The Origins of the 'Second' Temple: Persian Imperial Policy and the Rebuilding of Jerusalem
2006; Society of Biblical Literature; Volume: 125; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
1934-3876
Autores Tópico(s)Cassava research and cyanide
ResumoThe Origins of the 'Second' Temple: Persian Imperial Policy and the Rebuilding of Jerusalem, by Diana Edelman. BibleWorld. London: Equinox, 2005. Pp. xvi + 440. $29.95 (paper). ISBN 1845530179. This book by Diana Edelman, senior lecturer in the Department of Biblical Studies at the University of Sheffield, contests a scholarly consensus up to the 1990s Ezra 1-6, Haggai, and Zechariah can be relied upon for information about the origins of the Second Temple. These biblical texts presuppose 515 B.C.E. as the date when the exiles returned to Jerusalem and rebuilt its temple and 445 B.C.E. as the date when Jerusalem became fortified (7-8). According to Edelman's challenging hypothesis, historical priority should instead be accorded to the claim in the book of Nehemiah that the resettlement of Jerusalem only took place during the governorship of which began in the twentieth year of Artaxerxes, 444 BCE. Concomitantly, Edelman holds the rebuilding of the temple and Jerusalem's fortification took place at the same time (8). After a concise introduction (1-12), Edelman elaborates her hypothesis, discussing the literary evidence of Haggai-Zechariah 8, and Ezra 1-6 in, respectively, chs. 1 (13-79), 2 (80-150), and 3 (151-208). She then turns more specifically to the archaeological evidence about Yehud's boundaries and its settlement patterns in chs. 4 (209-80) and 5 (281-331). A final, sixth chapter (332-51) synthesizes insights drawn from the previous chapters. Chapter 1, When Generations Really Count: Dating Zerubbabel and Nehemiah Using Genealogical Information in the Book of Nehemiah, does a meticulous job of historical identification of generations on the basis of a list of priests and Levites in Neh 12:1-26. The combined reference to Persian military (2:9) and Jewish civil (7:2) appointments in Jerusalem constitutes important evidence for Edelman's hypothesis (26-27). Edelman concludes from the genealogical information and the chronological information in Elephantine papyrus AP 30 Nehemiah belonged to generation 3, while the return from exile under Zerubbabel and Yeshua (generation 2) should be dated around 465 B.C.E. (75). A critical point should be made with regard to Neh 7:6-72. While this genealogical list of returned exiles appears to be less relevant for the discussion (36, 37, 39, 74, 77), Edelman does not give due emphasis to the fact Neh 7:6-72 and Ezra 2 present parallel versions. The differences-which can be discerned between Ezra 2:2 and Neh 7:7; Ezra 2:10 and Neh 7:15; Ezra 2:17-20 and Neh 7:22-25; Ezra 2:30 having no equivalent in Neh 7:6-73; and Ezra 2:50 and Neh 7:52-need to be accounted for in a discussion about generations starting with the return from exile. This is not to deny the otherwise richly documented character of Edelman's discussion, which pays detailed attention to the ways in which historical information may be derived from both literary and documentary sources, including papyri, inscriptions, coins, and bullae. Chapter 2, What's in a Date? The Unreliable Nature of the Dates in Haggai and Zechariah, analyzes Haggai-Zechariah 8, deferring discussion of Ezra 1-6 to ch. 3 in view of the literary dependence of the latter on the former. Edelman puts the divergent references to the date of the temple-building in the books of Haggai (Hag 1:1, 15; 2:1, 10, 20) and Zechariah (Zech 1:1, 7; 7:1) in perspective. The dating formulae are first compared to Judean, Assyrian, Neo-Babylonian, Persian, Seleucid, and Ptolemaic contexts (82-90). Examples of Persian dating practices include the Behistun inscription, whose English translation is presented in appendix 1 (353-61). Edelman explains the various dates in Haggai and Zechariah in view of prophetic genre conventions (90-106), observing they deliberately fit Jeremiah's prophecies in 25.11-12; 27.6-7 (106) and 29:10 (95) about the seventy-year wrath of God against the people of Israel and the land. …
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