic covenant, not the Jews.
79. The Festival of Weeks: 6:17-22; 14:10, 20; 15: 1-2; 16: 13; 22:1-5; 29:5-8;
44:1-5 (cf. 1:1); compare with the Festival of Unleavened Bread: 18:17-19; 48:15-
49:23; or the Festival of Booths: 16:16,20-31; 32:1-29 (cf. 7:1).
80. Thus, not unlike the. Sabbath, which is also said to have been celebrated since
creation; cf. Jub. 2:18: "He [i.e. God] told us-all the angels of the presence and all
the angels of holiness (these two great kinds)-to keep sabbath with him in heaven
and on earth." 4Q216 VII, 8-9lacks the adjective "great."
solar calendar of 360 days or twelve months of 30 days each. This

appears to have been borrowed from the Babylonian schematic calendar,
which is identical in assigning twelve months of30 days each. 74 That the
four extra days are in some sense supplementary is confirmed by 1 En.
75:1-2:
The leaders of the chiefs of the thousands, which are appointed over the
whole creation and upon all the stars, are counted together with the four
(leaders of the seasons); they do not leave from the fixed stations
according to the reckoning of the year; and they render service on the
four days which are not counted in the reckoning of the year. On this
account, people err in them, for those luminaries scrupulously render ser-
vice to the fixed positions in the cosmos-one in the first gate of heaven,
one in the third, one in the fourth, one in the fifth, and one in the sixth. In
this manner the year is completed scrupulously in three hundred sixty-
four fzxed stations ofthe cosmos. (1 En. 75:1-2; italics added)
The Astronomical Book thus indicates that these four extra days had a
special status and at least at one point were not reckoned in the months.
However, there are also contrary indications that there were both 30- and
31-day months (cf. 1 En. 72:2-37; cf. 75:2; 82:4-6). It appears that the
author ofthe Astronomical Book originally assumed a 360-day calendar
with four supplementary days.
Although the author of Jubilees views the Enochic literature as
authoritative in some sense, his conception of the calendar is different.
The author of the Astronomical Book does not appear to judge between
the solar and lunar calendars, as the author of Jubilees does. Also, for the
author of Jubilees, there is no explicit indication that the four extra days
are supplementary. In other words, there is no indication of a 360-day
base calendar with four extra days dispersed throughout the year; the
solar calendar of Jubilees is emphatically a 364-day calendar, period.
These features are clear in the following passage:
32 Now you command the Israelites to keep the years in this number-364
days. Then the year will be complete and it will not disturb its time from
its days or from its festivals because everything will happen in harmony
with their testimony. They will neither omit a day nor disturb a festival. 33
If they transgress and do not celebrate them in accord with his command,
74. VanderKam, Enoch and the Growth of an Apocalyptic Tradition, 97; cf.
Finegan, Handbook ofBiblical Chronology, 32, who notes that this calendar was less
common in Babylon than the strictly lunar calendar of354 days. VanderKam (p. 97)
notes that the Egyptian solar calendar had 360 days to which five extra days were
appended at the end of the year. This is similar to the Astronomical Book, but,
importantly, the Astronomical Book disperses four extra days throughout the year.
4. Jubilees 103
then all of them will disturb their times. The years will be moved from
this; they will disturb the times and the years will be moved. They will
transgress their prescribed pattern ... 36 There will be people who care-
fully observe the moon with lunar observations because it is corrupt (with
respect to) the seasons and is early from year to year by ten days. 37
Therefore years will come about for them when they will disturb (the
year) and make a day oftestimony something worthless and a profane day
a festival. Everyone will join together both holy days with the profane
and the profane day with the holy day, for they will err regarding the
months, the Sabbaths, the festivals, and the jubilee. 38 For this reason I am
commanding you and testifying to you so that you may testify to them
because after your death your children will disturb (it) so that they do not
make the year (consist of) 364 days only. (Jub. 6:32-33, 36-38a)
The author of Jubilees, then, is intent on a 364-day calendar since it

perfectly divides into 52 weeks, which means that each day of every year
will fall on the same day of the week. Thus, a festival such as the
Festival of Weeks will always fall on a Sunday (III/15), and not float
among the days of the week from year to year.
The author of Jubilees, in assigning the fifteenth as the middle of the
third month, apparently thinks in terms of a uniform 30-day month
throughout the year. 75 Therefore, in arguing for a 364-day calendar, he
still, from time to time, shows that he is dependent on the Astronomical
Book's idea of a calendar of twelve 30-day months plus 4 extra inter-
calary days distributed throughout the year. 76 That this is so, is indicated
in another peculiar "error" the author makes in Jub. 5:27:
The waters remained standing on the surface of the earth for five
months-150 days.
The problem is, if months of 30 and 31 days are assumed, depending on

when the count started and ended, five months would be 151 or 152 days,
since the third, sixth, ninth, and twelfth months are 31 days each. The
five-month period mentioned inJub. 5:27 is no doubt linked to the span
of time between the beginning of the flood and the resting of the Ark on
the mountain (cf. Jub. 5:25-28; cf. the five-month span for these events
in both the MT and LXX). If so, then the five months in this context would
be 152 days, not 150 days, since the extra days on the end of the third
month and sixth month would have to be included. The author of
Jubilees, however, appears to be thinking in terms of a solar calendar of
75. To be technical, there is of course no middle day in an even-numbered

month. The fifteenth would be the middle day of a 29-day month, not a 30-day
month.
76. Cf. van Ruiten, "The Interpretation of the Flood Story," 77.
This also conforms with the hypothesis thatJubilees took Lev 23:15 to
refer to the first sabbath day after tl;le completion of Passover and the
Festival of Unleavened Bread (i.e., after 1/14-21):
Y:;J.~ ;J-9Uf;liJ ii;J)rnt;~ D:;;Jtf:;lt) Di'Q n:;l1PiJ n"11Jif7;1 D":J7 DT;ll~t;'1"
:;,r;:";1l'l nb'Qf;l ninfw
;"!Qtr,l DT;l:;t1i?iJ1 Di' D'lPQt) 1i-\'Jt;'l'l nJ,l':;lo/iJ nfWiJ n11Jif7;1 il} 16
:;"!);"!'? ;"l~t)
15 "And you shall count for yourselves from the morrow after the sabbath,
seven complete sabbaths. 16 You shall count fifty days until the morrow of
the seventh sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to
YHWH." (Lev 23: 15-16)
Fifty days from the morrow of the seventh Sabbath puts the beginning
point of the count on I/25 (Sabbath). The corollary is that as far as
Jubilees' calendar is concerned, the Festival ofWeeks must be III/15 (a
Sunday), not Ill/16 (a Monday), since the count explicitly culminates on
the morrow of the Sabbath (i.e. Sunday). 68 The problem is, how can this
be characterized as the "middle of the month"? It could simply be an
error, but there could be an explanation based on information from tl1e
Astronomical Book of 1 Enoch (72-82). 69
4.5. Jubilees and the Astronomical Book

The Astronomical Book of Enoch (1 En. 72-82) contains the first
indisputably clear reference to a 364-day solar calendar. The author of
Jubilees likely alludes to this book in his paragraph concerning the birth
and life of Enoch:
hi'T' f[
['l:J.] yo!:? i1TJi1'WT1n pm:J D'TJ1Vi1 mmN i!lP:J. :J.ln:J'l] (I)
[il)Nlil p1V[N'i 18 ill:lil'1!1i1n I:11:JI:l nlj?lil:J D'l1V;"l nl!llj?n DiN) (2)
[D'I:l:J.1')i1[ n1Y1:J.1V fiNil nlili:J. DiN 'l:J.:J. iY'l ;"li1Yn :J.n:J) (3)
(I) [And he wrote down in a book the signs of the sky, according to the
order of their months, so tha]t [the sons of men] would know
reading is that this is the beginning of a new day. Cf. Jub. 29:7: "On the fifteenth of
those days [i.e. third month; cf. Jub. 29 :5-6] Jacob prepared a banquet for Laban and
all who had come with him." There is no indication that the Festival of Weeks is
meant here, but the context is the covenant that Laban and Jacob make.
68. See the discussion of this issue in Chapter 2.
69. It is rather disappointing to find in the work of such an accomplished author,
as the author of Jubilees unmistakably is, that he does make mistakes. V anderKam
("Studies in the Chronology of the Book of Jubilees," 532-40) has an extensive
discussion of mistakes in the chronology of the Abrahamic narrative.
4. Jubilees 101
(2) [the cycles of the years, according to the orders of all their moriths.]
18 He was the [fir]st
(3) [to write a testimony, and he testified to the sons of men in the
generations of the earth. The weeks of] the [jubilees] (11Ql2 4, 1-3 =
Jub. 4:17-18)1° .
17 He [Enoch] was the first of mankind who were born on the earth who
learned (the art of) writing, instruction, and wisdom and who wrote down
in a book the signs of the sky in accord with the fixed pattern of their
months so that mankind would know th.e seasons ofthe years according to
the fixed patterns of each of their months. 18 He was the first to write a
testimony. He testified to mankind in the generations of the earth: The
weeks of the jubilees he related, and made known the days of the years;
the months he arranged, and related the Sabbaths of the years, as we had
told him ... 21 He was, moreover, with God's angels for six jubilees of
years. They showed him everything on earth and in the heavens-the
dominion of the sun-imd he wrote down everything. (Jub. 4:17-18,21
[Ethiopic]; italics added) 71
In the Astronomical Book, the author synchronizes the lunar and solar
calendars. However, while the solar calendar of364 days is the basis of
the solar calendar in the Astronomical Book, the four extra days at the
ends of the third, sixth, ninth, and twelfth months are in some sense
viewed as supplementary. 72 This is clear from 1 En. 74: 10-11:
If five years are combined the sun gains thirty extra days; consequently
one of those five years gains, and when it is completed, it turns out to be
three hundred sixty-four days. The gain of the sun and of the stars turns
out to be six days; in five years, six days every year add up to thirty days;
and the moon falls be4ind the sun and the stars for thirty days. (1 En.
74:10-11)13
In other words, the lunar calendar of354 days is exceeded by the solar
calendar by 6 days. This means that the author is working with a base
70. Florentino Garcia Martinez, Eibert J. C. Tigchelaar, and AdamS. van der
Woude, Manuscripts from Qumran Cave 11 (JJQ2-18, JJQ20-30) (DJD 23;
Oxford: Clarendon, 1997), 213.
71. James C. VanderKarri {Enoch and the Growth of an Apocalyptic Tradition
[CBQMS 16; Washington, D.C.: Catholic Biblical Association of America, 1984],
79-88; cf. Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls, 17) concludes that the terminus ad
quem for the Astronomical Book is approximately 200 B.C.E., while the terminus a
quo is indeterminate. In his words: "a third-century date for the AB is almost
assured, while a more ancient one is not impossible" (p. 88). The author of Jubilees,
therefore, writing sometime in the middle of the second century B.C.E., could have
had access to this book.
72. VanderKam, Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls, 23-24.
73. Translation: Ephraim Isaac, "The Book of Enoch," OTP 1:5-90.
The ancestors of Abram who are explicitly or implicitly said to be able

to write are: Enoch (Jub. 4: 17-23), Noah (Jub. 8: 11-12; 10:13), Shem
(Jub. 10:13), Arpachshad (Jub. 8:2), Kainan (Jub. 8:2-4), and Terah
(Jub. 11: 16). The following chart lays out the chronological information:
Table 11. Genealogy from Adam to Joseph in Various Sources 84

MT SP LXX Jubilees
Adam Lifespan 930 930 930 930
A.M. 1-930 1-930 1-930 1-930
Seth Lifespan 912 912 912
A.M. 130-1042 130-1042 230-1142 130-
Enosh Lifespan 905 905 905
A.M. 235-1140 235-1140 435-1340 228-
Kenan Lifespan 910 910 910
A.M. 325-1235 325-1235 625-1535 325-
Mehalel Lifespan 895 895 895
A.M. 395-1290 395-1290 795-1690 395-
Jared Lifespan 962 847 962
A.M. 460-1422 460-1307 960-1922 461-
Enoch Lifespan 365 365 365
A.M. 622-987 522-887 1122-1487 522-
Methuselah Lifespan 969 720 969
A.M. 687-1656 587-1307 1287-2256 587-
84. Adapted with infommtion gleaned from Ronald S. Hendel, The Text of
Genesis I-ll: Textual Studies and Critical Edition (New York: Oxford University
Press, 1998), 72; VanderKam, "Studies in the Chronology of the Book of Jubilees,"
529-31; Marshall D. Johnson, The Purpose ofthe Biblical Genealogies with Special
Reference to the Setting of the Genealogies of Jesus (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1969), 262-65. It is evident that the book of Jubilees follows most
closely the chronology of SP, at least until the flood, after which, the Jubilees
chronology greatly diverges from the SP. According to Jub. 23:9, the lifetimes of the
patriarchs after the flood decreased drastically, with the exception of Abraham who
lived to the age of 175, clearly implying that the patriarchs after the flood lived much
shorter lives than even Abraham. A quick comparison of the respective chronologies
confirms this. For instance, in SP, Shelah has Eber at the age of 130, whereas in
Jubilees it is 71; in SP, Eber has Peleg at the age of 134, whereas in Jubilees it is 64;
in SP, Peleg has Reu (or Ragew as Jubilees has it; cf. 'Po:yo:u) at the age of 130,
whereas in Jubilees it is 12(!), and so on. This also enables the author of Jubilees to
place the Exodus and Conquest in the 50th Jubilee, or the Jubilee of Jubilees. The
chronological data are not coherent in Jubilees' account of the patriarchs beginning
with Abraham. See VanderKam, "$tudies in the Chronology of the Book of Jubi-
lees," 532--40. He shows that these chronological errors are simply the not surprising
by-product of a complicated system, not the result of a complicated textual history
that involves multiple editions.
4. Jubilees 109
Lamech Lifespan 777 653 753

A.M. 874-1651 654-1307 1454-2207
Noah Lifespan 950 950 950 950
A.M. 1056-2006 707-1657 1642-2592 701-707-
1651-165785
Shem Lifespan 600 600 600 (600?)
A.M. 1556-2156 1207-1807 2142-2742 1207-(1807?)
Flood Begins 1656 . 1307 2242 1308
Arpachshad Lifespan 438 438 565
A.M. 1656-209486 1307-1745 2242-2807 1310-
Kainan Lifespan 460
A.M. 2377-2837 1375-
Shelah Lifespan 433 433 460
A.M. 1691-2124 1442-1875 2507-2967 1432-
Eber Lifespan 464 404 504
A.M. I72I-2I85 I572-I976 2637-3I4I I503-
Peleg Lifespan 239 239 339
A.M. 1755-I994 I706-1945 2771-3110 I567-
Ragew Lifespan 239 239 339
A.M. 1785-2024 I836-2075 2901-3240 I579-
Serug Lifespan 230 230 330
A.M. I817-2047 I968-2198 3033-3363 1687-
Nahor Lifespan 148 148 208
A.M. I847-1995 2098-2246 3163-3371 I744-
Terah Lifespan 205 145 205
A.M. 1876-2081 2177-2322 3242-3447 1806-
Abraham Lifespan 175 175 175 175
A.M. I946-2121 2247-2422 3312-3487 I876-2060
Isaac Lifespan 180 180 180 180
A.M. 2046-2226 2347-2527 3412-3592 1988-[2I62]
Jacob Lifespan I47 147 I47 I47
A.M. 2I06-2253 2407-2654 3472-3619 2046-2188
Joseph Lifespan 110 110 IIO
A.M. 2134-2242
Enoch is the first person to learn the art of writing and writes the first
books (Jub. 4:18, 19,21-22, 23).87 Since all of the patriarchs from Adam
85. Jubilees gives a range of dates (that is, a week of years) for the birth and
death of Noah rather than a specific year; thus, Noah was born sometime during the
range of years from 701-707 A.M. and died sometime during the range of years from
I651-I657 A.M.
86. Gen I1: I 0 says that Shem fathered Arpachshad at the age of I 00, two years
after. the flood. However, since Noah fathered Shem at the age of500 (Gen 5:32) and
the flood occurred when Noah was 600, we would expect Shem to be I 00 at the time
of the flood and I 02 when he fathered Arpachshad. This introduces a discrepancy of
2 years into the chronology from Shem on.
to Noah are alive and in human society at the same time from the birth of
Noah (701-707 A.M.) to the disappearance of Enoch (presumably 887
A.M.), Enoch had ample opportunity to hand his books over to Noah.
Although we are not explicitly told this, in Jub. 4:19 the angel of the
presence says that "He [Enoch] wrote a testimony for himself and placed
it upon the earth against all mankind and for their history" (italics
added), intimating that his posterity did have access to these books (cf.
1 En. 81:6; 82:1-3; 91:1; 92:1; 93:1-2). 88 While writing is not specifi-
cally mentioned, in Jub. 7:38-39 Noah tells his sons that Enoch gave
certain commands (concerning planting and harvesting; cf. Jub. 7:34-37)
which he gave to his son Methuselah, who in tum gave them to his son
Lamech, who in tum gave them to Noah himself. When combined with
the fact that in Jub. 21 :10 Abraham informs Isaac that he has the writings
of Enoch and Noah, it seems logical that Enoch's books were passed
down from father to son, from at least Enoch to Shem and then down to
Abraham. 89
It appears likely that this was the ideal; that is, the tradition, especially
as transmitted in books, was to be passed down from father to son. 90 The
87. On Enochic texts alluded to in Jubilees, see James C. VanderKam, "Enochic

Traditions in Jubilees and Other Second-Century Sources," in VanderKam, ed.,
From Revelation to Canon, 309-26.
88. Cf. 2 En. 68:1-3 (J recension), where Enoch is born and taken up to heaven
on Ill/6, the date of the Festival of Weeks according to the rabbinic reckoning
(probably indicating a very late date for this section at least): "Enoch was born on
the 6th day ofTsivan, and he lived for 365 years. [And] he was taken up to heaven
<in the month> Nitsan, on the 1st day. And he remained in heaven for 60 days,
writing down all [those] notes about all the creatures which the LORD had created.
And he wrote 366 books and he handed them over to his sons. And he remained on
the earth for 30 days, talking with them. And then he was taken up to heaven again
in the month ofTsivan [on the 6th day], on the very same 6th day on which he was
even born, and at the very same hour" (Francis I. Andersen, "2 [Slavonic Apoca-
lypse ot] Enoch," OTP, 1:196). The rest of the chapter relates how-upon Enoch's
ascension into heaven-Methusalam, his brothers, and Enoch's sons organized a
great festival for all the people held for three days. It should be noted however, that
the context does not allude to the Festival of Weeks. See the discussion by Jan van
Goudoever, Biblical Calendars (2d ed.; Leiden: Brill, 1961), 112-15.
89. Given Kainan's sin concerning the writings of the Watchers (Jub. 8:2-4), it
appears likely that at least Kainan was skipped. On the other hand, the angel of the
presence does say that Kainan kept his sin hidden (Jub. 8:4), so he presumably could
have been passed the books.
90. Subsequent history appears to bear this out. In Jub. 39:6 (Potiphar's wife),
the angel of the presence recounts Joseph's remembrance of Jacob reading from the
words of Abraham concerning adultery. Thus, the writings of Abraham apparently
4. Jubilees 111
fact that Noah gave his books to Shem, and the fact that Terah possessed
the books at all certainly supports this idea (Jub. 12:27). Moreover, the
angel of the presence tells Moses that Arpachshad, Kainan, and Terah
knew the art of writing. 91 Since the lives of Shem and Terah overlap
(albeit by just one year), it is just possible that the books were passed
down from Shem to Terah directly. 92
Enoch's books contained knowledge related to the calendar, chronol-
ogy, history, and knowledge of the Watchers (Jub. 4: 17-26), and one of
Noah's books contained knowledge of medicines (Jub. 10:13), but it is
his division ofthe earth among his sons (Jub. 8: 11-12), which he wrote
down, that is of particular interest here. Notably, after studying the books
of his forefathers (Jub. 12:27), Abram decided to go visit Canaan to see
it and return to Terah (12:28-13: 1). Why would he do this? The most
found their way into Jacob's hands. Whether they passed through the hands ~flsaac
is not known, but Jacob is depicted as being very close to Abraham, and in fact dies
in his embrace (Jub. 22:26-23:3). Jacob, in tum, passes it on to his son Levi (45:16).
These ancient writings are thus preserved in the priestly line from ancient times and
are, of course, highly significant vis-a-vis Jubilees' claim of authority.
91. Though, as mentioned above, Kainan perverts its use, following the teaching
of the Watchers (8:2--4).
92. This would be consistent with what appears to be the common practice, as
envisioned by the author of Jubilees-namely, for the patriarch to wait until near his
death before passing on his books. If so, then since Noah lived past the birth of
Ragew (his great-great-great-great-great-grandson) and since Shem was alive until
the birth ofTerah, it is possible. All ofthis assumes, of course, that Jubilees agrees
with the textual tradition that Shem lived to the age of600-which is nowhere made
explicit in the text. Since he was born before the flood, the age limit of 120 years
(Jub. 5:8) probably was understood not to apply to him (as, e.g., for Noah who lived
950 years [Jub. 10: 15]). At Abraham's death, we receive the notice that he had lived
for three jubilees and four weeks of years (175 years) which was longer than his
immediate ancestors (perhaps even including all his post-diluvian ancestors) because
he was perfect (Jub. 23:8, 10). Cf. Jub. 23:9, which states that after the flood the
lives of the patriarchs decreased: "For the times of the ancients were 19 jubilees for
their lifetimes. After the flood. they started to decrease from 19 jubilees, to be fewer
with respect to jubilees, to age quickly, and to have their times be completed in view
of the numerous difficulties and through the wickedness of their ways-with the
exception of Abraham." The angel of the presence notes, however, that even
Abraham did not complete four jubilees (Jub. 23:10) and that human beings from
Abraham's time would die before they complete two jubilees (Jub. 23: 11-14). It is
doubtful, however, that this is meant to apply to Shem since he was born before the
flood. This means that Noah and Shem likely outlived most of their progeny for
several generations. Note also that Kainan used his knowledge of the art of writing
in order to sin (Jub. 8:2--4), an indication that he was not fit to be given the books.
Terah, while outwardly an idolater, is secretly a monotheist (.Jub. 12:1-8).
plausible explanation is that he had just studied Noah's books and dis-
covered that the portion which was to have fallen to Shem(Jub. 8:12-21)
and his son Arpachshad in particular (Jub. 9:4, 13)-namely, the land of
Lebanon-was not possessed by its proper heir, that is, the progeny of
Arpachshad, from whom Abram is directly descended (see the chart
above).
This illegitimate ownership, according to Jub. 10:29-34, came about
because Canaan usurped Shem's and his sons' land. Canaan settled in
Lebanon, which is why the name of the land was changed to Canaan
(Jub. 10:34). Abram, upon completion of his studies of these ancient
books, departs for Canaan (Jub. 12:28; 13: 1). After a series of adven-
tures, the Lord appears to Abram in a dream (III/1) and promises
descendants and possession of the land of Canaan (Jub. 14:1-9). In the
middle of the third month, the Lord makes a covenant with Abram (Jub.
14:10-20) that is explicitly compared to the covenant Noah made with
God upon leaving the ark (Jub. 14:20). Certainly, this is related to
Abram's study of Noah's books, which set these events in motion. It is
thus not surprising that, having studied the books of his forefathers and
thus making himself fully aware that the Festival of Weeks is the
occasion for the renewal of the covenant, Abram seizes the opportunity
to renew this observance (Jub. 14:10).
It seems likely that the confusion oflanguages in the aftermath of the
Tower of Babel had something to do with the cessation of observance of
the Noachic covenant. In Jub. 6:18-19, the angel of the presence tells
Moses that there was a lapse in observance between the death of Noah
and Abraham's time:
18 This entire festival had been celebrated in heaven from the time of
creation until the lifetime of Noah-for 26 jubilees and five weeks of

years[= 1309 years]. Then Noah and his sons kept it for seven jubilees
and one week of years until Noah's death[= 350 years]. From the day of
Noah's death his sons corrupted (it) until Abraham's lifetime and were
eating blood. 19 Abraham alone kept (it), and his sons Isaac and Jacob
kept it until your lifetime. During your lifetime the Israelites had
forgotten (it) until I renewed (it) for them at this mountain. (Jub. 6: 18-19)
It is not coincidental, therefore, that the Tower of Babel episode (Jub.

10:18-26) is recounted immediately after the report of Noah's death
(Jub. 10:15-17). In fact, a close examination of Jub. 12:25 and 10:26
shows that there is a clear link:
The Lord sent a wind at the tower and tipped it to the ground. It is now
between Asshur and Babylon, in the land of Shinar. He named it the
Collapse [deqat]. (Jub. 10:26; italics added)
4. Jubilees 113
Then the Lord God said to me: "Open his mouth and his ears to hear and
speak with his tongue in the revealed language". For from the day of the
collapse [deqat] it had disappeared from the mouth(s) of all mankind.
(Jub. 12:25; italics added)
With the death ofNoah and the inaccessibility of Noah's books due to
the confusion of languages upon the collapse of the tower of Babel,
Noah's descendants forgot or otherwise neglected to celebrate the Festi-
val of Weeks, along with the other holy days. 93 It was not until Abram
was miraculously taught the Hebrew language (Jub. 12:25-27) that
Abram could read his ancestor's books and, not coincidentally, re-
establish the celebration of the covenant and the rest of the festivals and
holy days. Thus, the promise of descendants and land make perfect sense
in this context: it represents God's belated decision to right the wrong
committed by Canaan in response to Abram's faithfulness in reading his
ancestor's books and discovering the injustice and his faithfulness in
giving a tithe of firstfruits to Melchizedek upon defeating Chedorlaomer
(Jub. 13:25). 94
5.2. The Covenant of Circumcision (Jubilees 15.I-22)

In Jub. 15:1-22 (cf. Gen 17:1-22) Abram celebrates the Festival of
Firstfruits in the middle of the third month:
1 During the fifth year of the fourth week of this jubilee [1986 A.M.]-in
the third month, in the middle of the month-Abram celebrated the

festival of the firstfruits of the wheat harvest.
As stipulated in the biblical text, Abram offers a sacrifice. However, in

this case, the sacrifice does not match up with the specific requirements
·93. There is a chronological peculiarity here, stemming from the biblical text
itself. According to Jub. 10: !8-20; the building of the tower started sometime during
1590-1596 A.M. and lasted 43 years (i.e. until 1633-1639 A.M.). Yet, Noah's
lifespan is explicitly said to be 950 years. Since he was born in 701-707 A.M. (Jub.
4:28), this means that Noah lived until 1651-1657 A.M. ( cf. Adam's death in 930
A.M. which is correctly placed, chronologically speaking, in Jub. 4:29-30 and con-
text, or Abraham's death reported in Jub. 22:1). Thus, Noah's death is reported in
Jubilees before the Tower of Babel, even though, chronologically speaking, Noah's
death came afterwards. It seems rather peculiar that Noah would have allowed
something as disastrous as the building ofthe Tower of Babel if he had been alive at
the time (cf. the MT where Noah is alive in Terah's time, thus during the Tower of
Babel incident).
94. One of the two-fold purposes of the Festival of Weeks is the celebration of
the harvest and the giving of the firstfruits to the Lord (Jub. 6:21; 15:1-2; 16:13;
22: I; 44:4; cf. 7:34-36)
of either Lev 23:15-21 or Num 28:26-31. In Jubilees, Abram offers a

bull, a ram, and a sheep, along with the cereal offerings and the libations,
all offered with frankincense (Jub. 15:2). On the other hand, Leviticus
stipulates seven one-year-old male lambs, a bull, and two rams, along
with the grain offerings and libations (Lev 23:18) and Numbers stipu-
lates two bulls, one ram, and seven one-year-old male lambs, along with
the grain offerings (Num 28:27). Both biblical texts also call for a male
goat for a sin offering. Leviticus adds two male lambs for peace offerings
(Lev 23: 19). This discrepancy-already reflected in the differences
between Lev 23:15-21 and Num 28:26-31-probably reflects the fact
that Priestly rites differed according to time and place. 95
InJub. 15:3-10 God promises to make Abraham (his name is changed
inJub. 15:7 [cf. Gen 17:5]) the father of many nations and possession of
the land of Canaan to his descendants. In Jub. 15: 11-14 a new stipula-
tion is demanded of Abraham: he is commanded to circumcise all the
males of his family as a sign of the covenant, with severe punishment
prescribed for failure to observe this practice.
For the promise of many descendants to be fulfilled, Abraham needs a
son, and Ishmael will not do. Accordingly, God announces that Sarai-
whose name is changed to Sarah-will have a son, who will be named
Isaac (Jub. 15:15-21, whichparallelsrathercloselyGen 17:15-21). Isaac,
who is the promised child of the covenant, will not coincidentally be born
on the same day that celebrates covenant renewal (cf. Jub. 16:11-14).
5.3. The Birth ofIsaac (Jubilees 16:13)

InJub. 16:13 the Lord's promise is fulfilled and the promised son of the
covenant-Isaac-is born (cf. Gen 21:1-7):
11 In the middle of the fifth month he migrated from there and settled at
the well of the oath. 12 In the middle of the sixth month the Lord visited
Sarah and did for her as he had said. 13 She [Sarah] became pregnant and
gave birth to a son in the third month; in the middle of the month, on the
day that the Lord had told Abraham-on the festival of the firstfruits of
the harvest-Isaac was born. 14 Abraham circumcised him when he was
eight days old. He was the first to be circumcised according to the cove-
nant which was ordained forever. (Jub. 16:11-14)
Shortly after Abraham's renewal of the covenant during the Festival of

Weeks (Jub. 14-15), Abraham moves to the Oath Well near Beersheba
(Oath Well [cazaqta ma/:zalii]: 16:11; cf. 16:15, 20; 18:17; Beersheba
95. This assumes, of course, that errors have not crept into the text of Jubilees
due either to the author or to its subsequent transmission.
4. Jubilees 115
[bersabe]: Jub. 18: 17). This can hardly be coincidental, since the biblical
text does not record Abraham moving to Beersheba until after the
aborted sacrifice oflsaac (Gen 22:19).
It is important to note, however, that in the biblical text Abraham
makes a covenant with Abimelech concerning the ownership of a well
(Gen 21:27-33) and that the place is first given the name Beershebaqfter
Isaac's birth. In Gen 21:14, Hagar and the child, upon being expelled by
Abraham at the urging of Sarah, are said to have wandered in the
wilderness of Beersheba. This indicates that Abraham had been living in
the vicinity for some time (cf. Gen 20:15), perhaps even long enough
that Isaac's birth (Gen 21: 1-3) could be presumed to have taken place at
Beersheba. The author of Jubilees, however, omits the episode with
Abimelech and the covenant made over the issue of the ownership of the
well (Gen 21:25-33). Rather, inJub. 16:10 there is simply a summary
notice that Abraham migrated from Hebron and settled between Kadesh
and Sur in the mountains of Gerar, which recalls Gen 20:1, and then in
Jub. 16:11 there is the notice that Abraham settled at the well of the oath,
which recalls the occasion for the naming of the place "Beersheba,"
where Abimelech and Abraham made a covenant (Gen 21:31 ). All of this
takes place immediately before the report oflsaac 's birth in Jub. 16:12-
14 (cf. Gen 21:1-3). By omitting the Abimelech episode, and making
explicit the fact that Abraham and Sarah had migrated to the well of the
oath before Isaac's birth, and, indeed, that the place had been called
Beersheba before Isaac's birth, not afterwards as in the biblical text, the
author of Jubilees merely makes explicit what the biblical text might be
taken to imply in an oblique way but does not make entirely clear-
namely, that Isaac, the son of the covenant, was born at Beersheba
("Seven/Oath Well").
Isaac, as the promised son of the covenant, is therefore boin at the
Oath Well (Jub. 16:11, 15, 20), lives much of his life there (cf. Jub.
29:17-19), and, even though he does make a few journeys (e.g. Jub.
22: 1-2; 23:7), including an extended stayinPhilistia (e.g.Jub. 24:8, 12),
he typically returns to the Oath Well (e.g. Jub. 18:17; 24:21, 26).
Towards the end of his life he finally settles at Abraham's tower (Jub.
29:17-19) to avoid Esau because he married Ishmael's daughter
Mahalath (Jub. 29: 17-19), though much of his possessions remain at the
Oath Well to the end ofhis days (Jub. 36:12; cf. 37:1). It is fitting then
that Isaac, who represents the firstfruits of the promises associated with
God's covenant with Abraham, should be born and live much ofhis life
in Beersheba, at the Oath Well.
The Ethiopic distinction between the Oath Well and Beersheba
probably reflects a subtle but important change from the original Hebrew
text. 96 Beersheba (V;11p l~f.) and Oath Well ( i1.lJ1:11p l~f.) look very
similar in Hebrew, especially without vocalization (which of course was
a much later rabbinic innovation). V;iW 1~:;1 literally means "seven
wells," while i1.lJ1:11.p ~~~ literally means "oath well." 97 The author of
Jubilees evidently introduced a distinction between the two that does not
explicitly appear in the biblical text.
But this distinction merely reflects an ambiguity about the meaning of
Beersheba that is found in the biblical text itself. The author of Jubilees
therefore is merely exploiting it. In Gen 21:30, Abraham says the
following to Abimelech in making a covenant with him concerning a
dispute over the ownership of a well:
'Dl~l! ·~ ill!!? •7-il;i;Jl'l il::LP,:;l 'l:Q npf:! niV:;t:;> v~w-n~ ·~ ii.?N'l
:nl-l·ro ,~:;to·n~
You will take seven lambs from my hand in order that you will be for me
a witness that I dug this well. (Gen 21 :30)
Abraham calls the place Beersheba because the two of them made an
oath (Gen 21:31 ). However, Gen 21:30 attests to the fact that Beersheba
at least originally was likely associated with the number seven,
putatively the seven lambs offered by Abraham (or perhaps the fact that
there were seven wells in the vicinity). At any rate, there seems to be
little doubt that the author of Jubilees has made a distinction here,
capitalizing on this ambiguity between what Beersheba literally means
("seven wells") and what Gen 21 :31 implies that it means ("oath well").
In Jubilees, therefore, Beersheba is the city of"Seven Wells," whereas
the "Oath Well" apparently denotes one of the seven wells after which
Beersheba is named. This makes the best sense of Jub. 18: 17 where both
terms again occur in close proximity:
Then Abraham went to his servants. They set out and went together to
Beersheba. Abraham lived at the well of the oath.
Here there appears to be a distinction between the two terms. If the

author of Jubilees intended Beersheba and the Oath Well really to be
synonymous, then the repetition would appear to be superfluous. How-
ever, if the Oath Well is a particular well in Beersheba, then the use of
96. There is unfortunately no extant Hebrew text of Jubilees containing any

mention of Beersheba or the Oath Well.
97. Cf. VanderKam (The Book ofJubilees [ 1989], 96) who notes that Cedrenus,
a Greek historian preserves the same interpretation of Beersheba: to ¢p€ap ...
wu opKOU (= i1V1:11V iN:l). Endres (Biblical Interpretation in the Book of Jubilees,
40) is therefore probably incorrect when he asserts that "Well of the Oath" is a
translation of Beersheba.
4. Jubilees 117
the two terms does not represent a superfluous repetition. In such a case,
the Oath Well is merely the specific well in Beersheba ("Seven Wells")
near which Abraham dwelled.
In Jubilees, Abraham moves to the Oath Well almost immediately
after the two covenant passages in Jub. 14 and 15 (Jub. 16: 11). Hence-
forward, Abraham is depicted as living continuously at the Oath Well
from A.M. 1987-aside from a brief trip to Mt. Zion where Abraham is
almost required to sacrifice his son Isaac-until A.M. 2010 when he
moves to Hebron where first his wife, and then he himself dies (Jub.
18:17; 19:1; 22:1; 23:1). 9R As noted above, this represents a departure
from the biblical text, where it is first explicitly reported that Abraham
moves to Beersheba immediately after the aborted sacrifice of Isaac. In
Jubilees, however, this is depicted as a return to Beersheba. By this
subtle change, the author of Jubilees indicates that almost from the
moment that God twice makes a covenant with Abraham during the
Festival of Weeks (Jub. 14 and 15), Abraham goes to live at the Oath
Well. The purpose behind this change is so that Isaac is born at the Oath
Well in fulfillment of God's promise to Abraham as part of his covenant
in Jub. 14 and 15. As noted above, in Hebrew the words for "weeks"
(niv~~) and "oath" (il~H:J.o/) are quite similar, and, aside from vocaliza-
tion, the plural for "oath" ( niV:;llP) is identical with the plural for "week."
Based on this similarity, Zeitlin argues that "the name Shabuot in the
Book of Jubilees has not the connotation of 'weeks,' but means 'oaths,'
referring to the oaths of the covenants which God made with Noah and
Abraham. " 99 He notes that this festival, though it is referred to as the
Festival of First Fruits (Jub. 6:21) is never connected to the Waving of
the Sheaf, and there is no mention of the counting of weeks or days.
Rather, it is associated with the covenant of Noah, which was the occa-
sion for its institution as a feast in the first place. Zeitlin speculates that
the mix-up may have happened when the Greek translator of the original
Hebrew work of Jubilees mistook one word for the other. At any rate, the
Festival of Weeks, depending on vocalization, can be read as the Festival
of Oaths in Hebrew. What better place is there to celebrate the Festival of
Oaths than at the Oath Well?
In addition to this association with Beersheba and the Oath Well, there
are a couple of reasons why the author of Jubilees would associate the
birth oflsaac with the Festival ofWeeks. As VanderKam shows, there is
98. This parallels Isaac to a certain extent, since he also moves from the Oath
Well to Abraham's tower in Hebron towards the end of his life.
99. Italics in original. Solomon Zeitlin ("The Book of Jubilees: Its Character and
Its Significance," JQR 30 (1939): 5-7. Cf. also Jaubert,LaNotion d'Alliance, 104-5.
some terminology in Genesis that may have triggered this association,

specifically the promise that Abraham's son would be born at this
"season" (iV1D; Gen 17:21; 18:14; 21:2) and the prophecy that this
miraculous birth would occur "in due season" or, literally, "at a living
time", that is, when things start to grow (il'n rlV:J; 18:10, 14). 100 The
term iV1D in this context means "specific time" but it is also commonly
used to refer to special days, festivals included, and in the Pentateuch the
Festival of Weeks is considered one of the tJ'iV17:l (Lev 23:2, 37; Num
29:39). 101 The author of Jubilees decided that Isaac was born on the
Festival of Weeks because it was a harvest festival celebrated in the
spring, the season of living things (cf. il'n r1V:J). 102
InJub. 17:1, Abraham prepares a great feast when Isaac is weaned at
the age of two (cf. Gen 21 :8):
In the first year of the fifth week [1989], in this jubilee, Isaac was
weaned. Abraham gave a large banquet [gez'] in the third month, on the
day when his son Isaac was weaned. 103
The Ethiopic term for feast or banquet (gez,) is not the same as the one
used for festival (ba<iil; e.g., ba<iil zasubii<ein the phrase "the Festival of
Weeks"), but the association is likely intended since the one would
naturally occur during the other. While Jubilees is not specific about
which day in the third month this celebration occurred, a banquet
strongly hints at the Festival of Weeks.
God renews the original N oachic covenant with Abraham. The Noachic
covenant did not originally include any mention of land or progeny (cf.
Jub. 6) since, as a new Adam, Noah was the father of all humankind and
the entire earth was his. However, once Noah has divided up the earth
among his sons, recording this for posterity's sake (Jub. 8: 11-12), God
decides to honor this agreement, as all of Noah's sons and grandsons
swore an oath to honor the allotted shares of the others:
14 In this way Noah's sons divided (the earth) for their sons in front of
their father Noah. He made (them) swear by oath to curse each and every
one who wanted to occupy the share which did not emerge by his lot. 15
All of them said: "So be it!" So be it for them and their children until
eternity during their generations until the day of judgment on which the
100. James C. VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks," 191; cf. idem, "The Tem-
ple Scroll and the Book of Jubilees," in Temple Scroll Studies: Papers Presented at
the International Symposium on the Temple Scroll. Manchester, December 1987 (ed.
George J. Brooke; JSPSup 7; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1989), 220.
101. Ibid.
102. Ibid.
103. Cf. Isaac's birth two years previously in Jub. 16:13 (cf. 15:1, 21).
4. Jubilees 119
Lord God will punish them with the sword and fire because of all the evil
impurity of their errors by which they have filled the earth with
wickedness, impurity, fornication, and sin. (Jub. 9:14-15; italics added)
Since an oath involving the Lord was invoked, Canaan's usurpation of

Arpachshad' s portion must be remedied. Abraham, as the heir to Arpach-
shad's portion, and the patriarch who reads Noah's books, realizes what
has happened and makes a trip to Canaan. In response, the Lord renews
the original Noachic covenant with Abraham, this time incorporating the
division of the earth instituted by Noah and sealed by the oaths of his
sons and grandsons. Since the Festival of Weeks is also the Festival of
Oaths, for the author of Jubilees, this connection is completely natural
and not surprising.
5.4. The Death ofAbraham (Jubilees 22-23)

In Jub. 22 Abraham celebrates the Festival of Weeks with his family on
the last full day of his life. His two sons Ishmael and Isaac arrive, along
with Rebecca and Jacob. It is fitting that on the day of his death, both of
his sons, Isaac and Ishmael, also celebrate this important festival since
the promises associated with the covenant are bound up with his prog-
eny, especially Isaac. 104 Jacob's special position is highlighted by the fact
that it is Jacob who brings Isaac's and Rebecca's presents to Abraham.
His last words are spoken to Jacob. Abraham blesses Jacob, and prays
that God's promises to Abraham be transferred to Jacob and that God
renew his covenant with him (Jub. 22:10-15). Abraham also warns
Jacob to avoid the practices of the nations (Jub. 22:16-19) and to avoid
intermarrying with Canaan's daughters (Jub. 22:20-22). Abraham also
bequeaths his house to Jacob and his descendants (Jub. 22:24). Finally,
sometime during that night, Abraham dies (Jub. 23:1; cf. Gen 25: 1-18)
in his sleep, in the embrace of his favorite grandson, Jacob (Jub. 22:25....:.
23:3; cf. 19:15).
5.5. Jacob and His Journey to Egypt (Jubilees 44:1-10)

In Jub. 44:1-10 Jacob celebrates the Festival of Weeks before going
down to Egypt (cf. Gen 46:1-4). While the biblical text does not specify
which day this is, the author of Jubilees saw some things in the text of
Genesis that might indicate such a date. First of all, the reason for Jacob
stopping was because Joseph had sent for Jacob and his family to stay
in Egypt where there was plenty of food (Gen 45:26-28). According to
104. Cf. Jub. 15:20 where God promises to Abraham to bless Ishmael as well in
response to Abraham's request that Ishmael find favor in the eyes of the Lord,
though the Abrahamic promises will be fulfilled through Isaac.
the biblical text, Jacob stops at Beersheba, which is near the southern
border of Canaan, at the edge of the desert, and offers sacrifices to God
(Gen 46:1--4). Jacob has already decided to visit Joseph (Gen 45:28),
but, perhaps remembering the encounter of Abraham in Egypt (cf. Gen
12: 10-20) and God's warning to Isaac not to enter Egypt when a famine
struck (Gen 26:2-5), Jacob has second thoughts. Moreover, there appears
to be a reluctance on the part of the patriarchs to leave the Promised
Land after the covenant in Gen 15, in which God promises that Abraham
will possess the land of Canaan (cf. Gen 24:1-8). Nevertheless, God
reassures Jacob and he proceeds to Egypt (Gen 45:5).
Jubilees more or less follows the biblical text, except that in Jubilees,
Jacob is seen to be far more hesitant about going down to Egypt. The
reason for this is apparent from God's instructions to Isaac in Jub.
24:9-11:
9 The Lord appeared to him and told him: "Do not go down to Egypt.
Stay in the land that I will tell you. Live as a foreigner in that land. I will
be with you and bless you, 10 because I will give this entire land to you
and your descendants. I will carry out the terms of my oath which I swore
to your father Abraham. I will make your descendants as numerous as the
stars of the sky. I will give this entire land to your descendants. 11 All the
peoples ofthe earth will be blessed through your descendants because of
the fact that your father obeyed me and kept my obligations, commands,
laws, statutes, and covenant. Now obey me and live in this land." (italics
added)
The first portion of God's speech to Isaac as recorded in Jubilees is more

or less faithful to the biblical text, but the author makes an addition to the
text at the very end that contextualizes God's warning as being based on
the covenant stipulations. 105 Isaac is to live in the Promised Land in
keeping with the covenant promise concerning the possession of the land
of Canaan and the promise of numerous descendants.
Jacob's second thoughts are occasioned by his remembrance of the
dream he had seen at Bethel:
1 Israel set out from Hebron, from his house, on the first of the third
month. He went by way of the well of the oath and offered a sacrifice to
the God of his father Isaac on the seventh of this month. 2 When Jacob
remembered the dream that he had seen in Bethel, he was afraid to go
down to Egypt. (Jub. 44:1-2)
According to Gen 46:1, Israel stopped at Beersheba. The angel of the

presence further specifies that Israel stopped at the Oath Well. Given the
I 05. Endres, Biblical Interpretation in the Book ofJubilees, 66.

4. Jubilees 121
associations with the covenantal promises concerning land and progeny,

this is hardly surprising. Jacob's hesitation occasioned by his dream at
Bethel· reinforces this. It was at Bethel that God appeared to Jacob to
confinn these covenantal promises:
22 He spoke with Jacob and said: "I am the God of Abraham your father
and the God of Isaac. The land on which you are sleeping I will give to
you and your descendants after you. 23 Your descendants will be like the
sands of the earth. You will become numerous toward the west, the east,
the north, and the south. All the families of the nations will be blessed
through you and your descendants. 24 As for me, I will be with you. I will
guard you wherever you go. I will bring you back safely to this land
because I will not abandon you until I have done everything that I have
said to you." (Jub. 27:22-24; italics added)
As inJub. 44:1-4, Jacob is about to leave the land of Canaan in order to
live with Laban in the east. 106 In the former instance, God gave his
blessing to Jacob as he left the Promised Land. Jacob awaits at the Oath
Well for a similar blessing, since he is once again about to leave the
Promised Land, this time for Egypt.
In response, Jacob names the place Bethel (previously Luz), meaning
"the house of God" (cf. Jub. 31:1-3; 31:26-30; 32:1-9). Since it is the
covenantal promises that are at stake here, and since he arrived at the
Oath (i1Vl:l1V) Well on the seventh (V:J.W) day of the third month, he
tarries there seven (V,:J'IV) days to celebrate the harvest festival, the
Festival ofFirstfruits-in other words, the Festival of Weeks, the cove-
nant festival as is related in the following passage:
3 But as he was thinking about sending word to Joseph that he should
come to him and that he would not go down, he remained there for seven
days on the chance that he would see a vision (about) whether he should
remain or go down: 4 He celebrated the harvest festival-the firstfruits of
grain-with old grain because in all the land of Canaan there was not
even a handful of seed in the land since the famine affected all the
animals, the cattle, the birds, and mankind as well. 5 On the sixteenth the
Lord appeared to him and said to him: "Jacob, Jacob." He said: "Yes?"
He said to him: "I am the God of your fathers-the God of Abraham and
Isaac. Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt because I will make you into
a great nation there." (Jub. 44:3-5)
Reassured by God's response, Jacob goes to Egypt, secure in the knowl-
edge that the covenantal promises are not jeopardized by this act.
106. In this case, while Bethel is on the eastern side of Canaan, it is not the
easternmost city, but the suggestive name no doubt plays a large part in the reason
for Jacob receiving the dream there, as opposed to, say, Jericho or Gil gal, which are
both further to the east.
6. The Festival of Weeks as the Occasion

for Other Special Incidents
Covenant renewals between God and the patriarchs are not the only
special events that occur on the Festival ofWeeks.
6.1. The Birth ofJudah (Jubilees 28: 15)

InJub. 28:15 Leah's fourth son Judah is named on the Festival ofWeeks
(cf. Gen 29:35):
15He went in yet another time to her and she gave birth to a fourth son.
He named him Judah on the fifteenth of the third month during the first
year of the fourth week [2129 A.M.].
More than likely this anticipates the Davidic covenant. The angel of the
presence, in recounting the birth of each of Jacob's children, gives the
precise dates for the naming of each child, presumably the same as the
birth date, details which are not present in the biblical text.
Table 12. Naming ofJacob's Children107
Jacob 's Sons Mother A.M. Date Weekday Jubilees

Reuben Leah 2122 IX/14 Saturday 28:11
Simeon Leah 2124 X/21 Tuesday 28:13
Levi Leah 2127 Ill* Wednesday 28:14
Judah Leah 2129 III/15* Sunday 28:15
Dan Bilhah 2127 VI/9 Monday 28:18
Naphtali Bilhah 2130 VIII5 Sunday 28:19
Gad Zilpah 2131 VIII/12 Tuesday 28:20
Asher Zilpah 2133 XI/2 Saturday 28:21
Issachar Leah 2132 V/4 Monday 28:22
Zebulun and Dinah Leah 2134 VII/7 Tuesday 28:23
Joseph Rachel 2134 IV/I* Wednesday 28:24
Benjamin Rachel 2143 VIII/II Monday 32:33
Of all of Jacob's children, only three are born on significant dates (as
denoted by an asterisk[*] in the table above). Levi (the 3rd son) is born
on the New Year's day memorial festival (1/1), Judah (the 4th son) is
born on the Festival ofWeeks (III/15), and Joseph (the 11th son) is born
on a memorial festival (IV/1). Since Isaac, the promised son of the
covenant as it was renewed with Abraham, was born on a significant date
(III/15) that was tied to his significance, one might expect that these
107. Cf. Gen 29:31-30:24. As VanderKam (The Book ofJubilees [1989]) notes,
there are several problems with the dating of the years in these passages.
4. Jubilees 123
birthdays are also significant in some way. These three sons have a
prominent place in the book of Jubilees, particularly Levi and Judah (cf.
Jub. 31 :5-23; 34:3). 108 Joseph is the one who will save Israel from
famine, and Levi and Judah are the tribes from whom the priestly class
and the royal line, respectively, come.
Judah takes on a prominent role as befits the fact that the future mon-
archs of Israel will be chosen from among his de.scendants. Isaac's
blessings on Jacob's sons Levi and Judah highlight the importance of
these two sons. Levi's pre-eminence over Judah (Jub. 31:12-13)-and
thereby the priests over the monarchs-is indicated by the fact that Levi
is blessed first (right hand), and Judah second (left hand). 109 Key themes
associated with the Davidic covenant (2 Sam 7:5-17) are found already
in the patriarchal period in connection with Judah himself:
18 May the Lord give you the power and strength to trample on all who
hate you.
Be a prince-you and one ofyour sons-for Jacob's sons.
May your name and the name ofyour sons be one
that goes and travels around in the entire earth and the regions.
Then the nations will be frightened before you;
all the nations will be disturbed;
all peoples will be disturbed.
19 May Jacob's help be in you;
May Israel's safety be found in you.

20 At the time when you sit on the honorable throne that is rightly yours,
there will be great peace for all the descendants of the beloved's sons.
The one who blesses you will be blessed,
and all who hate and trouble you,
and those, too, who curse you
will be uprooted and destroyed from the earth
and are to be cursed. (Jub. 31: 18-20; italics added)
Certain themes, such as the ability to defeat enemies, rest or make peace
from war with their enemies, and the establishment of a great name, are
also found in 2 Sam 7. In addition, the idea that one of Judah's sons will
be the future king is explicitly mentioned in this text (cf. the italicized
portions in the translation above).
108. On Levi in Jubilees, see VanderKam, "Jubilees' Exegetical Creation of

Levi the Priest," 545-61; idem, "Isaac's Blessing of Levi and His Descendants in
Jubilees 31 ,"in Parry and Ulrich, eds., The Provo International Conference on the
Dead Sea Scrolls, 497-519.
109. VanderKam (The Book ofJubilees [2001], 64) expresses surprise that the
dates of Levi's and Judah's birth are not reversed, given the importance of Levi (cf.
Jub. 30-32). Perhaps the author's wish to foreshadow the Davidic covenant explains
this peculiarity.
In keeping with the royal motif, the military aspect of rule is espe-
cially prominent with respect to Judah in the book of Jubilees. This
likely reflects contemporary concerns, given the uncertain situation pre-
vailing in Judaea in the middle of the second century B.C.E. 110 Judah is
one of the three sons (in addition to Levi and Joseph) who accompany
Jacob as he rescues his other sons from the Amorite kings who raided
and plundered their herds (Jub. 34:1-9). It is at Judah's insistence that
his father Jacob shoots Esau with an aiTow (Jub. 38: 1). In the ensuing
battle, it is Judah who takes the lead militarily by leading the forces out
in front (Jub. 38:5), flanked by Levi and Simeon (Jub. 38:6, 8)-who
had distinguished themselves militarily in Shechem (Jub. 30:4). When
Israel arrives at Egypt to visit Joseph, Israel sends Judah to Joseph first to
check out the land of Goshen (Jub. 44:9-10).
The author of Jubilees has clearly drawn on Gen 49:8-12, which
foreshadows the future Davidic covenant and employs some of the
themes found in Jubilees in connection with Judah, including defeat of
enelllles:
:;':;ll;t 'Jf. 17 Ht)J:Io/' 1':t~N 91Vf. 11: 1'!;11:-111ii' i1J;ll:ol i1lli1; 8
:ll~'i?; '~ N':;l7:;>1 i1~ll:ol=il l'~l V1=il I;1'7l} 'P 91?~ i111i1; i1~ll:ol it\ 9
:O'r;lll nDjp' i?) i?'W N:Jt':;J ill 1'7n !'~~ pphf?i i1lli1'~ O:tW ;;o:-N? '"
:imo D':;tJWD1:;n iw~? !'~~ o:p ili'll!! '~f. i1i?1W7] ii'll !!;!~? '!li* "
::J7t;IQ O~~w-p71 1~:~ O'J'l} '7'7=?D 12
8 Judah, your brothers shall praise you;
Your hand shall be on the neck of your enemies;
Your father's sons shall bow down to you.
9 Judah is a lion's whelp;
From the prey, my son, you have gone up.

He couches, he lies down as a lion,
And as a lion, who dares rouse him up?
10 The scepter shall not depart from Judah,
Nor the ruler's stafffrom between his feet,

Until Shiloh comes,
And to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.
11 He ties his foal to the vine,
And his donkeys colt to the choice vine;

He washes his garments in wine,
And his robes in the blood of grapes.
12 His eyes are dull from wine,
And his teeth white from milk. (Gen 49:8-12; italics added) 111
110. Endres, Biblical Interpretation in the Book ofJubilees, 161.

111. NASB translation (1995).
4.Jubilees 125
The author of Jubilees has clearly expanded on the role of Judah to

provide the grounds for the royal line coming from among his descen-
dants.112
6.2. Jacob and Laban's Covenant (Jubilees 29:5-8)

When Jacob flees Laban, he arrives in Gilead on I/21 and Laban follows
him there on III/13:
During the seventh yearofthe fourth week [2135 A.M.] Jacob returned to
Gilead on the twenty-first day of the first month. Laban pursued him and
found Jacob on the mountain of Gilead on the thirteenth (day) in the third
month. (Jub. 29:5) 11 3
In Jub. 29:7 (cf. Gen 31:43-54), after re-establishing peace between

themselves, Jacob and Laban ratify a covenant to mark the. peace
between them:
7 On the fifteenth of those days Jacob prepared a banquet for Laban and
all who had come with him. That day Jacob swore to Laban and Laban to
Jacob that neither would commit an offense against the other on the
mountain of Gilead with bad intentions.
There are no explicit indications of the precise date in the biblical text,
but there are some key words and concepts that the author of Jubilees
likely found suggestive of a date on the Festival of Weeks .
. First of all, any covenant (cf. Gen 31:44), involving oaths as they
typically do, is more than likely to be associated with the Festival of
Weeks. In Gen 31:53 the verb V:JW ("to swear") is used and since the
Festival of Weeks is n1V:JIZ> ln, it can be read as the Festival of Oaths
with just a slightly different vocalization. Moreover, Jaubert suggests
that, in the eyes of the author, the Festival of Oaths, which embodies a
vertical relationship between God and human beings, also contains
within it the implication of a horizontal relationship or commitment
112. Admittedly, the permanence of rule is nowhere mentioned in Jubilees, but

the author-who has the benefit ofhindsight-has (likely) tactfully omitted mention
of it in light of subsequent history.
113. VanderKam (The Book ofJubilees [2001], 65) argues that this must be a
mistake since I/21 is the last day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread on which no
work (such as traveling) is supposed to be done. Moreover, Laban does not follow
him there until more than seven weeks later on Ill/13. Since chronological errors are
known to have crept into the text (eit;her by the author himself or subsequent
copiers), this appears to be a reasonable speculation. VanderKam suggests Jacob's
arrival as being III/10, or three days before Laban arrives-three days being the
stated distance between Jacob and Laban before Jacob took off (Jub. 29:1 ).
between human beings. 114 She cites the fact that covenants between
human beings are found in two key moments in Jubilees: the covenant
between Noah's sons to divide the earth which happens after the Flood
(Jub. 9:14-15), and Esau's oath to his mother that he will seek Jacob's
welfare upon their mother's deathbed (Jub. 35:24; cf. Isaac's insistence
that his sons treat each other well in Jub. 36:7-9). 115 It is the abrogation
of these oaths by Canaan (Jub. 10:29-32) and Esau (Jub. 37:9-23)
respectively that condemns them, especially in light of the fact that they
break the bonds ofbrotherhood. 116 Those who honor the commitment to
God that the Festival of Weeks represents are also expected to honor a
commitment to one's fellow human beings, since they are, after all, all
descendants ofNoah, and thus one big family. 117 The covenant between
Jacob and Laban, then, since it is fulfilled (in contrast to those ofNoah's
and Isaac's sons), is depicted as taking place on the Festival of Weeks.
Second, throughout this passage and its immediate relevant context the
number "seven" comes up repeatedly. The dispute which eventually
necessitated the ratification of a covenant was occasioned by Jacob's
marriage to Laban's daughters, Leah and Rachel, and more particularly
Laban's underhandeddealingwithJacob (Gen29:1-30), which, in turn,
eventually lead to Jacob dealing underhandedly with Laban with respect
to his flocks. The agreed-upon length of service was seven years for
Rachel, but Jacob was tricked into serving another seven years for Leah
as well (Gen 29:18, 20, 27, 30). The bridal week for both Rachel and
Leah (Gen 29:27, 28) and the seven days Laban spends chasing Jacob are
also suggestive of connections with the Festival of Weeks (Gen 31 :23).
The fact that Laban and Jacob are said to have sat down and broken
bread (Gen 31 :54) may have suggested to the author of Jubilees that they
must have had a feast, and thus the occasion was a festival.
7. Conclusion
In the Hebrew Bible, the evidence for the Festival of Weeks as the
occasion for covenant renewal is mixed. However, there are certain
aspects of the biblical text that were ripe for such an interpretation. The
author ofJubilees exploits these possibilities in linking the covenant with
114. Jaubert, La Notion d'Alliance, 108-10.

115. These are not explicitly associated with the Festival of Weeks.
116. Jaubert, La Notion d'Alliance, 110-11. She notes the contrast with the
unity and harmony of the brothers in Egypt with Joseph (Jub. 45:5; 46:1-2).
117. Ibid., 112-13, notes that the idea that the Israelites are brothers has biblical
origins.
4. Jubilees 127
the Festival of Weeks. Chief among these texts is Exod 19:1, which
indicates that the Israelites entered the wilderness of Sinai on the third
new moon after the exodus from Egypt. Since the Festival of Weeks
is the only major holy day in the third month, the author of Jubilees
naturally associated the Sinai event with the Festival ofWeeks, which he
identifies as the fifteenth day of the third month. Moreover, the play on
words based on the similarity of the Hebrew words for "oaths" and
"weeks" that Jubilees exploits can already be seen in 2 Chr 15:9-15.
This is most apparent in Jubilees inits distinction between Seven Wells
(Beer-Sheba) and the Oath Well. Therefore, it can be safely concluded
that this link was made sometime in the middle of the second century
B.C.E.IIB
118. Although the Hebrew texts of Jubilees from Qumran are too fragmentary to
establish with certainty that the original version of Jubilees contained this link, it is
pervasive throughout the book, making it unlikely that it was a later addition. More-
over, as will be seen in the next chapter, the evidence from Qumran establishes that
this link was made at this time. Since Jubilees was an authoritative book at Qum-
ran, it is likely that the covenanters got the idea that the Festival of Weeks was the
occasion for covenant renewal from the book of Jubilees itself.
Chapter 5
THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS AND COVENANT RENEWAL

IN THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS
1. Introduction
Central to the theology of the Qumran community was the idea of
covenant. The Yahad saw themselves as uniquely in possession ofthe
correct interpretation of the Torah, and thus as uniquely faithful to it.
They took their commitment to the covenant with the utmost seriousness,
incorporating severe penalties for violation ofthe Torah's precepts and
expelling those members who continually disobeyed the law or were
unwilling to accept the judgment of the community. This much is evident
through their key programmatic writings, such as the Community Rule
and the Damascus Document.
Almost from the beginning of Scrolls research, scholars have sus-
pected that the Qumran community held an annual covenant renewal
ceremony during the Festival ofWeeks. 1 Over the last couple of decades,
the remainder of the Dead Sea Scrolls have been released and have
finally been published in either the official DJD series or some other
major scholarly edition, and now the scholarly world is finally in a posi-
tion to analyze the extant texts to see if this theory has a sound basis.
Following is a survey of the evidence of the Dead Sea Scrolls with
respect to the Festival of Weeks and its possible connection to covenant
renewal.
2. The Festival of Weeks and the First-fruit Festivals

2.1. The Temple Scroll and Related Texts
At Qumran, the Festival ofWeeks was apparently seen as one of a larger
group of first-fruits festivals. According to the Temple Scroll, there are
1. Cf. J6zefT. Milik, Ten Years ofDiscovery in the Wilderness ofJudaea (trans.
J. Strugnell; SBT 26; London: SCM Press, 1959 [1957]), 117-18.
5. The Dead Sea Scrolls 129
four first-fruits festivals: barley, wheat, new wine, and oil. 2 The author of
the Temple Scroll slightly restates the formula used to derive the date of
the Festival of First Fruits in Lev 23:15-16:
v~w n~UT;JlJ 1J?lrn~ o~w::;~n oi•I,'J n~wlJ n1t)91,'J o~'? o~1~'?l 15
· :iiJ"MI'l nb•r.m nim:nZi

nnm
. . . Ol'l:J1pm
. . 0... oi• o•v.ion
. . 0. 11!301'
, , 1. nll':JWn
. . , 0'n3U>n
. 0 0 m·nao
:ni~·~·M~t)
;v ;.
15 And you shall count for yourselves from the morrow after the Sabbath,
seven complete Sabbaths. 16 You shall count fifty days until the morrow
of the seventh Sabbath; then you shall· present a new grain offering to
YHWH. (Lev 23:15-16)
11n1!J01 (10) 000
101}111 nN MO:JN':J:i 01'0 mo•on nui.:JliJ v:nv [no:i?) (11)

111!Jon n•v•::~wn n::~wn mmoo iV 111!J[on n!Junn] ... (12)
01' [o•won] (13)
(10) And you shall count
(11) seven(?) full Sabbaths from the day that you brought the sheaf
(12) [of the wave-offering; you shall c]ount to the morrow after the
seventh Sabbath, counting
(13) [fifty] days; (liQT XVlll, 10-13)3
2. The issue of the extent to which the Temple Scroll can be considered a "sec-
tarian" document is a vexed one. On the one hand, it appears to lack the specific
features of a sectarian document, which has led most scholars to conclude it is either
a text composed before the Qumran community was formed or composed outside the
community sometime after it was formed and brought into it. On the other hand, if
the Qumran community preserved it and, as is most likely, copied it, the text itself
must have been well received at Qumran. Whether it achieved the exalted status of a
text such as Jubilees (to which it is· often linked) is doubtful, however, since there
are far fewer copies of the Temple Scroll preserved (only three or four), and there is
no undisputed instance of another Qumran text citing the Temple Scroll as an
authoritative text.
3. The text and translation of the Temple Scroll is taken from Yigael Yadin, The
Temple Scroll (3 vols. and S1Jpp.; rev. ed.; Jerusaiem: Israel Exploration Society,
1983). The translation may occasionally be altered very slightly without comment in
the interests of greater literalness. For more on the first-fruits festivals in the Temple
Scroll, see Yadin, Temple Scroll, I :99-122; Dwight D. Swanson, The Temple Scroll
and the Bible: The Methodology of JJQT (STDJ 14; Leiden: Brill, 1995), 17-116.
There is also a short but useful summary in Sidnie White Crawford, The Temple
Scroll and Related Texts (Companion to the Qumran Scrolls 2; Sheffield: Sheffield
Academic Press, 2000), 49-57.
The count is to begin on the day of the sheaf offering (Sunday, I/26 in
the reckoning of the sect) and take up "seven full Sabbaths." Though the
term C'WOn ("fifty") days is not preserved, the parallel formulation is
found also in llQT XIX, 13 and XXI, 14, albeit in relation to the
festivals of wine and oil respectively. Nevertheless, these festivals are
patterned after the formula from Lev 23: 15-16 to derive the dates of
these festivals. The fifty days therefore necessitate the inclusive counting
of these seven weeks.
This formula is also used to calculate the dates of the other festivals,
insuring that each festival takes place exactly seven weeks apart. 4 This
means that the first-fruits festivals of wheat and wine are counted twice,
once for determining the date of its own festival (for which it is the last
day, to make fifty), and a second time to determine the date of the next
festival (for which it becomes the first day). 5 Thus the formula for deter-
mining the date of the wine festival begins from the date of the first fruits
of wheat:
(il]lil''? ilWiM ilnJDil nN ilDJN':J.il 01'0 ilDJ? ;it.ui('1!l01] (11)
nlD'Dn nm:::uv v:::nv nlVl:J.W ilV:JW C''11J:J:i eli? [nN] (12)
01' 0'1VDM 1'11!lOn r1'V':J.1Vil n:JWil n'lnlDD "T(V nl"iln] (13)
(11) [And] you shall [count] from the day that you broughtthenewcereal
offering to the Lo[rd,]
(12) [th]e bread of new fruits, seven weeks; seven full Sabbaths
(13) [there shall be un]til you count fifty days to the morrow of the
seventh Sabbath. (llQT XIX, 11-13)
From 4Q394 1-2 it is clear that the third day of the fifth month is the
Festival of Wine. This matches exactly the date arrived at by means of
the formula in the Temple Scroll.
Similarly, the formula for determining the date of the oil festival
begins from the date of the first fruits of wine:
il))Wn C'DV!l V:JW nl)):J.W ilV:JW ilTil Cl'I:J il(DJ?] il(Dn]'1!J01 (12)
r1:J1Vil n'lnlDD "TV ill"ilrl n1D'Dr1 r11n:J1V )1:l1i.l 01' cip5'1N1 (13)
... 01' C'WDn 1'11!lon n'V':lWil (14)
(12) And [you sha]ll count from that day on seven weeks, seven times,
nine
(13) and forty days, seven full Sabbaths there shall be, until the morrow
of the seventh
(14) Sabbath you shall count fifty days. (llQT XXI, 12-14)
4. For more information on these new festivals, see Yadin, Temple Scroll, I: 108-
14.
s. cr. ibid., I:I04.
This last text makes explicit what was implicit before so as to leave no
room for error or misunderstanding. The count includes seven full
Sabbaths, which in context can only be Sunday to Saturday-that is,
seven times seven making forty-nine. The morrow of the seventh Sab-
bath makes it fifty days. 6 According to the formula, the Festival of Oil
would take place on the 22nd of the sixth month. 7 That the Qumran
community-if not the author of the Temple Scroll himself-understood
this formula in terms of the solar calendar is clear from a fragment of a
calendrical text incorrectly published as a part of 4QMMT (4Q394 1-2).8
In this text (cf. 4Q394 1-2 V, 3-6) the Festival of New Oil is dated to the
22nd day ofthe sixth month. 9 The upshot of this is that the Festival of
Weeks, according to the Temple Scroll (especially when compared
against 4Q394 1-2) is celebrated on III/15, exactly the same date that the
book of Jubilees identifies. 10 Unlike in Jubilees, however, there is no
6. Cf. the description of the Therapeutae in Philo, On the Contemplative Life.

This is a group of men and women who lived near the Mareotic Lake and had a way
of life that is, in many ways, similar to the Essenes. Philo describes in great detail a
festival that takes place at the end of seven weeks which apparently occurred on a
regular basis (Contempt. 65), in explicit comparison to Plato's Symposium and
Xenophon's dialogue of the same name (Contempt. 57-63).
7. As Roger Beckwith argues ("The Temple Scroll and Its Calendar: Their
Character and Purpose," RevQ 18 [1997]: 17-19), the festival calendar of the Temple
Scroll assumes a solar calendar. The six days of the Wood Offering come sometime
between the New Oil and the Memorial of Trumpets (VIII!). However, if the lunar
calendar were the basis for reckoning, the New Oil could fall as late as Vl/27, not
leaving enough time for the six days of the Wood Offering before the Memorial of
Trumpets (VIII!). This is because the Sheaf could fall no earlier than l/22 and could
fall as late as 1/28 (because the Festival of Barley began on I/15). This assumes, of
course, that n:J.1V means "Saturday," as Yadin argues (Temple Scroll, 1:103-5, 116-
22), and did not refer to any day on which there was no work (e.g. the first and
seventh days of the Festival of Unleavened Bread), as the rabbis took it to mean.
That Yadin is correct would appear to be confirmed by 4Q327.
8. See the official re-edition: Shemaryahu Talmon, "394 1-2. 4QCalendrical
Document D (Re-edition)," in Qumran Cave 4, XVI: Calendrical Texts (ed. Shemar-
yahu Talmon, Jonathan Ben-Dov, and Uwe Glessmer; DJD 21; Oxford: Clarendon,
2001), 157-66.
9. The sixth month must be inferred but seems clear from the extant context;
besides which, the Festival of New Oil must occur sometime in the sixth month no
matter which calendrical system is used.
10. Despite the fact that it is an attractive hypothesis, Ben Zion Wacholder's
suggestion ("The Relationship Between 11 QTorah [The Temple Scroll] and the
Book of Jubilees: One Single or Two Independent Compositions?," in Society of
Biblical Literature Seminar Papers, 1985 (SBLSP 24; Atlanta: Scholars Press,
1985], 205-16) that the book of Jubilees and the Temple Scroll (in that order) are
indication in the extant portions of the Temple Scroll that the Festival of
Weeks is related to covenant renewal. 11
2.2. The Therapeutae

The Qumran practice of several first-fruits festivals separated by fifty
days is somewhat parallel to the practice of the Therapeutae as depicted
by Philo in The Contemplative Life:
OU'tOL 'tO !LEv 1Tp6i'tov a9pot(ov'ta:L tiL' emil E~tiO!LtXtiwv, oil !-LOVOV 't~V alTATIV
E~tiO!LtXtia: aA.A.a Ka:l 't~V Mva:j.LLV 'tE9T]1TO'tE~' ayv~v yap Ka:L aEL1Tap9evov
a:U't~V '£cra:OLV. EOn tiE 1TpOEOp'tO~ f.LEYLO'tT]~ eop'ti;~. 11v 1TEV'tT]KOV'ta<; EAIXXEV,
ayLW'tll'tO~ KIJ.Lij>UOLKW't!l'tO~ ttpL9j.LWV, EK 'ti'J~ 'tOU 6p9oywv[ou 'tpLywvou
tiUVtXj.LEW~, 01TEp EO'tLV apx~ Tii~ 'tWV oA.wv YEVEOEW~, OOO'ta:9e(~. 12
First, these meet together every seven weeks, out of reverence not only
for the simple seven, but its power as well. For they recognize its chastity
and eternal virginity. This is the eve-celebration of the greatest festival,
which fifty takes for itself, as being the most holy and natural of numbers,
being composed out of the power of the right-angled triangle, which is
the source of the creation of the universe. (Contempt. 65) 13
The Therapeutae appear to be closely related to the Essenes (cf.
Contempt. 1). 14 They apparently lived in Egypt (Contempt. 21-23) and
established a communal living arrangement (Contempt. 32, 36). These
men and women remained celibate (Contempt. 2, 68) and dedicated their
lives to becoming "disciples ofMoses" (Contempt. 63).
two parts of one composition is untenable. This is not to say that the two writings are
unconnected at all; it is probable that the two writings were from people who had a
similar outlook on a great many key issues. On some key differences between the
works, see VanderKam, "The Temple Scroll and the Book of Jubilees," 236.
11. TorleifElgvin ("The Qumran Covenant Festival and the Temple Scroll," JJS
36 [1985]: 103-6) attributes this to the fact that the Temple Scroll was written well
before 1QS or CD, and, in fact, predates the Essene exodus from 1erusalem. It is this
exodus from Jerusalem that provides the background for the new covenant in the
land of Damascus, which he thinks refers to their exile at Qumran.
12. The text is from Geza Vermes and Martin D. Goodman, eds., The Essenes:
According to the Classical Sources (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1989). The
translation is based on Vermes and Goodman's with some modifications.
13. For the translation, "every seven weeks", see Joseph M. Baumgarten,
"4QHalakah" 5, The Law of Hadash, and the Pentecontad Calendar," in Studies in
Qumran Law (SJLA 24; Leiden: Brill, 1977), 135. At any rate, in the absence of a
definite starting point for the count, the natural meaning of the phrase in context, is
that the Therapeutae met on a regular basis, every seven weeks.
14. On the many similarities, along with some differences, between the Essenes
and the Therapeutae, see the catalogue compiled by Vermes and Goodman, eds., The
Essenes, 16.
Philo describes the feast held every seven weeks at some length
(Contempt. 66-89). The members, wearing white garments (Contempt.
66), lie down on couches around a table, the men on the right side, the
women on the .left (Contempt. 69), organized by seniority, not in terms of
physical age, but in spiritual maturity (Contempt. 67). 15 The president
then gives a homily which appears to consist of an interpretation of
scripture, which consists of unfolding the meaning hidden in allegories
(Contempt. 75-78). Then each individual sings a hymn to God, one after
the other (Contempt. 80; cf. 1QSa II, 17-21), after which a simple meal
is eaten (Contempt. 81-82).
After the feast, there is an all-night festival consisting of two choruses,
formed of the men and the women, singing and dancing praises to God
(Contempt. 83-87) commemorating the miracle at the Red Sea (Con-
tempi. 85-87). The two choirs parallel the fact that Moses and Miriam
each sang a song to commemorate this event (cf. Exod 15:1-18, 20-21). 16
At sunrise, they raise their hands to heaven and pray (Contempt. 89). In
so doing, they believe that they are citizens ofheaven (Contempt. 90).
The model for this regularly held feast is the Festival ofWeeks, which
Philo says is their greatest festival (IJ.EYL01:T]c; E:op1:fjc;; Contempt. 65). This
is consistent with the Jubilees tradition, which elevated the Festival of
Weeks as the occasion for covenant renewal. Since Qumran also appears
to have celebrated a covenant renewal festival modeled on the Jubilean
paradigm, the suggestion that the Therapeutae are an Egyptian off-shoot
of the Essenes seems to have a. solid fou,ndation. 17 In this respect, Vermes
and Goodman note the fact that the Therapeutae advocate gesticulating
with the right hand (Contempt. 77), while the Qumran community
prohibits use of the left hand for the same purpose (lQS VII, 15). 18
Furthermore, the fact that the Qumran community celebrated a number
of festivals separated by seven weeks(llQT XVIII..,-XXII) is paralleled
somewhat by the practice of the Therapeutae as Philo describes it
(Contempt. 65). The difference is that the Therapeutae appear to have
celebrated this festival every seven weeks, or seven or eight times a year,
whereas the Qumran community had only the four first-fruits festivals
(barley, wheat, new wine, oil). Baumgarten suggests that the difference
15. The similarities to a Greek symposium are obvious. Cf. the lengthy com-
parison to Plato's and Xenophon's Symposium in Contempt. 41-62.
16. Compare 4QRP 0 6a ii and 6c which contains the largest preserved expansion
of 4QRP and probably represents an expanded version of the Song of Miriam.
17. Baumgarten, "4QHalakaha 5," 137; Vennes and Goodman; eds., The
Essenes, 17.
18. Vermes and Goodman, eds., The Essenes, 17.
may be attributed to the fact that the Qumran community, being more
active (Philo's attribution), was more directly impacted by the agri-
cultural seasons, whereas the Therapeutae, since they were more con-
templative (according to Philo), were no longer directly related to the
agricultural season and therefore the festivals could be extended beyond
the harvest seasons.I9
3. Calendars and the Date ofthe Festival

of Weeks in the Dead Sea Scrolls
3.1. Calendars at Qumran: General Considerations
Among the scrolls found at Qumran, fragments of at least eighteen
calendrical works were discovered. 20 This is in addition to the various
chronological indications preserved in the "foundation documents"
(lQS, CD, lQpHab, ·lQH•, llQPs•, and llQT), prayers (1Q34bis,
4Q408-409, 4Q507-509), and prayer collections (e.g. Shirot <Qlat
HaShabbat, 4Q503). 21 This preoccupation with matters pertaining to time
points to the belief among the Qumran community that all events were
under divine control and that this control was reflected in the movement
of the heavenly bodies, especially the sun and moon. 22
The book of Jubilees was a very important book for the Qumran
community. This is indicated by the fact that there are a large number of
copies of the book extant among the Dead Sea Scrolls (at least 14,
possibly 15 copies). 23 Of the biblical books at Qumran, only the Psalms
19. Baumgarten, "4QHalakah• 5," 138. It is also always possible that Philo
simply mistook the fact that the Therapeutae celebrated four first-fruits festivals in
succession as constituting a year-round phenomenon.
20. 4Q317-330. 4Q321 is actually two texts, while 4Q324 is actually four texts.
4Q337, 4Q561, 6Q17 are also possibly calendrical documents, though they are too
fragmentary to make a fim1 judgment. It should be noted that these documents are
not calendrical in the modern sense of the tenn (i.e. a complete list of all the days,
weeks, and months of the year) but only in the sense that they (typically) list holy
days.
21. Shemaryahu Talmon, Jonathan Ben-Dov, and Uwe Glessmer, Qumran Cave
4, XVI: Calendar Texts (DJD 21; Oxford: Clarendon, 200 I), 1.
22. Studies on the calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls are numerous. The follow-
ing two studies are a couple of good surveys of the issues and recent scholarship:
VanderKam, Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls; Uwe Glessmer, "Calendars in the
Qumran Scrolls," in The Dead Sea Scrolls After Fifty Years: A Comprehensive
Assessment (ed. P. W. Flint and J. C. VanderKam; 2 vols.; Leiden: Brill, 1999),
2:213-78.
23. VanderKam, Jubilees, 16; see also, idem, "The Jubilees Fragments from
Qumran Cave 4," in Proceedings of the International Congress on the Dead Sea
(37 copies), Deuteronomy (30 copies), Isaiah (21 copies), Genesis (20
copies), and Exodus (17 copies) outnumber the Jubilees manuscripts. 24
There are also a number of texts similar to Jubilees in content (e.g.
4QPseudo-Jubilees•,h,c), further indicating its popularity at Qumran. 25 In
addition, there is the fact that some Dead Sea Scrolls cite Jubilees as an
authority (4Q228 1 I, 1, 9; CD XVI, 2-4; X, 7-10 [cf. Jub. 23:11]). 26
When Jubilees ' popularity at Qumran is combined with the fact that
Jubilees claimed for itself authoritative status, it is hard to escape the
conclusion that the Qumran community accorded this book "canonical"
status.27
Given this fact, one might expect that the Qumran community
unequivocally accepted the 364-day solar calendar for which Jubilees
strenuously argues. Indeed, the Jubilean solar calendar is reflected in
many Qumran texts, including CD XVI, 2-4, the Temple Scroll, and
4Q252. It appears at first blush that the 364-day solar calendar as found
, in Jubilees was in some sense "normative" at Qumran. If such is the
case, it would be safe to assume that calendrical considerations were at
least partly to blame for the Qumran community's break with the Temple
authorities during the Hasmonaean period, as some scholars have
argued. 28 As Talmon points out, a group that disagrees with the wider
Scrolls, Madrid 18-21, March 1991 (ed. J. Trebolle Barrera and L. Vegas Montaner;
STDJ 11/2; Leiden: Brill, 1992), 2:635-48; Charlotte Hempel, "The Place of the
Book ~f Jubilees at Qumran and Beyond," in The Dead Sea Scrolls in Their His-
torical Context (ed. Timothy H. Lim; Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 2000), 187-88.
24. Only copies found in the 11 caves near Qumran are included in these counts.
1 Enoch (12 copies) also seems to have been considered authoritative (compare Jude
14-15 and 1 En. 1:9; cf. Barnabas 16:5) at Qumran. It is thus not surprising that
Martin Abegg, Jr., Peter W. Flint, and Eugene C. Ulrich (ed. The Dead Sea Scrolls
Bible: The Oldest Known Bible Translated for the First Time into English [San
Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1999], 196-98) include the book ofJubilees in their
Dead Sea Scrolls "canon" (though they do not actually translate the book).
25. Hempel, "The Place of the Book ofJubilees," 191-93.
26. 4Q228 I I, 9 probably contains a reference to the Hebrew title of Jubilees
preceded by a formula typically used to cite scriptural quotations and allusions. Cf.
ibid., 191-92.
27. The quotations around "canonical" merely allude to the problematic and
anachronistic problem of canon in the Second Temple period. See the cogent obser-
vations of Ulrich, "The Bible in the Making," esp. 17 and 31-33.
28. See Shemaryahu Talmon, "The Calendar Reckoning of the Sect from the
Judaean Desert," in Aspects of the Dead Sea Scrolls (ed. Chaim Rabin and Yigael
Yadin; Scripta Hierosolymitana 4; Jerusalem: Magnes, 1958), 162-99; idem,
"Calendar Controversy in Ancient Judaism: The Case of the 'Community of the
Renewed Covenant'," in Parry and Ulrich, eds., The Provo International Conference
on the Dead Sea Scrolls, 379-95; VanderKam, "2 Maccabees 6, 7A," 390-411;
idem, "Calendrical Texts and the Origins of the Dead Sea Scroll Community," in
Methods of Investigation of the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Khirbet Qumran Site:
Present Realities and Future Prospects (ed. Michael 0. Wise et al.; Annals of the
New York Academy of Sciences 722; New York: New York Academy of Sciences,
1994), 371-88. The issue of the history ofthe Qumran community is a complex one.
The identification of the Qumran community as Essene was the dominant view from
an early period, and though it has been challenged in recent years, it is still backed
by the best evidence and continues to enjoy wide support, though this is crumbling.
For a convenient collection ofthe primary texts bearing on the issue, see Vermes and
Goodman, eds., The Essenes; Todd S. Beall, Josephus' Description of the Essenes
Illustrated by the Dead Sea Scrolls (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988).
The Sadducean identification has been recently argued by Lawrence H. Schiffman,
"The New Halakhic Letter (4QMMT) and the Origins of the Dead Sea Sect," BA 53
(1990): 64-73; idem, "The Sadducean Origins of the Dead Sea Scroll Sect," in
Understanding the Dead Sea Scrolls (ed. H. Shanks; London: SPCK, 1993), 35-49.
This does not seem a plausible identification due to the differences in theology
between the Sadducees and the content of the scrolls. For a recent overview of the
issues of identity and history, including a summary of the arguments in favor of an
Essene identification, see James C. VanderKam, "Identity and History ofthe Com-
munity," in Flint and VanderKam, eds., The Dead Sea Scrolls After Fifty Years,
2:487-523, and Hartmut Stegemann, "The Qumran Essenes-Local Members of the
Main Jewish Union in Late Second Temple Times," in Trebolle Barrera and
Montaner, eds., The Madrid Qumran Congress: Proceedings of the International
Congress on the Dead Sea Scrolls, Madrid 18-21 March, 1991, 83-166. The issue
of the identification of the community and its connection to the site at Qumran, is
dependent, to a large degree, on the archaeological evidence. For a brief survey of
the archaeological work done at Qumran, see James VanderKam and Peter Flint, The
Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Their Significance for Understanding the Bible,
Judaism, Jesus, and Christianity (San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2002), 34-54.
Our understanding of the site still depends to a large extent on the work of Roland
de Vaux (The Archaeology and the Dead Sea Scrolls [Oxford: Oxford University
Press, 1973]), who, more than anyone else, is responsible for creating the consensus
theory that the inhabitants of Qumran were Essenes, and that they were responsible
for the library found in the nearby caves. This reigning theory has since been chal-
lenged, though not dethroned. See, e.g., Lena Cansdale, Qumran and the Essenes: A
Re-Evaluation ofthe Evidence (Tiibingen: Mohr, 1997), 81-190; Yizhar Hirschfeld,
Qumran in Context: Reassessing the Archaeological Evidence (Peabody, Mass.:
Hendrickson, 2004). Hirschfeld challenges each of the major aspects of de Vaux's
theory: Hirschfeld does not think that the inhabitants of the site were Essenes, that
the site was, in fact, a fort established by the Hasmonaean dynasty, which was later
rebuilt into a fortified manor by Herod and inhabited by one of the Herodian
aristocracy. Hirschfeld further believes that the scrolls were deposited in the caves
for safe keeping by Sadducean priests in the wake of the revolt. DeVaux's theory,
with a few modifications, has recently been defended by Jodi Magness (The
community over the observance of holy days will inevitably lead to a

parting of the ways unless the disagreement is resolved. 29
However, while the 364-day solar calendar makes for a nice neat
arrangement-at least mathematically-it has the serious problem of
coming up about 1 Y4 days short ofthe true solar year of approximately
365 Y4 days. 30 Over the long haul, then, the seasons of the year will be
disturbed, defeating the very purpose for which Jubilees' system is
designed (cf., e.g.,Jub. 6:33). 31 After only 73 years, the seasons will have
rotated one quarter of a year out of place. This means that the scheme as
it stands in the book of Jubilees does not appear to be practical, and some
form of intercalation is necessary, something that is not in evidence in
the book of Jubilees as we have it.J 2
Furthermore, the situation is complicated by the fact that there is
evidence of a luni-solar calendar at Qumran, roughly in line with the
teaching found in I En. 72-82 (Astronomical Book) which attempts to
synchronize the lunar and solar calendar. 33 The luni-solar calendar at
Archaeology of Qumran and the Dead Sea Scrolls [Studies in the Dead Sea Scrolls
and Related Literature; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002]).
29. Talmon, "Calendar Controversy in Ancient Judaism," 381. One of the exam-
ples Talmon cites is the calendar reform instituted by Jeroboam I (1 Kgs 12:25-33).
Of course, in this case, the calendar reform came about as a result of political
separation, not vice versa, but the fact that Jeroboam I believed that a change in the
calendar would serve to separate the Israelites from Judah more effectively high-
lights the significance of celebrating holy days together as a community.
30. To be more precise, the length of a solar year is 365 days, 5 hours, and just
under 49 minutes.
31. At least some of the ancients would have been aware that a 364-day solar
calendar would come up short by 1 Y. days. In Babylon, a system of intercalation
whereby seven months were gradually intercalated (one month every two or three
years) throughout a nineteen-month period was introduced by at least the fifth
century B.C. E., demonstrating their knowledge of a roughly 365 Y. day solar year
(Finegan, Handbook of Biblical Chronology, 16-17, 26-27, 31-32). However,
Roger T. Beckwith (Calendar and Chronology, Jewish and Christian: Biblical,
Jntertestamental and Patristic Studies [AGJU 33; Leiden: Brill, 1996], 133-36)
notes that an accurate solar year was not universally accepted until a late period (he
cites the example of the Roman Republic), demonstrating that some peoples were
known to stick stubbornly to calendars that did not measure up to empirical
knowledge of astronomical phenomena, but ones that probably had some practical
value, nevertheless.
32. For a good survey of the issue, see Beckwith, Calendar and Chronology,
125-40.
33. I Enoch is also well represented at Qumran, twelve copies having been found
there (11 in Cave 4 and 1 in Cave 7), four of which preserve approximately 30% of
the material corresponding to the Astronomical Book (4QEnastr' ar, 4QEnastrb ar,
Qumran appears to operate on a three-year cycle with a regular system of

intercalation to bring it into line with the solar year. Since the lunar month
is approximately 29 Y2 days, the months alternated between twenty-nine
and thirty days throughout the year, making for a 354 day lunar year. 34 It
therefore came up ten days short of the solar year of 364 days. The
devised solution was to add a thirty-day month every three years to bring
it into line with the solar year. 35 Since this results in the same problem
associated with the solar calendar of364 days, some further adjustments
would be required to keep it consistent with astronomical phenomena. 36
Some scholars therefore suggest that both calendars found at Qumran
remained a theoretical ideal that was never actually practiced by the
covenanters and that it was the lunar calendar used elsewhere in Judaism
that was adopted for practical everyday use. 37 There is no direct evidence
that the lunar calendar was in use at Qumran. JR Nevertheless, this calendar,
which was based on empirical observation of the new moon, was mod-
eled on the Babylonian lunar calendar used throughout the Near East
4QEnastr" ar, 4QEnastrd ar) according to J6zef T. Milik (The Books of Enoch:
Aramaic Fragments ofQumrdn Cave 4 [Oxford: Clarendon, 1976], 5). The first two
texts also contain material not extant in the Ethiopic translation, indicating that the
translation may have been abbreviated, likely due to the extremely tedious nature of
the material. For a short lucid discussion of this text as it relates to calendars, see
VanderKam, Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls, 17-27. In Jub. 6:36-37, the angel
of the presence notes that the moon disturbs the times. Clearly Jubilees is hostile to
including the moon in any type of calendrical scheme.
34. To be more precise, the lunar month is 29 days, 12 hours, and just over 44
minutes.
35. 4Q320 I I-III.
36. For a good survey of the various suggestions regarding intercalation, see
Beckwith, Calendar and Chronology, 126-33.
37. See, e.g., Joseph M. Baumgarten, "4Q503 (Daily Prayers) and the Lunar
Calendar," RevQ 12 (1986): 399-407; Finegan, Handbook ofBiblical Chronology,
42; Lawrence H. Schiffman, Reclaiming the Dead Sea Scrolls (New York: Jewish
Publication Society, 1994), 304; Sacha Stem, "Qumran Calendars: Theory and
Practice," in Lim, ed., The Dead Sea Scrolls in Their Historical Context, 179-86.
38. Maurice Baillet, ed., Qumran Grotte 4, III (DJD VII; Oxford: Clarendon,
1982), 105-36, and Baumgarten, "4Q503 (Daily Prayers) and the Lunar Calendar,"
399-407, suggest that 4Q503 assumes a lunar calendar. This is based on the refer-
ences to light and dark parts of the moon, which is understood to refer to the phases
of the moon like those described in I En. 73, 78-79. However, Daniel K. Falk
(Daily, Sabbath, and Festival Prayers in the Dead Sea Scrolls [STDJ 27; Leiden:
Brill, 1998], 22) notes that the moon was not completely ignored in a 364-day solar
calendar as the Astronomical Book of Enoch (I En. 72-82) itself proves, as do
Qumran texts such as 4Q320 and 4Q321. Thus the fact that 4Q503 makes allusions
to the moon need not mean that it assumes a lunar calendar in any exclusive sense.
from the time of the Seleucid Empire until Roman times. As such, one
can safely assume that the Qumran community was at least aware of the
calendar. Indeed, as Stem notes, if it were not for the evidence of a solar
calendar at Qumran, it would have been taken for granted that this was
the calendar in use there. 39
Nevertheless, there is good reason to think that the 364-day solar
calendar was in use at Qumran. First, there is the possibility that the
Qumran community intercalated their calendar in some fashion in order
to bring it into line with the true solar year. Recently, Uwe Glessmer and
Matthias Albani (re-)discovered a small limestone disk in the Rockefeller
museum which they argue is an astronomical measuring instrument. 40
The significance of this instrument (for the purposes ofthis discussion) is
that it is evidence that the Qumran community had a method of deter-
mining cardinal dates of the year (i.e. the solstices and equinoxes) and
thus the ability to deal with the discrepancy-based on empirical obser-
vation-between the 364-day solar calendar of the Enoch and Jubilee
tradition and the actual365 lf4-day solar year. 41
Furthermore, the recent publication of 4Q319--designated 'otot for
the repetitive use of the word "signs" throughout the text (cf. Gen
1: 14)-may give some indication that the Qumran community did use
intercalation. 42 Glessmer argued that 4Q319 contains a system for inter-
calation of the 364-day calendar with the true solar year of365 1;4 days. 43
His complex proposal involved the insertion of a week every Sabbath
year, with a further insertion of an extra week in the years of the "signs,"
39. Stern, "Qumran Calendars," I 85-86.

40. Uwe Glessmer and Matthias Albani, "An Astronomical Measuring Instru-
ment from Qumran," in Parry and Ulrich, eds., The Provo International Conference
on the Dead Sea Scrolls, 407-42. This is an overview of a longer French article:
Matthias Albani and Uwe Glessmer, "Un instrument de mesurage astronomique de
Qumran," RB I04 (I 997): 88-I IS. This item was originally discovered at Qumran
by Father Roland de Vaux. A small V discovered on the disk proves that it does not
come from the non-Jewish occupation period.
41. Glessmer and Albani, "An Astronomical Measuring Instrument from Qum-
ran," 442.
42. Over the years, numerous suggestions have been made, typically involving
the intercalation of a week or weeks after a varying number of years. See the suc-
cinct summary of various positions in VanderKam, "The Origin, Character, and
Early History of the 364-Day Calendar," 99 n. 57.
43. Uwe Glessmer, "Der 364-Tage-Kalender und die Sabbatstruktur seiner
Schaltungen in ihrer Bedeutung flir den Kult," in Ernten, was man slit. Festschrift K.
Koch zu seinem 65. Geburtstag (ed. Dwight R. Daniels, Uwe Glessmer, and Martin
Rosel; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener, 199I), 379-98.
in the periods with no "release" (i1'07.:l'lz.i). 44 Unfortunately, full publication

of the text subsequently showed that the original editor, Milik, was
correct in regarding the units of time as years, not Sabbath years, as
Glessmer's thesis required. Nevertheless, as VanderKam argues, it is
possible that 4Q319 contains the intervals at which periods of time (most
likely weeks) were intercalated in order to adjust the 364-day calendar to
astronomical reality.45
Second, there is always the possibility that the Qumran community
used the 364-day calendar, as it was, flaws and all. 46 Beckwith cites
several examples of inaccurate calendars that were nevertheless in use by
both contemporary peoples (the Roman Republic and Egypt until late in
the first century B.C.E.) and even later times (i.e. Mohammed in the
seventh century A.D.)Y He thus argues that the Qumran community
could easily have existed with a faulty solar calendar, despite the fact
that it lasted for approximately two centuries.
To the objection that the solar calendar would have been impractical
in view of the fact that the festivals had a cultic purpose tied to the
agricultural season (e.g. the waving of the Sheaf at the beginning of the
barley harvest and the Festival of Weeks as the festival celebrating the
first fruits of the wheat harvest), Beckwith argues that, due to the
alienation of the Qumran community from the Jerusalem priesthood, the
Qumranites would more than likely not have bothered with the sacrifices
and rituals associated with the various festivals since they were
specifically tied to the Temple. 48 Thus the fact that the harvest came later
and later in the year would not have posed a problem for the Qumran
community. 49
Beckwith argues, based on texts such as I En. 74:12 andJub. 6:30-32
(which are adamant about the fact that the solar year has 364 days
exactly), that the men of Qumran would have rejected any need for inter-
calation since their calendar was a matter of revealed interpretation of
44. This has the advantage of not disturbing the Priestly courses, as the periodic
addition of a month of 30 days would in the lunar calendar.
45. VanderKam, Calendars in the Dead Sea Scrolls, 83-84.
46. Beckwith, Calendar and Chronology, 133-40.
47. Ibid., 134.
48. Ibid., 137-39.
49. This argument also does not sufficiently appreciate the extent to which the
lunar calendar also does not accord with astronomical reality for much of its cycle.
While the lunar calendar is corrected every two or three ye.ars, it is nevertheless true
that for the last half of the cycle, the lunar calendar is off by as much as a whole
month.
scripture. 50 He notes that texts such as I En. 80:2-8 (Astronomical Book)

and I En. 18: 13-15 (Book of Watchers) indicate the late arrival of the
heavenly bodies and the seasons. 51 This indicates that the calendar's
divergence from reality was more than likely due to an absence of inter-
calation, though the possibility that an imperfect system of intercalation
was implemented cannot be ruled out.
Most significant for our purposes, however, is the fact that in these
I Enoch texts a theological rationale is provided for the fact that the
calendar did not match astronomical phenomena-namely, it is because
of sinners and wicked angels that the heavenly bodies have gone wrong.
In other words, it is not the calendar that is to blame, but creation itself
has been corrupted. Thus the calendar ought to continue to be observed
regardless of the empirical evidence. It is certainly possible that such a
rationale would have appealed to the Qumran community as a means of
explaining why the seasons were going awry.
3.2. The Date of the Festival of Weeks at Qumran

Because of the uncertainty arising from the ambiguous nature of the
instructions for dating the Festival of Weeks in Lev 23: 15-16 and Deut
16:9-10, various computations were possible. 52 Later Jewish tradition,
for instance, assigned the Waving of the Sheaf to I/16, arriving at a date
oflll/6 as the date of the Festival ofWeeks. 53
The Qumran community, however, considered III/15 as the date of the
Festival ofWeeks. This is clear from the following evidence.
3.2.1. 4Q325 I, 2-3; 4Q326. 4Q325 is a fairly well-preserved, quite

legible fragment, which indicates, with a fair amount of certainty, that
the Waving of the Sheaf occurred on I/26. 54 If so, then the Festival of
Weeks must have been celebrated on III/15 at Qumran:
[ ... :J'i'1' '?] vn:Jw 1::1 iWV mmw:J •1b[•'?w 01' no!lil] (1)
[ ... ] 1'?V1 il'Vi' '?v n:JW 1::1 il1!11Jm 0'i1!1V:J :JiV:l[ ... ] (2)
50. Beckwith, Calendar and Chronology, 136.

51. Ibid., 139-40.
52. See the discussion in Chapter 2.
53. Due to the varying lengths of the lunar month (which was either 29 or 30
days), the date could actually vary by a day on either side, since the first and second
months could vary in length-that is, the Festival of Weeks could also fall on III/5
or III/7.
54. According to paleographical analysis (Shemaryahu Talmon, with the help of
Jonathan Ben-Dov, "4QCalendrical Document/Mishmarot D," in Talmon, Ben-Dov,
and Glessmer, eds., Qumran Cave 4, XVI: Calendrical Texts, 125), the text is written
in an early formal Herodian script dating to the end of the last century B.C.E.
[ ... 'l]W[ ;., wnn;, U/1i 11:1UI inN 1:1 ;"lU/U/1 O'iUI)l:l 0'i1)1UI -1[V1D] (3)
... ;,•v-1; ?v [n:~w:~ ;,U~U~:~] (4)
(1) [ ... the Passah on the thi]rd [day] (of the week); on the eighteenth in it
(the first month) Sabbath (on which) ent[ers Joiarib
(2) ]in the evening. On the twenty-fifth in it Sabbath (on which) enters
Jeda'iah and enter[
(3) [the festiv]al of(First) Grain (falls) on the twenty-sixth in it after the
Sabbath; the beginning of the second mon[th
(4) [(falls) on the sixth (day) (of the week in which)] entered Jeda'iah ...
(4Q325 I, 1-4) 55
This text lists the Sabbaths, beginnings of the months, and festivals and
coordinates them with the priestly courses as found in 1 Chr 24:7-19.
This text is in line with 4Q320 4 III, 3 (discussed below) which has the
Waving of the Sheaf on the first day of Jeda'iah's watch. 56
Although the formulation 0',1V'IV 1-[vm ("festival of barley") is not
found in the Hebrew Bible, it is not an inappropriate formulation, since
the Waving of the Sheaf signaled the beginning of the barley harvest. 57
While the phrase is not complete, it can be reconstructed with a large
degree of certainty from a comparison with 4Q326, which a close look at
its wider context shows is roughly parallel to 4Q325: 58
[ 0'N1?n;, 1)11D 1:1 'l'OUI:l11:1U/ 1:1 ']V':li:l 1nN:l (I)
(1:1 15:1 'UI'?UI 01' nO!l;"l 1:1 14:!11]:l1b 1:1 liN:! (2)
[1:1 25:~mw 1:1 18:1 ']V':li 01' m!ln;, .in (3)
( pUINi;"l U/1n;, 11:lU/;"1 inN 0'i1)l] W1)110 1:1 26:1 11:lU/ (4)
(16:l11:1UI N1:l ')l'UI11:111:lU/ ]Nb 'lUI:l vac 30l(:l] (5) 59
(1) In the first (month) on the four[th (day) in it Sabbath, on the eighth in
it the Feast of(the Priests') Investiture],
(2) on the eleventh in it Sabba[th, on the 14th in it the Passah on the third
day (of the week), on the 15th in it]
(3) the Feast of Unleavened Bread on the four[th day (of the week), on
the 18th in it Sabbath, on the 25th in it]
55. All quotations and discussions of the text and translation of 4Q325 are from
the official DJD edition: Talmon, Ben-Dov, and Glessmer, eds., Qumran Cave 4,
XVI: Calendrical Texts, 123-31.
56. Priests entered service on the Sabbath and left on the Sabbath. The first full
day of their service was thus the day after the Sabbath.
57. Cf. also 4Q326 4.
58. One of the distinguishing features appears to be that 4Q326 does not
synchronize the dates with the Priestly watches (as 4Q325 appears to do), meaning
that this roster of holy days is applicable to any year.
59. In the original manuscripts there are a number of marks indicating numerical
values that were impossible to properly represent; thus Arabic numerals were simply
inserted in the appropriate places.
(4) Sabbath, on the 26th in it the Feast of (the First) G[rain after the
Sabbath; the first month]
(5) in [it] 30 (days) vac, on the second (day) in it (the second month)
Sabbath, on the ninth (day) in it Sabbath, on the sixteenth (day)].
(4Q326) 60
Given the mention of the 26th day (cf. line 4) of the first month (cf.
line 1), it is highly likely that the same festival is being referred to in
both cases (cf. 4Q325 1, 3). 61 Elsewhere at Qumran, this holiday is called
11J1Vil t"jJil (4Q320 4 III, 3, 13; 4 IV, 8; 4 V, 2, 11; 4 VI, 7; 4Q321 V,
4, 9; VI, 7; 4Q513 3-4, 2; 11Q19 XI, 10) or 11J1Vil n.!J'Jil 01' (11Ql9
XVIII, 10), which means "(the day of) the waving of the sheaf' and the
specific details of the festival are consistent with what is known of the
festival from Num 28:26-31 (cf. il.!J1Jnil 11JV nN O:JN':lil 01'1J, Lev
23: 15).
3 .2.2. 4Q320 4 III, 3-5. That the Qumran covenanters viewed the date of
the Festival of Weeks as falling on III/15 receives further confirmation
from 4Q320. 62 This text contains a roster of annual festivals in a 364-day
calendar synchronized with the priestly courses of 1 Chr 24:7-19: 63
.:1'iV1r.l :1J111.1',., mum (1)
tio!:l;, <1'T1Vr.l 'J:l n::11b::1 3::1 (2)
[,ov];, •p;, [;,•Jvi;[::~]l:l (3)
.['JU.I:1 ]fiO!:l:1 O',VU.I:l 5::1 (4)
.O'V1::1U.I:1 m V1UJ':::l 1::1 (5)
(1) the first year its festivals
(2) on the 3rd (day) in the week of the sons of Ma'oziah
(falls) the Passah
(3) on the 1st (day) [in ]Jeda['iah] (falls) the Waving of the[ Orner]
60. All quotations and discussions of the text and translation of 4Q326 are from
the official DJD edition: Talmon, Ben-Dov, and Glessmer, eds., Qumran Cave 4,
XVI: Calendrical Texts, 133-38.
61. According to Talmon ("4QCalendrical Document/Mishmarot C," in Talmon,
Ben-Dov, and Glessmer, eds., Qumran Cave 4, XVI: Calendrical Texts, 134), the
text is written in a late Hasmonaean or early Herodian book hand, indicating a date
in the early or middle part of the last century B.C.E.
62. Talmon ("4QCalendrical Document/Mishmarot A," in Talmon, Ben-Dov,
and Glessmer, eds., Qumran Cave 4, XVI: Calendrical Texts, 41-42) notes that the
text is written in a typical Hasmonaean script, thus indicating a date of around 125-
100 B.C.E.
63. Some festivals are missing from this list. Most notably, the Festival of
Unleavened Bread (I/15-21 ), but also the special Qumran festivals of First Oil, First
Wine, Wood Offerings, and Consecration of the Priests.
(4) on the 5th (day) in Se'orim (falls) the (Second] Passah

(5) on the 1st (day) in Jeshu'a (falls) the Festival of Weeks.
(4Q3204 III, 1-5)64
According to 1 Chr 24:7-19, this is the order ofthe priestly watches:

Table 13. Priestly Watches of I Chronicles 24:7-19
Jehoiarib 13 Huppah
2 Jedaiah 14 Jeshebeab
3 Harim 15 Bilgah
4 Seorim 16 lmmer
5 Malchijah 17 Hezir
6 Mijamin 18 Happizzez
7 Hakkoz 19 Pethahiah
8 Abijah 20 Jehezkel
9 Jeshua 21 Jachin
10 Shecaniah 22 Gamul
ll Eliashib 23 Delaiah
12 Jakim 24 Maaziah
The italicized names in 1 Chr 24:7-19 correspond to those mentioned in

4Q320 4 III, 2-5. When the data from these texts are correlated, they
indicate that the Festival of Weeks falls on 111115 and that the Waving of
the Sheaf falls on 1126. 6s
The Passover (1/14) falls on the third day of the watch ofMa'oziah's
sons. Since the Waving of the Sheaf falls on the first day of Jedaiah's
watch, this must be 1/26 because 12 days intervene between these two
dates-i.e., the last four days ofMa'oziah's watch+ the seven days of
Jehoiarib watch+ the first day of Jedaiah's watch. Since exactly seven
weeks intervene between the first day of Jedaiah' swatch and the first day
of Jeshua's watch, the Festival of Weeks must fall on 111115-i.e., four
days from 1126-30 +thirty days in the second month+ fifteen days to the
middle ofthe third month. 66 This basic datum-namely, 12 days between
Pesal) and the Waving of the Sheaf, and exactly seven weeks between
the Waving of the Sheaf and the Festival of Weeks-is consistently
64. The text and translation of 4Q320 can be found in the following volume:
Talmon, Ben-Dov, Glessmer, eds., Qumran Cave 4, XVI: Calendrical Texts, 54--55.
65. The data found here in 4Q320 4 III, 1-5 are largely paralleled in 4Q321 IV,
9-V, 1, except that the particular day of the various watches on which the holiday
falls is not specified. Cf. also 4Q319 11 which is heavily reconstructed but appears
to be a parallel to 4Q320 4 Ill.
66. Cf. VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks and the Story of Pentecost in
Acts 2."
replicated in the second year (4Q320 4 III, 11-4 IV, 1), the third year
(4Q320 4 N, 6-10), the fourth year (4Q320 4 IV, 14-4 V, 4), the fifth
year (4Q320 4 V, 9-13), and the sixth year of the cycle (4Q320 4 VI,
5-9).67
4. The Festival of Weeks and Covenant Renewal

in the Dead Sea Scrolls
There is certainly solid evidence that the Festival of Weeks was cele-
brated on the fifteenth day of the third month at Qumran. This is not
surprising, since the book of Jubiiees, which apparently had something
like "canonical" status at Qumran, identified this as the date of the Festi-
val of Weeks. However, whether the Qumran community celebrated the
Festival of Weeks as a covenant renewal festival is a more difficult
question to settle definitively. A perusal of the evidence follows.
4.1. The Damascus Document

4.1.1. Introduction. The reception history of the Damascus Document
(CD) is rather unusual and therefore poses some difficult problems. 68 In
1896, Solomon Schechter found two copies of the Damascus Document
(which he entitled Fragments ofa Zadokite Work) in a genizah in Cairo.
In the 1950s, fragments of what was clearly the same work were dis-
covered at Qumran. A total of at least ten copies have been found. 69
Certain similarities, along with some key differences (especially with
respect to the differences in communal lifestyle that the two documents
presuppose-namely, celibate [Community Rule] vs. more conventional
[Damascus Document]) relative to Qumran sectarian texts such as 1QS
67. Again, this is largely paralleled in 4Q321 IV-VII.

68. The Damascus Document has been the subject of much scholarly attention.
Some of the recent studies include: Charlotte Hempel, The Laws of the Damascus
Document: Sources, Tradition, and Redaction (STDJ 29; Leiden: Brill, 1998); idem,
The Damascus Texts (Companion to the Qumran Scrolls 1; Sheffield: Sheffield
Academic Press, 2000); Maxine L. Grossman, Reading/or History in the Damascus
Document: A Methodological Study (STDJ 45; Leiden: Brill, 2002); Jonathan G.
Campbell, The Use of Scripture in the Damascus Document 1-8, 19-20 (BZA W
228; Berlin: de Gruyter, 1995); Mark A. Knibb, The Qumran Community (Cam-
bridge Commentaries on Writings of the Jewish and Christian World 200 BC to AD
200; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987), 13-76; Philip R. Davies, The
Damascus Document: An Interpretation ofthe "Damascus Document" (JSOTSup
25; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1982).
69. For a fuller description of the details surrounding the discovery of the Damas-
cus Document, see Paul Kahle, The Cairo Genizah (Oxford: Blackwell, 1959).
were immediately apparent. 7° Coupled with the fact that there are so
many copies found at Qumran, it is clear that this text was a revered one
for the community on the shores of the Dead Sea.
Unfortunately, the fullest copies of the text that we have are the ones
found in the Cairo genizah. They are dated to the tenth (ms. A) and
twelfth centuries C.E. (ms. B), leaving the question of their reliability up
in the air. Fortunately, however, it appears from a close comparison of
the extant remains of CD (ms. A), with its Cave 4 copies, that the copies
from the Cairo genizah are more or less reliable. 71 Nevertheless, a
comparison of genizah copy A with the Cave 4 copies indicates that copy
A of CD omits significant portions from the Damascus Document from
Cave 4 and that columns 15-16 belong before column 9.
Thus, the genizah copies must be used with caution, since it is clear
that the genizah copies have undergone at least some modification (i.e.
through rearrangement and omission or abbreviation, whether accidental
or intentional) throughout the many centuries between its origin at
Qumran and its deposit in the Cairo genizah. 72 Schechter suggested prior
to the discovery of the Qumran fragments that CD was actually com-
prised of extracts from a larger work, a hypothesis which is remarkably
in keeping with the evidence discovered from Qumran. 73
70. For instance, women are clearly envisioned in the Damascus Document (CD
XI, 12; XII, 10; XIV, 15 etc.), which is reflected in the many issues dealing with
women that are covered in the Damascus Document, such as sex, marriage, men-
struation, and childbirth. In contrast, the Community Rule appears to be directed
exclusively towards men, not women (which agrees with the testimonies of Pliny the
Elder, Natural History 5.73, and Josephus, J. W. 2.120-21; Ant. 18.21), though one
should note that 1QSa, which was found on the same scroll as 1QS, does mention
women (1QSa I, 4, 9-11). In addition, there is no counterpart to the Damascus
Document's long historical section in the Community Rule, nor is there anything like
the two spirits doctrine of the Community Rule in the Damascus Document. More-
over, the probation period for a novice is at least two years (probably longer) in the
Community Rule (lQS VI, 17, 21) whereas it is only one year in the Damascus
Document (CD XV, 14-15). Further differences include the different roles assigned
functionaries such as the Examiner and the Many in the two works, the absence of
the paqid ("Overseer") in CD. There is also a much more pronounced use of the
term yahad in the Community Rule than in the Damascus Document, where the more
common tennis mahaneh ("camp"; cf. the War Scroll).
71. Unfortunately, ms. B is difficult to assess due to the fact that very little over-
lap with the Qumran copies has been found (two small fragments of column XX).
72. The possibility that it represents an earlier shorter version from that repre-
sented by the Cave 4 fragments cannot be ruled out either, since different versions
(both shorter and longer) have been found of the Serekh ha-Yahad.
73. Solomon Schechter, Fragments ofa Zadokite Work (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 191 0), x. Note the title of his work, reflecting this belief.
4.1.2. Covenant in the Damascus Document. Covenant is a crucial

concept in the Damascus Document. There are some 44 references to the
covenant in the extant versions, e·xcluding overlapping references. 74
Given the importance ofthe book of Jubilees at Qumran, one might think
that the various covenants in the Hebrew Bible (starting with Noah) are
all seen fundamentally as one covenant, renewed at various times (i.e.
Abraham, Moses, David) throughout Israel's history, like they are in
Jubilees. However, the Noachic covenant does not appear to have the
same fundamental significance in the Qumran scrolls as it does in Jubi-
lees. Rather, it is the Mosaic covenant that is central, the stipulations of
which spelled out in great detail the conditions for faithful observance of
the covenant. This covenant, as we learn from the Hebrew Bible, was
renewed from time to time throughout Israel's history. For instance, the
covenant ceremony conducted by Joshua (Josh 8:30-35) was the cove-
nant renewal that was commanded by Moses and the elders of Israel
(Deut 27:1-8). 75 In the Hebrew Bible, covenant renewals typically took
place after the breaking of the covenant, something that happened so
frequently that some prophets looked forward to a time when a "new
covenant" (Jer 31:30-33; Ezek36:24-28; 37:23-28) would be cut which
would be eternal (in the sense of unbroken) due to a change in disposi-
tion that God would effect in the hearts of his people. 76
The Qumran community saw themselves as living under this "new
covenant." The Qumran community, therefore, saw itself as the heirs
of pre-exilic Israel which renewed the covenant mediated by Moses on
Mt. Sinai. They saw themselves as a faithful remiiant of this covenant
community:
10 ••• The first ones who entered the covenant became guilty through it;
and they were given up 11 to the sword, having departed from God's
covenant and chosen their (own) will, straying after the wantonness 12 of
their heart, each doing his (own) will. But out of those who held fast to
God's ordinances, 13 who remained ofthem, God established his covenant
with Israel forever. .. (CD III, 10-13) 77
74. This is according to Hempel, The Damascus Texts, 79.

75. Other examples are the reforms of Josiah (2 Kgs 23:1-3//2 Chr 34:30-33),
King Asa (2 Chr 15:14-15), and Nehemiah (Neh 8-10). The book of Deuteronomy
could also be understood as a renewal of the covenant at Sinai, despite such a
passages as Deut 29:1 (consider, e.g., Deut 4:9-24).
76. Cf. Jaubert, La notion d'alliance, 215-16.
77. All texts and translations of CD are taken from James H. Charlesworth, ed.,
The Dead Sea Scrolls: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek Texts with English Transla-
tions. Vol. 2, Damascus Document, War Scroll, and Related Documents (PTSDSSP;
Ti.ibingen: Mohr, 1995), 4-57.
16 So is also the judgment for the penitents of Israel, who departed from
the way of the people: by God's love for 17 the first ones, who witnessed
after him, he loved those who came after them. For theirs 18 (is) the
covenant (with) the fathers ... (CD VIII, 16-18)
These texts reflect the self-understanding of the covenant community as

a much smaller remnant than the original covenant community, which
committed the sin of apostasy. The theme of apostasy is very apparent in
the Damascus Document:
2And now hearken to me, all who enter the covenant, and I will reveal to
your ear the ways of 3 the evil ones. (CD II, 2-3)
25 ••• But all who entered the covenant who have broken through the
border of the Torah, when the glory of God appears to Israel they will be
cut off from the midst of the camp, and along with them all the wicked
ones of Judah, in the days when it is purged ... (CD XX, 25-27)
5 ••• And those who enter the covenant for all of Israel as an eternal statute
shall have their sons, who have reached (the age) 6 for passing among
those that are mustered, take the oath of the covenant. .. (CD XV, 5-6)
The apostates are in contrast with those faithful members of the com-
munity who are often mentioned in direct connection to the covenant, as
in the above set of texts. That this covenant is seen as being in continuity
with the first is also clear:
7 .•• Andall those who come after them 8 to do according to the precise
meaning of the Torah which was taught to the first ones until the
completion of 9 the time of these years-just as the covenant which God
established with the first ones to atone 10 for their iniquities, so, too, will
God atone for them ... (CD IV, 7-10)
2 ••• And God recalled the covenant with the first ones, and he raised up
from Aaron men of discernment and from Israel 3 wise men; and he
allowed them to hear. (CD VI, 2-3)18
Nevertheless, CD speaks of a "new covenant" in the land of Damascus:

19 .•. as it was found by those who entered into the new covenant (n'1:J.i1
i11Vini1) in the land of Damascus (CD VI, 19)

21 ..• All the men who entered the new covenant (i11Vini1 n',:J.:J.) in the
land of Damascus ... (CD VIII, 21)

12 the covenant and the oath which they had taken in the land of Damas-
cus; that is, the new covenant (i11Vini1 n'1:J.). (CD XX, 12)19
78. Cf. also CD III, 10-13, cited above.

79. Damascus is referred to in CD VI, 5, 19; VII, 15, 19 (par. 4Q266 3 III, 20);
VIII, 21; XIX, 34; XX, 12. The issue of whether the Damascus Document reflects a
This is a concept based on Jer 31:31-34 and Amos 5:25-27:

31 "Behold the days are coming, declares YHWH, when I will make a new
covenant with the house oflsrael and the house of Judah (n':l nN 'n,:Jl
;nzrrn n',:l mm' n':l nNl .,N,ill'), 32 not like the covenant that I made with
their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of
the land of Egypt, my covenant that they broke, though I was their
husband, declares YHWH. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with
the house of Israel after those days, declares YHWH: I will put my law
within them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And
no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying,
'Know YHWH,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the
greatest, declares YHWH. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will
remember their sin no more." (Jer 31:31-34)
25"Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in
the wilderness, 0 house of Israel? 26 You shall take up Sikkuth your king,
and Kiyyun your star-god-Your images that you made for yourselves, 27
and I will send you into exile beyond Damascus ( 01N.,011:1 o:JnN 'n'.,lm
pilll:li.,)," says YHWH, whose name is the God of hosts. (Amos 5 :25-27)
While evidence for the concept of a "new covenant" is scarce elsewhere
in the scrolls (there are no parallel references to it in the specifically
Qumran copies of the Damascus Document), there is probably a refer-
ence to it in 1QpHab II, 3 (i11Z7ini1 [n~i:J.:J.), though without mention of
Damascus. 80 · ·
At any rate, the community clearly saw itself in continuity with the
covenant community of the pre-exilic period (cf. CD II, 14-IV, 12). The
covenant was the same eternal covenant. Precisely because the covenant
literal or symbolic interpretation of exile in Damascus, and, if symbolic, whether it

refers to Qumran or Babylon, is a vexing one. On the whole, it seems best to take the
reference as a cipher referring to the place of exile of the community. This should
therefore probably be understood as referring to Qumran itself(so Frank M. Cross,
The Ancient Library ojQum1'an [3d ed.; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, I 995],
71-73; Knibb, The Qumran Community, 62) though a reference to Babylon is also a
strong possibility (cf. Davies, The Damascus Covenant, 122-23), in which case this
would reflect the belief that the covenant community's origins lay in the exilic
period. For a survey of the various proposals regarding the history of the community
as reflected in the Damascus Document, see Hempel, The Damascus Texts, 54-65.
80. Cf. lQSb Ill, 26 (1Vi[n' 0.,1V]nl101:J n',:ll) and V, 21 (1., w"rn' 1n>;1 n',:ll); cf.
also 1QJ4bis 3 II, 6 (which is probably sectarian). Given the paucity of evidence for
this terminology at Qumran, Hempel, in criticizing (as "somewhat imprecise")
Talmon for speaking of "the yahad's renewed covenant," appears to have a point
(Hempel, The Damascus Te>:ts, 80; cf. Shemaryahu Talmon, "Qumran Studies: Past,
Present, and Future," JQR 85 [1994]: 22).
is depicted as "eternal" (cf. CD III, 13) it does not make sense to suppose
that the "new covenant" was wholly new. 81 Nevertheless, it signals that
some kind of new beginning (even with an acknowledgment of a strong
sense of continuity with the past) has occurred with the founding ofthe
Qumran community, which is why the "(re)new(ed) covenant" in the
land of Damascus (CD VI, 19; VII, 21; XX, 12) appears to be a key
event in the history of the community. 82 This new beginning signals the
hope of the Qumran community that the eschatological covenant spoken
of by Jeremiah and Ezekiel was not just wishful thinking, but a reality
that could be and was manifested in their community. 83 In particular, God
has taken the covenant that was broken by Israel and remade it with a
small remnant, manifested in the Qumran community, which has renewed
its observance. 84
At Qumran, this was considered, possible based, at least in part, on the
fact that the correct interpretation of Mosaic Torah was specially revealed
to them:
12 ••• But out of those who held fast to God's ordinances, 13 who remained
ofthem, God established his covenant with Israel forever, revealing 14 to

them hidden things in which all Israel had strayed: his holy sabbaths, the
glorious appointed times, 15 his righteous testimonies, his true ways, and
the desires of his will, which a person shall 16 do and live by them ... (CD
Ill, 12b-16a; 1QS V, 8-9)
81. An idea which is entertained by Alex Deasley (The Shape of Qumran

Theology [Carlisle: Paternoster, 2000], 144-47). He eventually settles for the idea
that while there is some continuity with the past, there is a sense of a new beginning
in the community's terminology. Cf. Jaubert (La notion d'alliance, 219-22) who
sees more continuity with the past covenant than Deasley does, but nevertheless
argues that these are two phases in the history of the covenant (p. 222).
82. 4Q266 3 III, 20 mentions Damascus, though not in parallel to any of the
references connected to the "new covenant."
83. Cf. Bilhah Nitzan, "The Concept of the Covenant in Qumran Literature," in
Historical Perspectives: From the Hasmoneans to Bar Kokhba in Light ofthe Dead
Sea Scrolls; Proceedings ofthe Fourth international Symposium ofthe Orion Center
for the Study of the Dead Sea Scrolls and Associated Literature, 27-31 January,
1999 (ed. David Goodblatt, Avital Pinnick, and Daniel R. Schwartz; STDJ 37;
Leiden: Brill, 2001), 93-98.
84. Ellen J. Christiansen, "The Consciousness of Belonging to God's Covenant
and What it Entails According to the Damascus Document and the Community
Rule," in Qumran Between the Old and New Testaments (ed. Frederick H. Cryer and
Thomas L. Thompson; JSOTSup 290; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998),
71-85.
At Qumran, proper observance of the Mosaic Torah was not possible

without the correct, divinely revealed interpretation, uniquely available
to the community. B5
4.1.3. Damascus Document as Covenant Formulary. Given the commu-

nity's emphasis on observance of the covenant and its pre-occupation
with the possibility of apostasy, it would not be surprising if the commu-
nity held an annual covenant renewal ceremony (or ceremonies) where
members could renew their commitment to the covenant and unfaithful
members could be expelled (cf. lQS II, 19). In CD XV, 5-XVI, 6 (sup-
plemented by 4QD• which supplies some of the missing text at the
bottom of column XV of CD), there is a ceremony describing the initi-
ation of new members:
5 .•• And those who enter the covenant for all of Israel as an eternal statute
shall have their sons, who have reached (the age) 6 for passing among
those that are mustered, take the oath of the covenant. Similar (is) 7 the
precept during the entire time of evil for everyone who repents from his
corrupt way. On the day that he speaks 8 with the Examiner for the Many,
they shall muster him with the oath of the covenant which Moses made 9
with Israel, the cove[na]nt to re[turn t]o the Torah of Moses with all (his)
heart [and with all] 10 (his) soul, to that which is found to be done during
the en[ tire tim]e of[evi]l. Let no one make 11 the precepts known to him
until he stands before the Examiner[ ... ] m, (lest) he prove to be a fool
when he q1.1estions him. 12 But when he takes upon himself to return to the
Torah of Moses with all (his) heart and all (his) soul, 13 they are free of
his blame if he should transgress. Should he err in any matter of the
Torah revealed to the multitude of 14 the camp, the Examiner shall ma[ke
it known] to him and enjoin it upon him, and te[ac]h (him) 15 for (a mini-
mum of) one complete year. According to his knowledge( ... ) (Anyone)
being a demented fool, any simple-minded or er[ra]nt man, 16 and one
85. As Sara Japhet ("Law and 'the Law' in Ezra-Nehemiah," 99-115) points out
with respect to Ezra-Nehemiah, there is a significant tension contained within the
idea of a divine law revealed in a written text. On the one hand, the divinely revealed
written law is eternal and unchanging, but on the other hand human conditions and
situations are constantly changing, requiring law with a degree of flexibility and
adaptability. The solution in Ezra-Nehemiah was to gloss over the distinction
between what a text literally said and what a text was thought to mean, which often
diverged from what the text literally said. Every legal decision was described as
being in accordance with the Torah, regardless of whether the decision actually
accorded with a written law. In the Qumran community, interpretation is now
explicitly distinguished from the literal meaning and given special status, but the
phenomenon reflects the same fundamental tension based in reality as that found in
Ezra-Nehemiah.
with dimmed eyes who can[not (see) ... and (any) y]oung b[o]y-none (of
these) 17 shall come a m[an ... ] ... (CD XV, 5b-17)
7 ••• Neither shall any simple minded or errant man, nor one with dimmed
eyes who cannot see, 8 [nor] a limping or lame or deaf person, nor a young
boy, none 9 of these shall [come] into the congregation, for the hol[y]
angels [are in their midst.] 10 [ ••. ] (4QDa 8 I, 7-10)86
1 with you a covenant and with all Israel. Therefore a man shall take upon
himself(an oath) to return to 2 the Torah of Moses, for in it everything is

specified. And the explication of their times, when 3 Israel was blind to
all these; behold, it is specified in the Book of the Divisions of the Times
4 in their Jubilees and in their Weeks ( Oil•?:ll'; O'n))il mp;no ,!:10
Oil'nl))l:l"IV::Il). And on the day when a man takes upon himself(an oath) to
return 5 to the Torah of Moses, the angel Mastema shall tum aside from
after him, if he fufills his words. 6 Therefore, Abraham was circumcised
on the day of his knowing ... (CD XVI, 1-6a) 87
In this respect, it should be noted that there are several references to

"entering the covenant" found at various points throughout the Damascus
Document (CD II, 2; VI, 11-12, 19; VIII, 21; XIX, 33-34; IX, 2; XIII,
14). 88 After the introductory exhortation to remain faithful to the Mosaic
covenant (CD I, 1-11, 1), there is a hortatory call to those who enter the
covenant (CD II, 2) to avoid the apostasy of their forefathers. The
Damascus Document is thus addressed to people who are described
as those who have entered the covenant. Much of the document is a
description of the things to avoid doing in order to stay within the
boundaries ofthe covenant (cf. "the Laws" which take up the last half of
the document).
Given this, Knibb's suggestion that the Damascus Document was
recited at the annual covenant renewal ceremony has much to commend
it. 89 K. Baltzer had noted that the Damascus Document contains many
features of a covenant formulary. 90 He identified four main sections:
86. All transcriptions and translations of Cave 4 copies of the Damascus Docu-
ment are taken from Joseph M. Baumgarten, Qumran Cave 4.XIII: The Damascus
Document (4Q266-273) (DJD 18; Oxford: Clarendon, 1996). See 4Q266 11 and
4Q270 7 II, cited below (p. 155), where the parallels are underlined as found in
Baumgarten's transcription.
87. Cf. 4QD• 8 I; 4QD< 6 I-II; 4QDr 4 II.
88. Cf. also Ill, 10; VIII, 1-2; XIX, 13-14, 16; XX, 25 where those who have
entered the covenant and have committed apostasy are condemned (both the pre-
exilic Israelites and the contemporary apostates in the community).
89. Knibb, The Qumran Community, 14.
90. Baltzer, The Covenant Formulary, 112-22.
Dogmatic Section (Antecedent History) I-VI, 11

Ethical Section VI, I 1-Vll, 4
Blessings and Curses VII, 4-
Corpus of Legal Stipulations IX, I-XVI, 20
Particularly noteworthy is the fact that the covenant formulary analogy

makes good sense of the historical overview in the first part of the
Damascus Document and explains quite well how it fits with the legal
sections. While it is true that, asP. R. Davies notes, the blessings and
curses precede the laws (typically it is reversed), this is not a decisive
objection, since the end of the Damascus Document contains an excom-
munication ritual complete with a cmse formula. 91
Davies presents his own analysis, limiting it to the Admonition alone,
and seeing it as a covenant formulary in its own right:
I, I-IV, 12a History of the community
IV, 12b-VII, 9 Legal section, beginning with an introductory
section demonstrating that those outside the
community do not have the law and concluding
with a brief formula of promise and warning
VII, 5-VIII, 19 Warnings (secondary expansion), reinforcing the
claims of the community against the
contemporary Jewish religious authorities.
XIX, 33-XX, 34 Supplement to original Admonition, betraying
presence ofne~ group (i.e. Qumran settlers). 92
The problem with his analysis, of course, is that it entirely ignores the
legal section, in the name of trying to line up the structure of the Damas-
cus Document with the typical covenant formulary. 93 The legal section,
in his view, is found within the Admonition itself in VI, 11-VII, 9 (i.e.
preceding the warnings as in a typical covenant formulary). 94
Knibb's thesis, though it cannot be proven, is therefore certainly
plausible. However, as both Falkand Davies have noted in different
ways, the Damascus Document does not appear to be liturgical so much
as it is descriptive. 95 This might indicate that the Damascus Document
subconsciously reflects the organization of the liturgy of a covenant
renewal ceremony as opposed to having been actually read during
91. Davies, The Damascus Document, 52; cf. Falk,Daily, Sabbath, and Festival
Prayers, 226.
92. Davies, The Damascus Document, 52-53. Rather than reproduce Davies's
exact wording, I have attempted briefly to summarize their content.
93. Cf. Hempel's (The Damascus Texts, 81) criticism along these lines.
94. Davies, The Damascus Covenant, 52.
95. Falk, Daily, Sabbath, and Festival Prayers, 226; Davies, The Damascus
Covenant, 53.
one. 96 Whatever the case may be, something like this document would
certainly not be out of place if read at a covenant renewal ritual. 97
Although it is not certain, the initial induction ceremony appears to
have been held on an ad hoc basis, whenever a new candidate presented
himself to the Examiner (1j?:J7.:li1; CD XV, 11). The candidate was then
on probation for one year(CD XV, 15). It does not seem practical for the
community to require a prospective member to wait several months for
him to join. This does not, however, preclude the possibility that the
official induction (i.e. after the probation period officially ended) itself
took place during the Festival ofWeeks, since the probation period could
perhaps last more than a year (i.e. from the time of first initiation till the
time of full acceptance into the community). 98
In any case, the new initiate, along with the other members of the
community, would presumably renew the covenant on an annual basis
(cf. 1QS II, 19) at the Festival of Weeks. An oblique indication that the
Festival of Weeks is the occasion for covenant renewal in the Damascus
Document is found in the reference to the book of Jubilees in CD XVI,
2b-6a. 99 Admittedly, it is in reference to a record of the apostasy of the
former covenant community of the pre-exilic era. However, it is men-
tioned in connection with covenant, and it does indicate that the book of
Jubilees was authoritative for the author of the Damascus Document and
the Qumran community as a whole. Moreover, since the book of Jubilees
prescribes covenant renewal on the Festival of Weeks, this is at least
suggestive.
4.1.4. Expulsion Ceremony in the Third Month. Indeed, in the Cave 4

copies of the Damascus Document, there is a description of a meeting in
the third month. 100 There are two parallel extant copies ofthis description:
96. Davies, The Damascus Covenant, 53.

97. On the liturgical aspects of the Damascus Document, see Falk, Daily,
Sabbath, and Festival Prayers, 226-35.
98. Cf. CD XV, 15: ;io•f.ln :131b "r)j ("for one complete year"), which leaves room
for the idea that the probation period could last more than a year (i.e. the probation
lasted one complete year between covenant festivals).
99. It is generally assumed that this is a gloss or interpolation (cf., for example,
Hempel, The Laws ofthe Damascus Document, 89), but it is now known that it is an
ancient gloss due to the parallels found in (4QD• 6 II, 17; 4QDr 4II, 5). Furthermore,
it appears (the extant text is fragmentary) that another text from Qumran cites
Jubilees as an authoritative text, namely, 4Q228 I I, 2, 9 (cf. James C. VanderKam
and J6zef T. Milik, "4QText with a Citation of Jubil~es," in Attridge eta!., eds.,
Qumran Cave 4, Vlll: Parabiblical Texts, Part I, 178-83).
100. It is likely that CD XIV, 3-6 preserves the rules for the mustering of this
meeting in the third month: "The rule for the settlement of all the camps: They shall
J'T.:l' ilOUil ON 111N1 '1li'?Uiil VJ"IlD:J1?i1p' OlJiif.l;i ['::11111'] (17)

fj2 ?1::>::11111)]' 1111N 0'0!1111T.:li111111!1 iiiill il"iin[il JT.:l ?1NT.:l1111] (18)
?1::>? 0il'VOT.:l.1 J11Dil 'YP ?[1:J:l]11;[p!!' 1111N ON i111j?!lil] (19)
fl"iiliii [111]'1"r[n]'7[V ]?[ 1:Jil ilJil Oi1'1V ::11111' ?1::>1 Oil'JDT.:l ::11111'] (20)
[ ... !110Nil] (21)
(17) [the inhabitants of] the camps shall congregate in the third month
and curse those who tum right
(18) [or left from the ]Law. This is the elaboration of the laws to be
followed during the entire period
(19) [of visitation, that which will be vis]ited [during al]l the periods of
wrath and their journeys, for all
(20) [who dwell in their camps and all who dwell in their towns. Behold,
it is a]ll [in accor]dance with the
(2l)[final in]terpreta[tion] of the Law. (4QD' = 4Q266 11, 17-21)
[ON 11]'1N1 '111'?111i11111n[:J1?i1p' DlJDT.:lil '::11111' ?::>1] (11)
[1]1i1N O'O!JWT.:li111111!1 ill vac [i111Dil JT.:l ?NT.:l1111 J'T.:l' ilOUil] (12)
!11Dil 'YP ?::>::1 11'P[!!'] '1111N n[N i111j?!!il] }>;? [?::>::1111111'] (13)
[::110]5 11:>i1 ilJil Oi1['1V ::1111]; ?::>1 Oil'Jn[n] :1111' ?::>? [Oil'l?]OT.:l1 (14)
vacat JliDNil ii'11l1fu] UI11T.:l1JJ (15)
( 11) [All the inhabitants of the camps shall congregate in the] third month
and cur[ se him]
(12) [who turns right or left from the Law.] vac This is the elaboration of
the laws
(13) [to be followed during the entire] period of[visitation,] that will be
[vis]ited during all the periods of wrath
(14) and [their]jour[neys,] for all who dwell in their [c]amps and all who
[dwell in their] towns. Behold it is all w[ritten (?)]
(15) in accordance with the final interpretation of[the] Law. vacat(4QDe
= 4Q270 7 II, 11-15)
This portion of text comes at the very end of the work. 101 Aside from a
few minor variations, the two parallel texts appear to be essentially the
all be mustered by their names; the priests first, the Levites second, the sons oflsrael
third, and the proselyte(s) fourth. And they shall be inscribed by their names, one
after the other, the priests first, the Levites second, the sons of Israel third, and the
proselyte(s) fourth. Thus shall they sit and thus shall they inquire about any
(matter)." The text goes on to delineate the qualifications of the presiding priest
(lines 6-8) and the Examiner (1jJ:JT.:lil; lines 8-12), after which the text outlines a
penal code of uncertain length. Since the instruction for expelling those who fail to
accept the judgment of the community appears to come right after this penal code, it
is a reasonable assumption that the description in CD XIV, 3-6 describes the rules
for the meeting described at the end of the text.
101. 4QD' II and 4QDc 7 II preserve a blank column to the left of the extant
column in question.
same. The preceding text indicates that the context is that of the
expulsion of those who are unfaithful to the covenant:
15 vacat And these are the l]aws by which all who are disciplined [shall be
ruled.] Any man who 16 [is disciplined(?)] shall come and make it known
to the priest appoin[ted over the Many and acc]ept his judgment
[wil]lingly, in accordance with what 17 [He sa]id through Moses con-
cerning the soul that sin[s unwittingly, that he shall bring] his sin offering
and [his guilt-offering. And con]ceming 18 lsrael it is written, "I shall get
me to the end of the hea[ vens and will not smell the savour] of your sweet
odours." And else[where it is written,] 19 "Rend your hearts, not your gar-
ments." And it is writ[ ten, "To return to God with weeping and fasting."]
And whoever re[jects] 20 these [laws,] which are in accord with the
statutes fou[ nd in the Law of Moses, shall not be reckoned among the
s]ons of [His] truth, [for his soul has despised] 21 the chastisements of
righteousness. vacat And being in [rebellion] (4QD• 71, 15-21).
The remainder of the context is extant in 4QD• 11, 5-16. Note the
overlap between the last few lines of 4QD• 7 I and the first few lines of
4QD• 11 (only two lines of which is presented in the translation here
5 ... And anyone who rejects 6 these regulations, (which are) in accor·
dance with all the statutes found in the law of Moses, shall not be reck-
oned 7 among all the sons of his truth; for his soul has despised righteous
instruction. Being in rebellion let him be expelled from the presence of 8
the Many. The priest appointed [ov]er the Many shall declare, 9 saying:
Blessed are you, Almighty God, in your hand is everything, and
who makes everything. You established 10 [pe]op1es in accordance
with their families and tongues for their nations, but made them go
astray in a 11 trackless void. But our ancestors you did choose and
to their descendants you gave your truthful statutes 12 and your
holy laws, which if a man does them, he shall live. You have set
boundaries 13 for us and cursed those who transgress them, for we
are the people of your redemption and the sheep of your pasture.
14 You cursed their transgressors but preserved us.
(Thereupon) the one being expelled shall depart. Anyone 15 who eats
from that which belongs to him, or who inquires about his welfare, or
derives benefit from him 16 shall have his action inscribed by the Overseer
permanently, and his judgment will be complete. (4QD• 11, 5-16) 102
At this annual ceremony, those who do not willingly accept the judgment
associated with the breaking of one of the preceding stipulations are
102. Compare the composite text of the final section of the Damascus Document
that Hempel (The Laws of the Damascus Document, 175-77) has transcribed and
translated.
expelled. The key issue was one of authority, or rather, the case of a
member challenging the authority of the community's laws. 103 An unwill-
ingness to accept judgment was viewed as rebellion, and thus intentional
sin. 104 The fear that such a person would corrupt the community is
evident from the amount of texts dealing with the theme ofapostasy. 105
An apostate is to be expelled from the community, with the curses
associated with failure to observe the covenant pronounced on him (cf
CD Vll, 9-VIII, 21). This was to take place during an assembly which
was to meet in the third month, presumably on an annual basis. Unfortu-
nately, the precise day is not specified, neither is the Festival of Weeks
mentioned. However, since there is only one festival day in the third
month, namely, the Festival of Weeks, it seems reasonable to suppose
that this is the occasion for the assembly, and since it concerns those who
have deliberately violated the covenant, it also seems reasonable to
suppose that this meeting had something to do with covenant renewal,
which might naturally include an expulsion of those. who either refuse to
or are unworthy of renewing it. 1°6
Milik commented that there were certain similarities in language
between the expulsion ceremony described in the concluding section of
the Damascus Document and the description of those who refuse to enter
the covenant (i.e. one who is unable to repent) in lQS II, 25-III, 6. For
instance:
103. Ibid., 180.

104. For a discussion ofthe distinction between intentional and unintentional sin
in the Damascus Document, see Anderson, "The Status ofthe Torah Before Sinai,"
15-19. The article deals with how Jubilees and the Damascus Document dealt with
the issue of Torah before Sinai. Since the patriarchs were largely unaware of Torah,
they could not be justly punished (at least harshly). The Damascus Document, for
instance, explains that the sons of Jacob were punished lightly due to the fact that
their errors were unintentiomil (CD III, 4-5). Anderson then illustrates by way of
Jubilees' discussion of the sin of Reuben with Bilhah and Judah with Tamar, how
this book also observes the same distinction (pp. 19-29).
105. Cf. the long recitation of the history of apostasy in the pre-exilic period of
Israel's history in CD II, 14-lll, 12 (cf. also IV, 12-VI, I; VII, 9-VIII,21;XII, 2-6),
headed by an exhortation against rebelling against God. See also 1QpHab V, 8-11;
1QH" II, 34-36; IV, 7, 9-12, 16-18; 1QMXIV, 10. Cf. Nitzan, "TheConceptofthe
Covenant," 96-98.
106. Several scholars have previously suggested this: Milik, Ten Years of
Discovery, 116-18; Jaubert, La notion d'alliance, 211-27; Knibb, The Qumran
Community, 14. Knibb argues that the document was intended to be used at the
annual ceremony and that it involved admission into the community as well as
expulsion from it (cf. CD II, 2).
il?Nil 0'\'-!l1VO:I ON10il ?1::!1 (4QD"ll, 5-6)

?[ N n',:l:l) Nl:l? ON10il ?1::11 (lQS II, 25-26) 107
il'iiii[il10 ?1N01Vl] 1'0' il\:lUil nN ,,,Nl (4QDa 11, 17-18)
?1N01Vl 1'0' ,10? Nl?l (lQS III, 10)
He speculated that both texts belong to an annual covenant renewal

ceremony, described in some detail in lQS I, 16-IIT,-12 (see below). 108
F alk identifies several aspects of this expulsion ritual which are simi-
lar to the cursing of the apostate in the first couple of columns of the
Community Rule: (1) the priest curses the apostate first in both cases
(1QS II, 11-18; 4QD• 11, 8-16); (2) the descriptions of the apostates are
very similar:
pillil ,,10'::1 11V.!Jl il?Vl '::! (4QD" 11, 7)
pill 'tl.!J1VO nVi ,,,0'::1 11V.!Jl il?Vl N'::J (1 QS II, 26-lll, 1) 109
(3) in order to be forgiven, the apostate had humbly to accept the disci-
plineofthe community (1QS Ill, 4-12; 4QD• 11, 1-5); (4)bothimposea
ban on eating with or otherwise associating with the apostate (1 QS V,
14-20; VII, 24-25; VITI, 23; 4QD• 11, 14-15). 11 ° Falk concludes that
"the ritual detailed at the end of the Damascus Document provides a
prayer of banishment for the apostate alluded to in 1QS II, 11-18." 111
Falk also notes that the confessional prayer of the covenant faithful at
the end of the Admonition (CD XX, 27-30) is strikingly similar to the
prayer of confession in the Community Rule:
But all who entered the covenant who have broken through the border of
the Torah, when the glory of God appears to Israel they will be cut off
from the midst of the camp, and along with them all the wicked ones of
Judah, in the days when it is purged. But all those who hold firmly to
these precepts, to go out and go in according to the Torah, and listen to
the voice of the Teacher and confess before God, (saying,):
107. J6zefT. Milik, "Milki-~edeq et Milki resa< dans les anciens ecritsjuifs et
chretiens," JJS23 (1972): 136.
108. This suggestion by Milik is endorsed by many. See Hempel, The Laws of
the Damascus Document, 184; Falk, Daily, Sabbath, and Festival Prayers, 233-34;
VanderKam, "Sinai Revisited," 49: Preben Wemberg-M0ller (The Manual of
Discipline [STDJ 1; Leiden: Brill, 1957], 14) suggested the Day of Atonement
(VIII I 0) as the date for the annual covenant renewal ceremony, but this seems less
and less likely given the weight of evidence now uncovered in favor of the Festival
of Weeks.
109. C£ Hempel, The Laws ofthe Damascus Document, 184.
110. Falk, Daily, Sabbath, and Festival Prayers, 233-34.
111. Ibid., 234.
ijv1iri 1jNo[n] We have [sin]ned; we have acted

lN1I:lN !Jj 13n.lN il.i impiously, we and our fathers
N-1:Jn 'Pn:l '"IP bli:J~:l by walking contrarily in the statutes of
the covenant.
u::~ 1'tl!l1VTJ noNi [p ]1-:!l Righteous 112 and true are your judg-
ments against us. (CD XX, 27-30)1 13
Then the Levites shall enumerate the iniquities of the sons of Israel and
all their guilty transgressions and their sins during the dominion ofBelial.
[And al]l those who cross over into the covenant shall confess after them
(by) saying:
Hvv[!l]1l'l))J We have perverted ourselves, we
have rebel[led],
we [have sin]ned, we have acted
impiously,
1l'J!li;TJ1J'l1i:J[Ni]1JN we [and] our [fath ]ers before us,
[ ... ]1ll1:Ji;(ii):l by our walking [ ... ]
i;N"\11.1' ]'5[N] j:11lll l11JN True and righte[ous] is the [Go]d of
[1l];l1l:J.N:ll1l:ll"O!l1Vt:1[l [Israel and] his judgment against us
and [our] fathers. (IQS I, 24-26)1 14
This confession demonstrates the kind of humble acceptance ofjudgment

that the community was looking for in response to those who failed to
adhere to the stipulations of the covenant. 115 Its link to the excommu-
nication ritual is therefore clear. Moreover, since the excommunication
ritual probably occurred during the Festival of Weeks, this parallel bol-
sters the suggestion by those scholars that see a connection between the
covenant renewal ritual described in 1QS I, 16-III, 12 and the Festival of
Weeks. 116
112. While j:11ll is not in the transcription in Charlesworth (Dead Sea Scrolls:
Damascus Document, 36-37), a close examination of the photographs indicates that
there is another word at the end of line 29 of column XX.
113. The translation has been slightly modified from that in Charlesworth (The
Dead Sea Scrolls: Damascus Document, 36-37) in the interests of consistency with
the passage from I QS.
114. All texts and translations of 1QS are from James H. Charlesworth, ed., The
Dead Sea Scrolls: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek Texts with English Translations.
Vol. 1, Rule of the Community and Related Documents (PTSDSSP; Louisville:
Westminster John Knox, 1994). The formatting is adapted (with minor variations)
from Falk (Daily, Sabbath, and Festival Prayers, 227) in order to make the parallels
more apparent.
115. 4Q4 77 records an example of members of the community who were
expelled. In this text, a list of three offenses is given in each case. A third offense
was considered final (cf., e.g., CD IX, 16-20).
116. In the context of the Community Rule, this confessional prayer is recited by
those who renew the covenant on an annual basis (lQS I, 16; II, 19).
It is unlikely that violators of the covenant stipulations were punished

only once a year. 117 However, severe cases requiring permanent expul-
sion were probably reserved for such an annual ceremony, since such an
occasion could serve the important function of reminding the community
itself of the importance of remaining faithful to the covenant and the
severe consequences that would befall anyone who deliberately rebelled
against the judgment of the community.m
4.2. Serekh ha-Yahad

4.2.1. Introduction. This document, entitled in'il1,0 ,!lO or "the Book
of the Rule ofthe Community," is a foundational text for the sect. 119 The
numerous copies of this text attest to this fact. There are twelve con-
firmed copies of this text at Qumran, ten from Cave 4, and one each from
Caves 1 and 5. 120 This makes it the best attested of the clearly sectarian
works at Qurnran. 121 Its importance to the sect over a long period oftime
is demonstrated by the fact that the document underwent an extensive
process of development during the history of the Dead Sea sect. 122 1QS,
117. Hempel, The Laws of the Damascus Document, 180.

118. Ibid.
119. 1QS used to be referred to as the Manual ofDiscipline. The script has been
dated on paleographical grounds to approximately 100-75 B.C.E. All references
(including text and translation) to 1QS are to the edition of Elisha Qimron and James
H. Charlesworth, "Rule of the Community (1 QS)," in Charlesworth, ed., Rule ofthe
Community and Related Documents, 1-51. All references (including text and
translation) to the copies of the Cave 4 and 5 copies of the Serekh ha- Ya/:tad are
taken from the edition of PhilipS. Alexander and Geza Vermes (Qumran Cave 4,
XIX: Serekh ha- Ya/:tad and Two Related Texts (DJD 26; Oxford: Clarendon, 1998).
All references (including text and translations) to I QSa and 1QSb are to the edition
of James H. Charlesworth and Loren T. Stuckenbruck, "Rule of the Congregation
(1 QSa)," in The Dead Sea Scrolls: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek Texts with English
Translations. Vol. I. Rule of the Community and Related Documents, 108-17, and
idem, "Blessings (1 QSb),"in Charlesworth, ed., Rule ofthe Community and Related
Documents, 119-31.
120. It is possible that there are actually thirteen copies from Qumran, depend-
ing on whether4QSh frg. 1 represents an eleventh copy of the Rule from Cave4. See
the discussion in the official edition: Alexander and Vermes, Qumran Cave 4, XIX,
47-49 (cf. p. 1 n. 1).
121. Compare with the Damascus Document (ten copies), the Songs of the
Sabbath Sacrifice (nine copies), the War Scroll (seven copies), and 4QMMT (six
copies).
122. See the discussion of Alexander and Vermes (Qumran Cave 4, XIX, 9-12),
and Sarianna Metso, The Textual Development of the Qumran Community Rule
(STDJ 21; Leiden: Brill, 1997), 69-149.
the best preserved of the various copies, represents a relatively late stage
in this literary process. 123
The fact that the Serekh ha-Yahad was of central importance to the
community as a kind of charter or constitution, combined with the fact
that it was found largely intact (aside from a number of small patches),
has made this text key for our understanding of the community's view of
itself and its purpose. This document presents an idealized portrait of the
Dead Sea sect's self-understanding as seen in its raison d'etre, commu-
nal organization, religious beliefs, liturgy, rituals, and laws.
4.2.2. Covenant in the Community Rule. Even a cursory reading of the

text readily indicates the centrality of the covenant to the self-under-
standing of the sect. The term n'i:J. ("covenant") occurs 32 times in 1QS
(plus four times in 1QSa and seven times in 1QSb). 124 When one con-
siders that 1QS consists of eleven columns, and that only columns VII,
IX, and XI fail to contain any occurrences of the term n'i:J., it becomes
clear that covenant is not only a key concept in this text, but it is a
pervasive concern. 125 Moreover, when one peruses the other non-biblical
literature at Qumran that is clearly sectarian, one often finds a similarly
heavy concentration of the term n'i:J.: CD (42 times), 1QM (13 times),
and lQH• (26 times).
123. See the argument developed by Metso (Textual Development, 69-149, esp.
the useful chart on p. 147). I briefly summarize her findings: Metso argues that the
Serekh ha- Ya/:lad originally consisted of a shortened version of 1QS V-IX minus
Vlll, 15b-IX, 11. From this original, two textual traditions emerged, A (represented
by 4QS 0 ) and B (represented by 4QSh,d). They were eventually combined in tradition
C (represented by 1QS). A later redactional stage can be seen in the corrections and
additions made by a second copyist in lQS Vll-Vlll. The rest of this section will
focus mainly on 1QS since it is the most complete copy, and even if it represents a
relatively late stage in the development of the text, it is sufficiently early (100-75
B.C. E.) that this form of the text (or a later one) would have been followed by the
community for most of its history.
124. These two fragmentary texts were appended to the end of 1QS and should
probably thus be read together, especially since they are not unrelated in terms of
subject. While there are many copies of 1QS, there is only one fragmentary copy of
1QSa and 1QSb, unless Stephen J. Pfann (Qumran Cave 4.XXV/: Cryptic Texts and
Miscellanea, Part I [DJD 36; Oxford: Clarendon, 2000], 515-16) is correct about
the 8 or 9 mss. he distinguishes among several fragments of 4Q249. All word statis-
tics from the Dead Sea Scrolls, unless otherwise stated, are taken from Martin G.
Abegg, Jr., The Dead Sea Scrolls Concordance: The Non-Biblical Texts from
Qumran (Leiden: Brill, 2003).
125. "Covenant" is similarly widely distributed in 1QSa (four times in one out
of two columns) and 1QSb (seven times in four out of five columns).
The way n~i::J. is used also indicates the centrality of the concept of
covenant. The covenant is something which the members of the commu-
nity ("Tn~il) enter into (~1::J.) and/or cross over to (i1::J.V). 126 The members
ofthe community are sometimes referred to as "the multitude of the men
of their covenant" (cn~i::J. ~iVJ~ ::J.1i). 127 The covenant is also referred to
as "the covenant of the everlasting community ( c~o?1V In~ n~i::J.) or
simply "the covenant ofthe community" ("Tn~il n~i::J.). 1 2s
The occurrences of the term n~i::J. cluster in columns I (5 times), II
(5 times), and V (12 times). According to Metso's theory of the develop-
ment of the Rule, a shorter version of column V was the original starting
point. Later, columns I-IV were added, making columns 1-11 the new
beginning point. 129 It is thus apparent that, in both versions, this text
began with a section elaborating the central role of the covenant in the
community.
According to the form of the text contained in 1QS, the text begins
with a long explanation of the purpose of the community (lQS I, 1-15):
I To the[ ... ] sym for his life [the Book of the Rul]e of the Community. In
order to seek 2 God with [all the heart and soul] doing what is good and
right before him, as 3 he commanded through Moses and through all his
servants the prophets, and in order to love all 4 that he has chosen, and to ·
hate all that he has rejected, keeping away from all evil 5 and adhering to
all good works, and in order to perform truth and righteousness and
justice 6 upon the earth; to walk no longer with the stubbornness of a
guilty heart, and (no longer with) lustful eyes 7 doing all evil; in order to
receive all those who devote themselves to do the statutes of God 8 into
the covenant of mercy, to be joined to the Council of God, to walk
perfectly before him (according to) all 9 revealed (laws) at their appointed
times, and in order to love all the Sons of Light each 10 according to his
lot in the Council of God, and to hate all the Sons of Darkness each
according to his guilt 11 at the vengeance of God; all those devoting them-
selves to his truth bringing all their knowledge, and their strength, 12 and
their property into the Community of God in order to strengthen their
knowledge by the truth of God's statutes, and discipline their strength 13
according to the perfection of his ways, and all their property according
to his righteous counsel, and in order not to deviate from any single one 14
of all the commands of God in their times, and in order that they not be
early (in) their times, nor late 15 from all their seasons, and in order not to
tum aside from his true statutes (by) walking either (to) the right or (to)
the left ...
126. lQS I, I6, 18, 20, 24; II, 10, 12, 18; V, 8, 20; VI, 15; X, 10.
127. lQS V, 9; VI, 19; cf. VIII, 16.
128. 1QS III, 11; VIII, 16.
129. Metso, Textual Development, 107-8.
Covenant faithfulness is clearly the dominant theme here. This theme is

also found in column V, which was the original beginning of the work.
Following this introduction, there is a description of the ritual that
marks the entry of the members into the Covenant ( 1QS I, 16-II, 25).
The priests and Levites officiate over this ceremony, leading the com-
munity in a liturgical service, with the priests exalting the God of salva-
tion and the initiates responding with a double "amen" (lQS I, 18-20).
Then the priests recount the rlghteousness of God and his mercy (1QS I,
21-22) followed by the Levites who enumerate the sins and guilt of the
children oflsrael (1 QS I, 22-23), to which the community is to respond
with a communal confession (1QS I, 24-II, 1). The priests then bless the
men of God's lot (1QS II, 1-4), and then the Levites curse all the men of
Belial's lot (lQS II, 4-9) to which the members respond with a double
"amen" (lQS II, 10). The priests and Levites then jointly curse back-
sliders who put a stumbling block before other members and falsely bless
themselves with the words of the covenant (lQS II, 11-17) to which the
members again respond with a double "amen (1 QS II, 18). Then follows
a description of the order in which the members will enter the covenant:
priests, Levites, and then the people (1 QS II, 19-22).
This was a yearly ritual. This is clear from 1QS II, 19-23, which
indicates that all the members of the community "entered" the covenant
every year:
19 Thus they shall do year after year, all the days of the reign of Belial.
The priests shall cross over 20 first into the order, according to their spirits,
one after the other. Then the Levites shall cross over after them, 21 then
all the people shall cross over thirdly into the order, one after the other,
by thousands, hundreds, 22 fifties, and tens, so that every single Israelite
may know his standing place in the Community of God 23 for an eternal
council. ..
Since line 19 is preceded by a paragraph marker, the description of the

pliests, Levites, and people crossing over is clearly a yearly occurrence.
This is probably to be connected to the prescription in column 5 "to
examine their spirit and their works year after year" (1 QS V, 24), given
the fact that the context in column V is again that of entering the
covenant and fidelity to the covenant. 130
130. If I QSb (Blessings), which was found on the same scroll as IQS and IQSa,
is not just a text intended solely to be applied during the Messianic Age, but also to
be celebrated in the present as a kind of participation in future blessings, then there
is further evidence that this covenant ceremony was renewed annually in III, 26 and
V,21.
4.2.3. The Yahad as Patterned after Israel at Sinai. The theme of cove-
nant is bound up with that of exile. 131 The exile had a profound effect on
the theology of the Qumran community. According to the community's
teaching, the exile came about as a result oflsrael' s unfaithfulness to the
covenant (cf. CD I, 3--4; VII, 9-15). Sometime afterwards God raised up
for the faithful remnant the Teacher ofRighteousness to guide them (CD
I, 4-11 ). The Qumran community, however, became ostracized from the
rest of Israel by an event, the specifics of which are not clear. This was
instigated by the Wicked Priest (cf. 1QpHab XI, 2-8). 132 The commu-
nity's self-understanding involved the recognition that they were still in
exile, but that this was in accordance with God's plan in that they had a
mission:
Bb vacat (They shall be) a most holy dwelling 9 for Aaron, with all-
encompassing knowledge of the covenant of judgment, offering up a
sweet odor. (They shall be) a house of perfection and truth in Israel 10 to
uphold the covenant of eternal statutes. They will be accepted to atone
for the land and to decide judgment over wickedness; and there will be no
more iniquity. When these are established in the principles of the Com-
munity.for two years among the perfect of the Way 11 they shall be set
apart (as) holy in the midst of the Council of the men of the Community.
Everything which has been concealed from Israel and is found by
somebody 12 who studies-he shall not conceal it from these out of fear
of a backsliding spirit. When these become the Community in Israel 13
they shall separate themselves from the session of the men of deceit in
order to depart into the wilderness to prepare there the Way of the Lord
(?); 14 as it is written: "In the wilderness prepare the way of the lord,
make level in the desert a highway for our God." 15 This (alludes to) the
study of the Torah wh[ic]h he commanded through Moses to do, accord-
ing to everything which has been revealed (from) time to time, 16 and
according to that which the prophets have revealed by his Holy Spirit
(IQS VII, 8b-16a; italics added)
17b One must argue with true knowledge and righteous judgment (only
with) the chosen of 18 the Way, each according to his spirit and according
to the norm of the Endtime. He shall guide them with knowledge, and
instruct them in the mysteries of wonder and truth in the midst of 19 the
men of the Community, so that they may walk perfectly each one with his
fellow in everything which has been revealed to them. That is the time to
prepare the way 20 to the wilderness. He shall instruct them (in) all that is
found to be performed in this time. (1 QS IX, 17-20; italics added).
131. See the overview by Martin G. Abegg, Jr., "Exile and the Dead Sea Scrolls,"
in Scott, ed., Exile: Old Testament, Jewish, and Christian Conceptions, 118-25.
132. Cf.. lQH XII, 8-9; 4Ql77 5-6, 7-10.
5. The Dead Sed Scrolls 165
The quoted passage is from Isa 40:3, which alludes to the retum from
Babylonian exile. The Qumran community's retum from exile would not
be accomplished w1til the eschaton (lQM I, 2-3), but in the meantime,
preparation for the retum involved study of the Torah. The path back
from exile, then, ultimately went through Sinai.
The fact that the wilderness is mentioned in connection with covenant
and the study of Torah indicates that the community may have patterned
itself after the covenant community in the wilderness before Mt. Sinai
when the Mosaic law was first given. J. VanderKam has marshaled
several parallels between the original community at the foot ofMt. Sinai
and the self-understanding of the Qumran community that indicates
this. 133 In addition to the fact that the Qumranites appear to have
celebrated an annual covenant renewal ceremony at the Festival of
Weeks based on Exod 19:1, he notes the following points of contact:
1. The term in', which the community employs to refer to itself, has
a possible origin in Exod 19:8: "All the people answered together
(1in') and said~ 'All that the LORD has spoken we will do.' " 134
2. Though the nation of Israel is depicted as quarrelsome and
contentious in the surrounding narrative, at this precise point (i.e.
Exod 19:8; cf. 24:3, 7) the Israelites are depicted as following
God's will; in fact, they affirm their intention to follow God's
will even before he makes it known (Exodus 20-23). This led
many ancient commentators to conclude that the Israelites at the
foot ofMt. Sinai were an ideal society. 135
3. The Community Rule uses language recalling that used for Israel
at Mt. Sinai, im_:luding "freely devoted themselves" (root :m;
Exod 25:2; 35:20-21; cf. 1QS I, 7, 11; V, 1, 6, 8, 10, 21, 22; VI,
13; IX, 5) and the organization of people into groups of thou-
sands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, an organizational pattern that
strongly recalls the Israelite organizational pattern established
shortly before their entrance into the wilderness of Sinai (Exod
18:21, 25; Deut 1:15; cf. 1QS II, 21-22).136
133. VanderKam, "Sinai Revisited," 48-59.

134. This term occurs 96 times in the Hebrew Bible, but VanderKam ("Sinai
Revisited," 52) suggests that this was the specific impetus for using the term in
relation to the sect.
135. See VanderKam (ibid., 53-54) for a review of the rabbinic exegesis
associated with this theme.
136. On :m in the Community Rule, see Catherine M. Murphy, Wealth in the
Dead Sea Scrolls and in the Qumran Community (STDJ 40; Leiden: Brill, 2002),
137-41.
4. The widely attested practice of the Qumranites with respect to

the communal sharing of goods appears to have had some
impetus from the Israelites' Sinai experience. VanderKam argues
that 1QS I, 11-12 is "strongly reminiscent" ofDeut 6:5 where
"heart" (:1:1?), "soul" (1V.!JJ), and "might" (1NIJ) are paralleled by
"knowledge" (n~n), "powers" (m:l), and "possessions" (l,il) in
1QS. 137 Since the heart was the seat of the intellect and/or will, a
correlation between "heart" and "knowledge" is certainly not
farfetched. The correlation of "might" and "possessions" is
likewise a well attested one in Jewish literature. 138
5. The Community Rule does not contain legislation for women,
which might reflect the fact that the words of God first addressed
to Moses are: "Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell
the sons oflsrael..." (Exod 19:3). Furthermore, in Exod 19:15
the people of Israel are told not to go near a woman, which may
have been the impetus for the Qumran community to remain
celibate. 139
Finally, the theme ofthe 1n' as a sanctuary in the wilderness recalls the
experience of the Israelites at the foot of Mt. Sinai, where they were
commanded to build a Tabernacle (Exod 26; cf. 35:30-36:38) from the
freewill offerings (:11J, iliJ,in) ofthe people (Exod 25: 1-9; 35:4-29). 140
This theme is only inferred from the Community Rule, but may have a
solid basis. In the last sections of the Community Rule, the reference to
the way in the wilderness (VIII, 13-14; IX 19-20) and Torah study sug-
gests this (see comments above). 141 Torah study and its interpretation are
137. VanderKam, "Sinai Revisited," 57.

138. VanderKam (ibid.) cites Tg. Ps.-J. on Deut 6:5 where "might" is translated
with JUJIJ (cf. m. Ber. 9:5).
139. VanderKam (ibid., 58-59) summons much rabbinic evidence (Tg. Ps.-J. on
Exod 19:3; Mekhilta, Bahodesh 2: I; Pirke de Rabbi Eliezer 321) which makes
explicit the different treatment of women and men at Sinai. Joseph Zias ("The
Cemeteries of Qumran and Celibacy: Confusion Laid to Rest?," DSD 7 [2000]: 220-
53) has recently identified the remains of women in the graves adjacent to the
Qumran ruins as belonging to much more recent Bedouin women, not ancient
Qumranites. Thus, one of the main arguments against the celibacy thesis-a hotly
contested idea-has no basis.
140. This paragraph is largely dependent on the excellent analysis of Murphy,
Wealth in the Dead Sea Scrolls, 139-41.
141. There is a possible reference to 1VipiJ ("sanctuary") in 4QS• III, I. Qimron
and Charlesworth (Rule ofthe Community and Related Documents, 87) read it w1pf.l,
but Alexander and Vermes (Qumran Cave 4, XIX, 144-45) read it as 1!/ip? (which
they nevertheless translate as "sanctuary").
frequently refelTed to as an atoning sacrifice in 1QS, a sacrifice which

transforms the community into Israel's Temple (VIII, 1-11; cf. V, 1-
7).142 There is also a confluence oftelTllinology between Exod 36:2-3 and
lQS VI, 18-20. Terms for approaching (:t,p) and the work (il:JtbTJil)
that is freely offered, as well as the idea that one is bringing one's offer-
ing are common to both these passages. 143 The term iliV, used only in
1QS V, 20 (but used several times in 1QSa, which was written on the
same scroll and appears to be used in a similar manner as in'), is found
throughout the Sinai nalTative in the Hebrew Bible. 144
In sum, the Community Rule appears to depict the Qumran community
as patterned after the Israelites at the foot of Mt. Sinai receiving the
Torah. The annual celebration of covenant renewal fits in nicely with this
theme, and coheres with a similar emphasis on covenant found in the
Damascus Document.
4.3. 4QCommunal Ceremony (4Q275)

Unfortunately, there is no specific indication within 1QS of the time of
year that this covenant ceremony was held. However, as argued above,
given the popularity of Jubilees at Qumran and the evidence from
elsewhere in the scrolls, the Festival of Weeks has to be considered at
least a strong possibility. While there is no indication of time of year
within 1QS itself, there is a possible indication in a text-that is,
142. Murphy, Wealth in the Dead Sea Scrolls, 139-40. Cf. the fact that the
Qumran community viewed prayers as a fonn of sacrifice in replacement of (or as a
token of) the Temple cult from which they seceded. On this see Shemaryahu
Talmon, "The Emergence oflnstitutionalized Prayer in Israel in Light of the Qumran
Literature," in The World ofQumranji-om Within: Collected Studies (Jerusalem:
Magnes; Leiden: Brill, 1989), 200'-43. Daniel K. Falk ("Qumran Prayer Texts and
the Temple," in Sapiential; Liturgical and Poetical Texts from Qumran: Proceedings
of the Third Meeting of the International Organization for Qumran Studies, Oslo
1998: Published in Memory of Maurice Baillet [ed. Daniel K. Falk, Florentino
Garcia Martinez, and Eileen M. Schuller; STDJ 35; Leiden: Brill, 2000], 106-26)
challenges Talmon's hypothesis, arguing that the idea that institutionalized prayer
arose as a replacement for sacrifice is not proven, and that there is evidence that
points in the opposite direction. He suggests that prayer and sacrifice would naturally
go together at the Temple and that rather than viewing prayer as a substitute for
sacrifice, it should be viewed as a token of the Temple service (i.e. since the sacrifice
which would accompany prayer was not possible for the in', the prayer itself was
offered by itself). For the present purposes, the distinction does not make much
difference.
143. Murphy, Wealth in the Dead Sea Scrolls, 140.
144. E.g. Exod 34:31; 35:1,4, 20; Num 1:2 et passim. Murphy, Wealth in the
Dead Sea Scrolls, 139.
4QCommunal Ceremony (4Q27 5)-that, thematically at least, has some

similarities to 1QS.I4s
This document, which is unfortunately very fragmentary, contains
indications that it may have had something to do with the covenant
renewal ceremony that was celebrated annually, as described in 1QS I-
11.146 In the first fragment, there is a reference to the third month:
[ ... ]fl ''':llP nN o•:J[I;J1il ... ] (!)

[ ... ]Olllil 'N'ij? 7[Ni1P' 'i'n:l ... ) (2)
[ ... •]1b•I;Jwil11Jim:l [ ... ] (3)
[ ... ] iDN1 ilJV1 l1[ ... ] (4)
[ ... )']1N:l 0'U1 D;f.ij}[ ... ] (5)
[ ... ]; Oili;J n[ni;J ... ] (6)
(I)[ wal]king the paths of [ ]
(2) [ the chosen ones of Is rae]1, the called ones of name [
(3) [ ] in the thir[ d] month [ ]
(4)[ ]0 t and he shall answer and say [ ]
(5) [ ]peoples and nations in the lan[d ]
(6) [ to gi]ve to them yo[ ] (4Q275 I, 1-6) 147
Although the second 1V is an uncertain reading (the right vertical stroke is
barely visible), there is little doubt that the third month is indicated since
an ordinal number seems to be called for after 1V11n:l. Unfortunately,
there is no specific day mentioned; yet, if this text is associated with
covenant renewal, and if one considers the fact that the only significant
holy day within the third month is the Festival of Weeks, this would
appear to be the most logical reference here.
But does this text refer to the covenant renewal ceremony? While the
extant textual evidence is far from conclusive, there are some good
reasons for thinking so. In the third fragment there appears to be a
description of a gathering of the community with its leaders, perhaps
along the lines of that described in 1QS I-11:
[ ... ]1V 1DV 0'Jj?Til1 ( 1)
[ ... ] lllln':l ,;V' (2)
[J'NI;J ... ] fl• ij?:lDil1 (3)
145. This is the judgment of the official editors, Alexander and Vermes (Qum-
ran Cave 4, XIX, 210-11 ), who published this text with the Cave 4 fragments of the
Community Rule.
146. Alexander and Vermes, Qumran Cave 4, XIX, 21 O-Il. As the editors note,
there is little in the text to support the idea behind the older classification of the
document as "TohorotBa" (cf. Milik, "Milki-~edeq et Milk! resa', 129). It should be
noted, that Milik nevertheless clearly saw that4Q275 was connected topically to the
Serekh ha-Yahad.
147. Ibid., 209-16.
(1) and the elders with him until [ ]

(2) they shall enter by genealogy [ ]
(3) and the Guardian shall [ without]. (4Q275 3, 1-3)
In 1QS VI there is a more detailed indication of the seating arrangements

during a meeting of the Many and the procedure by which new members
are admitted, which gives a role to the elders and the 1j?:JI:l (lQS VI, 8,
12, 20).
That this text contained liturgical elements consistent with a covenant
renewal ceremony is fairly certain. Covenantal blessings and curses were
an important pmt of the annual covenant renewal ceremony, as we have
seen (cf. lQS II, 4-9). In 4Q275 1, 4 there is the liturgical formula i1JV1
11:lN1, which is typically followed by a blessing, curse, "amen," or some
other kind of prayer. 148 There is a parallel in 1QS II, 5, where the plural is
used, to preface a curse: 111:lN1 UV1 ("and they shall answer and say").
The DJD editors conjecture that the formula in 4Q275 also prefaced a
curse, in this case against the nations, because of the mention of"nations"
(tJ'U) in line 5 (also possibly "peoples" though the reading is uncer-
tain: o'DV). Fragment 3 appears to contain a curse as well. Though the
term is only pmtially preserved (1]hN), the phrase "when he visits
des[truction" (i1] ~:J 11j?!J:l) in line 6 and even the phrase "from His
inheritance fore[ ver" (tJ~1]V~ m~nm) in line 5 appear to fit the context
of a curse.
Finally, in fragment 2 of 4Q275, there is a possible reference to the
Festival of Weeks in the first couple oflines:
[ ... 'V'J1Vil] V1J1Vil IV no'nil1 N!l[wa ... ] (1)
[ ... JQNl ] ~N N1il ':J on;mJ 1Wl['1 ... ] (2)
(1) [ judg]ment, and they shall discipline themselves until the [seventh]
week [ ]
(2) [ and they shall pos]sess their inheritance, for He is a [faithful] God
[ ] (4Q275 2, 1-2)
The editors argue that following the phrase V1:11ZJi1 1V one would expect
an ordinal number or an adjective; they suggest the number seven
('V':l1ZJi1), on the assumption that 4Q275 was connected to the annual
covenant renewal ceremony at Qumran. 149 If this is indeed the case, this
would indicate, as they suggest, that the seven weeks leading up to the
Festival ofWeeks were used as a period of self-reflection and discipline. 150
148. See, e.g., 1QM XV, 7; XVI, 15.

149. Alexander and Vennes, Qumran Cave 4, XIX, 214.
150. Ibid.
The evidence is sketchy and inconclusive, but nevertheless highly

suggestive. The editors' suggestion that 4Q27 5 is best understood in the
context of a covenant renewal ceremony held in the third month is the
theory that best fits the evidence available to us. If so, this is a further
indication that the Qumranites celebrated an annual covenant renewal
ceremony in connection with the Festival of Weeks.
5. Liturgical Texts in the Dead Sea Scrolls

E. G. Chazon estimates that the Dead Sea Scrolls contain more than two
hundred prayer texts formerly unknown to us. 151 The Community Rule
describes several instances of prayers used during the covenant renewal
ceremony (1 QS I, 18-11, 18), but these are most likely descriptions of the
prayers recited, not the actual, detailed prayers themselves. 152 The follow-
ing prayer texts from Qumran were ·likely associated with covenant
renewal, and may have been used during the ceremony described in 1QS
I-11: !53
1. 4QBerakhot (4Q280, 4Q286-290). 154 While the work is entitled
"blessings," curses are just as prominent in the work. This is a sec-
tarian liturgy for the ritual associated with the annual celebration
of covenant renewal. 155 It shares much of the language with the
151. Esther G. Chazon, "The Function of the Qumran Prayer Texts: An Analysis
of the Daily Prayers (4Q503)," in Schiffinan, Tov, and VanderKam, eds., The Dead
Sea Scrolls, 217.
152. On these prayers, see Falk, Daily, Sabbath, and Festival Prayers, 219-25.
He shows that the Damascus Document contains an alternative version of the
confession of sin (CD XX, 27-30; cf 1QS I, 24-26; see the discussion above).
153. There are too many for them to be discussed in any detail here. Here they
will simply be listed with a few summary comments attached.
154. 4Q280 is grouped here with the others despite the fact that there is some
question whether it actually is an edition of Berakhot. Milik ("Milki-~edeq et Milki
resa'," 115, 126-30) originally identified it as 4QPurifications, "The Purity Rule,"
but its similarity in content to Berakhot has since been recognized. At any rate, it is
clearly sectarian and related to the liturgy for the renewal of the covenant, just like
Berakhot.
155. Official DJD edition: Bilhah Nitzan, "Berakhot," in Qumran Cave 4, VI:
Poetical and Liturgical Texts, Part 1 (ed. Esther Eshel et al.; DJD 11; Oxford:
Clarendon, 1998), 1-74; See, idem, "4QBerakhot (4Q286-290): A Preliminary
Report," in New Qumran Texts and Studies: Proceedings ofthe First Meeting ofthe
International Organization for Qumran Studies, Paris, 1992 (ed. George J. Brooke
with Florentino Garda Martinez; STDJ 15; Leiden: Brill, 1994), 53-71; idem,
"4QBerakhot•-• (4Q286-290): A Covenantal Ceremony in the Light of Related
Texts," RevQ 16 (1995): 487-506.
description of the ritual in 1QS I-II, but it is much expanded in

comparison. In 1QS II, 4-18, the curses on the men of Belial's lot
are pronounced by the Levites while the people respond with the
double amen. The focus in Berakhot is the opposition between
God and Belial or Melchiresha. The laws of the covenant figure
prominently in this work (4Q286 13-14 + 20 + 4Q288 1; 4Q286
15, 1-4; 4Q287 8, 1-2; 9, 1-2; 4Q288 1, 1-3; 4Q280 3, 1-2) as do
curses on Belial and his followers (4Q286 7 II, 1~13; 4Q289 1, 1-
7; 4Q290 1, 1-3; 4Q280 1, 1-3; 2, 1-7). Since God and the head
ofthe eviL angels are addressed directly, and since the sections end
in a double "amen," the compositions were clearly meant.for com-
munal recital, which is consistent with 1QS I-II. Though curses on
Belial and his followers are extant, there are no corresponding
blessings on the community extant (though God is blessed in
many passages). This, however, is likely just accidental (though
we cannot be sure). 156 The covenantal blessings and curses (e.g.
Deut 27: 12-26) appear to provide the best background for under-
standing this liturgical work.
2 .. Songs ofthe Sabbath Sacrifice (4Q400-407, 11Q17, Mas1K). 157
This is a collection of thirteen songs meant to be sung on the first
thirteen sabbaths of the year. There is no trace of any songs for the
rest of the year. 15R This was an important text at Qumran, evi-
denced by the fact that nine copies of the text were found there
(eight copies from Cave 4 and one from Cave 11). 159 The texts
156. E.g. 4Q286 3, 1-8; 5, 1-13 etc.

157. Official DJD edition: Carol Newsom, "Shirot 'Oiat Hashabbat," in Eshel et
a!, eds., in Qumran Cave 4, VI: Poetical and Liturgical Texts, Part 1, 173-40 I. Cf.
also Carol Newsom, Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice: A Critical Edition (Atlanta:
Scholars Press, 1985).
·]58. As Carol Newsom (The Dead Sea Scrolls: Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek
Texts with English Translations. Vol. 48, Angelic Liturgy: Songs of the Sabbath
Sacrifice [PTSDSSP; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1999], 4) notes, some of
the themes evidenced in the work are specific to the first quarter of the year (e.g. the
first song and consecration of the angelic priesthood; the twelfth song and merkabah
right after the Festival of Weeks). Cf., however, 11 QPs• XXVII, 7 which states that
David wrote 364 songs for the daily offering, 52 songs for the Sabbath offering, and
30 songs for the new moons and festivals.
159. In addition, one copy was found at Masada. Carol Newsom ('"Sectually
Explicit' Literature from Qumran," in The Hebrew Bible and Its Interpreters [ed. W.
H. Propp eta!.; Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns, 1990], 182-85) has argued that the
Songs of the Sabbath Sacr(fice are not sectarian compositions. For a counter-
position, see Fa1k, Daily, Sabbath, and Festival Prayers, 126-30. Whatever the case,
it is clear that this text was treasured by the community.
describes the Sabbath liturgy of the angelic priests in the celestial

Temple. The Qumran community believed that it joined in angelic
worship in one united congregation in the heavenly throne room. 160
The text's preoccupation with the angelic priesthood has prompted
speculation that for the Qumran community the worship asso-
ciated with the angelic priesthood vindicated them in the face of
their exclusion from the Jerusalem Temple cult. 16 '
One reason why the composition may cover only the first
quarter of the year is the possibility that the work builds to a
climax in association with the sect's annual covenant renewal. 162
D. Halperin notes that the LXX ofEzek 43:2 shows influence of
exegesis on Ezek 1:24 and Ps 68:18, which relates the revelation
on Sinai (mentioning chariots of God), and notes that the syna-
gogue reading for the Festival of Weeks included both these texts
(Ezek 1 andPs 68:18-19, in addition to Exod 19). 163 Furthermore,
160. Songs ofthe Sabbath Sacrifice shares this theme of liturgical communion
with the angels with other texts at Qumran, including Hodayot, 4QDaily Prayers and
4QBerakhot. Similarities to the book of Revelation, Gnostic literature, and Hekhalot
literature have long been recognized. On angelic worship at Qumran, see Crispin H.
T. Fletcher-Louis, All the Glory ofAdam: Liturgical Anthropology in the Dead Sea
Scrolls (STDJ 42; Leiden: Brill, 2002); Esther G. Chazon, "Liturgical Communion
with the Angels at Qumran," in Sapiential, Liturgical, and Poetical Texts from
Qumran (ed. D. K. Falk et al.; Leiden: Brill, 2000), 95-105; idem, "Human and
Angelic Prayer in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls," in Liturgical Perspectives: Prayer
and Poetry in Light of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Proceedings ofthe Fifth International
Symposium ofthe Orion Center for the Study ofthe Dead Sea Scrolls and Associated
Literature, 19-23 Janua~y, 2000 (ed. Esther G. Chazon; STDJ 48; Leiden: Brill,
2003), 35-47; Moshe Weinfeld, "The Angelic Song Over the Luminaries in the
Qumran Texts," in Time to Prepare the Way in the Wilderness: Papers on the
Qumran Scrolls by the Fellows of the Jnstitute.for Advanced Studies of the Hebrew
University, Jerusalem 1989-1990 (ed. Devorah Dimant and Lawrence H. Schiffman;
STDJ 16; Leiden: Brill, 1995), 131-57.
161. If so, this gives some support to the idea ofTalmon and others that prayer
replaced (in some sense) sacrifice. Cf. 1QS VII, 4-10 where atonement is effected
not through the sacrificial cult of the Temple, but through prayer, praise, and
obedience to the Torah.
162. Cf. James R. Davila, Liturgical Works (Eerdmans Commentaries on the
Dead Sea Scrolls; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000), 90.
163. David J. Halperin, "Merkabah Midrash in the Septuagint," JBL 101 (1982):
351-63; idem, The Faces of the Chariot: Early Jewish Responses to Ezekiel's Vision
(Ttibingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1988), 57-59, 119-20, 146-49, 316-17, 355. The
identification ofPs 68:18-19 as a lectionary reading for Shavuot is problematic. See
the discussion in Chapter 6 below.
both these texts influenced Songs XI and XII, which were sung on
111114 and III/21 respectively; that is, both before and after the
Festival ofWeeks (111115).164
3. Festival Prayers (1Q34 + 1Q34his, 4Q507, 4Q508, 4Q509 +
4Q505): 165 This collection of festival prayers, preserved in very
poor condition, contains prayers which were meant to be recited
on the Day of Atonement, the monthly New Moon celebration, the
Festival of Weeks, and probably also the fall New Year and Pass-
over. It is likely that the whole annual festival cycle was addressed
more or less in chronological order, though there appear to have
been a few displacements. In 4Q508 3, 2 there is a possible refer-
ence to the establishment of the Noachic covenant. In 4Q509 131-
132 II, 5-20 there is apparently a prayer associated with the
Festival of Firstfruits akin to that described in the Temple Scroll
(cf. Jub. 22: 1; 11Ql9 XI, 11; XVIII, 14; XIX, 5-6, 9, 12; XLIII, 3,
6-7). 166In 1Q34 + 1Q34his 3 II, 1-8 (cf. 4Q509 97-98 I, 2-9) there
is a possible prayer connected to the Festival of Weeks. In line 5,
there is a reference to the fact that God has remembered the
covenant (1n'1:J n1::Jt '::J).167
4. 4QCommunal Confession (4Q393). 168 Though there is no specific
indication, it is possible thatthis communal confession was recited
during the annual covenant renewal ceremony since in 1QS I,
24-26 there is a communal confession. 169
164. Carol Newsom, "Merkabah Exegesis in the Qumran Sabbath Shirot," JJS
38 (1987): 11-30.
165. Official DJD edition: Baillet, Qumran Grotte 4, 111 (4Q482-520). See Falk,
Daily, Sabbath, and Festival Prayers, 155-87.
166. Cf. also 4Q508 13, 1-3 which contains a reference to new wine and oil and
possibly grain.
167. Baillet (Qumran Grotte 4,1II [4Q482-520], 185) suggests that this is the
Day of Atonement, since he believes that it is a continuation of the prayer in the
previous section (cf. 1Q34 + IQ34his 3 I; 4Q508 1, 1-3), which he takes to be the
Day of Atonement. However, the last extant lines in 1Q34 +1Q34bis 3 I appears to
contain a concluding benediction (cf. fl + 2, 4-6) which means that the relevant
section (f3 II) is not associated with the Day of Atonement at all. This would suggest
a setting in the Festival of Booths which follows the Day of Atonement in the
festival calendar, but the possibility of displacement makes it uncertain.
168. Official DJD edition: Daniel K. Falk, "4QCommunal Confession," in
Qumran Cave 4, XX: Poetical and Liturgical Texts, Part 2 (ed. E. Chazon et al.;
DJD 29; Oxford: Clarendon, 1999), 45-61; See also idem, "4Q393: A Communal
Confession," JJS 4 (1994): 184--207.
169. Cf. ibid., 204-7.
6. Conclusion
The evidence from Qumran falls short of absolute proof of a connection
between the Festival of Weeks and covenant renewal. However, a
substantial amount of circumstantial evidence can be marshaled to show
that, in all probability, the Yahad did in fact celebrate an annual covenant
renewal ceremony on the Festival of Weeks.
First, it is abundantly clear from the Temple Scroll and the calendrical
works that the Festival ofWeeks was celebrated at Qumran on 111115, in
keeping with the dating of the book of Jubilees, with which it shared the
solar calendar. Since this book is amply attested at Qumran, as well as
cited as an authoritative book, it is clear that this book was revered by the
covenanters. Furthermore, since Jubilees advocates covenant renewal on
the Festival of Weeks, one might expect that the Qumran community
followed suit.
This is, indeed, likely the case from what can be gathered from the
textual evidence at Qumran. The Damascus Document is best understood
as a covenant formulary, which concludes with the mention of a cere-
mony in the third month, where apostates were expelled from the com-
munity for breach of the covenant. Such a ceremony is associated with
covenant renewal on its face. Moreover, the Community Rule describes a
covenant ceremony in 1QS 1-11, during which the community reaffirmed
its commitment to the covenant. This ceremony consisted of liturgical
pieces containing praise, blessing and cursing, and confession of sins,
some of which are probably preserved in fragmentary form in works
such as 4QBerakhot and Festival Prayers, as well as perhaps, Songs of
the Sabbath Sacrifice and 4QCommunal Confession.
The Qumran community believed that it alone was truly faithful to the
covenant ratified at Sinai. The law revealed at that time needed the
special interpretation only the community had access to in order for its
members to observe the Torah correctly. The community, therefore,
constituted the small faithful remnant that would experience God's
eschatological salvation which was at hand. This was a time of testing
and trial, when the forces of Belial would attack the righteous. Apostasy
was always a concern and was dealt with severely.
In faithful preparation for the last days, the community spent its time
in study of the Torah, in imitation of the original Israelite community
which was gathered at the foot of Mt. Sinai to ratify the covenant and
receive the law. The worship of the community was believed to give the
worshipper virtual access to the heavenly worship of the angelic priests
in the celestial throne room. This reflected the belief that their com-
munity could proleptically experience the future as present; thus, they
believed they were experiencing heaven on earth, which explained why

they believed angels to be in their midst (cf. 1QSa II, 9).
All ofthis depended on faithful observance of the covenant. Thus, it is
not an overstatement to suggest that the covenant renewal ceremony was
the central event on the Qumranic religious calendar. Certainly the pride
of place it is given (i.e. at the begim1ing in cols. I-III) in one of their (if
not the) foundation documents, the Community Rule, suggests this. In
fact, the original beginning in column V also outlines the importance of
covenant, complete with instructions for the ceremony for entering the
covenant and an admonition to meet on an annual basis to examine each
member vis-a-vis his faithfulness to the covenant.
4QCommunal Ceremony, a document similar to the Community Rule,
identifies a meeting in the third month and possibly contains an indirect
reference to the Festival of Weeks. The Damascus Document, which
seems to reflect a different type of community from that in the Commu-
nity Rule, nevertheless exhibits some points of similarity with 1QS I-III.
Furthermore, the Damascus Document is in form a covenant formulary
and, according to the concluding section of this work, the expulsion cere-
mony was held in the third month. All of this evidence taken together
strongly suggests that the Qumran community held an annual ceremony
on the Festival of Weeks where they renewed their commitment to the
Covenant mediated by Moses at Sinai, and expelled those members who
failed in some way to live according to its stipulations as revealed by
God at that time and interpreted within the community.
Chapter 6
PENTECOST AND SINAI IN LUKE-ACTS
1. Introduction
The Festival of Weeks or Pentecost appears at a critical point in the
Luke-Acts nanative. 1 In Luke's nanative, the Ascension is closely asso-
ciated with Pentecost, since the promise of the Holy Spirit is given just
before Christ's ascent (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4-5, 8). Since the Ascension-
Pentecost nanative in Luke-Acts straddles the end of the Gospel ofLuke
(Luke 24:50-53) and the beginning of the book of Acts (Acts 1:1-11;
2:1-4), these events form the center of Luke's two-part work. 2 A
comparison with the Johannine gift of the Spirit shows that it occurs on
the same day as the resunection (John 20:19-23), a stark contrast to the
timing of the pouring out of the Spirit in Luke-Acts. 3 It will be argued
here that the Ascension and Pentecost nanative draws on the Sinai event,
and consciously draws a parallel between Moses' ascent of Mt. Sinai
during the third month (the month ofthe Festival of Weeks) and return
with the Law, on the one hand, and Jesus' ascension from Mt. Olivet and
the sending of the Spirit during Pentecost at Jemsalem, on the other. 4
1. Luke-Acts is an anonymous work, but the author has traditionally been

identified as Luke. Since the specific identity of the author of this work is of no par-
ticular consequence for this study, no attempt to identify the author will be made.
However, for the sake of convenience, the author will be referred to as Luke. Luke-
Acts can be dated to approximately 80-90 C.E. ( cf. Gregory E. Sterling (Historiogra-
phy and Self-Definition: Josephos, Luke-Acts and Apologetic Historiography
[NovTSup 64; Leiden: Brill, 1992], 329-30).
2. Note that the Sinai narrative taken as a whole (Exod 19-Num 10) is also
centrally located in the Pentateuch.
3. On the Johannine gift of the Spirit, see Gary M. Burge, The Anointed Commu-
nity: The Holy Spirit in the Johannine Tradition (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987);
Thomas R. Hatina, "John 20.22 in Its Eschatological Context: Promise or Fulfill-
ment?," Bib 74 (1993): 196--,219. On Jesus' departure, see Godfrey C. Nicholson,
Death as Departure: The Johannine Descent-Ascent Schema (SBLDS 63; Chico,
Calif.: Scholars Press, 1983).
4. Several scholars have argued for such a background to the Pentecost narrative:
VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks," 185-205; Noack, "The Day of Pentecost,"
6. Pentecost and Sinai in Luke-Acts 177
One preliminary issue that must be addressed concerns the probability

that the author of Luke-Acts was aware of the association between the
Festival ofWeeks and the Sinai eventthat some Jews (notably the author
of Jubilees and the Qurnranites) had previously made. 5 There are at least
two main objections. First, many scholars identify Luke as a Gentile; if
this is the case, it becomes increasingly unlikely that Luke would have
come into contact with this idea. Second, it is unlikely that Luke read or
understood Hebrew to any appreciable degree. 6 Moreover, though
Jtibilees was eventually translated into Greek, it is doubtful that this was
done early enough for Luke to have acquired a copy. It is therefore
unlikely that Luke ever read Jubilees or the relevant Dead Sea Scrolls.
73-95; Fitzmyer, "The Ascension of Christ and Pentecost," 409-40; Reinhard Neu-
decker, '"Das ganze Yolk sah die Stimmen .. .': Haggadische Auslegung und
Pfingstbericht," Bib 78 (1997): 329-49; Weinfeld, "Pentecost as the Festival/' 7-18;
Kretschmar, "Himmelfahrt und Pfingsten," 209-53; Le Deaut, "Pentecote et Tradi-
tionjuive," 127-44; Dupont, "The First Christian Pentecost," 35-59; James D. G.
Dunn, Baptism in the Holy Spirit: A Re-examination ofthe New Testament Teaching
on the Gift of the Spirit in Relation to Pentecostalism Today (Philadelphia: West-
minster, 1970), 38-54; Matthias Wenk, Community-Forming Power: The Socio-
Ethical Role of the Spirit in Luke-Acts (JPTSup 19; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic
Press, 2000), 232-73; W. Hall Harris, The Descent ofChrist: Ephesians 4:7-11 and
Traditional Hebrew Imagery (Biblical Studies Library; Grand Rapids: Baker, 1996),
143-70. There have also been many scholars who take an opposing view, however:
Marshall, "The Significance of Pentecost," 347-69; O'Toole, "Acts 2:30 and the
Davidic Covenant of Pentecost," 245-58; Frederick F. Bruce, "The Holy Spirit in
the Acts of the Apostles," Jnt 2 7 (1973 ): 166-83; Robert P. Menzies, Empoweredfor
Witness: The Spirit in Luke-Acts (JPTSup 6; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press,
1994), 173-20 I; Darrell L. Bock, Proclamation from Prophecy and Pattern: Lucan
Old Testament Christology (JSNTSup 12; Sheffield: JSOT, 1987), 155-87.
5. Here only a few gen"eral preliminary comments will be made to establish the
likelihood that the connection between Pentecost and Sinai found in Jubilees could
have been more widespread than is usually taken to be the case. A more detailed
discussion can be found below.
6. See Acts 1: 19 where the author makes the side note "so the field was called in
their language Akeldama or Field of Blood." The use of the third person here
strongly implies that the author did not speak Aramaic and was not a Jew. If Luke
did not speak Aramaic, it makes it extremely unlikely that he could read Hebrew,
which was not in everyday use at the time. Furthermore, if the traditional identifi-
cation of the author as Luke is correct, Col 4: I 0-11, 14 (where Paul identifies Aris-
tarchus, Mark, and Justus as the only ones who are circumcised among his present
companions which include Luke the physician) would appear to indicate that Luke,
at least, was not a practicing Jew, though some Jews did forgo circumcision due to
social pressure from the surrounding Greco-Roman culture.
However, these objections are not decisive. For one thing, though
many scholars do identify Luke as a Gentile, it has long been noted that
the author displays an intimate knowledge of the LXX. As such, many
argue that Luke was at least a God-fearer prior to conversion if not a
Hellenistic Jew. 7 Furthermore, while Luke more than likely did not read
Hebrew, there is a gap of approximately 240 years between the writing
of Jubilees (ca. 160-150 B.C.E.) and the composition of Luke-Acts (~0-
90 C.E.), providing more than enough time for the ideas contained in
Jubilees to filter into the Christian community through other (perhaps
oral) channels. After all, it was in the Christian community that the book
of Jubilees was preserved, long after it had ceased to be of any real
interest in the Jewish community, so there was definitely an affinity for
Jubilees among early Christians, though just how early it began is
impossible to determine precisely. 8
Furthermore, as has been argued previously, a connection between the
Festival ofWeeks and the events at Sinai was simply begging to be made
in light of the fact that the other festivals were already historicized (the
Festival of Unleavened Bread with the Passover event and the Festival of
Booths with the wilderness wanderings), leaving the Festival ofWeeks
as the only one without a connection to a key historical event in Israel's
past. In addition, all that Luke would have needed is the mere suggestion
that the Festival of Weeks could be associated with the events at Sinai. 9
From there, many of the (potential) connections would have been obvi-
ous to anyone as well read in the scriptures as Luke evidently was. It
should also be noted that despite the fact that Jubilees and the Dead Sea
Scrolls represent what turned out to be fringe elements in contemporary
Judaism, later rabbinic tradition makes this connection between the
Festival ofWeeks and the events at Sinai as well. The rabbis did not need
to go to Jubilees or the Dead Sea Scrolls to make such a connection,
7. Cf. Sterling (Historiography and Self-Definition, 327-28) who identifies the

author as either a longstanding God-fearer or Hellenistic Jew for precisely this
reason. See also the discussion by Darrell L. Bock, Luke (2 vols.; BECNT; Grand
Rapids: Baker, 1994), 1:6-7.
8. Indeed, prior to the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the book of Jubilees
was only extant in citations/aJlusions in Christian works and copies of the text that
were made by Christians. Hippolytus (170-236) certainly reflects knowledge ofJub.
8-10. How much earlier Jubilees was known in the Christian community is difficult
to determine. See VanderKam, The Book ofJubilees, 147-48.
9. The particulars ofJubilees' interpretation regarding the Festival ofWeeks (e.g.
that it is celebrated on III/15) are not at issue, since the claim that Luke borrowed
specific ideas from Jubilees is not being made here.
though it is possible they did. 10 All it took was a little theological imagi-
nation to make such an association since all the requisite elements were
already right there in the Hebrew Bible.
2. The Restoration of the People of God

2.1. The Jsaianic New Exodus in Luke-Acts
Before turning to the Pentecost narrative and analyzing it in some detail,
it is important to discuss Moses/Sinai allusions in the context of the
entire two-part work. Moses and Sinai motifs appear throughout the
Luke-Acts narrative. 11 Muph of the Moses-typology in Luke-Acts is part
of Luke's Isaianic New Exodus theme. This refers to the fact that the
foundation story of ancient Israel (Exodus, Sinai, Wilderness wandering,
and Promised Land) is transformed in Isa 40-55 to a future hope for the
exiles in Babylon. 12 Isaiah 40 opens with a message of comfort and
salvation to the exiles in images and terminology reminiscent of the
Exodus from Egypt (40: 1-11 ). The Exodus metaphor is particularly apt
because it too involved the salvation of the nation. 13
The New Exodus is a theme that is found in numerous individual pas-
sages throughout these chapters. 14 Just as in the original Exodus, Yahweh
I 0. There is some scattered evidence that a few relatively late rabbis knew
Jubilees, but otherwise, it appears that it made no appreciable impact on Judaism.
See VanderKam, The Book ofJubilees, 147-48.
II. See the discussion of Mosaic themes in Luke in the following works: E. L.
Allen, "Jesus and Moses in the New Testament," ExpTim 67 (1956): 104-6; PaulS.
Minear, To Heal and to Reveal: The Prophetic Vocation According to Luke (New
York: Seabury, ·]976), 102-21; David P. Moessner, Lord ofthe Banquet: The Liter-
ary and Theological Significance of the Lukan Travel Narrative (Minneapolis:
Fortress, 1989), 46-79; Richard J. Dillon, From Eyewitnesses to Ministers of the
Word: Tradition and Composition in Luke 24 (An Bib 82; Rome: Biblical Institute,
1978); Richard F. Zehnle, Peter's Pentecost Discourse: Tradition and Lukan Reinter-
pretation in Peter's Speeches of Acts 2 and 3 (SBLMS 15; Nashville: Abingdon,
1971), 47-52, 75-89.
12. Since Luke would not have understood the modern historical-critical division
of Isaiah into First, Second, and Third Isaiah, this terminology will be avoided in the
following discussion.
13. Much of the discussion in the following two paragraphs is indebted espe-
cially to David W. Pao, Acts and the Isaianic New Exodus (Grand Rapids: Baker,
2002), 37-69, and Mark L. Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts: The Promise
and Its Fulfillment in Lukan Christo logy (JSNTSup II 0; Sheffield: Sheffield
Academic Press, 1995), 285-97.
14. On the New Exodus motif in Is a 40-55, see: Bernard W. Anderson, "Exodus
Typology in Second Isaiah," in Israel's Prophetic Heritage: Essays in Honor of
will lead his people (lsa 42:16; 48:20; 49:9-10; 52:12), and again, as in
the original Exodus, Yahweh will defeat the horse and the chariot at the
sea in his role as a mighty warrior (lsa40:10; 42:13; 43:16-17; 51 :9-10;
52: 10; cf. Exod 14:25, 28; 15:3). Furthermore, just as Yahweh led Israel
through the parted sea, Yahweh will lead his people through the waters
(43:1-2; 51:10). Finally, as in the original wilderness wandering, Yah-
weh will provide food and water in the wilderness (Isa41: 17-20; 43:19-
21; 48:21; 49:9-10).15
In many ways, according to Isaiah, this salvation will be even more
glorious than the first. The exiles will go forth not in a rush, under duress
from its foes, as in the original Exodus, but at ease and in peace (Isa
52:12; 55: 12; Deut 16:3; Exod 12:11). The nation will be re-established
(49:8, 17-21; 54:11-14), her enemies ruined (41:11-12; 49:26; 54:15-
17), and the nations will do homage (45:14; 49:7, 22-23). Also, Jeru-
salem and the Temple will be rebuilt to surpass even its former glory
(44:28; 49:16-17; 54:11-12).
The Isaianic New Exodus theme accounts for Luke's presentation of
Jesus as the prophet like Moses (cf. Acts 3:22-23). 16 However, it is often
disputed how significant this motif is in Luke-Acts. 17 It is often argued
that the primary image for Lukan Christology is the Davidic Messiah,
rather than the eschatological prophet like Moses. 18 While this may be
true in certain respects, these scholars go too far in minimizing Moses-
typology in Luke-Acts (and correspondingly overemphasizing Davidic
themes), especially when they deny the presence altogether of Moses/
Sinai allusions in various key texts, including the Pentecost account in
James Muilenburg (ed. Bernard W. Anderson and Walter Harrelson; New York:
Harper, 1962), 177-95; Carroll Stuh1mueller, Creative Redemption in Deutero-
lsaiah (Rome: Pontifical Biblical Institute, 1970), 59-98; Rikki E. Watts, "Conso-
lation or Confrontation? Isaiah 40-55 and the Delay of the New Exodus," TynBu/41
(1990): 31-59; Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts, 285-97.
15. For more examples, see the discussion of Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in
Luke-Acts, 286-87.
16. For Luke'.s presentation of Jesus as a prophet, see Luke 4:16-30! 7: 16; 9:7-9,
18-19; 13:31-35; 24:19; Acts 3:22-24; 7:37.
17. See Menzies, Empowered for Witness; Bock, Proclamation from Prophecy
and Pattern; O'Toole, "Acts 2:30 and the Davidic Covenant of Pentecost"; cf. also
Marshall, "The Significance of Pentecost," 347-69. Strauss (The Davidic Messiah in
Luke-Acts) has a tendency to overemphasize the Davidic over against the Mosaic
elements in Luke's presentation of Jesus.
18. See especially Bock, Proclamation from Prophecy and Pattern; Strauss, The
Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts.
Acts 2. 19 The lsaianic New Exodus theme, however, fuses Mosaic and
Davidic traditions, and enables Luke to present Jesus "as the Davidic
Messiah who is also the prophet like Moses." 20 While Isaiah does not
specifically identify the Davidic Messiah as the one who will actually
lead the New Exodus, the restoration of the people of God in their ances-
tral home is accompanied by an expectation that the Davidic monarchy
will be re-established in Jerusalem.
Pao discerns six key themes of the lsaianic New Exodus program as it
relates to the restoration oflsrael which have counterparts in the Gospel
of Luke and especially the book of Acts. 21 While the anticipation of
many ofthese elements is found in the Gospel, it is not until the bookof
Acts that the restoration of the people of God becomes a reality. 22
(1) The Reconstitution of Israel. In Isaiah, a concern for the twelve
tribes oflsrael (lsa 49:5-6) and the re-unification of the divided kingdom
(Isa 11: 13; cf. 7:1-9, 17; 9:9) is the manifestation of related expectations
regarding the reconstitution of the nation oflsrael.
An allusion to the reconstitution of the twelve tribes of Israel can be
found in the passage concerning the election ofMattathias in Acts 1: 12-
26. Since the death of Judas reduces the number of apostles, Mattathias
is elected to .bring the number back up to twelve, a highly symbolic
number. That the number twelve is the focus of the passage is clear (cf.
Acts 1:26) and a comparison with Luke 22:28-30 (cf. Matt 19:28) shows
that the Twelve apostles are linked to the twelve tribes oflsrael: 23
28 You are those who have continued with me in my trials; 29 and I assign
to you, as my Father assigned to me, a kingdom 30 that you may eat and
drink at my table iri ~y kingdom, and sit on thrones judging the twelve
tribes of Israel.24
19. O'Toole, "Acts 2:30 and the Davidic Covenant of Pentecost"; Strauss, The
Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts, 145-47; Menzies, Empoweredfor Witness, 189-201;
Bock, Proclamation from Prophecy and Pattern, 156-87.
20. Max Turner, Power From on High: The Spirit in Israel's Restoration and
Witness in Luke-Acts (JPTSup 9; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1996), 289.
21. Pao, Acts and the Isaianic New Exodus, 111-46. He builds on the work of
Rikki E. Watts, Isaiah's New Exodus in Mark (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2000), and
Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts, but refines and adapts the idea for the
book of Acts.
22. Pao (Acts and the Isaianic New Exodus) is very detailed with respect to
Luke-Acts as a whole. Here, special attention will be made to any correspondences
that involves the Ascension and Pentecost narratives in particular.
23. Cf. Luke 22:3 where Judas' identity as one of the twelve is highlighted (cf.
Acts 1:17).
24. Also compare the selection of the disciples in Luke 6:12-16 and Acts 1:15-
26; Cf. Acts 26:7. All translations of the New Testament are taken from the English
The selection ofMattathias in Acts 1:12-26 therefore signals the begin-

ning of the restoration of the people of God, manifested as the Davidic
kingdom, to be decisively effected (though not fully completed) by the
outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost.
Moreover, just as in Isaiah the restoration of the people of God implies
the reunification of the divided kingdom, this same theme is found in
Acts, specifically the programmatic statement in Acts 1:8:
But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you;
and you shall be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria
and to the end of the earth.
Here three stages or categories are delineated: a city, two provinces, and
the ends of the earth. The middle two terms referring to the two prov-
inces, Judea and Samaria, occur only in Luke in the New Testament
(Acts 1:8; 8: 1; cf. 9:31). In Acts 8, when Philip evangelizes Samaria and
they accept the gospel, word reaches the apostles in Jerusalem (who
represent the people of God) and they affirm Samaria's inclusion in the
restored Israel by sending an official delegation. 25 The reception of the
Holy Spirit further confirms that the divided kingdom is restored by the
inclusion of the Samaritans.
(2) The Ingathering ofthe Exiles. Various passages in Isaiah express a
concern for the exiles and explicitly state that they will be gathered from
the ends of the earth (Isa 41:8; 43:5-7; 49:18; 51:9-11; 52: 11; 54:7; cf.
40: 11). The return of the exiles is closely linked to imageryof"the Way"
(1"11; Isa 40:3-5; 35:8-10) and to an emphasis on the return to the land
(Isa 49:8; 57: 13). In Acts, the ingathering ofthe exiles is depicted on the
day of Pentecost when Jews from all over the world are gathered at
Jerusalem (Acts 2:5). 26
Standard Version unless otherwise stated. Occasionally the translations are slightly
altered in the interests of greater literalness.
25. Jacob Jervell, Luke and the People of God (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1972),
127. On the Samaritans in Luke, see David Ravens, Luke and the Restoration of
Israel (JSNTSup 119; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1995), 72-106.
26. On the idea that the Jews of the Second Temple period believed thatthe exile
was a continuing phenomenon, see the collection of essays in Scott, ed., Exile: Old
Testament, Jewish, and Christian Conceptions, and idem, Restoration: Old Testa-
ment, Jewish, and Christian Perspectives (JSJSup 72; Leiden: Brill, 2001); cf.
Nicholas T. Wright, The New Testament and the People of God (London: SPCK,
1992), 268-69; Craig A. Evans, "Jesus and the Continuing Exile oflsrael," in Jesus
and the Restoration ofIsrael: A Critical Assessment ofN. T. Wright's Jesus and the
Victory of God (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity, 1999), 77-100.
· 6. Pentecost and Sinai in Luke-Acts 183
(3) The Community of the Spirit. In Isaiah, the Spirit who is normally
promised to specific individuals assigned to carry out various tasks (Isa
11: 1-3; 42:1; 62:1-2) is also promised to the entire community upon the
reconstitution of the nation (Isa 44: 1-4; 32: 14-17).
This finds its counterpart in Luke-Acts at Jesus' baptism, where the
Holy Spirit descends on Jesus (Luke 3:21-22; cf. 4:16-30) on the heels
of the declaration of John the Baptist that Jesus would baptize with the
Holy Spirit (Luke 3:16). In Acts 1:4-5 (cf. Luke 24:49), Jesus cites John
the Baptist and promises the power of the Holy Spirit to his followers
(cf. Acts 1: 8). This is fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, when the Spirit is
transferred to the believers in the upper room. Given the passage's allu-
sions to the Sinai event, the restoration of the people of God, encompass-
ing the ingathering of the exiles, is strongly implied.
(4) The Rebuilding of the Davidic Kingdom. A Davidic figure is
expected to play a prominent role in the formation of the restored Israel
(Isa 9:6-7; 11: 1; 16:4-5; 55: 1-5). While Moses and the Exodus tradition
is evoked to depict the deliverance oflsrael, the Davidic figure is evoked
in anticipation of the glorious reign of the restored kingdom. This has
many obvious points of contact in the Lukan presentation of Jesus and
the Kingdom he inaugurates. 27
(5) Repentance and the Turn to the Lord. In Isaiah, the scattering of
the people of God comes about as a result of their sins (Isa 42:22-43: 1;
50:1), and thus there is a call to repentance (Isa 43:24-25; 44:21-22;
55:6-7; 59: 1-21; 63:7-64: 12). In Luke-Acts, repentance is often linked
to restoration. In Luke 24:47, there is a programmatic statement that
repentance should be preached to all nations, a command that comes just
before the promise of the Spirit (Luke 24:47-49; cf. Acts 1:8). Further-
more, at the end of Peter's sermon on the day of Pentecost, there is a call
to repentance with an accompanying promise of the Holy Spirit (Acts
2:38).
(6) The Inclusion of the Outcasts. In Isaiah there is a concern for the
outcasts oflsrael and a universalistic focus on the nations (2:2-3; 11: 12;
42:10-12; 49:6; 51:4-5; 55:5; 56:1-8; 66:18; cf. Deut 23:1-9). Ames-
sage of salvation will be offered to them and those who accept will be
gathered and incorporated into the reconstituted nation oflsrael to give
glory to God.
The theme of the outcast or the marginalized is widespread in Luke-
Acts, as has been noticed for some time, as is the theme of the mission to
27. Pao, Acts and the IsaianicNew Exodus, 117 n. 17. On Luke's presentation of
Jesus as the Davidic Messiah, see Bock, Proclamation from Prophecy and Pattern;
Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts.
the Gentiles. 28 To single out just one episode, however, Pao notes that
Philip's encounter with the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8:26-40 (where it
is the fact that he is a eunuch that is foremost in the narrative, not his
ethnic identity) appears strange at first; upon closer scrutiny, however, it
makes perfect sense in light of the Isaianic New Exodus program, for in
Isa 56:3-5, a eunuch is mentioned along with foreigners, in connection
with the restoration oflsrael (cf. Isa 56:8). Since Isa 53:7 is cited in Acts
8:32-33, the Isaianic theme of the New Exodus appears clearly to be in
mind here. 29
2.2. A Survey of Moses- Typology in Luke-Acts

In connection to the Isaianic New Exodus theme, Luke incorporates
many references and allusions to Moses throughout his two-part work.
Here only a brief survey of the major themes, references, and allusions is
possible.
(1) Abrahamic Covenant. The term for "covenant" (6ux.9~KTJ) occurs a
handful of times in Luke--Acts, but never explicitly in connection with
the Mosaic covenant (though, cf. Luke 22:20). Instead, three of the four
occun-ences specifically identify the Abrahamic covenant (Luke 1:72;
28. On the outcast, see, for instance: Luke T. Johnson, Sharing Possessions:
Mandate and Symbol of Faith (OBT; Minneapolis: Fortress, 1981 ); John 0. York,
The Last Shall Be First: The Rhetoric ofReversal in Luke (JSNTSup 46; Sheffield:
JSOT Press, 1991); S. John Roth, The Blind, the Lame, and the Poor: Character
Types in Luke-Acts (JSNTSup 144; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1997). For
a survey of the literature on the mission to the Gentiles, see: Franr,:ois Bovon, Luke
the Theologian: Thirty-Three Years ofResearch (1950-1983) (trans. K. McKinney;
PTMS 12; Allison Park, Penn.: Pickwick, 1987), 323-43.
29. Turner (Power from on High, 247) provides the following somewhat differ-
ent, though complementary, summary of New Exodus themes in Isaiah: (1) God
calls for a "way" to be prepared in the wilderness for his saving activity (40:3-5;
43: 19); (2) God will come as the mighty divine warrior to defeat Israel's oppressors
and release the oppressed (40:10-11; 42:13; 51:9-16; 49:9, 2~25); (3) the Lord
will lead out a procession of captives along the "way" (40:11; 43:1-3; 52:11-12);
(4) God will sustain them in the wilderness more completely than in the original
Exodus, providing food and water(41:17-20; 43:19-21; 49:9-10); (5) God will pour
out his Spirit to restore and refresh his people (44:3) and he will teach them and lead
them in "the way" (54: 13; 48: 17); (6) the ultimate goal ofthe New Exodus is God's
enthronement in a restored Zion/Jerusalem (44:26; 45:13; 54:11-12), and this good
news becomes an occasion for celebration (40:1, 9-10; 52:1-10; cf. 43:19; 49:10-
11; 55:12-13); (7) this New Exodus will be accomplished at least in part through
this enigmatic servant, which has kingly, prophetic, and "Israel" characteristics.
Many of these elements will find resonance with various aspects of the discussion
presented in this section and the next.
Acts 3:25; 7:8). This is also true when related terminology alluding to the
covenant in some way is considered: KATJpOVOiJ.La. ("inheritance"; Acts
7:5), E:rra.yyEHa. ("promise"; Acts 7: 17; cf. 26:6), f:rra.yyEAAOiJ.a.L ("to
promise"; 7:5), Oj..I.OAOYEW ("confess," "promise"; Acts 7: 17), and opKoc;
("oath"; Luke 1:73), OiJ.VUW ("swear," "promise"; Luke 1:73) all refer in
one way or another to the Abrahamic covenant. 30 The only exceptions
(Emx.yyEALa. [Acts 13:23], opKO<; [Acts 2:30], Oj..I.VUW [Acts 2:30]) refer to
the Davidic covenant.3 1
The Mosaic covenant, outside of the oblique reference in Luke 22:20,
does not appear to be mentioned or referred to at all in Luke-Acts. 32
However, this is mitigated by the fact that Luke associates the Law with
Moses. 33 Furthermore, as some scholars have noted, the Mosaic covenant
is folded into the Abrahamic covenant, since, for Luke, the Abrahamic
covenant is more fundamental than the Mosaic. 34 This can be seen in a
review of the occurrences of covenant terminology in Luke-Acts.
For Luke, Abraham is the primary recipient of God's promise to the
fathers. 35 As Stephen's survey ofbiblical history shows, however, the
fulfillment of the promise was made possible by the deliverance of the
Israelites from Egypt in Moses' time:
30. Sometimes only generally of a promise made to the "fathers," but clearly
with the original patriarch, Abraham, in mind.
31. The term Ka"CaKAT]povo~Ew ("gave to as inheritance") found in Acts 13: 19 is
best seen as a reference to the Abrahamic covenant, even though it is found in the
context of the conquest, because it is a reference to the fulfillment of the Abrahamic
promises.
32. Cf. the critique of Marshall ("The Significance of Pentecost," 365-66) who
brings up precisely this point.
33. Generally speaking, Luke sees Moses as the equivalent of the law or its
source Luke 2:22; 5:14; 16:29, 31; 20:28, 37; 24:27, 44; Acts 6:11, 14; 13:38; 15:1,
5, 21; 21:21; 26:22; 28:23. On Luke and the law, see Stephen G. Wilson, Luke and
the Law (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983).
34. Robert L. Brawley, "Abrahamic Covenant Traditions and the Characteriza-
tion of God in Luke-Acts," in The Unity ofLuke-Acts (ed. Joseph Verheyden; BETL
142; Leuven: Leuven University Press, 1999), 125; Luke T. Johnson, The Gospel of
Luke (Sacra Pagina; Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical Press, 1991), 46. Johnson com-
pares this to Paul in Ga13:6-18 (cf. Nils A. Dahl, "The Story of Abraham in Luke-
Acts," in Studies in Luke-Acts [ed. Leander E. Keck and J. Louis Martyn;
Philadelphia: Fortress, 1980], 142).
35. On TT!Ic~p ("fathers") as a reference to the patriarchs, of whom Abraham is
the head, see Luke 1:55, 72, 73; 3:8; 16:24,27 (2x), 30; Acts 3:13, 25; 5:30; 7:2
(2x), 4, 11, 12, 14, 15, 19, 20, 32, 38, 39, 44,45 (2x) 51, 52; 13:17,32, 36; 15:10;
22:14; 26:6; 28:25.
5 Yet he gave him no inheritance (KAT]povoj.l[o:v) in it, not even a foot's
length, but promised (ETITJYYELAa'l:o) to give it to him as a possession and to

his offspring after him, though he had no child ... 8 And he gave him the
covenant of circumcision (6Lo:9~KTJV TIEp L'T:O!lf!~). And so Abraham became
the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac
became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs ... 17 But as
the time of the promise (o xpovo~ 1:f)~ ETio:yyEAlo:~) drew near, which God
had granted to Abraham, the people increased and multiplied in Egypt. ..
(Acts 7:5, 8, 17; cf. vv. 18-44)36
Here the Exodus, Sinai, and the possession of the land represent the
fulfillment of the promise to Abraham. 37
This can also be seen through the combination of Exodus-typology
with the Abrahamic covenant in Zechariah's speech in the Infancy
Narrative of Luke's Gospel:
71 that we should be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who
hate us; 72 to show mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his
holy covenant (6Lo:9~KTJ~ aylo:~ o:u1:ou), 73 the oath that he swore (opKov ov
Wj.lOOEv) to our father Abraham, to grant us 74 that we, being delivered
from the hand of our enemies, might serve him without fear, 75 in holiness
and righteousness before him all our days. (Luke I :71-75)
The reason or rationale for why the Abrahamic covenant is more fun-
damental than the Mosaic covenant for Luke, can be found in Peter's
sermon in Solomon's Portico:
25 You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant (1:f)c; 6Lo:9~KTJ~) that
God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, "And in your offspring
shall all the families of the earth be blessed." (Acts 3 :25) 38
Luke emphasizes the Abrahamic covenant because it implies that its

blessings were always meant to be extended beyond Israel to "all the
families of the earth," or, as Luke takes it, the Gentiles. This fits into
Luke's theology much better than an emphasis on the Mosaic covenant
would since it leaves little room for the inclusion of the Gentiles. Still, on
the day of Pentecost, it is still largely the Mosaic covenant that is in mind
(note that Abraham is not alluded to in Peter's speech), since it is a gath-
ering of Jews, not Gentiles, at that point in the nanative (Acts 2:5-11),
and since, for Luke, Jews are to observe the Mosaic Law faithfully in
36. Various texts in Deuteronomy already link the Abrahamic and Mosaic
covenant; see Deut 1:8, 10-11; 4:31; 15:4.
37. It should be noted that the restoration of the kingdom under a Davidic
Messiah represents the ultimate fulfillment of the Abrahamic promise (cf. Luke
I :67-79; Acts 7).
38. Again, Moses-typology can be found in the immediate context (Acts 3:22).
keeping with the covenant enacted at Sinai, which represents the estab-
lishment of the people of God as a nation and the (partial) fulfillment of
the Abrahamic promises. 39
(2) The Baptism and Temptation ofJesus (Luke 3:16-17, 21-22; 4:1-
13 ). The Isaianic New Exodqs motif also emerges in these two peri copes.
Jesus' baptism, while it definitely alludes to the anointing of the Davidic
Messiah (Ps 2:7), also evokes. the Isaianic "servant of the Lord" (Isa
42:1-4) and thereby indirectly alludes to Moses. 40 This Isaianic servant
includes elements suggestive of a prophet like Moses, a king like David
and the nation of Israel. In terms of its evocation of Moses, the Isaianic
servant shares the following traits: (i) Moses is regularly called God's
servant (Deut 34:5; Josh 1:1); (ii) the servant, like Moses, is a prophet
who is chosen from birth (lsa 49:1, 5; cf. Exod 1-2); (iii) both are
described as God's "elect one" (Isa 42:1; cf. Ps 106:23); (iv) both have
the Spirit (Isa 42:1; cf. Num 11: 17); (v) both bring Law (Isa 42:4) and
teach the words of God (Isa 50:4); (vi) both are notable for their
meekness (lsa 42:2-3; 50:5-6; 53:3-4; cf. Num 12:3); (vii) both suffer
for others (lsa 53:4-12; cf. Exod 17:4; 32:30-34; Num 11-14; Deut
1:37-40; 3:26; 4:21-22); (viii) both act as mediator (Isa 53: 12; cf. Exod
19-20, 24); (ix) finally, both restore the people, returning them from
exile (Isa 42:7; 49:6). 41
The Temptation narrative evokes Israel's experience in the wilderness,
with the caveat that it represents a complete reversal of type. Just as
Israel is God's son (Exod 4:22-23), Jesus is God's son. The forty days
Jesus spends in the wilderness are representative of the forty years spent
by Israel in the wilderness. Moreover, the three biblical passages Jesus
cites (Deut 8:3; 6:13, 16) are all linked to Israel's failures in the wilder-
ness, which Jesus overcomes. In Deut 8:2-3, Moses reminds the Israel-
ites that it was God who tested the Israelites in the wilderness for forty
years, through hunger (Deut 8:3 ), by the command to worship God alone
(Deut 6:13-15), and the test at Meribah (Deut 6:16; Exod 17:1-7).42
39. Cf. Paul in Acts, who is depicted by Luke as a faithful and law-abiding Jew
(Acts 16:1-3; 18:18; 22:3-4, 12-16, 17, 21; 23:1-5; 26:4-5).
40. Matt 12:18 preserves a version of lsa 42:1 which is quite close to that found
in Luke 3:22.
41. This list is heavily dependent on Dale C. Allison, The New Moses: A
Matthean Typology (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1993), 68-71.
42. Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts, 215-16; Birger Gerhardsson,
The Testing of God's Son (Lund: Gleerup, 1966); Charles A. Kimball, Jesus'
Exposition of the Old Testament in Luke's Gospel (JSNTSup 94; Sheffield: JSOT
Press, 1994), 80-97; Jeffrey B. Gibson, The Temptations ofJesus in Early Christi-
anity (JSNTSup 112; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1995), 85-87.
Thus, the Temptation narrative depicts Jesus beginning to turn back the
forces of darkness, preparing the way for the liberation of his people.
(3) The Sermon at Nazareth (Luke 4:16-30). This programmatic
episode marks the beginning of Jesus' ministry and sets up its over-
arching theme by clarifying the meaning of Jesus' baptismal reception of
the Spirit (cf. Luke 3:21-22; cf. vv. 16-17; Acts 1:4-5, 8). Whereas the
Baptism narrative works off of the base of Mark's text and the Tempta-
tion narrative uses Q as the base text, this pericope is largely Lukan, even
if, as many scholars suspect, Luke has used some traditional material. 43
Moreover, Luke moves the parallel Markan episode from the middle of
Jesus' ministry in Galilee (Mark 6: 1-6; cf. Matt 13:52-58) to the begin-
ning ofJesus' ministry, thereby highlighting the importance of this peri-
cope for a proper understanding of the overall thrust of Jesus' ministry.
The citation of Isa 61:1-2 in Luke 4: 18-21 is the centerpiece of an
obvious chiastic structure: Jesus stands up and then sits down (Luke
4:16, 20), is given and then gives the book (Luke 4:17, 20), and opens
and then closes the book (Luke 4:17, 20). The quote oflsa 61:1-2 (along
with Isa 58:6) appears as follows:
18 1TVEUf.l!X Kup lou €11' Ef.LE oii E'lvEKEV E)(p LOEv f.lE Euayyd.loao9aL m:wxo'i~,
IXTIEOTIXAKEV f.LE, KTJPU~!XL !XL)(f.l!XAWTOL~ &<jJEOLV K!XL -ru<jJA.ol~ &v&.pA.Etjnv, [&Tioa-
TELA!XL TE9pauof.LEVou~ i:v &<jJEOEL,] 19 ~ i:vLau-rlw Kuplou OEKTOV.
18 "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to
proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the
captives and recovering of sight to the blind, [to set at liberty those who are
oppressed,] 19 to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor." (Luke 4: 18-19)44
43. Martin Dibelius (From Tradition to Gospel [New York: Scribner, 1965], 11 0)
and Rudolf Bultmann (The Hist01y of the Synoptic Tradition [trans. J. Marsh; New
York: Harper & Row, 1963], 31-32, 386-87) identified Mark 6:1-6 as the basic
source. However, the reference to Elijah and Elisha, and other elements, suggests a
non-Markan source. Others suggest some influence from Q (Christopher M. Tuckett,
"Luke4,16-30, Isaiah andQ," in The Sayings ofJesus [ed. Joel Delobel; BETL 59;
Leuven: Leuven University Press, 1982], 347-48), while yet others opt for other
traditional sources (Bruce D. Chilton, "Announcement in Nazara," in Gospel
Perspectives II [ed. RichardT. France and David Wenham; Sheffield: JSOT Press,
1981], 164; Turner, Power from on High, 219). See the discussion of the literature in
C. J. Schreck, "The Nazareth Pericope: Luke 4:16-30 in Recent Study," in The
Gospel of Luke ( ed. Franz Neirynck; BETL 32; Leuven: Leuven University Press,
1989), 403-27.
44. The portion in square brackets is added from lsa 58:6 and the underlined
portion represents a change from the LXX Isa 61:2, probably because of the
appearance of the term a<jJEOL~ ("liberty") in both texts. The Greek text of the New
Testament is taken from the Nestle-Aland 27th edition.
1 rrvEiilla Kuplou l;rr' EllE, ou ilvEKEV l'xpwlov w. EuayyEA.loao9aL m:wxo1~
cirrEol:aA.KEv 1-!E, [taoao9aL 1:ou~ ouvcnpLilllEVou~ 'U KaplilQ:,] Kllpu~aL

aixllaA.uhoL~ ii<jJEOLV Kalw<jJJ..o1~ civapJ..EljiLV, 2 KaJ..E'craL EVLcwtov Kuplou
liEKtOV
1 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to
proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me [to heal the broken-
hearted] to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the
blind, 2 to declare the year of the Lord's favor. (LXX Is a 61: 1-2a)45
This pericope begins Jesus' ministry with the theme of rejection of the
prophet by the people of God (the Jews). 46 Since, in Acts 3:22-23, Luke
specifically identifies Jesus as the "prophet like Moses" (cf. Luke 7:16,
22; Acts 7:37), the Isaianic servant clearly involves a Moses-typology in
Luke's conception, and this Christological aspect dominates this peri-
copeY Later, in Stephen's speech, Moses becomes the paradigmatic
rejected prophet (Acts 7:35, 39, 52) and it is this image (Jesus as the
messianic prophet like Moses) that dominates the rest of Luke-Acts. 48
This citation identifies the true significance of Jesus' baptism as the
Spirit-endowed Isaianic serva.nt (Luke 3:21-22). Language involving the
proclamation of release to the captives and liberty for the oppressed
clearly evokes Exodus traditions. 49
The reason for the rejection by the people of God is explained by the
quoting of the proverb in Luke 4:23 and the citing of the examples of
Elijah and Elisha in Luke 4:25-27, where Jew and Gentile are clearly
45. The portion in square brackets ("to heal the broken-hearted") is omitted from
theLukan form of the citation.
46. Cf. Luke 7:16, 39; 13:33-34; 16:31; Acts 7:52. Luke's presentation of Jesus
as prophet has been discussed so often that it need not be repeated here. See the
following for a good summary: Minear, To Heal and to Reveal, 102-21; Moessner,
Lord of the Banquet, 47-52, 260-85.
47. The examples of Elijah and Elisha also play into this, since they can be
understood as prophets like Moses.
48. Bock (Proclamation From Prophecy and Pattern, I 09-11) and Strauss (The
Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts, 226-60) emphasize the kingly motifs in the Isaiah
citation, but they seem to be decidedly in the background. It should be noted in this
connection that Luke identifies Moses as a ruler (lipxwv) and judge (J..utpwt~~) in
Acts 7:36-37, just as David is also identified as a prophet (Acts 2:30). There is no
feature of the Isaiah citation that cannot be explained by reference to Moses. How-
ever, since the Isaianic servant does include Davidic elements, such an under-
standing should not be completely excluded either (cf. the more apparent Davidic
elements in the baptismal narrative, which Isa 61: 1-2 is meant to explicate).
49. Jubilee traditions are certainly also in the background, but the motive given
for the Jubilee practice itself invokes the Exodus in that the Israelites are God's
servants since he brought them out of Egypt (cf. Lev 25 :55).
being contrasted (cf. the reaction of the Jews in Luke 4:28-29). It is

Jesus' rejection by the people of God (i.e. the Jews; cf. Acts 7:35,39, 52)
that leads to the Gentile mission (which was nevertheless already implied
in the Abrahamic promises), and the eventual inclusion of them into the
people of God. This is not accomplished until Acts, as symbolized by
Peter's speech in Cornelius' house:
34 'Avo[~o:c; liE IlE'tpoc; 'tO 01:01!0: El1TEV' E1T'ttA.Tj9ELO:<; KO:'to:A.o:lll3«ivollO:l on miK
eanv 1TpOOW1TOATlf.I1T'tT]c; 0 9E6c;, 35 aU' EV 1TO:V't"L e9vEL 0 (jlo~OUilEVOc; O:lhov

KO:L Epyo:(~EVO<; liLKO:LOOUVT]V liEK'tO<; o:im\) eanv. 36 't"OV J..Oyov [ov] tt1TEO-
tELA.EV 1:o'ic; ui.oi.c; 'Iapo:~A. EooyyEA.L(ollEvoc; EiprJVTJV fiLIX 'IT]aou Xpw1:ou,
outoc; Eanv mivtwv KupLoc;, 37 UllE'ic; o'Liio:tE 1:0 yEVOilEVov Pflllo: Ko:9' oA.T]c;
tf\c; 'Ioulio:lo:c;, &p~allEvoc; &1ro tf\c; ro:A.LA.o:lo:c; llHIX to ~&1rnallll o eKf!p~Ev
'IwavvTjc;, 38 'IT]OOUV tOV OC1TO No:(o:p€9, we; EX.PLOEV O:UtOV 0 9Eoc; 1TVEU1!0:'tl
&y(q~ KO:L liuvallEL, oc; liLfjA.9EV EVEpyEtWV KO:L lWilEVO<; 1Tavto:c; touc; KO:tO:-
Iiuvo:atEUOilEVOU<; U1TO tOU liLo:~oA.ou, on 0 9Eoc; Jiv llEt' O:UtOU.
34 So Peter opened his mouth and said: "Truly I understand that God
shows no partiality, 35 but in every nation anyone who fears him and does
what is right is acceptable to him. 36 As for the word [that] he sent to
Israel, preaching good news of peace through Jesus Christ (he is Lord of
all), 37 you yourselves know what happened throughout all Judea, begin-
ning from Galilee after the baptism that John proclaimed: ·38 how God
anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power. He went
about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for
God was with him. (Acts 10:34-38)
Peter consciously expands the definition of the people of God to include
the Gentiles in language that strongly recalls elements of the citation of
Isa 61:1. 50 The restoration oflsrael will involve the inclusion of all who
"fear him" and "do what is right," regardless of ethnic designation, in the
face of opposition by those who were traditionally identified as the
people of God. Moreover, just as Jesus was endowed with the Spirit, so
the Spirit also marks the redefined people of God, replacing the law as an
identity marker (Acts 10:4~8; cf 13:38-39; 15:1-29).
(4) The Transfiguration and the Travel Narrative (Luke 9:28-36;
9:51-19:44). 51 As a theophany, the Transfigurationnarrative evokes
50. The only mention of Nazareth in Acts occurs in this text, and there are no
occurrences ofNazareth between Luke 4: 16 and Acts 10:3 8. The term liEKtoc; occurs
only in these two pericopes. Both passages depict Jesus' rejection. Note that the
Gentile mission typically begins in the synagogue, and that the Spirit plays an
important role. The description of Jesus' empowerment by the Spirit in Luke 4:14
and 18a is very close to the wording found in Acts 10:38. There are also a number of
linguistic parallels between Luke 4:18 and Acts 10:36.
51. Compare the travel narratives in Acts 8:4--40 (Philip); 9:32-11:18 (Peter);
12:25-28:16 (Paul).
Moses-Exodus traditions in many ways. 52 The altered appearance of his

face, the cloud, the voice, and the response ofterror (Luke 9:29, 34-35),
all recall the experience at Sinai. 53 Moreover, Peter's suggestion to make
booths (Luke 9:33) is an allusion to the Festival of Booths, which recalls
Israel's time in the wilderness (Lev 23:43).
Luke, like Matthew, reverses the order of the names so that Moses
comes before Elijah (Luke 9:30), perhaps tojust get the chronological
sequence correct, but perhaps also because Moses is the more prominent
image that Luke wishes to associate with Jesus. Besides which, the
image of Elijah (Luke 4:26; 7: 16) and the prophet of old who has been
raised up (Luke 9:8, 19) recalls the Deuteronomic prophet like Moses
whom God will raise up referred to in Deut 18:15-18 and 34:10. Further-
more, Elijah is a mirror image of Moses in ways that find resonance in
Luke. For instance, both experienced the presence of God on Mt. Horeb
(Deut 1:6; 1 Kgs 19:8) and each anointed a successor (Deut 34:9
[Joshua]; 1 Kgs 19:16-19; 2Kgs 2:9-15 [Elisha]).
At any rate, God's announcement that Jesus is "the chosen one" (o
EKA.EA.Ey[.LEVo<;) recalls the description of the Isaianic servant as the chosen
one (EXA.Eyw: Isa 41 :9; 43: 10; 44: 1) and the closing admonition to "listen
to him" (a.irwu aKO\JE't'E) is an allusion to LXX Deut 18:15, which is
explicitly applied to Jesus by Peter in Acts 3:22.
The topic of conversation between Jesus, Moses and Elijah is supplied
only by Luke, a theologically significant, though somewhat obscure
statement:
EA.cyov 1:~v E~ooov o:u1:oii, ~v ~llEAAEV 1TkllPOiiv iov 'IEpouao:A.~Il·
He spoke of his exodus, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.

(Luke 9:31)
What precisely Jesus is referring to by "exodus" has been variously

interpreted, but the main difference between the approaches concerns
whether "exodus" refers to Jesus' death alone or to Jesus' death and
ascension. 54 While it is true that E~o6o<; can refer to death (Wis 3:2; 7:6;
52. Franz Neirynck ("Minor Agreements: Matthew-Luke in the Transfiguration

Story," in Orientierung an Jesus: Zur Theologie der Synoptiker: Festschrift Josef
Schmid [ed. Paul Hoffmann, Norbert Brox, and Wilhelm Pesch; Freiburg: Herder,
1973], 253-66) shows that most likely Luke has rewritten Mark (Mark 9:2-8). As
the title of his article indicates, the Lukan version shows some minor agreements
with the Matthean version (Matt 17: 1-8).
53. The face (Exod 34:29-35); the cloud (19:9, 16; 24: 15-18); the voice (19:16--
24; 24:12-18); the terror (Exod 19:16; 20:18-19).
54. The former is favored by Frederick W. Danker (Jesus and the New Age: A
Commentary on St. Luke's Gospel [rev. ed.; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1988], 199) and
Josephus, Ant. 4:189; Philo, Virt. 77; T. Naph. 1:1), the language used at
Luke 24:50-51 in the context of the Ascension recalls the Exodus (see
the discussion below).
The Transfiguration launches Jesus on his journey to Jerusalem,
preserved in the so-called Travel Narrative (Luke 9:51-19:44; inspired
by Mark 10:1-52), which, some have argued, is one long prolonged
Deuteronomic Moses typology. 55 At 9:51, Jesus sets his face to go to
Jerusalem (the section ends in 19:44 since Jesus is in the Temple in
19:45), when the days drew near for him to be "taken up" (&vo:A.~j..tljJE<.u<;).
Ultimately, this is probably a reference to his ascension (Luke 24:50-53;
Acts 1:9-11), of which the Transfiguration may be a kind of preview. 56
During this extended journey narrative, the reader is informed numerous
times that Jesus is "on the way" (9:52, 56, 57; 10:38; 13:33) and, in par-
ticular, "on the way to Jerusalem" (9:53; 10:1; 13:22, 31; 14:25; 17: 11;
18:31, 35; 19:1, 11, 28).57
Wilhelm Michaelis ("666<;," TDNT 5: I 07). John Nolland (Luke [WBC 35; Dallas:
Word Books, 1989), 2:499) argues that it puts the accent on Jesus' death while
av&J.:ru.11jn<; (Luke 9:51) refers to his ascension. Both serve as bookend statements on
the end of Jesus' earthly career. The latter is favored by I. Howard Marshall (The
Gospel of Luke: A Commentary on the Greek Text [NIGTC; Grand Rapids: Eerd-
mans, 1978), 384-85), Joseph Fitzmyer (The Gospel According to Luke: Introduc-
tion, Translation, and Notes [AB 28; 2 vols.; Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1981-
85), 1:800), and Frans;ois Bovon (Luke I [Hermeneia; Minneapolis: Fortress, 2002],
376).
55. See the survey of scholarly interpretations provided by James L. Resseguie,
"Interpretation of Luke's Central Section (Luke 9:51-19:44) Since 1856," Studia
Biblica et Theologica 5, no. 12 (1975): 3-36. Meriting special mention is the work
of Christopher F. Evans, "The Central Section of St. Luke's Gospel," in Studies in
the Gospels: Essays in Memory ofR. H. Lightfoot (ed. Dennis E. Nineham; Oxford:
Blackwell, 1955), 37-53. For a critique of Evans' thesis, see: Craig L. Blomberg,
"Midrash, Chiasmus, and the Outline of Luke's Central Section," in Studies in
Midrash and Historiography (ed. RichardT. France and David Wenham; Gospels in
Perspective 3; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1983), 221-28. Others have presented their
own revised versions: John Drury, Tradition and Design in Luke's Gospel: A Study
in Early Christian Historiography (London: Darton, Longman & Todd, 1976), 138-
64; Michael Goulder, The Evangelist's Calendar (London: SPCK, 1979); Moessner,
Lord of the Banquet; Willard M. Swartley, Israel's Scripture Traditions and the
Synoptic Gospels (Peabody: Hendrickson, 1994), 126-45. See also the recent discus-
sion in Edward J. Woods, The "Finger of God" and Pneumatology in Luke-Acts
(JSNTSup 205; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 2001), 16-60.
56. The Transfiguration also recalls the resurrection appearances of Jesus in
Luke 24.
57. At this point in the narrative (Luke 9:51) Luke stops following Mark as his
base text and uses Q or L until Luke 18:15 where he again takes up Mark.
In these chapters, Luke's presentation of Jesus as a prophet is domi-

nant and the Exodus-typology is clear. Though Jesus does perform
miracles (11:14; 13:10-13; 14:1-6; 17:11-19; 18:35-43), the whole
section is dominated by the sayings of Jesus, which are addressed to his
disciples (instruction on discipleship), the crowd (admonitions and call to
conversion), and his opponents, the Pharisees and teachers of the law
(parables of rejection).
Evans argued that the material in Luke 10:1-18:14 more or less
parallels the material, passage by passage, in Deut 1-26. 58 While the
parallels are not always convincing, it is clear that there are many corre-
spondences. 59 Moessner takes a different approach and suggests that
Luke 9 is a preview of the central section in that Luke presents a Jesus
that parallels the Deuteronomic Moses as the one who mediates God's
voice at Mt. Sinai. 60 A stubborn Israel nevertheless rejects him during the
journey through the wildemess towards the Promised Land and the
prophet's death enables the people who obeyed him to enter the Prom-
ised Land. 61 This pattern can be divided up into four main themes:
1. The present generation is an evil, crooked one and as such demon-
strates solidarity with their "fathers."62
2. God has serit Jesus as a prophet to Israel, like all the prophets before
him/63
3. Nevertheless, this generation rejected Jesus the prophet, even killing
him out ·of their stiff-necked resistance. 64
4. Therefo're God will "rain" destruction upon Israel, as in 722 and 587
B.C.E., because they did not hearken to him. 65
58. Evans, "The Central Section of St. Luke's Gospel," 37-53.

59. Some of the parallels are a bit forced. See the critiques cited above. For a
handy comparison, see the chart in Swartley, Israel's Scripture Traditions, 151-53,
which is an adaptation of Evans's parallels with some of his own thrown in.
60. Moessner, Lord of the Banquet.
61. Moessner is justly criticized for the idea that Moses dies for the sins of the
people (cf. Deut 32:48-51 where Moses himself is blamed for his death). However,
the fact remains that Moses does die just outside of the Promised Land, and part of
the blame must rest on the stubbornness of the people (after all, Moses' sin comes
about out of frustration at the people's grumbling).
62. Luke 7: 18-50; II: 14-54; 17:20-37; 12:54-13:9.
63. Luke 9:51-19:44.
64. Luke9:51-58; 10:3,10-11,13, 16,25; 11:14-26,29-32,47-54; 12:49-50,
54-56; 13:1-9, 14--17,25-34; 14:1,24; 15:1-2; 16:14--16,27-31; 17:25-30; 18:8,
31-34; 19:7, 14,39-44.
65. Luke 11:31-32, 50-51; 12:57-59; 13:24-30, 35; 14:24; 17:26-30; 19:27,
41-44. .
Moessner provides an extensive analysis of the Central Section accord-

ing to this pattern. 66
Moessner argues on the basis of these parallels that Jesus is the
prophet like Moses who will lead his people out in a New Exodus from
the mountain to Jerusalem, where the restored people of God will wor-
ship, eat, and rejoice. The rejection of the prophet's message by the
stubborn and rebellious, however, will ensure the prophet's death, which
will lead the way to salvation.
Rather than a simple Deuteronomic Moses-typology, however, it
seems more likely that Luke has at least filtered some of the typology
through the lsaianic New Exodus.67 First, Luke's Christology involves a
fusion ofDavidic, Mosaic, and Servant of the Lord elements (as well as
others, like Elijah), which fits the Isaianic New Exodus pattern better than
a simple Deuteronomic Moses motif. Second, the goal towards which the
New Exodus theme aims is Jerusalem, which recalls the lsaianic New
Exodus motif more specifically than the Deuteronomic Moses motif.
(5) The Last Supper (Luke 22: 14-23). During the Last Supper, Jesus
describes the cup in very suggestive language:
·muto to TIOt~pwv ~ KIXLvTJ OLa9~KT] ~v tQ a'lf.Lat( f.LOU to im!op Uf.LWV
EK)(UWOf.LEVOV.
This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.
(Luke 22:20b)
The phrase "new covenant" is not paralleled in the other Gospel

accounts, but a very similar formulation, including the phrase "new
covenant" is found in 1 Cor 11 :25:
touto to 1rot~pwv ~ KaLv~ liLa9~K11 E:otl.v i:v tQ ~1-L<.il a'(f.Lan- touto 1TOLEi.tE,
omfKL~ E:&v 1TLVT]tE, Ei~ t~v Ef.L~v livaf.Lv 11aw.
This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink
it, in remembrance of me. (1 Cor 11:25)
While it is possible that Luke is simply handing on tradition (as is some-

times suggested), given that Luke can be demonstrated to be extensively
using Moses/Exodus-typology through his evocation of the Isaianic
New Exodus theme, it is at least arguable that Luke purposely chose this
66. These thematic headings are taken verbatim from Moessner's rather detailed
table of contents (Lord of the Banquet, pp. viii-ix). For detailed discussion, see pp.
82-257.
67. Moessner, Lord ofthe Banquet, 260-85. By "New Exodus" Moessner him-
self does not mean the Isaianic New Exodus, but an Exodus-Deuteronomy typology
that becomes "new" since it is now Jesus who will replicate this journey.
·formulation because it fits into his theology. 68 After all, Luke had a
choice of formulations at his disposal, and specifically chose this one.
(6) Stephen 's Speech (7: 1-53 ). The largest section of Stephen's speech
is dedicated to Moses (7: 17-44), not surprisingly, since Stephen's speech
is occasioned by the charge that he spoke against Moses and God (Acts
6: 11). More specifically, the charge was that he spoke against the Temple
and the Law, stating that Jesus would destroy the Temple and change the
customs handed down by Moses (Acts 6: 13-14). Stephen's response is to
flip the charge on its head. In effect, Stephen charges that it is not he who
has spoken against the Temple and the Law, but rather his opponents.
Just as Moses' fellow Israelites rejected him, so also have the descen-
dants of these same Israelites rejected Jesus, the prophet like Moses (cf.
Acts 7:37, 51-53).
Stephen's retelling ofthe biblical story, including Moses', differs in
numerous details from the story presented in the Pentateuch. 69 Luke has
reshaped the material to highlight the fact that Jesus is the prophet like
Moses (Acts 3:22-23; 7:37). The parallels are fairly clear. 70 Both were
born at the time when the Abrahamic promises were about to be fulfilled
(Acts 7: 17; cf. Luke 1:55, 72-73). Both were mighty in word and deed
(Acts 7:22; cf. Luke 24: 19). Both visited the sons oflsrael in order to
deliver his oppressed brothers (Acts 7 :23; cf. Luke 1:68; 7: 16), and bring
peace (Luke 1:79).
Just as Moses was rejected by his people and went away for a while,
so also was Jesus rejected, as symbolized by his execution (Acts 7:27-
28, 35, 39-41; Luke 23:44-49; cf. 12:35-37; 19:11-13). However,
whereas Moses' departure from his people is a type of exile, Jesus' depar-
ture is characterized as an E~oooc; (lit. "exodus") in Luke 9:31. While
separated from their followers, both encounter God on a mountain. 71
However, where Moses is the one who is given a new commission and is
thereby empowered (Acts 7:30-34), Jesus is the one who gives the com-
mission to his disciples in Luke-Acts (Luke 24:44--53; Acts 1:1-11).
68. Contra O'Toole, "Acts 2:30 and the Davidic Covenant of Pentecost," 250.
69. For a sample of the differences with an analysis of the interpretive tradition
upon which Stephen's speech is based, see James L. Kugel, "Stephen's Speech (Acts
7) in Its Exegetical Context," in Evans, ed., From Prophecy to Testament, 206-18
(which only covers the first 22 verses).
70. This list of correspondences is heavily dependent on Luke T. Johnson, The
Acts of the Apostles (Sacra Pagina 5; Collegeville, Minn.: Liturgical Press, 1992),
136-37. John Meier also supplied a number of suggestions that helped to refine these
parallels (given in a personal correspondence).
71. To be precise, Jesus does not meet God until he ascends from the mountain
into heaven.
Upon his return, Moses performed miraculous signs and wonders in

Egypt and in the wilderness (Acts 7:36). Jesus, on the other hand, poured
out the Spirit (Acts 2:1-4) which enabled his followers to perform
miraculous signs and wonders (Acts 2:43; 4:16, 30; 5:12; 6:8; 8:6, 13;
14:3; 15:12 [just as Jesus himself did; cf. Acts 2:22]), and which inspired
speech (Acts 2:4; cf. 7:38 "living oracles"). Finally, both were ultimately
rejected (Acts 7:41-43).72
Stephen's speech, coming as it does at the end of the Jerusalem
narrative, provides a hermeneutical key to understanding all that has
transpired with Jesus and the apostles to this point. The people have been
offered salvation once again, but while many accepted (Acts 2:42-47),
many, including the Jewish leaders who have arrested Stephen, have
rejected it (Acts 4-6), just as their ancestors rejected Moses. Thus a
Jesus-as-Mosaic-prophet typology thoroughly saturates this section of
Stephen's speech.
(7) "The Way" Terminology in Luke-Acts. 73 Use of this term is found
exclusively in contexts where the identity of the Christians becomes the
issue in some sort of conflict.74 As Pao argues, this term is best under-
stood against the background of the lsaianic New Exodus motif. In lsa
40-55, T11 ("way';) is a term that evokes the Exodus tradition (including
the wilderness wandering) and signifies a new act of salvation that God
is about to accomplish. 75 Luke 3:4-6 cites Isa 40:3-5, which introduces
this terminology, and this becomes an identity marker which links the
early Christian community to the ancient tradition of the formation of the
nation oflsrael during the Exodus. 76 As such, this foundation story of the
Israelite nation is signified in this term and becomes a way for the early
Christian community to define itself as the people of God. 77
As these parallels suggest, the Moses-Exodus typology as filtered
through Isaiah, is widespread and deeply significant for Luke's theology. 78
72. Note that idolatry becomes an important theme in Acts: 8:9-13; 12:20-23;
14:11-17; 17:24-31; 19:25-27.
73. As a reference to the early Christian movement, it appears in Acts 9:2; 19:9,
23; 22:4; 24:14, 22. It is unique in early Christian literature (aside from writings
dependent on Acts).
74. Pao, Acts and the lsaianic New Exodus, 61.
75. Cf. the discussion of the Travel Narrative above.
76. In the Qumran community, to belong to "the Way" is to study the Law (cf.
1QS VIII, 13-16; IX, 16-21). It is nevertheless, used as an identity marker in an
analogous way to the early Christian community as depicted in Acts.
77. See Pao, Acts and the Jsaianic New Exodus, 45-68.
78. The discussion to this point only scratches the surface. To do it full justice
would require a monograph on its own, which is not possible here. For a much fuller
As will be shown, the Pentecost account in Acts 2 consciously evokes

Moses-Sinai parallels which would imply that Luke was aware of the
idea that the Festival of Weeks was associated with the Sinai event in
some way, as in the book of Jubilees and the Qumran Scrolls. As this
survey of the Moses-Exodus typology in Luke-Acts shows, this fits in
perfectly with Luke's theology.
3. A New Covenant at Pentecost?

Acts 2 contains the account of the first Christian Pentecost. While Moses
and Sinai are not directly referred to in this account, it is apparent that
Sinai is being alluded to in many different ways. 79
3.1. Sinai and Pentecost Associations in Second Temple Judaism

To begin with, the fact that Luke says the Spirit descended on Pentecost
may have triggered associations with Sinai in and of itself. 8°Certainly,
by the time the book of Acts was written, Jews had long since made an
association between the Sinai event and the Festival of Weeks. While
discussion, see the works by Pao, Acts and the Jsaianic New Exodus; Ravens, Luke
and the Restoration of Israel; Turner, Power from on High, 213-427; Wenk,
Community-Forming Power, 213-58; Strauss, The Davidic Messiah in Luke-Acts,
261-336.
79. Bock (Proclamation from Prophecy and Pattern, 182-83) makes much of the
fact that Moses or the Law are not mentioned at all, claiming it to be "a fatal
omission." As the discussion below demonstrates, this is far from being the case.
80. The use of the phrase EV rt;i OUf.LTfAT]poiia6aL r~v ~f.LEpav rf]<; TfEV"I"T]Koarf]<;
("when the day of Pentecost was fully come") is rather unusual. The word OUf.LTfAT]-
p6w means "fill up, fulfill, approach, come" and occurs only three times in the New
Testament (Luke 8:23; 9:51 and Acts 2:1 ). Normally, when used figuratively in
terms of time, it suggests the end of an interval. In the case of Acts 2:1, the end of
the day of Pentecost cannot be meant, since Acts 2:15 indicates that it is still
morning. Rather, it suggests the arrival of an expected day, which is the way it is
also used in Luke 9:51 (in fact, using the identical construction: EV tt\i OUf.LTfAT]-
poiia6aL) in a very programmatic context, where Jesus sets his face towards Jerusa-
lem. VanderKam ("The 'Festival of Weeks," 198) notes that the rabbis commonly
designated the Festival of Weeks by the Hebrew word Il,liV. Since the verb form
means "close" when used in conjunction with time, the use of this term to refer to
the Festival of Weeks identifies this day as the close of the season that began with
Passover (cf. the rabbinic designation of the Festival of Weeks as no.!l ~1V mliV).
Already, late in the first century C. E., Josephus refers to the Festival of Weeks as
liaape&. Thus, this term was applied to the Feast of Pentecost by the time the book of
Acts was written, and while Luke did not use the same term, VanderKam notes that
it was a natural term for him to use.
there are some texts in the Hebrew Bible that might suggest such a link
(Exod 19:1; 2 Chr 15:10), it must be admitted that there are also contrary
indications (Deut 31:1 0; Neh 8) that suggest covenant renewal occurred
during the Festival of Booths every seven years. 81
Nevertheless, already in the Hebrew Bible the festivals were being
associated with historical events; the Festival of Unleavened Bread with
the Exodus (Exod 12-13) and the Festival of Booths with the wilderness
wanderings (Lev 23 :42-43). Since the Sinai event came chronologically
between these historical events and the Festival ofWeeks comes between
the Festivals ofUnleavenedBread(I/15-21) and Booths (VII/15-21) on
the calendar, one might say that such an association was begging to be
made, especially when one considers that, according to Exod 19: 1, the
Israelites approached Sinai in the third month. Be that as it may, as shown
in previous chapters, certain Jews of the Maccabaean period (probably
by the middle of the second century B.C.E.) definitely did make a connec-
tion between the Festival of Weeks and covenant renewal-specifically,
the author of the book of Jubilees and the Qumran Community. 82
The issue is, however, how widespread was this idea throughout
Second Temple Judaism. 83 Outside of the Qumran sect, did Jews of the
81. See Chapters 2 and3. The vagueness of the reference in 2 Chr 15:10 maybe
occasioned by the fact that, at that time, the date of the Festival of Weeks was
indeterminate, perhaps due to differing harvest times. Compare the rabbis, who
dated Shavuot to III/6 give or take a day due to the variable length of the lunar
month (i.e. either 29 or 30 days).
82. See Chapters 4 and 5 respectively.
83. Goudoever (Biblical Calendars, 95-123) analyzes calendar references in
4 Ezra, 2 Enoch, and Pseudo-Philo, and suggests that these texts show evidence of
the Festival of Weeks being connected to the Mosaic covenant in some way.
Unfortunately, his arguments are far from convincing. There is no certain allusion to
the Festival of Weeks in any ofthe contexts he cites. Goudoever therefore appeals to
Jubilees and the Qumran Scrolls as evidence that the covenant was renewed at the
Festival of Weeks. While this does provide precedent, the fact of the matter is that
there is no independent verification that the authors in question ever made the same
connection. Since the Mosaic covenant was such a central event (not to mention that
Ezra is depicted as a second Moses in 4 Ezra), an allusion to the Sinai event by
dating crucial events in the respective books to the third month, is hardly surprising.
To take his most promising instance as a representative example, he points to the
Biblical Antiquities of Pseudo-Philo, which makes lll/16 the occasion of a covenant
ceremony in connection with Joshua (L.A. B. 23:2; cf. Josh 24). Goudoever (pp. 116-
18) argues that since L.A.B. was recreating the covenant of Sinai, he followed
Jubilees in dating the Sinai covenant to lll/15. In this passage, Joshua renews the
Mosaic covenant (cf. L.A.B. 23:14). However, not only do the dates not match
(lll/15 in Jubilees and lll/16 in L.A.B.), but in Biblical Antiquities, Joshua's cove-
nant renewal actually takes place on the next day (i.e. Ill/17; which even defeats a
later Second Temple period commonly make an association between

the Festival of Weeks/Pentecost and covenant renewal? 84 The Qumran
community more than likely derived this association from its reading of
the book of Jubilees, but how widely was Jubilees read? A reading of
Philo and Josephus determines that these particular Jews, at least, were
unaware of an association between Pentecost and covenant renewal. 85
This leads some scholars to argue that this association was more or less
limited to a few sectarian Jews and was not widespread at all. 86
Menzies is one of the most forceful in arguing against the idea that the
mere mention of "t~v ~iJ.Epa.v tft~ 1TEVtTJKOatft~ (Acts 2: 1) would have
evoked images of Moses, Sinai or the covenant renewal ceremony in the
minds of Luke's readers." 87 First, he correctly notes that the rabbinic
parallel with Jub. I: I, which identifies III/16 as the day Moses ascended Sinai).
Moreover, in L.A.B. 13:5, the Festival of Weeks is referred to simply as a harvest
festival, and nothing more. The author surely would have made more of such a
reference if he did see some connection between the Festival of Weeks and Sinai.
See further the discussion of Howard Jacobson, A Commentary on Pseudo-Philo's
Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum with Latin Text and English Translation (2 vols.;
AGJU 31; Lei den: Brill, 1996), 2:711.
84. On the character of the Qumran Library, see the articles by Devorah Dimant:
"The Library of Qumran: Its Content and Character," in Schiffman, Tov, and
VanderKam, eds., The Dead Sea Scrolls, 170-76; idem, "The Scrolls and the Study
of Early Judaism," in The Dead Sea Scrolls at Fifty: Proceedings ofthe 1997 Society
ofBiblical Literature Qumran Section Meetings (ed. Robert A. Kugler and Eileen M.
Schuller; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1999), 43-59; idem, "The Qumran Manuscripts:
Contents and Significance," in Time to Prepare the Way in the Wilderness: Papers
on the Qumran Scrolls by Fellows of the Institute for Advanced Studies of the
Hebrew University, Jerusalem, 1989-1990 (ed. Devorah Dimant and Lawrence H.
Schiffman; Leiden: Brill, 1995), 23-36. She shows that to a large extent, the picture
of the Qumran sect as "a solitary and ascetic community, leading a secluded life in
an isolated site ... existing at the fringes of Judaism," while containing elements of
the truth, give a skewed picture of the group. She notes that a third of the Qumran
Library is composed of non-sectarian works (or at least there is no decisive evidence
[peculiar terminology or organizational pattems reflecting the community] that these
works are sectarian) and that they probably had much in common with the more
general Jewish literature of the time. She argues that the Qumranic community
"belonged to a central movement in contemporary Judaism, and probably played a
major role in its cultural, religious, and political life" ("The Scrolls and the Study of
Early Judaism," 44-47).
85. Philo identifies the Feast of Trumpets (VII/I) as the day commemorating the
giving of the Law on Sinai (Spec. Leg. 2.188-89).
86. See Marshall, "The Significance of Pentecost," 349; Menzies, Empowered
for Witness, 191-93.
87. Menzies, Empoweredfor Witness, 193.
literature, where the Festival of Weeks is the day commemorating the

giving of the law at Mt. Sinai, cannot be relied upon to determine first-
century practice since it is late (typically many centuries later). He specu-
lates that the transformation of the Festival of Weeks from a harvest
festival to a festival commemorating the law was given impetus by the
destruction of the Temple, since, without it, the sacrifices that were
central to the festival could no longer be carried out. Because the rabbis
emphasized the law, it was only natural that the rabbis associated this
festival with the giving of the law at Sinai.
~ In attempting to determine how early a connection between Sinai and
the Festival of Weeks arises, he addresses the evidence of Jubilees and
the Qumran Scrolls by minimizing their significance. For instance, he
argues that in the book of Jubilees, while the festival was important in
terms of the renewal of the covenant, the "cmmections between the feast
and the giving of the law at Sinai are minor," citingJub. 1:1 and 6:19. 88
However, this represents a superficial reading of Jubilees since covenant
and law is intimately connected and a major theme that undergirds the
whole work, even if it is not always immediately and obviously evident. 89
In Jubilees, this manifests itself, for instance, in the fact that law is
inserted into the narrative at various points. 90 Indeed, the one covenant,
originating with Noah and renewed by Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and
Moses, accumulates an increasingly large body of stipulations. 91 This
only reinforces in a unique way the obvious, of course: it is impossible to
88. Ibid., 191. The point he is making appears to be that while there may be
much emphasis on covenant in Jubilees, there is not much emphasis on the giving of
the law per se.
89. Furthermore, given the type of close reading that is in abundant evidence in
Second Temple Judaism, it is unlikely that something as crucial as calendrical
matters and holy days (especially when it involved the type of innovation that the
author of Jubilees was attempting) would have been missed by those who could read
Hebrew (i.e. highly educated Jews).
90. For an excellent discussion with examples, see Anderson, "The Status ofthe
Torah Before Sinai," 1-29. For a good summary, see VanderKam, The Book of
Jubilees, 100-109.
91. A close reading of Jub. 6 indicates that the author's position that the Festival
of Weeks was the day commemorating the covenant was a minority position, since
the author has the Angel of the Presence warn Moses that the Israelites forgot the
covenant festival in the past and will in the future as well. However, since Jubilees is
the earliest extant text definitively to make this connection, this is not entirely
surprising. There is most likely at least a two-century gap between Jubilees (proba-
bly the middle ofthe second century B.C. E.) and Luke-Acts (approximately the last
quarter of the first century C.E.), leaving plenty oftime for this tradition to spread.
I
think of covenant without law and vice versa, since the law represents
the stipulations which are the heart of the covenant itself. 92
As for Menzies evaluation of the evidence from the Qumran Scrolls,
he wrote his book before the evidence from Qumran was widely
available. Thus his argument that the Qumran community's probable
adoption of the solar calendar of Jubilees has not been substantiated by
evidence from the scrolls can be set aside. 93 However, he argues that
even if the Qumranites did celebrate the Festival of Weeks as a day for
covenant renewal, their observance of the Festival of Weeks was not
indicative of general practice in first-century Judaism. He cites the fact
that the Temple Scroll has three different feasts of First-fruits (New
Wheat, New Wine, and Oil) that are unique to the Qumran Scrolls. Aside
from the issue ofthe ultimate origin of the Temple Scroll, Menzies again
draws too neat a distinction between the covenant and the giving of the
law. The fact is, Jubilees and the Qumran Scrolls show clear evidence of
a connection between the Festival of Weeks and the Sinai event.
Moreover, since the book of Jubilees is not a sectarian document (i.e. not
a text written by the Qumran sect), the Qumran Scrolls establish that at
least some Jews of the Second Temple period were reading this book. 94
By the time Acts was written, some two hundred years later, there is every
possibility that Jubilees had a wider readership. Besides which, since the
connections between Pentecost and Sinai have so much material to work
with in the Hebrew Bible itself, there is no reason to think that other
Jews could not independently have made the connection as well.
This can be seen by the example of the rabbis. As noted above, for the
rabbis, Pentecost is seen as the day when the Torah was given at Sinai
(b. Pes. 68b). 95 While;: this does represent a different theological emphasis
92. This is why many scholars (e.g. Dunn, Baptism in the Holy Spirit, 48-49;
Turner, Power from on High, 280-82) are not always careful in distinguishing
between covenant and the giving of the law in their discussions of these associations
with the feast of Pentecost.
93. See the discussion in Chapter 5.
94. Cf. the comments of Hempel ("The Place of the Book ofJubilees at Qumran
and Beyond," 193-96) who says that "there is no reason to believe that Jubilees is a
sectarian text," even while acknowledging that it was a "literary pillar of the library"
(p. 195). Moreover, she states that "the Book of Jubilees was almost certainly
cherished beyond the confines of the Qumran library" (p. 193). Of course, it did
eventually find a home in the Christian community, where it was preserved in certain
communities for centuries thereafter.
95. For a list of rabbinic parallels to Acts 2, including many that make a con-
nection between the giving of the law and Pentecost, see Hennann L. Strack and
Paul Billerbeck, Kommentar zum Neuen Testament aus Talmud und Midrasch
than that provided by Jubilees and the Qumran Scrolls, they certainly
have in common a more general link between Sinai and Pentecost.
Without arguing, as some do, that this rabbinic tradition is very early and
provides direct evidence that this association was prevalent in the first
century C.E., this does raise the question of where this tradition of asso-
ciating Sinai with Pentecost came from, assuming that it did not just
appear out of thin air. 96 Presumably, the link between Pentecost and the
Sinai event was widespread enough that it later became the dominant
rabbinic belief; that is, it was apparently not limited to the Qumran
sectarians since that particular sect was destroyed by the Romans during
the Jewish revolt of 66-73 C.E. (probably in 68 C.E.).
Indeed, the book of Jubilees-which as far as we know makes the first
direct link between the Sinai event and the Festival of Weeks-was read
and preserved by Christians by at least the early post-New Testament era,
proving that Jubilees had gained a readership beyond the Qumranites. 97
(4 vols.; Munich: Becksche, I 922-28), 2:597-620. None of these parallels bear a

genetic relationship to the Pentecost narrative in Acts 2.
96. It is possible that some of the rabbinic traditions stem from very early
sources, but this cannot be decisively proven. The lectionary evidence which is
sometimes cited (e.g. by George B. Caird, "The Descent of Christ in Ephesians 4, 7-
11," Studia evangelica 2 [1964]: 539-41; J. C. Kirby, Ephesians, Baptism, and
Pentecost: An Inquify into the Structure and Purpose ofthe Epistle to the Ephesians
[Montreal: McGill University Press, 1968], 97-121; Aileen Guilding, "Some
Obscured Rubrics and Lectionary Allusions in the Psalter," JTS 3 [1952]: 41-55;
idem, The Fourth Gospel and Jewish Worship [Oxford: Clarendon, 1960], 220-28;
Henry St. J. Thackeray, The Septuagint and Jewish Worship [London: Oxford
University Press, 1921], 40-60), cannot be dated to the first century with any kind of
certainty. Moreover, as James C. VanderKam ("Covenant and Pentecost," CTJ 37
[2002]: 252) notes, the texts cited or alluded to in Acts 2 (i.e. Joel2:28-32 [3: 1-5];
Pss 16:8-11 [15:8-11]; 68: 19; 110:1 [ 109: 1]) are not those identified in the rabbinic
literature as the texts read in association with Pentecost (even though this is often
claimed for Pss 68 and 110, based on what looks like no more than tenuous links in
rabbinic texts and conjectural reconstructions built upon them): m. Meg. 3:5 (Deut
16:9-12); b. Meg. 31 a (Deut 16:9; Exod 19; Hab 3; Ezek 1); t. Meg. 4:5 andy. Meg.
3:74b (Exod 19-20). In addition, tractate Soferim identifies Ps 29. On the lectionary
cycle, see Jacob Mann, The Bible as Read and Preached in the Old Synagogue: A
Study in the Cycles of the Readings from Torah and Prophets, as Well as from
Psalms, and in the Structure of the Midrashic Homilies (New York: Ktav, 1971),
453-55. On the Festival of Weeks in the targums, see Potin, La Fete juive de fa
Pentecote. Harris (The Descent of Christ, 143-70) also provides a useful survey of
the rabbinic evidence.
97. Hippolytus ( 170-236) and Epiphanius (315-403) are two early Christians
who use substantial portions of the book of Jubilees. Scott (Geography in Early
Judaism and Christianity, 97-134) argues that the Pseudo-ClementineRecognitions
Moreover, since the theological emphasis differs (giving of the law in the
rabbinic literature vs. covenant renewal in Jubilees), the rabbis may have
come to this connection independently of the book of Jubilees. 98 If the
rabbis (sometime after the destruction of the Temple) and the author of
Jubilees (mid-second century B.C.E.) did arrive at this association inde-
pendently, why not others, especially since such a connection is already
hinted at in 2 Chr 15:10 (based on Exod 19:1)? This opens up the possi-
bility that Luke consciously evoked associations in his narrative account
of Pentecost that were already current among his contemporaries. 99
3.2. Allusions to Moses-Sinai in the Ascension Narrative

The Ascension (Luke 24:50-53; Acts 1:9-11) is linked to the Feast of
Pentecost since it is immediately before the Ascension that Jesus tells the
disciples to expect the outpouring of the Spirit (Luke 24:49; Acts 1:4,
8). 100 There are several aspects of the Ascension and the intervening
naiTative that suggest a Sinai background. Of course, the ascent of Jesus
and the descent of the Spirit suggests a general parallel with Moses'
ascent and descent ofMt. Sinai. Several aspects ofthis naiTative serve to
confirm this. 101
(1) The forty-day span during which Jesus' post-resuiTection appear-
ances took place recall three forty-day spans in Moses' life: two forty-
day stays on Mt. Sinai (Exod 24: 18; 34:28; Deut 9:9, 11, 18, 25), and the
forty days the twelve spies spent in the Promised Land (Num 13:25;
14:34). 102
(2) In Luke 24:50, the author uses the phrase E~~yayEv of: aurout; ("he
led them out"). The verb is the same as that used in the LXX to describe
1.27-71 (100-115 C.E.) and Theophilus of Antioch's Ad Autolycum (approx. 180-

192 C. E.) also used Jubilees as a source. ·
98. As VanderKam (The Book ofJubilees, 147-48)-notes, rabbinic evidence of
direct dependence on the book of Jubilees is very late, in contrast to Christian works,
where the evidence is quite early (though Jubilees never gained a widespread
influence).
99. Scott (Geography in Early Judaism and Christianity, 44--96) argues that
Luke-Acts shows dependence on Jubilees' Table of Nations tradition. Cf. Acts 1:8
(Jub. 8:12); Acts 2:2 (Jub. 10:26); Acts 2:9-11 (Jub. 8-9); Acts 15:20,29 (Jub.
7:20).
100. It is probably in this sense that the verb OUf.l1TAT)p6w is employed in Acts 2: I.
See the discussion above.
101. The list compiled here is heavily dependent on the list compiled by
VanderKam ("The Festival of Weeks," 196-98).
I 02. The number itself also recalls the forty years spent wandering in the
wilderness (Num 14:33-34).
Yahweh leading the Israelites out of Egyptian bondage (Exod 3:1 0; 6:6-
8; Lev 19:36), an event which immediately precedes Israel's sojourn at
Mt. Sinai. 103
(3) In this same verse, Jesus blesses his followers just as Moses
blesses those who built the sanctuary (Exod 39:43) and the Israelites at
the end of his life (Deut 33:1). There is a closer verbal parallel to Lev
9:22, where Aaron gives a blessing, and then is joined by Moses (cf.
Num 6:23). Moreover, Moses is said to have lifted his hands in the battle
against the Amalekites (Exod 17: 11) and in striking the rock at the
waters of Meribah (Num 20: 11 ).1°4
(4) The Ascension takes place on a mountain, which Luke 24:50
identifies as Bethany and Acts 1:12 identifies as Mt. Olives (Bethany is
on the Mt. of Olives). Of course, Moses ascends a mountain also:
Sinai/Horeb. The proximity to Jerusalem, in place of Mt. Sinai, can be
explained in terms of the Isaianic New Exodus motif, which makes Zion
the heir of Sinai, so to speak. 105
(5) A cloud hides Jesus' ascent (Acts 1:9, 11), which recalls Moses'
ascent ofMt. Sinai (Exod 19:3, 20; 24:1-2). During one of his many
ascents, Yahweh tells Moses that he will appear to him in a thick cloud
(Exod 19:9), which occurs three days later (Exod 19: 16). After the
theophany, Moses ascends into the cloud (Exod 24: 15-18) to receive the
law. It should be noted that Moses' ascension ofMt. Sinai was some-
times considered a heavenly ascent in Jewish literature. 106 Furthermore, it
was often thought that Moses did not actually die, but was translated into
heaven at the end ofhis life. 107
(6) Jesus' command for his disciples to wait in Jerusalem (Luke 24:49;
Acts 1:4) recalls Moses command to the elders to wait for him and
Joshua until they returned (Exod 24:14). 108
103. Cf. Luke 9:31 and discussion of this verse above.

104. In both cases, the same verb isused in the LXX as is used in Luke: Emxtpw.
105. On this theme in the Hebrew Bible, see Levenson, Sinai and Zion, 187-217.
106. L.A.B. 11: 15; 12:1; 32:9; Philo, QE 2.29; 2 Bar. 59:3-11.
107. Josephus, Ant. 4.325; cf. Ant. 4.330, 326. Josephus specifically says that
though Moses disappeared into a cloud, he really died, which implies that there was
a tradition circulating that Moses had ascended into heaven at his death, a tradition
Josephus wished to refute by citing the biblical record of his death. Cf. also, the
assumption of Moses' soul in Philo, QG 1.86; Mos. 2.288, 291; Virt. 76. Arie W.
Zwiep (The Ascension ofthe Messiah in Lukan Christo logy [Leiden: Brill, 1997], 66,
71) argues that, in this literature, Moses' final ascent is patterned on his ascent ofMt.
Sinai, rather than vice versa.
108. Cf. also the fact that at the Transfiguration (which may be a preview of the
ascension) he also has Peter, James, and John (Luke 9:28) accompany him up the
6. Pentecost and Sinai in Luke~Acts 205
(7) In Acts 1:6, the apostles ask Jesus, "Lord, will you at this time
restore the kingdom to Israel?" This may recall Yahweh's words at Mt.
Sinai: ''you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all
the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy
nation" (Exod 19:51J:-6a). This talk of kingdoms at Mt. Sinai denotes the
fact that the twelve tribes of Israel will become a nation at Mt. Sinai,
complete with anew constitution. Similarly, the twelve apostles and the
other early believers will become the members of the first Christian
Church. 109
(8) The Lukan chronology involving Jesus' death just after Passover,
resurrection, exaltation, ascension, and the outpouring of the Spirit on
Pentecost also points to an allusion to Moses and Sinai. If the rabbinic
formula (instead of the Jubilees formula) for determining the date of
Pentecost is used, then the fifty-day span (cf. Lev 23: 15-16; Deut 16:9-
10) would cover the period beginning from just after Passover to the
Festival of Weeks when Moses ascended Mt. Sinai. 110 In the Lukan
chronology, this corresponds to Jesus' death just after Passover to the
gift of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost. 111
mountain, where they see Jesus' glory, which parallels Moses' ascent up Mt. Sinai
with Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu (Exod 24:1, 9, plus the seventy elders) who behold
God's glory (Exod 24:10-11).
109. Note that between the Ascension (Acts 1:1-11) and Pentecost (Acts 2:1-
13) there is,the narrative concerning the choosing of the twelfth apostle (Acts 1:12-
26). As discussed earlier, this number is representative of the nation of Israel, with
its twelve tribes. Note also, that originally 120 people were gathered for the day of
Pentecost (Acts 2: 15), which is also suggestive of the twelve tribes of Israel gathered
about Mt. Sinai at the inauguration of the new nation oflsrael (cf. Exod 24:4 where
Moses sets up twelve pillars representing the twelve tribes of Israel in connection
with the covenant ceremony).
110. On the disputed date of the Festival of Weeks, see the discussion in
Chapter 2.
1 I 1. As VanderKam ("The Festival of Weeks," 197) notes, however, the
parallel is inexact since the one runs from Passover to ascent/covenant and the other
runs from Passover to descent/gift of the Spirit. As a side note, it is interesting that
there is a fifty-day span from the time Moses and the Israelites camp at the foot
ofMt. Sinai, and Moses returns from Mt. Sinai with the tablets of the law the first
time. Three days are spent at the foot of Sinai preparing for and experiencing the
theophany (Exod 19:10-11). On the fourth day, Moses performs the covenant
ceremony (Exod 24:4) and ascends the mountain, leaving behind the elders (Exod
24: 12-14). When Moses ascends further up Sinai, just outside of the cloud that has
descended on the summit, he must wait for six days and enters only on the seventh
(Exod 24: 16). Then there is the notice that Moses spends forty days and forty nights
on the mountain (Exod 24: 18). When added up, this span equals fifty days, including
Acts 1:3 is the only text in the New Testament that sets the period
between the Resurrection and the Ascension at forty days. 112 In fact, the
post-resurrection narrative in the Gospel of Luke leaves the reader with
the impression that the Ascension took place on Easter Sunday itself.
Later in Acts 13:31, the text is more vague about the length of this period,
using the imprecise phrase E:nl. ~j..tEpa.c; TIAELouc; ("for many days"). 113 Later
Christian tradition about the precise date of the Ascension is quite fluid
and diverse, assigning varying lengths of time to the post-Resurrection
appearances. 114 Interestingly, there is a Christian tradition that has Jesus
ascending on the day of Pentecost, thus bringing the Ascension of Jesus
on the day of Pentecost into close parallel with the ascension ofMoses of
Mt. Sinai on the Festival of Weeks, as in the book of Jubilees. 115
a ten/forty split, as in the Ascension/Pentecost narrative (which is, of course, actually

a forty/ten split). Of course, this only works if the seven days Moses spends waiting
is not to be included in the 40-day total, which is not entirely clear.
112. There is a harmonizing textual variant in Acts 10:41.
113. As Zwiep (The Ascension of the Messiah, 98, 186-87) notes, strictly
speaking the notice in Acts 1:3 does not precisely date the Ascension to the fortieth
day. He speculates that the forty days is a product of Lukan redaction. He notes the
fact that it is a typological number, which suggests that a precise number is not
really meant. Consider the fact that the twelve apostles in Acts 1 are in the company
of a total of 120 (12 x 10) before the day of Pentecost, a figure which then swells
to 3000 (120 x 25) after Peter's sermon (Acts 2:41) and then to 5000 (Acts 4:4).
In uncovering how Luke arrived at the number forty, Zwiep, following Gerhard
Lohfink (Die Himmelfahrt Jesu. Untersuchungen zu den Himmelfahrts- und
ErhOhungstexten bei Lukas [StANT 26; Munich: Kosel, 1971 ], 176-86) argues that
the number had to bring the Ascension close to the day of Pentecost to highlight the
close chronological connection of Ascension and Pentecost. Furthermore, the num-
ber had to be a round, inexact number and a biblical number. Forty was the only
number that satisfied all these factors. That the date of the Ascension was a fluid
concept in early Christianity can be shown by the various dates that early Christians
assigned to it (see the discussion below).
114. Tertullian (Apol. 21) follows Acts 1:3 in attesting forty days. However, the
Ethiopic Epistula Apostolorum 18 (29) identifies the Resurrection day itself as the
day of Ascension (cf. Epistle of Barnabas 15:8; Aristides, Apology 2; Gospel of
Peter 35-42). lrenaeus says that some Gnostic groups believed that Jesus talked with
his followers for 18 months after his resurrection (Adv. haer. 11.5; 28.7). Similarly,
the Ethiopic version of the Ascension of Isaiah 9:16 has Jesus ascending 545 days
(approximately 18 months) after his Resurrection, while the Apocryphon ofJames
2:19-24 has it as 550 days after the Resurrection. Finally, Pis tis Sophia 1.1 has Jesus
staying for eleven years after his resurrection before he ascends to heaven.
115. Kretschmar ("Himmelfahrt und Pfingsten," 209-53) assembles the evi-
dence. The Teaching ofAddai appeared to link the two celebrations (pp. 209-10)
and Eusebius (first half of the fourth century C.E.) celebrated the Ascension 50 days
While a Moses motif may indeed be present in this narrative, there are
also alternative, non-Mosaic associations that are possible for each of
these elements. The forty days not only recall Moses' stay on Mt. Sinai,
but also Elijah's journey to Mt. Horeb (1 Kgs 19:8). 116 Jesus' blessing of
his followers at the end of his earthly stay not only recalls Moses' final
blessing, but also Jacob's (Gen 49) or the high priest Simon's (Sir 50:20-
22).117 While the cloud does recall Moses' encounter with God at Sinai, a
cloud is also a regular feature of Hellenistic and Jewish assumption

stories. 118 Furthermore, some of the associated evidence is late and many
of the motifs are vague enough that an allusion to Moses/Sinai may not
necessarily have been meant. 119 For instance, while the suggestive phrase
E~~yctyEv 6E: autouc; ("he led them out") is used, it must be noted that those
who are lead out soon afterwards return to the city. 120 Moreover, many of
these allusions are complex and vague, enough so that it is doubtful that
a first-century reader or hearer of the text could reasonably be expected
to notice them. 121
after Easter (PG 24, col. 700 [p. 211]). In his commentary on Matt 9:15, Jerome
implies that the Montanists also celebrated the Ascension on Easter (PL 26, col. 58
[p. 211 ]). Kretschmar argued that this tradition was independent of that found in
Acts and in fact antedated it. The fact that the Ascension and Pentecost were
celebrated on the same day probably reflected the fact that the Festival of Weeks wllS
associated with the Sinai event. He also analyzed the evidence from Acts 2-noting
that Peter's speech in Acts 2:32-36 linked the Ascension with the giving of the
Spirit-and Eph 4:7-11, as well as the evidence from rabbinic literature, Jubilees,
and evidence from early Christian art (pp. 218-20). He concluded that a Moses-
typology associated with the feast of Pentecost was very early, probably at least as
early as the Maccabean period (Jubilees) if not earlier (cf. 2 Chr 15:10). See also
Goudoever (Biblical Calendars, 195-205) who also discusses various dates assigned
to the Ascension and Pentecost by the early Church (much of it overlapping with
Kretschmar's discussion).
116. Elijah's stay at Horeb, of course, is itself an allusion to Moses at Mt. Sinai
(Exod 3-4; 19-34), and establishes him as a prophet in the mold of Moses (cf. Deut
18:15-18).
117. As in the case of Lev 9:22, this also represents a very close verbal parallel
to that in Luke 24:50.
118. 1 En. 14:8; Josephus, Ant. 4.326 (of Moses); Rev 11:12.
119. For instance, Jesus does not after all ascend from Mt. Sinai, but from the
Mt. Olivet.
120. As noted by Zwiep, The Ascension of the Messiah, 87.
121. On the other hand, it is also not unreasonable to suppose that an author
purposely included allusions that he did not necessarily expect most of his readers/
hearers to pick up on, but included them for those precious few who had eyes to see
or ears to hear. Compare the intricacy of Jubilees' use of chronology: the fact that
However, taken collectively, it is hard to imagine that some sort of

allusion to Moses/Sinai is not intended by Luke, especially when one
considers the wider theological background. The Isaianic New Exodus is
a prominent theme in Luke-Acts, and the Pentecost narrative represents
the restoration of the nation of Israel promised in Isa 40. Moreover,
while these elements may be reminiscent of other biblical events, the
confluence of all of them-as found in this text-is not associated with
any other single event attested in the Hebrew Bible or elsewhere, which
does not invoke the momentous events at Sinai.
3.3. Allusions to Moses/Sinai in the Pentecost Narrative (Acts 2: 1-13)

The Pentecost narrative (Acts 2: 1-4) describes the giving of the Spirit in
very dramatic terms:
1 Kal EV tt\l OUf.t:rrAT]poilcr8aL t~v ~J.l.Epav til~ TTEVtT]KOcrtfl~ ~crav mivtE~ OJ.l.Oil
ETTL tO auto. 2 Kal EYEVE'CO &<t>vw EK toil oupavoil ~xo~ WOTTEp <\>EpOJ.l.EVT]~
TTvofl~ PLala~ Kal ETTA~pwcrEv ol..ov tov oiKov ou ~crav Ka9~J.l.EVOL 3 Kal
w<\>8T]Oav autoi:~ liLaJ.l.EpL(OJ.l.EVaL yA.wcrcraL WOELTTUpo~ KaL EKU9LOEV E<\>' 'Eva
'E'Kacrtov avtwv, 4 Kal ETTA~09T]crav mivtE~ TTVEUJ.l.ato~ &ylou ml ~p~avw
AaAELV EtEpaL~ yA.wcrcraL~ Ka8w~ to TTVEilJ.l.a EMiiou d:TTo<\>8E'yyEcr9aL autoi:~.
1 When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2
And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing
wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided
tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. 4 And
they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other
tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2: 1-4)
The descent of the Spirit recalls the Sinai theophany account in Exod
19:16-20; 20:18, where Yahweh's presence on the mountain 1s
described:
~P1 ,;;;;-~ll i~f WJ1 0'i?l~1 li~p 'D~l ,i?,jiJ n;i;J:;l '1!.i>71fo oi•~ 'D~l "
:iUnr.l:l ,WN Ollil"~::l i,n'l iNIJ ptn ,!J\!)
:,ilil n'nnn:a 1:lll'n'l ilmr.Jil·r";;'t;,;;~Nn' n~ip~ 'ou;·~;.;N ilU>i:l 'Nlli'; 17
JIV;~il 1U>v;
hwv ~ij;, ~N3 ~,;;, ,,~u -, 11VN,
" . - ., ., , ., --- .. , • ' "
;.;, 'Jso i;::> i~u..-,J'o 1i11 1'
" -, , .:iNo 1nil.:~j ;.:;;,.,
:~ip:J Ull.l' O'ii~Nill 13i' iliVi:l iNIJ ptm 1~iil 1bilV~·~ip 'il;l···;;
1ili1 w~.;-~;:i-·;wb~ ~;;;, Kip•, :;ilil w~,~~'N 'l;o ,il:~u ~,,il, ;;;; 10
,, ., . ' , ' " - ,, ., - . - - :'il~b -~~~]
this intricacy and nuance would escape the notice of many (presumably well-
educated) readers and, in particular, the vast majority of ordinary hearers did not
prevent the author from incorporating the most complex numerological scheme
imaginable into his work. In short, authors do not necessarily restrict themselves to
what they think an audience will pick up on.
16 On the morning of the third day there were thunders and lightnings and
a thick cloud on the mountain and a very loud trumpet blast, so that all
the people in the camp trembled. 17 Then Moses brought the people out of
the camp to meet God, and they took their stand at the foot of the
mountain. 18 Now Mt. Sinai was wrapped in smoke because the LORD had
descended on it in fire. The smoke of it went up like the smoke of a kiln,
and the whole mountain trembled greatly. 19 And as the sound of the
trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in
thunder. 20 The LORD came down on Mt. Sinai, to the· top of the
mountain. And the LORD called Moses to the top of the mountain, and
Moses went up (MT Exod I 9: I 6-20)
16 EYEVHO 6E •u ~f.LEPI)". •u -rpL 1:1J YEVTJ6EV1:0t; TTpoc; op6pov KO:L Eytvov-ro
cjlwvo:l KO:L &.o-rpo:TTO:L Ko:L VEcjJEAT] yvocpw6T]c; ETT' opouc; :Ewo: cpwv~ l:f)c;
acfA.m yyoc; ~xn f.LEYo: Ko:l i:mo~eTJ TTiic; 6 A.o:oc; 6 Ev -rfl TTo:pEf.LPoA.fl 17 ml ·
E~~yo:yEv Mwuof)c; -rov A.aov Eic; ouvcfvl."TJOLV -roD 6EOD ix -rf)c; TTo:pEf.LPoA.fic; Ko:l
TTO:pEO"rTJOO:V UTTO 1:0 opoc; 18 1:0 6€ opoc; 1:0 :Ewo: fKO:TTVl(HO OAOV 6uX. 1:0
KO:-ro:PEPTJKEVO:l ETT' o:u-rb "J:OV 6EOV EV TTUpl KO:L &.vE'pawEV 6 KO:TTVOc; we; KO:TTVOc;
KO:f.Ltvou Ko:l E~EO"rTJ TTI"ic; 6 A.o:oc; ocp66po: 19 i:y[vov-ro 6€ o:\. cjlwvo:l -rf)c;
ocfA.m yyoc; TTpopo:lvouoo:L ioxup6-rEpo:L ocp66po: Mwuof)c; EMA~L 6 liE 6Eoc;
°
ttTTEKp [vo:-ro o:un\i cjlwvu 2 KO:-rEPTJ 6E KUp LO~ ~TTL"J:O opoc; 1:0 :Ewo: ETTL"r~V
Kopucjl~v -roD opouc; KO:L EKclAEOEV KUpLOc; Mwuof)v ETTL l:~V KOpucjJ~v wu
opouc; KO:L ttVEPTJ Mwuof)c;. (LXX Exod 19: I 6-20)
Several correspondences can be noted: 122 ( 1) both events happened in the

morning (Exod 19:16; Acts 2:15); (2) fire (IV~= LXX nupl.) appears in
both accounts (cf. Exod 19:18; Acts 2:3); (3) cognate terms ~xoc; (Acts
2:2) and ~XH (Exod 19:16) appear in relation to a great sound, though the
former is connected to the sound of a rushing wind (note that it refers
just to the sound, not that there was a rushing wind) and the latter is
connected to the sound of trumpets (which is, nevertheless, a wind
instrument); and (4) the word ri?p (=LXX ljlwval.) also appears in both
contexts (Exod 19:16; 20:18; cf. 19:19). This is, in fact, the key to the
understanding of the link between the two passages. In the context of the
Sinai theophany, it denotes "thunder" in the plural (or more specifically,
the sound of thunder). More commonly, however, this term would denote
"sounds" or "voices". The "voices" that were heard were taken by later
interpreters to refer to God's words, which he would utter in giving the
Ten Commandments.
In Exod 20:18, where the text resumes describing the theophany after
the recitation of the Ten Commandments, the text says that the people
"saw the voices":
122. On the following discussion, see VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks,"

198-200.
~q:l!WlJ iQv·n~l itJWiJ ?ip ntt] tl!'~~iJ-n~] ri?ipiJ·n~ tl'~"l tllJQ-?~1

:phll;;l11T;Jl}:)1))~:1 tllJQ
Now when all the people saw the sounds and the lightning and the sound
of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and
trembled, and they stood. (MT Exod 20:18)
o
Kat n&c; A.aoc; E:wpa 1:~v <jlwv~v Kat 1:ac; A.a!J.mx.Sac; Kat 1:~v <jlwv~v 1:f]c;
aaA.TTL yyoc; K!Xl 1:0 opoc; 1:0 K!XTIVL(ov <J>oP119EV1:Ec; cSE n&c; 0 A.aoc; E01:1101XV
jJ.!XKp09EV
And when all the people saw the sound and the lightning and the sound of
the trumpet and the smoking mountain, the people were afraid and stood
afar off. (LXX Exod 20: 18)
In Ps 29, a text that eventually became a lectionary reading for the

Festival ofWeeks, the voice of Yahweh is praised seven times. Verse 7
reads:
:wtt ni:Jq7 :J¥h nJ;,:·?;p (MT Ps 29:7)
<jlwv~ Kup(ou cStaK6movtoc; <j>A.6ya nup6c; (LXX Ps 28:7)
The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire.
Later interpreters took this and speculated that the Israelites at Mt. Sinai
literally did see God's voice. 123 Philo (ca. 20 B.C.E.-50 C.E.) is a prime
example. In a passage that contains many other parallels to Luke's
account, he writes:
33 I should suppose that God wrought on this occasion a miracle (9aujJ.a-
toupyfioat) of a truly holy kind by bidding an invisible sound (~xov

&:opa1:ov) to be created in the air more marvelous than all instruments and
fitted with perfect harmonies, not soulless, nor yet composed of body and
soul full of clearness and distinctness, which giving shape and tension to
the air and changing it to flaming fire, sounded forth like the breath
(TTVEU!J.a) through a trumpet an articulate voice (<j>wv~v toaaun1v l'vap9pov)
so loud that it appeared to be equally audible to the farthest as well as the
nearest. .. 35 But the new miraculous voice (<j>wv~v) was set in action and
kept in flame (i:(wm)pEt) by the power of God which breathed upon it
(ETTLTTvEouoa 9Eou cSUvajJ.tc;) and spread it abroad on every side and made it
more illuminating in its ending than in its beginning by creating in the
souls of each and all another kind ofhearing far superior to the hearing of
the ears ... 44 It was natural that the place should be the scene of all that
was wonderful, claps of thunder louder than the ears could hold, flashes of
lightning of surpassing brightness, the sound of an invisible trumpet
123. Of course, i1Ni can have a more general meaning in the sense of "to
experience" as in Est 9:26 and Lam 2:16. However, early Jewish interpreters often
squeezed texts to derive interesting interpretations.
reaching to the greatest distance, the descent of a cloud which like a pillar
stood with its foot planted on the earth, while the rest of its body
extended to the height of the upper air, the rush of heaven-sent fire (TTupo~
oupav(ou ,Pop/F) which shrouded all around in dense smoke ... 46 Then
from the midst of the fire that streamed from heaven (aT!' OUp!XVOU T!Upo~)
there sounded forth to their utter amazement a voice, for the flame
became articulated speech in the language (ljJA.oyo~ EL~ liuiAm:ov) familiar
to the audience, and so clearly and distinctly were the words formed by it
that they seemed to see rather than hear them. 47 What I say is vouched
for by the law in which it is written, "All the people saw the voice," a
phrase fraught with much meaning, for it is the case that the voice of men
is audible, but the voice of God truly visible. Why so? Because whatever
God says is not words but deeds, which are judged by the eyes rather than
the ears. (Decal. 33, 35, 44, 46-47). 124
In another account of the Sinai event at Spec. 2.189, he adds that the
sound reached the ends of the earth:
For then the sound of the trumpet pealed from heaven and reached, we
may suppose, the ends of the universe, so that the event might strike
terror even into those who were far from the spot and dwelling well nigh
at the extremities of the earth (iov iooxanai.~ Kal:olKouna~), who would
come to the natural conclusion that such mighty signs portended mighty
consequences (1:& oihw~ IJ.qaA.a IJ.qaA.wv liTTOl:EAEOIJ.al:wv i:o1:l OTJIJ.Ei.a).
And indeed what could me.n receive mightier or more profitable than the
general laws which came from the mouth of God, not like the particular
laws, through an interpreter?
The parallels between Philo's accounts taken together and Luke's are
remarkable in their similarity, especially considering the fact that they
are describing two different events. The following key terminology in
Philo is also found in Luke: ~xov, TIUpo<;, TIVEUf.l!X., cj>wv~, oupa.vou, OLIIAEK-
'WV, Ka.toLKouvta<;. The parallels have been summarized by Max Turner
in the following way:
Both Philo and Luke (i) envisage a holy theophany before the assembled
people of God; (ii) in each case we have to do with a redemptive-histori-
cal event on earth which is formative for that people of God, marking a
124. Text and translations of Philo are from Colson and Whitaker, Philo. The
images of wind and fire are also associated with the word of God at Sinai in Tg.
Ps.-J. on Exod 20:2: "The first word, as it came forth from the mouth of the Holy
One, whose Name be blessed, was like storms, and lightnings, and flames of fire,
with a burning light on His right hand and on His left. It winged its way through the
air of the heavens, and was made manifest unto the camp oflsrael, and returned, and
was engraven on the tables of the covenant that were given by the hand ofMosheh"
(John W. Etheridge, The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan Ben Uzziel on the
Pentateuch [New York: Ktav, 1968]).
real new beginning of some kind-a mighty "sign" of mightier conse-

quences, as Philo puts it; (iii) in each this sign or wonder involves a
miraculous sound, and a rush of something "like" fire from heaven
descending to the people, and dividing to reach all, and (iv) in each case
this results in a miraculous form of speech, spreading and so coming to be
heard by a multiplicity (of Israel alone or of the far-away too?) in their
own language, and destined to reach "the ends of the earth" ... (v) each·
involves an important "gift" given to God's people and (vi) this gift
comes to Israel as the consequence of Israel's leader (both Philo and Luke
would add "and King" [e.g., Mos. 2.1-7, etc.]) ascending to God! 125
Philo's reference to the fact that "from the midst of the fire that streamed
from heaven (lin' oupocvou nup6c,;) there sounded forth to their utter amaze-
ment a voice, for the flame became articulated speech in the language
(~A.oyoc,; de; ouiAEK-rov) familiar to the audience" (Dec. 46) recalls (albeit
imperfectly) the speaking in tongues recounted in Acts 2:5-13:
5 ·Haa.v cSE: Et~; 'lepouoa.}..Tjf.L Ka.tOLKolivte~; 'loucSa.'i.oL, &vope~; eu}..a.~e'i.~; c:i:rro
1T(X.Vt01; ~evou~; tWV U1TO tov oupa.v6v. 6 YEVOf.LEVT]I; OE tf]~; <jlwvf]~; ta.UtT]I;
ouvf]}..8ev to n}..f]SD~; Ka.l ouvex.ue!], ott i)Kouov et~; EKa.oto~; tfl i.cSLQ: 1iLa.}..eKt<y
}..a.}..ouv-cwv a.u-cwv. 7 ~~La-ca.v-co 1iE Ka.l ~ea.uf.La.(ov }..eyov-ce~;· oux. loou
iina.vtEI; OUtOl ELOLV ol MAOUVtEI; ra.ALMLOL; 8 K(X.L1TWI; ~f.LE'i.~ aKOUOf.LEV
u
EKa.o-coc; tf1 icSLQ: 1iLa.AeKt<y ~f.Lwv Ev hevv~e11j.1ev; 9 rr&pSOL Ka.l Mf]1ioL Ka.l
'EMf.L'i.ta.L Ka.l ol Ka.toLKolivte~; -ci]v Meoonota.f.LLa.v, 'Iouoa.La.v te Ka.l
Ka.nna.1ioKLa.v, IT6v-cov Ka.l -ci]v "AaLa.v, 10 <llpuyLa.v tE Ka.l ITa.f.L<!JuHa.v,
Alyuntov Ka.l t& f.LEPTJ tf]c; AL~UTJ<; tf]c; Ka.toc Kup~VTJV, Ka.l ol E1TLOT]j.10livtec;
'Pwj.la:'i.oL, 11 1ou1ia.'i.ot tE Ka:lnpoo~}..utoL, Kpf]tec; Ka.l "Apa.~ec;, aKOUOf.LEV
A(X.AOUVtWV a.u-cwv ta.'i.e; ~f.LEtEpa. L<; yAWOOa. L~ tOC f.LEya.}..e'i.a. tOU eeou. 12
E~lOta.VtO OE navtEI; Ka.LOLT]1TOpouv, iXAAOI; npo~; &Uov Uyovte~· tl 8EAEL
tolito dva.L; u hepoL 1iE liLa.x.}..eua(ovte~; f:A€yov ott y}..euKou~; f.LEf.LEotw-
j.lEVoL elotv.
5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every
nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and
they were bewildered, because each one was hearing them speak in his
own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, "Are not
all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each
of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites
and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,
10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to
Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and
Arabians-we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of
God." 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another,
"What does this mean?'' 13 But others mocking said, "They are filled with
new wine." (Acts 2:5-13)
125. Turner, Power from on High, 284-85.

In Philo's account it is God who speaks in flame which becomes articu-

late speech and it is the audience who hears it in a "familiar language,"
whereas in Luke's account it is the people who speak iri languages
familiar to.the Jews of varying cultural backgrounds, albeit inspired by
the "tongues of fire" descending from heaven .
.Parallels to the Acts (and Philo's) account of the miraculous sound
and the languages spoken on the day of Pentecost can be found in later
rabbinic tradition. Like Philo, some rabbis took the text literally when it
said that the Israelites saw the sounds:
"Now when all the people saw [perceived] the thunderings [and the
lightnings and the sound of.the tmmpet and the mountain smoking, the
people were afraid and trembled]": "They saw what could be seen and
heard what could be heard," the words of R. IshmaeL R. Aqiba says,
"They saw and heard what could be seen, they saw something of fire
coming forth from the mouth of the Almighty and striking the tablets, as
it is said, 'The voice of the Lord hewed out flames of fire' (Ps 29:7):"
(Mekhilta de R. Ishmael, Bahodesh 9) 126
This rabbinic tradition also combined two biblical passages in order to
explain the "voices" of Exod 19:16 and 20:18. Genesis 10 lists the
seventy nations of the earth. If the "voices" were languages, then Ps
68:11 [12] might explain what the purpose of all these languages was:
"The Lord gives the word; the women who announce the news are a
great host." 127 That is, the languages were meant to spread the news of
the law to all the nations of the earth in their own language.
Thus, the Babylonian Talmud records Rabbi Jochanan as saying:
"Every single word that went forth from the Omnipotent was split up
126. The translation is from Jacob Neusner, Mekhilta According to Rabbi

Ishmael: An Analytical Translation. VoL 2, Amalek, Bahodesh, Neziqin, Kaspa and
Shabbata (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1988). As rabbinic works go, this is one of the
earlier ones. Strack and Sternberger date a final redaction to the latter half of the
third century C. E. (Strack and Sternberger, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash,
255). Compare also Tg. Neof Exod 20:2 ("The first commandment that went forth
from the mouth of God like flashes and lightning and fiery lamps-a fiery lamp to
His left and a flaming lamp to His right-flew up and glided aloft in the air and then
came back, and all [the people] of Israel saw it and were afraid, it came back and
was engraved on the two tablets") and Pirqei de Rabbi Eliezer 41 ("R. Judah said:
When a person speaks with his fellow, he himself is seen but his voice is not seen.
But Israel both heard God's voice and saw the voice going forth from His mouth,
and lightning and thunder, as it says, "And all the people saw the voices") as cited in
Kugel, Traditions of the Bible, 676.
127. On the connection of Ps 68 with Moses at Sinai in Jewish and Christian
literature, see further below.
into seventy languages" (b. Sab. 88b). 128 Similarly, Rabbi Ishmael is cited
as saying: "Just as a hammer is divided into many sparks, so every single
word that went forth from the Holy One, blessed be He, split up into
seventy languages" (b. Sab. 88b). 129
John G. Davies argues that there are verbal and conceptual parallels
between the Tower of Babel story (Gen 11:1-9) and Acts 2. 130 He lists
the following: <jlwv~ (Gen 11:1, 7; Acts 2:6); oupo:v6<; (Gen 11:4; Acts
2:2); 1Tflp (Gen 11 :3; Acts 2:3); yA.wooo: (Gen 11 :7; Acts 2:4); and OUYXEW
(Gen 11 :7; Acts 2:6). 131 The giving ofthe Spirit, resulting in the ability to
communicate in different languages, Davies argues, represents the rever-
sal of the curse from Babel. 132 It should be noted that the crowds in both
cases are confused (ouyxEw) when they hear the different languages
being spoken (Gen 11 :7; Acts 2:6). 133 This background makes perfect
sense in context, since the Babel story would have deep resonances with
the scattering of the Jews due to the exile. 134 Luke often fuses traditions
together; here the symbolic reconstituting of the nation of Israel on the
day of Pentecost draws on both Sinai and the Tower of Babel events,
with the negative effects ofthe Tower of Babel event being symbolically
reversed by the events at Sinai. 135
It should be noted that Luke elsewhere mentions speaking in tongues
(Acts 10:46; 19:6), but in no other instance does he mention the other
theophanic elements of sound, wind or fire. 136 Note also the instances in
128. Isidore Epstein, ed., Hebrew-English Edition of the Babylonian Talmud

(35 vols.; London: Soncino, 1935-52), 2:420. In Exod. Rab. 28:6, Rabbi Jochanan is
cited as saying the same thing in connection to the Sinai event as well.
129. Mekhilta de Rabbi Ishmael, Bahodesh 5 states that the Torah was offered to
the nations ofthe world, implying that the Torah was communicated to them in their
own language.
130. John G. Davies, "Pentecost and Glossolalia," JTS 3 (1952): 228-31.
131. Ibid.
132. It may be overstating it to say that it is a reversal since there is no unifi-
cation ofthe diverse languages into one common, universal language. Rather, it is an
overcoming of the barrier of language instituted as a result of the Tower of Babel
incident. Nevertheless, clearly Davies basic point stands.
133. Hee-Seong Kim, Die Geisttaufe des Messias: Eine kompositiongeschicht-
liche Untersuchung zu einem Leitmotiv des lukanischen Doppelwerks. Ein Beitrag
zur Theologie und Intention des Lukes (Bern: Lang, 1993), 158-60.
134. After all, as a result of the Tower of Babel incident, Abraham ends up in
"exile" in Ur of the Chaldees (i.e. Babylon).
135. On Luke fusing together Mosaic and Davidic traditions, see, for instance,
the discussion of Turner, Power from on High, 286.
136. Later, fire becomes a widespread symbol for the Torah (see 2 Bar. 59: 1-2;
b. Ta'anith 7a; b. B. Bat. 78b; Sifre on Deut. 343; Tg. Onq. Deut 33:2; Tg. Neof
Deut 33:2; Aquila, Symmachus, Vulgate Deut 33:2).
Acts where individuals are said to be filled with the Spirit (Acts 4:8,
31; 6:3; 7:55; 8:15-17; 9:17; 10:44-47; 11:15-16, 24; 13:9, 52; 15:8;
19:2-6). In none of these other instances are the theophanic elements
present in association with the coming of the Spirit upon individuals.
This strongly suggests that there is indeed something special about the
first outpouring of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost, that it is in some
sense inaugural or a beginning point. There is no better parallel to such a
phenomenon than the original founding ofthe nation oflsrael at the foot
ofMt. Sinai.
The makeup of the crowd that gathers around Peter is carefully
defined, unlike the amorphous crowds that gather so often to listen to
Jesus (Acts 2:5-11). The giving of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost
occurred in the presence of Jews fi·om "every nation under heaven" (Acts
2:5). 137 Peter, who stands as the representative of the twelve apostles,
offers the gift of the Spirit to those Jews who are gathered from the
Diaspora (Acts 2:38). The twelve apostles represent the core of the
restored people of God, who number 120 (Acts 1: 15), and will soon
swell to 3000 (Acts 2:41), thanks to the conversion of many of those in
the audience. This restoration is depicted in terms recalling the original
constitution of the people of God at Mt. Sinai.
Menzies analyzes these parallels and is unimpressed. 138 He raises three
main, overarching objections. First, along with the similarities are many
distinctions which are often overlooked. With respect to the differences
between the Lukan account and Philo, Menzies cites the following differ-
ences: (1) Luke associates the Spirit rather than God's voice with the
wind and fire imagery; (2) Luke does not associate these metaphors
directly to the language miracle; (3) Philo does not refer to God's voice
being transformed into different languages as in the Pentecost account;
(4) In Philo, the words are not heard so much as they are seen; (5) Light-
ning is entirely absent in the Lukan account, as is the trumpet blast; and
(g) Philo connected the giving of the law with the Festival ofTiumpets,
not Pentecost. 139
13 7. See Scott, Geography in Early Judaism and Christianity, 66-84.

138. Menzies, Empowered for Witness, 193-98. He cites the well-known
cautions voiced by Samuel Sandmel, "Parallelomania," JBL 81 ( 1962): 1-13, which
are the theoretical basis for the objections he raises. See also Strauss, The Davidic
Messiah in Luke-Acts, 145--47.
139. Menzies, Empowered for Witness, 195. VanderKam ("The Festival of
Weeks," 205) adds the following difference: in Acts 2, the message offered to the
Jewish people gathered in Jerusalem was accepted, whereas in the rabbinic literature,
the Torah was rejected.
With regard to the differences between the language miracle of the

rabbinic literature and Acts 2, Menzies notes the following differences:
(1) in the rabbinic literature, the oracle is delivered by God, rather than
Spirit-inspired disciples; (2) the rabbinic literature also speaks of individ-
ual words divided into different languages, which is completely different
from Luke's account; and (3) the number oflanguages (seventy) cited in
the rabbinic texts differs markedly from the Lukan account. 140
Second, the parallels adduced between Acts 2 and the texts from Philo
and the rabbinic literature are not unique to Sinai traditions, but represen~
tative of a broader milieu. With respect to the terminology and imagery
common to Acts 2 and Philo (and the rabbinic traditions), Menzies cites
several texts as containing many of the same elements as found in these
texts, all without an allusion to Sinai implied. 141 To cite just one example,
he points to 4 Ezra 13:1-10, where a divine figure likened to "wind"
(ventus) and associated with "clouds from heaven" (nubibus caeli; 13:3),
whose "voice" (vox) is compared to "fire" (ignem; 13:4), and from whose
mouth comes "streams of fire" (jluctum ignis), and "flaming breath"
(spiritumflammae); and from whose tongue (lingua) "a stonn of sparks"
(scintillas tempestatis; 13:1 0) issues forth. 142 Menzies argues, based on
these other parallels, that the features of Acts 2 and other texts such as
Philo are not specific to the Sinai traditions, but are the common cur-
rency of the theophanic traditions found in various texts.
The first two general objections may be addressed together. In short,
Menzies approach is wrong-headed. Certainly, he has shown that there is
no direct literary dependence between Luke, Philo, and the rabbinic
examples cited, but nobody argues for this. Luke, Philo, and the rabbinic
midrash all give very different accounts, even when, in the case of Philo
and the rabbinic literature, they are describing the same event: that is, the
theophany at Sinai. The problem for Menzies's argument, however, is
that Luke is not attempting to describe the Sinai event itself, but rather a
much different event, the descent of the Spirit, in terms that are only
meant to recall Sinai. If Philo and the rabbis (and Josephus or anyone
else for that matter) can differ in so many details in describing the same
thing (i.e. the theophany at Sinai), it is highly unrealistic to demand that
Luke's account, which is describing an entirely different event (but
nevertheless couched in terms intended to recall the Sinai theophany), to
140. Menzies, Empowered/or Witness, 197.

141. In this connection, one should note that "fire" (TTup) is commonly found in
biblical theophanies (Gen 15:17; Exod 3:2; 13:21-22; 14:24; 19:18; 24:17; Deut
4:12,24,33, 36; 5:4; 10:4; 1 Kgs 19:12; 2 Kgs 2:11; LXX Ps 17:9.
142. He also cites 1 En. 14:8-25; 2 Sam 22:8-15; lsa 66:15-16.
match up in every single detail. One should not be surprised, then, that
there are many great and small differences between the accounts. Rather,
the real question, as Turner notes, is this: Would the account of Pentecost
in Acts 2 remind a well-informed reader (or what Structuralists might
call the "ideal reader") of the momentous events of Sinai, despite all the
differences, or something else entirely? 143 As will become clear, there are
simply too many structural, thematic, conceptual, and linguistic parallels
to think that Sinai is not being evoked here.
Furthermore, with respect to the non-Sinai parallels Menzies cites,
they are not as impressive as it might seem at first blush. First, most of
them, while containing some impressive linguistic parallels, are missing
some important structural and conceptual parallels. Take 4 Ezra 13 for
instance. The situation envisaged here is vastly different from that found
in Exod 19 (and the midrashic interpretations on it) and Acts 2. Unlike
Exod 19 or Acts 2, 4 Ezra 13 is a vision in heaven. Moreover, while a
multitude is gathered, as at Sinai in Ex.od 19 and on the day of Pentecost
in Acts 2, in the case of 4 Ezra 13, this multitude is gathered to wage war
against the divine figure. Also, unlike in Acts 2 and in Exod 19, there is
no sense that there is a new beginning for a reconstituted nation (or in the
case of Acts 2, the inaugmation of the Christian community). In addition,
while the voice of the divine figme is featured prominently, it is not a
message to be heard by a multitude for their benefit, but a form of judg-
ment, words as fire that destroys those who hear it. These key conceptual
differences serve to underline how foreign this "parallel" is to Acts 2,
and simultaneously underlines some of the key conceptual similarities
between the account found in Acts 2 and the midrashic interpretations of
Exod 19 and20. Finally, there is the fact that in 4Ezra 13:39, according
to the interpretation of the vision given by the Most High, the fire which
comes forth from the.mouth of the divine figure represents the law, so it
may be that somewhere in the background to this text a Sinai allusion is
nevertheless lurking. 144 Despite Menzies's alleged non-Sinai parallels to
143. Turner, Power from on High, 283. Of course, not all readers, especially
Gentiles, could be expected to pick up on this or other allusions. Authors often put in
allusions knowing that not all readers will pick up on them. However, Luke must
have expected his most astute readers to have been able to do so. Therefore, Luke's
readers, though predominantly (but surely not exclusively) Gentile, must have been
well acquainted with scriptural traditions for him to include so many allusions (cf.
Luke T. Johnson, "Luke-Acts, Book of," ABD 4:405).
144. Many of the same objections can also be raised for Menzies's other cited
texts, which are generally even weaker parallels than 4 Ezra 13. I En. 14 also
depicts a heavenly vision, unlike Exod 19 and Acts 2. 2 Sam 22:8-16 incorporates
Acts 2, it remains a fact that the confluence of so many elements is found

in connection to only one event: Moses and the children of Israel at Mt.
Sinai.
Finally, to deal with the third of Menzies's objections, it should be
noted that he argues that using late rabbinic texts as "parallels" for New
Testament writings is anachronistic, since there is no evidence that these
rabbinic legends have any claim to have been around in the first-century
C.E. He cites, in particular, the absence ofthe seventy languages in Philo
and Josephus as proof that this tradition was late, though he does allow
that since Philo's account emphasizes the universal dimension of the
oracle, that Philo "represents a stage in the progressive development of
the Sinai tradition which was a necessary antecedent to the tradition
concerning the seventy languages."I4s
While it is certainly true that the rabbinic literature is later (usually
much later) than the first century C.E., and that some of the more specific
elements show great development, there is ample attestation for a more
general connection between the Festival of Weeks and the Sinai event in
the book of Jubilees and the Qumran Scrolls, and even hints in the
Hebrew Bible (2 Chr 15:10) as has been shown above. In other words,
nothing in the argument thus far depends solely on the rabbinic evidence.
There is clear and ample evidence that a connection between Sinai and
the Festival of Weeks was at least possible far before the rabbinic
period. 146 Furthermore, while the rabbinic literature does greatly develop
some of these midrashic elements, some of these elements are already
present in Philo. Moreover, though different languages are not referred to
in Philo's account, he does mention something that is suggestive of
this-namely, that the audience heard the articulate speech in a "lan-
guage familiar to the audience" (c'iL«tAEK-cov ... -c~v auv~811-co'i.c; &:KpOWIJ.E-
vDLc;). Finally, there is also the likelihood, that this association did not
just appear out of thin air inthe rabbinic period, but must have had some
antecedents from an earlier period.
3.4. Allusions to Moses/Sinai in Peter's Pentecost Speech (Acts 2: 14-42)

3.4.1. The Prophet Joel and the Fulfillment of Mosaic Expectation.
Although they are not immediately obvious, Peter's Pentecost sermon
reworked elements of the Sinai theophany in the context of God's rescue of David.
lsa 66:15-16 ha_s only very minor parallels to Acts 2.
145. Menz~s, Empoweredfor Witness, 197-98.
146. This is true even if Luke had absolutely no knowledge of Jubilees or the
Qumran Scrolls. The very fact that these texts made this association shows that such
an associatjon was possible in Luke's time.
does contc;lin two main allusions to Moses which are prominent concep-
tual features of his speech. Peter begins his sermon with a quote from the
prophet Joel:
17 Ko:l Ecrco:L iov 1:o:1c; ·ioaxcho:Lc; ~!lEpo:Lc;, I..Eyn 6 8E6c;, EKXEW thro roil
1TVEUj.lO:c6c; j.lOU ETTt micro:v crapKO:, KO:t 1TPD<Pll'EUGOUGLV ol ulol Uj.lWV KO:t o:l
Suyo:cEpEc; Uj.lWV KO:t ol VEIXVLO"KOL Uj.lWV 6pcicrnc; oo/OV"I:IXL KO:t oi.TipEcrPUcEpOL
vjlwv iovuTiv(oLc; EvuTivLo:crS~crovmL · IH Ko:( yE ETIL 1:ouc; lioul..ouc; !lou Ko:l ETIL
cac; lioul..o:c; j.lOU EV "I:O:Lc; ~j.lEpo:Lc; EKELVO:Lc; EKXEW lirro toU1TVEUj.l0:1:0c; j.lOU, KO:t
TIPD<Pll'EUGOUO"LV. 19 KO:t liwcrw 1:Ep0:1:0: EV cQ oupo:vQ &vw KO:t Gllj.lELO: E1Tt cf]c;
yflc; Klicw, o:tllo: Ko:l 1Tilp Ko:l a.,ll(lio: Ko:Tivou. 20 6 ~?..we; llno:cr,po:<jl~no:L ELc;
adwc; KO:t ~ crEI..~vll Eic; O:Lj.lO:, 1Tplv ioi..8E1v ~j.lEpo:v Kup(ou 1:~v llEYiiATlV KO:L
/cm<jlo:v,. 21 KO:L EO""I:IXL 1Tiic; oc; liv E1TLKO:AE0"111:0:L 1:0 OVOj.lO: Kup(ou crw8~GHO:L.
17 And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my
Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and
your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams;
18 even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour
out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy. 19 And I will show wonders in the
heavens above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and vapor of
smoke; 20 the sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood,
before the day of the Lord comes, the great and magnificent day. 21 And it
shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord
shall be saved. (Acts 2:17-21; cf. Joel2:28-32; 3:1-5])
This prophecy echoes the Mosaic longing found in Num 11:29: "Would
that all Yahweh's people were prophets, that Yahweh would put his
Spirit on them!" 147 In this biblical text, Yahweh descends in a theophany
and transfers some of the Spirit from Moses to the seventy elders, who
then proceed to prophesy (Num 11 :25).
Furthermore, the "signs" and "wonders" involving "fire" and "smoke"
would evoke descriptions of Sinai (Exod 19: 16-20). Moses, who per-
formed signs and wonders before Pharaoh (Exod 4:8-9; Acts 7:36), is
thus consciously set in parallel with Jesus who is also said to have
performed signs and wonders immediately following the quote from Joel
(Acts 2:22).
Moreover, the beginning of this quote, where the phrase "in the last
days" substitutes for "after these things," may also be intended to invoke
a Sinai allusion since this phrase (i.e. "in the last days" [i=v ta:l.c; i:axata:Lc;
~f.LEpa: Lc;]) is found only in Is a 2:2 in the LXX. 148 Here the law is described
147. Midr. Ps. 14:6 also sees Joel2:28-29 [3:1-2] as the fulfillment of the hope
expressed in Num 11:29.
148. Pao (Acts and the lsaianic New Exodus, 156) notes that !sa 2:2-4 is a key
text describing the going forth of the word of Yahweh from Jerusalem. Just as the
as going forth from Mt. Zion (Isa 2:3), on the basis of which Yahweh
will judge the nations. 149
The unquoted portion of the Joel passage (LXX Joel3:5b) surely lurks
in the background of Luke's thought and speaks to the purpose and
rationale of Peter's sermon corning as it does in the context of the
outpouring of the Spirit in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost that all have
just witnessed:
on EV tQ opn ~LWV KO:L EV IEpOUOO:AT]f.l EOTO:L O:vo:cr<¥(0f.!EVO~ Ko:86n EL1TEV
dpw~. m\. EOo:yyEA.L( Of.IEVOL' ou~ KUp LO~ 1Tp00KEKAT]TO:L
For it will be in Mt. Zion and in Jerusalem that there will be a remnant,
just as the Lord said, and they will be evangelized, those whom the Lord
calls. (Joel 3:5b) 150
The final phrase "those whom the Lord calls" is echoed by Peter in his
final call to salvation (Acts 2:39): "everyone whom the Lord our God
calls to himself' (ooou<; &v npooKaAEorrrcn Kupw<; 6 8Eo<; ~J.!wv). The
prophecy of Joel fits perfectly into the interpretation of Pentecost
because it mentions not only the outpouring of the Spirit, but also the
proclamation of the gospel to the gathered remnant of the people of God
in Jerusalem. 151
In the context of Joel's prophecy, the outpouring of the Spirit on all
flesh is a sign that Judah and Jerusalem's fortunes will be restored by
God (Joel3). This was a traditional expectation associated with Israel's
restoration. Various texts in Isaiah (11: 1-9; 42:1; 61: 1) indicate that a
Spirit-endowed individual (Davidic Messiah, the Servant of Yahweh)
will be associated with the restoration oflsrae1 (cf. Luke 3:21-22). It was
also a common expectation that the Spirit would be poured out on the
whole nation (Isa 44:3; Ezek 36:26-27; 39:25-29). The Joel citation fits
into this tradition. By citing Joel2:28-32, Peter was announcing that the
restoration oflsrael had been inaugurated by the outpouring of the Spirit.
Most of the rest of Peter's speech does not address the restoration of
Israel or contain allusions to Moses and Sinai (but see discussion of Acts
2:33 below). Rather, Peter focuses on Jesus as the Davidic Messiah
instead which might appear puzzling in light of the arguments advanced
Law of Moses went forth from Sinai, so the word of Yahweh will go forth from Mt.
Zion. In the New Exodus, Zion has become the heir of Sinai.
149. For further discussion, see Leo O'Reilly, Word and Sign in the Acts of the
Apostles (Rome: Pontifical Biblical Institute, 1987), 24-25.
150. The portion underlined differs from the Hebrew. For Euo:yyEA.L(owvoL, the
MT reads 0'1'iiV ("survivors").
151. Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, 60-61.
here, but this is easily explained. Clearly, in his speech, Peter is more
·concerned with dealing with the issue of who is the cause of the out-
pouring of the Spirit (especially the fact that Jesus is not dead, but has
been restl.rrected and lives), rather than the issue of what the outpouring
of the Spirit actually means or signifies (perhaps it was considered self-
evident?).152
In this respect, Peter's speech at the Temple (3:12-26), which comes
shortly after the Pentecost event, comes closer to addressing conceptu-
ally the issue of the meaning of the events on Pentecost. Specifically, in
the middle of his speech, Peter refers in Acts 3:20-21 to "times of
refreshing" (Ka.Lpot ava.ljn)~Ewc;) and the "time for restoring all things"
(xpovwv tllTOKa.ta.otaOEWc;; navtwv). The first phrase appears to be based
on lsa 32:15, where the term avaljlu~Lc; occurs in Symmachus's trans-
lation of the passage. 153 Interestingly, in Symmachus' translation, the
outpouring of the Spirit appears to be understood as the advent of
"refreshing," since Symmachus reads ava~Lc; instead ofnVEUj.La., as the
other LXX manuscripts do. Furthermore, note the strong parallel between
Acts 2:38 and 3:19-20a:
Ilhpo~ liE 1Tpoc; a.\rrou~· !-1Ha.vo~aa.'tE, [cj>!]cr(v,] Ka.l J}a.1Tna8~•w EKa.a•oc;
U!-1WV E1TL t<\i OVO!la.n 1T]OOU XpLOtOU Eic; acj>EOLV tWV li!la.pnwv U!-1WV Ka.l
A~!ll(IE08E t~v 1iwpHtV tou &.y(ou 1TVEU!-1a.toc;.
And Peter [said] to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the
name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive
the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38)
19 1-lEta.vo~aa.tE ouv Ka.l ematpel(la.tE ELc; to E~a.Ancj>Sijva.L U!-1WV. tac;
&.~a.pt(a.c;, 20 OlTWc; /iv EA8WOW Ka.LpOL !iv~l(lu~EW~ alTO 1TpOOW1TOU tOU KUpLOU
Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, 20 that
times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. (Acts 3: l9-
20a)
Here again the parallel suggests a connection between the reception of
the Spirit and the "times of refreshing." The phrase "times of refreshing,"
then, quite clearly refers to the outpouring of the Spirit on the day of
Pentecost (cf. Joel2:28-32//Acts 2:17-21).
152. Even this might be cutting too fine a line, since Davidic and Mosaic
elements are fused in both the Isaianic New Exodus theme and Luke's appropriation
of it since Moses represents the restoration of the people of God as a nation, and
David represents the return of a king who reigns over a restored and reunited people
of God in their ancestral territory allotted to them by the Abrahamic promises .
. 153. In the LXX, it only occurs in Exod 8:11, a context that has only the most
general relevance to the context in Acts. Isa 32:15 is elsewhere alluded to in Luke
24:49.
The term "restoration" (aTioKa:r:aoramc;) in the phrase "time for restor-

ing all things" does not occur in the LXX, but the cognate verb &noKa8(o-
TTJilL is a technical term for the restoration of the people of God to their
own land by God. 154 Thus, both phrases refer to the same overall event:
the restoration of the people of God as inaugurated by the outpouring of
the Spirit. Moreover, Peter declares that this restoration was predicted by
the holy prophets and cites the fact that Moses, the prophet par excel-
lence, predicted that a prophet like himself would arise to proclaim these
things:
18 But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ
would suffer, he thus fulfilled. 19 Repent therefore, and tum again, that
your sins may be blotted out, 20 that times of refreshing may come from
the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for
you, Jesus, 21 whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all
the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long
ago. 22 Moses said, "The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me
from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. 23
And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be
destroyed from the people." 24 And all the prophets who have spoken,
from Samuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days.
25 You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made
with your fathers, saying to Abraham, "And in your offspring shall all the
families of the earth be blessed." 26 God, having raised up his servant,
sent him to you first, to bless you by turning every one of you from your
wickedness. (Acts 3:18-26)
Since Luke combines many images in his portrait of Jesus (Davidic

Messiah, prophet like Moses, Elijah), it is not surprising that he does not
focus exclusively on one image (i.e. the prophet like Moses). Indeed,
since the restoration of Israel is in mind, drawing on the image of Jesus
as Davidic Messiah makes a lot of sense in this context. However, it is
impossible to deny the many Mosaic elements that are also present, as
some scholars tend to do.
3.4.2. A Possible Allusion to Psalm 68:18 {19] in Acts 2:33. There is a

possible veiled allusion to Moses and the Sinai event near the end of
Peter's speech in Acts 2:33:
33 tiJ OE~li[. ouv toii 8EOii ul!Jw8El~. t~V tE i:mryyEA.lo:v wii TrVEUf.LO:W~ toii
o
&ylou Ao:~wv no:pa -roii no:cp6~. t#XEEV wii-ro Uf.LEL~ [Ko:t] ~AETrHE Ko:t
a.KOUHE.
!54. Albrecht Oepke, "ti.noKo:8locT)f.LL, &noKo:nio-ro:ot~," TDNT I :388.

33 Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received
from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that
you yourselves are [both) seeing and hearing. (Acts 2:33).
The immediate context makes clear that this is primarily understood in

terms of the Davidic covenant. However, it is possible that a Mosaic
allusion forms a key part of the background to this verse. 155
The logic ofPeter's argument in Acts 2:29-36 suggests that his heir is
unlike David himself; that is, a descendant of David was resurrected and
ascended to God's right hand, where he received a great gift which he
subsequently gave to all. Peter's point is that this descendant of David
did not act in a Davidic manner at all, for if he did, then his argument
would necessarily fall apart. Since there is no tradition in Judaism in
which a Davidic Messiah ascends to heaven in order to receive a gift
which he then gives to his people, this suggests an alternative back-
ground.IS6
The fact that Luke often fuses Mosaic and Davidic elements together
suggests another possibility. 157 As mentioned above, Moses' ascent of
Mt. Sinai was sometimes considered a heavenly ascent. 158 In this connec-
tion, it is often suggested that Ps 68:18 [19] is the background for this
verse. 159 Here the relevant portion of the verse is cited in the MT and the
LXX:
155. Especially in light of Luke's Isaianic New Exodus motif, which fuses
Mosaic and Davidic elements.
156. Cf. Turner, Power from on High, 286. Contra O'Toole ("Acts 2:30 and the
Davidic Covenant of Pentecost," 245-58) who argues that the argument in 2:22-36
is built on the Davidic promise alone.
157. Brawley, "Abrahainic Covenant Traditions," 125; Turner, Power from on
High, 286.
158. Wayne A. Meeks, The Prophet-King: Moses TraditionsandtheJohannine
Christology (NovTSup 14; Leiden: Brill, 1967), 122-25; Harris, The Descent of
Christ, 123-42; Zwiep, The Ascension ofthe Messiah in Lukan Christo logy, 64--71.
Turner (Power from on High, 286) cites Josephus (Ant. 3 .77-78) as a close parallel to
Acts 2:33. Here Josephus describes Moses' ascent of Sinai and says that the people
were "exulting in the thought that Moses would return from God's presence with that
promise ofblessings (nit; Ellayyd.tat; 1:WV aya9wv) which he had led them to expect."
159. Wilfred L. Knox, The Acts of the Apostles (Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press, 1948), 85-86; Kretschmar, "Himmelfahrt und Pfingsten," 211-21;
Charles F. D. Moule, "The Ascension-Acts i.9," ExpTim 68 (1956-57): 205-9;
Barnabas Lindars, New Testament Apologetic: The Doctrinal Significance ofthe Old
Testament Quotations (London: SCM, 1961), 42-59, 97-104; Jacques Dupont,
"Ascension du Christ et don de !'Esprit d'apres Actes 2:33," in Christ and Spirit in
the New Testament (ed. Barnabas Lindars and StephenS. Smalley; Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1973), 219-28; Harris, The Descent ofChrist, 96--1 04;
Turner, Power from on High, 286-89.
011;9 nil.t;IQ .t;lr;ti?'? '=;!~ J;l':;lo/ Ci11!l'? J;l''?¥

You ascended on high; you led captives captive; you received gifts
among men. (MT Ps 68:19a)
cXVE~TJ~ EL~ ulf/0~ UXJ11XAW'tEUOIX~ IXLJ(;J11XAWOLIXV ~Aa~~ cS6J11X'tiX EV civ9pW11ql.
among them. (LXX Ps 67:19) 160
Since Sinai is mentioned in Ps 68:9, 17 [MT], rabbinic tradition asso-

ciated Ps 68:19 [MT] with Moses. 161 In fact, after his comprehensive
survey, Harris finds that "every time Ps 68:19 was mentioned in the
rabbinic literature, it was (without exception) interpreted of Moses and
his ascent to heaven to receive the Torah." 162 The issue is whether this
association can be traced back to the first century C.E.
Ephesians 4:7-10 may very well provide some evidence confirming
that Ps 68:19 was associated with Moses and the Sinai event before the
rabbinic period. 163 Ephesians 4:8 contains the only clear citation of Ps
68:19 in the New Testament:
live~~ el~ ulf/0~ UXJ11XAW'tEUOIX~ IXLJ(;J11XAWOUxV ~A.rxBe, li6J11X'tiX l=v civ9pW1T!\)
(LxxPs67:19)
When he ascended on high he led a host of captives, and he gave gifts to

men. (Eph 4:8)
The quotation shows some minor differences with the LXX, but there is in
addition, one major difference: instead of"you received" (eA.a~E<;) as in
the LXX, Eph 4:8 reads "he gave" (eOWKEv). The LXX reading reflects the
MT, which also reads "you received" (nnp7). Here the targum on Ps
68:19 provides a remarkably similar reading to that found in Eph 4:8:
Ui12 Nn::lD' Nn'11N 'Dln'.!l Nn.!llzN Nn"::lUI Nn':lUI N"::ll DUIO P'j217 Nnpryp
NUll 'l:l7 IJOD
160. There are no major variations from the MT.

161. SeePesiq. Rab. 47:4; Midr. Tehillim 22:19; 68:11; Sop. 16:10; PirqeR. El.
46. On the interpretation ofPs 68 (especially v. 19) in rabbinic tradition, see Harris,
The Descent ofChrist, 64-95. It must be emphasized once again that these works are
all centuries later than Luke, so reliance on them for traditions dating to the first
century C.E. is tenuous.
162. Harris, The Descent of Christ, 91.
163. Ibid., 104-11, shows that texts such as Testament ofDan 5:11; Testament
ofZebulun 4:8; Jub. 24:31-32 do not have Ps 68:19 in the background.
You ascended to the firmament, prophet Moses; you led captivity captive;
you taught the words of the Law; you gave gifts to the sons of men.I 64
Here, the Targum reads "you gave" (Nn:J.il' which is the second person
equivalent to Eph 4:8, "he gave" (EOWKEv). 165 However, this targum is
very late and displays other differences with the text form found in Eph
4:8. For instance, the second person is used consistently in the targum,
whereas Eph 4:8 uses a participle and the third person. 166 Rather than
some kind of dependent relationship, it is possible that one scribe some-
where simply misread the verb np7 ("to receive") for p~n ("to distrib-
ute") and that the author of Ephesians (and later the targumist) simply
capitalized on this variant reading.
The citation ofPs 68: 19 in Eph 4:8 occurs in a context, the interpreta-
tion of which is hotly disputed. This text has traditionally been
interpreted as referring to a descensus ad inferos ("descent into hell"). 167
More recently, however, it has been increasingly understood to refer to
the lncamation. 168 However, tl1ere is also a competing interpretation,
arguing for an allusion to Pentecost in these verses. 169
164. The text is from Paul de Lagarde, ed., Hagiographa chaldaice (Lipsiae: in
Aedibus B. G. Teubneri, 1873). The translation is my own. The underlined portions
represent the equivalent of the base text ofPs 68:19.
165. The Syriac also preserves "you gave" (&::lm....), but since it is uncertain
whether this represents a reading tradition independent of Eph 4:8, it would be
unwise to rely on it. ·
166. See the discussion in Harris (The Descent of Christ, 66--75).
167. The descensus ad inferos was widely held from the time of the ancient
Church; see Ignatius, Magn. 9:3; Polycarp, Phil. I :2; lrenaeus, Haer. 4.27.2; 5.31.1,
and 5.33.1; Tertullian, An. 55.2, among others. Many of these Church Fathers saw
Eph 4:7-11 as teaching Christ's descent into hell; Tertullian, An. 55.2, and Chry-
sostom, Hom. Eph. 11.81-82, to cite just a couple of early examples. This is still the
dominant position among biblical scholars (though the most recent studies have
definitely tended away from this interpretation). Some of the more recent, notable
works are the following: Friedrich Biichsel, "Ka.1:wnpo~," TDNT3:641--42; James D.
G. Dunn, Christology in the Making: A New Testament Inquiry into the Origins of
the Doctrine of the Incarnation (London: SCM Press, 1980), 186-87; Clinton E.
Arnold, Ephesians: Power and Magic: The Concept ofPower in Ephesians in Light
ofIts Historical Setting (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1989), 56-58; Larry J. Kreitzer, "The
Plutonium of Hierapolis and the Descent of Christ into the 'Lowermost Parts of the
Earth' (Ephesians 4,9)," Bib 79 (1998): 381-93. The latest, most substantial defense
of this position is that of Anthony T. Hanson (The New Testament Interpretation of
Scripture [London: SPCK, 1980], 135-50).
168. The theory that Eph 4:7-10 refers to the Incarnation also has some early
attestation going back to Theodore ofMopsuestia in the fifth century B.C. E. (Harris,
The Descent ofChrist, 14-15) but is not nearly as commonly held as the decensus ad
inferos throughout Christian history. It has won a number of modem adherents,
The dispute revolves around three key interpretive cruxes. First, the
decensus ad inferos assumes a three-story universe (of heavens, earth,
and Hades) but Ephesians seems to assume only a two-story universe (of
heaven and earth). Other references in Ephesians to the evil powers pic-
ture them not below the earth, but in the air/heavens above the earth (or
perhaps in an in-between region, between the heavens and the earth): 170
avaKEcj>aA.aLwoao9aL '!:a rr&vm EV cQ XpL01:Q, '!:eX ElTL 1:0l1; oupaVOL1; KaL ta
Errt ti'j1; yi'j1;
to unite all things in Christ, those in the heavens and those on the earth.
(Eph 1: 10)
Ev at, rrocE rrEp LErrat~oatE Kata tov aiwva tou KDOilou toutou, mta tov
&pxovta 1:TJ1; i:~ouo(a, 1:0U aEp01;, toU 1TVEUilato1; tOU viiv EVEpyoiiVt01; EV tol1;
uloi:1; ti'j1; arrEL9ELa1;·
in which you once walked according to the age of this world, according to
the prince of the power of the air, the spirit which is now working in the
sons of disobedience. (Eph 2:2)
however, including the following: Rudolf Schnackenburg, "Christus, Geist und

Gemeinde (Eph 4: 1-16)," in Lindars and Smalley, eds., Christ and Spirit in the New
Testament, 287-96; idem, Ephesians: A Commentary (trans. H. Heron; Edinburgh:
T. & T. Clark, 1991), 169-80; Markus Barth, Ephesians: Translation and Commen-
tary on Chapters 4-6 (AB 34A; Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1974), 432-34;
Ernest Best, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Ephesians (ICC; Edinburgh:
T. & T. Clark, 1998), 373-88; Peter T. O'Brien, The Letter to the Ephesians (Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), 286-97.
169. Among the more substantial recent work taking this position; see Caird,
"The Descent of Christ," 535-45; Kirby, Ephesians, Baptism and Pentecost, 145-
46; Calvin H. Porter, "The Descent of Christ: An Exegetical Study of Ephesians
4:7-11," in One Faith: Its Biblical, Historical, and Ecumenical Dimensions (ed.
Robert L. Simpson; Enid, Okla.: Phillips University Press, 1966), 45-55; Andrew T.
Lincoln, Paradise Now and Not Yet: Studies in the Role ofthe Heavenly Dimension
in Paul's Thought with Special Reference to his Eschatology (SNTSMS 43; Cam-
bridge: Cambridge University Press, 1981), 155-63; idem, "The Use of the OT in
Ephesians," JSNT 14 (1982): 16-57; idem, Ephesians (WBC 42; Dallas: Word,
1990), 242-48. The most extensive recent defense of this position is undoubtedly
that of Harris (The Descent of Christ). Thorsten Moritz (A Profound Mystery: The
Use of the Old Testament in Ephesians [NovTSup 85; Leiden: Brill, 1996], 56-86)
sees the Jewish Pentecost as the background to this text but argues that the author of
Ephesians is employing Eph 4:8-10 as a Christian polemic against identifying
Moses and Torah with Ps 68.
170. Cf. Plato's 6aLilWVE1; (Symposium 202d-203a) who are intennediate beings
between gods and men and who inhabit that space between heaven and earth. Even if
this were the case, however, it would still make the earth, the lowest point in
Ephesians' cosmology.
'(vex yvwpw8fl vi)v "t:CXL~ apxrxi.~ KCXL "t:CXL~ E~oua(rxL~ EV "t:Ol~ ElTOUpcxv(oL~ 1iu1
"t:fi~ EKKATJa(cx;~ ~ l!oA.ul!o(KLA.o~ aocp(cx; wu 8Eoil
that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might now be made
known to the principalities and the powers in the heavenly places. (Eph
3:10)
on OUK E'anv ~fl.LV~ lTIXATJ 1Tp0~ CXlf!CX KCXL alipKrx aA.A.& llpO~ ,Q;~ apxli~. llpO~
1:&~ E~oua(rx~. llpo~ wu~ KOOf!OKpliwprx~ 1:ou aK6wu~ 1:ouwu, llpo~ 1:&
lTVEUf!CXnKO: "t:fi~ lTOVTJp(cx;~ EV 1:01~ Ellouprxv(oL~.
For we are not wrestling with blood and flesh but against the principali-
ties, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against
the spiritual forces of iniquity in the heavenly places. (Eph 6: 12) 171
As these passages attest, the realm of the powers and principalities is not
in the depths of the earth, as the descensus ad inferos interpretation
would appear to require, but in the heavenly places, that is, the air. For
this reason, most recent interpreters reject this interpretation.
ra
Second, accordingly, many scholars take KcxrwrEpcx rf)<; yf)<; as a geni-
tive of apposition, which is fairly common in the book of Ephesians. 172
Those who take ra
KCX1"W1Epcx rf)<; yf)<; as referring to a descensus ad
inferos take this phrase as a partitive or comparative genitive indicating a
place lower than the earth and in stark contrast to imEpavw which indi-
cates the extreme uppermost of the heavens. 173 They argue that the geni-
tive of apposition is strange if a two story universe is assumed: why not
171. Cf. also Eph 1:20-21.

172. Caird, 'The Descent of Christ," 539. He cites Eph 6:14-17 (1:ov SwprxKrx "t:fi~
liLKrxLOauVTJ~, "the breastplate of righteousness; 1:ou EurxyyEHou "t:fi~ dp~VTJ~, "the
gospel of peace"; 1:ov 8upEov "t:fi~ TI(a"t:EW~, "the shield of faith"; 1:~v lTEpLKEcjlrxA.rx(rxv
wil OW"t:TJplou, "the helmet of salvation"); 2:15 (1:ov vof.i.ov 1:wv EvcoA.Wv, "the law of
the commandments"); 2:14 (1:0 f!EOO"t:OLXOV 1:ou yprxyf!oil, "the dividing wall of
hostility"); 2:20 (nil 8Ef!EHC¥ 1:wv ri1Toa1:6A.wv KrxlllpocpTJ"t:Wv, "the foundation of the
apostles and the prophets").
173. Some manuscripts insert a f!EPTJ after KCX1:W1:Eprx. This does not make much
· difference in the sense of the phrase one way or the other, though it may affect the
understanding of cfi~ yfi~. On balance, the manuscript tradition favors the longer
reading, since it is geographically widespread, early, and supported by a much larger
number of witnesses. However, the internal evidence favors the shorter reading. The
only plausible explanation for an original longer reading resulting in an omission is
simple error. On the other hand, one could explain the longer reading from an
original shorter reading by the scribal practice of inserting explanatory glosses. On
balance the shorter reading is to be preferred, since it is harder to explain how it
could have dropped out of such an early, important witness such as P46. For an
excellent discussion of the issues, with a contrary conclusion, see Harris, The
Descent of Christ, 40-45.
just refer to the earth simply? 174 However, the author could simply be
contrasting the earth itself (rather than the underworld) with the upper-
most parts (unEpavw) of the heavens. This leaves, then, two interpretive
possibilities: Incarnation or Pentecost.
Third, to most scholars, it has seemed that the most natural and
reasonable reading ofEph 4:7-10 implies that Christ first descended and
then ascended, which would indicate a reference to the Incarnation and
subsequent Ascension. However, there are good reasons for opting for
the Pentecost interpretation, which would reverse the order to first an
ascent and then subsequent descent, or Ascension and Pentecost. For one
thing, the context clearly favors a reference to the giving of the Spirit,
since the Spirit is explicitly mentioned in Eph 4:1-6 as the key element
in the unity of the body. Though all are called to lead a life worthy ofthe
calling, there is only one body and one Spirit. The section following Eph
4:7-10 (i.e. 4: 11-16) delineates the types of calling that is typical in the
church-namely, in terms of the various types of ministry-which in all
their diversity, nevertheless all work towards the unity referenced in 4: 1-
6 (in which the Spirit plays a key role).
Thus, Eph 4:7-10 denote~ the fact that Christ gave these gifts.
However, if the author's intention in quoting Ps 68:19 was to make the
point that Christ, upon ascending, gave gifts (or gifted individuals) to the
body of Christ, vv. 9-10 are completely unnecessary, since the giving of
gifts is asserted in vv. 7-8. Verses 9-10 would then be completely paren-
thetical to the argument. 175
Harris cogently argues that, formally, the point the author wishes to
make is that Ps 68:19 implies a descent subsequent to the ascent (v. 9);
that is, that when the Psalm says "he ascended ... " the part of the quote
that says " ... and he gave gifts ... " implies a subsequent descent in order
to distribute the gifts.1 76
Furthermore, the deeper point that the author of Ephesians wishes to
make here is that the one who ascended is the same as the one who
descended (v. 10). 177 Such a statement, Harris argues, makes no sense in
the context ofthe Incarnation, since it would be completely superfluous.
However, since the Ascension involves Christ and the descent involves
the gift of the Spirit, an insistence on the identity of the one who
174. See, for example, Arnold, Ephesians, 57.

175. Harris notes that the United Bible Societies' Greek New Testament in the
2d and 3d editions punctuated the text in this way; cf. the RSV.
176. Harris, The Descent of Christ, 177-80.
177. Ibid., 181-82.
ascended (Christ) and the one who descended (the Spirit)-that is, that
(in some sense at least) Christ= the Spirit-makes perfect sense, if the
author assumed that this was not a common understanding. 178
A very close relationship between Spirit and Christ is implied in
various passages from Paul's writings (1 Cor6:17; 15:45; 2 Cor3:17-18;
cf. Rom 8:9; Gal4:6; Phill: 19). 179 Therefore, in vv. 9-10, it is likely that
the author wishes to stress the point that the ascended Christ has not
abandoned his followers at his Ascension, but has actually returned in
the person of the Spirit. Indeed, elsewhere in Ephesians there are hints at
the close relationship between Christ and Spirit in such passages as 1: 13
(where the believer is sealed with the Holy Spirit in him [i.e. Christ]),
3: 16-17 (where the Spirit strengthens the inner man and Christ dwells in
the heart through faith), and 5: 18 (where the formula l:v TIVEUf.UX"l: L may
correspond to the formula EV XpLa14\). 180
Ephesians4:7-10 does not explicitly mention the Festival ofWeeks.
However, if Harris' interpretation is correct, then it is likely thatPs 68:19
was linked by the author of Ephesians to Moses' ascent of Mt. Sinai
(which, even without the evidence from the targum, is linked to Sinai in
its original context) and the giving of the Spirit (even ifPentecost is not
explicitly mentioned), and would suggest such a background if it is
indeed the basis of Peter's speech in Acts 2:33 (in a context in which
Pentecost is explicitly mentioned [Acts 2:1]).
Dupont argued that a Moses-typology did indeed lie behind Acts
2:33. 181 He began from the recognition that the speeches in Acts are
Lukan compositions, but that the scriptural quotations they contained
pointed to the underlying traditions. He believed that when the redac-
tional modifications and additions of Acts 2:33-34-based on the trans-
fer of the passage from Moses to Jesus-could be properly identified and
the original wording rediscovered, it would reveal that Ps 68: 19 did
indeed lie behind Acts 2:33:
178. Ibid., 172-82.

179. I do not assume Pauline authorship here. Even if Ephesians is deutero-
Pauline, however, a disciple of Paul could be expected to depend on Pauline modes
of thought and theology, or at least attempt to.
180. The latter suggestion is by Barth, Ephesians, 2:582 n. 117.
181. Dupont, "Ascension du Christ," 219-28. He builds on theworkofHenry J.
Cadbury ("The Speeches in Acts," in The Beginnings ofChristianity 1.5. The Acts of
the Apostles [ed. Frederick J. Foakes Jackson and Kirsopp Lake; London: Mac-
millan, 1933], 402-27), Kretschmar ("Himmelfahrt und Pfingsten," 211-21), and
especially Lindars (New Testqment Apologetic, 42-59, 97-104).
avEPTJ~ ei~ uwo~ UXf.L!XAul't€\JO!X~ a.lxf.La.A.wol.a:v Ua.pe~ OOf.L!Xta. EV av9pul'1Tql.
among them. (LXX Ps 67: 19)
tfl &~u~ ouv toil eeoil uwwee(c;, t~V t€ E1Ta.yyeA.I.a.v toil 1TV€Uf.L!Xt0~ toil ayl.ou
A.a.pwv 'IT!XpcX toil 1Ta.tp6~. E~EXEEV toilto BUf.LEL~ [KilL] PA.ElTEtE K!XL aKOUHE.
Therefore, having been exalted at the right hand of God, and having
received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out
this that you yourselves are [both] seeing and hearing. (Acts 2:33)
The phrase avE~TJ<; El<; u\jJO<; finds its echo in the word injJw6E(<; and the
expression EAa~E<; li6f.Lrxta finds its echo in .l..a~wv. The phrase "to the right
hand of God" (tflliE~u~ ... toil 6Eoil) is an addition anticipating the quote
from Ps 110:1 in Acts 2:35. "The promise of the Holy Spirit" (t~v
hrxyyEALIXV tou 1TVEUf.L!XtO<; tou ay(ou) is a redactional change based on the
fact that the "gifts" alluded to in Ps 67: 19 could be identified as the Holy
Spirit in light of the quote from Joel 2:28-32 (cited in Acts 2:17-21 ).
The phrase "he has poured out what you see an~hear" (E~EXEEV toilto o
~AE1TEtE KIXL cXKOUEtE) is a redactional modificatidn based partly on the
putatively original reading "he gave" (EiiWKEV [cf. Eph 4:8]), seen in light
of the wording of the quote from Joel2:28-32 (which begins "I will pour
out" [eqew] and refers to seeing visions and prophecies [which, as
auditory phenomena, must implicitly be heard; cf. Acts 2:22]) in Acts
2:17-21. 182 Finally, avE~TJ of Acts 2:34 represents Lukan redaction, now
being applied negatively to David ("For David did not ascend to
heaven"), instead of being applied to Moses ("You ascended on high";
cf. LXX Ps 67: 19). In short, all the elements of Acts 2:33 could be
accounted for in terms ofPs 68:19 as filtered through the context of the
day of Pentecost as narrated in Acts 2.
In sum, since there was no Davidic "ascent" tradition (a fact that Peter
capitalizes on to prove Christ's resurrection [cf. Acts 2:34]) as there was
a Mosaic one, and since the audience would most certainly have known
of a Mosaic ascent which resulted in the receiving of a gift which he then
gave to the people of God, and furthermore, since Moses was the one
biblical personage (other than Elijah) who transferred the Spirit to other
Israelites and expressed the hope that the Spirit would be given to the
182. · Dupont ("Ascension du Christ," 219-28) also argued, based on the parallel
descriptions of Christ (Acts 5:31 [which may contain an allusion toPs 68:19]) and
Moses (Acts 7:25, 35), that the Moses-typology was clearly present in Acts and was
also therefore likely present behind Acts 2:33.
whole nation (Num 11 :26-30; cf. Joel 2:28-32), it is reasonable to

conclude that Acts 2:33 does presuppose a Mosaic background. 183
However, objections have been raised against such an interpretation
by several scholars. 184 Menzies and Bock both take issue with the
specifics ofLindars 's and Dupont's proposed method of peeling back the
redactional layers of Acts 2:33. 185 While the proposal is undoubtedly
speculative, there is nothing inherently improbable about it, as even
Menzies concedes when he says that it is "ingenious" and "appears
plausible at first sight". 186 Moreover, even when looking at the text as it
is, it is clear that, as Peter himself points out, there is no precedent for a
Davidic ascent to heaven, whereas there are precedents for a Mosaic one.
Moreover, the reference to ascending and then pouring out the Spirit
recalls Moses' ascent and giving of the law to the assembled people of
God at Sinai.
R. O'Toole argues that the covenant that underlies the Lukan Pente-
cost is not the Mosaic covenant but the Davidic covenant (2 Sam 7: 12.:...
16). 187 In summing up his argument, he points out:
Although the Sinai covenant appears in his Institution Narrative and in
Acts 7:38, Luke has not worked this covenant into his theology. He also
rejects the law as a means of salvation almost as vigorously as does Paul.
Moreover, Luke almost always identifies "Moses" with the law. In the
passages where he does not (cf. Luke 9:28-36; Acts 3:22-23i 7:20---44),
no explicit mention of the Sinai covenant or the law occurs. 188
First of all, O'Toole makes too sharp a dichotomy between the Mosaic
and Davidic covenants in Luke-Acts. For him, the Lukan Pentecost is
either Mosaic or it is Davidic. Since the promises to David are amply
implied in Peter's Pentecost speech (cf. vv. 25, 29, 34-35), and the
Mosaic covenant is nowhere explicitly mentioned, he reasons that it is the
Davidic covenant, and it alone, that lies behind the Pentecost narrative in
183. Note that the sequence "received ... poured out..." (A.o:pwv ... E~EXEEV ... )
applied to Christ in Acts 2:33 is somewhat reminiscent of what Stephen says of
Moses in Acts 7:38 "he received living oracles to give to us" (lolif~o:'to ...liouvo:t ... ).
18.4. Bock, Proclamation from Prophecy and Pattern, 181-86; O'Toole, "Acts
2:30 and the Davidic Covenant of Pentecost"; Menzies, Empowered for Witness,
198-201.
185. Menzies, Empowered for Witness, 199-200; Bock, Proclamation from
Prophecy and Pattern, 182.
186. Menzies, Empowered/or Witness, 199.
187. O'Toole, "Acts 2:30 and the Davidic Covenant of Pentecost," 245-58; cf.
also Bock, Proclamation from Prophecy and Pattern, 182-83.
188. O'Toole, "Acts 2:30 and the Davidic Covenant of Pentecost," 257.
Acts 2. This is based on a false assumption, however. In fact, both the

Mosaic and the Davidic covenants are alluded to here as the arguments
above amply attest. The only interpretation that makes sense of all of the
allusions in the text is that Jesus is the son of David who is also a
prophet like Moses. 189
Second, the fact that Moses or Sinai is not mentioned in the Pentecost
narrative is no obstacle to this interpretation. First of all, as mentioned
above, Peter's initial speech does not focus on the meaning and signi-
ficance of the events on the day of Pentecost, aside from the quotation of
Joel2:28-32, and this clearly recalls a Mosaic background, whatever else
it recalls. 190 Rather, his speech focuses on trying to prove that it is Jesus
ofNazareth who is responsible for the Pentecost event, since he is raised
and exalted at the right hand of God, and uses Davidic allusions to make
his point. However, it is important to note that the Davidic allusions do
not serve to draw out the meaning and significance of the day of
Pentecost as much as it draws out who is responsible for it. Furthermore,
this allusion to David is a way of proclaiming the present reign of Jesus
as the Davidic messiah (Acts 2:32-35) over the restored and reunited
nation as envisioned in Isaiah and appropriated by Luke in fulfillment of
the Abrahamic promises. The meaning and significance of the day of
Pentecost is tied to the Isaianic New Exodus theme in Luke-Acts, which
clearly recalls a Mosaic background, though not exclusively so (i.e. it
includes Davidic elements as well).
Furthermore, the allusions to Sinai are ample and clear. The New
Exodus theme which can be traced throughout both parts of Luke-Acts
has as its climax the reconstitution of the people of God. While the
Davidic Messiah is the one who leads the way and makes this recon-
stitution possible, the very fact that the people of God are reconstituted
inescapably recalls the original formation of God's people at the foot
of Mt. Sinai. In other words, there is no need for Luke to be explicit
about a connection to Moses or Sinai since such a connection would
have been blatantly obvious: the Davidic messiah is the one who will
accomplish the New Exodus, which inevitably points back to Sinai
anyways. This makes the Davidic Messiah a new Moses of sorts, in both
Isaiah (where the Servant has both Messianic and Mosaic characteristics)
189. Turner, Power from on High, 289. Again, it bears repeating that Luke
likely derives this from the New Exodus theme as found in Isaiah which fuses
Davidic with Mosaic themes.
190. Note that Peter quotes Joel and then more or less draws no significance
from it, other than identifying Jesus as the one who accomplished what Joel was
talking about.
and Luke-Acts (where Jesus is both the Davidic Messiah and the Prophet
like Moses).
As for a reference to the law or covenant, the very point of the Lukan
Pentecost is that Christian identity is now tied up with the Spirit, rather
than the law or covenant. 191 Therefore, the law and covenant are quite
properly not mentioned in the context, but the implications of this are
spelled out in the rest of Acts, where Jew and Gentile alike are marked
by the Spirit, either at conversion or shortly thereafter, and the law is no
longer the key determining factor in salvation or what it means to be a
Christian (cf. Acts 13 and 15).
On a final note, Peter's closing exhortation to "Save yourselves from
this crooked generation" (tf\<; yEvEii<; tf\<; oKoA'ia<; tfXlJtT)<; [Acts 2:40]) con-
sciously alludes to the wayward wilderness generation which Moses
condemns in Deut 32:5 (yEvEa oKOALa Kill. oLEOtpa:f.Lf.LEVTJ ["crooked and
twisted generation"]). Furthermore, it is likely that the three thousand
who convert in Acts 2:41 are meant to stand in stark contrast with the
three thousand who fell at the hands of the sons of Levi when Moses
returns fi·om Mt. Sinai and finds the Israelites worshipping the golden
calf (Exod 32:28). Note the dose verbal correspondence:
and that day three thousand men of the people fell. (Exod 32:28)
KIX t 1TpOOHE9TJOIXV EV tiJ ~flEP~ EKEl V1J \jJU)(IX t wad tp LO)( [A.ta L.
and there were added that day about three thousand souls. (Acts 2:41) 192
3.5. Ideal Community in Luke-Acts

The first wave of conversions on the day of Pentecost results in the
formation of the first Christian community. The portrait of this com-
munity is highly idealized:
42 ·Haav ole lTpOOK!XptEpouvtE~ tiJ OLO!X)(iJ rwv aTioar6A.wv KIXL riJ KOLVv.w[~.
riJ KMOEL wu &prou KIXL ra'i~ lTpooEu)(ak 43 €y[vno oE mxou ljluxiJ cp6po~.
191. This is not to suggest that Jewish Christians will no longer observe the
stipulations of the covenant, as Wilson (Luke and the Law) points out. However, the
fact nevertheless remains that it is no longer the Law that will mark out who the
people of God are, but rather the Spirit, a fact that is amply attested throughout the
book of Acts where the Spirit consistently comes upon new believers, Jew and
Gentile alike. See further below.
192. It is also possible that Jer 52:28 is being alluded to (though note that this
particular passage is not found in the LXX of Jeremiah), since the text reports that
3023 people were deported in the seventh year ofNebuchadnezzar (cf. "about three
thousand souls"), and, all told, 4600 people by the 23rd year ofNebuchadnezzar.
TioUci TE TEpcna Kal. OT)iJ.EI.a 1itex rwv ciTioor6A.wv (oyLvno. 44 TiaVTE~ liE oL
1TLOTEUOVTEC: ~aav E1TL TO ttUtO KO:L ELXOV iinavta Ka.l tfl Kt~!JCX.''CO:
KOlVCi 45
KO:L rex~ imcip~EL~ ETILTipaoKov KO:L OLEIJ.Ept(ov aura TiiioLV Ka96n ifv n~
XPELav ELXEV' 46 Ka9' ~IJ.Epav TE 1!pooKapTEpoilvTE~ OiJ.08uiJ.r.:OOv EV T<\i i.Ept;i,
KA.wvrE'~ n Ka•' oi:Kov ifp1:ov, IJ.ETEA.aiJ.Pr.:vov •pmpfi~ E:v ciyr.:UtcioEL Kal.
ciq,EA.61:T)TL KapoLa~ 47 O:LVOUVl:E~ l:OV 9EOV KO:l EXOVl:E~ xciptv 1Tp0~ oA.ov l:OV
o
A.aov. liE Kupw~ 1!poonL9EL •ou~ ocy(Of!Evou~ Ka8' ~IJ.Epav ETil 1:0 au1:6.
42 And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship,
to the breaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe came upon every
soul, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. 44 And
all who believed were together and had all things in common. 45 And they
were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the
proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple
together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with
glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the
people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were
being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)
Toii liE 1TA.~9ou~ 1:wv 1TL01:Euociv•wv ~v KapoLa Kal.IJ!ux~ iJ.La, Kal ouok EL~ n
l:WV imapxovl:WV aurt;i EAEYEV 'Lotov ELVO:L &U' ~v O:Ul:Ol~ ct1TO:VTO: KOLVa.
32 Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul,
and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own,
but they had everything in common ... (Acts 4:32; cf. vv. 33-37) 193
As Johnson notes, Luke's account of the early Church borrows from

Hellenistic philosophy concerning friendship. 194 There was a common
Greek proverb: "the things offriends will be in common" (Plato, Repub-
lic 449c; cf. Aristotle, Nic. Ethics 1168b; Philo, Abr. 235). 195 It was
common among Greek writers and thinkers to view the sharing of
possessions as a key part of the ideal society. 196
193. Evidence for the sharing of possessions in early Christianity, at least in a

limited sense, can be found in the New Testament (Gal2: 10; 1 Cor 16: 1-4; 2 Cor 8-
9; Rom 15:25-31; Phil4:15-20) and from other early Christian texts (Didache4:5-
8; Letter ofBarnabas 19:8; cf. Lucian ofSamosata, Passing ofPeregrinus 13). See
Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, 62.
194. Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, 62.
195. Allan Bloom, The Republic ofPlato: Translated, with Notes, an Interpre-
tive Essay, and a New Introduction (2d ed.; New York: Basic, 1991).
196. Plato, Critias llOc-d; Republic, 420c-422b; 462b-464a; Laws 679b-c;
684c-d; 744b-746c; 757a; Ovid, Metamorphoses 1:88-111; Porphyry, Life of
Pythagoras 6:29-30; 20; cf. Aristotle, Politics 1261a-1267b for a contrary view. See
Pieter van der Horst, "Hellenistic Parallels to the Acts of the Apostles," JSNT 25
(1985): 59.
Ancient writers often considered the community gathered atthe foot

ofMt. Sinai to be an ideal community as well. 197 Although according to
the biblical account the Israelites would quickly tum to idolatry in the
absence of Moses (Exod 32), there are indications that, initially at least,
the people of Israel were obedient and consecrated. They solemnly
agreed to do all that Yahweh had commanded (Exod 19:7-8; 24:3), and,
as instructed, the people consecrated themselves for three days, washing
their garments and abstaining from sexual relations (Exod 19: 10, 14-15).
Jewish writers such as Philo and Josephus saw the newly constituted
nation oflsrael in idealized tenns as well. Philo reports that the Israelites
at Sinai maintained the strictest purity, abstaining from sexual relations
and performing ablutions and lustrations as well as washing their clothes,
all elements taken from the biblical account. He adds, however, that the
Israelites abstained from any pleasures not necessary for survival, and
wore garments of the purest white (Dec. 45). Josephus says that the
Israelites "partook of more sumptuous fare" and describes their clothing
as "splendid attire" (Ant. 3.78).
The description of the Essenes by Josephus and Philo are similar in
some ways to their respective descriptions of the people of Israel at
Sinai. Josephus says that the Essenes dressed in white (J. W 2.123). Philo
and Josephus both state that the Essenes do not marry (Hypothetica 8.11,
14; J. W 2.120-21), though Josephus does state that some Essenes do
(J. W 2.160-61). 198 Other aspects ofPhilo and Josephus's descriptions of
the Essenes closely parallel the account found in Acts, especially refer-
ences to their shared possessions (Every Good Man is Free 77, 79,
84-85; J. w 2.122-27).199
Moreover, as the Qumran scrolls attest, there are several parallels
between the Qumran community and the early Christian community. The
197. VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks," 201-3.

198. Some Dead Sea Scrolls do refer to women and children (Damascus Docu-
ment, I Q28a, and others). However, the textual evidence is consistent with the idea
that sotne Essenes were celibate and that others married and had children. Though
the graves of women and children have been found in the cemetery, it appears that
they are actually Bedouin and no more than a few centuries old. See the work of
Zias, "The Cemeteries of Qumran and Celibacy," 220-53.
199. For further discussion on how the Qumran community saw itself as an
idealized covenant community, see Chapter 5. There are many rabbinic texts that
also discuss the people of God at Sinai in idealized terms. Pirqe de Rabbi Eliezer 41
indicates that the Israelites were completely unified at Mt. Sinai, in contrast to the
strife that marked their journey to that point. At 327, the text says that the entire
generation was worthy to be like the angels and that death had no power over them.
For further references, see VanderKam, "The Festival of Weeks," 202-3.
early Christian community was characterized by four key elements,

according to Acts 2:42: (1) the Apostles' teaching; (2) fellowship which
included the sharing of goods; (3) a common meal; and (4) prayer. Each
of these four main elements are further elaborated in the rest of the
summary (Acts 2:43-47). The Qumran community was also character-
ized by an emphasis on these same four elements. Adherence to the
teaching of the community is emphasized in such important documents
as lQS V, 2-12; VI, 4-8; lQSa I, 1-5; lQM X, 10; CD IV, 7-9. The
Qumran community also shared possessions and lived in a close-knit
community (lQS I, 11-13; V, 1-3; VI, 15-25) and ate a ritual meal
together (1 QS V, 8-12; 1QSa II, 17-22). Furthermore, prayer texts are
amply attested at Qumran, and it is immediately evident that prayer was
a key element in the spiritual life of the community (e.g. see the follow-
ing: Daily Prayers [4Q503]; Songs ofthe Sabbath Sacrifice [4Q400-407,
11Ql7]; Festival Prayers [4Q507-509]; Berakhot [4Q286-90]).
Since the Qumran community and the early Church both understood
themselves to be the eschatological people of God, they understood
themselves in similar terms. The Qumran community, much like the
early Church, believed itself to be the community that had renewed the
covenant (cf. Luke 22:20), and, as such, was the heirs to the promise, the
true Israel, which was in stark contrast to the rest of Judaism. 20°Further-
more, the self-understanding of the community as the renewed people of
God is tied to the idea that the person's entrance into the community is
accompanied by the reception of the Spirit, by which the recipient is
thereby cleansed (lQS III, 6-11; III, 13-IV, 26; IX, 2-6; lQH XIV,
12b-13; XVI, llb-12 cf. 1Q34 3 II, 5-7). 201
200. 4Q504-506; 1QS V, 7-24; IX, 3; CD Ill, 13-20; VII, 9-VIII, 2; lQHXV,
15-19; Cf. Shemaryahu Talmon, "The Community of the Renewed Covenant:
Between Judaism and Christianity," in The Community of the Renewed Covenant:
The Notre Dame Symposium on the Dead Sea Scrolls (ed. Eugene C. Ulrich and
James C. VanderKam; Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 1994), 3-24.
201. On the two spirits in 1QS Ill, 13-IV, 26 there is much discussion. The
following see the concept primarily in terms of mood or disposition: Wemberg-
M011er, "A Reconsideration of the Two Spirits," 413-41; Marco Treves, "The Two
Spirits of the Rule of Qumran," RevQ 3 (1961): 449-52. For criticism of this posi-
tion, see the following: Arthur E. Sekki, The MeaningofRuah at Qumran (Atlanta:
Scholars Press, 1989); Herbert G. May, "Cosmological Reference in the Qumran
Doctrine of the Two Spirits and in Old Testament Imagery," JBL 82 (1963): 1~14;
James H. Charlesworth, "A Critical Comparison of the Dualism in 1QS 3:13-4:26
and the Dualism Contained in the Gospel of John," in John and Qumran (ed. James
H. Charlesworth; London: Chapman, 1972), 76-106. It is a fact that in the Hebrew
Bible it is not always possible to make a clear distinction between the Spirit of God
acting upon a person/people, and a person's spirit being acted upon by God. There
4. Conclusion
The final issue relates to the significance of Pentecost. It has been seen
that the Festival of Weeks was considered to be the occasion for the
renewal of the covenant in some quarters of early Judaism (i.e. Jubilees,
Dead Sea Scrolls). Since the Pentecost account in Acts 2 appears to
incorporate Moses-Sinai allusions, there is the issue of how the giving of
the Spirit at Pentecost in Acts 2 relates to the covenant and the giving of
the Law at Sinai in the third month (Exod 19:1 ).
While there are those who object, the Spirit does appear to be a
superior replacement for the Law in Luke-Acts. 202 This is indicated in the
are certain indications in this passage and its near context ("spirit of true counsel"
[lQS Ill, 6], "holy spirit of the community" [lQS Ill, 7), "spirit of uprightness and
of humility" [1 QS ll!, 8]) that the divine Spirit is at least being alluded to, even if a
reference to a person's inner disposition is also present. Since a person is clearly
cleansed by God, not merely by his own inner disposition alone (lQS ll!, 7-11; IV,
20-22), some reference to the Spirit of God seems to be implied.
202. Dupont, The Salvation of the Gentiles, 40; O'Reilly, Word and Sign, 21;
Dunn, Baptism in the Holy Spirit, 49. Jacob Jervell (The Unknown Paul: Essays on
Luke-Acts and Early Christian History [Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1984), 116-21)
rejects the idea of the Spirit as a kind of New Law but supports the idea that the
Spirit helps in obeying the Law. Turner (Power from on High, 353-56) argues that
Luke is not really clear on the relationship between Spirit and Law. He bases this on
three main arguments: (1) in Luke-Acts, Pentecost is not the beginning ofthe New
Age s-ince this was inaugurated by Jesus himself through his ministry; (2) the old and
new covenant are not contrasted in Luke-Acts (the mention of a new covenant in
Luke 22:20 is borrowed terminology); (3) the Spirit neither replaces nor establishes
the Law, since the Law is carefully observed by the fledgling Church until Acts 10.
These arguments are specious, however. While it is true that Pentecost is not the
beginning of a New Age, it does represent a beginning of sorts, namely, the transfer
of the Spirit (which resided uniquely on Jesus during his earthly ministry, according
to Luke, since the Spirit is not depicted as resting on anyone else during this time) to
his followers. The Spirit is poured out for the first time on the church. Surely this
constitutes some kind of beginning! Furthermore, while there is little new covenant
language in Luke-Acts, it does exist (Luke 22:20) and is dependent on Paul (1 Cor
11 :25), who also viewed the Spirit as in some way replacing the Law (see, e.g., Rom
8). Finally, Turner's claim that there is no adequate basis for the idea that the Spirit
replaces the Law because the community remains committed to the Law until Acts
10, ignores the obvious fact that the community does not remain committed to the
Law after Acts 15. Compare this with the fact that he argues that "the Gentiles, who
receive the Spirit, do not keep the Mosaic Law, yet are admitted as 'one people of
God' with messianic Israel" (p. 355). This is precisely the point he has not addressed.
What unites the true Israel as the people of God? If it is not the Law, as Turner
himself admits, then what is it? Clearly it is the Spirit.
parallel descriptions by Peter of Jesus receiving the Holy Spirit and

pouring it out on his followers (Acts 2:33) and Stephen's description of
Moses receiving the "living oracles" to give to his people (Acts 7:38).
Furthermore, in Luke-Acts, the Law is an identity marker for the
Jews. This can be seen clearly in the opponents of Jesus and his Apostles
and their consistent charge that Jesus and his followers have violated or
abandoned the Law (see Acts 7) and even by some Jewish Christians
who insist that salvation is linked to observance of the Law of Moses
(Acts 15:1-5). It becomes quite apparent, however, that for Luke the
Spirit, not the Law, is the true identity marker for Christians. While the
Law will continue to be followed by Jewish Christians (Acts 21),
including people like Paul, it is the Spirit that decisively marks one out
as a member of the restored people of God, not the Law. This can be
seen by Peter's appeal to the fact that the Spirit had fallen upon the
Gentiles (Acts 10:45-47; cf. Paul in 11:15). Thus, in the Jerusalem
council, Peter stands up and delivers the key speech:
7 And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them,
"Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among
you, that by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word of the gospel
and believe. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them, by
giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, 9 and he made no distinc-
tion between us and them, having cleansed their hearts by faith. 10 Now,
therefore, why are you putting God to the test by placing a yoke on the
neck of the disciples that neither our fathers nor we have been able to
bear? 11 But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the
Lord Jesus, just as they will." (Acts 15:7-11; italics added)
Peter appeals to the fact that the Gentiles have received the Spirit to
argue that the Law should no longer be a burden imposed on them, a
burden that even the Jews have been unable to bear (cf. Acts 13:38-39).
Clearly, the reception of the Spirit, not the observance of the Law,
becomes the identity marker that truly counts. 203 Moreover, since the
Gentiles are not required to follow the Law, it is the reception of the
Spirit that unites both Jewish and Gentile Christians as the restored
people of God.
203. This is also reflected in the account of the Ephesians in Acts 19. Paul
becomes concerned when they say they did not receive the Spirit upon conversion,
and rectifies the situation. It seems clear that Paul expects the reception of the Spirit
to be the marker signifying genuine Christian conversion.
Chapter 7
CONCLUSION
Most Second Temple era Jews considered the events that took place at
Mt. Sinai to represent the fulcmm of Jewish history. Much exegetical
.effort was devoted to explaining the full significance of the covenant
made there between Yahweh and his people, and the subsequent giving
of the Law. Such an important event was bound to be celebrated on an
annual basis eventually. Certainly, by the rabbinic period, the Festival of
Weeks was strongly associated with the giving of the Law and was
celebrated in commemoration of this momentous event. But how early
was this association made? This study has attempted to determine that
issue, tracing the development of the Festival ofWeeks from an original
harvest festival to its association with the events at Mt. Sinai.
One peculiarity about the Festival of Weeks is that it remained the
only one ofthe three great festivals (Unleavened Bread and Booths being
the other two) without a fixed, precisely determined date. The early law
collections contain no date whatsoever (Exod 23: 16; 34:22; cf. Num
28:26-31 ), while the later texts are rather vague about the date, providing
a formula for determining the date (Deut 16:9-10; Lev 23:15-16), but
whose application has become obscure with the passage of time. This
eventually led to disputes about just when the Festival of Weeks was
supposed to be celebrated.
The evidence from the Hebrew Bible shows that the Festival of Weeks
underwent a historical development. Originally, the three main festivals,
the Festival of Weeks among them (represented by Exod 23:16 and
34:22), had free-floating dates depending on the agricultural calendar and
required a pilgrimage to the local sanctuary. The Festival ofUnleavened
Bread marked the beginning of the barley harvest, while the Festival of
Weeks marked the end of the wheat harvest. These dates varied from
region to region, and year to year, depending on the climate.
With the Deuteronomic program of centralization, which required a
national pilgrimage to the central sanctuary in Jemsalem, the free-float-
ing date for the Festival of Weeks was no longer feasible. It now had to
be celebrated on the same day by the entire nation, in any given year.
Thus, in Deut 16:9-10 there is a rather vague formula for determining
the Festival of Weeks by counting off seven weeks from the beginning of
the grain harvest. The date of the festival continued to vary from year to
year, since the formula was tied directly to the harvest, but the date of the
festival no longer varied from region to region as it presumably had in
the past (due to climate differences of the various regions oflsrael), since
now the entire nation celebrated it together every year.
Eventually, the Festival of Weeks was given a fixed date on the
calendar (Lev 23:15-21; cf. Num 28:26-31). For several reasons, the
pilgrimage requirement was dropped (cf. the omission of the Festival of
Weeks in Ezek 45:18-25). It was only a one-day festival, after all,
making a long pilgrimage from the outlying areas impractical. Addition-
ally, in many regions, the harvest would still be happening, not to men-
tion the necessity of doing post-harvest chores such as threshing and
storing.
In the Second Temple period the Festival ofWeeks was an important
symbol of Jewish identity in the face of the Hellenistic threat. Celebra-
tion of the Festival of Weeks was a sign offaithfulness in opposition to
the menace of assimilation. The Festival of Weeks regains its status as a
pilgrimage festival during this time, or at any rate, many very pious Jews
continued the ancient practice of making a pilgrimage to the central
shrine for this festival despite the requirement to do so being dropped.
Whatever the case may be, because of the large numbers of people at
Jerusalem, it often became the occasion for wars and tumults (Ant.
14.337-341; 17.254-64; J. W. 1.229-30, 253; 2.42-44). It also appears
from the evidence of the LXX (on Lev 23: 11 ), Philo (Spec. 2.162), and
Josephus (Ant. 3.250-52) that the second day of the Festival ofUnleav-
ened Bread was reckoned "the morrow of the Sabbath," meaning that the
Festival of Weeks was celebrated fifty days after the sixteenth day of the
first month.
A second peculiarity about the Festival of Weeks is that, unlike the
other two great festivals, the Festival ofUnleavened Bread (the Exodus)
and the Festival of Booths (wilderness wanderings), the Festival of
Weeks is never explicitly associated with a great historical event from
Israel's past. Thus, while the other two festivals took on the character of
a week-long, national celebration connecting contemporary Israelites
(and later, Jews) to a momentous historic occasion, the Festival ofW eeks
remained a simple, one-day festival that marked the end of the wheat
harvest according to the Hebrew Bible.
7. Conclusion 241
Despite the fact that the argument is occasionally made that the
Festival of Weeks was the occasion for a celebration of the Sinai event
(or some aspect thereof) already in the Hebrew Bible there is little
explicit evidence for making this claim. Indeed, one could easily make
the argument that the Festival of Booths was the occasion for covenant
renewal (cf. Neh 8), since it was already explicitly the occasion for a
septennial reading of the Law (Deut 31:10-13). Moreover, arguments
made in support of texts such as Pss 50 and 81 having their roots as
celebrations of the revelation at Mt. Sinai during the Festival of Weeks
are unconvincing. Indeed, what little indications there are point to the
Festival of Booths, particularly with respect toPs 81 (cf. v. 4). The sug-
gestion that the calendrical speculations in Dan 10-12 rely on a solar
calendar of the type that Jubilees advocates, resulting in identifying the
date of the Festival of Weeks as III/15, holds some promise, but at this
point must remain in the realm of speculation since it is impossible to
verify.
On the other hand, the evidence in favor of the Festival of Booths as
the occasion for covenant renewal should not be overstated. It is true that
Deut 31: 10-13 stipulates a septennial reading of the Law during the
Festival of Booths, but there is nowhere a stipulation for a covenant
renewal. Furthermore, while Neh 8 recounts a covenant renewal, it
appears that covenant renewals could happen at any time during the year.
A covenant renewal was typically occasioned by the realization on the
part of the king (or some other leader) that the children of Israel had
failed to uphold the Law and keep the covenant (e.g. Exod 34; Josh 24;
2 Kgs 22-23; 2 Chr 15:10; Neh 9-10). In other words, covenant renew-
als were ad hoc occasions, not regularly tied to any particular festival
or date.
Nevertheless, while there are no explicit links between the Festival of
Weeks and the Sinai event, already in the Hebrew Bible, the groundwork
for such an association is already in place. First and foremost, since the
other two great festivals were already associated with a momentous
historical event in Moses' career, such an association for the Festival of
Weeks was begging to be made. Furthermore, just as the events at Mt.
Sinai lie chronologically between the Exodus and the wilderness wander-
ings, so also does the Festival of Weeks lie chronologically between the
Festival of Unleavened Bread (associated with the Exodus) and the
Festival of Booths (associated with the wilderness wanderings).
In addition, the chronological notice in Exod 19:1 dating the arrival of
the Israelites to Sinai in the third month means that the only possible
holiday that could, chronologically speaking, be the occasion for the
celebration of the events at Mt. Sinai is the Festival of Weeks since it

was the only holiday celebrated in the third month, regardless of the
application of the formula in Deut 16:9-10 and Lev 23:15-16. Further-
more, in 2 Chr 15:10-15, King Asa renews the covenant during an
occasion greatly resembling a festival in the third month (the regnal year
is given as the 15th, which is highly suggestive of a link to the solar
calendar of Jubilees, which Jaubert has shown likely lies behind the
chronology of priestly texts such as Chronicles). During this covenant
renewal, which likely took place during the Festival of Weeks, oaths are
made: Given the similarity between the terms "weeks" and "oaths" (the
plurals are identical in the consonantal Hebrew text), it seems likely that
there is a play on words of some sort here. At any rate, nothing could be
more natural than to celebrate a covenant renewal during a Festival of
"Oaths" in the third month.
It is only with the book of Jubilees that there is an explicit connection
between the Festival of Weeks and covenant renewal. The book of
Jubilees was written in an attempt to fight the trend towards assimilation
to Greek culture in Judaea. Some Hellenistic Jews cited a pristine past
when there was no distinction between Jew and Gentile, and maintained
that the solution to all their problems was to re-unite with the Greeks.
The first step was to abandon any distinguishing characteristics of Juda-
ism, including circumcision and the covenant. The author of Jubilees
counters this by showing that it was the covenant with the Jews that was
originally universal (i.e. the Noachic covenant, of which the Abrahamic
and Mosaic covenants are simply renewals), and that it was the Greeks
and other nations who had separated themselves from the Jews by
rejecting it.
The book of Jubilees is therefore thoroughly concemed with the cove-
nant. The first covenant with humankind was with Noah after the Flood;
Noah, as the new Adam, represented all humankind. The chronological
notice that Noah and his family exited the ark on Ill/ 1 in Jubilees repre-
sents a change from both the MT and LXX where Noah and his family exit
on Il/27 (Gen 8:14, 18-19). This change is important since it means that
the Noachic covenant is made during the third month. In fact, while the
Festival ofW eeks/Oaths has been celebrated in heaven since the time of
creation (Jub. 6: 17-19), Noah is the first person to celebrate it on earth.
Of crucial importance is the fact that theN oachic covenant is the one and
only covenant. The others (Abrahamic, Mosaic, and by implication,
Davidic) are all seen to be in continuity with the Noachic covenant, in
that they are depicted as renewals of the original covenant with Noah,
rather than separate covenants. With each successive renewal, additional
7. Conclusion 243
laws are revealed, the most complete being the revelation of the Law to
Mose.s on Mt. Sinai, which forms the context for the writing.
It is the failure to uphold the covenant and its attendant stipulations
that has led to the present disaster that has befallen the people of God,
according to the author of Jubilees. The book sounds a note of hope,
however, in the very structure of the work, by way of its chronology. The
jubilee legislation in Lev 25 stipulates two things during the jubilee (i.e.
50th) year: the freeing of Israelite slaves and the returning of ancestral
property. Not coincidentally, the Exodus from Egypt occurs during the
50th jubilee period in Jubilees' chronology, as does the entry into the
Promised Land. In other words, in the 50th jubilee period, the Israelite
slaves are freed from Egyptian domination and repossess their ancestral
home. This jubilee structure gives hope to God's people because it
demonstrates God's control over history and his ultimate faithfulness to
his people.
This pattern of seven sevens is also found in the formula determining
the date of the Festival of Weeks (Deut 16:9-10; Lev 23: 15-16), which
becomes the occasion for celebration of covenant renewal. Given the
numerical pattern associated with the Weeks, as well as the similarity
between the Hebrew word for "weeks" and "oaths," as well as the date of
the festival in the third month (cf. Exod 19: 1), such an association was
only natural for the author of Jubilees to make. Within the body of the
work, the Festival ofWeeks becomes the most important festival on the
calendar which is in stark contrast to common practice by Second
Temple Jews, where the Festival of Weeks lagged behind the Passover/
Unleavened Bread and the Festival of Booths in popularity.
In this book, which is so concerned with calendrical matters, the
Festival of Weeks is precisely dated to the fifteenth day of the third
month. This is possible because the author of Jubilees strongly advocates
use of the solar calendar, making it possible to determine a specific,
unchanging date for the Festival of Weeks. In contrast, any attempt to
determine the Festival ofWeeks by the lunar calendar must contend with
the fact that the lunar month is approximately 29.5 days, meaning that
the length of the month varies between 29 and 30 days.
In Jubilees, several significant events are associated with the Festival
ofWeeks and/or the fifteenth day of the third month (i.e. the date of the
festival). Of course, it is often the occasion for covenant renewals: the
covenant of the pieces (.Jub. 14: 1-20) and the covenant of circumcision
(Jub. 15:1-22). The former is the first covenant renewal since Noah's
time, made possible due to the books that were handed down from ances-
tor to descendant and Abram's miraculous rediscovery of the Hebrew
language, enabling him to read these writings and realize the importance
of the Festival of Weeks. Another momentous event to occur on III/15 is
the birth oflsaac, the son of the covenant (Jub. 16:13). He is born at
Beersheba, specifically the Oath Well, which represents a change from
the biblical text since it does not explicitly record Abraham living in
Beersheba until after the aborted sacrifice oflsaac (Gen 22: 19). Indeed,
in the biblical text, Beersheba does not get its name until after Isaac's
birth (compare Gen 21:1-3 and 21:31-33; but cf. also 21:14).
With the publication of virtually the entire Qumran corpus, it is now
clear that the Qumran covenanters, for whom the book of Jubilees was
highly revered, also celebrated the Festival of Weeks as the day of
covenant renewal on the fifteenth day of the third month. This much is
clear from the Temple Scroll and calendrical works such as 4Q320,
4Q325, and 4Q326. In addition, detailed prescriptions for entrance into
the community in 1QS I, 16-II, 25 appear to involve covenant renewal as
its central feature (cf. 4Q275). The Qumran covenanters also appear to
have had procedures in place for expulsion of covenant violators on this
same date (4QD• 11, 17-211/4QD• 7 II, 11-15). Moreover, many schol-
ars have theorized that the Damascus Document was recited at an annual
covenant ceremony because of the affinity it has to a covenant formulary.
Finally, there are several liturgical texts ( 4QBerakhot, Songs of the
Sabbath Sacrifice, 4QCommunal Confessions, among others) that would
likely have been used during a covenant renewal ceremony.
The Qumran community believed that it alone was truly faithful to the
covenant that was ratified at Sinai, at least partly due to the fact that it
alone had the key to the special interpretation needed to correctly
observe the Torah. Since the community represented the small faithful
remnant under constant trial and temptation, apostasy was always a con-
cern and was dealt with severely. In preparation for the last days, the
Qumran community spent its time in study of the Torah in imitation of
the original Israelite community that was gathered at the foot of Mt.
Sinai. The worship of the community was believed to give the believer
access to the heavenly worship of the angelic priests in the celestial
throne room.
Because of the importance of covenant in the Qumran community, it is
not an overstatement to say that the covenant renewal ceremony was the
central event on Qumran's religious calendar-the fact that covenant
plays a central role in key sections of such foundational documents as the
Community Rule and the Damascus Document is a strong indication of
this. All of this evidence indicates that the Qumran community cele-
brated an annual covenant renewal ceremony on the Festival of Weeks
7. Conclusion 245
on IIV15 in keeping with the teaching of the book of Jubilees, during

which time the community expelled members who had failed to live
according to the stipulations revealed by God at Sinai and interpreted
within the community.
Finally, the account of Pentecost in Acts 2 reflects an association
between the Festival of Weeks (Pentecost) and Sinai. Certainly this
association was already made by the middle of the second century B.C.E.
by the author of Jubilees. The fact that the Qumran covenanters revered
the book sometimes obscures the fact that Jubilees had a wider reader-
ship than just this sectarian community. Furthermore, the rabbinic evi-
dence (where the Festival of Weeks is typically connected to the giving
of the Law), while late, certainly did not appear out of thin air. It there-
fore provides indirect evidence that the Festival ofWeeks may have been
associated with the events at Sinai at a much earlier period. Even those
scholars who· are not impressed with the evidence from the book of
Jubilees and the Qmnran scrolls acknowledge the likelihood that an asso-
ciation was made shortly after the destruction of the Temple in 70 C. E.
When Pentecost is understood in combination with Jesus' Ascension
(linked by the fact that Jesus commands his disciples to wait for the out-
pouring of the Spirit just before his ascent), the numerous allusions to
Moses' ascent and descent ofMt. Sinai become clear. Furthermore, this
understanding fits into the wider context of the two-volume work.
Certainly, Luke's portrait of Jesus as the prophet like Moses permeates
the Gospel of Luke and some of the speeches in Acts. Moreover, the
association between Pentecost and Sinai makes perfect sense in light of
the Isaianic New Exodus motif which forms an overarching theme tying
together the two works. For one thing, this illuminates the background
behind Luke's fusing of the Davidic and Mosaic traditions. It explains
why, for instance, the Pentecost narrative is followed immediately by
Peter's speech, which begins with a quotation alluding to Moses (Joel
2:28~32) but is focused on how Jesus' resurrection follows from the fact
that he is an heir of David.
The description of the theophany in Acts 2 recalls Philo's description
of the theophany at Sinai (Decal. 33, 35, 44-47) in many structural and
thematic elements as well as in some of the details. In Exod 20: 18, the
text reports that the people "saw the voices." This was taken by some
later interpreters to mean that the people actually saw the voice of God at
Mt. Sinai in the form of fire, which recalls the tongues of fire in Acts 2:3.
Other parallels include the fact that both theophanies, marked by miracu-
lous signs (sound, fire), take place before a large assembly of people. In
addition, both are key redemptive-historical events which result in
articulate speech familiar to their respective audiences. While these
theophanic elements are not unique to the description of the theophany at

Mt. Sinai, the confluence of so many of them is found in connection to
only the events which transpired when Moses and the people of God
gathered at the foot ofthis mountain.
There is also a possible allusion toPs 68:18 [19] in Acts 2:33. In this
connection, Eph 4:7-11, which cites this psalm, is probably to be
understood as referring to Jesus' Ascension and the events at Pentecost.
This is indicated by the surrounding context, which contains references
to the Spirit and the diversity of the various types of ministry in the
Church. In addition, an emphasis on the identity of the one who ascended
and descended (or vice versa) in the context of the Incarnation inter-
pretation becomes superfluous, but makes good sense if many people did
not commonly identify the one who ascended (Jesus) with the one who
descended (the Spirit). If this interpretation is correct, then the author of
Ephesians linked Moses' ascent ofMt. Sinai in Ps 68:18 [19] with the
giving of the Spirit and would suggest such a background in Peter's
allusion to this passage in Acts 2:33.
By means of the many allusions in the Ascension and Pentecost narra-
tive to the events at Mt. Sinai, Luke depicts Jesus' ascent and subsequent
giving of the Spirit to his followers as the inauguration of a new com-
munity, which is marked not by the Law, but by the Spirit. This new
community is depicted in idealistic terms, which finds parallels in the
depiction of the original Israelites at Mt. Sinai by Philo and Josephus,
and the Qumran community in the Dead Sea Scrolls.
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---."Studies on the Prologue and Jubilees 1." Pages 266-79 in Fora Later Generation:
The Tran~formation of Tradition in Israel, Early Judaism, and Early Christianity.
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---."A Twenty-Eight-Day Month Tradition in the Book ofJubilees?" Vetus Testamentum
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VanderKam, James C., and Peter W. Flint. The Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Their
Significance for Understanding the Bible, Judaism, Jesus and Christianity. San
Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2002.
VanderKam, James C., and J6zefT. Milik. "Jubilees." Pages 1-185, plates I-XII in Qumran
Cave 4.ll1: Para biblical Texts, Part 1. Edited by Harold Attridge, et al. Discoveries in
the Judaean Desert XIII. Oxford: Clarendon, 1994.
VanGemeren, Willem A. The New International Dictionary of Old Testament Theology and
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Zwiep, Arie W. The Ascension o.fthe Messiah in Lukan Christology. Novum Testamentum
Supplements 87. Leiden: Brill, 1997.
INDEXES
INDEX OF REFERENCES
OLD TESTAMENT/ 17:1-22 113 31:23 126

HEBREW BIBLE 17:5 114 31:25 73
Genesis 17:15-21 114 31:43-54 96, 125
1:2 94 17:21 118 31:44 125
1:14 139 18:10 118 31:53 125
6:9-9:19 95 18:14 118 31:54 126
7:2 95 19:30-38 24 34 80
7:3 95 20:1 115 38:24 24
7:4 95 20:15 115 45:5 120, 126
7:10 95 21:1-7 114 45:26-28 119
7: II 95 21:1-3 115,244 45:28 120
8:4 95 21:2 118 46:1-4 119, 120
8:5 91 21:8 118 46:1-2 126
8:10 95 21:14 115,244 49:8-12 124
8:12 95 21:21-34 96
8:13 91 21:22-33 77 Exodus
8:14 95,242 21:25-33 115 1-2 187
8:18-19 242 21:27-33 115 3-4 207
8:18 95 21:30 116 3:2 216
8:19 95 21:31-33 244 3:10 204
8:21 97 21:31 96, 115, 4:8-9 219
9 94 116 4:22-23 187
9:11-15 96 22:19 115 6:6-8 204
9: II 97 24:1-8 120,244 8: II 221
9:16 106 25:1-18 119 12-13 198
10 213 26:2-5 120 12 70
10:18-20 113 26:26-33 96 12:1-20 15
II: 1-9 214 29:1-30 126 12:1-13 38
II :I 214 29:1 125 12:2-6
11:3 214 29:18 126 12:2 12,21
II :4 214 29:20 126 12:6 18
II :7 214 29:27 126 12:8 18
12:10-20 120 29:28 126 12:11 180
15 120 29:30 126 12:14 37
15:1-21 106 29:31-30:24 122 12:15-20 16, 17
15:17 216 29:35 122 12:21-23 15
Index ofReferences 271
12:27 15 19:8 61, 165 71,97-99,

12:29-34 16, 17 19:9 191,204 239
12:37-39 16, 17 19:10-14 57 23:17 15,20
12:37 53 19:10-11 205 23:18-19 13, 17
13:4 12 19:10-11 91,92 23:18 13, 17, 18
13:6 38 19:10 235 23:19 13
13:20 53 19:12-13 56 23:20-33 12
13:21-22 216 19:14-15 56,235 24 80,90
14:1-2 53 19:15 166 24:1 205
14:24 216 19:16-23:33 54 24:1-8 47
14:25 180 19:16-20:21 47 24:1-3 56
14:28 180 19:16-25 56 24:1-2 204
15:3 180 19:16-20 56,208, 24:3-8 54
15:22 53 209,219 24:3 56, 61, 165,
16:1 53,91 19:16 75, 91, 191, 235
16:9 36 204,209, 24:4-8 56,90
16:10 36 213 24:4 12,91,205
16:16-24 191 19:18 209,216 24:7 165
17:1-7 187 19:19 75,209 24:9-14 56
17:1 53 19:20-24 56 24:9 56,205
17:4 187 19:20-23 56 24:10-11 205
17:11 204 19:20 204 24:12-18 191
. 18:21 165 19:24 56 24:12-14 205
18:25 165 19:25-24:6 56 24:12 13,90
19-34 I, 207 20-23 165 24:14 204
19-24 12, 13, 53, 20 217 24:15-18 191,204
55,57,90 20:1-17 47,51 24:15-17 56
19-20 3,187,202 20:2 211,213 24:16 205
19 53, 90, 172, 20:18-21 56 24:17 216
176, 202, 20:18-19 191 24:18-32:6 56
217 20:18 75,208-10, 24:18 203,205
19:1-2 54,56 213,245 25:1-9 166
19:1 I, 52-55, 20:21-24:2 56 25:2 165
57, 59, 60, 20:21-23:19 II, 51 26 166
70,77,90- 20:21-22 12 31:18 13,57
92, 95, 127, 20:21 56 32 235
165, 198, 20:22-23:33 47 32:7-14 56
203,237, 21 53 32:15-18 56
241,243 23:1-23:33 56 32:15-16 13
19:2-25 93 23:14-19 10, II 32:19-29 56
19:3-8 47,50 23:14-17 12, 14, 15, 32:19 13
19:3-6 56 17,30 32:28 233
19:3 166,204 23:14 14, 15 32:30-34 187
19:4 50 23:15 12, 13, 15- 32:30 56
19:5-6 205 18,20,71 32:31-35 56
19:5 50 23:16 9, II, 12, 33:1-34:3 56
19:6 50 14, 15, 21, 34 13, 14, 77,
19:7-8 56,235 36, 45, 68, 241
19:8-13 56 34:1 13
Exodus (cont.) 14:20 99 129, 130,

34:4 13 15:1 99 141,205,
34:5-28 56 16:13 99 239,242,
34:11-26 13-15 16:29 68 243
34:11-13 14 17-26 29 23:15 16, 32, 39,
34:14-16 14 17-18 30 I 00, 143
34:18-26 10, 11 18:24-30 30 23:16--21 33
34:18-24 15, 17, 30 19-20 30 23:16 34,99
34:18-21 15 19:2 30 23:17 34,44
34:18 16--18,71 19:9-10 34,35 23:18-19 44
34:20 20 19:9 35 23:18 39, 40, 43,
34:22 9, 13-15, 19:10 35 114
21, 27, 36, 19:36 204 23:19 39, 114
45, 61, 68, 20:22-26 30 23:20 34,36,39
71,97-99, 21-22 30 23:21 32,37
239 22:31-33 30 23:22 27, 30, 34,
34:23-24 15,20 23-25 30 35
34:24 10, 14 23 13, 16, 27, 23:23-25 27
34:25-26 17 28, 30, 31, 23:23 30
34:25 17, 18 33, 36, 38, 23:24 21, 75, 76,
34:28 13,203 40,69 91
34:29-35 191 23:1-2 27 23:25 32
34:29 56 23:2-3 32 23:26-32 27
34:31 167 23:2 30, 118 23:27 31
35:1 167 23:3 27,30 23:28 32
35:4-29 166 23:4 27 23:33-36 27,31
35:4 56, 167 23:5-8 19,30 23:34 37,68, 75
35:20-21 165 23:5 21,27 23:35 32
35:20 167 23:6--8 27,31 23:36 32
35:30-36:38 166 23:6--7 42 23:37-38 27,30
36:2-3 167 23:6 37 23:37 118
39:43 204 23:7 32,33,42 23:39-43 27, 30, 69,
40:17 54,91 23:8 32,33 70
45:18-25 38 23:9-22 29,30 23:39-40 30
45:21-24 38 23:9-21 30 23:39 9,68
45:25 38 23:9-14 19,28,32 23:40 70
23:9 19,31 23:41 91
Leviticus 23:1-5 9 23:42-43 70, 198
1:5 18 23:11 19, 32, 42, 23:43 18, 191
2:2-3 34 46,240 23:44 27
2:9-10 34 23:14 18,31 23:5 30
2:11-16 34 23:15-22 37,39,98 23:6--8 9
2:11-12 34 23:15-21 27, 28, 45, 23:9-14 27
2:12 27 80, 97, 114, 23:9 30
2:14-16 34 240 24 88
9:22 204,207 23:15-17 36 25 88,243
13:26-32 68 23:15-16 1, 2, 16, 19, 25:8 16
14:1 99 23,31,32, 25:9 76
14:10 99 54,100, 25:10 16
25:18-24 30 28:17 37,38 9:18 203

25:55 189 28:26-31 9, 27, 28, 9:25 203
26:3-45 30 35-37,39, 10:4 216
44:1-5 99 45, 80, 97, 11:26-32 65
98, 114, 15:4 186
Numbers 143, 239, 15:12-17 20
I: I 54 240 16 18
1:2 167 28:26 36 16:1-17 15,27,30
1:18 91 28:27-31 34 16:1-8 15
6:23 204 28:27 39, 40, 43, 16:1-7 13
7:1 54 44,114 16:1-3 71
9:1 54 28:28-29 39 16:1-2 27
9:3-5 54 28:30 39,44 16:2 15
9:9-11 51 28:31 39 16:3-4 16,27
9:11 54 28:39 27 16:3 16, 180
10 53, 176 28:40 27 16:5-7 27
10:11-12 54 29:1 21, 75, 76, 16:5 15,38
10:11 53 91 16:6-8 38
10:12 53 29:7-11 68 16:8 16,27
10:28 53 29:12 37,68, 75 16:9-12 9, 15, 27,
11:25 219 29:39 118 45, 97, 98,
11:26-30 231 33:38 91 202
11:29 219 16:9-10 1,2, 15-17,
12:3 187 Deuteronomy 23, 54, 57,
13:25 203 1-26 193 141,205,
14:33-34 203 1:6 191 239,240,
14:34 203 1:8 186 242,243
18-29 16 1:10-11 186 16:9 14, 16, 21,
18:12-13 34 I :15 165 27,31,202
18:12 27 1:37-40 187 16:10-12 19
20:1 53 3:26 187 16:10-11 26
20:11 204 4:9-24 147 16:10 20,61
20:22 53 4:12 216 16:11-12 20,35,41
21:10-11 53 4:21-22 187 16:11 15, 17
22:1 53 4:24 216 16:13-15 15, 27, 68,
28-36 35 4:31 186 71, 104
28-29 13, 27, 28, 4:33. 216 16:13 17
30,38,40 4:36 216 16:14-15 76
28 37 5:1-4 50 16:15 15
28:1-6 27 5:4 216 16:16-17 15,27
28:1 27 5:12-15 20 16:16 15, 20,41
28:2-8 27 6:5 166 16:6-7 15
28:7-11 27 6:13-15 187 17:14-20 67
28:9-10 27 6:13 187 17:14 67
28:11-15 27 6:16 187 17:18-20 66,67
28:12-38 27 8:2-3 187 18:4 27
28:16-31 39 8:3 187 18:15-18 191,207
28:16 21,27 9:9 203 18:15 191
28:17-25 27 9:11 203 23:1-9 183
Deuteronomy (cont.) 2:8 24 5:1 40

23:14-17 15 2:21 23,24 6--7 40
26:1-11 28 2:23-3:2 24 8:12-16 40,41
26:2 27 2:23 22,24 8:13 9
26:10 27 3:6--14 24 15 59, 77
27-28 65 15:1 60
27:1-8 147 2 Samuel 15:8-15 59,60
27:12-26 171 6:12-23 76 15:9-15 127
29 66 6:15 76 15:10-15 52, 55, 77,
29:1 147 7 123 96
29:9-14 77 7:5:__17 123 15:10 58, 72
30 66 7:12-16 4,231 15:14-15 60, 147
30:19-20 50 22:8-16 217 15:14 76
31 80 22:8-11 216 15:15 76
31:9-13 65-68,76, 29:3-11 51
241 I Kings 30 68
31:9 80 7:51 40 30:2 13,51
31:10-11 54, 64,65 8 40 30:5 13
31:10 66, 198 9:25 40,41 30:13 13,38
31:11 68 10:1-11:13 67 30:21 38
31:19 87 12:25-33 137 31:3 40
31:21 87 12:28 41 34:11-26 13
31:24-26 80 12:30 41 34:30-33 147
31:26-26 80 19:8 191,207 35:1-19 68
32:5 233 19:12 216 35:11 18
32:48-52 35 19:16--19 191 35:17 13,38
32:48-51 193
33:2 214 2 Kings Ezra
34:1 35 2:9-15 191 3:1-4 68,69, 71
34:5 35, 187 2:11 216. 3:5 41
34:7-9 35 11:4 77 6:19-22 68
34:9 191 22-23 77,241 6:20-22 13
34:10 191 23:1-3 147 6:22 38
34:18-24 15 23:2-3 51
23:21 51 Nehemiah
Joshua 6:15 68
1:1 187 I Chronicles 7:5-10:40 67
6:5 76 15:10-15 242 7:72-10:40 67, 71
6:20 76 15:10 198,203, 7:72-8:18 65,68
8:30-35 65, 147 207,218, 8-10 147
9:15-20 77 241 8 64, 68, 69,
24 49, 65, 198, 15:28 76 71, 76, 198,
241 15:29 76 241
23:31 40 8:1-8 71
Judges 24:7-19 142-44 8:9 68
21:19 15 8:13-18 68, 69,71
2 Chronicles 8:15 69
Ruth 2:3 40 8:17 70
1:22 22,24 5-7 68,69 8:18 68
Index ofR~ferences 275
9-10 77,241 81 50, 65, 71, 40:11 182, 184

9 68 12, 16, 11, 41:8 182
9:1 68,71 241 41:9 191
10:1-40 61,71 81:2-6 12 41:11-12 180
10:34 41 81:2-3 76 41:17-20 180, 184
12:44-13:31 61 81:4 72-74,241 42:1-4 187
81:9 12 42:1 183, 187,
&ther 81:10-11 12 220
9:26 210 81:17 12 42:2-3 187
85 65 42:7 187
Job 98:6 76 42:10-12 183
26:9 74 106:23 187 42:13 180, 184
38:33 20 109:1 202 42:16 180
39:25 16 110:1 202,230 42:22-43:1 183
126 65 43:1-3 184
Psalms 150 76 43:1-2 180
15:8-11 202 43:5-7 182
16:8-11 202 Proverbs 43:10 191
17:9 216 7:20 12 43:16-17 180
28:7 210 43:19-21 180, 184
29 202,210 Isaiah 43:19 184
29:7 210,213 2:2-4 219 43:24-25 183
16 2:2-3 183 44:1-4 183
47:6 16 2:2 219 44:1 191
50 65, 71, 76, 2:3 220 44:3 184,220
77,241 7:1-9 181 44:21-22 183
50:4-7 12 7:17 181 44:26 184
50:5 12 9:2 21 44:28 180
50:7-15 12 9:6-7 183 45:13 184
50:7 12 9:9 181 45:14 180
50:16 12 11:1-9 220 48:17 184
50:18-20 12 11:1-3 183 48:20 180
50:23 12 II :I 183 48:21 180
65 65 11:12 183 49:1 187
61 65 11:13 181 49:5-6 181
67:19 224,230 16:4-5 183 49:5 187
68 213,224, 32:14-17 183 49:6 183, 187
226 32:15 221 49:7 180
68:9 224 35:8-10 182 49:8 180, 182
68:11 213 40-55 179 49:9-10 180, 184
68:12 213 40 179,208 49:9 184
68:17 224 40:1-11 179 49:10-11 184
68:18-19 172 40:1 184 49:16-17 180
68:18 172,222, 40:3-5 182, 184, 49:17-21 180
223.246 196 49:18 182
68:19 202,222- 40:3 165 49:22-23 180
25,228-30, 40:9-10 184 49:24-25 184
246 40:10-11 184 49:26 180
40:10 180 50:1 183
Isaiah (cont.) Lamentations 3:1-2 219

50:5-6 187 2:16 210 3:5 220
51:4-5 183
51:9-16 184 Ezekiel Amos
51:9-11 182 I 172,202 2:2 76
51:9-10 180 1:24 172 5:25-27 149
51:10 180 8:14-18 39
52:1-10 184 16:8 77 Habakkuk
52:10 180 36:24-28 147 3 202
52:11-12 184 36:26-27 220
52:11 182 37:23-28 147 Zephaniah
52:12 180 39:25-29 220 I :16 76
53:3-4 187 43:2 172
53:4-12 187 43:18-27 38 APOCRYPHAIDEUTERO-
53:7 184 45:18-25 240 CANONICAL BOOKS
53:12 187 45:18-20 38 I Esdras
54:7 182 45:21-25 30,38 5:52 41
54:9-10 96 45:21 13, 38, 39
54:11-14 180 46:1-15 38 2 Esdras
54:11-12 180, 184 I :31 41
54:13 184 Daniel
54:15-17 180 9 61 Tobit
55:1-5 183 10-12 52,61,241 1:2 42
55:5 183 10:2-3 62 1:5-8 41
55:6-7 183 10:4 61,62 1:6 41
55:12-13 184 10:13 62 1:10 42
55:12 180 10:17 61 1:22 42
56:1-8 183 10:18 61 2:1-10 41
56:3-5 184 10:19 61 2:6 41
56:8 184 10:21 61 2:7 41
57:13 182 11-12 61
58:6 188 II :28 62 Judith
59:1-21 183 II :30 62 8:6 41
61:1-2 188, 189 II :32 62 10:2 41
61:1 190,220 12:11 61
62:1-2 183 12:12 61,63 Additions to Esther
63:7-64:12 183 16:22 41
66:15-16 216 Hosea
66:18 183 12:9 70 Wisdom ofSolomon
13:2 41 3:2 191
Jeremiah 7:6 191
2:3 27 Joel
4:19 76 2:28-32 202,219- Ecclesiasticus
5:24 20 21,230-32, 33:8 41
31:30-33 147 245 43:7 41
31:31-34 149 2:28-29 219 47:10 41
31:35 20 3 220 50:20-22 207
52:28 233 3:1-5 202,219
Baruch 4:17 188 11:29-32 193

1:14 41 4:18-21 188 11:31-32 193
4:18-19 188 11:47-54 193
I Maccabees 4:18 190 11:50-51 193
1:11-15 82-84 4:20 188 12:35-37 195
1:39 41 4:23 189 12:49-50 193
1:45 41 4:25-27 189 12:54-13:9 193
10:34 41 4:26 191 12:54-56 193
12:11 41 4:28-29 190 12:57-59 193
5:14 185 13:1-9 193
2 Maccabees 6:12-16 181 13:10-13 193
6:6 41,42 7:1-53 195 13:14-17 193
6:7-8 42 7:16 180, 189, 13:22 192
12:31-32 42 191, 195 13:24-30 193
NEW TESTAMENT 7:17--44 195 13:25-34 193
Matthew 7:18-50 193 13:31-35 180
9:15 207 7:22 189 13:31 192
12:18 187 7:39 189 13:33-34 189
13:52-58 188 8:23 197 13:33 192
17:1-8 191 9 193 13:35 193
19:28 181 9:7-9 180 13:38 192
9:8 191 14:1-6 193
Mark 9:18-19 180 14:1 193
6:1-6 188 9:19 191 14:24 193
9:2-8 191 9:28-36 190,231 14:25 192
10:1-52 192 9:28 204 15:1-2 193
9:29 191 16:14-16 193
Luke 9:30 191 16:24 185
1:55 185, 195 9:31 191, 195, 16:27-31 193
1:67-79 186 204 16:27 185
1:68 195 9:33 191 16:29 185
1:71-75 186 9:34-35 191 16:30 185
1:72-73 195 9:51-19:44 190, 192, 16:31 185, 189
1:72 184, 185 193 17:11-19 193
1:73 185 9:51-58 193 17:11 192
1:79 195 9:51 192,197 17:2a--:37 193
2:22 185 9:52 192 17:25-30 193
3:4-6 196 9:53 192 17:26-30 193
3:8 185 9:56 192 18:8 193
3:16-17 187, 188 9:57 192 18:15 192
3:16 183 10:1-18:14 193 18:31-34 193
3:21-22 183, 187- 10:1 192 18:31 192
89,220 10:3 193 18:35--43 193
3:22 187 10:10-11 193 18:35 192
4:1-13 187 10:13-16 193 19:1 192
4:14 190 10:25 193 19:7 193
4:16-30 180, 183, 11:14-26 193 19:11-13 195
188 11:14 193 19:11 192
4:16 188, 190 11:15-54 193 19:14 193
Luke (cont.) I :15 215 2:38 183,215,

19:27 193 I :17 181 221
19:28 192 I :19 177 2:39 220
19:39-44 193 1:26 181 2:40 233
19:41-44 193 1:73 185 2:41 206,215,
19:44 192 2 3,4,181, 233
20:28 185 197,201, 2:42-47 I96,234
20:37 I85 202,2I4-- 2:42 236
22:3 I8I I8, 230, 2:43-47 236
22:I4-23 I94 232,237, 2:43 I96
22:20 I84, I94, 245 3:I2-26 22I
236,237 2:I-13 205,208 3:I3 185
22:28-30 I8I 2:I-4 176,196, 3:I8-26 222
23:44-49 I95 208 3:I9-20 22I
24:I9 180, 195 2:I I97, I99, 3:20-2I 22I
24:27 I85 203,229 3:22-24 I80
24:44-53 I95 2:2 203,209, 3:22-23 I80, I89,
24:44 185 2I4 I95,23I
24:47 I83 2:3 209,214, 3:22 I86, I9I
24:49 176, 183, 245 3:25 I85, I86
203, 204, 2:4 I96,2I4 4-6 I96
22I 2:5-13 2I2 4:4 206
24:50-53 I76, I92, 2:5-II I86,2I5 4:8 2I5
203 2:5 182,2I5 4:16 I96
24:50-5I I92 2:6 2I4 4:30 I96
24:50 203,204, 2:9-II 203 4:3I 2I5
207 2:I4-42 2I8 4:32 234
2:I5 I97, 205, 4:33-37 234
John 209 5:I2 I96
20:I9-23 176 2:17-21 2I9, 22I, 5:30 I85
20:22-23 2 230 5:3I 230
2:22-36 223 6:3 2I5
Acts 2:22 I96, 2I9, 6:8 I96
I:I-II I76, I95, 230 6:II I85, I95
205 2:25 23I 6:13-I4 I95
I :3 206 2:29-36 223 6:I4 I85
I:4-5 I76, 183, 2:29 231 7 186,238
188 2:30 4, 185, 189 7:2 185
I:4 203,204 2:32-36 207 7:4 I85
I:6 205 2:32-35 232 7:5 185, I86
I:8 I76, I82, 2:33-35 2 7:8 185, 186
183, I88, 2:33-34 229 7:II 185
203 2:33 220,222, 7:12 185
1:9-11 ]92, 203 223,229- 7:14 185
I:9 204 31, 238, 7:I5 185
I :II 204 246 7:17 185, I86,
I:I2-26 181, I82, 2:34--35 231 195
205 2:34 230 7:I8-44 186
1:12 204 2:35 230 7:19 I85
1:15-26 18I 7:20-44 231
7:20 185 11:24 215 26:6 185

7:22 195 12:20-23 196 26:7 181
7:23 195 12:25-28:16 190 26:22 185
7:25 230 13 233 28:23 185
7:27-28 195 13:9 215 28:25 185
7:30-34 195 13:17 185
7:32 185 13:19 185 Romans
7:35 189, 190, 13:23 185 8 5,237
195,230 13:31 206 8:9 229
7:36-37 189 13:32 185 15:25-31 234
7:36 196,219 13:36 185
7:37 180, 189, 13:38-39 190,238 I Corinthians
195 13:38 185 6:17 229
7:38 185, 196, 13:52 215 11:25 194,237
231,238 14:3 196 15:45 229
7:39-41 195 14:11-17 196 16:1-4 234
7:39 185, 189, 15 233,237
190 15:1-29 190 2 Corinthians
7:41-43 196 15:1-5 238 3:17-18 229
7:44 185 15:1 185 8-9 234
7:45 185 15:5 185
7:51-53 195 15:7-11 238 Galatians
7:51 185 15:8 215 2:10 234
7:52 185, 189, 15:10 185 3:6-18 185
190 15:12 196 4:6 229
7:55 215 15:20 203
8 182 15:21 185 Ephesians
8:1 182 15:29 203 I :10 226
8:4-40 190 16:1-3 187 1:13 229
8:6 196 17:24-31 196 1:20-21 227
8:9-13 196 18:18 187 2:2 226
8:13 196 19 238 2:14 227
8:15-17 215 19:2-6 215 2:15 227
8:26-40 184 19:6 214 2:20 227
8:32-33 184 19:9 196 3:10 227
9:2 196 19:23 196 3:16-17 229
9:17 215 19:25-27 196 4:1-6 228
9:31 182 21 238 4:7-12 2
9:32-11:18 190 21:21 185 4:7-11 207,225,
10 237 22:3-4 187 246
10:34-38 190 22:4 196 4:7-10 224,225,
10:36 190 22:12-16 187 228,229
10:38 190 22:14 185 4:7-8 228
10:41 206 22:17 187 4:8-10 226
10:44-48 190 22:20 185 4:8 224, 225,
10:44-47 215 22:21 187 230
10:45-47 238 23:1-5 187 4:9-10 228,229
10:46 214 24:14 196 4:9 228
11:15-16 215 24:22 196 4:10 228
11:15 238 26:4-5 187 4:11-16 228
Ephesians (cont.) 92.1 110 5.25-28 103

5:18 229 93.1-2 110 5.27 103
6:12 227 5.32 95
6:14--17 227 2 Enoch 6 87, 93, 96,
68.1-3 110 118
Philippians 6.1-3 96
1:19 229 4Ezra 6.1 95
4:15-20 234 13 217 6.2 97
13.1-10 216 6.5-6 97
Colossians 13.3 216 6.7-14 97
4:10-11 177 13.4 216 6.10-11 97
13.10 216 6.11 61
Jude 13.39 217 6.13 85
14--15 135 14.1-8 80 6.15-16 97
14.37-38 80 6.17-22 105, 107
Revelation 6.17-19 97, 98, 106,
11:2 63 Jubilees 107,242
II :3 63 105 6.17 61
11:12 207 1.1-4 85 6.18-19 112
12:6 63 1.1 90, 93, 105, 6.19 85,200
12:14 63 199, 200 6.20-22 98
13:5 63 1.7-16 80 6.20 85
1.7-12 85 6.21 113,117
PSEUDEPIGRAPHA 1.8-10 86,87 6.22 80,85
Ascension of Isaiah 1.8 89 6.30-32 140
9.16 206 1.13-14 85 6.32-33 103
1.15-18 85 6.32 85
2 Baruch 1.15 85 6.33 137
59.1-2 214 1.27-2.1 85 6.36--38 103
59.3-11 204 1.27 79,84 6.36--37 138
2-50 85 6.38 85
I Enoch 2 88 7.1 105
1.9 135 2.1 84,85 7.20 203
14 217 2.9 98 7.34--37 110
14.8-25 216 2.17-33 87 7.34--36 113
14.8 207 2.18 105 7.38-39 110
18.13-15 141 2.23 93 8-9 203
72-82 63, 100, 2.26 85 8.2-4 108,110,
137, 138 4.17-26 Ill Ill
73 138 4.17-23 108 8.2 108
74.10-11 63, 101 4.17-18 101 8.4 110
74.12 140 4.18 109 8.11-12 108, Ill,
75.1-2 63, 102 4.19 82, 109, 118
78-79 138 110 8.12-21 88, 112
80.2-8 141 4.21-22 109 8.12 203
81.6 110 4.21 101 9.1 88
82.1-3 110 4.23 109 9.2-6 88
83-90 82 4.29-30 113 9.4 112
91.1 110 5.8 Ill 9.13 112
9.14-15 88, 119, 16.11-14 114 27.22-24 121

126 16.11 114, 115, 28.7 85
10.13 108,111 117 28.11 122
10.15-17 112 16.12-14 115 28.13 122
10.15 •' 111 16.12 104 28.14 122
10.18-16 112 16.13 2, 33, 57, 28.15 122
10.26 112,203 105, 113, 28.18 122
10.28-34 88 114,118, 28.19 122
10.29-34 112 244 28.20 122
10.29-32 126 16.15 114, i 15 28.21 122
10.34 112 16.16-19 104 28.22 122
11.16 108 16.16 105 28.23 122
12.1-8 111 16.20-31 104,105 28.24 122
12.25-27 107, 113 16.20 114,115 29.5-8 96, 105,
12.25 112, 113 17.1 118 125
12.27 Ill 17.15-18.13 105 29.5-6 100
12.28-13.1 Ill 18.17-19 104,105 29.5 125
12.28 112 18.17 114--17 29.7 100,125
13.1. 112 19.1 117 29.17-19 115
13.25 113 19.15 119 30-32 123
14--15 114 21.10 110 30.4 124
14 117 22-23 119 30.11 85
14.1-20 106,243 22 119 30.12 80,85
14.1-9 112 22.1-5 105 30.17 85
14.1-7 107 22.1-2 115 30.21 85
14.1 107 22.1 113,117, 31.1-3 121
14.9 107 173 31.5-23 123
14.10-20 112 22.10-15 119 31.12-13 123
14.10 94,105, 22.16--19 119. 31.18-20 123
107, 112 22.20-22 119 31.26--30 121
14.13-16 107 22.24 119 32.1-29 105
14.18 107 22.25-23.3 119 32.1-9 121
14.20 105, 107, 22.26--23.3 Ill 32.33 122
112 23.1 117, 119 34.1-9 124
15 117 23.7 115 34.3 123
15.1-22 113,243 23.8 Ill 35.24 126
15.1-2 105, 113 23.9 108, 111 36.7-9 126
15.1 2, 57, 99, 23.10 Ill 36.12 115
118 23.11-14 Ill 37.1 115
15.2 114 23.11 135 37.9-23 126
15.3-10 114 23.15-16 57 38.1 124
15.7 114 23.32 85 38.5 124
15.11-14 114 24.8-27 96 38.6 124
15.15-21 114 24.8 115 38.8 124
15.20 119 24.9-11 120 39.6 110
15.21 118 24.12 115 41.25 85
15.28 85 24.21 115 44.1-10 119
15.33 85 24.26 115 44.1-5 2,33,57,
16.10 115 24.31-32 224 105
Jubilees (cont.) II, 2-3 148 XV, 5--6 148

44.1-4 121 II, 2 152, 157 XV, II 154
44.1-2 120 II, 14--III, 12 157 XV, 14--15 146
44.3-5 121 II, 14--IV, 12 149 XV, 15 !54
44.4 113 III, 10--13 147, 148 XVI, 1-6 !52
44.9--10 124 III, 10 !52 XVI,2-6 !54
45.16 lll III, 12-16 !50 XVI, 2-4 135
48.12-19 105 III, 13-20 236 XIX, 13-14 152
48.15-49.23 105 III,13 150 XIX, 16 !52
49.2 105 III,4--5 157 XIX, 33-XX, 34 153
49.15 85 IV, 7-10 148 XIX, 33-34 !52
49.22 85 IV, 7-9 236 XIX, 34 148
50.1 85 IV, 12-VI 1 157 XX, 12 148,150
50.2 85 IV, 12-VII9 !53 XX,25-27 148
50.4--5 89 v, 1-5 80 XX,25 !52
50.4 88 VI, 2-3 148 XX,27-30 158, 159,
50.6-13 87 VI,5 148 170
50.12 58 VI, 11-VII, 9 153 XX,29 159
50.13 85 VI, 11-VII, 4 !53
72.2-37 102 VI, 11-12 152 /QpHab
75.2 102 VI, 19 148, 150, II, 3 149
82.4--6 102 152 V, 8-11 157
VII,4 153 XI, 2-8 164
Pseudo-Philo VII, 5-VIII, 19 !53
Liber antiquitatum VII, 9-VIII, 2 236 /QapGen
biblicarum VII, 9-VIII, 21 157 X,13 97
11.15 204 VII, 9-15 164
12.1 204 VII, 15 148 IQS
13.5 199 VII, 19 148 I-III 175
23.2 198 VII, 21 150 I-II 168, 171,
23.14 198 VIII, 1-2 !52 174
32.9 204 VIII, 13-14 166 I, 1-15 162
VIII, 16-18 148 I, 7 165
Testament ofDan VIII, 21 148, 152 I, 11-13 236
5.11 224 IX, I-XVI, 20 !53 I, 11-12 166
IX,2 I 52 I, II 165
Testament ofNaphtali IX, 16--20 159 I, 16-III, 12 4, 158, 159
1.1 192 IX, 19--20 166 I, 16-II, 25 163,244
X, 7-10 135 I, 16 159,162
Testament ofZebulun XI, 12 146 I, 18--II, 18 170
4.8 224 XII, 10 146 I, 18--20 163
XII, 2--6 !57 I, 18 162
QUMRAN XIII, 14 !52 I,20 162
CD XIV, 15 146 I, 21-22 163
I, 1-Il, 1 152 XIV, 3--6 154, 155 I, 22-23 163
I, I-IV, 12 !53 XIV, 6-8 155 I, 24--II, I 163
I, I-VI, II !53 XIV, 8-12 !55 I, 24--26 159,170,
I, 3-4 164 XV,5-XVI,6 151 173
I, 4--11 164 XV, 5-17 151, 152 I, 24 162
II, 1-4 163 VI, 15 162 3 II, 6 149

II, 4-9 163, 169 VI, 17 146
II, 4-18 171 VI, 18-20 167 IQH
II, 5 169 VI, 19 162 II, 34-36 157
II, 10 162, 163 VI, 20 169 IV, 7 157
II, 11-18 158 Vl,21 146 IV, 9-12 157
II, 11-17 163 VII 161 IV, 16--18 157
II, 12 162 VII, 4-10 172 XII, 8-9 164
II, 18 162, 163 VII, 8-16 i64 XIV, 12-13 236
II, 19-23 163 VII, 15 133 XV, 15-19 236
II, 19-22 163 VII, 24-25 ISS XVI, 11-12 236
II, 19 151, 154, VII-VIII 161
159, 163 VIII, I-ll 167 4QPs"
II, 21-22 165 VIII, 13-16 196 XXVII, 7 171
II, 25-Ill, 6 157 VIII, 16 162
II, 25-26 158 VIII, 23 158 4Ql77
II, 26-III, I 158 IX 161 5-6 164
Ill,4-12 158 IX,2-6 236 7-10 164
Ill,6-ll 236 IX,3 236
III, 6 237 IX,5 165 4Q216
III, 7-11 237 IX, 16--21 196 I, 4-7 90
III, 7 237 IX, 17-20 164 II, 3-10 86
III,8 237 X, 10 162 II, 17 85
III, 10 158 XI 161 VI, 7-8 98
III, II 162 VI,8 98
Ill, 13-IV, 26 236 IQSa VII, 8-9 105
IV, 20-22 237 I, 1-5 236
V-IX 161 I, 4 146 4Q228
V, 1-7 167 I, 9-11 146 I, I I 135
v, 1-3 236 II, 9 175 I, I 2 154
V,l 165 II, 17-22 236 I, I 9 135, 154
V,2-12 236 II, 17-21 133
v, 6 165 4QS'
v, 7-24 236 IQSb III, I 166
v, 8-12 236 III,26 149,163
v, 8-9 150 V,21 149, 163 4QIY' (4Q266)
v, 8 162, 165 3 III, 20 !50
V,9 162 IQM 8I 152
v, 10 165 I, 2-3 165 8 I, 7-10 152
v, 14-20 158 X, 10 236 II 155, 156
v, 20 162, 167 XV, 7 169 II, 1-5 158
V,21 165 XVI, 15 169 II, 5-6 158
v, 22 165 II, 5-16 156
v, 24 163 IQ34 II, 7 158
Vl,4-8 236 3 II, 5-7 236 II, 8-16 158
VI, 8 169 II, 14-15 158,244
VI, 12 169 IQ34bis II, 17-18 158
VI, 13 165 3I 173 II, 17-21 155
VI, 15-25 236 3 II, 1-8 173
4QDc 4Q319 4Q513

61-II 152 11 144 3--4,2 143
6 II 17 154
4Q320 IIQ/2
4QDe (4Q270) I I-III 138 4, 1-3 101
7I 156 4III 144
7 I, 15-21 156 4 III, 1-5 33, 144 IIQT (IIQ/9)
7Il 155 41Il, 11-IV, I 145 XI, 10 143
7 II, 11-15 155,244 4 III, 13 143 XI, 11 173
41Il, 2-5 144 XVIII, 10 143
4QDf 4 III, 3-5 143 XVIII,I0-13 129
4II 152 4 III, 3 142, 143 XVIII, 14 173
4 II, 5 154 4 IV, 14-V, 4 145 XVIll-XXII 133
4 IV, 6-10 145 XIX, 5-6 173
4Q275 41V, 8 143 XIX, 9 173
1, 1-6 168 4 V,2 143 XIX, 11-13 130
I, 4 169 4 v, 9-13 145 XIX, 12 173
I, 5 169 4 V, II 143 XIX, 13 130
I, 6 169 4 VI, 5-9 145 XXI, 12-14 130
2, 1-2 169 4 VI, 7 143 XXI, 14 130
3, 1-3 169 XLIII, 3 173
4Q321 XLIII,6-7 173
4Q280 IV-VII 145
I, 1-3 171 IV, 9-V, I 144 PHILO
2, 1-7 171 V,4 143 DeAbrahamo
V,9 143 235 234
4Q286 VI, 7 143
3, 1-8 171 Dedecalogo
5, 1-13 171 4Q325 33 211,245
13-14 171 I, 1--4 142 35 211,245
15 1--4 171 1, 2-3 141 44--47 245
20 171 1, 3 143 44 211
45 235
4Q287 4Q326 46--47 211
8, 1-2 171 4 142 46 212
160 43
4Q287 4Q394
9,1-2 171 1-2 131 Eve1y Good Man is Free
1-2 V, 3-6 131 77 235
4Q288 79 235
1 171 4Q508 84-85 235
1, 1-3 171 I, 1-3 173
3,2 173 Hypothetica
4Q289 13, 1-3 173 8.11 235
I, 1-7 171
4Q509 Quaestiones in Genesin
4Q290 97-98 I, 2-9 173 1.86 204
1,1-3 171 131-132
II, 5-20 173
Quaestiones in Exodum JOSEPHUS Lucian of Samosata

2.29 204 Antiquities The Passing of Peregrinus
3.77-78 223 13 234
DeSomniis 3.78 235
2.75-77 43 3.250-52 43,240 Ovid
3.250-51 34 Metamorphoses
De specialibus /egibus 3.250 32,44 1.88-111 234
1.183-84 43 3.252 44
1.184 43 3.253 44 Plato
2.162 32,42,240 4.189 192 Critias
2.176-78 43 4.325 204 110 234
2.176 43 4.326 204,207
2.177 43 4.330 204 Laws
2.185-87 43 13.251-52 44 624 83
2.188-89 199 13.252 44 634-35 83
2.189 211 14.337-41 44,240 679 234
14.337-38 44 684 234
De virtutibus 17.254-64 44,240 744-46 234
76 204 17.254 44 757 234
77 192 18.21 146 853 83
De vita contemplativa War Minos

I 132 1.253 240 319-20 83
2 132 1.229-30 44,240
21-23 132 1.229 44 Republic
32 132 1.253 44 420-22 234
36 132 2.42-44 44,240 449 234
41-62 133 2.42 43,44 462-{)4 234
57-63 131 2.120-21 146,235
63 132 2.122-27 235 Symposium
65 43, 131-33 2.123 235 202-203 226
66-89 133 2.160-{)1 235
67 133 6.288-309 45 Plutarch
68 132 6.299-300 45 Lycurgus
69 133 5 83
75-78 133 CLASSICAL GREEK AND
77 133 ROMAN WRITINGS Solon
80 133 Aristotle 14 83
81-82 133 Nicomachean Ethics
83-87 133 1168 234 Porphyry
85-87 133 Life ofPythagora
89 133 Politics 6.29-30 234
90 133 1261-67 234
MISHNAH
De vita Mosis Livy Berakot
2.1-7 212 1.19 83 9.5 166
2.288 204
2.291 204 Ifallah
4.10 25
Bikkurim MIDRASH Barnabas

1.3 25 Exodus Rabbah 16.5 135
28.6 214 19.8 234
Ros Hasanah
1.3 74 Mekhilta, Bahodesh Chrysostom
2:1 166 Homilies on Ephesians
Megillah 11.81-82 225
3.5 202 Mekhilta de Rabbi
Ishmael, Bahodesh Didache
So{ah. 5 214 4.5-8 234
7.2 66 9 213
7.8 66 Epistula Apostolorum
Midrash Psalms 18 (29) 206
TOSEFTA 14.6 219
Sukkah Gospel ofPeter
3.18 24 Midrash Rabbah 35-42 206
69 24
Megillah Ignatius
4.5 202 Midrash Tehillim Epistle to the Magnesians
22.19 224 9.3 225
Menal:wt 68.11 224
10.33 24 Irenaeus
Pirqe de Rabbi Eliezer Adversus Haereses
TALMUDS 41 213, 235 I 1.5 206
b. Sabbat 46 224 I 28.7 206
86-87 93 4.27.2 225
88 214 Pesiqta Rabbati 5.31.1 225
47.4 224 5.33.1 225
b. Pesa/:lim
68 201 RuthRabbah Pistis Sophia
5.11 23 1.1 206
b. Ros Hasanah
8 73 Soperim Po1ycarp
16.10 224 To the Philippians
b. Ta'anith 1.2 225
7 214 Vayyiqra Rabbah
29.6 73 Tertullian
b. Megillah Apologeticus
31 202 EARLY CHRISTIAN 21 206
WRITINGS
b. BabaBatm Apoc1yphon ofJames De Anima
78 214 2.19-24 206 55.2 225
b. MenafJot Aristides OTHER

65 32 Apology Machiavelli
2 206 Discourses on Livy
y. Megillah 1.9 83
3.74 202 1.1 I 83
INDEX OF AUTHORS
Abegg, M.G., Jr. 161, 164 Bloom, A. 234

Abegg, M., Jr 135 Blum, E. 53
Albani, M. 139 Boccaccini, G. 62, 63
Albright, W. F. 21 Bock, D. L. 177, 178, 180, 181, 183, 189,
Alexander, P. S. 160, 166, 168, 169 197,231
Alexander, T. D. 12,53 Boecker, H. J. 51
Allen, E. L. 179 Borowski, 0. 22
Allison, D. C. 187 Bosman, H. L. 9, 37
Alt, A. 51,66 Botterweck, G. J. 37
Andersen, F. I. II 0 Bovon, F. 184, 192
Anderson, B. W. 179 Brawley, R. L. 185,223
Anderson, G. A. 104, !57, 200 Broyles, C. C. 75
Andrew, M. E. 51 Bruce, F. F. 177
Arichea, D. C. 56 Biichsel, F. 225
Arnold, C. E. 225, 228 Bultmann, R. 188
Attridge, H. 86, 90, 98 Burge, G. M. 176
Aune, D. E. 63
Cadbury, H. J. 229
Baethgen, F. 75 Caird, G. B. 202, 226, 227
Baillet, M. 13 8, 173 Campbell, J. G. 145
Baltzer, K. 49, 50, 77, 95, !52 Cansdal e, L. 13 6
Barclay, J. M.G. 82 Caquot, A. 74
Barth, M .. 226, 229 . :Carroll, R. P. 20
Barthelemy, D. 57 Cartledge, T. W. 61
Baumgarten, J. M. 132-34, 138, !52 Cazelles, H. 74
Beall, T. S. 136 Charlesworth, J. H. 147, 159, 160, 166,
Beckwith, R. 131,137,138,140,141 236
Begrich, J. 64 Chazon, E. G. 170, 172
Ben-Dov, J. 134, 141-44 Cheyne, T. K. 73
Bergsma, J. S. 88 Childs, B.S. II, 13, 91,92
Berner, C. 88 Chilton, B. D. 188
Best, E. 226 Christiansen, E. J. !50
Betz, 0. 3 Clifford, R. J. 47
Beyerlin, W. 48 Cohen, M. E. 9, 64
Bickerman, E. 82, 84 Collins, J. J. 62, 82
Billerbeck, P. 201 Colson, F. H. 43,211
Blenkinsopp, J. 11-13, 15, 30, 35, 49, 53, Crawford, S. W. 129
56,67,68, 71 Cross, F. M. 29, 149
Bloch-Smith, E. M. 9
Blomberg, C. L. 192 Dahl, N. A. 185
Danker, F. W. 191 Gourgues, M. 3

Davies, J. G. 214 Graetz, H. H. 73
Davies, P.R. 145, 149, 153, 154 Grayson, A. 49
Davila, J. R. 172 Greer, R. 6
Davis, D. R. 13 Grossman, M. L. 145
De Vries, S. J. 52, 61 Guilding, A 202
Deasley, A. 150 Gunkel, H. 64
Delcor, M. 3
Dibelius, M. 188 Halperin, D. J. 172
Dillon, R. J. 179 Halpem-Amaru, B. 88
Dimant, D. 199 Hanson, AT. 225
Doering, L. 87 Haran, M. 9, 22, 29, 36-38, 52
Dozeman, T. B. 12, 53 Harris, W. H. 177,202,223-25,227-29
Drury, J. 192 Hartley, J. 30
Duggan,M. W. 67,68, 71 Hatina, T. R. 176
Duhm, B. 75 Hauge, M. R. 48
Dunn,J.D.G. 177,201,225,237 Hempel, C. 135, 145, 147, 149, 153, 154,
Dupont, J. 3, 5, 177, 223, 229, 230, 237 156, 158, 160,201
Hendel, R. S. 54, 95, 108
Elgvin, T. 132 Hengel, M. 82, 84
Endres, J. C. 84, 116, 120, 124 Herion, G. A 48-51
Epstein, I. 214 Herkenne, H. 73
Etheridge, J. W. 211 Hillers, D. R. 48
Evans, C. A. 182, 193 Hirschfeld, Y. 136
Evans, C. F. 192 Holladay, W. L. 20
Hopkins, D. C. 22, 26
Falk, D. K. 138, 153, 154, 158, 159, 167, Horst, P. van der 234
170, 171, 173
Finegan, J. 62, 102, 137, 138 Isaac, E. 10 I
Fishbane, M. 52 Jacobson, H. 199
Fitzmer, J. 41, 177
Fitzmyer, J. 192 Japhet, S. 41, 61, 71, 151
Fitzmyer, J. A 3 Jastrow, M. 44
Fletcher-Louis, C. H. 172 Jaubert, A. 2, 57, 58, 93, 117, 126, 147,
Flint, P. W. 135, 136 150, 157
Freedman, H. 23, 24 Jeremias, J. 48
Freehof, S. B. 74 Jervell, J. 182, 237
Friedman, R. E. 11 Johnson,L. T. 184,185,195
Frymer-Kensky, T. S. 64 Johnson, M.D. 108,217,220,234
Garcia Martinez, F. 79, 85, 101 Kahle, P. 145

Gerhardsson, B. 187 Kaufmann, Y. 29
Gerstenberger, E. 19,31-33 Kedar-Kopfstein, B. 37
Gibson, J. B. 188 Kim, H.-S. 214
Glassmer, U. 134 Kimball, C. A. 187
Glessmer, U. 139, 142-44 Kirby, J. C. 202,226
Goodman, M. D. 132, 133, 136 Klein, J. 64
Goudoever,J. van 61,62, 110,198,207 Knibb, M. A 145, 149, 152, 157
Goulder, M. 192 Knohl, I. 29, 30, 52
Index ofAuthors 289
Knox, W. L. 223 Najman, H. 71, 79, 81, 85

Korosec, V. 49 Neirynck, F. 191
Kosmala, H. 13 Neudecker, R. 177
Kraus, H.-J. 9, 10, 14, 20, 38, 52, 75 Neusner, J. 213
Kreitzer, L. J. 225 Newsom, C. 171, 173
Kretschmar, G. 2, 177,206,223,229 Nicholson, E. 29, 52, 53
Kugel, J. L. 6, 195, 213 Nicholson, E. W. 48
Kuntz, J. K. 48 Nicholson, G. C. 176
Niehaus, J. J. 48
Lagarde, P. de 225 Niese, B. 44
Le Deaut, R. 3, 52, 177 Nitzan, B. 150, 157, 170
Lemaire, A. 75 Noack, B. 3
Levenson,J. D. 47,48,50 Nolland, J. 192
Levi, G. 51 Noth, M. II, 12, 14, 29, 30, 35, 52,91
Levine, B. 22
Levinson, B. M. 48, 52 O'Brien, P. T. 226
Lieberman, S. 25 O'Reilly, L. 220, 237
Lieberman, S. J. 93 O'Toole, R. F. 4, 177, 180, 181, 195,223,
Lincoln, A. T. 226 231
Lindars, B. 223, 229 Oepke, A. 222
Lohfink, G. 206
Lohse, E. 4, 9, 61 Pao, D. W. 179, 181, 183, 196, 197,219
Parpola, S. 49
Magness, J. 136 Patrick, D. 12, 51
Mann, J. 202 Paul, S.M. 12,51
Mann, T. W. 48 Perlitt, L. 14
Marshall, I. H. 4, 5, 177, 180, 185, 192, Petersen, A. R. 64
199 Pfann, S. J. 3, 161
Marshall, J. W. 51 Pfeiffer, R. H. 13
May, H. G. 236 Porter, C. H. 226
McCarthy, D. J. 48, 49 Potin, J. 3, 202
Meeks, W. A. 223
Mendenhall, G. E. 48-51 Qimron, E. 160, 166
Menzies, R. P. 177,180,181,199,215,
216,218,231 Rad, G. von 52, 54,64-66
Metso, S. 160-62 Ravens, D. 182, 197
Michaelis, W. 192 Renaud, B. 53
Milgrom, J. 18, 19, 22, 23, 25, 29, 30, 32, Rendtorff, E. 48
34,37,38 Rendtorff, R. 53
Milik, J. T. 128, 138, 154, 157, 158, 168, Resseguie, J. L. 192
170 Ringgren, H. 9
Minear, P. S. 179, 189 Rose, M. 53
Moberly, R. W. 12, 13 Roth, S. J. 184
Moessner, D.P. 179, 189, 192-94 Rubenstein, J. L. 69-71
Momigliano, A. 82 Ruiten, J. T. A. G. M. van 94, 95, 103
Morgenstern, J. 9, 13, 51
Moritz, T. 226 Sanders, E. P. 59
Mowinckel, S. 51, 64, 71, 74,75 Sanders, J. A. 7
Murphy, C. M. 165-67 Sandmel, S. 215
Schechter, S. 146 Ulrich, E. C. 81, 135

Schiffman, L. H. 136, 138
Schmid, H. H. 15, 53 Van Seters, J. 12, 13, 15, 53
Schmidt, H. 73 VanderKam, J. C. 2-5, 9, 55, 57--60, 63,
Schnackenburg, R. 226 68,78-94,96,97,100-102,104,
Schreck, C. J. 188 106, 108, 110-16, 118, 122, 123,
Schulz, J. P. 47 125, 132, 134, 136, 138-40, 144,
Schwartz, B. J. 53 154,158,165,166,176,178,179,
Scott, J. M. 88, 182,202,203,215 200,202,203,205,209,215,235
Segal, B. Z. 51 Vaux, R. de 9, 136
Sekki, A. E. 236 Vermes, G. 132, 133, 136, 160, 166, 168,
Shaver, J. R. 70 169
Simon, M. 23, 24
Skemp, V. T. M. 41 Wacholder, B. Z. 80, 87, 131
Smith, M.S. 9, 52-54 Watts, J. W. 68
Snaith, N.H. 39,73-75 Watts, R. E. 180, 181
Sonnet, J.-P. 67 Weinfeld, M. 3, 29, 50, 52, 54, 66, 71, 72,
Spatz, L. 47 77,172,177
Sprinkle, J. M. 51,56 Weiser, A. 65
Stamm, J. J. 51 Wellhausen, J. 9, 14, 22, 52
Stegemann, H. 136 Wenk, M. 177, 197
Sternberger, G. 24, 213 Wernberg-Meller, P. 158, 236
Sterling, G. E. 82, 176, 178 Wevers, J. 27, 42, 91
Stern, S. 138, 139 Whitaker, G. H. 211
Strack, H. L. 24, 201, 213 Whybray, R.N. 53
Strauss, M. L. 179-81,183,187, 189,197, Wilson, S. G. 185
215 Woods, E. J. 192
Stuckenbruck, L. T. 160 Woude, A. S. van der 101
Stuhlmueller, C. 180 Wright, N. T. 182
Swanson, D. D. 129
Swartley, W. M. 192, 193 Yadin, Y. 129-31
York, J. 0. 184
Tahnon, S. 131, 134, 135, 137, 141-44,
149,167,236 Zehnle, R. F. 179
Tcherikover, V. 82 Zeitlin, S. 117
Thackeray, H. St. J. 44, 202 Zias, J. 166, 235
Tigay, J. H. 21, 22 Zimmerli, W. 39
Tigchelaar, E. J. C. 101 Zwiep, A. W. 204, 206, 207, 223
Toorn, K. van der 64
Treves, M. 236
Tuckett, C. M. 188
Turner, M. 181, 188, 197,212,214,217,
223,232,237

Pentecost and Sinai The Festival of Weeks As A Celebration of The Sinai Event Library Hebrew Bible Old Testament Studies PDF

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For my parents

Copyright© 2008 by Sejin Park

T & T Clark International, 80 Maiden Lane, New York, NY I 0038

T & T Clark International is a Continuum imprint.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

296.4 '3 809--dc22

Presbyterian Church of South Bend, IN for their encouragement and

A.D. anno Domini

Apocryphal and Pseudepigraphal Books

Dead Sea Scrolls

IQapGen Genesis Apocryphon

Tat-gums and Rabbinic Texts

HALOT Koehler, L., W. Baumgartner, and J. J. Stamm, The Hebrew

SBT Studies in Biblical Theology

Kretschmar's thesis about an early Jewish association between the

5. Roger Le Deaut, "Pentecote et tradition juive," Spiritus 7 (1961): 127-44;

8. James C. VanderKam, "Sinai Revisited," in Biblical lnte1pretation at Qumran

confirmation of his thesis in Luke's presentation of Moses, Abraham,

2. The Limits of this Study

16. Marshall, "The Significance of Pentecost," 365-66.

particular and detailed exegetical moves that readers made in associating

In many ways, the methodology of this study will also be similar to

THE FESTIVAL OF WEEKS IN THE HEBREW BIBLE

1. On festivals in early Israel, se·e Julius Wellhausen, Prolegomena to the History

2. The Festival of Weeks in the Hebrew Bible

21 You shall work six days, but on the

seventh day you shall rl(st. During plow-

4: Kraus, Worship in Israel, 29-30.

24For I will drive out nations from before

Pentateuch, 169, 189, 197. Blenkinsopp assigns Exod 23:20-33 to D as a sequel to

The word O'l~:!:J ("first-fruits"), which is also used to describe the

2 .I. 2. Exodus 34:22 a. Exodus 34 has been a notoriously difficult passage

Decalogue") to E's "ethical Decalogue." 10 According to Wellhausen

The phrase nv;;:t~ lO ("Festival ofWeeks") presupposes ~he formula for

10. Julius Wellhausen, Composition des Hexateuchs und der historischenBiicher

Festival of Booths, is not assigned a date, whereas the Festival of

2.2. Deuteronomic Texts

Table 1. Comparison ofFestival Passages in Exodus and Deuteronomy

The Deuteronomistic program of centralization of worship makes its

(WMANT 36; Neukirchen: Neukirchen-Vluyn, 1969), 203-32; Hans H. Schmid,

the Festival of Unleavened Bread is not explicitly mentioned; there are

Exodus 23:18 appears to contain a couple of general injunctions relat-

phrase. Moreover, the verb n:Ji ("offer") in Exod 23:18 is changed in

20. See further below.

2.2.2. Jeremiah 5:24. Jeremiah 5:24 appears to contain an allusion to the

33. Wellhausen, Prolegomena, 83-92; Tigay, Deuteronomy, 156; Haran, Temples

other regions of the country. However, if the formula as described in

However, it is possible that the rabbi's chronology is motivated by other

37. Cf. Milgrom, Leviticus, 3:2059.

47. Hopkins, Highlands of Canaan, 224.

ability that, due to the differing climatic conditions in various regions,

2.3. Priestly Texts

from the morrow after the sabbath, from

53. On which, see further below.

54. E.g. Noth, Pentateuchal Traditions, 9. There is a significant minority of

Unleavened Bread from I/15-21 (23:6-8), the Day of Atonement on

59. It may be that this phrase is a secondary addition as Gerstenberger (Leviticus,

63. Milgrom, Leviticus, 3: 1985; cf. Josephus, Ant. 3.250-51.

Leviticus 23:22 Leviticus 19:9-10

The chief difference is that the stipulation is extended to vineyards in

2.3.2. Numbers 28:26-31 [P]. The commissioning of Joshua in Num

:O'W:J~O'l nlJ:JI!h iMNO'l iv:J~? liiVJlJliiVJlJ 29

languages is that of 'festal, joyful gathering'," which includes the "connotation of