Jewish-Greek Literature in the Hellenistic and Roman Eras: Some Findings from a Study of Genre

The most basic finding of studies into Hellenistic Judaism is the recognition that some Jewish authors adopted Greek genres and were widely influenced by Greek literary culture. Writing in Greek does not automatically imply the adoption of Greek genres or substantial influence of Greek writing practices (e.g., Jewish apocalyptic). Nevertheless, many texts display awareness of Greek compositional practices and participate, to varying degrees, in recognizable Greek genres. This engagement was not accidental, nor was it done subconsciously.