Theses by Ari R . Silbermann
An analysis of the Psalm Pesher including a translation of the text with critical notes, a commen... more An analysis of the Psalm Pesher including a translation of the text with critical notes, a commentary and sections dealing with the workings of the pesher and comparisons to rabbinic midrash.
Conference Presentations by Ari R . Silbermann
EABS, Syracusa, 2023
The association between women and wisdom in the Bible is quite well-known. Wisdom is described al... more The association between women and wisdom in the Bible is quite well-known. Wisdom is described allegorically as a woman, and it is likely that some references to foreign women in Proverbs may be references to foreign wisdom. However, what is less well considered are the deeper motifs underpinning this connection. In this paper, I hope to show that the relationship between wisdom and the feminine is also reflected in the base meaning of .זנות Usually translated as fornication or prostitution, I believe its meaning is more basically tied to going astray and erring, particularly in Second Temple texts. This then allows for a basic linking of foreign wisdom and the figure of the harlot and opens up new vistas for consideration. For Second Temple texts, additional layers are added to this relationship, particularly in terms of the demonic, which was also believed to lead astray. I hope to demonstrate how this works in Second Temple texts, particularly as it relates to the tradition of the Watchers' transmission of scientific knowledge, 4Q184 (initially dubbed Wiles of the Wicked Woman), and the apocalyptic worldview. I further hope to show how these ideas are really the mirror image of older Ancient Near Eastern ideas which linked the motifs of wisdom, the straight path, permanent laws of creation, and the building of houses or temples.
EABS Syracuse, 2023
It is well recognized that the interaction between different polytheisms in the ancient world pro... more It is well recognized that the interaction between different polytheisms in the ancient world produced interpretatio-translation of various gods of one culture and mapping them onto another culture. Israelite monotheism, particularly in
Categories and Boundaries in Second Temple Literature, Online, Midlands 4 Cities Partnership, 2021
This paper examines the curious description of deceit and guile spoken by Jacob and his sons to S... more This paper examines the curious description of deceit and guile spoken by Jacob and his sons to Shechem and Hamor in Jub 30:4. Based on the halakha forbidding exogamy in Jub 30:7 which precludes 'desiring' to give one's daughter' in marriage, a complex development of the verse in question.
Sacred Scriptures – Their Nature and the Place in Religions. Israeli Association for the Study of Religions Annual Conference, 2018
Many scholars have shown the deep intertextual connections between interpretive works found at Qu... more Many scholars have shown the deep intertextual connections between interpretive works found at Qumran and scriptural passages. For instance, Nitzan has shown how Pesher Habakkuk employs intertextual references to develop and actualize ideas that are not found explicitly in the verses before the pesharist. More directly, the pesharist in some cases expounds a verse based on an allusion to a scriptural verse found elsewhere where only knowledge of the latter allows a deep understanding of the pesher and its unique method of interpretation. In an earlier paper I showed that it is possible to identify allusions to sectarian texts in Pesher Psalms a (4Q171) in the same way as others have identified allusions to Scripture, such that a pesher can only be understood by knowing the intertext. In this paper I extend the discussion to understand why this process was important for sectarians, their ideas of continued revelation and authoritative texts. I claim that by utilizing well-known and authoritative sectarian texts in this way, the pesharist was attempting to actualize and apply earlier sectarian literature to developing circumstances. By doing this, the pesharist was reinforcing the revelatory and authoritative status for sectarian works while also ensuring that those earlier revelations were properly understood. Until now such approaches towards exegesis have been applied to what is commonly called Scripture, but this paper challenges scholars to reexamine approaches to the idea of authoritative texts and development of canon in Second Temple Judaism.
World Congress of Jewish Studies, August 10th 2017, Jerusalem
Many scholars have shown the dee... more World Congress of Jewish Studies, August 10th 2017, Jerusalem
Many scholars have shown the deep intertextual connections between interpretive works found at Qumran and scriptural passages. For instance, Nitzan has shown how Pesher Habakkuk employs intertextual references to develop ideas that are not found explicitly in the verses before the pesharist. More directly, the pesharist in some cases expounds a verse based on an allusion to a scriptural verse found elsewhere where only knowledge of the latter allows a deep understanding of the pesher and its unique method of interpretation. Since the question of which texts at Qumran and in the Second Temple period were authoritative is still debated it is incumbent upon scholars to develop as many indicators of a text's authoritativeness as possible, whether it be physical features of discovered manuscripts or evidence within the texts themselves. In this presentation I will attempt to show that it is possible to identify allusions to sectarian texts in Pesher Psalms (4Q171) in the same way as others have identified allusions to Scripture, such that a particular pesher can only be understood by knowing the intertext. Such a claim is important in its own right when approaching the study of sectarian literature, but is also significant because it may offer further parameters for identifying authoritative texts for the Qumran community and understanding how an authoritative text was actually used.. With that said, it is important to make clear that my claim is a limited one whose method should be applied cautiously and a discussion of such limitations will be included in my presentation.
Talks by Ari R . Silbermann
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Theses by Ari R . Silbermann
Conference Presentations by Ari R . Silbermann
Many scholars have shown the deep intertextual connections between interpretive works found at Qumran and scriptural passages. For instance, Nitzan has shown how Pesher Habakkuk employs intertextual references to develop ideas that are not found explicitly in the verses before the pesharist. More directly, the pesharist in some cases expounds a verse based on an allusion to a scriptural verse found elsewhere where only knowledge of the latter allows a deep understanding of the pesher and its unique method of interpretation. Since the question of which texts at Qumran and in the Second Temple period were authoritative is still debated it is incumbent upon scholars to develop as many indicators of a text's authoritativeness as possible, whether it be physical features of discovered manuscripts or evidence within the texts themselves. In this presentation I will attempt to show that it is possible to identify allusions to sectarian texts in Pesher Psalms (4Q171) in the same way as others have identified allusions to Scripture, such that a particular pesher can only be understood by knowing the intertext. Such a claim is important in its own right when approaching the study of sectarian literature, but is also significant because it may offer further parameters for identifying authoritative texts for the Qumran community and understanding how an authoritative text was actually used.. With that said, it is important to make clear that my claim is a limited one whose method should be applied cautiously and a discussion of such limitations will be included in my presentation.
Talks by Ari R . Silbermann
Many scholars have shown the deep intertextual connections between interpretive works found at Qumran and scriptural passages. For instance, Nitzan has shown how Pesher Habakkuk employs intertextual references to develop ideas that are not found explicitly in the verses before the pesharist. More directly, the pesharist in some cases expounds a verse based on an allusion to a scriptural verse found elsewhere where only knowledge of the latter allows a deep understanding of the pesher and its unique method of interpretation. Since the question of which texts at Qumran and in the Second Temple period were authoritative is still debated it is incumbent upon scholars to develop as many indicators of a text's authoritativeness as possible, whether it be physical features of discovered manuscripts or evidence within the texts themselves. In this presentation I will attempt to show that it is possible to identify allusions to sectarian texts in Pesher Psalms (4Q171) in the same way as others have identified allusions to Scripture, such that a particular pesher can only be understood by knowing the intertext. Such a claim is important in its own right when approaching the study of sectarian literature, but is also significant because it may offer further parameters for identifying authoritative texts for the Qumran community and understanding how an authoritative text was actually used.. With that said, it is important to make clear that my claim is a limited one whose method should be applied cautiously and a discussion of such limitations will be included in my presentation.