Missing Priests

The Zadokites in Tradition and History
Erscheinungsjahr 2006
ISBN: 978-0-567-02852-5
Verlag: Continnuum-3PL

Buch, Englisch, Band No: 452, 232 Seiten, Format (B × H): 157 mm x 235 mm, Gewicht: 537 g

Reihe: The Library of Hebrew Bible/Old Testament Studies

This is a study of one priesthood of Ancient Israel, the Zadokites, and its role in the social, historical, cultural, and religious lives of the ancient Israelites.

- Provides a foundation for studies of priesthood(s) in ancient Israel
- Challenges assumptions about the Zadokites and situates the Zadokite priest hood in the Hellenistic period.

Biblical scholars agree that priesthood(s) played a critical role in the social, historical, cultural, and religious lives of the ancient Israelites. This study seeks to clarify the role of one such priesthood, the Zadokites. Traditional scholarship assumes the dominance of a Zadokite priesthood from a united monarchy until the time of the Hasmoneans. The thesis of this study is that references to the "sons of Zadok" in ancient texts reflect the sectarian nature of the Second Temple period. The extent to which modern scholarship has magnified the Zadokites as the dominant priestly institution from the monarchy into the Second Temple period cannot be substantiated. Rather, the Second Temple period serves as the terminus for all literary references to the Zadokites and provides a socio-historical context which allows for the development of a plausible reconstruction explaining their appearance in the ancient texts. This comprehensive study of the Zadokites provides a study of historiography that traces the growth of scholarly notions concerning the Zadokites. The study examines historiographic issues related to the development of these conceptualizations. Literary analysis indicates the role and status of the Zadokites in available textual evidence. A socio-historical reconstruction forms the theoretical basis and attempts to answer such questions such as: Who placed the Zadokites in these texts? Why were the Zadokites included in these texts? The Zadokites will be situated in relation to the Dead Sea Scrolls. The study provides a foundation for studies of priesthood(s) in ancient Israel.

Zielgruppe

Academic

Autoren/Hrsg.

Hunt, Alice

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Jüdische Studien Geschichte des Judentums Geschichte des Judentums: Biblische & Klassische Periode
• Geisteswissenschaften Christentum, Christliche Theologie Bibelwissenschaften Altes Testament: Exegese, Geschichte

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Presuppostions Set the Paradigm: Zadokites as the Dominant Priesthood
II. A Time for Cacophony, A Time for Polyphony: Historiography, Ancient Israel, and the Zadokites
III. Biblical Evidence of the Zadokites
IV. Extra-Biblical Evidence of the Zadokites
V. Zadokites in Social Context

Über Autor(innen)

Alice Hunt is Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Senior Lecturer in Hebrew Bible and Jewish Studies at Vanderbilt University, USA.