The Book of Genesis in Late Antiquity: Encounters between Jewish and Christian Exegesis

549 Pages·2013·4.16 MB·English

by  Emmanouela Grypeou

The Book of Genesis in Late Antiquity
Jewish and Christian
Perspectives Series
Editorial Board
David Golinkin – Alberdina Houtman
Marcel Poorthuis – Joshua Schwartz
Freek van der Steen
Advisory Board
Yehoyada Amir – David Berger – Shaye Cohen
Judith Frishman – Martin Goodman
Clemens Leonhard – Tobias Nicklas – Eyal Regev
Gerard Rouwhorst – Seth Schwartz – Yossi Turner
VoLuME 24
The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/jcp
The Book of Genesis
in Late Antiquity
Encounters between Jewish and
Christian Exegesis
By
Emmanouela Grypeou and Helen Spurling
LEiDEN • BoSToN
2013
Bar-Ilan University, Israel
University of Tilburg: Faculty of Catholic Theology,
The Netherlands
Schechter Institute of Jewish Studies, Israel
Bar-ilan university after the ingeborg Rennert Center for Jerusalem
BInagr-eIblaonrg U Rneinvenresritty C, Iesnrateerl for Jerusalem Studies, Israel
Studies, israel

UBanri-vIelarsnit Uy onfiv Terislbituy,r gIs:r Faaeclulty of Catholic Theology,
university of Tilburg: Faculty of Catholic Theology,
The editors gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Ingeborg Rennert Center for Jerusalem Studies.
TThhee NNeetthheerrllaannddss
University of Tilburg: Faculty of Catholic Theology,
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Schechter institute of Jewish Studies, israel
Interaction between Judaism and Christianity in history, religion, art and literature / edited
Ingeborg Rennert Center for Jerusalem Studies, Israel
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Je ru salpe.m c mSt.u —die s (.Jewish and Christian perspectives series ; v. 17)
Includes bibliographical references.
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ISBN 978-90-04-17150-3 (hardback : alk. paper)
1. Judaism--Relations--Christianity—History. 2. Christianity and other religions—
Grypeou, Emmanouela.
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Emmanouela Grypeou and Helen Spurling.
Interaction between Judaism and Christianity in history, religion, art and literature / edited
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CoNTENTS
Acknowledgements  ........................................................................................ ix
introduction  ..................................................................................................... 1
Previous Approaches to Jewish-Christian Relations in
Late Antiquity  ........................................................................................ 2
The Biblical Text and Exegetical Encounters  ................................... 11
Rabbinic Literature and Approach  ...................................................... 15
Christian Literature and Approach  ...................................................... 21
The Process of Encounter  ....................................................................... 26
Methodology: The Development and Transmission of
Each Exegetical Tradition  .................................................................. 30
overview of this Volume  ......................................................................... 38
1. in Paradise: Adam from Creation to Resurrection  ......................... 39
Rabbinic Traditions  ............................................................................. 39
The Creation of Adam: The Hours of Man in Paradise  ....... 40
The Transgression of Adam and Eve: The Serpent as an
intermediary  ................................................................................ 47
The Burial of Adam: The Temple Mount and the Cave of
Machpelah  .................................................................................... 50
The Resurrection of Adam  ........................................................... 54
Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained: The Christian
Tradition  ............................................................................................. 59
one (Last) Day in Paradise ........................................................... 59
The Devil and the Serpent, or, the Loss of Paradise  ............ 68
Where does Adam lay? or, the Promise of Return  ............... 71
Resurrection from Dust, or, Paradise Regained  ..................... 79
The Exegetical Encounter  .................................................................. 84
2. Cain and Abel  ............................................................................................. 99
Rabbinic Traditions  ............................................................................. 99
Cain was the Son of Sammael or the Devil  ............................. 100
Cain and Abel’s Twin Sisters  ....................................................... 104
Cain killed Abel over a Woman  .................................................. 108
Abel was killed by a Stone ............................................................ 112
Lamech killed Cain  ......................................................................... 113
vi contents
The Christian Tradition  ...................................................................... 116
The Birth of Cain and Abel  .......................................................... 119
The Death of Abel  ........................................................................... 121
The Death of Cain  ........................................................................... 128
The Exegetical Encounter  .................................................................. 132
3. The Flood Story  .......................................................................................... 147
Rabbinic Traditions  ............................................................................. 147
The Descendants of Seth and Cain  ............................................ 148
Repentance and the Ark  ............................................................... 152
Mocking of Noah and the Building of the Ark  ....................... 156
Noah and Chastity  ........................................................................... 160
The Christian Tradition  ...................................................................... 165
The Descendants of Seth and Cain  ............................................ 166
Repentance and the Ark  ............................................................... 175
Mocking of Noah  ............................................................................. 180
Noah and Chastity  ........................................................................... 181
The Exegetical Encounter  .................................................................. 185
4. Abraham and Melchizedek  .................................................................... 199
Rabbinic Traditions  ............................................................................. 199
Melchizedek identified with Shem  ............................................ 200
Priesthood of Abraham  ................................................................. 205
Melchizedek and Jerusalem  ......................................................... 209
Bread and Wine Symbolism  ......................................................... 211
Melchizedek and Circumcision ................................................... 213
The Christian Tradition  ...................................................................... 215
Melchizedek identified with Shem  ............................................ 215
Priesthood of Abraham vs Priesthood of Melchizedek  ....... 220
Melchizedek and Jerusalem  ......................................................... 221
Bread and Wine Symbolism  ......................................................... 225
Melchizedek and Circumcision ................................................... 226
The Exegetical Encounter  .................................................................. 228
5. Hagar and ishmael  .................................................................................... 239
Rabbinic Traditions  ............................................................................. 239
Hagar: A Gift from Pharaoh  ......................................................... 240
ishmael the Plunderer  ................................................................... 243
Apocalyptic ishmaelites  ................................................................ 246
contents vii
ishmael the Rejected  ...................................................................... 249
 idolatry  .......................................................................................... 251
 Bloodshed and Animosity towards isaac  ............................ 253
 Firstborn Rights and inheritance  .......................................... 255
Abraham’s Lack of Generosity  .................................................... 256
The Christian Tradition  ...................................................................... 259
Hagar: A Gift from Pharaoh  ......................................................... 264
ishmael’s Animosity ........................................................................ 266
Hagar’s Expulsion  ............................................................................ 271
ishmael and the Apocalyptic understanding of the
Muslim Arabs  ............................................................................... 272
The Exegetical Encounter  .................................................................. 277
6. Jacob’s Ladder  ............................................................................................. 289
Rabbinic Traditions  ............................................................................. 289
The Foundation Stone and the Temple Built, Destroyed
and Rebuilt  ................................................................................... 291
The Stone(s) as Nation israel—Election and Fulfilment
of the Promise  ............................................................................. 295
The Messiah as Jacob’s Stone or Cornerstone  ........................ 298
The Anointed Stone  ........................................................................ 300
The Christian Tradition  ...................................................................... 301
The Angels on the Ladder and their Symbolism  ................... 305
The Christological interpretation of Jacob’s Vision  .............. 307
The Anointing of the Stone  .......................................................... 310
The Exegetical Encounter  .................................................................. 314
7. Joseph and Potiphar  ................................................................................. 323
Rabbinic Traditions  ............................................................................. 323
The Beauty of Joseph ...................................................................... 325
Potiphar and Joseph  ....................................................................... 329
Potiphar, Potiphera and Asenath  ............................................... 332
The Christian Tradition  ...................................................................... 336
The Beauty of Joseph ...................................................................... 338
Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife  .......................................................... 340
Potiphar: A Eunuch? ....................................................................... 345
Potiphar: Joseph’s Father-in-Law?  .............................................. 350
The Exegetical Encounter  .................................................................. 351
viii contents
8. The Blessing on Judah  .............................................................................. 361
Rabbinic Traditions  ............................................................................. 361
Judah is Praised (Genesis 49:8)  ................................................... 362
 Praise for Judah’s Actions  ........................................................ 362
 Praise for Judah’s Victories  ...................................................... 365
The Lion of Judah (Genesis 49:9)  ............................................... 367
The Messiah and the Nations (Genesis 49:10)  ........................ 372
 The Sceptre and Messiah  ......................................................... 372
 Shiloh and Messiah  .................................................................... 376
 Subjection of the Nations  ........................................................ 379
The Donkey and the Vine (Genesis 49:11)  ................................ 381
 Garments washed in Wine  ...................................................... 384
The ‘Wine’ and ‘Milk’ (Genesis 49:12)  ....................................... 387
The Christian Tradition  ...................................................................... 390
Gen 49:8: ‘Judah your Brothers will praise you’  ..................... 390
Gen 49:9: ‘Judah is a Lion’s Whelp’  ............................................ 393
Gen 49:10: ‘A Ruler will not fail’  .................................................. 398
Gen 49:11a: ‘He who binds his Foal to a Vine’  ........................ 412
Gen 49:11b: ‘He who washes his Garment in Wine’  .............. 416
Gen 49:12: ‘Wine and Milk’  ........................................................... 419
The Exegetical Encounter  .................................................................. 421
Conclusions ....................................................................................................... 437
Abbreviations  ................................................................................................... 445
Primary Sources: Editions and Translations  ........................................... 449
General Bibliography  ..................................................................................... 463
index of Ancient Sources  ............................................................................. 497
Subject, Biblical and Ancient Names index  ........................................... 529
ACKNoWLEDGEMENTS
This volume is the culmination of our joint research on the relationship
between rabbinic and Christian exegetical writings of Late Antiquity. This
work was initially conducted at the Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian
Relations and the Centre of Advanced Theological and Religious Studies of
the Faculty of Divinity, university of Cambridge. We would like to thank
the Leverhulme Trust for their generosity in funding our research through
a Research Project Grant.
Dr. Ed Kessler, Executive Director of the Woolf institute, Cambridge,
initiated this research project and our gratitude for his unfailing support
and guidance during the completion of the research and writing of this
book goes beyond words.
We are grateful to Professor William Horbury (Cambridge) and Pro-
fessor Nicholas de Lange (Cambridge) for their help and interest in our
work from its earliest stages. We would also like to thank Professor Her-
mann Lichtenberger, PD Dr. Dmitrij Boumazhnov and Dr. Scott Caulley
for their generous invitation to present early results of our work at the
Colloquium of the institute for the Study of Christian origins at the uni-
versity of Tübingen. Their constructive, critical comments have helped
us to shape our methodological approach to the question of ‘exegetical
encounters’. Many thanks also to the members of the Hebrew, Jewish and
Early Christian Studies Seminar at Cambridge for their helpful feedback
on aspects of this volume.
We would like to thank the participants of the conference ‘The Exegeti-
cal Encounter between Jews and Christians in Late Antiquity’, which we
organized in Cambridge in June 2007. All of the contributors offered valu-
able thoughts and insights on our own research questions and goals.
We would also like to thank Daniel Avasilichoaie and Yasmine Hou at the
Centre for the Study of Jewish-Christian Relations and David Goode at the
Faculty of Divinity, university of Cambridge for their valuable assistance
on administration and iT aspects of the research project. Many thanks
also to Dr. Philip Matyszak (Maty) who looked after the iT side of the
project in its early stages and who was always available for a good laugh.
Emmanouela is very grateful to Professor Robert L. Wilken for his
encouragement and inspiration in the study of Patristics in the context
of Christian-Jewish relations. Professor Michael E. Stone has been a most