From lingua franca to lingua sacra: The Scripturalization of Tobit in 4QTobe

Full title
From lingua franca to lingua sacra: The Scripturalization of Tobit in 4QTobe
Research notes

MDE/reader checked/14/03/2016

Reference type
Author(s)
Perrin, Andrew B.
Year
2016
Journal / Book Title || Series Title
Vetus Testamentum
Volume
66
Issue / Series Volume
1
Abbreviated Series Name
VT
Pages
117 – 132
Work type
Label
22/02/2016
Abstract

In light of the growing consensus that the book of Tobit was originally penned in Aramaic, the fragmentary Hebrew copy 4QTobe is a singularly unique literary artifact of Second Temple Judaism. While a cluster of other Aramaic works were read and received as authoritative literature by at least some Jews at this time (e.g., Daniel 2-7, the booklets of 1 Enoch, and Aramaic Levi Document), Tobit alone was translated from the common language of the ancient Near East into the traditional Israelite mother tongue. This study explores how the shift from Aramaic to Hebrew should inform our conception of the status and reception of Tobit in ancient Judaism. By virtue of the new linguistic overlay given to 4QTobe, this manuscript should be considered a literary edition in its own right, with an ostensibly higher level or different degree of authority than its Aramaic language counterparts.