What do you think?
Rate this book
The Spirit in First-Century Judaism
The work mirrors the growing recognition that the role of the Spirit in Judaism and early Christianity warrants further scholarly inquiry and lays a cornerstone in the foundation of pneumatological studies by scouring the writings of Plato and Plutarch, Daniel and the Dead Sea Scrolls, as well as those of Philo of Alexandria and Flavius Josephus. The text contextualizes the material both historically and literally, taking seriously the influence of popular Greco-Roman thinking as well as Jewish exegetical traditions.
316 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1997
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 7, 2020
"Neat boundaries simply cannot be drawn in the encounter between Jewish literary texts and their Greco-Roman context." (page 5)
This is a rich and important treatment of 'the spirit' in first-century CE Judaism. Levison argues for the Judaism of this period as a fertile religious field in its own right which was in conversation with other religious and philosophical traditions. His investigation focuses on Philo, Josephus, and Pseudo-Philo (author of the Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum).
The core of the project is to note trajectories in these works from biblical texts and to understand aspects of the milieu which most likely motivated these moves. Levison argues for a creativity and diversity with regard to the spirit which is conversant with broader Greco-Roman understandings of 'pneuma.'
Levison's project seems to be unquestionably successful in the main. This book shows that conceptions of 'the spirit' in Judaism were complex, to say the least, and that generalizations and broad brushstrokes are unsustainable. The book is already over 20 years old but will be valuable reading and an essential conversation partner on the topic for some time.
My main question is if the question is being asked from the right direction. Levison seems to begin with an idea of 'the spirit' and then ask what happens to that idea among these authors. This leads to what I suspect are some overstatements about the disparity of views on 'the spirit' within the texts. Perhaps it would have been better to start with a more formally lexicographical approach and ask how the word pneuma itself was used.
This is a rich and important treatment of 'the spirit' in first-century CE Judaism. Levison argues for the Judaism of this period as a fertile religious field in its own right which was in conversation with other religious and philosophical traditions. His investigation focuses on Philo, Josephus, and Pseudo-Philo (author of the Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum).
The core of the project is to note trajectories in these works from biblical texts and to understand aspects of the milieu which most likely motivated these moves. Levison argues for a creativity and diversity with regard to the spirit which is conversant with broader Greco-Roman understandings of 'pneuma.'
Levison's project seems to be unquestionably successful in the main. This book shows that conceptions of 'the spirit' in Judaism were complex, to say the least, and that generalizations and broad brushstrokes are unsustainable. The book is already over 20 years old but will be valuable reading and an essential conversation partner on the topic for some time.
My main question is if the question is being asked from the right direction. Levison seems to begin with an idea of 'the spirit' and then ask what happens to that idea among these authors. This leads to what I suspect are some overstatements about the disparity of views on 'the spirit' within the texts. Perhaps it would have been better to start with a more formally lexicographical approach and ask how the word pneuma itself was used.
January 14, 2014
Excellent survey of the Pneumatology of early Judaism focusing esp. on Philo, Josephus, and Pseudo-Philo's work. Levison connects Jewish thought with its broader Greco-Roman matrix. Most importantly, it let's Jewish and Greco-Roman Pneumatology stand on its own without worrying about how it impacts Christianity (if this is your concern see Levison's 'Filled with the Spirit'). This book invites students to travel many unexplored avenues if you are looking for something to help you get going in your study of ancient Pneumatology.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews