סדר עולם: מהדורה מדעית, פירוש ומבוא

Seder Olam is a chronological work of the corpus of literature written by the Sages. It begins with Adam and goes on to record primarily the events described in the Old Testament, ending with the death of Alexander of Macedon. Volume one includes the text and an extensive introduction; volume two contains the annotated commentary by the author of this critical edition.
This seminal work by Chaim Milikowsky provides a critical edition of the unique rabbinic chrononography Seder Olam, along with a substantial general introduction and a detailed commentary on the text. Using exegetical techniques, Seder Olam 'uncovers' the dates of biblical events from the creation of the world to the end of the biblical period. Milikowsky sets the context for Seder Olam's composition in the Hellenistic-Roman period within the twin axes of Jewish historiography and Jewish exegesis. He argues for a late first century date which would make Seder Olam the earliest composition preserved within the rabbinic corpus. Included in Milikowsky's introduction are a meticulous description of all the manuscripts of Seder Olam, and the first detailed stemmatic analysis of a rabbinic work. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in rabbinic Judaism of the first centuries.