Primaeval History Interpreted. The Rewriting of Genesis 1-11 in the Book of Jubilees

Leiden: Brill, 2000. First edition. Hardcover. near fine. Octavo. xiv, 408, (2)pp. Indices and bibliography. Text in English and occasional Hebrew phrases. Blue cloth lettered in gilt with publisher's gilt device on front cover. An ex-library copy with rubber stamp on title page & bottom of text block, and a library pocket on rear pastedown.

This volume deals with the primaeval history in the Book of Jubilees, an interpretative rewriting of the biblical narratives of Genesis through Exodus 19, written in the second century BCE. It contains a close comparison of Genesis 1-11 and Jubilees 2-10, in order to get a clear picture of the specific way the biblical story was rewritten. Each chapter offers an overall comparison of the parallel pericopes in Genesis and Jubilees, with special attention to the structure of the passages. It then gives a synoptic overview of the text of the parallel passages, along with a classification (e.g., addition, omission, variation, rearrangement), and analysis of the dissimilarities. The work is important for those interested in the history of biblical interpretation, in post-biblical Jewish literature and in intertexuality.(Publisher)

Contents: I. The Creation Story -- II. The Garden of Eden -- III. From the Garden to the Flood -- IV. The Story of the Flood -- V. The Aftermath of the Flood -- VI. From the Vineyard Until the Division of the Earth -- VII. The Division of the Earth. (OCLC)

Volume 66 of the Brill series, "Supplements to the Journal for the Study of Judaism." (SJSJ).