The Emergence of the Biblical Book of Job on the Backdrop of the so-called Job Literature
The aim of the project is a methodologically sound, complex and utterly transparent full-screen picture of the history of the Job literature, in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, as well as other relevant languages of the time. Immediate forerunners of the Job literature in the Bible and the mediate relatives in extra-biblical literature (Mesopotamia) as well as the biblical and extra-biblical traditions contemporary to all the authors of the book in the second temple period in Palestine (e.g., Proverbs, Ben Sira, wisdom in Dead Sea Scrolls) or immediately following them (e.g., Job’s translations, particularly the Old Greek version, also the Testament of Job, and the early Hebrew and Aramaic aftermath in the next centuries) will be taken into account. It is an innovative attempt to synthesize the results of various methodological approaches to the book, in order to ascertain an entire literary history of the Job literature (text, form, ideas) and the methodology suitable for that purpose.
This work was supported by the Estonian Research Council grant (PRG938).
List of project publications, selection of files added.
Nõmmik, Urmas and Diana Tomingas (2020) “Foreword” – Usuteaduslik Ajakiri 1 (77), 3–4.
Johandi, Andreas (2021) “Epideemiad muistses Lähis-Idas” – Horisont, 2 (55), 40−45.
Johandi, Andreas (2021) “Hümn Mardukile Ugaritist: killuke Vana-Lähis-Ida nn Iiobi kirjandust” Usuteaduslik Ajakiri, 2 (78), 3−17.
Johandi, Andreas (2023) ““Ei saanud ma öö õdusas süles und täis magada“: Unetus muistse Mesopotaamia mütoloogias” – Akadeemia, 1, 46−98.
Nõmmik, Urmas (2021) “Theokratie und alttestamentliche Weisheit. Überlegungen am Beispiel des Hiobbuches” – P. Juhás, R. Lapko and R. Müller, eds. Theokratie. Exegetische und wirkungsgeschichtliche Ansätze. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 151−167.
Nõmmik, Urmas (2021) “Vanaheebrea afektiivse ja reflektiivse mureluule stroofistruktuurist Iiobi kõnede näitel” – Keel ja Kirjandus, 1–2 (64), 65−82.
Põldsam, Anu (2022) “Kuidas tõlkida kannatust ehk Nutulaulude raamatu tõlkimisest uuemate teaduslike lähenemiste taustal” – Usuteaduslik Ajakiri 2 (82), 94−123.
The Tartu Edition of the Hebrew Book of Job presents the Hebrew text of the book of Job, aiming at reconstructing the proto-Masoretic text of approximately the second half of the second century BCE. The edited text is eclectic, i.e., it combines different ancient and medieval witnesses.
The Hebrew Book of Job has a history of at least two hundred years of emergence in the (5th)4th–2nd century BCE. The literary history of Job has numerous layers, which have been unravelled only broadly; the following overview explains a model of the literary emergence of the Hebrew Job by Urmas Nõmmik. The material serves as a preparation for writing a commentary on Job.
- Commentary on the Book of Job by Urmas Nõmmik (Historical Commentary on the Old Testament, Leuven: Peeters).
- Article volume: Biblical Job in the Literary Network of the Ancient Near East, edited by Andreas Johandi and Urmas Nõmmik (Kasion, Münster: Zaphon).
- Article volume: In the Wake of Wisdom: Aspects of Job's Reception in Past and Present, edited by Urmas Nõmmik, Anu Põldsam, Pieter van der Zwan (Sheffield: Sheffield Phoenix Press).
- Estonian translation and commentary of the Testament of Job and the Testament of Abraham by Ergo Naab (Piibel Kontekstis, Tartu: Tartu University Press).
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| Urmas Nõmmik Dr. theol. habil., Professor of Old Testament and Semitic Studies. Project assignment: Commentary of the Book of Job (Historical Commentary on the Old Testament, Leuven: Peeters), monograph on methodology (form, text and redaction criticism), the West-Semitic backdrop of Job. Expertise: Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, Job, Psalms, Genesis, poetology and form history, hermeneutics, motif history, history of religion of Ancient Israel, research history in Estonia. Profiles: ETIS / academia.edu |
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| Andreas Johandi PhD, Research Fellow in Near Eastern Religions Project assignment: The study of Ancient Near Eastern parallels to the Book of Job. Expertise: Religious history of Mesopotamia, early Mesopotamian pantheon, the god Asalluhi, Mesopotamian magic. Profiles: ETIS / academia.edu |
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| Ergo Naab PhD, Research Fellow in New Testament Project assignment: Translation and commentary of the Testament of Job ("Bible in Context" series). Expertise: New Testament, Paul, pseudepigrafic literature, formation of the early Christian ideology, social-historical and postcolonial research. Profiles: ETIS / academia.edu |
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| Anu Põldsam PhD, Lecturer in Jewish Studies Project assignment: Motif and reception history of the Book of Job in early Jewish literature (Talmud, midrashim, the Testament of Job) Expertise: Hebrew language, history of Jewish ideas, hermneutics, motif history, history of Jewish Studies Profiles: ETIS / academia.edu |
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| Jaan Lahe Dr. theol., Associate Professor of Religious Studies Project assignment: Reception of Job in gnostic literature. Expertise: Religious history of the Roman empire, so-called oriental cults in the Roman empire, cult of Mithras, gnosticism. Profile: ETIS |
Currently active members
Kristin Klaus MA, PhD student Project assignment: Significance of the style of the Old Greek Job in textual and redaction criticism. Expertise: Old Greek Job, Septuagint, Old Testament/Hebrew Bible. Profiles: ETIS | |
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| Alice Volkonski MA, PhD student Project assignment: Parallels of the Book of Job and Wisdom literature to the Pre-Islamic and Early Islamic Arabic tradition, Hebrew and Arabic Poetry in Medieval Spain. Expertise: Arabic language and literature, Pre-Islamic poetry, Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, Solomonic tradition. Profiles: ETIS |
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| Rahel Toomik MA, PhD student Project assignment: The Greek patristic reception of biblical literature, Didymus the Blind Expertise: Patristics, medieval Latin, orations of Tartu University in the Early Modern era Profiles: ETIS |
Members active in the past
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| Sirli Ellermäe MA Project assignment: Wisdom and psalm parallels to Job in the Qumran literature Expertise: Hodayot in Qumran |
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| Jonas Jakobson MA Project assignment: Poetological parallels among the deuterocanonical wisdom literature of the Hebrew Bible / Old Testament Expertise: Poetology and the genre-specific structure of the poetic texts of the Hebrew Bible / Old Testament and Ben Sira, wisdom literature of the Hebrew bible / Old Testament; ancient Near-East, Egypt and Greece; Ugaritology. Profiles: ETIS |
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| Diana Tomingas MA Project assignment: Research on literary and form criticism in the Hebrew book of Job. Expertise: Biblical Hebrew, poetology and literary features of the Hebrew Bible / Old Testament. Profiles: ETIS / academia.edu |
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| Amir Vasheghanifarahani MA, PhD student Project assignment: Hebrew and Syriac texts of the book of Job Expertise: Hebrew Bible/Old Testament, Peshitta, Syriac literature and Poetry |
Doris Diana Orr MA Project assignment: Form in the Book of Proverbs Expertise: Form criticism of the Hebrew Bible |