Queries & Comments

008

New Testament Political Figures

More Evidence

Thanks for the article by Lawrence Mykytiuk on political figures in the New Testament confirmed by archaeology and extra-Biblical writings (“New Testament Political Figures Confirmed,” BAR, September/October 2017). How about another one? Paul mentions an Erastus, the city treasurer in Corinth (Romans 16:23). An inscription in the theater at Corinth may very well refer to him.

Ancient Intertwining of Religion and Politics

In your list of real New Testament political figures, you failed to mention Lysanias (Luke 3:1), who is noted by Josephus in Antiquities 20.138 and War 2.27.

Also, while I’m sure you’ll be including various high priests in the follow-up piece on “nonpolitical figures,” according to Josephus, the Jewish high priests “were the political governors of the people,” and after the death of King Herod and his son (Archelaus), “the government became an aristocracy, and the high priests were entrusted with a dominion over the nation” (Antiquities 20.249–251; cf. Apion 2.185). This fact can be observed by the way Luke introduces various political figures at the beginning of chapter 3 and also includes in his list the names of Annas and Caiaphas (Luke 3:1–2).

Lawrence Mykytiuk responds: Thank you for the suggestions. In the article, identifications must be reliable, not merely possible, to be considered real and to appear in the table on pp. 56–57. More information on people not clearly documented outside the New Testament is available in my blog post, “New Testament Political Figures: The Evidence” (Bible History Daily, September 7, 2017; www.biblicalarchaeology.org/ntpeople), in which, regarding Erastus, I cite pieces by Henry J. Cadbury, Andrew D. Clarke, and Steven J. Friesen.

Professor Varner, Friesen’s chapter, “The Wrong Erastus,” shows that the identification of the Erastus of Romans 16:23 in the inscription on three remaining stone blocks in the plaza southeast of the theater at Corinth is founded on baseless speculation about the Biblical Erastus climbing to the higher social level and elite title of the inscriptional Erastus, inaccurate archaeology, and circular reasoning about the date of the inscription (which is more likely mid-second century C.E. than first century C.E.).

Mr. Rosenthal, I intentionally omitted Lysanias (Luke 3:1) from the table published in BAR because there is not enough data in sources outside the New Testament to identify Lysanias clearly. Josephus’s writings are vague in their time references and could refer to another Lysanias. In the inscription, there is enough evidence to make a reasonable (though not quite certain) identification of him and therefore to classify him as “almost real.” Also, Luke 3:1–2 specifies a particular time simply by listing public officials, political or not.

My forthcoming article on the remaining confirmed New Testament figures will address the political and religious aspects of ancient officialdom.

Clarification

“Hebron” Abbreviation in External Texts

In “Hebron Still Jewish in Second Temple Times,” (BAR, September/October 2017), author David Ben-Shlomo writes, “The name Hebron … is not mentioned in external texts and is known only from the Bible.” However, the four Hebrew letters that spell this word (ḤBRN) appear on seal impressions made during the First Temple period.

The authors of Numbers 3:27, Numbers 26:58, and 2 Samuel 2:1 used the same abbreviated spelling format.

Josephus on Hebron

I am somewhat puzzled by a statement in your article on Hebron that it is not known from external texts and only mentioned in the Bible, yet three paragraphs later you state it is found in Josephus (“Thus did Simon 010unexpectedly march into Idumea, without bloodshed; and made a sudden attack upon the city Hebron, and took it” (War 4.529).

Am I missing something here?

David Ben-Shlomo replies: There was possibly a misunderstanding regarding my statement about Hebron not being mentioned in external texts. I meant that Hebron is mentioned several times in the Old Testament but is not mentioned in any external Bronze Age or Iron Age texts. An exception would be the appearance of Hebron as one of the four cities of the LMLK seal impressions (ḤBRN) during the end of the Iron Age. This is interesting especially because Hebron and its fortifications are described in the Old Testament as very ancient: “built seven years before Zoan in Egypt” (Numbers 13:22).

Regarding the Second Temple period and Josephus, Hebron is mentioned several times, yet the construction of the monumental mausoleum on top of the Tombs of the Patriarchs by Herod the Great is not explicitly mentioned. However, Josephus might have mentioned this construction indirectly in a passage relating to the tomb of the patriarchs: “Their tombs are shown in this little town to this day, of really fine marble and of exquisite workmanship” (War 4.531–532).

THE TEMPLE MENORAH

Missing History and Mystery?

The article by Fredric Brandfon on the history of the Temple Menorah (“Did the Temple Menorah Come Back to Jerusalem?” BAR, September/October 2017) was a remarkably thorough account, save for one omission.

Jordanes tells us that Alaric moved south in Italy with his booty, but turned back, and then died suddenly. He was then buried somewhere in the bed of the Busento River with much of his booty. That supposedly might have included the Menorah, along with other Temple objects looted from Rome.

The account is of debatable historical value, but it surely should have been included as a variant on the Menorah’s obscure history.

Fredric Brandfon responds: Thank you for highlighting the story of Alaric and the Temple Treasure, possibly taken from Rome in 410 C.E. As historians, we are constantly making judgments about what we think is important and what we think is less so.

I make only oblique reference to Alaric in my article when I say that Procopius reported the sack of Rome by the Visigoths and their alleged capture of the “treasures of Solomon the King of the Hebrews.” 066Footnote 4 refers to the passage in Procopius where Alaric is indeed mentioned. But then, I go into far greater detail when describing the sack of Rome by the Vandals in 455 C.E.

Why did I choose the Vandals over the Goths? Why is Alaric in a footnote, and Geiseric, the Vandal leader, in the body of the article? I made that choice because that is the choice Procopius himself made. With regard to the Temple treasures, in Procopius, Alaric is little more than a footnote, while Geiseric and Belisarius are main characters.

CRUCIFIXION DARKNESS

Metaphor or Solar Eclipse?

I usually find BAR interesting, but the Classical Corner: “A Comet Gives Birth to an Empire,” by Sarah K. Yeomans (BAR, September/October 2017) is especially intriguing. I live in the 99.2+ shadow of the recent eclipse that passed across the United States. It brought to mind a line from the Gospel of Matthew 27:45: “From noon until three in the afternoon darkness came over all the land.” Are there any records that might include an eclipse in Jerusalem?

Sarah Yeomans responds: The passage you refer to pertains to Jesus’s crucifixion, which the Gospels indicate took place during the Jewish festival of Passover—celebrated during a full moon in spring. A new moon is needed for a solar eclipse to occur, making it precisely the wrong phase of the moon for a total eclipse. If we accept that the Gospels give us the correct date for Jesus’s crucifixion, a solar eclipse would have been impossible. Furthermore, according to Brother Guy Consolmagno, a noted astronomer and director of the Vatican Observatory, the darkness described during the crucifixion was too long to be a solar eclipse. While a partial eclipse can take several hours, the period of total darkness only lasts a few minutes at most.

NASA has a handy database that tracks solar and lunar eclipse events going back thousands of years (eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov). There was a total solar eclipse on March 19 in 33 C.E. that could be seen in Antarctica—not Jerusalem.

On April 3, 33 C.E., there was a partial lunar eclipse that would have been visible from Jerusalem, but if we are to take the passage in Matthew literally in terms of the timing during afternoon hours, we cannot point to either type of eclipse as an explanation.

There may have been cloud coverage, or the ancient authors may have combined separate events as a literary device to underscore the significance of the event.

PUZZLING POINT

Storage Amphora Bottoms

I enjoyed the piece in Strata, “Containers of the Ancient World,” (BAR, September/October 2017), but I am puzzled about the shape of the amphorae. They seem difficult to store with their pointed ends. Why were they constructed in such a strange way?

BAS Staff responds: Amphorae were formed to best serve their purpose. A 068seemingly unstable, pointed or rounded, base actually allowed for safe storage on uneven surfaces: The jars would be leaned against a wall or propped in the ground. On level surfaces, they could be kept upright in ring stands. Shipping amphorae could be propped shoulder-to-shoulder on wooden racks and fastened together with ropes around their necks.

GREAT DEBATES

Discussion Behind Bars

What makes BAR so good is that you allow different people to explain their work and let others debate and talk about it. I am a prison inmate, and I share BAR with friends. We all think differently, but we still love to discuss, debate, and talk about all the great articles in BAR.

New Testament Political Figures