Jerome was one of the very few early Christian scholars to know any Hebrew. This is a unique introduction, translation, and commentary of his Questions on Genesis - a fascinating work showing a Christian working alongside Jews in an age very different from our own. Jerome's influence on the Church is well known - but this work is equally important for the light thrown on the history and origin of many ideas at the heart of the Jewish tradition.

Focusing on his training in classical literary studies and his extensive interaction with Jewish sources, this book describes the practice of Hebrew scholarship in St Jerome and the significance of Hebrew for his biblical exegesis.

Since its publication in 2000, The Early Christian World has come to be regarded by scholars, students and the general reader as one of the most informative and accessible works in English on the origins, development, character and major figures of early Christianity. In this new edition, the strengths of the first edition are retained. These include the book’s attractive architecture that initially takes a reader through the context and historical development of early Christianity; the essays in critical areas such as community formation, everyday experience, the intellectual and artistic heritage, and external and internal challenges; and the profiles on the most influential early Christian figures. The book also preserves its strong stress on the social reality of early Christianity and continues its distinctive use of hundreds of illustrations and maps to bring that world to life. Yet the years that have passed since the first edition was published have seen great advances made in our understanding of early Christianity in its world. This new edition fully reflects these developments and provides the reader with authoritative, lively and up-to-date access to the early Christian world. A quarter of the text is entirely new and the remaining essays have all been carefully revised and updated by their authors. Some of the new material relates to Christian culture (including book culture, canonical and non-canonical scriptures, saints and hagiography, and translation across cultures). But there are also new essays on: Jewish and Christian interaction in the early centuries; ritual; the New Testament in Roman Britain; Manichaeism; Pachomius the Great and Gregory of Nyssa. This new edition will serve its readers for many years to come.

The Encyclopedia of Midrash provides a systematic account of biblical interpretation in Judaism. While emphasizing the Rabbinic literature, it also covers interpretation of Scripture in a number of distinct canons, ranging from the Targumic literature and Dead Sea Scrolls to the New Testament and Church Fathers. The Encyclopedia of Midrash provides readers with a depth and breadth of treatment of Midrash unavailable in any other single source. Through the writings of top scholars in each of their fields, it sets out the current state of the question for each of the many topics discussed in its pages. The print edition is available as a set of two volumes (9789004141667).

The value and significance of the targums—translations of the Hebrew Bible into Aramaic, the language of Palestinian Jews for centuries following the Babylonian Exile—lie in their approach to translation: within a typically literal rendering of a text, they incorporate extensive exegetical material, additions, and paraphrases that reveal important information about Second Temple Judaism, its interpretation of its bible, and its beliefs. This remarkable survey introduces critical knowledge and insights that have emerged over the past forty years, including targum manuscripts discovered this century and targums known in Aramaic but only recently translated into English. Prolific scholars Flesher and Chilton guide readers in understanding the development of the targums; their relationship to the Hebrew Bible; their dates, language, and place in the history of Christianity and Judaism; and their theologies and methods of interpretation. “With clear presentation of current research and the issues involved, including the Targums and the New Testament, and a rich bibliography, this is the most complete—and up-to-date—introduction to the Targums. An outstanding, highly recommended achievement.” Martin McNamara, Emeritus Professor of Scripture, Milltown Institute, Dublin, Ireland

These essays explore ancient Jewish Bible interpretation preserved in the Aramaic Targums, bringing it into conversation with Rabbinic and Christian scriptural exegesis, and setting it in the larger world of ancient translations of the Bible.