Elijah in Upper Egypt: The Apocalypse of Elijah and Early Egyptian Christianity (Studies in Antiquity & Christianity)

STUDIES IN A N T I Q U I T Y & CHRISTIANITY

ELIJAH IN UPPER EGYPT

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AND EARLY EGYPTIAN CHRISTIANITY

David Frankfurter

A fresco, The Prophet

llija in the Desert, from thirteenth-century Moraca.

S T U D I E S IN A N T I Q U I T Y & C H R I S T I A N I T Y

ELIJAH IN UPPER EGYPT

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AND EARLY EGYPTIAN CHRISTIANITY

David Frankfurter

FORTRESS PRESS

MINNEAPOLIS

For Eleanor, Jack, and Anath

ELIJAH IN U P P E R E G Y P T T h e Apocalypse of Elijah and Early Egyptian Christianity Copyright © 1993 T h e Institute for Antiquity and Christianity. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in critical articles or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any m a n n e r without prior written permission from t h e publisher. Write to: Permissions, Augsburg Fortress, 4 2 6 S. Fifth St., Box 1209, Minneapolis, M N 55440. Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the C h u r c h e s of Christ in the United States of America.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Frankfurter, David, 1 9 6 1 Elijah in Upper Egypt : the apocalypse of Elijah and early Egyptian Christianity / David Frankfurter. p. cm. — (Studies in antiquity and Christianity) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0 - 8 0 0 6 - 3 1 0 6 - 4 (alk. paper) 1. Apocalypse of Elijah—Criticism, interpretation, etc. 2. Egypt—Religion. I. Title. II. Series. BS1830.E46F73 1992 229.913—dc20

92-17353 CIP

T h e paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements o f American National Standard for Information S c i e n c e s — P e r m a n e n c e of Paper for Printed Library Materials, A N S I Z329.48-1984.

Manufactured in the U.S.A. 97

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Contents

Foreword Acknowledgments

Abbreviations

xiii

Introduction

1

PART

O N E

T h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h as R e l i g i o u s L i t e r a t u r e 1.

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

7

Contents of the Apocalypse of Elijah Histories of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah: A R e v i e w o f Research

10

Dating

17

Questions of Provenance and M i l i e u

20

Manuscript Character

21

Witnesses

24

Manuscripts, Recensions, Fragments: The Identity of the Apocalypse of Elijah 2.

27

T h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h i n Its B i b l i c a l C o n t e x t

31

T h e Apocalypse of Elijah's Use of Sources

31

The "Apocalypse‫ ״‬of Elijah

39

The Apocalypse of Elijah and Other Elijah Pseudepigrapha

44

Contents

vi

3.

The Context of Christian Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

58

Narrative Context of Elijah Pseudepigraphy in the Apocalypse of Elijah

4.

59

Religious Context of Elijah Pseudepigraphy

65

Conclusion: Understanding Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

75

Literary Aspects of the Apocalypse of Elijah: Genre, Self-Presentation, a n d Audience

78

O r a l Performance a n d the Progressive A s s e m b l i n g of Forms

79

From Genre to "Intrinsic‫ ״‬Genre in the Description of the Apocalypse of Elijah

94

The Implied Audience and Implied A u t h o r of the Apocalypse of Elijah 5.

96

T h e L a w l e s s O n e a n d t h e Fate o f t h e S a i n t s : M a j o r T h e m e s a n d Traditions i n the Apocalypse of Elijah

103

D e c e i t a n d R e c o g n i t i o n as P r a c t i c a l C o n c e r n s

103

A M a p t h r o u g h the Woes: Signs i n the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah

106

R e c o g n i t i o n o f S i g n s as a S o l u t i o n t o D i s o r d e r a n d A n x i e t y

125

T h e T e x t as Its O w n S o l u t i o n : T h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h as R i t u a l E x e c r a t i o n 6.

Exhortatio

ad Martyrum:

127 T h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah a n d the Lore

of M a r t y r d o m

141

M a r t y r d o m as a L i t e r a r y T h e m e

141

Exhortatio

ad martyrum:

Social Reflection a n d Social C o n t r o l

in the Apocalypse of Elijah

145

Extremist V i e w s a n d M e l i t i a n Origins

152

Conclusions

154 PART

TWO

Envisioning the Collapse of Things: The Convergence of Egyptian and Christian Worldviews in the Apocalypse of Elijah 7.

Chaosbeschreibung:

T h e Literary and Ideological Background

of the Apocalypse of Elijah

159

Egyptian Kingship Ideology

162

T h e D e m o n i c O p p o s i t i o n to K i n g s h i p

164

Contents

Kingship Propaganda and the Portrayal of Antikingship

168

The Use of Chaosbeschreibung

174

in the Hellenistic Period

Excursus: T h e Prophetic Motifs of Chaosbeschreibung Priesthood and Oracles in the R o m a n Period Continuity of Chaosbeschreibung

Vaticinia

Sine Eventibus:

Chaosbeschreibung

183 185

in Late R o m a n Egypt and the

Literary Context of the Elijah Apocalypse 8.

vii

192

T h e Use of Egyptian

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

195

Outline of ApocEl 2: T h e Discourse on Signs of W o e

200

General Implications of ApocEl 2

201

Chaosbeschreibung

203

Motifs in ApocEl 2

Integration of Legends with Chaosbeschreibung

211

T h e Question of Historical Antecedents to ApocEl 2

216

T h e Meaning of References to Jews and Jerusalem

226

T h e Synthesis of Native and Christian Traditions

228

Conclusion: T h e Perspective of ApocEl 2

236

PART THREE

A Silhouette of the Millennium: Toward a Historical and Social Context for the Apocalypse of Elijah 9.

The First Level: Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

241

T h e Socioeconomic Decline in Egypt in the Third Century

242

Rebellion, Religion, and Ideology in Third-Century Egypt

249

Alexandrian Revolts of the Third Century

257

T h e Evidence for Rebellions in Egypt

264

Epichoric Responses to Third-Century Decline: Historical Implications for the Context of the Apocalypse of Elijah Conclusion

265 268

10. The S e c o n d Level: Evidence for Millennialism in the Egyptian Chora, Ca. 2 6 0 - 2 7 0 C.E.

270

11. The Third Level: A Sect in the Crossfire of Asceticism Debates, Ca. 2 6 0 - 2 9 0 C.E.

279

T h e Concept of Fasting in the Apocalypse of Elijah

280

T h e Nature of the Conflict in ApocEl 1:13-19

283

viii

Contents

Excursus: Fasting in the Gospel of T h o m a s

284

A Historical Context for Internecine Conflict over Asceticism

286

An Analogous Scenario: Tertullian's De leiunio

291

The Severity of Egyptian Ascetic Fasting

292

Conclusion: Fasting and the Apocalypse of Elijah

296

Appendix: T h e Text of the Apocalypse of Elijah in English

299

Bibliography

329

Index of Ancient Texts

357

Index of Subjects

370

Index of Modern Authors

374

Foreword

We are delighted to welcome the publication of David Frankfurter's volume Elijah in Upper Egypt in the Studies in Antiquity and Christianity series. As he himself notes in his Introduction, this monograph addresses themes of significance for the study of the development of Egyptian Christianity, and thus his work contributes to the discussions taken up within the Roots of Egyptian Christianity Project of the Institute for Antiquity and Christianity. The particular concern of Dr. Frankfurter's book for rural Egyptian Christianity distinguishes his work from other studies of Christianity and religious traditions in Egypt. Dr. Frankfurter is also a member of and a contributor to the Coptic Magical Texts Project of the Institute for Antiquity and Christianity, and his evaluation in this book and other publications of the figure of Elijah in Egyptian texts of ritual power advances the study of Egyptian magical traditons. Dr. Frankfurter uses the Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah as a window through which we may glimpse aspects of the troubled and creative world of third-century Egypt. In that world, with its preoccupation with prophecy, apocalyptic, millennialism, asceticism, and sacred power and knowledge, we may recognize social anxieties that continue to call for the response of thoughtful people. MARVIN MEYER

Director, Coptic Magical Texts Project, Claremont Associate Professor of Religion, C h a p m a n University BIRGER P E A R S O N

Director, Roots of Egyptian Christianity Project Professor of Religious Studies University of California, Santa Barbara

ix

Acknowledgments

I t w a s i n J o h n S t r u g n e l l ' s P s e u d e p i g r a p h a S e m i n a r at H a r v a r d D i v i n i t y S c h o o l t h a t I first e n c o u n t e r e d the Elijah A p o c a l y p s e a n d came to w r i t e a b o u t t h e p r o b l e m s i t e n t a i l e d ; h e has since r e m a i n e d a n i n t e r e s t e d m e n t o r a n d c r i t i c . M y g r o w i n g i n t e r e s t i n t h e t e x t a n d its

Egyptian

b a c k g r o u n d culminated in a dissertation, directed b y M a r t h a H i m m e l f a r b a n d John Gager a n d p r e s e n t e d to P r i n c e t o n U n i v e r s i t y ' s D e p a r t m e n t o f R e l i g i o n i n 1990. T h i s b o o k is a r e v i s i o n a n d e x p a n s i o n o f t h a t dissertation. I a m deeply indebted to M a r t h a H i m m e l f a r b , w h o encouraged the project f r o m the beginning, patiently read undigested drafts a n d delivered finely detailed criticisms, a n d g u i d e d m e t h r o u g h a maze of a p o c r y p h a l w r i t i n g s a n d religious remains w i t h generosity a n d interest. A n d I t h a n k J o h n Gager for d e m o n s t r a t i n g the i m p o r t a n c e of socialscientific theory, of a r t i c u l a t i n g historical context, a n d of the

"alter-

native‫ ״‬data represented i n the magical corpora, all v i t a l c o n t r i b u t i o n s to the present project. R o m a n E g y p t is t h e s h a r e d d o m a i n o f h i s t o r i a n s , classicists, E g y p tologists, a n d religionists; a n d each m u s t w o r k i n c o n v e r s a t i o n w i t h t h e others to gather a f u l l i m p r e s s i o n of this r e m o t e a n d c o m p l e x w o r l d . Yet t o cross f i e l d s w i t h i n t e g r i t y is a s k i l l f e w o f u s are t a u g h t , a n d I a m deeply i n d e b t e d to the patient advice, o p e n e n c o u r a g e m e n t , a n d i n spiring academic e c u m e n i s m of L u d w i g K o e n e n a n d D a v i d Potter of the classics d e p a r t m e n t o f t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f M i c h i g a n , G a r t h F o w d e n o f t h e R e s e a r c h C e n t e r f o r G r e e k a n d R o m a n A n t i q u i t y i n A t h e n s , Janet J o h n son of the Oriental Institute of the U n i v e r s i t y of Chicago, a n d John

xi

Acknowledgments

xii

G w y n Griffiths of the Department of Classics and Ancient History of the University of Wales. I also thank Peter Brown, Adela Yarbro Collins, John Collins, Evasio DeMarcellis, Richard Valentasis, Jacques van de Vliet, and Richard Lim, invaluable consultants and critics at various points along the way. I owe my deep appreciation to Marvin Meyer, a generous and patient sponsor; the Institute for Antiquity and Christianity, for accepting this work and granting funds for indexing and production; and Birger Pearson and James Goehring, for helpful suggestions. Finally, I thank the College of Charleston for a s u m m e r research grant, and particularly Michael Phillips and Shirley Davidson, interlibrary loan staff of Robert Scott Small Library, for being m y indefatigable and good-humored links to the rest of the world. I dedicate these studies to m y parents, Eleanor M u n r o and Jack Kahn, models of dedication and self-discipline, and to Anath G o l o m b w h o witnessed the very germination of this project, w h o intertwined her graduate career with mine, and w h o consented in 1988 to join her life with mine too.

Abbreviations

AARSR

American A c a d e m y of Religion Studies in Religion

AB

Anchor Bible

Acts And.

Matt.

Acts of Andrew and

Acts Paul

Acts of Paul

Adomnan

Vision of

Adv.

Irenaeus Adversus

haer.

Matthew

Adomnan haereses

An Boll

Analecta Bollandiana

ANF

The Ante-Nicene

Fathers

(10 vols.), ed. Alexander

Roberts and James Donaldson (Edinburgh: Τ. & T. Clark, 1 8 8 5 - 9 7 ) ANRW

Aufstieg

und Niedergang

der romischen

Welt, ed.

Hildegard Temporini and Wolfgang Haase (Berlin: De Gruyter, 1 9 7 2 - ) Ant.

Josephus

AOH

Acta Orientalia

Hungaricae

AOT

The Apocryphal

Old Testament,

Antiquities ed. H.F.D. Sparks

(Oxford: Clarendon, 1984) Apion

Josephus Against

Apion

Apoc. Ab.

The Apocalypse

ApocEl

T h e Apocalypse of Elijah

Apoc.

Paul

The Apocalypse

of Paul

Apoc.

Pet.

The Apocalypse

of Peter

Apoc.

Sed.

The Apocalypse

Apopth. Asc. Is.

patr.

Apopthegmata Ascension

of

of

Abraham

ofSedrach patrum Isaiah

xiii

Abbreviations

xiv

As. Mos.

Assumption

ATLA

American Theological Library Association

of

Moses

2 Bar.

2 Baruch

BASOR

Bulletin

of the American

Schools for Oriental

Β ASP

Bulletin

of the American

Society of

BIFAO

Bulletin

de I'institut franqais

Bulletin

of the John Rylands

BJRL

Research

Papyrologists

d'archiologie University

orientale Library of Man-

Chester Borghouts

J. F. Borghouts, Ancient

Egyptian Magical

Texts, Ni-

saba 9 (Leiden: Brill, 1978) BWANT

Beitrage zur Wissenschaft vom Alten und Neuen Testament

BZNW

Beihefte zur Zeitschrift fur die neutestamentliche Wissenschaft

CAH

The Cambridge

Ancient History (12 vols.), ed. S. A.

C o o k (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1st ed. 1 9 2 3 - 3 9 ; 2d ed. 1 9 7 0 - ) CBQ

Catholic

Biblical

Quarterly

2 Clem.

2

Comm. Eccles.

Didymus the Blind, Commentary

Comm. Matt.

Origen Commentary

Corp. Herm.

Corpus

CP

Classical

CPJ

Clement on

on

Ecclesiastes

Matthew

Hermeticum Philology

Corpus Papyrorum

Judaicarum

(3 vols.), ed. Victor

Tcherikover and Alexander Fuks (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1 9 5 7 - 6 4 ) CQR

Church Quarterly

Crum

W. E. Crum, A Coptic Dictionary

Review (Oxford: Clarendon,

1939) CSCO

Corpus scriptorum christianorum orientalium (Louvain)

De fuga

Tertullian De fuga in

Dem. Chr.

Demotic

persecutione

Chronicle

De Spec. leg.

Philo, De Specialibus

Disc. 8 - 9

Discourse

Div. inst.

Lactantius Divinae

1,2 En

1,2

Epis. apost.

Epistula

legibus

on the Eighth and

Enoch apostolorum

Ninth

institutae

Abbreviations

Epis.

Aristeas

Epistle of

Aristeas

Epis.

Barn.

Epistle of

Barnabas

XV

EPRO

Etudes preliminaires aux religions orientales dans

ER

Encyclopedia

l'empire romain of Religion

(6 vols.), ed. M. Eliade (New

York: Macmillan, 1987) Encyclopedia

ERE

of Religion and Ethics (13 vols.), ed.

James Hastings (New York: Scribners, 1911) ETL

Ephemerides

Exh. ad mart.

Origen Exhortatio

Gos.

Gospel of

Thorn.

theologicae

lovanienses

ad

martyrum

Thomas

GRBS

Greek, Roman, and Byzantine

HDR

Harvard Dissertations in Religion

Herm.Sim.

Hermas

Herm.

Hermas

Vis.

Studies

Similitude(s) Vision(s)

Hist,

eccles.

Eusebius of Caesarea Historia

Hist.

moti.

Historia

monachorum

in

ecclesiastica

Aegypto

Horn.

Pseudo-Clement

HR

History of

Homilies

HSCP

Harvard

HSM

Harvard Semitic Monographs

HTR

Harvard

HUCA

Hebrew

JA JAAR

Journal

JAC

Jahrbuch

JAOS

Journal of the American

JBL

Journal of Biblical

Religions

Studies in Classical Theological

Philology

Review

Union College

Annual

asiatique

Journal of the American

Academy

fur Antike und

Oriental

Literature

JEA

Journal

of Egyptian

JEH

Journal

of Ecclesiastical

Jerome, Comm. Is.

Commentary

JHS

Journal

of Hellenic

Studies

JJP JJS

Journal

of Juristic

Papyrology

Journal

of Jewish

JNES

Journal

of Near Eastern

JQR JRS

Jewish

on

Quarterly

Journal of Roman

of

Religion

Christentum

Archaeology History

Isaiah

Studies Review Studies

Studies

Society

Abbreviations

xvi

JSJ

Journal for the Study of Judaism

JSNT

Journal for the Study of the New

JTS

Journal

Kropp

Angelicus M. Kropp, Ausgezvahlte

lenistic

and Roman

in the Persian,

Hel-

Period

of Theological

Testament

Studies koptische

Zauber-

texte (3 vols; Brussels: Fondation reine Elisabeth, 1931) Kuhn

Κ. H. Kuhn, ‫׳׳‬The Apocalypse of Elijah," A O T 753-73

LCL

Loeb Classical L i b r a r y

Lichtheim

M i r i a m L i c h t h e i m , Ancient Egyptian Literature

(3

vols.; Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 197380) LSJ

H. G. Liddell, R. Scott, and H. S. Jones, A GreekEnglish Lexicon, 9 t h ed. ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 192540; Suppl. 1968)

LXX

Septuagint

Neferti

Prophecy of Neferti

NHC

N a g H a m m a d i Codices

NHL

The Nag Hammadi Library, 3d ed., ed. James M . Robinson (San Francisco: H a r p e r & Row, 1988)

NHS

N a g H a m m a d i Studies

NPNF

Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series 2 (14 vols.), ed. P h i l i p Schaff a n d H e n r y Wace ( E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. Clark)

NTA

E. Hennecke, New Testament

Apocrypha

(2 vols.), ed.

W. S c h n e e m e l c h e r ; English translation ed. R. McL. Wilson (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1963) NTS

New Testament

NumenSupp

Numen

Studies

Or. Lamb.

Oracle of the

Lamb

Or. Pot.

Oracle of the

Potter

Orig. World

On the Origin of the

OTP

The Old Testament

Supplements

World Pseudepigrapha

(2 vols.), ed.

James H. Charlesworth (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1 9 8 3 - 8 6 ) Paraph.

Shem

The Paraphrase

PG

Patrologia

PGM

Papyrigraecae

ofShem

graeca,

ed. J.-P. Migne

magicae:

Die griechischen

Zauber-

papyri, 2d ed., ed. K. Preisendanz et al. (Stuttgart:

Abbreviations

xvii

Teubner, 1973-74), tr. and extended in The Magical

Papyri in Translation,

Greek

vol. 1, ed. Hans Dieter

Betz (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986) Pietersma

Albert Pietersma, Susan Turner Comstock, and Harold A. Attridge, The Apocalypse

of Elijah,

SBLTT

19 (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1981) PL

Patrologia

latina, ed. J.-P. Migne

Pss. Sol.

Psalms of

Solomon

PTA

Papyrologische Texte und A b h a n d l u n g e n

PW

Pauly-Wissowa, Real-Encyclopadie

der

classischen

Altertumswissenschaft RB

Revue

REA

Revue des etudes

REg

Revue

RHPR

Revue d'histoire

RHR

Revue de I'histoire

Rosenstiehl

J e a n - M a r c Rosenstiehl, L'Apocalypse duction,

biblique anciennes

d'egyptologie et de philosophie des

traduction,

religieuses

religions d'Elie:

Intro-

et notes, Textes et etudes pour

servir a I'histoire du Judaisme intertestamentaire 1 (Paris: Paul Guethner, 1972) RSO

Rivista degli studii

SAC

Studies in Antiquity and Christianity

SBL

Society of Biblical Literature

SBLDS

S B L Dissertation Series

SBLMS

S B L Monograph Series

SBLSP

S B L S e m i n a r Papers

SBLTT

S B L Tests and Translations

SC

Sources chretiennes

Schrage

Wolfgang Schrage, "Die Elia-Apokalypse," in Apokalypsen,

orientale

ed. Werner Georg Kiimmel et al., Judische

Schriften aus hellenistisch-romischer Zeit 5 (Gutersloh: G e r d M o h n , 1980) Sib. Or.

Sibylline

Oracles

Slav. Vis. Dan.

Slavonic

Vision of

Steindorff

Georg Steindorff, Die Apokalypse bekannte Apokalypse

Apokalypse,

Daniel des Elias, eine un-

und Bruchstucke

der

Sophonias-

(Leipzig: J. C. Hinrichs, 1899)

Stone/ Strugnell

Michael E. S t o n e and J o h n Strugnell, The Books of

Abbreviations

xviii

Elijah, Parts 1-2, S B L T T 18 (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1979) Strom.

Clement of Alexandria

SVTP

Studia in Veteris Testamenti Pseudepigrapha

T.Adam

Testament

TDNT

Theological

T. Isaac

Testament

T.Job

Testament,of

T. Levi

Testament

TP ΑΡΑ

Transactions

Stromata

of Adam Dictionary

of the New Testament

(Grand

Rapids: Eerdmans, 1964)

logical

of

Isaac fob

of Levi and Proceedings

of the American

Philo-

Association

TZ

Theologische

VigChr

Vigiliae

Zeitschrift

War

Josephus The Jewish

Wintermute

O. S. Wintermute, "Apocalypse of Elijah," OTP

WUNT

Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen

Christianae War

1:721-53 Testament ZAS

Zeitschrift

fiir dgyptische

ZKG

Zeitschrift

fiir

Sprache

ZNW

Zeitschrift

fiir die neutestamentliche

Ζ ΡΕ

Zeitschrift

fiir Papyrologie

und

Altertumskunde

Kirchengeschichte und

DEAD SEA SCROLLS CD

Cairo Damascus

1QH

Thanksgiving

1QM

War Scroll

Document Hymns

1QS

Rule of the

4QSb

Appendix Β (Blessings) to 1QS

Community

4QpNah

Commentary

on Ν ahum

Wissenschaft Epigraphik

S e d p r i u s q u a m ille v e n i a t , prophetabit Helias

But b e f o r e that h a p p e n s , Elijah will prophesy

tempore partito

in t i m e d i v i d e d ,

m e d i o h e b d o m a d i s axe.

in t h e m i d d l e of t h e w e e k

— C o m m o d i a n Carmen

apologeticutn

833-34

Introduction

The editors of the first v o l u m e of Studies i n A n t i q u i t y a n d Christ i a n i t y , The Roots of Egyptian

Christianity,

e x p l a i n e d its c o n t r i b u t i o n as

f o l l o w s : " B y s t u d y i n g t h e d e v e l o p m e n t o f E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y as a n e x p r e s s i o n o f E g y p t i a n c u l t u r e , o n e is b e t t e r a b l e t o u n d e r s t a n d w h a t m a k e s E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y E g y p t i a n . 1 ‫ ״‬But, as h i s t o r i c a l l y c r i t i c a l as t h e c o l l e c t e d p a p e r s a i m e d t o be, e v e r y p a p e r f o c u s e d o n t h e r e l i g i o u s cultures of either A l e x a n d r i a or established monasticism.

Strikingly

absent f r o m d i s c u s s i o n w a s t h e s u b u r b a n a n d r u r a l C h r i s t i a n i t y

of

Greco-Egyptians and native Egyptians f r o m the period before Pachomius, a Christianity

that w o u l d

f o r m a complex of links

between

Alexandria a n d the rural monastery, between apocalyptic Judaism a n d apocalyptic Egyptian Christianity, between epichoric folk religion a n d fanatical Egyptian martyrs, b e t w e e n the scribal traditions of the native Egyptian priesthood and Coptic literature, a n d between

Alexandrian

ecumenism a n d the n a t i o n a l i s m of Egyptian monastic culture. T h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h is u n i q u e e v i d e n c e o f t h i s p h a s e i n t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of Egyptian C h r i s t i a n i t y a n d of E g y p t i a n religions of the R o m a n p e r i o d as a w h o l e . 2 T h e text, w h i c h c a n be d a t e d b o t h p a l e o 1· B i r g e r A . P e a r s o n a n d J a m e s E. G o e h r i n g , F o r e w o r d , The Roots of Egyptian Christianity, ed. B i r g e r A . P e a r s o n a n d J a m e s E. G o e h r i n g , S A C 1 ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : Fortress, 1986), x v i i . 2. C f . T i t o O r l a n d i ( " C o p t i c L i t e r a t u r e , " i n Roots of Egyptian Christianity), w h o notes that the Apocalypse of Elijah was " w r i t t e n in a milieu characterized b y the mixture of Jewish a n d C h r i s t i a n elements i n the presence of s o m e f o r m o f E g y p t i a n n a t i o n a l i s m . T h i s is p r e c i s e l y t h e t y p e o f m i l i e u w h e r e o n e c a n i m a g i n e t h a t C o p t i c l i t e r a t u r e h a d its b e g i n n i n g s " (p. 58). E w a W i p s z y c k a ' s r e c e n t a r t i c l e " L a c h r i s t i a n i s a t i o n d e 1 ' E g y p t e a u x I V e - V I e siecles: A s p e c t s s o c i a u x et e t h n i q u e s " ( A e g y p t u s 6 8 (1988]: 1 1 7 - 6 5 ) s h o w s i n

1

2

Introduction

graphically a n d historically to a fairly definite p e r i o d — t h e latter half of t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y C.E.—reflects i n its s u s t a i n e d e s c h a t o l o g i c a l d e t a i l s a social g r o u p whelmingly

outside

an urban

concerned with

setting, w h o s e

members

were

over-

t h e e n d o f t h e w o r l d as t h e y k n e w

it,

n a m e l y , o f E g y p t i t s e l f . I n s o f a r as t h e t e x t s h o w s g e n e r a l i n f l u e n c e f r o m the book

of Revelation, this g r o u p was one of

the first t r u l y

‫״‬mil-

lennialist" m o v e m e n t s ; yet it seems their ideals lay n o t i n o v e r t h r o w i n g an increasingly oppressive R o m a n establishment but rather in acquiring eschatological salvation a n d sacred p o w e r t h r o u g h m a r t y r d o m . These were not people w h o were entirely accustomed to the topogr a p h y , lore, a n d genres of biblical literature; n o r d o they exhibit

any

c o m m i t m e n t to t h e G o s p e l t r a d i t i o n . T h e places i n w h i c h t h e y o r i e n t e d themselves and envisioned future events lay in Egypt; the

narrative

m a t e r i a l s b y w h i c h t h e y d e f i n e d t h e m s e l v e s as C h r i s t i a n c a m e n o t s o m u c h f r o m t h e r e a d i n g a n d r e c o l l e c t i o n o f a c t u a l t e x t s as f r o m a t h r i v i n g o r a l l o r e ( i n h e r i t e d , p r e s u m a b l y , f r o m E g y p t i a n J e w s as w e l l as d i v e r s e C h r i s t i a n evangelists). T h e m o s t s t r i k i n g aspect o f the A p o c a l y p s e

of

E l i j a h , h o w e v e r , is i t s a u t h o r ' s d e e p a c q u a i n t a n c e w i t h n a t i v e E g y p t i a n p r o p h e t i c tradition, a w o r l d o f m o t i f s a n d oracles reflecting the i d e o l o g y of the pharaoh. N o other Christian text of this period represents such a t h o r o u g h synthesis of i n d i g e n o u s a n d C h r i s t i a n ideas a n d

traditions.

T h u s t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h c a n b e s e e n as a p r e c u r s o r t o t h e C o p t i c "nationalism" of the later monasteries. Similarly, w h e n placed in context o f t h e m a n y o t h e r E g y p t i a n p r o p h e t i c texts c o p i e d a n d

the

com-

posed in this period, the Apocalypse of Elijah represents a Christian offshoot of this native millennialist l i t e r a t u r e — t h e hopes a n d fantasies o f t e m p l e priests that a true p h a r a o h w o u l d r e t u r n a n d cleanse t h e land. F i n a l l y , t h e C o p t i c A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h m a y n o w s t a n d as o u r b e s t attested Elijah a p o c r v p h o n f r o m antiquity, w h o s e historical i m p o r t a n c e is s h o w n b y t h e v a r i e d u s e s t o w h i c h b o t h B y z a n t i n e a n d I r i s h a p o c a l y p t i c t r a d i t i o n s s u b s e q u e n t l y p u t its c o n t e n t s . But w h a t , t h e n , d o w e learn a b o u t the biblical p s e u d o n y m " E l i j a h " f r o m a text w h o s e i n i t i a l currency

lay

largely

in

Christian

Egypt? The

Apocalypse

of

Elijah

demonstrates v i v i d l y h o w the heroes a n d authorities of biblical tradition

d e t a i l that t h e c o u n t r y s i d e w a s far m o r e resistant t o c o n v e r s i o n t h a n w e r e t h e cities (not least b e c a u s e t h e l a n g u a g e o f c o n v e r s i o n w a s , i n i t i a l l y , G r e e k ) , b u t t h i s d o e s n o t e x c u s e a perspective o n Christianity that concentrates exclusively u p o n Alexandria until the rise o f m o n a s t i c c u l t u r e .

3 Introduction

w e r e as m e a n i n g f u l t o E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n s w i t h l i t t l e o r n o a c q u a i n t a n c e w i t h J u d a i s m as t h e y w e r e t o J e w s o f P a l e s t i n e . T h u s , c o m p o s e d i n the m i d s t o f t h e p o l i t i c a l a n d social t u r m o i l of the t h i r d c e n t u r y , t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h is e v i d e n c e f o r a n e a r l y E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y t h a t lay o u t s i d e t h e religious w o r l d o f A l e x a n d r i a a n d its various, interpenetrating

Christianities,

gnostic

sects, a n d

groups. This C h r i s t i a n i t y was, for all intents a n d purposes,

Hermetic eschato-

logically o r i e n t e d . In its s u s t a i n e d c o n c e r n a b o u t deceivers a n d a " L a w less O n e ‫( ״‬a p r o t o t y p e f o r t h e A n t i c h r i s t t r a d i t i o n ) , t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h also o p e n s a w i n d o w u p o n t h e social anxieties o f a m i l l e n n i a l i s t sect t o d i s c e r n l e g i t i m a t e c h a r i s m a t i c a u t h o r i t y i n a n e w r e l i g i o n f r a u g h t w i t h diverse teachings a n d "deception." T h e m e t h o d t h r o u g h o u t this b o o k represents a c o m b i n a t i o n o f social history, literary criticism, a n d history of religions, focusing o n certain types of literary f o r m s a n d genres f u n c t i o n w i t h i n

how

particular

social a n d h i s t o r i c a l s i t u a t i o n s . A s c o n t e m p o r a r y h i s t o r i a n s h a v e b e g u n to demonstrate, the literary collection, the b o o k or scroll, the legend or p r o p h e c y , the m e t a p h o r , a n d the w o r d itself all assume vastly d i f f e r e n t meanings a n d values in d i f f e r e n t — a n d differently

literate—cultures.3

The f o l l o w i n g chapters therefore a t t e m p t to take f u l l account of

the

n a t u r e of literacy, the c i r c u l a t i o n o f texts, a n d t r a d i t i o n a l concepts o f language a n d the w r i t t e n w o r d in the R o m a n Egyptian culture

that

s p a w n e d t h e E l i j a h A p o c a l y p s e a n d i n f l u e n c e d its r a p i d c i r c u l a t i o n o v e r the fourth century.

3. C f . J. G o o d y a n d 1. W a t t , " T h e C o n s e q u e n c e s o f L i t e r a c y , " Comparative Studies in Society and History 5 ( 1 9 6 2 - 6 3 ) : 3 0 4 - 4 5 ; J. G o o d y , The Interface between the Written and the Oral ( C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1987), esp. 1 2 5 - 2 0 8 ; N a t a l i e Z e m o n Davis, " P r i n t i n g a n d the People" a n d " P r o v e r b i a l W i s d o m a n d P o p u l a r Errors," i n Society and Culture in Early Modern France ( S t a n f o r d : S t a n f o r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1975), 1 8 9 - 2 6 7 , 3 2 6 - 4 6 ; a n d C a r l o G i n z b u r g , The Cheese and the Worms, tr. J o h n T e d e s c h i a n d A n n e T e d e s c h i ( H a r m o n d s w o r t h , E n g . : P e n g u i n , 1982).

PART ONE

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

1 The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

CONTENTS OF THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH T h e general topic of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah involves deception a n d false l e a d e r s i n t h e last d a y s — h o w d e c e p t i o n w i l l m a n i f e s t i t s e l f , h o w it w i l l be e x p o s e d at t h e e n d , a n d h o w t h e r i g h t e o u s a n d t h e ‫ ״‬s a i n t s " c a n e x p e c t v i n d i c a t i o n i n a n e s c h a t o l o g i c a l j u d g m e n t a n d rest i n a m i l l e n n i a l p a r a d i s e . Six r e l a t i v e l y d i s c r e t e s e c t i o n s a r e w o v e n t o g e t h e r i n e s c h a tological sequence to reflect this theme. Opening w i t h a prophetic commission formula—‫״‬The w o r d of the L o r d came to m e saying, 'Say to this people, ‫ ״‬W h y d o y o u a d d sin to y o u r sins a n d anger the L o r d G o d w h o created y o u ? 1 : 1 )

‫ — ) ״ ' ״‬w h i c h

lacks a n y i n d i c a t i o n o f i d e n t i t y o r s e t t i n g , t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h t u r n s q u i c k l y to a discussion i n dualistic t e r m s o f the d e v i l a n d t h e w o r l d , t h e c o m i n g of C h r i s t , angelic status, a n d t h e i n v i n c i b i l i t y a n d r e w a r d s o f t h o s e p r o f e s s i n g C h r i s t (1:2-12). T h i s s e c t i o n r e f l e c t s t h e m o s t d i r e c t i n f l u e n c e o f early C h r i s t i a n ( p a r t i c u l a r l y J o h a n n i n e ) texts i n the A p o c alypse of Elijah. A discussion of this i n t r o d u c t i o n in chapter 4 of this b o o k addresses its c o n t e x t u a l a n d r h e t o r i c a l e f f e c t s u p o n t h e rest o f t h e t e x t ; c h a p t e r 3 discusses t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p o f t h e o p e n i n g f o r m u l a

to

Elijah pseudepigraphy. Addressed in homiletical style to the ‫״‬wise m e n of the land,‫ ״‬the d i s c u s s i o n t u r n s t o ‫ ״‬d e c e i v e r s w h o w i l l m u l t i p l y i n t h e last t i m e s ‫ ״‬a n d w h o p r e a c h t h a t ‫ ״‬t h e f a s t d o e s n o t exist, n o r d i d G o d c r e a t e i t 1 : 1 3 - 1 4 )

‫״‬

T h e speaker argues instead f o r the spiritual a n d concrete benefits of fasting, t h e n turns a b r u p t l y to the dangers of spiritual ‫ ״‬d o u b l e - m i n d e d -

7

)

8

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

ness1:23-27)

‫״‬

)

.

C h a p t e r 11 i n t h i s b o o k p r o p o s e s a h i s t o r i c a l c o n t e x

this f a s t i n g passage. C h a p t e r 2 o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h ( h e n c e f o r t h A p o c E l 2) is a n e x t e n d e d p r e d i c t i o n o f p o l i t i c a l " t i m e s o f w o e , " s i m i l a r i n g e n r e to t h e soc a l l e d a p o c a l y p s e i n M a r k 13 a n d t o t h e t r a d i t i o n o f t h e Sibylline

Oracles

but deriving more directly f r o m the native Egyptian apocalyptic

tra-

d i t i o n , w h i c h describes "times of distress" a n d their resolution u n d e r a n e w , G o d - s e n t p h a r a o h . T h i s E g y p t i a n t r a d i t i o n a n d its l i t e r a t u r e a r e outlined i n chapter 7 of this book, f o l l o w i n g w h i c h chapter 8 provides a c o m m e n t a r y o n this section of the Apocalypse of Elijah, d e m o n s t r a t i n g its E g y p t i a n i n h e r i t a n c e a n d l i t e r a r y context. T h e c o n c l u s i o n of A p o c E l 2 predicts a t i m e o f ( t e m p o r a r y ) peace a n d beneficence, p r e p a r i n g the w a y for the advent of the eschatological adversary. T h e t h i r d c h a p t e r ( A p o c E l 3) c o n s i s t s o f a series o f s i g n s a n d a t t r i b u t e s of

the

eschatological

Adversary,

who

is c a l l e d

the

"Lawless

( n t y H p e ΝΤλΝΟΜίλ), occasionally the "Shameless One"

One"

(ηλτφίπβ),

a n d o n c e the "Destructive O n e " (ncyHpe ΜΠΤΛΚΟ), a n d w h o functions

as the antihero of the Apocalypse of Elijah. T h e chapter begins by comparing the advent of this deceiver to the parousia of Christ (3:1-4). A description of the true parousia is followed by a list of the miracles that the Adversary is able to perform (3:6-13). T h e chapter ends with a physiognomic description of the Adversary, emphasizing his ability to change appearance (3:14-18). An analysis of the nature and sources of these signs of the Adversary can be found in chapter 5 below. T h e text's fourth chapter (ApocEl 4) discusses the activities of the eschatological Adversary as his influence spreads upon the earth, emphasizing his cruelty toward those w h o try to unveil him and coneluding with a description of the decline of the earth as the saints depart and he is left in dominion. Three successive martyrdoms are expected, having a common literary pattern: (1) "The virgin whose n a m e is Tabitha" arises to expose and harry the Lawless One, but he throws her upon a temple platform and sucks her blood. In the morning she resurrects herself and continues her diatribe, announcing her spiritual inviolability (4:1-6). 1 (2) Enoch and Elijah return as the "two witnesses" of Revelation 11 to condemn the Lawless One. He kills them, but they arise on the fourth day to declare 1. For an extended discussion o f this passage, see David Τ. M. Frankfurter, "Tabitha in t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , ‫ ׳‬/ I S 44 (1990)113-25.

9

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

their

spiritual

inviolability

and

the

Adversary's

impending

doom

(4:7‫־‬19). 2 A n interlude describing the gruesome tortures applied o n the Lawless One's orders to ‫״‬the priests of the l a n d " f o l l o w s the first t w o m a r t y r d o m s (4:20-23). O t h e r p r i e s t s a r e d e s c r i b e d as f l e e i n g i n t o t h e d e s e r t ( 4 : 2 4 - 2 9 ) . T h e n , (3) " s i x t y

righteous

ones‫ ״‬w a g e a massive assault o n t h e

Ad-

versary, c o n s e q u e n t l y to s u f f e r m a r t y r d o m (4:30-33).3 B o t h t h e i m a g e r y a n d the i d e o l o g y o f m a r t y r d o m i n this section o f t h e text suggest t h a t the author was composing in response to r u m o r s a n d legends of executions, w h i c h

flourished after

the

Decian

or

Valerian

actual

religious

e d i c t s . T h e i n t e r f a c e b e t w e e n h i s t o r y a n d a m a r t y r d o m ideology

ob-

v i o u s l y e n g e n d e r e d b y a p o c a l y p t i c b e l i e f s is a n a l y z e d i n c h a p t e r 6 o f this book. T h e l a s t c h a p t e r ( A p o c E l 5) m a y b e d i v i d e d i n t o t h r e e

sequential

eschatological * m o v e m e n t s , ‫ ״‬e n l a r g i n g the scope of action f r o m

the

t e r r e s t r i a l ( t h a t is, t h e l a n d o f E g y p t ) t o t h e c o s m i c . T h e f i r s t s e c t i o n c o m b i n e s t h e r e a l i z a t i o n b y t h e d e c e i v e d m a s s e s t h a t t h e i r l e a d e r is t h e A d v e r s a r y a n d u l t i m a t e l y powerless w i t h a description of angels t a k i n g u p o r l e a d i n g a w a y t h e saints (5:1-20). L a c k i n g t h e saints, t h e e a r t h d r i e s u p a n d loses i t s f e r t i l i t y , a n d a n i m a l s d i e ( 5 : 7 - 9 , 14, 18). A t t h i s p o i n t begins the battle between

the

Adversary

a n d the angels of

Christ

(5:20-21). The second section begins w i t h conflagration: G o d sends fire u p o n t h e e a r t h a n d judges sinners (5:22-31), a n d t h e e a r t h a n d m o u n t a i n s bear w i t n e s s a t t h i s j u d g m e n t (Is 1:2; M i 6:2). E n o c h a n d E l i j a h r e t u r n t o s t r i k e the deathblow to the Adversary, w h o " w i l l perish like a serpent w h i c h has n o b r e a t h i n i t 5 : 3 2 - 3 5 )

‫״‬

)

.

T h e A d v e r s a r y a n d his m i n i o n s are l o

i n t o "the abyss.‫״‬ T h e t h i r d section also b e g i n s w i t h c o n f l a g r a t i o n : at his

parousia,

m o d e l e d g e n e r a l l y o n R e v e l a t i o n 2 0 - 2 1 (5:36-39), C h r i s t also scorches 2. T h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h d o u b l e s t h e e s c h a t o l o g i c a l r e t u r n o f E n o c h a n d E l i j a h i n a m a n n e r u n i q u e i n early C h r i s t i a n literature: at 4:7-19 t h e y are m a r t y r e d , resurrected, a n d a s s u m e d u p t o h e a v e n ; a n d at 5:32 t h e y r e t u r n t o k i l l t h e A d v e r s a r y . R i c h a r d B a u c k h a m has s h o w n , i n an exhaustive study of the E n o c h / E l i j a h tradition (‫״‬The M a r t y r d o m o f E n o c h a n d E l i j a h : J e w i s h o r C h r i s t i a n ? ' / B L 95, 3 [ 1 9 7 6 ] : 4 4 7 - 5 8 ) ‫ ׳‬t h a t t h e f o r m e r i m a g e w a s a C h r i s t i a n t r a d i t i o n i n f l u e n c e d b u t n o t b a s e d o n R v 11:4-12 ( t o w h i c h A p o c E l 4 : 7 - 1 9 c l o s e l y c o n f o r m s ) , w h i l e t h e l a t t e r i m a g e o f t h e i r s i m p l e r e t u r n at the eschaton was Jewish. Whereas each o f the texts he analyzes represents either the J e w i s h o r t h e C h r i s t i a n t r a d i t i o n , o n l y t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h h a s b o t h (see a l s o i d e m , ^ E n o c h a n d E l i j a h i n t h e C o p t i c A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , * Studia Patristica 16, 2 [ 1 9 8 5 ] : 6 9 3. T h i s scene p e r h a p s r e c a l l s t h e l e g e n d o f t h e s i x t y hasidim

i n 1 M a c c 7:16-17.

10

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

t h e e a r t h (5:37). A ‫ ״‬n e w h e a v e n a n d n e w e a r t h , ‫ ״‬b e t w e e n w h i c h t h e saints c a n pass e a s i l y , are e s t a b l i s h e d . T h e t i m e p e r i o d o f C h r i s t ' s r u l e is s p e c i f i e d as a m i l l e n n i u m , a l t h o u g h w h a t f o l l o w s t h i s m i l l e n n i u m is n o t mentioned.

HISTORIES OF THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH: A REVIEW OF RESEARCH P r e v i o u s s c h o l a r s h i p o n t h e C o p t i c E l i j a h A p o c a l y p s e has a d h e r e d t o t w o p r i n c i p a l fields of i n q u i r y : the relationship of this Elijah a p o c r y p h o n to t h o s e c i t e d b y r a b b i n i c a n d p a t r i s t i c sources, a n d t h e

historical

i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f its ‫ ״‬p o l i t i c a l ‫ ״‬p r o p h e c i e s ( i n A p o c E l 2). W h e n G e o r g S t e i n d o r f f f i r s t p u b l i s h e d t h e B e r l i n a n d P a r i s c o d i c e s as distinct apocalypses of Elijah a n d Z e p h a n i a h , he stated ( w i t h n o particular argument) that ‫״‬the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah derives f r o m a Jewish Grundschrift

w h i c h referred particularly to the Jerusalem T e m p l e a n d

t h e r e - e s t a b l i s h m e n t o f t h e h o l y places." 4 H e t h e n c o n c l u d e d , f r o m t h e p r o f u s i o n o f E g y p t i a n references, t h a t t h e text arose a m o n g E g y p t i a n Jews. F i n a l l y , S t e i n d o r f f v e n t u r e d t w o h i s t o r i c a l i d e n t i f i c a t i o n s o f f i g u r e s i n A p o c E l 2: (1) t h a t a n ‫ ״‬A s s y r i a n K i n g " d e s c r i b e d i n t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e oracles r e p r e s e n t s A n t i o c h u s E p i p h a n e s ; a n d (2) t h a t a " K i n g o f Peace" w h o succeeds h i m r e f e r s t o P o p i l l i u s L a e n u s , t h e R o m a n a m b a s s a d o r w h o forced A n t i o c h u s to leave Egypt.5 I m m e d i a t e l y f o l l o w i n g S t e i n d o r f f ' s e d i t i o n , W i l h e l m Bousset m a d e a d e t a i l e d s t u d y o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h . 6 A g r e e i n g t h a t t h e first p a r t o f A p o c E l 2 m u s t be J e w i s h ( l a r g e l y o n t h e basis o f t h e s l o g a n " T h e n a m e o f G o d is O n e , " p r e s e n t i n 2:10; cf. 2:49), h e s u g g e s t e d as a terminus quern f o r t h e Grundschrift

post

t h e p e r i o d o f T r a j a n a n d H a d r i a n — t h a t is, t h e

era o f t h e J e w i s h r e v o l t ( 1 1 6 - 1 1 7 C.E.).7 T h e text t h e r e f o r e c o n s t i t u t e d a series o f d i f f e r e n t r e d a c t i o n s . T h e s e c o n d l a y e r , i n d i c a t e d b y t h e d e s c r i p t i o n o f A s s y r i a n s a n d Persians a n d a k i n g f r o m " t h e C i t y o f t h e S u n " (2:42-53), r e f e r r e d ( t h r o u g h c o m p a r i s o n t o Sib. Or. 13:151) to O d e n a t h o f P a l m y r a a n d t h u s e s t a b l i s h e d a t h i r d - c e n t u r y C.E. J e w i s h

redaction.

4. G e o r g S t e i n d o r f f , Die Apokalypse des Elias, eine unbekannte Apokalypse, und Bruchstticke der Sophonias-Apokalypse ( L e i p z i g : J. C . H i n r i c h s , 1899), 19. 5. I b i d . , 75 n . 7, 77 n . 3. O n A n t i o c h u s a n d P o p i l l i u s , see E d w y n R. B e v a n , House of Ptolemy ( C h i c a g o : A r e s , 1968), 286. 6. W i l h e l m Bousset, * B e i t r a g e z u r G e s c h i c h t e d e r E s c h a t o l o g i e : D i e A p o k a l y p s e d e s Elias,* Ζ KG 2 0 ( 1 8 9 9 ) : 1 0 3 - 1 2 . 7 . Ibid., 1 0 5 .

11

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

Because t h e t e x t s e e m e d t o p l a c e c o n s i d e r a b l e h o p e i n t h e against

Persians

the Assyrians, Bousset c o n c l u d e d that the context of this re-

d a c t i o n w a s J e w i s h fears o f O d e n a t h , trust in Persian d e l i v e r a n c e , a n d a n t i c i p a t i o n o f a messianic k i n g d u r i n g t h e last q u a r t e r o f t h e

third

c e n t u r y C.E.8 T h e d e s c r i p t i o n o f C h r i s t i m m e d i a t e l y a f t e r t h e m e n t i o n o f the messianic k i n g (3:2-4) t h e r e f o r e s i g n i f i e d a s u b s e q u e n t

Christian

redaction, w h o s e i n t e n t i o n w a s i n part to s h o w t h e false hopes of t h e prior Jewish editor.9 B u t a l t h o u g h s o m e o r a c l e s c o u l d b e u n d e r s t o o d as p o r t r a y i n g circumstances

and

eschatological

hopes of

third-century

Jews

the (e.g.,

* l i b e r a t i o n ‫ ״‬o f J e w s , 2:39), o t h e r s b o r e n o d i r e c t c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s . 1 0 I n d e e d , B o u s s e t c o u l d o n l y c o n n e c t s u c h o r a c l e s as * f o u r k i n g s w i l l f i g h t with three2:43)

‫״‬

of the R o m a n Empire.

11

b

)

w i t h "the confusion of pretenders during that period

‫ ״‬T h u s Bousset's certainty i n r e d a c t i o n criticism

a n d h i s t o r i c a l c o r r e s p o n d e n c e o n l y w e n t so f a r — a n d t h e n o n l y

for

E g y p t i a n Judaism. T h e rest o f t h e oracles w e r e e i t h e r a t t e n u a t e d t o t h e point of i n c o m p r e h e n s i b i l i t y or deliberately vague. A t t h e s a m e t i m e as B o u s s e t ' s a n a l y s i s o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , there appeared a short r e v i e w o f the S t e i n d o r f f e d i t i o n b y the great French E g y p t o l o g i s t G a s t o n Maspero.12 A l t h o u g h agreeing that the text was probably Jewish w i t h a considerable Christian overlay,

Maspero

was the first scholar to p o i n t o u t the n a t i v e E g y p t i a n b a c k g r o u n d of m a n y o f t h e oracles.13 H e c o n c l u d e d b y s u g g e s t i n g that perhaps Jewish

one

might

apocalypses

come [from

to

think,

Egypt]

without

which

too m u c h

were

adapted

horror, or

that

imitated

the by

Christians w e r e t h e m s e l v e s p r e c e d e d b y r u d i m e n t a r y sorts o f apocalypses composed

by

Pagans, some in Greek, others in the native language

of

Egypt.14

8. I b i d . , 1 0 6 - 8 . B o u s s e t ' s a s s u m p t i o n t h a t t h e k i n g f r o m t h e C i t y o f t h e S u n is o p p o s e d t o t h e P e r s i a n s i n A p o c E l 2:46 d o e s n o t f i t t h e t e x t . A s O . S. W i n t e r m u t e ( * A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , ' i n OTP 1:743 n . 13) a n d W o l f g a n g S c h r a g e ( ‫ ־‬D i e E l i a A p o k a l v p s e , " i n Apokalypsen, J u d i s c h e S c h r i f t e n a u s h e l l e n i s t i s c h - r o m i s c h e r Z e i t 5, e d . W e r n e r G e o r g K u m m e l e t a l . [ G u t e r s l o h : G e r d M o h n , 1980], 222) s h o w , t h e k i n g f r o m t h e C i t y o f t h e S u n m u s t b e i d e n t i f i e d w i t h t h e R i g h t e o u s K i n g o f 2:51 r a t h e r t h a n w i t h t h e A s s y r i a n K i n g o f 2:47b. 9. B o u s s e t , * B e i t r a g e , ' 111. 10. I b i d . , 1 0 7 - 8 . 11. I b i d . 12. G a s t o n M a s p e r o , r e v i e w o f Die Apokalypse des savants ( 1 8 9 9 ) : 3 1 . 4 3 ‫־‬ 13. I b i d . , 38, 4 0 - 4 3 . 14. I b i d . , 43.

des Elias,

bv Georg Steindorff,

Journal

12

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

M a s p e r o ' s i n t u i t i o n o f a n a t i v e E g y p t i a n b a c k g r o u n d t o v a r i o u s elem e n t s o f t h e text h a s since b e e n c o r r o b o r a t e d t h r o u g h p u b l i c a t i o n s a n d discussions of E g y p t i a n p r o p h e t i c literature of the R o m a n period, a n d t h e s e c o n d s e c t i o n o f t h i s b o o k is p a r t l y m e a n t to bear o u t M a s p e r o ' s idea. Oscar v o n L e m m c o n t i n u e d the G e r m a n predilection for historical d e c o d i n g i n h i s 1904 p h i l o l o g i c a l d i s c u s s i o n o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , s u g g e s t i n g a J e w i s h Grundschrift

f r o m the early post-Exilic period.15 T h e

w a r s b e t w e e n P e r s i a n a n d A s s y r i a n k i n g s i n 2:39-50, h e i m a g i n e d , m u s t reflect C y r u s ' s assault o n N e b u c h a d n e z z a r i n 540 B.C.E., w h i c h l e d t o t h e r e s t o r a t i o n o f P a l e s t i n e to t h e Jews a n d t h e b u i l d i n g o f t h e S e c o n d Temple. Presuming—as v o n L e m m d i d — t h a t this section of the A p o c alypse of Elijah represents a Jewish author's perspective, this interp r e t a t i o n w o u l d e x p l a i n t h e passage's d e p i c t i o n o f A s s y r i a n s ( t h u s d e n o t i n g B a b y l o n i a n s ! ) as e v i l a n d P e r s i a n s as s a l v i f i c . S u c h a ‫ ״‬l i t e r a l ' historical u n d e r s t a n d i n g of ‫״‬Persian" a n d ‫״‬Assyrian,‫ ״‬h o w e v e r , conflicts w i t h t h e E g y p t i a n l o c u s o f t h e e v e n t s d e s c r i b e d : M e m p h i s , Kos, t h e N i l e . It w a s C a m b y s e s , n o t C y r u s , w h o i n v a d e d E g y p t , a n d h e w a s h a r d l y l a u d e d f o r t h i s act i n E g y p t i a n a n d C o p t i c t r a d i t i o n . F u r t h e r , v o n L e m m d i d n o t address t h e m e a n i n g s u c h a n a n c i e n t r e c o l l e c t i o n w o u l d h a v e h a d in an Egyptian Christian composition. Consequently,

E m i l Schurer discussed the C o p t i c Apocalypse

E l i j a h i n t h e c o n t e x t o f ‫ ״‬L o s t P s e u d e p i g r a p h a " i n h i s History People in the Time of Jesus Christ

of

of the Jewish

(1909). D e m o n s t r a t i n g t h e text's sat-

u r a t i o n w i t h C h r i s t i a n elements, he expressed d o u b t that a Jewish Grundlage

l a y b e n e a t h i t , o r t h a t t h e text w a s i n a n y w a y a d e v e l o p m e n t

of a n o t h e r Elijah apocalypse. T h e historical A p o c E l 2 that describes P e r s i a n b a t t l e s S c h u r e r a s c r i b e d g e n e r a l l y t o t h e p o l i t i c a l fears o f t h e l a t e third century

C.E.16

W h e n it h a s b e e n cited, S c h u r e r ' s m o r e c o n s e r v a t i v e assessment o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h has b e e n v i e w e d as a n e x t r e m e a n d

un-

p e n e t r a t i n g o p i n i o n that c o u l d be disregarded i n the interest of s h o w i n g Jewish origins.17 Yet i t represents t h e b e g i n n i n g o f a restrained c u r r e n t o f s c h o l a r l y v i e w s , o n e t h a t w i l l be f o l l o w e d i n t h i s s t u d y . 15. O s c a r v o n L e m m , " K l e i n e k o p t i s c h e S t u d i e n — X X V I : B e m e r k u n g e n z u S t e l l e n d e r k o p t i s c h e n A p o k a l y p s e n , 1 3 - 1 8 , " Bulletin de Vacademie imperiale des de St.-Petersbourg 21 (1904):228.

einigen sciences

16. E m i l S c h u r e r , Geschichte des jtidischen Volkes im Zeitalter Jesu Christi, 4 vols. (4th e d . ; L e i p z i g : H i n r i s c h s ' s c h e , 1909), 3:368. 17. E.g., see J e a n - M a r c R o s e n s t i e h l , L'Apocalypse d'Elie: Introduction, traduction, et notes, T e x t e s et e t u d e s p o u r s e r v i r a I ' h i s t o i r e d u J u d a i s m e i n t e r t e s t a m e n t a i r e 1 ( P a r i s :

13

The Coptic Apocalypse o f Elijah

Jean-Marc

Rosenstiehl's

1972 c o m m e n t a r y

on

the Apocalypse

E l i j a h a r g u e d i n m o s t d e t a i l f o r a n e a r l y J e w i s h "core.

18

of

‫ ״‬Acknowledging

a t h i r d - c e n t u r y J e w i s h layer to the text, Rosenstiehl b e g a n w i t h Bousset's t h e o r y that t h e e n d o f A p o c E l 2 reflects events i n P a l m y r a . I n d e e d , h e c l a i m e d to i d e n t i f y e v e n closer correspondences t h a n Bousset d i d bet w e e n t h e oracles o f the text a n d historical events d u r i n g the reign o f V a l e r i a n a n d its a f t e r m a t h . 1 9 A s s u p p o r t f o r t h e t h e o r y t h a t a J e w i s h author was placing messianic hopes i n the Palmyrenes after O d e n a t h ' s devastation of Babylonian Jewry, Rosenstiehl referred to the evidence that O d e n a t h ' s w i f e , Z e n o b i a ( w h o was i n c l i n e d t o w a r d exotic gions), reconstructed a n

Egyptian synagogue during her

reli-

invasion.20

T h u s J e w s h a d r e a s o n t o e x t o l Z e n o b i a ' s f o r c e s as l i b e r a t i n g , h e r e a soned, r e v e r s i n g Bousset's o r i g i n a l t h e o r y that the J e w i s h a u t h o r f e a r e d the Syrians a n d h o p e d f o r t h e Persians.21 Rosenstiehl's most radical theory about the origins of the Apocalypse of Elijah, h o w e v e r , w a s his r e a d i n g o f Essene t r a d i t i o n s i n t h e b e g i n n i n g o f A p o c E l 2 a n d m u c h o f A p o c E l 3. 2 2 T h i s i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , i n f l u e n c e d b y t h e r e s e a r c h o f M a r c P h i l o n e n k o , v i e w e d A p o c E l 3 as c o m p o s e d l a r g e l y of allegories for the Q u m r a n c o m m u n i t y ' s experiences: T a b i t h a

rep-

r e s e n t e d t h e Essene sect, t h e a d v e r s a r i a l L a w l e s s O n e r e p r e s e n t e d H y r c a n u s I I ( t h e h y p o t h e t i c a l p e r s e c u t o r o f t h e Q u m r a n Essenes), a n d t h e t w o kings i n t h e b e g i n n i n g of A p o c E l 2 s t o o d for P o m p e y a n d Caesar, t h e R o m a n r u l e r s a t t h e t i m e o f t h e Essenes. T h u s R o s e n s t i e h l p u t t h e first d r a f t o f the text i n a f i r s t - c e n t u r y E g y p t i a n Jewish m i l i e u ,

with

s t r o n g c o n n e c t i o n s t o t h e Q u m r a n Essenes. 2 3 B u t w i t h n o m o r e c e r t a i n i n d i c a t i o n s o f a date i n the first c e n t u r y t h a n the r o u g h e s t

historical

a n a l o g i e s a n d c o m i n g as it d i d f r o m a s c h o o l t h a t h a s t e n d e d t o see Essene i n f l u e n c e i n v i r t u a l l y a l l S e c o n d T e m p l e l i t e r a t u r e , R o s e n s t i e h l ' s Essene t h e o r y h a s f o u n d f e w f o l l o w e r s . 2 4

P a u l G u e t h n e r , 1972), 6 1 - 6 2 . J a m e s H . C h a r l e s w o r t h (The Pseudepigrapha and Modern Research, with a Supplement, Septuagint a n d Cognate Studies 7 [Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, 1981), 95), w h o d e c i d e d t h a t " m o s t s c h o l a r s c o n c u r t h a t [ A p o c E l ] d e r i v e s f r o m a n earlier Jewish w o r k , * d i d n o t e v e n cite S c h u r e r . 18. R o s e n s t i e h l . T h e s i x t y - y e a r h i a t u s i n A p o c E l s c h o l a r s h i p is d o u b t l e s s d u e t o t h e d i s c o v e r y o f t h e Q u m r a n l i b r a r y (a c o n s i d e r a b l e i n f l u e n c e o n R o s e n s t i e h l ) a n d t h e consequent projects to collect all t h e p s e u d e p i g r a p h a i n translations a n d c o m m e n t a r i e s . 19. I b i d . , 6 4 - 6 7 . 20. C P / 3:144 ( = n o . 1449); R o s e n s t i e h l , 67; c f . J a c q u e s S c h w a r t z , " L e s p a l m y r e n i e n s et l ' E g y p t e , " Bulletin de la societe archeologique d'Alexandrie 4 0 (1953):77. 21. Bousset, " B e i t r a g e , " 108. 22. R o s e n s t i e h l , 6 8 - 7 3 . 23. I b i d . , 76. 24. See t h e r e v i e w o f R o s e n s t i e h l b y P. M . P a r v i s , JTS 24 ( 1 9 7 3 ) : 5 8 8 - 8 9 ; c f .

Adela

14

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

Nevertheless, Rosenstiehl's serious discussion of E g y p t i a n

literary

and mythological influences o n the Apocalypse of Elijah established the necessity o f c o n s i d e r i n g n a t i v e m a t e r i a l s w h e n i n t e r p r e t i n g t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h . 2 5 S u c h a l i t e r a r y - h i s t o r i c a l p e r s p e c t i v e has since b e e n o f f e r e d b y W o l f g a n g Schrage. 2 6 C i t i n g n o t o n l y t h e H e l l e n i s t i c E g y p t i a n Potter's

Oracle

a n d its a s s o c i a t e d t e x t s b u t a l s o G r e c o - E g y p t i a n l e g e n d s

of Alexander, Schrage s h o w e d i n even m o r e detail t h a n Maspero the complex of literary traditions i n w h i c h the Apocalypse of Elijah participated.27 H o w e v e r , these l i t e r a r y o b s e r v a t i o n s h a r d l y q u a l i f i e d S c h r a g e ' s ass u m p t i o n t h a t t h e t e x t m u s t p i v o t u p o n ex eventu

r e f e r e n c e s to h i s t o r i c a l

f i g u r e s a n d h i s c o n s e q u e n t search f o r specific c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s at t h e e n d o f A p o c E l 2. W h i l e a t t r i b u t i n g p a r t i c u l a r d e t a i l s — f o r

example,

n u m e r o l o g y — t o literary traditions i n h e r i t e d f r o m the Bible a n d other sources, S c h r a g e i d e n t i f i e d t h e k i n g f r o m t h e " C i t y o f t h e S u n " as Z e n o b i a , a s i g n i f i c a n t c o r r e c t i o n o f Bousset a n d R o s e n s t i e h l , a n d a r g u e d t h a t t h e a u t h o r h a d a l r e a d y w i t n e s s e d h e r e x p u l s i o n b y A u r e l i a n i n 272. T h i s r e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n d e p e n d e d o n (1) t h e i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f t h e " k i n g f r o m t h e s u n " n o t , as Bousset t h o u g h t , w i t h t h e A s s y r i a n K i n g — t h a t is, a n e v i l r u l e r — b u t w i t h t h e " R i g h t e o u s K i n g " ; (2) t h e c o r r e s p o n d e n c e o f "Persians" w i t h

t h e P a l m y r e n e s ; a n d (3) t h e " A s s y r i a n s "

signifying

Rome. 2 8 Schrage's i m p l i c a t i o n t h a t a w o m a n c o u l d be s y m b o l i z e d as a ‫ ״‬k i n g " a n d the P a l m y r e n e s — S y r i a n s — a s Persians ( w h o w e r e the enemies of P a l m y r a d u r i n g the t h i r d c e n t u r y ) o b v i o u s l y assumes that the w r i t e r h a d s u c h a l i m i t e d s e l e c t i o n o f a l l e g o r i c a l s i g n i f i e r s at h i s d i s p o s a l t h a t these contradictory

r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s w e r e necessary, a n a s s u m p t i o n

made

rather d o u b t f u l b y the large repertoire of s y m b o l s characteristic of the Sibylline

Oracles (to w h i c h S c h r a g e o f t e n r e f e r s f o r p a r a l l e l s t o h i s i d e n t i -

fications). 2 9 B u t i f t h e d r a m a t i s p e r s o n a e are so d e l i b e r a t e l y l i m i t e d i n Y a r b r o C o l l i n s , " T h e E a r l y C h r i s t i a n A p o c a l y p s e s , " Semeia 14 (1979):99. C h a r l e s w o r t h a l o n e f o l l o w s R o s e n s t i e h l (Pseudepigrapha and Modern Research, 95). 25. Rosenstiehl, 4 3 - 4 7 . R o s e n s t i e h l ' s u n c r i t i c a l use o f R. Reitzenstein a n d Η. H. S c h a e d e r ( " D a s T o p f e r o r a k e l , " in idem, Studien zum antiken Synkretismus aus Iran und Griechenland [Leipzig: T e u b n e r , 1926], 3 8 - 5 1 ) in i n t e r p r e t i n g t h e Potter's Oracle led h i m to s e e Iranian traditions i n f l u e n c i n g the A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah ( R o s e n s t i e h l , 4 3 - 4 6 ) . 26. S c h r a g e , 1 9 4 - 2 8 8 . 27. Ibid., 2 1 2 - 1 7 . 28. Ibid., 2 2 2 - 2 5 . 29. A t h i r d - c e n t u r y p s e u d o n y m o u s a u t h o r w h o " p r e d i c t e d " Z e n o b i a ( w h o p r e s e n t e d herself as the n e w Cleopatra) as a savior-king would have had a considerable " e s c h a t o l o g i c a l w o m a n ' tradition f r o m w h i c h to d r a w a p p r o p r i a t e s y m b o l s (cf. Sib. Or. 3 . 7 5 - 8 2 , 3 5 6 - 6 2 ; 8 . 7 5 - 8 0 , 1 9 4 - 2 1 2 ; V a l e n t i n N i k i p r o w e t z k y , La troisrtme Sibylle, Etudes

15

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

t h i s s e c t i o n , w h a t c e r t a i n i n d i c a t i o n s are t h e r e t h a t h i s t o r i c a l e v e n t s are p o r t r a y e d ex eventu—that

t h e e n t i r e e p i s o d e is n o t a p r o p h e t i c f a n t a s y ?

M o r e o v e r , Schrage's suggestion of such detailed correspondences presumes a considerable degree of political awareness o n the part of the author, a p r e s u m p t i o n that m i g h t be said to contrast w i t h the o v e r t l y f a n t a s t i c n a t u r e o f m o s t o f t h e text. T h u s S c h r a g e ' s a n a l y s i s begs c e r t a i n important historical a n d theoretical questions. S c h r a g e f o l l o w s S c h u r e r i n c o n s i d e r i n g t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , as it s t a n d s , t o be t h e c o m p o s i t i o n ( n o t r e d a c t i o n ) o f a C h r i s t i a n a u t h o r w h o h i m s e l f m a d e use o f d i v e r s e e a r l y J e w i s h t r a d i t i o n s . 3 0 S c h r a g e ' s c o m m e n t a r y therefore represents a step a w a y f r o m facile "core" theories b u t d e m o n s t r a t e s t h e p r o b l e m s i n h e r e n t i n c u r s o r y a t t e m p t s t o associate a n Egyptian oracular or prophetic

text too closely w i t h

events of

any

period. O . S. W i n t e r m u t e ' s 1983 e d i t i o n o f t h e t e x t s o u g h t f o r t h e f i r s t t i m e t o prove

a Jewish "core," this t i m e t h r o u g h r e d a c t i o n criticism.31 L i m i t i n g

h i m s e l f to t h e parallel m a r t y r d o m

stories o f A p o c E l 4,

Wintermute

suggested that the m o s t " p r i m i t i v e ‫ ״‬one, d e s c r i b i n g the m a r t y r d o m o f the ' s i x t y

righteous"

(4:30-33), m u s t h a v e b e e n o r i g i n a l , a n d t h a t

it

f u n c t i o n e d as t h e m o d e l f o r t h e d e s c r i p t i o n o f T a b i t h a ' s a n d E n o c h / E l i j a h ' s p r e v i o u s m a r t y r d o m s (4:1-6, 7-19). 3 2 M a n y f a c t o r s m i g h t h a v e l e d t o t h e p a r a l l e l c o n s t r u c t i o n o f A p o c E l 4, h o w e v e r , a b o v e a l l t h e c o m p o sitional style of the author;33 a n d such a small p o r t i o n of a stylistically c o m p l e x t e x t is h a r d l y t h e basis f o r a g e n e r a l r e d a c t i o n a l t h e o r y

of

J e w i s h o r i g i n s . I n d e e d , W i n t e r m u t e w a s t h e n l e d t o m a k e s u c h statem e n t s as " w e a r e i n c l i n e d t o c o n f r o n t t h e p r e s e n t s e c t i o n w i t h t h e a

priori

assumption that it contains a n early Jewish s t r a t u m that has been supp i e m e n ted b y a C h r i s t i a n editor.34‫״‬ Still, W i n t e r m u t e r e f r a i n e d f r o m p r o p o s i n g a n y historical correspondences a n d i n s t e a d s u m m a r i z e d t h e perspectives o n A p o c E l 2 i n three different hermeneutical interpretations:

j u i v e s 9 ( P a r i s : M o u t o n , 1970), 1 4 3 - 5 0 ) . S c h r a g e s u g g e s t s t h a t a h y p o t h e t i c a l , b r i e f a l l i a n c e t h a t Z e n o b i a f o r g e d w i t h S h a p u r ( r e f l e c t e d i n Sib. Or. 13.111) m i g h t h a v e l e d s o m e J e w s t o see P a l m y r e n e s a n d P e r s i a n s as o n e e n t i t y (223). N o t o n l y is t h i s perspective d o u b t f u l w i t h i n the m o r e general historical circumstances of P a l m y r e n e Persian a n i m o s i t y , b u t t h e h i s t o r i c i t y o f t h i s alliance has itself b e e n q u e s t i o n e d (cf. A . A l f o l d i , * T h e C r i s i s o f t h e E m p i r e , * CAH 12 ( 1 9 3 9 ] , 1 7 8 - 7 9 ) . 30. S c h r a g e , 206. 31. W i n t e r m u t e , 7 2 1 - 5 3 . 32. I b i d . , 725. 33. See R o s e n s t i e h l , 2 8 - 3 7 , a n d S c h r a g e ' s m o r e e x t e n s i v e a r g u m e n t , 2 1 7 - 2 0 . 34. W i n t e r m u t e , 7 2 6 .

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

16

1. A l l o f t h e k i n g s a r e d r a w n f r o m a l i t e r a r y t r a d i t i o n , a n d t h e a u t h o r h i m s e l f b e l i e v e s o r s p e c u l a t e s t h a t a t s o m e f u t u r e d a t e t h e first o f t h e s e kings will appear. 2. S o m e o f t h e k i n g s h a d a l r e a d y a p p e a r e d , b u t t h e a u t h o r c a s t s h i s w o r k in t h e s t y l e o f a s e e r w h o d e s i r e s t o w a r n h i s c o n t e m p o r a r i e s o f t h e i m m i n e n t e n d o f t h e a g e b y j o i n i n g their o w n h i s t o r y to that o f t h e final a g e a n d c a s t i n g it all in t h e f o r m o f a f u t u r e p r o p h e c y . 3. T h e a u t h o r h a s m a d e u s e o f a p r i o r l i t e r a r y t r a d i t i o n o r e v e n a c o m p l e t e apocalypse

from

an

earlier time, w h i c h

he brought

up to date

by

m o d i f y i n g details o f t h e p r e d i c t e d f u t u r e to c o n f o r m m o r e a c c u r a t e l y to t h e a c t u a l c o u r s e o f h i s t o r y a s h e k n e w it. 3 5

Interpretations 2 and 3 represent those m a d e by previous scholars in search of historical and redactional specificity. By contrast, scholarly attention to native Egyptian literary tradition opened up the first alternative. 3 6 Rollin Kearns's 1986 discussion of the influence of Egyptian prophecy on the Christian "son of m a n " tradition again imposed a rigid historical determinism on the symbolism and narrative of the Apocalypse of Elijah. 3 7 Kearns attempted to improve upon Schrage's correspondence between the king from the "City of the S u n " and Zenobia by referring this messianic figure to Waballath, Zenobia's son and puppet ruler during the Palmyrene occupation of Alexandria. 3 8 T h e application of the oracle to this new king constituted a traditional use of "Isis-Horus" propaganda to justify a foreign kingship. 3 9 Kearns's detailed history of Egyptian prophetic and oracular literature does exhibit the background against which the Apocalypse of Elijah should be read. He has been criticized, however, for drawing his historical correspondences too closely, 4 0 and this use of Waballath is a case in point. Evidence exists neither for Waballath's significance as a ruler nor for propaganda arguing his legitimacy. 4 1 Finally, Kearns's 35. Ibid., 723. 36. Cf. ibid., 7 2 3 - 2 4 . 37. Rollin Kearns, Das Traditionsgefiige urn den Menschensohn (Tubingen: M o h r [Siebeck), 1986). 38. Ibid., 9 6 - 1 0 0 . 39. Ibid., 9 8 - 9 9 . 40. S e e remarks by John Collins in his review of Kearns, in /BL 107 (1988):538. 41. Cf. Schwartz, "Les palmyreniens," 76. W a b a l l a t h ' s appearance on coins with Aurelian in 2 7 0 showed not his coimperial pretensions but Zenobia's arrogating of his father's title, Corrector Orientis, for her son. T h e r e is e v i d e n c e that Zenobia conciliated certain Greco-Egyptian sentiments (and devoted considerable propaganda to e n h a n c e this effect by appearing as a new Cleopatra; cf. Arthur Stein, "Kallinikos von Petrai," Hermes 58 [1923]:454-55; G l e n W. Bowersock, " T h e Miracle of M e m n o n , " BASP 21

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

17

answer to the gender of the "king from the sun" still does not account for the other problems involved in making a close connection between the Palmyrene invasion and the Apocalypse of Elijah. The history of scholarship on the Apocalypse of Elijah, and on ApocEl 2 especially, represents a series of attempts to prove a preconceived Jewish core a n d — i n the service of these attempts—to associate the oracles of ApocEl 2 to any series of historical events that would have had an immediate impact upon Jews. 4 2 Coincidentally, the historical period that has achieved some scholarly consensus in this regard, the last quarter of the third century C.E., also agrees with the

terminus

ante quern posed by the manuscripts of the Apocalypse of Elijah, so o n e cannot fault it on textual grounds. Because of the explicit references to Egypt and the manifest use of Egyptian oracle tradition, all commentators h a v e acknowledged that the text took its form in Egypt; however, no commentators seeking a Jewish Grundschrift

or even a Jewish redaction in the late third century h a v e

addressed the virtually complete lack of evidence for any Jewish activity in Egypt at this time. 4 3 Finally, all but Wintermute have assumed that the major function of oracles and their symbols is to recast historical events allegorically, as vaticinia

ex eventus,

and that the text itself can always be dated by

the last "historical" reference before the text lurches into imaginary eschatology.

DATING Early attempts at dating the Apocalypse of Elijah presupposed that it was a Christian redaction of a Jewish Elijah apocalypse—presumably the one cited by Origen as the source of 1 Cor 2:9—and that therefore it contained a "core" deriving from the first century C.E. or B.C.E.; but those who propose Jewish origins for texts that express any degree of Christian self-definition carry the burden of proof. Inevitably, the "Chris(1984]:31-32), but we cannot deduce from this and from the existence o f the prediction of a "king from the sun" that the Apocalypse of Elijah was designed as propaganda for Waballath. 42. See the wise remarks by B. Dehandschutter, "Les Apocalypses d'Elie," in Elie le prophete: Bible, tradition, iconographie, ed. Gerard F. Willems (Louvain: Peeters, 1988), 64-66. 43. S e e CP] 1:94, although cf. A. Kasher, "The Jewish C o m m u n i t y of Oxyrhynchus in the Roman Period," //S 32 (1981 ):153-57, w h o perhaps draws too much from CPJ 473.

18

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

t i a n i z a t i o n ‫ ״‬o f p r e e x i s t i n g J e w i s h t e x t s is a c o n t i n u o u s p r o c e s s r a t h e r t h a n a c r o s s - c u l t u r a l p l u n d e r i n g ; a n d it is p r e c i s e l y i n t h i s

cultural

continuity between Judaism and Christianity—a continuity that allowed s u c h C h r i s t i a n c o m p i l a t i o n s as 2 E s d r a s a n d t h e Testaments Patriarchs—that

of the

Twelve

one s h o u l d expect the c o m p o s i t i o n of biblical pseudepi-

g r a p h a b y p r o f e s s i n g C h r i s t i a n s . 4 4 S u c h classic a t t e m p t s as t h a t b y R. H . C h a r l e s t o dissect a p o c a l y p t i c texts f o r t h e i r cores a n d

interpolations

h a v e b e e n s h o w n t o rest o n d u b i o u s p r e s u p p o s i t i o n s , 4 5 a n d

similar

analyses of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah h a v e d e m o n s t r a t e d little d e v e l o p ment in redaction-critical methodology. Thus the f o l l o w i n g discussion of the date of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah w i l l focus o n the Coptic (once G r e e k ) t e x t at h a n d , r a t h e r t h a n a p u t a t i v e J e w i s h c o r e l y i n g w i t h i n t h i s text.

Terminus ante quem A n A c h m i m i c m a n u s c r i p t o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h is t h e e a r l i e s t e v i d e n c e o f t h e text, d a t i n g f r o m the b e g i n n i n g o f the f o u r t h C.E.

46

century

T h i s w o u l d suggest t h a t the latest p e r i o d i n w h i c h the present

Apocalypse of Elijah m i g h t h a v e been c o m p o s e d in Greek w o u l d be the last q u a r t e r o f t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y . 4 7

Terminus post quem W i n t e r m u t e has r i g h t l y n o t e d t h a t the earliest date the A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h ( i n i t s p r e s e n t f o r m ) c o u l d h a v e b e e n c o m p o s e d is b o u n d b y t h e

44. See J a m e s H . C h a r l e s w o r t h , " C h r i s t i a n a n d J e w i s h S e l f - D e f i n i t i o n i n L i g h t o f t h e C h r i s t i a n A d d i t i o n s t o t h e A p o c r y p h a l W r i t i n g s , " i n Jewish and Christian Self-Definition, v o l . 2: Aspects of Judaism in the Greco-Roman Period, e d . E. P. S a n d e r s et a l . ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : Fortress, 1981), 2 7 - 5 5 , 3 1 0 - 1 5 ; a n d t h e a p t r e m a r k s b y M a r i n u s d e J o n g e , " T h e T e s t a m e n t s o f t h e T w e l v e P a t r i a r c h s : C h r i s t i a n a n d J e w i s h , ‫ ״‬i n Jewish Eschatology, Early Christian Christology, and the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs (Leiden: Brill, 1991), 2 3 3 - 4 3 . 45. C f . J a m e s B a r r , ‫ ־‬J e w i s h A p o c a l y p t i c i n R e c e n t S c h o l a r l y S t u d y , * BJRL 58 ( 1 9 7 5 ) : 9 35; a n d J o h n J. C o l l i n s , " A p o c a l y p t i c L i t e r a t u r e , " i n Early Judaism and Its Modern Interpreters, e d . R o b e r t A . K r a f t a n d G e o r g e W . E. N i c k e l s b u r g ( A t l a n t a : S c h o l a r s Press, 1986), 3 4 8 - 5 0 . 46. B e r l i n s t a a t l . M u s e e n , A b t e i l . P . 1 8 6 2 a n d P a r i s , B i b l . N a t . C o p t e . 135 (see p p . 2 1 23, b e l o w , o n m a n u s c r i p t s ) . O n i t s d a t i n g , c f . S t e i n d o r f f , 6 ( l a t e f o u r t h / e a r l y f i f t h c e n t u r y ) ; C a r l S c h m i d t , " D e r K o l o p h o n d e s M s . O r i e n t . 7594 d e s B r i t i s c h e n M u s e u m s , " Sitzungsberichte der preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Philosophisch-Historisch Klasse (1925):317 ( f o u r t h c e n t u r y ) ; a n d V i k t o r S t e g e m a n n , Koptische Palaographie ( H e i d e l b e r g : I m S e l b s t v e r l a g , v o n F. B i l a b e l , 1936), l i b - 1 2 a , f i g . 1 ( t h i r d c e n t u r y ) . R o s e n s t i e h l (20); S c h r a g e (201); a n d P i e t e r s m a (1) a l l p l a c e t h e m s . a t l a t e t h i r d / e a r l y fourth century. 47. S t e i n d o r f f , 18.

19

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

a v a i l a b i l i t y o f t h e N e w T e s t a m e n t texts r e f l e c t e d i n its c o m p o s i t i o n . 4 8 The recollection of Johannine literature a n d the book of

Revelation

w o u l d t h u s s i g n a l t h e m i d d l e o f t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y as t h e earliest date. 4 9 T h e i n t r o d u c t o r y passage o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h is s h a r e d b y t h e Apocalypse

of Paul (Apoc.

Paul 3) a n d m i g h t c o n c e i v a b l y d e r i v e f r o m a

text o r f r a g m e n t t h a t e x i s t e d b e f o r e e i t h e r o f these texts. 5 0 I f so, t h e terminus

ante quern o f s u c h a s o u r c e w o u l d b e t h e a p p r o x i m a t e d a t e o f

these texts: t h e s e c o n d h a l f o f t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y C.E.51 T h e r e is n o p o s s i b l e terminus

post quern f o r s u c h a f r a g m e n t ; n o r c a n o n e p r e s u m e t h a t its

biblical p h r a s e o l o g y indicates Jewish a u t h o r s h i p . If each text e m p l o y e d t h e passage as a f r a g m e n t , m o r e o v e r , t h e r e is n o necessary h i s t o r i c a l r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n its lost c o n t i n u a t i o n a n d t h e texts t h a t m a d e use o f it. B u t i f t h e f r a g m e n t d i d b e l o n g to a n E l i j a h a p o c r y p h o n , t h e n it m a y n o t be a c o i n c i d e n c e t h a t t h e a p o c a l y p s e s o f P a u l a n d E l i j a h

both

c o n t a i n t h e t y p e o f m a t e r i a l s a t t r i b u t e d t o lost E l i j a h a p o c r y p h a

by

r a b b i n i c a n d p a t r i s t i c sources ( r e s p e c t i v e l y , a t o u r o f h e l l a n d e s c h a t o l o g i c a l details). T h a t is, b o t h a p o c a l y p s e s c o u l d h a v e b e e n c o m p o s e d as n e w revelations in an "Elianic revelation‫ ״‬tradition. C h a p t e r 8 w i l l discuss i n d e t a i l t h e d e b t t h a t A p o c E l 2 o w e s to E g y p t i a n p r o p h e t i c l i t e r a r y t r a d i t i o n , p a r t i c u l a r l y to t h e n a t i v e oracles t h a t w e r e c i r c u l a t i n g d u r i n g t h e t i m e o f its c o m p o s i t i o n . C h i e f a m o n g these are t h e O r a c l e s o f t h e L a m b a n d t h e P o t t e r , w h i c h h a v e b e e n d a t e d i n o r i g i n to t h e H e l l e n i s t i c p e r i o d b u t are e x t a n t o n l y i n p a p y r i o f t h e R o m a n period.52 W h i l e the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah participates i n the same l i t e r a r y a n d i d e o l o g i c a l t r a d i t i o n as these " p a g a n ‫ ״‬texts, h o w e v e r , t h e r e is n o specific e v i d e n c e o f d e p e n d e n c e u p o n a c t u a l m a n u s c r i p t s o f these texts. 5 3 T h e r e f o r e o n e c a n d a t e t h e i d e o l o g y , s e n t i m e n t s , i m a g e r y , a n d e v e n o r a c u l a r s a y i n g s o f t h i s c h a p t e r o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h to t h e Hellenistic p e r i o d (and even m u c h earlier) w i t h o u t affecting the date of t h e c o m p l e t e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h as a h i s t o r i c a l c o m p o s i t i o n . 48. W i n t e r m u t e , 7 2 9 - 3 0 . 49. M a n u s c r i p t e v i d e n c e f o r t h e s e l a t t e r t e x t s ' c i r c u l a t i o n i n E g y p t d o e s n o t until the third century, however.

begin

50. See b e l o w , p p . 2 8 - 2 9 a n d A p p e n d i x . 51. O n d a t i n g Apoc. Paul, see R. P. C a s e y , ‫ ׳‬T h e A p o c a l y p s e o f P a u l , ' / T S 34 (1933):28, 31. 52. See C . C . M c C o w n , " H e b r e w a n d E g y p t i a n A p o c a l y p t i c L i t e r a t u r e , " HTR 18 ( 1 9 2 5 ) : 3 9 2 - 4 0 1 ; a n d L u d w i g K o e n e n , " D i e P r o p h e z e i u n g e n des T o p f e r s , " Ζ ΡΕ 2 (1968):186-94. . 5 3 . Pace F r a n ? o i s e D u n a n d , " L ' O r a c l e d u P o t i e r et la f o r m a t i o n d e l ' a p o c a l y p t i q u e e n E g y p t e , " in L'Apocalyptique, ed. M . P h i l o n e n k o a n d M . S i m o n , E t u d e s d ' h i s t o i r e d e s religions 3 (Paris: P a u l G e u t h n e r , 1977), 56.

20

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

Attempts at Closer Dating M o s t s c h o l a r s h a v e s e e n t h e p r e s e n t f o r m o f A p o c E l 2 as r e f l e c t i n g — e v e n i f n o t d i r e c t l y — t h e p o l i t i c a l t u r m o i l o f t h e l a t e t h i r d c e n t u r y C.E. a n d t h e r e f o r e h a v e p l a c e d t h e text's e x t a n t f o r m t o w a r d its later term i n u s : t h a t is, a r o u n d 2 6 0 - 2 9 5 . D e b a t e , as w e h a v e s e e n , h a s c o n c e r n e d t h e d a t i n g o f e a r l i e r Vorlagen.

C h a p t e r s 9 - 1 1 discuss i n detail t h e ex-

ternal reasons for a later t h i r d - c e n t u r y date. A

terminus

post

quem

m a y also be i n f e r r e d f r o m t h e details

and

i d e o l o g y o f m a r t y r d o m i n A p o c E l 4. T h e s e m a t e r i a l s p r o b a b l y r e f l e c t t h e martyrological lore that circulated a r o u n d the Decian edict in 249-251 C.E., w i t h

the concomitant

development

of

the ideal of

martyrdom

a m o n g Egyptian Christians.54

QUESTIONS OF PROVENANCE AND MILIEU T h e a b u n d a n t references to E g y p t a n d E g y p t i a n cities m a k e a n E g y p t i a n m i l i e u certain. T h e f a v o r a b l e v i e w o f M e m p h i s a n d t h e use o f a negative

Hellenistic

euphemism

for Alexandria, discussed b e l o w

in

c h a p t e r 8, s u g g e s t t h a t t h e c o m p o s i t i o n t o o k p l a c e i n E g y p t p r o p e r ; t h e presence o f o n e A c h m i m i c a n d three d i f f e r e n t Sahidic C o p t i c

manu-

scripts also suggests t h a t

among

the text h a d p a r t i c u l a r

popularity

C o p t i c speakers. T h e k n o w l e d g e o f a n d a b i l i t y to use E g y p t i a n p r o p h e t i c traditions suggest t h a t t h e a u t h o r , a n d p r e s u m a b l y his audience, w e r e accustomed to such language a n d traditions; a n d because these trad i t i o n s t e n d e d t o h a v e n a t i o n a l i s t o v e r t o n e s , i t is c o n c e i v a b l e t h a t t h e text's m i l i e u s h a r e d s u c h s e n t i m e n t s t o w a r d E g y p t a n d its m y t h o l o g i c a l status. T h e r e f o r e a n y r e c o n s t r u c t i o n o f t h e m i l i e u m u s t t a k e i n t o a c c o u n t b o t h t r a d i t i o n a l a n d C h r i s t i a n aspects o f the text. T h e e s c h a t o l o g i c a l f o c u s o f t h e t e x t , its u s e o f s e c t a r i a n n o m e n c l a t u r e f o r b o t h d r a m a t i s p e r s o n a e a n d a u d i e n c e (see c h a p t e r 4, p p . 9 8 - 1 0 1 ) , a n d i t s a p p a r e n t u s e o f t h e b o o k o f R e v e l a t i o n (see c h a p t e r 2, p p . 3 7 - 3 8 ) all suggest a m i l l e n n i a l i s t social setting. E v i d e n c e f o r o n e s u c h

mil-

l e n n i a l i s t m o v e m e n t i n E g y p t at t h i s t i m e c o r r o b o r a t e s t h i s s o c i o l o g i c a l i n f e r e n c e , as is f u r t h e r d i s c u s s e d i n c h a p t e r 10. T h e a t t e n t i o n t o f a s t i n g a n d t h e c u l t i v a t i o n of p s y c h i c ‫ ״‬s i n g l e - m i n d e d n e s s " (1:23-27), c o m b i n e d 54. S e e b e l o w , c h a p . 6. B a u c k h a m h a s s o u g h t t o c o r r o b o r a t e t h e t e x t ' s " l a t e r * d a t i n g b y p o i n t i n g o u t t h e r e l a t i v e l y late stage o f t h e E n o c h / E l i j a h l e g e n d i n A p o c E l 4:7-19 ( * M a r t y r d o m o f E n o c h a n d Elijah,* 458).

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

21

with the text's fascination with martyrdom, m a y indicate ascetic tendencies (see chapter 11), and the reference to "deceivers" w h o deny fasting may be a hyperbolic attempt to describe a recent dispute over the proper limits of ascetic practice (see chapter 11). Yet no social organization or hierarchy (such as is found in established monasticism) is apparent; the text shows n o specific interest, positive or negative, in Alexandrian ecclesiastical hierarchy or authority; and there are no reflections of (purely) theological disputes.

MANUSCRIPT CHARACTER Five manuscripts or fragments witness to the Apocalypse of Elijah, although their variations are significant e n o u g h to suggest a n u m b e r of different recensions and (in light of the state of the manuscripts) even the independent circulation of fragments of the text without authority or title. 55 Although four of these manuscripts are in Coptic, the presence of a Greek fragment of the text verifies that the Apocalypse was originally written, or took its present form, in Greek. T h e manuscripts themselves range in date (on paleographical grounds) from the early fourth through the fifth centuries C.E. O n e manuscript in Achmimic Coptic (designated Ach), collated and edited by Steindorff from Berlin, staatl. Museen, Abteilung P.1862 and Paris, Bibl. Nat. Copte 135, c a m e from the library of S h e n o u t e ' s White Monastery. 5 6 Included in the s a m e codex was a recension of the alypse

of Zephaniah,

Apoc-

and at o n e time the two texts were understood

together to constitute the Apocalypse of Elijah. 5 7 This manuscript, from the early fourth century C.E., contains the beginning and end of the Apocalypse of Elijah but is missing significant portions of the middle. It provides the only text of the Apocalypse's conclusion. But though it has ordinarily been taken as the earliest text, 5 8 the Achmimic manuscript has 55. For a detailed discussion o f the texts a n d their relationships, s e e Pietersma, 1, 7 18. 56. Steindorff, 6 6 - 1 0 7 . S e e Maspero's a c c o u n t of the find in his review o f Steindorff, 1 - 2 n. 5. 57. Urbain-Bouriant, *Les papyrus d ' A k h m i m (Fragments d e manuscrits en dialectes bachmourique et thebain)," Memoires publiέs par les membres de la mission archeologicjue franqaise au Caire 1, 2 ( 1 8 8 5 ) : 2 4 5 - 4 6 , 2 6 0 - 7 9 ; and L. Stern, *Die koptische Apocalypse des Sophonias, mit e i n e m A n h a n g iiber den untersahidischen Dialect," ZAS ( 1 8 8 6 ) : 1 1 5 35. S e e H.F.D. Sparks, *Introduction to the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah,* AOT, 7 5 3 - 5 4 . This view is followed by Wilhelm Bousset, The Antichrist Legend, trans. A. H. Keane (London: Hutchinson, 1896), 8 7 - 9 1 . 58. This is the text given precedence in the translations of Kuhn, S c h r a g e , a n d

22

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

been s h o w n

more recently

to represent an independent

cension of, presumably, a c o m m o n Greek

Coptic

re-

Vorlage.59

The recently published f o u r t h / f i f t h - c e n t u r y

Chester Beatty

manu-

s c r i p t ( P . C h e s t e r B e a t t y 2 0 1 8 ) i n S a h i d i c C o p t i c is n o w o u r m o s t c o m plete copy of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, a n d o n text-critical g r o u n d s m a y lie closest to a n " o r i g i n a l ‫ ״‬G r e e k text.60 T h e text stops c o n s i d e r a b l y s h o r t o f t h e e n d , h o w e v e r , a n d l i n e fillers at t h i s p o i n t suggest t h a t t h e scribe h i m s e l f m a y n o t h a v e k n o w n the end.61 T h i s text has been d e s i g n a t e d Sa 3 . T h e m o s t i n t e r e s t i n g a s p e c t o f Sa 3 is i t s u n i q u e u s e o f a p u n c t u a t i o n system that distinguishes not grammatical units but rather syllabic units, evidently to facilitate reading aloud. Such p u n c t u a t i o n must have been fairly novel in the ancient Mediterranean w o r l d , where w r i t t e n docum e n t s g e n e r a l l y l a c k e d s u c h v i s u a l c o n v e n i e n c e s as w o r d

separation,

p u n c t u a t i o n , o r d e m a r c a t e d sections.62 O f t e n readers w i t h e v e n a m o d erate degree o f literacy w e r e u n a b l e to m a k e sense of a m a n u s c r i p t : H e r m a s , f o r e x a m p l e , describes c o p y i n g a n e n t i r e b o o k , yet says, " I w a s u n a b l e t o d i s t i n g u i s h t h e s y l l a b l e s ‫ ״‬u n t i l g r a n t e d d i v i n e gnosis

(Hertn.

Vis. 2 . 1 . 4 - 2 . 2 . 1 ) . T h e s e v e r a l p u n c t u a t i o n s y s t e m s d e p l o y e d i n Sa 3 , h o w ever, d i v i d e d the w o r d s e v e n f u r t h e r , i n t o phonemes.63 This fact s h o u l d illuminate the performative context of the Apocalypse of Elijah

and

p r e s u m a b l y o t h e r early C o p t i c texts n o t o b v i o u s l y h o m i l e t i c i n nature: t h e text w a s to be r e a d a l o u d t o a n a u d i e n c e , r a t h e r t h a n p r i v a t e l y b y a n i n d i v i d u a l ; a n d r e a d i n g s u c h a text d i d n o t require a h i g h degree o f literacy.64 Another

manuscript

of

the Apocalypse of

Elijah in

fourth/fifth-

c e n t u r y S a h i d i c C o p t i c ( d e s i g n a t e d Sa 1 ), a l s o f o u n d i n t h e W h i t e M o n a s W i n t e r m u t e . R o s e n s t i e h l g i v e s a s i m u l t a n e o u s t r a n s l a t i o n o f t h e A c h m i m i c text a n d Steindorff's Sahidic text (discussed b e l o w , p p . 299-300). 59. See P i e t e r s m a , 1 2 - 1 5 ; a l s o P i e r r e L a c a u , " R e m a r q u e s s u r l e m a n u s c r i t a k h m i m i q u e des a p o c a l y p s e s d e S o p h o n i e et d ' E l i e , " Journal asiatique 254 (1966): 1 6 9 - 7 0 , 187-95. 60. P i e t e r s m a , 18. 61. See P i e t e r s m a , 6, 88 ( f a c s i m i l e o f last p a g e ) . 62. See P a u l J. A c h t e m e i e r , "Ornne verbum sonat: T h e N e w T e s t a m e n t a n d t h e O r a l E n v i r o n m e n t o f W e s t e r n A n t i q u i t y , ‫ ׳‬JBL 109 ( 1 9 9 0 ) : 1 0 - 1 1 . 63. P i e t e r s m a , 2. See t h e l i n g u i s t i c a n a l y s i s o f t h i s p h e n o m e n o n b y N a t h a l i e B e a u x , * P o u r u n e p a l e o g r a p h i e d u p a p y r u s C h e s t e r B e a t t y 2018," Etudes coptes 3, C a h i e r s d e la b i b l i o t h e q u e c o p t e 4 ( L o u v a i n : Peeters, 1988), 4 6 - 4 7 . 64. See H e r b e r t C . Y o u t i e ' s d i s c u s s i o n o f t h e " i l l i t e r a t e " l e c t o r i n P . O x y 2673 ( ' A G R A M M A T O S : A n A s p e c t o f G r e e k S o c i e t y i n E g y p t , ‫ ׳‬HSCP 75 [1971]:163); a l t h o u g h cf. E w a W i p s z y c k a ' s c o u n t e r h y p o t h e s i s ( " U n l e c t e u r q u i n e sait p a s e c r i r e o u u n C h r e t i e n q u i n e v e u t p a s s o u i l l e r ? [ P . O x y . ΧΧΧ1ΙΙ 2673),‫ ־‬Ζ Ρ Ε 5 0 [ 1 9 8 3 ] : 1 1 7 - 2 1 ) . O n

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

23

tery, shares the manuscript inventory Paris copte 135 with the Achmimic text. Also collated and edited by Steindorff, 6 5 this manuscript included another, Sahidic recension of the Apocalypse

of

Zephaniah;

however, it lacks the beginning, the end, and part of the middle of the Apocalypse of Elijah. A colophon to a biblical codex in the British M u s e u m (BM 7594), written in a Greek script but in Sahidic Coptic, was found in 1925 to represent the opening passages of the Apocalypse of Elijah, although the title was not included. 6 6 T h e script is dated to the mid-fourth century. There is no evidence that the scribe k n e w much more than this beginning of the text; therefore this manuscript may provide evidence that fragments of the Apocalypse of Elijah circulated independently in third- and fourth-century Egypt. This colophon text is designated Sa 2 . O f special significance is a fourth-century papyrus fragment with several lines of Greek (PSI 7, designated Grk), which matches on the verso the Achmimic text of o n e of the final scenes of the Apocalypse of Elijah. 6 7 T h e recto side, however, cannot be reconstructed to parallel any other part of the Achmimic text, which suggests that the Greek fragment contains another or earlier recension of the Apocalypse of Elijah than that of the Achmimic manuscript. Because the conclusion of the text is missing in all of the Sahidic manuscripts, it is impossible to say w h e t h e r this different recension matches any of the Sahidic versions. T h e evidence of the manuscripts s h o w s that a variety of recensions of the Apocalypse of Elijah already existed by the end of the fourth century (Grk, Ach, Sa 3 ) and that the Apocalypse of Elijah also circulated in fragments (Sa 2 , Sa 3 ). T h e binding together of the apocalypses of Elijah and Zephaniah in Ach and S a 1 codices further suggests an early historical association between the texts, a hypothesis corroborated by their tandem appearance in medieval canon lists.

public performance of Scripture, s e e William A. G r a h a m , Beyond the Written Word: Oral Aspects of Scripture in the History of Religion (Cambridge: C a m b r i d g e University Press, 1987), 129. T h e recognition of syllables was the first stage in t h e teaching o f literacy in Pachomian monasticism; see t h e P a c h o m i a n Praecepta 139b, in Armand Veilleux, ed. and tr., Pachomian Koinonia, 3 vols., Cistercian Studies Series 4 5 - 4 7 (Kalamazoo, Mich.: Cistercian Press, 1980-82), 2:166. 65. Steindorff, 1 1 5 - 4 5 . 66. E. A. Wallis Budge, Coptic Biblical Texts in the Dialect of Upper Egypt (London: British Museum, 1912; reprint. N e w York: A M S , 1977), lv-lvii, 2 7 0 - 7 1 ; a n d Schmidt, *Der Kolophon,* 3 1 2 - 2 1 . 67. PSI 7, in Papiri Greet e Latini 1 (Florence: Ariani, 1912), 1 6 - 1 7 ; and "Appendix: T h e Greek Apocalypse of Elijah,' in Pietersma, 9 1 - 9 4 .

24

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

WITNESSES Several r a b b i n i c a n d patristic sources refer to E l i j a h a p o c r y p h a that are n o l o n g e r e x t a n t . O n l y

f o u r sources, h o w e v e r , b e t r a y a d e f i n i t e

k n o w l e d g e o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h as g l e a n e d f r o m t h e C o p t i c t e x t s ; a n d several other texts seem to h a v e k n o w n either the extant

Apoc-

a l y p s e o f E l i j a h or its t r a d i t i o n s .

Didymus the Blind T h e earliest source r e f e r r i n g d i r e c t l y t o t h e e x t a n t A p o c a l y p s e E l i j a h is D i d y m u s Ecclesiastes

t h e B l i n d ( f o u r t h c e n t u r y ) . I n h i s Commentary

of on

(235,11. 2 6 - 2 8 ) c o n c e r n i n g Q o h 8 : 4 b - 5 a , D i d y m u s says:

It is t r u e t h a t n o b o d y s a y s o f t h e t r u t h o f G o d , * W h a t w i l l y o u d o ? ‫ ״‬as a l s o o f t h e s h a m e l e s s [άι>αιδη9] a n d i m p u d e n t k i n g . A n d t h i s s h a m e l e s s

one

p e r h a p s c a n t a k e t h e c o u n t e n a n c e o f t h e A n t i c h r i s t . F o r in this regard, in t h e P r o p h e c y o f E l i j a h , a c e r t a i n g i r l [κόρη],

having risen up and

accused

him, called h i m "Shameless.68‫״‬

This allusion clearly matches the description of the h e r o i n e a n d m a r t y r T a b i t h a , w h o p u r s u e s a n d h a r r i e s t h e S h a m e l e s s O n e i n A p o c E l 4 : 1 - 6 . It is i m p o r t a n t t o n o t e , h o w e v e r , t h a t D i d y m u s c a l l s h i s s o u r c e t h e " P r o p h ecy o f E l i j a h ‫ ״‬w h e r e a s e l s e w h e r e h e ascribes t o a n " A p o c a l y p s e

of

Elijah‫ ״‬a v i s i o n t h a t does n o t exist i n the e x t a n t text o f the same name.69

The Tiburtine Sibyls T h e G r e e k T i b u r t i n e S i b y l , w h i c h w a s e x p a n d e d i n 5 0 3 - 5 0 4 C.E. f r o m a n e a r l i e r S i b y l l i n e p r o p h e c y o f ca. 3 7 8 - 3 9 0 , c o n t a i n s a f i n a l d e s c r i p t i o n o f t h e e s c h a t o n w h o s e d e t a i l s ( a m o n g w h i c h is a n o t h e r ,

anonymous

reference to the eschatological T a b i t h a ) s h o w a clear d e p e n d e n c e o n the A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah.70 T h e a u t h o r assigned oracles, signs, a n d eschat o l o g i c a l e v e n t s f r o m t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h ( p a r t i c u l a r l y A p o c E l 2) i n s o m e w h a t rearranged order to a " n i n t h generation‫ ״‬o f the w o r l d .

68. D i d y m u s t h e B l i n d , Commentary on Ecclesiastes, tr. a n d e d . B a r b e l K r e b b e r a n d J o h a n n e s K r a m e r , Didymos der Blinde: Kommentar zum Ecclesiastes ( T u r a - P a p y r u s ) , v o l . 4: Kommentar zu Eccl. Kap. 7-8, 8, 16 ( B o n n : R u d o l f H a b e l t , 1972), 1 3 6 - 3 7 . O n D i d y m u s ' s k n o w l e d g e o f A p o c E l g e n e r a l l y , see i b i d . , 1 5 9 - 6 1 . 69. D i d y m u s , Comm. Eccles. 92.5. 70. P a u l J. A l e x a n d e r , The Oracle of Baalbek: The Tiburtine Sibyl in Greek Dress, D u m b a r t o n O a k s S t u d i e s 10 ( W a s h i n g t o n , D . C . : D u m b a r t o n O a k s , 1967), 1 9 - 2 2 (text), 2 8 - 2 9 ( t r a n s l a t i o n ) , 3 8 - 4 0 ( d i s c u s s i o n ) . O n t h e l a t e f o u r t h - c e n t u r y Vorlage, see i b i d . , 4 8 65, 1 3 6 - 3 7 .

25

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

T h e original, f o u r t h - c e n t u r y S i b y l l i n e p r o p h e c y , a c c o r d i n g to P a u l A l e x a n d e r , a l s o g a v e rise t o t h e b r i e f e r L a t i n T i b u r t i n e S i b y l , a t e x t t h a t s h o w s m a n y o f t h e s a m e p a r a l l e l s t o t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h as d o e s the G r e e k , a l o n g w i t h s o m e t h a t are d i f f e r e n t . 7 1 I n this L a t i n r e c e n s i o n the sequence o f the eschatological w o e s a n d signs f r o m the A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah has b e e n e n t i r e l y rearranged, b u t the C h r i s t i a n v o c a b u l a r y a n d e m p h a s i s h a v e b e e n r e t a i n e d m o r e c o n s i s t e n t l y t h a n i n t h e e x t a n t (508 C.E.) G r e e k T i b u r t i n e S i b y l . T h e L a t i n r e c e n s i o n also gives u n i q u e e m p h a s i s to t h e f i g u r e of t h e ‫״‬last R o m a n e m p e r o r , ‫ ״‬t h e e a r l i e s t a p p e a r a n c e o f w h a t w a s t o b e c o m e a s t a n d a r d topos o f B y z a n t i n e a p o c a l y p s e s . A l t h o u g h i t r e m a i n s u n c l e a r w h e t h e r this idea derives f r o m the text of the f o u r t h - c e n t u r y T i b u r t i n e Sibyl, the f u n c t i o n of this final beneficent ruler i n the eschatological timetable bears a s t r i k i n g s i m i l a r i t y to that o f t h e " k i n g f r o m the city . . . of the Sun‫ ״‬i n A p o c E l 2:46-53, s u c h t h a t o n e c o u l d i m a g i n e this latter f i g u r e as o n e o f t h e " l a s t e m p e r o r ' s ‫ ״‬i d e o l o g i c a l r o o t s . 7 2 T h e i n d e p e n d e n t p r o x i m i t y in w o r d a n d image of b o t h the Greek a n d the L a t i n T i b u r t i n e Sibyls to the A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h suggests t h a t t h e late f o u r t h - c e n t u r y

Vorlage

(which

Alexander

calls t h e

"Theodosian

S i b y l ‫ ) ״‬m u s t h a v e b e e n i n t e n d e d as a n e x p a n s i o n o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah.73

The "Apocalypse" of Shenoute A v i s i o n a r y n a r r a t i v e a n d e s c h a t o l o g i c a l d i s c o u r s e a d d e d t o Besa's Life of Shenoute

i n the A r a b i c v e r s i o n o f t h a t text also c o n t a i n s details

w h o s e m o s t p r o b a b l e source w a s t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah. T h i s passage h a s b e e n d a t e d t o 6 8 5 - 6 9 0 C.E.74 I t is i n t e r e s t i n g t o n o t e t h a t t h e t w o 71. L a t i n T i b u r t i n e S i b y l , i n Sibyllinische Texle und Forschungen, ed. Ernst Sackur ( H a l l e : M a x N i e m e y e r , 1898), 1 7 7 - 8 7 , esp. 1 8 5 - 8 6 ; t r a n s l a t e d i n B e r n a r d M c G i n n , Visions of the End, R e c o r d s o f C i v i l i z a t i o n , S o u r c e s a n d S t u d i e s 4 6 ( N e w Y o r k : C o l u m b i a U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1979), 4 9 - 5 0 . 72. See P a u l J. A l e x a n d e r , " T h e D i f f u s i o n o f B y z a n t i n e A p o c a l y p s e s i n t h e M e d i e v a l W e s t a n d t h e B e g i n n i n g s o f J o a c h i m i s m , " i n Prophecy and Millenarianism: Essays in Honour of Marjorie Reeves, e d . A n n W i l l i a m s (Essex: L o n g m a n , 1980), 5 8 - 5 9 , 9 3 - 9 4 n . 9. See also b e l o w , p . 202. 73. See A l e x a n d e r , Oracle of Baalbek, 60, 137. 74. E. A m e l i n e a u , Monuments pour servir a Vhistoire de I'Egypte chretienne aux IV* et V' 1 siicles (Memoires publies par les membres de la mission archeologique franqaise au Caire 4 [ P a r i s : E r n e s t L e r o u x , 1888]), 3 4 2 - 4 3 ( t e x t a n d t r a n s l a t i o n ) , l i i - l v i i i ( d i s c u s s i o n a n d d a t i n g ; a l t h o u g h c f . D a v i d N . B e l l , t r a n s . , The Life of Shenoute by Besa, C i s t e r c i a n S t u d i e s 73 [ K a l a m a z o o , M i c h . : C i s t e r c i a n Press, 1983], 4 - 5 ) . O n t h e d e p e n d e n c e u p o n A p o c E l , see R o s e n s t i e h l , 4 0 - 4 1 , (40 n . 54); B a u c k h a m , " E n o c h a n d E l i j a h i n t h e C o p t i c A p o c a l y p s e , " 73.

26

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

manuscripts of the Apocalypse of Elijah that Steindorff edited ( A c h a n d Sa 1 ) w e r e b o t h f o u n d i n t h e W h i t e M o n a s t e r y o f S h e n o u t e , w h e r e t h i s A r a b i c Life w a s d o u b t l e s s e d i t e d .

Canon Lists T h r e e m e d i e v a l lists o f b o o k s m e n t i o n a n E l i j a h a p o c r y p h o n i n i m m e d i a t e a s s o c i a t i o n w i t h a Z e p h a n i a h a p o c r y p h o n : t h e Synopsis

scrip-

turae sacrae o f P s e u d o - A t h a n a s i u s ( s i x t h c e n t u r y ? ) a n d t h e Stichometry Nicephorus

o f E l i j a h f o l l o w e d b y a b o o k o f Z e p h a n i a h ; t h e Catalogue ical

of

(patriarch of C o n s t a n t i n o p l e 806-815) b o t h m e n t i o n a b o o k

Books separates t h e t w o b y t h e Vision

of Sixty

of Isaiah.75

Canon-

Although

n u m b e r of stichoi listed for the Elijah a p o c r y p h o n in the

the

Stichometry

does n o t precisely m a t c h w h a t can be reconstructed for the A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , 7 6 t h e close a s s o c i a t i o n o f t h e E l i j a h a n d Z e p h a n i a h a p o c r y p h a m a t c h e s t h e m a n u s c r i p t f o r m i n w h i c h b o t h Sa 1 a n d A c h w e r e f o u n d .

Tabitha References T w o a d d i t i o n a l texts m e n t i o n i n g a n e s c h a t o l o g i c a l h e r o i n e T a b i t h a m a y be d e p e n d e n t o n t h e f u l l e r e x p o s i t i o n of her l e g e n d i n A p o c E l 4:1-6 or, a l t e r n a t e l y , m a y

provide independent

attestations of a

Tabitha

legend. 1. A C o p t i c E n o c h a p o c r y p h o n i n t h e P i e r p o n t M o r g a n L i b r a r y ( C o p tic T h e o l o g i c a l T e x t s 3, fols. 1 - 9 ) r e v e a l s t h a t " [ t w o ] w i l l be t a k e n u p t o [ h e a v e n ] i n t h e i r b o d i e s , o n e E l i j a h , a n d a n o t h e r T a b i t h a [. . .‫״‬

2. A f i n a l p r e d i c t i o n i n t h e A r a b i c r e c e n s i o n o f t h e History Carpenter

of Joseph the

m o r e e x p l i c i t l y reflects t h e m a r t y r d o m scenes o f

the

A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h : " W h o are t h o s e f o u r , t h o s e o f w h o m y o u h a v e s a i d t h a t t h e A n t i c h r i s t s h a l l s l a y t h e m because o f t h e i r r e p r o a c h i n g ? T h e S a v i o u r a n s w e r e d : ‫ ׳‬T h e y are E n o c h , E l i j a h , S c h i l a , a n d Tabitha78.(32)

‫״׳‬

75. Lists r e p r o d u c e d i n R o s e n s t i e h l , 1 3 - 1 6 . 76. S t e i n d o r f f , 1 4 - 1 5 . 77. W . E. C r u m , Theological Texts from Coptic Papyri, Anecdota Oxoniensia, Semitic Series 12 ( O x f o r d : O x f o r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1913), 3 - 1 1 ( = n o . 3); a n d B i r g e r A . P e a r s o n , " T h e P i e r p o n t M o r g a n F r a g m e n t s o f a C o p t i c E n o c h A p o c r y p h o n , " i n Studies on the Testament of Abraham, ed. G e o r g e W , E. N i c k e l s b u r g , S e p t u a g i n t a n d C o g n a t e S t u d i e s 6 ( M i s s o u l a , M o n t . : S c h o l a r s Press, 1976), 2 2 7 - 8 3 , esp. 243, 2 7 0 - 7 1 . See F r a n k f u r t e r , 'Tabitha," 23-25. 78. C o n s t a n t i n e

Tischendorff,

Evangelia

apocrypha

(Leipzig:

Avenarius

&

Mendel-

27

The Coptic Apocalypse o f Elijah

MANUSCRIPTS, RECENSIONS, FRAGMENTS: THE IDENTITY OF THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH A s w i t h a n y t e x t t h a t is e x t a n t i n a n u m b e r o f d i f f e r e n t v e r s i o n s o r recensions ( i n c l u d i n g those of the N e w Testament), the question rem a i n s , O n w h a t basis d o w e a s s u m e o r i n f e r ‫״‬the" text? M u l t i p l e theories of scribal procedure a n d error m a y account for m a n y of the differences a m o n g t e x t s as " v a r i a t i o n s ‫ ״‬f r o m a n " o r i g i n a l ‫ ״‬f o r m . Y e t s u c h t h e o r i e s can o n l y account f o r some variations; considerable differences

may

r e m a i n a m o n g m a n u s c r i p t s that are n e a r l y identical i n title a n d contents, requiring the responsible editor or translator

to p r i n t

the

divergent

passages i n p a r a l l e l c o l u m n s . O c c a s i o n a l l y i t is p o s s i b l e t o a c c o u n t f o r d i f f e r e n c e s i n w o r d i n g o r f o r d u p l i c a t e d p h r a s e s ; 7 9 m o r e o f t e n it i s d i f f i c u l t t o a r g u e f o r o n e o r i g i n a l f o r m or, w h e n passages are m i s s i n g f r o m a m a n u s c r i p t , t h a t o n e m a n u script has a d d e d t h e passages o r a n o t h e r has l e f t t h e m out.80 D o s u c h differences suggest a n ideological t e n d e n c y i n one or t h e other m a n u script or recension? A l b e r t Pietersma has s h o w n that the A c h m i m i c a n d Sahidic manuscripts really belong to t w o different recensions, whereas s s o h n , 1853), 133; see A . B a t t i s t a a n d B. B a g a t t i , Edizione critico del testo Arabo della historia Iosephi Fabri Lignarii, S t u d i u m B i b l i c u m F r a n c i s c a n u m , collectio m i n o r 20 ( J e r u s a l e m : F r a n c i s c a n Press, 1978), 176. T h e i d e n t i t y o f " S c h i l a " is u n c l e a r ; W . E. C r u m suggests i t is a c o r r u p t i o n o f * S i b y l " ( " S c h i l a u n d T a b i t h a , " Z N W 12 [ 1 9 1 1 j : 3 5 2 ) , b u t c f . G r k . T i b . S i b . 1. 140: " T h e r e w i l l a r i s e Skylla, w i f e o f t h e r u l i n g w i l d b e a s t , a n d s h e w i l l b r i n g f o r t h t w o w o m b s " ( A l e x a n d e r , Oracle of Baalbek, 17, 27). 79. E.g., t h e i m a g e o f p e o p l e d e s i r i n g d e a t h i n t h e t i m e s o f w o e ( A p o c E l 2:5, 32). I n b o t h A c h a n d Sa 3 t h e s e c o n d p a s s a g e i n c l u d e s a c h i a s t i c s e c o n d s t r o p h e , " a n d d e a t h w i l l flee f r o m t h e m " ( c f . R v 9:6; t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p t o t h e p h r a s e i n R e v e l a t i o n is n o t d i r e c t , h o w e v e r : see f u r t h e r , c h a p t e r 2, p . 37, b e l o w ) ; b u t o n l y i n A c h d o e s t h i s s e c o n d s t r o p h e a p p e a r also i n t h e f i r s t passage. O n e m a y a c c o u n t f o r t h e d i f f e r e n c e as t h e A c h m i m i c s c r i b e ' s a d d i t i o n t o t h e f i r s t passage, b a s e d o n t h a t s c r i b e ' s r e c o l l e c t i o n o f R v 9:6 a n d doubtless o n his m o r e i m m e d i a t e m e m o r y ( f r o m previous reading) of the phrase in the s e c o n d passage. 80. E.g., t h e p r o p h e t i c i n t r o d u c t i o n t o A c h h a s G o d a d d r e s s i n g t h e n a r r a t o r , " S o n o f M a n , say t o t h i s p e o p l e , * w h e r e a s t h a t o f Sa 2 a n d Sa 3 r e a d s s i m p l y , " S a y t o t h i s p e o p l e " (1:1). A l t h o u g h t h e a p p e l l a t i o n " S o n o f M a n " is a p p r o p r i a t e t o a d i v i n e f i g u r e ' s a d d r e s s to a p r o p h e t — t h e scenario p r e s u p p o s e d i n the i n t r o d u c t i o n — o n e can o n l y guess w h e t h e r it b e l o n g e d to t h e G r e e k original o f A p o c E l or seemed an *appropriate a d d i t i o n ' t o t h e A c h m i m i c s c r i b e . L i k e w i s e , i n t h e e s c h a t o l o g i c a l d i s c o u r s e i n A p o c E l 2, t h e " P e r s i a n s * a r e d e s c r i b e d as r a n s a c k i n g E g y p t ; b u t w h e r e a s Sa 3 d e s c r i b e s t h e i r t a k i n g * t h e w e a l t h i n t h a t p l a c e , " A c h g i v e s m o r e d e t a i l i n i n d i c a t i n g " t h e w e a l t h of the temple i n t h a t p l a c e " (2:43). D o e s A c h a d d o r Sa 3 l e a v e o u t ? S u c h m e t h o d o l o g i c a l q u e s t i o n s a r e s o m e w h a t a v o i d e d i n the extensive r e v i e w of m a n u s c r i p t pluses a n d minuses i n P i e t e r s m a , 1 6 - 1 8 . See J e a n - M a r c R o s e n s t i e h l ' s a s t u t e c o m m e n t s i n " L ' A p o c a l y p s e d ' E l i e , * he musion 95 ( 1 9 8 2 ) : 2 7 5 - 7 6 .

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

28

R o s e n s t i e h l h a s s u g g e s t e d t w o f a m i l i e s o f o n e r e c e n s i o n . 8 1 H o w does t h i s h e l p o n e to u n d e r s t a n d t h e o r i g i n a n d d e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h ? W h a t c a n b e s a i d a b o u t t h e e x t e n t o f these r e c e n s i o n s i n l i g h t o f t h e G r e e k f r a g m e n t , w h o s e r e c t o side d o e s n o t c o r r e s p o n d to a n y t h i n g i n t h e e x t a n t A c h m i m i c text? Rosenstiehl

has a d v a n c e d

the striking hypothesis

that

the

two

families or recensions derive f r o m a divergence already present i n the G r e e k m a n u s c r i p t t r a d i t i o n . 8 2 T h i s h y p o t h e s i s assumes t h a t t h e w o r d i n g a n d contents of the Apocalypse of Elijah could have been fluid fairly s o o n a f t e r t h e text's i n i t i a l c o m p o s i t i o n . O n l y a s c r i b a l c o n t e x t o f d y namic creativity, h i g h l y influenced by situations of oral reading and interpretation,

would

account

for

such

early

divergence

in

the

manuscripts. B u t t h e p r o b l e m is f u r t h e r m a n i f e s t i n t h e c i r c u l a t i o n o f f r a g m e n t s . I t has b e e n m e n t i o n e d t h a t l i n e f i l l e r s f o l l o w i n g t h e a b r u p t e n d o f Sa 3 i n d i c a t e t h a t t h e scribe h a d n e i t h e r a n e n d i n g s u c h as w e f i n d i n A c h n o r e v e n a t i t l e b e f o r e h i m . S i m i l a r l y , i n Sa 2 t h e o p e n i n g passages o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , w i t h o u t m u c h m o r e t h a n 1:1-16, a p p e a r to h a v e been a d d e d i n script to a biblical codex. T h u s by the m i d - f o u r t h century, pieces o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h c i r c u l a t e d i n d e p e n d e n t l y . T h i s c a n also b e seen i n e x t e r n a l p a r a l l e l s to t h e text. T h e close p a r a l l e l b e t w e e n t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n s o f A p o c E l 1:1-4 a n d Apocalypse

of

Paul 3 - 4 , d i s p l a y e d i n t h e A p p e n d i x , i m p l i e s s o m e l i t e r a r y r e l a t i o n s h i p ; a n d traditionally scholars h a v e v i e w e d the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah a n d the Apocalypse

of Zephaniah

as sources f o r t h e Apocalypse

v i s i o n a r y m a t e r i a l s t h a t f o l l o w i n t h e Apocalypse

of Paul,

of Paul.83

The

however, may

themselves derive f r o m a n earlier p e r i o d t h a n those of the subsequent chapters of the Apocalypse of Elijah, w h i c h betray a t h i r d - c e n t u r y o r i g i n . M o r e o v e r , Apocalypse

of Paul

3 - 4 lacks the collection of Johan-

81. Pietersma, 12-13, 18; Rosenstiehl, * L ' A p o c a l y p s e d ' E l i e , ' 270-72. 82. Rosenstiehl, ‫ ־‬L ' A p o c a l y p s e d ' E l i e , " 273-74. H i s m o s t c o n v i n c i n g e v i d e n c e is t h e a l t e r n a t i v e w o r d i n g ΝΝΜΠΟΛ6ΜΟΟ in S a 3 a n d ΝΜΠΟΛΙΟ in A c h , f o r 2 : 3 6 . R a t h e r t h a n r e g a r d i n g this t o b e a C o p t i c s c r i b e ' s c o n f l a t i o n o f ΠΟΑΕΜΟΟ to ΠΟΛΟΟ, w h e n c e n o , \ 1 c (see ibid., 2 7 3 n. 21), R o s e n s t i e h l finds t h e e x p l a n a t i o n at t h e G r e e k level: τώί‫ ׳‬πολέμων c o u l d easily b e w r i t t e n a s των •πό\(ων (ibid., 273). T h e h y p o t h e s i s w o u l d tentatively explain w h y t h e r e c t o o f t h e G r e e k d o e s not m a t c h a n y t h i n g in t h e e x t a n t C o p t i c text, b e c a u s e t h e o n l y m s . c o n t a i n i n g this final s e c t i o n o f A p o c E l is A c h . By R o s e n s t i e h l ' s h y p o t h e s i s , t h e lost parallel s e c t i o n in S a h i d i c m i g h t g i v e a translation o f the G r e e k ' s recto. 8 3 . M . R. J a m e s , The Apocryphal New Testament ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1 9 2 4 ) , 5 2 7 η . 1; R. P. C a s e y , ‫ ־‬T h e A p o c a l y p s e o f P a u l , ' JTS 34 (1933):7-8; T h e o d o r e S i l v e r s t e i n , Visio Sancti Pauli, S t u d i e s a n d D o c u m e n t s 4 ( L o n d o n : C h r i s t o p h e r s , 1935), 3, 92 n. 3.

29

The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah

n i n e p h r a s e s e m p l o y e d i n A p o c E l 1:1-7, s u g g e s t i n g t h a t t h e f o r m i n w h i c h t h i s i n t r o d u c t i o n o c c u r s i n t h e Apocalypse t i v e . A n d t h e use i n t h e Apocalypse

of Paul

of Paul is m o r e p r i m i -

of o n l y this i n t r o d u c t o r y

passage, w i t h o u t a n y t h i n g else o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , r e q u i r e s s o m e e x p l a n a t i o n , f o r c e r t a i n l y t h e Apocalypse

of Paul h a s a n i n t e r e s t i n

e s c h a t o l o g i c a l j u d g m e n t . 8 4 T h e m o s t l i k e l y h i s t o r i c a l r e a s o n f o r t h e coi n c i d e n t a l o p e n i n g passages is e i t h e r t h a t t h e Apocalypse

of Paul or t h e

A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h u s e d a n u n a t t r i b u t e d f r a g m e n t o f t h e o t h e r , or t h a t e a c h e m p l o y e d a n u n a t t r i b u t e d f r a g m e n t f r o m s o m e o t h e r text. Y e t t h e f r a g m e n t t h e o r y b r i n g s o n e n o closer t o a h i s t o r i c a l l i n e a g e t h a n these t w o alternatives. H o w m i g h t s u c h f r a g m e n t s h a v e e n t e r e d c i r c u l a t i o n ? T h e state o f o u r m a j o r texts o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h p r o v i d e s a n a n s w e r : s i z a b l e leaves o f c o d e x , s u c h as are m i s s i n g f r o m A c h a n d Sa 1 , s i m p l y d r o p p e d o u t i n c i r c u l a t i o n . T h e m a t e r i a l o n these loose leaves, a l b e i t u n a t t r i b u t e d in authority, m a y w e l l have p r o v i d e d valuable visions of the eschaton, u n i q u e d e s c r i p t i o n s o f t h e A n t i c h r i s t , u n d e r w o r l d scenes, o r b i b l i c a l l o r e to a scribe e n g a g e d i n t h e c o m p o s i t i o n o f a n e w text. T h i s ‫״‬free‫ ״‬a n d a d h o c use o f u n a t t r i b u t e d m a t e r i a l r e s e m b l e s t h e t r a n s m i s s i o n a n d reuse o f e a r l y J e w i s h r a b b i n i c a n d m y s t i c a l texts, as Peter S c h a f e r has s h o w n : Most of the manuscripts

hand them down

structured *raw material," w i t h o u t phantasy

titles i n t e r c h a n g e a b l e

in the f o r m of only

loosely

a title ( a n d if w i t h a title, t h e n

almost

at w i l l ) ,

with

no

with

recognizeable

b e g i n n i n g a n d n o recognizeable e n d (and if w i t h a b e g i n n i n g or an

end,

then not very u n i f o r m in the various manuscripts).85

T h e a n a l y s i s o f a n c i e n t l i t e r a t u r e , S c h a f e r argues, "is n o t a m a t t e r o f static texts, b u t r a t h e r o f t h e d o c u m e n t a t i o n a n d d e s c r i p t i o n o f a d y n a m i c m a n u s c r i p t t r a d i t i o n . 8 6 ‫ ״‬I n t h e case o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h t h i s s t a t e m e n t is a m p l y d e m o n s t r a t e d b y t h e t e x t ' s f r e e use i n

the

Tiburtine Sibylline tradition: the prophecies themselves were authoritative b u t their sequence a n d literary context w e r e e v i d e n t l y not. The f r a g m e n t a r y a n d divergent transmission of the manuscripts of t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h f o l l o w i n g its i n i t i a l c o m p i l a t i o n m a y i n d e e d p r o v i d e a fair illustration of the literary m i l i e u i n w h i c h a n Elijah text 84. E.g., Apoc.

Paul

18, 21; c f . C o l l i n s , ‫ ״‬E a r l y C h r i s t i a n A p o c a l y p s e s , " 86.

85. P e t e r S c h a f e r , " R e s e a r c h i n t o R a b b i n i c L i t e r a t u r e : A n A t t e m p t t o D e f i n e t h e Status Quaestionis," JJS 3 7 (1986): 149. C f . a l s o i d e m , " T r a d i t i o n a n d R e d a c t i o n i n H e k h a l o t L i t e r a t u r e , " JSJ 14 ( 1 9 8 3 ) : 1 8 0 - 8 1 . 86. S c h a f e r , " R e s e a r c h i n t o R a b b i n i c L i t e r a t u r e , " 151.

30

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

was first composed in R o m a n Egypt. That is, the manuscript record expresses a world in which fragmentary sources and a liberal (and perhaps less direct) use of prior texts and traditions were normative to literary culture. Such a cultural scenario is corroborated by the historical evidence for general illiteracy, semiliteracy, and the eclecticism evident among those w h o were actually able to compose texts.

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical Context

As an Old Testament pseudepigraphon appealing to the authority of the biblical prophet Elijah, presuming to reveal the layout of the times of woe and the eschaton, employing biblical phraseology and motifs, and drawing upon the world of Jewish and Christian lore, the Apocalypse of Elijah demonstrates a complex relationship to Scripture. Its author was evidently acquainted as much with oral traditions and phrases as with actual texts. Its attribution in the memory of Didymus the Blind and in the library of the White Monastery was to Elijah, and yet Elijah is not mentioned as the narrator. Finally, there is evidence for a number of Elijah apocrypha in circulation in late antiquity; does this text reflect an original or a later version of the others? Was it composed in conscious relationship with the others? Approaching the Apocalypse of Elijah with these issues in mind, we can gain a sense of how literary composition in early Christian Egypt reflected indigenous notions of Scripture and scriptural authority.

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH'S USE OF SOURCES Although the papyrological evidence shows a diversity of biblical and Christian texts circulating in Egypt by the third century, the particular selection of these texts—and later, their particular collection in codices— allows no basis for assuming what Scripture a third-century Christian might have known. 1 Not only were texts inconsistently available to 1. S e e H. Idris Bell, "Evidences of Christianity in Egypt during the R o m a n Period,"

31

32

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

different Christian congregations, but the congregations developed their own

orientations

and

preferences

from

among

the

available

texts.

S o z o m e n gives a v a l u a b l e assessment of this c h r o n i c d i v e r s i t y i n the p u b l i c c a n o n as i t c o n t i n u e d e v e n i n t h e f i f t h c e n t u r y , w h e n t h e N e w Testament h a d become established: The same prayers a n d psalms are not recited nor the same lections read o n the same occasions in all churches. T h u s the b o o k

entitled "The

alypse of Peter," w h i c h

spurious by

was considered

altogether

c i e n t s , is s t i l l r e a d i n s o m e o f t h e c h u r c h e s o f

Palestine, o n

Apocthe

an-

the day

of

preparation, w h e n the p e o p l e observe a fast in m e m o r y of the passion of the Savior. So the w o r k though

unrecognized

monks.

. . . Many

entitled ‫״‬The Apocalypse of the Apostle

by

other

t h e a n c i e n t s , is s t i l l e s t e e m e d

by

c u s t o m s are still to be o b s e r v e d

i n cities

villages; a n d those w h o h a v e been b r o u g h t u p in their observance from

respect

to

the

great

men

who

instituted

and

Paul,"

most of

the and

would,

perpetuated

these

c u s t o m s , c o n s i d e r it w r o n g t o a b o l i s h t h e m . 2

Here w e h a v e a v i v i d illustration of the w a y local traditions determ i n e d t h e variety o f texts to w h i c h congregants w e r e a c c u s t o m e d a n d t h a t t h e y v e n e r a t e d as i n s p i r e d : S c r i p t u r e w a s , i n e f f e c t , a r e g i o n a l p h e n o m e n o n . W h e n w e e x a m i n e a text f r o m t h e era b e f o r e t h e

New

Testament's c o m p l e t i o n , then, w e s h o u l d expect this regional diversity to e x t e n d e v e n to texts that b e c a m e canonized. It w o u l d be

method-

ologically u n s o u n d to m a r s h a l a stream of parallels f r o m Jewish a n d C h r i s t i a n texts o n t h e a s s u m p t i o n t h a t a scribe or a C h r i s t i a n c o m m u n i t y w a s f a m i l i a r w i t h t h e e n t i r e B i b l e a n d N e w T e s t a m e n t (as w e

know

these collections) or e v e n a s u b s t a n t i a l p o r t i o n of t h e m . Eusebius offers a different glimpse of h o w Scripture circulated in this period, citing a n Egyptian m a r t y r , d e p o r t e d to Palestine, w h o h a d apparently m e m o r i z e d " w h o l e b o o k s of scripture.‫ ״‬Eusebius describes h o w h e c o u l d , at w i l l , recite like

some

treasury

Prophets, n o w

of

discourses,

now

a

text

from

the

Law

f r o m the Writings, and other times a gospel or

and

the

apostolic

text . . . : s t a n d i n g before a large assembly in a c h u r c h he recited

certain

parts of holy scripture. W h i l e I could o n l y hear his voice I t h o u g h t

that

HTR 3 7 (1944): 1 9 9 - 2 0 3 , esp. 202 n. 57; a n d C o l i n H . R o b e r t s , Manuscript, Society, and Belief in Early Christian Egypt ( L o n d o n : B r i t i s h A c a d e m y , 1979), c h a p . 1. T h e e v i d e n c e s h o w s far m o r e biblical t h a n C h r i s t i a n scriptures w e r e used by C h r i s t i a n s i n E g y p t and, a m o n g those C h r i s t i a n scriptures used, a fairly even d i s t r i b u t i o n o f N e w Testament a n d n o n c a n o n i c a l texts. 2. S o z o m e n , Historia

ecclesiastica

7 . 1 9 (tr. C h e s t e r D . H a r t r a n f t , i n NPNF

2:390).

T h e Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical C o n t e x t

s o m e o n e w a s r e a d i n g a l o u d [άναγινώσκαν], ings, but w h e n

33

a s is t h e c u s t o m in t h e m e e t -

I c a m e c l o s e r I s a w at o n c e w h a t w a s g o i n g o n : all

the

o t h e r s s t o o d w i t h c l e a r e y e s in a circle a r o u n d h i m ; a n d h e , u s i n g o n l y his mind's

eye, spoke

plainly,

without

flourish,

like s o m e

prophet,

over-

c o m i n g m a n y of t h e m in their strong bodies.3

Obviously such scenarios were typical of Christian use of Scripture in Egypt: sparse literacy, memorized texts, vibrant performances of oral ‫ ״‬s c r i p t u r e " — i n d e e d , w h e r e w e r e t h e texts t h e m s e l v e s ? It is q u i t e p r o b able t h a t m o s t w h o p a r t i c i p a t e d i n C h r i s t i a n c e r e m o n y i n R o m a n E g y p t w e r e f a m i l i a r w i t h b i b l i c a l a n d o t h e r sacred m a t e r i a l s only t h r o u g h t h e i r p u b l i c r e a d i n g o r r e c i t a t i o n . 4 T h i s o r a l d i s s e m i n a t i o n o f "texts‫ ״‬a n d ideas w o u l d have i n f o r m e d the repertoire a n d c o m p o s i t i o n a l abilities

of

C h r i s t i a n scribes at least as m u c h as d i d a c t u a l texts. I n t h e w o r d s o f Gustav Bardy, T h e first translations [of t h e N e w T e s t a m e n t i n t o C o p t i c ] o w e their o r i g i n in Egypt

to oral explications, g i v e n o n behalf o f those w h o

f o l l o w the passages read in c h u r c h in the sacred tongue; a n d

could

not

naturally

matters were not preserved in the same w a y everywhere.5

It w o u l d t h e r e f o r e be i n c o r r e c t to a s s u m e t h a t a p a r t i c u l a r idea o r i m a g e expressed i n a n E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n w r i t i n g s h o u l d o w e its o r i g i n to t h e a u t h o r ' s use o f a w r i t t e n text. I n s t e a d , ideas a n d i m a g e s d e r i v e f r o m the author's synthesis of traditions w i t h i n an oral milieu, w h e r e the texts t h e m s e l v e s i n v a r i a b l y h a d a n o r a l o r p u b l i c n a t u r e . N o t w i t h s t a n d i n g t h i s u n c e r t a i n t y as t o t h e c i r c u l a t i o n a n d i n f l u e n c e o f texts, it is q u i t e a p p a r e n t t h a t s o m e h o w ( p r e s u m a b l y t h r o u g h o r a l t r a d i t i o n s , s u c h as p r e a c h i n g ) a " b i b l i c a l c u l t u r e " arose i n E g y p t , c o n sisting o f t h e v e n e r a t i o n o f b i b l i c a l heroes, t h e use o f b i b l i c a l f o r m u l a s a n d phrases i n n e w c o m p o s i t i o n s , a n d t h e m a g i c a l use o f s c r i p t u r a l phrases a n d f r a g m e n t s . T h i s b i b l i c a l c u l t u r e w o u l d a c c o u n t n o t o n l y f o r t h e c h o i c e o f E l i j a h as p s e u d o n y m o u s a u t h o r i t y ( i n A p o c E l as w e l l as o t h e r O l d T e s t a m e n t p s e u d e p i g r a p h a c o m p o s e d i n E g y p t ) b u t also f o r

3. E u s e b i u s , Martyrs of Palestine [ G r k . ] 13.7, 8 ecclesiastique, Livres VIll-X et les martyrs en Palestine, [Paris: E d i t i o n s d u C e r f , 1958], 1 6 9 - 7 2 ) "

i n Eustbe de Cisaree: Histoire ed. a n d tr. G u s t a v B a r d y , S C 55

4. C f . R o b e r t s , Manuscript, Society, and Belief, 20; W i l l i a m V . H a r r i s , Ancient ( C a m b r i d g e : H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1989), 305; a n d see f u r t h e r d i s c u s s i o n c h a p t e r 10.

Literacy below,

5. G u s t a v B a r d y , * L e s p r e m i e r s t e m p s d u c h r i s t i a n i s m e d e l a n g u e c o p t e e n E g y p t e , " i n Memorial LaCrange (Paris: J. G a b a l d a , 1940), 209.

34

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

t h e t y p e o f l a n g u a g e t h e a u t h o r uses f o r t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h . 6 M u c h o f t h e t e x t is c o m p o s e d i n b i b l i c a l p h r a s e o l o g y , e m p l o y i n g

parallel-

i s m s — " s h e w i l l p u r s u e h i m u p to Judea, s c o l d i n g h i m u p to Jerusalem‫״‬ ( A p o c E l 4:2; c f . 2 : 3 7 - 3 8 ) — a n d p h r a s e o l o g y d r a w n p a r t i c u l a r l y f r o m t h e Prophets—"sixty

righteous

o n e s w h o are p r e p a r e d f o r this h o u r

will

h e a r ; a n d t h e y w i l l g i r d o n t h e b r e a s t p l a t e o f G o d " ( 4 : 3 0 f )7 T h e f o r m u laic i n t r o d u c t i o n t o t h e t e x t is u n i q u e i n t h i s r e g a r d , e x p l i c i t l y r e c a l l i n g a prophetic commission f o r m u l a f r o m Ezekiel a n d Jeremiah, w h i c h m u s t h a v e e n t e r e d t h e r e p e r t o i r e o f E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n s c r i b e s as a t y p i c a l p r o p h e t i c o p e n i n g . 8 P r o p h e t i c i m a g e r y also c o n t r i b u t e s

to the

com-

position of the final chapter of the Apocalypse of Elijah: the j u d g m e n t of "the shepherds of the people"9 a n d of the heavens a n d the earth, the witness of the m o u n t a i n s a n d b y w a y s , a n d the separation of the right e o u s . B u t t h i s s t y l e is c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f p s e u d e p i g r a p h a a n d o f m i l i e u s a c q u a i n t e d e v e n t o a m o d e s t d e g r e e w i t h b i b l i c a l t e x t s ; it d o e s n o t a t a l l i m p l y t h e a u t h o r ' s close l i t e r a r y a t t e n t i o n t o p a r t i c u l a r texts. T h e m o s t o b v i o u s use o f extant C h r i s t i a n Scripture w o u l d appear to b e A p o c E l 1:2, w h i c h e c h o e s 1 Jn 2:15; y e t o n l y t h e f i r s t p a r t o f t h e v e r s e is a q u o t a t i o n . T h e rest o f t h e v e r s e — " f o r t h e p r i d e o f t h e w o r l d a n d i t s d e s t r u c t i o n are t h e d e v i l ' s " — s e e m s r a t h e r t o be a r o u g h r e c o l l e c t i o n o f 1 Jn 2 : 1 6 1 7 , 1 0

‫־‬

suggesting t h e text's historical distance f r o m a text o f 1

6. See B. R. Rees, " P o p u l a r R e l i g i o n i n G r a e c o - R o m a n E g y p t , 2: T h e T r a n s i t i o n t o C h r i s t i a n i t y , " JEA 36 ( 1 9 5 0 ) : 9 6 - 9 7 . O n t h e r e v e r e n c e f o r a n d p o p u l a r i t y o f b i b l i c a l t e x t s , see also R o b e r t s , Manuscript, Society, and Belief, 1 2 - 2 1 . R o b e r t s sees a h i s t o r i c a l continuity between Jewish a n d early Christian scribalism in Egypt, w h i c h w o u l d a c c o u n t f o r t h e i n t r a - C h r i s t i a n d e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e nomina sacra, b y w h i c h t h e s c r i b e o f a b i b l i c a l m a n u s c r i p t c a n b e i d e n t i f i e d as J e w i s h o r C h r i s t i a n ( i b i d . , 4 4 - 4 7 ) . 7. C f . Is 59:17; W i s 5:18; E p h 6 : 1 0 - 1 7 . 8. " T h e w o r d o f t h e L o r d c a m e t o m e s a y i n g , ' S a y t o t h i s p e o p l e , " W h y d o y o u a d d s i n t o y o u r s i n s a n d a n g e r t h e L o r d G o d w h o c r e a t e d y o u ? " " ( A p o c E l 1:1). T h i s p e r i c o p e , p e r h a p s d r a w n f r o m a n i n d e p e n d e n t f r a g m e n t i n c i r c u l a t i o n ( c f . Apoc. Paul 3, in A p p e n d i x a n d above, pp. 28-29), receives m o r e extensive discussion b e l o w , c h a p t e r 4, p. 82. 9. " H e w i l l j u d g e t h e s h e p h e r d s o f t h e p e o p l e ; h e w i l l a s k a b o u t t h e f l o c k o f s h e e p " ( A p o c E l 5:31). A l t h o u g h t h e s c r i p t u r a l s o u r c e o f t h i s m e t a p h o r is E z e k i e l 34 ( c f . Z e e 13:7), it a c h i e v e d w i d e r c u r r e n c y i n G r e c o - R o m a n J u d a i s m w i t h t h e a s s o c i a t i o n m a d e i n 2 Enoch ( " D r e a m V i s i o n s " ) 8 9 - 9 0 w i t h t h e " a n g e l s o f t h e n a t i o n s " ( c f . D n 10:13; see d i s c u s s i o n s i n R. H . C h a r l e s , Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, 2 vols. ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1913), 2:255 n. 59; a n d M a r t i n H e n g e l , Judaism and Hellenism, 2 v o l s . , tr. J o h n B o w d e n [ T u b i n g e n : M o h r , 1973; 2 d e d . , P h i l a d e l p h i a : Fortress, 1974], 1:187). I n I En 90:25, t h e s e v e n t y a n g e l i c " s h e p h e r d s , " h a v i n g d e s t r o y e d t h e i r " s h e e p , " a r e " j u d g e d a n d f o u n d g u i l t y , a n d t h e y w e r e cast i n t o t h a t f i e r y a b y s s " (tr. R. H . C h a r l e s , The Book of Enoch or 1 Enoch [ O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1912], 213). I n t h e Shepherd of Hermas t h e m e t a p h o r is r e v e r s e d : w a y w a r d s h e e p a r e f l o g g e d b y a " s h e p h e r d o f p u n i s h m e n t " (Herm. Sim. 6 . 2 - 3 ) . 10. See b e l o w , p . 83.

35

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical Context

J o h n . T h i s i n f e r e n c e g a t h e r s c o n s i d e r a b l e w e i g h t w i t h t h e fact t h a t , w h e r e a s 1 J o h n i n t r o d u c e s ( a n d e v e n p r o m o t e s ) t h e title " A n t i c h r i s t " i n a millennialist context similar to that of the Apocalypse of Elijah,11 the A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h n e v e r uses t h i s t i t l e at all, p r e f e r r i n g " L a w l e s s O n e " o r " S h a m e l e s s O n e " to d e s i g n a t e a c l e a r l y d e f i n e d eschatological a d v e r sary. I t w o u l d a p p e a r t h a t i n t h e a u t h o r ' s m i n d , at least, l o c a l titles f o r eschatological adversaries h a d g a i n e d precedence over the a u t h o r i t y of this particular scripture. L i k e w i s e , t h e v i v i d l y d u a l i s t i c c o s m o l o g y , i n t o w h i c h t h e S o n is sent " t o save us f r o m t h e c a p t i v i t y " (1:5), m a y h a v e b e e n i n s p i r e d b y s u c h l a n g u a g e i n t h e G o s p e l o f J o h n (e.g., 3 : 1 7 ) — a text o f early a n d p r o m i n e n t c i r c u l a t i o n i n E g y p t — o r o t h e r J o h a n n i n e l i t e r a t u r e (cf. 1 Jn 2:15-17) b u t was p r o b a b l y n o t based o n t h e m . T h e a n g e l o l o g i c a l a c c o u n t o f C h r i s t ' s d e s c e n t i n A p o c E l 1:5-7 echoes n o t o n l y P h i l 2:6-8 a n d H e b r e w s (e.g., 1:4-6; 2:7-9), b u t , m o r e v i v i d l y , t h e Ascension

of Isaiah

a n d Epistula

Apostolorutn

13. T h i s v a r i e t y o f p a r a l l e l s

reflects t h e r i c h store o f a p o c a l y p t i c a n g e l o l o g i c a l t r a d i t i o n s c u r r e n t i n late a n t i q u i t y a n d a v a i l a b l e t o a n E g y p t i a n a u t h o r t h r o u g h b o t h esoteric a n d exoteric channels. It w o u l d be e q u a l l y d i f f i c u l t to p o s i t a d i r e c t source f o r t h e b r i e f h e a v e n l y ascent n a r r a t i v e i n A p o c E l 1:8-10, w h e r e the r i g h t e o u s are d e s c r i b e d as p a s s i n g h o s t i l e " T h r o n e s " o n t h e i r w a y u p to t h e h e a v e n l y c i t y , s i m p l y b y v i r t u e o f b e a r i n g t h e c o r r e c t d i v i n e "seal." T h o s e w h o h a v e s i n n e d a n d t h e r e f o r e l a c k t h e seal, t h e t e x t proceeds t o say (1:1112), c a n n o t pass b y t h e " T h r o n e s o f d e a t h . " A t r a d i t i o n a l v o c a b u l a r y seems to b e assumed

h e r e ; f o r a l t h o u g h T h r o n e s are listed as a n a n g e l i c

r a n k i n C o l 1:16 a n d T. Levi 3:8, t h e r e s e e m t o be n o o t h e r r e f e r e n c e s t o T h r o n e s as t h e specific r a n k t h a t p r o h i b i t e d access to h e a v e n .

The

s t r u c t u r e o f ascent i t s e l f — d i s p l a y i n g o n e ' s seal to w h a t s e e m t o b e a n g e l i c g a t e k e e p e r s — f i n d s g e n e r a l a t t e s t a t i o n i n gnostic a n d J e w i s h Hekhalot

l i t e r a t u r e o f t h e R o m a n p e r i o d . O r i g e n , f o r e x a m p l e , discusses

w h a t t h e O p h i t e s "are t a u g h t t o say at t h e e t e r n a l l y c h a i n e d gates o f t h e A r c h o n s a f t e r p a s s i n g t h r o u g h w h a t t h e y c a l l ' t h e Barrier o f w h e r e a s t h e Ascension

of Isaiah

Evil,‫״׳‬

describes the angels of the three l o w e s t

11. See Gregory C. Jenks's analysis of αντίχριστος in 1 John in connection with the development of Adversary traditions ( T h e Origins and Early Development of the Antichrist Myth, BZNW 59 [Berlin: de Gruyter, 1991], 3 3 9 - 4 7 . Jenks notes that although the title "Antichrist" gained ascendancy in patristic literature of the third century, the Johannine epistles themselves were rarely employed (347).

36

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

h e a v e n s r e q u i r i n g a " p a s s w o r d ‫ ״‬o f C h n s t d u r i n g h i s descent—"so

that he

m i g h t n o t be r e c o g n i z e d 1 2 . ( 1 0 : 2 3 - 2 8 )

Irenaeus k n o w s of

rituals

‫״‬

i n w h i c h n e o p h y t e s are t r a i n e d t o r e s p o n d i n r o t e f o r m u l a s t o t h e

d i f f e r e n t h e a v e n l y r a n k s , so t h a t t h e y " m a y b e c o m e i n c a p a b l e o f b e i n g seized b y t h e p r i n c i p a l i t i e s a n d p o w e r s . . . . A n d t h e y a f f i r m t h a t b y s a y i n g these t h i n g s , [ t h e u t t e r e r ] escapes f r o m t h e p o w e r s . 1 3 ‫ ״‬H a n d b o o k s o f t h i s sort h a v e a c t u a l l y c o m e d o w n t o u s i n t h e t w o Books of Jeu. Seals as t h e m e a n s o f e n t r a n c e or passage are s p e c i f i e d i n

Hekhalot,

g n o s t i c , a n d ritual ( " m a g i c a l ‫ ) ״‬texts, t h e l a t t e r t w o t y p e s o f t e n p r o v i d i n g i c o n o g r a p h i c d i a g r a m s o f t h e v a r i o u s seals r e q u i r e d f o r c o m p l e t e ascent. 1 4 T h i s i c o n o g r a p h i c d e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e t r a d i t i o n o f

heavenly

passage, w h i c h e s s e n t i a l l y t r a n s f o r m e d t h e d e s c r i p t i v e t e x t i n t o a n a p o t r o p a i c p a s s p o r t , d e m o n s t r a t e s t h e l e g a c y o f t h e E g y p t i a n Book of the Dead, p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t h o s e texts w i t h a n E g y p t i a n p r o v e n a n c e ( s u c h as t h e Books of Jeu).15 B u t t h e ascent n a r r a t i v e i n t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h p r e s e n t s a n a n o m a l y . By i t s e l f , t h e ascent t o t h e h e a v e n l y c i t y d e r i v e s f r o m J e w i s h a p o c a l y p t i c t r a d i t i o n , p a r t i c u l a r l y t h e b o o k s o f Enoch,

the

which

c a p t u r e d t h e i n t e r e s t o f E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n s f r o m a n e a r l y date. 1 6 S i m i l a r l y , t h e t e c h n i c a l d e s i g n a t i o n o f a n a n g e l i c r a n k as T h r o n e s s h o u l d be a s c r i b e d to c u r r e n t a p o c a l y p t i c l o r e , e x p a n d i n g as s u c h C h r i s t i a n texts as C o l o s s i a n s b e g a n t o c i r c u l a t e . I t m a y b e a p p r o p r i a t e , h o w e v e r , to v i e w the Thrones' "hostility‫ ״‬a n d the i m p l i c a t i o n that they w o u l d destroy s i n n e r s w h o t r y t o pass i n t h e c o n t e x t o f E g y p t i a n m o r t u a r y m y t h o l o g y , whose imagery was widely k n o w n (and even on v i e w in

temples)

t h r o u g h o u t t h e R o m a n p e r i o d . I t is t h e E g y p t i a n t r a d i t i o n t h a t m o s t 12. O r i g e n , Contra Celsum 6.31 ( i n Origen: Contra Celsum, tr. H. Chadwick [ C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1953], 346). I n g e n e r a l , see K u r t R u d o l p h , Gnosis, tr. a n d ed. R. M c L . W i l s o n ( S a n F r a n c i s c o : H a r p e r & R o w , 1983), 1 7 1 - 7 5 ; a n d Martha H i m m e l f a r b , "Heavenly Ascent and the Relationship of the Apocalypses and t h e Hekhalot L i t e r a t u r e , " HUCA 5 9 ( 1 9 8 8 ) : 8 2 - 8 5 . 13. I r e n a e u s , Contra

haereses

1.21.5, tr. A . R o b e r t s a n d J. D o n a l d s o n , ANF

14. See H i m m e l f a r b , " H e a v e n l y A s c e n t , " 8 0 - 8 2 ; R u d o i p h ,

1:346.

Gnosis.

15. See L. K a k o s y , " G n o s i s u n d a g y p t i s c h e R e l i g i o n , " i n The Origins of Gnosticism: Colloquium of Messina, e d . U . B i a n c h i ( L e i d e n : B r i l l , 1970), 2 4 1 - 4 3 . By i t s e l f t h e " s e a l i n g " o f t h e righteous ( c f . 4 E z 6:5; R v 7 : 2 - 8 , 1 3 : 1 6 - 1 8 ) is a b i b l i c a l m o t i f ( E z e k 9 : 4 - 5 ; Is 44:5; see M i c h a e l S t o n e , Fourth Ezra: A Commentary on the Book of Fourth Ezra, H e r m e n e i a [ M i n n e a p o l i s : F o r t r e s s , 1990], 158 n . 107), b u t i t s s t r o n g l y i c o n o g r a p h i c a n d a p o t r o p a e i c uses i n e a r l y J e w i s h m y s t i c i s m a n d C o p t i c G n o s t i c i s m c l e a r l y i n c o r p o r a t e ritual traditions outside the Bible. 16. See G e o r g e W . E. N i c k e l s b u r g , " T w o E n o c h i c M a n u s c r i p t s : U n s t u d i e d E v i d e n c e f o r E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y , " i n Of Scribes and Scrolls: Studies on the Hebrew Bible, Intertestamental Judaism, and Christian Origins, Presented to John Strugnell, ed. H a r o l d W . A t t r i d g e , J o h n J. C o l l i n s , a n d T h o m a s H . T o b i n , C o l l e g e T h e o l o g y S o c i e t y R e s o u r c e s i n R e l i g i o n 5 ( L a n h a m , M d . : U n i v e r s i t y Press o f A m e r i c a , 1990), 2 5 2 - 6 0 .

37

The Apocalypse o f Elijah in Its Biblical C o n t e x t

v i v i d l y e m p h a s i z e d t h e threat posed b y the "gatekeepers‫ ״‬to the righteous

soul.

17

un-

T h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah m a y n o t be consciously syn-

thesizing these t r a d i t i o n s b u t m a y rather e n v i s i o n Jewish ascent m o t i f s t h r o u g h the lens of n a t i v e m y t h o l o g y . A

more i m m e d i a t e resource or inspiration for eschatological

other imagery i n the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah m a y be the b o o k of

and Rev-

elation. T h e Elect w i l l h a v e t h e n a m e of G o d w r i t t e n o n t h e i r f o r e h e a d s a n d t h e r e f o r e " w i l l n o t h u n g e r o r t h i r s t " ( A p o c E l 1:9; 5:6; c f . R v 3:12; 7:3, 16; 14:1); a n d t h e y " w i l l w a l k w i t h t h e a n g e l s u p t o [ G o d ' s ] c i t y ‫ ( ״‬A p o c E l 1:10; c f . R v 2 1 : 1 0 - 2 7 ; H e b 11:16). A n i m a g e o f p e o p l e f r u i t l e s s l y s e e k i n g t o d i e i n t h e d a y s o f w o e ( A p o c E l 2:5, 3 2 - 3 3 ) m a y c o m e e i t h e r f r o m R v 9:6 o r f r o m n a t i v e E g y p t i a n t r a d i t i o n . 1 8 T h e f i r s t n a r r a t i v e o f E n o c h a n d Elijah's r e t u r n appears to be o n e o f the earliest c o m b i n a t i o n s of J e w i s h E n o c h / E l i j a h t r a d i t i o n w i t h t h e " t w o w i t n e s s e s " passage i n Rv 11:3-12, a l t h o u g h it is m o r e l i k e l y t h a t t h e a u t h o r r e c e i v e d a t r a d i t i o n a l r e a d y synthesized t h a n that he edited the text of Revelation l l . 1 9 Finally, the c o n c l u s i o n o f t h e t e x t , c u l m i n a t i n g i n a " m i l l e n n i u m 3 5 - 3 9,5:22-24)‫״‬ reflects t h e a u t h o r ' s f a m i l i a r i t y w i t h a n eschatological sequence

pre-

s u m a b l y derived f r o m Revelation 20-22 ( a l t h o u g h he has n o t a b l y left o u t t h e p o s t m i l l e n n i a l " r e t u r n " o f S a t a n d e s c r i b e d i n R v 20:7-10). A l t h o u g h all these echoes of t h e b o o k o f R e v e l a t i o n d e m o n s t r a t e a general awareness in the Apocalypse of Elijah of the former's teachings

and

t h e m e s , H . F . D . S p a r k s h a s a p t l y c a u t i o n e d t h a t " i t is p o s s i b l e t o d i s c o u n t s o m e o f t h e [ p r o p o s e d ] c o n t a c t s w i t h R e v e l a t i o n . . . as n o m o r e t h a n p a r t of the c o m m o n stock-in-trade of apocalyptic literature, w h e t h e r Jewish or Christian."20

17. See Jan Z a n d e e , Death as an Enemy, according to Ancient Egyptian Conceptions, N u m e n S u p p 5 ( L e i d e n : B r i l l , 1960), 1 1 4 - 2 5 ( c f . 3 1 6 - 1 8 ) ; J. G w y n G r i f f i t h s , The Divine Verdict: A Study of Divine Judgement in the Ancient Religions, N u m e n S u p p 52 ( L e i d e n : B r i l l , 1991), 2 1 0 - 1 3 ; c f . R u d o l p h , Gnosis, 1 7 9 - 8 5 , o n g n o s t i c i m a g e s o f t h e p u n i s h m e n t o f the u n r i g h t e o u s ascender. H i m m e l f a r b notes that "instances o f angelic hostility i n the a p o c a l y p s e s a r e r a r e " ( " H e a v e n l y A s c e n t , " 84) a n d r e f e r s t o J o h a n n M a i e r ' s e x p l a n a t i o n o f t h e h o s t i l e p o w e r s i n Hekhalot t e x t s as d u e t o t h e f e a r i n v o l v e d i n i m a g i n i n g o r "practicing" their esoteric ascents (84-85, c i t i n g J o h a n n M a i e r , " D a s G e f a h r d u n g s m o t i v b e i d e r H i m m e l s r e i s e i n d e r j u d i s c h e n A p o k a l y p t i k u n d ' G n o s i s , " Kairos 5 [ 1 9 6 3 ] : 2 2 - 2 4 , 28-30). A l t h o u g h useful psychologically, this explanation avoids the question o f E g y p t i a n i n f l u e n c e p o s e d (at least) b y t h e g n o s t i c texts. 18. C f . Admonitions

of Ipuwer

4.3; Sib. Or. 8.353. See b e l o w , c h a p t e r 8, p p . 1 8 3 - 8 4 .

19. See J o a c h i m J e r e m i a s , " H A ( e ) 1 a y , " e d . G e r h a r d K i t t e l , tr. a n d e d . G e o f f r e y W . B r o m i l e y , T D N T 2:940; R i c h a r d B a u c k h a m , " T h e M a r t y r d o m o f E n o c h a n d E l i j a h : J e w i s h o r C h r i s t i a n ? " fBL 95, 3 ( 1 9 7 6 ) : 4 5 7 - 5 8 ; i d e m , " E n o c h a n d E l i j a h i n t h e C o p t i c A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h / Studia Patristica 16, 2 ( 1 9 8 5 ) : 7 3 - 7 5 . 20. H . F . D . S p a r k s , " I n t r o d u c t i o n t o t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , " A O T , 758. S p a r k s ' s c a u t i o n has been g i v e n e x t e n s i v e f o u n d a t i o n i n G o n z a l o A r a n d a , "Ideas escatologicas

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

38

S t i l l , it is n o t s u r p r i s i n g t h a t R e v e l a t i o n w o u l d h a v e h a d s u c h a n influence, directly or indirectly, on the composition of early Christian pseudepigrapha i n Egypt. A n d r e Grabar observed the influence of Reve l a t i o n t h r o u g h o u t t h e i c o n o g r a p h y o f C o p t i c chapels. 2 1 M o r e i m p o r tantly, evidence f r o m Eusebius s h o w s this text a n d the image of the heavenly city exerting considerable p o w e r o n U p p e r E g y p t i a n munities in the t h i r d century.

22

com-

T h e r e is g o o d r e a s o n t o b e l i e v e t h a t t h e

A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h w a s c o m p o s e d i n just s u c h a c o m m u n i t y . L i k e t h e b o o k o f R e v e l a t i o n , t h e Shepherd

of Hermas

achieved con-

s i d e r a b l e p o p u l a r i t y i n E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y f r o m a n e a r l y date. 2 3 It is perhaps f r o m this text's short discourse against " d o u b l e - m i n d e d n e s s " i n Herm.

Vis. 4 . 2 . 5 - 6 , w h i c h associates p s y c h i c p r e p a r a t i o n w i t h e s c h a t o -

l o g i c a l resilience, t h a t t h e a u t h o r o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h

drew

i d e o l o g i c a l i n s p i r a t i o n f o r t h e d i s c o u r s e o n t h e s a m e t o p i c (1:23-27). Y e t t h e r u s t i c m e t a p h o r s t h e a u t h o r o f t h e E l i j a h A p o c a l y p s e e m p l o y s to describe " d o u b t " a n d " s i n g l e - m i n d e d n e s s " s h o w that he has integrated the ideology t h o r o u g h l y i n t o local terms a n d therefore was p r o b a b l y not d e p e n d e n t u p o n a text o f

Hermas.

T h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h bears s i g n i f i c a n t p a r a l l e l s t o t w o

other

i m p o r t a n t E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n a p o c a l y p s e s , t h e a p o c a l y p s e s o f Peter a n d o f P a u l ; y e t n o n e o f these p a r a l l e l s is v e r b a t i m a n d f e w are s u f f i c i e n t l y i d i o s y n c r a t i c to p r o v e t h e use o f o n e o r a n o t h e r as sources. T h e a b b r e v i a t e d j u d g m e n t scene i n A p o c E l 5:26-29 recalls t h e m o r e e x t e n s i v e scenes i n Apoc. Pet. 6 a n d Apoc. Paul 13-51; b u t t h e p r o n o u n c e d i n t e r e s t j u d i a s e n e l A p o c a l i p s i s c o p t o d e Elias,‫ ״‬i n Simposio biblico espanol, ed. N . F e r n a n d e z M a r c o s , J. T r e b o l l e B a r r e r a , a n d J. F e r n a n d e z V a l l i n a ( M a d r i d : U n i v e r s i d a d C o m p l u t e n s e , 1984), 6 6 3 - 7 9 . 21. A n d r e G r a b a r , Martyrium: Recherches sur le culte des reliques et I'art Chretien antique, 2 v o l s . ( P a r i s : C o l l e g e d e F r a n c e , 1946), 2:231 (cf. 2:210, o n J e w i s h a p o c a l y p t i c visions in general). 22. See E u s e b i u s , Hist, eccles. 7.24; Martyrs of Palestine 11. 9 - 1 0 (cf. H e b l l : 1 5 f ) ; G e r h a r d M a i e r , Die Johannesoffenbarung und die Kirche, W U N T 25 ( T u b i n g e n : M o h r [ S i e b e c k ] , 1981), 8 6 - 1 0 7 . J a m e s C h a r l e s w o r t h n o t e s a l a c k o f i n f l u e n c e f r o m R e v e l a t i o n u p o n e a r l y C h r i s t i a n a p o c a l y p s e s , e x c e p t f o r t h e a p o c a l y p s e s o f E l i j a h a n d P a u l (The New Testament Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha: A Guide to Publications, with Excurses on Apocalypses, A T L A B i b l i o g r a p h y Series 17 [ M e t u c h e n , N.J., a n d L o n d o n : A T L A / S c a r e c r o w Press, 1987], 3 4 - 3 6 , 3 9 - 4 0 ) . B e c a u s e t h e l a t t e r t w o t e x t s a r e d i s t i n c t l y E g y p t i a n i n origin, the relative influence of Revelation m a y indeed be based o n regional proclivities. Paul A l e x a n d e r has p o i n t e d out a similar absence of Revelation's i n f l u e n c e i n Byzantine apocalypses ("The Diffusion of Byzantine Apocalypses in the M e d i e v a l West a n d the B e g i n n i n g s o f J o a c h i m i s m , " i n Prophecy and Millenarianism: Essays in Honour of Marjorie Reeves, ed. A n n W i l l i a m s [Essex: L o n g m a n , 1980], 59). 23. P . M i c h . 130 ( l a t e s e c o n d c e n t u r v ) ; see R o b e r t s , Manuscript, 22.

Society,

and Belief,

21-

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical Context

39

in afterlife materials in Egyptian Christian texts m a k e s a simple source hypothesis untenable. Indeed, within the context of this afterlife tradition it is quite remarkable that the judgment scene in the Apocalypse of Elijah is so short. T h e striking parallel between the introductory passages in Apoc.

Paul

3 and ApocEl 1:1-4 represents an instance of c o m m o n sources rather than the immediate dependence of o n e upon the other, as w e discuss below. The Apocalypse of Elijah's relationship to the apocalypses of Peter and of Paul demonstrates n o more than that the literary culture of early Egyptian Christianity was beginning to focus on particular topics (such as the afterlife). Hence, except for the problem of the introductory passage and the possible use of the book of Revelation, the Apocalypse of Elijah does not display any evidence of having m a d e direct use of prior textual sources. Yet it is evident that the oral scriptural culture, which influenced the composition of the Apocalypse of Elijah, was richly influenced by (primarily) biblical and (to a lesser extent) Christian texts.

THE "APOCALYPSE" OF ELIJAH There is reason to believe that, rather than pertaining to a distinct, historically self-conscious literary genre, the word "apocalypse" gained popularity and even conventionality through the great notoriety of the book of Revelation, which described itself as an

αττοκάλνψις

in its incipit

(Rv 1:1). 24 Not only were Jewish revelatory pseudepigrapha thus titled retroactively, but subsequent, Christian attempts at composing revelatory texts c a m e to be designated "apocalypses." 2 5 T h e history of the use of the title s h o w s the importance of the book of Revelation in early Christian literature, and that it stands as an archetype behind subsequent Christian revelatory texts. 2 6 By contrast, the fact that titles in late antiquity conventionally followed the texts themselves suggests that in performance they had little importance in establishing the genre of a 24. C f . P h i l i p V i e l h a u e r , " A p o c a l y p s e s a n d R e l a t e d S u b j e c t s : I n t r o d u c t i o n , " tr. D a v i d Hill, NTA 2 : 5 8 2 ( " T h i s literary g e n r e d o e s not a p p e a r originally t o h a v e h a d a n y c o m m o n title"). 25. S e e M o r t o n S m i t h , " O n t h e H i s t o r y o f Α Ι I O K Α Λ Υ 1 Ι Τ Ω a n d Α Ι Ι Ο Κ Α Λ Υ Π Σ Ι Ι , " ‫׳‬n Apocalypticism in the Mediterranean World and the Near East, ed. D a v i d H e l l h o l m ( T u b i n g e n : M o h r [Siebeck], 1983), 19. 26. V i e l h a u e r , " A p o c a l y p s e s , " 582. O n t h e v a r y i n g i m p a c t o f R e v e l a t i o n o n sequent apocalypses, see C h a r l e s w o r t h , New Testament Apocrypha, 34-36.

sub-

40

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

text for an a u d i e n c e a n d m a y h a v e been a d d e d m e r e l y to library

facilitate

reference or, occasionally, to classify texts b y a u t h o r i t y

and

canon.27 A l t h o u g h t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h m a y b e o u t l i n e d as h a v i n g seq u e n t i a l sections, it does n o t h a v e a n o v e r a l l s t r u c t u r e o f s u p e r n a t u r a l r e v e l a t i o n to a p a r t i c u l a r , l e g e n d a r y recipient. U n l i k e D a n i e l , 4 Ezra, 2 Baruch,

a n d Revelation (for example), the Apocalypse of Elijah contains

n o o p e n i n g s t o r y t h a t m i g h t describe h o w , w h e n , a n d w h e r e its c o n tents—almost exclusively eschatology—were revealed to (presumably) Elijah or a closing story that w o u l d account for the present,

literary

n a t u r e o f t h e r e v e l a t i o n s ( c f . D n 1 2 : 5 - 1 3 ; 4 E z r 1 4 : 3 7 - 4 8 ; 2 Baruch

77-87;

R v 22:6-19).28 T h e " s p o k e n " c h a r a c t e r o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h c o n trasts w i t h t h e v i v i d l y t e x t u a l o r s c r i b a l s e l f - c o n s c i o u s n e s s o f t r a d i t i o n a l a p o c a l y p s e s (e.g., D n 12:4, 9; 1 En 14:1; 92:1; 93:1; R v 22:18). F u r t h e r m o r e , the text o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah lacks all i n d i c a t i o n o f t h e i d e n t i t y o f t h e i m p l i e d n a r r a t o r , a l t h o u g h t h e v o i c e is h i g h l y p e r s o n a l i z e d t h r o u g h t h e use o f first-person p r o n o u n s a n d e x c l a m a t o r y interjections. A first-person voice to deliver revelation w a s characteristic of m a n y apocalypses—establishing the literary conceit that the

hero

h i m s e l f b e h e l d t h e c o s m i c secrets, t h a t t h e a u d i e n c e w a s r e c e i v i n g h i s true disclosures—and a l l o w e d for some flexibility a n d exchange a m o n g t h e l i t e r a r y g e n r e s o f a p o c a l y p s e , e p i s t l e (e.g., R v 1:4; 22:21), a n d t e s t a m e n t (1 En 83:1; 91:1-3). 2 9 It w a s c u s t o m a r y , h o w e v e r , f o r t h e s e g e n r e s t o i d e n t i f y t h i s voice, e v e n i n t h e first p e r s o n : "I, E n o c h

[/Ezekiel/Abra-

ham/John].‫ ״‬The Apocalypse of Elijah contains no such

identification

27. I n Egypt t h e titles t h e m s e l v e s came t o acquire a p o w e r i n d e p e n d e n t o f their f u n c t i o n as reference rubrics. P . M i c h , i n v . 1559 is o n l y o n e o f m a n y t a l i s m a n i c φνλακτήρια c o n t a i n i n g o n l y t h e titles a n d first w o r d s o f biblical texts (in this case, t h e four c a n o n i c a l G o s p e l s ) ; cf. G e r a l d M. B r o w n e , Michigan Coptic Texts (Barcelona: Papyrologia C a s t r o c t a v i a n a , 1979), 4 3 - 4 5 . S e e , in g e n e r a l , E. A. Judge, * T h e Magical U s e o f Scripture in t h e Papyri," in Perspectives on Language and Text: Essays and Poems in Honor of Francis J. Andersen's Sixtieth Birthday, ed. Edgar W . C o n r a d a n d E d w a r d G. N e w i n g ( W i n o n a Lake, Ind.: E i s e n b r a u n s , 1987), 3 3 9 - 4 9 . 28. S e e t h e analysis o f t h e literary f r a m i n g e l e m e n t s in Revelation by Lars H a r t m a n , " F o r m a n d M e s s a g e : A Preliminary Discussion o f Partial T e x t s ' in R e v 1 - 3 and 22:6ff," in L'apocalypse johannique el Vapocalyptique dans le Nouveau Testament, ed. J. L a m b r e c h t (Louvain: L o u v a i n University Press, 1980), 1 2 9 - 4 9 . 29. C f . Anitra B i n g h a m K o l e n k o w , " T h e G e n r e T e s t a m e n t a n d Forecasts o f t h e Future in t h e Hellenistic J e w i s h Milieu," JSJ 6 ( 1 9 7 5 ) : 5 7 - 7 1 . O n R e v e l a t i o n , s e e J o h n J. Collins, " P s e u d o n y m i t y , Historical R e v i e w s , a n d t h e G e n r e o f t h e R e v e l a t i o n o f J o h n , " CBQ 3 9 ( 1 9 7 7 ) : 3 4 0 - 4 1 , 3 4 2 n. 47; Elisabeth S c h u s s l e r Fiorenza, The Book of Revelation: Justice and Judgment ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : Fortress, 1985), 1 6 5 - 7 0 .

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical C o n t e x t

41

a n d therefore lacks b o t h the conceit of an ancient revelation a n d the implicit authority of a legendary figure. A s s u c h , t h e A p o c a l y p s e of E l i j a h c a n n o t be i n c l u d e d u n d e r literary category

"apocalypse,‫״‬

whether

t h i s c a t e g o r y is d e f i n e d

the ex-

c l u s i v e l y b y its f r a m e n a r r a t i v e o r i n a d d i t i o n b y eschatological i n t e r ests. 3 0 A g e n r e a p o c a l y p s e m u s t r e p r e s e n t t h e e s s e n t i a l c o n t e x t u a l i z i n g f r a m e w o r k b y w h i c h s u b s i d i a r y c o n t e n t s are p r e s e n t e d a n d a u t h o r i z e d , a n d the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah lacks this f r a m e w o r k . H o w e v e r , the a t t r i b u t i o n a n d title, the o p e n i n g discourse, the parenetic section that f o l l o w s the incipit, a n d t h e m a r k e d l y C h r i s t i a n eschatology t h a t c o n c l u d e s the text o f the A p o c a l y p s e of E l i j a h all recall t h e type o f m a t e r i a l s f o u n d i n m a n y a p o c a l y p s e s . W e t h e r e f o r e m u s t p r e sume o n the part of the composer some r u d i m e n t a r y familiarity apocalypses, a l t h o u g h w i t h o u t a n awareness of a n apocalyptic

with genre

s u c h as w a s a p p a r e n t l y c u r r e n t i n S e c o n d T e m p l e J u d a i s m a n d w h i c h w e n o w e m p l o y as a t a x o n o m i c c a t e g o r y . U n d e r t h e s e c i r c u m s t a n c e s , o n e m u s t assess t h e s i g n i f i c a n c e o f t h e Apocalypse of Elijah's title b o t h in the history a n d for the classification of t h e text; f o r t h e title a n d its r e l a t i v e a n t i q u i t y h a v e i m p l i c a t i o n s b o t h for the intentionality of the author31 a n d for the local significance of the w o r d " a p o c a l y p s e . ‫ ״‬B e c a u s e E l i j a h is e x p l i c i t l y m i s s i n g as d r a m a t i s p e r s o n a d u r i n g t h e c o u r s e o f t h e text, 3 2 t h e o n l y i n d i c a t i o n t h a t t h i s t e x t is 30. C f . V i e l h a u e r , ‫ ־‬A p o c a l y p s e s , " 5 8 2 - 8 7 ; J o h n J. C o l l i n s , " I n t r o d u c t i o n : T o w a r d s t h e M o r p h o l o g y o f a G e n r e , " Semeia 14 (1979):9; i d e m , " A p o c a l y p t i c L i t e r a t u r e , " i n Early Judaism and Its Modern Interpreters, ed. R o b e r t A . K r a f t a n d G e o r g e W . E. N i c k e l s b u r g ( A t l a n t a : S c h o l a r s Press, 1986), 3 4 6 - 4 7 ; a n d A d e l a Y a r b r o C o l l i n s , ‫ ־‬I n t r o d u c t i o n : E a r l y C h r i s t i a n A p o c a l y p t i c i s m , " Semeia 3 6 ( 1 9 8 6 ) : 5 - 6 . T h e e m p h a s i s o n e s c h a t o l o g y h a s b e e n c r i t i c i z e d b y C h r i s t o p h e r R o w l a n d , The Open Heaven: A Study of Apocalyptic in Judaism and Early Christianity ( N e w Y o r k : C r o s s r o a d , 1982), 48, 7 0 - 7 2 ; a n d M a r t h a H i m m e l f a r b , "The Experience of the Visionary a n d G e n r e in the Ascension of Isaiah 6-11 a n d the A p o c a l y p s e o f P a u l , " Semeia 3 6 ( 1 9 8 6 ) : 1 0 6 . 31. A l t h o u g h a n y t e x t t r a n s c e n d s s t r u c t u r a l l y a n d h i s t o r i c a l l y t h e a u t h o r ' s i n t e n t i o n s , the choice o f genre a n d t h e subsequent effects o f the genre u p o n the text's contents s h o u l d b e r e c o g n i z e d as t h e a u t h o r ' s v i t a l h i s t o r i c a l act as m e d i u m b e t w e e n t h e l i t e r a r y c u l t u r e i n w h i c h t h e t e x t is c o m p o s e d a n d t h e m e s s a g e i n t e n d e d ; a n d i t is a c h o i c e w i t h r e c u r r e n t e f f e c t s o n t h e r e c e p t i o n a n d i n t e r p r e t a t i o n o f t h e t e x t as i t is t r a n s m i t t e d i n history. O n t h e i m p o r t a n c e of a u t h o r i a l i n t e n t i o n a l i t y w i t h respect to genre criticism, see E. D . H i r s c h , Jr., Validity in Interpretation ( N e w H a v e n a n d London: Yale University Press, 1967), 1 0 0 - 1 0 1 , 1 2 3 - 2 6 , a n d p a s s i m ; a n d D a v i d H e l l h o l m , ‫ ־‬T h e P r o b l e m o f A p o c a l y p t i c G e n r e , " Semeia 3 6 ( 1 9 8 6 ) : 3 1 ( = §3.3.5.1). 32. T h e t w o e p i s o d e s d e s c r i b i n g E l i j a h ' s e s c h a t o l o g i c a l r e t u r n i n t a n d e m w i t h E n o c h ( A p o c E l 4 : 7 - 1 9 ; 5:32) c o n s t i t u t e t y p i c a l c o m p o n e n t s o f e a r l y J e w i s h e s c h a t o l o g y , w i t h n o m o r e i n t r i n s i c c o n n e c t i o n t o a n i m p l i e d a u t h o r t h a n T a b i t h a o r t h e L o r d . See E m i l S c h u r e r ( G e s c h i c h t e des jiidischen Volkes in Zeitalter Jesu Christi, 3 v o l s . [ 4 t h ed.; L e i p z i g : H i n r i c h s ' s c h e , 1909], 3:368), w h o d o u b t s a n E l i j a h a p o c a l y p s e Grundlage o n this v e r y

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

42

an ‫״‬Apocalypse of Elijah" appears i n the A c h m i m i c m a n u s c r i p t , w h i c h a l o n e c o n t a i n s t h e e n d o f t h e t e x t . I f Sa 1 w e r e a S a h i d i c v e r s i o n o f t h e s a m e c o d e x (because b o t h c o n t a i n t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h a n d w h a t a p p e a r s to b e a p o r t i o n o f t h e Apocalypse

of Zephaniah),

t h e n Sa 1 w o u l d

also h a v e c o n t a i n e d t h e t i t l e " A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h " a f t e r t h e s a m e text. 3 3 T h e hypothesis that o u r A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah circulated u n d e r this n a m e i n c o n j u n c t i o n w i t h t h e Apocalypse

of Zephaniah

l i g h t o f t h e B y z a n t i n e c a n o n lists, t h e Catalogue a n d t h e Stichometry

of Nicephorus,

gains strength in

of Sixty Canonical

Books

w h i c h list t h e t w o titles t o g e t h e r o r i n

close p r o x i m i t y . 3 4 I n t h e t w o m a n u s c r i p t s t h a t d i d n o t i n c l u d e t h e Apocalypse niah,

ofZepha-

Sa 2 a n d Sa 3 , h o w e v e r , t h e r e is n o i n d i c a t i o n t h a t t h e text w a s

k n o w n as t h e " A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h . " A p p e n d e d i n s c r i p t to a c o d e x c o n t a i n i n g D e u t e r o n o m y , J o n a h , A c t s , a n d R e v e l a t i o n , 3 5 Sa 2 is m i s s i n g all b u t t h e f i r s t , h o m i l e t i c s e c t i o n . I t m i g h t b e i n f e r r e d t h a t t h e A p o c alypse of Elijah, in w h a t e v e r length, was a d d e d in connection w i t h the codex's b o o k o f R e v e l a t i o n , f o r t h i s e a r l y s e c t i o n o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h c o n t a i n s m a n y r e f e r e n c e s to R e v e l a t i o n . T h i s i n f e r e n c e , h o w e v e r , r e q u i r e s t h a t t h e scribe k n e w n e i t h e r t h e rest o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h nor the n a m e of the text he was c o p y i n g d o w n . By c o n t r a s t , Sa 3 seems to h a v e b e e n m i s s i n g its e n d a n d t i t l e a l r e a d y at t h e c o p y i s t stage: l i n e f i l l e r s o n p a g e 20 r suggest t h a t n o m o r e o f t h e t e x t w a s k n o w n t o t h e scribe. 3 6 W e t h e r e f o r e c a n n o t p r e s u m e t h a t t h e text w a s n e c e s s a r i l y c o p i e d as t h e " A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h . " Such manuscript evidence offers n o m o r e concerning the nature of t h e t i t l e t h a n t h a t t h e text c i r c u l a t e d as t h e " A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h " o n l y i n c o n j u n c t i o n w i t h t h e Apocalypse

of Zephaniah,

a n d e v e n t h e n n o t neces-

s a r i l y f r o m t h e c o m p o s i t i o n a l stage o f t h e text. basis; cf. H e i n r i c h W e i n e l , " D i e spatere c h r i s t l i c h e A p o k a l v p t i k , " i n Ε Υ Χ Α Ρ Ι Σ 1 Ή Ρ Ι Ο Ν , ed. H a n s S c h m i d t ( G o t t i n g e n : V a n d e n h o e c k & Ruprecht, 1923), 166. 33. Urbain Bouriant, "Les p a p y r u s d ' A k h m i m ( F r a g m e n t s de m a n u s c r i t s en dialectes b a c h m o u r i q u e et t h e b a i n ) , " Memoires publics par les membres de la mission archeologique franqaise au Caire, vol. 1, fasc. 2 ( 1 8 8 5 ) : 2 6 1 . T h e recent analysis o f t h e S a h i d i c a n d A c h m i m i c versions o f t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah by P i e t e r s m a et al. s u g g e s t s that, if A c h a n d S a 1 do in fact h a v e a historical relationship, S a 1 w a s p r o b a b l y t h e c o d e x f r o m w h i c h A c h w a s copied. P i e t e r s m a et al. h a v e n o t e d a general a g r e e m e n t a m o n g t h e S a h i d i c mss., from w h i c h A c h s t a n d s at a substantial d i s t a n c e (its s o m e w h a t g r e a t e r a g e notwithstanding). S e e Pietersma, 12-18. 34. S e e a b o v e , p. 26. 35. S e e E. A. Wallis Budge, Coptic Biblical Texts in the Dialect of Upper British M u s e u m , 1912; reprint, N e w Y o r k : A M S , 1977), i x - x , lv-lvii. 36. P i e t e r s m a , 6, 88.

Egypt

(London:

43

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical C o n t e x t

D i d y m u s t h e B l i n d , p r e s e n t l y t h e e a r l i e s t w i t n e s s t o t h e t e x t , is q u i t e e n i g m a t i c as t o i t s t i t l e . I n h i s E c c l e s i a s t e s c o m m e n t a r y h e cites t h e e x t a n t A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h as t h e " P r o p h e c y o f E l i j a h " b u t r e f e r s t o a n o t h e r a p o c r y p h o n , w h i c h a p p a r e n t l y d i s c l o s e d s e c r e t s o f t h e u n d e r w o r l d , as "the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah.37‫ ״‬In his Z e c h a r i a h c o m m e n t a r y ,

Didymus

seems t o recall t h e passage d e s c r i b i n g t h e a r r i v a l o f E n o c h a n d

Elijah

( A p o c E l 4 : 7 - 1 9 ) b u t o n l y as " a n a p o c r y p h a l b o o k . 3 8 ‫״‬ W h i l e it is c o n c e i v a b l e t h a t D i d y m u s w a s r e f e r r i n g t o t h e s a m e t e x t u n d e r several n a m e s — t h a t t h e precise title of t h e text w a s u n i m p o r t a n t t o h i m — t h e r e is r e a s o n t o b e l i e v e h e k n e w m o r e t h a n o n e E l i j a h a p o c r y p h o n . T h e text t h a t he calls t h e " A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h " seems to c o n t a i n s u c h " t o u r s o f h e l l " m a t e r i a l as is a s c r i b e d t o E l i j a h a p o c r y p h a b y t h e Pseudo-Titus

Epistle

a n d several r a b b i n i c sources.39 T h e text t h a t h e calls

t h e " P r o p h e c y o f E l i j a h " a n d " a n a p o c r y p h a l b o o k " a p p e a r s to be t h e e x t a n t A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h . D i d y m u s w r o t e at a p p r o x i m a t e l y t h e s a m e time that the A c h m i m i c manuscript of the Apocalypse of Elijah was c o p i e d (early or m i d - f o u r t h c e n t u r y ) , a n d b y the e n d o f t h e f o u r t h cent u r y the various recensions o f t h e text r a n s i g n i f i c a n t l y parallel to o n e a n o t h e r . B e c a u s e t h e r e is n o i n d i c a t i o n t h a t a n y o f t h e s e r e c e n s i o n s e v e r c o n t a i n e d a t o u r o f h e l l , it is d o u b t f u l t h a t D i d y m u s c o u l d h a v e k n o w n one Elijah a p o c r y p h o n w i t h b o t h a t o u r o f hell a n d the heroic persecution materials n o w in the Apocalypse of Elijah. D i d y m u s therefore p r o b a b l y k n e w b o t h a Prophecy of Elijah a n d an A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , a n d t h e t e x t t h a t h e calls t h e " P r o p h e c y o f E l i j a h " is w h a t w e n o w c a l l t h e A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h , w h e r e a s h i s " A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h " is n o w l o s t . 4 0 B u t h o w f i x e d a n d d i s t i n c t w e r e t h e s e t i t l e s f o r

37. D i d y m u s t h e B l i n d , C o m m e n t a r y o n Ecclesiastes 2 3 5 . 2 6 - 2 8 , o n Q o h 8 : 4 - 5 : " P r o p h e c y o f E l i j a h " ( i n Didymos der Blinde: Kommentar zum Ecclesiastes (Tura-Papyrus), v o l . 4: Kommentar zu Eccl. Kap. 7-8, 8, tr. a n d e d . J o h a n n e s K r a m e r a n d B a r b e l K r e b b e r , P T A 16 [ B o n n : R u d o l f H a b e l t , 1972], 1 3 6 - 3 7 ) : c f . ApocEl 4 : 1 - 6 ; a n d Comm. Eccles. 92.5, o n Q o h 3:16: " A p o c a l y p s e o f E l i j a h " ( e d . M i c h a e l G r o n e w a l d , Didymos der Blinde: Kommentarzum Ecclesiastes, v o l . 2, P T A 22 [ B o n n : R u d o l f H a b e l t , 1977], 1 3 0 - 3 1 ) . 38. Commentary on Zechariah 7 7 . 1 9 (342), o n Z e c h 4 : 1 1 - 1 4 ( e d . L o u i s D o u t r e l e a u , S C 83 [ P a r i s : E d i t i o n s d u C e r f , 1962], 1 : 3 7 4 - 7 7 ) . See d i s c u s s i o n b y K r e b b e r , Didymos der Blinde, 4:160. It is w o r t h n o t i n g t h a t b o t h t h i s r e f e r e n c e t o A p o c E l a n d t h e o n e t o " t h e P r o p h e c y o f E l i j a h " c o n c e r n t h e e p i s o d e s o f h e r o i c p e r s e c u t i o n f r o m A p o c E l 4. 39. See M i c h a e l S t o n e a n d J o h n S t r u g n e l l , The Books of Elijah, M o n t . : S c h o l a r s Press, 1979), 1 4 - 2 6 ; a n d b e l o w , p p . 4 5 - 4 6 .

S B L T T 18 ( M i s s o u l a ,

40. A l t h o u g h h e m a y h a v e b e e n s i m p l y c o p y i n g O r i g e n , w h o a t t r i b u t e d P a u l ' s q u o t a t i o n i n 1 C o r 2:9 t o t h e "secretum o f E l i j a h t h e P r o p h e t " ( O r i g e n , Comm. Matt. 23.37), J e r o m e c l a i m e d t o h a v e k n o w n a n "Apocalypsus o f E l i j a h " w h e r e the passage c o u l d b e f o u n d ( J e r o m e , Comm. Is. 17, o n 64:4; a n d Ep. 57 t o P a m m a c h i u s ) . See

44

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

D i d y m u s ? H o w d o w e a c c o u n t for the fact that h e a n d t h e scribe of the A c h m i m i c m a n u s c r i p t g a v e t h e s a m e text different n a m e s ? It is n o coincidence that t h e Elijah a p o c r y p h o n f r o m w h i c h D i d y m u s recalls a vision of t h e u n d e r w o r l d is called αποκάλυψα, w h e r e a s the Elijah a p o c r y p h o n f r o m w h i c h h e recalls Tabitha in her eschatological assault on the Antichrist is called προφητ(ία. T h e f o r m e r material d o e s constitute a revelation or "unveiling‫( ״‬of a secret cosmic realm), w h e r e a s the latter w o u l d m o r e properly b e called "prophecy.‫ ״‬Titles of a p o c r y p h a were evidently r a t h e r fluid for D i d y m u s a n d (we m i g h t s u p p o s e ) his contemporaries, a n d a single text m i g h t b e r e f e r r e d to by a variety of a n a l o g o u s titles, d e p e n d i n g o n t h e p r i m a r y association a scholar, scribe, or librarian m i g h t h a v e w i t h it. A l t h o u g h the text of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah derives originally f r o m t h e later third century, t h e r e is n o e v i d e n c e to ascribe a fixed title of "apocalypse" to this initial stage of composition. Q u i t e the contrary: t h e r e is e v i d e n c e for a fluidity of t i t l e s — u n d e r the p s e u d o n y m Elijah— at least until the creation of t h e A c h m i m i c codex in t h e m i d - f o u r t h century. T h e "Apocalypse of Elijah" m u s t t h e r e f o r e be considered w i t h out t h e constraints of t h e rubric "apocalypse.‫״‬ Still, it is i m p o r t a n t to consider that d u r i n g the f o u r t h c e n t u r y this text c a m e to b e called a n "apocalypse," at least in s o m e m a n u s c r i p t s . Merely as a recollection of t h e b o o k of Revelation, this title w o u l d not h a v e b e e n entirely e x t r a o r d i n a r y as applied to t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. Parts of the text recall t h e b o o k of Revelation, while m o r e generally t h e eschatological f o c u s of the text m i g h t h a v e r e m i n d e d s o m e millennialist scribe of the similarly d r a m a t i c p r o p h e c i e s in Revelation. In Egypt, w h e r e the extant A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah w a s especially p o p u l a r in s o m e areas, it is conceivable the text c a m e to be called a n "apocalypse" b e c a u s e certain scribes, in light of Revelation, associated the title ά-ποκάλυψ^ις specifically w i t h eschatological c o n t e n t s (as d o m a n y m o d e r n scholars).

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AND OTHER ELIJAH PSEUDEPIGRAPHA A v a l u a b l e collection of patristic a n d rabbinic references to Elijah a p o c r y p h a , edited b y Michael S t o n e a n d John Strugnell, illustrates t h e

Stone/Strugnell, 64-71. Because Jerome provides n o f u r t h e r i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t this text, it c a n n o t b e certain that h e h a d ever read it.

T h e Apocalypse o f Elijah in Its Biblical C o n t e x t

45

extent of the pseudepigraphic Elijah tradition. 4 1 Few of these references can be connected with the Apocalypse of Elijah discussed here, but they do illustrate the interests a n d tendencies of literature written u n d e r the n a m e of Elijah a n d therefore supply the context in which the present Apocalypse of Elijah would have developed. Tours of Hell The fifth-century Epistle of Pseudo-Titus contains the earliest a n d most extended "quotation‫ ״‬from an Elijah apocalypse, describing the torments of sinners in G e h e n n a (11. 400-417). 42 The rabbinic Chronicle of Jerachmeel also attributes such a vision to Elijah. 43 But w h e r e a s the Hebrew a p o c r y p h o n Sefer Eliahu does describe Elijah's journey "to the west of the world [where] I saw souls being judged in pain, each according to his deeds," 44 the Apocalypse of Elijah n o w h e r e mentions even the existence of an underworld, merely suggesting a vertical separation of saints a n d sinners in 5:26-28. 45 41. S e e S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l . Cf. A l b e r t - M a r i e Denis, Introduction aux pseudepigraphes grecs d'ancien testament. S V T P 1 (Leiden: Brill, 1970), 163-69; a n d Emil S c h i i r e r ,History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ, 3 vols., ed. G e z a V e r m e s , F e r g u s Millar, a n d M a r t i n G o o d m a n (rev. ed.; E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1987), 3:799-803. 42. S e e S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 14-15; a l s o Epistle of Pseudo-Titus, tr. A. d e S a n t o s O t e r o (Eng. t r a n s l a t i o n b y G e o r g e O g g ) in NTA 2:158. Cf. t h e brief d i s c u s s i o n in M o n t a g u e R h o d e s J a m e s , The Lost Apocrypha of the Old Testament: Their Titles and Fragments ( L o n d o n : S P C K , 1920), 5 5 - 5 6 , 61. 43. A n e a r l y identical vision to t h a t in Jerachmeel is a l s o f o u n d , a t t r i b u t e d to Elijah, in Reshith Chokmah. For b o t h , s e e S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 1 6 - 2 6 (cf. J a m e s , Lost Apocrypha, 56). J e a n - M a r c R o s e n s t i e h l d i s c u s s e s a n o t h e r e a r l y t o u r led b y Elijah, w h i c h m a k e s u s e of a p o p u l a r f o l k l o r e motif of t h e a n c i e n t w o r l d f o r its f r a m e , t h a t of t h e u n e q u a l f a t e s of rich a n d p o o r : "Les r e v e l a t i o n s d'Elie: Elie et les t o u r m e n t s d e s d a m n e s , " in La litterature intertestamentaires: Collogne de Strasbourg ( S t r a s b o u r g : P r e s s e s u n i v e r s i t a i r e s d e France, 1985), 99-107. O n t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p of t h e s e texts t o o t h e r a p o c a l y p t i c visions of u n d e r w o r l d p u n i s h m e n t s , s e e M a r t h a H i m m e l f a r b , Tours of Hell: An Apocalyptic Form in Jewish and Christian Literature ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : U n i v e r s i t y of P e n n s y l v a n i a Press, 1983) 34-37, 127-39. 44. In M o s e s B u t t e n w e i s e r , Die hebraische Elias-Apokalypse (Leipzig: E d u a r d P f e i f f e r , 1897), 15. T h e "west" a s t h e l a n d of t h e d e a d is a n E g y p t i a n t r a d i t i o n , AMNTE or "west" b e i n g t h e s t a n d a r d t e r m for H a d e s in C o p t i c literature. R i c h a r d B a u c k h a m h a s a r g u e d t h a t t h e visit t o G e h e n n a in Sefer Eliahu, w h i c h h e d a t e s t o t h e first c e n t u r y C.E., at t h e latest, is a " s u m m a r y " of t h e m o r e e l a b o r a t e a c c o u n t s of Hell a t t r i b u t e d to Elijah in t h e Pseudo-Titus Epistle a n d t h e Chronicle of Jerachmeel (see b e l o w , p p . 49-50), i m p l y i n g t h a t t h e P s e u d o - T i t u s Elijah f r a g m e n t w o u l d b e " p r o b a b l v t h e o l d e s t e x t a n t t o u r of hell" ( B a u c k h a m , "Early J e w i s h Visions of Hell," ITS 41 [1990]:375; cf. 363-65). W h i l e B a u c k h a m a p p r o p r i a t e l y d e r i v e s v i s i o n s of hell f r o m t h e J e w i s h h e a v e n l y t o u r s t r a d i t i o n (cf. H i m m e l f a r b , Tours of Hell, c h a p . 2), t h i s p a r t i c u l a r p r o p o s i t i o n rests o n q u i t e insecure dating. 45. It is s t r a n g e t h a t A c h c o m m e n c e s A p o c E l 2 w i t h t h e p h r a s e " r e g a r d i n g t h e d i s s o l u t i o n of h e a v e n a n d e a r t h and that which is under the earth," w h e r e a s t h e S a h i d i c

46

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

It is t h u s of considerable interest that D i d y m u s t h e Blind, w h o cites the Coptic Elijah A p o c a l y p s e accurately in o n e p a s s a g e — a s t h e P r o p h ecy of Elijah—refers e l s e w h e r e to a n "Apocalypse of Elijah" that contains i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t Hades. 4 6 Barbel Krebber, the editor of Didym u s ' s Ecclesiastes c o m m e n t a r y , h a s a s s u m e d that a single a p o c r y p h o n m u s t lie b e h i n d b o t h citations; 4 7 but in light of the p r e s e n t evidence, it is m o r e likely that D i d y m u s k n e w t w o Elijah a p o c r y p h a , o n e describing a tour of H a d e s a n d t h e other describing the e s c h a t o n . T h e latter h a s c o m e d o w n as t h e Coptic Elijah Apocalypse.

Origen's Attribution of 1 Corinthians 2:9 Origen claimed that Paul h a d t a k e n the verse, " w h a t n o eye h a s seen, n o r ear heard, nor the h e a r t of m a n conceived, w h a t G o d h a s p r e p a r e d for those w h o love him," f r o m "no canonical book, except in t h e apocryp h o n of Elijah the prophet." 4 8 Jerome also k n e w of s u c h a p h r a s e in "the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah." 49 This p h r a s e a p p e a r s n o w h e r e in the extant A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. T w o significant instances of the p h r a s e — i n C l e m e n t of Alexandria's Protrepticus a n d the Apostolic Constitutions—place it in t h e context of a "description" of eschatological r e w a r d s , destined for the righteous a f t e r the last judgment. 5 0 A l t h o u g h the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah d e m o n s t r a t e s an o v e r w h e l m i n g interest in t h e ultimate fate of the righteous, not a single m a n u s c r i p t bears a trace of t h e phrase; a n d it w o u l d b e difficult to d e t e r m i n e w h e r e it m i g h t m o s t a p p r o p r i a t e l y h a v e fit, as the A p o c a l y p s e texts h a v e o n l y . . h e a v e n a n d earth.* But b e c a u s e t h e p h r a s e — a n d t h e c h a p t e r s t h a t f o l l o w — c o n c e r n s t h e e s c h a t o l o g i c a l d i s s o l u t i o n of t h e s e places, it is d o u b t f u l that a d e s c r i p t i o n of t h e u n d e r w o r l d s u c h a s w e f i n d in t h e Elijah f r a g m e n t s c o u l d h a v e b e e n a l l u d e d to h e r e . T h e i m a g e of e s c h a t o l o g i c a l j u d g m e n t in A p o c E l 5:26-28 p o s e s t h e righteous a n d t h e c o n d e m n e d o b s e r v i n g e a c h o t h e r f r o m t h e i r r e s p e c t i v e places, a s c e n e p a r a l l e l e d in t h e story of L a z a r u s ( Q / L k 16:23-26) a n d t h e E g y p t i a n s t o r v of S e t n e - K h a m w a s (cf. 1 En 62:11-12; 108:14-15; Jb 23:30). Yet at a n earlier p o i n t (1:11) t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah d e s c r i b e s j u d g m e n t a s o c c u r r i n g a s all p e o p l e a t t e m p t to a s c e n d t o t h e h e a v e n l y J e r u s a l e m in t h e e s c h a t o n : o n l y t h e r i g h t e o u s c a n s a f e l y p a s s t h e " T h r o n e s of d e a t h . " 46. D i d y m u s t h e Blind, Comm. Eccles. 2 3 5 . 2 6 - 2 8 (on T a b i t h a ; tr. a n d ed. K r a m e r a n d Krebber); 92.5 (on H a d e s ; tr. G r o n e w a l d ) . 47. Krebber, "Die E l i a s a p o k a l y p s e bei D i d y m o s , " in K r a m e r a n d K r e b b e r , eds., Didymos der Blinde, 4:159-61. 48. O r i g e n , Comm. Matt., o n M t 27:9; s e e S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 6 4 - 7 3 . 49. J e r o m e , Comm. Is., b o o k 17, o n 64:4; Ep. 57 to P a m m a c h i u s ; s e e S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 68-71. 50. C l e m e n t of Alexandria, Protrepticus 44; Apos. Cons. 7.32.5 (both in S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 44-46, frags. III.f-g). S e e J a m e s , Lost Apocrypha, 54; D e n i s , Introduction aux pseudipigraphes grecs, 163-64 a n d n. 2.

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical Context

47

of Elijah tends to give m o r e concrete images of reward than "what eye has not seen, nor ear heard." 51 Furthermore, the phrase circulated widely as an unattributed, f o r m u laic logion. 52 Thus although its content—unimaginable heavenly rewards—suggests the type of material offered by a n apocalyptic vision, the phrase would hardly be a distinctive feature of any text. 53 Paul himself probably d r e w the p h r a s e from the store of formulas and expressions arising from ancient liturgical tradition, as Pierre Prigent has argued. 5 4 Deriving as it must from such general origins, it is understandable w h y the phrase would have circulated so widely in late antiquity. 55 But then w h a t value has Origen as a witness to an Elijah apocalypse c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s with Paul? N o n e whatsoever; it is more likely that Origen and Jerome were familiar—although not necessarily directly familiar—with an Elijah apocalypse in their o w n historical periods. W h e t h e r they k n e w that this apocalypse contained the phrase, or (equally likely) w h e t h e r they associated the p h r a s e with contents they ascribed to this apocalypse, Origen a n d Jerome decided that this apocalypse must be Paul's scriptural source at 1 Cor 2:9. It must be realized, however, that their only reason for seeking a source for 1 Cor 2:9 a m o n g the apocrypha circulating in their cultures was that Paul himself indicated that the phrase was quoted from elsewhere. Origen therefore can be a witness not to an Elijah a p o c r y p h o n of the first century C.E. or earlier but rather to o n e from his o w n time a n d place, third-century Alexandria a n d Caesarea. Because Didymus the Blind

51. E.g., A p o c E l 1:8-10; 4:27-29; 5:6, 39. D e n i s w o u l d m a k e t h e C l e m e n t p a s s a g e t h e possible c o n c l u s i o n to A p o c E l (Introduction aux pseudepigraphes grecs, 164); a n d it is t r u e that h e r e t h e r e is o n l y o n e m s . w i t n e s s (Ach), a l l o w i n g t h e possibility of a n a l t e r n a t i v e e n d i n g . But b e c a u s e C l e m e n t d o e s n o t claim t o b e q u o t i n g a n a p o c r y p h o n h e r e , least of all o n e of Elijah, it w o u l d b e a f o r c e d a n d c o n v o l u t e d a r g u m e n t , s p e c u l a t i n g o n t h e original place in A p o c E l of a p a s s a g e f r o m C l e m e n t , in o r d e r to s u p p o r t Origen's claim. Cf. B. D e h a n d s c h u t t e r , "Les A p o c a l y p s e s d'Elie," in Elie le prophete: Bible, tradition, iconographie, ed. G e r a r d F. W i l l e m s ( L o u v a i n : P e e t e r s , 1988), 6 0 - 6 1 . 52. S e e S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 4 2 - 6 3 ; E u s e b i u s , De laudibus Constantini 6.21 (PC 20:1549); a n d , in g e n e r a l , Pierre P r i g e n t , " C e q u e l'oeil n ' a p a s v u , I C o r . 2,9: H i s t o i r e et p r e h i s t o i r e d u n e citation," TZ 14 (1958):416-29. 53. S e e H a n s C o n z e l m a n n ' s d i s c u s s i o n of t h e p h r a s e a s a c o m b i n a t i o n of w i s d o m a n d a p o c a l y p t i c t h e o l o g i e s (I Corinthians, tr. J a m e s W. Leitch [ P h i l a d e l p h i a : Fortress, 1975], 63-64). 54. P r i g e n t , " C e q u e l'oeil n ' a p a s vu," 4 2 4 - 2 9 . 55. P a u l ' s o p e n i n g καθώς γίγραπται, d o e s n o t i m p l y t h a t P a u l k n e w t h e s o u r c e b u t o n l y t h a t t h e s o u r c e w a s at least o c c a s i o n a l l y f o u n d in textual f o r m . Cf. A r c h i b a l d R o b e r t s o n a n d A l f r e d P l u m m e r , A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the First Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians ( E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1911), 4 1 - 4 3 .

48

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

k n e w t w o Elijah a p o c a l y p s e s in f o u r t h - c e n t u r y Alexandria, of w h i c h only ours r e m a i n s in Coptic, it is likely that O r i g e n k n e w at least o n e of t h e m . Jerome m a y h a v e b e c o m e familiar w i t h this s e c o n d Elijah a p o c alypse either t h r o u g h its w i d e circulation or, m o r e likely, t h r o u g h his interest in Egyptian monastic culture, w h i c h circulated a n d transcribed an a b u n d a n c e of a p o c r y p h a l literature. In this respect it is interesting to n o t e a p a s s a g e of the biblical p s e u d e p i g r a p h o n Testament of Jacob, p r o b a b l y compiled a m o n g Egyptian C h r i s t i a n s of a n "Old T e s t a m e n t " orientation a f t e r the third century: 5 6 H e w a s t a k e n u p i n t o t h e h e a v e n s t o visit t h e r e s t i n g - p l a c e s . A n d b e h o l d , a h o s t of t o r m e n t o r s c a m e o u t . T h e a p p e a r a n c e o f e a c h o n e w a s d i f f e r e n t ; a n d t h e y w e r e r e a d y t o t o r m e n t t h e s i n n e r s — t h a t is t h e f o r n i c a t o r s , a n d t h e h a r l o t s , a n d t h e c a t a m i t e s . . . [etc.]. I n s h o r t , m a n y a r e t h e

punish-

m e n t s f o r all t h e s i n s w e h a v e m e n t i o n e d : t h e u n q u e n c h a b l e fire, t h e o u t e r d a r k n e s s , t h e p l a c e w h e r e t h e r e s h a l l b e w e e p i n g a n d g r i n d i n g of t e e t h , a n d t h e w o r m t h a t d o e s n o t s l e e p . A n d it i s a t e r r i b l e t h i n g f o r y o u t o b e b r o u g h t b e f o r e t h e j u d g e , a n d it i s a t e r r i b l e t h i n g t o c o m e i n t o t h e h a n d s of t h e l i v i n g G o d . W o e t o a l l s i n f u l m e n f o r w h o m t h e s e t o r t u r e s a n d t h e s e tormentors are prepared. A n d a f t e r w a r d s h e took m e a n d s h o w e d m e the p l a c e w h e r e m y f a t h e r s A b r a h a m a n d I s a a c w e r e , a p l a c e t h a t w a s all light; a n d t h e y w e r e g l a d a n d r e j o i c e d in t h e k i n g d o m of t h e h e a v e n s , in t h e city of t h e b e l o v e d . A n d h e s h o w e d m e all t h e r e s t i n g - p l a c e s a n d all t h e g o o d things p r e p a r e d for the righteous, a n d the things that eye h a s not seen n o r ear heard, and

have

n o t c o m e i n t o t h e h e a r t of m e n ,

that

God

has

p r e p a r e d f o r t h o s e w h o l o v e h i m a n d d o h i s w i l l o n e a r t h ( f o r , if t h e y e n d well, t h e y d o h i s will).57

A l t h o u g h at o n e time briefly discussed as the source of 1 Cor 2:9, the p a s s a g e is fairly obviously built o u t of a n u m b e r of q u o t a t i o n s or recollections f r o m Christian Scripture. 5 8 Its contents, h o w e v e r , curiously c o m b i n e the p h r a s e f r o m 1 Cor 2:9 a n d a tour of hell, t w o "Elianic" attributions missing f r o m t h e Coptic Elijah A p o c a l y p s e but evidently part of the lost Elijah apocalypse. T h e Testament of Jacob n o w h e r e implies an association w i t h Elijah; n o r is it a p p a r e n t that the a b o v e 56. T h e text a s s u m e s t h e e x i s t e n c e of a n e s t a b l i s h e d liturgical c a l e n d a r . Cf. J a m e s H. C h a r l e s w o r t h , The Pseudepigrapha and Modern Research, with a Supplement, Septuagint a n d C o g n a t e S t u d i e s 7 (Chico, Calif.: S c h o l a r s Press, 1981), 131-33; S c h u r e r , History of the Jewish People, 3.2:766. 57. Γ. Jacob 8 (tr. K. S. K u h n , AOT 4 4 7 - 4 8 ) . 58. S e e H.F.D. S p a r k s , 1‫ ״‬Kor 2 9 : A Q u o t a t i o n f r o m t h e C o p t i c T e s t a m e n t of J a c o b ? ' Z N W 67 (1976):267-76, e s p . 273-75, r e s p o n d i n g to E c k h a r d v o n N o r d h e i m , *Das Zitat d e s P a u l u s in 1 Kor 2 9 u n d s e i n e B e z i e h u n g z u m k o p t i s c h e n T e s t a m e n t J a k o b s , " ZNW 65 (1974):112-20.

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical C o n t e x t

49

passage derives from another source. As the sole heavenly tour in the text, however, the passage certainly d e p e n d e d on some model for its contents, particularly as the composer was relying on phrases from Christian Scripture to fill in the details. It is conceivable that an Elijah apocalypse with a tour of hell a n d "eye has not seen" phrase distantly provided this model. The Physiognomy of Antichrist Although descriptions of the a p p e a r a n c e of the eschatological Adversary circulated widely in late antiquity a n d eventually became a standard c o m p o n e n t of both Jewish a n d Christian apocalyptic literature, 59 a Greek manuscript f r a g m e n t attributes the Adversary's description to "secrets that Elijah the prophet said. 60 ‫ ״‬Both the Apocalypse of Elijah a n d Sefer Eliahu contain short physiognomies of Adversaries; yet there is not a c o m m o n detail a m o n g the three descriptions. This would suggest that only the concept of accurate descriptions of the eschatological Adversary may h a v e been associated with the authority of Elijah. 61 Sefer Eliahu This Hebrew text, 62 written in the n a m e of Elijah, was coincidentally also dated to the rise of Palmyra in the third century C.E. by its editor, Moses Buttenweiser. The text's obvious references to events in the seventh century, however, m a k e the theory of a third-century core difficult to sustain critically. 63 The text is manifestly an apocalypse, 59. See Jean-Marc Rosenstiehl, "Le portrait de l'Antichrist," in Pseudepigraphes de I'ancien testament et manuscrits de la mer morte, ed. Marc Philonenko (Paris: Presses universitaires, 1967), 45-60; Stone/Strugnell, 28-39; and Bernard McGinn, "Portraying A n t i c h r i s t i n t h e M i d d l e A g e s , " i n The Use and Abuse

of Eschatology

in the Middle

Ages,

ed. Werner Verbeke et al., Mediaevalia Lovaniensa Series 1, Studia 15 (Louvain: Louvain University Press, 1988), 1-13. 60. Paris Greek'4, f.228 r , in Stone/Strugnell, 28-29. 61. Cf. James, Lost Apocrypha, 57-60. 62. Text and G e r m a n translation in Buttenweiser, Die hebraische Elias-Apokalypse; text and Hebrew commentary in Midr"'shei G'ulah, ed. Yehudah Eben-Shmuel (Jerusalem: Mosad Bialik, 1954), 41-48. 6 3 . B u t t e n w e i s e r , Die hebraische

Elias-Apokalypse,

68-77,

s u m m a r i z e d in i d e m ,

Outline

of the Neo-Hebraic Apocalyptic Literature (Cincinnati: Jennings & Pye, 1901), 30-31. Buttenweiser's dating has been criticized in Schurer, History of the Jewish People, 3:803. On the historical context of Sef. EL, see M. Avi-Yonah, The Jews under Roman and Byzantine Rule (New York: Schocken, 1976), 261, cf. 257-60; and Salo Wittmayer Baron, A Social

and Religious

History

of the Jews, v o l . 5 : Religious

ed.; N e w York: Columbia University Press, 1957), 138-69.

Controls

and Dissensions

(2d

50

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

revealed by Michael to Elijah o n M o u n t C a r m e l (cf. 1 Kings 19). A very brief tour of the regions of t h e world, 6 4 including G e h e n n a , m o v e s quickly to a discussion of o m i n o u s battles, the precise n a m e s of t h e last kings, a n d a n eschatological timetable c u l m i n a t i n g in conflagration, j u d g m e n t , resurrection, a n d a n e w world. T h e r e are f e w parallels in Sefer Eliahu to the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. T h e f o r m e r focuses exclusively on Palestine, w h e r e a s the latter describes events in Egypt. W h e r e a s the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah only alludes to biblical passages, Sefer Eliahu cites t h e m explicitly, a l o n g w i t h certain rabbinic authorities. T h e discussion of k i n g s — P e r s i a n a n d R o m a n — hardly r e s e m b l e s the battles b e t w e e n Persians a n d Assyrians in ApocEl 2. A l t h o u g h each text contains a p h y s i o g n o m i c description of an eschatological A d v e r s a r y , the details are not parallel. 6 5 Finally, Sefer Eliahu's attribution to Elijah can b e u n d e r s t o o d within the context of Jewish mysticism, w h e r e his eschatological s t a t u s as t h e final legal a u t h o r i t y lent h i m u n p a r a l l e l e d a u t h o r i t y as the bearer of revelation. G e r s h o m Scholem o b s e r v e d that "at i m p o r t a n t t u r n i n g points in the history of Jewish mysticism—precisely at t h o s e times w h e n s o m e t h i n g n e w a p p e a r e d — c o n s t a n t r e f e r e n c e w a s m a d e to revelations of t h e p r o p h e t Elijah." 66 As m u c h as o n e can account for t h e Elijah p s e u d o n y m also in an Egyptian Christian context (see c h a p t e r 3, below), o n e can see the p s e u d o n y m as a distinctive o u t g r o w t h of early Byzantine Judaism in the case of Sefer Eliahu. It t h e r e f o r e b e c o m e s difficult to account for the coincidence of p s e u d e p i g r a p h i c authorities o n the basis of a c o m m o n Vorlage. It is scarcely possible that t h e t w o texts h a v e a c o m m o n origin, a l t h o u g h their o b v i o u s s h a r i n g of t h e m e s allows the possibility of a n Elijah revelation "tradition" of s o m e sort, a subject to w h i c h w e will return. 64. T h i s tour, w h i c h is o r g a n i z e d by d i r e c t i o n , s e e m s to reflect a larger t r a d i t i o n of Elijah's t r a v e r s e s of t h e w o r l d ; s e e Louis G i n z b e r g , The Legends of the Jews, 7 vols. ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : J e w i s h P u b l i c a t i o n Society, 1909-38), 4:203; 6:326 n. 46 (b. Berakot 4b). T h e t r a d i t i o n is a m p l y w i t n e s s e d in a K u r d i s t a n i J e w i s h h a v d a l a h h y m n : "Elijah ( d w e l l s ) a m o n g t h e a n g e l s . H e s o a r s (over) t h e e n t i r e w o r l d in f o u r orbits. . . . H e t r a v e l s (to) t h e f o u r c o r n e r s of t h e w o r l d " (4, 7), in Y o n a S a b a r , The Folk Literature of the Kurdistani Jews: An Anthology, Yale J u d a i c a Series 23 ( N e w H a v e n : Yale U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1982), 68-70. B a u c k h a m s e e s t h i s t o u r in Se/E/ a s a " s u m m a r y " of a p r i o r J e w i s h a p o c a l y p s e ("Early Jewish Visions of Hell," 362-65). 65. S e e R o s e n s t i e h l , "Le p o r t r a i t d e ! , a n t i c h r i s t , " 52. 66. G e r s h o m S c h o l e m , Origins of the Kabbalah, e d . R. J. W e r b l o w s k y , tr. A l l a n A r k u s h ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : J e w i s h P u b l i c a t i o n Society, 1987), 36; cf. 2 3 8 - 4 6 . S e e a l s o A h a r o n W i e n e r , The Prophet Elijah in the Development of Judaism: A Depth-Psychological Study ( L o n d o n : R o u t l e d g e & K e g a n Paul, 1978), 5 3 - 5 9 ; G i n z b e r g , Legends of the Jews, 4:229-33; a n d M o s h e Idel, Kabbalah: Neiv Perspectives ( N e w H a v e n : Yale U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1988), 100, 241.

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical Context

51

The Two Sorrows of the Kingdom of Heaven and the Irish Apocryphal Tradition T h e considerable s e c o n d a r y literature o n Irish biblical a p o c r y p h a h a s s h o w n in detail not only the i n d i g e n o u s folkloric sources of s o m e of t h e legends but also the early circulation in Ireland of a substantial c o r p u s of ancient Jewish a n d Christian literature f r o m t h e Mediterranean. 6 7 Early Irish Christianity's interest in the figures of Elijah a n d E n o c h a n d their destined opposition to the Antichrist is reflected in a n u m b e r of ind i g e n o u s compositions; b u t Elijah a p p a r e n t l y h e l d a special position in legend. 6 8 T h e r e f o r e w e read in a text entitled The Two Sorrows of the Kingdom of Heaven, a p p a r e n t l y d a t i n g f r o m the t e n t h or e l e v e n t h century, 69 h o w Elijah p r e a c h e d b e f o r e the birds of p a r a d i s e a f t e r his ascension: 7 0 H e p r e a c h e d t o t h e m a b o u t t h e D a y of j u d g e m e n t , in p a r t i c u l a r , a b o u t t h e t o r t u r e s t o b e m e t e d o u t t o t h e s o u l s of c e r t a i n p e r s o n s o n D o o m s d a y . T h e f o u r rivers a r o u n d M o u n t Sion w o u l d b e a s s i g n e d to b u r n souls for ten t h o u s a n d y e a r s . . . . T h u s , a g r e a t a m o u n t of distress a w a i t s t h e s i n n e r . F o r t u n a t e is h e w h o h a s a c c u m u l a t e d g o o d l y m e r i t , e v e n o n t h a t d a y i t self..., The host assembled

t h e r e will b e e n o r m o u s .

M o r e o v e r , it i s i n

the

p r e s e n c e of t h a t h o s t t h a t a l l w i l l s e t f o r t h t h e i r d e e d s , b o t h g o o d a n d b a d . . . . C h r i s t , s o n of G o d , a l o n g w i t h t h e a n g e l s of h e a v e n , a n d t h e i n h a b i 67. T h e d i v e r s i t y of late a n t i q u e texts a n d of n e w c o m p o s i t i o n s b a s e d u p o n l a t e a n t i q u e texts in m a n u s c r i p t s d a t i n g a s early a s t h e e i g h t h c e n t u r y s u g g e s t s t h a t s u c h texts b e g a n t o e n t e r I r e l a n d w i t h t h e b e g i n n i n g of Irish m o n a s t i c i s m in t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y C.E. Cf. M. R. J a m e s , " L e a r n i n g a n d L i t e r a t u r e Till P o p e S y l v e s t e r II," Cambridge Medieval History 3 (1922):504-6; St. J o h n D. S e y m o u r , "The Bringing F o r t h of t h e Soul in Irish Literature," JTS 22 (1921):16-20; i d e m , " N o t e s o n A p o c r y p h a in Ireland," Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 37C (1925-27):107-17; D. N . D u m v i l l e , "Biblical A p o c r y p h a a n d t h e Early Irish: A P r e l i m i n a r y I n v e s t i g a t i o n , " Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy 73C (1973):299-338; M a r t i n M c N a m a r a , The Apocrypha in the Irish Church (Dublin: I n s t i t u t e f o r A d v a n c e d S t u d i e s , 1975); J a n e S t e v e n s o n , "Ascent t h r o u g h t h e H e a v e n s , f r o m E g y p t t o Ireland," Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies 5 (1983):21-35; a n d Maire H e r b e r t a n d M a r t i n M c N a m a r a , eds., Irish Biblical Apocrypha: Selected Texts in Translation ( E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1989). 68. S e e D u m v i l l e , "Biblical A p o c r y p h a , " 3 0 8 - 1 1 (Elijah and E n o c h ) . Elijah a n d E n o c h lore w a s a p p a r e n t l y e v e n m o r e w i d e s p r e a d in m e d i e v a l E u r o p e : e.g., t h e s e m i - C h r i s t i a n eschatological saga in O l d G e r m a n , t h e Muspilli, w h e r e i n Elijah a l o n e f i g h t s w i t h t h e Antichrist. S e e t r a n s l a t i o n a n d d i s c u s s i o n in U r s u l a D r o n k e , "Beowulf a n d R a g n a r o k , " Saga-Book of the Viking Society 17 (1969):317-21. 69. M c N a m a r a , " I n t r o d u c t i o n , " in H e r b e r t a n d M c N a m a r a , eds., Irish Biblical Apocrypha, xxii. 70. O n m u l t i f o r m e of t h i s f r a m e n a r r a t i v e , s e e S e y m o u r , " N o t e s o n A p o c r y p h a in I r e l a n d , " 110. T h e r e a r e o b v i o u s i n d i g e n o u s folkloric r o o t s t o t h e story, a s n o a n a l o g s exist in M e d i t e r r a n e a n or J e w i s h texts (cf. G i n z b e r g , Legends of the Jews, 4:202-11).

52

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

t a n t s of e a r t h a n d of hell, will b e l i s t e n i n g t o all u n t i l t h e r e v e l a t i o n s a r e completed [A j u d g e m e n t p r o c e s s is d e s c r i b e d , w h e r e e a c h p e r s o n is w i t n e s s e d b y a n a c c o m p a n y i n g a n g e l a n d d e m o n a n d s e n t t o h e a v e n o r hell, d e p e n d i n g o n t h e " m e a s u r e ‫ ״‬of g o o d o r evil.] A t last, w h e n t h e d e c i s i o n s a b o u t t h e f a t e of t h e c h i l d r e n a r e c o m p l e t e d , t h e n C h r i s t will b i d t h o s e w h o h a v e c h o s e n t h u s to d e p a r t w i t h t h e devil a n d his rabble, to b e cast into his c o m p a n y in the eternal a b y s s . . . [ T h e a u t h o r d e s c r i b e s t h e c r y ] u t t e r e d b y t h e s o u l s in t h e i r d e l i g h t a t e s c a p i n g f r o m t h e d e v i l , a n d t h e c r y of t h e d e n i z e n s of hell l e f t b e h i n d . [ A n o t h e r ] cry is t h a t of t h e s o u l s of t h o s e w h o m e r i t h e l l , a s t h e y a r e b e i n g d r a g g e d off t o t h e e t e r n a l d w e l l i n g of p a i n a n d t o r t u r e , w h i c h h a s n o e n d . T h o s e , h o w e v e r , c h o s e n b y G o d , will g o t o t h e e t e r n a l k i n g d o m w i t h C h r i s t , s o n of G o d , t o r e m a i n t h e r e f o r e v e r a m o n g t h e h o s t s of a r c h angels.71

The discourse concludes with the f r a m e - e n d i n g "Thus Elijah preaches of the distress of Doomsday,‫ ״‬and then the text proceeds to discuss Enoch and Elijah's eschatological battle with Antichrist (§8). Here we come u p o n the statement that ‫״‬there is n o miracle performed by Christ on earth that h e [Antichrist] will not perform, except for the raising of the

dead."72

This idea finds its first a n d most detailed expression in ApocEl 3:1113; 4:31 but it does not a p p e a r to have been typical of Antichrist signs thereafter. 7 3 Further, the inability to resurrect was not a c o m m o n expectation of the Antichrist in Irish Christian tradition, for a n o t h e r apocryphon devoted exclusively to the origins a n d a p p e a r a n c e of the Antichrist says that ‫״‬he will raise the dead in imitation of Christ. 74 ‫ ״‬Thus w h e r e M. R. James once proposed that the Two Sorrows derived from "an 71. Two Sorrows, §§3-6, tr. Maire Herbert, in Herbert and McNamara, eds., Irish Biblical Apocrypha, 19-21. See also text and introduction in G. Dottin, "Les deux chagrins du r o y a u m e d u ciel," Revue celtique 21 (1909):349-87; and discussion by M c N a m a r a , Apocrypha 7 2 . Two Sorrows

in the Irish

§ 8 , i n Irish

Church,

Biblical

24-27.

Apocrypha,

21.

73. Cf. Wilhelm Bousset, The Antichrist Legend, tr. A. H. Keane (London: Hutchinson, 1896), 177-79. An eschatological tract attributed to Ephraem Syrus is t h e only other significant early source (De fine extremo 9; see Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 178, 282 n. 14), but it is d o u b t f u l that this was the text used by the author of the Two Sorrows. 74. Antichrist

§3, i n Irish

Biblical

Apocrypha,

149. S o a l s o in t h e A n t i c h r i s t d i s c o u r s e in

the Book of Lisntore; f. 110; RIA ms. 23.N.15, translated in Dottin, "Les deux chagrins," 355; and Douglas Hyde, "Mediaeval Account of Antichrist," in Medieval Studies in Memory of Gertrude Schoepperle Loomis (Paris: C h a m p i o n , 1927), 391-98. B. O ' C u i v has published a Middle Irish poem from a fourteenth century ms., which predicts, "Everything that fair Christ did while H e w a s on earth Antichrist does without difficulty except raise people f r o m the dead" ("Two Items from Irish Apocryphal Tradition: 1. The Conception and Characteristics of Antichrist," Celtica 10 [1973]:98).

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical Context

53

apocryphon w h i c h it is s a f e to say, belongs to Eastern C h r i s t e n d o m , " there is n o w good r e a s o n to believe that it is t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, in its Greek form, that lies s o m e w h e r e b e h i n d t h e Two Sorrows.75 Yet the only substantial t h e m a t i c overlaps b e t w e e n the Two Sorrows a n d the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah lie in (1) the j u d g m e n t scene, w h i c h is considerably less detailed a n d d e m o n o l o g i c a l in ApocEl 5:24-31 t h a n in Two Sorrows;76 (2) t h e general t h e m e of the r e t u r n of E n o c h a n d Elijah; a n d (3) the basic idea of t h e "distress of D o o m s d a y , " w h i c h is articulated in terms of u n d e r w o r l d p u n i s h m e n t in the Two Sorrows a n d in terms of terrestrial w o e s a n d signs in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. 7 7 T h e r e is a narrative correlation b e t w e e n the texts: the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah is essentially a n e x t e n d e d homiletic discourse, w h e r e a s the Two Sorrows is a story about s u c h a n e x t e n d e d discourse; 7 8 but this correlation r e p r e s e n t s n o m o r e t h a n a c o m m o n tradition (of w h i c h the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah might be the ultimate source). U n d e r s u c h circumstances, it is d o u b t f u l that the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah lay immediately b e f o r e t h e a u t h o r of t h e Two Sorrows. T h e most striking aspect of the Two Sorrows is its coincidental c o m bination of t h e very t w o t r a d i t i o n s — e s c h a t o l o g y a n d u n d e r w o r l d p u n 75. James, " L e a r n i n g a n d Literature," 505; cf. 5 0 2 - 3 o n circulation a n d r e a d i n g of G r e e k a p o c r y p h a in I r e l a n d . Cf. M c N a m a r a , w h o insists t h a t Irish a p o c r y p h a w i t h E a s t e r n M e d i t e r r a n e a n o r i g i n s d e r i v e f r o m Latin v e r s i o n s (Apocrypha in the Irish Church, 2 - 3 , 128). T h e Latin s o u r c e s h e h a s s u g g e s t e d , h o w e v e r — e . g . , P s e u d o - H i p p o l y t u s , De consummatione mundi (see M c N a m a r a , Apocrypha in the Irish Church, 25; cf. Dottin, "Les d e u x c h a g r i n s , " 3 5 7 - 5 8 ) — a r e late, w i t h n o a p p a r e n t p a r a l l e l s to t h e Two Sorrows. C i r c u l a t i o n of G r e e k lore a n d texts in early Irish C h r i s t i a n i t y m a y b e m a n i f e s t in S a i n t P a t r i c k ' s association of t h e n a m e Ή λ ί α ϊ w i t h t h e s u n , ήλιος, in h i s Confessions (chap. 20). T h i s n a m e t r a d i t i o n is o t h e r w i s e a t t e s t e d o n l y in t h e e a s t e r n M e d i t e r r a n e a n w o r l d (see b e l o w , p p . 71-72), s u g g e s t i n g t h a t e a r l y Irish m o n k s m a y h a v e h a d a p a r t i c u l a r interest in t h e lore of Elijah. O n early C o p t i c m i s s i o n s to I r e l a n d , s e e Aziz S. Atiya, History of Eastern Christianity ( N o t r e D a m e , Ind.: U n i v e r s i t y of N o t r e D a m e Press, 1968), 150-51. 76. T h e r e is a close parallel b e t w e e n t h e Two Sorrows's i m a g e of t h e a c c o m p a n y i n g angel a n d d e m o n , w h o t e s t i f y to a p e r s o n ' s m e a s u r e of g o o d or evil, a n d t h e e n i g m a t i c s t a t e m e n t in A p o c E l 5:26 t h a t "the s i n s of e a c h o n e will s t a n d a g a i n s t h i m in t h e p l a c e w h e r e t h e y w e r e c o m m i t t e d , w h e t h e r of t h e d a y or of t h e n i g h t . " 77. A s e p a r a t i o n b e t w e e n u n d e r w o r l d p u n i s h m e n t a n d terrestrial d i s t r e s s s e e m s t o b e i m p l i e d in a n o t h e r Irish a p o c r y p h o n The Vision of Adomnan, a tour apocalypse manifestly influenced by Enochic a n d apocalyptic Pauline literatures, w h i c h epitomizes t h e s t o r y of t h e Two Sorrows: Elijah is d e s c r i b e d a s telling t h e i n h a b i t a n t s of P a r a d i s e "of t h e p u n i s h m e n t s a n d t o r t u r e s of hell, and t h e terrors of D o o m s d a y " (Adomnan 43, ed. a n d tr. H e r b e r t , in H e r b e r t a n d M c N a m a r a , eds., Irish Biblical Apocrypha, 147). 78. In t h e E t h i o p i a n J e w i s h text Abba Elijah, a n e x t e n d e d h o m i l y o n d i v e r s e s u b j e c t s (including, at t h e e n d , e s c h a t o l o g y ) is f r a m e d a s t h e w o r d s of " p r e a c h e r A b b a Elijah, of t h e city of Rome"; s e e text in Wolf Leslau, Falasha Anthology, Yale J u d a i c a Series 6 ( N e w H a v e n : Yale U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1951; r e p r i n t , N e w York: S c h o c k e n , 1969), 4 0 - 4 9 .

54

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

ishments—ascribed to an Elijah a p o c r y p h o n by late a n t i q u e sources, as discussed above. P u n i s h m e n t of s i n n e r s is given m u c h m o r e e m p h a s i s in the Irish text t h a n in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah ( w h e r e it is largely implied that sinners will die in the reign of, or with, t h e Lawless O n e ) . T h e Two Sorrows casts its u n d e r w o r l d p u n i s h m e n t s into the a f t e r m a t h of an eschatological j u d g m e n t , in contrast to the Pseudo-Titus Epistle a n d the Chronicle of Jerachmeel, w h i c h b o t h reveal p u n i s h m e n t s as the status q u o of an (ongoing) u n d e r w o r l d . 7 9 T h e Two Sorrows d o e s not discuss m e t h ods of p u n i s h m e n t , w h e r e a s t h e t w o Elijah "quotations" dwell luridly o n m e a s u r e - f o r - m e a s u r e deserts. A n d t h e r e are m a n y differences b e t w e e n the eschatology of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah a n d that of t h e Two Sorrows. Yet s o m e h o w t h e a u t h o r h a s e n v i s i o n e d the p r o p e r topics of a n Elijah discourse to be eschatology a n d p u n i s h m e n t s . C o u l d it, t h e r e f o r e , reflect the original, core Elijah a p o c r y p h o n ? This is d o u b t f u l . K n o w l e d g e of t h e transmission of m a n u s c r i p t s bet w e e n the Greek world a n d Ireland is exceedingly primitive, a n d the most responsible appraisal of s u c h a p p a r e n t textual affiliations s h o u l d neither require i m m e d i a t e textual d e p e n d e n c e n o r extrapolate f r o m o n e medieval Irish text to explain t h e diverse Elijah a p o c r y p h a of late a n tiquity. It is m o r e plausible to suggest that t h e a u t h o r of t h e Two Sorrows h a d o n c e h e a r d or read the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah b u t w a s m o r e interested in (or r e m e m b e r e d with m o r e relish) its s y m b o l i s m of the j u d g m e n t t h a n in all the cosmic a n d social distress p o r t r a y e d as l e a d i n g u p to that j u d g m e n t . A l t h o u g h h e m i g h t h a v e e n c o u n t e r e d the tradition of Elijah's u n d e r w o r l d visions t h r o u g h Christian folklore, the discussion of p u n i s h m e n t s in the Two Sorrows can be better u n d e r s t o o d as a n e x p a n s i o n of the c o r r e s p o n d i n g section of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah t h a n as a n eschatologizing e p i t o m e of the lurid Pseudo-Titus Epistle.

Conclusion: Apocalypse of Elijah and Elianica M. R. James c o n c l u d e d after his 1920 s u r v e y of s u c h Elianic references a n d writings: It is q u i t e p r o b a b l e ,

I think,

that

the original Apocalypse

[of

Elijah]

c o n t a i n e d a l l t h e i n g r e d i e n t s t h a t t h e f r a g m e n t s s h o w u s , d e s c r i p t i o n s of

79. Explicit d e s c r i p t i o n s of u n d e r w o r l d p u n i s h m e n t s a r e cast in t h e c o n t e x t of eschatological p r o p h e c y in Apoc. Pet. 7 - 1 3 (Eth ). T h e r e is a n i n d i c a t i o n in s u c h l i t e r a t u r e of a t e n s i o n b e t w e e n t r a d i t i o n s of e s c h a t o l o g i c a l j u d g m e n t a n d r e c o m p e n s e ( p e r h a p s n a t i v e t o s e c t a r i a n e s c h a t o l o g y ) a n d t r a d i t i o n s of a f t e r d e a t h j u d g m e n t a n d r e c o m p e n s e ( p e r h a p s n a t i v e to less s e c t a r i a n a n d e s c h a t o l o g i c a l l y o r i e n t e d g r o u p s ) .

The Apocalypse of Elijah in Its Biblical C o n t e x t

55

h e l l - t o r m e n t s , e s c h a t o l o g i c a l p r o p h e c y , d e s c r i p t i o n s of A n t i c h r i s t a n d d i d a c t i c m a t t e r . But n e i t h e r of t h e e x t a n t A p o c a l y p s e s c a n b e s u p p o s e d t o represent the old b o o k faithfully. T h e Coptic h a s been Christianized, the H e b r e w a b r i d g e d , a n d a d d i t i o n s m a d e to both.80

In 1979, Stone a n d Strugnell expressed a more equivocal opinion: "The editors believe that, in antiquity there w a s at least o n e Elijah apocryphon"; and yet the "fragments . . . may, as literary pieces, go back to, or reflect knowledge of, an early Greek apocryphal work on Elijah. 81 ‫״‬ Sparks alone has taken the restrained position that "there were probably several 'Elijahs' circulating in the early centuries in various languages, some of which were only distantly related to o n e another, if at all." 82 This is the view assumed in this book. If there w a s ever an original text disclosing the revelations of Elijah—and there is n o evidence that there ever was—it is inextricable from the profusion of Elianic texts and, more importantly, Elianic lore that circulated in the Greco-Roman period. 8 3 We h a v e concrete evidence, therefore, for (1) an Elijah apocryphon composed in Greek in the latter half of the third century C.E., consisting almost entirely of eschatology a n d k n o w n both as Elijah's "prophecy" (Didymus the Blind) a n d Elijah's "apocalypse" (Ach)—the subject of this study; a n d (2) an Elijah apocryphon composed in H e b r e w in the seventh century C.E., p e r h a p s on the basis of a prior version. We also have good reason, on the testimony of Didymus, to consider the existence of (3) a Greek Elijah a p o c r y p h o n containing a tour of hell. If Origen h a d heard of or read this apocryphon, then its terminus ante quern would be a r o u n d 244 C.E. (the period of his c o m m e n t a r y on the Gospel of Matthew). Its earliest date would be impossible to establish, but given this h y p o thetical text's absence so far a m o n g Egyptian manuscript archives, it would p e r h a p s be u n s a f e to push the terminus post quern back further than the second century C.E. or to assume Jewish origin. 84 Further, o n e cannot p r e s u m e a literary connection between this hypothetical Greek tour-apocalypse of Elijah and the Elijah tour fragments in the Epistle of

80. James, Lost Apocrypha, 61. This assumption is again reflected in Richard Bauckham, ' T h e Apocalypses in the N e w Pseudepigrapha,* JSNT 26 (1986):109-10. 81. Stone/Strugnell, 1, 6 (emphasis mine). John Strugnell reiterated his conviction in the existence of an Ur-Elijah a p o c r y p h o n in a conversation with the author in April 1989. 82. Sparks, "Introduction to the Apocalypse of Elijah," 759. 83. Cf. Dehandschutter, "Les Apocalypses d'Elie," 64-67. 84. This would place t h e text in the early period of Christian tour-of‫־‬hell apocalypses; cf. Himmelfarb, Tours of Hell, 169-70.

56

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

Pseudo-Titus and the Chronicle of Jerachmeel. So Didymus's ‫״‬Apocalypse of Elijah‫ ״‬m a y simply be o n e more imaginative retelling of the lore of Elijah, this time written in Alexandria. Finally, because Origen's theory of 1 Cor 2:9 is incorrect a n d no source-critical dissections of the Coptic Elijah apocalypse h a v e sueceeded convincingly in demonstrating a Jewish Vorlage, w e h a v e no reason to assume or even to seek a pre-Christian Elijah apocalypse. Certainly, the argument f r o m silence cannot be pushed too far; but w h e n only sheer conjecture proposes Hellenistic Jewish writing in the n a m e of Elijah, we would be mistaken to seek proof in such obviously late texts as the three Elijah apocrypha mentioned above. The diverse Elianica that we h a v e discussed d o indicate the parameters within which revelations of Elijah w e r e composed t h r o u g h o u t late antiquity. If w e except the "eye has not seen" saying as too widespread to be indicative, then these parameters would be constituted by (1) revelations of the u n d e r w o r l d and (2) revelations of the eschaton, with particular attention to the a p p e a r a n c e of the eschatological Adversary. N o d o u b t the parameters functioned in the following way: a text, or even a fragment, that dealt with either or both of these subjects would be attributed to Elijah, w h o was understood to be an authority on such matters (presumably insofar as h e w a s supposed to have traveled through the h e a v e n s from Mount Horeb a n d to return to expose the eschatological Adversary in the eschaton). 8 5 Precisely h o w such texts or fragments were thereby understood as the revelations of Elijah—generally and in the specific context of early Egyptian Christianity—occupies chapter 3. This theory would allow for the possibility that the a u t h o r s o f t h e Pseudo-Titus

Epistle

a n d t h e Chronicle

of Jerachmeel

may

have inserted in their works, as traditional Elianica, unattributed fragm e n t s containing u n d e r w o r l d descriptions. That is, they would h a v e labeled them as visions of Elijah because these represented the type of revelation that these authors associated with Elijah. 86 Of course, other figures were credited with both u n d e r w o r l d a n d eschatological rev85. Himmelfarb proposes that "in the late Second Temple period tours with a particular interest in the p u n i s h m e n t of the wicked after death must have circulated . . . the heroes were probably Isaiah and Elijah" (Tours of Hell, 169), although her basis for this conjecture is the m u c h later use of these figures as guides a m o n g t h e earlier extant tour texts. Cf. Bauckham, "Early Jewish Visions of Hell," 362-65, 375-76. 86. Himmelfarb proposes that the Pseudo-Titus Elijah f r a g m e n t w a s itself interpolated with Christian imagery (Tours of Hell, 36). If so, it would demonstrate the continuing authority of the Elianic vision for some Christians.

T h e Apocalypse o f Elijah in Its Biblical C o n t e x t

57

elations, a n d we must therefore explain w h y Elijah is the seer in some cases a n d Paul, Peter, Ezra, or Mary in others. T h e a n s w e r probably lies in the relative authority or ‫ ״‬traditionally" that o n e n a m e (and his or her legend) held in any particular place a n d time. The d o m i n a n t status of Elijah in early Coptic asceticism is discussed in the next chapter. Even w h e n the a b u n d a n c e of Elijah attributions a n d texts are accounted for through the acknowledgment of a historically fluid tradition, questions remain about the extant texts: If the Elijah tradition encompassed both eschatological a n d u n d e r w o r l d visions, w h y do the three extant Elijah texts—Apocalypse of Elijah, Sefer Eliahu, a n d the Two Sorrows—only allude to the u n d e r w o r l d (vividly, in the case of the Two Sorrows) without incorporating or inventing an u n d e r w o r l d tour? Did the two traditions of Elijah's revelations continue independently? Was there ever the desire on the part of an early scribe—as there was in the case of Enoch literature—to compile (or compose) a complete apocalypse of Elijah out of the diverse traditions circulating in late antiquity? At the present state of availability of Elijah texts, these questions cannot be answered. It is conceivable that, as more Elijah texts are f o u n d a n d more non-Elijah texts are explored for Elijah traditions, the tendencies of traditions a n d composition will increasingly be fleshed out. It is h o p e d that the observations a n d hypotheses a d v a n c e d in this book will sustain the evidence afforded by further discoveries.

3 The Context of Christian Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

T h e discussion of a n Elianic revelation tradition raises a m o r e general issue—the m e a n i n g of Elijah p s e u d e p i g r a p h y itself. W h y write a b o o k in t h e n a m e of Elijah? W h a t significance did his n a m e carry a n d for w h o m ? W h a t is the relationship b e t w e e n the l e g e n d a r y Elijah a n d the c o n t e n t s of a text written in his n a m e ? A l t h o u g h r e v e r e n c e for biblical h e r o e s s u c h as Elijah, Enoch, a n d Moses w a s w i d e s p r e a d in antiquity, t h e s e q u e s t i o n s m u s t b e a s k e d separately of each Elijah p s e u d e p i g r a p h o n w e h a v e discussed, for e a c h is a p r o d u c t of its i m m e d i a t e e n v i r o n m e n t a n d religious culture. T h u s just as the p s e u d e p i g r a p h y of Sefer Eliahu m u s t b e explained in the context of sixth- a n d s e v e n t h - c e n t u r y Palestine, so o n e m u s t u n d e r s t a n d t h e motivations of Elianic composition a n d attribution in third- a n d f o u r t h - c e n t u r y Egypt to explain t h e p s e u d e p i g r a p h y of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. 1 T h i s c h a p t e r w a s p r e s e n t e d in s h o r t e r f o r m t o t h e C o n s u l t a t i o n in C h r i s t i a n A p o c r y p h a of t h e SBL 1989 A n n u a l M e e t i n g , C h i c a g o , N o v e m b e r 1989. 1. P s e u d e p i g r a p h y p e r s e h a s b e e n s t u d i e d f r o m a n u m b e r of d i f f e r e n t a n g l e s , p a r t i c u l a r l y t h a t of p s y c h o l o g i c a l m o t i v a t i o n . T h i s topic h a s b e e n b r a c k e t e d in this s t u d y a n d t h e a n a c h r o n i s t i c q u e s t i o n of ' d e c e p t i o n * t h r o u g h p s e u d e p i g r a p h y h a s b e e n a v o i d e d . P s e u d e p i g r a p h y w a s a c u l t u r a l p h e n o m e n o n , a n d its m o t i v a t i o n s r a n g e d f r o m t h e n e e d for a h e r o ' s a u t h o r i t y to t h e literary c o n v e n t i o n s of s o m e scribal g r o u p . See, e.g., L. H. B r o c k i n g t o n , *The P r o b l e m of P s e u ' d o n y m i t y , " / I S 4 (1953):15-22; Kurt A l a n d , " T h e P r o b l e m of A n o n y m i t y a n d P s e u d o n v m i t y in C h r i s t i a n L i t e r a t u r e of t h e First T w o C e n t u r i e s , " ITS 12 (1961):39-49; W o l f g a n g S p e y e r , ' R e l i g o s e P s e u d e p i g r a p h i e u n d literarische F a l s c h u n g im A l t e r t u m , " jAC 8 / 9 (1965/66):88-125; Bruce M. M e t z g e r , "Literary Forgeries a n d C a n o n i c a l P s e u d e p i g r a p h a , " /BL 91 (1972):3-24; M o r t o n S m i t h , " P s e u d e p i g r a p h y in t h e Israelite Literary T r a d i t i o n , " in Pseudepigrapha /, e d . Kurt v o n Fritz, E n t r e t i e n s s u r l ' a n t i q u i t e c l a s s i q u e 18 ( G e n e v a : V a n d o e u v r e s , 1972), 191-227;

58

59

The C o n t e x t o f Christian Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

Because the m e a n s by which a text might gain authority through a p s e u d o n y m are twofold, the issue in the Apocalypse of Elijah will be approached in two ways: first, by examining the social and religious milieu that might give rise to Elijah pseudepigraphy; a n d second, by considering the w a y s in which the p s e u d o n y m o u s authority is constructed within the text. These two contexts will be referred to as, respectively, the religious context a n d the narrative context. The religious context represents the cultural or practical significance of a pseudo n y m o u s authority (in this case, Elijah). The narrative context denotes the story of revelation—whatever connects the substance of revelation with the scriptural (or legendary) traditions of the p s e u d o n y m o u s authority.

NARRATIVE CONTEXT OF ELIJAH PSEUDEPIGRAPHY IN THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH The Apocalypse of Elijah does not discuss the m a n n e r or recipient of revelation; hence there are n o explicit indications of its Elijah pseudepigraphy, apart from the title. It will be necessary, therefore, to examine other Elijah materials to f o r m some idea of h o w this text might h a v e been considered an "Apocalypse of Elijah,‫ ״‬w h e t h e r by the author or a later scribe. Would an audience in Upper Egypt h a v e assumed a particular frame-story telling the circumstances of Elijah's revelation? The Apocalypse of Elijah opens: "The word of the Lord came to m e saying, 'Say to this people, "Why do you add sin to your sins a n d anger the Lord G o d w h o created you?"‫ "׳‬This prophetic commission formula, coupled with a remonstrative oracle, seems to be built out of similar formulas in Ezekiel and Jeremiah; these formulas would have been easily remembered by Egyptian Christian scribes. But the introduction also recalls the language of the biblical Elijah legend: "Then the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying, ' G o d o w n , . . . a n d you shall say to him'" (1 Kgs 21:17, 19). Likewise, o n Carmel, Elijah uses the s a m e kind of rhetorical question against the masses: "How long will you go limping with two different opinions?" (1 Kgs 18:21). The language of the Martin Hengel, "Anonymitat, P s e u d e p i g r a p h i e u n d 'Literarische Falschung' in der judisch-hellenistischen Literatur,‫ ״‬in Pseudepigrapha I, ed. von Fritz, 231-329; C h r i s t o p h e r R o w l a n d , The Open

Heaven:

A Study

of Apocalyptic

Christianity ( N e w York: Crossroad, 1982), 61-70, 240-47.

in Judaism

and

Early

60

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

introduction t h e r e f o r e w o u l d allow s o m e c o n n e c t i o n b e t w e e n t h e text of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah a n d t h e Elijah of biblical legend. T h e contents of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah p r o v i d e i n f o r m a t i o n a b o u t t h e e s c h a t o n a n d its p r e c e d i n g w o e s a n d t h e r e f o r e could constitute an eschatological revelation, given by or to s o m e l e g e n d a r y figure. F u r t h e r more, the Elianic revelation tradition r e p r e s e n t e d by the Chronicle of Jerachmeel, the Pseudo-Titus Epistle, a n d o t h e r texts discussed a b o v e provide evidence that Elijah w a s believed (in s o m e Jewish a n d Christian circles of late antiquity) to h a v e received revelations c o n c e r n i n g t h e u n d e r w o r l d a n d t h e j u d g m e n t . Yet t h e biblical story of Elijah d o e s n o t m e n t i o n a particular occasion for revelation of a n y kind. O n c e again o n e m a y ask, W h y w e r e these revelations attributed to Elijah? N o legend of Elijah's revelations a p p e a r s in the earliest Lives of the Prophets,2 but in t w o later recensions h e is said to h a v e "traversed the h e a v e n s [0ι‫׳‬ραι07‫׳‬Γ0λώι‫ ]׳‬with angels" 3 a n d to h a v e b e e n "reckoned w o r t h y of the greatest mysteries a n d divine gifts [χαρισμάτων]."4 Both passages refer to Elijah's lifetime r a t h e r t h a n to e v e n t s f o l l o w i n g his ascent by chariot (cf. 2 Kgs 2: l l ) . 5 A similar tradition is r e p o r t e d by t h e f o u r t h - c e n t u r y Syriac writer A p h r a a t , w h o states that "the Holy O n e t r a n s p o r t e d [Elijah] into the a b o d e of the saints, w h e r e t h o s e w h o love impurity h a v e n o power." 6 T h e s e texts s h o w the existence of a tradition in w h i c h Elijah received revelations, t h u s s u p p l e m e n t i n g the tradition already discussed of the c o n t e n t of Elijah's revelations. T h e s e texts d o not indicate, h o w e v e r , the precise narrative context in w h i c h the Apocalypse of Elijah m i g h t h a v e b e e n h e a r d . 7 The clearest indication of this narrative context is in Sefer Eliahu. To 2. Vitae Prophetarum, C o d e x M a r c h a l i a n u s , Elijah (tr. D.R.A. H a r e , OTP 2:396-97). 3. R e c e n s i o n D o r o t h e i , in S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 95. 4. R e c e n s i o n E p i p h a n i i , in S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 97. D a t i n g e s t i m a t e s f r o m S c h u r e r , The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ, ed. G e z a V e r m e s , Fergus Millar, a n d M a r t i n G o o d m a n , 3 vols. ( E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1973-87), 3:785. 5. P r e s u m a b l y a n y r e v e l a t i o n s r e c e i v e d a f t e r this p o i n t in t h e l e g e n d w o u l d r e q u i r e s o m e a c c o u n t of Elijah's d e s c e n t or r e a p p e a r a n c e , s o t h a t t h e r e v e l a t i o n s c o u l d b e t r a n s m i t t e d as literary a p o c a l y p s e . W h i l e t h e r e existed a v a s t l o r e c o n c e r n i n g E l i j a h ' s e s c h a t o l o g i c a l r e t u r n (as p e r M a l a c h i 4), a r e v e l a t i o n t h a t d e p e n d e d u p o n t h i s lore to e x p l a i n its e x i s t e n c e w o u l d a l s o i m p l y t h a t t h e e s c h a t o n itself h a d c o m e . T o a c e r t a i n e x t e n t , this is t h e case in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah (see b e l o w , p p . 2 6 5 - 6 6 , 296-98), b u t t h e Elijah r e v e l a t i o n s in g e n e r a l d o n o t reflect t h i s i m p l i c a t i o n a b o u t t h e t i m e s of t h e reader. 6. A p h r a a t , De virginitate et sanctitate, P a t r o l o g i a syriaca 1, 1:833-34. 7. Cf. t h e n a r r a t i v e c o n t e x t s in w h i c h g n o s t i c r e v e l a t i o n s w e r e a t t r i b u t e d to Jesus: " T h e f a v o u r i t e p e r i o d for s u c h r e v e l a t i o n s is t h e f o r t y d a y s b e t w e e n t h e r e s u r r e c t i o n a n d t h e (final) a s c e n s i o n , b u t o t h e r e v e n t s f r o m t h e life of Jesus a r e a l s o u s e d , s u c h a s t h e t r a n s f i g u r a t i o n s c e n e " (Kurt R u d o l p h , Gnosis, tr. R. McL. W i l s o n [San Francisco: H a r p e r & R o w , 1983], 151).

The C o n t e x t of Christian Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

61

its eschatological prophecies Sefer Eliahu adds two literary elements: (1) it begins with a quotation of 1 Kgs 19:5-9, the description of Elijah's journey to Mount Horeb; a n d (2) it contains the following f r a m e story: M i c h a e l t h e g r e a t P r i n c e of Israel r e v e a l e d t h i s m y s t e r y t o E l i j a h t h e p r o p h e t o n M o u n t C a r m e l : t h e E n d a n d t h e a g e w h i c h is t o c o m e at t h e e n d of d a y s , a t t h e e n d of t h e f o u r t h k i n g d o m , in t h e d a y s of t h e f o u r t h k i n g w h o is t o c o m e : " T h e s p i r i t of t h e L o r d l i f t e d m e u p a n d t o o k m e t o t h e e a s t of t h e w o r l d , a n d I s a w t h e r e a h i g h p l a c e in f l a m e s , s u c h t h a t n o - o n e c o u l d e n t e r in t h e r e . A g a i n t h e s p i r i t l i f t e d m e u p a n d t o o k m e t o t h e s o u t h of t h e world.8‫״‬

In each direction Elijah beholds secret places, o n e of which is hell; following these brief tours of the cosmos, the archangel Michael tells him of the eschaton. Although originating in a distinctly different place and time from the Apocalypse of Elijah, Sefer Eliahu expresses a tradition associating Elijah's revelations with a particular point in his legend: his ascent of a mountain. It should be noted that Sefer Eliahu contradicts itself by giving both Horeb and Carmel as the mountain; but in addition to Elijah's intimacy there with the ‫״‬still, small v o i c e 1 ) ‫״‬ 19:12-13), there is another reason to believe that Horeb was the originally intended locus of Elijah's revelations. According to the ninth- or tenth-century Midrash Tanhuma, God revealed to Elijah that the four p h e n o m e n a that h e beheld on Horeb represented the four worlds that h u m a n k i n d must traverse: life on earth (as the storm), death (as the earthquake), hell (as fire), a n d judgment (as the small voice). 9 This h a g g a d a h does not only correspond to the four worlds that Elijah tours in Sefer Eliahu; it also suggests a connection between the eschatological content of m a n y Elianic revelations and the symbolic p h e n o m e n a of 1 Kgs 19:11-12. 10 8. Sefer Eliahu, in Midfshei G'ulah, ed. Eben-Shmuel (Jerusalem: Mosad Bialik, 1954), 41; cf. Moses Buttenweiser, Die Hebrdische Elias-Apokalypse (Leipzig: Eduard Pfeiffer, 1897), 15 (directions reversed). 9. Midrash Tanhuma, P e k u d e 2; Yezirat ha-Valad 155; cited in Louis Ginzberg, The Legends of the Jews, 7 vols. (Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1909-38), 4:200; 6:322 n. 30. O n the dating of this tractate, see M o s h e David Herr, "Tanhuma Yelammedenu," in Encyclopedia Judaica (New York: Macmillan, 1971), 15:795. In t h e Targum to the Kings passage, Elijah beholds angels of wind, storm, and fire before seeing God himself. 10. A twelfth-century Coptic e n c o m i u m to Elijah, attributed to John Chrysostom, gives an extensive discourse on right piety and rewards, apparently delivered by God to Elijah while he is on Mount Horeb. See E. A. Wallis Budge, "On the Fragments of a Coptic Version of an Encomium o n Elijah the Tishbite, attributed to Saint John

Kgs

62

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

But w h a t u s e m i g h t Sefer Eliahu, w i t h its f r a m e - s t o r y a n d h e n c e m o r e apocalyptic format, h a v e for Egyptian Christianity? A c o n n e c t i o n can be m a d e t h r o u g h Coptic healing, binding, a n d a m u l e t spells f r o m the Byzantine period. It b e c a m e c o n v e n t i o n a l in G r e c o - E g y p t i a n "magic" to identify or authorize a set of ritual instructions or e v e n a m e r e spell u n d e r an authoritative p s e u d o n y m , m u c h like a m i n i a t u r e apocalypse. T h e Testament of Solomon a n d t h e Eighth Book of Moses ( P G M XIII.1-343)

are good e x a m p l e s of this device. It w a s also c o m m o n in Coptic ritual spells to m a k e an oblique or cursory r e f e r e n c e to s o m e legend associated with Christ, Mary, Peter, or H e b r e w figures—called a historiola—to i n v o k e the p o w e r to p e r f o r m a particular feat or cure. T h e historiola, a cross-cultural speech p h e n o m e n o n , consists of a n invocation of a m y t h i cal p r o t o t y p e for a desired act, expressed in a n o f t e n enigmatic s h o r t h a n d . Historiolae in Coptic spells d r a w u p o n the p a r a d i g m a t i c narratives of biblical a n d Christian legend as m y t h s , in order to i n v o k e the s a m e p o w e r in c o n t e m p o r a r y times. 1 1 T h e historiola constitutes, in Bronislaw Malinowski's terms, "the historical s t a t e m e n t of o n e of those e v e n t s w h i c h once for all v o u c h for t h e t r u t h of a certain f o r m of magic. 1 2 ‫״‬ T h e legend of Elijah w a s also u s e d as such a f r a m i n g device. A line of p o w e r f u l χαρακτήρ«‫ ן‬on a Coptic p a p y r u s of t h e sixth or s e v e n t h c e n t u r y is i n t r o d u c e d with t h e p h r a s e "This is the φυλακατηρων of the p r a y e r of Elijah." 13 A complex spell f r o m t h e s a m e period begins, "The P r a y e r of Elijah the Tishbite: (It is) the chariot of Christ that b e h a s prayed: Jesus is the n a m e ; h e h a s raised u p the o n e w h o seeks(?) after h i m [eTeK.TN*q]. 14 ‫ ״‬Here t h e r e f e r e n c e to Elijah is d r a w n out t h r o u g h an C h r y s o s t o m , ‫ ־‬Transactions

of the Society of Biblical

Archaeology

9 (1893)1367-69, 393-94.

In his brief review of "Apocalypses d a n s le Talmud" (Revue des (1880]:108-14), Israel Levi proposed that a passage in b. Sanhedrin 9, in questioned about the age of the world, derives from a larger apocalyptic Elijah is the revealer (110). The postulated text might be an early form of another, independent Elijah apocalypse. 11. Cf. Kropp, 3:5-9, 51-63, 218-24. 12. B r o n i s l a w

Malinowski,

City, N.Y.: Doubleday, antecedent";

see

Magic,

Science,

and

Religion,

and

Other

etudes juives 1 which Elijah is work in which Sefer Eliahu, or

Essays

(Garden

1954), 84. Gerardus Van der Leeuw calls it t h e "magical

h i s Religion

in

Essence

and

Manifestation,

tr. J. E. T u r n e r

(2d

ed.;

Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1964), 423. 13. P.London Hay 10434 v , in W. E. Crum, "Magical Texts in Coptic—II," JEA 20 (1934): 199. 14. P.Rainer 108, spell 2, in Viktor Stegemann, Die koptischen Zaubertexte der Sammlung

Papyrus

Erzherzog

Rainer

in

Wien,

Sitzungsberichte

der

heidelberger

Aka-

demie der Wissenschaften, Philos.-hist. Klasse (Heidelberg: Carl Winters Universitatsb u c h h a n d l u n g , 1934), 73-76, cf. ibid., 26. Stegemann derives ε τ ε κ τ Ν λ ί ! f r o m κ ω τ ε .

T h e C o n t e x t o f C h r i s t i a n Elijah Pseudepigraphy in E g y p t

63

oblique reference to the chariot of fire in which Elijah w a s assumed. O n e may infer from these texts that a tradition of "Elijah's prayer" was current in Coptic ritual tradition, a n d that therefore the clients of "magic"—which included everybody in Roman Egypt a n d b e y o n d — considered a correspondence b e t w e e n Elijah a n d p o w e r f u l speech to be conceivable. 1 5 A third spell provides further evidence of an Elijah "folklore" that assimilated biblical legend for pragmatic applications. It invokes the legend of Elijah splitting the Jordan River to dry u p a hemorrhage. Moreover, like the first two spells' reference to a prayer of Elijah, this o n e refers to Elijah's magic "command." F o r a flow o r d i s c h a r g e of b l o o d : (As) E l i j a h , b e i n g a b o u t t o c r o s s o v e r t h e J o r d a n , u p o n t h e w a t e r , o n f o o t , h e l d u p h i s s t a f f in c o m m a n d s t h a t t h e J o r d a n b e like t h e d r y l a n d , s o also, L o r d , c a s t t h e flow f r o m N N , t h r o u g h t h e p o w e r of t h e O n e in w h o s e h a n d s a r e t h e k e y s of t h e h e a v e n s , LAGAR GAR GAR AROMARKAR16

In the fourth text, from the tenth century, Elijah's p o w e r f u l speech is invoked as a f r a m e for the spell that follows, but this time in the context of a legendary "holy mountain": T h e b i n d i n g w o r d s , w h i c h Elijah the p r o p h e t s p o k e u p o n the holy mountain, of w h i c h t h e n a m e s a r e t h e s e : CHAKOURI CHABNE1 C H A B N A SHORANI S H O U I O N A Let t h i s b i n d i n g b e u p o n t h e m a l e o r g a n of N N ( e n t e r i n g ) i n t o N N 1 7

The text does not specify with which m o u n t a i n the spell should be associated (presumably Carmel or Horeb). If Carmel, it should be associated with Elijah's prayer to bring d o w n fire from heaven (1 Kgs 18:3638); if Horeb, it should be understood as w o r d s that were "revealed" to 15. This idea of Elijah's words of power is still prominent in Syriac tradition; see Michel Hayek, "Elie d a n s la tradition syriaque," in Elie le prophete, vol. 1: Scion les ecritures et les traditions chretiennes (Bruges: Les e t u d e s carmelitaines, 1956), 170. 16. P.London Hay 10391 v , 11. 1-4, in Kropp 1:59. 17. P.Heidelberg'1682, 11. 29-34, in Friederich Bilabel and Adolf G r o h m a n , Griechische, koptische, und arabische Texte zur Religion und religiosen Literatur in Agyptens Spdtzeit, Veroffentlichungen aus d e n badischen P a p y r u s - S a m m l u n g e n 5 (Heidelberg: Verlag der Universitatsbibliothek, 1934), 394.

64

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

Elijah as part of a larger revelation. Because the text does not specify which of these two, however, it is equally likely that Carmel a n d Horeb had symbolically merged in the practical context of the magical historiola, that is, there w a s o n e m o u n t a i n with which Elijah's p o w e r f u l speech a n d his knowledge of spells was associated. 1 8 W h e n a ritual text attributed its spells or formulas to a hero in late antiquity, there was invariably a story presupposed of h o w that hero might have come by such magical words. The Testament of Solomon a n d the Eighth Book of Moses again are good examples of this literary presupposition, but the Greek Magical Papyri are full of attributions to such lesser-known figures as Astrapsoukos (PGM VIII. 1), Zminis of Tentyra (PGM XII.121), a n d Pythagoras (PGM VII.795). 19 Similarly, it may be argued from the fourth Elijah spell cited above a n d its association of Elijah with a holy m o u n t a i n and with w o r d s of power that this spell presupposed a story—a wider tradition—that Elijah received a revelation on top of a m o u n t a i n . Although the full extent of this tradition is retained only in Sefer Eliahu, there are indications that a legend of Elijah's m o u n t a i n t o p revelation lies behind the additions to Elijah section of the Lives of the Prophets. Moreover, the attestation of this tradition in the sphere of practical ritual, or "magic,‫ ״‬suggests (1) that there was a sizable Elijah folklore in Coptic Egypt, a n d (2) that the legend of Elijah's m o u n t a i n t o p revelation was a part of this folklore. Indeed, the idea of his p o w e r f u l speech a n d the diversity of subjects to which it was applied probably arose from such a revelation tradition, rather than from the prayer in 1 Kings 18.20 C a n one indeed infer from such a culturally a n d historically broad sampling of texts to the Apocalypse of Elijah? It should be r e m e m b e r e d that the issue here is the narrative context by which an audience, with its store of Elijah legends, could c o m p r e h e n d the nature of an Elianic 18. O n the symbolism of Horeb and its synthesis with other m o u n t a i n s in biblical tradition, see Robert L. C o h n , The Shape of Sacred Space, AARSR (Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, 1981), 43-45, 54-61. The centrality of m o u n t a i n t o p s in the visionary traditions of ancient Judaism has also been discussed by George W.E. Nickelsburg, "Enoch, Levi, a n d Peter: Recipients of Revelation in Upper Galilee," JBL 100 (1981 ):586, 589, 599. 19. See Hans Dieter Betz, "The Formation of Authoritative Tradition in the Greek Magical Papyri," in Jewish and Christian Self-Definition, vol. 3: Self-Definition in the Greco-Roman World, ed. Ben F. Meyer and E. P. Sanders (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1982), 161-70, 236-38. 20. Medieval (and p e r h a p s earlier) Jewish magical tradition employed another, apocryphal Elijah legend for magical purposes: his opposition to Lilith and protection of a birthing w o m a n . Gershom Scholem sees this historiola as a late importation from Byzantine Christian tradition (Kabbalah [New York: N e w American Library, 1978], 35960), although Richard Greenfield views the Christian tradition itself as late (Traditions of Belief in Late Byzantine Demonology [Amsterdam: Hakkert, 1988], 187 n. 565).

The Context of Christian Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

65

revelation. While it is conceivable that the apocalyptic narrative f r a m e here reconstructed arose during the later Byzantine period, closer to the time of the extant sources, there are compelling reasons to take the later evidence as witness to a tradition current in the third century. First, such a diverse selection of texts nonetheless reflects a fairly consistent legend of Elijah's revelations. Second, from the Elijah cycle in the books of Kings to the prophecy of an eschatological Elijah in Malachi to the discussions of Elijah's return in connection with John the Baptist a n d Jesus, 21 it is quite evident that the legend of his revelations came out of a folklore both rich a n d of t r e m e n d o u s antiquity. Although interest in Elijah u n d e r w e n t changes over the long history of this folklore, such a basic motif as his m o u n t a i n t o p revelations would probably have arisen well before the Byzantine period. Third, o n e would assume that the m a n y apocalyptic a n d ascetic circles, both Jewish a n d Christian, in the eastern Mediterranean world that venerated Elijah would h a v e treasured such a legend. If the Apocalypse of Elijah derives from such a milieu, then there is good reason to believe that some tradition whereby Elijah received secret revelations to pass on to his followers would have been of keen interest. Under these circumstances, a seventh-century Jewish text a n d a tenth-century Coptic spell carry considerable relevance for the Elianic nature of the Apocalypse of Elijah. The narrative context of the Apocalypse of Elijah a n d its pseudepigraphic attribution may t h u s be outlined: the text would have been heard and understood in light of the legend of Elijah's revelations on a mountaintop. In a predominately illiterate culture, such legends would have carried authority equal to that of biblical stories. 22 Hence the audience would have been able to provide the narrative f r a m e for the Apocalypse of Elijah a n d any other Elijah pseudepigrapha they heard, as if the introduction to the text were to read, "These are the revelations that the angel Michael disclosed to Elijah while h e w a s praying on the mountain."

RELIGIOUS C O N T E X T OF ELIJAH PSEUDEPIGRAPHY The currency of Elijah traditions in Coptic magic a n d folklore in general implies that Egyptian Christians held Elijah in special regard. In 21. Cf. Mk 6:15; 8:28; 9:4-5, 11-13; Jn 1:21, 25; Lk 9:54. 22. E p i p h a n i u s r e p o r t s t h e didactic u s e of a p o c r y p h a l ( a n d r a t h e r d e r o g a t o r y ) Elijah l e g e n d s a m o n g t h e Borborite sect (Panarion 26.13.4-5).

66

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

investigating the religious context of Elijah pseudepigraphy, the questions become: Why write an apocalypse of Elijah in Egypt? What w a s the degree of his authority? Eusebius reports a story in which a large n u m b e r of Christians from the Egyptian countryside, deported to Palestine u n d e r Diocletian's edicts, came to trial u n d e r o n e Firmilian: [ F i r m i l i a n ] b r o u g h t f o r w a r d t h e first of t h e m i n t o t h e m i d s t , a n d a s k e d h i m w h a t w a s h i s n a m e ; b u t i n s t e a d of h i s r e a l n a m e h e h e a r d f r o m t h e m t h e n a m e of a p r o p h e t . A l s o t h e rest of t h e E g y p t i a n s w h o w e r e w i t h h i m , i n s t e a d of t h o s e n a m e s w h i c h t h e i r f a t h e r s h a d g i v e n t h e m a f t e r t h e n a m e of s o m e idol, h a d t a k e n f o r t h e m s e l v e s t h e n a m e s of t h e p r o p h e t s , s u c h a s these—Elias, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Samuel, Daniel.23

Frend has rightly inferred from this story that biblical prophets in early Christian Egypt h a d m u c h more than legendary significance. 24 Apparently, they were forms of supernatural identity for some. 2 5 The same identification with prophets—in this case, Elijah—is a p p a r ent in fourth-century traditions of the lives of Antony a n d Paul of Thebes. Athanasius mentions that Antony "said in himself that the Ascetic ought to learn closely from the politeia of the great Elijah, as a mirror of his o w n life" (7).26 Even if unattributable to Antony's self23. Eusebius, Martyrs in Palestine [Syr.] 11.8 (ed. and tr. William Cureton, History of the Martyrs of Palestine by Eusebius [London: Williams & N o r g a t e 4 0,[1861‫״‬ ) texts vary only slightly: see Eusebius, Martyrs in Palestine [Grk.], ed. and tr. Gustav B a r d y , Eusebe de Cesaree: Histoire

SC 55 [Paris, martyrdoms of 29, tr. Cureton, gives a similar of Is 44:5.

ecclesiastique

livres

Vlll-X

et les martyrs

en

Palestine,

1958], 158-59). The Syriac text a d d s the same description to the Paul, Valentina, and Hatha u n d e r Firmilian (Martyrs in Palestine [Syr.] 27), w h e r e a s the Greek text omits it ([Grk.] 8.1, tr. Bardy, 144). Eusebius account of this event in his Isaiah commentary (11.25) as the fulfillment

24. W.H.C. Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church (London: Basil Blackwell, 1965; reprint, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1981), 466-67; and ‫־‬The Winning of the Countryside,‫ ־‬/EH 18 (1967):6. 25. O n martyrs n a m e d Elijah, see Hippolyte Delehaye, Les martyrs d'Egypte, AnBoll 40 (Brussels: Societe des Bollandistes, 1922), 74, 77-78, 80; and De Lacy O'Leary, The Saints of Egypt (London: C h u r c h Historical Society, 1937; reprint, Amsterdam: Philo Press, 1974), 128-29. O n the distribution of Hebrew n a m e ‫ ׳‬a m o n g early Egyptian Christians, see Annick Martin, "Aux origines de l'eglise copte: L'implantation et le developpement d u christianisme en Egvpte (I*‫־‬IV* siecles),‫ ־‬REA 83 (1981):49 n. 89. 26. Athanasius, Vita Antonii 7 (PG 26:853). The Syriac version changes this gloss to "He said that the m o n k should be k n o w n , by his life and by his performance, to be a stranger to the world and the companion of the Watchers" (La Vie primitive de S. Antoine, tr. and ed. Rene Draguet, C S C O 418, S. Syri 184 (Louvain: Secretariat d u CSCO, 1980], 14), reflecting the Syriac Christian preference for angelological paradigms over biblical paradigms. T. D. Barnes's recent attempt to argue the Syriac text's priority raises more problems t h a n it solves ("Angel of Light or Mystic Initiate? The Problem of

.

The Greek

The C o n t e x t o f Christian Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

67

conception, it is likely that Athanasius's gloss reflects an early monastic tradition associating anachoresis with Elijah. The Life of Pachomius, for example, links Antony a n d Elijah directly. 27 In Jerome's story of Paul of Thebes, the imitation of Elijah is even more explicit: A n d as [Paul a n d A n t o n y ] talked they perceived that a crow h a d settled on a b r a n c h of t h e tree, a n d s o f t l y f l y i n g d o w n , d e p o s i t e d a w h o l e loaf b e f o r e their w o n d e r i n g eyes. A n d w h e n h e h a d w i t h d r a w n , "Behold," said Paul, * G o d h a t h s e n t u s o u r d i n n e r , G o d t h e m e r c i f u l , G o d t h e c o m p a s s i o n a t e . It is n o w s i x t y y e a r s s i n c e I h a v e h a d e a c h d a y a h a l f loaf of b r e a d ; b u t at t h y coming, Christ h a t h d o u b l e d his soldiers' rations.28

The incident recalls Elijah's being fed by crows in the beginning of his biblical cycle (1 Kgs 17:6). Such miraculous feedings became a motif of monastic legend, invariably implying a parallel with Elijah. 29 Again, later in Jerome's Life of Paul, Antony declares to his disciples w h e n h e has returned from visiting Paul just before the latter's death, "I h a v e seen Elijah, I h a v e seen John in the desert, truly I h a v e seen Paul in Paradise! 30 ‫ ״‬In this way Jerome p u t s Paul of Thebes in a lineage with Elijah and John the Baptist. John the Baptist, himself an Elianic figure in the Gospels, 3 '· is rarely mentioned alone in Egyptian monastic literature as an anchoritic paradigm. This suggests that his n a m e appeared as reinforcement of an Elijah paradigm: h e expressed the continuity a n d validity of the anchoritic model of Elijah in the lore of Christian origins. Thus a tradition of Elijah as the paradigm of anachoresis circulated even outside monastic literature. John Cassian reports that *anchorites . . . feared not to penetrate the vast recesses of the desert, imitating, to wit, John the Baptist, w h o passed all his life in the desert, a n d Elijah and Elisha. 32 Sozomen wrote that the Pachomian m o n k s at Tabennesi "were clothed in skins in remembrance of Elias, it appears to me, because they thought that the virtue of the prophet would be thus always retained in the Life of Antony," ITS 37 [1986]:353-68); see David Brakke, *St. Athanasius and Ascetic Christians in Egypt* (Ph.D. diss., Yale University, 1992). 2 7 . Vita Pachomius

2; c f . J o h n C a s s i a n , Conferences

14.4.

28. Jerome Vita Paul 10 (PL 23:25; also in Helen Waddell, tr., The Desert Fathers [London: Constable, 1936; reprint, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan, 1957 (1936)], 35). 29. Cf. Historia monachorum in Aegypto 1.47 (tr. N o r m a n Russell), and Benedicta Ward, *Introduction,* both in The Lives of the Desert Fathers (London: Mowbray, 1981), 44. 30. Jerome Vita Paul 13 (PL 23:26). 31. E.g., M a t t h e w ' s clarification of Mk 9:13 (Mt 17:12-13). 32. John Cassian, Conferences 18.6 (tr. E. Gibson, NPNF 11:481).

68

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

their memory. 3 3 ‫ ״‬Jerome suggests that m o n k s may have considered these rough, Elijah-like garments to represent the h u m a n body—as concrete *garments of shame‫—״‬because ‫״‬after driving us from the paradise of virginity [the serpent] tries to clothe us in tunics of skin, such as Elijah on his return to paradise threw u p o n the ground. 3 4 ‫״‬ Within the literary culture of anachoresis a n d monasticism, however, the figure of Elijah looms even greater. O n e m o n k , w h o h a d taken the n a m e Elijah a n d retreated well into the desert of Antinoe, attracted popular rumors that ‫״‬the spirit of Elijah rested u p o n him. He was f a m o u s for having spent seventy years in the terrible desert‫ ;״‬a n d t h u s ‫״‬every day h e worked m a n y miracles a n d did not cease healing the sick. 35 ‫״‬ The Panegyric on Makarios of Tkow largely concerns this Egyptian bishop's struggles against both native religion in Upper Egypt a n d *heretics‫ ״‬at church councils. The language of this opposition, however, explicitly reflects Elijah's confrontation with the priests of Baal in 1 Kings 18. During the scene of his extermination of the still-thriving Temple of Kothos, Makarios tells his attendant monks, *Let u s s t a n d a n d p r a y t o g e t h e r , a n d w e will b r i n g fire f r o m h e a v e n a n d it will c o n s u m e t h i s t e m p l e . * A n d w h e n t h e y s t o o d at p r a y e r w i t h t h e brothers w h o w e r e with t h e m , a voice c a m e d o w n f r o m h e a v e n to t h e m : ‫ ״‬S a v e y o u r s e l v e s ( b y g o i n g ) o u t s i d e t h e d o o r of t h e t e m p l e . * A n d w h e n w e h a d c o m e a w a y f r o m t h e t e m p l e a n d h a d n o t yet t u r n e d o u r g a z e back, a g r e a t w a l l of f i r e s u r r o u n d e d t h e t e m p l e . A n d a n h o u r h a d n o t y e t e l a p s e d b e f o r e t h e f i r e h a d d e v o u r e d t h e f o u n d a t i o n s of t h e t e m p l e . A n d t h e w a l l s of t h e t e m p l e fell d o w n , its w a l l s a n d its s t o n e s . T h e f i r e c o n s u m e d t h e m right d o w n t o its f o u n d a t i o n s . [ M a k a r i o s ] l o o k e d b a c k a n d c u r s e d e v e n its l a n d , s a y i n g : *Let t h e r e b e n o t r e e g i v i n g s h a d e o n it, n o r a n y s e e d b e f o u n d in it f o r e v e r . A n d it s h a l l b e p a r c h e d , w i t h w i l d b e a s t s a n d s e r p e n t s b r e e d i n g in it.* 36

33. Sozomen, Historia ecclesiastica 3.14 (PG 67:1069; tr. Chester D. Hartranft, NPNF 2:291-92. Cf. Palladius, Historia lausiaca 32.3, w h o merely reports that each m o n k must wear a coat of goatskin at all times and that a n angel delivered this decree. 34. Jerome, Epistle 22.18.2 (tr. F. A. Wright, Select Letters of St. Jerome [LCLJ, 91). Clement of Alexandria m a y also be thinking of c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s imitators of biblical saints w h e n he asks about the Carpocratians, *Which of t h e m goes about like Elijah, clad in a sheepskin and a leather girdle? Which of them goes about like Isaiah, n a k e d except for a piece of sacking and without shoes? Or clothed merely in a loincloth like Jeremiah? Which of t h e m will imitate John [the Baptist's] gnostic way of life?* (Stromata 3.6.53; tr. Henry Chadwick, Alexandrian Christianity [London: SCM, 1954], 65). 3 5 . Hist.

mon. 7 ( t r . R u s s e l l , i n Lives of the Desert

Fathers.

69).

36. Dioscorus of Alexandria (attrib.). Panegyric on Macarius of Tkou‫׳‬, V.9, ed. and tr. D. W. Johnson, C S C O 415-16, Scriptores Coptic! 41-42 (Louvain: Secretariat d u CSCO, 1980), 2:27-28.

T h e C o n t e x t o f C h r i s t i a n Elijah Pseudepigraphy in E g y p t

69

That this scene is m e a n t to recall the descent of "the fire of Y H W H " in 1 Kgs 18:38 is s h o w n at the e n d of t h e text, w h e n M a k a r i o s o p p o s e s heretics, saying, " W h y i n d e e d w o u l d I c o u n t myself a m o n g the priests of Baal, a n d not c o u n t myself w i t h Elijah?" 37 Dioscorus himself praises Makarios: "The p r o p h e t s are c o m i n g out to m e e t you b e c a u s e a prophetic spirit is w h a t dwells in you. Elijah is c o m i n g out to m e e t you because you h a v e been z e a l o u s for G o d like h e was." 3 8 C o n s e q u e n t l y , at the e n d of his life Makarios is invited by Elisha a n d John the Baptist to s h a r e their Egyptian m a r t y r i u m , p r e s u m a b l y as Elijah's representative. 3 9 Makarios's c o n t e m p o r a r y , A b b o t S h e n o u t e of Atripe, w a s said to h a v e received Elijah's very m a n t l e : W h e n a p a Pjol [ S h e n o u t e ' s b o y h o o d superior] raised his eyes to h e a v e n , h e s a w a n a n g e l of t h e L o r d g u a r d i n g t h e y o u n g b o y S h e n o u t e w h i l e h e w a s s l e e p i n g , a n d t h e a n g e l s a i d t o a p a P j o l : " W h e n y o u g e t u p in t h e m o r n i n g , p u t t h e m a n t l e w h i c h y o u will f i n d b e f o r e y o u u p o n t h e y o u n g b o y S h e n o u t e , f o r it is t h e m a n t l e of E l i j a h t h e T i s h b i t e w h i c h t h e L o r d J e s u s h a s s e n t t o y o u t o p u t u p o n h i m . T r u l y , h e will b e a r i g h t e o u s a n d i l l u s t r i o u s m a n , a n d a f t e r h i m , n o - o n e like h i m will a r i s e in a n y c o u n t r y . " 4 0

Indeed, following a description of S h e n o u t e ' s ascetic regime, the biogr a p h e r acclaims, "The w h o l e of his life a n d his intention w e r e like [those of] Elijah the Tishbite, the charioteer of Israel," a n d h e refers to S h e n o u t e as " p r o p h e t " t h r o u g h o u t t h e rest of the Life.*1 In his s e v e n t h - c e n t u r y description of a tour of the m o n a s t e r i e s a n d gatherings of a n c h o r i t e s in t h e Egyptian desert, the m o n k P a p h n o u t i describes a m e e t i n g with A p a Bencfer, d u r i n g w h i c h the old m o n k tells of his o w n y o u t h f u l training in a n U p p e r Egyptian m o n a s t e r y : I learned t h e divine w o r k f r o m t h e s e d i v i n e a n d perfect elders w h o lived in t h e m a n n e r of a n g e l s of G o d , a n d I h e a r d f r o m t h e i r m o u t h a d i s c o u r s e [ e y c A - x i ] o n E l i j a h t h e T i s h b i t e — t h a t at t h e m o m e n t w h e n h e h a d t h e m o s t p o w e r in C o d of a n y s o r t , h e w a s in t h e d e s e r t . S i m i l a r l y J o h n t h e Baptist, w h o m n o b o d y c o u l d i m i t a t e , l i v e d in t h e d e s e r t w i t h o u t s h o w i n g h i m s e l f in J e r u s a l e m . 4 2

37. Panegyric XV.8 (ibid., 2:95). That t h e power to bring d o w n fire w a s considered a mark of Elianic power is s h o w n in Lk 9:54. 38. Panegyric ΧΙΙ1.5 (ibid., 2:84). 39. Panegyric XVI.1-4, (ibid., 96-98). John the Baptist and Elisha themselves appear in a d r e a m to Dioscorus to invite this deposition of Makarios's remains, VI. 1-3. 40. Besa, Life of Shenoute 8 (tr. David N. Bell, The Life of Shenoute by Besa, Cistercian Studies Series 73 [Kalamazoo, Mich.: Cistercian Press, 1983], 44). 41. Life of Shenoute 10 (tr. Bell, 45). O n the title •προφήτης as applied to anchorites, see Bell, tr., Life of Shenoute, 93 η. 1. 42. Vita Benofer, tr. E. Amelineau, "Voyage d ' u n moine egyptien d a n s le desert,"

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

Several aspects of piety directed toward Elijah can be gleaned f r o m this passage. First, w e m a y note that the model of Elijah was considered basic to the practice of desert asceticism in the m i n d s of the holy elders. Second, Elijah w a s not simply mentioned, but an entire discourse or homily would be composed (spontaneously, w e must assume in this case) on his importance. 4 3 Third, in both the models of Elijah a n d John the Baptist here the city is specifically opposed to the desert; the desert is viewed as the locus for the attainment of power, as in the case of the anchorite n a m e d Elijah. Finally, John the Baptist is mentioned in immediate connection to Elijah, thus corroborating the suggestion that these two figures constituted o n e ascetic paradigm—John the Baptist viewed essentially as a later representative of Elijah. 44 In all these cases, then, Elijah (and John the Baptist as his alter ego) constituted the reason, the paradigm, of anachoresis. Moreover, the idea is consistently expressed that if o n e w i t h d r a w s into the desert like Elijah, o n e will gain the powers that Elijah h a d in the desert: powers of healing (Elijah the anchorite), p o w e r s of p u n i s h m e n t (Makarios, Shenoute), but also, we may infer, powers of vision a n d revelation; for not only Shenoute but also the anchorite John of Lycopolis was credited with prophetic abilities. 45 Recueil

de travaux

relatifs

a la philologie

et a V archeologie

egyptiennes

et assyriennes

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(1885):175. 43. A significant analog to such Elijah conferences can be f o u n d in the Apophthegmata Patrum (Alphabetical): a discussion of t h e h u m a n i t y or divinity of Melchizedek between Apa Daniel and Cyril of Jerusalem (Daniel 8) and a virtual symposium on Melchizedek held by the m o n k s of Scetis (Copres 3). Early Jewish Melchizedek traditions held this figure to be a holy wild man, called back to civilization by A b r a h a m ; and it is likely that this legend was embraced by Egyptian desert hermits as an identity with traditional authority. See Gustav Bardy, "Melchisedech dans la tradition patristique,‫ ־‬RB 35 (1926):496-509, 36 (1927):25-4'5; and S. E. Robinson, ‫־‬The Apocryphal Story of Melchizedek,‫ ־‬/S/ 18 (1987). Cf. Birger A. Pearson, ‫־‬The Figure of Melchizedek i n G n o s t i c L i t e r a t u r e , ‫ ־‬i n i d e m , Gnosticism,

Judaism,

and

Egyptian

Christianity,

SAC

5

(Minneapolis: Fortress, 1990), 108-23. 44. See E. Amelineau, "Le christianisme chez les anciens coptes," RHR 14 (1886):33941. 45. Cf. Palladius, Historia lausiaca 35.9; and Hist. mon. 1.28, 64. Shenoute's abilities as a seer are evident in the addition of an ‫־‬Apocalypse‫—־‬revealed by Christ—to the Besa's Life in the Arabic recension. A Coptic ostracon apparently sent by an important ascetic near the monastery of St. Epiphanius in Thebes begins a sentence, ‫־‬If his d e e d s equal those of Elijah and [John] t h e Baptist' (MMA ostracon 12.180.150, ed. and tr. W. E. C r u m in idem; and H. G. Evelyn White, The Monastery of Epiphanius at Thebes, 2 vols. [New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1926], 2:33 [txt], 179 [trans.], = ostracon no. 103). The fourth-century Syrian Ephrem attributed Elijah's powers to ‫־‬withhold the rain from the adulterers‫ ־‬and to "restrain the d e w f r o m the w h o r e m o n g e r s ' to the p r o p h e t ' s virginity; indeed, "since o n earth he conquered fleshly desire, he went u p to [the place] where holiness dwells a n d is at peace" ( H y m n 14, tr. Kathleen E. McVey, Ephrem the Syrian: Hymns [New York: Paulist Press, 1989], 144). The language clearly presents both

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71

As in the case of the narrative context of Elijah pseudepigraphy, the use of fourth- a n d fifth-century monastic sources to account for a thirdcentury p h e n o m e n o n might a p p e a r anachronistic, until o n e notices that such a wide selection of late texts seems again to reflect a consistent p h e n o m e n o n in the case of anchoritic Elijahs. In some cases the Elijah paradigm is "marketed‫ ״‬for an extramonastic or even censorious audience: Jerome's Paul a n d Athanasius's Antony might fall into such a category; 46 hut even w h e n Besa casts S h e n o u t e as Elijah's direct heir, he is evidently employing a parallel of considerable local authority, w h o s e roots must antedate the fourth century. Finally, Eusebius's description of the Egyptians in Palestine suggests that such biblical paradigms invoked by anchorites continued from the third century, w h e n m a n y of these same anchorites entered the desert to escape the edicts—in m a n y cases probably in explicit recollection of Elijah the Tishbite in his flight from the dominion of A h a b (1 Kgs 17:3).47 The powers i m m a n e n t in an anchorite w h o emulated Elijah may also have been understood in a more ancient context. An encomium on a martyr n a m e d Elijah describes h o w the power a n d n a t u r e of the sun, ή‫׳‬λι05, are i m m a n e n t in the Greek n a m e f Ηλια?: For the significance of Elijah, in the Greek language, is "sun.‫ ״‬In the first place, this name came to him at his birth at the same time as his body. Then his life manifested itself in conformity with his name. And just as the saint had his name, so also he had his virtues, as it is written in the Psalms. But while the sun, insofar as it is perceptible, has an end to its light, the light of the martyrs has no end. After the sun (sets in) the west, it rises again. Thus the vanquished martyrs "set" in the body at their death; but they enter anew, with the Lord, into the glory because they are delivered from the cycle of their sufferings.48

Elijah's virginity a n d his resulting p o w e r s as imitable (cf. McVey, Ephrem the Syrian, 4 5 46). 46. Cf. Michael A. Williams, "The Life of Antony a n d the Domestication of Chartsmatic Wisdom," in idem, ed., Charisma and Sacred Biography, JAAR Thematic Studies 48, 3-4 (Chico, Calif.: American A c a d e m y of Religion, 1982), 23-45; discussed in m o r e detail below, chapter 11, pp. 289-90. 47. Cf. Oliver Nicholson ("Flight f r o m Persecution as Imitation of Christ: Lactantius' Divine Institutes IV.18, 1-2," ITS 40 |1989]:48-65), w h o proposes "that t h e spirituality of the refugees survived t h e end of the persecutions in the desert places w h e r e Christians h a d fled" (64). 4 8 . Martyrdom of St. Elijah f. 3 5 ' v , i n G e o . P . G . S o b h y , Le martyre de saint Helias et I'encomium de Veveque Stephanos de Hnes sur saint Helias, B i b l i o t h e q u e d ' e t u d e s c o p t e s 1

(Cairo: IFAO, 1919), 69-70 [trans, w a s modified from that of Sobhy on p. 114 of Le martyre de saint Helias J. A homily o n Elijah attributed to John C h r y s o s t o m reflects a similar t h e m e (PG 63:464). There is p r o b a b l y n o relationship in this case to the appearance of Elijah o n a heavenly chariot in Sib. Or. 2.187-89, as the latter is not

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

The e m b o d i m e n t of the self's essence in one's n a m e w a s a basic belief of classical Egyptian religion and a c o m m o n theme of Egyptian mythology a n d magic. 49 The Greco-Egyptian a n d Coptic magical corpora, moreover, s h o w that the considerable power attributed to n a m e s in Egypt—personal, legendary, a n d secret—continued throughout the Rom a n period. Finally, solar symbolism had a particular legacy in Egyptian tradition, denoting the p o w e r behind kingship (originally) a n d cosmic stability (more generally). This solar sense of the n a m e Elijah would only have been accessible to an audience that understood Greek; yet it is clear that the n a m e Elijah a n d its expression in the figure of a holy m a n or martyr had assumed indigenous connotations a n d achieved a peculiar degree of veneration in the milieu of the above encomium's author. 5 0 In light of Elijah's great stature in Coptic tradition a n d the types of piety associated with his n a m e , it is right to ask h o w an ‫״‬Elijah charisma‫״‬ w a s integrated into the Christian life of the hermits. Was this degree of veneration of a biblical prophet accepted in all quarters? In fact, there is evidence in Egyptian monastic literature that Elijah veneration fell u n d e r some censure. In two stories from the Historia monachorum, d e m o n s call overzealous m o n k s "Elijah.‫ ״‬W h e n Apa Apollo manages to save both his Thebaid monastery a n d the people of the region from a famine by multiplying a f e w baskets of bread, "Satan appeared to him a n d said, 'Are you not Elijah, or one of the prophets or apostles, that you h a v e the confidence to do these things?' 51 ‫ ״‬The second story is told by Apa Or:

explicitly solar; b u t cf. J e a n D a n i e l o u , Primitive Christian Symbols, tr. D o n a l d A t t w a t e r (Baltimore: H e l i c o n , 1964), 8 6 - 8 7 . 49. Cf. G e o r g e F o u c a r t , * N a m e s (Egyptian),* ERE 9:151-55; E. A. Wallis Budge, Egyptian Magic, Books o n E g y p t a n d C h a l d e a , vol. 2 ( L o n d o n : K e g a n P a u l , T r e n c h , T r i i b n e r , 1901; reprint, N e w York: D o v e r , 1971), 157-81; S i e g f r i e d M o r e n z , Egyptian Religion, tr. A n n E. Keep (Ithaca, N.Y., a n d L o n d o n : C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1973), 9 10. For o t h e r C o p t i c e x a m p l e s , s e e W o l f g a n g Kosack, Die Legende im Koptischen: Untersuchungen zur Volksliteratur Agyptens, H a b e l t s D i s s e r t a t i o n s d r u c k e , Reihe k l a s sische Philologie 8 (Bonn: H a b e l t , 1970), 73. 50. As is briefly n o t e d b y S o b h y , Martyre de saint Helias, 114 n. 2. It is s i g n i f i c a n t t h a t t h e Confession of St. P a t r i c k (§20) r e c o r d s t h e s a m e s o l a r c o n n o t a t i o n to ' H A t a j : "I s a w t h e s u n rising in t h e s k y a n d . . . I w a s c r y i n g o u t 'Elijah! Elijah!' w i t h all m y s t r e n g t h " (tr. R.P.C. H a n s o n , The Life and Writings of the Historical Saint Patrick [ N e w York: S e a b u r y , 1983], 90). H a n s o n s u g g e s t s t h a t P a t r i c k w a s a b l e t o m a k e s u c h a n a s s o c i a t i o n w h i l e himself k n o w i n g little G r e e k (91), b u t t h e Ή λ ι ' α ί or ήλως c o n n e c t i o n m a y r a t h e r t e s t i f y to t h e legacy of G r e c o - E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y in Irish m o n a s t i c t r a d i t i o n . O n v e n e r a t i o n for Elijah in I r e l a n d a n d G a u l , s e e D. B. Botte, " U n e f e t e d u p r o p h e t e Elie en G a u l e a u VI*· siecle," Cahiers sioniens 3 (1950): 170-77, e s p . 174-75. 51. Hist. mon. 8.46 (tr. Russell, Lives of the Desert Fathers,

77).

The C o n t e x t o f Christian Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

73

I k n o w a m a n in t h e d e s e r t w h o d i d n o t t a s t e a n y e a r t h l y f o o d f o r t h r e e d a y s ; e v e r y t h r e e d a y s a n a n g e l u s e d t o b r i n g h i m h e a v e n l y f o o d a n d p u t it in h i s m o u t h . F o r h i m t h i s t o o k t h e p l a c e of f o o d a n d d r i n k . A n d 1 k n o w w i t h r e g a r d t o t h i s s a m e m a n t h a t t h e d e m o n s a p p e a r e d t o h i m in a v i s i o n a n d s h o w e d h i m h o s t s of a n g e l s a n d a c h a r i o t of f i r e a n d a g r e a t e s c o r t of g u a r d s , a s if a n e m p e r o r w a s m a k i n g a visit. A n d t h e ' e m p e r o r ‫ ׳‬s a i d , " Y o u h a v e s u c c e e d e d in a t t a i n i n g e v e r y v i r t u e , m y g o o d m a n ; p r o s t r a t e y o u r s e l f b e f o r e m e a n d I shall t a k e you u p like Elijah.52‫״‬

He manages to expel the d e m o n s by invoking Christ. Such tales of the sarcastic exaltation of hermits as Elijah must reflect a real situation a n d a real controversy in early Coptic culture: that hermits claimed explicitly to be Elijah a n d t h u s directed veneration a w a y from Christ and attention a w a y from churches. A similar situation may have occupied fourth-century Jerusalem, w h e r e Cyril's fourteenth catechetical lecture appears to respond to strong local sentiment preferring Hebrew figures—Elijah in particular—to the heroes of Christian legend: E l i j a h r a i s e d t h e d e a d , b u t d e m o n s a r e n o t d r i v e n o u t in t h e n a m e of E l i j a h . W e d o n o t s p e a k ill of t h e p r o p h e t s , b u t w e c e l e b r a t e m o r e m a g nificently their master . . . R e m e m b e r t h a t E n o c h w a s t r a n s p o r t e d to h e a v e n , b u t Jesus a s c e n d e d . R e m e m b e r w h a t w a s said y e s t e r d a y a b o u t Elijah: t h a t Elijah w a s t a k e n u p in a c h a r i o t of fire, b u t (it w a s ) t h e c h a r i o t of C h r i s t , of w h i c h t h o u s a n d s a n d t h o u s a n d s w e r e s i n g i n g p r a i s e s ; t h a t E l i j a h w a s t a k e n u p t o t h e e a s t of t h e J o r d a n , w h i l e C h r i s t a s c e n d e d t o t h e e a s t of t h e river of K i d r o n ; t h e f o r m e r a s c e n d e d as it were i n t o h e a v e n , b u t J e s u s a s c e n d e d ( t r u l y ) i n t o h e a v e n ; that (Elijah) said that h e w o u l d give his h o l y disciple a d o u b l e p o r t i o n in S p i r i t , b u t C h r i s t b e s t o w e d s u c h a n a b u n d a n c e of g r a c e in t h e H o l y S p i r i t t o h i s o w n d i s c i p l e s t h a t n o t o n l y w o u l d t h e y p o s s e s s it in t h e m s e l v e s , b u t b y t h e l a y i n g - o n of t h e i r h a n d s t h e y w o u l d b e a b l e t o t r a n s f e r it t o b e l i e v e r s . . . A s e r v a n t of C h r i s t a s c e n d e d t o t h e t h i r d h e a v e n . S o if E l i j a h o n l y a r r i v e d at t h e first, w h i l e P a u l t h e t h i r d , t h e l a t t e r t h e n h a s t h e g r e a t e r dignity. D o not p u t to s h a m e t h e Apostles; t h e y are n o t inferior to Moses, n o r a r e t h e y s e c o n d to t h e p r o p h e t s . T h e y a r e n o b l e w i t h t h e noble, a n d n o b l e r still. E l i j a h w a s t a k e n u p t o h e a v e n , b u t P e t e r r e c e i v e d t h e k e y s t o t h e K i n g d o m of H e a v e n . . . . E l i j a h w e n t o n l y t o h e a v e n , b u t P a u l w a s i n h e a v e n a n d in P a r a d i s e . 5 3

Such obvious rivalry is p e r h a p s more u n d e r s t a n d a b l e in a city surr o u n d e d by the holy spots of biblical heroes than in the Egyptian chora;54 52. Hist. mon. 2.9 (ibid., 64).

53. Cyril of Jerusalem, Catecheses 14.16, 25-26 (PG 33:845, 857, 860). 54. The immediate reason for such a crisis of legendary authorities in fourth-century

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

but Cyril's defense of Christian heroes provides general evidence for Elijah's tremendous significance in the Eastern empire, as a model of ascetic anachoresis, magical power, a n d heavenly privilege. 55 This tremendous significance of Elijah, then, constitutes the religious context of Elijah p s e u d e p i g r a p h y in Christian Egypt. It is clear that this religious context goes b e y o n d the world of the anchorites, w h o modeled themselves after Elijah. Not only did Elijah come to be viewed as the prototype and archetype of anachoresis a r o u n d the Mediterranean world through the dissemination of the Greek Vita Antonii and Jerome's Vita Pauli, but even for the folk of the chora Elijah carried power: "The people said the spirit of Elijah rested u p o n him . . . h e did not cease healing the sick." The charisma of Elijah w a s also a popular charisma, attracting a n d serving villagers and townspeople. 5 6 The ritual spells themselves s h o w the importance of Elijah outside the walls of the monastery, for Elijah appears in them as the archetypal speaker of magic words. John Collins a n d George W. E. Nickelsburg once suggested that ‫״‬the willingness to use the [biblical] tradition, a n d conceive one's identity in terms derived from it, constitutes, perhaps, the most comprehensive definition of Judaism. 5 7 ‫ ״‬It is evident, however, that the veneration a n d imitation of biblical figures h a d also become a customary f o r m of piety a m o n g early Coptic anchorites.

Jerusalem may have been the increase in pilgrimages to the holy sites of Elijah and John the Baptist in the Judean hills. See t h e detailed analysis of Cyril's audience by Joseph Tracy Rivers III, "Pattern and Process in Early Christian Pilgrimage" (Ph.D. diss., Duke University, 1983), 238-52; and Gedaliahu Stroumsa's argument for a large JewishChristian community in Jerusalem, to w h o s e alternative "Christologies" Cyril would here be responding ("'Vetus Israel‫׳‬: Les Juifs d a n s la litterature hierosolymitaine d ' e p o q u e byzantine," RHR 205 [1988]:115-31). 55. A h y m n attributed to Ephraim and a p p e n d e d to an eighth-century Syriac collection of Vitae of holy w o m e n casts Elijah as a m e t a p h o r for Christ: "As the earthly form in the chariot descended, thus our Lord descended clothed in a body by His grace; and being clothed in a cloud, He rode and ascended to reign above and beneath. Angels of fire and of wind w o n d e r e d at the Elijah w h o m they saw, for in Him w a s hidden the gentle wisdom" (in Agnes Smith Lewis, tr., Select Narratives of Holy Women, Studia Sinaitica 10 [London: Clay, 1900]), 205 [= f.l80 r ]). O n Elijah as descending angel, see also Ginzberg, Legends of the Jews, 6:325 nn. 39-40. 56. To a certain extent this would generally: the narrator of the Historia possessed various charisms, some in others in the w o n d e r s and signs they Desert Fathers,

have been true of the Egyptian anchorite saint monachorum "saw there m a n y great fathers w h o their speech, s o m e in their m a n n e r of life, and performed" (Hist. mon. 5.7, tr. Russell, Lives of the

67).

57. John J. Collins and George W. E. Nickelsburg, "Introduction," in Ideal Figures in Ancient Judaism, ed. John J. Collins and George W. E. Nickelsburg, Septuagint and Cognate Studies 12 (Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, 1980), 10.

The Context of Christian Elijah Pseudepigraphy in Egypt

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CONCLUSION: UNDERSTANDING ELIJAH PSEUDEPIGRAPHY IN EGYPT Through identifying the narrative and religious contexts, one can understand the cultural significance of the title "Apocalypse of Elijah." There was a tradition of Elijah's revelations on Horeb; therefore an apocalyptic text might be cogently attributed to the legend of Elijah. And Elijah himself w a s so important as a paradigm a n d as a source of power for hermits as well as lay people that a n y text purporting to contain the revelations of Elijah would be met with considerable interest. The intention of the author w h o applied the p s e u d o n y m can also be discerned, for u n d e r these circumstances to produce a text u n d e r the n a m e Elijah would h a v e been a holy act. A late Byzantine encomium attributed to John Chrysostom depicts G o d saying to Elijah, "Whosoever shall take the pains to have a book m a d e a n d written in thy [Elijah's] name, a n d shall dedicate it to thy shrine, I will write his n a m e in the book of life, and will m a k e him to inherit the good things of the kingd o m of heaven." 5 8 It is also conceivable, in light of the evidence for anchorites' identification with Elijah a n d of the prophetic pretensions that arose in some hermits, that an author of an apocalypse of Elijah might actually h a v e believed himself to be "channeling" the w o r d s of the ascended p r o p h et. 59 The Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah is, for all intents a n d purposes, a prophecy of the end and may indeed have been delivered as the w o r d s of Elijah incarnate to an audience quite prepared for such a conceit. 58. Budge, " F r a g m e n t s of a C o p t i c V e r s i o n of a n E n c o m i u m , " 369, 394. T h e m a n u s c r i p t is d a t e d t o 1199 C.E. a n d w a s f o u n d in a c h u r c h d e d i c a t e d t o Elijah (ibid., 355-56). O n C h r y s o s t o m p s e u d e p i g r a p h y s e e J o h a n n e s Q u a s t e n , Patrology, vol. 3 (Utrecht: S p e c t r u m , 1950; W e s t m i n s t e r , M d . : C h r i s t i a n Classics, 1983), 470. T h e practice of b l e s s i n g t h e scribe w i t h i n t h e n a r r a t i v e or r e v e l a t i o n is n o t u n i q u e in late a n t i q u e literature: e.g., Apoc. Sed. 16:3, " t h e sin of h i m w h o c o p i e s t h i s a d m i r a b l e s e r m o n will n o t b e r e c k o n e d f o r e v e r a n d e v e r " (tr. S. A g o u r i d e s , OTP 1:613); cf. Γ. Isaac 6:21; a n d , in g e n e r a l , Violet M a c D e r m o t , The Cult of the Seer in the Ancient Middle East ( L o n d o n : W e l l c o m e I n s t i t u t e of t h e H i s t o r y of M e d i c i n e , 1971), 195. 59. T h i s is a c o m m o n h y p o t h e s i s of a p o c a l y p t i c p s e u d e p i g r a p h y : M e t z g e r s p e a k s of "a vivid s e n s e of k i n s h i p w h i c h t h e a p o c a l y p t i s t s h a r e d w i t h t h e o n e in w h o s e n a m e h e w r o t e " ("Literary Forgeries," 19), a n d J o h n J. C o l l i n s b e l i e v e s t h a t "the practice of p s e u d e p i g r a p h y a u t o m a t i c a l l y a s s u m e s a m e a s u r e of i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of t h e real a u t h o r w i t h his p s e u d o n y m o u s h e r o " (The Apocalyptic Vision of the Book of Daniel, H S M 16 [Missoula, M o n t . : S c h o l a r s Press, 1977], 27, cf. 72-73); cf. a l s o D. S. Russell, The Method and Message of Jewish Apocalyptic ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : W e s t m i n s t e r , 1964), 133; H e n g e l , " A n o n y m i t a t , P s e u d e p i g r a p h i e , " 2 7 7 - 7 8 ; R o w l a n d , Open Heaven, 6 2 - 6 6 , 245.

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

It is in this context that the eschatological Elijah tradition from Malachi 4 assumes relevance. In the d e v e l o p m e n t of this tradition in Jewish and Christian apocalyptic circles of the first three centuries C.E., Elijah—and Enoch—returns not primarily to reconcile families a n d define laws (Mai 4:6) but to expose the eschatological Adversary a n d thus preserve the righteous during the woes before the judgment: "Nero shall be raised u p from hell,‫ ״‬C o m m o d i a n declares, but "Elias shall first come to seal the beloved ones. 60 ‫ ״‬Insofar as the Apocalypse of Elijah offers its audience precisely the information needed to recognize the time, acts, and a p p e a r a n c e of this Adversary (ApocEl 3), a " p r o p h e t composer" of the Elijah apocalypse would implicitly stand in the role of the unveiler Elijah of the end times. It is precisely this unveiler Elijah who, in second-century Christian circles, became, along with Enoch, Elijah the martyr. 6 1 Indeed, w e find Cyprian invoking Elijah as exemplary martyr along with Mattathias (of 2 Maccabees), Daniel, and the Three Young Men. 6 2 An intrinsic connection thus arises between the martyrological concerns of the text and the p s e u d o n y m "Elijah." 63 It is not implausible that an Egyptian Christian of the third century might assume the role of prophet a n d the task of exposing an eschatological Adversary in the person of a religious or civil authority—and thus consider himself (or suggest to others the persona of) Elijah redivivus. In times of catastrophe a n d millennialist rumors—that is, in the right historical context—such a prophet might well be so recognized a n d gather a following. There were, indeed, two Elijah traditions in apocalyptic lore, that of the revealer of heavenly mysteries a n d that of the exposer of the eschatological Adversary. Neither was entirely exclusive of the other, a n d either might have been d r a w n u p o n as a paradigm for prophetic status a n d self-definition in early Christianity. 6 4 A safer theory of pseudepigraphy for the Apocalypse of Elijah than that proposing outright identification with the p s e u d o n y m o u s authority has been proposed by Kurt Aland. 6 5 W h e n a prophet presents a dis60. Commodian, Instructions 41 (tr. Robert Ernest Wallis, ANF 4:211). Cf. Apoc. Pet. 2 (Eth.); ApocEl 4:7-19, 5:32-35. Elijah also arrives alone in Sib. Or. 2.187-88 and in early rabbinic tradition (cf. Ginzberg, Legends of the jews, 4:233-35). See, in general, Richard Bauckham, "The Martyrdom of Enoch and Elijah: Jewish or Christian?" JBL 95, 3 (1976) 453. 61. Ibid., 457-58. 62. Cyprian, Epistle 67.8.2. 63. See below, chapter 6. 64. Cf. B. Dehandschutter, "Les Apocalypses d'Elie," in Elie le prophete: Bible, tradition, iconographie, ed. Gerard F. Willems (Louvain: Peeters, 1988), 66-67. 65. Aland, "Problem of Anonymity," 43-45.

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course to an audience in an oral setting, a u t h o r s h i p is not strictly identified: the "prophecy" is understood as divinely inspired, while the identity (or individuality) of the prophet is a p p a r e n t to the audience. The nature of the discourse is established by setting, therefore, rather than by title and attribution. W h e n the discourse is written d o w n , however, its status as prophecy—as divine word—requires an appropriate attribution, for the setting is henceforth the text itself a n d its subsequent public readings. T h u s it is the scribe w h o attaches a p s e u d o n y m of local or general authority to a discourse that h a d been delivered orally without the insistence of individual authorship. "What h a p p e n e d in pseudo n y m o u s literature of the early period," concludes Aland, "was nothing but the shift of the message from the spoken to the written word." 66 Aland's positivistic view of the role of the Holy Spirit notwithstanding, 67 his theory is eminently applicable to the Apocalypse of Elijah. First, it is appropriate to Greco-Roman Egypt to emphasize that texts passing from oral to written settings (and, indeed, between scribal settings) might undergo such formal and ideological changes as title a n d frame-narrative additions. Second, the text betrays evidence of having been intended as prophecy and (as is argued in chapter 4, below) of having been composed for, or in, an oral setting. Third, the evidence adduced in this chapter for the d o m i n a n c e of the figure of Elijah in early rural Egyptian Christianity accounts for the application of the n a m e "Elijah" to a prophecy apparently delivered in such a milieu. Would the audience of the text's first p e r f o r m a n c e understand the performer—the p r o p h e t — t o be Elijah to some extent, a n d the discourse itself to be Elijah's words? T h e evidence presented here suggests that some individuals in the chora (particularly desert ascetics) were locally considered to incarnate "the spirit of Elijah" in several ways (desert solitude, healing, vision). If the composer of the Apocalypse of Elijah held such a charisma preceding the actual delivery of the prophecy, then it is quite possible that the audience heard the prophecy as the words of Elijah himself: that is, they beheld him in his prophetic p e r f o r m a n c e as, essentially, Elijah himself. But it is also possible that any individual w h o appeared prophetlike in third-century rural Egypt may have been regarded as "an Elijah" or "a second Elijah" (or a "second John the Baptist"), in which case a rural audience might h a v e regarded any prophetic discourse as the "words of Elijah.‫״‬ 66. Ibid., 43. 67. E.g., "It needs n o a r g u m e n t that it is t h e Spirit w h o speaks in the apocalypses" (ibid., 46). See other criticisms in Metzger, "Literary Forgeries," 14-16.

3 Literary Aspects of the Apocalypse of Elijah: Genre, Self-Presentation, and Audience Both the private reading a n d the public performance of a text are diachronic processes: that is, the text is accepted a n d interpreted in progressive stages, from the first sentence to the last. It follows that the beginning of the text will always function as an introduction to the rest, thereby establishing context, authority, a n d tradition, those vital aspects of a text that determine h o w it will be understood from the beginning of any given reading. G e n r e is, in effect, the grounding in the traditions a n d literary conventions of a culture from which any text must start a n d to which any text must refer for it to be meaningful to an audience. The contents of a text—eschatology, parenesis, legend—can function in any genre, under a variety of rubrics, a n d can assume meaning a n d authority depending on the literary genre (or subgenre) through which they are communicated. The opening segment of a text t h u s will, by and large, determine the significance of the rest of the text. In Hirsch's words, "An interpreter's preliminary conception of a text is constitutive of everything that h e subsequently understands, a n d . . . this remains the case unless a n d until that generic conception is altered. 1 ‫ ״‬Likewise the closure of a text will either reinforce or redefine the context a n d significance established in its opening. It is therefore the total f r a m e of the text—its opening and closing segments 2 —that functions in reading and p e r f o r m a n c e as the 1. E. D. Hirsch, Jr., Validity in Interpretation ( N e w H a v e n a n d London: Yale University Press, 1967), 74. 2. T h e f r a m e is reinforced t h r o u g h the course of the text by t h e use of internal narrative elements referring back to t h e introduction: e.g., the narrative interludes in 2 Bar. 13:1; 21:1-4; 36:1; 44:1; etc.

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chief indication of literary genre. 3 O n e cannot discuss the Apocalypse of Elijah as an apocalypse because the primary criterion for classifying a text u n d e r this genre is not the contents of its revelation but the story of its revelation, which establishes both tradition (i.e., the patriarch or hero's legend) a n d authority (his privilege in receiving revelation) as a link between the audience (or reader) a n d the a u t h o r - p e r f o r m e r . It is still possible, however, to discuss the "intrinsic genre" of the text, that is, the m a n n e r in which it systematically presented itself to an audience in dialectic with the audience's o w n literary categories a n d expectations. Moreover, it must be admitted that w h e n an author employs the conventions of a genre for the production of a n e w text, the author may not repeat the genre's abstract structure but rather may imitate recollectively an existing text. In this case—a case of w h a t w e might call "historical influence"—the scribe may well consider aspects of the content of the previous text to be as w o r t h y of imitation as the basic revelatory structure. 4

ORAL PERFORMANCE AND THE PROGRESSIVE ASSEMBLING OF FORMS In his letter "On Virginity," Jerome offers a rare glimpse of h o w an eschatological discourse functioned in a fourth-century Egyptian monastery:

3. T h i s " p r o g r e s s i v e ' / p e r f o r m a t i v e u n d e r s t a n d i n g of literary g e n r e relies largely o n Hirsch, Validity in Interpretation, 6 8 - 1 2 6 ; a n d Roger D. A b r a h a m s , " T h e C o m p l e x Relations of S i m p l e F o r m s , " in Folklore Genres, e d . D a n B e n - A m o s , P u b l i c a t i o n s of t h e A m e r i c a n Folklore Society 26 ( A u s t i n : U n i v e r s i t y of T e x a s Press, 1976), 193-214. Cf. N o r t h r o p Frye, Anatomy of Criticism ( P r i n c e t o n : P r i n c e t o n U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1957), 2 4 6 50; Lars H a r t m a n , " S u r v e y of t h e P r o b l e m of A p o c a l y p t i c G e n r e , " in Apocalypticism in the Mediterranean World and the Near East, ed. D a v i d H e l l h o l m ( T u b i n g e n : M o h r , 1983), 329-43; a n d D a v i d H e l l h o l m , "The P r o b l e m of A p o c a l y p t i c G e n r e a n d t h e A p o c a l y p s e of J o h n , " Semeia 36 (1986):29-33. O b v i o u s l y , o n c e t h e r e a d i n g of t h e text is u n d e r w a y , certain t r a d i t i o n a l e l e m e n t s t h a t w o u l d b e p r o p e r l y classified u n d e r c o n t e n t , r a t h e r t h a n g e n r e criteria, m a y a l s o p r o v i d e literary i n d i c a t i o n a s to g e n r e , a u t h o r i t y , a n d religious tradition. E.g., s u c h i m a g e s d u r i n g t h e c o u r s e of t h e text a s a n g e l d e s c r i p t i o n s , fire a n d light in h e a v e n , a n g e l i c a r m i e s , z o o m o r p h i c a c c o u n t s of history, a n d t h e special r e c o g n i t i o n of t h e p a t r i a r c h all w o u l d c o r r o b o r a t e t h a t a text is a n a p o c a l y p s e ( b u t w o u l d n o t in t h e m s e l v e s e s t a b l i s h t h e g e n r e ) . O n m o t i f s a n d t h e m e s c h a r a c t e r i s t i c t o p a r t i c u l a r g e n r e s , s e e H a r t m a n , " P r o b l e m of A p o c a l y p t i c G e n r e , " 3 3 3 - 3 6 . 4. It can b e s u g g e s t e d t h a t J o h n of P a t m o s c r e a t e d h i s a p o c a l y p s e in t h i s w a y , recalling d e t a i l s of D a n i e l a s m o r e i m p o r t a n t — o r m o r e c o n t r i b u t i v e of a u t h o r i t y — t h a n p s e u d o n y m i t y (or t h e s u p p r e s s i o n of h i s o w n i n d i v i d u a l a u t h o r s h i p ) ; c e r t a i n l y his text c o u l d h a v e a p p e a r e d a s a d e u t e r o - D a n i e l . C f . J o h n J. Collins, " P s e u d o n y m i t y , Historical R e v i e w s , a n d t h e G e n r e of t h e R e v e l a t i o n of J o h n , " CBQ 39 (1977):332.

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W h e n [ t h e a b b o t , a t t h e e n d of a l o n g h o m i l y , ] b e g i n s t o a n n o u n c e

the

k i n g d o m of C h r i s t , t h e f u t u r e h a p p i n e s s , a n d t h e c o m i n g g l o r y , y o u m a y see e v e r y o n e w i t h a g e n t l e sigh a n d lifted g a z e s a y i n g to himself: " O h that I h a d t h e w i n g s of a d o v e . F o r t h e n I w o u l d fly a w a y a n d b e at r e s t . " 5

T h e topics J e r o m e lists as typically so m o v i n g to t h e m o n k s are precisely those that s t a n d out at several p o i n t s in the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah: parousia, m i l l e n n i u m , h e a v e n l y r e w a r d s for the righteous. W e might note, in the p a s s a g e by Jerome, that not only is s u c h a n eschatological discourse p r e s e n t e d every e v e n i n g b u t it is a p p a r e n t l y p r e s e n t e d orally: coeperit adnuntiare.6 A discourse o n s u c h topics w a s p r o b a b l y considered a n oral g e n r e a m o n g Egyptian Christians, w h e t h e r it w a s inspired by a text or, p e r h a p s most relevant for t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, led s u b s e q u e n t l y to the composition of a text. A n d if o n e can take Jerome's s o m e w h a t romanticized description of the "gentle sigh" to indicate the a u d i e n c e ' s active interest a n d participation, it b e c o m e s clear that the eschatological discourse h a d a consistently s t r o n g impact on a u d i e n c e s in E g y p t — o f f e r i n g not only h o p e s , to be sure, but also horrors. It is a historically a p p r o p r i a t e a s s u m p t i o n that a n y "new" text in thirdcentury Egypt w o u l d h a v e been read a l o u d a n d c o m p o s e d with this p e r f o r m a t i v e setting in m i n d . 7 This a s s u m p t i o n b e c o m e s all the m o r e applicable to the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah b e c a u s e of its recurrent use of imperative verbs a n d a p o s t r o p h i c a d d r e s s e s to "you wise m e n of t h e land" (e.g., 1:13) or "you priests of t h e land" (e.g., 2:40). This text h a s a n oral quality that goes b e y o n d t h e oral conceits of most o t h e r apocalyptic discourses. 8 T h e p u n c t u a t i o n of the C h e s t e r Beatty m a n u s c r i p t (Sa 3 ) 5. J e r o m e , Epistle 22, 35.3 (tr. F. A. W r i g h t , Select Letters of St. /erome [LCL], 139). 6. Earlier t h e a b b o t is d e s c r i b e d a s " b e g i n n i n g t o e x p o u n d " (incipit disputare). 7. Cf. Rv 1:3; in g e n e r a l , s e e Josef Balogh, " V o c e s P a g i n a r u m ' : Beitrage z u r G e s c h i c h t e d e s l a u t e n L e s e n s u n d S c h r e i b e n s , " Philologus 82 (1926):84-109, 202-40, P a u l J. A c h t e m e i e r , "Omne verbum sonat: T h e N e w T e s t a m e n t a n d t h e O r a l E n v i r o n m e n t of Late W e s t e r n A n t i q u i t y , ' JBL 109 (1990):3-27, e s p . 15-19; William V. H a r r i s , Ancient Literacy ( C a m b r i d g e : H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1989), 35-36, 125-26, 224-26, 2 3 1 - 3 2 , 304-5; D a v i d L. Barr, "The A p o c a l y p s e of J o h n a s O r a l E n a c t m e n t , " Interpretation 40 (1986):243-56; a n d William A. G r a h a m , Beyond the Written Word: Oral Aspects of Scripture in the History of Religion ( C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1987), c h a p . 11. A l t h o u g h h e e m p h a s i z e s t h e f o u r t h c e n t u r y , G r a h a m ' s g e n e r a l o b s e r v a t i o n s w o u l d h o l d e v e n m o r e f o r t h e p r e m o n a s t i c p e r i o d . O n literary c o m p o s i t i o n f o r p u b l i c r e a d i n g in c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s C h r i s t i a n c u l t u r e s , s e e M. v a n U y t f a n g h e , " L ' h a g i o g r a p h i e et s o n public a l ' e p o q u e m e r o v i n g i e n n e , " Studia patristica 16, 2 (1985):54-62, a n d R a m s a y M a c M u l l e n , "The P r e a c h e r ' s A u d i e n c e (A.D. 350-400)," JTS 40 (1989):503-11, e s p . 5 0 8 - 9 . 8. C o m p a r e h o m i l e t i c a s i d e s in M k 13:14—"let t h e ' r e a d e r ' u n d e r s t a n d " ( w h e r e αναγινώσκω carries t h e s e n s e of " p e r c e i v i n g by m e a n s of a text," w h e t h e r p r i v a t e l y or p u b l i c l y ) — a n d Rv 13:10, 18; 14:13. Cf. Rv 17:9, o n w h i c h , R. H. C h a r l e s o b s e r v e s , "our

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strongly suggests an orientation toward public reading. 9 Finally, the text's associative rather than systematic sequences of themes might even suggest that the text's first p e r f o r m a n c e was spontaneous, like a p r o p h ecy. At the very least we m a y conclude that the text was written specifically for public performance a n d that this function continued in its Coptic translations. 1 0 A public reading is an episodic event, as the audience hears material sequentially from a single source (the reader) a n d assesses subsequent material in light of prior material. Such an assessment occurs not only o n the level of making progressive sense of narrative or a r g u m e n t but also with regard to the significance a n d authority of the material, its relationship with other materials (literary and oral) encountered in the past, a n d the nature of both performer a n d implied narrator of the text. The following analysis therefore approaches the Apocalypse of Elijah as a sequence of individual sections, each of which conforms to a particular literary form—or, in this case, speech type—and sets u p a particular relationship between the public reader of the text a n d the audience (as mediated through an a m b i g u o u s implied speaker a n d implied audience). 11 These sections are discrete both form-critically a n d in terms of the effects they might h a v e had on audiences if performed individually. Yet in the Apocalypse of Elijah they should have a reciprocal effect on each other as far as authority, traditionality, a n d the relationship between the audience a n d the performer (the public reader) are concerned. 12

a u t h o r a b a n d o n s h i s role a s Seer a n d a d d r e s s e s w o r d s of a d m o n i t i o n directly t o h i s r e a d e r s " (A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Revelation of St. John, 2 vols. [ E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1920], 1:368). 9. S e e a b o v e , p. 22. 10. Cf. W i n t e r m u t e , 735 n. h 7 3 7 ‫״‬ n. n2. O n t h e p e r s i s t e n c e of oral p e r f o r m a t i v e m a r k e r s in w r i t t e n literature, s e e W a l t e r J. O n g , Orality and Literacy: The Technologizing of the Word ( L o n d o n a n d N e w York: M e t h u e n . 1982), 171. 11. O n t h e d i f f e r e n c e b e t w e e n i m p l i e d a n d historical a u d i e n c e a n d a u t h o r , see S e y m o u r C h a t m a n , Story and Discourse: Narrative Structure in Fiction and Film (Ithaca, N.Y., a n d L o n d o n : C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1978), 146-51. 12. Cf. R o g e r D. A b r a h a m s , " C o m p l e x R e l a t i o n s of S i m p l e F o r m s , " 194, 198-99; i d e m , " I n t r o d u c t o r y R e m a r k s t o a R h e t o r i c a l T h e o r y of Folklore," Journal of American Folklore 81 (1968): 144-46; t h e dialectical p r o c e s s b e t w e e n " a u t h o r " a n d r e a d e r / a u d i e n c e , a s o u t l i n e d b y H i r s c h , Validity in Interpretation, 78-88; a n d issues in t h e a s s e s s m e n t of social s e t t i n g d i s c u s s e d b y William G . D o t y , " T h e C o n c e p t of G e n r e in Literary Analysis," in SBLSP (1972), ed. L a n e C. M c G a u g h y , 2 vols., 2:422-28. Similar i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s of texts h a v e b e e n p r o p o s e d b y M e n a k h e m Perry, "Literary D y n a m i c s : H o w t h e O r d e r of a Text C r e a t e s Its M e a n i n g s , I. T h e o r y of Literary D y n a m i c s , " Poetics Today 1 (1979):35-61; a n d t h e c o n t r i b u t o r s to D e n n i s E. S m i t h , ed., How Gospels Begin, Semeia 52(1991).

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

The Apocalypse of Elijah begins, "The w o r d of the Lord came to m e saying to me, '[Son of Man,] say to this people, "Why do you add sin to your sins and anger the Lord God w h o created you?‫ "'״‬This pericope reproduces a first-person narrative introduction used—in slightly abbreviated forms—in the prophetic books of Ezekiel a n d Jeremiah a n d also recalls formulaic narrative in the biblical Elijah cycle (1 Kgs 17:2, 8; 18:1; 21:17,19). The form is generally classified as a "prophetic commission (or revelation) formula."' 3 In analyzing the self-presentation of the text, however, it is useful to consider the function of this formula as it is intended to h a v e an impact on the audience. Borrowing a concept from J. L. Austin's theory of speech acts, o n e might designate the commission formula's ittocutionary function as establishing a first-person claim to divine authority (whereas its locutionary function is merely to inform an audience of the event of a god's contact). 14 The "Son of Man‫ ״‬address appears only in the Achmimic text, but because its presence gives little n u a n c e to the pericope (apart from the reinforcement of archaic phraseology) it is difficult to attribute much significance to its absence. It is clear nonetheless that the passage w a s meant to recall, if not Ezekiel specifically, the glorified claims of a biblical prophet. 1 5 The passage's almost identical fivefold repetition in Ezekiel would certainly h a v e facilitated its memorization a n d subsequent recollection as a typical prophetic formula, suitable for the introduction of a new text. 13. Ez 6:1; 12:1; 13:1; 14:2; 33:1-2; Jer 1:4, 11, 13; 2:1; 16:1; 24:4; cf. Is 30:ld; Sir 3:27b. O n the form, see Claus Westermann, The Basic Forms of Prophetic Speech, tr. H u g h Clayton White (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1967), 100-115; Klaus Koch, The Growth of the Biblical Tradition, tr. S. M. Cupitt (2d ed.; N e w York: Scribner's, 1969), 202, 216-17; David

E. A u n e ,

Prophecy

in

Early

Christianity

and

the

Ancient

Mediterranean

World

(Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1983), 90-91, 328-31." 14. J. L. Austin, How to Do Things with Words, ed. J. O. Urmson and Marina Sbisa (2d ed.; Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1975); John R. Searle, "A Taxonomy of lllocutionary Acts," in Language, Mind, and Knowledge, ed. Keith G u n d e r s o n , Minnesota Studies in the Philosophy of Science 7 (Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1975), 344-69; and Richard O h m a n n , "Literature as Act," Approaches to Poetics, ed. Seymour C h a t m a n (New York: Columbia University Press, 1973), 81-108, w h o approaches literature f r o m the perspective of mimesis. 15. Arguments could be m a d e both for the originality and for t h e later addition of "Son of Man," and so no assumptions will be m a d e either way in this analysis. Functionally, it merely reinforces the Ezekelian language of the introduction. "Add sin to sins" appears not in Ezekiel but in Is 30:ld and Sir 3:27b, but in neither book in a context that seems to have influenced ApocEl. Therefore it is probable that t h e phrase circulated autonomously in the repertoire of stock biblical phrases f r o m which Christian preachers and authors d r e w for their compositions and homilies. On the popularization of biblical phraseology in early Egyptian Christianity, see above, chap. 2, pp. 33-35.

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83

There follows an admonition that begins with a fairly exact quotation of 1 Jn 2:15a—"Do not love the world or the things in the world"—but that appears to improvise an elaboration on this theme: "for the pride of the world a n d its destruction are the devil's." The content of this elaboration does not differ significantly from its analog in 1 Jn 2:16-17: F o r all t h a t is in t h e w o r l d , t h e l u s t of t h e f l e s h a n d t h e l u s t of t h e e y e s a n d t h e p r i d e of life, is n o t of t h e F a t h e r b u t is of t h e w o r l d . A n d t h e w o r l d p a s s e s a w a y , a n d t h e l u s t of it; b u t h e w h o d o e s t h e will of G o d a b i d e s f o r ever.

There is good reason to believe, therefore, that the author was recalling his source from memory a n d was only able to recall the first part exactly. 16 From a careful consideration of the nature of scriptural citations in this introduction, therefore, it appears that the author intended to create a sense of biblical authority through the use of stock phraseology, rather than drawing carefully from set texts for the p u r p o s e of systematic exegesis. This would suggest that from its conception the Apocalypse of Elijah was designed for oral p e r f o r m a n c e — w h e r e biblical phraseology a n d quotations would h a v e an effect regardless of context and accuracy—rather than private r e a d i n g — w h e r e accuracy a n d context could be checked against other texts a n d considered systematically. 1 7 What effect might such an introduction h a v e on the subsequent text and its oral reception? What clues does the audience receive as to implied speaker, authority, a n d genre? The claim established by the revelation/commission formula presents itself in the first person. Although m a n y apocalypses employ the first-person voice for introduction or narration, the Apocalypse of Elijah lacks the journal-like commission formulas conventional to apocalypses such as 4 Ezra ("In the thirtieth year . . . I w a s troubled as I lay on m y bed. . . . Then the angel that had been sent to me, w h o s e n a m e was Uriel, a n s w e r e d 4 : 1,3:1]‫] ״‬ elation (‫״‬I John . . . was on the island called Patmos I w a s in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet

16. The special emphasis Wintermute puts on 'pride, boasting" ( α > ο γ ψ ο γ ; 735 η. g.) is p e r h a p s u n w a r r a n t e d in the context of ApocEl. The 'pride" seems not so m u c h to refer to a personified kosmos as to t h e worldly a n d materialistic attitudes of nonascetics, as perceived by the author a n d his audience (a perspective identical to that in 1 Jn 2:1517). 17. O n the private reader's ability to check and "back-loop" to earlier text, see Ong, Orality and Literacy, 39-40.

)

and

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

84

saying, ' W r i t e 1 8 . ( [ 1 : 9 - 1 1 ] ‫״׳‬ T h e e c h o of the p r o p h e t i c voice f r o m a n d Jeremiah w o u l d p r o b a b l y h a v e established t h e text in the m i n d of the a u d i e n c e as a p r o p h e t i c discourse, a g e n r e that customarily e m ployed first-person narrative to indicate the context a n d authority of its contents. A l t h o u g h t h e ‫ ״‬Γ is not identified by n a m e , w e m u s t s u p p o s e that the a u d i e n c e w o u l d h a v e s h a r e d with the a u t h o r a familiarity with the l a n g u a g e a n d lore of prophets. 1 9 This p r o p h e t i c i n t r o d u c t i o n t h e r e f o r e implies that t h e a u d i e n c e s h o u l d consider w h a t follows as divinely directed, if not inspired. T h e introduction's perlocutionary effect w o u l d p r e s u m a b l y b e the a u d i e n c e ' s sense of a w e d anticipation b e f o r e t h e delivery of divine prophecies. 2 0 The i m m e d i a t e u s e of a scriptural q u o t a t i o n might h a v e f u n c t i o n e d to reinforce the divine authority of the text. Of greatest i m p o r t a n c e is the reflexive effect that this introduction (and its implications for the n a t u r e of t h e first-person s p e a k e r ) w o u l d h a v e h a d o n the public reader a n d , it is to b e a s s u m e d , o n t h e a u t h o r w h o c o m p o s e d it for public reading. W i t h o u t a n y t h i r d - p e r s o n introduction to establish a s e p a r a t e implied s p e a k e r (e.g., Enoch, A b r a h a m , Moses), w i t h o u t a n y systematic distinction b e t w e e n this i n t r o d u c t o r y claim of divine direction a n d the rest of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, the location of t h e e m p h a t i c *me‫ ״‬in t h e first verse falls necessarily u p o n the p e r f o r m e r or public reader (as the implied author). 2 1 T h a t is, this e m 18. Cf. 2 Bar. 1:1; 1 En (*Parables') 37:1-5; Rv 1:1. See A u n e , Prophecy in Early Christianity, 115-16, 330-31. Ezekiel anticipates this e m p h a s i s on the physical "text" of the revelation in 2:8—3:3. 19. A u n e ' s analysis of the c o n t i n u a t i o n a n d t r a n s f o r m a t i o n of these f o r m u l a s in firsta n d s e c o n d - c e n t u r v Christianity (and, p r e s u m a b l y , Judaism) aims ultimately at portraying a social a n d religious p h e n o m e n o n of itinerant Christian " s h a m a n s " a n d their ecstatic utterances. N o such context can b e d e d u c e d f r o m the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah; indeed, A u n e ' s a c k n o w l e d g m e n t of "literary oracles" (Prophecy in Early Christianity, 318-20) s h o w s that f o r m u l a s f r o m an ecstatic or o t h e r w i s e oral religious context might also be used in literature to give the p r e t e n s e of the a u t h o r ' s ecstasy and inspiration. A n o t h e r plausible origin of prophetic f o r m u l a s a n d l a n g u a g e in the Apocalypse of Elijah and e l s e w h e r e is the "ecstatic" anticipation of delivery experienced by a religious leader as that leader c o m p o s e s the text of a h o m i l y or o t h e r inspirational discourse in private. From this state the c o m p o s e r might write an authentically ecstatic style into the text, even t h o u g h the e v e n t u a l p e r f o r m a n c e derives f r o m a p r e p a r e d text. 20. Austin explains t h e perlocutionary act thus: "Saying s o m e t h i n g will o f t e n , or even normally, p r o d u c e certain consequential effects u p o n the feelings, t h o u g h t s , or actions of the audience, or of the speaker, or of o t h e r persons: a n d it m a y be d o n e with the design, intention, or p u r p o s e of p r o d u c i n g them. . . . We shall call the p e r f o r m a n c e of an act of this kind the p e r f o r m a n c e of a perlocutionary' act" (How to Do Things with Words,

101).

21. Cf. Barr, "Apocalypse of John," 251-52. O n the charisma of p e r f o r m a n c e , see William H u g h Jansen, "Classifying P e r f o r m a n c e in the S t u d y of Verbal Folklore," in

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85

phatic "me" of the implied a u t h o r - s p e a k e r w o u l d s u b s u m e the identity of the historical s p e a k e r ( w h o , in the first p e r f o r m a n c e of t h e text, m a y also h a v e b e e n t h e historical a u t h o r or ad h o c oral composer). This w o u l d suggest that the a u t h o r i t y of t h e text in its first p e r f o r m a n c e ( s ) w a s b o r n e not only by t h e biblical p h r a s e o l o g y a n d the stated claim of divine direction but also by t h e prior c h a r i s m a of t h e s p e a k e r . I n d e e d , there is p r o b a b l y a historical relationship b e t w e e n the typically prophetic voice e m p l o y e d in this introduction, t h e text's attribution to Elijah, a n d the particular f o r m of t h e a u t h o r ' s c h a r i s m a in his c o m m u n i t y (e.g., as a p r o p h e t ) . The m a n u s c r i p t tradition implies that t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah h a d a d y n a m i c presence in public r e a d i n g s well a f t e r its composition. O n e can infer this k i n d of p o p u l a r i t y f r o m b o t h t h e p u n c t u a t i o n in Sa 3 a n d the early diversification of recensions or text "families," evidently in t h e process of readings a n d applications. It is t h e r e f o r e a p p r o p r i a t e to c o n sider w h e t h e r t h e p e r f o r m a n c e a n d illocutions r e v i e w e d h e r e w o u l d c o n t i n u e effectively over the course of a series of historical readings. David Barr h a s a r g u e d that the epistolary f r a m e used in the b e g i n n i n g of the book of Revelation (1:11)—a text m a n i f e s t l y i n t e n d e d for oral perf o r m a n c e (1:3)—actually preserves t h e orally a u t h o r i t a t i v e voice of the p r o p h e t John as written literature a f t e r the historical p r o p h e t w a s gone. 2 2 O n e might o b s e r v e similar a t t e m p t s to couch oral p r o p h e c y within recognized literary genres, in order to e n d o w t h e m w i t h p e r m a n e n t scriptural authority, in Mark 13, Apocalypse of Peter 2-6, a n d t h r o u g h o u t the eschatological p o r t i o n s of Jewish apocalypses. If the c o m p o s e r or a s u b s e q u e n t redactor of the Elijah A p o c a l y p s e h a d a d d e d a literary f r a m e to locate the parenesis a n d w a r n i n g s in historical l e g e n d — t o explain h o w the p r o p h e c y h a d been p r e s e r v e d t h r o u g h the time of the p r e s e n t a u d i e n c e — t h e n t h e text w o u l d h a v e b e c o m e a "true" a p o c a l y p s e w h o s e authority w o u l d reside in its literary n a t u r e , not in its p e r f o r m a t i v e effect Studies in Folklore, e d . W. E d s o n R i c h m o n d ( B l o o m i n g t o n , Ind.: I n d i a n a U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1957), 110-18; a n d A b r a h a m s , *Rhetorical T h e o r y of Folklore," 147-48. O n g n o t e s t h e i n c i d e n t of an A f r i c a n e p i c p e r f o r m e r p s y c h o l o g i c a l l y a n d d r a m a t i c a l l y i d e n t i f y i n g w i t h h i s h e r o d u r i n g t h e c o u r s e of p e r f o r m a n c e (Orality and Literacy, 46). O n e w o u l d a s s u m e this to b e t h e case in p u b l i c r e a d i n g too, a s a n y d i s c o u r s e will intrinsically p u t t h e historical r e a d e r in t h e p o s i t i o n of t h e i m p l i e d s p e a k e r (such a p r i n c i p l e m i g h t b e d e m o n s t r a t e d w i t h t h e G o s p e l of J o h n a n d t h e N a g H a m m a d i t r a c t a t e Thunder, Perfect Mind). 22. Barr, " A p o c a l y p s e of J o h n , " 2 4 9 - 5 0 . C f . A u n e , Prophecy in Early Christianity, 275: "It is v e r y p o s s i b l e t h a t [ R e v e l a t i o n ' s ] p u b l i c r e a d i n g w o u l d r e p l a c e a p r o p h e t i c a d d r e s s to t h e c o n g r e g a t i o n s b y o n e or m o r e of t h e i r local p r o p h e t s . "

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

a n d ‫״‬presence.‫ ״‬The (so-named) Apocalypse of Elijah, however, preserves the immediacy of the first performer (the composer or prophet) as an authoritative presence in each reading: Elijah becomes not merely a visionary of biblical legend but, even more, the revealer of the present. Thus the first-person introduction would continually h a v e h a d a powerful effect on the s o m e w h a t disjointed homily that follows it, by creating in audiences the (perlocutionary) u n d e r s t a n d i n g that the h o m ily is a continuation of the Lord's word, in spite of the fact that God is occasionally mentioned in subsequent verses in the third person. 2 3 It is not unusual for narrative religious literature to contain at some point a parenetic discourse that represents the ideology of the text's composer or compositional community. 2 4 The vividly homiletic nature of ApocEl 1:327, however, contrasts with those parenetic discourses written specifically for expression within the narrative context of an apocalypse, testament, or gospel. 25 This homily contains a variety of subjects: cosmic Christology (ApocEl 1:3-7), an exposition on the eschatological fate of the audience—the saints—versus that of sinners (1:8-12), a d e f e n s e of fasting a n d discussion of its benefits (apparently an issue of immediate significance to the audience—1:13-22), and, finally, an exhortation against d o u b t (1:23-27). But the links b e t w e e n these topics are not m a d e explicitly. The hortatory a n d even urgent way in which topics c o m m e n c e should dissuade us from seeking aporias—gaps between artificially linked texts. Instead, there are implicit associations between topics, which would have been apparent to the first audiences (e.g., the relationship b e t w e e n powers of 23. The confusion created by this transition f r o m Lord's voice to homily is exhibited by various translators' attempts to p u n c t u a t e the e n d of the initial speech. While Wintermute (735) a n d Rosenstiehl (79) end the quotation before the verse from 1 John, Pietersma (21) carries it to t h e e n d of t h e latter verse. Schrage (231) a n d Kuhn (762) forgo quotation m a r k s altogether, thus representing accurately the implicit n a t u r e of the text's voice. 24. Philip Vielhauer, *Apocalypses a n d Related Subjects: Introduction,* tr. David Hill, in NTA 2:587. 25. The m a j o r distinction b e t w e e n the s e c o n d - p e r s o n addresses of a homily designed for public p e r f o r m a n c e a n d a parenetic discourse designed for inclusion in a literary text is the presence in the latter of a narrated audience to w h o m the discourse is (apparently) directed (although it is implicitly directed to the reader or public audience). In the homily, which as a f o r m lacks a narrative context, the object of the discourse is explicitly the historical audience. Although the homiletic section of the Elijah Apocalypse develops its t h e m e s m u c h more t h a n d o the clipped parenetic utterances ascribed to early Jewish a n d Christian prophets, the authority by which parenesis might be w o v e n into oracular a n d eschatological speech derives f r o m the tradition of the prescriptive oracle. See Aune, Prophecy in Early Christianity, 321-22.

Literary A s p e c t s o f the A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah

87

fasting a n d single-mindedness). Yet the unsystematic arrangement of the Apocalypse of Elijah as compared to, for example, the progressive visions of the book of Revelation is quite apparent a n d lends support to a compositional origin in public or even s p o n t a n e o u s prophecy. 2 6 The author has reinforced the illocutionary effect of the first-person introduction—that the homily continues to represent the divine w o r d — through his alternation of prophetic descriptions of God's intentions and "quotations" of God's o w n words. For example, the second segment of the homily appears almost entirely in God's voice: R e m e m b e r that h e h a s p r e p a r e d for y o u [plural] t h r o n e s a n d c r o w n s in h e a v e n . F o r e v e r y o n e w h o will o b e y [ m e ( A c h ) ] [his v o i c e (Sa 3 )] will receive t h r o n e s a n d c r o w n s . A m o n g those w h o are m i n e , says the Lord, I will w r i t e m y n a m e u p o n t h e i r f o r e h e a d s a n d s e a l t h e i r r i g h t h a n d s . T h e y will n o t b e h u n g r y , n o r will t h e y t h i r s t , n o r will t h e L a w l e s s O n e p r e v a i l o v e r t h e m , n o r will t h e T h r o n e s h i n d e r t h e m , b u t t h e y will g o w i t h t h e a n g e l s t o m y city. ( A p o c E l 1:8-10)

Even w h e n the next homiletic segment opens with the address, "Hear, Ο wise men of the land" (1:13a), the speaker does not clearly change until God is himself invoked in the third person (1:13b), w h e n w e u n d e r s t a n d the p r o p h e t - a u t h o r to be speaking in h u m a n voice. But then the divine voice apparently breaks in again during the discourse on the powers of fasting (1:16): Sa3

Ach

s o t h a t t h e evil o n e will n o t d e c e i v e y o u But a h o l y f a s t is w h a t

so t h a t t h e evil o n e will n o t c o n s u m e y o u But a h o l y f a s t is w h a t

he has established. T h e Lord says,

I h a v e established, t h e Lord says,

H e w h o fasts continually will n e v e r s i n

He w h o fasts will n e v e r s i n 2 7

Once again, no change of speakers is indicated until, several verses later, God is mentioned in the third person (1:18). Thus throughout the homiletic section the pretense of the divine voice, which w a s initiated in the first verse of the text, is maintained through a consistent confusion of implied speakers. In the context of 26. Cf. Barr, *Apocalypse of John,* 244-49. 27. Cf. Wintermute, 738 n. d3. In ApocEl 1:20 the Achmimic ms. quotes God again— "But a holy fast is w h a t I have created*—where Sa 3 continues in third person—"a holy fast is w h a t the Lord created."

88

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

public performance, the illocutionary n a t u r e of this confusion of voices would have been twofold: (1) a casting of divine authority over the entire discourse (the third-person references to G o d merely establishing the nature of the supernatural speaker), a n d (2) the implication that the performer—the public reader—himself spoke the voice of God. 2 8 This would again suggest that the author and original speaker of the text m e a n t to cast himself as a prophet with divine authority, a n d one may presume that this effect continued in subsequent readings. O n e might say that the Apocalypse of Elijah w a s conceived for the type of enthusiastic Upper Egyptian assemblies in which Eusebius beheld the prodigious reciter of Scripture in the early fourth century. 2 9 The confusion of speakers a n d authorities continues in the Apocalypse of Elijah 2: ‫[״‬Those w h o are mine (Sa 3 )] [Now, therefore, they (Ach)] will not be overcome, says the Lord, nor will they fear in battle. A n d w h e n they see a king w h o has arisen in the north" (ApocEl 2:2-3a). By not indicating a new speaker, the author has created the impression that it is God himself w h o delivers the sequence of political a n d social oracles in ApocEl 2, an impression that would be reinforced by the continued use of "oral" markers: the use of first-person singular a n d second-person plural p r o n o u n s a n d of exclamatory interjections ("Woe to you!"). While obviously maintaining the implication of oral address, ApocEl 2 changes in speech type f r o m homily to oracular prophecy. The content and motifs of these oracles come directly f r o m native Egyptian oracle tradition, rather than from the immediate ideology a n d concerns of the rural Christian m o v e m e n t ; a n d there is reason to believe that, in thirdcentury Egypt, an audience would have recognized the traditional language a n d imagery of the oracles. 30 Furthermore, while listening to the particular descriptions a n d predictions constituting ApocEl 2, the audience would hear and u n d e r s t a n d the whole text in light of its experiences of Egyptian oracles, which h a d considerable circulation in Greek during the Roman period. A text that h a d begun in the voice a n d authority of biblical prophecy a n d maintained this voice through a series of homilies would n o w acquire the voice, the authority, a n d even the concerns and dramatic scope of traditional Egyptian oracles. 28. O n the illocutionary effect of "oral" markers, see Roger Fowler, Literature as Social Discourse (London: Batsford Academic, 1981), 88-91. 29. See above, pp. 32-33. 30. See chaps. 7-8.

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The obscure imagery a n d language of ApocEl 2 also recall the symbolism a n d forms of speech used in Hellenistic oracular literature such as the Sibylline Oracles. O f t e n such enigmatic language refers obliquely—but systematically—to actual historical events of the era of the writer; the oracles are thereby called vaticinia ex eventus, "prophecies (written) out of the events (that they seem to predict).‫ ״‬In the case of ApocEl 2, this function of allusively d o c u m e n t i n g c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s events is not so clear; indeed, it is argued in chapter 8, below, that there is no ex eventu reference intended in this chapter of the Elijah Apocalypse. The audience is left, however, with such tantalizing oracles as "A king will rise u p in the west, w h o m they will call the King of Peace. . . . He will kill the Unrighteous King" (2:6-7) a n d "For here are his signs—I will tell you so you will recognize him: for h e has two sons, one on his right a n d one on his left" (2:17-18). Without an explanation (which is not forthcoming in the text) the audience might be left with the o p a q u e ravings of a temple seer. But h o w does the opacity of this material operate in the context set u p by the prior homily? In anticipation of ApocEl 2, the author has introduced the homily on fasting with the address "Hear, Ο wise men [ N C A B G O Y ] of the land, concerning the deceivers w h o will multiply in the end times [ N T £ A H NNeoyoeicy]" (1:13a). The "deceivers" are subsequently identified as those opposing the fast. Because the oracular ApocEl 2 does discuss the eschaton, the "wisdom" ascribed to the audience in the address should indicate their special ability to u n d e r s t a n d the oracles. This is not to imply that the audience might actually h a v e perceived a systematic correspondence b e t w e e n the oracles a n d their o w n period; but they m a y h a v e been able to connect the "deceivers" to individuals w h o h a d been recently criticizing excessive fasting in the region. 31 A specific motif of eschatological o p p o n e n t s to fasting cannot be f o u n d elsewhere in Jewish a n d Christian literature. The audience could therefore locate itself in the eschaton, realize the author's p r o n o u n c e m e n t u p o n it of "wise men," 32 a n d understand the oracles in ApocEl 2 to be a vivid portrayal of imminent events. It is in ApocEl 2 that a corporate dramatis persona of "priests of the land" ( n o y h h b μπκ.λ.2) begins to appear: as a reign is good or bad (or as 31. See below, chap. 11. 32. The illocutionary force of this address is both to separate the audience f r o m outsiders hierarchically, as the "wise" against the "unwise," and to create in the audience the experience of u n i q u e and privileged understanding.

90

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

a sign bodes evil), so the "priests‫ ״‬gain or suffer or ‫״‬tear their garments‫״‬ 2:28)). Because there is a historical correlation between the forms 3 3 of ApocEl 2—which arose in native Egyptian temple settings—and the relative fortune of the Egyptian priesthood u n d e r various historical rulers (whether Egyptian, Greek, or Roman), the author m a y h a v e intended his use of ογΗΗΒ (or, originally, icpcis) to signify the audience's status in relation to the oracles he w a s delivering. 3 4 W h e n h e addresses the ‫״‬priests‫ ״‬in the second person in 2:40, there is even further reason to take this term as a designation of the audience in the latter's projected eschatological experience: as the woes begin a n d the audience m e m b e r s recognize the signs, they will be like the temple priests w h o interpret chaotic events in the Egyptian kingship as preordained. Thus this enigmatic term for an eschatological group (which seems to reflect the implied audience) may derive from the very literary form employed in ApocEl 2; a n d consequently the audience, identifying with the ‫״‬priests of the land,‫ ״‬is placed in a more traditional relationship to the ‫״‬pagan" imagery a n d language in ApocEl 2 than the more "Christian" sections in ApocEl 1 might h a v e allowed. The exhortation against doubt, which concluded the homiletic section a n d followed the fasting homily through the theme of "impassioned concentration," connects to this oracular section with the following w o r d s (1:27—2:3): Sa

Ach

If y o u are a l w a y s s i n g l e - m i n d e d in t h e L o r d , b e w i s e t o t h e T i m e ,

Therefore, be always singlem i n d e d in t h e L o r d , s o t h a t y o u

so that you might c o m p r e h e n d all t h i n g s c o n c e r n i n g t h e A s s y r i a n , . 1 ‫ן‬ ‫ן‬ , / k i n g s a n d t h e d e s t r u c t i o n of n e a v , en and earth.

m i g h t c o m p r e h e n d all t h i n g s . _ , , T h e r e f o r e , c o n c e r n i n g t h e A s sJy r i , . , , , a n k i n g s a n d t h e d e s t r u c t i o n of , ° , . . . . heaven and earth and the things u n d e r t h e earth.

33. I prefer J. Arthur Baird's distinction of "form"—"small individual units representing the materials out of which the literary work is composed . . . usually said to be a product of the use to which the transmitting community put the oral material"—from "genre"—"a collective category that requires m a n y individual units often, but not always, of different types. . . . It is basically a literary designation" ("Genre Analysis as a Method of HistoricafCriticism," in SBLSP (1972), 2:386-87). 34. Moreover, t h e perspective in ApocEl 2, which expresses a sympathetic interest in Memphis (2:21; cf. 2:44, 46-47) and sentiments against Alexandria (2:15; cf. 2:31), can be attributed to the ideology of the Egyptian priesthood, particularly during Roman times: as Garth Fowden observes, "Memphis was a potent symbol in Egyptian eyes, an antitype, . . . of the Greek metropolis of Alexandria" (The Egyptian Hermes [Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987), 41).

Literary Aspects of the Apocalypse o f Elijah

T h o s e w h o are m i n e will n o t b e

N o w , t h e r e f o r e , t h e y will n o t b e

o v e r c o m e , s a y s t h e Lord, n o r will they fear in battle. A n d w h e n they

o v e r c o m e , s a y s t h e L o r d , n o r will t h e y f e a r in b a t t l e . A n d w h e n t h e y

s e e a k i n g w h o h a s a r i s e n in t h e

s e e a k i n g w h o h a s a r i s e n in t h e

n o r t h t h e y will call h i m t h e K i n g of

n o r t h t h e y will call h i m t h e K i n g of

the Assyrians a n d the Unrighteous King.

the Assyrians a n d the Unrighteous King.

91

As in ApocEl 1:13, wisdom is here associated with perception of the onset of eschatological woes; but here such wisdom is also characterized as lack of ‫״‬double-mindedness,‫ ״‬which apparently denoted a state of uncertainty preventing one's absolute conviction in legitimate a u t h o r ity. 35 Moreover, the audience's implicit capacity for discerning the nature of things is n o w focused on two themes or events: the eradication of the cosmos for a ‫ ״‬n e w h e a v e n a n d n e w earth‫—״‬a t h e m e that the audience would presumably have recognized from Revelation, other eschatological literature, or an oral lore of cosmic cataclysm—and ‫״‬the Assyrian kings.‫״‬ The ‫״‬Assyrians‫ ״‬function as the dramatis persotiae maleficiorum both in the beginning a n d the conclusion of ApocEl 2 (2:3b, 42-47). T h u s the above passage does indeed focus the notion of wisdom with material anticipating the eschatological oracles. In the late third century, h o w ever, ‫״‬kings of the Assyrians‫ ״‬would not h a v e represented a readily apparent contemporary historical reference to most Egyptians. Indeed, the author (notably in the Lord's voice) indicates that this rather vague appellative is to be applied to an even vaguer ‫״‬king arising in the north‫״‬ 2:3)a). Neither appellative brings the character any closer to historical identifiability. But the c o m p o u n d i n g of oracular references, particularly in the voice of God, w a s a traditional device both in Egyptian a n d early Christian prophetic literature, which functioned to give the reader or audience the sense of the oracle's interpretation a n d historical reference without completely unveiling it. 36 Following ApocEl 2, the text turns progressively toward Christian images of eschatological woes, reflecting the tradition of eschatological discourse inherited from Enoch literature, Daniel, Revelation, a n d pre-

35. Cf. Oscar J. F. Seitz, ‫־‬Antecedents and Signification of t h e Term DIPSYCHOS,' JBL 66 (1947):211-19; and idem, ‫־‬Afterthoughts on the Term Dipsychos," NTS 4 (1958):327-34. 36. Cf. Aune, Prophecy in Early Christianity, 327; and Janet H. Johnson and Robert K. Ritner, "Multiple Meaning a n d Ambiguity in the 'Demotic Chronicle," in Studies in Egyptology Presented to Miriam Lichtheim, 2 vols., ed. Sarah Israelit-Groll (Jerusalem: Magnes Press, 1990), 1:494-506).

92

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

sumably an oral tradition of eschatological preaching. The text continues to be punctuated with the speech devices of a public delivery, of oral performance; a n d the illocutionary authority of the voice likewise continues to be divine or prophetic (for w h a t h u m a n leader, indeed, would have the k n o w l e d g e to disclose these materials?): T h e n if you s h o u l d h e a r t h a t t h e r e is security a n d s a f e t y in Jerusalem, tear y o u r g a r m e n t s , Ο priests of t h e l a n d , b e c a u s e t h e D e s t r u c t i v e O n e will n o t b e long in coming! (2:40) In t h e f o u r t h y e a r of t h a t king t h e r e will a p p e a r [ s o m e o n e (Sa 3 )j [the Lawless O n e (Ach)] saying, ‫״‬I a m t h e Christ.‫ ״‬But h e is n o t — d o n o t believe him! (3:1) For b e h o l d , I will tell y o u his signs s o t h a t y o u m i g h t r e c o g n i z e h i m . (3:14)

From the almost familiar voice of the oracles and the signs of the Lawless One, the Apocalypse of Elijah changes abruptly in speech type to a series of dramatic narratives describing: (1) m a r t y r d o m s of eschatological heroes; (2) martyrdoms of "saints‫ ״‬a n d the " r i g h t e o u s 3 ) ;‫)״‬ evacuation of saints a n d the righteous; (4) the decline of earth without saints; (5) final battle, judgment, a n d parousia. But t h o u g h straight narrative does not require the degree of audience recognition or participation that the direct address does, the author of the Apocalypse of Elijah has nevertheless achieved a rhetorical effect similar to that of the earlier sections. In this case, rather than employing homiletic a n d oral performative devices, h e constructs the narrative a r o u n d a series of dramatic monologues delivered by the heroes and antiheroes of the narrative (ApocEl 4:2, 5, 8-12, 15, 16, 31; 5:10-19, 25-27). T h u s the audience participates in the verbal exchanges between the Lawless O n e a n d his o p p o n e n t s at the s a m e time as the drama of the eschatological events is ‫״‬realized" in the immediate historical setting of the public reading. In one of these monologues the participation of the audience in the events of the end times becomes strikingly explicit. "Sixty righteous ones" accuse the Lawless O n e before they die at his h a n d s (4:31): Every feat w h i c h t h e p r o p h e t s p e r f o r m e d , you h a v e p e r f o r m e d [ f r o m t h e b e g i n n i n g (Ach)], b u t you w e r e q u i t e u n a b l e to raise a corpse, b e c a u s e y o u lack t h e p o w e r [to give life (Ach)]—by this w e h a v e r e c o g n i z e d t h a t y o u are t h e Lawless O n e !

This claim by the ‫״‬righteous‫ ״‬immediately recalls an earlier passage in

Literary Aspects o f the Apocalypse of Elijah

93

the Apocalypse of Elijah wherein the divine or oracular voice instructs the audience on the signs of the Lawless O n e (3:11-13): H e will m u l t i p l y h i s s i g n s a n d h i s w o n d e r s in t h e p r e s e n c e of e v e r y o n e . H e will d o t h e t h i n g s w h i c h t h e C h r i s t d i d , e x c e p t o n l y f o r r a i s i n g a d e a d p e r s o n — b y t h i s y o u will k n o w t h a t h e is t h e L a w l e s s O n e : h e h a s n o p o w e r t o g i v e life!

The ‫״‬Righteous Ones‫ ״‬w h o h a v e this k n o w l e d g e in the eschaton are therefore identified with the audience of the Apocalypse of Elijah, w h o have just been informed of this crucial distinguishing ‫״‬sign.‫ ״‬Once again the immediate audience of the text in p e r f o r m a n c e is represented in the narrative; whereas earlier it a p p e a r e d through second-person plural addresses a n d through the image of apocalyptic wisdom, here audience members a p p e a r as actual dramatis personae in the eschatological narrative. This presence of the audience within the text is f u r t h e r m o r e reinforced by the narrative t h e m e of ApocEl 4, namely, martyrdom. Particularly gruesome details of the execution of the *saints . . . a n d the priests of the l a n d 4 : 2 1 - 2 3 ) ‫ ) ״‬, an obvious reference to flight from cution into the desert (4:24), a n d an apparently well-developed ‫״‬martyr ideology 3 7 (4:26-29) ‫״‬ all reflect the practice a n d lore of m a r began with the Decian edicts in the mid-third century in Egypt. Because any Egyptian Christian congregation with eschatological leanings would have been familiar with the lore of m a r t y r d o m (if not with the experience of fleeing or refusing the edicts) by the time the Apocalypse of Elijah w a s written, the text's audience would have f o u n d these narratives of eschatological m a r t y r d o m s familiar. Seeing themselves in the saints, priests, a n d ‫״‬sixty righteous‫ ״‬would consequently follow the audience members' recognition of the m a r t y r d o m imagery. The final scenes of eschatological destruction not only maintain the dialogue format but are punctuated with the refrain "on that day, 38 ‫ ״‬a rhetorical device highly effective in (and probably distinctive of) an oral context, w h e r e the repetition of lines, phrases, a n d interjections serves to 37. The passage describes what must be a prior belief system: (1) desert refugees w h o die will not be eaten by animals (4:26); (2) refugees as well as martyrs will be granted a blessed eschatological status (4:26b-27a, 28-29), (3) but actual martyrs will have a higher status in the eschatological kingdom than the refugees (4:27b); and (4) a formulaic "promise" that martyrs would eventually "sit o n G o d ' s right h a n d ' (cf. Herm. Vis. 3.2.1) had circulated in Egypt and w a s used to justify the m a r t y r - r e f u g e e hierarchy. 38. 2m π ε ζ ο ο γ ε τ Μ Μ λ γ (Sa 3 )/ ? μ n e 2 0 0 y e 6ΤΜΗΟ (Ach): ApocEl 4:30; 5:1a, 2a, 7 ^ 1 5 , 22, 25, 29b, 30, 33, 36a. Cf. 2:5, "many people will long for death in those days

(?Ν Ν€£00γ €ΤΝ€Μλγ].*

94

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

reinforce the content and importance of a text and to raise the emotional participation of an audience. 3 9 In the case of the e n d of the Apocalypse of Elijah, the repetition of this particular formula synchronizes the events of eschatological judgment a n d cataclysm that follow the more (apparently) identifiable period of the eschatological martyrdoms. 4 0 The composer activates the more fantastic imagery of the end of the text a n d makes it available to his audience with a rhetorical device—the repetition of a formula—that emphasizes the culmination of a prophetic, eschatological discourse.

FROM GENRE TO "INTRINSIC" GENRE IN THE DESCRIPTION OF THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH E. D. Hirsch has described the process of literary interpretation as the progressive search for the ‫״‬intrinsic‫ ״‬genre of the text. 41 The critic, reader, or audience commences an encounter with a text with a certain series of assumptions about the text as a whole, which concern context, authority, and literary type—that is, genre in the most general sense— based on previous literary encounters. 4 2 During the course of the reading, 43 these assumptions are gradually defined, corrected, substituted, or jettisoned until, at the end, the text has taken on a particular significance and context for the ‫״‬reader(s),‫ ״‬one m u c h more specific than their initial impression. This particular sense of a text is the ‫״‬intrinsic genre,‫ ״‬a n d Hirsch argues further that it is ‫״‬a conception shared by the speaker a n d the interpreter. 44 ‫״‬

3 9 . S e e O n g , Orality

and

Literacy,

39-41; a n d

A u n e , Prophecy

in Early

Christianity,

335-37. The emotional effect of prophetic rhetorical devices u p o n an audience is perlocutionary, that is, it is intentional as far as t h e "ritual" of prophetic a u d i e n c e implies emotive or ecstatic participation and as the function of p r o p h e t is to facilitate this participation, but this intention is not explicit in the prophetic utterances. 40. There is no basis to A. T. O l m s t e a d ' s general claim "that the phrases 'in that day, in those davs,' usually introduce obvious interpolations" ("Intertestamental Studies," IAOS 56 (1936]:255). 41. Hirsch, Validity in Interpretation, 78-89. 42. Cf. ibid., 71-77. A b r a h a m s ' s p e r f o r m a t i v e model w o u l d require that t h e performative situation of audience, performer, or reader be a d d e d here as a necessary constraint u p o n the preliminary sense of a text. 43. "Reading" here is m e a n t to d e n o t e a n y e n c o u n t e r with a prepared text, w h e t h e r private or public. 4 4 . H i r s c h , Validity

in Interpretation,

81.

Literary Aspects of the Apocalypse of Elijah

95

A p p l y i n g this progressive m o d e l to the situation in w h i c h the A p o c alypse of Elijah w a s c o m p o s e d a n d read, w e can see that, a l t h o u g h it w o u l d not h a v e b e e n h e a r d as a n apocalypse, the text's a u d i e n c e w o u l d h a v e perceived f o r m s of speech c o n v e n t i o n a l to apocalypses, oracles, homilies, a n d b o t h Egyptian a n d biblical p r o p h e c y a n d w o u l d h a v e based its u n d e r s t a n d i n g of the text o n prior experiences w i t h a n d respect for these genres. That is, the "intrinsic genre" of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah is a c o n g l o m e r a t e of several literary g e n r e s a n d traditions that w e r e historically c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s to the audience. T h e initial "sense of t h e whole" w o u l d h a v e b e e n t h a t of t h e biblical p r o p h e t i c utterance, c o n d i t i o n e d b y t h e o p e n i n g passage; a n d alternating p r o p h e t i c a n d divine voices c o n t i n u e the illocutionary effect of this initial sense t h r o u g h o u t a parenetic section. S u b s e q u e n t l y , while m a i n taining t h e p r o p h e t i c voice, t h e text m o v e s into t h e l a n g u a g e a n d i m agery of Egyptian p r o p h e t i c oracles. T h e p r o p h e t i c authority is t h u s "situated" in t h e symbolic w o r l d of native Egyptian literature, while the u s e of this native oracular l a n g u a g e gives increased scope a n d a u t h o r i t y to the " p r o p h e t " — a s if a biblical p r o p h e t w e r e n o w s p e a k i n g in t h e m a n n e r of a priest of K h n u m , t h e oracular r a m god of E l e p h a n t i n e . T h e s u b s e q u e n t sections o n t h e signs, acts, a n d d e m i s e of the Lawless O n e c h a n g e t h e p r o p h e t i c voice to o n e of relative i n t i m a c y w i t h the audience: the p r o p h e t directly i n f o r m s the a u d i e n c e of signs a n d d r a matically enacts the conflicts b e t w e e n the "saints" a n d the Lawless O n e a n d the latter's pathetic demise. Here it is p r o b a b l e that t h e a u d i e n c e ' s a c q u a i n t a n c e with a n oral (homiletic) tradition of eschatological e v e n t s a n d p e r h a p s its experience of o t h e r eschatological texts (such as Revelation, Mark 13, 2 T h e s s a l o n i a n s 2, 1 a n d 2 John) w o u l d h a v e a l l o w e d it to u n d e r s t a n d these materials in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah as conceivable e v e n t s of the e n d time. Certain p a s s a g e s in these last chapters, h o w e v e r , also m a k e m o r e particular r e f e r e n c e either to t h e time a n d e v e n t s of t h e a u d i e n c e (i.e., m a r t y r d o m , anachoresis) or to epichoric Egyptian concerns. 4 5 T h e particular eschatological traditions i n h e r i t e d f r o m Jewish a n d Christian g r o u p s w e r e t h u s e x p l a i n e d a n d situated for the benefit of an Egyptian audience. By t h e e n d , t h e a u d i e n c e h a s h e a r d — n a y , w i t n e s s e d — a description 45. E.g., Tabitha (ApocEl 4:1-6; see David Τ. M. Frankfurter, "Tabitha in the Apocalypse of Elijah," ITS 41 [1990]: 13-25); decline of fertility (5:7-14); saints' power over fertility (5:18); Lawless O n e compared to serpent (5:33b; cf. 1:4).

96

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

of the e n d of the w o r l d f r o m an Egyptian perspective: the Egyptian Christian a u d i e n c e ' s particular historical situation is a d d r e s s e d as the onset of eschatological woes, a n d the signs of the e n d actually begin in Egypt. Yet the revealer is a biblical p r o p h e t , his allegiance—ultimately— to a n angelic Christ figure a n d his h e a v e n l y city, a n d his "voice" the direct a n d even intimate style of a homilist.

THE IMPLIED AUDIENCE AND IMPLIED AUTHOR OF THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH An inference h a s b e e n s u r f a c i n g gradually in the p r e s e n t analysis of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, that t h e text w a s c o m p o s e d for a specific a u d i e n c e in a concrete historical situation. If o n e w e r e to take this as an a s s u m p t i o n , t h e n w h a t indications might be g l e a n e d f r o m the text a b o u t the n a t u r e a n d self-definition of this a u d i e n c e ? Likewise, h o w d o e s t h e i m a g e of the implied s p e a k e r elucidate a historical a u t h o r ?

Implied and Historical Audience Orality and Literacy In contrast to the literary self-consciousness in a p o c a l y p s e s — e v i n c e d by the narrative f r a m e describing the historical reason for the t e x t — t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah reveals itself as highly oral a n d p e r f o r m a n c e oriented, b o t h in its s p e e c h types a n d its associative progression of t h e m e s . N o w h e r e are t h e r e m e n t i o n s of books, scribes, or writing, details that characterized a p o c a l y p s e s in circulation at that time (e.g., 2 Enoch 22-23; 2 Bar. 84:9; Rv 22:7, 18-19). 46 Further, scriptural allusions (e.g., to 1 John or Revelation) are n e i t h e r explicit n o r exactly cited a n d seem to b e d r a w n f r o m the m e m o r y of t h e a u t h o r , if h e w a s at all acquainted with the texts themselves. S o m e of these aspects can b e partly accounted for by the h o m i l y genre; b u t considering that f e w p e o p l e in R o m a n Egypt h a d t h e ability to read, c o m p r e h e n d , a n d u s e books, the oral n a t u r e of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah suggests that t h e a u d i e n c e itself was, at most, semiliterate. 46. This characteristic aspect of literary a p o c a l y p s e s h a s b e e n seldom discussed. Cf. T h e o d o r e A. Bergren, *Accounts in the A p o c a l y p s e s of Their Literary Origin" (paper presented to the SBL P s e u d e p i g r a p h a G r o u p , Chicago, N o v e m b e r 1989).

Literary Aspects of the Apocalypse of Elijah

97

Eschatology and Millennialism T h e s e c o n d indication of a u d i e n c e lies in the eschatological subject matter of the Elijah Apocalypse. M a n y a p o c a l y p s e s f r o m the Second T e m p l e period contain eschatological details but d o not suggest a necessarily millennialist or eschatologically oriented social milieu. The overw h e l m i n g l y eschatological interest of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, h o w ever, w o u l d seem to b e a g o o d indication of the a u d i e n c e ' s orientation. That the e s c h a t o n is said to begin with the arrival of t h e "Deceivers" o p p o s i n g t h e fast (1:13) s t r e n g t h e n s the case that the a u d i e n c e considered its o w n period to be premillennial. Conversely, o n e m i g h t p r o p o s e that the text r e p r e s e n t s the a u t h o r p e r f o r m e r ' s e n d e a v o r to convince an a u d i e n c e of its eschatological status, w h e r e the a u d i e n c e w a s familiar e n o u g h w i t h millennialist ideology a n d apocalyptic "signs" to b e so convinced. Because there is evid e n c e for millennialist activity in U p p e r Egypt d u r i n g the s e c o n d half of the third c e n t u r y C.E.,47 either reconstruction of t h e a u d i e n c e ' s relationship to millennialist ideology w o u l d be historically plausible. W h e n the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah is c o m p a r e d to o t h e r Egyptian Christian p s e u d e p i g r a p h a of t h e R o m a n period, it e m e r g e s as e v e n m o r e u n u s u a l in this eschatological focus. T h e Apocalypse of Peter o p e n s w i t h a n eschatological section b a s e d o n Mark 13 (Apoc. Pet. 1-2), Jewish eschatological lore (2-4; 6), a n d G r e c o - R o m a n ideas of cosmic (κπνρωσις (5) b u t t h e n p r o c e e d s to Peter's extensive tourlike p r e v i e w of the hell a n d h e a v e n of t h e final j u d g m e n t . T h e Apocalypse of Paul is almost entirely d e v o t e d to tours of hell a n d h e a v e n , m a k i n g only passing reference to a n e v e n t u a l "great d a y of j u d g m e n t " (Apoc. Paul 16; 18; cf. 21). T h e Testament of Abraham, w h i c h m a y be t a k e n as Christian for p r e s e n t purposes, 4 8 focuses exclusively o n personal d e a t h a n d afterlife. A n d texts f r o m t h e N a g H a m m a d i c o r p u s rarely i n c l u d e eschatological narratives of a n y length. 4 9 It is t h e r e f o r e clear that a n e x t e n d e d escha47. S e e c h a p . 10 48. S u b s t a n t i a l s c h o l a r l y o p i n i o n r e g a r d s t h i s text a s J e w i s h , p r e s u m a b l y p r e - 1 1 7 C.E., b u t its circulation, i n f l u e n c e , a n d ( m o s t i m p o r t a n t l y ) preservation in E g y p t i a n C h r i s tianity m a k e it a n i m p o r t a n t d o c u m e n t of E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n l i t e r a t u r e of t h e R o m a n period—as this literature naturally developed from a uniquely Egyptian Jewish literature of t h e e a r l y R o m a n p e r i o d . 49. W h e n t h e y a r e p r e s e n t , e s c h a t o l o g i c a l d e s c r i p t i o n s u s e c o s m i c r a t h e r t h a n terrestrial details: e.g., Orig. World ( N H C II, 5) 125-27; Paraph. Shew ( N H C VII, 1) 4 3 - 4 5 .

98

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

tological discourse w a s not a literary f o r m typical of early A l e x a n d r i a n a n d Greco-Egyptian Christian cultures 5 0 a n d m a y t h e r e f o r e r e p r e s e n t a n entirely different social milieu f r o m those milieus that c o m p o s e d tours a n d discussions of d e a t h a n d afterlife. O n e m i g h t expect that c o m m u n i t i e s interested in issues of individual d e a t h a n d afterlife w e r e stable a n d relatively h a r m o n i o u s in their collective situations, w h e r e a s a c o m m u n i t y focusing exclusively o n eschatological w o e s with dualistic, collective c o n s e q u e n c e s w o u l d b e in s o m e crisis. Rural Environment T h e exhortation against d o u b t (ApocEl 1:23-27) e m p l o y s imagery f r o m Egyptian rural life: a f a r m e r w i t h his tool, a soldier w i t h his breastplate, the implications of royal "service.‫ ״‬A s s u m i n g that these rustic m e t a p h o r s for the w e l l - e q u i p p e d p s y c h e w e r e m e a n t to inspire familiarity in the a u d i e n c e , w e m i g h t infer that t h e original a u d i e n c e w a s c o m p o s e d of people with rural b a c k g r o u n d s . 5 1 "Wise Men" T h e speaker a d d r e s s e s "wise m e n " ( N C A e e o y ) in ApocEl 1:13a, with regard to the arrival of t h e o p p o n e n t s of fasting, a n d follows this a d d r e s s with the exhortation to ‫״‬be wise [λρι c i B e ] to the times,‫ ״‬which serves to introduce ApocEl 2, the Egyptian oracle section. Because t h e w o r d is used in direct connection with b o t h the a u d i e n c e ' s i m m e d i a t e situation (critics of fasting) a n d the eschatological significance of i m m i n e n t e v e n t s (the subject of the text as a whole), it is o b v i o u s that the u s e of C A B G (or, originally, σόφος) is not gratuitous but is m e a n t to characterize the a u d i e n c e a n d the text's i m m e d i a t e milieu. That is, the a u d i e n c e is r e n d e r e d ‫״‬wise‫ ״‬t h r o u g h its reception of the a u t h o r ' s revelations of eschatological signs. To reinforce the a u d i e n c e ' s s e n s e of this ‫״‬sign-interpreting w i s d o m " See George MacRae, "Apocalyptic Eschatology in Gnosticism," in Apocalypticism in the Mediterranean World, ed. Hellholm, 317-25. 50. It is possible, h o w e v e r , that the extended f o r m of eschatological discourse a m o n g early Christians derived ultimately f r o m earlier texts such as Revelation, Mark 13, a n d biblical prophecy (in dialectic with t h e Sibylline tradition). 51. Speech types that d r a w their imagery a n d reference from quotidian activities— besides this passage f r o m the Apocalypse of Elijah, o n e might mention the parable, the joke, a n d the aphorism—originate by n a t u r e in an oral setting (cf. O n g , Orality and Literacy, 42-43; Werner Kelber, The Oral and the Written Gospel [Philadelphia: Fortress, 1983], 57-64). It is equally possible, however, that such imagery functioned as "quaint" rustic stereotypes rather t h a n reflecting the audience's socioeconomic b a c k g r o u n d .

Literary Aspects of the Apocalypse of Elijah

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a n d its self-definition as N C A B G O Y , n e a r the e n d of the text the a u t h o r juxtaposes the fate of t h e undiscerning followers of the Lawless O n e as the land dries u p (5:10-14): "You p e r f o r m e d [vain (Sa 3 )] signs b e f o r e u s until you estranged u s f r o m the Christ," they wail, "Woe to us b e c a u s e w e listened to you!" (5:11b). Similarly, the sixty m a r t y r s w h o a t t e m p t to unveil the Lawless O n e m e n t i o n a specific sign that t h e a u t h o r h a s already revealed to his audience: t h e Lawless O n e c a n n o t raise the d e a d (4:31; cf. 3:12-13). H e n c e o n e m i g h t infer that the a u t h o r w a s p o s i n g the a u d i e n c e of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah as "wise m e n , " w h e r e w i s d o m m e a n s t h e specific ability to recognize the signs of eschatological w o e s a n d deceit based o n i n f o r m a t i o n delivered b y the a u t h o r . It is f u r t h e r m o r e conceivable that the original a u d i e n c e m e m b e r s h e l d s u c h w i s d o m to be their particular capacity a n d p o w e r b e y o n d t h e i m m e d i a t e context of the reading.

"Saints" More o f t e n t h a n "wise men," t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah refers in the course of narrative to a g r o u p called the "saints" ( Ν β τ ο γ λ λ Β ) . T h e variety of situations in which saints are described implies a considerably d e v e l o p e d ideology s u r r o u n d i n g holy p e o p l e a n d their status in this world a n d in the eschaton. It is unclear, h o w e v e r , to w h a t d e g r e e "saint" w a s a term of self-definition for t h e social milieu of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. T h e a u t h o r a n d his a u d i e n c e e v i d e n t l y consider their l a n d s c a p e a n d its fertility to b e controlled by t h e presence of "saints" (5:18) a n d their "holy places," w h i c h will be alternately d e m o l i s h e d a n d rebuilt d u r i n g the eschatological w o e s (2:11,41,48b). Saints are also t h e objects of t h e Lawless O n e ' s hostility (4.2, 21-29) a n d are t h e r e b y to be identified with the "sixty righteous ones" w h o recognize the Lawless O n e by his inability to resurrect. T h a t is, "saints" are m a r t y r s a n d άναχώρητίς w h o are not deceived by t h e Lawless O n e ' s pretenses to authority. O n c e again, b e c a u s e it is ApocEl 3 that reveals the ability to recognize this figure, it w o u l d a p p e a r that the "saints" w h o are to suffer persecution are to b e identified with t h e a u d i e n c e of the text. Further e v i d e n c e for this identification a p p e a r s in 1:8-10, w h e r e the a u d i e n c e ( a d d r e s s e d in s e c o n d p e r s o n ) is p r o m i s e d a h e a v e n l y e n d similar to that described for m a r t y r s (4:27-29). It a p p e a r s , h o w e v e r , that t h e r e w e r e at least t w o senses in w h i c h "saint" w a s u n d e r s t o o d in t h e social milieu of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah:

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

the martyred saint, w h o s e remains a n d shrine offered p o w e r a n d fertility in the landscape (cf. 4:6); and the "holy persons" w h o resist "evil," suffer persecution, a n d are supposed to enter the heavenly city of Christ. Because the latter sense would h a v e functioned more aptly as a model for religious life, the audience probably identified itself more with this kind of saint. Even in later Coptic tradition, however, there w a s a continuum between a persecuted or ascetic "sainthood" in life and the rewards and concrete p o w e r s of saints in their shrines a n d martyrologies. 5 2

"Priests" Finally, the Apocalypse of Elijah refers to a b o d y called the "priests of the land" ( Ν Ο Υ Η Η Β Μ Π Κ . * 2 — 2 : 2 4 , 28, 40; 4:21 [Ach]). It has been suggested that this appellative m a y have indicated the audience's h e r m e neutical status in relation to the native Egyptian "priestly" literary form of ApocEl 2. 53 There is the implication of this "syncretistic" m e a n i n g w h e n ογΗΗΒ is used twice to refer, apparently, to priests of native or Greco-Roman temples (2:14b, 48). 54 Yet the term obviously designates groups in an orthodox relationship to the "Christian" Apocalypse of Elijah. Twice the text refers to "priests" a n d "saints" (2:24; 4:21 [Ach]) in such combination as to indicate that these are p r e s u m e d to be two distinct bodies. At one point the "priests" are addressed in the second person: "If you should hear that there is security a n d safety in Jerusalem, tear your garments, Ο priests of the land, because the Destructive O n e will not delay (his) coming!" (2:40). Earlier they are said to perform the s a m e act in response to a different sign of woe: "On that day the priests of the land will tear their garments" (2:28).55 Thus "priests" seems to designate a 52. S e e P e t e r B r o w n , The Making of Late Antiquity ( C a m b r i d g e : H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1975), c h a p s . 3 - 4 ; Violet M a c D e r m o t , The Cult of the Seer in the Ancient Middle East ( L o n d o n : W e l l c o m e I n s t i t u t e of t h e H i s t o r y of M e d i c i n e , 1971), e s p . 179-88, 201-19. 53. T h a t is, just as t h e n a t i o n a l i s t oracle d e r i v e d f r o m t h e t e m p l e p r i e s t h o o d in Egypt, s o t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g of s u c h oracles (or p a r t i c i p a t i o n in t h e m ) i m p l i e d o n e ' s m e m b e r s h i p in a "priesthood.* 54. T w o lines c o r r e s p o n d i n g t o S a 3 a r e m i s s i n g f r o m A c h : " H e will c o m m a n d t h a t t h e t e m p l e s of t h e p a g a n s (Ν;>€ΘΝΟΟ] b e p l u n d e r e d a n d t h e i r priests killed" (cf. P i e t e r s m a , 40). For a l t e r n a t e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s of this section, s e e W i n t e r m u t e 743 n. n3; a n d K u h n , 766. 55. A n y r e l a t i o n to M k 14:63 w o u l d h a v e t o b e d i s t a n t , b e c a u s e A p o c E l s h o w s n o o t h e r k n o w l e d g e of M a r k , a n d t h e l e g e n d a r y h i g h p r i e s t of J e r u s a l e m w h o i n t e r r o g a t e d Jesus c o u l d h a r d l y h a v e b e e n a p o s i t i v e p a r a d i g m f o r a t h i r d - c e n t u r y a p o c a l y p t i c C h r i s t i a n c o m m u n i t y in Egypt.

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101

particular holy g r o u p as d r a m a t i s p e r s o n a e of the eschatological w o e s — their f o r t u n e s are indications of positive a n d n e g a t i v e s i g n s — a n d it designates the a u d i e n c e itself (as implied in t h e s e c o n d - p e r s o n address). The precise distinction evidently a s s u m e d by t h e a u t h o r b e t w e e n "priests‫ ״‬a n d "saints" r e m a i n s enigmatic, h o w e v e r , as d o e s the extent of the u s a g e of the term "priests" in t h e milieu of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. We can only guess that t h e a u d i e n c e u s e d "priests‫ ״‬as a self-designation, because (1) "priests of t h e land" are a d d r e s s e d in t h e s e c o n d person, a n d (2) t h e c o g n a t e relationship (in Coptic) b e t w e e n "priest" ( O Y H H B ) a n d "saint" ( ο γ Λ Λ β ) — b o t h signifying holiness a n d purity, a c o m m o n selfr e p r e s e n t a t i o n of religious s e c t s — m a y reflect the u s e of up- in the original Greek. 5 6 If t h e r e is s o m e correlation b e t w e e n "priests" a n d the originally (native) priestly literary f o r m of nationalist oracle that t h e a u t h o r e m p l o y s in ApocEl 2, t h e n the u s e of Ο Y H H B w o u l d represent an interesting continuity b e t w e e n i n d i g e n o u s a n d Christian religious selfdefinition.

Implied Speaker-Historical Author Because the text is c o m p o s e d in a n oral m o d e of expression, the first a u t h o r is likely to h a v e been also t h e first p e r f o r m e r of t h e text b e f o r e a n audience. Based o n inferences f r o m Elijah p s e u d e p i g r a p h y a n d f r o m the u s e of the p r o p h e t i c c o m m i s s i o n f o r m u l a , t h e r e is reason to believe that this a u t h o r h a d a c o m m u n i t y designation as " p r o p h e t " b e f o r e h e presented the text; a n d the c h a r i s m a that this designation reflected m a y h a v e derived f r o m t h e a u t h o r ' s s t a t u s as ascetic a n c h o r i t e or h e r m i t a n d , possibly, r e f u g e e f r o m a religious edict. T h e a u t h o r h a s d r a w n o n highly traditional oracular l a n g u a g e a n d imagery in the composition of ApocEl 2. As t h e r e is n o r e a s o n to c o n sider literary d e p e n d e n c e u p o n s u c h classical Egyptian oracular texts as the Oracle of the Potter a n d its m u l t i f o r m s , it is likely that the a u t h o r ' s k n o w l e d g e of s u c h traditional Egyptian f o r m s of expression c a m e b y s o m e other means. 5 7 U n d e r these circumstances, it is conceivable t h a t the a u t h o r ' s b a c k g r o u n d i n c l u d e d s o m e activity in the Egyptian priest56. Cf. C r u m , 4 8 7 - 8 8 , s.v. ο γ ο π . C o m p a r e t h e p r i e s t l y s e l f - d e f i n i t i o n s a m o n g t h e Q u m r a n E s s e n e s a n d in t h e b o o k of R e v e l a t i o n (e.g., Rv 1:6; 5:10; 6:9; 20:6); t h e a u t h o r of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah a l s o m i g h t h a v e s o u g h t t o i m p o r t a r c h a i c J e w i s h t e r m s of s a c r e d privilege t o c h a r a c t e r i z e a h e r o i c g r o u p in t h e d r a m a of e s c h a t o l o g i c a l w o e s . 57. C f . J e a n - P i e r r e M a h e , Hermes en Haute-Egypte, 2 vols., B i b l i o t h e q u e c o p t e d e N a g H a m m a d i 3 a n d 7 ( Q u e b e c : P r e s s e s d e l ' U n i v e r s i t e Laval, 1978-82), 2:111-13, o n t h e similar issue in r e l a t i o n to t h e Perfect Discourse.

102

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

hood, which was the source of Egyptian oracle compositions. In the priesthood he would have h a d regular contact with the literary tradition of Egyptian oracles a n d their forms a n d motifs and thus been able to achieve the capability of composing such tracts, rather than merely being familiar with some of them (a familiarity that, to be sure, would apply to most Egyptians a n d Greco-Egyptians of this time). As Lactantius's liberal use of both Hermetic literature a n d the Oracle of Hystaspes expresses, there is no reason w h y an author defining himself as a Christian would not have looked to native ("pagan‫ )״‬literatures as being useful a n d authoritative. 5 8 The priesthood h a d m a n y classes, a n d there is some evidence that members on the lower rungs achieved popular leadership roles—ineluding prophetic roles—independently of (and often contrary to) the higher priesthoods, w h o generally cooperated with Greco-Roman rulers. 59 Both the form a n d the sentiments—a modified religious nationalism—of ApocEl 2 reflect the perspectives of this lower priesthood a n d its insurgent a n d prophetic activities. To m o v e from this status to the type of millennialist Christianity expressed in the Apocalypse of Elijah therefore may not have represented a great ideological change. This hypothesis of the author's origins would also account for his literacy, a skill that was normative only a m o n g the Egyptian priesthood. 6 0 58. F o w d e n , Egyptian Hermes, 205-12. F o w d e n a l s o h a s p r o p o s e d t h e E g y p t i a n p r i e s t h o o d as t h e f o n t of o t h e r religious m o v e m e n t s d u r i n g t h e R o m a n p e r i o d (166-68, 186-95). 59. S e e S a m u e l K. E d d y , The King Is Dead (Lincoln: U n i v e r s i t y of N e b r a s k a Press, 1961), 314-20; F r a n i o i s e D u n a n d , Religion populaire en Egypte romaine, E P R O 77 (Leiden: Brill, 1979), 125-28; i d e m , "Grecs et e g y p t i e n s e n E g v p t e lagide: Le p r o b l e m e d e l ' a c c u l t u r a t i o n , " in Modes de contacts et processus de transformation dans les societes anciennes, Collection d e l'ecole f r a n f a i s e d e R o m e 6 7 (Pisa a n d R o m e : Ecole f r a n c a i s e d e Rome, 1983), 5 9 - 6 2 ; a n d G l e n W . B o w e r s o c k , " T h e M e c h a n i c s of S u b v e r s i o n in t h e R o m a n Provinces," in Opposition et resistances ά Γempire d'Auguste a Trajan, E n t r e t i e n s s u r I ' a n t i q u i t e c l a s s i q u e 3 3 ( G e n e v a : V a n d o e u v r e s , 1986), 2 9 1 - 3 1 7 ( a n d d i s c u s s i o n , 3 1 8 20). 60. F o u r t h - c e n t u r y a n d later m o n a s t i c l i t e r a t u r e p r o v i d e s i n s t a n c e s of C h r i s t i a n i z e d sons of priests: Apophthegmata patrum ( a n o n y m o u s ) n o . 191 (ed. N a u , " H i s t o i r e s d e s solitaires e g y p t i e n s , " Revue de !'orient chretietl 13 [1908]:275) = n o . 59 (tr. Benedicta W a r d , The Wisdom of the Desert Fathers [Fairacres, O x f o r d : S L G Press, 1975], 20); a n d Vita Mosis Abydi 4 (ed. E. A m e l i n e a u , Monuments, 687).

5 The Lawless One and the Fate of the Saints: Major Themes and Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah DECEIT AND RECOGNITION AS PRACTICAL CONCERNS The organizing theme of the Apocalypse of Elijah is the manifestation a n d configuration of deceit a n d false leadership in the last days. The aim of the text is therefore to inform the audience h o w to distinguish legitimate from illegitimate charismatic leadership a n d to describe the imminent rewards for those w h o can maintain their powers of discernment through the eschatological woes. This t h e m e commences with the homily on fasting: "Hear now, you wise men of the land, concerning the deceivers w h o will multiply in the end time . . . w h o say , The fast does not exist, nor did God create it‫״׳‬ (ApocEl 1:13). Therefore, w h e n the audience m e m b e r s encounter opponents of fasting, they should k n o w that the eschatological woes h a v e started—that these are the deceptive leaders they should avoid. The audience must already be familiar with o n e or m o r e individuals holding significant ecclesiastical positions w h o have criticized the practice of fasting in the audience's region; hence the time of the onset of deceit (according to the a u t h o r - p e r f o r m e r of the Apocalypse of Elijah) is ‫״‬now,‫ ״‬the time of the p e r f o r m a n c e of the text. Thus w h a t unfolds as the pathetic story of the Lawless O n e is actually a projection of imminent events a n d their dramatic resolution. Apocalypse of Elijah 2 provides a foil to the subsequent, m o r e focused account of the Lawless O n e by describing the alternately beneficial and evil reigns of kings in Egypt. A ‫״‬King of P e a c e ' follows a ‫״‬king of injustice,‫ ״‬but himself causes depredations in Egypt a n d is followed 103

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

by a d e m o n - f a c e d son (2:6-22). The violence that this son, subsequently also called a king, inflicts u p o n the land (2:24-38) culminates in invasions and the establishment of a king "from the city which is called T h e City of the S u n 2 : 3 9 - 5 0 ) ‫ ) ״ ׳‬, w h o s e reign is so beneficial to Egypt that living will go to the dead (saying), 'Rise u p a n d be with us in this rest"‫׳‬ 2:53)). At this p o i n t — w h e n things are at their best—the Lawless O n e will appear. Thus the falseness of terrestrial peace a n d prosperity anticipates the subsequent falseness of the Lawless One. The Lawless O n e is not identified with an Antichrist. Indeed, the term "Antichrist" should not be used to represent every instance of an eschatological Adversary, especially w h e n "Antichrist" is not used explicitly. Although both Wilhelm Bousset a n d Gregory Jenks have convincingly s h o w n that an Antichrist tradition has roots in Jewish tradition, 1 the Jewish sources tend to describe either a false prophet with supernatural powers or a royal figure manifesting delusory prophetic traits. 2 ‫״‬Antichrist" in early Christian sources (that is, after Mk 13:22 a n d 1 John) has a more literal meaning: anti-Christ. The figure has a demonic character, more monstrous than deceitful, a n d resembles—if not derives f r o m — the Jewish Beliar.3 The lack of the term in the Apocalypse of Elijah, in spite of the considerable semeia a n d prophecies that the author has collected about the Lawless One, demonstrates that in the milieu of the author neither the term "Antichrist" nor a doctrine of his eschatological status had taken root. The a u t h o r w a s assembling the tradition himself out of diverse Jewish a n d early Christian traditions of eschatological adversaries. Moreover, there is n o reason to assume this n o m e n c l a t u r e was d r a w n directly from the N e w Testament (e.g., from 2 Thessalonians 2 for "Destructive One‫)״‬, because such n o m e n c l a t u r e h a d entered oral circulation by the second century C.E.4 In a similar (and probably con-

1. W i l h e l m Bousset, The Antichrist Legend, tr. A. H. K e a n e ( L o n d o n : H u t c h i n s o n , 1896); a n d G r e g o r y C. Jenks, The Origins and Early Development of the Antichrist Myth, B Z N W 59 (Berlin: d e G r u y t e r , 1991). Cf. R. H . C h a r l e s , A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Revelation of St. John, 2 vols. ( E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1920), 2 : 7 6 83; D. S. Russell, The Method and Message of feivish Apocalyptic (Philadelphia: Westm i n s t e r , 1964), 276-80. 2. J e n k s t e n d s t o d e e m p h a s i z e t h e i n f l u e n c e of t h e false p r o p h e t in t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of t h e Antichrist m y t h (cf. Antichrist Myth, 17-18, 202, 218, 341-43) t o c o n c e n t r a t e on t h e i m a g e of t h e * E n d t y r a n t " (175-83, 193-328). 3. Cf. Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 153-56. J e n k s s u b s u m e s Beliar a l t e r n a t e l y u n d e r t h e c a t e g o r i e s of * S a t a n ‫( ׳‬Antichrist Myth, 139-49) a n d ‫ ־‬E n d t y r a n t 2 5 7 - 5 9,119)‫׳‬ a d d r e s s i n g w h e t h e r t h e r e existed a c o h e r e n t Beliar t r a d i t i o n . 4. Cf. C o l i n H. R o b e r t s , Manuscript, Society, and Belief in Early Christian Egypt ( L o n d o n : British A c a d e m y , 1979), 20; William V. Harris, Ancient Literacy ( C a m b r i d g e : H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1989), 298-99.

‫׳‬

)

,

Major T h e m e s and T r a d i t i o n s in the A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah

105

temporaneous) text f r o m the Coptic monastery of Saint Macarius, the Adversary is n a m e d not only "Shameless One" but "Great Devil," "Lawless One," a n d "Antichrist." 5 The author initially discusses the critical features of the Lawless O n e (implicitly posing the audience as the "wise men" a n d "saints" of the later narrative): he has powers that mirror those of Moses a n d Jesus, except that he cannot resurrect; there are physiognomic details to look for; h e will appear "in the holy place" (ApocEl 3:5-18). His powers a n d his location suggest that this figure might be recognized as false only with great difficulty. He is a veritable ψ^δο-προφήτης, although not so m u c h by his ultimate evil as by his semblance of legitimacy. Three eschatological heroes or teams of heroes (including Tabitha, Enoch, a n d Elijah) arise to accuse the Lawless O n e a n d expose his illegitimacy (4:1-19, 30-33), a n d in the course of these h a r a n g u e s w e learn that the Lawless O n e has sought to associate himself with "the saints" (4:8)—a detail that s h o w s the earnestness of his disguise. Yet h e kills all these heroic exposers, as well as the "saints" a n d the "priests of the land": the Lawless O n e n o w assumes the role of persecutor. This new role might be said to be his hubris (5:1): Sa

Ach

A n d in t h a t t i m e t h e h e a r t s of m a n y will t u r n a w a y a n d withdraw from him, saying

A n d in t h a t t i m e t h e h e a r t s of m a n y will h a r d e n a n d t h e y w i l l flee f r o m h i m , s a y i n g ,

T h i s is n o t t h e C h r i s t ! F o r t h e C h r i s t d o e s n o t kill t h e Righteous, nor does he p u r s u e

T h i s is n o t t h e C h r i s t ! T h e C h r i s t d o e s n o t kill t h e Righteous, nor does he pursue people w h e n he will seek (them), but h e p e r s u a d e s t h e m with signs a n d w o n d e r s .

p e o p l e of t r u t h . W i l l h e n o t (rather) s e e k t o p e r s u a d e t h e m with signs a n d w o n d e r s ?

Those w h o h a v e thus recognized the Lawless O n e for w h a t h e is are consequently led from the earth to a liminal "holy place" by angels (5:2-6). The Apocalypse of Elijah then describes in vivid terms the demise of the earth, n o w bereft of saints; a n d in traditional Egyptian style, the author uses drought imagery (5:7-10, 14).6 C o n f r o n t e d with this situ5. Tr. H u g h G. Evelyn White, ‫״‬Fragments of an Apocalyptic Gospel,* in Monasteries of Wadi 'N Natrun,

v o l . 1: New

Coptic

Texts from

the Monastery

of St. Macarius,

G. Evelyn White (New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1926), 20-21. 6. Cf. Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 195-99.

ed. H u g h

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ation, the "sinners‫ ״‬w h o r e m a i n e d with the Lawless O n e realize their fatal error a n d cry, "What h a v e you d o n e to us, Ο Lawless O n e ? . . . W o e to us because w e listened to you!" (5:10-11). With a rapidly drying earth, the Lawless O n e himself realizes his i m m i n e n t d o w n f a l l a n d calls for t h e forcible return of the saints (5:15-20). W h e n h e (apparently) drags t h e m back f r o m their "holy place" (5:20), h o w e v e r , angels join to fight against him; a n d there follows a divine €κττνρωσις a n d j u d g m e n t of the earth a n d its people (5:21-31). But it is Enoch a n d Elijah, returning a second time (cf. 4:7-19), w h o finally conquer the Lawless O n e a n d cast h i m into an abyss (5:32-35). T h e n , with a short description of parousia a n d millennium, the Apocalypse of Elijah ends. From the onset of illegitimate, deceitful critics of fasting in ApocEl 1 to the disposal of t h e Lawless O n e in ApocEl 5, t h e text details t h e vicissitudes of f a l s e h o o d in the progression of eschatological events. Just as the text's concentration on eschatology might imply a millennialist audience, so also this d o m i n a n t t h e m e of eschatological deceit p r o b a b l y indicates that the distinction b e t w e e n legitimate a n d illegitimate charismata w a s for t h e a u t h o r a n issue of critical c o n t e m p o r a r y importance. 7 Therefore he p r e s e n t e d the inevitability of t h e eschatological woes, their i m m i n e n c e to t h e period of t h e audience, a n d the signs a n d f e a t u r e s critical for the audience's correct u n d e r s t a n d i n g of events. In all, the a u t h o r w a s imposing a greater urgency a n d wider implications on his a u d i e n c e ' s choices b e t w e e n leaders a n d teachings—for these choices m u s t h a v e b e e n n u m e r o u s to inspire such a crisis over legitimacy.

A MAP THROUGH THE WOES: SIGNS IN THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH The Tradition of the Eschatological Sign In reconciling an anticipated crisis of legitimate leadership, the Apocalypse of Elijah provides signs by w h i c h deception can be discerned, w i s d o m gained, a n d a state of psychic resilience m a i n t a i n e d t h r o u g h o u t the eschatological woes. These signs c o n t i n u e a n d m u s t be u n d e r s t o o d in the context of wider traditions of signs in t h e G r e c o - R o m a n world. 7. T h i s is by n o m e a n s a n o v e l o b s e r v a t i o n w i t h r e g a r d to a n early C h r i s t i a n text: 2 T h e s s a l o n i a n s , 1 J o h n , a n d t h e b o o k of R e v e l a t i o n all e x p r e s s a similar s o c i a l - r e l i g i o u s context. S e e Neil F o r s y t h , The Old Enemy: Satan and the Combat Myth ( P r i n c e t o n : P r i n c e t o n U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1987), 309-17; Jenks, Antichrist Myth, 6 0 - 6 4 , 115.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah

107

T w o traditions i n f o r m e d the m e a n i n g of σημα,ον ("sign") in GrecoR o m a n Judaism a n d n a s c e n t Christian sects. O n e w a s the classical Hellenistic sense of the w o r d , d e s i g n a t i n g a divine o m e n — t h e very voice of a god or presage of a n i m p o r t a n t e v e n t — t h a t could ( a n d must) b e interpreted by professional seers. In this s e n s e t h e σημΰον itself—a flight of birds or s h o o t i n g s t a r — c o r r e s p o n d e d f u n d a m e n t a l l y to s o m e t h i n g else i m m i n e n t in t h e h u m a n or cosmic e n v i r o n m e n t . 8 T h e other pertin e n t tradition of σημέιον derived f r o m t h e S e p t u a g i n t ' s translation of t h e H e b r e w ‫ אות‬a n d d e n o t e d the f u n c t i o n of a trait or action to d e m o n s t r a t e authority a n d legitimacy for a s e c o n d a r y act, primarily a c o m m a n d or one's speech in general: in R. F o r m e s y n ' s w o r d s , "Le signe est au service d e la parole." 9 A l t h o u g h t h e r e m i g h t certainly be a "cosmic" σημάον (e.g., G n 1:14; 1 S m 14:10; Ps 74:9), s u c h a sign w o u l d f u n c t i o n specifically to d e m o n s t r a t e this g o d ' s p o w e r a n d a u t h o r i t y (as o p p o s e d to others'). Following the primary biblical use of ‫( אות‬e.g., Ex 4:8), h o w e v e r , σημα,ον (and its plural form, occasionally c o m b i n e d with τέρατα—"wonders") came largely to refer to a p r o p h e t ' s authority, especially p r o p h e t s expressing Mosaic traits a n d powers. 1 0 As e l s e w h e r e in the G r e c o - R o m a n world, t h e r e w a s a necessarily t h a u m a t u r g i c a l aspect to establishing prophetic a u t h o r i t y a n d charisma; t h e biblical tradition h a d merely e n coded this aspect in traditions of Moses a n d his successors. 1 1 F u n d a m e n t a l to b o t h senses of σημα,ον—that

legitimate s u p e r n a t u r a l

8. Cf. R. F o r m e s y n , "Le s e m e i o n j o h a n n i q u e et le s e m e i o n h e l l e n i s t i q u e , " ETL 38 (1962):863-69. 9. Ibid., 874; cf. 869-81. H e r b e r t C. Youtie h a s a l s o d i s c u s s e d a s e n s e of σημΰον as "proof": (1) t h a t a p e r s o n k n o w s t h e s i t u a t i o n of w h i c h s h e o r h e p r e s u m e s to s p e a k , t h r o u g h r e f e r e n c e to a specific detail t h a t t h a t p e r s o n w o u l d n o t o t h e r w i s e k n o w ; or (2) in a letter, t h a t t h e a u t h o r is w h o s h e or h e s a y s s h e o r h e is t h r o u g h r e f e r e n c e to a specific detail ( a p p a r e n t l y a g r e e d - u p o n ) , t h e k n o w l e d g e of w h i c h is s h a r e d o n l y by a u t h o r a n d recipient. S e e H e r b e r t C . Youtie, " S E M E I O N in t h e P a p y r i a n d Its S i g n i f i c a n c e for Plato, Epistle 13 ( 3 6 0 a - b ) , " in i d e m , Scriptiunculae, 2 vols. ( A m s t e r d a m : H a k k e r t , 1973), 2:963-75. But t h o u g h t h i s s e n s e is c h a r a c t e r i z e d b y t h e p r i n c i p l e of legitimation a n d a c c u r a t e r e c o g n i t i o n , t h e lack of a s u p e r n a t u r a l e l e m e n t r e m o v e s it f r o m t h e s p h e r e of m e a n i n g u n d e r d i s c u s s i o n . 10. Cf. J o s e p h u s , Ant. 2 . 2 8 4 - 3 2 8 a n d 20.168; F o r m e s y n , "Le s e m e i o n , " 870; a n d O t t o Betz, "Miracles in t h e W r i t i n g s of F l a v i u s J o s e p h u s , " in Josephus, Judaism, and Christianity, ed. Louis H . F e l d m a n a n d G o h e i H a t a (Detroit: W a y n e S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1987), 222-31. N o t e t h e p h r a s e in D e u t e r o n o m y c o n c e r n i n g p r o p h e t s w h o a t t a i n legitimacy t h r o u g h t h e d e m o n s t r a t i o n of "a sign [:‫ ;איר‬LXX: σημΰον] or a w o n d e r [‫;מופת‬ LXX, Tt'paj]" b u t w h o t h e n u s e t h i s a u t h o r i t y to steer f o l l o w e r s a w a y f r o m t h e t r a d i t i o n a l religion (Dt 13:1-3). ‫־‬ 11. See, in g e n e r a l , A n i t r a B i n g h a m K o l e n k o w , " R e l a t i o n s h i p s b e t w e e n Miracle a n d P r o p h e c y in t h e G r e c o - R o m a n W o r l d a n d Early C h r i s t i a n i t y , " ANRW 2.22.2 (1980):14701506.

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

authority might be recognized and that a great event must be preceded by portent—was the belief not so m u c h that a determinism permeated the universe but that a kind of certainty might be attained regardless of the vicissitudes of history. O n e gained such certainty through foreknowledge of signs a n d events a n d through the consequent ability to recognize things w h e n the time arrived. "How often,‫ ״‬describes Cicero, h a s o u r s e n a t e e n j o i n e d t h e d e c e m v i r s t o c o n s u l t t h e b o o k s of t h e S i b y l s ! For instance, w h e n t w o s u n s h a d b e e n s e e n , or w h e n t h r e e m o o n s h a d a p p e a r e d . . . . O n all t h e s e o c c a s i o n s t h e d i v i n e r s a n d t h e i r a u s p i c e s w e r e in p e r f e c t a c c o r d a n c e w i t h t h e p r o p h e t i c v e r s e s of t h e S i b y l . . . . O r a g a i n , w h e n t h e T i b e r w a s d i s c o l o u r e d w i t h b l o o d . . . d i d n o t t h e s o o t h s a y e r s in reply a n n o u n c e t h e e v e n t s w h i c h s u b s e q u e n t l y took place, a n d w e r e not s i m i l a r p r e d i c t i o n s f o u n d in t h e S i b y l l i n e b o o k s ? . . . In w h a t i m p o r t a n t affairs, a n d h o w o f t e n h a s [the senate) not b e e n g u i d e d w h o l l y by t h e a n s w e r s of t h e s o o t h s a y e r s ! 1 2

The critical need for certainty a n d accurate recognition—the inspiration for seeking signs—rises in direct proportion to the sense of i m m a n e n t chaos, whether in the realm of leadership (hence the promulgation of signs of legitimacy) or in the realm of cosmos and politics (hence the promulgation of signs of imminent disaster or beneficence). In the dramatically polarized world envisioned by sectarian Judaism a n d nascent Christianity, any blurring of borders or unclarity in recognition might give rise to crisis. 13 In such a context we can u n d e r s t a n d the evolution a n d systematization of eschatological signs from Sibylline to Jewish apocalyptic texts. 14 The signs of the end, as Lars H a r t m a n has argued, do not provide a chronology of eschatological events but rather a sense that a rigid determinism governs the sequence of the end times. 15 Revealed as they were by angels, these eschatological signs provided the audience with a sense of certainty and a conviction that the chaos that progressed outside was unfolding in an inevitable pattern. Thus the ‫״‬signs‫ ״‬were presented in details stereotyped from classical oracle literature, as in 4 Ezra: 12. Cicero, On Divination 1 (tr. Naphtali Lewis, The Interpretation of Dreams and Portents [Toronto and Sarasota, Fla.: Samuel Stevens, 1976], 104). 13. Cf. Ramsay MacMullen, "Two Types of Conversion to Early Christianity," VigChr 37 (1983): 181-83 ' 14. See the review of the apocalyptic "signs of the end" tradition in Russell, Method and Message, 271-76. 15. Lars Hartman, "The Functions of Some So-called Apocalyptic Timetables," NTS 22 (1976):1-14.

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N o w c o n c e r n i n g the signs: Behold, the d a y s are c o m i n g w h e n t h o s e w h o d w e l l o n e a r t h s h a l l b e s e i z e d w i t h g r e a t t e r r o r , a n d t h e w a y of t r u t h s h a l l be h i d d e n . . . a n d the s u n shall s u d d e n l y s h i n e forth at night, a n d the m o o n d u r i n g t h e d a y . Blood shall d r i p f r o m w o o d , a n d the s t o n e shall u t t e r its v o i c e

T h e s e a r e t h e s i g n s w h i c h I a m p e r m i t t e d t o tell y o u

F o r b e h o l d , t h e t i m e will c o m e w h e n t h e s i g n s w h i c h I h a v e f o r e t o l d t o y o u will c o m e t o p a s s ; t h e city w h i c h is n o w s e e n s h a l l a p p e a r , a n d t h e l a n d w h i c h n o w is h i d d e n s h a l l b e d i s c l o s e d . A n d e v e r y o n e w h o h a s b e e n d e l i v e r e d f r o m t h e evils t h a t I h a v e f o r e t o l d s h a l l s e e m y w o n d e r s . 1 6

Here, in the sectarian context of 4 Ezra (as o p p o s e d to t h e professional context of Cicero's civic soothsayers), the authoritative p r o p h e c y of t h e u n f o l d i n g of eschatological e v e n t s allows t h e i m m e d i a t e a u d i e n c e (and even s u b s e q u e n t readers) a s e n s e of p o w e r in its certainty a n d textb e s t o w e d ability to recognize these events. 1 7 But t h e distinction b e t w e e n those w h o h a v e t h e privilege a n d ability to recognize e v e n t s a n d those w h o d o not is only implied in 4 Ezra t h r o u g h the "esoteric" context of the p r o p h e c y ' s revelation. 1 8 O t h e r texts, f o l l o w i n g the t h e m e of general chaos, detail the c o n f u s i o n of the eschatological w o e s for those w h o d o not h a v e the k n o w l e d g e of signs. Lactantius stresses the c o n f u s i n g n a t u r e of eschatological portents: Strange p r o d i g i e s in t h e s k y will confound t h e m i n d s of m e n w i t h t h e g r e a t e s t t e r r o r : t h e t a i l s of c o m e t s , t h e e c l i p s e s of t h e s u n , t h e c o l o r of t h e m o o n , a n d t h e f a l l i n g s of s t a r s . T h e s e t h i n g s , h o w e v e r , will not happen in their customary manner, b u t t h e r e will s u d d e n l y a r i s e unknown stars a n d t h o s e not seen b y t h e e y e s . 1 9

An evil king will seek to attain p o w e r a n d a u t h o r i t y o v e r all; a n d by "changing his n a m e a n d transferring the seat of empire, h e will bring a b o u t t h e confusion and disturbance of the h u m a n race." 20 S e c o n d Thes16. 4 Ezr 5:1, 4-5, 13a; 7:26-27 (RSV). Cf. -4s. Mos. 10:4-6, w h e r e the signs of the end are portrayed as the reversal of the normal cosmic order: "The sun will not give light. And in darkness the h o r n s of t h e m o o n will flee. Yea, they will be broken in pieces. It will be turned wholly to blood. Yea, even the circle of the stars will be t h r o w n into disarray" (10:5; J. Priest, tr., OTP 1:932). 17. Cf. 2 Bar. 27:1-14; Mk 13:5-37. O n the social context of 4 Ezra, see Michael Edward Stone, Fourth Ezra. Hermeneia (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1990), 41-42; cf. 106-14 on the 'signs of the e n d ' passage. 18. Cf. Stone, Fourth Ezra, 113-14; although 4 Ezr 5:6 suggests a rudimentary social distinction in the ability to recognize things: "And one shall reign w h o m those w h o dwell on earth do not expect, and the birds shall fly away together" (RSV). The exodus of the birds undoubtedly functions as the portent of this ruler. 19. Lactantius Divinae institutae 7.16 (Mary Francis McDonald, tr., Lactantius: Divine Institutes, The Fathers of t h e C h u r c h 49 [Washington, D.C.: Catholic University Press, 1964), 516, emphasis mine). 20. Lactantius Div. inst. 7.16 (tr. McDonald, 515; emphasis mine).

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

salonians describes in e v e n stronger l a n g u a g e h o w the eschatological A d v e r s a r y will c o m e ‫״‬with all wicked deception for those w h o are to perish, because they r e f u s e d to love t h e truth a n d so b e saved‫ ;״‬a n d then the a u t h o r considers a different cause for the fate of the u n e n l i g h t e n e d : ‫ ״‬G o d s e n d s u p o n t h e m a s t r o n g delusion, to m a k e t h e m believe what is false" (2 T h e s 2:10-11; e m p h a s i s mine). It is significant that in b o t h Lactantius a n d 2 T h e s s a l o n i a n s (as in Mk 13:21-23 a n d 1 Jn 2:18-19; 4:1-6) the a d v e n t a n d signs of illegitimate charismatic authority (‫״‬false teachers‫ )״‬b e c o m e the p a r a m o u n t s y m b o l s of eschatological confusion. 2 1 The ability to see t h r o u g h this particular c o n f u s i o n a n d t h e r e b y to avoid deceitful allegiances b e c o m e s the p a r a m o u n t p o w e r that t h e ‫״‬saints‫ ״‬hold in p r e p a r a t i o n for the last days. T h u s to a certain extent t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah's t h e m e of eschatological deceit, a n d i n d e e d the w h o l e Antichrist tradition as a literary t h e m e of the eschatological discourse, is an extension of t h e basic tradition of ‫״‬signs of the end,‫ ״‬f o c u s e d u p o n o n e particular crisis a n d confusion. 2 2 T h e t h e m e of eschatological deceit t h u s derives f r o m the general t h e m e of eschatological signs. Indeed, the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, o n e of the earliest a n d most focused discussions of the eschatological A d versary in an apocalyptic setting, treats t h e t w o levels of signs as interrelated. The text p r o v i d e s various lists of signs b y w h i c h the a u d i e n c e m i g h t recognize illegitimacy, t h e r e b y avoid deceit, a n d participate in the m i l l e n n i u m . T h e signs of the Lawless O n e are o n e especially e m p h a sized list. But b o t h levels of signs—signs of the e n d in general a n d signs of the Lawless O n e in particular—offer the a u d i e n c e certainty a n d security in the midst of eschatological chaos. As the transition f r o m ApocEl 1 to ApocEl 2 m a k e s clear, the f o r e k n o w l e d g e a n d u n d e r s t a n d ing of signs is a privilege of t h o s e in the a u d i e n c e w h o r e m a i n ‫״‬singleminded2:1—1:27) ‫״‬ ) . T h e concept of eschatological signs e m b r a c e s a w i d e r array of m o t i f s a n d literary f o r m s t h a n d o e s simply t h e w o r d σημάον, it is significant, h o w e v e r , that the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah u s e s M A G I N , the s t a n d a r d Coptic translation of σημέιον, s e v e n times d u r i n g the course of t h e text. In o n e instance σημάον carries the Hellenistic sense of a visible celestial portent: t h e r e t u r n i n g Christ a p p e a r s ‫״‬with the sign of t h e cross preced21. Cf. Jenks, Antichrist Myth, 60-64, 115. 22. Presumably the origin and subsequent appeal of the tradition derived specifically from real or imagined crises of authority and charismatic legitimacy in the milieus of the authors. In m a n y cases (particularly 2 Thessalonians and 1 John) this context can be demonstrated.

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ing him" (3:2).23 Twice it appears in t a n d e m with qprmpe—"wonders"— to denote the "false" miracles that the Lawless O n e is able to perform in front of the multitudes (3:11; 5:1b). 24 The phrase "signs a n d wonders" was often used in a sarcastic sense to describe false or alleged miracles performed by a pretender to Mosaic p r o p h e t h o o d , a n d the author of the Apocalypse of Elijah evidently w a n t s to invoke this u n d e r s t a n d i n g of false miracles. 25 The other uses of the w o r d ΜλείΝ, however, refer specifically to the personal and physical characteristics by which o n e might recognize a specific individual. A passage offering a physiognomic description of the Lawless O n e commences: "For behold, I will tell you his signs so that you might recognize him" (3:14). The identical w o r d s open the earlier passage detailing the "King of Peace,‫ ״‬his two sons, a n d their activities (2:17), suggesting that this passage w a s m e a n t to anticipate a n d work in correspondence with the subsequent descriptions of the Lawless One. Indeed, as the chief sign of the most ruthless son is his polymorphism (2:19),26 so also the Lawless O n e will t r a n s f o r m h i m s e l f [ b e f o r e y o u (Sa)] [in t h e p r e s e n c e of t h o s e w h o s e e h i m (Ach)]: a t o n e t i m e h e will b e a n [old m a n ( S a ) ] [ y o u n g b o y (Ach)]; b u t at a n o t h e r t i m e h e will b e a [ y o u n g b o y (Sa)][old m a n (Ach)]. H e will t r a n s f o r m h i m s e l f in e v e r y s i g n [in h i s s i g n s (Sa 1 )], b u t t h e s i g n of h i s h e a d h e will n o t b e a b l e t o c h a n g e . (3:16-17)

Thus signs in the Apocalypse of Elijah, while drawing on wider Jewish a n d Hellenistic traditions of heavenly portent a n d false miracles, more specifically encompass the m i n u t e details of an eschatological Adversary's behavior a n d appearance, which would allow precise identification; the audience's certainty in this domain would ensure its complete avoidance of unholy allegiances in the e n d times. T h e Apocalypse of Elijah takes its systematic predictions of woes a n d accumulation of 23. The complex of parallels a d d u c e d by Bousset (Antichrist Legend, 232-36) m a k e s clear that the word here refers to more t h a n simply t h e cross symbol itself. Indeed, the text proceeds to describe this parousiac image as a celestial event: "the whole world sees him like the sun which shines f r o m east to west." 24. The word ΜΛΕΙΝ is used similarly, but alone, in ApocEl 5:11. 25. See, e.g., Josephus, Ant. 20.168; War 7.438 (σημΰα και φάσματα); cf. War 1:28 (in positive sense); Mk 13:22; Jn 4:48. The list of miracles in ApocEl 3:6-10 is essentially Mosaic, i.e., the types of powers and beneficial acts exhibited by a salvific "new Moses," and the sixty righteous ones themselves refer to the Lawless O n e s miracles as every feat which the prophets performed"; see below, pp. 112-17. 26. "Demonic face" is probably a translator's interpretation of "changed shape" (μορφήν ίχων ήλλοιωμίνην), as it a p p e a r s in t h e corresponding episode in t h e Tiburtine Sibyl 191 (in Paul J. Alexander, The Oracle of Baalbek: The Tiburtine Sibyl in Greek Dress, Dumbarton O a k s Studies 10 [Washington, D.C.: D u m b a r t o n Oaks, 1967], 20, 28).

112

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

details about the Lawless O n e to an obsessive degree, evidently addressing an audience's desperate need for "real‫ ׳׳‬information. The following pages address the two kinds of information the text provides: false signs in performance of miracles a n d signs denoting personal appearance. Signs and Wonders of the Lawless One The signs of the Lawless O n e are confined, in the form of two lists, to ApocEl 3. The first delineates the miracles h e is expected to be able to perform; the second, discussed in the next section, identifies his physiognomic features. The list of miracles can be divided into three constitutive parts: (1) an introduction, which places the list in the context of previous references to the Lawless O n e a n d to w h a t stage in the eschatological timetable h e is expected to a p p e a r (2:40; 3:1); (2) miracles that portray his power over heavenly bodies; a n d (3) miracles that establish his powers a n d authority as akin to those of Jesus (and, as will b e discussed, Moses before him). The third part concludes with a directive to the audience on h o w to use this list a n d its final clue. 2. Introduction

(3:5):

T h e L a w l e s s O n e will a g a i n b e g i n to s t a n d in t h e h o l y [place (Sa)] [places (Ach)]. 2. Cosmic powers (3:6-8a):

Sa

Ach

H e will s a y t o t h e s u n ,

H e will s a y t o t h e s u n ,

*Fall," a n d it will fall; "Darken!" a n d it d o e s so, "Shine!" a n d it d o e s so,

‫־‬Fall,' a n d it will fall; H e w i l l s a y , "Shine!"—it d o e s so, He will say, "Darken!"—it does so He w i l l say to t h e m o o n , " B e c o m e blood!"—it d o e s so,

H e will a c c o m p a n y t h e m t h r o u g h t h e sky. 2 7 3. Imitatio Mosei et Christi

(3:8b-13):

S a y i n g , "Walk u p o n t h e sea and the rivers a s if u p o n d r y l a n d . "

H e w i l l w a l k u p o n t h e sea a n d t h e rivers a s if u p o n d r y l a n d .

H e will m a k e t h e l a m e w a l k , H e will m a k e t h e deaf h e a r , H e will m a k e t h e d u m b s p e a k , 27. See notes on this line in Appendix, p. 314 n.58.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah

113

H e will m a k e t h e b l i n d s e e , L e p e r s h e will p u r i f y , T h e sick h e will h e a l , T h e d e m o n s h e will cast o u t — H e w i l l m u l t i p l y h i s s i g n s a n d w o n d e r s i n t h e p r e s e n c e of e v e r y o n e . H e w i l l d o t h e t h i n g s w h i c h t h e C h r i s t d i d [will d o (Sa 1 )], e x c e p t o n l y f o r r a i s i n g a c o r p s e — b y t h i s y o u will k n o w t h a t h e is t h e L a w l e s s O n e : h e h a s n o p o w e r t o g i v e life!

The importance of this list for the structure a n d function of the Apocalypse of Elijah is evident in later references to it in some of the text's dramatic monologues. The ‫״‬sixty righteous ones‫ ״‬recognize the Lawless O n e because, in their words, ‫״‬you were [quite (Sa 3 )] unable to raise a c o r p s e 4 : 3 1 ) ‫ ״‬b ) . Immediately before the final exodus of the sain a last group realizes that the Lawless O n e has been trying ‫״‬to persuade them with signs and wonders" (5:1b); a n d later, while the earth is drying up, those w h o followed the Lawless O n e lament that "you produced signs in our presence" (5:11). The list of the Lawless O n e ' s signs t h u s functions as the m e a n s by which the audience of the Apocalypse of Elijah can recognize and avoid the Lawless O n e ' s seductive power, can claim the fate of the saints, a n d t h u s can be evacuated from the earth by angels before eschatological conflagration. The miracle list (part 3, above) itself derives from an early Jewish tradition of those miracles that, w h e n performed by a prophet in the style of Moses, would inaugurate a time of redemption a n d a kind of terrestrial millennium. The scriptural basis of this tradition is Dt 18:1519, a promise that Moses conveys from God to Israelites that "YHWH your God will raise u p for you a prophet like me"; but the tradition would have h a d popular roots as well. 28 A r o u n d the Mosaic foundations of the promise there accumulated traditions of w h a t such a "new Moses‫״‬ would do; a n d the sources of such traditions came logically f r o m the miracles in the Exodus legend (e.g., Ex 4:2-11; 17:1-6) a n d prophetic imagery of the "new Exodus" (e.g., Is 35:5-6). 29 It is in the latter texts that the authenticating miracles of the Mosaic prophet begin to take the f o r m of a "list." 28. The legend of Elijah already bears Mosaic traits in its river-crossing episode (2 Kgs 2:8). 29. O n the "new exodus" theme in Isaiah, see Frank Moore Cross, Canaanite Myth and Hebrew Epic (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1973), 170-74. The use of a similar miracle list to portray a millennium in Sib. Or. 8.205-8 probably derives f r o m such popular Jewish tradition, rather than directly f r o m a text such as Q / L k 7:22.

114

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

The popularity of these miracle lists—which certainly circulated in oral as well as written form—in the early Roman period is s h o w n not only in the reported activities of p r o p h e t s in first-century Palestine 3 0 but also in early p r o p a g a n d a for jesus. A unique pericope in the Synoptic Sayings Source (Q/Lk 7:22) presents such a list as a claim of Jesus, 31 a n d the miracle sources of both Mark a n d John a p p e a r to h a v e been composed along such lists. 32 Still more representative of this tradition is the profusion of short accounts of Jesus' miracles, delivered in a list format with no c o m m o n order or wording, throughout early Christian apocryphal literature. For example, in the Acts of Paul the apostle gives the following account: A n d h e did great a n d w o n d e r f u l w o r k s , s o that h e c h o s e f r o m t h e tribes t w e l v e m e n w h o m h e h a d w i t h h i m in u n d e r s t a n d i n g a n d f a i t h , a s h e raised the dead, healed diseases, cleansed lepers, healed the blind, m a d e cripples whole, raised u p paralytics, cleansed those possessed by demons.33 30. See above, p. I l l n.25; and Richard A. Horsley, " L i k e O n e of the Prophets of Old‫׳‬: Two Types of Popular Prophets at the Time of Jesus," CBQ 47 (1985):435-63. T h e popularity of the Moses paradigm for the attainment of religious charisma is also manifest in the Q u m r a n Essene sect: cf. N. Wieder, "The 'Law-Interpreter' of the Sect of the Dead Sea Scrolls: The Second Moses," JJS 4 (1953):158-75. See, in general, Geza Vermes, Jesus the Jew (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1973), 95-99. O n the continuity of the Moses aretalogical paradigm in second- and third-century Judaism (and Jewish Christianitv), see Jarl Fossum, The Name of God and the Angel of the Lord (Tubingen: M o h r [Siebeck], 1985), 112-55, 159-62. 31. Cf. Mt 11:5. Mark 7:37, in which a witnessing crowd acclaims that Jesus "has d o n e all things well; he even makes the deaf hear and the d u m b speak," u n d o u b t e d l y also comes from such a tradition of Mosaic miracle lists. Although the narrative context is indeed the healing of a deaf mute (Mk 7:32-36), the plural n o u n s in 7:37 suggest that t h e phrase derives f r o m elsewhere a n d may have led to the construction of the miracle story, rather than vice versa. 32. Cf. Paul J. Achtemeier, "Toward the Isolation of Pre-Markan Miracle Catenae," JBL 89 (1970):265-91; and idem, "The Origin and Function of the Pre-Marcan Miracle Catenae," JBL 91 (1972):198-221. 33. Acts Paul 10 (Eng. tr. R. Mcl. Wilson [Ger. tr. W. SchneemelcherJ), NTA 2:382. O t h e r l i s t s a r e f o u n d i n Acts And.

Matt.

10; Epis. Apost.

5 : 9 ; Sib. Or.

1 . 3 5 1 - 5 9 ; T.

Adam

3:1. See Paul J. Achtemeier, "Gospel Miracle Tradition and the Divine Man," Interpretation

26

(1972):189-94;

Julian

Hills,

Tradition

and

Composition

in

the

Epistula

Apostolorum, HDR 24 (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1990), 39-44, 49-50; and David Frankfurter, "The Origin of t h e Miracle-List Tradition and Its Medium of Circulation," SBLSP (1990), ed. David J. Lull (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1990), 344-74. There is no basis to Stephen E. Robinson's claim that the list in the Testament of Adam is the source of the Apocalypse of Elijah section u n d e r discussion (so as to provide a terminus ante quem for the former text; see Stephen Edward Robinson, The Testament of Adam, SBLDS 52 (Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, 1982), 150-51. There is not one parallel that is not generic to the miracle-list tradition. Inheriting this tradition independently, the authors of the Elijah Apocalypse and the Testament of Adam developed their respective lists in relation to their own literary genres and cultures.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah

115

Associated with this tradition of Mosaic miracles—the signs such a prophet would perform in authentication of himself a n d inauguration of the new age—was a corresponding tradition of the miracles performed by one w h o claimed such prophetic status but w h o actually was illegitimate and deceptive. A w a r n i n g in Dt 13:1-3 gave scriptural f o u n d a t i o n to this false prophet tradition; thus in such "crisis literature" as 2 Thes 2:9-10, Mk 13:22, and Rv 13:13-14, the performance of "signs a n d w o n ders" is the primary m o d e of an eschatological Adversary's self-presentation. 34 That is, he tries to a p p e a r as a legitimate Mosaic prophet, but (in the ideology of these early Christian texts) he is only the false prophet of Deuteronomic instructions. Although the miracle-list traditions both of Jesus a n d of the eschatological Adversary arose out of the Mosaic prophet tradition, they mutually influenced each other throughout late antiquity. 35 Indeed, as the portrayal of Christ himself became more cosmic in scope, so also the portrayal of the eschatological Adversary gained cosmic powers. 3 6 However, the Adversary's p o w e r s over the celestial bodies are consistently represented as those of changing the normal course of those bodies: for example, making the sun appear at night a n d the m o o n 34. T h e s e o b s e r v a t i o n s h o l d t r u e for J e w i s h A d v e r s a r y t r a d i t i o n s also. A n u n p u b lished H e b r e w m a n u s c r i p t f r o m Y e m e n , p r o b a b l y w i t h early m e d i e v a l roots, a p p l i e s t h e Mosaic list t r a d i t i o n ( a l o n g w i t h explicit r e f e r e n c e s to biblical s i g n s of r e d e m p t i o n s u c h as Is 35:5-6; 42:7) to t h e e s c h a t o l o g i c a l A d v e r s a r y : His feet will b e like t h e feet of a b e a r , a n d h i s h a n d s like t h e j a w s of a p a n t h e r . H e will b e b e a u t i f u l of eyes, a n d will b r e a k jaws, will r o a r like a y o u n g lion a n d g r o w l like a lion. H e will m a k e t h e d e a d c o m e alive, a n d will set f r e e t h e p r i s o n e r s of t h e pit, a n d o p e n t h e e y e s of t h e b l i n d . A n d h e will b r i n g m a n n a d o w n f r o m h e a v e n for t h e m , a n d will m a k e rivers of h o n e y flow in t h e valleys. A n d h e will reign f o r t y d a y s . ( C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y m s . 8 9 0 a d d . 3 3 8 1 , tr. R a p h a e l Patai, in The Messiah W a y n e S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1979], 162).

Texts [Detroit:

35. S e e Sib. Or. 2.165-69; H i p p o l y t u s , De Antichristo 6; Apocalypse of Daniel 13; P s e u d o - C l e m e n t Horn. 2.17-18; a n d , in g e n e r a l , Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 25-26; Jenks, Antichrist Myth, 57-60. For o n e t h e o r y of this m u t u a l i n f l u e n c e , s e e D a v i d J. H a l p e r i n , " A s c e n s i o n or I n v a s i o n : I m p l i c a t i o n s of t h e H e a v e n l y J o u r n e y in A n c i e n t J u d a i s m , " Religion 18 (1988):60-61; cf. B e r n a r d M c G i n n , Visions of the End, R e c o r d s of Civilization, S o u r c e s a n d S t u d i e s 4 6 ( N e w York: C o l u m b i a U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1979), 17. 36. Cf. Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 175-83; P. J. A l e x a n d e r , The Byzantine Apocalyptic Tradition, ed. D o r o t h y d e F . A b r a h a m s e (Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 1985), 202-3.

116

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

during the day; blotting out the sun; causing the m o o n to become bloody a n d the stars to fall. 37 This tendency would suggest that traditional Hellenistic oracular portents, as discussed above, h a v e become associated with the Adversary's o w n powers, p e r h a p s by virtue of their "paganness" or opposition to natural order. 3 8 The Adversary's miracles therefore represent a synthesis of the catalog of celestial portents in oracular literature a n d the lists of Mosaic miracles that were circulating u n d e r the n a m e of Jesus in Christian missionary tradition; the result is an eschatological Adversary w h o threatens the natural cosmic order. This synthesis is evident in the Apocalypse of Elijah's combination of cosmic powers a n d Mosaic miracles (parts 2 a n d 3 of the miracle list above). The Lawless O n e ' s inability to resurrect, given as the mark crucial for his recognition in the Mosaic miracles, is quite u n u s u a l in Antichrist literature. Most lists of the eschatological Adversary's signs, particularly those that cleave closely to the Mosaic prophet tradition, include resurrection as simply o n e more of his powers. 3 9 A m o n g Bousset's collection of late antique texts describing the Adversary's miracles, P s e u d o - E p h raem is the only other early source (besides the Apocalypse of Elijah) stating that the Adversary will not be able to raise the dead. 4 0 The source 37. S e e a l s o Asc. Is. 4:5; P s e u d o - M e t h o d i u s (in A l e x a n d e r , Byzantine Apocalyptic Tradition, 51); Slav. Vis. Dan. 11 (ibid., 72); E r y t h r a e a n Sibyl (ibid., 203). See, in g e n e r a l , A l e x a n d e r , Byzantine Apocalyptic Tradition, 202-3. 38. T h e u s e of s u c h i m a g e r y as p o r t e n t c o n t i n u e s in 4 Ezr 5:4b-5; Sib. Or. 2.6-7; 3.796807; 8.202-205; /4s. Mos. 10:4-6; a n d e l s e w h e r e . C f . biblical u s e of s u c h "cosmic reversal" p o r t e n t s in Is 13:10; Ez 32:7-8; a n d , e s p . D n 8:10, w h i c h d e s c r i b e s a m y t h i c eschatological A d v e r s a r y c a u s i n g s t a r s to fall. L a c t a n t i u s ' s p r o p h e c y t h a t t h e A d v e r s a r y "will close h e a v e n a n d h o l d b a c k t h e r a i n s . . . will o r d e r fire to d e s c e n d f r o m h e a v e n , a n d t h e s u n to s t a n d still in its course" (Div. inst. 7.17; tr. M c D o n a l d , 517, 518) a l s o e x p r e s s e s t h e u s e of p o r t e n t a s m i r a c l e ( b u t m a y a l s o reflect m i r a c l e s f r o m t h e l e g e n d of Elijah). 39. Esp. Sib. Or. 3.66; t h e Syriac P s e u d o - M e t h o d i u s a p o c a l y p s e , p u b l i s h e d b y F. N a u ("Revelations et l e g e n d e s : M e t h o d i u s — C l e m e n t — A n d r o n i c u s , " /A 9 [1917]:442 [ c h a p . 6j); a n d o t h e r late a n t i q u e s o u r c e s in Bousset, Antichrist Tradition, 176-77, 282; to w h i c h m i g h t b e a d d e d t h e Irish a p o c r y p h o n on t h e A n t i c h r i s t p u b l i s h e d in M a i r e H e r b e r t a n d M a r t i n M c N a m a r a , eds., Irish Biblical Apocrypha: Selected Texts in Translation ( E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1989), 149 ( c h a p . 3). 40. P s e u d o - E p h r a e m , De fine extremo 9, 11 (in Bousset, Antichrist Tradition, 178-79; G r k texts: 277 n. 14, 278 n. 20. O n d o u b t f u l n e s s of a t t r i b u t i o n , s e e A d e l a Y a r b r o Collins, The Combat Myth in the Book of Revelation, H D R 9 ( M i s s o u l a , M o n t . : S c h o l a r s Press, 1976) 168-69, 197 n. 74. Cf. Cyril of J e r u s a l e m , Catecheses 15.14: "The m u l t i t u d e s m a y t h i n k t h a t t h e y s e e a d e a d m a n raised, w h o is n o t raised, a n d l a m e m e n w a l k i n g , a n d b l i n d m e n seeing, w h e n t h e c u r e h a s n o t b e e n w r o u g h t " ( G i f f o r d , tr., NPNF 7:108). A Daniel a p o c r y p h o n d e s c r i b e s h o w t h e Israelites w a r n a f a l s e m e s s i a h : "If y o u a r e t h e M e s s i a h y o u m u s t b r i n g t h e d e a d t o life, by w h i c h w e will b e p e r s u a d e d . " But h e is u n a b l e to d o it a n d b e c o m e s e n r a g e d (H. Z o t e n b e r g , ed. a n d tr., " G e s c h i c h t e Daniels: Ein A p o k r y p h , " Archiv fur wissenschaftliche Erforschung des Allen Testaments 1, 4 [1869]:416-19).

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah

117

or origins of this idea are unclear and, because of the paucity a n d diversity of its witnesses, probably lie in the realm of oral tradition. Its prominence in the Apocalypse of Elijah as a critical sign of the Lawless O n e reflects the text's special interest in promoting the recognition of signs as a proper strategy of life in the end times. The author of the Apocalypse of Elijah, then, integrates a highly structured list of (illegitimate) miracles—and one form of impotence— into the text both to establish the text's function (recognition of signs) a n d to create a core teaching to which subsequent narrative will refer. The strong similarity of this list to others promulgated to legitimize Jesus suggests the author's acquaintance with a general miracle-list tradition, whose immediate cultural origins may h a v e been Jewish rather than Christian: as the ‫״‬sixty righteous‫ ״‬a n n o u n c e , the Lawless O n e performs ‫״‬every feat which the prophets p e r f o r m e d ‫( ״‬ApocEl 4:31). The isolation of the Lawless O n e ' s inability to resurrect, however, implies the author's knowledge of an extension of this miracle-list tradition, used to prophesy the miracles of the eschatological Adversary. The author's interest in emphasizing the Lawless O n e ' s impotence in this miracle suggests that his motivations go beyond a mere comparison of ‫״‬Christ a n d Antichrist‫ ;״‬rather, the signs of the Adversary m u s t be functional for a community living in the s h a d o w of the parousia. The Appearance of the Lawless One Directly following the description of the Lawless O n e ' s ‫״‬signs a n d wonders‫ ״‬is a detailing of features of his appearance. Like the signs a n d wonders, these physiognomic details are constructed in a list format; and just as the signs a n d w o n d e r s passage could be outlined with obvious introduction, conclusion, a n d thematic groups of signs, so even more can the physiognomic details. 1. Introduction

(3:14):

For b e h o l d , I will tell y o u h i s s i g n s s o t h a t y o u m i g h t r e c o g n i z e h i m : 2. Physiognomy

(3:15).·4‫י‬

H e is a s m a l l pelec, t h i n - l e g g e d , tall, w i t h a t u f t of g r e y h a i r o n h i s f o r e h e a d , w h i c h is b a l d , w h i l e h i s e y e b r o w s 4 2 r e a c h t o h i s e a r s , 4 3 ( a n d ) t h e r e is a l e p r o u s s p o t o n t h e f r o n t of h i s h a n d s . 41. O n translation and interpretation difficulties in this physiognomic section, see notes ad loc. in Appendix, pp. 315-16. 42. Sa 3 has B 0 y 2 e , *eyelids," but this makes little sense in t h e context, which concerns the hair arrangement of t h e Lawless O n e . Cf. Wintermute, 746 n. z. 43. Cf. the Hebrew recension of t h e Secretum secretorum, a medieval miscellany: "Of

T H E A P O C A L Y P S E O F ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS L I T E R A T U R E

118

3. Polymorphism

(3:16-18):

Sa H e will t r a n s f o r m h i m s e l f before you:

Ach H e will t r a n s f o r m himself in t h e p r e s e n c e of t h o s e w h o see him

at o n e t i m e h e will b e an old man

a t o n e t i m e h e will b e a young boy

b u t at a n o t h e r t i m e h e will b e a young boy.

b u t at a n o t h e r t i m e h e will b e

4. Conclusion

an old man

(3:17-18):

H e will t r a n s f o r m h i m s e l f in e v e r y s i g n , b u t t h e s i g n of h i s h e a d h e will n o t b e a b l e t o c h a n g e . By t h i s y o u will k n o w t h a t h e is t h e L a w l e s s O n e !

The a u t h o r is delivering t w o f u n d a m e n t a l details: part 2 describes the hair o n the Lawless O n e ' s h e a d as c o n f i g u r e d in a certain way; 4 4 a n d part 3 states that h e is p o l y m o r p h i c . The conclusion (4) t h e n reconciles these t w o features: a l t h o u g h the a u d i e n c e m i g h t think the Lawless O n e incapable of being recognized (3), his hair configuration (2) will a l w a y s remain the s a m e (4). T h e a u t h o r w a s t h u s d r a w i n g o n a tradition in w h i c h the peculiarities of facial a n d cranial hair constituted a sign of internal s u p e r n a t u r a l n a t u r e a n d potential. T h e w o r d σημάον itself carried the s e n s e of distinctive p h y s i o g n o m i c features. 4 5 Writers in late antiquity paid considerable attention to the physical a p p e a r a n c e s of holy p e r s o n s (philosophers, heroes, saints) as a

brows:—Much hair on the eyebrows betokens weakness, and boldness of speech; w h e n the eyebrows extend sidewards (to the temple) they betoken vainglory (pride), and he w h o has eyebrows wide apart, equal in length and shortness, and black, is alert and wise" (11.89; M. Gaster, tr., Studies and Texts, 3 vols. [1928; reprint. N e w York: Ktav, 1971], 2:800-801). 44. The "leprous spot [ ο γ τ ο NCCUB^]" obviously constitutes a place of discolored or no hair. Cf. Wintermute: "A leprous bare spot" (746). The sign of the tuft of gray hair (C6IM) is found, to my knowledge, only in t w o other texts: a medieval Irish ms. says, "There is a grey tuft (?) in the exact middle of his forehead," but goes on to describe "one eye protruding f r o m his h e a d in the middle of that tuft" (PH 7270-3, in B. O'Cuiv, "Two Items from Irish Apocryphal Tradition: 1: The Conception and Characteristics of Antichrist," Celtica 10 |1973]:89); and a fourteenth-century Latin ms. describes a face "in the upper (part) marked with leprosy, having a white part in the hair on his forehead" (Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, ms. 404, fol. 7, in Montague Rhodes James, The Lost Apocrypha of the Old Testament: Their Titles and Fragments [London: SPCK, 1920], 59). A final verse of the latter text implies some relationship to t h e Apocalypse of Elijah: "These his marks will be unchangeable, but in the others he will be able to change himself" (James, Lost Apocrypha, 59). 45. LSJ, s.v. σημάον,

1593B, 1.9; Youtie, "SEMEION in the Papyri," 972-73.

Major T h e m e s arid T r a d i t i o n s in t h e Apocalypse o f Elijah

119

visible expression of their inner natures a n d powers. By this idea, holiness a n d wisdom would by necessity be recognizable in one w h o held these powers. 4 6 Rabbinic tradition held that the biblical prophets a n d tannaitic sages manifested their holiness through exceptional beauty. 4 7 Hellenistic tradition tended to create odd features for heroes' attributes, to express their s u p e r h u m a n natures. Alexander, according to PseudoCallisthenes, "had the m a n e of a lion and eyes of different colors—the right eye black, the left grey—and teeth as s h a r p as a serpent's." 4 8 Lucian describes the Egyptian priest a n d sage Pancrates as "tall, flat-nosed, with protruding lips a n d thinnish legs." 49 In early Christian tradition o n e finds the following physiognomy of Paul: "A m a n small of stature, with a bald head a n d crooked legs, in a good state of body, with eyebrows meeting a n d nose s o m e w h a t hooked, full of friendliness. 5 0 ‫ ״‬In the context in which it appears, this description is s u p p o s e d to epitomize Paul's nature as holy m a n and emissary of God; indeed, such features are "full of friendliness. 51 ‫״‬ Just as the miraculous signs of the Mosaic p r o p h e t could be assigned to identify illegitimate as well as legitimate leaders, so also this interest in physiognomy applied to tyrants, sorcerers, a n d other types of evil leadership. The Greek Tiburtine Sibyl adds a p h y s i o g n o m y to its

46. E.g., A m m i a n u s M a r c e l l i n u s : " G a z i n g l o n g a n d e a r n e s t l y at e y e s at o n c e d e l i g h t f u l a n d a w e - i n s p i r i n g , a n d a f a c e to w h i c h a n i m a t i o n a d d e d c h a r m , t h e y tried t o d e d u c e w h a t sort of m a n h e w o u l d p r o v e to be; it w a s as if t h e y w e r e e x a m i n i n g t h o s e old b o o k s w h i c h i n t e r p r e t p h y s i c a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s as a r e v e l a t i o n of t h e spirit w i t h i n " (15.8.16; W a l t e r H a m i l t o n , tr., Ammianus Marcellinus [ H a r m o n d s w o r t h : P e n g u i n , 1986], 82f). Cf. O r i g e n , Contra Celsum 1.33. Patricia C o x d e s c r i b e s t h e u s e of " p h y s i o g n o m i c m a n u a l s t h a t a t t a c h e d d e f i n i t e m o r a l a t t i t u d e s t o specific b o d i l y f e a t u r e s . T h i s m e t h o d of t y p e c a s t i n g w a s n o t so esoteric a s it m i g h t s e e m , f o r p h y s i o g n o m i c a l t h e o r y h a d c a p t u r e d t h e i m a g i n a t i o n of a b r o a d s p e c t r u m of t h e G r a e c o - R o m a n literati" (Biography in Late Antiquity [Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 1983], 15). In g e n e r a l , s e e Elizabeth C o r n e l i a E v a n s , " R o m a n D e s c r i p t i o n s of P e r s o n a l A p p e a r a n c e in H i s t o r y a n d Biography," HSCP 46 (1935):43-84; a n d i d e m , " T h e S t u d y of P h y s i o g n o m y in t h e S e c o n d C e n t u r y A.D.," TP APA 72 (1941):96-108. 47. Cf. H e n r y A. Fischel, " M a r t y r a n d P r o p h e t (A S t u d y in J e w i s h Literature)," JQR 37 (1947):379-81. In g e n e r a l , o n r a b b i n i c p h y s i o g n o m i c s p e c u l a t i o n , s e e Emil S c h u r e r , The History of the Jewish People in the Age of Jesus Christ, ed. G e z a V e r m e s , F e r g u s Millar, a n d M a r t i n G o o d m a n , 3 vols. ( E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1973-87), 3:366-69. 48. P s e u d o - C a l l i s t h e n e s , Alexander Romance, 13.3 (Ken D o w d e n , tr., " P s e u d o C a l l i s t h e n e s : T h e A l e x a n d e r R o m a n c e , " in Collected Ancient Greek Novels, ed. B. P. R e a r d o n [Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 1989], 662). 49. Lucian, Philopseudes 34. 50. Acts of Paul and Thecla 3 ( E n g tr. W i l s o n [Ger. tr. W . S c h n e e m e l c h e r ] , NTA 2:354). 51. E. P r e u s c h e n ' s a s s u m p t i o n t h a t t h e d e s c r i p t i o n is " n o t v e r y f l a t t e r i n g " is a n a c h r o n i s t i c , a n d h i s a t t e m p t t o link it directly to t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah p a s s a g e u n d e r d i s c u s s i o n s o m e w h a t s t r a i n e d ( " P a u l u s als Antichrist," ZNW 2 (1901):191-94).

120

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

"prophecy‫ ״‬of t h e e m p e r o r Anastasius: "He is bald, h a n d s o m e , his f o r e h e a d (shines) like silver, h e h a s a long right arm. 5 2 ‫ ״‬Tacitus reports that w h e n a p r e t e n d e d N e r o redivivus w a s executed in a b o u t 69 C.E., "his body, which w a s r e m a r k a b l e for its eyes, hair, a n d grim face, w a s carried to Asia a n d f r o m there to Rome." 5 3 It w o u l d not h a v e b e e n his resemblance to the original N e r o that w o u l d h a v e inspired so m a n y viewers as m u c h as t h e expression in such f e a t u r e s of N e r o ' s legendary p o w e r s (or evils). 54 T h e Q u m r a n astrological text (4Q186) links p h y s i o g n o m i c attributes both to h o r o s c o p e a n d to o n e ' s "portions" of light a n d darkness: a n d h i s h e a d . . . [ a n d h i s c h e e k s a r e ] f a t . H i s t e e t h a r e of u n e v e n l e n g t h (?). His fingers are thick, a n d his thighs are thick a n d very hairy, each one. His t o e s a r e t h i c k a n d s h o r t . H i s s p i r i t c o n s i s t s of e i g h t ( p a r t s ) in t h e H o u s e of D a r k n e s s a n d o n e f r o m t h e H o u s e of L i g h t . 5 5

A n o t h e r horoscope for a n individual h o l d i n g "eight parts" in the H o u s e of Light indicates that "his fingers are thin a n d long. A n d his thighs are smooth. 5 6 ‫ ״‬As the Acts of Paul a n d the Apocalypse of Elijah also seem to 52. Greek Tiburtine Sibyl 166-67 (Alexander, tr., Oracle of Baalbek, 27; cf. 41-42, 111). 53. Tacitus, Histories 2.9 (Clifford H. Moore, tr., Tacitus, 5 vols. (Cambridge, 1925), 2:175. 54. S e n e c a (De constantia

sapientis

18) a n d S u e t o n i u s (De vita

Caesarutn:

Caligula

3)

show an interest in physiognomic detail (and, implicitly, its symbolism) in describing the emperor Caligula; see Evans, "Roman Descriptions of Personal Appearance," 64-65; Jean-Marc Rosenstiehl, "Le portrait de !'antichrist,* in Pseudepigraphes de Vancien testament et manuscrits de la mer morte, ed. Marc P h i l o n e n k o (Paris: Presses universitaires, 1967), 53-54 and notes ad loc. Between Rome and Asia, Nero's powers would have been understood as both evil and salvific. O n the diverse Mediterranean sentiments toward and mythic views of Nero, see John J. Collins, The Sibylline Oracles of Egyptian /udaism, SBLDS 13 (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1974), 80-85; A. Yarbro Collins, Combat Myth in Revelation, 17690; Martin Bodinger, "Le m y t h e de Neron de !'Apocalypse de Saint Jean au Talmud de Babvlone," RHR 206 (1989):23-30. 55. 4Q186,

1, f r a g . ( J o h n M . A l l e g r o , e d . , Discoveries

in the Judaean

Desert,

vol. 5:

Qumran Cave 4 [Oxford: Clarendon, 1968], 88-91 [cf. PI. 31]; also in G. Vermes, tr., The Dead Sea Scrolls in English [2d ed.; H a r m o n d s w o r t h : Penguin, 1975], 269). These horoscopes assume an anthropological scheme explained in the Serek scroll: "During their life all the hosts of m e n h a v e a portion in their divisions [of light and darkness] and walk in (both) their ways. And the whole reward for their d e e d s shall be, for everlasting ages, according to w h e t h e r each m a n ' s portion in their two divisions is great or small. For God has established the spirits [of light and darkness] in equal measure until the final age" (1QS 4.15-16; tr. Vermes, 77). In general, o n Jewish physiognomic traditions, see Ithamar G r u e n w a l d , Apocalyptic and Merkavah Mysticism, Arbeiten zur Geschichte des antiken J u d e n t u m s und des Urchristentums 14 (Leiden: Brill, 1980), 21824. 56. 4Q186, 2 (tr. Vermes, ibid., 269).

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

121

agree on this feature of their subjects, it is quite possible that "thinness‫״‬ of limbs was a positive attribute for some circles during the GrecoRoman period. 57 Cranial a n d facial hair, a n o t h e r consistent detail of these physiognomies a n d the critical feature of the Lawless One, also seems to have carried special m e a n i n g for a subject's character a n d authority. 5 8 Thus the attention to the eschatological Adversary's physical attributes functioned within a wider context of h u m a n a p p e a r a n c e a n d its expression of inner nature. Rather than being a fantastic speculation o n monstrosity, such physiognomies represented systematic deductions o n the signs of deceitfulness a n d megalomania in the face a n d body. O n l y by the medieval period had the physiognomic description of the eschatological Adversary become monstrous, p e r h a p s as his a d v e n t a n d deceptions seemed no more imminent a n d imaginable than the beasts of Daniel a n d Revelation. 59 The author of the Apocalypse of Elijah presents the physiognomy of the Lawless O n e as a plausible a n d functional list of signs. As two other physiognomic descriptions of the eschatological Adversary h a v e come d o w n in the n a m e of Elijah, w h a t can be said about literary interdependence on this t h e m e a m o n g Elijah texts? In Sefer Eliahu the evil king Gigit is described with a long face, a bald spot (?) between his eyes, tall stature, highly arched soles, 60 a n d thin legs. 61 In 57. Cf. Vermes, Dead Sea Scrolls, 268. T h e descriptions of Caligula a n d N e r o in Suetonius a n d Seneca (see above, p. 120 n. 54) also m e n t i o n their thin legs, b u t there it is evidently an e m b l e m of m a l p r o p o r t i o n , a p h y s i o g n o m i c sign of evil nature; see Evans, *Roman Descriptions of Personal A p p e a r a n c e , " 64-65, 67. 58. Cf. Acts of John 89, w h e r e Jesus' c h a n g i n g a p p e a r a n c e s are signaled in terms of hair: "rather b a l d - ( h e a d e d ) but with a *thick* flowing beard . . . a y o u n g m a n w h o s e beard w a s just b e g i n n i n g [apxty
of Eschatology

in the Middle

Ages, e d . W e r n e r V e r b e k e , e t al.,

Mediaevalia

lovaniensa series 1, s t u d y 15 (Louvain: Louvain University Press, 1988), 1-13. 60. ‫כפות רגליו גבוהים‬. 61. Sefer Eliahu, in Y e h u d a h E b e n - S h m u e l , ed., Midr*shei C'ulah (Jerusalem: Mosad

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

122

the Paris Greek fragment, the Antichrist is described as having a flaming head, a bloody right eye, a grayish (or glad [χαρ07τό?]) left eye with two pupils, white eyelids, a big lower lip, thin right thigh, flat feet, but the big toe of his foot crushed. 6 2 Apart from a p r o n o u n c e d interest in facial details, the only element shared by both these "Elianic‫ ״‬physiognomies a n d the section of the Apocalypse of Elijah is the attribute of thin legs. It has been noted, however, that this attribute w a s a s t a n d a r d "positive" sign in m a n y ancient physiognomies, a n d a survey of the diverse physiognomies of the eschatological Adversary in Christian literature of late antiquity shows that thinness of legs h a d become a s t a n d a r d "negative" sign too. 63 There is no reason, therefore, to assume either that these physiognomies in the n a m e of Elijah derived from a c o m m o n origin or that there was any more historical relationship a m o n g t h e m than there w a s a m o n g otherwise attributed physiognomies. Like physiognomic signs, p o l y m o r p h i s m as a power a n d attribute could characterize both good and evil forces. The most general context in which the p o l y m o r p h i s m of the eschatological Adversary would h a v e been understood in late antiquity—and in Egypt in particular—is demonology. D e m o n s ' abilities to change into a n y form were precisely their most d a n g e r o u s power, as the Egyptian desert m o n k s k n e w well: d e m o n s appeared to t h e m as monsters, reptiles, native gods, heretics, beautiful w o m e n , a n d even monks. 6 4 In the urban Byzantine world of the sixth century, Procopius reports stories circulating that the emperor Justinian had been seen changing into a monstrous demon. 6 5 Procopius's reason for citing these stories echoes the function of the descriptions of the Lawless O n e in the Apocalypse of Elijah:

Bialik, 1954), 42; cf. Moses Buttenweiser, Die hebraische Elias-Apokalypse (Leipzig: E d u a r d Pfeiffer, 1897), 16, 62. T h e interpretation "bald spot" f r o m t h e H e b r e w ‫ ג ב פ י ח‬is unclear a n d based largely o n the parallel with ApocEl (cf. Buttenweiser, Die hebraische Elias-Apokalypse, 16 n. 12). As the text itself refers to Daniel's vision, E b e n - S h m u e l inserts ‫"( קרן‬horn") into the text; t h u s "between his eyes a spiring h o r n " ( E b e n - S h m u e l , Midfshei

Gulah,

4 2 n . ad

loc.).

62. Paris Greek 4, f.228 r , in S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 28-29; cf. N a u , " M e t h o d i u s — C l e m e n t — Andronicus," 453-62. 63. See Rosenstiehl, "Le portrait d e ! antichrist," 59; S t o n e / S t r u g n e l l , 36-37. 64. Cf. E. Amelineau, "The Role of the D e m o n in the Ancient Coptic Religion," The New World 2 (1893):518-35; a n d N o r m a n H. Bavnes, "St. A n t o n v a n d the D e m o n s , " JEA 40 (1954):7-10. 65. Procopius, Anecdota 12.20-27.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah

123

T h e r e is a c l e a r d i f f e r e n c e b e t w e e n w h a t is h u m a n a n d w h a t is s u p e r n a t u r a l [7‫־‬ά δαιμόνια]. T h e r e h a v e b e e n m a n y e n o u g h m e n , d u r i n g t h e w h o l e c o u r s e of h i s t o r y , w h o b y c h a n c e o r b y n a t u r e h a v e i n s p i r e d g r e a t f e a r , r u i n i n g cities o r c o u n t r i e s o r w h a t e v e r e l s e fell i n t o t h e i r p o w e r ; b u t t o d e s t r o y all m e n a n d b r i n g c a l a m i t y o n t h e w h o l e i n h a b i t e d e a r t h r e m a i n e d for these t w o [Justinian a n d T h e o d o r a ] to accomplish, w h o m Fate a i d e d in t h e i r s c h e m e s of c o r r u p t i n g all m a n k i n d . . . . Thus not by human, but by some other kind of power they accomplished their dreadful designs.66

In Procopius's mind, r u m o r s of Justinian's d e m o n i c polymorphism account for the depredations a n d catastrophes of his rule: h e is demonic by nature, a n d d e m o n s must inevitably manifest their true form. 6 7 Similarly, the Lawless O n e of the Apocalypse of Elijah, u n d e r w h o s e d o m i n ion the saints will be killed and the land will dry up, m a y be k n o w n to the saints by his physiognomic signs a n d (or in spite of) his o l d - y o u n g polymorphism. Yet there was also a "positive‫ ״‬tradition of polymorphism in antiquity, and it is this tradition that provides the context for the particular bimorphic a p p e a r a n c e of the Lawless One. In biblical tradition the ability to change form w a s a power a n d attribute of angels (e.g., Genesis 18-19), becoming a source of interest in Jewish apocalyptic speculation (but sometimes with terrifying effects on h u m a n s w h o observed the phenomenon). 6 8 Furthermore, through their ascents a n d heavenly ‫״‬initiations‫ ״‬in apocalyptic literature, legendary Hebrew patriarchs a n d prophets also became, in a sense, polymorphic, as they assumed angelic characteristics. 69 Early Jesus traditions d r e w on this idea both in the image of the transfiguration (Mk 9:2-10 a n d parallels), w h e r e Jesus

66. Procopius, Anecdota 12.15-17 (tr. Atwater, in Procopius: Secret History [Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1961], 63-64). 67. O n Procopius's use of c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s popular traditions of the eschatological Adversary, see Berthold Rubin, w h o rightly sees this portrayal of Justinian in a long tradition of viewing evil rulers as incarnations of the demonic (Das Zeitalter lustinians [Berlin: de Gruyter, 1960], 204-14, 441-54). 68. E.g., Apoc. Ab. 15:6-7: ‫״‬A great crowd in the likeness of men . . . all were changing in aspect and shape, r u n n i n g and changing form and prostrating themselves and crying aloud words I did not know‫( ־׳‬tr. R. Rubinkiewicz, OTP 1:696). 69. Cf. James H. Charlesworth, *The Portrayal of the Righteous as an Angel,* in Ideal Figures in Ancient Judaism, ed. George W. E. Nickelsburg and John J. Collins, Septuagint and Cognate Studies 12 (Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, 1980), 135-51; Martha Himmelfarb, *From Prophecy to Apocalypse: The Book of the Watchers and Tours of H e a v e n , * i n Jewish Spirituality

from

the Bible through

the Middle

Ages, e d . A r t h u r G r e e n

(New York: Crossroad, 1986), 145-65. Fischel generalizes this t h e m e to encompass the apotheosis of martyrs (*Martyr a n d Prophet,* 381-83).

124

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

appears in t a n d e m with the angelicized Moses a n d Elijah, a n d in docetic ideas extending from the Gospel of John to the Ascension of Isaiah, the Acts of John, a n d t h e C o p t i c Apocalypse

of Peter ( N H C V I I , 3 ) . 7 0 T h e

Acts

of Paul says also of the apostle that "now he appeared like a man, a n d n o w he h a d the face of an angel. 71 ‫״‬ O n e of Christ's m e t a m o r p h o s e s with special relevance for the Lawless O n e ' s peculiar polymorphism is his alternate a p p e a r a n c e as a child, a youth, a n d an old man. 7 2 In the Apocryphon of John, the disciple is presented with a luminescent youth ( λ λ ο γ ) w h o turns into an old man, w h o then becomes like a slave boy (2ΛΛ) 73 —"the [likenesses] a p p e a r e d through each other, [and] the [likeness] h a d three forms. 74 ‫ ״‬In the Acts of John, the disciple James sees a child beckoning to him, while John himself sees a "man standing there w h o is h a n d s o m e , fair and cheerful looking." As they follow him he appears to John "as rather bald( h e a d e d ) but with a thick flowing beard, but to James as a y o u n g m a n w h o s e beard w a s just beginning. 7 5 ‫ ״‬In the Acts of Peter, a group of widows w h o m Christ has healed from blindness claim they saw " a n old m a n . . .‫ ;׳‬but others (said), 'we saw a growing lad'; a n d others said, ' w e saw a boy. 76 ‫ ״׳‬Indeed, a h y m n in this text describes Christ as "both great and little, beautiful a n d ugly, y o u n g a n d old." 77 In the Apocalypse of Paul ( N H C V, 2) the apostle encounters a y o u n g child w h o reveals himself to be the Holy Spirit. It is d o u b t f u l that the similar portrayal of the Lawless O n e in the 70. Cf. Gedaliahu G. Stroumsa, "Polymorphie divine et transformations d un mvthologeme: L ' A p o c r v p h o n de Jean' et ses sources," VigChr 35 (1981):412-34; Kurt Rudolph, Gnosis, tr. R. McL. Wilson (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1983), 157-71; and David R. Cartlidge, "Transfigurations of Metamorphosis Traditions in the Acts of John, Thomas, and Peter," Semeia 38 (1986):53-66. 71. Acts of Paul and Thecla 3 (Eng. tr. R. Wilson [Ger. tr. W. Schneemelcher], NT A 2:354). 72. See the detailed discussion in Stroumsa ("Polymorphie divine," 416-19), w h o suggests that this trimorphism is rooted in a more ancient esoteric Jewish tradition of God as bimorphic—youth and old m a n — a f t e r the characters of the lover in Song of Solomon 5 and the 'ancient of days" in Daniel 7 (420-21, 426-27). 73. Bentley Layton translates the three forms as "child," "elderly person," a n d "young person" to accentuate the trimorphism (Gnostic Scriptures [Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1987], 29), but Stroumsa ("Polymorphie divine," 418-19) argues that while λ λ ο γ has the ambivalent sense of child or y o u n g man, 2 λ Λ has the definite m e a n i n g of "servant, slave" (for which h e finds a significant prototype in Phil 2:7 [425, 433 n. 76]). 74. N H C II, 1.2 (tr. Wisse, NHL, 105). 75. Acts of John 88-89 (Eng. tr. G. C. Stead [Ger. tr. K. Schaferdiek], NT A 2:225). 76. Acts of Peter 21 (Eng. tr. G. C. Stead [Ger. tr. W. Schneemelcher], NTA 2:304). 77. Acts of Peter 20 (Eng. tr. G. C. Stead [Ger. tr. W. Schneemelcher], NTA 2:302).

Major T h e m e s arid T r a d i t i o n s in t h e Apocalypse o f Elijah

125

Apocalypse of Elijah a n d later apocalyptic literature 7 8 comes directly from this popular tradition of Jesus' epiphanies, for Jesus' child a n d old man aspects carried specific mythological a n d theological meanings that would not transfer to an eschatological Adversary. According to the Gospel of Philip, Jesus' varied appearances w e r e supposed to mirror the spiritual levels of his beholders. 7 9 In the Apocalypse of Elijah, the Lawless O n e ' s alternating a p p e a r a n c e as old a n d y o u n g is m e a n t to indicate both the difficulty involved in his recognition a n d his supernatural power; and the immediate context of these motives is demonology of late antiquity. 8 0 The nearest prototype in Christian folklore for this particular power of the Lawless One, this "polymorphism of ages," however, would most probably be the similar m e t a m o r p h o s e s of Jesus. Simon Magus, for example, w a s also said to hold this power: "He began suddenly to change his forms, so as instantly to become a child, a n d after a little an old man, a n d again a youth." 8 1 Thus once again the portrayal of the eschatological Adversary follows closely u p o n that of the prophet or, in this case, heavenly redeemer.

RECOGNITION OF SIGNS AS A SOLUTION TO DISORDER AND ANXIETY The preceding pages h a v e addressed w h a t might be called the ideological core of the Apocalypse of Elijah as an apocalyptic document, 78. Cf. Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 150-51. Cf. also A p o c E l 2:19, w h e r e t h e p r i n c e d e s t i n e d to d e v a s t a t e Egypt a n d its i n h a b i t a n t s h a s "a d e m o n i c face.‫ ״‬T h e original f o r m of C o p t i c 0 γ 2 0 NAIABOAOC m a y well b e p r e s e r v e d in t h e G r e e k T i b u r t i n e Sibyl: ‫״‬a k i n g w h o h a s a c h a n g e d s h a p e [μορφήν «χωι‫ ׳‬ήλλοιωμίνην]' (1. 191). 79. N H C II, 3.57.29-58.10. 80. Cf. P a u l ' s c o n c e p t i o n of h i s o p p o n e n t s in 2 C o r 11:13-15: t h e y a r e o n l y d i s g u i s e d (μίτασχηματιζόμ(νοι) a s t r u e , righteous a p o s t l e s b u t a r e a c t u a l l y "deceitful w o r k m e n " (ίργάται δόλιοι), a n d in this c o v e r t h e y m i m i c S a t a n h i m s e l f , w h o "disguises h i m s e l f a s a n a n g e l of light." 81. Martyrdom of Saints Peter and Paul 14, in Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 275 n. 38 (text), 150 ( t r a n s l a t i o n ) . T h i s t r a d i t i o n m a y b e b a s e d o n t e a c h i n g s , i m p u t e d u p o n S i m o n ' s f o l l o w e r s b y c h u r c h f a t h e r s , t h a t S i m o n himself w a s a d o c e t i c s a v i o r ( I r e n a e u s Adv. haer. 1.23.3) a n d t h a t S i m o n m a n i f e s t e d h i m s e l f a s t r a n s f i g u r e d , o n e t i m e a s t h e F a t h e r a n d o n c e as t h e S o n (Cyril of J e r u s a l e m , Catecheses 6.14); cf. F o s s u m , Name of God, 128-29. O n t r a d i t i o n s of S i m o n M a g u s a s t h e e s c h a t o l o g i c a l A d v e r s a r y , s e e Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 147-50. T h e t r i m o r p h i s m of Jesus a n d S i m o n m a y also b e u n d e r s t o o d in t h e c o n t e x t of G r e c o - R o m a n o m e n t r a d i t i o n s : L i b a n i u s r e p o r t s t h a t , in t h e m i d s t of t h e A n t i o c h e n e riots of 354 C.E., a n old m a n p u l l i n g d o w n a n i m p e r i a l s t a t u e " c h a n g e d , first, i n t o a y o u t h , t h e n i n t o a child, a n d finally v a n i s h e d ; a n d [ t h e c r o w d ) felt n o s m a l l a l a r m u p o n s e e i n g t h e t r a n s f o r m a t i o n s " (Or. 19.30, ed. a n d tr. A. F. N o r m a n , Libanius: Selected Works, 3 vols. LCL [ C a m b r i d g e : H a r v a r d , 1977), 2:286-87).

126

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

namely, the structure a n d meaning of the signs it provides to the audience. The Apocalypse of Elijah's use of the word a n d concept "sign‫ ׳׳‬fits into wider traditions of the eschatological sign in the Greco-Roman world: as cosmic omen, as proof of charismatic authority through the performance of traditional miracles, as distinguishing feature in physical appearance. In each case, it has been argued, the interest in the sign— a n d even more, the providing of signs in literature—betrays a need for certainty of recognition w h e n the forecast time arrives. Through this certainty the confusion and deceit that characterize the premillennial woes are avoided, an eschatological resilience is achieved, and the passage into the millennium is guaranteed. The foreknowledge of signs t h u s also h a d a social aspect: those w h o k n o w signs are saved, w h e r e a s those w h o do not are d o o m e d to confusion in the e n d times. These social ramifications appear clearly in the descriptions of the onset of persecution and m a r t y r d o m in ApocEl 4. Although this theme was quite traditional to Jewish and Christian eschatology, consistently functioning in such a way as to separate a n d define historical audiences, 8 2 its articulation in the Apocalypse of Elijah was rendered vivid a n d effective through direct links between audience a n d characters (the persecuted saints) a n d through the use of Enoch, Elijah, a n d Tabitha as "first sacrifices" in the sequence of martyrdoms. Crucial to the resilience of these saints—the projected audience—is the foreknowledge of two lists of signs of the Lawless One, provided in ApocEl 3. One, drawing on the tradition of ancient miracle lists of Jesus—and before him, Moses—describes the signs the Lawless O n e will perform ("sign" m e a n i n g proof); the second, drawing on Greco-Roman physiognomy a n d polymorphism traditions—customarily referring to both good and bad figures w h o s e natures might be k n o w n by their appearances—describes the signs by which the Lawless O n e might be physically recognized ("sign" meaning physiognomic aspect). Each of these lists conforms to a strict structure of introduction, thematic organization, and conclusion. Indeed, the use of such systematic structuring devices, which stand out from the narrative courses of chapters 2 a n d 4 in the Elijah Apocalypse, could imply that the author has used sources for both sections. The presence of miracle lists a n d physiognomies of eschatological Ad82. See chap. 6, below.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

127

versaries throughout apocryphal literature of late antiquity allows the possibility that such lists circulated in written f o r m a n d could have been used by the author of the Apocalypse of Elijah. However, the author's evident interest in communicating directly to an audience about such eschatological signs might also account for his change of style in the particular chapter w h e r e the details of signs are concentrated. O n e striking aspect of the Apocalypse of Elijah's eschatological signs is their diversity: the extensive clues to the end times in ApocEl 2; the various signs the Lawless O n e can a n d cannot perform; the arrangement of his cranial a n d facial hair; a n d his ability to transform. The Apocalypse of Elijah seeks to prepare its audience with a variety of ‫״‬media‫ ״‬of eschatological signs. Given the peculiar emphasis on the appearance of the Lawless O n e in particular, o n e might infer desperation in the author and his milieu in achieving this eschatological certainty.

THE TEXT AS ITS O W N SOLUTION: THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RITUAL EXECRATION I n h i s s t u d y The Origins

and Early

Development

of the Antichrist

Myth,

Gregory Jenks placed the Apocalypse of Elijah with Irenaeus a n d Hippolytus as the main witnesses to an Antichrist ‫״‬myth‫ ״‬developing in the third century C.E. 83 The literary genres of these texts differ considerably, however: literary treatises by n a m e d Christian authors on the one h a n d , and a biblical p s e u d e p i g r a p h o n of an oral, prophetic n a t u r e on the other hand. Nevertheless, this very juxtaposition of witnesses to the Christian Antichrist tradition brings the Apocalypse of Elijah's approach to an eschatological Adversary into high relief. Rather than a discussion of Antichrist based u p o n imaginative biblical exegesis, as the third-century church authorities constructed their treatises, 84 the Apocalypse of Elijah constructs a dramatic narrative set in the definite future, punctuated with diatribes a n d laments by the opposing sides of the eschaton. Having analyzed the Apocalypse of Elijah as a repository of specific traditions concerning an eschatological Adversary a n d having established an interpretive f r a m e w o r k for the text (as well as assumptions regarding

83. Jenks, Antichrist Myth, esp. 27-38. 84. Cf. ibid., 41-48.

128

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

its historical p e r f o r m a n c e ) in c h a p t e r 4, t h e next task is to e x a m i n e t h e literary f u n c t i o n of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah's description of the d e m i s e of the Lawless O n e . The parallelism b e t w e e n t h e legends of Tabitha (4:1-6), Elijah a n d Enoch (4:7-19), a n d t h e sixty righteous o n e s (4:30-33) is quite noticeable: each heroic party (1) "hears" of t h e Lawless O n e ' s activity, (2) p r e p a r e s itself (Tabitha: p u r e g a r m e n t ; righteous ones: breastplate), a n d (3) s h i f t s location in order (4) to o p p o s e the Lawless O n e with (5) a specific diatribe; (6) the Lawless O n e b e c o m e s a n g r y a n d (7) kills the heroic party; but (8) in the cases of T a b i t h a a n d Elijah a n d Enoch, the heroic party resurrects itself to c o n t i n u e the diatribe. 8 5 In each legend the d y n a m i c focus is (5), the diatribe. Within t h e narrative, the diatribes consist of u n v e i l i n g t h e Lawless O n e despite his pretensions, a f u n c t i o n that t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah itself serves for its a u d i e n c e by giving the Lawless O n e ' s signs in ApocEl 3. Within the overall p e r f o r m a t i v e context of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, t h e diatribes, along with the several m o n o l o g u e s in ApocEl 5, create a living d r a m a of the e n d times w i t h i n w h i c h the a u d i e n c e can participate t h r o u g h h e a r ing the very w o r d s s p o k e n by the d r a m a t i s p e r s o n a e — t h e h e r o e s of the end. Within the narrative, the heroic parties deliver the diatribes t o — t h a t is, in the presence of—the Lawless O n e . In the context of t h e p e r f o r m a n c e or public reading, h o w e v e r , it is t h e p e r f o r m e r w h o h a s t a k e n over the heroic parties' roles, for h e is the o n e w h o enacts t h e m o n o l o g u e s , using the s e c o n d - p e r s o n singular voice. In the h o m i l y o n fasting (1:13-22), the s e c o n d - p e r s o n plural p r o n o u n s a c k n o w l e d g e d a n d established a role a n d a variety of identities for the audience; n o w , similarly, t h e s e c o n d p e r s o n singular p r o n o u n s in these diatribe situations i n v o k e their refere n c e — t h e Lawless O n e — a s a reality. Because the diatribes are addresses, there is the implication of a d u a l "address situation"—both addressor a n d addressee. 8 6 T h u s the Lawless O n e is "present" in t h e situation set u p by the p e r f o r m a n c e in order to b e rhetorically o p p o s e d 85. Cf. Rosenstiehl, 32-37; a n d Schrage, 218-19. W i n t e r m u t e ' s a t t e m p t at source criticism on the basis of these intratextual parallels (724-26) is difficult to sustain methodologically. 86. This principle is true for a n y a p o s t r o p h i c speech but particularly in the context of prayer a n d exorcism (the a d d r e s s to o t h e r w o r l d l y beings). From a speech-acts perspective, the c o n j u r i n g or calling into being of a nonexisting situation constitutes "situating speech," a c u s t o m a r y c o m p o n e n t of ritual. See W a d e T. Wheelock, "The Problem of Ritual Language: From Information to Situation," /AAR 50 (1982):49-71.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah

129

by Tabitha, Elijah a n d Enoch, a n d the sixty r i g h t e o u s o n e s — a n d by the public r e a d e r in their voices. T h e r e f o r e it is i m p o r t a n t to recognize that the diatribes h a v e a perlocutionary force in d r a m a t i z i n g t h e e n d times, their conflicts, a n d their spiritual realities within the i m m e d i a t e world of the audience; but t h e diatribes also h a v e an illocutionary force as f o r m a l devices of c o m b a t . In the latter legends of Enoch a n d Elijah a n d the sixty righteous, the heroic parties rush "to d o battle" ( N c e n o A e M e i ; 4:7) or "in c o m b a t " (eyMicye; 4:31) with the Lawless O n e , a n d at that point begin their diatribes. The militant significance is c o m p o u n d e d in t h e case of the sixty r i g h t e o u s ones, w h o "gird t h e m s e l v e s with t h e breastplate of G o d " (4:31) b e f o r e b e g i n n i n g their speech. 8 7 T a b i t h a ' s "garment of linen" (4:1), while bearing archaic significance in t h e context of her h e a l i n g blood, carries the overt m e a n i n g h e r e of a r m o r in the s e n s e of g a r b for holy war; 8 8 a n d her "rebuking" ( c 0 0 £ e ; 4:2) of t h e Lawless O n e h a s a clearly polemical sense. T h u s the diatribes are positioned as w e a p o n s that the h e r o e s e m p l o y against the Lawless O n e . Several o t h e r circumstances offer f u r t h e r illustration of the f u n c t i o n of hostile l a n g u a g e in the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. In ApocEl 4:16, Elijah a n d Enoch promise that "we will . . . kill you, as you are p o w e r l e s s to speak on that day"; a n d in 5:32 it is fulfilled: "They kill h i m w i t h o u t his being able to utter a word." Evidently t h e ability to s p e a k a n d military potency w e r e conceived as reciprocal powers. Elijah a n d Enoch t h e m selves are never said to bear a n y w e a p o n s except their o w n diatribes, and yet h e r e they p e r f o r m the final execution of t h e Lawless O n e ; a n d the Lawless O n e dies w h e n or b e c a u s e h e is u n a b l e to s p e a k . A divergence in the Sahidic a n d A c h m i m i c m a n u s c r i p t s c o n t i n u e s this t h e m e of d a n g e r o u s speech. W h e r e t h e Sahidic m a n u s c r i p t begins ApocEl 4:16 as part of Elijah a n d E n o c h ' s diatribe, " W h e n e v e r you [the Lawless O n e ] say '1 h a v e o v e r p o w e r e d t h e m , " the A c h m i m i c m a n u script interjects narrative " W h e n the w o r d s w e r e s p o k e n , they over87. The biblical m e t a p h o r of spiritual a r m o r (Is 11:5; 59:17; Wis 5:17-20; Eph 6:10-17) gained popularity a m o n g cultures t h r o u g h w h i c h biblical texts a n d f o r m u l a s circulated. During the third' century, h o w e v e r , it is likely that t h e m e t a p h o r w o u l d h a v e a s s u m e d specific m e a n i n g within the ideology of m a r t y r d o m , as ApocEl 4:30-33 s e e m s to reflect. 88. Cf. Jdt 16:8-9. T h e legend of Tabitha a p p e a r s to be based on a figure f r o m Egyptian h e a l i n g spells, Tabitjet, the w i f e of Horus, w h o also had healing blood. In this sense the linen g a r m e n t carries associations with the g o d d e s s Isis, w h o a b s o r b e d m a n y such minor g o d d e s s e s d u r i n g the G r e c o - R o m a n period w h i l e rising to considerable p r o m i n e n c e in Egyptian religion even d u r i n g the third century; see David Τ. M. Frankfurter, "Tabitha in the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah," JTS 41 (1990):16-19.

130

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

powered him" a n d then begins again with the diatribe. Curiously, in the Achmimic version the plural p r o n o u n of "they overpowered‫״‬ (λγόΝόλΜ) seems to refer not to Elijah a n d Enoch but to their words: that is, the w o r d s in themselves bore the p o w e r to vanquish the enemy. 8 9 The notion that a specific utterance might carry the power to harm or transform an object w a s axiomatic to Egyptian mythology a n d ritual practice. 90 Indeed, it w a s so deeply traditional to the culture that s p a w n e d Coptic Christianity that there is little surprise in finding the notion assumed in an early pseudepigraphon; the same concept of effective utterances continued to underlie the massive collections of ritual spells being gathered at the s a m e time (e.g., the Demotic Papyrus of London and Leiden or the Paris Greek papyrus) a n d even the cryptographic inscriptions of sacred w o r d s a n d passages f o u n d on the walls of Coptic monasteries. 9 1 Certainly, such effective utterances in Egyptian religion (and, for that matter, in most religions) traditionally took place in highly stylized ritual situations, issuing from the m o u t h s of designated authorities or priests. 92 The three legends that surround the diatribes u n d e r discussion offer important analogs. The verbal w e a p ons—the diatribes—seem to d r a w part of their p o w e r from the figures w h o speak them: heroic prophetic figures w h o s e respective m a r t y r d o m s in each legend actually seem to grant them further authority a n d power. As the speakers of the diatribes are, therefore, specially designated, so also the form in which the diatribes are delivered is clearly ritualized by virtue of its formal repetition in each legend. The diatribes must be delivered by the right figure in the right way, a n d thereby d r a w their power. What, then, were the specific illocutionary effects of the diatribes— w h a t constituted their weaponry? Along with references to the Lawless O n e ' s acts of cruelty a n d deception, the diatribes declare both his impotence against the heroes ("You have no power over m y spirit or my 89. Cf. t h e similar i m a g e in Est 7:8. 90. S e e Jan Z a n d e e , " D a s S c h o p f e r w o r t im a l t e n A g y p t e n , " in Verbum: Essays on Some Aspects of the Religious Function of Words ( U t r e c h t : K e m i n k , 1964), 3 3 - 6 6 ; J. F. B o r g h o u t s , "Magie," in Lexikon der Agyptologie, e d . W o l f g a n g Melck a n d W o l f h a r t W e s t e n d o r f ( W i e s b a d e n : H a r r a s s o w i t z , 1980), 3:1139-41; a n d , esp., R o b e r t K. Ritner, " T h e M e c h a n i c s of A n c i e n t E g y p t i a n Magical Practice" ( P h . D . diss., U n i v e r s i t y of C h i c a g o , 1987), 37-62. 91. S e e Frederik Wisse, " L a n g u a g e M y s t i c i s m in t h e N a g H a m m a d i Texts a n d in Early C o p t i c M o n a s t i c i s m 1: C r y p t o g r a p h y , " Enchoria 9 (1977):101-20. 92. Cf., in g e n e r a l , S t a n l e y J. T a m b i a h , " T h e Magical P o w e r of W o r d s , " Man 3 (1968): 175-208; a n d B e n j a m i n Ray, " P e r f o r m a t i v e U t t e r a n c e s ' in A f r i c a n Rituals," HR 13 (1973):16-35.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah

131

b o d y because I live in the Lord always,‫ ״‬proclaims Tabitha; ApocEl 4:5) and his estrangement from heavenly powers (ApocEl 4:8-12): 1

you are always estranged [when you associate yourself w i t h t h e s a i n t s (Sa 1 )].

2

You h a v e b e c o m e a n e n e m y to

3 4

a n d you h a v e (even) acted against those on earth. Y o u a r e a n e n e m y of t h e

5 6

You are always a stranger. You have fallen fro m h e a v e n

7

like t h e m o r n i n g s t a r . Y o u c h a n g e d ( a n d ) [ y o u r (Sa 1 )] l i n e a g e b e c a m e dark to you.

the heavenly ones

Thrones a n d the angels.

8

Are you indeed not a s h a m e d , as you establish yourself against G o d ?

9

Y o u , o h Devil!

The structure is repetitive, and in a way it forces the separation of the Lawless O n e from the powers of the cosmos. The verb tenses refer to the Adversary's status as a fait accompli: as desirable as they might be from the perspective of the audience, these are not wishes Elijah a n d Enoch are expressing but declarations, realities. Through their very utterances, the words of Tabitha, Elijah, a n d Enoch would effect this precise situation of impotence a n d estrangement, which they describe as reality. For example, in referring to the Lawless O n e as an ‫״‬enemy‫( ״‬οςλαςε) of the Thrones and the angels in line four, the diatribe invokes the prior image of Thrones as the heavenly gatekeepers w h o will ‫״‬seize [sinners w h o try to ascend to heaven] and prevail over t h e m because the angels d o not trust them, a n d they h a v e estranged themselves from his dwelling places1:11-12) ‫ ) ״‬. It is not the animosity of the Lawless O n e heaven that the diatribe describes but the animosity of the heavenly powers against the Lawless O n e as the archsinner, an animosity that should turn to seizing a n d overpowering him in his hubris. 9 3 So also lines two, six, seven, a n d eight all demarcate ways in which the Lawless O n e is separated from heaven. 9 4 T h r o u g h these multiple allusions the

93. O n this sense of "estrangement* (cf. 4 Ezr 6:5), see Stone, Fourth Ezra, 158. 94. Line six probably invokes Is 14:12 as a historiola (i.e., "as Lucifer fell, so m a y you"). O n the interpretation of line seven, see n o t e in the Appendix.

132

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

diatribe seeks to "fix‫ ״‬him in a safely u n a m b i g u o u s status outside the heavenly realm, as p u n i s h e d by heavenly powers. Even line nine has such an ‫״‬effective‫ ״‬or illocutionary function. ‫״‬You, oh Devil 95 ‫ ״‬is a thought u n i q u e to the Apocalypse of Elijah thus far, for the Lawless O n e has not been identified as the devil; 96 a n d so it appears to function as a conclusory statement, as if it were deduced from the preceding descriptions. In the context of the monologue's performative function, however, the w o r d s might be m o r e aptly characterized as an exorcistic p r o n o u n c e m e n t : a second-person statement of identity (‫״‬you are X‫)״‬, w h o s e illocutionary function is to claim recognition and, through recognition, p o w e r over the subject of reference. It reinforces the dualistic opposition of the previous lines by n a m i n g the Lawless O n e as a (or the) traditional o p p o n e n t of God, heavenly beings, a n d earthly saints. The words also isolate him in his ‫״‬true nature‫—״‬he can n o longer have the power of disguise, and he becomes subject to the p u n i s h m e n t s intended for the devil. Do the diatribes work within the context of the narrative? Certainly, the Lawless O n e proceeds to slaughter more righteous people and to reign over the earth as it declines (5:1-20), so the contemporary reader is unable to perceive the lethal nature of the w o r d s within the text. But, as Stanley Tambiah has aptly noted, all ritual, w h a t e v e r t h e i d i o m , is a d d r e s s e d t o t h e human participants and uses a t e c h n i q u e w h i c h a t t e m p t s to r e - s t r u c t u r e a n d i n t e g r a t e t h e m i n d s a n d e m o t i o n s of t h e a c t o r s [i.e., in t h i s c a s e t h e l e c t o r a n d a u d i e n c e ] . . . . L a n g u a g e is a n artificial c o n s t r u c t a n d its s t r e n g t h is t h a t its f o r m o w e s n o t h i n g t o e x t e r n a l r e a l i t y : it t h u s e n j o y s t h e p o w e r t o i n v o k e i m a g e s a n d comparisons, refer to time past a n d f u t u r e a n d relate events which c a n n o t b e r e p r e s e n t e d in a c t i o n . 9 7

95. Sa 1 clearly has ο γ Δ ί Λ β ο λ Ο ο ; Sa 3 has a lacuna here, but the stem of some letter that could not be ο γ - is visible immediately before the break (cf. Pietersma, 83 [facsimile of ms., in ibid., 15]). Whereas Pietersma reads this letter as n - (thus: "you are the devil; 48), it seems more likely to be a dalda, the first letter of AIABOAOC. The use of ‫;׳‬TOK in the last two lines is an intensification of t h e primary n o u n . 96. The cosmic actions of t h e devil are mentioned in ApocEl 1:2, 4; and a character in the oracles of ApocEl 2 is said to "assume a demonic face" (QNA.X1 NNOHJJO NAIABOAOC; 2:19). The fate of the Lawless O n e (dropped into t h e abyss—5:35) appears to be vaguely modeled on that of the devil in Revelation 20, yet the text never makes the identification explicit. A later scribe, as s h o w n in the Achmimic manuscript, changed "Lawless One" to "Devil" to reflect this implication: " W h a t have you d o n e to us, Ο Lawless One, saying "1 am the Christ" w h e n you are the Lawless O n e [Devil (Ach)]" (5:10). Sa 1 a n d Sa 3 both have n c y n p e NTANOMIA. 97. Tambiah, "Magical Power of Words," 202; e m p h a s i s mine.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

133

The "world‫ ״‬in which these diatribes would h a v e meaning as lethal utterances would be the performative situation, with its fabric of the needs a n d concerns that a third-century Egyptian Christian audience might bring into this world. The text itself establishes anxieties about deceit, legitimacy of power, and the need for certainty, and presumably these anxieties would have been generally contiguous with those of the audience itself, particularly if, as chapters 9 a n d 10 will demonstrate, the text grew out of a n d continued to address an audience with millennialist inclinations during a historical period of social and economic disintegration. Furthermore, in the public reading of the Elijah Apocalypse these diatribes a n d their object gained a certain reality: the Lawless O n e became the victim of the speeches in the very room in which the reader mimicked them. Indeed, the narration a n d the diatribes, read aloud to an audience, would have operated on a level more basic than that of a simple recounting of f u t u r e events. In their dramatic structure, desperate reality, and illocutionary force, the diatribes conform to Bronislaw Malinowski's image of the magical rite, w h o s e essence, he argues, is ‫״‬the dramatic expression of emotion": In w a r m a g i c , a n g e r , t h e f u r y of a t t a c k , t h e e m o t i o n s of c o m b a t i v e p a s s i o n , a r e f r e q u e n t l y e x p r e s s e d in a m o r e o r l e s s d i r e c t m a n n e r . In t h e m a g i c of t e r r o r , in t h e e x o r c i s m d i r e c t e d a g a i n s t p o w e r s of d a r k n e s s a n d evil, t h e m a g i c i a n b e h a v e s a s if h i m s e l f o v e r c o m e b y t h e e m o t i o n of f e a r , o r at l e a s t v i o l e n t l y s t r u g g l i n g a g a i n s t i t . . . . O r e l s e in a n act, r e c o r d e d b y m y s e l f , t o w a r d off t h e e v i l p o w e r s of d a r k n e s s , a m a n h a s ritually t o t r e m b l e , t o u t t e r a s p e l l s l o w l y a s if p a r a l y z e d b y f e a r All s u c h acts, u s u a l l y r a t i o n a l i z e d a n d e x p l a i n e d b y s o m e p r i n c i p l e of m a g i c , a r e prima facie e x p r e s s i o n s of e m o t i o n . 9 8

In the Apocalypse of Elijah Apocalypse emotion is expressed by the lector in the role of Tabitha, Elijah a n d Enoch, and the sixty righteous ones. Standing s o m e w h e r e between Malinowski's ‫״‬war‫ ״‬a n d ‫״‬terror magic,‫ ״‬then, the diatribes d r a w their lethal nature from their cathartic function within the performative situation: they ‫״‬kill‫ ״‬the Lawless O n e at each reading. Within the text the diatribes stand as p o w e r f u l w e a p o n s with which certain heroes are e n d o w e d a n d which, in the performative context of the public reading, effectively transform the Lawless O n e into an impotent d e m o n . In this way the Apocalypse of Elijah itself held such a function of 9 8 . B r o n i s l a w M a l i n o w s k i , Magic,

Science and Religion,

N.Y.: Doubleday, 1954), 72; cf. 71-74.

and Other

Essays ( G a r d e n C i t y ,

134

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

chastizing the Lawless O n e , of c o n v e y i n g lethal w o r d s against a n intensely "real" A d v e r s a r y , merely t h r o u g h the text's narrative of his eschatological demise. By describing a n d declaring t h e eschatological e v e n t s of t h e destruction of t h e Lawless O n e (the representative, locutionary f u n c t i o n of ApocEl 1, 4-5), the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah seeks to cause these e v e n t s as a n illocutionary act of the w o r d s themselves, just as they are p r e s u m e d to w o r k within the text's narrative. The A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah t h u s s e e m s to h a v e f u n c t i o n e d as a ritual execration of t h e Lawless O n e , a formalized curse against a n i m a g e of cosmic evil. Clear e v i d e n c e also a p p e a r s in the similes it offers to d e scribe the Lawless O n e ' s d e a t h : E l i j a h a n d E n o c h . . . p u r s u e t h e L a w l e s s O n e . T h e y kill h i m w i t h o u t h i s b e i n g a b l e t o u t t e r a w o r d . In t h a t t i m e h e w i l l d i s s o l v e in t h e i r p r e s e n c e a s ice d i s s o l v e s in fire. H e will p e r i s h l i k e a s e r p e n t w i t h n o b r e a t h in it. T h e y will s a y t o h i m , Y o u r t i m e h a s p a s s e d b y . N o w i n d e e d y o u will p e r i s h w i t h t h o s e w h o b e l i e v e in y o u [5:32-34].

T h e similes of "ice in fire" a n d "lifeless s e r p e n t " occur b e f o r e Elijah a n d Enoch actually p r o n o u n c e the Lawless O n e ' s d e a t h . T h e casual interprefer w o u l d ascribe this peculiar o r d e r to either sloppiness or interpolation; but there is reason to a s s u m e deliberate choice in the o r d e r . T h e very character of the similes explains w h y they w o u l d b e uttered b e f o r e t h e p r o n o u n c e m e n t of d e a t h : each recalls traditional analogies e m p l o y e d in Egyptian ritual curses to repulse a n d verbally "kill" the mythical adversaries of t h e cosmos. The image of "melting," in the s e n s e of dissolution (Greek, τήκ(ΐν),99 w a s c o m m o n l y u s e d in t h e G r e c o - R o m a n period to refer to the earth in eschatological conflagration (2 Pt 3:12; Apoc. Pet. 5); a n d i n d e e d , the Book of the Watchers a n d 2 Clement e a c h attach a simile to s t r e n g t h e n the force of this verb: "and [the hills] shall melt [τακήσονται] like w a x b e f o r e a flame" (1 En 1:6 a f t e r Ps 97:5); 100 "and t h e w h o l e earth (will be) like lead melting [τηκόμ(νος] in fire" (2 Clem. 16:3). While retaining this eschatological sense, h o w e v e r , the m e t a p h o r of ice dissolving in fire that w e find in ApocEl 5:33, as applied to a n individual, explicitly recalls t h e diverse 99. Coptic, ΒcuΛ €ΒΟΛ (Ach p. 42, 11. 16-17) is c o m m o n l y used in ritual texts to invoke a power to "loosen'—cf. London Ms. Or. 6796, 11. 25, 40, 59 (= G in Kropp, 1:3637). But it customarily translates τήκ(1ν (cf. C r u m , 32B, s.v. BUJA §d), which was presumably used in the Greek text. 100. Greek text of 1 En 1:6, ed. R. H. Charles, in The Book of Enoch or 1 Enoch (Oxford: Clarendon, 1912), 274. In Micah 1:4, "the valleys will burst open [‫[יתבקעו‬, like wax near [‫ ]מפני‬the fire." Cf. Ps 68:3.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse of Elijah

135

melting a n d burning m e t a p h o r s that a p p e a r in Greco-Roman and Greco-Egyptian ‫״‬binding‫ ״‬a n d cursing spells, w h e r e such m e t a p h o r s are intended either to obliterate the free will a n d resistance of a victim (e.g., for erotic purposes) or to destroy her or him altogether. 1 0 1 W h e n w e narrow our focus to Egyptian culture alone, w e find the same imagery used for a p u r p o s e quite similar to that in ApocEl 5: burning a n d melting were the d o m i n a n t m e t a p h o r s used in the central rituals to curse Apophis and Seth, the d e m o n i c images of chaos in darkness and chaos in periphery and desert. 102 These rituals, which aimed to repulse Apophis from the sun a n d Seth from the ordered cosmos of Egypt, involved the molding a n d burning of wax images a n d required the continual utterance of detailed spells: 103 T H I S S P E L L IS T O BE S P O K E N O V E R (a f i g u r e o f ) A P E P d r a w n o n a n e w s h e e t of p a p y r u s in g r e e n i n k , a n d t h e r e s h a l l b e m a d e ( a n i m a g e o f ) A P E P W I T H W A X E N B O D Y W I T H H I S N A M E I N S C R I B E D O N IT I N G R E E N I N K , T O BE P U T O N T H E FIRE t h a t h e m a y b u r n b e f o r e Re. . . . T h o u shalt d o this very often against storm so that the s u n m a y shine a n d ‫ ׳‬A P E P b e f e l l e d in v e r y t r u t h . . . . F A L L U P O N T H Y F A C E , Ο A P E P , T H O U F O E O F RE; t h e f i r e w h i c h i s s u e s f r o m t h e E y e of H o r u s c o m e s f o r t h a g a i n s t t h e e . . . it p r e s s e s o n t h e e w i t h a b l a s t of f l a m e , t h e fire c o m e s f o r t h a g a i n s t t h e e , a n d f i e r c e is its f l a m e a g a i n s t t h y s o u l , t h y spirit, t h y m a g i c , t h y b o d y a n d t h y s h a d e ; t h e M i s t r e s s of B u r n i n g h a s p o w e r o v e r t h e e , . . . s h e a n n i h i l a t e s t h y s h a p e , she chastises thy f o r m , . . . . . . T h e fire c o m e s f o r t h a g a i n s t y o u , y e f o e s of Re, y e w h o r e b e l a g a i n s t H o r u s , a n d against y o u r souls, y o u r b o d i e s a n d y o u r s h a d e s ; t h e fire 101. Cf. P. Heidelberg 1681 (tenth cent. C.E.): ‫־‬In the h o u r that I write your names, along with your figures and your amulets, on a potsherd, and light a fire u n d e r it until it is charred, (so may) you char the face of N N ' (11. 35-39, ed. Friederich Bilabel in idem a n d A d o l f G r o h m a n , Griechische, koptische und arabische Texte zur Religion und religiosen Literature in Agyptens Spatzeit [ H e i d e l b e r g : U n i v e r s i t a t s b i b l i o t h e k , 1934), 4 0 1 -

2). See Ernst Kuhnert, "Feuerzauber," Rheinisches Museum fiir Philologie 49 (1894):37-58; Christopher A. Faraone, "Clay H a r d e n s and Wax Melts: Magical Role-Reversal in Vergil's Eighth Eclogue," CP 84 (1989):294-300; *Binding and Burying the Forces of Evil: The Defensive Use of 'Voodoo Dolls' in Ancient Greece,* Classical Antiquity 10 (1991):165-205, esp. 172-80; and, esp., idem, *Molten Wax, Spilt Wine and Mutilated Animals: Sympathetic Curses in Near Eastern and Early Greek Oaths," /HS 113 (1993, forthcoming). The goddess Artemis uses wax figures to destroy evil in an inscription published by Merkelbach, *Ein Orakel des Apollon fur Artemis von Koloe,' ZPE 88 (1991):70-72. T h e use of a wax-melting simile against "enemies* in Ps 68:3 suggests t h e influence or background of such execration rites. 102. See chap. 7, pp. 164-68. 103. See H. Te Velde, Seth, God of Confusion, tr. G. E. van Baaren-Pape (Leiden: Brill, 1977), 150-51; Maarten J. Raven, "Wax in Egyptian Magic and Symbolism," Oudheidkundige

mededelingen

uit het rijksmuseum

van oudheden

te Leiden 6 4 ( 1 9 8 3 ) : 7 - 4 7 ,

esp. 14, 24-26; and Ritner, *Mechanics of Ancient Egyptian Magical Practice," 93-111.

136

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

c o m e s f o r t h , it c o o k s y o u , its g l o w (?) b a k e s (?) y o u , its b u r n i n g b u r n s y o u , W e p e s t h e great d i v i d e s you, s h e d e v o u r s you, s h e p a r c h e s you.104 A s f o r t h e w a x , t h e y m a k e it i n t o ‫ ״‬e n e m i e s " t o kill h i s [ S e t h ' s j n a m e , t o p r e v e n t h i s s o u l f r o m l e a v i n g t h e p l a c e of e x e c u t i o n . A s f o r t h e w a x , o n e m o l d s it i n t o f i g u r i n e s of " e n e m i e s " t o d e s t r o y h i s n a m e T h e f l a m e , t h e b u r n i n g , t h e g r e a t l i o n e s s , t h e e m b r a c e r . . . . (It is t h e y ) w h o cast fire a g a i n s t S e t h a n d t h e R o b b e r s M i s t r e s s of t h e f l a m e w i t h p o w e r f u l v i s a g e . . . . S h e w h o s e f l a m e is h a r m f u l . T h e y r e c i t e t h e b o o k s of ‫ ״‬r e p u l s i n g t h e e n e m i e s , " of " p u t t i n g t h e e n e m i e s o n t h e fire," of " p u r s u i n g t h e o p p o n e n t s , " of " r e d u c i n g t h e e n e mies to ashes."105

Such m e t a p h o r s functioned as persuasive analogies, to use T a m b i a h ' s terminology. That is, the metaphorical images (burning, melting, and, in some classical texts, spearing a n d crushing), combined with the mimetic gestures, represent the desired a n d potential state of the object: Apophis, Seth, their "rebels"—or, in the Apocalypse of Elijah, the Lawless One. By invoking the images as metaphor, the speaker or author seeks to transfer that desirable state onto the object. 106 The speech act itself need not be explicitly in a jussive, subjunctive, or injunctive case—"Let it be that X becomes like Y"—as so often occurs in practical spells. Even in the representative or definite mode, the declarative utterance would f u n c tion with illocutionary force akin to that of the curse. 107 Indeed, it can be argued that any prophetic description of the demise of an adversary, w h e t h e r "real" or demonic, is g r o u n d e d linguistically in the curse, the illocutionary transfer of these images of demise onto the object. 108 104. P.Bremner-Rhind 22.24-23.2, 24.8-11, 25.4-5 (tr. R. O. Faulkner, "The BremnerRhind Papyrus—III-IV: D. The Book of O v e r t h r o w i n g 'Apep," JEA 23 [1937]:168, 169, 170). 105. P.Salt 825, V.4-5, Χ, XII (tr. Philippe Derchain, Le papyrus Salt 825 (B.M. W051): Rituel pour la conservation de la vie en Egypte, Memoires de l'academie royale de Belgique 58, la [Brussels: Palais des academies, 1965), 138, 141-42; cf. 78, 161-62." 106. Stanley J. Tambiah, "Form and Meaning of Magical Acts: A Point of View," Modes of Thought: Essays on Thinking in Western and Non-Western Societies, ed. Robin Horton and Ruth Finnegan (London: Faber & Faber, 1973), 199-229, esp. 205, 225. 107. See Daniel Lawrence O'Keefe on t h e "magical sentence" (Stolen Lightning: The Social Theory of Magic [New York: Vintage, 1982], 53-54. 108. Cf. Jeremiah 28 (woe oracles); N m 10:35 (ritual curses); 1QH vi, 29-35; 1QM xii, xix (victory h y m n s describing demise of spiritual adversary's armies); Rv 20:7-10 (description of spiritual adversary's demise presented in past tense). Formal parallels between Egyptian execration and Hebrew prophetic discourse have been discussed by A. Bentzen, "The Ritual Background of Amos I, 2-11, 16," Oudtestamentische Studien 8 (1950):83-99, and M. Weiss, ‫־‬The Pattern of the ‫׳‬Execration Texts' in the Prophetic Literature," Israel Exploration fournal 19 (1969): 150-57. The ironic or "persuasive" use of t h e dirge form in Revelation 18 against Rome (as "Babylon") is analyzed by Yarbro

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

137

Therefore w h e n the Apocalypse of Elijah describes the Lawless O n e as going to "dissolve as ice dissolves in fire,‫ ״‬it is trying to cause the Lawless One, w h o s e presence would h a v e become as real as Seth or Apophis w a s for Egyptian priests, to dissolve also, at that m o m e n t , by the power of the lethal utterance itself. 109 Through the use of such analogies a n d descriptions, the Apocalypse of Elijah gains a ritual function approximating that of the traditional execration texts, but in a Christian setting. Plutarch reports popular forms of curse rituals against Seth performed in Egypt as late as the early second century C.E.; a n d his testimony, taken with the presence, well through the Byzantine period, of general curse spells inscribed on p a p y r u s a n d lead tablets, militates against any notion that these traditions h a d evaporated by the Roman period. 110 Once the concept of ‫״‬execration‫ ״‬or curse has been applied to the last chapters of the Apocalypse of Elijah, and once it is admitted that the act of cursing Seth or Apophis and the act of cursing the Lawless O n e are similar ritual ‫״‬goals,‫ ״‬it is difficult to d e n y that the techniques and language of cursing a d o m i n a n t mythical adversary would h a v e persisted within Egyptian culture. 111 It is quite likely, therefore, that the author of the Apocalypse of Elijah is drawing on native execration traditions in his use of specific analogies for the Lawless O n e ' s death. Collins,

"Revelation

I'Apocalyptique

dans

18: le

Taunt-Song Nouveau

or

Testament,

Dirge?" ed.

J.

in

L'apocalypse

Lambrecht

johannique

(Louvain:

et

Louvain

University Press, 1980), 185-204. O n the variety of curse f o r m s a n d their illocutionary intent, see general articles by A. E. Crawley, "Cursing a n d Blessing," ERE 4:367-74; a n d Lester K. Little, "Cursing," ER 4:182-85. 109. N o t e that a "completed" illocution in a curse, according to formal speech-acts analysis, would require the prior existence in reality of the victim, such that the victim could be t r a n s f o r m e d through t h e illocution. This would seem impossible in the cases u n d e r discussion, w h e r e the illocution is designated against w h a t might be viewed as an imaginary victim, the spiritual or mythical adversary ("How would o n e gauge if the illocution w e r e felicitous or not?"). Three points would qualify these objections: (1) within the worldview of the subjects, the victim or adversary is not imaginary; (2) the prescriptions of the ritual are otherwise fulfilled within cultural conventions, that is, the mythical adversary is not expected to be present as, for example, the priest is; (3) by Tambiah's participant-centered analysis of ritual language's effectiveness, the "completion" of the speech act is accomplished through the catharsis of t h e ritual (as if the locution were not o u t w a r d l y but i n w a r d l y directed). Cf. Little, "Cursing," 184. 110. Plutarch De Iside et Osiride 30-31, which describes t h e ritual destruction of objects s t a m p e d with an image of a b o u n d ass or a b o u n d h u m a n , iconography that matches that in the Egyptian texts; see John G w y n Griffiths, ed. a n d tr., Plutarch: De Iside et Osiride (Cardiff: University of Wales Press,"1970), 407-8, 411-12. 111. O n the continuity of Seth imagery in Coptic d e m o n o l o g y , see E. Amelineau, "The Role of the D e m o n in the Ancient Coptic Religion," 519-25; Franiois Lexa, La "1agie dans I'Egypte antique, 2 vols. (Paris: Paul G e u t h n e r , 1925), 1:151-52; A n t o i n e Cuillaumont, "La conception du desert chez les moines d'Egypte," RHR 188 (1975):1115; a n d below, pp. 164-66.

138

T H E A P O C A L Y P S E O F ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS L I T E R A T U R E

T h e second m e t a p h o r c o m p a r e s t h e A d v e r s a r y to "a s e r p e n t [ δ ρ ά κ ω ι ‫] ׳‬ w i t h n o b r e a t h in it.‫ ״‬T h e i m a g e suggests t h e d r a c o n i n e S a t a n of Revelation 12, a n d certainly a n a u t h o r with a n y a c q u a i n t a n c e with the book of Revelation w o u l d recall this figure; t h e r e is e v i d e n c e that early C o p t s held it in particular interest. 1 1 2 Because t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah h a s h i t h e r t o described the Lawless O n e as essentially h u m a n , h o w e v e r , it m a k e s less sense to import Revelation 12 as the key at this point in the text t h a n to read the a n a l o g y in its f u n c t i o n a l s e n s e in t e r m s of t h e persuasive analogies directed at A p o p h i s , a d r a g o n , a n d Seth, w h o represented d a n g e r o u s reptiles in general. 1 1 3 A striking parallel to t h e s e c o n d m e t a p h o r a p p e a r s , coincidentally, in the context of a s u s t a i n e d diatribe against the devil f r o m the fifth century, the w o r k of t h e Coptic a b b o t S h e n o u t e . In this f a m o u s l y c o m p l e x s e r m o n S h e n o u t e begins a c o m p a r i s o n of the devil to a s e r p e n t by d e scribing the devil's far m o r e extensive ‫״‬poison‫״‬: "Wither will the s e r p e n t t h r o w (its) liquid? For p e r h a p s (the poisons) reach as far as t h o s e ( w h o are standing) n e a r it. . . .But you, Ο i m p i o u s one, y o u r p o i s o n s reach those in the entire universe!" 1 1 4 T h e d e v i l - s e r p e n t a n a l o g y established, S h e n o u t e t h e n declares the devil i m p o t e n t by virtue of his p r i m o r d i a l expulsion or fall, invoking, a p p a r e n t l y , G n 3:14 in c o m b i n a t i o n with Is 14:12. The devil, h e implies, can t h u s b e c o m p a r e d to a s e r p e n t ' s h a r m less corpse. In t h e f o l l o w i n g p a s s a g e o n e can h e a r t h e illocutionary force of S h e n o u t e ' s declarations, s u c h that his insistence on a past e v e n t (the devil's fall) w o u l d h a v e f u n c t i o n e d in the i m m e d i a t e , p e r f o r m a t i v e context as lethal s p e e c h — t h e "killing" of a q u i t e real a n d pernicious e n e m y in the world of his audience: A s e r p e n t is r e a l l y ( o n l y ) like a p i e c e of r o p e , rising a n d b e n d i n g , q u i t e e a s i l y d e s t r o y e d , a n d w h o e v e r a v o i d s its p o i s o n will n o t d i e f r o m it. But you, you are indeed the enemy, and you have n o other power than the p o i s o n of y o u r s i n s , f o r y o u a r e c u t u p a n d s c a t t e r e d f a r b e y o n d (?) t h e s e r p e n t , 1 1 5 n o t o n l y b e c a u s e G o d h a s m a d e y o u i m p o t e n t 1 1 6 in t h i s w a y ,

112. See the (apotropaic?) illustration of a serpent next to Revelation 12 in the twelfth-century British Museum Ms. Oriental 6803, fol. 18r, in E. A. Wallis Budge, Coptic Biblical Texts in the Dialect of Upper Egypt (London: British Museum, 1912; reprint, N e w York: AMS, 1977), 299. 113. Pace Rosenstiehl, 115n. ad loc.; Wintermute, 752 n. k3. 114. Inst. fr. Coptic 1, fol. 10.38-43, 50-55, ed. P. du Bourguet, "Diatribe d e C h e n o u t e contre le demon," Bulletin de la societe d'archeologie copte 16 (1961/62):30; cf. 43, 51. 115. e e o * π λ ρ λ n j o q . Perhaps, "to a far greater extent than the serpent"? 116. AAK NCBIHN; the sense is analogous to t h e Lawless O n e ' s accused powerlessness in ApocEl 4:5; cf. Crum, 53A.

Major Themes arid Traditions in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

139

b u t a l s o b e c a u s e y o u r c o r p o r e a l f o r m is d e s t r o y e d a c c o r d i n g t o w h a t is w r i t t e n a n d w h a t w e k n o w of y o u b y y o u r w e a k n e s s , w h e r e a s e v e n t h e b o d y of t h e s e r p e n t is w h o l e s o t h a t it m a y b e t o u c h e d ( ? ) . " 7

Like the Apocalypse of Elijah, S h e n o u t e invokes the analogy of devil to serpent ( e o q ) specifically in the context of declaring the devil's impotence, a n d in a type of speech w h e r e the function of declaration carries particular illocutionary force. In both cases the image of a dead or dying snake is invoked in order to "kill‫ ׳׳‬the spiritual adversary at that m o m e n t by this illocutionary force of declaration. In S h e n o u t e ' s case, the illocutionary act implicity carries the a d d e d force of the biblical declarations in Gen 3:14 a n d Isa 14:12. Finally, in both cases o n e can hear echoes of the exercration of the "serpents" Apophis a n d Seth. 118 It has been argued here that both similes applied to the demise of the Lawless O n e in ApocEl 5—ice melting a n d a serpent dying—carried the illocutionary function of killing the Lawless O n e ritually through persuasive analogy: "Let him dissolve as ice melts in fire; Let him perish like a serpent with no breath." Moreover, we have seen that this illocutionary function is only an extension to the text as a whole of the symbolically lethal nature of the diatribes uttered by Tabitha, Elijah a n d Enoch, a n d the sixty righteous ones. Both concepts, we h a v e seen, are deeply traditional to Egyptian religion a n d culture; a n d the cursing similes employed at the e n d of the text themselves d r a w on traditional Egyptian imagery used to curse equivalent cosmic adversaries. By virtue of its last chapters, therefore, the Apocalypse of Elijah may plausibly be viewed with the function of execration, a n d its performative setting with the function of curse ritual. 119 In a way, to recognize that the Apocalypse of Elijah was designed to function as a ritual execration is merely to acknowledge that the text a n d its symbols, imagery, a n d n a m e s held m a n y more types of power for a late antique Egyptian audience than for a m o d e r n one. "The very quality of the s o u n d s a n d the [intonation] of the Egyptian words," the Corpus 117. TA20q. D u Bourguet unnecessarily corrects to T i i c o q . Text: Inst. fr. Coptic 1, 12.35-13.9, ed. du Bourguet, "Diatribe d e C h e n o u t e contre le d e m o n , " 32; cf. 44, 51-52. I am deeply indebted to Jacques van der Vliet for discussion of this passage. 118. At the conclusion of an execration of Seth in the Edfu texts (Hellenistic period), Seth turned himself into a Roaring Serpent . . . a n d was seen n o more" (9, 9; tr. H. W. Fairman, in "The Myth of Horus at Edfu—I," ]LA 21 (1935):32). Seth's m e t a m o r p h o s i s >nto a serpent at his death poses a striking parallel to ApocEl 5:33. 119. Ritual cursing, even as part of the liturgy, was c o m m o n in Christian monastic tradition; see Lester K. Little, 'La morphologie des maledictions monastiques," Annates 34 (1979):43-60.

140

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

Hermeticum claimed at r o u g h l y the s a m e time, "carry in t h e m s e l v e s the p o w e r of the t h i n g s said. . . . O u r speech is not m e r e talk; it is a n u t t e r a n c e replete with workings." 1 2 0 As n a m e s a n d w o r d s c o n t i n u e d to bear these special p o w e r s in Coptic religion, so the public u t t e r a n c e of the written w o r d w o u l d h a v e carried a p o t e n c y that t r a n s c e n d e d the m e r e transmission of knowledge. 1 2 1 F u r t h e r m o r e , the d r a m a t i z e d e n c o u n t e r with t h e Lawless O n e o f f e r e d by t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah could not h a v e b e e n a neutral e v e n t in t h e life of an Egyptian Christian a u d i e n c e in the second half of the third century, a period replete w i t h persecutions a n d perceived persecutions, millennialist h o p e s a n d r u m o r s , struggles b e t w e e n orthodoxies a n d heresies, a n d a general decline in the e c o n o m i c a n d political orders (subjects discussed in the last t h r e e c h a p t e r s of this book). W h e r e Jenks noticed "a p a t t e r n of increasingly d r a m a t i c accounts of the d e s t r u c t i o n of the Antichrist" in Christian literature of t h e late third century, 1 2 2 p e r h a p s w e m a y perceive c o m m u n i t i e s in the act of reconciling the anxieties of this period t h r o u g h rituals of cursing t h e eschatological A d v e r s a r y — t h e representative i m a g e of all the deception, conflict, a n d imperial p o w e r that they i m a g i n e d to b e poised in the cosmos. By describing his d e m i s e in the most specific terms imaginable, t h e y w o u l d "experience" the e n d of evil a n d achieve catharsis in the k n o w l e d g e that all t h i n g s w o u l d be accomplished as described. 120. Corp. Herm. 16.1-2 (ed. A. D. N o c k a n d A.-J. Festugiere, Corpus Hermeticum, 2 vols. [2d ed.; Paris: Societe d ' E d i t i o n "Les Belles Lettres," 1960], 2:232; m o d i f i e d f r o m t r a n s l a t i o n b y W a l t e r Scott, Hermetica, 4 vols. [ O x f o r d , 1924-36; r e p r i n t , Boston: S h a m b h a l a , 1985]), 1:265. 121. M a c D e r m o t , The Cult of the Seer in the Ancient Middle East ( L o n d o n : W e l l c o m e Institute of t h e H i s t o r y of M e d i c i n e , 1971), 193-95; cf. K r o p p , 3:116-39; L. K a k o s y , " R e m a r k s o n t h e I n t e r p r e t a t i o n of a C o p t i c Magical Text," A O H 13 (1961 ):325-28. 122. Jenks, Antichrist Myth, 97.

6 Exhortatio ad Martyrum:

The Apocalypse of Elijah and the Lore of Martyrdom

The penultimate chapter of the Apocalypse of Elijah narrates a series of heroic martyrdoms, which are projected into the e n d times. The first two episodes, comprising the challenge, martyrdom, a n d resurrection of Tabitha and, then, of Elijah a n d Enoch, seem to have been composed out of popular eschatological traditions concerning the heroes of the end times. The story of the saints' persecution in ApocEl 4:20-33, however, seems to d r a w from other forms of Egyptian Christian lore. Because the composition of the Apocalypse of Elijah occurred in the second half of the third century, it is likely that experiences, rumors, a n d attitudes stemming from the Decian a n d Valerian edicts contributed to the martyrdom imagery a n d expectations. The following analysis, however, will commence by bracketing the question of historical reflection to examine h o w such imagery arose a n d functioned as literary themes.

M A R T Y R D O M AS A LITERARY T H E M E

After the m a r t y r d o m of Elijah a n d Enoch, the Lawless O n e turns his wrath u p o n the saints, a n d the text describes his procedures of torture with lurid detail (4:22-23). The interest with which later audiences held this passage m a y be evident in the manuscript divergences: Sa3

Ach H e will kill t h e m , h e will e x t e r m i n a t e t h e m [ ]

141

142

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

Sa3

Ach

H e will c o m m a n d that their eyes be seared

. . . ] t h e m ; that their eyes be put out

with an iron borer

w i t h s t i c k s of i r o n ; He will remove their heads.

the

skin

from

H e will r e m o v e t h e i r n a i l s o n e b y one.

H e will r e m o v e their nails o n e by one.

H e will c o m m a n d t h a t v i n e g a r w i t h lime be s h o v e d into their nostrils.

H e will c o m m a n d t h a t v i n e g a r w i t h l i m e b e p u t in t h e i r n o s t r i l s .

The simplest interpretation of these references to m a r t y r d o m is that the author considered a recently experienced, historical persecution (e.g., under the Decian or Valerian edicts) to be a sign that the e n d w a s near: that is, that the above passage w a s designed as vaticinium ex eventus. Yet these references follow such mythopoeic episodes as the Nile running with blood (2:44) and the return of Tabitha and Elijah a n d Enoch (4:1-19), t h u s militating against an interpretation that assumes that everything preceding the persecution is "historical‫ ״‬a n d everything following it, eschatological myth. Instead of borrowing wholesale from contemporaneous experiences of persecution, Richard Bauckham has pointed out, "the Apocalypse of Elijah's series of martyrs seems rather to indicate a writer w h o is spinning a narrative of the reign of Antichrist out of various diverse traditional materials available to him. 1 ‫״‬ What types of materials, then, would p r o m p t the lurid details in 4:2223? Certainly the events of the third century in Egypt would h a v e provided a context for the scenes' formulation a n d m e a n i n g to an audience; but a far more plausible context than actual historical experience would be the lore of m a r t y r d o m that developed in Greco-Roman Judaism, became a d o m i n a n t theme in the early Jesus movement, and came to flourish wildly in Egypt. 2 Oral martyrological traditions stressed the lurid details of sufferings well before the grossly anti-Christian edicts of Diocletian; and this lore w a s as socially vital for Christian self-definition a n d consolation as it w a s historically dubious. 3 1. Richard Bauckham, "Enoch and Elijah in the Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah," Studia patristica 16, 2 (1985):75. 2. See the list of martyrological parallels to ApocEl 4:22-23 that Oscar von Lemm collected ("Kleine koptische Studien—Χ.5 Bemerkungen zu einigen Stellen der koptischen Apokalvpsen, 4-6," Bulletin de I'academie imperiale des sciences de St.-Petersbourg 13 [1900):23-26j. 3. In general see Judith Perkins, "The Apocryphal Acts of the Apostles and Early Christian Martyrdom," Arethusa 18 (1985):211-30; and Peter Brown, The Cult of the Saints: Its Rise and Function in Latin Christianity (Chicago: University of Chicago Press,

The Apocalypse o f Elijah and the Lore of M a r t y r d o m

143

Cyprian reveled in such imagery: "Blood was flowing that might extinguish the fire of persecution (and) settle the flames and fires of G e h e n n a with glorious gore." 4 The fifth-century Coptic abbot S h e n o u t e considered a gruesome e n d the criterion of a "true" martyr. 5 A n d the performative ‫״‬world" in which such stories circulated was vibrant: not only the retelling of events a n d rumors, but letters a n d even songs described martyrs' deaths. 6 O n e early story is particularly significant in that it has come d o w n to us in two distinct versions. Both Eusebius a n d Palladius received, independently, oral accounts of the martyr Potamiaena's execution by hot pitch during Severus's reign (193-211) a n d retold t h e m with only the most basic elements in c o m m o n — a n d yet with a c o m m o n interest in drama a n d graphic details. 7 Indeed, Palladius claims a specific lineage to his version's transmission: that he received it from o n e Isidore, w h o in turn h a d heard it f r o m the m o u t h of the hermit Antony himself. The important point we m a y derive f r o m the coincidence of these stories is that the retelling of martyrdoms in graphic detail had become a peculiarly Christian tradition already in the third century, long before the actual production of martyrological texts. 8 In the Apocalypse of Elijah, scenes of m a r t y r d o m a n d persecution function as "signs," marking a n d clarifying the course of the preeschatological woes for an audience that evidently needed such a map. We might well presume from this function that m a r t y r d o m a n d persecution 1981), 80-85. Saul Lieberman has suggested that m a n y of t h e p u n i s h m e n t s that apocalyptic writers envisioned in hell were actually based on c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s Roman punishments ("On Sins and Their Punishments," in idem, Texts and Studies [New York: Ktav, 1974], 48-50). Most of his evidence for these Roman practices, however, comes from materials w h o s e interests in the details of torture are more lurid than objective: Eusebius, martyrologies, and ancient Christian art (cf. Lieberman, "Sins and Their Punishments," 46 n. 101, 50 nn. 122-23, 51 n. 130). Roman brutality notwithstanding, the historian must c o m p r e h e n d the martyrological interests in emphasizing this brutality—as with apocalyptists' interests in creating hell p u n i s h m e n t s — w i t h i n their own ideological a n d social contexts. 4. C y p r i a n , Epistle

1 0 . 2 . 2 ( i n Saint

Cyprien:

Correspondence,

e d . a n d tr. L e

Chanoine

Bayard, 2 vols. [Paris: Societe d'Edition "Les Belle Lettres," 1925], 1:24), my trans. 5. O n Shenoute's view of martyrs, see Jurgen Horn, Studien zu den M'drtyrern des nOrdlichen

Oberagypten,

vol.

1: MUrtyrerverehrung

und

Mdrtyrerlegende

im

Werk

des

Schenute, Gottinger Orientforschungen 4, Reihe: Agypten 15 (Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, 1986), 8-9. Origen, Exhortatio ad martyrum, 23-24, dwells on lurid details in discussing 2 Maccabees 6. 6. Tertullian Scorpiace 7 (songs); Cyprian Ep. 31.2; cf. Dionysius of Alexandria in Eusebius, Hist, eccles. 6.41-42 (letters). 7. Eusebius, Hist, eccles. 6.5; Palladius Historia Lausiaca 3. Cf. Frances M. Young, from Nicaea to Chalcedon (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1983), 40-41. 8. On motivations behind such graphic imagery in m a r t y r d o m lore, see Donald W. Riddle, The Martyrs: A Study in Social Control (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1931), 66-69; a n d Brown, Cult of the Saints, 82-84.

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

h a d b e c o m e c o m p o n e n t s of the field of literary m o t i f s used to construct eschatological scenarios, a n d that the a u d i e n c e w o u l d already h a v e b e e n familiar with the "eschatological‫ ״‬significance of m a r t y r d o m . In fact, the tradition of sacred m a r t y r d o m to w h i c h t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah alludes stems f r o m a Jewish tradition associating the holiness a n d privilege of p r o p h e t s with m a r t y r d o m . 9 "As early as the first c e n t u r y C.E.,‫ ״‬H e n r y Fischel describes, ‫״‬it h a d b e c o m e a generally accepted teaching of Judaism that p r o p h e t s h a d to suffer or e v e n u n d e r g o m a r t y r dom. 1 0 ‫ ״‬T h e t e a c h i n g g a i n e d full literary r e p r e s e n t a t i o n in s u c h texts as 2 a n d 3 Maccabees, the Martyrdom of Isaiah a n d o t h e r lives of t h e p r o p h e t s , a n d rabbinic midrashim. 1 1 T h e residue of oral tradition in Q — ‫״‬no p r o p h e t is accepted in his o w n country 1 2 ‫ — ״‬a n d M a r k — ‫ ״‬t h e y will deliver you u p to councils; a n d you will b e b e a t e n in synagogues 1 3 ‫—״‬ s h o w s that t h e m e s of persecution a n d m a r t y r d o m a m o u n t e d to a n ethic p r e a c h e d a m o n g itinerant p r o p h e t s . T h r o u g h the book of Revelation (with w h o s e ideas the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah s h o w s s o m e familiarity), t h e m a r t y r d o m a n d persecution of p r o p h e t s gain particular p r o m i n e n c e as a sign—a constitutive stage—of t h e eschatological sequence: for example, the episode of the ‫ ״‬t w o μάρτνροι" (probably Moses a n d Elijah) of Rv 11:3-13, w h i c h is e x p a n d e d a n d d r a m a t i z e d in ApocEl 4:7-19 (the characters t h e r e identified as Elijah a n d Enoch). 1 4 T h e fact that t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah places this e p i s o d e (along with t h e m a r t y r d o m of T a b i t h a ) as t h e first of a series of eschatological m a r t y r d o m s signifies that the e p i s o d e h a d a s s u m e d a n archetypal m e a n i n g b y w h i c h the s u b s e q u e n t m a r t y r d o m s of the ‫״‬saints‫ ״‬m i g h t b e u n d e r s t o o d . Thus, as Elijah a n d E n o c h ' s return a n d m a r t y r d o m w e r e a distinctive sign of the e s c h a t o n (in the tradition of the

9. See, in g e n e r a l , H e n r y A. Fischel, " M a r t y r a n d P r o p h e t (A S t u d y in J e w i s h Literature),‫ ־‬JQR 37 (1947):265-80, 3 6 3 - 8 6 ; a n d G e o r g e W . E. N i c k e l s b u r g , Jr., Resurrection, Immortality, and Eternal Life in Intertestamental Judaism, H a r v a r d T h e o l o g i c a l S t u d i e s 26 ( C a m b r i d g e : H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1972), e s p . 9 3 - 1 1 1 . 10. Fischel, " M a r t y r a n d P r o p h e t , " 279; cf. N i c k e l s b u r g , Resurrection, Immortality, Eternal Life, 48-66, o n t h e t r a d i t i o n of t h e w i s e m a n a s m a r t y r e d s a i n t . 11. S e e Fischel, " M a r t y r a n d P r o p h e t , " 265-80. 12. Q / L k 4:24 ( / / G o s p e l of T h o m a s 31; Jn 4:44b); cf. M k 6:4b ( / / Mt 13:57b). 13. Mk 13:9 ( / / Mt 10:17-18; Lk 21:12-13). 14. W i l h e l m Bousset, The Antichrist Legend, tr. A. H . K e a n e ( L o n d o n : H u t c h i n s o n , 1896), 208-11; R. H. C h a r l e s , A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Revelation of St. John, 2 vols. ( E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1920), 1:281-82; M. Black, " T h e T w o W i t n e s s e s ' of Rev. l l : 3 f . in J e w i s h a n d C h r i s t i a n A p o c a l y p t i c T r a d i t i o n , " in Donum Gentilicium: New Testament Studies in Honour of David Daube, e d . E. B a m m e l , C. K. Barrett, a n d W. D. D a v i e s ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1978), 2 2 7 - 3 7 ; a n d B a u c k h a m , " E n o c h a n d Elijah in t h e C o p t i c A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah," 6 9 - 7 6 .

The Apocalypse of Elijah and the Lore of M a r t y r d o m

145

book of Revelation but orally as well), so also o t h e r s ' m a r t y r d o m s in the text were to b e u n d e r s t o o d as distinctive signs of eschatological i m minence. 1 5 By the third c e n t u r y C.E., persecution a n d m a r t y r d o m were widely interpreted in apocalyptic a n d o t h e r eschatological literature as h e r a l d ing the e s c h a t o n , suggesting t h a t the m a r t y r or righteous sufferer h a d come to r e p r e s e n t a p r i m a r y f o r m of authority, p o w e r , a n d holiness for sectarian c o m m u n i t i e s : the saints, as it were, m u s t suffer; those w h o suffer m u s t be saints; a n d the s u f f e r i n g of the saints signifies the beginning of the e n d times. 1 6 By b r a c k e t i n g q u e s t i o n s of historical experience a n d veracity b e h i n d the images of m a r t y r d o m in ApocEl 4, o n e can perceive t h e c o m b i n a t i o n of t w o "literary" traditions in these passages: (1) t h e oral martyrological lore circulating in the w a k e of t h e Decian a n d Valerian edicts (and doubtless earlier); a n d (2) the tradition f o u n d in m a n y apocalyptic texts (and also in oral circulation) that the collective m a r t y r d o m of the righteous w o u l d b e a sign of the e n d times. T h e question t h e r e f o r e arises: H o w did t h e details of m a r t y r s ' s u f f e r i n g f u n c t i o n socially, particularly as these details w e r e f r a m e d in the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah within a n eschatological narrative?

EXHORTATIO AD MARTYRUM: SOCIAL REFLECTION A N D SOCIAL C O N T R O L IN T H E A P O C A L Y P S E O F ELIJAH

The Social Function of Predicting Martyrdom M a r t y r d o m lore f u n c t i o n e d reflexively, to s t r e n g t h e n a u d i e n c e s ' social cohesiveness, to console t h e m , to reverse e m b a r r a s s m e n t t h r o u g h

15. W.H.C. Frend suggests, on the basis of the tradition of Elijah's premillennial return (Mai 4:5-6) and the fast growth in late antiquity of the tradition of his and Enoch's martyrdom, that Elijah in particular w a s the archetypal p r o p h e t - m a r t y r (Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church [London: Basil Black well, 1965; reprint, Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1981], 58-59). He cites the LXX form of Sir. 48:10a, You [Elijah] w h o are for reproofs [«‫< ׳‬Acy/*01s] at the appointed time," a verse w h o s e significance is not quite clear. If correct, this hypothesis of Elijah's particular significance to early martyrs would provide a n interesting link b e t w e e n the interest in martyrdom in ApocEl 4 and the text's very p s e u d e p i g r a p h y of Elijah. 16. Hippolytus In Danielem 4.51; Cyprian Ep. 67.7-8; Cyprian, De mortem. In general see Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 211-15; Gregory Jenks, The Origins and Early Development °f the Antichrist Myth, BZNW 59 (Berlin: deGruyter, 1991), 64-67, cf. 185; and Frend, Martyrdom

and Persecution,

46, 5 8 - 5 9 .

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THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

heroization, to lend drama to community life a n d identity, a n d to define the community itself as select a n d sacred. 17 Like the telling of past martyrdoms, which habitually employed such motifs as the frustrations of the persecutors a n d the suffering a n d then apotheosis of the martyrs to dramatize reports, 1 8 a lurid account of eschatological m a r t y r d o m would d r a w an audience into active participation with the drama, but this time as a particular sign of the end. In ApocEl 4 such drastic f u t u r e events in the lives of the saints constituted a sign to recognize a n d understand, a distinct stage in the progression toward parousia a n d millennium. The book of Revelation again provides helpful parallels a n d sources for interpreting these motifs as they occur in ApocEl 4. In the history of martyrdom as an eschatological theme, Revelation h a d already exp a n d e d the motif from referring to single p r o p h e t - m a r t y r s to embracing and defining a social body, presumably the first audience of Revelation w h o themselves m a y never h a v e experienced persecution. 1 9 Using a homiletic aside similar to those in the Apocalypse of Elijah, John of Patmos indicates that an account of the fate of those seduced by an eschatological Adversary ‫״‬is a call for the e n d u r a n c e of the saints. . . . And I heard a voice from h e a v e n saying, 'Write this: Blessed are the dead w h o die in the Lord henceforth‫( ״׳‬Rv 14:12-13). Not only should the audience be inspired by the eventual destruction of the unrighteous, but they should imagine their o w n sanctification in execution. W a y n e Meeks has aptly described the function of this collective anticipation of suffering as legitimizing sectarianism itself: T h e "cognitive dissonance" p r o d u c e d by that s e p a r a t i o n w a s s h a r p l y emphasized, not relieved, by the promise that they w o u l d be persecuted . . . t h e e x p e r i e n c e [of h o s t i l i t y ] h e l p s t o m a k e s e n s e of t h e s e p a r a t i o n a n d t h u s to reinforce t h e b o u n d a r i e s b e t w e e n t h e g r o u p a n d t h e larger society.20

17. C f . N i c k e l s b u r g , Resurrection,

Immortality,

Eternal

Life,

93-111; Riddle,

Martyrs,

53-76; Perkins, *Early Christian Martyrdom." 18. See Fischel's detailed folkloric analysis of the Jewish-Christian martyr legend in "Martyr and Prophet,* 376-84. 19. See Leonard T h o m p s o n , "A Sociological Analysis of Tribulation in the Apocalypse of John," Semeia 36 (1986):147-74; cf. idem, The Book of Revelation: Apocalypse and Empire (New York: Oxford University Press, 1990), 172-74, 188-91. A collective body of "persecuted righteous" is a traditional Jewish literary theme from the post-Exilic period; s e e N i c k e l s b u r g , Resurrection,

Immortality,

Eternal

Life,

11-111.

20. Wayne Meeks, "Social Functions of Apocalyptic Language in Pauline Christ i a n i t y , " Apocalypticism

in the Mediterranean

World

and the Near

ed. (Tubingen: Mohr [Siebeck[, 1983), 692; cf. 692 n. 19.

East, D a v i d

Hellholm,

The Apocalypse of Elijah and the Lore of Martyrdom

147

ApocEl 4 w o u l d likewise d r a w thick lines b e t w e e n those w h o w o u l d suffer a n d those w h o , implicitly, m i g h t b e expected to o b e y the c o m m a n d s of the Lawless O n e . Most importantly, the collective n a t u r e of the eschatological m a r t y r d o m s that follow t h o s e of Tabitha, Elijah, a n d Enoch w o u l d s u b s u m e the f e a r s o m e individuality of the stories of torture a n d execution that w e r e circulating in Christian lore. 21 S u f f e r i n g w o u l d befall the "saints" as a w h o l e , b o t h d e m o n s t r a t i n g a n d r e w a r d i n g t h e m w i t h their e n t h r o n e m e n t in h e a v e n . The Promise of Heavenly Rewards It is typical of the literature of m a r t y r d o m to associate the g r u e s o m e process of suffering with the a t t a i n m e n t of a h e a v e n l y status b e y o n d that of n o r m a l h u m a n s . In t h e book of Revelation m a r t y r s are envisioned u n d e r t h e very altar of t h e h e a v e n l y t e m p l e (6:9-10), a n d the vision of S a t u r u s i n c l u d e d in the Martyrdom of Perpetua and Felicitas actually identifies the m a r t y r s w h o congregate a r o u n d the t h r o n e of G o d in the h e a v e n l y t e m p l e by t h e n a m e s of recently executed Christians (chaps. 11-13). This t h e m e of a m a r t y r ' s h e a v e n l y r e w a r d s evidently derives f r o m the prior association of p r o p h e t i c s t a t u s a n d m a r t y r d o m : that in m a r t y r d o m the p r o p h e t is so exalted as to b e accepted into h e a v e n a n d t a u g h t h e a v e n l y secrets (a p o i n t exemplified in the a t t a c h m e n t of the Ascension of Isaiah to t h e earlier Martyrdom of Isaiah).22 T h e text's linking of m a r t y r d o m a n d h e a v e n l y r e w a r d s in s u c h a w a y as to reconcile possible anxieties a b o u t g r u e s o m e executions w i t h glorious p r o m i s e s m a y serve a n o t h e r overall f u n c t i o n in its composition and public p e r f o r m a n c e : t h e exhortatio ad martyrum. More properly regarded as a species of h o m i l y within a g e n r e (such as a letter or a sermon) t h a n as a literary g e n r e itself, the exhortatio ad martyrum m a y in this case d e s i g n a t e t h e overall design of the p r o p h e c y a n d its s e q u e n c e of f o r m s in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. At t h r e e points in the text a single p a s s a g e links t o g e t h e r f o u r important t h e m e s of social definition: (1) identity within the p r i m a r y sacred group, (2) resistance to t h e Lawless O n e , (3) ascent to h e a v e n l y status, a n d (consequently) (4) privilege o v e r a n o t h e r social group. The first passage occurs in the b e g i n n i n g of the text a n d is obviously a d dressed to the i n t e n d e d a u d i e n c e : 21. T h e r e d u c t i o n of t h e C h r i s t i a n ' s i n d i v i d u a l i t y t h r o u g h t h e l i t e r a t u r e a n d p r o c e s s of m a r t y r d o m is o n e of R i d d l e ' s s i n g u l a r t h e s e s in Martyrs; cf. 2 1 - 2 6 , 7 7 - 9 0 . 22. Cf. Fischel, " M a r t y r a n d P r o p h e t , " 3 6 4 - 7 1 . O n h e a v e n l y r e w a r d s in C o p t i c m a r t v r o l o g y , s e e M a c D e r m o t , Cult of the Seer, 184-88, 6 4 2 - 5 6 .

148

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

R e m e m b e r t h a t h e h a s p r e p a r e d for y o u t h r o n e s a n d c r o w n s in h e a v e n . For e v e r y o n e w h o will o b e y h i s voice will receive t h r o n e s a n d c r o w n s . A m o n g t h o s e w h o a r e m i n e , s a y s t h e Lord, 1 will write m y n a m e u p o n their f o r e h e a d s a n d seal their right h a n d s . T h e y will n o t b e h u n g r y , n o r will t h e y thirst, n o r will t h e Lawless O n e prevail o v e r t h e m , n o r will t h e T h r o n e s h i n d e r t h e m , b u t t h e y will go w i t h t h e a n g e l s to m y city. (1:8-10

[Sa3]) The author has not prefaced these promises with any explanation of w h y the audience should deserve them: Is this privileged destiny extended to the whole audience, to particular members, to every Christian? Or is it a formulaic "promise" used to exhort any congregation in an anxious state? T h e explanation must be f o u n d in the eschatological narrative itself, into which the audience has been projected as the "saints." We h a v e seen this projection already in terms of recognizing the Lawless O n e ' s inability to resurrect (3:12-13; 4:31). The s a m e language of heavenly promises is likewise repeated in the "rapture" scene in ApocEl 5: In t h a t time t h e Christ will h a v e pity u p o n t h o s e w h o b e l o n g to h i m . . . . T h o s e u p o n w h o s e f o r e h e a d s is inscribed t h e n a m e of t h e Christ, u p o n w h o s e right h a n d is t h e seal, f r o m little to great, [the angels] will lift t h e m u p on their w i n g s a n d carry t h e m a w a y b e f o r e t h e w r a t h A n d t h e y will n e i t h e r h u n g e r n o r thirst, n o r will t h e Lawless O n e h a v e p o w e r o v e r t h e m . (5:2, 4, 6 [Sa 3 ])

Although the m o v e m e n t from earth in this passage is horizontal (to a "holv land") rather than vertical (an ascent to heaven), we can see that the author's previous promises to the audience in ApocEl 1 pertain to the fate of "saints" here in ApocEl 5. In both cases the recipients of the promises are identified as "those w h o are the Lord's," for example, or "those w h o are Christ's." The imagery of ascent in the first passage, however, is crucial to the promises offered. And it is precisely this ascent imagery that the Apocalypse of Elijah promises to those w h o suffer the cruelties of the Lawless O n e : T h e y will arise a n d receive a place of rest. But they will n o t i n h a b i t t h e k i n g d o m of t h e Christ like t h o s e w h o h a v e e n d u r e d . But for t h o s e w h o h a v e e n d u r e d , says t h e Lord, I will a p p o i n t t h e m to sit at m y right h a n d . [They will receive f a v o r o v e r o t h e r s (Ach).] T h e y will t r i u m p h o v e r t h e Lawless O n e . T h e y will w i t n e s s t h e d e s t r u c t i o n of h e a v e n a n d e a r t h . T h e y will receive t h e t h r o n e s of glory a n d t h e c r o w n s . (4:27-29 [Sa 3 ])

This passage is linked to the first o n e by its rewards of thrones a n d crowns a n d its reference to triumphing over the Lawless One; parallels

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149

with the second passage, from ApocEl 5, include resilience to the Lawless O n e a n d probably also the references to heavenly status (kingdom or holy land), the witnessing of the eschaton (cf. 5:36-38; 2:1), and, most importantly, ascent to heaven: arising (Coptic TCUOYN), entering the kingdom of Christ, e n t h r o n e m e n t at God's right h a n d , r e w a r d s of thrones a n d crowns. Through the parallel promises of heavenly ascent a n d e n t h r o n e m e n t given to the audience, the martyrs, a n d the righteous w h o exit the earth before the judgment, the text inevitably equates these different groups. Continually beckoning toward h e a v e n as the audience's true destination no matter w h a t fate might befall them, the text is able to inculcate dissociation from and, thus, resistance to edicts, tortures, a n d other calamities that might come by way of the audience. 2 3 This use of heavenly ascent was apparently typical to the p r o p a g a n d a of martyrs a n d their circles during the third century. *From your letters,‫״‬ the jailed confessors Moses a n d Maximus wrote to Cyprian of Carthage, w e s a w t h o s e g l o r i o u s t r i u m p h s of t h e m a r t y r s , a n d w i t h o u r e y e s w e h a v e virtually followed t h e m a s c e n d i n g to heaven, a n d w e h a v e c o n t e m p l a t e d t h e m e s t a b l i s h e d a m o n g t h e a n g e l s a n d p o w e r s a n d d o m i n i o n s of h e a v e n . Even more, w e h a v e virtually s e n s e d t h e Lord with o u r ears, giving, (even) r e t u r n i n g t o t h e m h i s p r o m i s e d t e s t i m o n y b e f o r e t h e F a t h e r . It is t h i s , t h e n , t h a t r a i s e s o u r s p i r i t s e v e r y d a y , a n d i n f l a m e s u s t o p u r s u e s u c h a l e v e l of honor.24

Cyprian later answered in like terms, imagining their very incarceration as opportunity for ascent: ‫״‬Already hoping only in heavenly things and contemplating only divine matters, you ascend to greater a n d greater heights by the very delay of your martyrdom, a n d in the long extension of time you do not dissipate your glory, you increase it!25‫״‬ Cyprian's image w a s hardly an ad hoc metaphor, as the visions recorded in Perpetua and Felicitas d e p e n d on precisely this notion of martyrs gaining their visionary a n d ascent powers even before death. Origen, writing only a few decades before the proposed period of the Elijah Apocalypse, provides a scenario of heavenly ascent through martyrdom that strongly resembles the heavenly ‫״‬promises‫ ״‬u n d e r discussion: 23. Cf. Riddle, Martyrs, 28-38. 24. Cyprian Ep. 31.2 (ed. Le C h a n o i n e Bayard, Saint Cyprien: Correspondence 1:78-79), my trans. 25. Cyprian Ep. 37.1.3 (Bayard, Saint Cyprien 1:93), m y trans.

150

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

If y o u b e l i e v e that Paul w a s c a u g h t u p to t h e third h e a v e n , a n d w a s c a u g h t u p to Paradise a n d h e a r d u n s p e a k a b l e w o r d s w h i c h m a n c a n n o t utter, y o u will a c c o r d i n g l y realize that y o u will h a v e i m m e d i a t e k n o w l e d g e of m o r e a n d greater m a t t e r s t h a n the u n s p e a k a b l e w o r d s r e v e a l e d to Paul. For after r e c e i v i n g t h e m h e d e s c e n d e d f r o m t h e third

heaven,

w h e r e a s after y o u h a v e a c q u i r e d this k n o w l e d g e y o u will n o t d e s c e n d again. . . . A n d if y o u d o n o t fall a w a y f r o m t h o s e w h o f o l l o w [Christ] y o u y o u r s e l v e s shall p a s s t h r o u g h t h e h e a v e n s , p a s s i n g n o t m e r e l y a b o v e earth a n d the m y s t e r i e s of earth, but e v e n a b o v e t h e h e a v e n s a n d their mysteries. For in G o d there are t r e a s u r e d u p m u c h greater v i s i o n s t h a n t h e s e , w h i c h n o b e i n g w i t h a material b o d y c a n p e r c e i v e b e f o r e it is s e p a r a t e d f r o m e v e r y c o n t a c t w i t h matter. 2 6

Here is evidence that the fantastic promises a n d systematic details of ascent in the Apocalypse of Elijah derived from a general linking of martyrdom with apocalypticism a m o n g Egyptian Christians already existing in the beginning of the third century. Moreover, by identifying themselves with the eschatological martyrs as "those belonging to the Lord,‫ ״‬the audience of the Elijah Apocalypse could expect an imperviousness to the power of the Lawless One, offered explicitly as a facet of their ascent to h e a v e n (1:10; 4:28; 5:6). This additional promise would reflect the scale of the threat posed by the Lawless One's illegitimate dominion in ApocEl 3 - 5 (cf. 2:41); but it also reflects the typically adversarial conception of m a r t y r d o m in the third century, as triumph over demonic forces: ‫״‬You not only confessed,‫ ״‬says Cyprian, "but by God's will you terrified the great serpent himself, the precursor of Antichrist, by these utterances a n d divine w o r d s that I know." 2 7 As presented in the Apocalypse of Elijah, the Lawless O n e acts as a s u p e r h u m a n , but h u m a n nevertheless; yet the text alternately labels him as akin to Lucifer (4:11), the devil (4:12), a n d a serpent (5:33). Although he is never d r a w n as distinctly demonic as is, for example, Revelation's "beast" (chap. 13), such epithets d o serve to clarify the nature of the conflict in which the saints are supposed to be engaged. This exhortation function of the Apocalypse of Elijah fits well with other observations m a d e t h u s far on the design a n d performative effect of the text. The prophetic m o d e of the text itself a n d the implied nature of the speaker as a prophet would h a v e carried particular authority in a milieu concerned with the visionary aspects of martyrdom. T h e signs in 2 6 . O r i g e n Exhortatio

ad martyrum

1 3 ( t r . H e n r y C h a d w i c k , Alexandrian

Library of Christian Classics 2 [London: SCM, 1954]), 402. 27. Cyprian Ep. 22.1.2 (Bayard, Saint Cyprien 1:59-60), my trans.

Christianity,

The Apocalypse o f Elijah and the Lore o f M a r t y r d o m

151

the text, w h i c h f u n c t i o n to p r e p a r e t h e a u d i e n c e to persist t h r o u g h the eschatological w o e s by its ability to recognize clues in the c h a o s of events, i n c o r p o r a t e predictions of m a r t y r d o m s as t h e inevitable f a t e of the h e r o e s a n d saints w h o can recognize the Lawless O n e . T h e a u d i e n c e sees itself in a role given sacred v a l u e already by the heroic m a r t y r d o m s of Tabitha, Elijah, a n d Enoch; i n d e e d , the p r o m i s e of T a b i t h a ' s healing blood (4:6) suggests the e s t a b l i s h m e n t of martyr-cults. 2 8 So also t h e e x t e n d e d description of the d e m i s e of t h e Lawless O n e , c o u p l e d with the r e p e a t e d descriptions of the saints' victorious ascent, creates a s e n s e of ultimate vindication a n d retribution. T h e anticipation a n d h o p e p r o f fered by the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah are m e a n t to s u r p a s s anxieties for individual safety a n d yet to exhort t h e a u d i e n c e to d e a t h s f r a m e d as the natural c o n s e q u e n c e s of their allegiance a n d u n d e r s t a n d i n g . Historical Implications of the Exhortatio Function It is n o w a p p r o p r i a t e to r e t u r n to the b r a c k e t e d q u e s t i o n of historical reflection. Specifically, if t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah exhorts or e v e n merely p r e p a r e s its a u d i e n c e for m a r t y r d o m with the p r o m i s e of h e a v enly r e w a r d s , d o e s it t h e r e f o r e indicate that t h e a u t h o r or m e m b e r s of the a u d i e n c e h a d historical a c q u a i n t a n c e with the e v e n t s s u r r o u n d i n g the Decian or Valerian edicts or that the text w a s written partly to p r e p a r e a n a u d i e n c e to b e c o m e martyrs? It h a s b e e n suggested that the m a r t y r d o m descriptions circulated with an interest in lurid details that t r a n s c e n d e d simple accurate r e p o r t a g e — t h a t t h e r e was, in fact, a folklore of m a r t y r d o m in t h i r d - c e n t u r y E g y p t — a n d that t h e n a r r a t i v e representation of m a r t y r d o m h a d a social f u n c t i o n , particularly in t h e context of eschatology. These o b s e r v a t i o n s allow us to regard t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah's u s e of m a r t y r d o m m a t e r i a l s — n o t only t h e p r o p h e c y of m a r t y r d o m for t h e ‫״‬saints‫ ״‬b u t the lurid details t h e m s e l v e s — a s highly traditional, instead of necessitating i m m e d i a t e historical experience. S u c h traditionality w o u l d account for t h e text's great p o p u l a r i t y o v e r the f o u r t h a n d fifth centuries, w h e n precise historical r e f e r e n c e s a n d experience-specific e x h o r t a t i o n s w o u l d h a v e been lost o n a u d i e n c e s ac-

28. Cf. W i n t e r m u t e , 756 n. 4a; a n d David Τ. M. F r a n k f u r t e r , ' T a b i t h a in the Apocalypse of Elijah,' ITS 41 (1990):19-20. T h e saints' role in m a i n t a i n i n g the c o s m o s in ApocEl 5:18 recalls that of the p h a r a o h (see below, p p . 162-63), b u t in this context probably reflects a highly revered cult of martyrs. O n t h e martyr-cult as a "promise" of eventual reverence by t h e g r o u p , see Riddle, Martyrs, 92-97.

152

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH AS RELIGIOUS LITERATURE

c u s t o m e d to a legitimate religion in Christianity. If the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah indeed expresses t h e f u n c t i o n of exhortatio ad martyrum, h o w e v e r , then p r e s u m a b l y s o m e k i n d of m a r t y r d o m w a s s u c h a historical possibility for a u t h o r a n d a u d i e n c e that actual e x h o r t a t i o n w a s t h o u g h t necessary. If the text m a y b e safely d a t e d to the s e c o n d half of the third century, the historical coincidence with t h e period of the Decian a n d Valerian edicts w o u l d lead o n e to expect that r u m o r s arising f r o m these edicts h a d s o m e impact o n t h e a u t h o r ' s p o r t r a y a l of the e n d times. 2 9

EXTREMIST VIEWS AND MELITIAN ORIGINS C h a p t e r 4 of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah describes t w o g r o u p s of "martyrs": t h o s e w h o u n d e r g o t h e g r u e s o m e tortures of t h e Lawless O n e (4:20-23), a n d t h o s e w h o flee into the desert a n d d i e — t h e αναχωρητ(ς. A l t h o u g h those w h o c h o o s e this latter p a t h will be blessed in h a v i n g their bodies p r e s e r v e d "until the last d a y of t h e great j u d g m e n t " a n d will ultimately "rise a n d receive a place of rest," the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah m a k e s clear that these fugitives f r o m torture "will not be in the k i n g d o m of the Christ like those w h o h a v e e n d u r e d [ Ν β Ν Τ λ γ ^ γ π ο Μ ί Ν ε ] " (4:27). It is likely that, prior to the a u d i e n c e ' s e n c o u n t e r with such a h i e r a r c h y b e t w e e n m a r t y r a n d αναχώρητης, it already held a n ideology a b o u t t h e diverse r e s p o n s e s to t h r e a t (real or perceived) a n d a b o u t m a r t y r d o m as an ideal. Moreover, e v e n this mild d i s p a r a g e m e n t of anachoresis d u r i n g the third century, w h e n e v e n lapsi w e r e forgiven, w o u l d h a v e placed the a u d i e n c e at a n extreme ideological position in relation to other Egyptian Christians. 3 0 Yet it w a s a position for w h i c h t h e r e is s o m e record. The Shepherd of Hermas anticipates t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah's hierarchy r e m a r k a b l y , advising that t h o s e w h o bear "stripes, i m p r i s o n m e n t s , great afflictions, wild beasts, for the sake of t h e N a m e " will sit "on t h e right h a n d of the 29. It is u n l i k e l y t h a t t h e historical i m p a c t o n t h e text c a m e f r o m t h e edicts t h e m s e l v e s , r a t h e r t h a n f r o m t h e r e s p o n s e of c e r t a i n C h r i s t i a n g r o u p s to t h e s e edicts, b e c a u s e t h e edicts w e r e n o t d e s i g n e d a g a i n s t C h r i s t i a n s a n d p r o b a b l y did n o t affect C h r i s t i a n s of m o r e m o d e r a t e t e m p e r a m e n t s . O n t h e m o t i v a t i o n s b e h i n d t h e edicts, s e e b e l o w , p p . 249-50, 259-61. 30. S e e E u s e b i u s Hist, eccles. 6.42.5, 44.4; A n n i c k M a r t i n , "La reconciliation d e s lapsi e n Egypte," Rivista di storia e letteratura religiosa 22 (1986):256-69; a n d O l i v e r N i c h o l s o n , "Flight f r o m P e r s e c u t i o n as Imitation of Christ: L a c t a n t i u s ‫ ׳‬D i v i n e I n s t i t u t e s IV.18, 1 - 2 , " ITS 40 (1989):48-65. T h e d e s i r e for m a r t y r d o m is criticized in t h e Testimony of Truth

( N H C IX, 3), 3 4 .

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153

Holiness . . . but for the rest there is the left side. 31 ‫ ״‬Cyprian wrote in the early 250s to d e f e n d as an equal martyr the Christian w h o "flees, leaving behind all his property, a n d staying in hiding-places a n d solitude falls a m o n g bandits, or dies from fever or fatigue,‫ ״‬w h e r e a s his o p p o n e n t s claim such a person "dies without peace a n d without communion. 3 2 ‫ ״‬In the beginning of the third century, Tertullian composed an entire tract against flight from persecution, arguing that m a r t y r d o m is ordained by God a n d therefore inevitable. 33 A n d a century earlier the Apocryphon of James recalled Jesus exhorting his disciples to imitate his sufferings quite literally, a martyrdom that would certainly exclude death during anachoresis.34

However, anachoresis or escape were precisely the responses to civic persecution favored by the Alexandrian bishops Dionysius a n d Peter and, evidently, by m a n y others. 3 5 It m a y therefore be possible to attach the Apocalypse of Elijah's explicit hierarchy of martyrs to cultural proclivities within Egypt. O n the basis of Eusebius's testimony in the Historia ecclesiastica and the Martyrs in Palestine, scholars h a v e long regarded Upper Egyptians of this period as particularly fanatical in their longing for martyrdom. 3 6 Coincidentally, recent scholarship on the social origins of the Melitians in Egypt has also focused u p o n conflicts of authority a n d culture b e t w e e n Alexandria a n d Upper Egypt. The Meli31. Herm. Vis. 3.2.1 (tr. Kirsopp Lake, The Apostolic Fathers, 2 vols., LCL [Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1912], 2:29, 31). The Shepherd then takes a less partisan posture, that "both, w h e t h e r they sit on the right or the left, h a v e the s a m e gifts, and the same promises, only the former sit on the right and h a v e s o m e w h a t of glory." 32. Cyprian Ep. 57.4.3. 33. Tertullian De fuga in persecutione. The probability that he wrote this tract after joining the N e w Prophecy, or Montanist, m o v e m e n t does not by any m e a n s suggest that the sentiments expressed in De fuga were u n c o m m o n a m o n g the Christianities of his era. 3 4 . Apocalypse

of James ( N H C I, 2) 5 ( o n d a t i n g t h e Apocalypse

of James t o t h e e a r l y

second century, see Ron Cameron, The Other Gospels [Philadelphia: Westminster, 1982], 56). O n analogous sentiments a m o n g the Novatian sect, see Eusebius Hist, eccles. 6.43; and Timothy Gregory, "Novatianism: A Rigorist Sect in the Christian Roman Empire," Byzantine

Studies

2 (1975):1-18.

35. On Dionysius, see Eusebius Hist, eccles. 6.40; on Peter of Alexandria, see Tim Vivian, Sf. Peter of Alexandria: Bishop and Martyr, SAC (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1988), 1820. Cf. Tertullian De fuga in persecutione 11, which refers to ecclesiastical authorities fleeing, thereby (according to Tertullian) setting a bad example for lay Christians. 36. E.g., A . H . M . J o n e s , The

Later

Roman

Empire,

284-602:

A Social,

Economic,

and

Administrative Survey, 2 vols. (Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1964; reprint, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1986), 1:74-75; after Eusebius Hist, eccles. 6.41.14-42.4 (Dionysius); 8.9; Martyrs of Palestine 8.1, 13; 11.6; A m m i a n u s Marcellinus 22.16.23; on rural martyrs, see also Cyprian Ep. 27.1.

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tians, in outraged response to the Alexandrian church's leniency toward Christians w h o h a d lapsed during Diocletian's persecution, established their o w n "Church of the Martyrs," which gained great popularity a m o n g Christians in Upper Egypt. Its popularity in Egypt throughout late antiquity—even to the point of forming its o w n monasteries (composed, it appears, predominantly of Copts)—strongly suggests that its ideology had u n d e r p i n n i n g s in Upper Egyptian cultural identity. 37 Without drawing the rural-Alexandrian cultural differences too rigidly or simplistically, o n e is tempted nevertheless to view, in such a "rigorist" milieu as the Apocalypse of Elijah seems to reflect, the ideological a n d social roots of the Melitians. While not attacking "Alexandrian" ecclesiastical authorities in any explicit way, the Apocalypse of Elijah elsewhere demonstrates ideological tendencies in polemic with those we can reconstruct as Alexandrian. 3 8 Because the Melitian schism represents the first major split within the church dominated by Dionysius and Peter, it is entirely likely that its origins would lie in tensions between the Alexandrian bishops a n d the Christian communities of outlying areas during the second half of the third century.

CONCLUSIONS If the Apocalypse of Elijah is read as a response to later third-century millennialist interpretations of the imperial edicts, as having the f u n c tion of exhorting its audience toward a heavenly identity resistant to earthly persecutions, as offering people already well acquainted with the gruesome folklore of Egyptian martyrdoms a preview of their eschatological victory, then its references to m a r t y r d o m provide the first internal correlation to a specific historical period—the time of Decius a n d Valerian and shortly thereafter. As an eschatological discourse the 37. See, esp., Vivian, St. Peter of Alexandria, 3 6 - 3 8 ; a n d C. W i l f r e d Griggs, Early Egyptian Christianity: From Its Origins to 451 C.E., C o p t i c S t u d i e s 2 (Leiden: Brill, 1990), 121-30; a n d , in g e n e r a l , H. Idris Bell, Jews and Christians in Egypt ( L o n d o n : British M u s e u m , 1924; r e p r i n t , W e s t p o r t , C o n n . : G r e e n w o o d , 1972), 3 8 - 9 9 ; F r e n d , Martyrdom and Persecution, 5 3 9 - 4 1 ; a n d A n n i c k M a r t i n , " A t h a n a s e et les m e l i t i e n s (325-335)," in Politique et theologie chez Athanase d'Alexandrie, ed. C h a r l e s K a n n e n g i e s s e r , T h e o l o g i e h i s t o r i q u e 27 (Paris: B e a u c h e s n e , 1974), 31-61. T h e o d o r e t Historia ecclesiastica 1.9.14, e n i g m a t i c a l l y d e s c r i b e s Melitian m o n k s a s f o l l o w i n g "practices c o r r e s p o n d i n g to t h e m a d n e s s e s of S a m a r i t a n s a n d J e w s " (text in Bell, Jews and Christians in Egypt, 42 η. 1), p e r h a p s a l l u d i n g to t h e n o n - A l e x a n d r i a n s y m p a t h i e s of t h e m o v e m e n t . 38. E.g., t h e p r o n o u n c e d m i l l e n n i a l i s m of t h e text (cf. c h a p t e r 10), t h e h o m i l y o n f a s t i n g (cf. c h a p t e r 11), a n d t h e u s e of t r a d i t i o n a l a n t i - A l e x a n d r i a n o r a c l e s ( c h a p t e r 8, p p . 205-6, 213-14).

T h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah and t h e Lore of M a r t y r d o m

155

A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah offers n o specific reflection of historical e v e n t s of the later third century; a n d o n e m u s t p o s t u l a t e a historical period o n the tentative basis of the m a n u s c r i p t s t h e m s e l v e s before seeking other, external r e a s o n s for assigning it to this period. H a v i n g d o n e this, h o w e v e r , it is possible to find a n u m b e r of i m p o r t a n t correlations b e t w e e n t h e contents of the text a n d historical a n d social situations of t h e s e c o n d half of the third century. T h e m e t h o d t h e r e f o r e d o e s not proceed by w a y of the identification of vaticinia ex eventus but by reading t h e text's images generally as c o m p r e h e n s i b l e w i t h i n a particular historical period.

PART T W O

ENVISIONING THE COLLAPSE OF THINGS: THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS IN THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH

6 Chaosbeschreibung: The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah This a n d the following chapter serve t w o related points, vital for understanding the genesis of a d o c u m e n t like the Apocalypse of Elijah in Roman Egypt. First, the motifs a n d language of m u c h of the Apocalypse of Elijah arise and d r a w meaning from an Egyptian literary tradition of great antiquity. Second, because the motifs a n d language can be understood within this literary context, the interpretation of the text as a cryptic reflection of historical events—as vaticinia ex eventus— becomes impossible to maintain. In the history of its interpretation, the Apocalypse of Elijah has occasionally been viewed as heir to the traditions of Egyptian oracular literature. 1 If o n e sets apart the vividly Christian beginning a n d end, a considerable portion of the Apocalypse of Elijah (designated as the second chapter in Jean-Marc Rosenstiehl's a n d subsequent translations) closely resembles a type of prophecy that h a d circulated in Egypt for several t h o u s a n d years. This s a m e type of prophecy was, moreover, adapted to the Roman experience in several texts c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s with the Apocalypse of Elijah: the Potter's Oracle (which originated as a nationalist tract during the Ptolemaic period); 2 a related, anti-Jewish 1. Gaston Maspero, review of Die Apokalypse des Elias, by Georg Steindorff, Journal des savants (1899):41-43; Ludwig Koenen, ' T h e Prophecies of a Potter: A Prophecy of World Renewal Becomes an Apocalypse,* in Proceedings of the 12th International Congress of Papyrology, ed. Deborah H. Samuel, American Studies in Papyrology 7 (Toronto: Hakkert, 1970), 254; Frantoise D u n a n d , ' L O r a c l e du Potier et la formation de ‫® י‬pocalyptique en Egypte," in L'Apocalyptique, ed. Marc Philonenko, Etudes d'histoire des religions 3 (Paris: Paul Geuthner, 1977), 54-56; Rollin Kearns, Das TraditionsgefUge "‫ ׳״‬den Menschensohn (Tubingen: Mohr [Siebeck], 1986), 97-99. 2· See Ludwig Koenen, *Die Prophezeiungen des , T o p f e r s , " ZPE 2 (1968): 178-209

159

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

oracle (which m a y h a v e originated as a r e s p o n s e t o t h e Jewish messianic revolution of 116-117 C.E.);3 a n d t h e Perfect Discourse, p r o b a b l y composed d u r i n g the third century C.E. a n d t h e n included in t h e Hermetic tractate Asclepius, w h e n c e it c a m e to Lactantius as an a u t h o r i t a t i v e prophecy. 4 T h e r e are also extant r e m a i n s of o t h e r oracles in circulation at this time that u s e d similar p r o p h e t i c forms, images, a n d m y t h o l o g y . 5 Both the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah a n d these a n a l o g o u s texts b e l o n g e d to a living native literary tradition with consistent ideology a n d f o r m s of expression. This c h a p t e r reviews t h e f o u n d a t i o n s , d e v e l o p m e n t , a n d characteristics of this native p r o p h e t i c literature as it e v o l v e d f r o m the t w e l f t h d y n a s t y (early s e c o n d m i l l e n n i u m B.C.E.) t h r o u g h t h e Byzantine period, in order to g r o u n d historically t h e c o n t e n t i o n in c h a p t e r 8 that the

(critical text a n d discussion); Ζ ΡΕ 3 (1968): 137-38; i d e m , " B e m e r k u n g e n z u m Text d e s T o p f e r o r a k e l s u n d zu d e m A k a z i e n s v m b o l , ' ZPE 13 (1974):313-17 (corrections); i d e m , *A S u p p l e m e n t a r y N o t e o n t h e D a t e of t h e O r a c l e of t h e P o t t e r , ' ZPE 54 (1984):9-13 (discussion); C. C. M c C o w n , " H e b r e w a n d E g y p t i a n A p o c a l y p t i c Literature," HTR 18 (1925):397-400 ( t r a n s l a t i o n of text P 2 , w i t h brief d i s c u s s i o n ) ; J o n a t h a n Z. S m i t h , " W i s d o m a n d A p o c a l y p t i c , " in Religious Syncretism in Antiquity, e d . Birger A. P e a r s o n ( M i s s o u l a , M o n t . : S c h o l a r s Press, 1975), 144-54 (discussion); D u n a n d , " L O r a c l e d u Potier," 4 1 - 6 7 ( e x t e n s i v e discussion); S t a n l e y M. Burstein, ed., The Hellenistic Age from the Battle of Ipsos to the Death of Kleopatra VII ( C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1985), 136-39 (English t r a n s l a t i o n of text P 2 ); cf. R i c h a r d R e i t z e n s t e i n a n d Η. H. S c h a e d e r , Studien zum antiken Synkretismus aus Iran und Griechenland (Leipzig: T e u b n e r , 1926), 39-40; a n d C . H. Roberts, " T h e O r a c l e of t h e Potter," Oxyrhynchus Papyri 22 (1954):89-99 (= P . O x y 2332; first e d i t i o n of text P 3 a n d d e t a i l e d d i s c u s s i o n of traditions). 3. PSI 982 (ed. G e o r g V. M a n t e u f f e l , "Zur p r o p h e t i e in P.S.I., VIII.982," Melanges Maspero 2, M e m o i r e s p u b l i e s p a r les m e m b r e s d e l'institut f r a n £ a i s d ' a r c h e o l o g i e o r i e n t a l e d u Caire 6 7 [Cairo: I F A O , 1934), 119-24); M e n a h e m Stern, "A F r a g m e n t of G r a e c o - E g y p t i a n P r o p h e c y Bearing o n Jews," CP/ 3:119-21 ( = CPJ 520). L u d w i g K o e n e n h a s s h o w n m e t h e text of a n u n p u b l i s h e d O x y r h y n c h u s f r a g m e n t t h a t is a l m o s t identical to CPJ 520 a n d t h a t d e m o n s t r a t e s b o t h t h e c u r r e n c y of this p r o p h e c y a n d (by s h a r e d v o c a b u l a r y ) its ideological p r o x i m i t y to t h e Potter's Oracle. 4. Asclepius 2 4 - 2 7 = N H C VI, 8, 70-76; cf. A. D. N o c k a n d A.-J. Festugiere, Corpus Hermeticum, 2 vols. (2d ed.; Paris: S o c i e t e d ' E d i t i o n "Les Belles Lettres," 1960), 2:288-90; J e a n - P i e r r e M a h e , Hermes en Haute-Egypte, 2 vols., B i b l i o t h e q u e c o p t e d e N a g H a m m a d i 3 a n d 7 ( Q u e b e c : P r e s s e s d e l ' u n i v e r s i t e Laval, 1978-82), 2:47-61; G a r t h F o w d e n , The Egyptian Hermes ( C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1987), 38-44, 205-9. 5. PSI 760 ( t h i r d / f o u r t h c e n t u r y ) , in Papiri Greci e Latini 7 (Florence: Ariani, 1925), 4 5 - 4 6 ; P . C a i r o 31222 ( R o m a n period), in G e o r g e R. H u g h e s , "A D e m o t i c Astrological Text," INES 10 (1951):256-64; P . O x y 2554 (third c e n t u r y ) , in J o h n Rea, " P r e d i c t i o n s b y Astrology," Oxyrhynchus Papyri 31 "(1966):77-83; P . S t a n f o r d G 9 3 b v ( s e c o n d c e n t u r y ) , in J o h n C. S h e l t o n , "An Astrological Prediction of D i s t u r b a n c e s in Egypt," Ancient Society 7 (1976):209-13; P.Tebt. Tait 13 ( s e c o n d c e n t u r y ) , in W. J. Tait, Papyri from Tebtunis in Egyptian and in Greek (P.Tebt. Tait) ( L o n d o n : E g y p t E x p l o r a t i o n Society, 1977), 4 5 - 4 8 ; a n d V i e n n a l u n a r o m i n a p a p y r u s (late s e c o n d / e a r l y third centuries), in R i c h a r d A. P a r k e r , A Vienna Demotic Papyrus on Eclipse- and Lunar-Omina ( P r o v i d e n c e , R.I.: B r o w n U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1959), 35-52.

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

161

oracles of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah constitute not vaticinia ex eventus, as m a n y scholars h a v e h i t h e r t o a s s u m e d , b u t an ideal or typical tableau of times of distress in Egypt. S u c h tableaus, to w h i c h I refer u n d e r ]an A s s m a n n ' s term Chaosbeschreibung,6 arose out of the k i n g s h i p ideology of traditional Egypt a n d the literary f o r m s u s e d b y scribes to glorify a n d d e f i n e the accession of kings. With the decline of t h e k i n g s h i p in the Late period a n d increased c o n t r o v e r s y over its a u t h o r i t y in the H e l lenistic period, scribes f r o m various ( a n d o f t e n conflicting) temples began to appeal nostalgically to the l e g e n d a r y past for p a r a d i g m s of true k i n g s h i p a n d optimistically to t h e f u t u r e for a "messianic" p h a r a o h . Both perspectives cast a g l o o m y light o n t h e p r e s e n t times, t h e times of illegitimate or a b s e n t kingship; a n d scribes b e g a n to describe "this present chaos" w i t h the v o c a b u l a r y a n d m o t i f s traditionally e m p l o y e d for characterizing the interregnal period: Chaosbeschreibung. T h e r e f o r e the resurgence in ApocEl 2 of m a n y of t h e ancient p r o p h e t i c topoi c o n f i r m s an i m p o r t a n t historical point: that the process of scribal composition d u r i n g t h e R o m a n period w a s f o u n d e d u p o n t h e a n c i e n t texts a n d legends a n d involved deliberate a n d continual u p d a t i n g . T h e historical s p a n covered in this c h a p t e r , p e r h a p s striking n o n Egyptological readers as excessive, s h o u l d clarify that the scribal traditions that t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah ultimately i n h e r i t e d w e r e f o u n d e d u p o n a t r e m e n d o u s conservatism. 7 I n d e e d , t h r o u g h t h e vicissitudes of Egyptian history d u r i n g the Late, Hellenistic, R o m a n , a n d Byzantine periods, w e find the s a m e literary form, Chaosbeschreibung, e m e r g i n g to address n e w historical situations in traditional w a y s . T h e M i d d l e Kingd o m roots of this f o r m receive discussion largely to indicate its u n d e r lying ideology a n d the relationship of its "prophecies" to historical events: Were they u n d e r s t o o d to b e vaticinia ex eventus or sine eventibus? These roots, h o w e v e r , also w i t n e s s to a strong a r c h a i s m in Egyptian literature, consistently pulling writers of t h e G r e c o - R o m a n period back to the language, symbols, a n d m y t h s of classical Egypt. T h e classical 6. Jan A s s m a n n , " K o n i g s d o g m a u n d H e i l s e r w a r t u n g : P o l i t i s c h e u n d k u l t i s c h e C h a o s b e s c h r e i b u n g in a g y p t i s c h e n T e x t e n , " in Apocalypticism in the Mediterranean World and the Near East, e d . D a v i d H e l l h o l m ( T u b i n g e n : M o h r [Siebeck], 1983), 345-77. 7. N o t e t h a t s c h o l a r s of R o m a n E g y p t h a v e c u s t o m a r i l y s t u d i e d t h e p r o p h e c i e s of this p e r i o d in c o n t i n u i t y w i t h t h o s e of classical E g y p t : M c C o w n , " E g y p t i a n A p o c a l y p t i c Literature,* 367-405; Jean D o r e s s e , "Visions m e d i t e r r a n e e n n e s , " La table ronde 110 (1957):29-35; K o e n e n , " P r o p h e c i e s of a Potter," 2 5 1 - 5 4 ; M a h e , Hermes en Haute-Egypte 2:69-81; A s s m a n n , " K o n i g s d o g m a u n d H e i l s e r w a r t u n g , " p a s s i m ; a n d , esp., J a n B e r g m a n , I n t r o d u c t o r y R e m a r k s o n A p o c a l y p t i c i s m in Egypt," in Apocalypticism ranean World, e d . H e l l h o l m , 5 3 - 5 5 .

ft

in the

Mediter-

162

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

b a c k g r o u n d s of other, related literary or mythological traditions that persisted in Egyptian culture of the R o m a n period, such as that of t h e d e m o n i c adversaries A p o p h i s a n d Seth, also c o n t r i b u t e to the u n d e r s t a n d i n g of their a p p e a r a n c e s in late antiquity, e v e n w i t h i n a Christian matrix.

EGYPTIAN KINGSHIP IDEOLOGY T h e axial s y m b o l of Egyptian religion f r o m earliest times t h r o u g h the G r e c o - R o m a n period w a s t h e figure of the p h a r a o h . T h r o u g h t h e p h a r a o h ' s accession, presence, a n d d r a m a t i c e n a c t m e n t of festal rituals, t w o Egypts w e r e united, 8 the s u n rose, the Nile flowed, crops w e r e fertile, p e o p l e w e r e healthy, children w e r e born, families stayed together, t h e y o u n g respected their elders, e c o n o m i c a n d caste distinctions w e r e m a i n t a i n e d , i n v a d e r s a v o i d e d the b o r d e r s of Egypt, v e n o m o u s s n a k e s a n d desert beasts stayed a w a y f r o m people, t h e g o d s w e r e propitiated, t h e d e c e a s e d w e r e properly disposed of a n d attained a p l e a s a n t afterlife, a n d so on. T h e p h a r a o h established Ma"at, o r d e r a n d justice, in Egypt; indeed, h e symbolized its very p r e s e n c e a n d operation. 9 The king w a s also the highest religious f u n c t i o n a r y , w h o a d j u r e d t h e various divinities of Egypt t h r o u g h public rituals to m a i n t a i n t h e c o n 8. H e n r i F r a n k f o r t h a s a r g u e d t h a t t h e u n i f i c a t i o n of a n U p p e r a n d L o w e r E g y p t in t h e p e r s o n of t h e p h a r a o h a n d his c r o w n d i d n o t r e p r e s e n t a political u n i f i c a t i o n of t w o distinct cultural entities b u t " e x p r e s s e d in political f o r m t h e d e e p l y r o o t e d E g y p t i a n t e n d e n c y to u n d e r s t a n d t h e w o r l d in dualistic t e r m s a s a series of p a i r s of c o n t r a s t s b a l a n c e d in u n c h a n g i n g e q u i l i b r i u m " (Kingship and the Cods [ C h i c a g o : U n i v e r s i t y of C h i c a g o Press, 1948], 19, cf. 19-23). 9. Cf. P h i l i p p e D e r c h a i n , "Le role d u roi d ' E g y p t e d a n s le m a i n t i e n d e l ' o r d r e c o s m i q u e , " in Le pouvoir et le sacre, A n n a l e s d u C e n t r e d ' e t u d e d e s religions 1 (Brussels: U n i v e r s i t e libre d e Bruxelles, 1962), 61-73. In F r a n k f o r t ' s w o r d s , " N a t u r e itself c o u l d n o t b e c o n c e i v e d w i t h o u t t h e k i n g of Egypt. . . . K i n g s h i p in E g y p t r e m a i n e d t h e c h a n n e l t h r o u g h w h i c h t h e p o w e r s of n a t u r e f l o w e d i n t o t h e b o d y politic to b r i n g h u m a n e n d e a v o r to f r u i t i o n . . . H e exercises a n e v e r e n d i n g m y s t e r i o u s activity o n t h e s t r e n g t h of w h i c h daily, h o u r l y , n a t u r e a n d society a r e i n t e g r a t e d " (Kingship and the Gods 33, 34, 60). G e o r g e s P o s e n e r , w h o o t h e r w i s e a r g u e s for a less idealized k i n g s h i p in Egypt, o b s e r v e s t h a t in t h e a n c i e n t E g y p t i a n w o r l d v i e w "lines of p a r t i c i p a t i o n b i n d t h e c o s m i c o r d e r to t h e E g y p t i a n c o m m u n i t y at whose heart is the Pharaoh. W h a t a f f e c t s social life r e v e r b e r a t e s in t h e u n i v e r s e . T h e h u m a n collectivity a n d n a t u r e a r e in s o l i d a r i t y a n d o b e y a l a w of similarity: like i n v o k e s like" (De la divinite du pharaon, C a h i e r s d e la societe a s i a t i q u e 15 [Paris: I m p r i m e r i e n a t i o n a l e , 1960], 56; e m p h a s i s m i n e ) . O n k i n g s h i p a n d Ma'at, s e e a l s o H e n r i F r a n k f o r t , Ancient Egyptian Religion: An Interpretation (New York: C o l u m b i a U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1948; r e p r i n t , N e w York: H a r p e r , 1961), 4 9 - 5 8 ; a n d , in g e n e r a l , J o h n Baines, "Society, Morality, a n d Religious Practice," in Religion in Ancient Egypt: Gods, Myths, and Personal Practice, ed. Byron E. S h a f e r (Ithaca, N.Y.: C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1991), 127-28.

T h e Literary and Ideological B a c k g r o u n d o f the A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah

163

tinuity of cosmos a n d society. He administrated the exchange of offerings a n d natural beneficences b e t w e e n the realms of h u m a n s a n d gods. 10 In these roles the p h a r a o h w a s alternately identified with the gods Horus, Osiris, a n d Re.11 As Horus h e symbolized the king of both gods a n d people, the mediator between the divine order a n d the social a n d political order of Egypt, a n d the conqueror of Seth, the god of the periphery. As Osiris (a role a s s u m e d at the p h a r a o h ' s death) he symbolized chthonic a n d regenerative power; 1 2 a n d just as Osiris w a s father to Horus, so the dead pharaoh w a s the mythical "father" of the n e w pharaoh. 1 3 Finally, as "Son of" Re, the sun god (and the mythical father of Ma'flf), the p h a r a o h was the creator of order, the o p p o n e n t of chaos (both in creation a n d continually, with the rising of the sun), a n d the archetypal king of the heavens: 1 4 His eyes seek out every body. H e is R e w h o s e e s w i t h h i s r a y s , W h o lights t h e T w o L a n d s m o r e t h a n t h e s u n - d i s k , W h o m a k e s verdant more than great Hapy, H e h a s filled t h e T w o L a n d s w i t h life force. N o s e s turn cold w h e n h e starts to rage, W h e n h e is a t p e a c e o n e b r e a t h e s air. H e gives f o o d to t h o s e w h o s e r v e h i m , H e nourishes h i m w h o treads his path. T h e k i n g is s u s t e n a n c e , h i s m o u t h is p l e n t y , H e w h o will b e is h i s c r e a t i o n . 1 5 10. Posener, De la divinite du pharaon, 39-42, 61; Serge Sauneron, The Priests of Ancient Egypt, tr. Ann Morrissett, Evergreen Profile Book 12 (New York: Grove Press, I960), 31-34. 11. The actual cultural equation of t h e Egyptian king and Egyptian divinities has given rise to considerable debate, the t w o sides generally being represented by Frankfort (Kingship and the Cods), w h o emphasizes the p h a r a o h ' s divinity, and Posener (De la divinite du pharaon), w h o argues that historical kings were consistently u n d e r stood as h u m a n s as well as e m b o d i m e n t s of the sacred office. Egyptologists tend to agree with Posener's argument: see David P. Silverman's discussion of the status questionis (*Divinity and Deities in Ancient Egypt," in Religion in Ancient Egypt, ed. Shafer, 58-73). Because the present section f r a m e s t h e mythology of kingship as background to the "messianic" oracles of the Greco-Roman period, I have sought to review common points and functions of kingship in Frankfort's and Posener's works. 12. Cf. Frankfort, Kingship and the Gods, 181-95. 13. Frankfort observes, "Kingship is conceived in its profoundest aspect, on the plane of the gods, as involving two generations . . . the actual occupancy of the throne creates a fusion of the late king and his successor" (ibid., 33). Cf. Posener, De la divinite de la pharaon, 20. 14. Cf. Frankfort, Kingship and the Gods, 148-61. 15. Stela of Sehetepibre (Cairo M u s e u m 20538), verso, 11. 12-15 (tr. Lichtheim, 1:128).

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

THE DEMONIC OPPOSITION TO KINGSHIP The created order a n d the p h a r a o h w h o maintained it owed some of their symbolic force to two distinct mythological systems of opposition in which order was threatened by chaos a n d finally triumphed. Seth a n d Apophis, two personifications of "evil‫—״‬chaos—in Egyptian literature, became particularly important in Greco-Egyptian magical texts but continued to maintain their ancient significance in the discussion a n d representation of threats to the land a n d cosmos of Egypt. Seth Seth can be most generally characterized as a god of things that dwell on the margins of Egypt: the desert a n d its life forms, foreigners, a n d chaos, as the limits of Egypt were considered the limits of civilization a n d Ma'at. In m y t h s his functions were more vividly portrayed: Seth dismembers Osiris a n d scatters or d r o w n s the pieces; H o r u s attacks Seth to avenge his father; Seth succeeds in removing Horus's eye; but finally, Horus triumphs. In a n o t h e r episode Seth sends a scorpion to sting the infant Horus while his mother Isis w a n d e r s through the marshes of the Delta. 16 In Greco-Roman times Seth carried two principal functions in Egyptian culture: at the level of the priesthood a n d the royal cult, Seth w a s regarded as the divine power behind foreigners, particularly invading foreigners; a n d at a more popular or quotidian level, Seth was regarded as the threat posed by the desert a n d its dangerous inhabitants— reptiles, scorpions, demons. 1 7 The c o m m o n symbolism at both levels is marginality. Seth was the god of Egypt's periphery and, therefore, of the periphery of the cosmos itself. Consequently, as periphery, h e intrinsically threatened the interior, the order of the Egyptian cosmos— fertility, social h a r m o n y , the continuity of religion and cult—in m u c h the same way as the Seth of mythology threatened Osiris a n d Horus, the images of order in the cosmos. 1 8 Over the course of the Late a n d Hellenistic periods, Seth became explicitly associated with every nation that h a d invaded or was invading 16. See J. G w y n Griffiths, The Conflict of Horus and Seth (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 1960); H. Te Velde, Seth, God of Confusion, tr. G. E. van Baaren-Pape (Leiden: Brill, 1977). 17. See L. Keimer, "L'horreur des egyptiens pour les d e m o n s du desert," Bulletin de I'institut d'Egypte 26 (1944): 135-47. 18. Cf. Te Velde, Seth, 117.

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Egypt: Assyria, Persia, a n d (in some temples) Greece. Translated into Greek as Typhon, Seth even became identified with the Jews in some priestly quarters. 1 9 More importantly, Seth w a s cursed in special rituals both for invasions past a n d to prevent invasions future, through the media of iconography (especially the image of a b o u n d ass), inscriptions, priestly rituals, a n d public dramas, which o f t e n involved the king himself as Horus. Papyrus Jumilhac presents a typical execration of Seth from the late Ptolemaic period: H o r u s is invoked to ‫״‬exterminate [Seth's] allies, destroy his t o w n s a n d nomes, erase his n a m e from the land, [and] shatter his statues in all the nomes. 2 0 ‫ ״‬The myth of Seth thus came to articulate a sweeping a n d hostile Egyptian xenophobia. 2 1 The second, ‫״‬quotidian" level at which Seth w a s understood also involved ritual a n d thus would have both a s s u m e d a n d promoted the mythology of Seth beyond the priesthood. Formulas a n d narratives describing Horus's snakebite or scorpion sting at Seth's behest a n d his suffering a n d subsequent cure at the h a n d s of the goddesses Isis a n d Selket were engraved on stelae a n d statues a n d u n d o u b t e d l y chanted over real victims. 22 The stelae themselves, which were carved in great a b u n d a n c e throughout the Greco-Roman period a n d placed by temples a n d in homes, portrayed the child H o r u s standing on crocodiles a n d victoriously grasping beasts traditionally associated with the desert a n d Seth: antelopes, scorpions, snakes. The Horus stelae functioned in a m a n n e r both curative (through water w a s h e d over them) a n d apotropaic: they w a r d e d off the powers of Seth in the form of reptiles a n d scorpions. 2 3 There is considerable evidence b e y o n d the H o r u s stelae that Seth's role as disturber of the cosmos was not just a priestly trope but also h a d 19. See below, pp. 189-90. 20. P.Jumilhac XVII.10-11 (tr. Jacques Vandier, Le Papyrus Jumilhac [Paris: C e n t r e national de la recherche scientifique, 1961], 129; cf. 108-9). The classic exposition of a ritual drama against Seth is H. W. Fairman, The Triumph of Horus (London, 1974). 21. See, in general, Etienne Drioton, "Le nationalisme au t e m p s des p h a r a o n s , " in idem, Pages d'egyptologie (Cairo: Editions d e la Revue de Caire, 1957), 375-86; J. G w y n Griffiths, "Egyptian Nationalism in the Edfu T e m p l e Texts," in Glimpses of Ancient Egypt: Studies in Honour of H. W. Fairman, ed. John Ruffle, G. A. Gaballa, a n d Kenneth Kitchen (Warminster: Aris & Phillips, 1979), 174-79. 22. See texts in Borghouts, 59-76. 23. See M. G. Daressy, Textes et dessins magiques, Catalogue general d e s antiquites egyptiennes d u m u s e e d u Caire nos. 9401-449 (Cairo: IFAO, 1903); A. Moret, "Horus sauveur," RHR 72 (1915):213-87; P. Lacau, "Les statues , guerisseuses‫ ׳‬d a n s l'ancienne E g y p t e , " Academie

des

inscriptions

et

belles-lettres,

Commission

de la fondation

Piot:

Monuments et mimoires 25 (1921-22):189-209; Keith C. Seele, "Horus on the Crocodiles," JNES 6 (1947):43-52.

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN A N D CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

meaning at a deeply popular level. Plutarch gives vivid descriptions of local execration rituals, including an annual mass slaughter of crocodiles in the t o w n of Apollonopolis. 2 4 Greco-Egyptian ritual (‫״‬magical‫ )״‬texts, in which S e t h - T y p h o n was often transvalued as an appeasable daimon, nevertheless preserved the essence of his traditional functions: in a Greek section of the third-century C.E. Demotic magical p a p y r u s of London and Leiden, Seth is addressed as ‫״‬you w h o cause destruction and desolation, you w h o hate a stable household, you were driven out of Egypt and have roamed 2 5 foreign lands, you w h o shatter everything a n d are not defeated. 2 6 ‫ ״‬A n d the anti-Jewish violence that arose in Memphis a n d elsewhere in the Roman period is probably attributable to a popular notion of ‫״‬Typhonian" peoples, a concept that certain priesthoods applied to Jews. 27 U p through the Late period there existed actual temples of Seth, w h e r e he w a s propitiated as the foreigners' divinity, lord of the desert, t h u n d e r god, and p o w e r f u l d e f e n d e r of Re against the dragon Apophis. 2 8 It is evident (although strange) that in a few quarters this cult continued even into the Roman period, w h e n Seth h a d reached an almost exclusively negative status. A second-century C.E. p a p y r u s lists, a m o n g a series of festivals celebrated in an Upper Egyptian town, one seemingly devoted to Typhon. 2 9 It remains unclear w h e t h e r this festival or procession actually would h a v e constituted a veneration of S e t h T y p h o n in any sense or a national exorcistic or apotropaic rite (to expel Seth-Typhon). The word—actually in dative plural, τυφωνίοις (‫״‬for the Typhonians‫—)״‬might h a v e been a priestly (and negative) term for the regular rites of a certain c o m m u n i t y of foreigners living in the area, in which the particular priest in the p a p y r u s w a s asked to participate. Apophis Apophis was considered not a god, like Seth, but a great serpent in pursuit of Re, the sun; Seth is called u p o n in his capacity as god of 24. P l u t a r c h De 1side et Osiride § § 3 0 - 3 1 , 50 ( J o h n G w y n Griffiths, Plutarch: De !side et Osiride (Cardiff: U n i v e r s i t y of W a l e s Press, 1970), 411, 490-93). 25. (•π€νόμασθ1)ς: cf. LSJ 649A, s.v. i-ni'νομος. 26. P . L o n d o n a n d L e i d e n col. XXIII, 11. 10-12 (tr. J a n e t J o h n s o n in Betz, Greek Magical Papyri, 232). 27. CPJ 141; CPJ 520; cf. R o g e r R e m o n d o n , "Les a n t i s e m i t e s d e M e m p h i s , " Chronique d'Egypte 35 (1960):244-61; a n d , esp., J e a n Yoyotte, " L ' E g y p t e a n c i e n n e et les o r i g i n e s d e l ' a n t i j u d a i s m e , " RHR 163 (1963):133-43. S e e a l s o d i s c u s s i o n b e l o w , p p . 189-91. 28. T e Velde, Seth, God of Confusion, 124-40. 29. P . H e i d . inv. 1818 v 1.9 (in H e r b e r t C. Youtie, " T h e H e i d e l b e r g Festival P a p y r u s : A R e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n , " in i d e m , Scriptiunculae, vol. 1 [ A m s t e r d a m : H a k k e r t , 1973), 5 1 4 - 4 5 , esp. 525-28).

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"confusion" to help repel A p o p h i s from harrassing Re. 30 Apophis threatens to destroy the sun in its daily circuit through the sky; and insofar as the sun, Re, is the image of Ma^at, Apophis represents both darkness and chaos hypostasized. Consequently, the conflict cycle of Apophis a n d Re approximates that b e t w e e n Seth a n d H o r u s in expressing the accession of order and the triumph over chaos in all its manifestations. The m y t h also reflects a n o t h e r dimension, that of cosmogony, for Re is a creator-god a n d Apophis the hypostasization of primordial chaos a n d darkness. T h u s as the king is "Son of Re" a n d the image of Re on earth, the repulsion of Apophis reflects the repulsion of the king's enemies. 3 1 Apophis's mythological relevance arises almost exclusively in the context of ritual a n d iconographic cursing: the Bremner-Rhind p a p y r u s gives extensive descriptions of the m a n y Egyptian gods (imagined as riding in Re's barque) combining their powers to destroy Apophis. 3 2 The text is punctuated with declarations against Apophis a n d instructions for burning his images a n d names. By their ritualized reading, therefore, the descriptions of Apophis's destruction and Re's triumph would actually aid the sun in its circuit, replay the cosmogony, a n d thus reestablish Ma‫י‬at in the cosmos. Whereas Seth a n d A p o p h i s remained completely distinct ideas within the traditional mythology, occasional merging began to a p p e a r in the Late period, continuing as an occasional p h e n o m e n o n of Greco-Egyptian ritual ("magical") texts. 33 Conclusion Two discrete schemes of mythological opposition were associated with Egyptian kingship ideology and, in the later period, came to reflect more general a n d critical oppositions in Egyptian experience, particularly in nationalist p r o p a g a n d a . Seth evolved from a "god of for30. See Te Velde, Seth, God of Confusion, 99-108. 3 1 . F r a n k f o r t , Kingship

and the Gods,

150; c f . S i e g f r i e d M o r e n z , Egyptian

Religion,

tr.

Ann E. Keep (Ithaca, N.Y., and London: Cornell University Press, 1973), 168-69. 32. R. O. Faulkner, *The Bremner-Rhind P a p y r u s III-IV: D. The Book of Overthrowing ‫׳‬Apep,* JEA 23 (1937): 166-75; 24 (1938):41-53. This drama is also described in t h e Book of the Dead, c h a p . 3 9 .

33. Cf. Philippe Derchain, "A propos d une stele magique d u musee Kestner,* REg 16 (1964):19-23, PI. 2 (*Seth cursed and iconographically b o u n d for attacking sun‫ ;)״‬Arthur S Hunt, *An Incantation in the Ashmolean Museum,* ]EA 15 (1929):155-57, PI. 31, 1 (*Typhon adversary of sun*); H. 1. Bell, A. D. Nock, and Herbert T h o m p s o n , *Magical Texts from a Bilingual Papyrus in the British Museum," Proceedings of the British Academy (1931):252, 255, 275-79 (lizard, a Sethian animal, hated by the Sun and all the gods).

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

eigners" a n d of t h e desert to a ‫״‬god of the chaotic, i n v a d i n g Foreigner,‫״‬ a n d in this evolution h e b e c a m e progressively d e m o n i z e d as t h e s y m b o l of all historical forces that o p p o s e d the traditional order of Egypt. A p o p h i s , by contrast, m a i n t a i n e d a m o r e abstract f u n c t i o n as t h e a n t a g o n i s t of Re a n d concretization of c h a o s itself. T h e r e is scant e v i d e n c e that these m y t h s o v e r l a p p e d ; s u c h as t h e r e is derives largely f r o m the Hellenistic period.

KINGSHIP PROPAGANDA AND THE PORTRAYAL OF ANTIKINGSHlP In t h e b e g i n n i n g of t h e s e c o n d m i l l e n n i u m B.C E. a text w a s written describing—as p r o p h e c y — a cataclysmic decline in Egypt, i n c l u d i n g details of f a m i n e , social disintegration, a n d i n v a s i o n s f r o m t h e East: D r y is t h e r i v e r of E g y p t . . . . F o e s h a v e r i s e n in t h e East, A s i a t i c s h a v e c o m e d o w n t o E g y p t . . . I s h o w y o u t h e l a n d in t u r m o i l , w h a t s h o u l d n o t b e h a s c o m e t o p a s s . M e n will s e i z e w e a p o n s of w a r f a r e , t h e l a n d will live in u p r o a r . . . . I s h o w y o u t h e s o n a s e n e m y , t h e b r o t h e r a s f o e , a m a n s l a y i n g h i s f a t h e r . . . . T h e l a n d is r u i n e d , its f a t e d e c r e e d , d e p r i v e d of p r o d u c e , l a c k i n g in c r o p s . . . . T h e l a n d is s h r u n k — i t s r u l e r s a r e m a n y , it is b a r e — i t s t a x e s a r e g r e a t ; . . . Re will w i t h d r a w f r o m m a n k i n d : T h o u g h h e will rise a t h i s h o u r , o n e will n o t k n o w w h e n n o o n h a s c o m e . 3 4

C o n c l u d i n g these descriptions w a s this ‫״‬messianic" oracle: T h e n a k i n g will c o m e f r o m t h e S o u t h , A m e n y , t h e j u s t i f i e d , b y n a m e , . . . H e will t a k e t h e w h i t e c r o w n , h e will w e a r t h e r e d c r o w n ; h e will join t h e T w o M i g h t y O n e s , . . . R e j o i c e , Ο p e o p l e of h i s t i m e , t h e s o n of m a n will m a k e h i s n a m e f o r all e t e r n i t y ! T h e e v i l - m i n d e d , t h e t r e a s o n - p l o t t e r s , t h e y s u p p r e s s t h e i r s p e e c h in f e a r of h i m ; A s i a t i c s fall t o h i s s w o r d , L i b y a n s will fall t o h i s f l a m e , r e b e l s t o h i s w r a t h , t r a i t o r s t o h i s m i g h t , . . . T h e n O r d e r will r e t u r n t o its s e a t , w h i l e C h a o s is d r i v e n a w a y . 3 5

T h e text, entitled t h e Prophecy of Neferti, h a s long b e e n recognized as p r o p a g a n d a for the reign of A m e n h e m e t I d u r i n g the t w e l f t h d y n a s t y (1991-1783 B.C.E.); a n d t h e r e f o r e , as "prophecy," it w a s m e a n t to f u n c t i o n as vaticinium ex eventu.36 This fact h a s led scholars to a s s u m e that, as t h e 34. Neferti (tr. Lichtheim, 1:141-43) 35. Neferti 57-70 (tr. Lichtheim, 1:143-44). 36. Cf. Georges Posener, Litterature et politique dans VEgypte de la XII·‫ ־‬dynastic (Paris: Librarie ancienne H o n o r e C h a m p i o n , 1956), 16-60, 145-57; and idem, "Literature,' in The Legacy of Egypt, ed. J. R. Harris (2d ed.; Oxford: Clarendon, 1971), 231-32; and see s u m m a r y of text in McCown, "Egyptian Apocalyptic Literature," 383-86.

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

169

messianic king A m e n y r e p r e s e n t e d t h e recently e n t h r o n e d A m e n h e m e t , so also the c a t a s t r o p h e s in Egypt that p r e c e d e A m e n y ' s a d v e n t m u s t h a v e r e p r e s e n t e d a real historical situation in Egypt at that time. 3 7 S. Luria, h o w e v e r , in a 1929 discussion of revolutionary reversal imagery, suggested that such descriptions of w o e s a n d c h a o s in Egyptian literature could b e t a k e n as f o r m u l a i c a n d imaginative, r a t h e r t h a n as reflective of historical e v e n t s — i n d e e d , that t h e t h e m e of social reversal a n d c a t a s t r o p h e w e r e literary topoi arising f r o m Egyptian royal ideology. 3 8 C o n s e q u e n t l y , Egyptologist Miriam Lichtheim h a s a r g u e d that scribes of the t w e l f t h d y n a s t y in Egypt w e r e d r a w i n g o n a literary t h e m e of "national distress," of w h i c h t w o c o m p o n e n t s could b e o b s e r v e d : T h e first is t h e i n f i l t r a t i o n of t h e D e l t a b y A s i a t i c s ; t h e s e c o n d is civil w a r a m o n g E g y p t i a n s . T h i s s e c o n d t o p i c is d e s c r i b e d b y m e a n s of t h r e e topoi . . . : i n d i s c r i m i n a t e b l o o d s h e d , i n d i f f e r e n c e to suffering, a n d t h e reversal of t h e social o r d e r , b y w h i c h t h e rich b e c o m e p o o r a n d t h e h a v e - n o t s become the masters.39

W h e r e a s Lichtheim d r e w a fairly strict line b e t w e e n the literary topos a n d the historical e v e n t s of t h e period, R a y m o n d Weill in 1918 a n d A s s m a n n in 1983 s o u g h t to reconcile t h e literary n a t u r e of these portrayals of c a t a s t r o p h e (which obviously d r e w their imagery f r o m t h e sphere of historical detail) with a historical reality that w a s itself o f t e n i n c o m p r e h e n s i b l e w i t h o u t the ideological a n d articulative force of propaganda. 4 0 Weill s a w the persistence of a " t h e m e of disorder" in Egyptian literature, a "tableau of desolation" w h o s e ahistorical c o m p o n e n t s crystallized a n d even achieved a m e a s u r e of historicity d u r i n g the calamitous Late a n d G r e c o - R o m a n periods. 4 1 A s s m a n n , classifying a broad range of s u c h tableaus, e m p l o y s t h e evocative t e r m Chaosbeschreibung, w h i c h u s e f u l l y indicates t h e mythological u n d e r p i n n i n g s of these ideas a n d of their roots in k i n g s h i p ideology. Chaosbeschreibung was, essentially, the idealized r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of Egypt w i t h o u t a p h a r a o h ; discourses e m p l o y i n g this f o r m w o u l d t h u s 37. E.g., Posener, Litterature et politique, 45-59, which is otherwise the most complete and detailed study of t h e Prophecy of Neferti in its historical context. 38. S. Luria, "Die Ersten w e r d e n die Letzten sein (zur 'sozialen Revolution' im Altertum)," Klio 22 (1929):405-31. 39. Lichtheim, 1:144 n. 9. 40. Lichtheim, 1:134-35, 139, 149-50; A s s m a n n , "Konigsdogma u n d Heilserwartung," 345-77, esp. 349-50. 41. Raymond Weill, La fin du moyen empire egyptienne (Paris: Imprimerie nationale, 1918), 22-145, esp. 35-37, 65, 118, 125.

170

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

pertain intrinsically—that is, regardless of historical e v e n t s — t o b o t h the interregnal periods a n d the actual lapses of k i n g s h i p (such as t h o s e that occurred r e p e a t e d l y o v e r t h e course of the Late period). By k i n g s h i p ' s very n a t u r e as the axis of order, its i m a g i n e d a b s e n c e m u s t cause catast r o p h e in all the d o m a i n s into w h i c h t h e p h a r a o h ' s integrative p o w e r s extend: religious structure, social structure, n a t i o n a l b o u n d a r i e s , a n d fertility. Chaosbeschreibung acted as a trope to l a u d k i n g s h i p by describing its symbolic antitheses. T h u s Chaosbeschreibung discourses a p pear in ritual ("magical") spells to describe t h e c o s m o s in decline following Osiris's d e a t h or H o r u s ' s illness f r o m s n a k e b i t e or even t h e g o d s ' r e f u s a l to o b e y the ritual d e m a n d s of a priest, w h o s e p r o f e s s e d u r g e n c y w a s s u p p o s e d to reflect the u r g e n c y a n d instability of the cosmic o r d e r u n d e r the threat of Seth. 4 2 As a literary f o r m , Chaosbeschreibung was conceived to f u n c t i o n as p r o p a g a n d a in praise of a p r e s e n t king, r a t h e r t h a n as a chronicle of actual events. 4 3 I n d e e d , it effectively p r e s e n t e d the

42. E.g., P . T u r i n 137, 1 - 4 : ' O n t h e n i g h t t h a t t h e w i f e of H o r u s shall b i t e t h e e , I s u f f e r n o t t h e Nile to b e a t u p o n its b a n k , I s u f f e r n o t t h e s u n to s h i n e u p o n t h e e a r t h , I s u f f e r n o t t h e s e e d t o g r o w * (tr. A l a n G a r d i n e r , "Magic [Egyptian]," ERE 8:265A); P.Salt 825, 1.2-5: " T h e e a r t h is d e v a s t a t e d , t h e s u n d o e s n o t leave, t h e m o o n tarries—it d o e s not exist. N u n [the p r i m e v a l o c e a n ] is d i s t u r b e d , t h e e a r t h t u r n s u p s i d e - d o w n ; t h e river is n o l o n g e r n a v i g a b l e . . . t h e w h o l e w o r l d g r o a n s a n d w e e p s " ( F r e n c h tr. P h i l i p p e D e r c h a i n , Le papyrus Salt 825 [B.M. 10051]: Rituel pour la conservation de la vie en Egypte, M e m o i r e s d e l ' a c a d e m i e r o y a l e d e Belgique 58, l a [Brussels: Palais d e s a c a d e m i e s , 1965], 137); cf. P . L e i d e n I, 348 v II, 5 - 8 (in F r a ^ o i s Lexa, La magie dans I'Egypte antique, 2 vols. [Paris: G e u t h n e r , 1925], 2:62); P G M V.284-89; P G M LXII.13-14. In g e n e r a l , o n "magical" u s e s of Chaosbeschreibung, s e e S e r g e S a u n e r o n , " A s p e c t s et sort d ' u n t h e m e m a g i q u e e g y p t i e n : Les m e n a c e s i n c l u a n t les dieux," Bulletin de la societe franqaise d'egyptologie ( N o v e m b e r 1951):11-21; a n d S i e g f r i e d S c h o t t , " A l t a g y p t i s c h e V o r s t e l l u n g e n v o m W e l t e n d e , " Analecta biblica 12 (1959):319-30, e s p . 3 2 5 - 2 9 ; D e r c h a i n , papyrus Salt 825, 2 4 - 2 8 , 146-47; a n d A s s m a n n , " K o n i g s d o g m a u n d H e i l s e r w a r t u n g , " 369-71. 43. Cf. A s s m a n n , " K o n i g s d o g m a u n d H e i l s e r w a r t u n g , " 350-51. P o s e n e r s e e s a s e r i e s of s t a g e s e v i d e n t in t h e e v o l u t i o n of Chaosbeschreibung a s e m p l o y e d in t h e service of a p r e s e n t king. T h e p r o t o t y p e of t h e f o r m lay in t h e " c o m p l a i n t " g e n r e , e p i t o m i z e d by t h e Admonitions of Ipuwer ( d i s c u s s e d b e l o w , p p . 171-72), w h i c h d e s c r i b e d a " p r e s e n t " s t a t e of social a n d c o s m i c c h a o s . T h e c o n t e m p l a t i o n of p r e s e n t c h a o s t h e n c a m e t o b e j u x t a p o s e d to a m y t h i c a l p e r i o d of o r d e r (a p a r a d i s e of sorts), a n d t h e d i s j u n c t i o n b e t w e e n illud tempus a n d t h e p r e s e n t w a s a c c o u n t e d f o r b y a m y t h of t h e "fallen s t a t e of t h e w o r l d , " w h i c h is r e f l e c t e d in s e v e r a l early texts ( P o s e n e r , Litterature et politique, 28). Basic i m a g e s of this m y t h s e e m to b e t h e d e p a r t u r e of t h e p r i m e v a l g o d s f r o m e a r t h , t h e arrival of S e t h , t h e b e g i n n i n g s of e n v i r o n m e n t a l evils (such a s s e r p e n t s ) , t h e d e c l i n e of h u m a n life s p a n s , a n d t h e loss of Ma'at (cf. L. K a k o s y , "Ideas a b o u t t h e Fallen S t a t e of t h e W o r l d in E g y p t i a n Religion: D e c l i n e of t h e G o l d e n Age," A O H 17 [1964]:205-16). T h e t r a n s p o s i t i o n of t h e m y t h i c a l p e r i o d of o r d e r to t h e " f u t u r e " k i n g s h i p , P o s e n e r a r g u e s , first t o o k p l a c e in t h e c o m p o s i t i o n of Neferti a n d w a s m o t i v a t e d by t h e political a g e n d a of c r e a t i n g t h e m o s t e f f e c t i v e p r o p a g a n d a (Litterature et politique, 28-29).

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse o f Elijah

171

king as salvific, even "messianic,‫ ״‬as h e restored an Egypt in deep disintegration. 44 Neferti may be justly regarded as "the prototype of all subsequent political Chaosbeschreibung.45‫ ״‬The discourse a n d its motifs came to be used to characterize the period before any p h a r a o h ' s accession: Hatshepsut, for example, claimed to h a v e expelled invaders a n d restored order and religion in Egypt, w h e n in fact her rule followed no such disasters; 46 a n d in 196 B.C.E. Ptolemy V, in manifest imitation of this tradition, would proclaim in the archaic phrases of the Rosetta Stone his defeat of rebels, preservation of temples f r o m destruction, a n d general beneficence a n d order. 4 7 Several centuries after Neferti there appeared another extended discourse, titled the Admonitions of Ipuwer,48 w h o s e prophetic motifs ineluded social reversal ("See the judges of the land are driven from the land, ( t h e nobles) are expelled from the royal mansions. See, noble ladies are on boards, Princes in the workhouse"); mass death ("There's blood everywhere, n o shortage of dead, the shroud calls before o n e comes near it, the stream is the grave, the t o m b became stream"); the encroachment of desert a n d invaders ("Lo, the desert claims the land, the nomes are destroyed, foreign b o w m e n h a v e come into Egypt"); a n d the striking image of a bloody Nile ("Lo, the river is blood, as one drinks from it one shrinks from people a n d thirsts for water 49 .(‫ ״‬These vivid images of catastrophe convinced Egyptologist Alan Gardiner that "it is the picture of a real revolution . . . the condition of the country which it discloses is one which cannot be ascribed to the imagination of a romancer," w h e r e a s Lichtheim has more circumspectly viewed the text 44. The use of the word "messianic" is appropriate in this particular case because of

the necessarily royal concept of the savior figure in Egyptian nationalistic prophecy. To clarify that the word is imported from another ideological context, however, I employ quotation marks. 45. Assmann, "Konigsdogma und Heilserwartung," 360. 46. Weill, La fin du moyen empire, 40-44 (with further examples of Chaosbeschreibung as propaganda for specific kings, 45-60); see also Assmann, "Konigsdogma und Heilserwartung," 364-68; Silverman, "Divinity and Deities," 70-71. 47. Cf. Ludwig Koenen, "Die Adaptation agyptischer Konigsideologie am Ptolemaerhof," in Egypt and the Hellenistic World, ed. E. Van ‫׳‬t Dack, P. van Dessel, and W. van Gucht, Studia hellenistica 27 (Louvain, 1983), 143-90, esp. 170-71. 48. Arguing against the scholarly consensus, on the basis of Ipuwer1 s ahistoricity, Lichtheim classifies it "as a work of the Late Middle Kingdom [i.e., ca. 1750-1650 B.C.E ] and of purely literary inspiration" (1:149). 49. Ipuwer (tr. Lichtheim, 1:151-55). See t h e selection and discussion in McCown, "Egyptian Apocalyptic Literature," 370-82.

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

as "the last, fullest, most exaggerated a n d hence least successful, composition on the t h e m e 'order versus chaos.' 5 0 ‫״‬ Over the course of the second millennium B . C . E . , Ipuwer a n d Neferti were continually recopied as classical literature of kingship. 5 1 These texts bear close similarities, except for the m a n n e r in which they are presented—that is, their genres. The Chaosbeschreibung discourse of Ipuwer appears to lack a n y narrative context a n d has therefore been classified as a ‫״‬complaint. 5 2 ‫ ״‬Arising as it did in the archival milieus of Egyptian wisdom scribes, the text might well have served as a synthetic gathering of the Chaosbeschreibung motifs selectively deployed in p r o p a ganda for particular kings, as if to teach f u t u r e scribes the c o m p o n e n t s of effective p r o p a g a n d a . Weill likewise saw in Ipuwer t h e t h e m e of d i s o r d e r [ g i v i n g ] p l a c e t o a v e r i t a b l e t r e a t i s e o n g o v e r n m e n t a n d t h e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n of E g y p t , in w h i c h e a c h p r e s c r i p t i o n r e s u l t s i n d i r e c t l y f r o m t h e i m a g e of t h e c a l a m i t y w h i c h o c c u r s f r o m w h a t is n o t f o l l o w e d . C o n s e q u e n t l y t h e b o o k c o n t a i n s a c o m p l e t e c o l l e c t i o n of social m i s f o r t u n e s of w h i c h E g y p t i a n s at t h i s t i m e h a d [at s o m e p o i n t ] t h e experience or t h e idea.53

The genre of Neferti, in contrast, was presented as the prophecy of the scribe and ‫״‬great lector priest of Bastet,‫ ״‬Neferti, before King Snefru. Both characters lived during the fourth dynasty a n d by the twelfth dynasty (the period of the text) h a d become legendary. The "prophecy‫״‬ of a King Ameny during the reign of King Snefru therefore gained the authority of tradition through the literary comparison of the present and legendary kings. 54 The technique of f r a m i n g a discourse or plot within the life of a king in his court demonstrates the influence of the Konigsnovelle, a favorite literary genre in ancient Egypt: In t h e f i x e d f o r m of t h i s h i s t o r i o g r a p h i c a l g e n r e , a n i m p o r t a n t h i s t o r i c a l e v e n t is d e s c r i b e d a s t h e r e s u l t of a n a c t i o n t a k e n b y t h e k i n g . A d r e a m , a m e s s a g e , o r s o m e o t h e r e v e n t p r o m p t s t h e k i n g t o d i s c u s s t h e m a t t e r first

50. Alan Gardiner, Egypt of the Pharaohs (London: Oxford University Press, 1961), 109; Lichtheim, 1:150. 51. Cf. Posener, Litterature et politique, 30 n. 9; Lichtheim, 1:139 (Neferti); 1:149-50 Gpuwer).

52. Cf. Assmann, "Konigsdogma u n d Heilserwartung," 347-57. McCown believes that the text once had a narrative f r a m e and ending ("Egyptian Apocalytic Literature," 37172). 5 3 . W e i l l , Le fin du moyen

empire,

134.

54. See Posener, Litterature et politique, 29-36.

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

173

in a n a s s e m b l y of a d v i s o r s , p r i n c e s , o r e v e n w o r k e r s ; h e t h e n i s s u e s o r d e r s f o r t h e e x e c u t i o n of h i s p l a n s . T h e s e l e a d t o a w i d e v a r i e t y of h i s t o r i c a l a c t i o n s . W a r f a r e is u n d e r t a k e n ; t e m p l e s , s a n c t u a r i e s , o r w e l l s a r e b u i l t o r r e n e w e d ; a s t a t u e of a g o d is t r a n s p o r t e d ; s a c r i f i c e s a r e e s t a b l i s h e d , r i t u a l s p e r f o r m e d , a n d provisions issued for w o r k e r s ; or p r o p h e c i e s a b o u t the u n h a p p y f u t u r e of E g y p t a n d its f i n a l r e s t o r a t i o n u n d e r a n e w r u l e r a r e m a d e a n d w r i t t e n d o w n in t h e p r e s e n c e of t h e k i n g . 5 5

The genre or device m a y be c o m p a r e d to the Jewish court-romances of Ahikar, Joseph, Esther, a n d Daniel, the last of which likewise f r a m e s prophecy within the context of court narrative. 5 6 In the continuation of the Chaosbeschreibung form into the Roman period, the Konigsnovelle was often used in Egyptian literary tradition as a f r a m i n g narrative in order to identify the period of the prophecy a n d to legitimize it as the word of a legendary prophet. 5 7 Jonathan Z. Smith has labeled the two forms in combination—(1) a legendary seer's prophecy to a legendary king of (2) catastrophes and their reconciliation—as an "apocalypse," because of the resemblance to Jewish apocalypses (whose occasional eschatological discourses are often f r a m e d within courtly or other narratives). 58 The importation of this genre label, however, does not a d d to the understanding of either f r a m e or Chaosbeschreibung;59 further, apart from the literary need to contextualize a discourse with narrative, there is no intrinsic relationship between Konigsnovelle a n d Chaosbeschreibung.60

55. Ludwig Koenen, ‫־‬The Dream of Nektanebos," BASP 22 (1985): 172-73; cf. Alfred Hermann, Die dgyplische Konigsnovelle, Leipziger Agyptologische Studien 10 (Gluckstadt: Augustin, 1938). Koenen does express "doubts as to w h e t h e r the Konigsnovelle represents a genre or rather a narrative technique" ("Dream of Nektanebos," 173 n. 6). 56. See John J. Collins, "The Court-Tales in Daniel and the Development of Apocalyptic," /BL 94 (1975):218-34; Susan Niditch and Robert Doran, ‫־‬The Success Story of the Wise Courtier: A Formal Approach," /BL 96 (1977):179-93; and John W. B. Barns, "Egypt and the Greek Romance,‫ ־‬Mitteilungen aus der Papyrussammlung der i)sterreichischen

Nationalbibliothek

5 (1956):29-36.

57. The Konigsnovelle w a s similarly used as a f r a m e narrative for other purposes, e.g., to render a healing spell authoritative a n d powerful: "to cure w h o m e v e r [suffers) physically from his illness, after His Majesty had seen a book of protection f r o m the (time) of the ancestors" (P.Berlin 3049, 18.6-19.1; tr. Pascal Vernus, "Un Decret de Thoutmosis III relatif a la sante publique," Orientalia 48 [1979]:177; cf. 183-84 on use of Konigsnovelle).

58. Smith, "Wisdom and Apocalyptic," 141-44. 59. Bergman, e.g., uses "apocalyptic" in an exclusively eschatological sense in his "Remarks on Apocalypticism in Egypt," 51-60. 60. Cf. Collins ("Court-Tales"), w h o suggests literary and historical associations between Daniel's court stories and the book's prophecies. In the case of Egyptian prophetic texts, one might argue that the nostalgia involved in setting t h e prophecies in the court of a legendary king is connected to the anticipation or adulation of "right"

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

T H E USE O F CHAOSBESCHREIBUNG IN

THE HELLENISTIC PERIOD D u r i n g t h e Late period (712-332 B.C.E.), Egypt s u f f e r e d r e p e a t e d invasions f r o m Assyrians a n d Persians; legends of these d e p r e d a t i o n s c o n t i n u e d well into the Coptic period. T h u s w e find in t h e later literature of Chaosbeschreibung greater precision in i d e n t i f y i n g the foreigners w h o , according to the k i n g s h i p ideology, m i g h t e n t e r Egypt u n r e p e l l e d by the p o w e r of t h e p h a r a o h : they are n o w specifically d e n o t e d as Persians a n d Assyrians. 6 1 In the b e g i n n i n g of the Hellenistic period w e also find that the legend of N e k t a n e b o s , the last native p h a r a o h before the c o m i n g of Alexander, is b r o u g h t into t h e service of the Konigsnovelle f r a m e . H e represents the p a r a d i g m a t i c king of yore a n d is e v e n claimed as the secret f a t h e r of the world e m p e r o r Alexander. 6 2 The Demotic

Chronicle

N e k t a n e b o s is exalted as the m o d e l Egyptian king in a n i m p o r t a n t prophetic w o r k of the early Hellenistic period, referred to as the Demotic Chronicle.63 T h e structure of the text is a series of brief, enigmatic oracles—apparently b a s e d o n t h o s e delivered in t h e oracle t e m p l e of H a r s a p h e s in H e r a k l e o p o l i s — f o l l o w e d by brief c o m m e n t a r i e s a p p l y i n g t h e terms of the oracle to historical events. 6 4 T h e r e f e r e n c e to N e k t a n e b o s

k i n g s h i p in t h e p r o p h e c y . But t h i s c o i n c i d e n t "royal o r i e n t a t i o n " of t h e t w o literary f o r m s e x p r e s s e s t h e social c o n t e x t of l i t e r a t u r e in E g y p t (i.e., in t h e s e r v i c e of t h e king; see S m i t h , " W i s d o m a n d Apocalytic") r a t h e r t h a n a n intrinsic r e l a t i o n s h i p of t h e literary forms. 61. See, e.g., J a c q u e s S c h w a r t z , "Les c o n q u e r a n t s p e r s e s et la litterature e g v p t i e n n e , " BIFAO 48 (1949):65-80. 62. S e e M a r t i n Braun, History and Romance in Graeco-Oriental Literature (Oxford: Blackwell, 1938), 19-25; Β. E. P e r r y , " T h e E g y p t i a n L e g e n d of N e c t a n e b u s , " TPAPA 97 (1966):327-33; R e i n h o l d M e r k e l b a c h , Die Quelleη des griechischen Alexanderromans ( M u n i c h : C. G . Beck sche, 1977), 7 7 - 8 8 ; A l a n B. Lloyd, " N a t i o n a l i s t P r o p a g a n d a in P t o l e m a i c Egypt," Historia 31 (1982):46-50; i d e m , " T h e Late P e r i o d : 6 6 4 - 3 2 3 B.C.,' in Ancient Egypt: A Social History, e d . B. G . Trigger et al. ( C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e University Press, 1983), 2 9 1 - 9 2 ; a n d K o e n e n , " D r e a m of N e k t a n e b o s , " 171-94. 63. M c C o w n , " E g y p t i a n A p o c a l y p t i c Literature," 387-92. T h e f u l l e s t d i s c u s s i o n is by Janet H. J o h n s o n , "Is t h e D e m o t i c C h r o n i c l e a n A n t i - G r e e k Tract?" in Grammata Demotika, e d . Heinz-J. T h i s s e n a n d Karl-Th. Z a u z i c h ( W u r z b u r g : Gisela Z a u z i c h , 1984), 107-24. T r a n s l a t i o n s of t h e Demotic Chronicle c a n b e f o u n d in E u g e n e Revillout, " S e c o n d extrait d e la C h r o n i q u e D e m o t i q u e d e Paris: Les p r o p h e t i e s p a t r i o t i q u e s , " Revue egyptologique 1 (1880): 145-53; 2 (1881):1-10, 5 2 - 6 2 ; a n d W i l h e l m S p i e g e l b e r g , Die sogennante Demotische Chronik (Leipzig: H i n r i c h s , 1914). 64. Cf. Janet H. J o h n s o n , "The D e m o t i c C h r o n i c l e a s a n Historical S o u r c e , " Enchoria 4 (1974):1-17. F r a n i o i s D a u m a s c o g e n t l y c o m p a r e d t h i s f o r m a t t o t h e Q u m r a n pesher m o d e of millennialist exegesis of p r o p h e c y ("Litterature p r o p h e t i q u e et e x e g e t i q u e

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

175

a n d systematic allusions to o t h e r kings of t h e Late period suggest not only that these "oracles" are a literary fiction but that the text w a s m e a n t to offer a clear description of the ideal p h a r a o h , o n e w h o expels foreign i n v a d e r s (notably the Persians) a n d m o u n t s t h e t h r o n e with p r o p e r ritual. 6 5 As with the "king f r o m the S o u t h " in the Prophecy of Neferti, t h e Demotic Chronicle envisions a realization of this ideal p h a r a o h — a "messianic" king to c o m e f r o m H e r a k l e o p o l i s (coincidentally the milieu of t h e Demotic Chronicle). In the case of t h e Demotic Chronicle a n d other Egyptian k i n g s h i p p r o p a g a n d a c o m p o s e d u n d e r the Ptolemies, the question arises w h e t h e r the ideological f u n c t i o n of Chaosbeschreibung, w i t h its inevitable m e s sianic conclusion, w a s nationalistic—that is, anti-Hellenistic. T h e legend of N e k t a n e b o s ' s f a t h e r h o o d of A l e x a n d e r is only o n e e x a m p l e of the m a n y w a y s in w h i c h Egyptian priests u s e d the native k i n g s h i p ideology a n d its literary f o r m s to c o m p o s e p r o p a g a n d a for the Ptolemies. 6 6 Because the last king in t h e Demotic Chronicle is envisioned as succeeding the Greeks a n d a p p a r e n t l y is m e a n t to recall the native kings of the Dynastic period, h o w e v e r , it w o u l d seem that t h e a u t h o r d o e s n o t consider the Ptolemaic a d m i n i s t r a t i o n a legitimate reflection of Egyptian kingship. But t h e G r e e k s h a r d l y receive the execration in the Demotic Chronicle that the Persians do. This m a y suggest that the priestly milieu that predicted a "messianic" native king r e m a i n e d fairly close to t h o s e milieus that advertised the Ptolemies as legitimate, as if t h e text w e r e claiming, "The Ptolemies are better rulers t h a n the Persians, b u t still not legitimate according to the traditional form." 6 7 It is conceivable, h o w e v e r , that t h e a u t h o r a i m e d at a protective subtlety, to p r o p h e s y against t h e Ptolemies but not to a n t a g o n i z e t h e m directly. 68 A m a j o r t h e m e of the text is the invasion of the foreigner, a e g y p t i e n n e et c o m m e n t a i r e s e s s e n i e n s , " in A la rencontre de Dieu [ M e m o r i a l Albert Gelin], B i b l i o t h e q u e d e la f a c u l t e c a t h o l i q u e d e t h e o l o g i e d e Lyon 8 [Le P u y : E d i t i o n s Xavier M a p p u s , 1961), 203-21). 65. S e e J a n e t H. J o h n s o n , ' T h e D e m o t i c C h r o n i c l e a s a S t a t e m e n t of a T h e o r y of Kingship,* Journal of the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities 13 (1983):66-72. 66. B r a u n s u g g e s t s t h a t t h e A l e x a n d e r r o m a n c e of P s e u d o - C a l l i s t h e n e s is a d e l i b e r a t e e x t e n s i o n of a n a t i o n a l i s t i c " N e k t a n e b o s r o m a n c e " c o m p o s e d d u r i n g t h e P e r s i a n p e r i o d (History and Romance, 23-24). O n priestly p r o p a g a n d a in f a v o r of P t o l e m i e s , s e e K o e n e n , "Die A d a p t a t i o n a g y p t i s c h e r Konigsideologie," 143-90; J o h n s o n , " A n t i - G r e e k Tract?" 115-20; a n d G r i f f i t h s ("Edfu T e m p l e Texts," 174-79), w h o d i s c u s s e s t h e e v i d e n c e at t h e U p p e r E g y p t i a n t e m p l e of E d f u for a x e n o p h o b i c p r o p a g a n d a u s e d in s u p p o r t of t h e P t o l e m i e s a n d t h e i r military p r o t e c t i o n of E g y p t . 67. J o h n s o n , " A n t i - G r e e k Tract?" 107-24. 68. N o t e t h a t t h i s text r e m a i n s in D e m o t i c , w h e r e a s o t h e r p r o p h e c i e s , b o t h p r o - a n d a n t i - P t o l e m y , w e r e t r a n s l a t e d i n t o G r e e k . T h e u s e of D e m o t i c w o u l d e n s u r e t h a t t h e text c o u l d n o t circulate o u t s i d e t h e p r i e s t h o o d .

176

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

persistent theme of the lapse of kingship in Chaosbeschreibung; a n d it is quite likely that Greeks are implicitly included as m e m b e r s of this class, for a final oracle about ‫״‬dogs‫ ״‬probably refers to them. O n e sees, then, in muted form, the use of traditional ideology in tension with contemporary political realities. The Demotic Chronicle is not ‫״‬anti-Greek‫ ״‬per se but sets u p an ideal contrast to Ptolemaic rule, which implicitly casts the latter as ‫״‬a time of foreign domination,‫ ״‬a n d t h u s as illegitimate. 69 The rebellion, the messianic king from Herakleopolis, a n d the Egypt that he will purify of foreigners all constitute a prediction of an ideal scenario. These traditional themes represent an author's attempt at using Chaosbeschreibung to separate kingship ideology from the real, illegitimate administration of Egypt, by projecting a series of ‫״‬revolutionary‫ ״‬events into a f u t u r e context. Presumably, the Sitz-im-Leben of such a novel use of kingship ideology would h a v e been the rivalry of the Herakleopolis oracle priesthood with the M e m p h i s priesthood (which benefited substantially from Ptolemaic rule). 70 The Oracles of the Lamb and the Potter In contrast to the muted anti-Hellenism of the Demotic Chronicle, a series of oracles emanating from the temples of the god K h n u m d u r i n g the uprisings of the mid-second century B.C.E. articulated the religious nationalism of the kingship ideology in increasingly stronger terms, applying the images of Chaosbeschreibung specifically to the dominion of the Ptolemies. The priesthoods of Khnum, w h o s e chief centers were Herakleopolis (the source of the Demotic Chronicle) a n d Elephantine, h a d actively circulated oracular p r o p a g a n d a with explicitly nationalist overtones since the Late period. 71 K h n u m was revered as the mythical potter a n d 69. Cf. J. G w y n Griffiths, "Apocalyptic in the Hellenistic Era," in Hellholm, ed., Apocalypticism

in the Mediterranean

World,

279-80, 283; a n d

Lloyd, "Nationalist

Propa-

ganda," 41-45. Johnson argues that the Greeks are criticized here as not ruling in accordance with Ma'at, but not simply because they were foreign ("Anti-Greek Tract?" 122-244; cf. idem, "Theory of Kingship," 72). 70. Lloyd, "Nationalist Propaganda," 41, 45. See also Dorothy J. T h o m p s o n , "The High Priests of Memphis u n d e r Ptolemaic Rule," in Pagan Priests, ed. Mary Beard and John North (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1990), 97-116. 71. Cf. Lloyd, "Nationalist Propaganda," 41, 45; D u n a n d , "LOracle d u Potier," 61; L. Kakosy, "Prophecies of Ram Gods," AOH 19 (1966):341-56; J. F. Borghouts, "The Ram as a Protector and Prophesier," REg 32 (1980):33-46. The Elephantine papyri disclose violent conflicts between the Jewish temple of Elephantine and t h e priests of K h n u m a r o u n d t h e time of the invasion of C a m b y s e s (ca. 525 B.C.E.); cf. Lloyd, "Late Period," 317.

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse o f Elijah

177

creator, symbolized as a ram, w h e n c e arose a tradition a r o u n d the Mediterranean world of a ram, or lamb, often four-headed, that uttered prophecies. 7 2 From this tradition arose Konigsnovelle "frames‫ ״‬for oracles circulated u n d e r the authority of K h n u m : K h n u m w a s represented either as a lamb speaking before the legendary king Bocchoris (in the Oracle of the Lamb) or as a potter disclosing the f u t u r e of Egypt before another legendary king, A m e n h o t e p (as in the Oracle of the Potter).73 Within such traditional narrative settings a Chaosbeschreibung discourse was delivered; but it n o w was presented as a prophecy for an Egypt that lacked a legitimate p h a r a o h a n d suffered u n d e r the sway of foreign rulers. This latter scenario marks a significant contrast to a n d d e v e l o p m e n t from that of Neferti, w h o s e prophecy of disintegration a n d reconstitution before the legendary king Snefru bore no connection with the reign of King Snefru himself. With stories such as that of Bocchoris, the prophecy itself is supposed to take place during a period of national catastrophe (e.g., Egypt u n d e r King Bocchoris), rather than during a neutral or glorious period in which it predicts calamities to come. 74 This new interconnection between the f r a m e narrative a n d the tableaus of Chaosbeschreibung appears throughout Egyptian literature of the Hel72. M a n e t h o frag. 64 and 65: *The twenty-fourth dynasty: Bochchoris of Sais . . . in his reign a lamb spoke,* ed. W. G. Waddell, Manetho, LCL [Cambridge and London: Harvard University Press, 1940[; Aelian (De nat. animal. 12.3) describes the oracular lamb as eight feet tall, with two tails, two heads, and four horns. The god Amun, whose principal temple was in Thebes, was also represented as a lamb and also produced oracles—the most f a m o u s of which w a s the god's *recognition" of Alexander in the oasis shrine of Siwah; see Kakosy, "Prophecies of Ram Gods"; and Borghouts, "Ram as Protector and Prophesier." The Theban priesthood was quite active in sparking nationalistic rebellion against Ptolemaic rule d u r i n g t h e second century B.C.E.; cf. Claire Preaux, "Esquisse d une histoire des revolutions egyptiennes sous les Lagides," Chronique d'Egypte 22 ( 1 9 3 6 ) : 5 3 0 5 4 9 - 5 2,32‫;־‬Maurice Alliot, *La Thebaide en lutte contre les rois d'Alexandrie sous Philopator et Epiphane (216-184),* Revue beige de philologie et d'histoire 29 (1951):422-23, 432, 438; E d w v n R. Bevan, House of Ptolemy (Chicago: Ares, 1985), 335-37. 7 3 . O n t h e Oracle

of the Lamb,

s e e W e i l l , La fin

du moyen

empire,

114-19;

McCown,

"Egyptian Apocalytic Literature,* 392-97; Griffiths, *Apocalyptic in the Hellenistic Era," 286-87; and the new edition and translation by Karl-Theodor Zauzich, "Das Lamm des Bokchoris," in Papyrus Erzherzog Rainer (P.Rainer Cent.) (2 vols.; Vienna: Verlag Bruder Hollinek, 1983), 1:165-74. Lysimachus also refers to a Bocchoris legend in his account of the "Invasion of t h e Impure," cited in Josephus, Against Apion §§304-11. O n the use of the K h n u m tradition in the Potter's Oracle, see P.Graf 29787 ( = text P 1 ), in Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des T o p f e r s , 1 9 5 - 9 8*‫(׳‬and discussion, 182-86). The Potter's Oracle makes explicit use of t h e Lamb's Oracle in P J , 11. 33-34 (*(He) is the one w h o will bring the evils to the Greeks, as t h e Lamb a n n o u n c e d to Bacharis [sic‫ ;)*]־‬on this verse, see Koenen, *Supplementary Note,* 9-13. 7 4 . C f . W e i l l , La fin du moyen

empire,

117.

178

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN A N D CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

lenistic period. In one story, reported by the first-century C.E. priest Manetho, the legendary king Amenophis discovers a written prophecy that during his reign Egypt will be invaded and despoiled by an impure people associated with Seth-Typhon. Accepting the fate as divinely ordained, Amenophis gathers all the sacred images and retreats to Memphis. 75 In the Alexander Romance of Pseudo-Callisthenes, King Nektanebos, himself blessed with clairvoyance (and therefore without need of a secondary prophet), learns that Egypt will be imminently invaded by hordes from m a n y nations and, indeed, that this was the gods' design. He escapes to Macedonia, leaving Egypt with nothing but an oracle that " t h i s king w h o has fled will come again to Egypt, not in age but in youth, and our enemy the Persians he shall subdue 7 6 ‫—״׳‬that is, to wit, Alexander the Great. The Chaosbeschreibung discourse of the Oracle of the Lamb concludes with explicit references to the Assyrian invasions and a deportation of images (analogous to King Amenophis's removal of holy images to Memphis before the invasion of the impure). Strikingly, order is restored not in connection with a king but through the Egyptians' rescue of the images after a nine-hundred-year period. Although the ‫״‬latest‫ ״‬foreign power mentioned in the text is the ‫״‬Medes,‫ ״‬this does not imply that the text was written before the Ptolemaic period. 77 The extension of the times of distress over a nine-hundred-year period means that the foreign dominations might also be understood as relevant to a reader (or audience) of Ptolemaic or Roman times. 78 Indeed, the Lamb's Oracle is a good example of a typological use of Assyria and Persia as archetypal enemies, a status that was never attained by r Ελληνικοί.79 75. M a n e t h o , f r a g . 54 ( = J o s e p h u s Apion §§236-50); cf. Weill, La fin du moyen empire, 77-78, 118-20, o n t h e u s e of t r a d i t i o n a l m o t i f s in t h i s s t o r y . 76. P s e u d o - C a l l i s t h e n e s Alexander Romance 1 . 1 - 3 (tr. Ken D o w d e n , " P s e u d o - C a l l i s t h e n e s : T h e A l e x a n d e r R o m a n c e , " in Collected Ancient Greek Novels, ed. Β. Ρ R e a r d o n (Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 1989], 656). 77. Or. Lamb 2.21-23: " A n d it will h a p p e n t h a t t h e M e d e w h o h a d t u r n e d his sight u p o n Egypt will d e p a r t a f t e r F o r e i g n e r s a n d their o t h e r places. Injustice will p e r i s h . Right a n d O r d e r will b e e s t a b l i s h e d a g a i n in Egypt" ( G e r . tr. Z a u z i c h , "Der L a m m , " 168). 78. Cf. K o e n e n , " S u p p l e m e n t a r y N o t e , " 11 n. 12: " T h e p a s s a g e s e e m s t o h a v e b e e n w r i t t e n w i t h o u t k n o w l e d g e of, or w i t h o u t a c k n o w l e d g i n g , t h e G r e e k rule in Egypt. . . . T h e latter m i g h t h a v e b e e n p o s s i b l e b e f o r e s u c h o r a c l e s t u r n e d decisively a n t i - G r e e k in t h e 2 n d c e n t . B.C." It is difficult to a g r e e w i t h his a r g u m e n t t h a t M a n e t h o ' s r e f e r e n c e to a n o r a c u l a r L a m b ( f r a g . 6 4 / 6 5 ) p r o v i d e s a terminus ante quem f o r t h e e x t a n t Oracle of the Lamb, for M a n e t h o gives n o i n d i c a t i o n t h a t h e w a s f a m i l i a r w i t h m o r e t h a n a t r a d i t i o n (or, at m o s t , a Vorlage text) of t h e L a m b p r o p h e s y i n g t o Bocchoris a b o u t a "990 y e a r s " ( f r a g . 64, ed. W a d d e l l , Manetho, 164). 79. A l t h o u g h cf. P . T e b t . Tait 13, I. 7, in Tait, Papyri from Tebtunis, 4 7 a n d n o t e j. T h e Potter's Oracle u s e s ζωνοφύροι ( " g i r d l e - w e a r e r s " ) to r e f e r t o G r e e k s , o n w h i c h s e e

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

179

Salvation from the present chaos is therefore precluded during the time of the Greeks because of the excessively long waiting period of nine h u n d r e d years. This period, which Ludwig Koenen calculated to last until approximately 139 C.E., w a s m e a n t to coincide with the turning of the Sothis period, a solar cycle that implied the renewal of the world. 80 The reintegration of Egypt was meant to occur not so m u c h through the accession of any particular king as by the turn of the eons (so it would appear from the extant text in the manuscript). The solar associations of the Sothis tradition clarify the "royal" implications of the end of chaos, for the return of the royal sun god, Re, is the primary myth here. It is only in the briefest allusion that the Oracle of the Lamb prophesies the messianic p h a r a o h : "He of the 55 (years?) (is) our c r o w n e d one(?)." 81 In general, the Bocchoris story anticipates a single, culminative "millennium" of Re—a marked d e v e l o p m e n t from the cycle of Chaosbeschreibung and reconstitution in Neferti, which was understood to reflect any pharaoh's accession at any time. Because of its long "premillennial" period, the Lamb's Oracle might appear to have been impractical as p r o p a g a n d a for a particular pretender to the throne of Egypt during the Hellenistic period. The Potter's Oracle, however, uses the Oracle of the Lamb in such a w a y as to suggest that revolutionary p r o p a g a n d a w a s historically composed on the basis of the Lamb's Oracle. Indeed, the Potter's Oracle—now extant in three Greek papyri 8 2 —appears to be a response to p r o p a g a n d a issued, in the n a m e of K h n u m or Amun, in support of one Harsiesis, a "counterpharaoh" around w h o m a rebellion began in the Thebaid a r o u n d 1 3 0 B . C . E . , to be crushed by Ptolemy Euergetes II in 1 2 9 . 8 3 Roberts, *Oracle of the Potter," 91 n. 3; and Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des T o p f e r s , " 187. O n the significance of "Mede" in Egypt, see David F. Graf, "Medism: The Origin and Significance of the Term," /HS 104 (l'984):22-24. O n t h e typological use of Assyria and

Persia

in

the

Lamb's

Oracle,

see

Weill,

La

fin

du

moyen

empire,

116;

Arnaldo

Momigliano, "Some Preliminary Remarks on the Religious Opposition' to the Roman Empire,"

in

Opposition

et

resistances

a

I'empire

d'Auguste

a

Trajan

(Geneva:

Van-

doeuvres, 1986), 113; and, more generally, below, chap. 8, pp. 216-22. 80. Koenen, "Prophecies of a Potter," 253. Previous scholars have viewed the resulting date as the historical time of the redactor; cf. Weill, La fin du moyen empire, 116. 81. Or. Lamb 2.5 (Ger. tr. Zauzich, "Der Lamm," 168). 82. P> (= P.Graf 29787), f r o m t h e second century C.E., has only the Konigsnovelle frame introduction; P 2 (= P.Rainer 19 813), f r o m the third century C.E., contains the prophecy and t h e conclusion to the f r a m e story; P 3 (= P.Oxy 2332), f r o m the later third century C.E., resembles P J but lacks t h e f r a m e ending and a p p e a r s to h a v e u n d e r g o n e several interpolations. 83. Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des ‫׳‬Topfers," 186-91. Harsiesis's success in the Thebaid was such that one papyrus has a date based on his kingship years (P.Kakara I, H; cited in ibid., 191).

180

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

O n the basis of t h e o t h e r Egyptian k i n g s h i p p r o p a g a n d a w e h a v e s u r v e y e d a n d f r o m the material in the extant Potter's Oracle, w e m a y conclude that this Harsiesis p r o p a g a n d a m u s t h a v e consisted of: (1) a Chaosbeschreibung discourse that, referring implicitly to the p r e s e n t state of Egypt, effectively d e n i g r a t e d t h e Ptolemies; (2) (within t h e latter material) specific references to G r e e k s a n d G r e e k d o m i n a t i o n as Typ h o n i c (that is, associated with t h e S e t h - T y p h o n ) , to clarify the imm e d i a t e n a t u r e a n d the cause of c h a o s in Egypt; (3) t h e a d v e n t of a t r u e p h a r a o h (as the fifty-five-year ruler of t h e Lamb's Oracle), described in s u c h a w a y as to indicate Harsiesis with certainty; a n d (4) a p r o p h e c y of this king's expulsion of the foreigners, r e e s t a b l i s h m e n t of shrines, a n d restoration of Ma'at t h r o u g h o u t t h e land. T h e g e n r e of p r e s e n t a t i o n w o u l d h a v e b e e n an oracle in the n a m e of A m u n or K h n u m . According to Ludwig K o e n e n ' s analysis, t h e Oracle of the Potter w a s c o m p o s e d specifically to d e n i g r a t e Harsiesis's claims to kingship, to portray h i m as a foreigner, a n d to redirect expectations of the "fifty-fiveyear ruler" to an ideal p h a r a o h in the f u t u r e , "sent f r o m Helios" (that is, Re) a n d established by Isis. 84 T h e n , in a s u b s e q u e n t recension of the Potter's Oracle (represented in a n O x y r h y n c h u s p a p y r u s , d e s i g n a t e d as P 3 ), a n editor s h i f t e d the p r o p h e t i c expectation f r o m the "messianic" p h a r a o h to the r e n e w a l of t h e Sothis cycle itself. 85 T h r o u g h this s c h e m e , the Potter's Oracle "returns" to t h e eschatology of the Lamb's Oracle to imply (1) that it is t h e cosmos's r e n e w a l that allows the r e e s t a b l i s h m e n t of kingship, rather t h a n (2) that the e s t a b l i s h m e n t of k i n g s h i p per se r e n e w s the cosmos. Chaosbeschreibung a n d its salvific resolution t h u s b e c o m e entirely p r o p h e t i c visions of a n eschaton. 8 6 84. T h e Potter's Oracle d e s c r i b e s H a r s i e s i s ' s c a r e e r in t h e m o d e of vaticinium ex event us: "From Ethiopia t h e r e will arise [. . ] h e f r o m a m o n g t h e p r o f a n e o n e s [ανοσιών] (will c o m e ) to Egypt, a n d h e will settle [in t h e city, w h i c h ] will a f t e r w a r d s b e d e s e r t e d — a n d h e ( w a s ) o u r m a n of t w o y e a r s . . . a n d A m u n s p o k e well" (Or. Pot. P 2 1 6 - 2 0 [= P 3 30-31]; ed. K o e n e n , " P r o p h e z e i u n g e n d e s T o p f e r s , " 202-3). T h i s E t h i o p i a n is a l m o s t c e r t a i n l y H a r s i e s i s a n d t h e "city," P a n o p o l i s , w h i c h H a r s i e s i s c h o s e a s his s t r o n g h o l d b u t w h i c h w a s d e s t r o y e d w i t h h i s d e f e a t a n d n o l o n g e r p e r m i t t e d to b e r e b u i l t ( K o e n e n , " P r o p h e z e i u n g e n d e s ' T o p f e r s , " 188; a n d Bevan, House of Ptolemy, 317). In l a b e l i n g h i m a n " E t h i o p i a n " t h e scribe implicitly d e n i g r a t e s h i m a s a f o r e i g n e r , a slight p e r h a p s explicable by t h e fact t h a t Ethiopia d o m i n a t e d t h e T h e b a i d d u r i n g t h e Late p e r i o d . T h e " t w o y e a r s " r e f e r e n c e , h o w e v e r , w a s t a k e n f r o m t h e Lamb's Oracle, w h i c h p r o p h e s i e d "he of t h e 2 (years?), w h i c h (?) is n o t o u r ( c r o w n e d one?)" to p r e c e d e t h e t r u e k i n g of f i f t y - f i v e years; in t h e Potter1 s Oracle it h a s b e e n a p p l i e d to H a r s i e s i s ' s t w o - y e a r reign a s if it h a d b e e n p r e d i c t e d ( K o e n e n , " S u p p l e m e n t a r y N o t e , " 12). 85. Or. Pot. m s . P 3 i n t e r p o l a t e s : "[That m a n ] w a s n o t o u r s ; t h e o n e w h o is o u r s of t h e f i f t y - f i v e y e a r s will b r i n g t h e evils to t h e G r e e k s w h i c h t h e L a m b a n n o u n c e d to Bacharis" (11. 31-34; ed. K o e n e n , " P r o p h e z e i u n g e n d e s T o p f e r s , " 203). 86. K o e n e n ( " P r o p h e c i e s of a Potter," 2 5 3 - 5 4 ) a n d S m i t h ( " W i s d o m a n d A p o c a l y p t i c , "

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As in the Lamb's Oracle, the Oracle of the Potter focuses on the deportation a n d salvific return of religious images ("the divine s t a t u e s [αγάλματα] of Egypt, w h i c h w e r e t r a n s p o r t e d there, will return to Egypt again 8 7 .(‫ ״‬O t h e r traditional t h e m e s d r a w n f r o m t h e Chaosbeschreibung tradition include a b a n d o n m e n t of the land ("the land will fall into confusion, a n d not a f e w of t h o s e i n h a b i t i n g Egypt will a b a n d o n their h o m e s (and) go forth to foreign lands 8 8 ;(‫ ״‬invasion by typical Eastern armies (‫״‬A king will c o m e f r o m Syria, w h o will be h a t e f u l to all m e n . . . the city w h i c h w a s f o u n d e d by the foreigners 8 9 will b e deserted, a n d these things will take place at the e n d of t h e evils [of t h e time] w h e n h o r d e s [φι-λλόροια] of foreign m e n c a m e into Egypt 9 0 ;(‫ ״‬a n d celestial problems, the decline of fertility, a n d social strife: T h e s u n will b e b l o t t e d o u t [άμανρωθήσ^ταί] (as it will be) u n w i l l i n g to b e h o l d the e v i l s (occurring) in Egypt. T h e earth will n o t r e s p o n d t o s e e d s ; t h e s e t h i n g s will b e part of its blight; the farmer will be c h a r g e d for t a x e s o n w h a t h e d i d not ( e v e n ) plant, a n d t h e y will fight in Egypt a m o n g e a c h

152-53) propose that the Potter's Oracle thereby became an "apocalypse," because the eschatology was cosmic, as opposed to nationalist-millennialist propaganda for a specific person, a n d because the vision itself seems to have circulated without the f r a m e (in the case of the two third-century papyri, P 2 and P 3 ). Because the definition of the genre "apocalypse" has been disengaged from the criterion of eschatology (by such scholars as Rowland and Himmelfarb; see above, p. 41 n. 30), Koenen's and Smith's observations merely s h o w that the Oracle of the Potter came to circulate as a solitary Chaosbeschreibung discourse, rather than in the literary f r a m e of the Konigsnovelle, and that the priestly eschatology of its authors, like that of most eschatological visionaries of the Greco-Roman period, came to synthesize and emphasize concepts of astrological determinism; cf. Franz C u m o n t , "La fin du m o n d e selon les mages occidentaux," RHR 103 (1931):29-96. 87. Or. Pot. P 2 34f (= P 3 57-58), ed. Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des T o p f e r s , " 206-7. This motif of Chaosbeschreibung may also reflect traditions or experiences of the priesthood of Khnum. Koenen views the "passive" return of images to Egypt in the Potter's Oracle as significant of the impotence of real kings—that the heroic king desired would bring them back himself (ibid., 181), as A m e n o p h i s presumably would in the legend of the impure invaders. But as Griffiths observes, a military return of icons is not the case in the Oracle of the Lamb either, for there the people bring t h e m back ("Apocalyptic in the Hellenistic Era," 290 n. 80). It is probable that the statues would be returned by virtue of the king's establishment of M a ' a t , which would reconcile all things generally. Cf. also Mahe, Hermes en Haute-Egypte, 2:97-100, on the concept of sacred statuary in Greco-Roman Egypt. 88. Or. Pot. P 2 21-23 (ed. Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des T o p f e r s , " 202-4). 89. Literally: "The city of the foreigners, which was founded." 9 0 . Or. Pot.

P2 16-17, 30-32 ( = P3 30-31, 53-54); ed. Koenen, " P r o p h e z e i u n g e n

des

Topfers," 202-3, 206-7. Roberts and Koenen are convinced that the "king from Syria" is an ex eventu reference to Antiochus Epiphanes, w h o invaded and occupied Egypt between 170 and 168 B.C.E. (Roberts, "Oracle of the Potter," 92, 98 n. 30; Koenen, Prophezeiungen des 'Topfers,'" 187); but this interpretation is unnecessary, for by this time the invasion of Syrians w a s a prophetic topos.

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o t h e r b e c a u s e of their n e e d for f o o d ; for w h a t t h e y p l a n t a n o t h e r r e a p s a n d r u n s off ( w i t h it). 91

Finally, w i t h the d e p a r t u r e of 'Αγαθός Ααίμων (the spirit of civic f o r t u n e ) f r o m the city of t h e foreigners (Alexandria) a n d its reinstatem e n t in Memphis, 9 2 a n d as the city is a b a n d o n e d a n d d i m i n i s h e s to the status of a fishing village, 93 a king " d e s c e n d e d f r o m Helios" will a p p e a r , "established b y the greatest g o d d e s s Isis." 94 U n d e r this king's reign all things return to order e v e n to t h e point that "the living m i g h t pray that the d e c e a s e d rise u p to s h a r e in t h e prosperity." 9 5

Conclusion ' Thus, f r o m t h e Demotic Chronicle t h r o u g h the Potter's Oracle, the Chaosbeschreibung discourse is increasingly applied to "current times" in Egypt, to characterize e x p e r i e n c e — w h a t e v e r its realities—as a n interregnal period that is by n a t u r e chaotic a n d awaiting t h e accession of a "King f r o m Re, installed by Isis.‫״‬ In a wider sense, h o w e v e r , the N e k t a n e b o s literature, the legends of K h n u m , a n d the intertextuality of t h e p r o p h e c i e s t h e m s e l v e s all reflect a scribal culture actively e n g a g e d in t h e collection, r e w o r k i n g , a n d diss e m i n a t i o n of classical t h e m e s a n d legends. As R o m e took control a n d the p r i e s t h o o d s b e c a m e increasingly alienated f r o m t h e g o v e r n m e n t , w e 91. Or. Pot. Ρ2 1, 7-10 (= Ρ 3 I, 18-23), ed. Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des T b p f e r s , " 200-203). 92. Agathos Daitmm represents t h e "divine blessing" u p o n Alexandria. However, t h e fact that it leaves Alexandria, t h e artificial city of t h e Hellenists, for Memphis (P 2 29 [= 3 P 52]), the traditional seat of priestly and pharaonic power, suggests that the author wants to portray a traditional Egvptian divine force: Psai, a native chthonic deity. See W. W. Tarn, "The Hellenistic Ruler-Cult and t h e Daemon," JHS 48 (1928):215-16, 21819; P. M. Fraser, Ptolemaic Alexandria. 3 vols. (Oxford: Clarendon, 1972), 1:210-11. 93. Or. Pot. P 2 35 (= P 3 59), ed. Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des T o p f e r s , 2 0 6 - 7 McCown is probably correct in u n d e r s t a n d i n g this phrase in the sense of Ez 26:5, 14 (LXX), "a place for the spreading of nets" (McCown, "Egyptian Apocalyptic Literature," 398 n. 79), because the a u t h o r obviously w a n t s to give as great a contrast as possible to the bustling merchant city of Alexandria. 94. Isis rose in both popular and politico-religious d o m a i n s to virtually monolatrous status during t h e Greco-Roman period. In classical Egyptian religion, Isis was identified with the t h r o n e of the p h a r a o h . During the Hellenistic period she absorbed the symbolism and function of the goddess Ma'at (cosmic order and justice as mediated through the pharaoh), came to signify the m a i n t e n a n c e of social and familial relationships, a n d — a s enforcer of cosmic o r d e r — w a s identified with goddesses a r o u n d the Mediterranean as an international kosmokratrix. The context in which Isis would have been understood to "install" a messianic pharaoh by (especially Memphite) priests of this period has been exhaustively studied by Jan Bergman, Ich bin Isis: Studien zum memphitischen Hintergrund der griechischen Isisaretalogien, Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis, Historia Religionum 3 (Uppsala: Uppsala University Press, 1968); see also notes by J. Z. Smith, "Native Cults in the Hellenistic Period," HR 11 (1971 ):236-49. 95. Or. Pot. P 2 28-43 (= P 3 50-71), ed. Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des T o p f e r s , 2 0 4 - 7 "‫׳‬.

‫״‬

.

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183

see the "Houses of Life," the t e m p l e scriptoria, w o r k i n g ever m o r e feverishly to d i s s e m i n a t e nostalgic a c c o u n t s of great kings, a n g r y accounts of invasions, pessimistic v i e w s of the present, a n d fantastic prophecies of a messianic p h a r a o h . A. Moret h a s well expressed the g r o w i n g archivism of the p r i e s t h o o d s in connection with Egypt's historical vicissitudes: T h e m o s t critical m o m e n t s of national life w e r e t h o s e w h e r e l e g e n d s s p o n t a n e o u s l y f l o u r i s h e d : at t h e t i m e of t h e E t h i o p i a n i n v a s i o n t h e d e a t h of Bocchoris, at t h e time of t h e Persian i n v a s i o n t h e d i s a p p e a r a n c e i n t o Egypt of N e c t a n e b o II, m a d e t h e s e last national P h a r a o h s enter the k i n g d o m of l e g e n d w h e n c e t h e y w o u l d p e r p e t u a l l y return, a r m e d w i t h all t h e r e s o u r c e s of m a g i c , t o correct s i t u a t i o n s a n d p r e p a r e the future resurrection of Egypt. 9 6

Excursus: The Prophetic Motifs of

Chaosbeschreibung

T h e Chaosbeschreibung f o r m in t h e h i s t o r y of E g y p t i a n literary tradition i n v o l v e d a limited s p e c t r u m of m o t i f s , all of w h i c h w e r e inspired b y a u t h o r s ' c o n t e m p l a t i o n s of t h e l a n d a n d t h e c o s m o s w i t h o u t t h e i n t e g r a t i n g p o w e r of the p h a r a o h . A s t h e m y t h i c a l f u n c t i o n of E g y p t i a n k i n g s h i p c h a n g e d little b e t w e e n t h e s e c o n d m i l l e n n i u m B.C.E. a n d t h e R o m a n p e r i o d (if a n y t h i n g , it g a i n e d a m o r e idealized character), s o t h e c o n t e m p l a t i o n of that k i n g s h i p ' s o p p o s i t e — d i s o r d e r a n d c a t a s t r o p h e — r e t a i n e d a c o n s t a n t s e l e c t i o n of m o t i f s (if a n y t h i n g , it g a i n e d greater detail o v e r time). O n t h e b a s i s of the literature d i s c u s s e d s o far, then, o n e m a y t y p o l o g i z e Chaosbeschreibung i n t o the f o l l o w i n g c a t e g o r i e s of m o t i f s . T h e y are listed h e r e in t h e order of the i m p o r t a n c e t h e literature s e e m s to attribute to t h e m ; h o w e v e r , in t h e texts t h e m s e l v e s t h e c a t e g o r i e s a n d m o t i f s are all interw o v e n . (It s h o u l d b e n o t e d that the s e c o n d a n d third categories, C h a o s in Earth a n d C o l l a p s e of Borders, fall u n d e r t h e rubric of "threats of S e t h - T y p h o n , " d e m o n s t r a t i n g Chaosbeschreibung's b a s i s in m y t h o l o g y as w e l l as k i n g s h i p ideology.)

1. C h a o s in Society: D i s i n t e g r a t i o n of t h e Social Order 9 7 a. interruption of f a m i l y structure a n d life (1) (2) (3) (4)

suicide strife a m o n g b l o o d r e l a t i v e s c e s s a t i o n of childbirth infanticide

(5) i m p r o p e r m o r t u a r y practices b. internal social strife a n d r e b e l l i o n s 96. Moret, "Horus sauveur," 286. 97. Assmann has emphasized social reversal and disintegration as axial to the entire ideology of Chaosbeschreibung ("Konigsdogma und Heilserwartung," 357, 357 n. 55); cf. Posener, De la divinite du pharaon, 56-57.

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

c. a b a n d o n m e n t of v i l l a g e s a n d c i t i e s d . d i s i n t e g r a t i o n of r e l i g i o u s c u l t (1) d e s t r u c t i o n o f t e m p l e s ( 2 ) d i s c l o s u r e of p r i e s t l y s e c r e t s (3) r e m o v a l o f s a c r e d i c o n s (4) d e p a r t u r e of g o d s 9 8 2. C h a o s i n E a r t h : F e r t i l i t y a n d t h e N i l e a . e n c r o a c h m e n t of d e s e r t (1) a p p r o a c h of d e s e r t a n i m a l s 9 9 (2) a c t i v i t y of r e p t i l e s a n d s c o r p i o n s 1 0 0 b. a g r i c u l t u r a l d e c l i n e 1 0 1 (1) f a m i n e (2) d r o u g h t c. d r y i n g o f N i l e (1) N i l e r u n n i n g w i t h b l o o d ( i n s t e a d of w a t e r ) 1 0 2

98. T h e explicit d e s c r i p t i o n of t h e d e p a r t u r e of t h e g o d s o n l y a p p e a r s in l i t e r a t u r e of t h e G r e c o - R o m a n p e r i o d , p a r t i c u l a r l y in t h e Perfect Discourse; h o w e v e r , J. G w y n G r i f f i t h s h a s f o u n d a n o t h e r , etiological v e r s i o n of t h i s Chaosbeschreibung motif w h i c h involves Seth (who pursues the Egyptian gods) a n d s h o w s the motif's more ancient r o o t s ("The Flight of t h e G o d s b e f o r e T y p h o n : A n U n r e c o g n i z e d M y t h , " Hermes 88 [1960|:374-76). Cf. t h e Potter's Oracle, in w h i c h t h e Agathos Daimon of A l e x a n d r i a d e p a r t s to b e r e i n s t a t e d in M e m p h i s . 99. Neferti p r e d i c t s t h a t "desert flocks will d r i n k at t h e river of Egypt, t a k e their e a s e on t h e s h o r e s for lack of o n e t o f e a r " (11. 3 5 - 3 7 ; tr. L i c h t h e i m , 1:141). T h e Book of Overthrowing Apep i n s t r u c t s t h e p r i e s t s t o m a k e "an a n t e l o p e b o u n d a n d f e t t e r e d , a n d it shall b e t h u s inscribed: ' A p e p , t h e F a l l e n " ( P . B r e m n e r - R h i n d 32.52-53; tr. F a u l k n e r , " B r e m n e r - R h i n d P a p y r u s — I V , " 53). In t h e H o r u s s t e l a e (see a b o v e , p. 165), t h e child H o r u s h o l d s " S e t h i a n " a n i m a l s in e a c h h a n d , i n c l u d i n g a n t e l o p e s , w h i l e a t e r r a - c o t t a i m a g e of t h e p r o t e c t i v e g o d Bes s h o w s h i m s e a t e d , victoriously, u p o n a n a n t e l o p e : s e e t h e d i s c u s s i o n by Jean L e C l a n t , "A p r o p o s d ' u n e t e r r e cuite d e Bes a l'Oryx," Hommages a Lucien Lerat, 2 vols., e d . H e l e n e W a l t e r , C e n t r e d e r e c h e r c h e s d ' h i s t o i r e a n c i e n n e 55 (Paris: "Les Belles Lettres," 1984), 1:409-19. A n t e l o p e s w e r e p r o b a b l y c l a s s e d a s d a n g e r o u s n o t o n l y by r e a s o n of t h e i r d e s e r t h a b i t a t b u t a l s o b e c a u s e t h e y c o u l d d a m a g e crops. 100. S e e n. 99, a b o v e . Just a s " t h e s e r p e n t did n o t bite in t h e a g e of t h e p r i m e v a l gods," a c c o r d i n g to a classical E g y p t i a n c o s m o g o n y ( I M . 8.81; tr. Kakosy, "Fallen S t a t e of t h e W o r l d , " 206), s o in t h e last d a y s , a c c o r d i n g t o t h e Apocalypse of Shenoute, "wild a n i m a l s will leave t h e i r c a v e r n s a n d crags; t h e y will bite d i s o b e d i e n t p e o p l e ; a n d t h e s e b i t e s will m a k e t h e m s u f f e r for six m o n t h s , just a s w h e n a s c o r p i o n s t i n g s a p e r s o n " (tr. E. A m e l i n e a u , Monuments pour seri'ir a I'histoire de I'Egypte chretienne aux IV' et V' siecles, Memoires publies par les membres de la mission archeologique franqaise au Caire 4 [Paris: E r n e s t Leroux, 1888], 344). N o t e t h e p r e s e n c e of s c o r p i o n s a n d s e r p e n t s to r e p r e s e n t d e m o n i c d a n g e r in Vita Antonii c h a p s . 9, 12, 23, 24, 39. In c h a p . 41, S a t a n e c h o e s S e t h in c o m p l a i n i n g to A n t o n y , "I n o l o n g e r h a v e a p l a c e " — h e h a s b e e n t h w a r t e d by t h e " n e w , " C h r i s t i a n p o w e r of o r d e r , t h r o u g h t h e a g e n c y of A n t o n y . 101. S e e J a c q u e s V a n d i e r , La famine dans I'Egypte ancienne (Cairo: IFAO, 1936); cf. t h e B y z a n t i n e a p o c a l y p t i c u s e s of t h i s motif cited in W i l h e l m Bousset, The Antichrist Legend, tr. A. H . K e a n e ( L o n d o n : H u t c h i n s o n , 1896), 195-200. 102. In b o t h Ipuwer a n d t h e Perfect Discourse, t h i s i m a g e is a s s o c i a t e d w i t h social strife a n d a n excess of c o r p s e s (i.e., social c h a o s ) r a t h e r t h a n w i t h d r o u g h t .

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

185

3. C o l l a p s e of B o r d e r s a. i n v a s i o n of " f o r e i g n e r s " (1) i n v a s i o n of ( S e t h - ) T y p h o n i a n s (2) i n v a s i o n of A s i a t i c s 1 0 3 (a) i n v a s i o n of A s s y r i a n s o r S y r i a n s (b) i n v a s i o n of P e r s i a n s 1 0 4 (c) i n v a s i o n of " g i r d l e - w e a r e r s 1 0 5 ‫״‬ (d) i n v a s i o n of j e w s 4. C h a o s in t h e H e a v e n s : B r e a k d o w n of t h e C e l e s t i a l O r d e r 1 0 6 a. d i s a p p e a r a n c e (or d a r k e n i n g ) of s u n 1 0 7 b. d i s a p p e a r a n c e (or d a r k e n i n g ) of m o o n 1 0 8

PRIESTHOOD AND ORACLES IN THE ROMAN PERIOD T h e Demotic

Chronicle,

t h e Oracle

of the Lamb

to Bocchoris,

and

the

Oracle of the Potter all vividly mark the transition of the Chaosbeschreibung discourse from royal p r o p a g a n d a for a particular king (which demonstrated by contrast the integrative power he imposed in Egypt) to prophecies of calamity, referring to the present or imminent times, in anticipation of a ‫״‬messianic‫ ״‬p h a r a o h . But whereas the Demotic Chronicle and the Oracle of the Lamb were composed a n d circulated for the most part in Demotic Egyptian—and therefore almost exclusively within priestly culture—the Potter's Oracle was translated into Greek, w h e n c e we h a v e our complete versions. 109 As the m e d i u m of such 103. In Neferti (32-34) and Ipuwer (3.1), the invading foreigners were denoted by a

general term for Oriental peoples. 104. Including "Medes"; cf. Graf, "Medism," 22-24. 105. ζωνοφόροι apparently denoting s o m e aspect of military attire, this term is used to designate Greeks in the Oracle of the Potter and in the new O x y r h y n c h u s fragment of CPJ 520; cf. Roberts, "Oracle of the Potter," 91 n. 3; Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des 'Topfers," 187. 106. This is a subsidiary motif of Chaosbeschreibung (which more reflects the effects of the lapse of kingship on land). By the Greco-Roman period, however, traditions of celestial portents became integrated into prophetic portrayals of eschatological chaos, as shown in the Sibylline Oracles. 107. For the significance of the solar eclipse in ancient Egypt, see primary sources in Ricardo A. Caminos, The Chronicle of Prince Osorkon, Analecta orientalia 37 (Rome: Pontifical Biblical Institute, 1958), 88-89; and Naphtali Lewis, The Interpretation of Dreams and Portents (Toronto: Stevens, 1976), 139-50. Cf. Posener, De la divinite du pharaon, 55-57. The d a r k e n i n g of t h e sun signified cosmic catastrophe or disorder in many Mediterranean cultures; see Jo Ann Hackett, The Balaam Text from Deir 'Alia, HSM 31 (Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, 1984), 29, 75-76. 108. According to t h e Vienna Demotic lunar omina text (second/third centuries C.E.), odd m o o n phases or colorings generally correspond to invasions and social chaos in Egypt; see Parker, Demotic Papyrus on Eclipse- and Lunar-Omina, esp. 35-36. 109. Roberts includes a transcription of an extremely lacunose Greek papyrus, P.

186

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

translations f r o m Demotic to Greek could o n l y h a v e b e e n the priesthood, it is a p p a r e n t that nationalist e l e m e n t s within the Egyptian priesth o o d h a d an interest in circulating these p r o p h e t i c tracts outside their o w n enclaves. 1 1 0 By the R o m a n period in Egypt ( a n d t h r o u g h o u t t h e eastern M e d i t e r r a n e a n world), G r e e k h a d b e c o m e the m a j o r l a n g u a g e not only for legitimizing o n e ' s native traditions a n d m y t h o l o g i e s in a cosmopolitan m o d e but also for articulating a n t i - G r e e k , nationalist sentiments. 1 1 1 T h e translation a n d circulation of t h e Potter's Oracle in Greek also suggests that its compositional e l e m e n t s m a y h a v e carried m e a n i n g a n d force outside Egyptian priestly circles. T h e p r e s e n c e in t h e Third Sibylline Oracle of a "King f r o m Helios" p r o p h e c y (Sib. Or. 3.65256), for example, s h o w s the a d o p t i o n of Egyptian f o r m s of Chaosbeschreibung b y Egyptian Jews. 112 T h e Sibylline Oracles t h e m s e l v e s express a deliberate syncretization of various local p r o p h e t i c traditions a n d motifs f r o m a r o u n d the G r e c o - R o m a n w o r l d , w h i c h a u t h o r s accum u l a t e d a n d c o m b i n e d to d r a w t h e m o s t effective eschatological scenarios. T h e p r o m u l g a t i o n of t h e Potter's Oracle t h r o u g h the third c e n t u r y C.E., h o w e v e r , as well as of the Demotic text of the Lamb's Oracle (preserved Trinity C o l l e g e D u b l i n 192b, w h i c h b e a r s s o m e similarities t o t h e Potter's Oracle a n d w h i c h h e b e l i e v e s m i g h t b e a p r e - 2 5 0 B.C.E. c o p y of t h e s a m e text ("Oracle of t h e Potter," 92 n. 3); but, g i v e n its c o n d i t i o n , t h e r e l a t i o n s h i p h a s yet to b e s h o w n . M o s t s c h o l a r s believe t h e Potter's Oracle w a s originally w r i t t e n in E g y p t i a n (e.g., Bevan, House of Ptolemy, 240; J.W.B. Barns, " A l e x a n d r i a a n d M e m p h i s : S o m e Historical O b s e r v a t i o n s , " Orientalia 46 [1977]:31; Lloyd, " N a t i o n a l i s t P r o p a g a n d a , " 50; pace M o m i g l i a n o , " R e l i g i o u s O p p o s i t i o n ' to t h e R o m a n E m p i r e , " 111). T h e f r a g m e n t a r y D e m o t i c p r o p h e c y P.Tebt.Tait 13 r e s e m b l e s t h e Potter's Oracle's a n t i - G r e e k a n d p r o M e m p h i t e p e r s p e c t i v e ; s e e Tait, Papyri from Tebtunis, 48; cf. a l s o Eve A. E. R e v m o n d , " D e m o t i c Literary W o r k s of G r a e c o - R o m a n D a t e in t h e Rainer C o l l e c t i o n of P a p y r i in V i e n n a , " in Papyrus Erzherzog Rainer (P.Rainer Cent.), 2 vols. ( V i e n n a : V e r l a g B r u d e r H o l l i n e k , 1983), 1:50, o n P . V i n d o b . D 9906/6758. 110. Cf. K o e n e n : ' I n all l i k e l i h o o d , t h e t r a n s m i s s i o n of s u c h p r o p h e c i e s w a s , in p a r t , oral, w i t h p r i v a t e copies m a d e f r o m h e a r s a y a n d earlier p r i v a t e copies" ( " S u p p l e m e n t a r y Note," 9 n. 2). 111. Cf. F o w d e n , Egyptian Hermes, 37, 4 3 - 4 4 ; a n d , esp., G l e n W. B o w e r s o c k , Hellenism in Late Antiquity ( A n n A r b o r : U n i v e r s i t y of M i c h i g a n Press, 1990). 112. J o h n J. C o l l i n s h a s p r o p o s e d t h a t a J e w i s h c o u r t i e r of P t o l e m y VI m a y h a v e v i e w e d t h i s k i n g in s u c h a salvific light t h a t h e u s e d a n E g y p t i a n n a t i o n a l i s t o r a c l e to a r g u e this p e r s p e c t i v e in local t e r m s (The Sibylline Oracles of Egyptian /udaism, S B L D S 13 [Missoula, M o n t . : S c h o l a r s Press, 1974], 41-44). A l t h o u g h a n i n g e n i o u s s u g g e s t i o n , it is b a s e d o n n o historical e v i d e n c e o t h e r t h a n t h e u s e of E g y p t i a n k i n g s h i p i d e o l o g y to legitimize t h e P t o l e m i e s . A m o r e a p t c o n c l u s i o n f r o m t h e l o c a t i o n t h e "King f r o m Helios" oracle in a J e w i s h c o m p o s i t i o n is t h a t t h e o r a c l e ' s "messianic" o v e r t o n e s h e l d a p p r e c i a b l e p o w e r a m o n g J e w i s h a s well a s M e m p h i t e circles. It is u n n e c e s s a r y to a s s u m e t h a t t r a d i t i o n a l m o t i f s s u c h a s t h i s o n e m u s t a l w a y s r e f e r t o historical p e r s o n s or events.

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

187

on a p a p y r u s roll d a t e d to ca. 7 - 8 C.E.), w a s also part of a m o v e m e n t of archaism a n d preservationism o n the part of priesthoods. 1 1 3 Assessing the scribal character of the extant Demotic texts, Eve R e y m o n d o n c e suggested t h a t t h e r e m a y e v e n h a v e b e e n a g e n e r a l m o v e m e n t a m o n g m e m b e r s of t h e E g y p t i a n p r i e s t h o o d t o w a r d s b u i l d i n g a n a r c h i v e of n a t i v e

literary

traditions a n d works, o n e that continued into R o m a n times . . . a systematical collecting a n d c o p y i n g of E g y p t i a n historical r o m a n c e s w r i t t e n at various earlier d a t e s . . . w h a t h a s c o m e d o w n to u s d e m o n s t r a t e s t h e c o n t i n u i t y of t h e literary t r a d i t i o n s i n s p i r e d b y t h e e v e n t s w h i c h f o l l o w e d t h e c o l l a p s e of t h e N e w K i n g d o m . T h e s u b j e c t - m a t t e r s of t h e F a y y u m n a r r a t i v e s d e a l w i t h

war,

civil w a r s , a n d , in p a r t i c u l a r w i t h t h e w a r w i t h t h e A s s y r i a n s . 1 1 4

Thus, as m u c h as the Chaosbeschreibung f o r m a n d the Konigsnovelle genre m e r g e d w i t h other, similar f o r m s a n d genres of t h e M e d i t e r r a n e a n world, they also held a revered traditional s t a t u s in the writing culture of Egypt t h r o u g h o u t the G r e c o - R o m a n period. T h e r e f o r e it c o m e s as little surprise to find, e v e n in the period of t h e Apocalypse of Elijah, a p r o f u s i o n of Egyptian oracular texts c o m p o s e d — or merely c o p i e d — i n imitation of the classical p r o p h e t i c forms. A seco n d - c e n t u r y Greek p a p y r u s f r a g m e n t c o m b i n e s the astrological specificity of lunar p h a s e s with a prediction of "disturbance" [ταραχή] in Egypt a n d h a s w h a t a p p e a r s to b e an ex eventu r e f e r e n c e to t h e boukoloi, a revolutionary b a n d i t organization of the R o m a n period. 1 1 5 A secondcentury Demotic collection of "lunar o m i n a " correlates lunar p h a s e s with invasions of Egypt, social b r e a k d o w n , a n d the actions of the p h a r a o h . 1 1 6 A third-century G r e e k p a p y r u s prophesies, in the m a n n e r of Neferti, class reversal c o m b i n e d with social strife, " f a m i n e a n d sickness," the t r a u m a of royal abdication, a n d , finally, a time w h e n "the king will b e 113. S e e D u n a n d , Religion populaire en Egypte romaine, 126-27, 160. O n t h e i d e o l o g y of a r c h a i s m , s e e E. J. H o b s b a w m , *The Social F u n c t i o n of t h e Past: S o m e Q u e s t i o n s , ' Past and Present 55 (1972):6-9. 114. R e y m o n d , * D e m o t i c Literary W o r k s , ' 48; cf. 50, on Oracle of the Lamb. A s i m i l a r p h e n o m e n o n m a y b e i n f e r r e d f r o m t h e D e m o t i c m a g i c a l texts of R o m a n d a t e , e.g., t h e D e m o t i c Magical P a p y r u s of L o n d o n a n d Leiden. 115. P . S t a n f o r d G 9 3 b v (in J o h n C . S h e l t o n , *An Astrological P r e d i c t i o n of Disturb a n c e s in E g y p t , ' Ancient Society 7 (1976):209-13). O n boukoloi, s e e ibid., 211; Jack W i n k l e r , *Lollianos a n d t h e D e s p e r a d o e s , ' JHS 100 (1980):175-81; J e a n - M a r i e B e r t r a n d , "Les Boucoloi o u le m o n d e a l ' e n v e r s , ' REA 90 (1988): 139-49. T h e ex eventu p r e d i c t i o n m i g h t r e f e r t o t h e a n t i - R o m a n r e v o l t u n d e r I s i d o r o s m e n t i o n e d b y C a s s i u s Dio, Historia 72.4. 116. P a r k e r , Demotic Papyrus on Eclipse- and Lunar-Omina, 35-52.

188

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

great and punish his adversaries. 1 1 7 ‫ ״‬A Demotic p a p y r u s of the Roman period, bearing marked resemblances to the Potter's Oracle, envisions the destruction of M e m p h i s in connection with "Greeks. 118 ‫ ״‬Another Demotic papyrus, of unspecified Roman date, organizes by astrological a n d Sothis phases predictions of rebellion, agricultural prosperity, Syrian military movements, a n d the defensive or beneficial activities of the pharaoh. 1 1 9 A t h i r d / f o u r t h - c e n t u r y Greek papyrus, PSI 760, seems to prophesy disorder in all forms, from crocodiles to fire. It is to such a general stream of Egyptian prophetic literature d u r i n g the Roman period, a n d to the familiarity with the literary forms a n d motifs of Egyptian prophecy that this stream exemplifies, that we can ascribe the ‫״‬core‫ ״‬prophecy of the Hermetic Perfect Discourse, a text that d r a w s deeply from the Chaosbeschreibung tradition: 120 F o r all d i v i n i t y will l e a v e E g y p t a n d will f l e e u p w a r d t o h e a v e n . A n d E g y p t will b e w i d o w e d ; it will b e a b a n d o n e d b y t h e g o d s . For f o r e i g n e r s will c o m e i n t o E g y p t , a n d t h e y will r u l e i t . . . . A n d in t h a t d a y t h e c o u n t r y t h a t w a s m o r e p i o u s t h a n all c o u n t r i e s will b e c o m e i m p i o u s . N o l o n g e r will it b e f u l l of t e m p l e s b u t it will b e f u l l of t o m b s . . . . A n d E g y p t will b e m a d e a desert b y t h e g o d s a n d the E g y p t i a n s . A n d as for y o u , River, t h e r e will b e a d a y w h e n y o u will f l o w w i t h b l o o d m o r e t h a n w a t e r . . . . A n d h e w h o is d e a d will n o t b e m o u r n e d a s m u c h a s h e w h o is a l i v e . . . . D a r k n e s s will b e p r e f e r r e d t o l i g h t a n d d e a t h will b e p r e f e r r e d t o life. N o o n e will g a z e i n t o h e a v e n . . . . In t h o s e d a y s t h e e a r t h will n o t b e s t a b l e , a n d m e n will n o t sail t h e s e a , n o r will t h e y k n o w t h e s t a r s in h e a v e n . . . . A n d t h e l o r d s of t h e e a r t h will w i t h d r a w t h e m s e l v e s . A n d t h e y will e s t a b l i s h t h e m s e l v e s in a city t h a t is in a c o r n e r of E g y p t a n d t h a t will b e b u i l t t o w a r d t h e s e t t i n g of t h e s u n . 1 2 1

117. P.Oxy 2554 (tr. Rea, in idem, ‫־‬Predictions by A s t r o l o g y , 8 1 ‫ ) ־‬. The f r a m e of this oracle is, strikingly, instructions for a magical rite (presumably integrating the oracle papyrus) to guarantee prosperity. T h e Sitz-im-Leben of t h e text would certainly h a v e been private (although the source of the oracle proper m a y well have been oralperformative); cf. Koenen, "Supplementary N o t e , 9 ‫ ־‬n. 2. 118. P.Tebt. Tait 13 (in Tait, Papyri from Tebfunis, 45-48). 119. P.Cairo 31222 (in Hughes, "A Demotic Astrological Text," 256-64). 120. Mahe, Hermes en Haute-Egypte, 2:69-72 (on inactuality of historical references), 2:111-13 (on relationship of composition to Egyptian sources); pace Walter Scott, Hermetica, 4 vols. (Oxford, 1924-36; reprint, Boston: Shambhala, 1983), 1:61-76. Cf. also Jacques Schwartz, "Note sur la Petite Apocalypse' de VAsclepius," Revue d'histoire et de philosophie

religieuse

6 2 ( 1 9 8 2 ) : 1 6 5 - 6 9 ; a n d F o w d e n , Egyptian

Hermes,

37-44. O n

Perfect

Discourse and Egyptian oracle tradition in general, see D u n a n d , "L'Oracle du Potier," 57-59; and Mahe, Hermes en Haute-Egypte, 2:72-97. Mahe rightly criticizes D u n a n d ' s supposition ("L'Oracle d u Potier," 59) that t h e Perfect Discourse is d e p e n d e n t on the Potter's Oracle, as based on f e w textual parallels (Mahe, Hermes en Haute-Egypte, 2:78 n. 106, 79). 121. Asclepius 24-27 (= N H C VI, 8.70-75; tr. James Brashler, Peter A. Dirkse, a n d

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

189

Here a n d t h r o u g h o u t H e r m e t i c literature, o n e f i n d s t w o o t h e r t h e m e s f r o m the classical literature of Chaosbeschreibung that carry special emphasis: the decline of religion a n d ritual accuracy, a n d the e x p o s u r e of ancient priestly secrets. 122 T h e crisis that w o u l d h a v e inspired s u c h s e n t i m e n t s of ritual decline, particularly in the R o m a n period, can b e c o m p a r e d to the m o t i v a t i o n s b e h i n d the literary a r c h a i s m of t h e priesthood: in b o t h cases o n e can infer that the religious elite of R o m a n Egypt, no longer s u p p o r t e d by the rulership, sensed a gradual d i m i n i s h i n g of their authority, temples, a n d crafts. P a p y r u s CPJ 520, a p r o p h e c y of t h e R o m a n period directed specifically against Jews, d e m o n s t r a t e s a n o t h e r tradition f r o m the Egyptian k i n g s h i p ideology: that of i d e n t i f y i n g t h e Chaosbeschreibung motifs of i n v a d i n g foreigners a n d e n c r o a c h i n g desert as m a n i f e s t a t i o n s of S e t h T y p h o n . M a n e t h o a n d C h a e r e m o n , Egyptian priests a n d n a t i o n a l apologists f r o m the third century B.C.E. a n d first c e n t u r y C.E. respectively, e a c h r e s p o n d e d to Jewish e x o d u s a c c o u n t s with a revisionist version f r o m their o w n tradition, casting the H e b r e w s as defiled p e o p l e w h o w o r s h i p e d Seth, w h o w e r e deliberately expelled f r o m Egypt, a n d w h o t h e n i n v a d e d Egypt, r a v a g i n g the c o u n t r y s i d e a n d (in particular) despoiling temples. 1 2 3 T h e a p p a r e n t n a r r a t i v e basis to this story consisted of a D o u g l a s M. P a r r o t t , NHL, 334-36). T h e city *in a c o r n e r of Egypt" is n o t n e c e s s a r i l y Alexandria, a n i n t e r p r e t a t i o n t h a t w o u l d a s s u m e a s u b t l y p r o - H e l l e n i s t i c b e n t to a p r o p h e c y t h a t d e m o n s t r a t e s a c h a u v i n i s t i c critique of H e l l e n i s m ; cf. M a h e , Hermis en Haute-Egypte, 2:252; a n d B. V a n Rinsveld, "La v e r s i o n c o p t e d e Γ A s c l e p i u s et la ville d e l'age d'or," in Textes et etudes de papyrologie grecque, demotique, et copte, P a p y r o l o g i c a L u g d u n o - B a t a v a 23 (Leiden: Brill, 1985), 2 3 3 - 4 2 ( w h o a s s u m e s it is A l e x a n d r i a ) . 122. Cf. Corp. Herm. 16.2: "As f a r a s it is in y o u r p o w e r , King, a n d y o u a r e p o w e r f u l in all things, p r e s e r v e t h e d i s c o u r s e [Aoyoj] f r o m b e i n g t r a n s l a t e d , s o t h a t s u c h g r e a t m y s t e r i e s d o n o t g o t o t h e G r e e k s , lest t h e a r r o g a n t , careless, f a n c y s p e e c h of t h e G r e e k s c a u s e t h e m e a n i n g , t h e s t r e n g t h , a n d t h e e m p o w e r e d u t t e r a n c e of t h e w o r d s to b e f o r g o t t e n " (ed. N o c k a n d Festugiere, Corpus Hermeticum, 2:232). T h e H e r m e t i c Discourse on the Eighth and Ninth ( N H C VI, 6) i n s t r u c t s t h e n o v i c e to inscribe t e a c h i n g s in h i e r o g l y p h s o n t u r q u o i s e t a b l e t s " a n d w r i t e a n o a t h in t h e b o o k , lest t h o s e w h o r e a d t h e b o o k b r i n g t h e l a n g u a g e i n t o a b u s e , a n d n o t ( u s e it) to o p p o s e t h e a c t s of f a t e " (Disc. 8 - 9 , 61.25-31, tr. ] a m e s Brashler, P e t e r A. Dirkse, a n d D o u g l a s M. P a r r o t t , NHL, 326-27). T h e s a m e s e n t i m e n t s a r e r e f l e c t e d in Ipuwer: " T h e p r i v a t e c h a m b e r , its b o o k s a r e stolen, t h e secrets in it a r e laid b a r e . Lo, m a g i c spells a r e d i v u l g e d , spells a r e m a d e w o r t h l e s s t h r o u g h b e i n g r e p e a t e d by p e o p l e " ( I p u w e r 6.6-8, tr. L i c h t h e i m , 1:155). 123. M a n e t h o f r a g . 54 (= J o s e p h u s Apion 1.26 §§227-50), ed. W a d d e l l , Manetho, 1 1 3 31; a n d C h a e r e m o n f r a g . 1 ( = J o s e p h u s Apion 1.26 §§218-92), ed. Pieter W i l l e m V a n D e r Horst, in i d e m , Chaeremon: Egyptian Priest and Stoic Philosopher, E P R O 101 (Leiden: Brill, 1984), 8 - 9 (cf. 4 9 - 5 0 n n . 1 - 8 , o n u s e of E g y p t i a n n a t i o n a l i s t tradition). E g y p t i a n nationalist a n t i - J u d a i s m is a l s o r e f e r r e d to by P l u t a r c h De Iside et Osiride 31; cf. Griffiths, Plutarch: De Iside et Osiride, 4 1 8 - 1 9 . A similar s t o r y s e e m s to h a v e b e e n p r o m u l g a t e d b y t h e A l e x a n d r i a n a u t h o r L v s i m a c h u s (apud J o s e p h u s Against Apion 1. §§304-11).

190

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

legend of a n invasion b y an i m p u r e , i m p i o u s p e o p l e w h o h a d d e s t r o y e d Egyptian temples a n d pillaged Egypt. This legend w a s essentially a retrojection into the mythical past of t h e Chaosbeschreibung invasion topoi a n d of traditional a c c o u n t s of historical invasions, all f r a m e d as a p r o p h e c y once given to the l e g e n d a r y king Amenophis. 1 2 4 But M a n e t h o (or a s u b s e q u e n t editor) 1 2 5 a n d C h a e r e m o n identified these ancient imp u r e i n v a d e r s as t h e Jews. C h a e r e m o n i n c l u d e d t h e vital detail that it w a s the g o d d e s s Isis w h o h a d instructed t h e p h a r a o h to expel t h e m , p r e s u m a b l y an idea already part of the tradition. This image of Isis as militant national savior, w h i c h s t e m s f r o m h e r role as installer of the king in the Potter's Oracle p r o p h e c y , b e c o m e s a focal m y t h in CPJ 520: t h e Jews are " l a w b r e a k e r s [παράνομοι] o n c e expelled f r o m Egypt by t h e w r a t h of Isis." 126 "Attack the Jews!" t h e p r o p h e c y t h e n proclaims, for "impious p e o p l e will despoil your t e m p l e s [7‫־‬a tepa]" a n d "your largest t e m p l e will b e c o m e s a n d for horses (or crocodiles? [ιττττων])."127 I n d e e d , t h e text w a r n s that the Jews "will inhabit the City of Helios." 126 T h e papyri t h e m s e l v e s c o m e f r o m t h e third c e n t u r y C.E.—roughly c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s w i t h b o t h of the Potter's Oracle m a n u s c r i p t s a n d t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah; a n d with b o t h of these texts CPJ 520 s h a r e s vocabulary a n d motifs. 1 2 9 H o w e v e r , it w a s m o r e likely c o m p o s e d in 124. S e e Weill, La fin du moyen empire, 120-45; Yoyotte, " L ' E g y p t e a n c i e n n e , ' 133-43; a n d Stern, " F r a g m e n t of G r a e c o - E g y p t i a n P r o p h e c y , " 119-20. 125. E.g., d u r i n g t h e A l e x a n d r i a n t e n s i o n s of t h e m i d - f i r s t c e n t u r y C.E. S e e J o h n G . G a g e r , Moses in Greco-Roman Paganism, S B L M S 16 ( N a s h v i l l e : A b i n g d o n , 1972), 115-18; cf. 119-20. 126. O n Isis's m i l i t a n t n a t i o n a l i s t i c f u n c t i o n in t h e Hellenistic period, s e e B e r g m a n , Ich bin Isis, 121-71; a n d Louis V. Z a b k a r , Hymns to Isis in Her Temple at Philae ( H a n o v e r , N . H . , a n d L o n d o n : U n i v e r s i t y Press of N e w E n g l a n d / B r a n d e i s U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1988), 58-73. 127. K o e n e n , r e v i e w of CP/, vols. 2 - 3 , ed. Victor T c h e r i k o v e r a n d A l e x a n d e r Fuks, Gnomon 40 (1968):258; cf. M a n t e u f f e l , ed., "Zur P r o p h e t i e , " 121, s u g g e s t i n g t h e m e a n i n g "hippopotamus." 128. CPJ 520 ( = PSI 982). 1 u s e a c o r r e c t e d r e c o n s t r u c t i o n of t h i s text, g r a c i o u s l y p r o v i d e d by L u d w i g K o e n e n a n d b a s e d o n a n u n p u b l i s h e d O x y r h y n c h u s p a p y r u s . 129. A crucial "intertextual" link b e t w e e n t h e Potter's Oracle a n d CPJ 520 a p p e a r s in t h e n e w O x y r h y n c h u s f r a g m e n t ' s u s e of t h e w o r d ζωνοφόροι ("girdle-wearers") a s a m e t a p h o r for G r e e k s a s i n v a d i n g f o r e i g n e r s . K o e n e n u n d e r s t a n d s a n e x h o r t a t i o n , " D o n ' t let y o u r city b e d e p o p u l a t e d , " t o r e f e r to A l e x a n d r i a — t h a t is, in a p o s i t i v e s e n s e ( r e v i e w of CP], 258). T h i s w o u l d i n d i c a t e a G r e e k milieu for a u t h o r a n d a u d i e n c e , r a t h e r t h a n o n e hostile to A l e x a n d r i a in t h e first p l a c e (as in t h e case of t h e Potter's Oracle). Because t h e A l e x a n d r i a n m o b w a s r e s p o n s i b l e for m u c h a n t i - J e w i s h activity a n d p r o p a g a n d a d u r i n g t h e first c e n t u r y (see P h i l o Against Flaccus; J o s e p h u s War 2:494-98; H . ldris Bell, Jews and Christians in Egypt

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse of Elijah

191

response to the Jewish messianic revolt of 116-117, w h e n Jewish culture and activities h a d a far greater impact on Greco-Egyptian life than in the third century a n d w h e n Egyptian peasants themselves were actively engaged in the defense of temples (CPJ 438). 130 Its recopying during the third century may be understood in connection with another p a p y r u s fragment, CPJ 450, which attests to a local festival continuing in the late second century in O x y r h y n c h u s that celebrated victory over the Jews. 131 The discourse of this festival almost certainly articulated the (now legendary) victory of Egyptians over Jews in terms of the eradication of Typhonians. Even beyond this local ritual context for this oracle's continued significance, however, its recopying s h o w s once again that oracles composed in the traditional m a n n e r — e v e n for such specific circumstances—were valued, reread, a n d probably subjected to new interpretations in later times. 132

[London: British M u s e u m , 1924; reprint, Westport, Conn.: G r e e n w o o d , 1972], 10-21; idem, "Anti-Semitism in Alexandria," IRS 31 [1941]:10-21; Alan K. Bowman, Egypt after the Pharaohs [Berkeley: University of California Press, 1986], 209-17; Maria Pucci Ben Ze'ev, "Greek Attacks against Alexandrian Jews during Emperor Trajan's Reign," JSJ 20 [1989]:31-48), Koenen's interpretation is plausible; but the city likely refers to Memphis, whose priests would be more likely to use such a traditional p r o p h e c y to incite action. CPJ 439 is evidence that M e m p h i s ' s d e f e n d i n g a r m y in 117 w a s able to d e f e a t the Jews; in such circumstances the M e m p h i t e priesthood's use of such a hortatory prophecy would be u n d e r s t a n d a b l e . 130. O n the military services of the peasantry, see Alexander Fuks, "The Jewish Revolt in Egypt (A.D 115-117) in the Light of t h e Papyri," Aegyptus 33 (1953):145, 153‫־‬ 54; idem in CP/ 2:236-38; a n d A. Kasher, "Some C o m m e n t s on the Jewish Uprising in Egypt in the Time of Trajan," //S 27 (1976):147-58. U n d e r these circumstances, a n d considering the c o n s e q u e n t wholesale extermination of Jews in Egypt, it is likely that priests were involved in t h e call to arms, as I argue in "Lest Egypt's City Be Deserted: Religion and Ideology in the Egyptian Response to the Jewish Revolt (116-117 C.E.)," //S 43 (1992):203-20, a scenario that w o u l d allow a precise historical context for this oracle. Remondon h a s discussed anti-Jewish ideology in t h e priestly center of M e m p h i s in the first century B.C.E. ("Les antisemites d e Memphis," 244-61); a n d CPJ 439 s h o w s that t h e defenders of this city had a m a j o r victory over t h e Jews (because of the M e m p h i t e priesthood's exhortations?—cf. Sib. Or. 5.60-70). The association b e t w e e n CPJ 520 (= PSI 982) a n d t h e Jewish revolt w a s first suggested by Manteuffel, ed., "Zur Prophetie," 123-24. 131. O n the native Egyptian participants in this festival, see Fuks, "Jewish Revolt in Egypt," 153-54; a n d idem'in CP/ 2:260, note for 11. 30-35. 132. Therefore Stern m a y be incorrect in assuming that CPJ 520 is ' e v i d e n c e for antiJewish feelings in third-century Egypt" ("Fragment of Graeco-Egyptian Prophecy," 120); the reason for its recopying a n d preservation m a y h a v e been its status as a traditional Egyptian prophecy. The social a n d economic decline of the third century C.E. m a y also account for the profusion of n e w a n d old oracles d u r i n g this period (as is discussed below, chap. 9, pp. 249-57).

192

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

CONTINUITY OF CHAOSBESCHREIBUNG IN LATE ROMAN EGYPT AND THE LITERARY CONTEXT OF THE ELIJAH APOCALYPSE As Egyptian priestly scribes a n d their c o u n t e r p a r t s in Coptic m o n a s teries c o n t i n u e d to copy, translate, interpret, a n d reapply t h e classical literary c o r p u s t h r o u g h the Byzantine period, t h e motifs of Chaosbeschreibung f o u n d their w a y into a diverse r a n g e of texts: not only apocalypses a n d prophecies but also legends a n d historical romances. Cambyses, the Persian king w h o i n v a d e d Egypt in 5 2 5 B.C.E., h a d been progressively d e m o n i z e d in Egyptian scribal m e m o r y a n d p r o p a g a n d a since the Hellenistic period. But in t h e Coptic C a m b y s e s legend (pre-seventh century C.E.) a n d the Chronicle of John ofNikiu (ca. 690) this demonization reaches its apex. 1 3 3 T h e C a m b y s e s legend d e m o n s t r a t e s a t h o r o u g h acquaintance with classical Egyptian genres, such as the fable a n d Konigsnovelle, as well as traditionally "nationalist‫ ״‬views of foreign invasion. Both the C a m b y s e s legend a n d t h e Chronicle of John strengthen their typically d e m o n i c view of C a m b y s e s by identifying him with the biblical Nebuchadnezzar. 1 3 4 T h e Chronicle of John describes C a m byses as deporting Egyptians a n d — a familiar t h e m e f r o m Chaosbeschreibung tradition—the land of Egypt as c o n s e q u e n t l y b e c o m i n g desert. These texts h a v e particular relevance for t h e use of ‫״‬Persians‫ ״‬as the archetypal invaders in late a n t i q u e Egyptian literature. Chaosbeschreibung motifs also i n f o r m e d the representation of invasions a n d terrestrial c a t a s t r o p h e in the Apocalypse of Shenoute, w h i c h w a s a d d e d to Besa's Life of Shenoute near t h e time of t h e latter's translation into Arabic (ca. 6 8 5 - 6 9 0 C.E.). Here, too, t h e A r a b invasion is cast in traditional terms as invasion by t h e ‫״‬Persians,‫ ״‬following w h i c h the Antichrist a p p e a r s a n d the earth lurches into chaos a n d drought. 1 3 5 133. S e e H . L u d i n J a n s e n , The Coptic

Story of Cambyses'

Invasion

of Egypt,

Avhand-

linger utgitt af det Norske Videnskaps-Akademi i Oslo 2, Hist.-Filos. Klasse 1950, 2 (Oslo: Jakob Dybwad, 1950); cf. Leslie S. B. MacCoulI, ‫־‬The Coptic Cambyses Narrative Reconsidered,* Greek, Roman, and Byzantine Studies 23 (1982): 185-88, which attempts a p e r h a p s too exact reconstruction of this text's situation of origin; and R. H. Charles, The Chronicle of John, Texts and Translations Society 3 (London, 1916; reprint, Amsterdam: APA-Philo Press, 1981). Note that this increasing emphasis on the person of the 'inv a d e r - k i n g ' and his ‫־‬rule‫ ־‬continues a classical t h e m e describing the state of royalty before the accession of the "savior-king"; cf. Weill, La fin du moyen empire, 45-68, 111-18. 134. These similarities suggest t h e possibility of c o m m o n sources; cf. Jansen, Coptic Story of Cambyses'

Invasion,

27.

135. Tr. Amelineau, in idem, Monuments, 338-48; cf. Rosenstiehl, 40-42; a n d above, pp. 25-26.

The Literary and Ideological Background of the Apocalypse o f Elijah

193

An eschatological discourse f o u n d a m o n g t h e Coptic M a n i c h a e a n homilies a n d c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s with the Apocalypse of Elijah m a k e s broad use of Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung imagery, along with other traditions f r o m the M e d i t e r r a n e a n world. 1 3 6 Essential Egyptian topoi are used to describe both the decline of t h e world a n d its eschatological reintegration u n d e r "Jesus the Splendor.‫ ״‬While there is n o reason to expect the a u t h o r m a d e use of actual Egyptian texts in this case, t h e discourse d e m o n s t r a t e s the spread of imagery that w a s once sensible only within Egyptian kingship ideology t h r o u g h the w h o l e Mediterr a n e a n world, a process already f o u n d in the Sibylline Oracle collections. Yet the presence of such imagery in a missionary text translated for native Egyptian c o n s u m p t i o n can hardly h a v e been coincidental, for these motifs were part of the langue of t h e Egyptian religious mentality. A n o t h e r text, the Arabic legend of a n antediluvian king of Egypt, Surid, to w h o m C o p t s ascribed t h e building of the pyramids, d r e w on both Chaosbeschreibung a n d the classical Konigsnovelle genre. 1 3 7 According to this legend, Surid h a d t h e p y r a m i d s built to h o u s e treasures a n d books of w i s d o m after priests reported to him a p r o p h e c y of the decline of Egypt, culminating in a flood a n d conflagration. Surid's preservation of holy objects in response to a p r o p h e c y of d o o m bears strong parallels to t h e legend of A m e n o p h i s , w h o r e m o v e s all t h e holy animals a n d images to Ethiopia in r e s p o n s e to a p r o p h e c y h e reads concerning the invasion of t h e impure. T h e content of Surid's prophecy—conflagration, flood, cosmic portents—integrated m a n y of t h e cosmic regeneration ideas of the M e d i t e r r a n e a n world. 1 3 8 In d r a w i n g on such a broad r a n g e of sources for their images of catastrophe—and, in the case of t h e C a m b y s e s legend, referring his evil to a biblical archetype, N e b u c h a d n e z z a r — t h e scribes of t h e Byzantine period d e m o n s t r a t e d a c o m m i t m e n t to u p d a t i n g the old traditions, to appealing to n e w f o r m s of authority a n d symbolism, and, by t h e s a m e 136. J a k o b P o l o t s k y , Manichdische

Handschriften

der Sammlung

Chester

Beatty

(Stutt-

gart: Kohlhammer, 1934), homily 2, 7.8-42.7; see Franz C u m o n t , "Homelies manicheennes," RHR 111 (1935): 119-21; Doresse, ‫־‬Visions mediterraneennes," 43-47; Ludwig Koenen, *Manichaean Apocalypticism at the Crossroads of Iranian, Egyptian, Jewish, and

Christian

Thought,"

in

Codex

Manichaicus

Coloniensis:

Atti

del

Simposio

Inter-

nazionale. ed. Luigi Cirillo (Cosenza: Editore Marra, 1986), 285-332, esp. 321-26. 137. See A. Fodor, "The Origins of the Arabic Legends of the Pyramids," AOH 23 (1970):335-63, esp. 347-53; S a n d o r Fodor, "The Origins of the Arabic Surid Legend,* ZAS 96 (1970):103-9, esp. 107-9. S. Fodor suggests a late third-century C.E. date for a hypothetical Greek Vorlage of this legend ("Arabic Surid Legend,* 107, 109). 138. See A. Fodor, "Arabic Legends of t h e Pyramids," 359-60; cf. 340-41, on the use of Enoch traditions in a similar etiology of the pyramids.

194

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

account, to c o m p r e h e n d i n g new problems in traditional terms. This is evident in Mani's revelations in the case of the Coptic homily, the Arab invasion in the case of the Apocalypse of Shenoute, the p h e n o m e n o n of the pyramids in the case of Surid, a n d the connection between biblical events and Egyptian history in John of Nikiu a n d Surid. The Greek, Demotic, Coptic, a n d Arabic literature of the Roman period demonstrates the native character and cultural importance of Chaosbeschreibung as a form of discourse and a spectrum of topoi, applicable to a variety of immediate purposes but invariably expressive of the same perspective: the fragile stability of the relevant cosmos—society a n d fertility in Egypt—and its sensitivity to the vicissitudes of rulers. Within this context, it is clear that the Apocalypse of Elijah represented o n e more attempt to describe chaos and distress in Egypt a n d their resolution with the a d v e n t (in Egypt) of a "messianic‫ ״‬king. 139 Most importantly, the Elijah Apocalypse's composition would be fairly directly c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s with the Perfect Discourse, CPJ 520, a n d a variety of other fragments of prophecy, including versions of the Potter's Oracle. The Apocalypse of Elijah stands apart not so much by its obviously Christian passages as by its addition of a n o t h e r period of sorrows and decline after the accession of a ‫״‬king from the sun‫( ״‬ApocEl 5:7-21, following 2:46-53). It is, therefore, Christ w h o m the text envisions as the real solar p h a r a o h (3:3). 1 3 9 . S e e W o l f g a n g K o s a c k , Die Legende

im Koptischen:

Untersuchungen

zur

Volkslitera-

lure Agyptetts, Habelts Dissertationdrucke, Reihe klassische Philologie 8 (Bonn: Habelt, 1970), 47-48, 92-93.

8 Vaticinia Sine Eventibus:

The Use of Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah The last chapter presented a traditional ‫״‬catalog‫ ״‬of motifs in Egyptian prophetic literature for envisioning social, national, terrestrial, and cosmic breakdown, motifs which were interlinked within the native ideology of kingship and its antithesis. During the second and third centuries C.E., both ‫״‬pagan‫ ״‬a n d Christian Egyptian writings continued to employ this Chaosbeschreibung tradition to cast current oracles a n d legends in imagery of archaic resonance. These writings included copies (or recensions) of texts essentially composed during the Ptolemaic period (such as the Potter's Oracle) a n d texts composed during the Roman period in response to, or to incite activity in response to, specific events or circumstances (such as the Jewish revolt of 116-117). ApocEl 2 can be understood as an extension of this literature, although integrated with the prophetic sentiments of Christians rather than those of (or beyond those of) the native priesthood. This chapter shows that the selection of motifs, dramatis personae of the preeschatological woes, a n d the ‫״‬sphere of relevance‫ ״‬in ApocEl 2—Egypt, kingship, local religious sites—all bespeak the author's intentional continuity with traditional Egyptian prophetic literature. Previous observations of this continuity notwithstanding, however, the history of scholarship on the Apocalypse of Elijah has sought to identify precise historical references in the course of the narrative, taking (for example) the references to ‫״‬Persian' a n d ‫״‬Assyrian‫ ״‬armies in The nucleus of this chapter was delivered as a paper in the SBL Pseudepigrapha

Group, N o v e m b e r 1988, u n d e r the title "The Eschatological Discourse of the Apocalypse of Elijah: Ex Eventu or Imaginary?"

195

196

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

Egypt as literally reflecting historical events of some period. 1 The dating of texts is a necessary c o m p o n e n t of historical a n d textual scholarship, and often this must be accomplished through the use of internal (narrative) evidence. The assumption u p o n which such scholars' historical hypotheses rest, however, is that the symbolism of oracular literature has the essential function of "replacing* historical elements with other terms. This assumption has been criticized in recent scholarship on the ‫״‬historical‫ ״‬discourses in Jewish a n d Christian apocalypses, w h o s e symbols—and the structures in which those symbols interact—manifestly reflect ancient Near Eastern mythological cycles. 2 John Collins has pointed out that ‫״‬a literary allegory does not consist merely of a set of isolated correspondences, but tells its story in such a way that it reflects the pattern of a venerated older story. 3 ‫ ״‬Even in the the case of the Sibylline Oracles, vaticinia ex eventus are mixed with vaticinia that have no identifiable historical antecedent in the ancient world: ‫״‬If o n e should consider the Sibylline Oracles a book of ‫׳‬keys,‫ ״׳‬observes Marcel Simon, ‫״‬one ought well to recognize that some 'false keys' can be f o u n d there, which do not open any door. 4 ‫״‬ There are cases w h e r e historical antecedents to symbols can be identified, but in such cases the symbols themselves are often arranged in such a m a n n e r as to reflect mythological order rather than a chronicle's e n d e a v o r toward identifiability. Apocalypses a n d oracles of the Greco-Roman period tended especially toward numerological arrangements. Kings or animals would a p p e a r and interact in groups of four, seven, ten, twelve, or multiples of these. Because history itself does not unfold in such neat numerological arrangements, scholars have rightly examined the preference for certain n u m b e r s a n d the traditions that lay

1. See above, chap. 1, pp. 10-17. 2. Cf. Paul Ricoeur, "Foreword* to Andre Lacocque, The Book of Daniel, tr. David Pellauer (rev. ed., Atlanta: John Knox, 1979), xvii-xxvi; John J. Collins, The Apocalyptic Vision of the Book of Daniel, HSM 16 (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1977); Paul A. P o r t e r , Metaphors

and Monsters:

A Literary-Critical

Study

of Daniel

7 and 8, C o n i e c t a n e a

Biblica, Old Testament Series 20 (Lund: Gleerup, 1983), esp. 5-12; and John J. Collins, "Apocalyptic Literature," in Early /udaism and Its Modern Interpreters, ed. Robert A. Kraft and George W. E. Nickelsburg (Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1986), 349-52. 3. Collins, Apocalyptic Vision, 113-14. 4. Marcel Simon, "Sur quelques aspects des Oracles Sibyllines juifs," in Apocalypticism

in the Mediterranean

World

and the Near

East, e d . D a v i d H e l l h o l m

(Tubingen:

Mohr, 1983), 224; cf. 222-24; a n d , in general, John J. Collins, "The Development of the Sibylline Tradition," in ANRW 2.20.1 (1987), 421-59.

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

197

behind them. 5 Both seven a n d twelve have ancient roots in Hebrew traditions of self-definition and cosmology; but by the Greco-Roman period, other cultures' speculations on the zodiac, the planets, a n d the Greek vowels would h a v e been thoroughly synthesized into the symbolism of these numbers. Four, the cardinal n u m b e r of directions and elements, had already in the Greco-Roman period achieved mythological status as the n u m b e r of world empires preceding cosmic renewal; by this scheme, there must always be four empires a n d then a fifth ‫״‬millennial‫ ״‬empire, h o w e v e r one actually identifies those empires with historical kingdoms. 6 The ancient world was replete with such n u m e r ological systems for arranging narrative; but it may be most useful to remember that these systems' origins lie not in specific scripture but in that same h u m a n p e n c h a n t for ‫״‬perfect‫ ״‬n u m b e r s a n d for ordered repetition of story that has always operated in folktales a n d epics. 7 Numerology a n d numerological arrangement h a d a general function in casting a sense of order a n d certainty u p o n the world w h e n there was, in actuality, n o n e ‫״‬out there. 8 ‫ ״‬Lars H a r t m a n has likewise concluded that apocalyptic ‫״‬timetables* such as those in Daniel 12, Apocalypse of Abraham 28-32, and 1 Enoch 93-105 had a perlocutionary (*practical‫ )״‬f u n c tion in conveying to reader or audience a sense of identity or eschatological imminence, rather than a locutionary (‫״‬theoretical") function, ‫״‬which would give precise answers to the ' w h a t and w h e n ' concerning the future. 9 ‫ ״‬Both H a r t m a n a n d Leonard T h o m p s o n have questioned the historicity of the tribulations prophesied in Mk 13:9-13 a n d the book of Revelation, on the basis that the theme of ‫״‬tribulation‫ ״‬was both a 5. See Adela Yarbro Collins, "Numerical Symbolism in Jewish and Early Christian Apocalyptic Literature," in ANRW 2.21.2 (1984):'1221-87. 6. Joseph Ward Swain, "The Theory of the Four Monarchies: Opposition History u n d e r the Roman Empire," CP 35 (1940):1-21: "The theory of four monarchies and a fifth included three elements: (1) it m a d e each m o n a r c h y a world-empire; (2) it minimized everything else (e.g., pre-Alexandrian Greece and ancient Egypt); and (3) it declared that the fifth m o n a r c h y — w h i c h might or might not have appeared as yet— would be vastly superior to all its predecessors and last forever" (ibid., 13). Cf. David Flusser, "The Four Empires in the Fourth Sibyl and in the Book of Daniel," Israel Oriental Studies 2 (1972):148-75; and A. Yarbro Collins, "Numerical Svmbolism," 123941. 7. Cf. Alex Olrik, "Epic Laws of Folk Narrative," tr. Jeanne P. Steager, in The Study of Folklore, ed. Alan D u n d e s (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall, 1965), 132-36, 139 : 40; Max Luthi, The European Folktale: Form and Nature, tr. John D. Niles (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1982), 32-33, 79; Jan Vansina, Oral Tradition as History (Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1985), 132-33. 8. As cogently suggested by Yarbro Collins, "Numerical Symbolism," 1224. 9. Lars Hartman, "The Functions of Some So-called Apocalyptic Timetables," NTS 22 (1976):12; cf. 2-3.

198

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

literary t h e m e of early Jewish p r o p h e c y ( H a r t m a n ) a n d a s y m b o l of c o m m u n i t y self-definition with n o verifiable historical basis ( T h o m p son). 1 0 Robert H o d g s o n h a s also s h o w n that P a u l ' s lists of his tribul a t i o n s — a p p a r e n t l y sketching his various historical sufferings—actually h a d the illocutionary f u n c t i o n of expressing his authority in the traditional t e r m s of G r e c o - R o m a n h e r o e s a n d holy m e n , w i t h n o intentional historical assertions. 1 1 It is clear that, for s u c h religious texts, historical accuracy is not nearly as i m p o r t a n t as rhetorical or perlocutionary effect o n a n a u d i e n c e or c o m m u n i t y . The p r o b l e m in t h e interpretation of ApocEl 2 is t h e r e f o r e to ascertain which s y m b o l s or motifs m i g h t d e s i g n a t e historical e v e n t s in the life of the a u t h o r a n d which f u n c t i o n as "merely" ideal images in the tradition of Chaosbeschreibung, f o r m i n g a literary pastiche of chaos. Because virtually all t h e s y m b o l s in that c h a p t e r of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah derive f r o m the literary tradition of Chaosbeschreibung, this "identification" process m u s t rely largely o n g u e s s w o r k , plausibility, a n d coincidence b e t w e e n the text a n d its historical period. Because the prophetic use of Chaosbeschreibung (in t h e Potter's Oracle as well as ApocEl 2) is s u p p o s e d to describe f u t u r e events, t h e f u n c t i o n of s u c h a discourse a n d its pseudohistorical configuration of m o t i f s might very well b e to lend a p o w e r f u l verisimilitude to t h e p r o p h e t i c reality. Indeed, the prophetic description of f u t u r e e v e n t s in the f o r m of "signs" intrinsically casts a secret o r d e r a n d d e t e r m i n i s m o v e r t h e i m m i n e n t catastrophes, to offer the a u d i e n c e the s e n s e of f o r e k n o w l e d g e a n d p r e p a r a t i o n . Like the "woe" discourse in Mark 13, ApocEl 2 constitutes a series of w a r n i n g s a n d signs, a p r e d e t e r m i n e d layout of e v e n t s w h o s e e v e n t u a l u n f o l d i n g w o u l d a p p e a r chaotic to t h o s e "uninitiated." By a different s c h e m e , ApocEl 2 m i g h t b e v i e w e d as a n a priori apocalyptic c o m p o s i t i o n — i n t h e w o r d s of Bernard M c G i n n , " m a k i n g use of t h e already established apocalyptic scenario to interpret c u r r e n t 10. Lars H a r t m a n , Prophecy Interpreted: The Formation of Some Jewish Apocalyptic Texts and of the Eschatological Discourse Mark 13 Par., tr. Neil T o m k i n s o n ( L u n d : G l e e r u p , 1966), e s p . 145-77; cf. M. D. H o o k e r ' s s u g g e s t i o n " t h a t t h e p h r a s e s [ w h i c h H a r t m a n p e r c e i v e s t o b e e m p l o y e d in M a r k 13) a r e n o t O l d T e s t a m e n t q u o t a t i o n s , ' c o n n e c t e d b y a c o n c e a l e d c a t c h - p h r a s e , b u t reflect a u s e of traditional eschatological motifs" ( r e v i e w of Prophecy Interpreted, b y Lars H a r t m a n , ITS 19 [1968):265; e m p h a s i s m i n e ) ; a n d s e e a l s o D a v i d E. A u n e , Prophecy in Early Christianity and the Ancient Mediterranean World ( G r a n d R a p i d s : E e r d m a n s , 1983), 185; L e o n a r d T h o m p s o n , "A Sociological A n a l y s i s of T r i b u l a t i o n in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of J o h n , " Semeia 36 (1986): 147-74. 11. Robert H o d g s o n , " P a u l t h e A p o s t l e a n d First C e n t u r y T r i b u l a t i o n Lists," ZNW 74 (1983):59-80.

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

199

events‫—״‬in contrast to an a posteriori composition, which reacts ‫״‬to political a n d social change by expanding the scenario to include transcendentalized versions of recent events, t h u s giving final validation to the present by making a place for it at the end. 12 ‫ ״‬The a priori apocalyptic m o d e is tradition-oriented, w h e r e a s the a posteriori m o d e is the more creative and innovative. Granted, a strict separation between these modes would ignore the intrinsic creativity by which traditional symbolic systems lend themselves to ‫״‬expansion,‫ ״‬w h e r e n e w symbols are integrated into the traditional f r a m e w o r k s with no greater historical specificity. 13 McGinn's working distinction, however, properly characterizes ApocEl 2 in light of Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung a n d in contrast to certain ex eventus passages of the Sibylline Oracles (which could b e called a posteriori by their use of historical detail). ‫״‬Inherited apocalyptic language,‫ ״‬McGinn states, "was a readily available, or a priori, way of interpreting contemporary events, especially conflict situations," 14 by articulating contemporary issues in terms of ancient apocalyptic symbols a n d also by "realizing" the symbols themselves in the implied antecedent issues. O n e of the problems faced in the interpretation of ApocEl 2 is w h e t h e r such a conflict situation is reflected analogically in the narrative or w h e t h e r it lies behind the text as a whole, inspiring the author to invoke the Chaosbeschreibung tradition as an a priori image of reality. For several reasons, then, one would expect the content of ApocEl 2 by its very nature to lie in tension with historical realities. Thus it is useful to state three presuppositions from which the identification of any of its historical antecedents must proceed: (1) O n e must look at literary precedents and traditions before seeking historical reflections,

12. B e r n a r d

McGinn,

Visions

of the

End:

Apocalyptic

Traditions

in the Middle

Ages,

Records of Civilization Sources and Studies 46 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1979), 33. 13. An example of this symbolic "expansion" would be the image of the Endtyrant, which is a synthesis of legendary events in the history of Israel (e.g., Nebuchadnezzar, Antiochus IV Epiphanes) with more c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s "historical" legends (Nero) and traditional demonology (Belial). Gregory C. Jenks traces t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of this image into the Christian 'Antichrist mvth" (The Origins and Early Development of the Antichrist Myth, BZNW 59 [Berlin: de Gruyter, 1991), 153-68, 175-83, 199-327). Its manifestations in the New Testament vividly d e m o n s t r a t e its "historical" verisimilitude—its pretense to certainty—and yet its utter fantasy: Mk 13:14; 2 Thessalonians 2; Revelation 13. The important aspect of the Endtyrant tradition in any historical period was its ready applicability to leadership, emperors, or simply t h e times at h a n d — t o render experience more meaningful by interpreting it as the realization of a priori tradition. 14. McGinn, Visions of the End, 35.

200

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

on the basis that the former will inevitably d o m i n a t e a n d give meaning to the latter. (2) The prophetic discourse is a complex literary f o r m w h o s e performative function is more often illocutionary—establishing a perspective a n d reifying an ideological or social system (such as the predetermined structure of the eschaton for those w h o are blessed)— than locutionary—conveying a body of information (such as a chronicle of events). (3) Oracles, Chaosbeschreibung, a n d other kinds of ‫״‬woe‫״‬ descriptions might be encountered, ‫״‬realized,‫ ״‬a n d meaningful, in performance or private reading, without the necessity that the audience or reader attempt systematic correspondences b e t w e e n the predictions a n d immediate politics. 15

OUTLINE OF APOCEL 2: THE DISCOURSE ON SIGNS OF WOE §A The Assyrian King (2:2-5) 16 §B The King of Peace (2:6-16) (a) Introduction: Vengeance on Egypt (vv. 6-9) (b) Beneficence to Egypt (vv. 10-11) (c) Secret activities (vv. 12-14) (d) Deportation of people to "Metropolis by sea‫( ״‬vv.15-16) §C The Sons of the King of Peace (2:17-28) (a) Introduction: T w o sons (vv. 17-19) (b) Establishment of M e m p h i t e temple; woes begin (vv. 20-23) (c) Religious oppression (vv. 24-28) §D Social Woes u n d e r the Evil King (2:29-38) (a) Introduction: Woe u p o n Egyptian rulers (vv. 29-30) (b) Urban decline (v. 31) (c) Distress and suicide (vv. 32-34) (d) Oppression of nursing mothers (v. 35) 15. Cf. Robert Doran, "The N o n - D a t i n g of Jubilees: Jub 34-38; 23:14-32 in Narrative Context,* /S/ 20 (1989):1-U. O n the concept of symbols' a u t o n o m y from antecedents in the real world, see Peter L. Berger and T h o m a s Luckmann, The Social Construction of Reality (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1966); and Roy Wagner, Symbols That Stand for Themselves (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986). 16. The verse n u m b e r s in p a r e n t h e s e s correspond to t h e s t a n d a r d chapter and verse divisions used in t h e Appendix and in Wintermute. This discussion of ApocEl 2, however, refers to sections, designated by capital and small letters both in this outline and in the translation in Appendix.

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

201

(e) Military conscription of children (v. 36) (f) L a m e n t of m o t h e r s a n d joy of virgins (vv. 37-38) §E Political Signs in Brief Oracles (2:39-43) (a) (b) (c) (d) (e)

Persian invasion; d e p o r t a t i o n of Jews (v. 39) Signs f r o m Jerusalem (v. 40) T h e Lawless O n e (v. 41) War b e t w e e n Persia a n d Assyria (v. 42) D e p r e d a t i o n s of w a r (v. 43)

§F Terrestrial Woes: T h e Nile R u n n i n g with Blood (2:44-45) §G T h e A d v e n t of t h e King f r o m t h e S u n (2:46-50) (a) A p p e a r a n c e of king (v. 46) (b) Flight to M e m p h i s (vv. 47-48a) (c) Destruction of P a g a n s h r i n e s a n d erection of Christian (?) shrines (v. 48) (d) S u p p o r t of Christian (?) s h r i n e s (vv. 49-50) § H A Deceptive Peace (2:51—3:1) (a) (b) (c) (d)

King acclaimed as savior (v. 51) Reprieve of taxes (v. 52a) Social prosperity (vv. 52b-53) A p p e a r a n c e of false Christ (3:1)

GENERAL IMPLICATIONS OF APOCEL 2 A distinctive structure p e r v a d e s this s e q u e n c e of prophecies: the period of preeschatological decline is e n v i s i o n e d t h r o u g h a cyclical alternation of evil kings a n d (ostensibly) beneficial kings, with their corr e s p o n d i n g d o m i n i o n s of w o e a n d prosperity, f r o m t h e introduction of the king of t h e Assyrians in §A to the a d v e n t of the solar Christ at the very e n d of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah (cf. 3:3). C o m p a r i n g this structure of a l t e r n a t i n g k i n g s h i p s to t h e k i n g s h i p ideology b e h i n d t h e Chaosbeschreibung tradition, o n e can see that the a u t h o r of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah is a d d r e s s i n g traditional Egyptian conceptions of w o e a n d prosperity. W o e s begin w i t h t h e arrival of t h e king of the Assyrians (§A) a n d c o n t i n u e t h r o u g h t h e b e g i n n i n g of the reign of the King of P e a c e (§B.a), b e f o r e h e reverses Egypt's f o r t u n e a n d

202

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

causes prosperity (§B.b-c). With the accession of the latter's son with the demonic face, however, prosperity ends (§C.b-c), 17 a n d the inhabitants of Egypt enter a period of horrible suffering (§§C.c-D, F). Then there arises a King from the "city which is called ‫׳‬the City of the Sun"‫—׳‬a manifest reflection of the King from Helios-Re in the Potter's Oracle— a n d Egypt enters a period of hitherto u n k n o w n prosperity a n d peace (§§G-H). This penultimate savior in the Apocalypse of Elijah no d o u b t forms one of the major sources of the "Last Emperor" tradition in Byzantine apocalypticism: a h u m a n ruler w h o s e beneficent accession a n d dominion would paradoxically usher in the period of the Antichrist. 1 8 Indeed, it is at this point that the Lawless O n e arises, w h o s e dramatic rise and fall are narrated in ApocEl 3-5; a n d it is significant that the author calls him a "king" at o n e point too (4:24). His dominion, which has d r e a d f u l consequences only for the "saints," apparently (it is not specified) maintains the prosperity of Egypt until angels rescue the saints (5:1-6). Then Egypt enters a period of unparalleled drought and decline: the sun darkens, birds a n d plants die, all moisture disappears. Then Christ arrives (5:36)—whom the text has already described as appearing "like the sun which shines from the east to the west" (3:3)— a n d the millennium is inaugurated. There are clear instances of repetition in this structure: the king from "the City of the Sun" repeats the acts of the King of Peace in his benefits to saint-shrines (§G.c-d; cf. §B.b), allegiance to the monolatrous slogan "The n a m e of God is One" (§G.c; cf. §B.b), his apparent acts of trickery (the a m b u s h of the Assyrians in §G.b, as with the incognito tour of Egypt in §B.c), and, more generally, his dominion of beneficence a n d prosperity. It is evident that the author constructed his prophecy of times of distress a n d recovery in a cyclical pattern, making use of a limited repertoire of prophetic "plots." 19 Whereas Chaosbeschreibung arose in Egypt to portray the decline of 17. To a certain extent, prosperity, or the king's benevolence toward Egypt, ends with §B.c-d; however, the precise meaning for a third-century Egyptian Christian of these verses and of the judgment they cast u p o n the king is unclear; see below, pp. 205-6, 229-30. 18. The earliest digression on the Last Emperor appears in the Latin Tiburtine Sibyl, w h o s e Vorlage seems to have been d e p e n d e n t on the Apocalypse of Elijah. See above, pp. 24-25; and Paul J. Alexander, "The Diffusion of Byzantine Apocalypses in the Medieval West and the Beginnings of Joachimism," in Prophecy and Millenarianism: Essays in Honour of Marjorie Reeves, ed. Ann Williams (Essex: Longman, 1980), 58-59, 63-64. 19. Cf. Rosenstiehl, 30-31, 36-37. Schrage (217-20) has aptly argued that the use of parallels and doublets in composition is not an indication of source and redaction but rather of compositional style (pace Wintermute, 721, 725-26).

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

203

t h e cosmos d u r i n g a lapse of k i n g s h i p or in interregnal periods, this cyclical structure of a l t e r n a t i n g d o m i n i o n s p o r t r a y s c h a o s as occurring at the h a n d s of kings (e.g., §§C.d a n d D.d-e). T h e reason for this evolution in Chaosbeschreibung m a y b e historical. T h e literary a c k n o w l e d g m e n t of "bad" k i n g s h i p in Egyptian literature ( w h e n previously k i n g s h i p w a s good per se) a p p e a r s to h a v e b e g u n in the Late a n d early Hellenistic periods, a p r o d u c t of diverse calamities a n d , as J. G w y n Griffiths h a s a r g u e d , Jewish influence. 2 0 It is conceivable that the ruthless taxation a n d socioeconomic decline of the chora u n d e r the R o m a n e m p e r o r s w o u l d h a v e c o n t r i b u t e d to t h e evolution of this concept of b a d k i n g s h i p to o n e of p r e d a t o r y kingship.

CHAOSBESCHREIBUNG

MOTIFS IN APOCEL 2

T h e clearest instance of t h e a u t h o r ' s u s e of native Egyptian p r o p h e t i c tradition a p p e a r s in §F. T h e surreal i m a g e of t h e Nile r u n n i n g with blood not only is anticipated in the classical Admonitions of Ipuiver but also occurs in the Perfect Discourse, d e m o n s t r a t i n g its c o n t i n u e d symbolic p o w e r t h r o u g h o u t t h e history of Egyptian literature. 2 1 An a n c i e n t fascin a t i o n with this u n i q u e i m a g e of t r a u m a t i c disorder can be seen in t h e legend of Moses' t u r n i n g the Nile to blood (Ex 7:14-24); a n d it is significant that Philo of Alexandria, w h o w a s p r o b a b l y a c q u a i n t e d w i t h the Egyptian prophecies, e x t e n d s the scriptural a c c o u n t of t h e biblical lege n d with lurid detail: "And the o p e n e d 'veins' [φλ€3/‫׳‬α?] g u s h e d forth jets of blood as in a h e m o r r h a g e , s u c h that n o t a t r a n s p a r e n t trickle could b e seen. 22 ‫ ׳׳‬But t h e Jewish use of t h e motif m a y b e a case of counterp r o p a g a n d a (attributing to Y H W H t h e p o w e r to effect this m o s t traditional

20. Alan B. Lloyd, *The Late Period: 664-323 B.C.,* in Ancient Egypt: A Social History, ed. B. G. Trigger et al. (Cambridge: C a m b r i d g e University Press, 1983), 298-99; Janet H. Johnson, *The Demotic Chronicle as a S t a t e m e n t of a T h e o r y of Kingship,* Journal of the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities 1 3 ( 1 9 8 3 ) : 6 8 - 7 2 ; J. G w y n G r i f f i t h s , The Divine Verdict: A Study of Divine Judgement in the Ancient Religions, N u m e n S u p p 52 (Leiden:

Brill, 1991), 176-83. 2 1 . Ipuwer

2 . 1 0 - 1 1 (tr. L i c h t h e i m , AEL

1 : 1 5 1 ; Perfect

Discourse:

Asclepius

24 ( =

NHC

VI, 71.17-20). S. Luria used the currency of this image to question the historicity of "distress" prophecies in Ipuiver a n d Neferti ("Die Ersten w e r d e n die Letzten sein [zur 'sozialen Revolution' in Altertum]," Klio 22 [1929]:414-15). 22. Philo of Alexandria De vita Mosis 1.99 (ed. a n d tr. Roger Arnaldez, C l a u d e Mondesert, Jean Pouilloux, a n d Pierre Savinel, De vita Mosis / - / / , Les o e u v r e s d e Philon d'Alexandrie 22 [Paris: Editions d u Cerf, 1967]). A n a n a l o g o u s image of m o u n t a i n ravines filled with corpses a n d flowing blood in torrents in Sib. Or. 3.682-84 a p p e a r s to recall instead Ez 38:22 (cf. H a r t m a n , Prophecy Interpreted, 91-94, esp. 93).

204

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

horror of Egyptians). Both Ipuwer a n d the Perfect Discourse, for example, associate the image with the excess of corpses that come from internal strife a n d brigandage. 2 3 T h u s the topos combines the idea of the disintegration of fertility with that of the disintegration of social a n d political structure, as if it were by the blood of slaughtered neighbors that the Nile lost its potential to irrigate. The traditional use of d r o u g h t imagery to express chaos on earth appears not only in ApocEl 2 (cf. 2:31) but also in ApocEl 5, in the description of the earth's decline after the departure of the saints (5:7-9, 12,14): T h e n , i n t h a t t i m e , t h e e a r t h will t r e m b l e ; t h e s u n w i l l d a r k e n . P e a c e will b e r e m o v e d f r o m u p o n t h e e a r t h a n d u n d e r h e a v e n [ . . . ] T h e t r e e s will b e u p r o o t e d a n d t o p p l e o v e r . W i l d b e a s t s a n d f a r m a n i m a l s will d i e in a c a t a s t r o p h e . Birds will fall o n t h e g r o u n d d e a d . T h e e a r t h will p a r c h , a n d t h e w a t e r s of t h e s e a will d r y u p . . . . [ T h e s i n n e r s l e f t o n t h e e a r t h u n d e r t h e d o m i n i o n of t h e L a w l e s s O n e c o m p l a i n : ] S e e , n o w w e will d i e in a f a m i n e a n d t r i b u l a t i o n ! . . . W e w e n t t o t h e d e p t h s of t h e s e a a n d w e f o u n d n o w a t e r . W e d u g in t h e water.24

rivers

and papyrus reeds and we found

no

Although this situation arises in response to the absence of "saints" (and to the dominion of the Lawless One) rather than to the absence of a pharaoh, the author nevertheless considers the details of drought and famine to epitomize cosmic disintegration as might precede the eschatological judgment and parousia. This choice of imagery suggests that the author is drawing u p o n epichoric traditions of Chaosbeschreibung, which were also probably the most meaningful for an Egyptian audience acquainted with the realities of drought. Terrestrial chaos is combined with images of social chaos in §§D.a-f. Indeed, a n u m b e r of motifs in this section of ApocEl 2 h a v e precise literary precedents in Egyptian oracle tradition. For example, §D.c, which appears to repeat the last part of §A, describes people so desperate in the times of distress that they seek to commit suicide but for some reason are unable to succeed: "Death flees from them." Suicide is a Chaosbeschreibung motif in Ipuwer ("Lo, great a n d small ( s a y ) , '1 wish I were dead,‫ ׳‬little children say, ‫׳‬He should not h a v e m a d e m e live!'") 25

2 3 . Ipuwer

2 . 6 - 7 ; Perfect

Discourse:

Asclepius

24 ( = N H C VI, 7 1 . 1 9 - 2 1 ) .

24. Taken f r o m Sahidic texts; see Appendix for notes on translation and manuscript conditions. 25. Ipuwer 4.3 (tr. Lichtheim, 1:153).

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

205

a n d , with the addition of d e a t h ' s "flight," this oracular logion s e e m s to h a v e b e c o m e a s t a n d a r d motif of eschatological distress in the GrecoR o m a n period, occurring in only slightly divergent f o r m s in the Sibylline Oracles (2.307-8; 8.353-54; 13.116-18) a n d the book of Revelation (9:6). 26 T h e p r o p h e c y in §D.b of t h e a b a n d o n m e n t of t h e "cities of Egypt" belongs to the s a m e tradition as t h e appellation "metropolis by the sea" in §B.d. Alexandria, s o - n a m e d in the Potter's Oracle, is there p r o p h e s i e d to b e c o m e "a r e f u g e for fishermen." 2 7 An extension of the repertoire of Chaosbeschreibung motifs describing terrestrial chaos, t h e i m a g e of the decline of a great "City by t h e Sea" arose especially d u r i n g the Hellenistic period as a r e s p o n s e to Alexandria a n d to the alien p h e n o m e n o n of the polis in general. 2 8 T h e particular version in §D.b, h o w e v e r , recalls the traditional image of the e n c r o a c h i n g desert (along with the thirdcentury reality of a b a n d o n e d villages a n d the recession of arable land). 2 9 Significantly, this p r o p h e t i c motif r e a p p e a r s in a positive antithesis in §H.a, w h e r e t h e King of R i g h t e o u s n e s s is sent "so that the land will not

26. Because Rv 9:6 h a s n o t h i n g intrinsically to d o w i t h t h e a t t a c k of t h e locusts in Revelation 9 (cf. R. H. C h a r l e s , A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Revelation of St. John, 2 vols. [ E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1920], 1:243: *The w r i t e r h a s h e r e p a s s e d f r o m t h e role of t h e S e e r t o t h a t of t h e p r o p h e t " ) , it is likely t h a t J o h n t o o k t h e p h r a s e f r o m e l s e w h e r e , r a t h e r t h a n c o i n i n g it h i m s e l f . T h e p a r a l l e l i s m b e t w e e n t h e first t w o lines a n d c h i a s m u s b e t w e e n t h e s e c o n d t w o s u g g e s t s t h a t t h e v e r s e is a logion of i n d e p e n d e n t circulation. C l o s e p a r a l l e l s t o t h e "flight of d e a t h " motif o c c u r in O v i d Ibis 123; S e n e c a Troades; C o r n e l i u s G a l l u s Elegies 1; a n d S o p h o c l e s Electra 1007-8 (see C h a r l e s , Revelation of St. John, 243-44). 27. O r a "place f o r f i s h e r m a n t o h a n g t h e i r nets." S e e a b o v e , p. 182 n.93. 28. Cf. Perfect Discourse: Asclepius 27 ( = N H C VI, 75.28-33): " A n d t h e l o r d s of t h e e a r t h will w i t h d r a w t h e m s e l v e s . A n d t h e y will e s t a b l i s h t h e m s e l v e s in a city t h a t is in a c o r n e r of E g y p t a n d t h a t will b e built t o w a r d t h e s e t t i n g of t h e s u n . E v e r y m a n will g o i n t o it, w h e t h e r t h e y c o m e o n t h e sea or o n t h e s h o r e " (tr. Brashler et al., NHL, 336); s e e discussion in J e a n - P i e r r e M a h e , Hermes en Haute-Egypte, 2 vols., B i b l i o t h e q u e c o p t e d e N a g H a m m a d i 3 a n d 7 ( Q u e b e c : P r e s s e s d e l ' u n i v e r s i t e Laval, 1978-82), 2:79, 252. T h e motif is u s e d a g a i n in t h e M a n i c h a e a n Homilies 2.14.1 I f f : s e e t r a n s l a t i o n a n d c o m m e n t a r y in L u d w i g K o e n e n , " M a n i c h a e a n A p o c a l y p t i c i s m at t h e C r o s s r o a d s of Iranian, E g y p t i a n , J e w i s h a n d C h r i s t i a n T h o u g h t , " in Codex Manichaicus Coloniensis: Atti del Simposio Internazionale, e d . Luigi Cirillo ( C o s e n i z a : Editore M a r r a , 1986), 322. Striking is t h e e x h o r t a t i o n in CPJ 520, " D o n ' t let y o u r city b e d e p o p u l a t e d , " w h i c h K o e n e n s e e s a s r e f e r r i n g to A l e x a n d r i a b u t w h i c h c o u l d a l s o r e f e r to M e m p h i s . C h r i s t i a n C a n n u y e r h a s a p t l y d e m o n s t r a t e d i n d i g e n o u s r o o t s t o t h i s motif in classical Egyptian i d e a l i z a t i o n s of t h e city in E g y p t i a n w i s d o m literature: " V a r i a t i o n s s u r le t h e m e d e la ville d a n s les m a x i m e s s a p i e n t i a l e s d e l ' a n c i e n n e Egypte," Chronique d'Egypte 64 (1989):44-54. 29. T h e G r e e k

T i b u r t i n e Sibyl's v e r s i o n of t h e Elijah A p o c a l y p s e

passage

more

vividly reflects t h i s t r a d i t i o n , r e a d i n g "the cities of t h e East will b e c o m e d e s e r t s , . . . a n d [the king] will hiss a n d say: ' W a s t h e r e e v e r a city h e r e ? " (198-200; in P a u l J. A l e x a n d e r , The Oracle

of Baalbek: The Tiburtine Sibyl in Greek Dress, D.C.: D u m b a r t o n O a k s , 1987], 21, 28).

[Washington,

D u m b a r t o n O a k s S t u d i e s 10

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b e c o m e desert." S u c h images p r o v i d e glimpses of t h e a u t h o r ' s d e b t to a traditional ideology that associated terrestrial a n d social prosperity directly with kingship. §D.d-f m a y also b e classified u n d e r "social chaos," in that these verses describe t h e disastrous effects of evil k i n g s h i p ( a n d c h a o s in general) u p o n h u m a n fertility a n d procreation. It is "antithetical" to t h e p r o p e r status a n d f u n c t i o n of a little b o y for the military to conscript him, as occurs in §D.e. T h e p o e m in §D.f l a m e n t s m o t h e r h o o d a n d praises virginity in the time of these woes, in considerable opposition to traditional Egyptian values, w h i c h w o u l d l a u d m o t h e r h o o d a n d procreation as an extension of the o r d e r i n g p o w e r of Ma'at a n d Isis (mediated, ultimately, t h r o u g h the s y m b o l of the king). 3 0 T h e terrible image in §D.d describes the evil t r a n s f o r m a t i o n of t h e magical s y m b o l s of breasts, breast milk, a n d blood in the time of woe; these magical "fields" s h o u l d be u n d e r s t o o d as extensions of h u m a n fertility. T h e variety of eschatological uses to w h i c h the s y m b o l i s m of childbearing a n d m o t h e r h o o d h a v e b e e n put, b o t h in Egyptian a n d Jewish literature, suggests that t h e continuity or arrest of n o r m a l m a t e r n i t y r e p r e s e n t e d for these cultures a g a u g e of social prosperity or disintegration—a vivid s y m b o l of order or chaos. While Ipuwer l a m e n t s m o t h e r h o o d d u r i n g the time of woe—"If only this w e r e the e n d of m a n , no m o r e conceiving, n o births! T h e n t h e land w o u l d cease to s h o u t , t u m u l t w o u l d b e n o more!" 3 1 —the Oracle of the Lamb (3.3) a n d d e u t e r o Isaiah p r o p h e s y h a p p i n e s s for barren w o m e n in t h e n e w age: "Sing, Ο barren one, w h o did not bear; break forth into singing a n d cry aloud, you w h o h a v e not been in labor! For t h e children of t h e desolate o n e will be m o r e t h a n t h e children of her that is married!" (Is 54:l). 3 2 Yet a curious encratite ideology e m e r g e s in s o m e early Jewish litera t u r e that reverses the traditional s e n t i m e n t s t o w a r d n o r m a l childbearing. 33 T h e notion of b e i n g "blessed" in c u r r e n t childlessness (Is 54:1b) c h a n g e s into a notion of childlessness as a desirable eschatological state 30. S e e Fran(0ise D u n a n d , Religion populaire en Egypte romaine, E P R O 77 (Leiden: Brill, 1979), 60-73. 31. Ipuwer 6 . 1 - 2 (tr. L i c h t h e i m , 1:154). 32. Cf. Or. Lamb: " T h e b a r r e n w o m a n will rejoice and s h e w h o h a s a c h i l d will b e glad, b e c a u s e of t h e g o o d t h i n g s w h i c h h a p p e n in E g y p t ' (3.3; G e r . tr. Z a u z i c h , " D a s L a m m d e s Bokchoris," 168, m y e m p h a s i s ) . T h e precise r e a s o n f o r t h e b a r r e n w o m a n ' s g l a d n e s s is u n s t a t e d b u t o n e m i g h t a s s u m e it w o u l d b e h e r c o n c e p t i o n of a child. 33. I u s e "encratite" in t h e s e n s e of Robert M u r r a y ' s c o n s e r v a t i v e d e f i n i t i o n : " t h e rejection of m a r r i a g e a n d t h e e v a l u a t i o n of sexual u n i o n a s evil a n d d e f i l i n g " (Symbols of Church and Kingdom [ C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1975], 11). O b v i o u s l y o n l y t h e first a s p e c t is a n u n d e n i a b l e i n f e r e n c e f r o m t h i s p a s s a g e in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah.

T h e Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

T r a d i t i o n in t h e Apocalypse o f Elijah

207

(2 Bar. 10:13-15; Lk 23:29). Consequently, the Egyptian-Jewish text Wisdom of Solomon praises barrenness in this world as a f o r m of purity, holding out ‫״‬fruit‫ ״‬as a reward for the time of ‫״‬examination of souls‫״‬ 3:13).34) This is evidently the sentiment of the poem in §D.f. Whereas lines 1 through 6 obviously use the sorrow of mothers to express the trauma of the time (in continuity with Chaosbeschreibung),35 the author—or his source (for the strophes can be separated form-critically)—adds a ‫״‬condition‫ ״‬by which the w o m e n of the audience may avoid such sorrows: the barren w o m a n and the virgin will be ‫״‬insulated‫ ״‬from the anguish of mothers during the times of woe and, moreover, are promised ‫״‬children in heaven.‫״‬ The tyrannical role of the evil king in §D.d indicates that the passage must be understood as further depredations on maternity in this period of chaos. The image of w o m e n forced to suckle snakes, however, h a d a wider currency in Egypt than simply Chaosbeschreibung imagery, suggesting a special symbolism indigenous to Egyptian culture. 36 Its sig34. S e e t h e d i s c u s s i o n in D a v i d W i n s t o n , The Wisdom of Solomon, AB 4 3 ( G a r d e n City, N.Y.: D o u b l e d a y , 1979), 131-32. P h i l o d e s c r i b e s t h e m o n a s t i c w o m e n of t h e T h e r a p e u t a e a s " y e a r n i n g n o t for m o r t a l b u t for i m m o r t a l o f f s p r i n g , t o w h i c h o n l y t h e d i v i n e l y b e l o v e d soul c a n give b i r t h " (De vita contemplativa 68). A l t h o u g h P h i l o n o w h e r e s u g g e s t s t h i s i d e o l o g y a r o s e a s p a r t of a millennialist a t t i t u d e , t h i s p a s s a g e s h o w s t h a t t h e idea of " h e a v e n l y c h i l d r e n " — i n t h i s case, αθανάτοι ίκγόνοι—may have circulated m o r e w i d e l y . S e e De vita contemplativa, e d . a n d tr. F r a n i o i s D a u m a s , Les o e u v r e s d e P h i l o n d ' A l e x a n d r i e 29 (Paris: E d i t i o n s d u C e r f , 1963), 128-29; a n d Ross Kraemer, " M o n a s t i c J e w i s h W o m e n in G r e c o - R o m a n Egypt: Philo J u d a e u s o n t h e T h e r a p e u t r i d e s , " Signs 14 (1989):352-55. A similar e t h o s in P h i l o (Deus 13-15) e n l a r g e s t h e m e a n i n g of b a r r e n n e s s a n d m o t h e r h o o d s o t h a t t h e s e c o n c e p t s m i g h t r e p r e s e n t s t a t e s in his m y s t i c a l s y s t e m (in W i n s t o n , The Wisdom of Solomon). 35. T h e u s e in line 5 of t h e E g y p t i a n p h r a s e JMMOC e ‫ ־‬r c u e e ("sit o n a brick") f o r t h e birth p r o c e s s w o u l d h a v e b e e n r e c e i v e d , e v e n in t h e original G r e e k , a s a c o m p o s i t i o n of t r a d i t i o n a l E g y p t i a n i m a g e s ; s e e W i n t e r m u t e , 742 n. s2; S c h r a g e , 246 n. g. 36. Cf. Apoc. Pet. 8; a n d C o p t i c T e b t u n i s p a i n t i n g s p u b l i s h e d by C o l i n C. Walters, "Christian P a i n t i n g s f r o m T e b t u n i s , " JEA 75 (1989): pis. 26, 28; a n d d i s c u s s i o n , 2 0 1 - 2 . In general, s e e M a r t h a H i m m e l f a r b , Tours of Hell: An Apocalyptic Form in Jewish and Christian Literature ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : U n i v e r s i t y of P e n n s y l v a n i a Press, 1983), 9 7 - 1 0 0 . A l t h o u g h H i m m e l f a r b a c c o u n t s for t h e i m a g e in C h r i s t i a n visions of hell by lex talionis ( m e a s u r e - f o r - m e a s u r e p u n i s h m e n t ) , t h e c u r r e n c y of t h e i m a g e in E g y p t m a y h a v e p r e c e d e d J e w i s h a n d C h r i s t i a n t r a d i t i o n s . In h i s life of A n t o n y (§86), P l u t a r c h r e p o r t s t h e l e g e n d t h a t " C l e o p a t r a h a d g i v e n o r d e r s t h a t t h e reptile [θηρίον] m i g h t f a s t e n itself u p o n her b o d y . . . a n d b a r i n g h e r arm [τον β ρ α χ ί ο ν α ] s h e h e l d it o u t for t h e bite"; a n d t h e n that "an i m a g e of C l e o p a t r a herself w i t h t h e a s p c l i n g i n g to h e r w a s c a r r i e d in [her f u n e r a l ] p r o c e s s i o n " (in B e r n a d o t t e P e r r i n , tr. Plutarch's Lives, LCL [ L o n d o n : H e i n e m a n n , 1920], 9:328-29). But t h e u n c e r t a i n r e f e r e n c e to h e r a r m m a y b e a m e r e case of d i s p l a c e m e n t o u t w a r d " ; it c a n h a r d l y b e a c o i n c i d e n c e t h a t S h a k e s p e a r e r e v e r t s t o t h e traditional C o p t i c t h e m e of t h e s e r p e n t b i t i n g t h e breast in Antony and Cleopatra, act 5, SC 2, 11. 2 4 3 - 3 1 0 (in 11. 3 1 1 - 1 3 s h e a p p l i e s a n o t h e r s e r p e n t to h e r a r m ) . C o n s i d e r i n g t h a t C l e o p a t r a m o d e l e d herself a f t e r t h e g o d d e s s Isis (cf. P. M . Fraser, Ptolemaic Alexandria,

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nificance to an a u d i e n c e of R o m a n Egypt m a y be b r o a c h e d t h r o u g h a n a lyzing the s y m b o l i s m of s e r p e n t s , breasts, breast milk, blood, a n d poison. It is t h e m e n t i o n of poison that first alerts u s that the m e a n i n g of §D.d m a y lie in the context of Egyptian ritual (‫״‬magical‫ )״‬spells. T h e Coptic w o r d κ λ ο referred to a vegetable poison, as o p p o s e d to, for example, s n a k e v e n o m , a n d t h u s to t h e t y p e of s u b s t a n c e collected a n d p u r v e y e d by a n expert. 3 7 T h e Greek w o r d used b y t h e Tiburtine Sibyl—and pres u m a b l y , that used by the G r e e k original of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah 3 8 — is φάρμακο ν, which w a s used equally for medical r e m e d i e s a n d for t h e diverse types of potions concocted by magical professionals in ritual. 3 9 A survey of Egyptian ritual spells f r o m the classical t h r o u g h t h e G r e c o - R o m a n periods reveals a n o v e r w h e l m i n g interest in averting s n a k e b i t e a n d in the repulsion of s n a k e s in general. 4 0 S u c h spells occasionally s u b s u m e d this interest within the m o r e m y t h o p o e i c scope of the repulsion of A p o p h i s b u t m o r e o f t e n took the view of s n a k e s as a n extension of t h e p e r i p h e r a l s p h e r e of S e t h - T v p h o n . 4 1 T h e s n a k e

3 vols. [ O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1972], 1:244) a n d t h a t a d o m i n a n t f o r m of Isis i c o n o g r a p h y in t h e G r e c o - R o m a n p e r i o d w a s Isis lactans—that is, s u c k l i n g H o r u s — o n e m a y p r e s u m e that her processional image followed this iconographic convention and that the s n a k e (rather than Horus) w a s attached to her breast, not her arm. O n the Egyptian s y m b o l i s m in C l e o p a t r a ' s suicide (by two s n a k e s ! ) in g e n e r a l , s e e J. G w y n Griffiths, *The D e a t h of C l e o p a t r a VII,* /EA 47 (1961): 113-18, pi. 9. 37. O s c a r v o n L e m m , *Kleine k o p t i s c h e S t u d i e n — X : B e m e r k u n g e n zu e i n i g e n S t e l l e n d e r k o p t i s c h e n A p o k a l v p s e n , 4," Bulletin de I'academie imperiale des sciences de St. Petersbourg 13 ( 1 9 0 0 ) : l l - 2 2 ; C r u m , 102B; cf. A. Lucas, *Poisons in A n c i e n t Egypt,* JEA 24 (1938): 198-99. V o n L e m m specifically n o t e s C o p t i c l e g e n d s in w h i c h a magos u s e s KAO a l o n g w i t h o t h e r s u b s t a n c e s ("Kleine k o p t i s c h e S t u d i e n — X . 4 , 1 2 - 1 4 ‫ ) ״‬. In t h e C o p t i c t h e u s e of KAO r a t h e r t h a n Μ λ τ ο γ ( s n a k e v e n o m ) a d d s a f u r t h e r " m i r a c u l o u s " s e n s e t o t h e p a s s a g e : w h e r e a s t h e a u d i e n c e m i g h t e x p e c t t h e b i t i n g s e r p e n t s to p r o d u c e Μ λ τ ο γ in t h e b l o o d of t h e w o m e n , t h e result is i n s t e a d KAO, v e g e t a b l e p o i s o n ! T h e m e s s a g e of t h e C o p t i c scribe, t h e r e f o r e , is t h a t in t h e e s c h a t o n s u c h terrible m i r a c l e s a s ΚΛΟ f r o m s e r p e n t s will occur. 38. S e e A l e x a n d e r , Oracle of Baalbek, 3 8 - 3 9 . 39. Cf. LSJ 1917A-B, e s p . §1.1, 3, 4. O n t h e i n c l u s i o n of p o i s o n in t h e m a g i c a l repertoire, s e e W o l f h a r t W e s t e n d o r f . "Gifte," Lexikon der Agyptologie 2 ( W i e s b a d e n : O t t o H a r r a s s o w i t z , 1977), 5 9 6 - 9 7 . 40. E.g., t h e M e t t e r n i c h Stela (tr. in B o r g h o u t s , nos. 9 3 - 9 5 ) a n d a s s o c i a t e d H o r u s stelae a n d magical s t a t u e bases; t h e T u r i n m a g i c a l p a p y r u s (tr. in B o r g h o u t s , n o s . 92, 102, 106, 108, 111, 115, 138); P . V a t i c a n 19a (ed. a n d tr. in P. E. S u y s , "Le p a p y r u s m a g i q u e d u Vatican," Orientalia 3 [1934]:63-87); P.Yale 1792 (in G e o r g e M. P a r a o s s o g l o u , *A C h r i s t i a n A m u l e t a g a i n s t S n a k e b i t e , " Studia Papyrologica 13 (1974]:107-10); t h e d i s c u s s i o n of hf3w in Jan Z a n d e e , Death as an Enemy according to Ancient Egyptian Conceptions, N u m e n S u p p 5 (Leiden: Brill, I960), 101-2; a n d t h e r e p r e s e n t a t i v e collection in B o r g h o u t s , 9 1 - 9 4 (nos. 136-43; cf. 5 1 - 8 5 [nos. 8 4 - 1 2 3 ] o n s c o r p i o n s , a n d p. ix). 41. Cf. spell 6 o n t h e m a g i c a l s t a t u e base, p u b l i s h e d b y Adolf Klasens, A

Magical

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e m e r g e s f r o m s u c h traditions as a highly symbolic figure: the a r c h e t y p a l d a n g e r in the Egyptian landscape. 4 2 Breasts s y m b o l i z e d the most v u l n e r a b l e part of the w o m a n in her capacity as m o t h e r . A detailed spell f r o m t h e ritual-medical corpora invokes a historiola of Isis as m o t h e r of H o r u s in order to protect a w o m a n ' s breasts f r o m "a male d e a d a n d a f e m a l e dead" 4 3 —that is, t w o specific d e m o n s — a n d it is p r o b a b l y w i t h i n this s p h e r e of ritual that a spell f r o m the Coffin Texts s h o u l d b e read: "That a w o m a n m a y not b e eaten by a snake." 4 4 H e n c e the forcible application of s e r p e n t s to breasts w o u l d h a v e constituted a n " u n i m a g i n a b l e horror," s u c h as m i g h t occur in the times of w o e u n d e r a n evil kingship. By itself, blood h a d highly symbolic v a l u e as a magical s u b s t a n c e in Egyptian ritual symbolism. 4 5 T h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah refers to the blood of t h e eschatological h e r o i n e - m a r t y r T a b i t h a as "a healing [ ο γ , χ λ ΐ ] for the p e o p l e [AAOC)" (4:6), w h i c h p r o b a b l y c o n t i n u e s a n older tradition of the scorpion g o d d e s s Ta‫־‬Bitjet, by w h o s e blood H o r u s w a s invoked to cure scorpion v e n o m . 4 6 Breast milk also w a s considered powerful. 4 7 But the r e p l a c e m e n t of breast milk with b l o o d — a l t h o u g h both sacred s u b s t a n c e s in their o w n r i g h t s — w a s horrifying: "Do not p r o d u c e blood!" c o m m a n d s o n e spell to protect the breasts. 4 8 It is this horror that p r e s u m a b l y led to t h e invention a n d transmission of a curious legend in t h e Arabic History of Alexandrian Patriarchs, in w h i c h a w o m a n baptizes h e r children by cutting her breast a n d a n o i n t i n g t h e m

Statue Base (Socle behague)

in the Museum

of Antiquities

at Leiden

( L e i d e n : Brill, 1952), 59,

99. 42. See also the Life of Jeremiah the Prophet 1-7, w h e r e the prophet is credited with expelling snakes (a power that persists after his death through the dust from his tomb); and the Life of Adam and Eve, w h e r e Eve's wailing at the child Seth's snakebite (chap. 37) and Seth's subsequent ritual rebuke of the snake (chap. 39) recall vividly the IsisHorus drama invoked in Egyptian healing spells. 43. P.Ebers 95.1-14 (tr. Borghouts, 40-41 [= no. 64)). Borghouts, 41-44 (nos. 65-70), are likewise meant to protect a baby's continued feeding from the breast. 44. Coffin Texts, spell 717 (tr. in Zandee, Death as an Enemy, 101). 45. E.g., the Tjet amulet in ancient and Greco-Roman Egyptian tradition (see Book of the Dead, spell 156); William H. Worrell, *Coptic Magical and Medical Texts,* Orientalia 4 (1935):7-8, 11 (= P.Mich, inv. 1190 r , 1. 33): *Find strength from this blood, which is under NN*; P G M IV.2484: *It is she, N N , w h o said, '1 saw [the goddess] drinking blood"; and Kropp, 2:93 (= no. XXVIII), 11. 112-15. 46. See Borghouts, 72-73 ( = nos. 97-98, 100); and David Τ. M. Frankfurter, *Tabitha ‫׳‬n the Apocalypse of Elijah,* /TS 41 (1990):14-23. 47. See Borghouts, 24-25, 34 (= nos. 34-35 [for burns], 51 [for catarrh]). Spell no. 34 ‫׳‬nvokes Isis, w h o says, "Show m e my way that I m a y d o what I k n o w (to do), that I ma > ‫ ׳‬extinguish it for him with my milk, with the salutary liquids from between my breasts." 48. Borghouts, 41 ( = no. 64).

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with d r o p s of h e r blood. 4 9 As in t h e Apocalypse of Peter, w h i c h describes as sour the milk p r o d u c e d b y w o m e n in hell w h o s e breasts are tortured by animals, the positive m a t e r n a l s y m b o l i s m of breast milk is n e g a t e d in this m a r t y r d o m legend: it is blood that b e c o m e s t h e sacred s u b s t a n c e . In these t w o contexts—symbolic b a p t i s m a n d h e l l — b l o o d or sour milk f r o m breasts is a p p r o p r i a t e . In contrast, §D.d of ApocEl 2 attributes a n entirely negative significance to t h e d r a w i n g of blood f r o m breasts. The p o w e r of this image in ApocEl 2 a n d its evocation of the Chaosbeschreibung tradition arises precisely b e c a u s e u n d e r the " d e m o n - f a c e d " king's reign, blood w o u l d replace breast m i l k — b e c a u s e s u c h an inversion as is a c k n o w l e d g e d in the stories of the baptizing m o t h e r a n d the hell of the Apocalypse of Peter m i g h t actually h a p p e n in Egypt u n d e r a cruel king. T h e u s e of Chaosbeschreibung in ApocEl 2 is t h e r e f o r e b o t h explicit a n d implicit. That these terrors stem directly f r o m vicissitudes in t h e k i n g s h i p implies a continuity of Egyptian k i n g s h i p ideology into t h e description of w o e s in the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. T h e details of the fate of w o m e n a n d m a t e r n i t y in these times also recall a basic motif of social chaos in Chaosbeschreibung; a l t h o u g h it m u s t b e a c k n o w l e d g e d that §D.f bears a form-critical r e s e m b l a n c e to s o m e c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s Jewish literature concerning t h e e s c h a t o n . Explicit uses of Chaosbeschreibung a p p e a r in the Nile, d r o u g h t , a n d f a m i n e imagery; the a b a n d o n m e n t of cities (especially Alexandria) a n d their return to dust; a n d the suicide motif (which also h a s w i d e r parallels in t h e G r e c o - R o m a n world). These images w e r e traditional to Egypt; they constituted the p r i m a r y s y m b o l s w i t h i n Egyptian literary culture for social a n d cosmic b r e a k d o w n , a n d they w e r e t h e s y m b o l s to w h i c h a p r e d o m i n a t e l y nonliterate Egyptian culture w a s a c c u s t o m e d in its reception a n d u n d e r s t a n d i n g of oracles a n d oracular p r o p a g a n d a (such as t h e Potter's Oracle a n d CPJ 520). 50 In t h e G r e c o - R o m a n period, the

49. " S h e cut h e r right b r e a s t w i t h t h e k n i f e , a n d t o o k f r o m it t h r e e d r o p s of b l o o d , w i t h w h i c h s h e m a d e t h e sign of t h e cross o n t h e f o r e h e a d s of h e r t w o c h i l d r e n , a n d o v e r their hearts, in t h e n a m e of t h e F a t h e r , t h e S o n , a n d t h e H o l y G h o s t ; a n d s h e d i p p e d t h e m in t h e sea" (in B. Evetts, tr., " H i s t o r y of t h e P a t r i a r c h s of t h e C o p t i c C h u r c h of A l e x a n d r i a , VI: P e t e r t h e First," Patrologia orientalis 1 [1907]:386). T h e a p p l i c a t i o n of cross m a r k s w i t h s a c r e d s u b s t a n c e s , a n d t h e m a n u a l c r u c i f o r m g e s t u r e in g e n e r a l , h a d m a n i f e s t l y "magical" v a l u e in l a t e a n t i q u e C h r i s t i a n i t y (cf. A t h a n a s i u s Vita Antonii 13, 78, a n d p a s s i m ; Vita Symeon Stylites [Syr.] passim). 50. O n literacy in a n c i e n t Egypt, s e e J o h n Baines a n d C. J. Eyre, "Four N o t e s o n Literacy," Gottinger Miszellen 61 (1983):65-72; Griffiths, Divine Verdict, 2 1 5 - 1 6 . O n G r e c o - R o m a n Egypt, s e e b e l o w , p p . 273-75.

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traditional l a n g u a g e of Chaosbeschreibung f u n c t i o n e d to situate material in the lives, sentiments, a n d symbolic w o r l d of Egyptians.

INTEGRATION OF LEGENDS W I T H

CHAOSBESCHREIBUNG

Archaic s y m b o l i s m is not t h e only material w i t h w h i c h an Egyptian a u d i e n c e might h a v e b e e n familiar in listening to the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. T h e a u t h o r s e e m s to h a v e e m p l o y e d legends of Hellenistic rulers to establish t y p e s for the composition of t h e k i n g s h i p cycles in § § A - C . Legends as such, h o w e v e r , c a n n o t b e considered to h a v e b e e n recognizable vaticinia ex eventus. S u c h a view w o u l d p r e s u p p o s e that the a u d i e n c e could identify the figures in the legends a n d t h e r e b y d a t e their o w n historical position vis-a-vis the chronology of the text. Legends such as ApocEl 2 e m p l o y s h a v e a n a m b i v a l e n t relationship to historical events: a l t h o u g h they m a y arise f r o m particular historical e p i s o d e s or experiences, their d e v e l o p m e n t occurs i n d e p e n d e n t l y of these e p i s o d e s a n d d e p e n d s u p o n the traditions a n d i m m e d i a t e context of the culture a n d of those w h o tell the legends. Legends f u n c t i o n not to replicate historical e p i s o d e s (as m i g h t chronicles) but to express basic t h e m e s or ideologies t h r o u g h t h e d r a m a t i c a r r a n g e m e n t of the motifs. T h e r e is n o evidence that the a u t h o r of ApocEl 2 i n t e n d e d a consistent r e p r e s e n tation of a historical period. Rather, h e m a d e use of stories w h i c h h a d arisen in t h e folklore s u r r o u n d i n g particular rulers, stories w h i c h c h a r acterized t h o s e rulers as beneficial or evil a n d w h i c h e v e n t u a l l y h a d c o m e to circulate as types of beneficial or evil r u l e r s h i p — s u c h as o n e might plausibly expect in a p r o p h e c y of f u t u r e k i n g s — i n d e p e n d e n t of the rulers themselves. T h e "King of Peace" w h o arises in the West (§B.a), r u n s over the sea like a lion (§B.a), a n d f o u n d s a "city by the sea" (§B.d) is clearly m o d e l e d u p o n traditions of A l e x a n d e r the Great. 5 1 In Hellenistic tradition, Alexa n d e r w a s the successor of the f o u r "Asian" empires, t h e salvific conqueror "from the west." 5 2 As the f o u r Asian e m p i r e s w e r e t h e m s e l v e s a motif of G r e c o - R o m a n p r o p h e t i c literature, so A l e x a n d e r a n d t h e 51. A s first r e c o g n i z e d a n d d i s c u s s e d b y F r a n z K a m p e r s , Alexander der Grosse und die Idee des Weltimperiums in Prophetie und Sage (Freiburg: H e r d e r s c h e V e r l a g s h a n d l u n g , 1901), 152-73; cf. S c h r a g e , 212. 52. In his retelling of D n 2:36, J o s e p h u s s p e a k s of A l e x a n d e r a s " a n o t h e r (king) f r o m t h e w e s t " (αττο τψ δΰσίω5; Ant. 10.209).

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN A N D CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

Greeks were construed as the final empire, those w h o would put an e n d to Asian dominion. 5 3 Egypt in particular revered Alexander as a savior-king. 5 4 The popular (if dubious) Egyptian tradition that Alexander paid h o m a g e to a Libyan A m m o n shrine was given a fantastic background in the Alexander Romance of Pseudo-Callisthenes. This text, which gained great popularity in the Greco-Roman a n d medieval worlds, clearly derives from Egyptian priestly p r o p a g a n d a in favor of Alexander. 5 5 In the Romance, Alexander appears as the true son of Nektanebos, the last native p h a r a o h a n d a legendary magician-prophet, w h o escaped to Macedon in the face of massive foreign invasion and, taking the form of the god A m m o n , impregnated Philip's wife in the form of the god A m m o n . The relevance of the Alexander tradition for ApocEl 2, §B.a, is evident at the beginning of the Romance. In the birth narrative Alexander is given leontomorphic attributes: ‫״‬This child w h o is going to be born,‫ ״‬a seer reports to Philip, ‫״‬will reach the rising sun, waging war with all— like a lion‫ ;״‬and at his birth Alexander has ‫״‬the m a n e of a lion [λίοι/τοκόμου] . . . a n d teeth as s h a r p as a serpent's; he displayed the energy of a lion. And there was no doubt of h o w his nature would turn out. 56 ‫ ״‬Underlying this symbolism is a wealth of Mediterranean, includ53. Cf. Sib. Or. 4.88-101, w h i c h p u t s M a c e d o n i a a s t h e final of f o u r k i n g d o m s (in t h e original, Hellenistic oracle; cf. J. Collins, " D e v e l o p m e n t of t h e S i b y l l i n e T r a d i t i o n , " 427). It is s t r i k i n g t h a t G r e e c e is n e v e r p o s e d a s t h e f i f t h "millennial" k i n g d o m p e r s e b u t r a t h e r as a m o r e g e n e r a l s u c c e s s o r t o A s i a n e m p i r e s . Both S w a i n ( " T h e o r y of t h e F o u r M o n a r c h i e s " ) a n d Flusser ("Four E m p i r e s " ) h a v e s h o w n t h a t this m y t h i c s t r u c t u r e of history w a s d e v e l o p e d in t h e G r e c o - R o m a n N e a r East as p o p u l a r p r o p a g a n d a a g a i n s t H e l l e n i s m . In Egypt, h o w e v e r , a d i s t i n c t i o n b e t w e e n E g y p t a n d G r e e c e w a s rarely m a d e (e.g., Sib. Or. 11.186-260, in w h i c h E g y p t f o l l o w s M a c e d o n i a in w o r l d d o m i n i o n , b e f o r e Rome). T h e r e f o r e f r o m t h e A s i a n — o r , m o r e exactly, P e r s i a n — p e r s p e c t i v e t h e f o u r e m p i r e s s c h e m e f u n c t i o n e d a s p r o p a g a n d a a g a i n s t G r e e c e a n d for "predicting" R o m e a s t h e "millenial" fifth k i n g d o m t h a t w o u l d expel t h e G r e e k s . 54 S t a n l e y Burstein h a s a r g u e d f o r t h e circulation of E g y p t i a n p r o p a g a n d a a g a i n s t A l e x a n d e r ( " A l e x a n d e r in Egypt: C o n t i n u i t y a n d C h a n g e " [ p a p e r p r e s e n t e d to t h e C o n f e r e n c e of t h e A m e r i c a n Research C e n t e r in Egypt, Berkeley, Calif., 1990]). 55. Cf. E. A. Wallis Budge, Tin‫ ׳‬History of Alexander the Great ( C a m b r i d g e : C a m b r i d g e University Press, 1889), xxxv-li; R e i n h o l d M e r k e l b a c h , Die Quellen des griechischen Alexanderromans ( M u n i c h : C. G . Beck'sche, 1977), 77-88; a n d L u d w i g K o e n e n , " T h e D r e a m of N e k t a n e b o s , " Β ASP 22 (1985): 192-93. It m a y n o t b e a c o i n c i d e n c e t h a t t h e A l e x a n d e r t r a d i t i o n s r e v o l v e a r o u n d t h e a u t h o r i t y of t h e g o d A m m o n ; t h e p r i e s t s of this R a m g o d w e r e r e s p o n s i b l e for p r o d u c i n g m a n y p r o p a g a n d i s t s oracles. 56. P s e u d o - C a l l i s t h e n e s Alexander Romance 1.8.5, 13.3 (tr. Ken Dovvden, " P s e u d o C a l l i s t h e n e s : T h e A l e x a n d e r R o m a n c e , " in Collected Ancient Greek Novels, e d . B. P. R e a r d o n [Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 1989], 660, 662). O n A l e x a n d e r ' s l e o n t o m o r p h i s m , s e e a l s o P l u t a r c h , De fort. Alex. 2.2 (335C); K a m p e r s , Alexander der Grosse, 170-71; Friedrich Pfister, Alexander der Grosse in den Offenbarungen der Griechen, Juden, Mohammedaner, und Christen (Berlin: A k a d e m i e - V e r l a g , 1956), 19, 21.

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ing Jewish a n d Egyptian, traditions of c o m p a r i n g h e r o e s a n d victors to lions, a n d a t h i r d - c e n t u r y a u d i e n c e w o u l d p r o b a b l y not h a v e h e a r d this simile as evocative of a n y o n e culture. 5 7 T h e image of t h e king's " r u n n i n g u p o n the sea" signified—in oracular p a r l a n c e — t h e act of c o n q u e r i n g f r o m across the Mediterranean. 5 8 It m a y b e c o n c l u d e d that, in general, the attributes of t h e King of Peace in §B.a derive f r o m Egyptian Alexa n d e r traditions. W h e r e a s §B.a e m p l o y s "positive" A l e x a n d e r traditions for a n i m a g e of a beneficial king, §B.d s h o w s q u i t e t h e o p p o s i t e view of the s a m e king: by his order "wise m e n " are "seized" ( c e 6 c u n e ) a n d d e p o r t e d to a "city by the sea." 59 But A l e x a n d e r traditions lie b e h i n d t h e latter passage too. The "city by the sea," as n o t e d , is Alexandria. In referring this w a y to Alexandria, p r o p h e c i e s s u c h as t h e Potter's Oracle p o r t r a y the city in a negative, r e s e n t f u l light, for Alexandria h a d displaced t h e priestly city M e m p h i s as a n administrative, economic, a n d religious p o w e r in

57. D u r i n g t h e R o m a n p e r i o d , s e v e r a l m a j o r E g y p t i a n g o d s w e r e c o m p a r e d to l i o n s in their victorious m a n i f e s t a t i o n s : Re ( P G M 111.511;'IV. 1667); H o r u s ( P G M IV.939; ΧΧ.9), Isis ( P G M IV.2129, 2302), a n d , w i t h p a r t i c u l a r v i v i d n e s s , K h n u m at Esna: "His m a j e s t y a p p e a r e d s h i n i n g u n d e r t h e f o r m of a lion w i t h v a l o r o u s p o w e r ; h e h a d b e e n p u t in t h e w o r l d like a lion w i t h f e r o c i o u s visage, v i g o r o u s , b r a v e , f r i g h t e n i n g , . . . filling t h e m o u n t a i n s w i t h his r o a r s " (Esna 127.5-6; S e r g e S a u n e r o n , tr., in i d e m , Les fetes religieuses d'Esna aux derniers siecles du paganisme, E s n a 5 [Cairo: I F A O , 1962], 375). O n E g y p t i a n lion s y m b o l i s m , s e e C o n s t a n t D e Wit, Le role et le sens du lion dans I'Egypte ancienne (Leiden: Brill, 1951), e s p . 16-36, a n d L u d w i g K o e n e n , "Die b r e n n e n d e H o r o s k n a b e : Zu e i n e m Z a u b e r s p r u c h d e s P h i l i n n a - P a p y r u s , " Chronique d'Egypte 37 (1962):172. O n J e w i s h u s e s of l e o n i n e s y m b o l i s m (e.g., f o r a m e s s i a h ) , s e e G n 49:8-12; Dt 33:22; 4 Ezr 11-12, esp. 12:31-32; 4 Q S b 5:29; Rv 5:5; cf. 1 M a c c 3:4; a n d t h e s h o r t d i s c u s s i o n by Richard B a u c k h a m , " T h e Figurae of J o h n of P a t m o s , " in Prophecy and Millenarianism: Essays in Honor of Marjorie Reeves, ed. A n n W i l l i a m s (Essex: L o n g m a n , 1980) 113-15. Cf. a l s o Brian M c N e i l , " C o p t i c E v i d e n c e f o r J e w i s h M e s s i a n i c Beliefs," RSO 51 (1977):39-45, w h o s e limited s c o p e l e a d s h i m t o m a k e t h e s e J e w i s h t r a d i t i o n s proof of this p a s s a g e ' s J e w i s h b a c k g r o u n d . H i p p o l y t u s a p p l i e s l e o n i n e a t t r i b u t e s t o t h e Antichrist ( w h o t h e r e b y i m i t a t e s C h r i s t ) in h i s treatise On Christ and Antichrist 6 - 1 4 , b u t h e d r a w s t h i s i m a g e exegetically f r o m G n 49:8-12 a n d Dt 33:22 a n d d o e s n o t u s e it a s a s i n g u l a r p o i n t of i d e n t i f i c a t i o n (in c h a p . 14 h e i d e n t i f i e s t h e A n t i c h r i s t a s a s e r p e n t ) . 58. Figures rise o u t of t h e sea in D n 7:3-4 (leonine), 4 Ezr 13:3, a n d Rv 13:1-2, b u t t h e y a r e n e v e r said t o t r a v e r s e it in t h i s w a y . T h e royal g o d d e s s Isis, w h o is d e s c r i b e d in a s e c o n d - c e n t u r y C.E. inscription a s " Q u e e n of s e a m a n s h i p — 1 m a k e t h e n a v i g a b l e a n d u n n a v i g a b l e w h e n it p l e a s e s m e " ( K y m e a r e t a l o g y ; tr. Frederick C . G r a n t , in i d e m , Hellenistic Religions [ I n d i a n a p o l i s : Bobbs-Merrill, 1953], 133), is i m a g i n e d a s " w a l k i n g u p o n t h e f a c e (of) t h e w a t e r of t h e S y r i a n s e a " in a Hellenistic d r e a m - o r a c l e (texts 1 a n d 47; tr. J. D. Ray, The Archive of Hor [ L o n d o n : E g y p t E x p l o r a t i o n Society, 1976], 11, 112; cf. 13-14, 156). O n Isis a s n a u t i c a l g o d d e s s , s e e J. G w y n G r i f f i t h s , Apuleius of Madauros: The Isis-Book, E P R O 39 (Leiden: Brill, 1975), 3 1 - 4 7 . 59. W i n t e r m u t e is clearly w r o n g in s t a t i n g t h a t "in t h e p r e s e n t text, t h e hostility [ t o w a r d A l e x a n d r i a ] is r e m o v e d " (730). It is q u i t e difficult b o t h e t y m o l o g i c a l l y a n d c o n t e x t u a l l y t o d e r i v e a p o s i t i v e m e a n i n g f r o m c c o n e (see C r u m , 826A).

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Egypt. 60 The Apocalypse of Elijah has taken the idea of displacement one step further, though, in d r a w i n g u p o n a tradition (reported in Pseudo-Aristotle's Economica) that Alexander h a d forcibly deported the market, the merchants, a n d even the priesthood of the Delta t o w n C a n o p u s to his new city f o u n d a t i o n s in order to establish the latter's financial and hierocratic authority. 6 1 Thus the Apocalypse of Elijah has employed negative as well as positive Hellenistic traditions, both of which derived f r o m Egyptian priestly lore a n d culture. These negative traditions continue into §C, w h o s e details recall incidents of the Diadochoi. The "left-right" symbolism in §C.a is revealed through an oracle in the Demotic Chronicle: "Left will be exchanged for right—right is Egypt; left is the land of Syria." 62 Although this oracle may originally have referred to an episode b e t w e e n o n e of the early Ptolemies and a native pretender-king, 6 3 for the present purposes it clearly demonstrates that in Egyptian oracle tradition "right-left" stood for "West-East," a n d more precisely, "Egypt-Syria." 6 4 Thus, if the "Righ60. A sentiment clearly voiced in the Oracle of the Potter; in general, see J.W.B. Barns, "Alexandria and Memphis: Some Historical Observations," Orientalia 46 (1977), 24-33; Fraser, Ptolemaic Alexandria, 1:251-54; and Dorothy J T h o m p s o n , "The High Priests of Memphis u n d e r Ptolemaic Rule," in Pagan Priests, ed. Mary Beard and John North (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1990), 113-14. The Alexander Romance of Pseudo-Callisthenes preserves traces of native distrust of Alexandria: Alexander himself is supposed to have been warned "not to f o u n d the city on so great a scale, because you will not be able to find e n o u g h people to fill it; and even if you do, the administration will be unable to supply t h e food it would need. In addition, the inhabitants of the city will be at war with each other because of its excessive and boundless size'" (31; tr. Dowden, "Alexander Romance," 674). Jerome also recalls Egyptian priestly diatribes w h e n he cast the hermit Paul of Thebes as prophesying, "Woe to thee Alexandria, w h o dost w o r s h i p monsters in room of God. Woe to thee, harlot city, in w h o m the d e m o n s of the earth have flowed together" (Vita Paul 8, PL 23:25; t r . ' H e l e n Waddell, The Desert Fathers [London: Constable, 1936; reprint, Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1966], 33). 61. Pseudo-Aristotle Economica 2.33C (ed. B. A. Van Groningen, Aristote: Le second livre de I'economique [Leiden: Sijthoff, 1933], 18-19 (cf. 186-87). See translation and discussion in Edwyn R. Bevan, House of Ptolemy (Chicago: Ares, 1985), 16-17. The source of the tradition may h a v e been Egyptian p r o p a g a n d a that credited native Egyptians as being the first inhabitants of Alexandria. But it is probably untrue; Robin Lane Fox points out that "the citizen body was exclusive rather than commercial. Macedonian veterans, Greeks and prisoners, p e r h a p s too a contingent of Jews, were detailed as the new citizens, and native Egyptians were mostly a d d e d as men of lesser status" (Alexander the Great [London: Futura, 1973], 198). Furthermore, Fraser notes that "this synoecism [of local peoples in Alexandria], if historical, w a s physical, and not merely constitutional—that is, the inhabitants of the area are said to h a v e taken u p residence in the new city" (Ptolemaic Alexandria, 1:41). 62. Dem. Chr. 2.12 (tr. Janet H. Johnson, in idem, "Is the Demotic Chronicle a n AntiGreek Tract?" in Grammata Demotika, ed. Heinz‫־‬J. Thissen and Karl-Th. Zauzich [Wurzburg: Gisela Zauzich, 1984], 110). 63. Cf. Johnson, "Anti-Greek Tract?" 110-13. 64. Cf. Griffiths, Divine Verdict, 225, on mythological use of right-left.

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215

teous King" in the first section of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah recalled Alexander, his "two sons" w o u l d depict t h e Diadochoi, P t o l e m y a n d Seleucus. 6 5 A f u r t h e r indication that t h e " d e m o n - f a c e d " s o n "on the right" recalls Ptolemy 1 a p p e a r s in §C.b, w h e r e the son sails u p to M e m p h i s to build a temple. Historically, P t o l e m y 1 i n a u g u r a t e d the Sarapis cult in M e m p h i s , exploiting the a u t h o r i t y a n d p o w e r of the priestly city to legitimize this n e w , syncretistic religion of the Greeks. 6 6 This tradition of P t o l e m y I (like that in §C.a) could only h a v e originated in a milieu hostile to Sarapis a n d Hellenism. 6 7 S u c h a milieu w o u l d h a v e b e e n M e m p h i t e in locale (to account for the interest in this city a n d the disdain for Alexandria in the p r e v i o u s section) a n d priestly but extraordinarily c o n s e r v a tive in its priestly outlook. 6 8 T h u s , a l o n g with his generally "Christian" ideology, the a u t h o r h a s — w i t h n o a p p a r e n t s e n s e of contradiction— integrated M e m p h i t e priestly traditions of early Hellenism. 6 9 That the text recalls historical figures w i t h o u t reflecting their historical existence is not a contradiction in terms. As a n i m a g e of t h e f u t u r e — o f w h a t h a s not yet h a p p e n e d — t h e eschatological discourse m u s t d e p e n d o n m y t h o l o g y a n d legend to create a scenario of e v e n t s that are b o t h plausible a n d m e a n i n g f u l . In Egyptian literature t h e transhistorical, mythic r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s of ideal k i n g s h i p w e r e c o m b i n e d w i t h anecdotal attributes of l e g e n d a r y kings s u c h as A m e n o p h i s or N e k t a n e b o s . T h u s t h e a u t h o r of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah u s e s l e g e n d a r y attributes of Hellenistic kings in c o m b i n a t i o n with the mythological ramifications of k i n g s h i p in Egypt to build a c o h e r e n t royal s e q u e n c e or cycle for the f u t u r e times of woe. O n e could only call such recollections ex (or post) eventus in t h e s e n s e that they are d r a w n f r o m t h e legends s u r r o u n d i n g figures of t h e past w h o m a d e considerable impacts u p o n 65. T h e m e m o r y of t h e early Hellenistic k i n g s in o r a c l e s w a s n o t f a v o r a b l e : Sib. Or. 11.225 v i e w s t h e D i a d o c h o i a s " k i n g s w h o a r e d e v o u r e r s of p e o p l e a n d o v e r b e a r i n g a n d faithless" (tr. J o h n J. Collins, in i d e m , "Sibylline O r a c l e s , " OTP 1:440). 66. O n P t o l e m y 1 a n d t h e S a r a p i s cult in M e m p h i s , s e e Fraser, Ptolemaic Alexandria, 1:252-54. 67. Cf. H. Idris Bell, Cults and Creeds in Greco-Roman Egypt (Liverpool: L i v e r p o o l U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1953; reprint, C h i c a g o : Ares, 1975), 20; h o w e v e r , P. M. Fraser h a s a r g u e d t h a t in t h e s e c o n d c e n t u r y B.C.E. t h e S a r a p i s cult h a d s i g n i f i c a n t a p p e a l a m o n g n a t i v e E g y p t i a n s ( " T w o S t u d i e s o n t h e C u l t of S a r a p i s in t h e Hellenistic W o r l d , " Opuscula Atheniensia 3 [1960]:9, 15-17). 68. N o t e t h a t p r o - M e m p h i t e , a n t i - A l e x a n d r i a n s e n t i m e n t s c h a r a c t e r i z e o t h e r E g y p tian p r o p h e c i e s c i r c u l a t i n g in t h e R o m a n p e r i o d , e.g., t h e Potter's Oracle (P 2 11. 2 8 - 3 0 [= 3 P 11. 5 0 - 5 3 , 60]) a n d P . T e b t . Tait 13 (see W. J. Tait, Papyri from Tebtunis in Egyptian and ·n Greek [P.Tebt. Tait] [ L o n d o n : E g y p t E x p l o r a t i o n Society, 1977], 45-48). 69. S e e a b o v e , p p . 101-2. T o h a v e s u c h k n o w l e d g e a n d i n t e r e s t in t h e s e priestly t r a d i t i o n s m i g h t s u g g e s t t h e a u t h o r ' s p r i o r t r a i n i n g in t h e p r i e s t h o o d .

216

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

Egyptian culture; but it w o u l d b e incorrect to view s u c h recollections as references, as if the a u d i e n c e w e r e likely to pick out A l e x a n d e r a n d Ptolemy to m a r k points in time by w h i c h they m i g h t situate themselves.

THE QUESTION OF HISTORICAL ANTECEDENTS T O APOCEL 2 Early scholarship o n t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah displayed a concerted interest in c o n n e c t i n g the various e p i s o d e s in ApocEl 2 to historical e v e n t s in the G r e c o - R o m a n world. As m o r e e l e m e n t s in this discourse h a v e been identified as traditional Egyptian literary motifs a n d types, h o w e v e r , t h e necessity of seeking historical a n t e c e d e n t s h a s b e c o m e m o r e difficult to m a i n t a i n . T h e a u t h o r is obviously heir to the Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung tradition a n d to Hellenistic-Egyptian "types" of rulers, w h i c h h a d originally circulated as legends of A l e x a n d e r a n d the Ptolemies. O n e gains the impression that t h e a u t h o r ' s p r i m a r y interest w a s — a g a i n in the tradition of Chaosbeschreibung literature—to create a literary pastiche of a l t e r n a t i n g times of prosperity a n d woe, w h i c h refleeted b o t h an archaic c o h e r e n c e a n d a certain verisimilitude. T w o c o m p o n e n t s of ApocEl 2, h o w e v e r , h a v e o f t e n b e e n r e g a r d e d as analogical reflections of c u r r e n t history: (1) the battles b e t w e e n Assyrians a n d Persians in Egypt (§§E a n d G), a n d (2) t h e accession of the "king f r o m the city w h i c h is called ' T h e City of the S u n " (§G). It is m e t h odologically a p p r o p r i a t e to assess the traditions b e h i n d these literary c o m p o n e n t s b e f o r e seeking historical a n t e c e d e n t s . Before the Assyrians a p p e a r as o p p o n e n t s of Persians in §§E.d a n d H.b, a King of the Assyrians is m e n t i o n e d in §A. G e o r g Steindorff perceived in this Assyrian King the distant reflection of A n t i o c h u s Epip h a n e s a n d the Seleucid invasion of Egypt; J e a n - M a r c Rosenstiehl s a w him as P o m p e y , in his capacity as "King f r o m the North." 7 0 Either interpretation a s s u m e s that the a u t h o r i n t e n d e d s u c h attributes as "Northe m " a n d "Assyrian" to be u n d e r s t o o d literally a n d historically. By t h e Hellenistic period, h o w e v e r , the w o r d assyrioi h a d a s s u m e d a largely unspecific a n d literary significance in oracles a n d o t h e r literature. "Assyrians" in the Sibylline Oracles signifies g r o u p s as diverse as Jews (e.g., 11.29, 80), Babylonians (3.99, 268-70, 809-10), A n t i o c h e n e s (12.135), Eastern peoples in general (11.159-61; 12.107-9), a n d e v e n 70. Steindorff, 75 n. 7; Rosenstiehl, 72.

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Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

217

Persians (5.336; 11.179; 12.266). 71 In Sib. Or. 11.81-82, a n "Assyrian King" s e e m s to d e n o t e Solomon. 7 2 In the book of Judith, N e b u c h a d n e z z a r rules over "Assyrians" rather t h a n Babylonians (1:1 a n d passim). T h e w o r d , therefore, seems to h a v e h a d a n essentially symbolic value, signifying Eastern "hordes." In Egyptian p r o p h e t i c literature, h o w e v e r , "Assyrians" h a d a n exclusively negative m e a n i n g , d e n o t i n g o n e of t h e typical i n v a d i n g armies of "foreigners"—peoples of S e t h - T y p h o n . 7 3 Even A t h a n a s i u s uses the Assyrian a r m y of biblical legend (2 Kings 19) in the Life of Antony as a n e x a m p l e of d e m o n i c hordes, against w h i c h the divine angels are vietorious. 7 4 T h e Chronicle of John ofNikiu a n d the Coptic C a m b y s e s legend a p p a r e n t l y used a source that identified C a m b y s e s as N e b u c h a d n e z zar. 7 5 Because all these texts c o m e f r o m the R o m a n period, it is not surprising that the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah s h o u l d follow the s a m e tradition of viewing "Assyrians" as a type of evil invader, a c o m p o n e n t of the Chaosbeschreibung tradition. I n d e e d , t h e a u t h o r h a s m a d e this s y m bolic value clear in i d e n t i f y i n g t h e Assyrian King b o t h as " f r o m the N o r t h " (a biblical attribute of the evil invader: Jer 1:14; 4:6; J1 2:20; Ez 38:15) a n d as "the U n r i g h t e o u s King"; a n d his invasion is f o l l o w e d by traditional "signs of distress": t h e g r o a n i n g land, t h e seizure of children, the longing for d e a t h . It is t h e r e f o r e d o u b t f u l that a particular figure or a r m y of historical Assyrian (or Syrian) nationality is i n t e n d e d ; rather, it is a motif of Chaobeschreibung: the invasion of T y p h o n i a n people. T h e symbolic v a l u e of "Assyrians" c o n t i n u e s in §§E a n d G, w h e r e they are o p p o s e d by "Persians" in battles that r a n g e over Egyptian soil. Obviously, Persian a n d Assyrian armies w e r e at n o time so e n g a g e d

71. S e e D a v i d Potter, Prophecy and History in the Crisis of the Roman Empire: A Historical Commentary on the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1990), 1 9 7 99; a n d T h . N o l d e k e / ' A S S Y R I O S S Y R I O S SYROS,* Hermes 5 (1871):443-68. 72. S e e J. Collins, * D e v e l o p m e n t of t h e S i b y l l i n e Tradition,* 4 3 8 - 3 9 . 73. Cf. O r . Lamb 2.24; a n d Or. Pot. P 3 30f ( a l t h o u g h L u d w i g K o e n e n u n d e r s t a n d s this also to r e f e r ex eventu to A n t i o c h u s E p i p h a n e s — " D i e P r o p h e z e i u n g e n d e s T o p f e r s , ' * Ζ ΡΕ 2 (1968), 187). P . C a i r o 31222 u s e s " S y r i a n " c o n s i s t e n t l y to r e p r e s e n t hostile l a n d s o u t s i d e Egypt, as a reflection of d o m e s t i c c h a o s ; s e e G e o r g e R. H u g h e s , "A D e m o t i c Astrological Text," /NES 10 (1951):258-59. S e e a l s o A r n a l d o M o m i g l i a n o , " S o m e P r e l i m i n a r y R e m a r k s o n t h e 'Religious O p p o s i t i o n ' to t h e R o m a n E m p i r e , " in Opposition et resistances ά Γempire d'Auguste a Trajan, E n t r e t i e n s s u r l ' a n t i q u i t e c l a s s i q u e 33 ( G e n e v a : V a n d o e u v r e s , 1986), 113. 74. A t h a n a s i u s Vita Antonii 28. 75. S e e H. L u d i n J a n s e n , The Coptic Story of Cambyses' Invasion of Egypt, A v h a n d linger utgitt a v d e t N o r s k e V i d e n s k a p s - A k a d e m i i O s l o 2, Hist.-Filos. Klasse 1950, 2 (Oslo: J a k o b D y b w a d , 1950), 27-29.

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THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

within Egypt. Therefore just as ‫״‬Assyrians‫ ״‬functions as a ‫״‬type‫ ״‬of invader in this text, so also must "Persian." By the first century C.E., Persia h a d already become the backdrop to the myth of Nero redivivus. In this myth the emperor Nero did not die but fled to Persia, w h e n c e h e would return at some f u t u r e time, supported by the Persian army, to conquer the Roman Empire. 7 6 The image of Persian invasion is an important corollary theme of the myth: "For the Persian will come onto your soil like hail, . . . with a full host n u m e r o u s as sand, bringing destruction on you. A n d then, most prosperous of cities [= Alexandria], you will be in great distress. 77 ‫ ״‬As, in popular tradition, the Persians were supposed to install Nero, so the Persian invasion in ApocEl 2 culminates in the installation of the king from "the City of the Sun" in §G. It is a p p a r e n t that "Persians" as an invading force constituted a popular literary b a c k d r o p to mysterious kings in the composition of oracles in the Greco-Roman world. In Egypt, after the invasion of Cambyses, the image of "Persians" carried an overwhelmingly negative significance (like "Assyrians"). Cambyses' invasion w a s continually retold through the Roman period in harsh, martyrological scenes, becoming a paradigm for u n d e r s t a n d i n g the Arab invasion of the seventh century. 7 8 "Persian‫ ״‬was used in Hel76. Cf. John J. Collins, The Sibylline Oracles of Egyptian Judaism, SBLDS 13 (Missoula, Mont.: Scholars Press, 1974), 80-81. The tradition of his return with the Persians appears most explicitly in Sib. Or. 5.94-105, 143-54; 8.139-59. O n the Nero redivivus myth, in general, see Larry Kreitzer, "Hadrian and the Nero Redivivus Myth," ZNW 79 (1988):92-115; and Martin Bodinger, "Le m y t h e de N e r o n de 1'Apocalypse de Saint Jean au Talmud de Babylone,‫ ־‬RHR 206 (1989):21-30. Both scholars note that the myth originally developed as a prophecy in the eastern Mediterranean of the eventual supplanting of Rome by the Asian kingdoms—that is, as anti-Roman nationalist propaganda. The Jewish prophecies of Nero as an evil antihero in Sibylline Oracles books 4, 8, and 12 and in Revelation m a y well be c o u n t e r p r o p a g a n d a against such popular h o p e f u l views of Nero and Persia. These prophecies' circulation throughout the Roman world is s h o w n by the several "false Neros" w h o m a n a g e d to gain considerable followings (see Albert Earl P a p p a n o , "The False Neros," Classical Journal 32 [1937]:38592). E.g., Sib. Or. 8.153-57 expresses itself in the form of an argumentative warning: "Celebrate, if you wish, the m a n of secret birth, riding a Trojan chariot from the land of Asia with the spirit of fire. But when he cuts through the isthmus glancing about, going against everyone, having crossed the sea, then dark blood will pursue the great beast" (tr. J. Collins, "Sibylline Oracles," OTP 1:421), emphasis mine. 77. Sib. Or. 5.93, 97-98 (tr. J. Collins, "Sibylline Oracles," OTP 1:395). Note the equation of a Persian invasion with woe u p o n Alexandria (the "City by the Sea"). 78. See Jacques Schwartz, "Les conquerants perses et la litterature egyptienne," B1FAO 48 (1949):65-80; Samuel K. Eddy, The King Is Dead (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1961), 261-67; Lloyd, "Late Period," 286-88; Jansen, Coptic Story of Cambyses'

Invasion,

4 5 - 4 9 ; c f . Chronicle

of John of Nikiu

51. L l o y d h a s f o u n d e v i d e n c e in

Herodotus that the earliest priestly recollections of C a m b y s e s were mixed, with some constituencies attributing to him an Egyptian lineage (as t h e Alexander Romance of Pseudo-Callisthenes did with Alexander the Great): see Alan B. Lloyd, "Herodotus o n

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

T r a d i t i o n in t h e Apocalypse o f Elijah

219

lenistic Egypt as a fictional nationality, apparently denoting a legal status of inferiority; and it is likely that the choice here of "Persian‫ ״‬also derived from a popular m e m o r y of Persian depredations. 7 9 Finally, the Testament of Job displays its Egyptian provenance in having the devil disguise himself as the king of the Persians. 8 0 Yet it is striking that ApocEl 2 does not entirely follow this traditional Egyptian view of Persians as a typical evil. Although in §G.b ‫״‬the Persians will take vengeance [ΝΛ.ΧΙ Μ Π Ε Κ Β Α ] on the land," they are also imagined as ridding the land of Jews 81 a n d Assyrians a n d installing the penultimate savior, the king f r o m "the City of the Sun"—a reversal of the traditional Egyptian sentiments toward Persians. Because an Egyptian audience with an "Egyptian" identity would have understood "Persian" with its traditionally negative value, this reversal might have led to a certain dissonance between the textual symbol a n d the traditional symbol. The simplest resolution of this contradiction in the m e a n i n g a n d function of "Persian" has been to take "Assyrian" and "Persian" as having represented each other in a historical prophecy of the imminent future; then one might conceivably come u p with a historically accurate conflict of the third century. 8 2 "Assyrians," that is, might be said to represent the Sassanid Persians u n d e r Ardashir a n d S h a p u r I, w h o threatened the Roman empire a n d its ally Palmyra (under O d e n a t h ) for much of the third century C.E.; w h e r e a s "Persians" could represent the Palmyrene (Syrian) army of O d e n a t h and, subsequently, Zenobia. 8 3 Palmyra a n d Persia h a d actually engaged in frequent battles during the C a m b y s e s : S o m e T h o u g h t s o n Recent Work,‫ ״‬in Achaemenid History, vol. 3: Method and Theory, ed. Amelie Kuhrt a n d H e l e e n S a n c i s i - W e e r d e n b u r g (Leiden: N e d e r l a n d s Instituut v o o r het n a b i j e O o s t e n , 1988), 55-66, esp. 62. By t h e later Hellenistic period, h o w e v e r , t h e n e g a t i v e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s of C a m b y s e s s e e m to h a v e d o m i n a t e d (see E d d y , King Is Dead, 261-63; a n d Lloyd, " H e r o d o t u s o n C a m b y s e s , " 62, 65-66), c u l m i n a t i n g in t h e C a m b y s e s legend, w h i c h is p r e s e r v e d in Coptic but p r o b a b l y derived f r o m a H e l l e n i s t i c Grundlage

( s e e J a n s e n , Coptic Story of Cambyses'

Invasion,

33, 49).

79. Bevan, House of Ptolemy, 109-11. 80. T. Job 17; cf. J o h n J. Collins, "Structure a n d M e a n i n g in t h e T e s t a m e n t of Job," SBLSP (1974), vol. 1, ed. G e o r g e M a c R a e ( C a m b r i d g e , Mass.: SBL, 1974), 50. It is r a t h e r striking that a n Egyptian Jew w o u l d follow t h e Egyptian h a t r e d of Persians, f o r in Jewish m e m o r y t h e Persians w e r e generally salvific. 81. A beneficial act in Egyptian nationalist tradition; see below, pp. 226-28. 82. It m i g h t b e suggested that, as t h e s u b s e q u e n t King of P e a c e recalls traditions of Alexander, so t h e U n r i g h t e o u s King (ApocEl 2:2-5) recalls ( w i t h o u t actually reflecting) C a m b y s e s , f r o m w h o s e l e g e n d a r y d e p r e d a t i o n s u p o n Egypt ( a n d c o n s e q u e n t Persian d o m i n a t i o n ) A l e x a n d e r w a s o n c e v i e w e d as a savior. ‫ י‬Ασσύριοι s e e m s to h a v e b e e n used for "Persian" in S t r a b o 16.743; cf. Sib. Or. 5.336; 11.179. 83. Cf. Schrage, w h o s u g g e s t s that "Assyrian" d e n o t e d a c o n t e m p o r a r y great p o w e r that included b o t h Persia a n d R o m e (224).

220

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

middle of the third century, although in Syria, net Egypt. Zenobia herself entered Upper Egypt in 269 C.E., allegedly at the invitation of a Greco-Egyptian merchant a n d dissident from Roman rule, Timagenes. 8 4 Indeed, Zenobia's apparent attempts at conciliating local a n d priestly sentiments in Egypt could conceivably be related to the "nationalist" elements of ApocEl 2.85 The argument for ApocEl 2's analogical reflection of third-century history continues further. Zenobia (or, according to Rollin Kearns, her son Waballath) 8 6 would become the king f r o m the "City of the Sun," for Palmyra did have a solar religion. The Jewish a u t h o r s h i p of a putative Vorlage of the Apocalypse of Elijah would presumably explain the text's high regard for Zenobia as the restorative king, because she m a y have restored a synagogue in Upper Egypt. 87 Thus the Apocalypse of Elijah, in some redactional phase, would emerge as deliberate (albeit allusive) p r o p a g a n d a for Zenobia's "messianic" authority. But these arguments at best rely on the historical coincidence of Zenobia's invasion with the terminus ante quern of the text of the Apocalypse of Elijah; a n d at worst they rely u p o n the untenable assumption that the Apocalypse of Elijah w a s written by a Jew. The assumption that these episodes in §§E and G were m e a n t to be read allegorically—as direct reflections of immediate history—is belied by the overwhelmingly typical (or "literary") n a t u r e of ApocEl 2 as a whole. Indeed, the classic Chaosbeschreibung image of the Nile r u n n i n g with blood appears in the midst of these allegedly "historical" sections. It is also in §E that o n e finds a profusion of stereotyped numerological indicators: three kings (§E.a), four kings versus three kings (§E.d), three years (§E.e). A survey of the use of n u m b e r s in ApocEl 2 reveals that they are all multiples of three or four: "four kings" (2:20), "30th year" (2:21), "three kings" (2:39, 42), "four (kings)" (2:42), "three years" (2:43), "three days" (2:44), "sixth year" (2:47), "three years a n d six m o n t h s " (2:52),88 "fourth year" (3:1). It is d o u b t f u l that any period of history could 84. Zosimus Historia nova, 1.44; see below, chapter 9, pp. 262-64. 85. Cf. Arthur Stein, "Kallinikos von Petrai," Hermes 58 (1923):454-55; Jacques Schwartz, *Les palmyreniens et l'Egypte," Bulletin de la societe archeologique d'Alexandrie 40 (1953):76-77; and ‫״‬Glen W. Bowersock, ‫־‬The Miracle of Memnon,‫ ־‬BASP 21 (1984):3132. 86. Rollin Kearns, Das Traditionsgefiige urn den Menschensohn (Tubingen: M o h r [Siebeck], 1986), 96-100. 87. See Rosenstiehl, 64-67; cf. Schwartz, *Les palmyreniens et l'Egypte," 77. 88. The use of "three years and six months" in passage §H.b is d r a w n directly f r o m a popular apocalyptic numerological system assigned to times of eschatological distress:

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

221

conform to such numerological regularity. Therefore it is likely that the n u m b e r s three a n d four constituted the author's numerical formulas, the fixed units he used to denote a m o u n t s that carried cultural and performative relevance. ApocEl 2 is arranged on the basis of threes and fours (and the early Jewish "three years a n d six months"), just as an epic or folktale might unfold in threes, fours, sevens, or h u n d r e d s . Finally, the supposed reference to Zenobia as "king" not only crosses gender lines but is so vague in terms of historical veracity that it could only be written considerably after the Palmyrene invasion—that is, close to the turn of the century. It would thereby lose its significance as ex eventu oracular p r o p a g a n d a for her authority a n d dominion; the reason for referring to her would consequently be lost; and, most importantly, the composition of the Greek text itself would be p u s h e d problematically close in time to the date of its first Coptic recensions in the early fourth century. The interpretation of §§E a n d G as referring to events of the third century C.E. therefore loses m u c h of its basis. Yet o n e still must account for the positive view of Persians in a text that otherwise cleaves closely to a literary tradition with f u n d a m e n t a l l y xenophobic views of invading foreigners. Insofar as invading Persians held an almost neutral (and occasionally beneficial) significance in the wider Mediterranean world as the prophesied supporters of Nero reciivivus against Rome (and, perhaps more notably, as the destroyers of Alexandria in Sib. Or. 5.98), there may have been a standard expectation of eschatological Persian invasions (and oriental triumph in general) a m o n g Greek-speakers in Roman Egypt, separate from the traditional Egyptian view of Persian invasions. The G r e e k - c o m p r e h e n d i n g audience of the Apocalypse of Elijah may have understood this more general sense of "Persians." The Persian expulsion of Jews a n d installation of the king from "The City of the Sun,‫ ״‬however, would h a v e h a d an ironic significance to an audience with the slightest k n o w l e d g e of the Egyptian negative valuation of

cf. Dn 7:25; 12:7 (= *a time, [two] times, and half a time'); Rv 11:2; 13:5 (*forty-two months'); 11:3; 12:6 (*one t h o u s a n d , t w o h u n d r e d , and sixty days"); C o m m o d i a n Carmen apologeticunt 11. 885-86 ("three years a n d a half"; ed. and tr. Antonio Salvatore, Commodiano: Carme apologetico [Torino: Societa Editrice Internazionale, 1977], 102-3). Charles notes also the effect of this numerological system on Luke's retelling of Elijah's drought in 1 Kgs 18:1: w h e r e t h e biblical legend assigns the d r o u g h t to roughly three years, Lk 4:25 puts three and a half years. See Charles, Revelation of St. John, 1:279-80; Hermann Gunkel, Schopfung und Chaos in Urzeit und Endzeit (Gottingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1895), 257-58, 266-72, 330, 395.

222

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

Persians. To such an audience, the Persians' accomplishment of such beneficial acts would mean that these acts (and the king's beneficial dominion) should not be understood as p e r m a n e n t or ultimate. Rather, the symbolic inversion of the Persians expresses the chaos of the preeschatological era, w h e n evil forces accomplish ostensibly positive acts. H o w , then, m a y w e u n d e r s t a n d the ‫״‬king from the city which is called The City of the Sun‫ ״׳‬in §G.a? The solar connotations of this penultimate great king closely resemble the prophecy in the Potter's Oracle of a messianic ‫״‬king descended from Helios,‫ ״‬designating a final, perfect p h a r a o h w h o would express the restorative a n d ordering powers of the sun god, Re.89 The term is also used in the Egyptian Jewish Third Sibylline Oracle, although subordinated to Y H W H : A n d t h e n G o d w i l l s e n d a K i n g f r o m t h e s u n w h o will s t o p t h e e n t i r e e a r t h f r o m evil w a r , . . . a n d h e will n o t d o all t h e s e t h i n g s b y h i s p r i v a t e p l a n s b u t in o b e d i e n c e t o t h e n o b l e t e a c h i n g s of t h e g r e a t G o d . 9 0

Collins has explained the Jewish use of such a traditional Egyptian motif as p r o p a g a n d a for Ptolemy VI: that a Jewish courtier might h a v e viewed this king in such salvific terms that he took an Egyptian term to express this sentiment in local symbolism (although phrasing it m o n o theistically: it is God w h o sends the king). 91 W h e t h e r or not this oracle h a d a particular historical reference, however, it provides evidence of the circulation of ‫״‬King from Re‫ ״‬prophecies or expectations beyond simply that of the Potter's Oracle.92 The extended form in which the prophecy appears in §G.a would reflect the Hellenistic-Egyptian priestly tradition that the s a v i o r - p h a r a o h would arise in Heliopolis, the ancient sacred city of Re, near Memphis. 9 3 An analogous prophecy of ‫״‬solar‫ ״‬figures appears in the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle, but it is divided into a ‫״‬priest. . . sent from the sun" (1. 151), a ‫״‬city of the s u n 1 5 3.1)‫ ) ״‬, a n d a terrible lion ‫״‬sent from the sun.11) 164-65). This section of the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle has been s h o w n 89. Note that, in the f r a m e narrative of the Potter's Oracle, t h e story of the potter's oracle to King A m e n o p h i s concludes with the latter burying t h e visionary potter iv Ή λ ι ο υ πόλίΐ (Or. Pot. P 2 11. 51-52; in Koenen, "Prophezeiungen des 'Topfers,'" 208). 90. Sib. Or. 3.652-56 (tr. J. Collins, ‫־‬Sibylline Oracles,‫ ־‬OTP 1:376). 91. J. Collins, Sibi/lline Oracles, 41-44. 92. Cf. Raymond Weill, La fin du moyen empire egx/ptien (Paris: Imprimerie nationale, 1918), 131-32 on the role of Heliopolis in the ancient Egyptian KOnigsnovelle about the impure invaders. 93. Cf. CPJ 520, which expresses the fear that the Jews (i.e., Typhonian foreigners) "will inhabit the City of Helios."

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

223

to refer to events surrounding the cities of Emesa a n d Palmyra in Syria, w h o s e religious iconography did have a solar theme. 9 4 Ironically, it is in light of these particular Syrian parallels that m a n y scholars have taken §G.a in ApocEl 2 to reflect a Palmyrene monarch. 9 5 Yet it is a problematic m o v e to take the language (and historical antecedents) of an oracle composed in Syria to interpret a similar motif in an Egyptian Christian text, w h e n the s a m e motif can be f o u n d in other, c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s Egyptian literature. The solar king in ApocEl 2 manifestly reflects the Egyptian tradition: he is associated specifically with the increase of arable land in §H.a (implying that he is conceived by the author as fulfilling traditional pharaonic functions), and he is the last beneficial king before the parousia of Christ. Indeed, it is likely that the presence in the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle of analogs of the "King from Re‫ ״‬motif actually reflects an importation of the Egyptian tradition, w h o s e centrality in Egyptian prophetic literature (and widening circulation through such media as the Third Sibylline Oracle and copies in late antiquity of the Potter's Oracle) led to its inclusion in the Greco-Roman oikumene of oracular motifs. The author of the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle f o u n d in the ‫״‬King from Re‫ ״‬motif a n d its analogs (such as the ‫״‬City of the Sun‫ )״‬fitting allegorical symbols for Palmyra a n d Emesa and their solar connotations. Similarly, the editor of the Greek Tiburtine Sibyl used the solar king of the Apocalypse of Elijah to prophesy the preeschatological rise of the Syrian city of Heliopolis. 96 Historical events of the third century, o n e m a y conclude, are not signified allegorically in ApocEl 2. The text was intended to be meaningful a n d plausible as a prophetic vision without the audience's perception of past history through its symbols a n d episodes. The period of the audience, in the chronological spectrum of the Apocalypse of Elijah, lies back in ApocEl 1:13 a n d following—the ‫״‬deceivers‫ ״‬w h o ‫״‬oppose fasting‫—״‬therein rendering all of ApocEl 2 as true prediction, rather than an account of past history. 97 94. The "priest' is Uranius A n t o n i n u s II and his Elagabalus cult (see A. T. Olmstead, "The Mid-Third Century of the Christian Era,* CP 37 (1942]:406-8). T h e ' l i o n ' is clearly O d e n a t h (ibid., 420; cf. Saul Lieberman, *Rabbinic Parallels to the Thirteenth Sibylline Book,‫ ־‬IQR 37 [1947]:37-38). J. Collins incorrectly identifies both as O d e n a t h (‫־‬Sibylline Oracles,* OTP 1:458). 95. E.g., Wilhelm Bousset, "Beitrage zur Geschichte der Eschatologie: Die Apokalypse des Elias,* Ζ KG 20 (1899): 106. 96· Greek Tiburtine Sibyl 1. 205 (shortened to "a king will arise f r o m t h e city of t h e su n"). O n the a u t h o r ' s interest in Heliopolis, see Alexander, Oracle of Baalbek, 44-47. 97. See chap. 11.

224

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

This interpretation of ApocEl 2 as using a n essentially a priori signification can be verified by assessing the u n d e r s t a n d i n g s of the text expressed by s u b s e q u e n t editors w h o u s e d the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah to c o m p o s e n e w texts. Did s u c h a u t h o r - e d i t o r s interpret its predictions of w o e s as m e a n t to h a p p e n d u r i n g i m m e d i a t e history or eschatologically? T h e first w i t n e s s to t h e text, D i d y m u s t h e Blind, did not consider t h e legend of T a b i t h a either a r e f e r e n c e to a n individual of his d a y or a *type‫ ״‬to b e interpreted abstractly, but r a t h e r a n authoritative proof text for the u s e of the n a m e ‫ ״‬S h a m e l e s s O n e ‫ ״‬for the figure of ‫״‬Antichrist. 9 8 ‫״‬ A m o r e complex case is t h e Greek Tiburtine Sibyl, w h i c h is constructed of prophecies in s u c h obviously allegorical f o r m a n d systematic a r r a n g e m e n t that o n e m a y a s s u m e t h e text's a u d i e n c e s v i e w e d t h e m as vaticinia ex eventus. Yet the text d e p e n d s o n the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah exclusively for its i m a g i n a r y portrayal of the eschaton. 9 9 T h a t is, it r e a d s the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah again as a n i d e a l — n o t ex eventus—prophecy of woes. Because of its consistent references t o a Heliopolis (in this case, evidently, the Syrian city) a n d t h e building of its temples, Paul J. Alexander h a s a r g u e d that the Greek Tiburtine Sibyl ‫ ״‬w a s c o m p i l e d in or n e a r Heliopolis‫ ״‬a n d that t h e a u t h o r h a d a s t r o n g interest in this city's status in the last days. 1 0 0 It c a n n o t b e a coincidence, therefore, that the a u t h o r h a s allowed his text to c u l m i n a t e w i t h the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah's ‫״‬King f r o m the Sun* prediction. I n d e e d , the a u t h o r c h a n g e s ‫״‬a king f r o m the city which is called ' T h e City of t h e Sun,‫ ״׳‬as b o t h Sa 3 a n d Ach articulate the oracle, to ‫״‬a king f r o m t h e City of the S u n [άπο ηλίου ·7τόλ€ω9],‫ ״‬w h i c h p e r h a p s m o r e easily reflected Syrian Heliopolis. 1 0 1 T h e m a n i f e s t interest in this city m u s t account for the u s e of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah in the first place: the a u t h o r s o u g h t a n oracular text that might b e read to express the ultimate glory of Heliopolis a n d f o u n d s u c h a text in the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. His disregard for the ex eventus v a l u e of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah's oracles is expressed in that h e actually r e a r r a n g e d m a n y of the episodes for his n e w eschatological p r o p h e c y . 98. Didymus the Blind Comm. Eccles. 235.24-28 (ed. and tr. J o h a n n e s Kramer and B a r b e l K r e b b e r , Didymos

der Blinde:

Kommentar

zum

Ecclesiastes

[Tura-Papyrus],

v o l . 4:

Kommentar zu Eccl. Kap. 7-8, 8, PTA 16 [Bonn: Rudolf Habelt, 1972], 136-37). 99. Grk. Tib. Sib. 173-227. 100. Alexander, Oracle of Baalbek, 44-47; the bulk of the references are in 11. 76-88, referring to Antiochus. There are no "King from Heliopolis" references in the Latin Tiburtine Sibyl. 101. Grk. Tib. Sib. 205. Alexander is incorrect in stating that the author interpolated the oracle here as an expression of his interest in t h e city (Oracle of Baalbek, 47). Rather, the author is epitomizing ApocEl 2, the culmination of which is this very oracle.

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

225

Therefore, in the case of the G r e e k Tiburtine Sibyl, t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah w a s read a n d a p p r o p r i a t e d out of a n interest in o n e particular oracle in its text. Yet this oracle w a s not t h e n u n d e r s t o o d historically; in the Tiburtine Sibyl it r e m a i n e d an entirely eschatological vision of a savior-king. 1 0 2 T h e h e r m e n e u t i c difference lies in the a u t h o r ' s localization of t h e oracle, so that it w o u l d pertain to civic interests. This w a s effected t h r o u g h the composition of the rest of the Tiburtine Sibyl. T h e last text that s h o w s clear k n o w l e d g e of the Apocalypse of Elijah is the Apocalypse of Shenoute. This late s e v e n t h - c e n t u r y e x p a n s i o n of t h e Vita c o m p o s e d by Besa, S h e n o u t e ' s o w n disciple, a d d s to t h e earlier text an eschatological revelation f r o m Christ that begins with a p r o p h e c y ex eventus of the A r a b invasions. 1 0 3 Like t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, this p r o p h e c y uses "Persian" as a type for i n v a d e r s (in this case, the Arabs), mixing s u c h allusive l a n g u a g e with m o r e explicit references to bishops, Christians, a n d monasteries. 1 0 4 T h e eschatological imagery, h o w e v e r , g r o w s increasingly fantastic, compiled largely f r o m the book of Revelation, a n d at this point the a u t h o r evidently a d d e d motifs f r o m the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah: t h e w o m e n w h o are suckled b y s e r p e n t s a n d p r o d u c e poison (§D.d), the sufferers' a p p e a l to the rocks to fall u p o n t h e m (§D.c), anachoresis (ApocEl 4:24-26), a n d others. 1 0 5 T h e a u t h o r not only is d r a w i n g o n the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah as a source for eschatological imagery (as o p p o s e d to the description of i m m e d i a t e history) but is using the text in a h a p h a z a r d w a y , d r a w i n g f r o m different sections w i t h o u t regard for their order in the text of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. 1 0 6 T h u s in the late s e v e n t h century, in the m i n d of at least o n e monastic scribe, the images of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah referred to the e s c h a t o n rather t h a n to p r o x i m a t e e v e n t s in Late R o m a n a n d Byzantine Egyptian history. T h e e v i d e n c e of s u b s e q u e n t r e a d i n g s of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah w o u l d not s u p p o r t a n a s s u m p t i o n that a u d i e n c e s h e a r d a n d u n d e r s t o o d its oracles in light of political e v e n t s of their o w n day. This e v i d e n c e 102. Cf. Rosenstiehl, 3 7 - 4 0 , 42. 103. Ed. E. A m e l i n e a u , Monuments pour servir a I'histoire de I'Egypte chretienne aux IV' et V si^cles. Memoires publies par les membres de la mission archeologique franqaise au Caire 4 (Paris: E r n e s t Leroux, 1888), 338-51. 104. In ibid., 3 4 0 - 4 1 . 105. In ibid., 3 4 2 - 4 4 . 106. Cf. Rosenstiehl, 4 0 - 4 2 . It is a likely i n f e r e n c e t h a t t h i s p r o p h e c y w a s c o m p o s e d f r o m t h e memory of v a r i o u s s c r i p t u r a l d e s c r i p t i o n s of t h e e s c h a t o n r a t h e r t h a n w i t h Revelation, t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, a n d (later in t h e text) M a r k 13 o n t h e scribe's v e r y desk.

226

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

t h e r e f o r e s u p p o r t s m y c o n t e n t i o n that ApocEl 2 w a s i n t e n d e d as p r o p h ecy—as a compilation of ideal ( t h o u g h traditional) oracles.

THE MEANING OF REFERENCES TOJEWS ANDJERUSALEM T h e references to Jews a n d Jerusalem in § E . a - b p o s e a different sort of question, that of the social location of the a u t h o r (although o n e scholar h a s suggested that these passages too were vaticinia ex eventus, describing the restoration of Jerusalem a f t e r the Babylonian Exile). 107 Earlier scholars a s s u m e d that the r e f e r e n c e to Jews r e t u r n i n g to Jerusalem in §E.a represented a Jewish writer's o w n expectation of a premillennial restoration, which w o u l d create a d e c e p t i v e s e n s e of peace, as §E.b describes. The p r o b l e m with this a s s u m p t i o n is not only the p r o f o u n d d e a r t h of e v i d e n c e for Egyptian Jewry in the late third century 1 0 8 but also the v e r b that describes t h e Jews' return to Jerusalem: αίχμαλωτίζαν ("take captive"). This w o r d , e m p l o y e d previously in ApocEl 1:3 to describe the "captivity [αιχμαλωσία] of this age," can h a r d l y express a salvific act for Jews o n t h e part of t h e Persians. W h a t §E.a describes is the Persians' d e p o r t a t i o n of t h e Jews f r o m Egypt a n d the resettlement of Jerusalem with Jews, b o t h of w h i c h are eschatological "signs.‫״‬ T h e first act, the Jews' r e m o v a l f r o m Egypt, c a n b e u n d e r s t o o d in the context of CPJ 520, t h e anti-Jewish oracle that predicted t h e expulsion f r o m Egypt of the Jews as T y p h o n i a n s , foreigners w h o w o r s h i p e d S e t h T y p h o n , "by the anger of Isis.‫ ״‬A l t h o u g h CPJ 520 w a s p r o b a b l y c o m p o s e d as native p r o p a g a n d a against the Jewish revolt of 116-17, the extant papyri derive f r o m t h e third c e n t u r y — t h a t is, r o u g h l y cont e m p o r a n e o u s to t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. T h u s the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah's §E.a belongs to t h e ‫״‬tradition‫ ״‬of Egyptian nationalist antiJudaism, w h i c h arose primarily in t h e Hellenistic period. T h e Jewish resettlement of Jerusalem as a sign of t h e e n d of days, s u c h as § E . a - b describes, a p p e a r s p r o m i n e n t l y in Eastern Christian apocalyptic literature only a f t e r the third c e n t u r y C.E. 109 This idea c o m 107. Oscar von Lemm, *Kleine koptische Studien, XXVI Bemerkungen zu einigen Stellen der koptischen Apokalypsen 14," 46. 108. See Tcherikover and Fuks, CP/ 1:94-96. 109. Cf. Cyril of Jerusalem Catecheses 15.15; Vita Shenoute (Arabic), in Amelineau, Monuments, 341; Greek Apocalypse of Daniel 8. Cf. also Wilhelm Bousset, The Antichrist Legend, tr. A. H. Keane (London: Hutchinson, 1896), 162-63; and Paul J. Alexander, The Byzantine Apocalyptic Tradition, ed. Dorothy deF. A b r a h a m s e (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1985), 206.

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

T r a d i t i o n in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

227

bined early Jewish (and Christian) prophecies that the Antichrist would ‫״‬take his seat in the temple of G o d 2 ) ‫ ״‬Thes 2:4) with Jewish hopes in late antiquity that the Messiah would rebuild the Jerusalem temple. 110 Thus in Hippolytus ‫״‬the antichrist . . . is also the one w h o will raise u p the kingdom of the Jews. 111 ‫ ״‬Although Robert L. Wilken has s h o w n that m a n y Christian authorities of the first three centuries held little regard for the terrestrial Jerusalem (preferring instead the heavenly Jerusalem or an altogether allegorical understanding of the holy city), 112 there is some evidence for ‫״‬Jewish‫ ״‬Christians w h o continued to hold reverence for the city as a holy place a n d the site of m a n y eschatological events. 1 1 3 Both §E.a and §E.b seem to reflect this position in describing Jerusalem as the site of two (deceptively) ‫״‬blessed‫ ״‬events, the return of the Jews a n d the rumor of peace. 114 The association b e t w e e n ‫״‬security‫ ״‬in Jerusalem and the imminent arrival of the Destructive O n e s h o w s that the author imagines Jerusalem only as an eschatological b a r o m e t e r — w h e n things appear pleasant there, then the eschatological Adversary will arise in ‫״‬the holy places. 115 ‫״‬ 110. See sources in Bousset, Antichrist Legend, 160-62 (the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah d r a w s on this tradition f r o m 2 T h e s s a l o n i a n s in describing the Lawless O n e as "taking his stand in the holy places"—e.g., ApocEl 2:41, 4:1-2). O n late a n t i q u e Jewish traditions of the restoration of Jerusalem a n d the temple, see Joseph Klausner, The Messianic Idea in Israel, tr. W. F. Stinespring (3d Ger. ed.; N e w York: MacMillan, 1955), 513-14. In t h e f o u r t h century there w a s a Christian millennialist m o v e m e n t w h o s e tenets included the rebuilding of the temple; Basil of C a e s a r e a writes disapprovingly of this "base" interpretation of biblical prophecies in Epistles 263 a n d 265, w h e r e a s Jerome's commentaries on Ezekiel, Isaiah, a n d Daniel take seriously Jewish expectations of restoration; see Robert L. Wilken, "The Restoration of Israel in Biblical Prophecy: Christian a n d Jewish Responses in the Early Byzantine Period," in "To See Ourselves as Others See Us": Christians,

Jews, "Others"

in Late Antiquity,

e d . J a c o b N e u s n e r a n d E r n e s t S. F r e r i c h s

(Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, 1985), 443-71. T h e sixth a n d s e v e n t h centuries s a w an increase of Jewish apocalyptic prophecies of the temple rebuilt: see Sefer Zerubbabel a n d Sefer Eliahu (in b o t h of which the t e m p l e d e s c e n d s f r o m h e a v e n , as in Revelation 21); Wilken, "Restoration of Israel," 453-61; a n d Salo W i t t m a y e r Baron, Social and Religious History of the Jews, 18 vols. (2d ed.; N e w York: C o l u m b i a University Press, 1957), 5:13950. 111. H i p p o l y t u s On Christ

and Antichrist

2 5 . 2 ( e d . E n r i c o N o r e l l i , Ippolito:

L'Anticristo

INardini Editore, 198η, 94). 112. Robert L. Wilken, "Early Christian Chiliasm, Jewish Messianism, a n d the Idea of the Holy Land," in Christians among Jews and Gentiles, ed. G e o r g e W. E. Nickelsburg and George W. MacRae (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986), 298-307. 113. E.g., I r e n a e u s Adv. haer. 1.26.2; see Wilken, "Early Christian Chiliasm," 299, 301; and idem, "Restoration of Israel." 114. In ApocEl 4:2-3, Jerusalem is juxtaposed to "the region of the s u n s e t ' — t h a t is, the Egyptian land of the dead. It is conceivable that this juxtaposition r e p r e s e n t e d a Christian extension of the mythological g e o g r a p h y that s e p a r a t e d the land of the d e a d from the land of the sunrise. 115. "Holy places" in plural m a y signify either the diverse holy sanctuaries of

228

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

T h e references to Jews a n d Jerusalem derive b o t h f r o m Egyptian nationalist anti-Judaism—a t h e m e of Chaosbeschreibung in its Hellenistic a n d R o m a n d e v e l o p m e n t — a n d f r o m early Christian millennial ideology of t h e preeschatological restoration of Israel a n d Jerusalem. T h e y d o not reflect the a u t h o r ' s o w n Jewish b a c k g r o u n d or s y m p a t h i e s .

THE SYNTHESIS OF NATIVE AND CHRISTIAN TRADITIONS T h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah 2 §D.f c o m b i n e s w h a t is p r o b a b l y a traditional N e a r E a s t e r n — E g y p t i a n a n d J e w i s h — c o n c e p t of childbirth as a g a u g e of eschatological w o e s or prosperity with a n encratite ideology, u n i q u e to ascetic Judaism of the G r e c o - R o m a n period a n d its Christian offshoots, praising virginity a n d b a r r e n n e s s . Both t h e a s s u r a n c e of "heavenly" children to the childless in this p o e m a n d the addition of •παρθένος to a traditional saying that originally p e r t a i n e d to inadvertent childlessness suggest that t h e p a s s a g e w a s expressing a current e t h o s or ideal of sexual r e n u n c i a t i o n in the a u t h o r ' s milieu. Indeed, the "promise" of h e a v e n l y children suggests that t h e a u t h o r himself a d v o c a t e d this e t h o s to his audience. 1 1 6 A different reflection of p o p u l a r Christian s e n t i m e n t s a p p e a r s in the references to "saints" in ApocEl 2. Their f u n c t i o n b o t h in the narrative a n d , p r e s u m a b l y , in t h e life of the a u d i e n c e is clarified outside ApocEl 2, in 5:2-20; t h e a u t h o r m a k e s clear that w h e n Egypt ("the earth") falls into rapid decline u n d e r the Lawless O n e , this h a p p e n s b e c a u s e of the d e p a r t u r e of the saints—"for b e c a u s e of t h e m the earth gives fruit, for because of t h e m t h e s u n s h i n e s u p o n t h e earth, for b e c a u s e of t h e m the d e w falls u p o n the earth" (5:18). S u c h p o w e r s w e r e attributed in an equally causal m a n n e r to the p h a r a o h in traditional k i n g s h i p ideology, as d e m o n s t r a t e d earlier (chap. 7, p p . 162-63); yet in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah the integrative force of the c o s m o s h a s s h i f t e d to t h e saints ( w h o were evidently a c o m b i n a t i o n of d e c e a s e d a n d v e n e r a t e d m a r t y r s a n d the i n t e n d e d a u d i e n c e of t h e text p r o j e c t e d into the future). J e r u s a l e m or t h e m u l t i p l e s a i n t - s h r i n e s of Egypt. T h i s is t h e o n l y place w h e r e Ach a n d Sa mss. a g r e e o n t h e n u m b e r of t h e s e places. E l s e w h e r e , w h e r e Sa 3 h a s "place" ( m e a n i n g J e r u s a l e m ? ) A c h h a s "places" ( A p o c E l 3:5), a n d vice v e r s a (4:7); cf. 4:1, w h e r e Sa 1 h a s "place* a n d A c h a n d S a 3 h a v e "places." 116. T h e p r e c e d e n t in t h e Wisdom of Solomon s h o u l d w a r n u s n o t to v i e w t h i s e t h o s a s u n i q u e l y o r originally C h r i s t i a n , a l t h o u g h , at t h e t i m e of t h e c o m p o s i t i o n of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, w e m i g h t justly a s s u m e it t o b e p r i m a r i l y C h r i s t i a n .

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

T r a d i t i o n in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

229

This h a r m o n y of native Egyptian tradition a n d a distinctly local Christian understanding of the charisma of saints a n d shrines pervades ApocEl 2. The explicit beneficiaries of the King of Peace's apparent benevolence in §B.b-c are the "saints,‫ ״‬the "priests," and the "holy places," all of w h o m are juxtaposed to the "pagans" a n d their "idols." In the prophecy of the king from "the City of the Sun" (§G), prosperity is likewise equated with the fate of saint-shrines; a n d as the King of Peace favors shrines a n d "saints"—compounding traditional Egyptian images of royal benevolence with Christian images—so also the king from "the City of the Sun" wipes out "pagans" a n d reestablishes Christian shrines in §G.c-d. Indeed both figures utter the motto "The n a m e of God is One!" (§§B.b, G.d). Although the slogan "The n a m e of G o d is One" (§B.b) has Jewish roots, it would not have seemed particularly strange to traditional Egyptians; indeed, the slogan gained great notoriety in popular Egyptian Christian tradition, as is witnessed by Saint Mark's legendary encounter with an Alexandrian cobbler w h o used the motto, as well as diverse amulets on which the motto functioned apotropaically. 1 1 7 In the thirdcentury Apocalypse of Elijah, the motto would h a v e indicated the King of Peace's (apparent or initial) s y m p a t h y for Christian identity: it f u n c tioned as a slogan of allegiance. 118 In §C.c the author has evidently intended to m a k e as vivid a contrast as possible b e t w e e n the dominions of the King of Peace (§B) and his son 117. Egyptian literature displays a t e n d e n c y t o w a r d h e n o t h e i s m — a p r e f e r e n c e for venerating "unity" while implicitly a c k n o w l e d g i n g plurality; cf. Siegfried Morenz, Egyptian Religion, tr. A n n E. Keep (Ithaca, N.Y., and London: Cornell University Press, 1973), 135-49. O n the Mark legend, see Birger Pearson, "Earliest Christianity in Egypt: S o m e Observations," in The Roots of Egyptian Christianity, ed. Birger A. Pearson a n d James E. Goehring, SAC 1 (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986), 140-45. A m o n g magical texts, cf. Dierk W o r t m a n n , " N e u e magische Texte,‫ ־‬Bonner Jahrbiicher 168 (1968):105, 107 ( = #7, 10). O n the slogan in general, see Eric Peterson, HEIS THEOS (Gottingen: V a n d e n h o e c k & Ruprecht, 1926). 118. §B.c suggests that this "King of Peace" will b e c o m e u n f a v o r a b l e to Christians. Although the precise s e n t i m e n t s of this passage are n o t clear, the a u t h o r s e e m s to imagine a situation in w h i c h a ruler will travel u p the Nile in disguise to assess the value of religious property, p e r h a p s for t h e p u r p o s e of later confiscation. T h e folkloric t h e m e of a ruler in disguise is w i d e s p r e a d , a l t h o u g h in Hellenistic Egypt it w a s given literary p r o m i n e n c e in P s e u d o - C a l l i s t h e n e s ' Alexander Romance: N e k t a n e b o s escapes M e m p h i s a n d sails to M a c e d o n in disguise (1.3.2-6). In the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle, the priest ήλιότκμτττος (11. 151-52; identified w i t h U r a n i u s A n t o n i n u s II of Emesa) is said to "accomplish e v e r y t h i n g with deceit [δόλω]." It is likely that t h e attribute of deceptiveness, b o t h in the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle a n d in the Elijah Apocalypse, m a d e structural sense as the opposite of the correct u n d e r s t a n d i n g of signs with w h i c h the reader or a u d i e n c e of the text is e n d o w e d t h r o u g h h e a r i n g its oracles.

230

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

with the ‫״‬demonic face.‫ ״‬This is most clear w h e n the d e m o n - f a c e d son recalls ‫״‬every gift which my father gave you‫״‬: there is a simple exchange between the activities of the ‫״‬King of Peace‫ ״‬and the d e m o n - f a c e d son. The explicit reference to performing ‫״‬sacrifices and abominations,‫ ״‬h o w ever, may reflect the imperial sacrifice edicts from the mid-third century. Likewise, the seizure of saints and priests and the shutting of the shrines suggests depredations specifically against Christians, w h e t h e r imagined or experienced. Thus one realm of tradition a n d lore to which the author appeals in casting this second image of eschatological woes is that of third-century persecution against Christians, or p e r h a p s the lore emanating from the Christian response to the religious edicts. Although o n e cannot deduce that the d e m o n - f a c e d son historically represents Decius or Valerian, there is the suggestion here, as in the materials discussed above in chapter 6, that persecution traditions a n d fantasies that arose in the third century affected the author's image of evil kingship. It is likely that the author intended the obscure image of the son ‫ ״‬a p p e a r i n g ] beneath the sun and the moon‫§( ״‬C.c, 2:27)119 as an explanation for the son's anti-Christian depredations. Although Schrage interpreted the image as a e u p h e m i s m for self-exaltation (in the spirit of Is 14:13-14 and Dn 8:10-11), 120 it gains greater contextual meaning w h e n interpreted within Egyptian Christian cultural categories, as allegiance to the sun a n d the m o o n as cosmic powers in the Greco-Egyptian sense and therefore as emblems of the son's primary allegiance to a high ritual *paganism"—the antithesis of Christianity in third-century Egypt. "Appearing beneath* in this sense could signify either iconographic representation (e.g., on stelae or amulets) or a public ritual. The use of "sun and moon" as emblems of "high" paganism would therefore belong to the interpretatio Graeca of Egyptian religious cosmology: Re a n d Thoth as successive lords of the sky, w h o s e counterparts in Greco-Egyptian ritual spells received considerable devotion. 1 2 1 That early Egyptian Christians considered typical "paganism" to be sun-, moon-, and starworship may be implied in the beginning of the Apocalypse of Paul, w h e r e each celestial body complains to God about h u m a n impiety a n d asks to punish m a n k i n d "so that they may k n o w that you alone are God" 119. ο γ ω Ν 2 βΒΟΛ ‫ ג ן‬. Wintermute translates "appear before" (741). 120. Schrage, 244 n. d. 1 2 1 . S e e H a n s G e o r g G u n d e l , Weltbild

und Aslrologie

in den griechischen

Zauberpapyri

(Munich: Beck, 1968), 3-17, 25-26; Patrick Bovlan, Thoth: The Hermes of Egypt (London, 1922; reprint, Chicago: Ares, 1987), 62-68; Garth Fowden, The Egyptian Hermes (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987), 22-27.

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse o f Elijah

231

(4-6). 122 The attitude emerges clearly in a Coptic sermon from the Byzantine period, which imagines sun, moon, and idols standing at the judgment seat of G o d a n d describing h o w h u m a n s worshiped t h e m in spite of their lowliness in the heavens. 1 2 3 In late antiquity such polemics would not h a v e been directed at the royal cult per se but at the GrecoRoman expressions of Re a n d Thoth in the cults, cosmologies, a n d ritual spells of the Roman period. 124 Thus, by describing the son as "appearing beneath the sun and moon," the author was implying that this demonic figure was a concerted pagan, a worshiper of heavenly bodies—and that this is w h y h e launched a persecution of the saints. The solar associations of the king from "the City of the Sun" (§G), w h o functions as penultimate benefactor to the "saints" a n d their shrines, reflect a syncretism pervading the Apocalypse of Elijah—and no doubt m u c h of early Egyptian Christianity—at the broadest level: that is, the conceptualization of Christ a n d the eschatological Adversary in terms of classical Egyptian mythology. It has been noted that Christ's parousia follows u p o n a series of alternating cycles between woe a n d beneficence; this m a k e s Christ the ultimate restorer of the order, fertility, and power that the King from the City of the Sun approximated and the Lawless O n e subsequently banishes. Christ's function reflects native traditions of a salvific restoration of the cosmos after a period of chaos— traditions that derived from the kingship ideology. As the p h a r a o h was "son of Re," the terrestrial e m b l e m of the sun, so the penultimate salvific king was to come from the City of the S u n — a n d so also does Christ come "like the sun which shines from the east to the west" (ApocEl 3:3). This simile distantly recalls the Synoptic Sayings Source in its comparison of the parousia to lightning (Lk 17:24 [= Mt 2 4 : 2 7 ] ) , an image considerably fleshed out by a second-century Egyptian C h r i s t i a n in t h e Apocalypse of Peter: T h e c o m i n g of t h e S o n of G o d will n o t b e m a n i f e s t , but like t h e l i g h t n i n g w h i c h s h i n e s f r o m east to t h e w e s t , s o s h a l l I c o m e o n t h e c l o u d s of h e a v e n w i t h a great h o s t in m y g l o r y , w i t h m y cross g o i n g b e f o r e m y f a c e will I

122. Latin; the Greek omits this clause. The text continues with similar testimonies from sea, (fresh) waters, and earth. 123. Pierpont Morgan ms. 595, fol. 105 v -106 r (in J. B, Bernardin, ‫־‬A Coptic Sermon Attributed to St. Athanasius,' ITS 38 [1937]: 124-25). Cf. Jer 8:2. 124. Cf. Ramsay MacMullen, Paganism in the Roman Empire (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1981), 84-88.

232

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN AND CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

come in my glory, shining seven times as bright as the sun will I come in my glory, with all my saints, my angels. 125 W h e t h e r or not the a u t h o r of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah r e m e m b e r e d this particular passage or an oral c o n d e n s a t i o n of it, it is quite significant that h e imagined the s u n as t h e m o s t a p p r o p r i a t e simile for Christ's return. From the Synoptic Sayings Source to the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, therefore, the s y m b o l of the parousia h a s c h a n g e d f r o m lightning to sun; a n d it c a n n o t b e a coincidence that this c h a n g e occurred with its progressive Egyptianization. 1 2 6 T h e s a m e i n d i g e n o u s perspective o n Christian motifs can be seen in the r e p r e s e n t a t i o n of t h e devil. In r e v i e w i n g the "execration" f u n c t i o n of the last c h a p t e r s of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, it b e c o m e s a p p a r e n t that the A d v e r s a r y himself is i m a g i n e d in the m e r g e d role of S e t h - T y p h o n a n d A p o p h i s (the o p p o n e n t of the s u n in Egyptian tradition). Like S e t h T y p h o n in Egyptian m y t h o l o g y , t h e A d v e r s a r y in t h e Elijah A p o c a l y p s e causes the decline of fertility a n d irrigation a f t e r the d e p a r t u r e of the saints (5:7-14); like b o t h S e t h - T y p h o n a n d A p o p h i s , h e dies "like a s e r p e n t with n o b r e a t h in it" (5:33); a n d , m o s t vividly recalling A p o p h i s , the devil is a n n o u n c e d in ApocEl 1 as h a v i n g "desired to p r e v e n t the s u n f r o m rising o v e r the earth a n d " — e v i d e n t l y m e a n t as a corollary threat— "to p r e v e n t t h e earth f r o m bearing fruit" (1:4). By t h e R o m a n period t h e traditional cosmic threats of S e t h - T y p h o n a n d A p o p h i s o f t e n m e r g e d ; thus, in t w o love spells f r o m t h e s e c o n d or third century c.E., the f o l l o w i n g evidently w e l l - k n o w n historiola is twice t a p p e d to bring lovers together: "As T y p h o n is t h e a d v e r s a r y [αντίδικο?] of t h e sun, so also inflame [the p r o p o s e d beloved]. 1 2 7 ‫ ״‬T h e scribe d r a w s o n "Typhon's" p e r p e t u a l , obsessive pursuit of Re to i n v o k e t h e s a m e kind of p o w e r for erotic ends. 1 2 8 T h e a u t h o r of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah 125. Apocalypse of Peter 1 (Eng. tr. Hill [Ger. tr. Maurer a n d Duensing], NT A 2:668). 126. C f . J u l i a n H i l l s , Tradition

and Composition

in the Epistula

Apostolorum,

100-106,

110. Christ is d u b b e d "the s u n of righteousness" in a discourse attributed to S h e n o u t e , Cairo ostracon 44674.125, ed. a n d trans. W. E. C r u m , in idem a n d H. G. Evelyn White, The Monastery of Epiphanius at Thebes, 2 vols. ( N e w York: Metropolitan M u s e u m of Art, 1926), 2:13-14 (txt), 2:163-64 (trans.) ( f no. 56). See in general G. Michailides, "Vestiges du culte solaire p a r m i les Chretiens d'Egypte," Bulletin de la societe d'archeologie copte 14 (1950):37-110. 127. P G M XXXIIa (in A r t h u r S. H u n t , "An Incantation in the A s h m o l e a n M u s e u m , " IEA 15 [1929]: 155-57 a n d pi. 31, fig. 1); a n d P. Cairo 60636 (in O. G u e r a u d , "Deux textes m a g i q u e s du m u s e e du Caire," in Melanges Maspero, 2 vols., Memoires d e 1'IFAO 67 [Cairo: IFAO, 1934-37], 2:201-6). 128. P G M XXXVI.77-82 i n v o k e s the ritual b u r n i n g of an i m a g e or inscribed n a m e of A p o p h i s or Seth in priestly execration rites, in o r d e r to "burn" t h e beloved's heart. See

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

233

in a similar case has imagined the devil's paradigmatic activity in the cosmos as threatening the sun, like Apep, a n d fertility, like S e t h Typhon. 1 2 9 O n e could conceptualize the intermediary steps and cultural paths between the still-continuing Egyptian temples a n d the Christian a u t h o r of the Apocalypse of Elijah as (1) the trade in ritual (‫״‬magical‫ )״‬spells, by which priestly materials continually entered popular culture a n d application; or (2) w h a t Griffiths has called the ‫״‬rather fluid adoption of sayings from o n e category to another‫ ״‬a m o n g the literate cultures of Roman Egypt—a matrix of shared perspectives, as it were, a m o n g those w h o wrote for Egyptian audiences; 1 3 0 or (3) a more general concept of an Egyptian ‫״‬mentality‫ ״‬that tended to imagine cosmic dynamics a n d forces within a limited, traditional range of symbols a n d motifs. But w h a t e v e r m e a n s allowed for continuity of traditions into the world of the Apocalypse of Elijah, o n e must be prepared to recognize a thorough syncretism in the theological perspective of the author, o n e that is both Christian a n d Egyptian. In Egypt the sun was the archetypal symbol of divinity a n d order; a n d as the two cosmic adversaries, S e t h - T y p h o n a n d Apep, merged in the practical mythologies of the Roman period, the singular demonic result posed a convenient reflection of, and therefore source for, the image of evil transmitted through Christian texts. As a creator, a synthesizer, then, the author of the Apocalypse of Elijah has demonstrated that Christian sentiments a n d Egyptian mythological images were f u n d a m e n t a l l y harmonious. A similar h a r m o n y can be perceived in the alternation of details concerning ‫״‬pagans‫ ״‬a n d ‫״‬saints‫״‬: as the pagans had their idols, so the saints n o w h a v e their ‫״‬holy places.‫ ״‬These ‫״‬holy places‫ ״‬reflect the author's consciousness of some n e t w o r k of shrines dispensing p o w e r that would be acceptable to Christians. It may be that the author is G u e r a u d ' s review of erotic uses of T y p h o n mythology (*Deux textes magiques,* 204-5). Note that a n o t h e r ritual text from t h e Roman period, the Demotic magical text f r o m London a n d Leiden, continues the traditional concept of Apophis against the sun (col. XIX, 1.3 7). 129. Even if this introductory section w a s based u p o n a prior f r a g m e n t , t h e *original" form of this particular verse is invisible b e h i n d the quite different versions in ApocEl a n d ApocPaul. See parallel translation in A p p e n d i x 1. 130. Griffiths, Divine Verdict, 220-21. This would be a "literary" analog to Walter Burkert's concept of "religious craftsmanship": those ritual techniques w h o s e neutral ideological value allows fluid importation into o t h e r religions ("Craft vs. Sect: T h e Problem of Orphics a n d Pythagoreans," in Jewish and Christian Self-Definition, vol. 3: Self-Definition in the Roman World, ed. B. F. Meyers a n d E. P. S a n d e r s [Philadelphia: Fortress, 1982], 1-22, 183-89, esp. 6-8).

234

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN A N D CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

transposing a fantasy of Palestine, the "holy land" (cf. ApocEl 5:5 Sa), u p o n Egypt, w h o s e network of indigenous temples a n d pilgrimage sites remained in active use during the third century. 1 3 1 It is also conceivable that ‫״‬holy places‫ ״‬signify actual martyr-shrines, p e r h a p s generated over the course of the third-century's executions, although real evidence for Christian cult-structures a n d for devotion to martyrs' relics does not a p p e a r in Egypt before the fourth century. 1 3 2 But native Egyptian p o p u lar religion was based on local shrines; and either alternative would express the fact that in the Apocalypse of Elijah the ‫״‬world" of Christian piety follows traditional, epichoric forms: shrines, holy men, priesthood, the awareness of kingship, a n d the integrity of land a n d society as the relevant factors of the cosmos. It is hardly unique to Egypt, however, that the conversion of the countryside should proceed through the exchange of healing shrines. 133 131. O n t h e h o l y sites of P a l e s t i n e (specifically t h e t o m b s of p r o p h e t s ) , s e e Marcel S i m o n , "Les s a i n t s d ' I s r a e l d a n s la d e v o t i o n d e l'eglise a n c i e n n e , " Revue d'hisloire et de philosophic religieuses 34 (1954): 106-12; i d e m , "Les p e l e r i n a g e s d a n s l ' a n t i q u i t e c h r e t i e n n e , " Les pelerinages, de l'antiquite biblique et classique a 1'occident medieval, E t u d e s d ' h i s t o i r e d e s religions 1 (Paris: G e u t h n e r , 1973), 9 7 - 1 0 4 ; Eric M. M e y e r s a n d J a m e s S t r a n g e , Archaeology, the Rabbis, and Early Christianity ( N a s h v i l l e : A b i n g d o n , 1981), 1 6 2 64; a n d esp. J o h n W i l k i n s o n , "Jewish H o l y Places a n d t h e O r i g i n s of C h r i s t i a n Pilgrimage," The Blessings of Pilgrimage, e d . R o b e r t O u s t e r h o u t , Illinois B y z a n t i n e S t u d i e s 1 ( U r b a n a / C h i c a g o : U n i v e r s i t y of Illinois Press, 1990), 41-53. T h e classic e v i d e n c e for t h e s e t o m b - s h r i n e s is Mt 23:29; 27:52-53; a n d Lk 11:47-48. A l e x a n d e r of C a p p a d o c i a is t h e first r e c o r d e d ( p r e - 2 1 3 C.E.) C h r i s t i a n visitor t o P a l e s t i n i a n h o l y sites (see E u s e b i u s Hist. eccl. 6.11.2), a l t h o u g h o p i n i o n s d i f f e r o n calling h i m a "pilgrim" (P.W.L. W a l k e r , Holy City, Holy Places? ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1990), 12, t o t h e a f f i r m a t i v e ; Pierre M a r a v a l , Lieu.χ saints et pelerinages d'orient [Paris: Editions d u C e r f , 1985), 25-27, t o t h e c o n t r a r y ) . O n E g y p t i a n h o l y sites a n d p i l g r i m a g e , s e e Jean Yoyotte, "Les p e l e r i n a g e s d a n s I ' E g y p t e a n c i e n n e , " Les pelerinages, S o u r c e s o r i e n t a l e s 3 (Paris: E d i t i o n s d u Seuil, 1960), 5 4 - 5 7 ; H. Idris Bell, Cults and Creeds in Craeco-Roman Egypt (Liverpool: Liverpool U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1953; r e p r i n t , C h i c a g o : Ares, 1975), 6 8 - 6 9 ; A l a n K. B o w m a n , Egypt after the Pharaohs (Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 1986), 171-72; a n d n o t e "Osiris s h r i n e s " m e n t i o n e d b y S t r a b o Geography 17.1.23. Roger S. Bagnall ( " C o m b a t o u vide: c h r i s t i a n i s m e et p a g a n i s m e d a n s I ' E g y p t e r o m a i n e t a r d i v e , " Ktema 13 |1988):285-96) o b s e r v e s a d e c l i n e in t h e g e n e r a l s u p e r s t r u c t u r e of E g y p t i a n religion during the third century, almost certainly d u e to Roman taxation a n d inflation, on w h i c h s e e b e l o w , p p . 242-49. 132. S e e A t h a n a s i u s Vita Antonii 90; a n d A t h a n a s i u s ' s festal letters for 369 a n d 370 C.E. Cf. d i s c u s s i o n bv L. T h . LeFort, "La c h a s s e a u x r e l i q u e s d e s m a r t y r s en E g v p t e a u IV* siecle," La nouvelle Clio 6 (1954):225-30, e s p . 227 η. 1; A l f r e d C. R u s h , Death and Burial in Christian Antiquity, C a t h o l i c U n i v e r s i t y of A m e r i c a S t u d i e s in C h r i s t i a n A n t i q u i t y 1 ( W a s h i n g t o n , D.C.: C a t h o l i c U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1941), 117-25. O n t h e r e c o r d of m a r t y r - s h r i n e s in Egypt s e e H i p p o l v t e D e l e h a y e , Les origines du culte des martyrs, Subsidia H a g i o g r a p h i c a "20 (2d ed.; Brussels: S o c i e t e d e s Bollandistes, 1933), 43, 4 6 - 4 7 ; a n d , o n A l e x a n d r i a , A n n i c k M a r t i n , "Les p r e m i e r s siecles d u c h r i s t i a n i s m e a A l e x a n d r i e : Essai d e t o p o g r a p h i e religieuse (III'-IV‫ ־‬siecles)," Revue des etudes augustiniennes 30 (1984):211-25. 133. R a m s a y M a c M u l l e n , Christianizing the Roman Empire (a.d 100-400) ( N e w H a v e n a n d L o n d o n : Yale U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1984), 77, 152 n. 13.

The Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

Tradition in the Apocalypse of Elijah

235

The particular combination of Christian a n d native Egyptian traditional elements in ApocEl 2 (as elsewhere in the text) obviously posed no contradiction in the mind of the author or his subsequent readers. Rather than an ideology that simply demonized a n d extirpated indigenous categories, therefore, the Christianizing Apocalypse of Elijah espoused an ideology of replacement or extension—founding Christian ideas u p o n native traditions. 134 While seldom so vividly represented in early Egyptian Christian literature outside of martyrologies, this m o d e of Christianization seems to have been characteristic of Egypt, at least as far as the most f u n d a m e n t a l traditions of the native religion are concerned (i.e., those through which Christianity was situated in the culture). 135 Outright conflicts b e t w e e n Christian mobs (such as those led by Shenoute of Atripe) and indigenous religion seem to have occurred largely in connection with issues of relative authority: authority of leadership, authority u n d e r which a local site was sacred, or authority u n d e r which a local ritual was practiced. 136 It was in these latter cases 134. C f . Pierre C a n i v e t , Hisloire d'une entreprise apologetique au V siecle (Paris: Bloud & G a y , 1957), 108. 135. T h e old d e b a t e o n t h e c o n t i n u i t y of m y t h o l o g i c a l m o t i f s in C o p t i c a p o c r y p h a l literature, w a g e d by E. A. Wallis B u d g e ( " E g y p t i a n M y t h o l o g y in C o p t i c Writings," in i d e m , Coptic Apocrypha in the Dialect of Upper Egypt [ L o n d o n : British M u s e u m , 1913J, lvi-lxxii), F r a n k H u d s o n H a l l o c k ( " C h r i s t i a n i t y a n d t h e O l d E g y p t i a n Religion," Egyptian Religion 2 [1934]:6-17), O . G . E . B u r m e s t e r ( " E g y p t i a n M y t h o l o g y in t h e C o p t i c A p o c r y p h a , " Orientalia 7 [1938):355-67), a n d E r n s t H a m m e r s c h m i d t ( " A l t a g y p t i s c h e E l e m e n t e im k o p t i s c h e n C h r i s t e n t u m , " Ostkirchliche Studien 6 [1957):233-50), h a s b e e n s u p e r c e d e d b y m o r e n u a n c e d s t u d i e s o n t h e c o n t i n u i t y of t r a d i t i o n s a n d s t r u c t u r e s : s e e A. P i a n k o f f , "La d e s c e n t e a u x e n f e r s d a n s les textes e g y p t i e n s et d a n s les a p o c r y p h e s coptes," Bulletin de la societe d'archeologie copte 7 (1941 ):33-46; Jean Doresse, Des hieroglyphes a la croix: Ce que le passe pharaonique a legue au Christianisme (Istanbul: N e d e r l a n d s H i s t o r i s c h - A r c h a e o l o g i s c h I n s t i t u u t , 1960); Violet M a c D e r m o t (The Cult of the Seer in the Ancient Middle East ( L o n d o n : W e l l c o m e I n s t i t u t e of t h e H i s t o r y of Medicine, 1971), 108-201; Jan Z a n d e e , " T r a d i t i o n s p h a r a o n i q u e s et i n f l u e n c e s e x t e r i e u r e s d a n s les l e g e n d e s coptes," r e v i e w of Die Legende im Koptischen: Untersuchungeti zur Volksliterature Agyptens, by W o l f g a n g Kosack, Chronique d'Egypte 4 6 (1971):211-19; T h e o f r i e d B a u m e i s t e r , Martyr Invictus, F o r s c h u n g e n z u r V o l k s k u n d e 46 ( M u n s t e r : Regensberg, 1972); W o l f g a n g S c h e n k e l , Kultmythos und Mdrtyrerlegende: Zur Kontinuitdt des dgyptischen Denkens, G o t t i n g e r O r i e n t f o r s c h u n g e n , Reihe: A g y p t e n 5 ( W i e s b a d e n : H a r r a s s o w i t z , 1977); T o r g n y S a v e - S o d e r b e r g h , " T h e P a g a n E l e m e n t s in Early C h r i s tianity a n d G n o s t i c i s m , " in Colloque international sur les textes de Nag Hammadi, ed. Bernard Bare, B i b l i o t h e q u e c o p t e d e N a g H a m m a d i , s e c t i o n " E t u d e s " 1 ( Q u e b e c : U n i v e r s i t e Laval, 1981), 7 1 - 8 5 ; a n d D o u g l a s M. P a r r o t t , " G n o s t i c i s m a n d E g y p t i a n Religion," Novum Testamentum 29 (1987):73-93. 136. S e e J e a n M a s p e r o , " H o r a p o l l o n et la fin d u p a g a n i s m e e g y p t i e n , " BIFAO 11 (1914): 163-95; R o g e r R e m o n d o n , " L ' E g y p t e et la s u p r e m e r e s i s t a n c e a u C h r i s t i a n i s m e ( V ' - V i r siecles)," BIFAO 51 (1952):63-78; W a l t e r Kaegi, " T h e F i f t h - C e n t u r y T w i l i g h t of Byzantine P a g a n i s m , " Classica et Mediaevalia 27 (1966):249-58; a n d E w a W i p s z y c k a , "La christianisation d e l ' E g y p t e a u x I V ' - V I * siecles: A s p e c t s s o c i a u x et e t h n i q u e s , " Aegyptus 68 (1988):117-65. S e e f u r t h e r t h e C o p t i c p r i m a r y s o u r c e s listed in D o r e s s e , Des hieroglyphes a la croix, 19 n. 46.

236

THE CONVERGENCE OF EGYPTIAN A N D CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEWS

that Christian bishops a n d m o n k s alike viewed the "pagan" element as s y n o n y m o u s with "demonic." 137 But even then the m a r a u d i n g Christians would reestablish the local cult in purified but functionally similar form. In the words of Shenoute himself, T h u s t h e n a t t h e site of a s h r i n e t o a n u n c l e a n spirit, it w i l l h e n c e f o r t h b e a s h r i n e t o t h e H o l y Spirit. A n d at t h e site of s a c r i f i c i n g t o S a t a n a n d w o r s h i p p i n g a n d f e a r i n g h i m , C h r i s t will h e n c e f o r t h b e s e r v e d t h e r e i n , a n d H e will b e w o r s h i p p e d , b o w e d d o w n t o a n d f e a r e d . A n d w h e r e t h e r e a r e b l a s p h e m i n g s , it is b l e s s i n g s a n d h y m n s t h a t will h e n c e f o r t h b e therein. A n d if p r e v i o u s l y it is p r e s c r i p t i o n s f o r m u r d e r i n g m a n ' s s o u l t h a t a r e t h e r e i n [i.e., t h e f e a r s o m e m a g i c a l p o w e r of h i e r o g l y p h s w h i c h h e p r o c e e d s t o d e s c r i b e ) . . . w h e r e t h e s e a r e , it is t h e s o u l - s a v i n g s c r i p t u r e s of l i f e t h a t will h e n c e f o r t h c o m e t o b e t h e r e i n , f u l f i l l i n g t h e w o r d of G o d w i t h H i s n a m e i n s c r i b e d f o r t h e m a n d H i s s o n ] e s u s C h r i s t a n d all H i s a n g e l s , r i g h t e o u s m e n a n d s a i n t s ( p o r t r a y e d ) , t h a t e v e r y w h e r e w h a t is t h e r e i n m a y give instruction c o n c e r n i n g e v e r y g o o d thing, especially purity.138

So also, in the Apocalypse of Elijah, it w a s not the principle of ancient holy places that w a s rejected a n d opposed during the "conversion" of rural Egypt; for indeed, this principle underlay the secure hold Christianity achieved in Egypt by the sixth century. 1 3 9 Rather, w h a t w a s rejected as demonic was that temple or shrine w h o s e local d o m i n a n c e threatened or otherwise could not be integrated into the local Christian establishment.

CONCLUSION: THE PERSPECTIVE OF APOCEL 2 When one considers carefully the various symbols, images, and "events" of the second chapter of the Apocalypse of Elijah, the assumption that the author is referring—systematically a n d allegorically— to precise historical events in the life of his audience(s) becomes u n tenable. The author has compiled a series of traditional Egyptian a n d Greco-Roman oracles from m e m o r y or, occasionally, from literary sources a n d from his o w n imagination—itself informed by the symbolic 137. See also Andre-Jean Festugiere, Les moines d'Orient, vol. 1: Culture ou (Paris: Editions du Cerf, 1961), 23-39. 138. Michigan ms. 158 (tr. Dwight W. Young, in idem, *A Monastic Invective Egyptian Hieroglyphs," in Studies Presented to Hans Jakob Polotzky, ed. D. W. (Beacon Hill, Mass.: Pirtle & Poison, 1981), 353-54. 139. Cf. Doresse, Des hieroglyphes a la croix, 22-23, 30-33; Baumeister, Invictus, 65-67.

saintete against Young Martyr

T h e Egyptian Chaosbeschreibung

T r a d i t i o n in the A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah

237

world and the forms of expression of traditional Egyptian prophecy—to describe cycles of woe a n d beneficence in Egypt preceding the a d v e n t of the eschatological Deceiver. The typical c h a o s - o r d e r structure of these cycles a n d their correspondence a n d (often) d e p e n d e n c e u p o n the ideal figure of the king (whether beneficial or predatory) s h o w the dependence of the chapter's macrostructure u p o n Egyptian kingship ideology. The smaller, precise details, such as the a d v a n c e of the desert, the King from the Sun (and the solar Christ), the longing for death, the expulsion of the Jews, and the Nile r u n n i n g with blood, s h o w the author's debt to the actual literary tradition of Egyptian nationalist prophecy, w h e t h e r or not he k n e w the texts directly. What is the ideological context for an extensive prophecy of imaginary (albeit historically plausible) events in the land of Egypt? Michael Barkun has argued that millennialist m o v e m e n t s (such as Christianity, in its nascent centuries) generally develop in connection with a disaster. 140 Because disasters are relative to the impact an event might have u p o n a group, however, it is the circumstances and "mentality" of the group that determine the "disastrous" nature of a particular event. 141 O n e aspect of this "mentality," which paves the way for millennialist response, observes Barkun, is a g e n e r a l , n o n s p e c i f i c s e n s e of d r e a d . It is q u i t e p o s s i b l e f o r l a r g e n u m b e r s of p e o p l e t o b e l i e v e t h a t s o m e f e a r f u l e v e n t is i m m i n e n t , w i t h o u t k n o w i n g its t y p e , s p e c i f i c t i m e of o c c u r r e n c e , o r t h e k i n d of m e a s u r e s t h a t m a y b e t a k e n a g a i n s t it. T h e s e n s e of i m p e n d i n g d o o m m a y h a v e v e r y little b a s i s in f a c t . It m a y , o n t h e o t h e r h a n d , s e r v e in s o m e s u b t l e f a s h i o n as a s e l f fulfilling p r o p h e c y w h i c h drags in train t h e very d r e a d e d e v e n t s t h e m selves. . . . S o m e p e r i o d s s e e m to f a n t a s i z e disasters m o r e t h a n others. . . . These prophecies m a y b e c o m e self-fulfilling because they encourage a p a r t i c u l a r r e a d i n g of e v e n t s . . . t h e e x i s t e n c e of d i s a s t e r itself m a y c o m e f r o m t h e c o n n o t a t i o n s g i v e n to a m b i g u o u s events.142

Such anxiety can be cogently inferred for m a n y groups, both Christian and traditional, in late Egypt a n d North Africa of antiquity on the basis of the promulgation of the native oracles of the Roman period; the Christian writings of Tertullian, Hippolytus, Cyprian, Lactantius, a n d Commodian; a n d the behavior of the martyrs. The literature of the second a n d — e v e n more—third centuries C.E. prophesied or envisioned 140. Michael Barkun, Disaster and the Millennium (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1974; reprint, Syracuse, N.Y.: Syracuse University Press, 1986). 141. Ibid., 51-90. 142. Ibid., 59, 60.

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THE C O N V E R G E N C E OF EGYPTIAN A N D CHRISTIAN W O R L D V I E W S

c o n t e m p o r a r y decline in terms d r a w n f r o m i n d i g e n o u s traditions a n d typologies, with little a t t e n t i o n to the concrete occurrences a r o u n d it. Such visions, in the w o r d s of R a m s a y M a c M u l l e n , c o u l d b e set i n m o t i o n b y a civil w a r , i n v a s i o n , o r n a t u r a l d i s a s t e r , a n d a n y o n e s u c h e v e n t d r e w u p t o t h e s u r f a c e of p o p u l a r c o n s c i o u s n e s s a n a c c o m p a n i m e n t of m a n y h a p p e n i n g s q u i t e u n c o n n e c t e d or, f r o m a s e n s e of a p p r o p r i a t e n e s s , i n v e n t e d o u t of w h o l e c l o t h . . . . N o d i f f e r e n c e w a s d i s c e r n e d b e t w e e n p o l i t i c a l i n s t a b i l i t y a n d p l a g u e : b o t h fell u p o n t h e e m p i r e a c c o r d i n g to s o m e cosmic or d i v i n e o r d e r . . . Millenary m y t h g a v e s h a p e to p r e s e n t e x p e r i e n c e s a n d p r o j e c t e d t h e m i n t o a f u t u r e of c o s m i c c o l l a p s e ; o r t h e y w e r e r e f e r r e d i n t o t h e p a s t , i n t o e r a s v a r i o u s l y c h o s e n b u t , b y a g r e e m e n t , b e t t e r . . . n o n e of t h e r e s p o n s e s t o crisis is n e w in k i n d . W h a t a l o n e is n e w is a t m o s t a g r e a t e r f r e q u e n c y of t r a d i t i o n a l r e s p o n s e s , i n e v i t a b l e in t h e c i r c u m s t a n c e s . 1 4 3

T h e Apocalypse of Elijah t h e r e b y takes its historical a n d ideological position not only beside t h e Perfect Discourse, the m a n u s c r i p t s of the Potter's Oracle, a n d CPJ 520 but, m o r e generally, beside the epistulary a n d homiletic interpretations of t h e age given by millennialist Christian authors, b o t h outside of E g y p t — C y p r i a n ' s letters, H i p p o l y t u s o n the Antichrist, Lactantius o n t h e details of the e s c h a t o n — a n d inside— N e p o s of Arsinoe, the subject of c h a p t e r 10. 143. R a m s a v M a c M u l l e n , The

Roman

Government's

(New Haven: Yale University Press, 1976), 6-7, 12.

Response

to Crisis,

A.D

235-337

PART THREE

A SILHOUETTE OF THE MILLENNIUM: TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT FOR THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH

9 The First Level: Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

W o e to y o u , rulers of Egypt, at t h a t time, because your time has passed! T h e v i o l e n c e of t h e p o o r will t u r n a g a i n s t y o u , a n d t h e y will seize y o u r s o n s as p l u n d e r ! —ApocEl 2:29-30

If the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah p r o v i d e s little in the w a y of vaticinia ex eventus to locate its precise d a t e of composition, it certainly reflects the turbulence a n d anxiety of s o m e i m m e d i a t e historical situation. T h e above w o e oracle displays a r e m a r k a b l e lust for revolution. T h e p o o r either hold a n incipient animosity t o w a r d t h e rulers, i m m i n e n t l y to b e ignited, or are r e a d y to turn t h e violence t h e y h a v e s u f f e r e d at the h a n d s of the rulers back against t h e m — s h a d e s of m e d i e v a l p e a s a n t revolts. The plural a p o s t r o p h e "rulers‫—״‬using the Greek, άρχω ν, instead of C o p tic, Νpo—could b e read as a sarcastic r e f e r e n c e to t h e n o n - E g y p t i a n b a c k g r o u n d of an Egyptian a d m i n i s t r a t i o n . Evidently, w e are in an era w h e n the " R o m a n n e s s " of Egypt's o v e r l o r d s w a s particularly noticed and v i e w e d as particularly oppressive. In reconstructing this era a n d its implications for the composition of the Apocalypse of Elijah, o n e m u s t b e a w a r e that historical circumstances h a d significance only as m e d i a t e d t h r o u g h the ideological perspectives of a u t h o r , milieu, a n d i m m e d i a t e culture. T h e text, as d e m o n strated so far, synthesizes a millennialist ideology o u t of native Egyptian traditions of Chaosbeschreibung, Christian eschatological tradition, a n d local Egyptian Christian lore a n d piety. As ‫״‬other-worldly‫ ״‬as millennialism t e n d s to be, h o w e v e r , it invariably r e s p o n d s to stresses in its

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T O W A R D A HISTORICAL A N D SOCIAL C O N T E X T

perceived e n v i r o n m e n t . As o n e s e e k s to u n d e r s t a n d the origins of the text, o n e m u s t c o m p r e h e n d not o n l y this millennialist ideology but also its religious milieu a n d its e n v i r o n m e n t — n o t only the "historical facts" of this e n v i r o n m e n t but h o w m e m b e r s of the m o v e m e n t read these facts.

THE SOCIOECONOMIC DECLINE IN EGYPT IN THE THIRD CENTURY The i m m e d i a t e context in w h i c h Chaosbeschreibung would have had m e a n i n g in t h i r d - c e n t u r y Egypt h a s been aptly s u m m a r i z e d in the w o r d s of Pierre Jouguet: "The third c e n t u r y w a s a disastrous epoch, w h e r e the crisis of central p o w e r a g g r a v a t e d , if not created, social troubles a n d e c o n o m i c misery." 1 Η. I. Bell h a s also described the decline of third-century Egypt by, o n t h e o n e h a n d , t h e i m p o v e r i s h m e n t of t h e u r b a n m i d d l e - c l a s s a n d , o n t h e o t h e r h a n d , t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of t h e p r o c e s s w h i c h e v e n t u a l l y , b y t h e b e g i n n i n g of t h e f i f t h c e n t u r y , r e d u c e d t h e b u l k of t h e p e a s a n t r y t o t h e s e m i - s e r v i l e d e p e n d e n t s of a l i m i t e d n u m b e r of g r e a t l a n d o w n e r s p o s s e s s ing an almost feudal authority.2

This m a r k e d decline in t h e e c o n o m y — e s p e c i a l l y r u r a l — d u r i n g t h e third century C.E. a n d the c o n c o m i t a n t increase in t h e general exploitation of b o t h p e a s a n t a n d m i d d l e classes can b e illustrated a n d explained by a c o m b i n a t i o n of factors. O n the most general level, multiplying hostilities along the various b o r d e r s of the e m p i r e required increased military f u n d i n g , a n d Rome h a d long looked to the agricultural richesse of the Nile Valley to sustain its imperial coffers. T h e s h i f t in imperial p o w e r to t h e military by t h e b e g i n n i n g of the third century, as h a s o f t e n been recognized, resulted in the imposition of particularly extreme b u r d e n s o n all of the provinces (and especially o n Egypt) to pay the armies or to bribe t h e m not to revolt. 3 Of c o n s i d e r a b l e i m p o r t a n c e for the e c o n o m i c life of Egyptians d u r i n g this period w a s t h e drastic decline in the v a l u e of currency, b e g i n n i n g with Caracalla's institution 1. Pierre Jouguet, La domination romaine en Egi/pte aux deux premiers siecles apres Jesus-Christ (Alexandria: Societe archeologique d'Alexandrie, 1976), 62. 2. H. Idris Bell, ‫־‬Roman Egvpt f r o m Augustus to Diocletian," Chronique d'Egypte 13 (1938):360. 3. See Mikhail Rostovtzeff, The Social and Economic History of the Roman Empire, 2 vols. (2d ed.; Oxford: Clarendon, 1957), 1:394-432, 487-88, 496-97; and A. R. Birley, "The Third Century Crisis in the Roman Empire," BJRL 58 (1975-76):253-81.

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

243

of the Antoninianus in the beginning of the century a n d leveling out under the reigns of Aurelian a n d Diocletian. 4 A social or economic decline in a country is invariably signaled by changes in the bureaucratic system of taxation—for example, n e w laws, new positions, or new calculations—as a sort of prelude to catastrophe. Bell suggested, indeed, that it was not the a m o u n t of taxes that increased with Roman domination "but the very efficiency of the Romans [that] m a d e [their taxes] more burdensome," 5 w h e r e a s F. Oertel observed that the increased levies, a hallmark of the empire of the third century, consisted "not in an increase in the normal items of taxation (land-taxes, poll-taxes, trade-taxes, etc.) corresponding to the devaluation of the currency—which such a step would h a v e m a d e plain to see—but in supplementary taxation. 6 ‫״‬ The tax system h a d already changed considerably with Roman rule through the d e v e l o p m e n t of the liturgical system of tax farming. Under this system, "free-lance" tax collectors bought—increasingly u n d e r coercion—the right to collect a set a m o u n t of taxes in a region, regardless of the year's earnings of the populace. Their ability to break even or turn a profit hence d e p e n d e d on their efficiency in collecting. From the beginning of the Roman period, there is evidence that in times of d r o u g h t or agricultural decline such tax farmers would resort to extreme a n d violent methods of extortion to collect the requisite sum. 7 Papyri from the reign of Philip ( 2 4 4 - 2 4 9 C.E.), however, disclose innovations even in this liturgical system, illustrating the correlation between economic innovation a n d exploitation. P. J. Parsons f o u n d references both to new tax quotas levied in response to (or regardless of) a general economic decline and to a n e w bureaucratic position to oversee taxation. He connected these innovations both to the greater financial needs of the empire u n d e r Philip a n d to a situation of drastically reduced resources in mid-third-century Egypt. Roman authorities, in a pattern of continued exploitation, indeed h a d responded to economic decline with 4. Allan Chester Johnson, Egypt and the Roman Empire, T h e Jerome Lectures, 2d series (Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1951), 42-51; Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History, 1:470-73; and Michael Crawford, "Finance, Coinage, and Money from the Severans to Constantine," in ANRW 2.2 (1975):569-71, 575-77. 5. H. Idris Bell, "Egypt u n d e r the Early Principate," CAH 10 (1934):314. 6. F. Oertel, ‫־‬The Economic Life of the Empire," CAH 12 (1939):262. 7. Philo De Spec. Leg. 2.92; 3.30; o n t h e legality of such practices see Naphtali Lewis, Life in Egypt under Roman Rule ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1983), 2 2 6 n . 5 a n d , in g e n e r a l , 1 5 9 -

H. Idris Bell, "The Byzantine Servile State in Egypt," JEA 4 (1917):89-93; idem, "The Economic Crisis in Egypt u n d e r Nero," /RS 28 (1938): 1-8.

244

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

heavier a n d more efficient taxation. 8 The direct victims of this exploitation were, coincidentally, a middle class that the Roman administration had largely created to expand the tax base; a n d it is the precarious fate of this middle class that m a y provide a context for new religious m o v e m e n t s in third-century Egypt. As the imperial administration changed land tenure, in the beginning of Roman rule, from a free royal s e r f d o m a n d collective responsibility for taxation to private land o w n e r s h i p a n d individual responsibility for taxes, a village petite bourgeoisie 9 developed, consisting of Greco-Egyptians, formerly of peasant classes, w h o could n o w o w n their o w n land and enter the ranks a n d responsibilities of a propertied class. 10 This bourgeoisie also consisted of Greco-Egyptians in the lower civil positions, who, during the latter half of Ptolemaic rule, h a d begun to occupy civil a n d military offices originally created by a n d for Greeks. Simultaneously, Greeks already in this middle class increasingly assimilated with the native population. T h u s already by the beginning of Roman rule a sizable, ethnically mixed intermediate class existed in Egypt; 11 and while Rome established firm class divisions through the imposition of the poll tax, the Roman taxation itself singled out individual achievement and status. Private landholding a n d its "privileges‫ ״‬were a two-faced gift; a n d this tendency to expand honors to the ironic detriment of a lower middle 8. P. J. Parsons, ' P h i l i p p u s Arabs a n d Egypt,' /RS 57 (1967): 134-41. 9. In using this term I a m referring to a n u m b e r of economic positions in Roman Egypt that w e r e associated as a "class" distinct f r o m the peasantry, as well as from a Greek elite w h o s e economic m e a n s w e r e based outside of Egypt proper (e.g., in Mediterranean shipping or Roman concerns). T h e following pages define the class's n a t u r e further. However, I do not imply by the use of this term any particular economic theory about the relationship between classes or the d y n a m i c s of classes. 10. For a s u m m a r y of "classes" in R o m a n Egypt, see Lewis, Life in Egypt, 39-51, 6667; Alan K. Bowman, Egypt after the Pharaohs (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1986), 100-101. The ethnic designation "Greco-Egyptian" here refers to (1) persons of native background w h o s p o k e Greek, participated in Hellenistic culture (inevitable for most Egyptians during the Roman period), or even considered themselves Greek; a n d (2) those of Greek background w h o identified themselves within traditional Egyptian cultural terms. The term is an analytic convenience, h o w e v e r , not a historical selfreference; see Koen Goudriaan, Ethnicity in Ptolemaic Egypt, Dutch M o n o g r a p h s on Ancient History a n d Archaeology 5 (Amsterdam: J. C. Gieben, 1988), esp. 117-19. "Greek" will therefore designate the main Alexandrian p o p u l a c e (and certain individuals in the larger Egyptian cities such as Oxyrhynchus), which did not consider itself "Egyptian" in any w a y a n d w a s not so viewed by others. 11. Franioise

Dunand,

"Grecs et egyptiens en

l'acculturation,"

i n Modes

de contacts

et processus

Egypte lagide: Le p r o b l e m e de transformation

dans

les

de

societes

anciennes, Collection de l'ecole f r a n t a i s e de Rome 67 (Pisa a n d Rome: Ecole f r a ^ a i s e de Rome,

1983), 6 9 - 7 0 .

C f . S.

Davis,

Race

Relations

in

Ancient

Egypt:

Greek,

Egyptian,

Hebrew, Roman (New York: Philosophical Library, 1952), 56; Bowman, Egypt after the Pharaohs,

122.

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

245

class a n d the relative profit of t h e i m p e r i u m e m e r g e s even m o r e clearly in 212 C.E., w h e n Caracalla e x p a n d e d the actual R o m a n citizenship to all those a b o v e t h e lowly dedicatii, a s t a t u s of unclear p a r a m e t e r s b u t w h i c h essentially consisted of u n p r o p e r t i e d peasants. T h e result ( a n d certainly the motive) w a s t h e imposition a n d collection of e v e n m o r e taxes f r o m those in the c o u n t r y t o w n s w h o could barely pay. 1 2 F u r t h e r m o r e , with the d u b i o u s h o n o r of R o m a n citizenship p e o p l e w i t h m i n o r l a n d h o l d i n g s a n d e c o n o m i c m e a n s b e c a m e subject to the liturgical system of public service, a n d their financial responsibilities to the g o v e r n m e n t h a d to be met individually. 1 3 D u r i n g h a r d times, the tax f a r m e r s t e n d e d to concentrate their efforts o n those w h o could pay m o r e r a t h e r t h a n o n p e a s a n t s w h o clearly h a d n o t h i n g . Conversely, in t h e b e g i n n i n g of the third century, t h o s e w h o h a d b e e n at o n e time so privileged as to h o l d public office in a t o w n a n d to b e subject to λειτουργία suddenly found t h e m s e l v e s forced to b u y a p o s t — t a x collection—for w h i c h t h e r e w o u l d b e n o possible c o m p e n s a t i o n ; p e o p l e w e r e u n a b l e to p a y or h a d fled. 14 In the midst of the i n n o v a t i o n s of Philip (250 C.E.), o n e f i n d s a record of a trial b e f o r e the R o m a n prefect, in w h i c h a g r o u p of villagers in Arsinoe complain that they h a v e been illegally pressed into p e r f o r m i n g liturgies for the city. A representative of the Arsinoite s e n a t e pleads: By l a w y o u a r e j u d g i n g c i t i z e n s o f A r s i n o e , f o r m e r l y a n u m e r o u s b o d y , b u t n o w g o i n g t o r u i n if t h e y h o l d o f f i c e f o r t w o d a y s o n l y ; . . . O n e o f t h e m , m a k i n g a declaration to b e p u t o n record b e f o r e t h e strategus, said ‫״‬Let him have my

property and

fulfil t h e liturgy‫ ;״‬the m a n

w h o said

this

sustained t h e office, this very m a n w h o h a d a b a n d o n e d his property.15

A liminal class w a s t h u s c a u g h t b e t w e e n t h e large l a n d h o l d e r s of the cities a n d the i m p o v e r i s h e d peasantry. 1 6 As the latter classes c o n t i n u e d 12. R o s t o v t z e f f , Social and Economic History, 1:418-19. 13. Bell, *Byzantine Servile State," 8 8 - 9 0 ; R o s t o v t z e f f , Social and Economic History, 1:292-97. 14. S e e A r t h u r E. R. Boak, "Village Liturgies in F o u r t h C e n t u r y Karanis," Mitteilungen aus der Papyrussamlung der osterreichischen Nationalbibliothek 5 (1956):37-40. 15. P . L o n d . 2565, 11. 93 ff (in T. C. S k e a t a n d E. P. W e g e n e r , "A Trial b e f o r e t h e Prefect of Egypt, A p p i u s S a b i n u s , c. 250 AD,* /Ε A 21 [1935):237; cf. 246). T h e t e s t i m o n y d e s c r i b e s a villager w h o a c t u a l l y s o l d off all h i s p r o p e r t y in o r d e r t o a v o i d t h e λίΐτονργία b u t w a s f o r c e d i n t o office a n y w a y . S e v e r u s ( 1 9 3 - 2 1 1 C.E.) h i m s e l f h a d m a d e it illegal t o p r e s s villagers i n t o t h e s e r v i c e of t h e city; t h u s t h e p a p y r u s s h o w s t h a t by t h e m i d - t h i r d c e n t u r y S e v e r u s ' s l a w s p r o t e c t i n g t h e l o w e r classes f r o m u n d u e exploitation w e r e c o m m o n l y b e i n g a b r o g a t e d . In t h i s case t h e A r s i n o i t e s a r g u e u n s u c c e s s f u l l y that h e h a d o r d a i n e d this l a w " w h i l e t h e cities w e r e still p r o s p e r o u s . " Cf. Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History, 1:409; Lewis, Life in Egypt, 4 8 - 4 9 . 16. S e e Bell, " B y z a n t i n e Servile State," 9 3 (cf. 100); i d e m , *Early Principate,* 314; J o u g u e t , Domination romaine, 6 3 - 6 4 ; Lewis, Life in Egypt, 4 9 - 5 0 , 163. It is i n t e r e s t i n g to n o t e S a r a h P o m e r o y ' s t h e o r y " t h a t u n d e r R o m a n r u l e w o m e n g a i n e d in e c o n o m i c a n d

246

T O W A R D A HISTORICAL A N D SOCIAL C O N T E X T

at roughly the same level—the more c u n n i n g landholders occasionally expanding their estates, the peasants simply leaving in greater n u m bers—a town and village bourgeoisie w a s raised a n d crushed over the course of the century. 1 7 The position of this bourgeoisie itself was precarious: failure to perform liturgy or pay taxes would result in public humiliation through confiscation of property, reduction in rank to peasant, and, quite often, corporal punishment. 1 8 When o n e c o m p o u n d s these facts of third-century petite bourgeois life with the cultural composition of a class created largely of successful, "upwardly mobile" Greco-Egyptians a n d a lower class of Greeks, it is apparent that insecurity of economic position would have been merely the foundation of a general social insecurity: cultural, ethnic, a n d — insofar as the economic vicissitudes of the bourgeoisie became a f u n c tion of the existence and well-being of peasants a n d the continued fertility of their fields—local. 19 Having inspired the resentment of the peasantry (who n o w largely constituted the militia in Egypt) 20 a n d gradually losing their holdings to an urban elite, the Egyptian village a n d town bourgeoisie of the third century was caught between two hostile worlds of identity a n d culture. 21 N o w h e r e does this a p p e a r more clearly than in Caracalla's 215 edict expelling all ethnic Egyptians from Alexandria: G e n u i n e Egyptians [he advises] can easily be recognized a m o n g the linenw e a v e r s by their s p e e c h , w h i c h p r o v e s t h e m to h a v e a s s u m e d t h e a p p e a r a n c e a n d d r e s s of a n o t h e r class; m o r e o v e r , t h e i r m o d e of life, t h e i r f a r f r o m civilized m a n n e r s r e v e a l t h e m t o b e E g y p t i a n c o u n t r y - f o l k . 2 2

legal capacity while the prosperity of Egypt as a whole declined" ("Women in Roman Egypt: A Preliminary Study Based on Papyri," in Reflections of Women in Antiquity, ed. Helene P. Foley [New York: Gordon & Breach, 1981], 318). 17. This is not to understate the plight of the peasantry, w h o suffered equally from taxation and yet w h o were bound to their land increasingly by Roman laws. See Oertel, "Economic Life," 264, 268; Bell, "Byzantine Servile State." 18. Rostovtzeff, Social ami Economic History, 1:486-89; Lewis, Life in Egypt, 161-66. 19. Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History, 1:496-97; cf. Lewis, Life in Egypt, 48-50; and Bowman, Egypt after the Pharaohs, 105, on economic interdependence. 20. O n Egyptian peasants in the Roman army, see Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History, 425, 498-501; A. Kasher, "Some C o m m e n t s o n the Jewish Uprising in Egypt in the Time of Trajan," //S 27 (1976):151-58; Lewis, Life in Egypt, 20-21, 27-28; J. F. Gilliam, "Enrollment in the Roman Imperial Army," in idem, Roman Army Papers, Mavors Roman Army Researches 2 (Amsterdam: J. C. Gieben, 1986), 163-72. O n religious developments in this native military "subculture," see Frantoise D u n a n d , Religion populaire en Egypte romaine, EPRO 77 (Leiden: Brill, 1979), 81-82, 107, 110, pis. 91-93. 21. Cf. Oertel, "Economic Life," 264. 22. P.Giessen 40, 11.28-30 (ed. and tr. F. M. Heichelheim, "The Text of the Constitutio

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

247

Along with the simple, peasant άναχώρητίς were quite a n u m b e r of tradespeople a n d propertied individuals—members of the Greco-Egyptian petite bourgeoisie—who fell u n d e r the edict as "assuming the appearance a n d dress of a n o t h e r class. 23 ‫״‬ These factors are important for understanding millennialist activity in Egypt of this period. Although m a n y scholars of millennialism have noted a consistently peasant base for such movements, often religious m o v e m e n t s of the most systematically *other-worldly‫ ״‬character arise a m o n g liminal or middle classes. 24 T h e reason most commonly offered for this p h e n o m e n o n is that the subversion of the middle class's economic status results in the deprivation of critical aspects (and symbols) of their social status, such as access to institutions of the d o m i n a n t culture a n d the various m e a n s of social identity. 2 5 Furthermore, a socioeconomic transition within a single culture from (relative) collectivization to individualization has implications for the status of the individual person: identity ceases to be d e p e n d e n t on locale a n d on collective life a n d traditions a n d becomes more contingent on m e a n s of acquiring status that distinguish and must be maintained by the individual. In the terms coined by Mary Douglas, the social structure of Greco-Roman Egypt (or at least of the bourgeoisie) would h a v e turned from a relatively "high grid‫( ״‬integrated and interdependent) system Antoniniana a n d t h e T h r e e O t h e r D e c r e e s of t h e E m p e r o r C a r a c a l l a C o n t a i n e d in P a p y r u s G i s s e n s i s 4 0 , ' ]EA 26 [1940]: 12-13). 23. A p p a r e n t l y s o m e E g y p t i a n s w e r e a l l o w e d t o stay, p r e s u m a b l y t h o s e w h o a p p e a r e d to c o n f o r m t o C a r a c a l l a ' s e x c e p t i o n for t h o s e " w h o c o n g r e g a t e h e r e w i t h t h e object of v i e w i n g t h e g l o r i o u s city of A l e x a n d r i a or c o m e d o w n for t h e s a k e of e n j o y i n g a m o r e civilized life [or] for i n c i d e n t a l b u s i n e s s " ( P . G i e s s e n 40, 11.25-27; tr. H e i c h e l h e i m , "Constitutio Antoniniana," 13). D i o n y s i u s m e n t i o n s E g y p t i a n s a m o n g t h e first m a r t y r s in t h e A l e x a n d r i a n p o g r o m of 249 (in E u s e b i u s , Hist, eccles. 6.41.19, 21). 24. S e e M a x W e b e r , The Sociology of Religion, tr. by E p h r a i m Fischoff (Boston: B e a c o n Press, 1963), 9 8 - 9 9 , 106-8. Cf. E. J‫ ׳‬H o b s b a w m , Primitive Rebels: Studies in Archaic Forms of Social Movement ( N e w York: Frederick P r a e g e r , 1959; r e p r i n t , N e w York: W. W. N o r t o n , 1965), 71-72, 83, 85; M i c h a e l B a r k u n , Disaster and the Millennium (New Haven: Yale U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1974; r e p r i n t , S y r a c u s e , N.Y.: S y r a c u s e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1986), 36, 94-95. O n e c o n o m i c a s p e c t s of m i l l e n n i a l i s m , s e e K e n e l m Burridge, New Heaven, New Earth: A Study of MiUenarian Activities ( O x f o r d : Basil Blackwell, 1969), 4 1 - 4 6 , 1 0 8 15. 25. O n t h e s y m b o l s of m i d d l e - c l a s s i d e n t i t y in R o m a n E g y p t — n a m e s , b e n e f i t s of citizenship, c u l t u r a l i n s t i t u t i o n s — s e e B o w m a n , Egypt after the Pharoahs, 124-26. O n t h e instability of m a i n t a i n i n g t h e s e s y m b o l s , s e e M a r y D o u g l a s , Natural Symbols ( N e w York: P a n t h e o n , 1973), 103-4; J o h n G a g e r , Kingdom and Community ( E n g l e w o o d Cliffs, N.J.: P r e n t i c e - H a l l , 1975), 94-96. N o r m a n C o h n h a s s t r e s s e d t h e i m p a c t of r a p i d social a n d e c o n o m i c c h a n g e in p r o d u c i n g a m e n t a l i t y c o n d u c i v e to millennialist e x p e c t a t i o n (The Pursuit of the Millennium [rev. ed.; L o n d o n : T e m p l e S m i t h , 1970], 53-60); s e e a l s o H o b s b a w m , Primitive

Rebels, 6 7 , 80.

248

T O W A R D A HISTORICAL A N D SOCIAL C O N T E X T

under Ptolemaic rule to a "low grid‫( ״‬individualistic a n d competitive) system under Roman rule. 26 Consequently, the rapid disintegration of both the u r b a n a n d the epichoric bourgeoisie from Caracalla through Diocletian would have isolated the m e m b e r s of this class still more, as it became progressively impossible for the individual to maintain class status a n d cultural identity u n d e r the weight of imperial exploitation. 2 7 Under these circumstances, the rapid flight to a millennialist sect w h o s e sights were set purely on eschatological events can be explained as a flight by people bereft of socioeconomic status a n d cultural identity (as a result of third-century oppression), w h o s e self-definition was largely individualistic, to a social situation of purely collective identity—again, in Douglas's terms, ‫״‬the high group, low grid" situation. 2 8 The individual status, lost in the vicissitudes of the Egyptian economy, becomes moot in the experience of the millennialist sect: one is simply a ‫״‬Christian‫( ״‬or, in the terms of the Apocalypse of Elijah, a "saint" or a "righteous one"). O n e might also d r a w a correlation between the "fractured individual" of the third-century Egyptian bourgeoisie a n d the "pathological yearning for martyrdom" apparent a m o n g Egyptian martyrs in the Diocletianic persecution. 2 9 In assuming biblical n a m e s a n d volunteering for tortures

26. E g y p t i a n society m a i n t a i n e d a relatively c o n s i s t e n t s t r a t i f i c a t i o n t h r o u g h t h e P t o l e m a i c p e r i o d ; s e e D u n a n d , " G r e c s et e g v p t i e n s , " 6 7 - 6 8 . A l t h o u g h it is difficult to g a u g e " g r o u p " — D o u g l a s ' s s p e c t r u m of collective v e r s u s i n d i v i d u a l i d e n t i t y — i n historical cultures, it w o u l d s e e m e v i d e n t t h a t at this time in E g y p t t h e p r o g r e s s i v e i n d i v i d u a l i z a t i o n of i d e n t i t y a n d r e s p o n s i b i l i t y i n d i c a t e s a transition to " l o w g r o u p " s t a t u s . In a similar vein, H e n r y A. G r e e n a t t r i b u t e d t h e i n d i v i d u a l i s m of early E g y p t i a n G n o s t i c i s m to this very t r a n s i t i o n f r o m P t o l e m a i c to R o m a n e c o n o m i c a d m i n i s t r a t i o n s a n d their effect o n p r e - 1 1 5 J u d a i s m (Economic and Social Origins of Gnosticism, SBLDS 77 (Atlanta: S c h o l a r s Press, 1985]; a n d i d e m , "The S o c i o - E c o n o m i c B a c k g r o u n d of C h r i s t i a n i t y in Egypt," in The Roots of Egyptian Christianity, e d . Birger A. P e a r s o n a n d J a m e s E. G o e h r i n g , S A C 1 ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : Fortress, 1986], 110-11). 27. T h i s portrait of m i s e r y is n o t t o g a i n s a y t h e g l o r i o u s a t t e m p t s m a d e b y e m p e r o r s a n d cities alike to i n v o k e civic p r i d e a n d d i v e r t t h e p o p u l a c e w i t h g a m e s ; cf. Robin L a n e Fox, Pagans and Christians ( N e w York: A l f r e d A. K n o p f , 1987), 578. 28. Cf. K e n e l m Burridge, " M i l l e n n i a l i s m s a n d t h e R e c r e a t i o n of History," in Religion, Rebellion, Revolution, e d . Bruce Lincoln ( N e w York: St. M a r t i n s, 1985), 230: ‫ ־‬T h e t e n s i o n s b e t w e e n t o o m u c h a n d t o o little f r e e d o m for t h e self to realize itself, b r o u g h t a b o u t by p o l i t i c o - e c o n o m i c c o n d i t i o n s w i t h a s t r o n g m o r a l c o m p o n e n t in w h i c h a n a l t e r n a t i v e m o r a l o r d e r is s u g g e s t e d , s e e m to m e to f o r m t h e a r m a t u r e of m i l l e n nialisms." S u c h c o n d i t i o n s in R o m a n E g y p t w o u l d p r e s u m a b l y h a v e b e e n t h e e x t e n s i o n of c i t i z e n s h i p b y C a r a c a l l a . 29. T h e p h r a s e is G . E . M . d e Ste. C r o i x ' s ("Why W e r e t h e Early C h r i s t i a n s P e r s e c u t e d ? " in Studies in Ancient Society, e d . Μ. I. Finley [ L o n d o n a n d Boston: R o u t l e d g e & K e g a n Paul, 1974], 234-37); s e e a l s o D o n a l d W. Riddle, The Martyrs: A Study in Social Control ( C h i c a g o : U n i v e r s i t y of C h i c a g o Press, 1931), 6 0 - 6 9 . T h e p a r a m o u n t e x a m p l e of this " p a t h o l o g i c a l y e a r n i n g " is T e r t u l l i a n ' s Scorpiace 7.

Egypt in the Third C e n t u r y C.E.

249

a n d execution, the latter were sacrificing all sense of themselves as individuals to an eschatological identity a n d to pain. 30

REBELLION, RELIGION, AND IDEOLOGY IN THIRD-CENTURY EGYPT Ideological Responses to Decline The rumbling of the empire's f o u n d a t i o n s w a s not experienced only on the level of immediate livelihood and subsistence. Prophets a n d ideologues on all sides also saw the decline in a wider and more o m i n o u s perspective: that the world itself w a s collapsing. 31 For example, it w a s in the third century that the religious requirements imposed on the populace of the empire changed most markedly from the cultural ecumenism of the Hellenistic world to obligations of conformity. Whether it arose from the imperium's o w n pessimistic selfreflection or from genuinely new ideas about w h a t should constitute an imperial religion, the concept developed that certain forms of piety were anarchic a n d criminal. Hence the Roman period witnessed paranoid h u n t s for evidence of "magic 32 ‫ ״‬a n d the imperial edicts on sacrifice. O n the one h a n d , then, it w a s understood both by the state a n d by considerable n u m b e r s of people that the integrity of the empire w a s being threatened by insufficient ritual h o m a g e a n d by subversive cults actively working against it: ‫״‬If the Tiber floods the t o w n or the Nile fails to flood the fields,‫ ״‬proceeds Tertullian's f a m o u s complaint, ‫״‬if the sky stands still or the earth moves, if famine, if plague, the first reaction is 'Christians to the lion! 33 ‫ ״׳‬In the eyes of the populace a n d the mobs, the 30. Eusebius Martyrs in Palestine 11. O n masochism as the subordination a n d diminishment of the ego, see Esther Menaker, " M a s o c h i s m - Α Defense Reaction of the Ego,‫ ״‬Psychoanalytic Quarterly 22 (1953):205-20; cf. T h e o d o r Reik, Masochism in Sex and Society (New York: G r o v e Press, 1962), 349-59. 31. See, in general, E. R. Dodds, Pagan and Christian in an Age of Anxiety (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965; reprint, N e w York: Norton, 1970); Ramsay MacMullen,

The

Roman

Government's

Response

to Crisis,

A.D. 235-337

(New

Haven

and

London: Yale University Press, 1976), chap. 1; Peter Brown, The Making of Late Antiquity (Cambridge: H a r v a r d University Press, 1975), 99-101. 32. See Peter Brown, "Sorcery, Demons, a n d the Rise of Christianity f r o m Late Antiquity into the Middle Ages," in Witchcraft Confessions and Accusations, ed. Mary Douglas (London: Tavistock, 1970), 17-45; a n d Morton Smith, Jesus the Magician (San Francisco: H a r p e r & Row, 1978), 68-93. 3 3 . T e r t u l l i a n Apologia

40 (ed. T. H e r b e r t

B i n d l e y , Tertulliani

apologeticus

adversus

gentes pro christianis [Oxford: C l a r e n d o n Press, 1889], 124-25); see also Dodds, Pagan and Christian, 114-15; MacMullen, Roman Government's Response, 24-47; Robert L. Wilken, The Christians as the Romans Saw Them ( N e w H a v e n : Yale University Press, 1984), 50, 59-69.

250

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

atheism and anarchism that a p p e a r e d intrinsic to Christianity would result in the departure of the gods and tyche from the inhabited cosmos. 34 O n the other h a n d , the third century witnessed a great outpouring of Christian millennialist literature, articulating almost the same view from a different perspective: that the weakening of the empire and the onset of persecutions signaled the imminent end of the world a n d the beginning of the reign of Christ. 3 5 Rebellion, Religion, and Nationalism In the context of this "culture of anxiety" and in response to the social and economic b r e a k d o w n in Egyptian society a n d to the economic and racial oppression of Roman administration, a series of violent revolts characterizes the third century in both Egypt a n d Alexandria. The history of these revolts is assessed here with particular attention to their ideological ramifications, for I propose that the Apocalypse of Elijah can be read as a Christian synthesis of such general oppositional sentiments as motivated these revolts. However, it is useful to clarify the terminology and presuppositions involved in assessing the ideologies of rebellious social groups. Most problematic is the term "nationalism.‫״‬ In classical Egypt, a typical hierocratic kingdom, religious a n d political discourses were f u n d a m e n t a l l y indistinguishable. Indeed, the selfdefinition of Egypt and its p h a r a o h as against the nations of its k n o w n world was symbolized a n d understood within the mythological antithesis of Horus a n d Seth, leading Egyptologists such as Etienne Drioton to characterize the ancient Egyptian mythological perspective as nationalistic. 36 The validity of this term becomes clear in the Late a n d Hellenistic periods, as m e m b e r s of the Egyptian priesthood sought alternately (and often in competition with each other) to discredit and to legitimize p h a r a o h s of foreign descent by f r a m i n g them in relationship to nostalgic visions of the past, chief a m o n g which was the ability of legitimate p h a r a o h s to expel foreigners and quell revolt. Disliked forces or leaders (such as Cambyses and various Ptolemies) were thereby objectified 34. See de Ste. Croix, *Why Were the Early Christians Persecuted?" 238-42. 35. See Jean Gage, "Commodien et le m o m e n t millenariste du III'' siecle (258-262 ap. J.-C.)," RHPR 41 (1961)1355-78; Geza Alfoldy, *The Crisis of the Third Century as Seen b y C o n t e m p o r a r i e s , " GRBS 15 ( 1 9 7 4 ) : 8 9 - 1 1 1 ; M a c M u l l e n , Roman

Government's

Response,

1-23. 36. Etienne Drioton, "Le nationalisme au temps des pharaons," in idem, Pages d'egyptologie (Cairo: Editions de la Revue du Caire, 1957).

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

251

symbolically as T y p h o n i a n — a s people of S e t h — a n d o p p o s e d to Ma'at—cosmic order a n d social integrity. Both Samuel K. Eddy a n d Alan B. Lloyd h a v e s h o w n in detail t h e nationalist character of the various m o v e m e n t s of the Hellenistic period that o p p o s e d the foreign kingships, while J. G w y n Griffiths, Janet H. J o h n s o n , a n d Ludwig Koenen h a v e argued for a similar "king versus foreigner" ideology h a v i n g b e e n d e ployed in s u p p o r t of the Ptolemies. 3 7 T h e r e f o r e it w o u l d s e e m that "nationalism" is a c o h e r e n t a n d a p p r o p r i a t e term for the ideology of native opposition or rebellion d u r i n g the G r e c o - R o m a n period, indieating a n u m i n o u s sense of Egypt as a relative geographical unit that w a s d e f e n d i n g its b o u n d a r i e s against "invasion." A p r o b l e m arises, h o w e v e r , in a p p l y i n g to social trends in a n ancient agrarian society a term conceived in m o d e r n times to represent m o d e r n ethnic or political m o v e m e n t s , as Ernest Gellner h a s a r g u e d most articulately. 3 8 Theoretically, t h e traditionally a n d deeply local character of peasant lives, as is m a n i f e s t e d in kinship b o u n d a r i e s a n d language dialects, should create a virtually a u t o n o m o u s symbolic world, o n e b o t h separate f r o m t h e symbolic w o r l d s of o t h e r (even neighboring) local cultures a n d "beneath" a n y sort of national consciousness that might cross these m a n y parochial worlds. By this view, w h i c h a s s u m e s a primitive region u n a f f e c t e d by wars, invasions, or political p r o p a g a n d a , a "national consciousness" w o u l d be neither relevant nor accessible to the lives of village peasants. 3 9 T h e ruling elite (including t h e priesthood) in such a society w o u l d express its cultural self-definition not in t e r m s of nationalist alliance with t h e s e dispersed p e a s a n t classes ( f r o m w h o m they w o u l d h a v e a l o n g - s t a n d i n g hierarchical interest in distinguishing themselves) but rather in t e r m s of caste status. 4 0 If p e a s a n t s are viewed as f u n d a m e n t a l l y local in identity a n d aspirations a n d the p r i e s t h o o d — 37. Samuel K. Eddy, The King Is Dead (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1961), chaps. 10-11; Alan Lloyd, "Nationalist P r o p a g a n d a in Ptolemaic Egypt," Historia 31 (1982):33-55; J. G w y n Griffiths, "Egyptian Nationalism in the Edfu T e m p l e Texts," in Glimpses

of Ancient

Egypt:

Studies

in Honour

of H. W. Fairman,

ed. J o h n Ruffle, G.

A.

Gaballa, and Kenneth Kitchen (Warminster: Aris & Phillips, 1979), 174-79; Ludwig Koenen, ' D i e Adaptation agyptischer Konigsideologie a m Ptolemaerhof," in Egypt and the Hellenistic World, ed. E. Van ‫׳‬t Dack, P. van Dessel, a n d W. van Gucht, Studia Hellenistica 27 (Louvain, 1983), 143-90; Janet H. Johnson, "Is t h e Demotic Chronicle a n Anti-Greek Tract?" in Grammata Demotika, ed. Heinz-J. Thissen a n d Karl-Th. Zauzich (Wurzburg: Gisela Zauzich, 1984), 107-24. 38. Ernest Gellner, Nations and Nationalism 1983), 8-18. 39. Ibid., 12-13. 40. Ibid., 16.

(Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press,

252

T O W A R D A HISTORICAL A N D SOCIAL C O N T E X T

the actual instrument of elite political p r o p a g a n d a — a s f u n d a m e n t a l l y hierarchical in identity (i.e., as opposing itself to the lower classes), then, according to Gellner, there should be "little incentive or opportunity for [such agrarian] cultures to aspire to the kind of m o n o c h r o m e h o m o geneity and political pervasiveness a n d domination for which later, with the coming of the age of nationalism, they eventually strive. 41 ‫״‬ Although the image of rigidly distinct cultural worlds would aptly characterize Egypt in pharaonic (and even early Ptolemaic) times because of the culture's powerful, complex priesthood a n d differing cultural regions, by the Roman period this ideal scenario collapses, for three significant reasons: (1) the issue of ethnic distinctions a n d racism, which became a source of considerable identification a n d conflict during the Roman period; 42 (2) the increasing conflict a m o n g elements of the priesthood during the Greco-Roman period, often regional in identification a n d public sway (e.g., Memphis, Thebes, Esna, Edfu, a n d Elephantine); and (3) the public (or even "popular") role of the local priesthood, w h o s e oracles might be used to inspire rebellious sentiments or violence, often across a considerable region. 43 It must f u r t h e r m o r e be remembered that the status a n d authority of priests and temples diminished considerably under Roman administration, eliminating the intrinsic alliance between economic and religious (or cultic) authorities that h a d developed over the course of the Hellenistic period: n o w the priesthoods were essentiallv on their own, exploited for f u n d s like the rest of Egypt. 44 Therefore Glen Bowersock has argued that "at the center of provincial subversion 41. Ibid., 13. 42. A p o i n t a r g u e d at l e n g t h by Davis, Race Relations in Ancient Egypt, esp. 113-65. Cf. D u n a n d , "Grecs et e g v p t i e n s e n Egypte," p a s s i m . 43. S e e D u n a n d , Religion populaire, 118-34; i d e m , " G r e c s et e g v p t i e n s , " 71-74; cf. Claire P r e a u x , "Equisse d u n e histoire d e s r e v o l u t i o n s e g y p t i e n n e s s o u s les lagides," Chronique d'Egypte 22 (1936):529, 545-52. O n t h e p o p u l a r a u t h o r i t y of t h e E g y p t i a n p r i e s t h o o d in t h e R o m a n p e r i o d t h r o u g h a d m i n i s t r a t i o n of oracles, s e e A m m i a n u s Marcellinus, Hist. 19.12 (Bes o r a c l e t h r i v i n g in 359 C.E.); W. S c h u b a r t , " O r a k e l f r a g e n , " ΖAS 67 (1931):110-15, A. H e n r i c h s , "Zwei O r a k e l f r a g e n , " ZPE 11 (1973):115-19; A d a m B u l o w - J a c o b s e n , ' P . C a r l s b e r g 24: Q u e s t i o n to a n Oracle," ZPE 57 (1984):91-92, P . O x y 2554 (ed. J o h n Rea, " P r e d i c t i o n s by Astrology," Oxyrhynchus Papyri 31 (1966):77-83; P.Yale 299 ( s e c o n d c e n t u r y C.E.); ed. G e o r g e M. P a r a s s o g l o u , "Circular f r o m a Prefect: Sileat o m n i b u s p e r p e t u o d i v i n a n d i curiositas," in Collectanea Papyrologica, Festschrift Η C. Youtie, e d . A n n Ellis H a n s o n [Bonn: R u d o l f H a b e l t , 1976], 2 6 1 - 7 4 ; a n d J o h n Rea, "A N e w Version of P.Yale in v. 299," ZPE 27 (1977):151-56; p l u s m a t e r i a l s in c h a p . 7. 44. D o r o t h y J. T h o m p s o n , " T h e H i g h Priests of M e m p h i s u n d e r P t o l e m a i c Rule," in Pagan Priests, ed. M a r y Beard a n d J o h n N o r t h (Ithaca, N.Y.: C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1990), 115-16; Lewis, Life in Egypt, 9 1 - 9 2 ; H . Idris Bell, Cults and Creeds in Graeco-Rornan Egypt (Liverpool: Liverpool U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1953; r e p r i n t , C h i c a g o : Ares, 1975), 5 4 - 5 5 .

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

253

[during the Roman period] stood the local temples, . . . [which were] far more vital than m a n y have thought. 4 5 ‫״‬ Moreover, rural villagers in Roman Egypt, subject as they were to ethnic discrimination, invasions, revolts, and the universalizing ideology of Hellenistic language a n d culture, were hardly i m m u n e to national or multiregional alliances. Bruce Lincoln has discussed latent configurations of identity that become activated, even at the most local level, under certain historical circumstances a n d which effectively unite peopie across prior local divisions. 46 Under certain kinds of real or perceived stress, the most localized and conservative communities may redefine themselves in much more expansive a n d p o w e r f u l terms than those in which they ordinarily lead their lives—here is a dualism that divides (or, respectively, unites) everything in its view. 47 Clifford Geertz perceives this p h e n o m e n o n as a function of ideology itself: It is w h e n n e i t h e r a s o c i e t y ' s m o s t g e n e r a l cultural o r i e n t a t i o n s n o r its m o s t d o w n - t o - e a r t h "pragmatic" o n e s s u f f i c e a n y l o n g e r t o p r o v i d e an a d e q u a t e i m a g e of political p r o c e s s that i d e o l o g i e s b e g i n t o b e c o m e crucial as s o u r c e s of sociopolitical m e a n i n g s a n d attitudes. 4 8

Primitive nationalism is hence a form of latent social identity aroused under extreme circumstances, a p h e n o m e n o n of organization, sentiment, a n d discourse that essentially cuts across our modern distinctions of religion a n d politics. It is basically a ‫״‬regionalism," expanded a n d intensified against perceived invasion or impurity through the use of religious propaganda, which is invariably wielded by figures in positions of highly traditional authority, especially priests. Nationalism conceived 45. Glen W. Bowersock, "The Mechanics of Subversion in the Roman Provinces," in Opposition et resistances ά Γempire d'Auguste a Trajan, Entretiens sur l'antiquite classique 33 (Geneva: Vandoeuvres, 1986), 315; cf. c o m m e n t s by M. Giovannini in "Discussion," in Opposition et resistance, 319. 46. Bruce Lincoln, Discourse and the Construction of Society (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989), 3-50. Lincoln's approach is not entirely incompatible with Gellner's, as most of his examples c o m e from urban, industrial societies, the cultural point at which Gellner finds t h e social basis of nationalism. 47. See Georg Simmel, Conflict and the Web of Croup-Affiliations, tr. Kurt H. Wolff a n d Reinhard Bendix (New York: Free Press, 1955), 98-107. This widely dualistic worldview arises particularly with millennialist m o v e m e n t s that d r a w on the cosmic and otherworldly terms of Christian scripture; see Peter Worsley, The Trumpet Shall Sound: A Study of "Cargo" Cults in Melanesia (2d ed.; N e w York: Schocken, 1968), 245-46; cf. Barkun, Disaster and the Millennium, 84-86, on indigenous structures from which prophets and their communities can synthesize millennialist worldviews. 48. Clifford Geertz, "Ideology as a Cultural System," in idem, The Interpretation of Cultures (New York: Basic Books, 1973), 219.

254

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

in this way can encompass the oppositional sentiments of both native a n d immigrant groups, of both an underclass a n d an elite, of both mobs a n d militias. Although admitting the problematic nature of such a m o d ern term in reference to the ideal a n d static agrarian society, o n e can profitably apply it to certain ideological trends that express an exceptionally wide identity in opposition to a perceived foreign presence a n d that articulate xenophobic sentiments vis-a-vis the land. Such ideologies tend to arise in those agrarian cultures that h a v e been subject to ethnic division; economic exploitation; popular, often insurgent priestly leadership; or prior multiregional alliances or identities. Roman Egypt epitomizes these circumstances, from city to chora. The motivations a m o n g the participants in the sequence of anti-Roman revolts over the course of the third century cannot otherwise be understood. The regional character of these revolts as well as the evidence of priestly leadership implies that the participants understood themselves as d e f e n d e r s of a culture against perceived aliens—a culture w h o s e ordering structure was the temple a n d a view of the land as resisting S e t h - T y p h o n in his m a n y forms. Thus we may aptly call the sequence of revolts and their violent prophecies "nationalistic.‫״‬ Viewing nationalism in Roman Egypt in this way f u r t h e r m o r e allows the critic to see a continuity between "secular" revolts (which might use no apparent mythological discourse) a n d overtly religious texts such as the Apocalypse of Elijah. E. J. H o b s b a w m has s h o w n in detail that religious-secular distinctions are anachronistic with regard to popular movements of rebellion, which customarily involved both mythological and economic types of rhetoric. 49 Therefore one must dismiss such assertions as Ramsay MacMullen's that "the religious attachments of the Egyptians had been much weakened over the first three h u n d r e d years of Roman occupation, a n d h a d been to some extent w i t h d r a w n from other aspects of culture, 50 ‫ ״‬or 49. H o b s b a w m , Primitive Rebels, esp. 66: "The k i n d s of c o m m u n i t y which p r o d u c e d millenarian heresies are not the o n e s in w h i c h clear distinctions b e t w e e n religious a n d secular things can be d r a w n . " More recently, H o b s b a w m has derived the p o p u l a r "proto-nationalist* mentality e v e n in m o d e r n times f r o m religious u n d e r s t a n d i n g s of land a n d people (Nations and Nationalism since 1780: Programme, Myth, Reality [Cambridge: C a m b r i d g e University Press, 1990], esp. 50-51, 67-79). 50. Ramsay MacMullen, "Nationalism in R o m a n Egypt," Aegyptus 44 (1964):191. It s h o u l d be noted that MacMullen is r e s p o n d i n g to J. G r a f t o n Milne, "Egyptian Nationalism u n d e r Greek a n d R o m a n Rule," JEA 14 (1928):226-34, an article guilty of s o m e excessive assertions a b o u t the monolithic character of G r e c o - R o m a n Egyptian religion.

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

255

A.H.M. Jones's "that t h e r e w a s n o conscious survival of the old Egyptian nationalism in the Christian period." 5 1 In circumstances of p o p u l a r revolt, a religious character m u s t be a s s u m e d a n d articulated critically, rather t h a n assessed d o u b t f u l l y t h r o u g h a n a c h r o n i s t i c criteria.

Three Kinds of Nationalism in Roman Egypt It is u s e f u l to delineate t h e s p h e r e s of nationalistic activity that c h a r acterize t h i r d - c e n t u r y Egypt a n d its cultures; for it w o u l d be incorrect to say that all the revolts of t h e third c e n t u r y reflected the p o p u l a r sentim e n t s of either the p e a s a n t r y or t h e declining m i d d l e class of G r e c o Egyptians. First, since the b e g i n n i n g of R o m a n d o m i n a t i o n , Greek Alexandria, w h i c h w a s i n f a m o u s a m o n g R o m a n s for its m o b s a n d collective d e m o n strations, 5 2 h a d d e v e l o p e d its o w n f o r m of nationalism—of city-state identity a n d p r i d e — a n d this "nationalism" of the elite s h o w s itself persistently f r o m Caracalla to Diocletian. T h e chief literary witness for a Greek social entity that asserted its identity in opposition to native Egyptians a n d Egypt as a w h o l e , Jews (and ultimately Christians), a n d R o m a n p o w e r a n d t h e pretensions of e m p e r o r s is t h e c o r p u s of d i s p a r a t e p a p y r i k n o w n as the Acta Alexandrinorum.53 This literature a p p e a r s in the f o r m of stylized trial p r o t o cols, c o m p o s e d over a period f r o m t h e early first c e n t u r y t h r o u g h the third c e n t u r y C.E., a n d exhibits the struggles of t h e g y m n a s i a r c h s of Alexandria against a p r e j u d i c e d i m p e r i u m a n d (in their view) h a u g h t y Jews. 54 T h e t o n e is d e f e n s i v e ; t h e a u t h o r s w e r e clearly c o m p o s i n g p r o p a g a n d a to justify p o p u l a r G r e e k s e n t i m e n t s of persecution a n d hostility. A l t h o u g h arising f r o m a n d referring to t h e first century, t h e p a p y r i o n which t h e Acta are p r e s e r v e d are d a t e d to the s e c o n d a n d third centuries, s h o w i n g that these tracts c a p t u r e d e n o u g h m i n d s to b e copied c o n -

51. A . H . M . Jones, " W e r e A n c i e n t H e r e s i e s N a t i o n a l or Social M o v e m e n t s in Disguise?" ITS 10 (1959):287. Cf. J o h n G w y n Griffiths, " E g y p t i a n I n f l u e n c e s o n A t h a nasius,* in Studien zu Sprache und Religion Agyptens, vol. 2: Religion ( G o t t i n g e n : F. J u n g e , 1984), 1023-37. 52. S e e M e y e r R e i n h o l d , " R o m a n A t t i t u d e s t o w a r d E g y p t i a n s , " Ancient World 3 (1980):97-103; cf. H. Idris Bell, " A n t i - S e m i t i s m in A l e x a n d r i a , " /RS 31 (1941):1-18. 53. S e e H e r b e r t A. M u s u r i l l o , The Acts of the Pagan Martyrs ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1954). 54. A n a n i m o s i t y t o w a r d t h e J e w s is a p p a r e n t in s e v e r a l of t h e Acta (e.g., Acta Isidori), reflecting political a n d e t h n i c s t r u g g l e s o v e r g a i n i n g R o m a n c i t i z e n s h i p in t h e first c e n t u r y C.E.

256

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

tinually through the third century. 5 5 That they were f o u n d in Upper Egypt also s h o w s that p r o p a g a n d a concerning Alexandrian self-definition was being used to galvanize anti-Roman sentiments a m o n g Greeks living outside Alexandria. "We can easily picture,‫ ״‬suggests Naphtali Lewis, ‫״‬the more literate and affluent of the Alexandrians and metropolites nursing the political grievances of their classes by perusing these books in the privacy of their libraries or reading t h e m aloud in gatherings of friends. 5 6 ‫״‬ Second, there was the ‫״‬nationalism" of a Roman Empire coming apart at its seams, w h o s e apologists understood this decline quite religiously, in terms of anarchic elements both beyond a n d within its borders. 57 But organized violence a m o n g self-defined Romans often evolved along military lines; in an empire that w a s increasingly d e p e n d e n t u p o n and governed by armies, there w a s the tendency for the military commanders to revolt, along with the Roman citizens of a region, against the emperor. Finally, there is evidence for Egyptian nationalistic uprisings in the third century, expressed in the Potter's Oracle manuscripts, the Perfect Discourse, and the briefer oracular materials in Demotic a n d Greek, discussed above (pp. 185-91). In this period Egyptian nationalism may be characterized as focusing on a "millennial" reconstitution of the Egyptian kingship, which would simultaneously restore fertility to the land, create order a m o n g the people of the land, a n d expel foreigners from the borders of Egypt. It is probable that the major social class to have sought refuge a n d identity in Egyptian nationalism by the middle of the third century w a s the Greco-Egyptian bourgeoisie, a n e w class in Roman Egypt whose m e m b e r s were gradually losing economic subsistence a n d access to the institutions of the d o m i n a n t culture. 58 The

55. Rostovtzeff (Social and Economic History, 1:418) follows the theory of A. von Premerstein (Zu den sogennanten alexandrinischen Mdrtyrerakten, Philologus Supp. 16:2 [Leipzig: Dietrich, 1923), 73-75) that the Acta Alexandrinorum were actually collected into a single tract just before Caracalla's massacre, signifying an increase in Alexandrian nationalist fervor. Unfortunately, the diverse fragments cannot be attributed at a n y time to a single editorial project; see Musurillo, Acts of the Pagan Martyrs, 264-66. 56. Lewis, Life in Egypt, 200-201. 57. See de Ste. Croix, ‫־‬Why Were the Early Christians Persecuted?' 210-49. 58. Zbigniew Borkowski, *Local Cults and Resistance to Christianity," //P 20 (1990):25-30, has recently called attention to a preference on the part of the village lower-aristocracies for local, distinctly Egyptian cults. This and t h e evidence discussed by Franioise D u n a n d (Religion populaire en Egypte romaine, esp. 146-58), concerning popular Egyptian preference for "Hellenistic" forms of indigenous deities, suggest a Greco-Egyptian cultural syncretism at the village level in Egypt, implying an Egyptian identity that could be galvanized through priestly p r o p a g a n d a like the Potter's Oracle.

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

257

circulation of the Potter's Oracle in Greek indicates that a Greek-speaking milieu f o u n d no contradiction in expressing anti-Greek feelings a n d expectations in this language—that, indeed, it had become the "native‫״‬ language of a sizable population of Egyptians. Although Egyptian nationalism was opposed to Greeks and Romans (and occasionally Jews); Alexandrian nationalism to Egyptians, Romans, a n d Jews; and Roman nationalism to groups of individuals in its midst w h o advocated (or prayed for) the end of the empire and its gods, all shared, in the vicissitudes of their respective crises, a pathological attribution of all negative events to alien, impure elements within the social and geographical boundaries defining each one's ‫״‬nation.‫״‬

ALEXANDRIAN REVOLTS O F THE THIRD CENTURY

In 215 C.E., responding to w h a t seems to have been a direct affront on the part of the elite elders a n d youth of Alexandria, the emperor Caracalla had his troops massacre a sizable portion of the city's population. The Alexandrines' initial actions seem to h a v e been inspired by a combination of Caracalla's o w n particular pretensions, his exploitative economic innovations, a n d their general anti-Roman sentiments. 5 9 Although the victims of the massacre came predominately f r o m the elite of the Greek population, a considerable n u m b e r of Egyptians and Greco-Egyptians, refugees from the chora, also fell to Caracalla's army. These natives seem to h a v e played some role in Alexandrian insurgency, for Caracalla expelled t h e m from Alexandria by edict in 215 for ‫״‬agitating the city. 60 ‫ ״‬In light of the Egyptian nationalist view of the ‫״‬city by the sea" as the seat of the foreigner, destined for destruction, Alexandria at this point undoubtedly took on greater negative significance for Egyptians, because native Egyptians—in particular, those fleeing taxation or drought in the chora—could no longer enter the city. 61 59. C a s s i u s D i o Historic!

7 8 . 2 2 - 2 3 ; J. G r a f t o n M i l n e , History

of Egypt

under

Roman

Rule, A History of Egypt 5 (3d ed.; London: Methuen, 1924), 63-64;" P. Benoit and J. Schwartz, *Caracalla et les troubles d'Alexandrie en 215 apres J.-C.,' Etudes de Papyrologie 7 (1948):17-33; Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History, 1:417-18; and Fergus Millar, A Study of Cassius Dio (Oxford: Clarendon, 1964), 156-58, w h o views the obscurity of these events as *an object lesson in h o w little o u r sources help us to understand particular e v e n t s ' (156). 60. P.Giessen 40, 11.20; see Heichelheim, *Text of the Constitutio Antoniana," 10-22; cf. B ^noit and Schwartz, *Caracalla et les troubles d'Alexandrie,' 30 n. 2, 31. Obviously, m u c h of this agitation derived from the Greek Alexandrines' o w n ethnic prejudices. Origen was apparently a m o n g those expelled. 61. O n peasant anachoresis to Alexandria, see Claire Preaux, *L'attache a la terre:

258

T O W A R D A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL C O N T E X T

T h e next period revealing e v i d e n c e of religious-nationalistic activity is the transition f r o m Philip to Decius, f r o m 244-251 C.E. It h a s been n o t e d a b o v e that the reign of Philip r e p r e s e n t e d p e r h a p s the lowest point in the Egyptian e c o n o m y a n d t h e period of the m o s t serious social disintegration d u r i n g the w h o l e R o m a n a d m i n i s t r a t i o n of Egypt. P a p y rus evidence f r o m this period s h o w s b o t h a greater e a r n e s t n e s s in collecting taxes (with a n e w post: taxation overseer) a n d the d e s p e r a t e abrogation of laws that Severus h a d d e s i g n e d specifically to protect t h e village economy. 6 2 O n e can a s s u m e that r e s e n t m e n t a m o n g all classes w a s r u n n i n g high at this time. David Potter h a s p o i n t e d to Philip's celebration of Rome's t h o u s a n d year anniversary with lavish festivals a n d g a m e s as an act that m a n y in the e m p i r e w o u l d h a v e taken as p o r t e n t o u s of s o m e i m m i n e n t c h a n g e of great proportions. 6 3 As Z o s i m u s describes, s u c h celebrations o n e v e n a h u n d r e d - y e a r scale h a d the p o w e r to "bring a b o u t cures for plagues, decay, a n d diseases," a n d their neglect m i g h t h a v e dire c o n s e q u e n c e s for the empire. 6 4 So a n imperial celebration of the t u r n i n g point of t h e millennium, at the s a m e time as o t h e r s (such as C y p r i a n ) w e r e d e f i n i n g the age in terms of a m o r e violent, cataclysmic t u r n i n g point, 6 5 m a y h a v e struck s o m e p e o p l e in Alexandria a n d Egypt as an e v e n t of critical proportion, requiring collective action. 6 6 Between the n e w l y c o m p o u n d e d b u r d e n of R o m e a n d this spate of p r o p a g a n d a , it is t h e r e f o r e not surprising to find, in the letters of Dionysius of Alexandria, the report of a mantis attracting t h e Alexandrian c r o w d s in the w i n t e r of 248, w i t h the m e s s a g e that a n e w religion that was d e n y i n g the g o d s w a s responsible for the w o e s a r o u n d t h e m . In Dionysius's perspective, this C o n t i n u i t e s d e l ' E g y p t e p t o l e m a i q u e a l ' E g y p t e r o m a i n e , " in Das romisch-byzantinische Agypten, A e g y p t i a c a T r e v e r e n s i a 2 ( M a i n z : P h i l i p p v o n Z a b e r n , 1983), 2 - 3 . 62. P a r s o n s , " P h i l i p p u s A r a b s a n d Egypt"; S k e a t a n d W e g e n e r , "Trial b e f o r e t h e P r e f e c t of Egypt." 63. D a v i d Potter, Prophecy and History in the Crisis of the Roman Empire: A Historical Commentary on the Thirteenth Sibylline Oracle ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1990), 236-40. Cf. W. Ensslin, "The S e n a t e a n d t h e A r m y , " CAH 12 (1939):91-92; R o b e r t M. G r a n t , Augustus to Constantine: The Rise and Triumph of Christianity in the Roman World ( N e w York: H a r p e r & R o w , 1970), 167-68. 64. Z o s i m u s Historia nova 2.1, 7. 65. M a c M u l l e n , Roman Government's Response, c h a p s . 1 a n d 2; A l f o l d y , "Crisis of t h e Third Century." 66. A w a r e n e s s of i m p e r i a l or f o r e i g n e v e n t s m a y h a v e b e e n restricted to u r b a n a n d t r a d e p o p u l a t i o n s , w h o s e e c o n o m i c s p h e r e s w e r e c u l t u r a l l y w i d e r t h a n rural a n d p e a s a n t p o p u l a t i o n s . T h e f u l l e s t a c c o u n t of P h i l i p ' s g a m e s a p p e a r s o n l y in O r o s i u s ' s f i f t h - c e n t u r y h i s t o r y of R o m e , Contra paganos, in w h i c h h e a s s o c i a t e s t h e m a g n i f i c e n c e of t h e g a m e s w i t h P h i l i p ' s (traditionally alleged) C h r i s t i a n i t y ( c h a p . 20).

E g y p t in the T h i r d C e n t u r y C.E.

259

c r e a t o r of evils f o r t h i s city, w h o e v e r h e w a s , w a s b e f o r e h a n d in s t i r r i n g a n d i n c i t i n g t h e m a s s e s of t h e h e a i h e n [ίθνών] a g a i n s t u s , f a n n i n g a n e w t h e f l a m e of t h e i r n a t i v e s u p e r s t i t i o n . A r o u s e d b y h i m a n d s e i z i n g u p o n all a u t h o r i t y f o r t h e i r u n h o l y d e e d s , t h e y c o n c e i v e d t h a t t h i s k i n d of w o r s h i p of t h e i r g o d s — t h e t h i r s t i n g f o r o u r b l o o d — w a s t h e o n l y f o r m of p i e t y . 6 7

It is interesting that Dionysius views the rhetoric of the mantis as a p p e a l i n g to "native" superstition (την ϊτΐίχώρων αντον δίΐσώαιμονίαν), b e c a u s e this implies that h e w a s using terminology a n d motifs that the a u d i e n c e could appreciate as rooted in the traditions a n d self-definition of the city. In t h e act of "prophesying," the mantis w a s expressing t h e a u d i e n c e ' s g e n u i n e experience of the times in terms of the m y t h of Alexandrian culture a n d persecution a n d identifying t h e christianoi as a gross d a n g e r to their cultural a n d cosmic integrity. T h e r e f o r e S t e w a r t Oost h a s aptly c o m p a r e d the resulting p o g r o m to that against the Jews u n d e r Flaccus in the first century, for the Jews also b e c a m e t h e scapegoats of a n t i - R o m a n sentiment. 6 8 It w a s clear to the c r o w d that the malaise of the times a n d the d e p r e d a t i o n s by t h e i m p e r i u m w e r e a direct result of the bizarre practices of a cult that (to t h e m ) m a d e a p o i n t of d e n y i n g the city's holy tyche.69 T h u s the initial p e r f o r m a n c e of the mantis a n d the e n s u i n g p o g r o m w e r e a r e s p o n s e b o t h to R o m a n a u t h o r ity a n d to the peculiar b e h a v i o r of the Christians, while the f o r m s of speech the mantis u s e d articulated these " d a n g e r o u s entities" in the clear terms of local p r o p h e t i c expectation. Philip's reign a n d a d m i n i s t r a t i v e i n n o v a t i o n s p r o v o k e d such animosity in Alexandria that his o v e r t h r o w by Decius in 249 m u s t h a v e 67. Dionysius of Alexandria, in Eusebius Hist, eccles. 6.41.1 (tr. J.E.L. Oulton, Eusebius: The Ecclesiastical History, LCL [London: William Heinemann, 1932], 2:101). 68. Stewart Irvin Oost, "The Alexandrian Seditions u n d e r Philip a n d Gallienus," CP 56 (1961 ):2, 4. 69. Many scholars have suggested that the m o b (or t h e mantis, as "soul" of the mob) would have picked the Christians out of the m a n y religions in Alexandria because Philip himself, according to legend, carried o n a mild flirtation with Christianity, allegedly even receiving a letter f r o m Origen (see Eusebius Hist, eccles. 6.34, 36; Oost, "Alexandrian Seditions," 4-5; W.H.C. Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church [London: Basil Blackwell, 1965; reprint, G r a n d Rapids: Baker Book House, 1981j, 404-5; Fox, Pagans and Christians, 452-54; and, esp., H a n s A. Pohlsander, "Philip the Arab and Christianity," Historia 29 [1980]:463-71). The mobs, then, were taking out their resentment for the emperor's policies on representatives of the emperor's religion. This is pure conjecture, however, and attributes the w r o n g sort of rationality to the Alexandrian mob. It is far more likely that the Alexandrians' "local superstitions"—in Dionysius's o w n terms—were the motivating elements: a traditional hatred of Roman authority and the pretenses of its emperors; a d e e p reliance on Agathos Daimon—in indigenous terms, the presence of t h e holy in the city of Alexandria a n d t h e performances that kept its protection—and a strong sense of their o w n cultural identity in Egypt.

260

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

been greeted with some relief by Greeks in Egypt. 70 Decius's religious respect for the Roman order a n d tyche doubtless galvanized sentiments of some parties in Alexandria, w h o temporarily transcended their antiRoman nationalism to identify themselves within the larger sphere of the empire and its cosmos. The evidence of the libelli, the affidavits of public sacrifice, s h o w s that Decius's understanding of the relationship between regional piety a n d the maintenance of the empire was u n precedented in Roman history, yet highly nostalgic in motivation. In Potter's words: T h e e v i d e n c e of [ D e c i u s ' s ] a c t i o n s s u g g e s t s t h a t h e w a s d e e p l y c o n s e r v a tive, t h a t h e w a s d e e p l y p i o u s , t h a t h e p o s s e s s e d a f e r o c i o u s t e m p e r , a n d t h a t h e w a s q u i t e s t u p i d . H e s e e m s to h a v e y e a r n e d for t h e d a y s w h e n t h e e m p i r e a p p e a r e d to b e invincible, a n d h e a p p e a r s to h a v e c h e r i s h e d t h e m e m o r y of T r a j a n a n d t h e o t h e r e m p e r o r s w h o h a d m a d e R o m e g r e a t . T h u s o n e of h i s first a c t s a f t e r a s s u m i n g t h e t h r o n e w a s t o t a k e t h e n a m e T r a j a n f o r h i m s e l f a n d t o i s s u e a n e d i c t o r d e r i n g all t h e i n h a b i t a n t s of t h e e m p i r e t o s a c r i f i c e t o t h e a n c e s t r a l g o d s f o r t h e s a f e t y of t h e s t a t e . 7 1

Through Decius's institutions, therefore, the religious anxieties of the Alexandrians (concerning civic fortune, presence of gods, tradition, a n d cosmic stability)—which complemented and partly motivated their ethnic nationalism—were allayed through an ecumenical revival of religious values a n d cult, uniting the pantheism of the empire with the most localized guardian deities. The edicts of sacrifice seem to h a v e been worded in sufficiently general terms (‫״‬to the gods‫ )״‬to evoke these divergent sentiments of the need for divine presence a n d accessibility in the land. 72 That is, such a requirement as public sacrifice for the maintenance of the imperium a n d its world was comprehensible to a variety of nationalist ideologies, particularly during the political catastrophes of the mid-third century. 7 3 70. Cf. Parsons, "Philippus Arabus and Egypt," 140-41; Grant, Augustus to Constantine.

168; F o x , Pagans and Christians,

452.

71. Potter, Prophecy and History, 41-42; cf. John R. Knipfing, "The Libelli of t h e Decian Persecution," HTR 16 (1923):357; Oost, "Alexandrian Seditions," 7; Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution, 405-6; and the perceptive discussion by H a n s A. Pohlsander, "The Religious Policy of Decius," ANRW 2.16.3 (1986): 1826-42. 72. Knipfing, "Libelli," 353. See, in general, Brown, Making of Late Antiquity, 99-101 and passim. 73. Coincidentally, our evidence for the people w h o conformed to this edict in Upper Egypt comes mostly from the class of Egyptian and Greco-Egyptian bourgeoisie discussed above, w h o s e members had become citizens through Caracalla's decree and yet had been frequently dislocated during this period, probably owing to the oppression of new taxes; see Knipfing, "Libelli," 358; cf. 356.

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

261

The persecution of Christians becomes clearly an expression of religious a n d nationalist sentiments u n d e r Valerian in 257 C.E. The decision to harass Christians seems to h a v e been conceived in the w a k e of a surge of disasters across the empire—clear demonstration to the Greco-Roman mind of impiety within the borders. 7 4 The letters of Dionysius indicate that the instigator of the persecution was the chief financial minister to the emperor, Macrianus, w h o later replaced Valerian as emperor. 7 5 It is true that, in his official role, Macrianus's commitment to the persecution could only have been his responsibility for the sacrifice registry. 76 It is scarcely possible, however, that Dionysius is merely scapegoating Macrianus for being the executor of Valerian's plan. Macrianus must h a v e demonstrated a particular interest in the choice of Christians, because h e was acting as a religious leader concerned for the tyche of the city a n d empire, as invoked and symbolized in the loyalty of citizens to the divine benefactors—‫״‬the gods,‫ ״‬the deputy prefect of Egypt a d m o n i s h e d Dionysius, ‫ ״‬w h o save the Empire. 77 ‫ ״‬That Macrianus's anti-Christian ideology echoed local a n d p e r h a p s even epichoric anxieties about anarchic foreigners and their threat to the cosmos is s h o w n by the fact that his—and then his son's— claim to the throne was recognized both in Alexandria a n d well into Upper Egypt. 78 Thus, once again, several nationalist ideologies could become allied on o n e major religious point, the extermination of impurity. In the Alexandrian uprising of 260 there is the first suggestion of a synthesis of Christian a n d Alexandrian nationalistic sentiments. In 260, in support of the pretenders Macrianus a n d Quietus (the sons of Macrianus the financial minister) and in opposition to Gallienus ( w h o h a d recently defeated t h e m a n d would imminently restore Roman rule), a 74. See Christopher J. Haas, "Imperial Religious Policy a n d Valerian's Persecution of the Church, A D 257-260,' CH 52 (1983):138; cf. Pohlsander, "Religious Policy of Decius." 75. In Eusebius Hist, eccles. 7.10.4; cf. Oost, "Alexandrian Seditions," 7-9, w h o probably goes too far in seeing Macrianus as the Roman appointed apxitptvt, acting in this capacity to start the persecution. 76. S e e

H.-G.

Pflaum,

Les carrieres

procuratoriennes

equestres

sous

le

haut-empire

romain, 4 vols. (Paris: Geuthner, 1960), 2:930-32. 77. Dionysius, in Eusebius Hist, eccles. 7.11.7. See Michael M. Sage, "The Persecution of Valerian and the Peace of Gallienus," Wiener Studien 17 (1983): 139-42. Sage's observation that t h e persecution focused on wealthy Christians and o n Christians' property suggests that there may h a v e been a socioeconomic element in t h e performance of persecution in Alexandria. 78. Oost, "Alexandrian Seditions,' 8, 17 n. 43; see also Sage, "Persecution of Valerian," 137-41.

262

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

considerable body of Alexandrians barricaded themselves into o n e part of the city. Moreover, although Gallienus himself declared the end of Valerian's persecution, a n u m b e r of Christians joined the anti-Roman forces there. 7 9 Oost suggests that their opposition to Gallienus w a s inspired by their lack of conviction that the persecution was over; but it is more likely that the ideology of certain Christian groups at this point a n d in this milieu actually incorporated Alexandrian anti-Roman nationalism. 8 0 Nonetheless, a body of Christians from this anti-Roman side escaped over the line, intent on enjoying a Roman-sanctioned ‫״‬Peace of the Church" a n d surviving to suffer the plague that racked Alexandria the following spring ( 2 6 2 C.E.). This participation of Christians, suggesting a synthesis of Christian a n d Alexandrian nationalist attitudes, provides a comparative type to the milieu of the Apocalypse of Elijah, which synthesizes Christian a n d Egyptian nationalism. Therefore the participation of the Alexandrian Christians in the uprising becomes an important indicator of an ideologically complex series of Christianities during the third century. Indeed, it provides reason to believe that the millennialist overtones of third-century Christianity offered a more expansive ideology to those people w h o h o p e d for social, religious, a n d civic renewal in a nationalist or otherwise militant vein. To w h a t extent did these uprisings a n d their ideologies a n d propaganda influence the chora? A cultural continuity between Alexandria and such Upper Egyptian centers of Greek economic life as O x y r h y n chus has long been recognized, and the presence of copies of the Acta Alexandrinorum in the rubbish h e a p s of these t o w n s proves that nationalist p r o p a g a n d a was in circulation u p the Nile. 81 But the only event that clearly affected Alexandria a n d Egypt together was the invasion of the 79. Dionysius describes the Christians as "separated into o n e or the other part of the faction" (Eusebius Hist, eccles. 7.21.1; cf. 7.32.6-13, ed. Oulton and Lawlor, Eusebius 2:178); see Oost, "Alexandrian Seditions," 10-11, 19 n. 52. 80. The recollection of Rome's favors to Jews may well have become a shared propaganda between this new apocalyptic sect and those w h o continued to believe in the tyche of Alexandria. 81. Barkun argues that millennialist ideology generally cannot take root a m o n g urban social groups, insofar as their economic and social identities are too diversified and more accustomed to rapid change and misfortune in their immediate environment (Disaster and the Millennium, 66-74). It is likely, however, that w h e n nationalist ideologies are transmitted out into the countryside, they may effect t h e growth of millennialism there. See the interaction between "political" a n d typically "religious" sentiments in rural Italy a n d Spain ( n i n e t e e n t h - t w e n t i e t h centuries), discussed by H o b s b a w m (Primitive Rebels, 57-107, esp. 62-63, 87-89).

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

263

Palmyrene army u n d e r Zenobia in 269 C.E.‫ ׳‬an incident that m a n y scholars h a v e viewed as the inspiration for the Apocalypse of Elijah. The immediate occasion for this invasion, according to the historian Zosimus, w a s an invitation from Timagenes, a Greco-Egyptian, w h o s e obvious desire was to expel the R o m a n s — w h o were at this time progressively losing hold on the countryside—by the only m e a n s possible: an invasion by the only army at that time equal to the Roman forces. 82 Although o n e can only infer that Timagenes‫ ׳‬motives were nationalistic a n d that he represented a sizable constituency a m o n g Greco-Egyptians of means, it is k n o w n that Zenobia devoted considerable p r o p a g a n d a to establishing herself in Egyptian tradition; indeed, she presented herself as the new Cleopatra. 8 3 Under these circumstances, we must view this invasion as working specifically in conciliation of Egyptian nationalist sentiments. If it is correct to assume that Timagenes represented an "Egyptian" anti-Roman leadership that had coalesced during the previous decade, then it would a p p e a r once again that the socioeconomic locus of these nationalist sentiments was still largely bourgeois. The effect of this invasion on Upper Egyptian cultures must h a v e been considerable, even if there is n o notice of it in early Christian literature. Yet local response to the invasion w a s evidently not u n equivocally positive, for at o n e point the Roman general Probus w a s able temporarily to expel the P a l m y r e n e garrison with an army composed of Egyptians a n d Africans. 8 4 Nevertheless, Rome did not fully regain control over Upper Egypt until the end of the century. By this time the Blemmyes, a nomadic tribe from the south that h a d harried Egyptian t o w n s from the beginning of the third century, h a d become allies against Rome for the growing Egyptian resistance; and the Blemmyes joined the Palmyrene army in its conquest of Egypt. 85 Zenobia's claim o n Alexandria in 270 w a s more of a compromise with

8 2 . Z o s i m u s Historia

nova

1.44.

83. See Arthur Stein, "Kallinikos von Petrai,* Hermes 58 (1923):454-55; Jacques S c h w a r t z , " L e s p a l m y r e n i e n s e t l ' E g v p t e , " Bulletin

de la societe archeologique

d'Alexandrie

40 (1953):76-77; Glen W. Bowersock, "The Miracle of Memnon," BASP 21 (1984):31-32. 84. Zosimus Historia nova 1.44. The immediate effectiveness of this ad hoc army recalls the battles of 117 C.E., w h e n a Roman army of Egyptian conscripts effectively quelled the Jewish revolt and annihilated most of Egyptian Jewry. If Probus's army understood its defensive p u r p o s e similarly, there may well h a v e been propaganda in circulation describing the Palmyrenes as "Typhonic" despoilers of Egypt, a view Zenobia herself would h a v e sought actively to counter. 85. O n the Blemmyes, see Ladislas Castiglione, "Diocletian u n d die Blemmves," ZAS 96 (1970):90-102.

264

T O W A R D A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL C O N T E X T

Rome. S h e set u p her son, W a b a l l a t h , as a p u p p e t ruler a n d established his p o w e r as corrector orientis by m i n t i n g coins s h o w i n g b o t h h i m a n d the R o m a n e m p e r o r Aurelian. 8 6 But the c o m p r o m i s e w a s short-lived; Aurelian did not accept W a b a l l a t h ' s illegitimate title, a n d Zenobia declared herself a n d h e r son not only i n d e p e n d e n t but Augusti in 272. 87 In response, Aurelian l a u n c h e d a n e w c a m p a i g n against t h e P a l m y r e n e a r m y a n d succeeded that very year in expelling t h e m f r o m Egypt. 8 8 The Alexandrian Greeks, with their g r o w i n g hatred of the i m p e r i u m , h a d also regarded t h e P a l m y r e n e s as liberators; a n d i m m e d i a t e l y u p o n the expulsion of Zenobia, a rebellion started u n d e r the l e a d e r s h i p of Firmus, a p r o m i n e n t m e r c h a n t w h o s e ties e x t e n d e d far u p the Nile a n d w h o h a d allied himself with b o t h Palmyra a n d t h e Blemmyes. This rebellion w a s crushed, h o w e v e r , a l o n g with a considerable portion of Alexandria itself, by Aurelian's a r m y in 273.

THE EVIDENCE FOR REBELLIONS IN EGYPT T h e chora u n d e r w e n t its s h a r e of sufferings d u r i n g the third century, but the e v i d e n c e for revolt t h e r e is m u c h sparser t h a n for Alexandria. T h e years 260-261 s a w r e p e a t e d raids by the Blemmyes into U p p e r Egypt; a n d , as part of their p r o - E g y p t i a n rule, M a c r i a n u s a n d Q u i e t u s sent a m o m e n t a r i l y successful c a m p a i g n against them. 8 9 Dionysius writes that d u r i n g these years t h e Nile alternately ran exceedingly low a n d too high, causing severe f a m i n e in the chora.90 S u c h circumstances, along with the Alexandrian battles a n d plague, c o n t i n u e d flight f r o m land, a n d the d e p r e d a t i o n s of b a n d i t s ( f o r m e d of these very fugitives a n d soldiers, give f o u n d a t i o n to Mikhail Rostovtzeff's view of this period as o n e of depopulation. 9 1 In 278 there is e v i d e n c e for revolts in P t o l e m a i s a n d C o p t o s , this time s u p p o r t e d by t h e Blemmyes; a n d in t h e early 290s there a p p e a r s to h a v e been general uprising t h r o u g h o u t U p p e r Egypt, o n c e again in con86. O n W a b a l l a t h ' s role, s e e S c h w a r t z , " P a l m y r e n i e n s et l'Egypte," 7 5 - 7 6 . 87. H e n r i Seyrig, " V H A B A L A T H V S A V G V S T V S , " in Melanges offerts a K. Michalowski ( W a r s a w : P a n s t w o w e W y d a w n , 1966), 6 5 9 - 6 2 ; J.-P. R e y - C o q u a i s , "Syrie r o m a i n e , d e P o m p e e a Diocletien," /RS 68 (1978):59-60. 88 Seyrig, " V H A B A L A T H V S A V G V S T V S " ; P o t t e r , Prophecy and History, 61. 89. It s h o u l d b e n o t e d t h a t in t h e early 270s E g y p t i a n n a t i o n a l i s t s a n d t h e P a l m y r e n e army looked to the Blemmyes for support against Rome. 90. In E u s e b i u s Hist, eccles. 7.21.5-6. 91. Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History, 1:476.

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

265

junction with the Blemmyes. T h e latter uprising w a s a p p a r e n t l y not finally c r u s h e d until the e n d of the century. 9 2 It is p r o b a b l e that a n u m b e r of different ideologies c o m b i n e d in the uprising of the last d e c a d e of t h e third century. T h e revolt's acclaimed leaders, Achilleus a n d Domitius, s o u g h t a n Egypt i n d e p e n d e n t of R o m e but p r e d o m i n a t e l y for Greek a n d R o m a n i n h a b i t a n t s — t h a t is, in the tradition of Alexandrian nationalism. 9 3 But a critical area of t h e revolt in U p p e r Egypt w a s t h e region of T h e b e s a n d Coptos, a traditional priestly center. 9 4 This location w o u l d suggest that priestly p r o p a g a n d a m i g h t h a v e played a role in galvanizing the uprising in t h e chora; a n d this p r o p a g a n d a w o u l d h a v e recalled traditional Egyptian religious n a t i o n alism. This is only conjecture, h o w e v e r ; the m a n y Egyptian n a t i o n a l i s t prophetic d o c u m e n t s d a t e d to the third c e n t u r y c a n n o t necessarily be ascribed to this period.

EPICHORIC RESPONSES T O THIRD-CENTURY DECLINE: HISTORICAL IMPLICATIONS FOR THE C O N T E X T OF THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH T h e third century in Egypt m a y be seen as a series of i n c r e m e n t a l catastrophes, a n d t h e cultures that s u f f e r e d these c a t a s t r o p h e s s e e m to h a v e boiled almost constantly, in o n e revolt or a n o t h e r , over the course of this period. It w o u l d be possible, therefore, to view a n y millennialist uprising d u r i n g the m i d d l e or t h e latter half of the c e n t u r y as a n a t u r a l r e s p o n s e to objective "deprivation*—that is, as a n entirely e c o n o m i c m o v e m e n t , only c o u c h e d in religious terms. But this k i n d of a s s e s s m e n t of a millennialist g r o u p ' s historical s e l f - u n d e r s t a n d i n g m u s t necessarily ignore those c a t a s t r o p h e s to w h i c h the g r o u p m a y n o t r e s p o n d , a n d it m a y not b e able to a c c o u n t for the o f t e n m i n o r e n v i r o n m e n t a l stimuli that can trigger the f o r m a t i o n of millennialist groups. Barkun observes: 92. S e e W . S e s t o n , *Achilleus et la r e v o l t e d e I ' E g y p t e s o u s Diocletien d ' a p r e s les p a p y r u s et YHistoire Auguste," Melanges d'archeologie et d'histoire 55 (1938): 184-200; Allan C h e s t e r Joh n s o n , "Lucius D o m i t i u s D o m i t i a n u s A u g u s t u s , " C P 45 (1950):14-16; A l a n K. B o w m a n , "The Military O c c u p a t i o n of U p p e r E g y p t in t h e Reign of Diocletian," BASP 15 (1978):26-33; a n d i d e m , " T w o N o t e s : I. T h e Revolt of Busiris a n d C o p t o s , " BASP 21 (1984):33-36. 93. S e e J o h n s o n , "Lucius D o m i t i u s , " 17-19. 94. S e e B o w m a n , "Revolt of Busiris a n d C o p t o s . "

266

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

T h e r e is n o r e a s o n t o a s s u m e t h a t t h e d i s a s t e r s y n d r o m e is w h o l l y d e p e n d e n t u p o n t h e p r e s e n c e of o b j e c t i v e c r i t e r i a . F o r t h e m o s t p a r t , of c o u r s e , it is b r o u g h t o n b y r a d i c a l c h a n g e s in t h e e n v i r o n m e n t . Yet t o a c e r t a i n e x t e n t t h e v e r y p e r c e p t i o n of t h e s e c h a n g e s d e p e n d s u p o n i n d i v i d u a l ' s m e n t a l s e t . This is particularly apt to In‫ ׳‬the case been a long, slow erosion of familiar patterns and institutions, h a v e g o n e l a r g e l y u n n o t i c e d . In s u c h c i r c u m s t a n c e s , t h e m a y a p p e a r r e l a t i v e l y i n s i g n i f i c a n t in itself, b u t it suddenly in the mind of the perceiver a sense of the interconnectedness discrete events and a concomitant sense of loss and dread.95

an

where there has changes which catalytic e v e n t brings together of previously

The preoccupation with signs of persecution and martyrdom in the Apocalypse of Elijah a n d the reference to saints being c o m m a n d e d "to perform sacrifices a n d abominations" (2:26) imply that in the historical self-definition of this particular millennialist Christian milieu, the edicts of Decius a n d p e r h a p s also that of Valerian formed just such a catalytic event. Chapter 11 will discuss a more immediate catalytic event in the life of the group, which inspired the composition of the text. If, however, o n e takes these focal aspects of the Apocalypse of Elijah with the martyrdom lore that w a s widely current through Egypt by the end of the third century, a scenario develops of a minor civil requirement with no consistent enforcement a n d varying penalties that was almost immediately transformed a m o n g m a n y Egyptian Christian groups into a series of wild legends of horrible persecution a n d torture—and of the holiness of those bodies that endured. 9 6 That Decius's edict h a d a catalytic effect in the formation a n d galvanization of millennialist Christian groups, a n d that this "catalysis" must be viewed in the context of third-century decline, can also be seen in the transformation of the practice of anachoresis over the century. Popular anachoresis began as a check on the exploitation of peasants in Ptolemaic times: peasants might flee to local temples, from w h o s e asylum they could safely negotiate with landlords. During the early Roman period, flight became a popular m e a n s to avoid taxes, and peasants would invariably m a k e their way to Alexandria (whence Caracalla attempted to expel them in 215) or—less often—join bands of robbers in the marshes of the Nile Delta. 97 Not surprisingly, anachoresis 95. Barkun, Disaster ami the Millennium, 81-82 (emphasis mine). 96. Fox aptly s h o w s the difference between the reality of the edict's enforcement and its immediate use in Christian martyrological lore (Pagans and Christians, 455-60). Cf. Sage, "Persecution of Valerian," 137-59. 97. Cf. the revolt of the boukoloi u n d e r the priest Isidoros in 172 C.E. (although this probably did not h a v e such official military roots as Milne [History of Egypt, 52] attests).

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

267

became epidemic in the third century as the economy collapsed; the Theadelphia papyri describe entire villages abandoned. 9 8 A different form of social "disengagement‫ ״‬seems to have been practiced in first-century Judaism: the Epistle of Barnabas mentions individual retreat as an extreme form of response to eschatological imminence. 9 9 There may well be a relationship b e t w e e n this early rationale for escape from society a n d w h a t o n e finds in the late-third-century chora of Antony, w h e r e a country town might h a v e a n u m b e r of hermits living right on its outskirts. 100 Their motivations m a y have been to imitate Elijah, as chapter 3 has discussed; both Antony and Paul of Thebes seem to have had religious motivations in their solitary escapes into the desert and may historically h a v e considered themselves to be ‫״‬waiting out‫ ״‬the judgment of the world (much like Elijah in 1 Kgs 17:17).101 Later hermits' views of the desert a n d its monstrous inhabitants vividly recall the native Egyptian perception of the "region of Seth." 102 In Jerome's recollection, however, Paul was also supposed to have a b a n d o n e d his civic life to avoid "persecution" u n d e r the Decian edict. 103 It is neither useful nor historically accurate to m a k e a categorical distinction between ancient banditry and ancient rebellion; see Eric H o b s b a w m , Bandits (rev. ed.; N e w York: Pantheon, 1981). 98. O n the history of Greco-Roman Egyptian anachoresis, see Henri Henne, "Documents et travaux sur l'anachoresis," Mitteilungen aus der Papyrussammlung der osterreichischen Nationalbibliothek 5 (1956):59-66; Franioise D u n a n d , ‫״‬L'exode rural en Egypte a 1'epoque hellenistique," Ktema 5 (1980): 137-50; Preaux, "L'attache a la terre"; cf. Georges Posener, "L'ANACHORESIS d a n s I'Egypte p h a r a o n i q u e , ' in Le rnonde grec: Hommages a Claire Preaux, ed. Jean Bingen, Guy Cambier, and Georges Nachtergael (Brussels: Editions de l'universite de Bruxelles, 1975), 663-69. O n a b a n d o n m e n t of villages in Theadelphia, see P.Theadelphia, 20 (= P.Cairo 10889), in Pierre Jouguet, Papyrus de Theadelphie (Paris: Fontemoing, 1911), 123-26. 99. Ep. Barn. 4:10b. The "social disengagement" of the T h e r a p e u t a e that is described by Philo (De vita contemplativa) is really an alternative community, not a response to anticipated catastrophe or flight f r o m oppressive society. 1 0 0 . Vita Antonii

3; c f . Bohairic

Life of Pachomius

127: A n t o n y s a y s , " W h e n I b e c a m e a

monk, there w a s as yet n o koindnia on earth to m a k e it possible for me to live in a koinOnia. There were only a few people w h o used to w i t h d r a w a little way outside their village and live alone" (Armand Veilleux, tr. and ed., Pachomian Koinonia, 3 vols., Cistercian Studies Series 45-47 [Kalamazoo, Mich.: Cistercian Press, 1980-82], 1:184). 101. Paul's execration of Alexandria—"Woe to thee, Alexandria, . . . w h o dost worship monsters in room of God. Woe to thee, harlot city, in w h o m the d e m o n s of all the earth have flowed together." (Jerome Vita Paul 8 [PL 23:23 f]; in Helen Waddell, tr., The Desert Fathers [London: Constable, 1936; reprint, A n n Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1988], 33)—recalls t h e Potter's Oracle, which anticipates the city's destruction. 102. L. Keimer, "L'horreur des egyptiens pour les d e m o n s du desert," Bulletin de I'institut d'Egypte 26 (1944):135-47; cf. Antoine Guillaumont, "La conception du desert chez les moines d'Egypte," RHR 188 (1975):1-21. 103. Jerome Vita Paul 3-4 (PL 23:19-20).

268

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

Here one turns naturally to the considerable evidence for anachoresis as a response to perceived persecution. In 249, Dionysius wrote of "the multitude of those w h o ' w a n d e r e d in deserts and mountains' [Heb 11:38], perishing from hunger a n d thirst and frost and diseases and bandits and wild beasts. 104 ‫ ״‬Whereas Dionysius implies that the plight of these refugees was a catastrophe in itself, both Annick Martin and Oliver Nicholson h a v e recently discussed the attitude, popular during Dionysius's time, that flight to the desert was considered a noble, alternative form of martyrdom, even a deliberate imitation of biblical figures such as Elijah, John the Baptist, or Christ. 105 Such anachoresis resembles traditional Egyptian flight insofar as it functioned as an escape from civic responsibility a n d the penalties for disobedience; but it also resembles the "religious" anachoresis of the hermits insofar as the refugees often seem to h a v e considered themselves to be awaiting the "appointed time."

CONCLUSION At the first level of the historical a n d social context of the Apocalypse of Elijah, then, a p r o f o u n d decline in the Egyptian economy a n d concomitant increase in economic oppression during the century in which the text was written constitute the most general circumstances in which millennialist m o v e m e n t s and their ideologies flourish. The context of a new a n d suffering middle class a n d economic innovations that put the maintenance of status and identity onto the individual provides a basis for sect formation. The persistent revolts and their ideological bases (occasionally explicit, as in the case of the mantis w h o sparks the antiChristian pogrom in 249) s h o w that types of "revolutionary behavior" similar to that of millennialism were endemic to the period. Moreover, the consistently nationalistic basis of these revolts parallels the archaic Egyptian nationalism underlying the Chaosbeschreibung motifs employed in the Apocalypse of Elijah. The continuity of culture a n d materials between Alexandria and the chora argues that the countryside (or at least its cities) w a s by no m e a n s insulated from events in Alexandria; and the inevitable rumors of these events must have attributed to them a 104. In Eusebius 105. See Annick letteratura religiosa Imitation of Christ:

Hist, eccles. 6,42.2 (ed. Oulton and Lawlor, Eusebius 2:110). Martin, *La reconciliation des lapsi en Egypte," Rivista di storia e 22 (1986):258-61; and Oliver Nicholson, *Flight f r o m Persecution as Lactantius‫ ׳‬Divine Institutes IV.18, 1 - 2 , ' JTS 40 (1989):4865‫־‬.

Egypt in the Third Century C.E.

269

nationalistic significance a p p r e c i a b l e by epichoric folk. I n d e e d , it w o u l d h a v e been just s u c h a rural, i m p o v e r i s h e d , nationalistic perspective that w o u l d coin a n d r e s p o n d to the w o e oracle of ApocEl 2 with w h i c h this chapter began: the f o r e i g n - b o r n rulers of Egypt are d a m n e d as o p p r e s sive a n d apostrophically w a r n e d of incipient revolution. Finally, this c h a p t e r h a s pressed the martyrological data discussed in c h a p t e r 6 to p r o p o s e that the Decian edict p r o v i d e d a possible catalytic e v e n t for the historical self-definition of millennialist groups. T h e imp o r t a n c e of the edict m a y b e seen in the t r a n s f o r m a t i o n of the m e a n i n g of anachoresis in Christian lore.

10 The Second Level: Evidence for Millennialism in the Egyptian Chora, Ca. 260-270 C.E.

Chapter 9 addressed the context in which a millennialist m o v e m e n t would be comprehensible in Egypt at the time of the composition of the Apocalypse of Elijah. Under the circumstances outlined, it is hardly a coincidence to find evidence for millennialist activity in a region of the Fayyum about a decade after the period of the Decian edict. In a letter titled ‫״‬On Promises,‫ ״‬which largely concerns the interpretation of the book of Revelation, Dionysius of Alexandria refers to a group of Christians in Arsinoe w h o were following the ideas of Nepos, a local bishop, and Coracion, a Christian prophet of sorts. Nepos h a d written a treatise on Revelation called Refutation of Allegorists, on which, Dionysius complained, his followers "rely completely as proving incontrovertibly that Christ's kingdom will be here on earth. 1 ‫ ״‬Dionysius's account of his encounter a n d conflict with this group discloses a microcosm of millennialist sentiment during the catastrophic decline of the third century: W h e n I a r r i v e d in t h e d i s t r i c t of A r s i n o e , w h e r e a s y o u k n o w t h i s n o t i o n h a d l o n g b e e n w i d e l y h e l d , s o t h a t s c h i s m s a n d s e c e s s i o n s of e n t i r e c h u r c h e s h a d t a k e n p l a c e , I c a l l e d a m e e t i n g of t h e p r e s b y t e r s a n d t e a c h e r s

1. Dionysius, in Eusebius Hist, eccles. 7.24.4 (ed. Oulton and Lawlor, Eusebius: The Ecclesiastical History, 2 vols. [London: H e i n e m a n n , 1932], 2:192). Eusebius himself summarizes their h o p e as "a kind of millennium o n this earth devoted to bodily indulgence" (Hist, eccles. 7.24.1), but this "antinomian" interpretation probably reflects his o w n prejudices against millennialism; see Clementina Mazzucco, "Eusebe de Cesaree et VApocalypse de Jean," Studia patristica 17, 1 (1982):317-24; and Frank S. Thielman, "Another Look at the Eschatology of Eusebius of Caesarea,' VigChr 41 (1987):226-37.

270

Evidence for Millennialism in the Egyptian Chora, Ca. 260-270 C.E.

271

of the village congregations, with any l a y m e n w h o w i s h e d to attend, and urged them to thrash out the question in public. So they brought me this book as positive and irrefutable proof, and I sat with them for three days on end from d a w n to dusk, criticizing its contents point by point. In the process I w a s immensely impressed by the essential soundness, complete sincerity, logical grasp, and mental clarity s h o w n by these good people, as w e methodically and good-temperedlv dealt with questions, objections, and points of agreement. W e refused to cling with pig-headed determination to opinions once held e v e n if proved wrong. There was no shirking of difficulties, but to the limit of our p o w e r s w e tried to grapple with the problems and master them; nor were w e too proud, if worsted in argument, to abandon our position and admit defeat: conscientiously, honestly, and with simple-minded trust in God, w e accepted the conelusions to be drawn from the proofs and teachings of Holy Writ. In the end, the author and originator of this doctrine, Coracion by name, in the hearing of all present assured and promised us that for the future he would not adhere to it, argue about it, mention it, or teach it, as he w a s completely convinced by the arguments on the other side. Of the rest, s o m e were delighted with the discussion, and with the all round spirit of accommodation and concord. 2

Apparently, the book of Revelation h a d gained some popularity in Nepos's region, either before or after Coracion had begun teaching the text publicly as a scenario of imminent events. The text's popularity w a s d u e specifically to its promises of an imminent, terrestrial eschaton a n d installation of the kingdom of God. Coracion's interpretation attracted m a n y followers, because (one might assume) he phrased his exegesis in the immediate terms a n d concerns of his audience and probably a d d e d corollary prophecies for their benefit. As the m o v e m e n t grew, however, some of its m e m b e r s became aware that the Alexandrian school of allegorical exegesis h a d been promoting a different interpretation of prophetic a n d apocalyptic texts, which effectively denied the imminent reality of Revelation's "promises." These members were u n d o u b t e d l y of a social status that would h a v e been aware of Alexandrian trends, for example, the Greco-Egyptian l a n d e d classes discussed in chapter 9. Nepos was one of these literate and cultured participants. As bishop of the region, h e may well h a v e h a d more secure contacts with Alexandria than the others w h o followed Coracion a n d may h a v e considered himself d e p e n d e n t u p o n Alexandria for his authority. N e p o s proceeded to write a treatise explaining and justifying Coracion's interpretation of 2. E u s e b i u s Hist,

eccles.

7.24 (in G. A. W i l l i a m s o n , tr., Eusebius:

Church [Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1965], 307-9).

The

History

of

the

272

T O W A R D A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL C O N T E X T

Revelation; a n d in calling the treatise Refutation of Allegorists, h e w a s directing it specifically at the A l e x a n d r i a n school, of w h i c h Dionysius himself w a s h e a d . N e p o s w a s t h e r e f o r e a s e l f - a p p o i n t e d apologist for a religious m o v e m e n t , a t t e m p t i n g to d e f e n d a local " d e v e l o p m e n t " against the disapproval of outsiders. This scenario begins to reveal a f u n d a m e n t a l conflict b e t w e e n Alexandrian a n d epichoric G r e c o - E g y p t i a n religious cultures, o n e similar to that seen in the Elijah A p o c a l y p s e ' s "rigor1st" perspective o n p r o p e r m a r t y r d o m . 3 From the p o p u l a r i t y of C o r a c i o n ' s m o v e m e n t t h r o u g h o u t the region, its attraction for b o t h literate a n d nonliterate G r e c o - E g y p t i a n s in Arsinoe, a n d the explicitly eschatological n a t u r e of its ideology, w e m a y cogently infer its "millennialist" character. 4 F u r t h e r m o r e , the large rural a n d p e a s a n t base that a p p a r e n t l y characterized the m o v e m e n t (e.g., as indicated by the r e f e r e n c e to its s p r e a d a m o n g the "villages" [κώμαι]) recalls the typically p e a s a n t roots of millennialist m o v e m e n t s reviewed in cross-cultural studies. 5 I n d e e d , m a n y of t h e c o n g r e g a t i o n s s e e m to h a v e b e e n led by p e o p l e of rustic b a c k g r o u n d s : in Dionysius's view of the Arsinoite believers, C o r a c i o n ' s t e a c h i n g s "do not allow o u r simpler [άπλοι‫׳‬στ€‫׳‬ροι9‫ ]׳‬b r e t h r e n to h a v e lofty noble t h o u g h t s . . . they p e r s u a d e t h e m to expect in the Kingdom of G o d w h a t is trifling a n d mortal a n d like the present." 6 This c o n d e s c e n s i o n s t a n d s in contrast to Dionysius's a d m i t t e d respect for N e p o s ' s o w n abilities, suggesting that the believers h a d a significantly lower cultural b a c k g r o u n d t h a n Nepos. 7 With this k i n d of following, C o r a c i o n ' s millennialist teachings m u s t h a v e t a p p e d d e e p epichoric sources, w h i c h w o u l d not h a v e e v a p o r a t e d in intellectual a r g u m e n t w i t h a n A l e x a n d r i a n bishop. 8 Dionysius himself i n f o r m s his readers that w h e n h e arrived in the Arsinoite n o m e in t h e early 260s, "this doctrine h a d long b e e n widely held, so that b o t h 3. S e e a b o v e , c h a p . 6, p p . 152-54. In g e n e r a l , o n s o c i o e c o n o m i c origins of E g y p t i a n clergy, s e e A n n i c k M a r t i n , " A u x o r i g i n e s d e l e g l i s e c o p t e : L ' i m p l a n t a t i o n et le d e v e l o p p e m e n t d u c h r i s t i a n i s m e e n E g v p t e (I*‫־‬IV* siecles),‫ ־‬REA 8 3 (1981 ):48-51. 4. D i o n y s i u s ' s d e s c r i p t i o n of t h e A r s i n o i t e s a s 7-019 αντώιατιθίμίνονϊ ("militant o p p o n e n t s " ; E u s e b i u s Hist, eccles. 7.24.5 [ed. O u l t o n a n d Lawlor, Eusebius 2:192]), a p o l e m i c a l t e r m i n h e r i t e d f r o m 2 T m 2:25, m a y a l s o i m p l y t h a t t h e y t e n d e d t o w a r d a certain f a n a t i c i s m . 5. S e e M i c h a e l B a r k u n , Disaster and the Millennium ( N e w H a v e n : Yale U n i v e r s i t y Press; r e p r i n t , S y r a c u s e , N.Y.: S y r a c u s e U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1986), 6 6 - 7 4 , 92-97. 6. In E u s e b i u s Hist, eccles. 7.24.5 (ed. O u l t o n a n d L a w l o r , Eusebius 2:192). 7. Cf. W . H . C . Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution in the Early Church ( L o n d o n : Basil Blackwell, 1965; r e p r i n t , G r a n d R a p i d s : Baker Book H o u s e , 1981), 466. 8. Cf. G e r h a r d Maier, Die Johannesoffenbarung und die Kirche, W U N T 25 ( T u b i n g e n : M o h r [Siebeck] 1981), 87-96, w h o o v e r e m p h a s i z e s t h e intellectual a s p e c t of t h e conflict.

273

Evidence f o r Millennialism in t h e Egyptian Chora, Ca. 2 6 0 - 2 7 0 C.E.

schisms and secessions of whole congregations h a d taken place 9 ;‫ ״‬a n d h e carefully avoids the claim that he quelled the entire movement, restricting the account of his dogmatic successes in Arsinoe to the one small meeting h e held with Coracion a n d a few local leaders. Indeed, it is d o u b t f u l that even these representatives remained convinced for long after Dionysius returned to Alexandria. Their respective cultural worlds were too different, a n d Dionysius's allegorical use of Revelation too abstract and impractical in the face of present a n d immediate calamities for the m o v e m e n t simply to cease. What is more, an Alexandrian bishop at this time would hardly have h a d the authority in rural Egypt to dictate orthodoxy, as Dionysius wants to claim. 10 If one may believe Dionysius's portrayal of this millennialist movement as essentially defining itself through Scripture, this focus must be reconciled with the p r e d o m i n a n t illiteracy of the chora during this period. 11 Indeed, Dionysius himself remarks on the rarity and, in his mind, the danger of such ideas as Coracion's being presented in written form: If [ N e p o s ] w e r e h e r e n o w a n d p u t t i n g f o r w a r d h i s i d e a s i n s p e e c h a l o n e [ψιλω

λ ό γ ω ] , c o n v e r s a t i o n w i t h n o t h i n g in w r i t i n g w o u l d suffice, u s i n g

q u e s t i o n a n d a n s w e r as m e a n s to p e r s u a d e a n d w i n o v e r o u r o p p o n e n t s . B u t a w o r k h a s b e e n p u b l i s h e d [γραφής

militant

δ< (*καμένης]

which

s o m e people find m o s t convincing.12

How, then, was the ideology communicated a n d understood? W h a t kind of hierarchy was responsible for dissemination of ideas? The followers themselves are clearly rural a n d illiterate. Dionysius claims that h e held a meeting to debate Nepos's views with ‫״‬the presbyters and teachers of the brethren in the villages [rats κώμαις]"—sug9. In E u s e b i u s Hist, eccles. 7.24.6 (ed. O u l t o n a n d L a w l o r , Eusebius 2:194). 10. C. W i l f r e d Griggs, Early Egyptian Christianity: From Its Origins to 451 C.E., S t u d i e s 2 (Leiden: Brill, 1990),' 100; s e e 8 6 - 8 8 o n t h e C o r a c i o n - N e p o s c o n t r o v e r s y . R o u s s e a u ' s i m a g e of a u n i t e d E g y p t (Pachomius: The Making of a Community in Century Egypt [Berkeley: U n i v e r s i t y of C a l i f o r n i a Press, 1985], 3 - 1 3 ) is inapplicable to the mid-third century.

Coptic Philip Fourthclearly

11. O n t h e p r e d o m i n a n c e of n o n l i t e r a c y a n d s e m i l i t e r a c y d u r i n g t h i s p e r i o d , s e e H e r b e r t C . Youtie, ' A G R A M M A T O S : A n A s p e c t of G r e e k S o c i e t y in E g y p t , ‫ ׳‬HSCP 75 (1971):161-76; i d e m , ' B R A D E O S G R A P H O N : B e t w e e n Literacy a n d Illiteracy,' in i d e m , Scriptiunculae, 2 vols. ( A m s t e r d a m : H a k k e r t , 1973), 2:629-51; i d e m , ' H Y P O G R A P H E U S : T h e Social I m p a c t of Illiteracy in G r a e c o - R o m a n E g y p t , ' ZPE 17 (1975):201-21; N a p h t a l i Lewis, Life in Egypt under Roman Rule ( O x f o r d : C l a r e n d o n , 1983), 62, 8 1 - 8 2 ; a n d William V. Harris, Ancient Literacy ( C a m b r i d g e : H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y Press, 1983), 190, 2 7 8 - 8 0 , 316. 12. D i o n y s i u s , in E u s e b i u s Hist, eccles. 7.24.4 (tr. W i l l i a m s o n , Eusebius, 308).

274

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

gesting rural a n d p e a s a n t audiences, if not also leadership. In Dionysius's description of the d e b a t e , h e n o w h e r e m e n t i o n s these r e p r e sentatives‫ ׳‬ability to read either N e p o s ' s book or the Scripture on w h i c h it was based: T h e y b r o u g h t m e this b o o k as positive a n d irrefutable proof, a n d I sat w i t h t h e m f o r t h r e e d a y s o n e n d f r o m d a w n t o d u s k , c r i t i c i z i n g its c o n t e n t s p o i n t b y p o i n t . In t h e p r o c e s s I w a s i m m e n s e l y i m p r e s s e d b y t h e e s s e n t i a l s o u n d n e s s , c o m p l e t e s i n c e r i t y , logical g r a s p , a n d m e n t a l c l a r i t y s h o w n b y these good people, as w e methodically a n d g o o d - t e m p e r e d l y dealt with q u e s t i o n s , o b j e c t i o n s , a n d p o i n t s of a g r e e m e n t . 1 3

T h e l a n g u a g e carefully describes a situation of oral interaction, in w h i c h even t h e book itself is v i e w e d (by t h e congregants) only as a concrete d e m o n s t r a t i o n of their beliefs: (1) t h e y bring h i m t h e book, a p p a r e n t l y as proof in a n d of itself; (2) Dionysius is t h e only character described as m a k i n g u s e of the b o o k itself ("I sat w i t h t h e m . . . criticizing its c o n t e n t s [7‫־‬a γ(γραμμ(να]"); (3) t h e "intellectual‫ ״‬attributes that Dionysius i m p u t e s to t h e m d o not require literacy, only t h e ability to c o m p r e h e n d ideas; (4) a n y m e n t i o n of a single c o n g r e g a n t ' s ability to read or point out passages is conspicuously missing. 1 4 I n d e e d , by Dionysius's t e s t i m o n y not e v e n Coracion h a s facility w i t h letters: h e is only m e n t i o n e d as αρχηγός και €Ισηγητής, 1 5 h e d o e s not d e b a t e Dionysius o n different terms f r o m the ‫״‬presbyters a n d teachers,‫ ״‬a n d h e is instructed to refrain not f r o m writing millennialist ideology, only f r o m discussing (διαλίξ(σθαι), m e n t i o n i n g (μ(μνήσθαι), or t e a c h i n g (διδά£αι>) it. It is m o r e likely that N e p o s or o t h e r s with the ability to read h a d p r e s e n t e d the text of the Refutation of Allegorists orally a n d in parts t h a n that each c o n g r e g a n t h a d read a n d c o n t e m p l a t e d the text. Nepos, t h e n , m a y well h a v e b e e n the first m e m b e r of t h e Arsinoite m o v e m e n t to put its ideology into writing ( t h e r e b y attracting the notice of the Alexandrian authorities). O n e m i g h t a s s u m e , h o w e v e r , that o t h e r s like him—literate, c o n v e r s a n t w i t h Alexandrian Greek culture, a n d p e r h a p s also viewing Alexandria as a source of philosophical a n d 13. Dionysius, in Eusebius Hist, eccles. 7.24.7-8a (ibid.). 14. Dionysius's statement that "a book has been published (that is) most convincing, so it seems to certain p e o p l e ' (in Eusebius Hist, eccles. 7.24.5; ed. Oulton and Lawlor, Eusebius 2:192) does not require that these "certain people" (τίσιν) had actually read it themselves. Certainly, Nepos's work may have m a d e it to Alexandria, thus earning a more direct readership and "convincing" some people there of millennialist bent. Neither case, however, implies the literacy of Coracion's followers in Arsinoe. 15. In Eusebius Hist, eccles. 7.24.9 (ed. Oulton and Lawlor, Eusebius 2:194).

Evidence for Millennialism in the Egyptian Chora, Ca. 2 6 0 - 2 7 0 C.E.

275

ecclesiastical authority—were involved a m o n g the millennialist congregations, at least in the positions of copyist, lector, a n d public interpreter of Scripture. 16 Because the m o v e m e n t seems to have arisen in connection with a text, the book of Revelation, even t h o u g h the majority of its a d h e r e n t s would h a v e been illiterate, it is likely that the charismatic leadership of the m o v e m e n t consisted of those able to read a n d interpret this particular text. 17 This capacity might also imply three tiers of interaction: leaders, subsidiary teachers, a n d a u d i e n c e - a d h e r e n t s . In this situation the leaders belonged to such socioeconomic milieus as promoted literacy on a general level; the partial literacy of the subsidiary teachers would have stood in contrast to their audiences' basic illiteracy a n d d e p e n dence on these teachers for access to Scripture. 1 8 Thus the "literary" character of the m o v e m e n t would have positioned teachers a n d audiences, leaders and congregations, in different positions (perhaps thereby implying different socioeconomic backgrounds). It has often been noted that charismatic leadership in millennialist movements, even those of the poorest socioeconomic classes, tends to come from those holding "marginal" status in society: individuals w h o are—and w h o express to their audience a status of being—conversant with the d o m i n a n t culture but still f u n d a m e n t a l l y allied with the culture of the audience. 1 9 N e p o s certainly conforms to this type: an educated Gieco-Egyptian bishop sympathetic to rural millennialism a n d able to 16. O n t h e i n c r e a s i n g literacy of t h e clergy in s u b s e q u e n t c e n t u r i e s , s e e E w a W i p s z y c k a , "Le d e g r e d ' a l p h a b e t i s a t i o n e n E g y p t e b y z a n t i n e , ' Revue des eludes augustiniennes 30 (1984):288-91. 17. O n t h e integral p r e s e n c e of c h a r i s m a t i c l e a d e r s h i p in millennialist m o v e m e n t s , see, e.g., P e t e r W o r s l e y , The Trumpet Shall Sound: A Study of "Cargo" Cults in Melanesia (2d ed.; N e w York: S c h o c k e n , 1968), ix-xxi; Y o n i n a T a l m o n , ' P u r s u i t of t h e M i l l e n n i u m : T h e Relation b e t w e e n Religious a n d Social C h a n g e , ' Archives europeennes de sociologie 3 (1962): 133-35; B a r k u n , Disaster and the Millennium. 39-40, 86-90. 18. Cf. t h e N o r t h A f r i c a n m a r t y r Lucian, w h o is "less well t r a i n e d in holy scripture," a c c o r d i n g to C y p r i a n of C a r t h a g e (Epistles 27.1; in Saint Cyprien: Correspondence, ed. a n d tr. Le C h a n o i n e Bayard, 2 vols. [Paris: S o c i e t e d ' E d i t i o n "Les Belles Lettres," 1925), 1:65), b u t n e v e r t h e l e s s c a n p r e p a r e c r u d e certificates of a b s o l u t i o n in t h e n a m e s of f e l l o w m a r t y r s (Ep. 27.2; e d . Bayard, Correspondence 1:65). O n partial literacy in R o m a n Egypt, s e e Youtie, " B R A D E O S G R A P H O N , * 2629-51; a n d A n n i c k Martin,' "Aux o r i g i n e s d e 1 eglise copte," 4 8 - 4 9 ; i d e m , "L'eglise et la k h o r a e g y p t i e n n e au IV* siecle," Revue des etudes augustiniennes 25 (1979): 15-17, o n r e c r u i t m e n t of l o w e r , n o n l i t e r a t e classes in Christian priesthood. 19. K e n e l m Burridge, New Heaven, New Earth: A Study of Millenarian Activities ( O x f o r d : Basil Blackwell, 1969), 153-63; Bruce Lincoln, " N o t e s t o w a r d a T h e o r y of Religion a n d R e v o l u t i o n , " in i d e m , ed., Religion, Rebellion, Revolution ( N e w York: St. M a r t i n ' s , 1985), 274-75.

276

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

write a literary apologia for it. Coracion too, w h e t h e r fully or partially literate, would have had to display an unusual knowledge of Scripture a n d prophetic lore to h a v e galvanized a millennialist m o v e m e n t ; t h u s h e also is placed in a marginal position in relation to his illiterate audience. It is interesting to note that the a u t h o r of the Apocalypse of Elijah also betrays a considerable acquaintance with certain scriptural texts, as well as an "oral‫ ״‬culture of quoted and epitomized Scripture. At no point, however, does the Elijah Apocalypse's author m a k e an explicit distinction between scriptural quotations a n d his o w n statements in "biblicalese," which suggests that the audience itself may not have been able to tell the difference. Here one should consider the singular role of Revelation in the teachings of Coracion a n d N e p o s and, presumably, in the ideology of the m o v e m e n t as a whole. It is unlikely that this was the only text with which Coracion a n d his followers would h a v e been familiar. The a b u n dant circulation of apocalyptic a n d liturgical texts during this time is reflected in the libraries of Wadi N a t r u n a n d the White Monastery of Shenoute; a n d Jerome's description of an eschatological discourse in a fourth-century monastic liturgy would explain the interest in a n d need for texts of an eschatological bent. 20 A m o n g the other texts in circulation in Upper Egypt during the third century that might have had popularity in congregations of millennialist bent are the Shepherd of Hermas, the Apocalypse of Peter, a n d parts of the Enochic corpus. 2 1 However, Coracion's (apparently) central use of Revelation in Arsinoe: corresponds to the Apocalypse of Elijah's special familiarity with this text a m o n g other books of Scripture. Moreover, it would m a k e the Arsinoite m o v e m e n t "genuinely" millennialist (as per Rev 20:2-10). Although the relationship between text and religious m o v e m e n t is always highly complex, Arsinoe provides an early example of w h a t was to become in history a typical colonial p h e n o m e n o n : the use of an essentially alien text to c o m p r e h e n d local anxieties a n d inequities and to motivate behavior in response. 2 2 The p a p y r u s record for Arsinoe during the 260s is diverse. From w h a t 20. Jerome Epistles 22.35.3; discussed above, pp. 79-80. 21. See George W. E. Nickelsburg, Jr., "Two Enochic Manuscripts: E v i d e n c e f o r E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y , " i n Of Scribes and Scrolls: Bible, Intertestamental Judaism, and Christian Origins Presented

Unstudied

Studies on the Hebrew to John Strugnell, ed.

Harold W. Attridge, John J. Collins, and T h o m a s H. Tobin, College Theology Society Resources in Religion 5 (Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1990), 251-60. 22. See esp. Burridge, New Heaven, New Earth, 15-22, 108, on Te Hua, prophet of the N e w Zealand Hauhau m o v e m e n t of 1862.

Evidence for Millennialism in the Egyptian Chora, Ca. 260-270 C.E.

277

is k n o w n of this period, the overall situation could only have become worse over the decade since Philip's reign. It was just over ten years since the senate of this very n o m e tried to force villagers into assuming the urban liturgies, claiming that the metropolitan citizens themselves were being ruined. 2 3 By the e n d of the third century, according to the Theadelphia papyri, the arable land in the southwestern part of the n o m e h a d vastly receded before the desert, a n d whole villages had been abandoned. 2 4 By contrast, o n e of the earliest Christian papyri is a letter from a wealthy Greek Christian concerning trade between Arsinoe, Alexandria, and Rome a n d reflecting a well-endowed, urban, Greek congregation in Arsinoe during the late 260s. 25 It is quite evident, then, that there w a s economic diversity in the Arsinoite n o m e of the mid-third century but that suffering w a s more general in the chora, a n d some prosperity existed a m o n g those elite Greeks w h o were not economically attached to Arsinoe a n d its decline. 26 The Christian p a p y r u s also gives evidence for congregations of an Alexandrian-identified merchant class that may have been less inclined to join millennialist ideologies of the countryside. Perhaps it w a s just such a class of Christians that first alerted Dionysius to Nepos's activities. O n e may therefore conclude that sometime in the late 250s or early 260s, 27 in the aftermath of Valerian's edicts and concurrent with Alexandrian seditions a n d p r o f o u n d despair in Egypt, a Christian millennialist m o v e m e n t spread a m o n g villagers in the Arsinoite chora. Although its ideology was based on public interpretations of apocalyptic texts in circulation at that time, which were administered by literate members of the Egyptian or Greco-Egyptian middle class, there also developed an oral form of interpretation a n d exhortation a m o n g congregations led by semiliterate or nonliterate ‫״‬presbyters a n d teachers.‫״‬

23. P.London inv. 2565 (in T. C. Skeat and E. P. Wegener, "A Trial before the Prefect of Egypt Appius Sabinus, c. 250 A.D." ]EA 21 (1935]:224-47 and pi. 28). 24. See Pierre Jouguet, Papyrus de Theadelphie (Paris: Fontemoing, 1911), esp. nos. 1617, 20.

25. P.Amherst 3(a); in Herbert Musurillo, "Early Christian Economy: A Reconsideration of P.Amherst 3(a) (= Wilcken, Chrest 126),‫ ״‬Chronique d'Egypte 31 (1956):124-34. 26. See Henry A. Green, "Socio-Economic Background of Christianity in Egypt," in The Roots of Egyptian Christianity, ed. Birger A. Pearson and James E. Goehring, SAC 1 (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986), 105. 27. This trip was one of Dionysius's final acts before he died in 264 and may be dated to the period after his return f r o m exile u n d e r Valerian (ca. 262). However, t h e Arsinoite millennialist m o v e m e n t apparently had begun considerably before his arrival and probably did not expire so soon thereafter.

278

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

Indeed, there is papyrological evidence that literacy was not a requirement for Christian liturgical leadership in the Roman period. 28 What is most important at this point, however, is the historical correlation between agricultural, economic, political, a n d social disintegration a n d a millennialist m o v e m e n t of the poor a n d disenfranchised. O n e cannot deduce the extent to which Egyptian nationalist ideology had an effect in this m o v e m e n t ; the schism with Alexandrian authority a n d the rural, Greco-Egyptian social m a k e u p of the m o v e m e n t only give reason to expect that this millennialist ideology bore elements of Egyptian nationalism or nativism. Although the dates of this millennialist m o v e m e n t correspond to the period in which the Apocalypse of Elijah w a s written, a n d although the m o v e m e n t evidently extended over a considerable area in the Fayyum, it would be premature to view Coracion a n d N e p o s ' s milieu as the historical situation from which the Apocalypse of Elijah derived. 2 9 This would be to rest on the assumption that there were no other similar millennialist m o v e m e n t s in Upper Egypt during this period. O n the contrary, the existence of rebellions t h r o u g h o u t the third century, the ideological continuum that has been argued to h a v e existed a m o n g the various rebellions and a m o n g their respective propagandas, and the sporadic growth of Christianity in the chora30 all would suggest that behind the silence arose other such millennialist movements. Crossculturally, the addition of Christian eschatological doctrine to situations of socioeconomic stress has led quite o f t e n to millennialism over broad regions. 31 The Arsinoite m o v e m e n t , therefore, must be regarded as representing a type of religious situation that occurred often a r o u n d Egypt during the third century a n d in which the Apocalypse of Elijah was written. 28. P.Oxy 2673; see Youtie, "AGRAMMATOS," 163, 163 n. 6; cf. Ewa Wipszycka, ' U n lecteur qui ne sait pas ecrire ou u n chretien qui ne veut pas se souiller? (P.Oxv. XXXIII 2673),‫ ־‬ZPE 50 (1983): 117-21. 29. It is interesting to note that Hugh G. Evelyn White assigned to this very movement of Coracion and Nepos a fragment of an "Apocalyptic Gospel" containing some significant parallels to the Apocalypse of Elijah (Hugh G. Evelyn White, ed., The Monasteries

of Wadi

,

N

Natriin,

vol.

1: New

Coptic

Texts

from

the Monastery

of

Saint

Macarius [New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1926], 18). 30. See Ewa Wipszycka ("La christianisation d e I'Egypte aux I V ' - V P siecles. Aspects sociaux et ethniques," Aegyptus 68 [ 1988]: 117-65), w h o argues, against Roger S. Bagnall ("Religious Conversion and Onomastic C h a n g e in Early Byzantine Egypt," BASP 19 [1982]:105-23), that conversion occurred exceedingly slowly on the popular level, and then only in mass conversions of villages. 31. Cf. Sylvia L. T h r u p p , "Millennial Dreams in Action: A Report on the C o n f e r e n c e D i s c u s s i o n , " i n i d e m , e d . , Millennial

Dreams

in Action:

Movements (New York: Schocken, 1970), 11-27.

Studies

in Revolutionary

Religious

10 The Third Level: A Sect in the Crossfire of Asceticism Debates, Ca. 260-290 C.E.

In the scheme of historical analysis set out in these final chapters, the first level represented the most general context for the composition of a text like the Apocalypse of Elijah: historical, economic, social, a n d ideological circumstances within which a millennialist m o v e m e n t and its literary compositions would be comprehensible. T h e second level of historical-social context demonstrated that Christian millennialism did arise during this period, probably out of the catastrophes of the midthird century. This level also suggested the instrumental use of the book of Revelation in focusing a n d legitimating popular Christian millennialism. Finally, there is reason to expect that r u m o r s of persecution could have catalyzed the formation of a millennialist m o v e m e n t , to w h o s e m e m b e r s the Apocalypse of Elijah w a s subsequently addressed, even though the text gives no indication that the m a r t y r d o m s it narrates point to an immediately critical incident. We are t h u s moving closer to a hypothetical historical, social, a n d religious scenario in which the Apocalypse of Elijah makes sense as a literary p h e n o m e n o n . Early Christian texts were o f t e n composed in direct response to specific ideological conflicts. Indeed, o n e might suggest that the desire to put ideology into literary form tends to arise from disagreements of such magnitude that oral preaching a n d debate simply cannot carry e n o u g h authority in the conflict. The exalted literary f r a m e s of prophecy a n d apocalypse encapsulate ideas o f t e n of the most ephemeral importance, cast as the words of angels or even of God. What particular conflict might therefore h a v e motivated the literary composition of the Apocalypse of Elijah, which is presented in the f o r m 279

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of an authoritative discourse f r o m G o d ? Between the p a r e n e t i c introduction to t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah a n d t h e eschatological discourse p r o p e r there is a substantial p a s s a g e c o n c e r n e d w i t h fasting a n d its benefits but, m o r e specifically, with a g r o u p of "deceivers" w h o o p p o s e fasting (1:13-22). This p a s s a g e contains its o w n introduction ("Hear n o w , you wise men"), suggesting its f u n d a m e n t a l i n d e p e n d e n c e f r o m t h e o p e n i n g passages of the Elijah Apocalypse; it is p r e s e n t e d as a singularly i m p o r t a n t t h o u g h t . In f o r m the p a s s a g e is clearly hortatory, p u n c t u a t e d with imperatives a n d s e c o n d - p e r s o n addresses. Its f u n c t i o n as e x h o r tation s e e m s to h a v e b e e n b o t h polemical a n d apologetic. Insofar as the p a s s a g e is hortatory, a d d r e s s i n g a particular a u d i e n c e in the s e c o n d person, it c o n t i n u e s the rhetorical m o d e of the introduction of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, focusing its p a r e n e t i c c o n c e r n s o n the issue of fasting. H o w e v e r , i n s o f a r as t h e issue of fasting is i n t r o d u c e d with an alert to the a u d i e n c e r e g a r d i n g "deceivers w h o will multiply in the end time," the passage also f u n c t i o n s as the i m m e d i a t e f r a m e for u n d e r s t a n d i n g the entire s u b s e q u e n t eschatological discourse: t h e w a r n ing a b o u t o p p o n e n t s of fasting b e c o m e s the "reason" for t h e eschatological discourse itself a n d its description of eschatological d e c e p t i o n . Could the specific f o r m in w h i c h this section is p r e s e n t e d a n d its central i m p o r t a n c e for t h e rest of the text reflect a real historical situation—a controversy o v e r fasting—in reaction to w h i c h the text w a s c o m p o s e d ? A l t h o u g h this s t u d y h a s a r g u e d in detail for t h e ahistoricity of m o s t of ApocEl 2, o n t h e basis of prior literary traditions b e h i n d ostensibly historical references, this particular theme—eschatological o p p o n e n t s of f a s t i n g — d o e s not h a v e a literary tradition b e h i n d it. 1

THE CONCEPT OF FASTING IN THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH T h e homily in ApocEl 1:13-22 stresses t h e p u r i f y i n g f u n c t i o n of fasting. Fasting s e e m s to cultivate a p a r a - a n g e l i c state in the individual, symbolized especially in the allusion to incense rising to the t h r o n e of 1. O n f a s t i n g in g e n e r a l , s e e E.C.E. O w e n , "Fasting in t h e E a s t e r n C h u r c h , " CQR 126 (1938):95-110; Rudolf A r b e s m a n n , "Fasting a n d P r o p h e c y in P a g a n a n d C h r i s t i a n Antiquity," Traditio 7 ( 1 9 4 9 - 5 1 ) : 1 - 7 1 ; i d e m , "Fasten," in Reallexikon fiir Antike und Christentum, e d . T h e o d o r Klauser ( S t u t t g a r t : A n t o n H i e r s e m a n n , 1950-), 7:474-82; H e r b e r t M u s u r i l l o , "The P r o b l e m of Ascetical F a s t i n g in t h e G r e e k Patristic Writers," Traditio 12 ( 1 9 5 6 ) : l - 6 4 .

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G o d . But fasting also h a d a concrete f u n c t i o n for the a u t h o r ' s milieu: it cultivated a force that w a s b o t h apotropaic (against d e m o n s a n d diseases) a n d connective. T h e v e r b iixpyuv signifies t h e control of s o m e sort of natural force or p o w e r , a n d the c o m p a r i s o n s to incense a n d o i n t m e n t m a k e clear that this p o w e r w a s conceived quite concretely 2 T h e a p o t r o p a i c fast, w h i c h w a s a i m e d at t h w a r t i n g disease a n d d e m o n s t h r o u g h a v o i d i n g f o o d , w a s based o n the notion that d e m o n s resided in or m i g h t e n t e r into f o o d (or certain foods). 3 A l t h o u g h the extensive d e m o n o l o g y of Egypt w o u l d certainly h a v e p r o v i d e d rich soil for this notion, t h e fullest discussion of d e m o n s ' u s e of f o o d to enter bodies is f o u n d in the P s e u d o - C l e m e n t i n e texts. 4 Naturally, t h e r e w a s but a short step b e t w e e n t h e idea of food as p r o n e to d e m o n i c habitation (which h a s parallels in m a n y local traditions o u t s i d e Egypt of late a n tiquity) a n d the idea that food—especially m e a t — w a s by its very n a t u r e d e m o n i c . A l t h o u g h this belief a c h i e v e d special s t a t u s a m o n g Manic h a e a n s , s p a r k i n g s u c h ecclesiastical r e s p o n s e s as the S y n o d of A n c y r a ' s c a n o n 14 (requiring all clerics at least to taste m e a t at feasts), 5 it is likely that a n y c o m m u n i t y practicing e x t r e m e fasting regimes might arrive at t h e conclusion that eating itself w a s a n u n h o l y act. For t h e Montanist Tertullian, the refusal of f o o d restored t h e purity lost t h r o u g h A d a m ' s eating of the fruit. 6 A f o u r t h - or f i f t h - c e n t u r y Egyptian m o n k w h o m a n aged to put off eating for an entire d a y s a w a d e m o n rise out of himself in s m o k e a n d w a s r e w a r d e d with t h e d i s a p p e a r a n c e of all his h u n g e r . 7 2. O n t h e a t t a i n m e n t of s a c r e d p o w e r t h r o u g h fasting, s e e R o l a n d C r a h a y , "Le j e u n e c o m m e s y m b o l e c h a r i s m a t i q u e , " in Eschatologie et cosmologie, A n n a l e s d u c e n t r e d ' e t u d e d e s religions 3 (Brussels: U n i v e r s i t e libre d e Bruxelles, 1969), 137, 142, 152-54. 3. S e e M u s u r i l l o , "Ascetical Fasting," 19-23; O t t o Bocher, Damonenfurcht und Ddmonenabwehr: Ein Beitrag zur Vorgeschichte der christlichen Taufe, B W A N T 5, 10 (Stuttgart: K o h l h a m m e r , 1970), 273-88. Cf. A t h a n a s i u s , Vita Antonii 23. 4. P s e u d o - C l e m e n t i n e Homilies 9.10; Recognitions 4.16-19, 3 2 - 3 4 ; s e e d i s c u s s i o n in M u s u r i l l o , "Ascetical Fasting," 20-21. 5. Cf. S y n o d of G a n g r a , C a n o n 2: "If a n y o n e c o n d e m n s o n e w h o e a t s m e a t , t h o u g h h e a b s t a i n s f r o m b l o o d , i d o l a t r o u s sacrifices, a n d t h i n g s s t r a n g l e d , a n d is f a i t h f u l a n d d e v o u t , as if in s o d o i n g h e h a d n o h o p e of s a l v a t i o n , let h i m b e a n a t h e m a ' (tr. C h a r l e s J o s e p h H e f e l e , in i d e m , History of the Councils of the Church, vol. 2: AD. 326 to A.D 429, tr. a n d ed. H e n r y N u t c o m b e O x e n h a m [ E d i n b u r g h : Τ. & T. C l a r k , 1896; r e p r i n t , N e w York: A M S , 1972], 328). 6. T e r t u l l i a n , De Ieiunio 3. 7. Apophthegmata patrum e g y p t i e n s , " Revue de I'orient Wisdom of the Desert Fathers desert m o n k s on a mission r e v e a l e d to t h e m t h e y r e f u s e

( A n o n . ) n o . 145 in F. N a u , ed., " H i s t o i r e s d e s solitaires Chretien 13 (1908):50 = n o . 13 in Benedicta W a r d , tr., The (Fairacres, O x f o r d : S L G Press, 1986], 4). In a n o t h e r story, t o A l e x a n d r i a a r e u n w i t t i n g l y s e r v e d m e a t ; w h e n this is to eat a n y m o r e ( A p o p h t h e g m a t a patrum [ A n o n . ] n o . 162, in

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TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

Fasting in rural Egypt represented no abstract withdrawal or discipline as part of the philosopher's life, but rather a quite concrete attainment of apotropaic a n d divine power. Indeed, the concreteness of the early Egyptian ascetics' concept of fasting is reflected in the terse lists of the fast's powers that are f o u n d in both the Apocalypse of Elijah and a later treatise on virginity attributed to Athanasius: 8 A p o c E l 1:21-22 3

F o r [ t h e h o l y f a s t (Sa )[ r e l e a s e s sin, heals diseases, casts out d e m o n s ,

exerts p o w e r u p t o t h e t h r o n e of G o d

Pseudo-Athanasius You see w h a t the fast does: it h e a l s d i s e a s e s , it d r i e s u p b o d i l y d i s c h a r g e s , it e x o r c i s e s d e m o n s , it e x p e l s evil t h o u g h t s , it m a k e s t h e m i n d c l e a r e r , it p u r i f i e s t h e h e a r t , it c l e a n s e s t h e b o d y a n d it s e t s a p e r s o n b y t h e t h r o n e of G o d .

as an ointment, [as i n c e n s e , (Sa 3 )] a s a r e m i s s i o n of sin through a holy prayer

In Jewish apocalyptic tradition, there w a s a close relationship between fasting a n d heavenly visions; 9 and early Christian uses of the apocalypse model, such as the Shepherd of Hermas, s h o w that the preparation for mystical vision by fasting w a s widely noted as a literary theme if not attempted as a practice. 10 It is therefore striking that the Apocalypse of Elijah lacks any mention of the use of fasting as preparation for visionary experiences. P e r h a p s this particular tradition of mystical practice was not a constitutive part of the religious life of the sect behind the Apocalypse of Elijah—that its ascetic ideology focused exclusively on purity and concrete effects such as exorcism.

Nau, ed., *Histoires des solitaires egyptiens," 53 = no. 30 in Ward, Wisdom of the Desert Fathers,

7).

8. Pseudo-Athanasius, On Virginity 7 (PG 28:260). 9. E.g., 4 Ezr 5:13; 6:35; 2 Bar. 9:2; '12:5; cf. Dn 10:3. 10. Herm. Vis. 2.2.1; 3.1.2; 3.10.6-7. See the discussion in Arbesmann, ‫״‬Fasting and Prophecy,* 52-71, esp. 57-59.

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THE NATURE OF THE CONFLICT IN APOCEL 1:13-19 The passage 1:13-19 describes a situation in which certain individuals are preaching "against" the fast, whereas the author or speaker of the text a n d his audience believe strongly in the practice of fasting and h a v e high claims for its various effects. 11 Yet the extreme positioning of opponents a n d d e f e n d e r s probably masks a more complex situation: the opponents, it may be, are criticizing the type or extent of fasting practiced by the author a n d community. O n e should also consider the historical identity of the o p p o n e n t s in relation to the nature of polemic in general: simply put, distinctions are d r a w n more vividly a n d polemic is phrased more bitterly the closer the o p p o n e n t s are in categories other than that u n d e r contention—in Georg Simmel's words, "Where e n o u g h similarities continue to m a k e confusion a n d blurred borderlines possible, points of difference need an emphasis not justified by the issue but only by that danger of confusion. 1 2 ‫ ״‬Early Christianity is replete with examples of authors labeling their intimate o p p o n e n t s with the strongest available terms: Antichrist, sons of darkness, Satan. 1 3 Thus the ‫״‬deceivers‫ ״‬were probably not so ideologically alien to the h o m e audience as the author wants to indicate. It is quite improbable that the passage originated, for example, as a Jewish defense of Yom Kippur fasting against Christians. 1 4 The author w a s u n d o u b t e d l y faced with (at least) two groups of Christians. 1 5

11. It might also be suggested that the author is attempting to convince a neutral audience of the value of fasting, against "deceivers" w h o preach against fasting. As I show shortly, however, the d e b a t e cannot be between o p p o n e n t s and p r o p o n e n t s of fasting per se (for fasting was c o m m o n to all types of Christians) but rather would be between different degrees and ideologies of fasting. T h e radical distinctions would m a k e little sense to outsiders, w h o would see both groups as advocating some sort of fasting. Hence the author must be d e f e n d i n g a practice already current in the community, which has been brought u n d e r criticism by outside parties. That is, t h e text arises out of a situation c o m m o n to both author and audience. 12. Georg Simmel, Conflict and the Web of Group-Affiliations, tr. Kurt H. Wolff a n d Reinhard Bendix (New York: Free Press, 1955), 48. 13. On the use of demonological categories to label religious opponents, see Neil Forsyth, The Old Enemy: Satan and the Combat Myth (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1987), 309-14; Gregory C. Jenks, The Origins and Early Development of the Antichrist Myth, BZNW 59 (Berlin: de Gruyter, 1991), 60-64, 115; a n d cf. 2 Cor 11:13-15; 1 Jn 2:18-19; Rv 2:9, 20. 14. Cf. Steindorff, 19; Rosenstiehl, 83 n. ad loc; followed by Wintermute, 737 n. q2. 15. Cf. Schrage, 235 n. b.

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The question then arises, What "types‫ ״‬of Christians might represent the respective sides? Two alternatives might be advanced: (1) "gnostic antinomian" (or "extremist Pauline") Christians w h o w e r e opposed to all fasting (as a demonic c o m p o n e n t of the "law") w h e n fasting per se was normative to Egyptian a n d Alexandrian Christianity; or (2) Alexandrian ecclesiastical authorities w h o were opposed to the extreme fasting in practice a m o n g certain sects in the chora but not opposed to fasting per se. Because the only evidence for "gnostic antinomians" w h o opposed all fasting is a short reference in Epiphanius's Panarion (1.26.5.8), a notoriously fantastic account of heresies from the fourth century, and because the Alexandrian attitude toward asceticism apparently tended to "spiritualize" and to endorse moderation in fasting, 16 it would seem more historically probable to posit the second alternative as the scenario behind the Apocalypse of Elijah. That is, the "deceivers" envisioned by the Elijah Apocalypse correspond best to orthodox Alexandrian Christians.

EXCURSUS: FASTING IN THE GOSPEL OF THOMAS T h e Gospel of Thomas's s t r a n g e a d m o n i t i o n s r e g a r d i n g r e l i g i o u s f a s t i n g m i g h t b e c o n s t r u e d a s o p p o s i n g t h e p r a c t i c e a l t o g e t h e r , s o t h a t t h e first a l t e r n a t i v e mentioned a b o v e w o u l d be a possible context for the fasting passage.17 Because T h o m a s c i r c u l a t e d e a r l y a n d — i n l i g h t of t h e p a p y r u s f r a g m e n t s — p r o f u s e l y a m o n g E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n s , it is w o r t h c o n s i d e r i n g its logia a s p o t e n t i a l c o n t r a d i c t i o n s t o t h e f a s t i n g i d e o l o g y in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of E l i j a h . T h e m o s t e n i g m a t i c of t h e s e logia, 14, s t a t e s q u i t e d i r e c t l y t h a t "if y o u f a s t , y o u will b e g e t s i n f o r y o u r s e l v e s , ‫ ״‬e l a b o r a t i n g f u r t h e r : ‫ ״‬F o r w h a t g o e s i n t o y o u r m o u t h will n o t d e f i l e y o u , b u t w h a t c o m e s o u t of y o u r m o u t h , t h a t is w h a t will d e f i l e y o u . " T h e c o n t e x t in w h i c h it o c c u r s , h o w e v e r , m i l i t a t e s a g a i n s t a n o v e r l y literal i n t e r p r e t a t i o n : ‫״‬If y o u p r a y y o u will b e c o n d e m n e d , a n d if y o u g i v e a l m s , y o u will d o evil t o y o u r s p i r i t s . ‫ ״‬T h e l a t t e r d i r e c t i o n s f u n c t i o n a s p a r a d o x e s , a i m e d t o r a i s e t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g of r e l i g i o u s p r a c t i c e s t o a h i g h e r o r m o r e

16. See Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 6.12; 7.12. Barnabas 3 quotes Is 58:3-7, a postExilic assault on such fasting as might have excluded social compassion (cf. also justin, Dial. 15). Barnabas's subsequent critique of millennialist anachoresis—"do not live alone, retiring by yourselves, as if already perfected" (4:10b)—allows the possibility that Barnabas 3 is directed against first-century hermits w h o were fasting in preparation for the eschaton. O n "spiritual fasting" in general, see Musurillo, "Ascetical Fasting," 35-42; and J. A. McGuckin, "Christian Asceticism and t h e Early School of Alexandria," Monks, Hermits, and the Ascetic Tradition, ed. W. J. Sheils (Oxford: Blackwell, 1985), 30-38. 17. Cf. Frank Williams (The Panarion of Epiphanius of Salamis, N H S 35 [Leiden: Brill, 1987), 87 n. 20), w h o refers to logia 14 and 104 as potential evidence for Epiphanius's image of alleged gnostic opposition to fasting.

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s p i r i t u a l l e v e l . T h e text t h e r e f o r e a l l o w s t h a t f a s t i n g is n o t w r o n g p e r se b u t a b s u r d in its "literal,‫ ״‬c o n c r e t e f o r m . L o g i o n 27, w h i c h is a l s o e x t a n t in G r e e k ( P . O x y 1,11. 4 - 1 1 ) , i n s t r u c t s : "If y o u d o n o t f a s t from the world [ e n i c o c M o c ; G r e e k , τον κόσμον],

y o u will n o t f i n d t h e

k i n g d o m . " T h e Gospel of Thomas t h u s t e n d s t o a b s t r a c t t h e n o t i o n of f a s t i n g f r o m "mere" a b s t e n t i o n f r o m e a t i n g f o o d to a m o r e g e n e r a l d i s e n g a g e m e n t f r o m c e r t a i n w o r l d l y e f f e c t s , a n i n t e r p r e t i v e m o v e s i m i l a r t o t h e a t t i t u d e s of t h e Alexandrian allegorical school.18 F i n a l l y , l o g i o n 104 a n s w e r s a n i n v i t a t i o n t o p r a y a n d f a s t w i t h t h e c o m m a n d " ( O n l y ) w h e n t h e b r i d e g r o o m c o m e s o u t of t h e b r i d a l c h a m b e r , then [ r o r e ] let t h e m f a s t a n d let t h e m p r a y . " T h i s is o b v i o u s l y a m u l t i f o r m of M k 2 : 1 9 - 2 0 ( / / M t 9:15; Lk 5:34-35), c o n c e r n i n g J e s u s ' h i s t o r i c a l d i f f e r e n c e f r o m J o h n t h e B a p t i s t o n t h e q u e s t i o n of f a s t i n g . T h e M a r k a n s a y i n g s e r v e d t o j u s t i f y f a s t i n g a m o n g e a r l y C h r i s t i a n s in s p i t e of t h e t r a d i t i o n t h a t J e s u s h i m s e l f d i d n o t f a s t d u r i n g h i s l i f e t i m e ( Q / L k 7:33-34). T h e Gospel of Thomas s a y i n g , in c o n t r a s t , s e t s t h e t i m e of n o t f a s t i n g d u r i n g t h e p e r i o d w h e n t h e b r i d e g r o o m is "in t h e b r i d a l c h a m b e r " — e v i d e n t l y t h e p e r i o d of t h e t e x t ' s r e a d i n g — r a t h e r t h a n t h e p e r i o d of J e s u s ' l i f e (as in M a r k ) : t h a t is, t h e r e a d e r o u g h t n o t t o f a s t u n t i l t h e t i m e w h e n J e s u s " c o m e s o u t of t h e b r i d a l c h a m b e r . " 1 9 T a k e n in all, t h e Gospel of Thomas b e t r a y s a n i n c i p i e n t d i s t r u s t of t h e p r a c t i c e of f a s t i n g ; b u t a n i n t e r p r e t a t i o n t h a t w o u l d t a k e t h i s d i s t r u s t a s e v i d e n c e of t h e a u t h o r s ' a n d a u d i e n c e s ' liberal a t t i t u d e t o w a r d f o o d w o u l d r u n u p against not o n l y t h e t e x t ' s o w n a s c e t i c t e n d e n c y (e.g., Gos. Thorn. 29, 110) b u t a l s o t h e e n t i r e a s c e t i c t e n o r of its S y r i a n b a c k g r o u n d . 2 0 Thomas d o e s n o t a d v o c a t e f a s t i n g a s a d e l i b e r a t e a s c e t i c a c t — a n d , i n d e e d , l o g i o n 14 d e m o n s t r a t e s t h e t e x t ' s e a r n e s t d e s i r e t o s u b v e r t t h e w h o l e n o t i o n of " d e l i b e r a t e " p i e t y — b u t it d o e s c o u c h f a s t i n g w i t h i n a g e n e r a l s e l f - a b n e g a t o r y s t a n c e : a s t h e G r e e k v e r s i o n of l o g i o n 36 teaches, "Do not be c o n c e r n e d from m o r n i n g until e v e n i n g a n d f r o m e v e n i n g until m o r n i n g , either a b o u t y o u r f o o d , w h a t you eat, or y o u r clothes, w h a t y o u wear.21‫״‬ T h e Gospel of Thomas d e m o n s t r a t e s t h a t , e v e n i n m a n i f e s t l y a s c e t i c texts, t h e gnostic attitude t o w a r d fasting t e n d e d to o p p o s e concrete regimens, a n d theref o r e t o r e s e m b l e t h e " s p i r i t u a l f a s t ‫ ״‬of t h e A l e x a n d r i a n c h u r c h . A l t h o u g h t h e

18. Cf. Clement of Alexandria, Strom. 6.12; 7.12. 19. It may not even be clear that t h e reader is meant here, for the final third-person exhortation, "Let them fast and let them pray," contrasts with the disciples' initial question, "Let us pray today a n d let us fast," and Jesus' "What sin h a v e / committed?" If such a contrast were intended, then it would again place fasting a n d praying as acts of "surface" piety, which "they" d o in contrast to "our" pure piety. 20. See Sebastian Brock, "Early Syrian Asceticism," Numen 20 (1973):1-19, esp. 4-5; cf. A r t h u r V o o b u s , History

of Asceticism

in the Syrian

Orient,

v o l . 2: Early Monasticism

in

Mesopotamia and Syria, C S C O 197, Subsidia 17 (Louvain: C S C O , 1960), 261-64. Striking evidence of Syrian interest in fasting a p p e a r s in M a t t h e w ' s addition of t h e specific term ν η σ τ ι ύ ί ΐ ν to Jesus' acts in the wilderness of the temptation (Mt 4:2; cf. Lk 4:2). 21. P.Oxy 655, II. 1-7. I take the reconstruction as established and therefore h a v e eliminated brackets; see Nag Hammadi Codex II, 2-7, N H S 20, ed. Bentley Layton (Leiden: Brill, 1989), 121.

286

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

r e l i g i o u s m e a n i n g a n d v a l u e of *spiritual f a s t s ' m a y h a v e d i f f e r e d c o n s i d e r a b l y b e t w e e n w o r l d l y A l e x a n d r i a n s a n d g n o s t i c c o m m u n i t i e s , t h e r e j e c t i o n of J e w i s h s c r i p t u r a l t r a d i t i o n s of s e l f - d e n i a l a s s h a l l o w c o n t i n u e d b e t w e e n t h e s e C h r i s t i a n c u l t u r e s . ‫ ״‬N e v e r t h e l e s s , ‫ ״‬a s t h e V a l e n t i n i a n P t o l e m y i n f o r m s a n e o p h y t e in t h e late s e c o n d c e n t u r y C.E., f a s t i n g a s t o t h e v i s i b l e r e a l m is o b s e r v e d b y o u r a d h e r e n t s , s i n c e f a s t i n g , if p r a c t i c e d w i t h r e a s o n , c a n c o n t r i b u t e s o m e t h i n g t o t h e s o u l , s o l o n g a s it d o e s n o t t a k e p l a c e in i m i t a t i o n of o t h e r p e o p l e o r b y h a b i t o r b e c a u s e f a s t i n g h a s b e e n p r e s c r i b e d ( f o r ) a p a r t i c u l a r d a y . L i k e w i s e , it is o b s e r v e d in m e m o r y of t r u e f a s t i n g , s o t h a t t h o s e w h o a r e n o t y e t a b l e t o o b s e r v e t r u e f a s t i n g m i g h t h a v e a r e m e m b r a n c e of it f r o m f a s t i n g a c c o r d i n g t o t h e visible realm.22

Taking into account, then, the late-third-century date of the Elijah Apocalypse's composition a n d its Egyptian milieu, o n e ought to seek the events reflected in the fasting passage during this half-century. More specifically, we seek evidence of inter-Christian controversies over fasting practice in this period that would h a v e an impact on a group in Upper Egypt. Indeed, it must h a v e been an impact of catastrophic proportions if, as seems likely, the composition of the extant Apocalypse of Elijah sprang from the fasting passage (ApocEl 1 : 1 3 - 2 2 ) as an ad hoc defense of community religious practices against outside opponents. For the author of this passage a n d of the subsequent eschatological discourse effectively set his audience on the threshold of an eschatological countdown, simply by the fact that the audience would recognize those very ‫״‬deceivers‫ ״‬w h o opposed their fasting regimens.

A HISTORICAL CONTEXT FOR INTERNECINE CONFLICT OVER ASCETICISM The only documentary evidence concerning Egyptian Christians' fasting practices in the third century appears in Dionysius of Alexandria's letter to Basilides, tentatively dated to 2 4 7 - 2 4 8 C.E. 23 Asked to establish some rules about Paschal fasting w h e n , it seems, Romans and Pentapolitans followed different customs for this period, Dionysius in 22. Letter to Flora (= Epiphanius, Panarion 33.5.13-14); in Bentley Layton, tr., The Gnostic Scriptures (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, 1987), 312. 23. S e e C h a r l e s L e t t F e l t o e , The Letters

and Other

Remains

of Dionysius

of

Alexandria

(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1904), 91-105; translation in idem, St. Dionysius of Alexandria: Letters and Treatises (London: SPCK, 1918), 76-81. The d a t e is uncertain, but Feltoe (Letters and Other Remains, 92) locates it in the period w h e n Dionysius w a s both bishop and administrator of the Alexandrian catechetical school.

A Sect in the Crossfire o f Asceticism Debates

287

this letter rules that everyone should try his or her best to continue beyond midnight to Easter morning. Those w h o could not m a k e it even this far would be censured; those w h o continue on to the fourth watch are praised; but ‫״‬all do not continue during the six days of the fast either equally or similarly.‫ ״‬Dionysius's interests are clearly not in forcing a resistant congregation to go b e y o n d its capabilities; rather, h e attempts ‫״‬gentle coercion‫ ״‬of a d h e r e n t s to follow the very rudiments of the annual ritual. The letter would suggest that at this point in the third century w h e n Dionysius w a s bishop, a n d specifically in Alexandria, there was little threat perceived from communities and individuals w h o practiced a more extreme form of asceticism than that advocated by Dionysius. There were u n d o u b t e d l y ascetic hermits at this time; the Life of Antony mentions ‫״‬local‫ ״‬ascetics living on the outskirts of villages in the late third century (chap. 3). A n d it is clear that Dionysius himself was not loath to censure forms of piety he considered incompatible with his o w n churches (as h e did in the conflict with Coracion a n d Nepos some fifteen years later). But the situation Dionysius is witnessing in Alexandria appears to be a tendency to ‫״‬underfast‫ ״‬rather than to fast in extreme degrees. Although a regional conflict over fasting is not evident at this point in the third century, o n e can see the bishop's desperation to cajole even a slightly self-abnegating attitude out of his flock, a need that might turn to capitulation to (and justification of) their laxity u n d e r extreme circumstances. A controversy b e t w e e n Alexandria and rural ascetics over the issue of fasting would therefore h a v e h a d to h a v e taken place after the middle of the third century. It was precisely in this period (250-300) that a determined Manichaean mission to Upper Egypt was already establishing cenobitic communities. This mission to Egypt w a s facilitated through the translation of Manichaean materials from Aramaic immediately into Coptic. This tactic allowed Manichaeism to bypass Alexandrian Greek culture and head directly to the countryside, w h e r e encratite sects with a Syrian Christian basis h a d apparently been flourishing for a century or more. 24

24. See W. Seston, *L'Egypte m a n i c h e e n n e , ' Chronique d'Egypte 14 (1939):36272‫;־‬ Robert M. Grant, "Manichees and Christians in the Third and Early Fourth Centuries,' in Ex Orbe Religionum (Studia Geo Widengren), N u m e n S u p p 21 (Leiden: Brill, 1972), 4 3 0 39; Ludwig Koenen, "Manichaische Mission u n d Kloster in A g y p t e n , ' in Das rdmischbyzantinische Agypten, Aegyptiaca Treverensia 2 (Mainz a m Rhein: Philipp von Zabern,

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

288

As Alexandrian authorities became aware of Manichaeism's growth a n d attraction in Egypt, they began to lash out against its ascetic practices. A p a p y r u s fragment from the late third century s h o w s that one of the first issues addressed in the polemic against Manichaeism was its renunciation of marriage. 2 5 But Manichaeism brought with it a particularly exalted view of fasting a n d its powers. The Coptic collection of Manichaean teachings k n o w n as the Kephalaia describes the purifying functions of fasting in great detail, even asserting that w h e n Electi fast they generate angels (chap. 81 ).26 Nevertheless, even these views would not have differed substantially from the ascetic attitudes of m a n y Jewish-Christian sects a n d desert hermits. Consequently, anxious as they were to identify and decry Manichaeism in its rise even w h e n Egyptian Manichaeans were essentially indistinguishable from other Christian ascetics, it was inevitable that Alexandrian bishops would notice a n d strike at every group practicing extreme degrees of asceticism. Parallels a b o u n d from the fourth century. Jerome remarks bitterly that w h e n certain Christian w o m e n of his t o w n "see a w o m a n with a pale sad face, they call her , a miserable Manichaean nun‫׳‬: a n d quite logically too, for on their principles fasting is heresy. 27 ‫ ״‬In Jerome's desperate defense of a strict encratism a n d asceticism he h a d continually to d e f e n d himself against charges of Manichaeism, which had become, in the words of Robert Markus, ‫״‬part of the standard vocabulary of denigration frequently hurled especially at ascetics a n d their defenders. 2 8 ‫ ״‬A pathological fear of Manichaean electi in church ranks led the Synod of Ancyra in 314 to decree the m a n d a t o r y tasting of meat: 1983), 93-108; Gedaliahu G. Stroumsa, "Monachisme et marranisme chez les manicheens d'Egypte," Numen 29 (1982): 184-201; idem, "The Manichaean Challenge to Egyptian Christianity," in The Roots of Egyptian Christianity, ed. Birger A. Pearson and James E. Goehring, SAC 1 (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1986), 307-19; C. Wilfred Griggs, Early

Egyptian

Christianity:

From

Its Origins

to 451 C.E., C o p t i c S t u d i e s 2 ( L e i d e n :

Brill,

1990), 95-96. 25. P.Rylands III.469; see Grant, "Manichees a n d Christians," 432; and Stroumsa, "Manichaean Challenge," 311-15, w h o notes the Manicheans' successful endeavors to appear like Christians. It is interesting to n o t e that renunciation of marriage was also a dominant issue in the Synod of Gangra: the "Eustathians" are said not only to have forbidden marriage but to have avoided the h o m e s of married people and to have despised married priests. 26. O n Manichaean fasting, see extracts of the Kephalaia in Michael H. Browder, "Coptic Manichaean: Kephalaia of the Teacher (Selections)," in Vincent H. Wimbush, e d . , Ascetic

Behavior

in

Greco-Roman

Antiquity:

A

Sourcebook,

SAC

6

(Minneapolis:

Fortress, 1990), 190, 193. 2 7 . J e r o m e , Epistles

2 2 . 1 3 ( e d . a n d tr. F. A . W r i g h t , Select Letters

of Jerome

[Cambridge:

Harvard University Press, 1933], 81). 28. Robert Markus, The End of Ancient Christianity (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990), 48; cf. 37-39.

A Sect in the Crossfire of Asceticism Debates

289

even those presbyteroi or diakonoi w h o customarily avoided flesh must demonstrate their good faith by taking a bit at special feasts, or they would "be excluded from the ranks of the clergy." The test would efficiently discover tnose clerics w h o s e ascetic rigidity embarrassed the wider church. And in Egypt, w h e r e the Life of Antony states unequivocally that the hermit refused to converse with Manichaeans (chap. 68), Robert Grant has argued that Athanasius would not h a v e m a d e the point "unless there h a d been some suspicion that A n t o n y ' s asceticism was like that of his opponents." 2 9 Manichaeism continued to grow in popularity a r o u n d the Mediterranean world throughout the fourth century, although its infamy w a s legislated by the time of Diocletian's 297 edict of repression. 3 0 Therefore one cannot say that the late third century was the only time Manichaeism would have irritated Alexandrian authonties to such a degree that they would h a v e lashed out against rural ascetics. However, other social a n d political problems of the late third century t h u s far observed—extreme inflation, banditry, invasions, the disintegration of towns, and a fanatical Christian culture in the chora comprised of refugees from the edicts a n d persecutions—might h a v e contributed to the anxiety of certain bishops in their encounter with Manichaeism during this particular period. Indeed, the "crisis" of Manichaean success in the chora may h a v e merely crystallized a wider tension between the charismatic ascetic figures in the countryside a n d the Alexandrian bishops, w h o were still struggling to gain a u t h o n t y outside the city during the third century. The bishops h a d to contend not only with the charismatic potential of such prophetae redivivi as were discussed in chapter 3 but also with a sustained influx of Syrian Christian texts a n d missionaries with strongly ascetic tendencies, w h o s e teachers claimed broad powers of gnosis and vision. 31 As its sizable Coptic remains show, the Manichaean mission itself could only have followed well-trodden p a t h s into the countryside, to communities already sympathetic to the Manichaean denigration of the flesh. 32 Michael Williams is doubtless correct to read the Life of 29. Grant, *Manichees and C h r i s t i a n s , . 4 3 8 - 3 9 ‫־‬ 30. Cf. Codex Theodosianus 16.5; a n d see discussions in Stroumsa, "Monachisme et marranisme," 190, 194; and idem, *Manichaean Challenge,' 309-13. 31. O n Syrian Christianity in Egypt, see Helmut Koester, History and Literature of Early Christianity (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1982), 222-25. 32. See, esp., Peter Brown, "The Diffusion of Manichaeism in the Roman Empire," in idem, Religion and Society in the Age of Saint Augustine (London: Faber & Faber, 1972), 97, 103-5; cf. Seston, "L'Egypte manicheenne," 366-67; Stroumsa, "Manichaean Challenge," 310-11.

290

T O W A R D A HISTORICAL A N D SOCIAL C O N T E X T

Antony in this light, not as a m a n i f e s t o for the a n c h o r i t e life but as an i n s t r u m e n t of polemic a n d r e f u t a t i o n against rural holy m e n in Egypt w h o were locally h o n o r e d for their zealous asceticism a n d r e g a r d e d as h a v i n g charismatic powers. T h r o u g h o u t t h e Life, Williams h a s s h o w n , A t h a n a s i u s is domesticating A n t o n y , creating a h e r m i t w h o w o u l d w o r k with, rather t h a n in conflict with, Alexandrian Christianity. 3 3 Even the Apocalypse of Paul, w h o s e visionary a m b i t i o n s m i g h t otherwise h a v e conflicted w i t h Alexandrian ecclesiastical sensibilities, imagines that, h u n g o n trees outside the h e a v e n l y Jerusalem, t h e r e are those w h o fasting d a y a n d night h a v e zealously practised renunciation, b u t t h e y h a v e h a d a h e a r t p r o u d b e y o n d t h a t of o t h e r m e n in t h a t t h e y h a v e glorified a n d praised t h e m s e l v e s a n d d o n e n o t h i n g for their neighb o u r s . . . . All t h e t i m e t h e s e s p e n t o n e a r t h s e r v i n g G o d t h e y h u m b l e d themselves shamefacedly during that time because men c o n f o u n d e d and r e p r o a c h e d t h e m , b u t t h e y w e r e n o t s o r r y n o r d i d t h e y r e p e n t in o r d e r t o d e s i s t f r o m t h e p r i d e w h i c h w a s in t h e m . 3 4

The early m o v e m e n t against Egyptian M a n i c h a e i s m g a v e direction a n d p u r p o s e to Alexandria's struggle for authority in the chora; t h e r e f o r e the identifying criteria a n d accusatory label of "Manichaeism" or "heresy" w e r e w i e l d e d h a p h a z a r d l y a n d v e h e m e n t l y . Within this context, the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah's fasting p a s s a g e m a k e s e m i n e n t sense. Just as Dionysius, alerted by the circulation of N e p o s ' s apologetic tract, sailed u p to Arsinoe in a n a t t e m p t to quell a millennialist m o v e m e n t , so a n o t h e r g r o u p of Alexandrian ecclesiarchs m a y h a v e traveled t h r o u g h the chora to seek out a n d w a r n against Manichaeism, t h i n k i n g they could identify its m e m b e r s by their rigorous ascetic practices a n d t h u s distinguish t h e m f r o m o r t h o d o x Christians. T h e special fasting ideology a n d , p r e s u m a b l y , practices of the milieu of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah m a y h a v e attracted the attention a n d suspicions of these ecclesiastical a g e n t s in their anxious search to root out M a n i c h a e i s m in E g y p t — a n d , in a wider sense, to e n f o r c e the a u t h o r i t y of t h e A l e x a n d r i a n c h u r c h . T h e Alexandrians' criticisms of the sect a p p a r e n t l y h a d a d e v a s t a t i n g effect o n the c o m m u n i t y , for these ecclesiarchs w e r e seen as "deceivers w h o 33. Michael A. Williams, "The Life of Antony and the Domestication of Charismatic Wisdom," in idem, ed., Charisma and Sacred Biography, JAAR Thematic Studies 48, 3-4 (Chico, Calif.: Scholars Press, 1982), 23-45. 34. Apoc. Paul 24 (Eng. tr. Best (Ger. tr. Duensing], NTA 2:775-76). O n dating, see R.P. Casey, "The Apocalypse of Paul,' ITS 34 (1933):28; a n d Martha Himmelfarb, Tours of Hell: An Apocalyptic Form in Jewish and Christian Literature (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1983), 18-19.

A Sect in the Crossfire of Asceticism Debates

291

will multiply in t h e e n d time,‫ ״‬w h o p r e a c h e d that ‫״‬the fast does not exist, nor did G o d create it.‫ ״‬T h e latter p h r a s e is merely typical h y p e r b o l e for teaching that fasting as this sect p e r f o r m e d it w a s extreme, incompatible with Alexandrian c h u r c h practice, a n d suggestive of M a n i c h a e a n motivations.

AN ANALOGOUS SCENARIO: TERTULLIAN'S DE IEIUNIO In the second half of the s e c o n d century C.E., there arose a religious m o v e m e n t that, its u n i q u e origins n o t w i t h s t a n d i n g , m a y be justly a n d profitably c o m p a r e d to a n y s u b s e q u e n t ecstatic millennialist m o v e m e n t that espoused Christian ideology. This w a s M o n t a n i s m ; its location, the backcountry of Asia Minor; a n d its ‫״‬doctrine,‫ ״‬t h e return of authoritative oral prophecy, the i m m i n e n c e of the eschaton, a n d t h e necessity of severe asceticism to bring on ecstasy a n d hasten the end. 3 5 As the m o v e m e n t spread west a n d gained popularity in N o r t h Africa, a C a r t h a g i n i a n church official n a m e d Tertullian converted (in t h e early third century C.E.) a n d b e c a m e a sophisticated s p o k e s m a n for Montanist ideology. O n e of Tertullian's last extant works, w h i c h h e wrote as a Montanist, is a n apology for the sect's severe fasting regimes, titled De Ieiunio. It has particular relevance to t h e fasting passage of t h e Apocalypse of Elijah because it d e m o n s t r a t e s the type of rhetoric a m e m b e r of a millennialist sect might use to d e f e n d his c o m m u n i t y ' s radical fasting practices against the criticisms a n d a d m o n i s h m e n t s of m o d e r a t i o n f r o m representatives of an u n c o n v e r t e d ecclesiastical ‫״‬orthodoxy. 3 6 ‫״‬ As the Apocalypse of Elijah describes its o p p o n e n t s as ‫״‬people w h o s e god is their belly,‫ ״‬so Tertullian addresses t h e detractors of Montanism: 3 7

35. O n Montanism as a millennialist m o v e m e n t , see D. H. Williams, "The Origins of the Montanist Movement: A Sociological Analysis," Religion 19 (1989):331-51. 36. Timothy D. Barnes might well be correct that "Tertullian no longer harboured a n y real h o p e of persuading those w h o rejected the N e w Prophecy. H e was writing rather to justify, to vindicate and to encourage the Montanists alone" (Tertullian: A Historical and Literary Study [Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1971], 135); however, this begs t h e question of the function and Sitz-im-Leben of any polemical or apologetic tract as an extramural document. 37. The characterization of "people w h o s e god is their belly' probably derives f r o m a popular accusation of gluttony in the Greco-Roman period, used against other Jesus believers in Phil 3:19; cf. 3 Macc 7:11; Euripides Cyclops 334-35. There is little reason to assume that its use demonstrates knowledge of Philippians as a whole; rather, it w a s part of the langue of religious polemic a m o n g early Christians.

292

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

For to you your belly is god, and your lungs a temple, and your paunch a sacrificial altar, and your cook the priest, and your fragrant smell the Holy Spirit, and your condiments spiritual gifts, and your belching prophecy.38 Other polemical terms of this controversy also anticipate those of the Apocalypse of Elijah: Montanists, according to Tertullian, h a v e been labeled not only haeretici but also pseudoprophetae (De leiun. 12). Moreover, a m o n g his arguments for radical fasting, Tertullian places fasting in the context of Genesis exegesis (De leiun. 3) and states on the basis of Christian Scripture that "fasts are to be the w e a p o n s for battling with the more direful demons, 3 9 ‫ ״‬paralleling the rationales for fasting in the Apocalypse of Elijah. Of particular interest are Tertullian's consistent references to the story of Elijah, ‫״‬for Elijah,‫ ״‬he explains, ‫״‬insofar as he had invoked a famine, already devoted himself e n o u g h to fasts. 40 ‫״‬ Although the dates a n d the cultural a n d religious contexts are quite distinct, the polemical situation that s p a w n e d De leiunio a n d the rhetoric used to argue it approximate w h a t o n e can surmise of the Apocalypse of Elijah's background to such an extent that Tertullian's situation offers a social a n d historical type for illuminating the text's situation. Both De leiunio and the Apocalypse of Elijah apparently concern a sectarian response to authoritative outsiders' criticisms of fasting practice. Both sects espouse millennialist ideology. The rhetoric of debate in o n e case parallels that of the other. Therefore De leiunio constitutes a comparative scenario for the background of the fasting passage in the Apocalypse of Elijah and for the hypothesis that it w a s directed not toward ‫״‬gnostic antinomians‫ ״‬but against a centralized ecclesiastical administration that w a s uncomfortable with severe asceticism.

THE SEVERITY OF EGYPTIAN ASCETIC FASTING The hypothesis that an epichoric Egyptian Christian group may h a v e practiced a more extreme degree of fasting than Alexandrian (and other urban Greek) groups is corroborated by the reputation of Egyptian desert hermits in the fourth and subsequent centuries a n d by the Egyptian incorporation of lengthy fasts into normalized Christian practice. 38. Tertullian De leiun. 16 (tr. Thelwall, ANF 4:113). 39. Tertullian De leiun. 8 (tr. Thelwall, ANF 4:107). 40. Tertullian De leiun. 6 (my trans.); cf. 7, 9.

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A t h a n a s i u s ' s festal letters of t h e early f o u r t h c e n t u r y s h o w a m u c h greater e m p h a s i s o n the i m p o r t a n c e of fasting a n d in normalizing extensive fasts t h a n d o e s Dionysius's letter to Basilides. T h e festal letter of 329, for example, w h i l e a d v o c a t i n g only a five-day fast, exalts the practice of fasting with exempla f r o m the stories of Moses, Elijah, a n d Daniel a n d with s o m e specific e x h o r t a t i o n s that recall those of the A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah. 41 With references to the rules for holy w a r in N u m b e r s 10, A t h a n a s i u s c o m p a r e s fasting w i t h p r e p a r a t i o n for battle (chap. 2);42 it s e p a r a t e s the p u r e a n d t h e i m p u r e (chap. 4). T h e f o o d of the i m p u r e is d e m o n i c (chap. 5), w h e r e a s the f o o d of the p u r e "prepares the saints, a n d raises t h e m a b o v e t h e earth" (chap. 5). In the context of these e x h o r t a t i o n s to p o p u l a r fasting, w e m a y u n d e r s t a n d the p r e p a r a t i o n of the Life of Antony, w h i c h associated fasting specifically with purity a n d resistance to d e m o n s (e.g., c h a p . 23). F o u r t h - c e n t u r y literature f r o m within t h e ascetic c o m m u n i t i e s is e v e n m o r e explicitly f a v o r a b l e t o w a r d radical fasting. T h e m o n a s t i c c a n o n of P s e u d o - H i p p o l y t u s institutes a f o r t y - d a y fast as part of the a n n u a l cycle, along with fasts o n W e d n e s d a y a n d Friday; f u r t h e r m o r e , " w h o e v e r should a d d to this (schedule) will receive r e c o m p e n s e " (canon 20). 43 It w a s p r o b a b l y A t h a n a s i u s w h o first publicly r e c o m m e n d e d t h e f o r t y - d a y fast as a n official practice in t h e 330s, 44 but in d o i n g so h e w a s d r a w i n g o n a practice already traditional (and u n i q u e ) to Egyptian ascetics: imifating Jesus' f o r t y - d a y t e m p t a t i o n as a fasting period. 4 5 A certain A b b a James is said to h a v e s t a r v e d himself secretly for forty d a y s to stave off the d e m o n of fornication, b r e a k i n g the fast only w h e n a n o t h e r h e r m i t visited h i m with the holy c o m m u n i o n . 4 6 The exhaustive lore of the Egyptian h e r m i t s in Palladius's Historia Lausiaca a n d in the various Apophthegmata patrum contain n u m e r o u s 41. O n exempla, s e e M u s u r i l l o , "Ascetical Fasting," 5 - 6 . 42. Cf. A p o c E l 1:23-24 ( w h i c h directly f o l l o w s t h e f a s t i n g p a s s a g e ) : " W h o a m o n g y o u w o u l d g o o u t to t h e field, t a k i n g p r i d e in his skill, b u t w i t h o u t a tool in h i s h a n d ? O r w h o is it t h a t w h o w o u l d g o to w a r [to fight ( A c h ) j w i t h o u t a b r e a s t p l a t e o n ? If h e is d i s c o v e r e d will t h e y n o t kill h i m , b e c a u s e h e d e s p i s e d t h e service [όφφικιον] of t h e king?' 43. R e n e - G e o r g e s C o q u i n , tr., "Les c a n o n s d ' H i p p o l v t e , Patrologia Orientalis 31, 2 (1966):387. 44. Cf. A t h a n a s i u s Festal Letter 10 (338 C.E.), 12. 45. C o q u i n , " C a n o n s d ' H i p p o l y t e , " 328-30. A s Mt 4:2 a l r e a d y a d d s νηστίύσας to Mk 1:13, t h e i n t e r p r e t a t i o n of t h e t e m p t a t i o n a s a f a s t i n g p e r i o d c o u l d h a v e d r a w n o n a primitive Syrian Christian tradition. 46. E.g., Apophth. patr. ( A l p h a b e t i c a l ) , P h o c a s 2.

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TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

laudatory stories of extreme ascetic practices, starvation fasts, a n d d e m onstrations of the purificatory a n d exorcistic effects of fasting. 47 Although these stories are difficult to date, m a n y certainly come from the fourth century and earlier a n d thus provide some background a n d explanation for the fourth-century institutionalization of long fasts in Egyptian Christianity. Athanasius a n d Pseudo-Hippolytus were reflecting epichoric tendencies in ascetic practice, a n d so their rationales for fasting drew u p o n a lore of asceticism's concrete powers, a lore that apparently came from the hermits themselves. 4 8 The ideology of fasting promoted by the Apocalypse of Elijah w a s actually quite regular in the context of rural Egyptian asceticism, as demonstrated by the PseudoAthanasius treatise on virginity, quoted above (p. 282). Extreme fasting was also retrojected into presentations of biblical lore. In a curious extension of the concept of the didactic exemplum, the Testament of Isaac s t a t e s : N o w o u r f a t h e r I s a a c h a d m a d e f o r h i m s e l f a b e d r o o m in h i s h o u s e ; a n d w h e n h i s s i g h t b e g a n t o fail h e w i t h d r e w i n t o it a n d r e m a i n e d t h e r e f o r a h u n d r e d years, fasting daily until evening. . . . A n d h e kept three periods of f o r t y d a y s a s f a s t s e a c h y e a r , n e i t h e r d r i n k i n g w i n e n o r e a t i n g f r u i t n o r s l e e p i n g on his bed. A n d h e p r a y e d a n d g a v e t h a n k s to G o d continually.49

The author of this text apparently m a d e structural use of the Testamerit of Abraham, an Egyptian Jewish or Christian text from about the first century C.E.; the focus on the cycles of forty-day fasts, however, implies a monastic milieu of the fourth or later centuries. To be sure, the regimen of daily ( d a w n to dusk) fasting, plus three forty-day cycles annually of (presumably) more severe fasting, that is ascribed to Isaac may be merely the sort of exaggerated feat o n e normally attributes to a hero or patriarch (such as the extended life span). The way the regimen is specifically dictated in this passage, however, suggests that, even if s u p e r h u m a n , it would not h a v e been m u c h more severe than those regimens followed by the intended audience of the Testament of Isaac.50 47. E.g., Apophth. patr. (Alphabetical): Theodora 6; Cassian 1. See Arbesmann, ‫״‬Fasting and P r o p h e c y , 3 3 - 3 5 ‫״‬ ; Musurillo, ‫״‬Ascetical Fasting," 28-32. Cf. also Eusebius's account of the Egyptian martyr Procopius's severe diet (Martyrs of Palestine [Syr.] 3). 48. In a judgment scene on the wall of the Coptic Abydos chapel dating f r o m the tenth century, there is a figure specified as *he w h o breaks the fast before the appointed time [ π ε τ β λ λ ΝΜΗΟ‫״(׳‬Α CBOA Μ π λ τ ε ο φ ω π ι ) ' (in C. C. Walters, *Christian Paintings from Tebtunis," JEA 75 [1989]:203 and pi. 28, 2). 49. T. Isaac 5:3, 5 - 7 (Sahidic; tr. Κ. H. Kuhn, AOT 431); cf. Stinespring's translation from Arabic in OTP 1:907. 50. The actual differences implied between t h e daily and forty-day fasts are unclear

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295

The retrojecfion of monastic or anchoritic fasting practices into the life of a biblical figure suggests, o n c e again, t h e f u n d a m e n t a l i m p o r t a n c e of t h e biblical tradition for establishing religious p a r a d i g m s in Egyptian ascetic Christianity, w h e t h e r in f o r m a l exempla or in c o n t e m p l a t i o n a n d private imitation. T h e r e m a y i n d e e d b e a relationship b e t w e e n the centrality of fasting in the milieu of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah a n d the figure of Elijah himself, b e c a u s e Elijah w a s consistently b r o u g h t u p as a p a r a d i g m of religious fasting, with or w i t h o u t seclusion. 5 1 Regardless, h o w e v e r , of t h e s e rural ascetic c u r r e n t s p r o m o t i n g infinite fasting, certain ecclesiastical q u a r t e r s c o n t i n u e d to criticize w h a t they perceived as excesses. A story a b o u t A t h a n a s i u s , included in the Arabic History of the Patriarchs, tells of s o m e n u n s w h o c o m p l a i n e d to him that s o m e of their m e m b e r s f a s t e d "six d a y s of t h e w e e k c o n tinuously" a n d t h e r e f o r e w e r e u n a b l e to w o r k . A t h a n a s i u s is said to h a v e replied, B e l i e v e m e m y sisters, I h a v e n e v e r f a s t e d f o r t w o w h o l e d a y s t o g e t h e r , w i t h o u t b r e a k i n g m y f a s t d u r i n g t h e d a y ; b u t I o n l y a t e in m o d e r a t i o n , a n d n e i t h e r w e a r i e d m y s o u l n o r p u n i s h e d m y b o d y . F o r it is g o o d t h a t f a s t i n g s h o u l d b e i n m o d e r a t i o n , a n d d r i n k i n g in m o d e r a t i o n , a n d s l e e p in m o d e r a t i o n . F o r if a m a n e a t s a s h e o u g h t , h e is s t r o n g f o r p r a y e r ; a n d s o l i k e w i s e if h e s l e e p s in m o d e r a t i o n ; b u t t o f o o d t h e r e s h o u l d b e a l i m i t , a n d t o d r i n k a limit, a n d t o s l e e p a limit. S o tell t h e m t o b r e a k t h e i r f a s t in m o d e r a t i o n , a n d t o w o r k , f o r e v e r y t h i n g is g o o d in m o d e r a t i o n , t h a t w o r d s m a y n o t b e m u l t i p l i e d , a n d t h e b e g i n n i n g of t h e m m a y n o t b e f o r g o t t e n . 5 2

Just as t h e biblical patriarch Isaac is b r o u g h t into service of severe asceticism in Testament of Isaac 4, t h e A l e x a n d r i a n patriarch A t h a n a s i u s , w h o himself systematized fasting a m o n g Egyptian lay Christians, is h e r e

and may h a v e ranged from the addition or subtraction of bread or meat at dusk to the addition or subtraction of water itself. Fasting practices a m o n g the desert hermits were entirely irregular and even a m o n g cenobitic communities of t h e late fourth century, Jerome indicates there were problems in the various degrees of fasting; for, he romanticizes, "long fasts help no o n e here [in his Palestinian monastery]. Starvation wins no deference, and the taking of food in moderation is not c o n d e m n e d " (Ep. 46.10, tr. W. H. Freemantle, NPNF 6:64). O n the diversity of fasting practices, see O w e n , "Fasting in the Eastern Church," 96-97, 102-5. 51. Tertullian De Ieiun. 7, 9; Athanasius, Festal Letter 1 (329 C.E.), 6; Vita Antonii 7; Vita Paul 10, 13; cf. 1 Clem. 17:1. 52. Arabic History of the Patriarchs: Athanasius (B. Evetts, ed. and tr., "History of the Patriarchs of the Coptic C h u r c h of Alexandria—II," Patrologia orientalis 1 [1907]):405. L.-Th. LeFort discerns a historical basis to this encounter of Athanasius and t h e n u n s ("Athanase, Ambroise, et C h e n o u t e : 'Sur la virginite," Le Museon 48 [1935]:55-73, esp. 67-68).

296

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

brought into the service of those Christian authorities w h o censured severe asceticism. In a Coptic e n c o m i u m on Elijah from the Byzantine period, this prototype of radical desert asceticism is finally domesticated. The encomium exhorts the audience to k e e p t h e f e a s t of t h e h o l y E l i j a h , e a c h o n e a c c o r d i n g t o h i s a b i l i t y . For h e requires nothing from us beyond our power, but only bread w h e r e o n we s h a l l f e a s t t o g e t h e r w i t h h i m o n t h e d a y of h i s c o m m e m o r a t i o n . If w e g i v e a c u p of c o l d w a t e r a c c o r d i n g t o o u r p o w e r , w e s h a l l m a k e o u r s e l v e s w o r t h y of t h e h o l y E l i j a h . 5 3

This stress on individual limits m a r k s a far cry from the competitive selfdenials of the desert anchorites. Fasting in the Egyptian chora was practiced to extreme degrees from at least the fourth century, w h e r e a s the Alexandrian perspective on fasting continued to emphasize moderation a n d to disapprove of ascetic "athletics.‫ ״‬It is plausible to infer from these later materials that the milieu of the Apocalypse of Elijah followed an earlier form of these fasting regimens (or the ascetic ideology behind them), thus earning the attention and confused censure of Alexandrian authorities in the later third century. 5 4

CONCLUSION: FASTING AND THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH Therefore, from the passage on fasting in the Apocalypse of Elijah, one can m a k e the following hypotheses concerning the historical circumstances of the text's composition. Members of the collective body for which the extant Apocalypse of Elijah was composed practiced an extreme regimen of fasting, such as was practiced by the desert hermits of later Egyptian ascetic literature. 53. Cairo ms. 53 (tr. H u g h G. Evelyn-White, in idem, ed., The Monasteries of the Wadi ,

N Natriin,

v o l . 1: New

Coptic

Texts from

the Monastery

of Saint

Macarius

[New

York:

Metropolitan M u s e u m of Art, 1926|, 72). The text is attributed to John Chrysostom and is evidently a recension of the Pseudo-Chrysostom encomium published by E. A. Wallis Budge, "On the Fragments of a Coptic Version of an Encomium on Elijah the Tishbite, attributed to Saint John Chrysostom," Transactions of the Society of Biblical Archaeology 9 (1893):384 (text), 404 (translation). 54. Cf. the ascetic Christian milieu proposed for the Ascension of Isaiah by Antonio A c e r b i , Serra lignea: Studi sulla fortuna dell'Ascensione 5 3 ; s e e a l s o A . C a m p l a n i , Le lettere festali di Atanasio

(Rome: C.I.M., 1989), 277-78.

di Isaia ( R o m e : A . V . E . , 1 9 8 4 ) , 4 0 di Alessandria: Studio storico-critico

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297

The practice of fasting held considerable symbolic importance for this group. It expressed the exorcism of demons, purification toward an angelic status, and—of greatest importance—imitation of the saints of biblical legend. During the same period that this group was practicing (or at least espousing) its fasting regimes—a useful range might be 2 6 0 - 2 9 0 C . E . — Manichaean missions were growing in size a n d influence in Upper Egypt. The group u n d e r consideration was not itself Manichaean, for the Apocalypse of Elijah does not s h o w any Manichaean influence; but the ideology of radical asceticism may ultimately derive from Syrian Christianity, along w h o s e missionary tracks Manichaeism followed. Ecclesiastical authorities based in Alexandria, becoming aware of the Manichaean mission, viewed it as a considerable threat. In seeking to cast the differences b e t w e e n Manichaeism a n d Alexandrian Christianity in the sharpest terms a n d to prevent any overlap in allegiance, they chose to focus u p o n the religious styles that they considered most alien to their o w n practices, specifically, radical asceticism. These authorities consequently set out to the chora to find a n d censure w h a t e v e r groups of Christians practiced severe asceticism. The milieu of the Apocalypse of Elijah fell u n d e r such censure a n d p e r h a p s even ruptured u n d e r it, as often h a p p e n s with religions in situations of rival doctrine a n d authority. At this point, indeed, the social body to w h o m the Apocalypse of Elijah w a s addressed might be considered a "sect,‫ ״‬for strong boundaries against the world seem to be established first in regard to the fasting dispute. Moreover, because the dominant theme of the Apocalypse of Elijah after the fasting passage concerns the problem of deceitful leadership in the e n d times, it is likely that the author was especially sensitive to the p o w e r of rival authority. The Alexandrian authorities w h o criticized the severity of the sect's fasting regimen were thus seen as "deceivers" w h o denied fasting altogether. 5 5 A literate member of the sect or an individual with "prophetic" pretensions, w h o was acquainted with apocalyptic literature, composed the fasting passage—perhaps initially as a s p o n t a n e o u s discourse—to be a 55. It is equally likely that only o n e ecclesiastical official had arrived a n d o p p o s e d the sect's fasting, because the plural in the p r o p h e c y of ‫״‬deceivers" attributes the necessary d e t e r m i n i s m to the arrival of even o n e "deceiver." T h e plural also f u n c t i o n s to reduce the personal charisma of t h e "deceiver" (such as the Lawless O n e is e n d o w e d with) a n d m a k e s him or t h e m merely i n s t r u m e n t s of a "deceptive" doctrine.

298

TOWARD A HISTORICAL AND SOCIAL CONTEXT

defense of fasting, an exposition of the ascetical ideology of the sect, and p e r h a p s an expression of the effect of these deceivers on the sect. Assuming that the text was meant for or derived from public presentation, its composition in Greek implies that the sect consisted of individuals w h o could u n d e r s t a n d Greek. For the sect, the ecclesiastical censure may h a v e represented a final, "catalytic‫ ״‬event, signifying the imminence of preeschatological woes a n d a millennium sure to follow—that is, the point at which the thirdcentury decline, the rumored persecutions of Christians, a n d the millennialist teachings to which they h a d been exposed in such texts as Revelation all ‫״‬suddenly m a d e sense.‫ ״‬Insofar as the author placed the fasting passage immediately before the eschatological discourse, the former comes to function as a threshold of recognizable events before the onset of unfamiliar eschatological woes a n d signs. In this position, the fasting passage becomes the historical validator of the events of the eschatological discourse, in spite of the fact that the events themselves do not systematically reflect historical events of the late third century. The link between the fasting passage and the eschatological discourse is reinforced by the consistent emphasis in the latter on illegitimate and deceitful leadership, culminating in the account of the Lawless One. This emphasis intrinsically recalls ‫״‬the deceivers w h o will multiply in the end time . . . w h o say ‫׳‬the fast does not exist.‫״׳‬ The fate of the sect that s p a w n e d the Elijah Apocalypse can only be imagined. It seems plausible that its opposition to the Alexandrian ecclesiarchy would h a v e continued through the persecutions of Diocletian, p e r h a p s to form one root of the Melitian schism. T h e emphasis on exalted martyrdom in the Apocalypse of Elijah, however, makes it nearly certain that m e m b e r s of the sect would h a v e been counted a m o n g the more fanatical Egyptian martyrs during the Diocletianic persecution. 5 6 56. See Maureen A. Tilley, "The Ascetic Body a n d the (Un)Making of the World of the Martyr," JAAR 59 (1991 ):467-79, w h o proposes that preparation for m a r t y r d o m derived from ascetic activity already c o m m o n to Christian sects.

APPENDIX

The Text of the Apocalypse of Elijah in English

INTRODUCTION

The three most recent translations of the Apocalypse of Elijah, those of Wolfgang Schrage, Κ. H. Kuhn, a n d O. S. Wintermute, followed Georg Steindorff's original opinion that the Achmimic manuscript represented the best reading of the text, a n d indeed that the extant Sahidic manuscripts might themselves be translations from the Achmimic. 1 The splendid and, by now, standard translations these scholars prepared therefore d e p e n d e d primarily on Ach, referring to the Sahidic m a n u scripts to correct corruptions a n d fill lacunae. The particular value of these translations over their predecessors, those of Steindorff a n d Jean-Marc Rosenstiehl, came from their inclusion of the Chester Beatty manuscript, Sa 3 , to "complete‫ ״‬the text of the Apocalypse of Elijah. However, they used this manuscript almost solely to fill in lacunae (such as ApocEl 2:16-30) rather than to offer a more general perspective on the Sahidic a n d Achmimic recensions. Rosenstiehl h a d provided just such a perspective in his 1972 commentary (prepared, unfortunately, without access to the vital Sa 3 ): a parallel translation of Sahidic and Achmimic texts, by which o n e might see the nature of the variations b e t w e e n these manuscripts. Rosenstiehl recog1. Cf. Steindorff, 17; Carl Schmidt, ‫־‬Der Kolophon des Ms. orient. 7594 des Britischen M u s e u m s , ' Sitzungsberichte

der preussischen

Akademie

der Wissenschaften,

Philosophiseh-

Historisch Klasse (1925):318; cf. Pietersma, 14; and Jean-Marc Rosenstiehl, 'L‫׳‬Apocalypse d'Elie,' Le Museon 95 (1982):272-73.

299

300

APPENDIX

nized a n d then reasserted in 1982 that each Coptic text must be regarded as an i n d e p e n d e n t lineage or family from the Greek, and that it is therefore misleading to focus on one or a n o t h e r manuscript or recension as "better. 2 ‫״‬ It is out of respect for the Coptic recensions as "families" that I have chosen to follow Rosenstiehl's example a n d offer a parallel translation. 3 Indeed, the reader will find that very f e w of the divergences in wording a n d content (printed in boldface) can reasonably be ascribed to "corruptions" one way or the other. W h e n such a corruption can be traced, it is noted; but in general the reader will encounter the divergences as testimony to the fluidity of copying a n d transmission in Roman Egypt (see chapter 2, pp. 27-29). It is p e r h a p s dishonest, then, to place the Sahidic recension as a unit to the left a n d the Achmimic to the right, because the Sahidic m a n u scripts themselves present some divergences. However, the textual analysis prefacing the recent critical edition of Sa 3 has demonstrated that there are fewer divergences within the Sahidic family than between any of the Sahidic manuscripts and Ach, and, furthermore, that the Sahidic texts may follow the Greek more faithfully than Ach. 4 I h a v e therefore chosen to compile a "best" Sahidic text on the left, following Pietersma in e n d o w i n g Sa 3 with s o m e w h a t more authority but noting "variations" either in the translation (also in boldface, w h e r e Sa 3 a n d Ach agree: cf. ApocEl 4:8; 5:9) or in notes, according to the importance I assign to the variation. Those lacunae for which reconstructions have been fairly established are not marked with brackets, so that the reader m a y derive a sense for the text of the Apocalypse of Elijah rather than merely for its m a n u scripts in their original states. In those places w h e r e lacunae are u n breachable I have placed brackets, separated approximately the length of line missing. The notes cover those instances w h e r e reconstructions have been debated. Chapter and verse n u m b e r s follow Wintermute's translation, on the basis that five chapters are easier to work with than three (as in Rosen2. Rosenstiehl, "L'Apocalypse d'Elie," 272-74. 3. It is hoped that a future edition of t h e Coptic texts of the Apocalypse of Elijah will also employ parallel columns, rather than keying all divergences to a single text as Albert Pietersma, Susan Turner Comstock, a n d Harold A. Attridge did. 4. Pietersma, 12-18.

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301

stiehl a n d K u h n ) a n d a n y c h a p t e r s a n d verses are better t h a n k e y i n g a complete translation to the p a g e s a n d line n u m b e r s of a single m a n u script (as in Pietersma a n d Schrage). T o link t h e text m o r e c o n v e n i e n t l y to discussions in the rest of this book, h o w e v e r , the text h a s b e e n completely a r r a n g e d with subject h e a d i n g s a n d , in the case of ApocEl 2, lettered p a r a g r a p h s , m a n y of w h i c h o v e r l a p W i n t e r m u t e ' s verse numbers. As t h e translation is n o t m e a n t as a c o m m e n t a r y , discussion of content h a s b e e n kept to a m i n i m u m in t h e notes, a l t h o u g h the notes will key particular passages to relevant discussions in the b o o k . For the r e a s o n s outlined in c h a p t e r 2 (pp. 31-39), scriptural a n d a p o c r y p h a l parallels are not p r o v i d e d u n l e s s they h a v e i m m e d i a t e historical or literary relevance to the u n d e r s t a n d i n g of a passage. Rosenstiehl a n d Schrage p r o v i d e an a b u n d a n c e of motif a n d verbal parallels in early Jewish a n d Christian literature. T h e p r e s e n t translation a n d this s t u d y are not m e a n t to p r e s e n t t h e Elijah A p o c a l y p s e as simply a matrix of parallels a n d influences. T h e translation o p e n s in t h r e e c o l u m n s , to i n c o r p o r a t e the introduction to Apocalypse of Paul 3, with w h i c h t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah bears a definite literary relationship.

THE APOCALYPSE OF ELIJAH Prophetic Introduction5 Sa

Ach

1 . 1 . T h e w o r d of t h e Lord c a m e t o m e thus: S a y to this p e o p l e , w h y d o y o u sin and a d d sin to y o u r sins, a n g e r i n g t h e Lord G o d w h o created you?

1 . 1 . T h e w o r d of the Lord c a m e t o m e thus: S o n of M a n , s a y to this people, w h y do you a d d sin t o y o u r sins, a n g e r i n g t h e Lord G o d w h o created you?

Apoc. Paul 3-46 T h e w o r d of t h e Lord c a m e t o m e thus: S a y to this p e o p l e , h o w

long will you t r a n s -

gress 7 and multiply sin and anger the God w h o created you? . . . [3a]

5. See discussion, pp. 82-86. 6. On the relationship to the Apocalypse of Elijah of this passage f r o m the Apocalypse of Paul, see pp. 28-29. 7. Latin: delinquetis (= delinquentes); Greek: αμαρτάν(τί.

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2. Do not love the world, nor what is in the world, for the pride of the world and its destruction are of the devil.8

2. Do not love the world, nor what is in the world, for the pride of the world and its destruction are of the devil.

3. Remember that the Lord who created everything had mercy on you,

3. Remember that the Lord of Glory who created everything had mercy on you,

so that he might rescue us from the captivity of this age.

so that he might rescue us from the captivity of this age.

4. For many times the devil desired to prevent 9 the sun from rising over the earth and to prevent the earth from giving fruit, 10

4. For many times the devil desired to prevent the sun from rising over the earth and to prevent the earth from giving fruit,

Apoc. Paul 3-4

Remember and know that all creation is subject to G o d . . . . [3b]

The Reason for Christ

Sa

. . . For many times the sun, the great light, has objected to God saying: Ο Lord God almighty, I look upon the impiety and injustice of men. [4] Ach

wishing to swallow people like fire that runs through straw, wishing to swallow them like water.

wishing to swallow people like fire that runs through straw, wishing to swallow them like water.

5. And because of this the God of glory had mercy on us: He will send his son into the world so that he might rescue us from the captivity.

5. And because of this the God of glory had mercy on us. He sent his son into the world so that he might rescue us from the captivity.

8. Cf. 1 Jn 2:15-17; but the scribe h a s a p p a r e n t l y i n v o k e d the verse f r o m m e m o r y : see discussion, p p . 34-35, 83. 9. Sa: €TMKA π ρ » ; Ach: λΤΜΚλπρι. I a m following Pietersma (21) in taking this in an active sense; cf. W i n t e r m u t e : "not to let" (736). 10. See discussion, pp. 232-33.

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Sa 6. H e d i d n o t i n f o r m a n a n g e l w h e n h e c a m e to us, n o r an a r c h a n g e l ,

6. H e d i d n o t i n f o r m a n a n g e l w h e n h e c a m e to us, nor an archangel, nor

but he changed

any principality, but he changed

himself to b e like a m a n , w h e n h e c a m e to us, so t h a t h e m i g h t r e s c u e u s f r o m t h e flesh, 1 1

himself to b e like a m a n , w h e n h e c a m e to us, so that h e might rescue us

7. s o t h a t y o u m i g h t t h u s b e c o m e

7. T h e r e f o r e , b e c o m e c h i l d r e n t o h i m as h e becomes a father to you.

c h i l d r e n t o h i m as h e b e c o m e s a f a t h e r to you.

Heavenly Rewards and Punishments12 8. R e m e m b e r t h a t h e h a s p r e p a r e d f o r y o u [pi.] t h r o n e s a n d c r o w n s in h e a v e n . F o r e v e r y o n e w h o will o b e y h i s v o i c e will r e c e i v e t h r o n e s 1 3 a n d c r o w n s . 9. A m o n g t h o s e w h o a r e m i n e , s a y s t h e L o r d , I will w r i t e m y n a m e u p o n their f o r e h e a d s a n d seal t h e i r right h a n d s . T h e y will n o t b e h u n g r y , n o r will t h e y t h i r s t , 10. n o r will t h e L a w l e s s O n e h a v e p o w e r o v e r t h e m , n o r will t h e T h r o n e s h i n d e r t h e m , b u t t h e y will g o w i t h t h e a n g e l s t o m y city.

8. R e m e m b e r t h a t h e h a s p r e p a r e d f o r y o u [pi.] t h r o n e s a n d c r o w n s i n h e a v e n . For e v e r y o n e w h o will o b e y m e will r e c e i v e t h r o n e s a n d c r o w n s . 9. A m o n g t h o s e w h o a r e m i n e , s a y s t h e L o r d , I will w r i t e m y n a m e u p o n their f o r e h e a d s a n d seal t h e i r r i g h t h a n d s . T h e y will n o t b e h u n g r y , n o r will t h e y t h i r s t , 10. n o r will t h e L a w l e s s O n e h a v e p o w e r o v e r t h e m , n o r will t h e T h r o n e s h i n d e r t h e m , b u t t h e y will g o w i t h t h e a n g e l s t o m y city.

11. But a s f o r t h o s e w h o s i n , t h e y will n o t p a s s b y t h e T h r o n e s , b u t t h e T h r o n e s of d e a t h

11. But a s f o r t h o s e w h o sin, t h e y w i l l b e s h a m e d ; t h e y will n o t p a s s

will s e i z e t h e m a n d e x e r t power over them, because the angels d o not trust them,1412. a n d t h e y h a v e estranged themselves f r o m his dwelling places.

b y t h e T h r o n e s , b u t t h e T h r o n e s of d e a t h will seize t h e m a n d exert power over t h e m because the angels d o n o t t r u s t t h e m , 12. a n d t h e y h a v e e s t r a n g e d t h e m s e l v e s f r o m his dwelling places.

11. Cf. Phil 2:6-8; Heb 1:4-6; Asc. Is. 10; Epis.Apost. 13. See discussion, p. 35. 12. See discussion, pp. 147-51. 13. Note that θρόνοι is used both for such physical rewards (cf. 4:10) and for t h e intermediary angels w h o obstruct t h e impure f r o m entering h e a v e n (1:10-11). See discussion, pp. 35-37. 14. n i e e (= ττ(ίθ(σθαι). O n hostile T h r o n e s as gatekeepers of h e a v e n , see pp. 35-37.

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Sa 15

A Discourse on Fasting 13. H e a r n o w , y o u w i s e m e n of t h e

13. H e a r n o w , y o u w i s e m e n of t h e

land, concerning the deceivers w h o will m u l t i p l y in t h e e n d t i m e , b e c a u s e t h e y will a d o p t t e a c h i n g s t h a t a r e n o t of G o d . T h e y will p u t a s i d e

land, concerning the deceivers w h o will multiply in t h e e n d time, b e c a u s e t h e y will a d o p t t e a c h i n g s t h a t a r e n o t of G o d . T h e y will p u t a s i d e

God's law—these people whose god is their belly—who say, *The

God's law—those who have made their belly their god—who say,

f a s t d o e s n o t exist, n o r d i d G o d create i t ‫ — ״‬w h o m a k e themselves l i k e s t r a n g e r s t o t h e c o v e n a n t of G o d , a n d r o b 1 6 t h e m s e l v e s of g l o rious p r o m i s e s . 14. T h e s e o n e s a r e n e v e r e s t a b l i s h e d in f i r m f a i t h . S o d o n o t let t h o s e p e o p l e d e c e i v e y o u !

" T h e f a s t d o e s n o t exist, n o r d i d G o d create it‫—״‬who m a k e themselves l i k e s t r a n g e r s t o t h e c o v e n a n t of G o d , a n d r o b t h e m s e l v e s of g l o r i o u s p r o m i s e s . 14. T h e s e o n e s a r e n e v e r e s t a b l i s h e d in f i r m f a i t h . S o d o n o t let t h o s e p e o p l e d e c e i v e y o u !

15. R e m e m b e r t h a t t h e L o r d m a d e fasting from (the time of) his creation of t h e h e a v e n s as a b e n e f i t t o m a n k i n d o n a c c o u n t of t h e p a s s i o n a n d c h a n g i n g desires that o p p o s e you, so t h a t t h e evil o n e will n o t d e c e i v e y o u . 16. But a h o l y f a s t is w h a t h e h a s e s t a b l i s h e d . T h e L o r d s a y s , 1 7 17. H e w h o f a s t s c o n t i n u a l l y will n e v e r sin, a l t h o u g h e n v y a n d s t r i f e a r e in h i m . 18. But h e w h o is h o l y , let h i m fast. H e w h o fasts, ( h o w e v e r , ) w i t h out being holy angers the Lord a n d a l s o t h e a n g e l s , 19. a n d h e h a r m s h i s o w n soul.

15. R e m e m b e r t h a t t h e L o r d m a d e fasting f r o m (the time of) his creation of t h e h e a v e n s a s a b e n e f i t t o m a n k i n d o n a c c o u n t of t h e p a s s i o n a n d desires that o p p o s e you, so that the evil o n e will n o t c o n s u m e y o u . 16. But a h o l y f a s t is w h a t I h a v e e s t a b l i s h e d , t h e L o r d s a y s , 17. H e w h o f a s t s will n e v e r sin, e v e n t h o u g h t h e r e b e in h i m e n v y a n d s t r i f e . 18. But h e w h o is h o l y , let h i m f a s t . H e w h o fasts, (however,) w i t h o u t b e i n g holy a n g e r s the Lord a n d also the a n g e l s , 19. a n d h e h a r m s h i s o w n soul.

Furthermore, he gathers up wrath f o r h i m s e l f f o r t h e D a y of W r a t h .

H e g a t h e r s u p w r a t h for himself for t h e D a y of W r a t h .

15. See discussion, chap. 11. 16. Sahidic mss. use Coptic q t o 6 e ; Ach uses Greek 17. Sa 2 ends at this point.

α-ποσπρΰν.

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Sa 20. A h o l y f a s t is w h a t t h e L o r d

20. A h o l y f a s t is w h a t I e s t a b l i s h e d

established with pure heart and p u r e

w i t h p u r e h e a r t a n d p u r e h a n d s . 21.

hands. 21. For the holy fast releases

F o r it r e l e a s e s sin, h e a l s

sin, h e a l s [ 6 t p a v ( v t 1 v \ d i s e a s e s , c a s t s o u t d e m o n s , 22. e x e r t s p o w e r [ivfpyttv] u p t o t h e t h r o n e of G o d , a s an ointment, as incense, as a remiss i o n of sin t h r o u g h a h o l y p r a y e r . 1 8

d i s e a s e s , c a s t s o u t d e m o n s , 22. e x e r t s p o w e r [i ixpyriv] u p t o t h e t h r o n e of God, as an ointment, as a remission of sin t h r o u g h a h o l y p r a y e r .

[Otpa-nevtiv]

On Single-Mindedness 23. F o r w h o a m o n g y o u w o u l d g o o u t t o t h e f i e l d , t a k i n g p r i d e in h i s skill, b u t w i t h o u t a t o o l in h i s h a n d ? O r w h o is it t h a t w o u l d g o t o w a r without a breastplate on?

23. W h o a m o n g y o u w o u l d g o o u t t o t h e f i e l d , t a k i n g p r i d e in h i s skill, b u t w i t h o u t a t o o l in h i s h a n d ? O r w h o is it t h a t w o u l d g o t o w a r t o fight w i t h out a breastplate on?

24. If h e is d i s c o v e r e d will t h e y n o t kill h i m , b e c a u s e h e d e s p i s e d t h e s e r v i c e of t h e k i n g ? 25. L i k e w i s e , it is impossible for a n y o n e to e n t e r t h e h o l y p l a c e w h i l e in d o u b t . 26. H e w h o d o u b t s in p r a y e r is d a r k n e s s t o himself, a n d even the angels d o not trust him.

24. If h e is d i s c o v e r e d will t h e y n o t kill h i m , b e c a u s e h e d e s p i s e d t h e s e r v i c e of t h e k i n g ? 25. L i k e w i s e , it is i m p o s s i b l e for a n y o n e to e n t e r t h e h o l y p l a c e w h i l e i n d o u b t . 26. H e w h o d o u b t s in p r a y e r is d a r k n e s s t o himself, and even the angels do not trust him.

27. If y o u a r e a l w a y s s i n g l e - m i n d e d

27. T h e r e f o r e , b e a l w a y s s i n g l e m i n d e d in t h e L o r d , s o t h a t y o u

in the Lord, be wise to the Time, so t h a t y o u m i g h t c o m p r e h e n d [1‫׳‬0<‫]׳״‬ all t h i n g s 2 . 1 c o n c e r n i n g t h e A s s y r i a n k i n g s a n d t h e d e s t r u c t i o n of h e a v e n a n d earth.19

m i g h t c o m p r e h e n d [z‫׳‬o«ix‫ ]׳‬all t h i n g s .

2.1. Therefore, concerning the Assyrian kings and the destruction of h e a v e n a n d e a r t h a n d t h e t h i n g s

under the earth: 20

18. There is a similar list of benefits to fasting preserved in the Pseudo-Athanasian On Virginity

7. S e e p. 282.

19. It is not entirely clear w h e t h e r "concerning the Assyrian kings," etc., should be understood as the reference of "know all things"; Rosenstiehl (87), Wintermute (739, 739 n. a), and Kuhn (764) all believe on the basis of Ach that a distinctively n e w chapter begins right here with a summarizing incipit. 20. In the addition of this reference to "the things u n d e r the earth," the Achmimic scribe may be demonstrating his acquaintance with c o n t e m p o r a n e o u s "tours" of hell— supposed to disintegrate in the eschaton (cf. Rv 20:13-14; Apoc. Pet. 5).

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The Discourse on the Signs of Woe

21

§ A . T h e Assyrian K i n g

a) 2. Those who are mine will not be

2. Now, therefore, 22 they will not be

o v e r c o m e , s a y s t h e L o r d , n o r will

o v e r c o m e , s a y s t h e L o r d , n o r will t h e y f e a r in b a t t l e .

t h e y f e a r in b a t t l e . b) 3. A n d w h e n t h e y s e e a k i n g w h o h a s a r i s e n in t h e n o r t h t h e y will call h i m t h e K i n g of t h e A s s y r i a n s a n d t h e U n r i g h t e o u s K i n g . H e will i n crease his wars a n d disturbances a g a i n s t E g y p t . 4. T h e l a n d will g r o a n t o g e t h e r . Y o u r c h i l d r e n will b e s e i z e d . 5. M a n y w i l l d e s i r e d e a t h at that time.

3. A n d w h e n t h e y s e e a k i n g w h o h a s a r i s e n in t h e n o r t h t h e y w i l l call h i m t h e K i n g of t h e A s s y r i a n s a n d t h e U n r i g h t e o u s King. H e will i n c r e a s e his w a r s a n d disturbances against E g y p t . 4. T h e l a n d will g r o a n t o g e t h e r . Y o u r c h i l d r e n will b e seized. 5. M a n y will d e s i r e d e a t h a t t h a t

time, but death will flee from them. 23

§B. T h e K i n g of Peace a ) 6. T h e n a k i n g will a r i s e in t h e w e s t , w h o m t h e y will call t h e K i n g of P e a c e . 7. H e will r u n u p o n t h e s e a like a r o a r i n g l i o n . 8. H e will kill t h e

6. T h e n a k i n g will a r i s e in t h e w e s t , w h o m t h e y w i l l call t h e K i n g of P e a c e . 7. H e will r u n u p o n t h e s e a l i k e a r o a r i n g lion. 8. H e will kill t h e

Unrighteous King. Vengeance will

Unrighteous King. He will take ven-

be taken24 u p o n Egypt with war, and t h e r e will b e m u c h b l o o d s h e d . 9. A t t h a t t i m e h e w i l l c o m m a n d p e a c e in Egypt a n d a w o r t h l e s s gift.

g e a n c e u p o n Egypt with war, a n d t h e r e will b e m u c h b l o o d s h e d . 9. A t t h a t t i m e h e c o m m a n d e d p e a c e in E g y p t a n d a w o r t h l e s s gift.

b ) 10. H e will g r a n t p e a c e t o t h e s a i n t s . 2 5 H e will p r o c e e d t o s a y , " T h e

H e will p r o c e e d t o s a y , " T h e n a m e of

10. H e will g r a n t p e a c e t o t h e s a i n t s .

21. See discussion, chap. 8. 22. τ ί Ν ο γ 6 e . Rosenstiehl (87 n. ad loc), after Steindorff (76 η. 1), took this as a corruption of the corresponding words Νετε Noyei n6 in the Sahidic mss. 23. This phrase appears also in 2:32, at which point Sa 3 also continues "but death will flee from them." The phrase was evidently widely k n o w n , as it appears also in Rv 9:6. Because Sa 3 and Sa 1 agree in not including the second part of the phrase in 2:5, it is conceivable that the Achmimic scribe m a d e the addition to 2:5 on the basis of 2:32. 24. The difference between t h e recensions here gives a s o m e w h a t different cast to the king's character; if deliberate, Sa 3 may be removing a n y "negative" aspects to t h e king's character, or Ach may be ensuring that this king not be seen as entirely salvific. 25. The same root, ογλλβ ("holy"), is used for "saints" (Νετογϋβ) and "priests" (NOYHHB)—serving to designate both native and Christian hierophants. The resulting ambiguity surrounding the type or authority of "holiness" u n d e r discussion probably reflects a continuity in t h e concept of the holy in the world of the Apocalypse of Elijah's author. See discussion, pp. 99-101.

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name of God is One!11 ‫ ״‬. He will give honor to the priests of God. He will exalt the holy places.

God is One!* 11. He will give honors to the s[aints]. He will exalt the places of the saints.

c) 12.26 He will give worthless gifts to the house of God. 13. He will circulate among the cities of Egypt with deception, without (their) knowing. 14. He will take count of the holy places. He will weigh the idols of the Pagan [i'01‫׳‬o?]. He will take count of their wealth. He will appoint priests for them.

12. He will give worthless gifts to the house of God. 13. He will circulate among the cities of Egypt with deception, without (their) knowing. 14. He will take count of the holy places. He will weigh the idols of the Pagan [t'01‫׳‬os]. He will take count of their wealth. He will appoint priests for them.

d) 15. He will command that the wise men of the land be seized, along with the great ones of the people, to be taken to a metropolis by the sea, as he says, "There is but one language!* 16. But when you hear "Peace and Joy exist!* I will.. .29

15. He will command that the wise men of the land be seized, along with the great ones of the people, to be taken to the metropolis27 by the sea, as he says.. .28

§C. The Sons of the King of Peace30 a) 17 for here are his signs. I will tell you so you will recognize him:31 18. For he has two sons, one on his right and one on his left. 19. Now the one on the right will get a demonic

26. T h e r e is a n i n d e n t a t i o n h e r e in S a 3 m s . p. 6; cf. P i e t e r s m a , 74. 27. H e r e Sa 1 a g r e e s w i t h A c h a g a i n s t Sa 3 in g i v i n g t h e d e f i n i t e article. Cf. Oracle of the Potter: ή •παραθαλάσσιος πόλις (Ρ 2 35 = Ρ 3 59); a n d t h e c o n t r a s t i n g s e n s e in Asclepius 27: o y n o A i c e c 2 T ο γ κ ο ο ? ϋ τ ε KHMC [ N H C VI,75, 28-29], O n t h e u s e of t h i s t e r m , s e e p p . 205, 213-14. 28. Both A c h a n d Sa 1 b r e a k off h e r e . 29. O n e line illegible in Sa 3 . S e e f a c s i m i l e in P i e t e r s m a , 74. 30. A l t h o u g h t h i s s e c t i o n h a s d r o p p e d o u t of t h e A c h m i m i c l e a v e s of t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, its u s e in t h e G r e e k T i b u r t i n e Sibyl (11. 190-98; e d . P a u l J. A l e x a n d e r , in i d e m , The Oracle of Baalbek: The Tiburtine Sibyl in Creek Dress, D u m b a r t o n O a k s S t u d i e s 10 [ W a s h i n g t o n , D C . : D u m b a r t o n O a k s , 1967], 20-21) m a k e s it c e r t a i n t h a t it w a s p a r t of t h e original G r e e k text. 31. T h e a n t e c e d e n t of "his (signs)" m u s t b e t h e s o n w h o g a i n s a " d e m o n i c face," w h e r e a s t h e "he" w h o h a s t w o s o n s (2:18) m u s t r e f e r t o t h e "King of P e a c e " d e s c r i b e d in the preceding passage.

APPENDIX

308

Sa face.

32

Ach

H e will a b a n d o n t h e n a m e of

God. b ) 20. F o r f o u r k i n g s c o m e f r o m t h a t k i n g . 21. But in h i s t h i r t i e t h y e a r h e (will) c o m e u p t o M e m p h i s ; h e will b u i l d a t e m p l e in M e m p h i s a t t h a t t i m e . 3 3 22. H i s s o n will a r i s e a g a i n s t h i m a n d kill h i m . 23. T h e w h o l e l a n d will t r e m b l e . c) 24. A t t h a t t i m e h e 3 4 will i s s u e a d e c r e e o v e r all t h e l a n d t h a t t h e p r i e s t s of t h e l a n d a n d all t h e s a i n t s b e seized, saying "Every gift w h i c h m y f a t h e r g a v e y o u , a n d all t h e g o o d t h i n g s , y o u will r e t u r n t w o - f o l d ! " 25. H e will s h u t t h e h o l y p l a c e s . H e will t a k e t h e i r h o m e s . H e will t a k e t h e i r s o n s a s p r i s o n e r s . 26. H e will c o m m a n d (that they)35 p e r f o r m sacrifices [0υσ1'α] a n d a b o m i n a t i o n s a n d b i t t e r a c t s u p o n t h e l a n d . 27. H e will appear beneath the sun a n d the m o o n . 28. At t h a t t i m e t h e p r i e s t s of t h e l a n d will t e a r t h e i r g a r m e n t s . § D . Social W o e s under the Evil K i n g a) 29. W o e t o y o u , r u l e r s of E g y p t , at that time, because y o u r time h a s p a s s e d ! 30. T h e v i o l e n c e of t h e p o o r 3 6

32. The corresponding king in the Greek Tiburtine Sibyl "has a changed shape [μορφην ϊ'χων ήλλοιωμίνην]" (1. 191; ed. Alexander, Oracle of Baalbek, 20, 28). If this phrase is original to the Apocalypse of Elijah in Greek, it would imply that this king is a precursor to the polymorphic Lawless O n e in ApocEl 3:16-17 (see ibid., 113, 113 n. 54). It is perhaps to m a k e explicit this implication that the Coptic translator has used διά/30λ0ϊ for his features here. 33. The corresponding king in the Greek Tiburtine Sibyl "will rebuild the altars of Egypt" (1. 192; ed. Alexander, Oracle of Baalbek, 21, 28), apparently an abstraction from the Apocalypse of Elijah text. 34. In spite of the previous prediction of his death at the h a n d s of his o w n son, the text is apparently still discussing the d e m o n - f a c e d son of the King of Peace. The latter is a more likely candidate to be the d o n o r of "gifts and good things" in v. 24. 35. Wintermute reads this conjunctive clause as passive (741), but t h e previous sentences also contain an unstated plural party w h o must also be the antecedents here. 36. NJC1N[60]NC NN?HK.e. The sense is either that the violence that t h e rulers h a v e committed against the poor will turn back against the rulers, or that the incipient

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Ach

will t u r n a g a i n s t y o u , a n d t h e y will seize y o u r s o n s a s p l u n d e r [αρπαγή].

30 . . . , s o n s a s p l u n d e r

b ) 31. T h e cities of E g y p t will g r o a n at t h a t t i m e , a n d t h e r e will n o l o n g e r b e h e a r d t h e v o i c e of t h e b u y e r o r seller in t h e m a r k e t s [ α γ ο ρ ά ] of t h e cities of E g y p t . T h e y will collect d u s t .

31. T h e cities of E g y p t will g r o a n at t h a t t i m e , a n d t h e r e will n o l o n g e r b e h e a r d t h e v o i c e of t h e b u y e r o r s e l l e r in t h e m a r k e t s [αγορά] of t h e cities of E g y p t . T h e y will c o l l e c t d u s t .

c) 32. T h e n t h o s e w h o a r e in E g y p t will w e e p t o g e t h e r . T h e y will d e s i r e d e a t h , yet d e a t h (will) flee f r o m t h e m . 33. T h e y will c l i m b u p r o c k s a n d l e a p off t h e m , s a y i n g "Fall d o w n o n u s ! " — a n d (yet) t h e y (will) n o t d i e , b u t d e a t h flees f r o m t h e m . 34. A d o u b l e a f f l i c t i o n (will) m u l t i p l y a r o u n d the land at t h a t t i m e .

32. T h e n t h o s e w h o a r e in E g y p t will w e e p t o g e t h e r . T h e y will d e s i r e d e a t h , y e t d e a t h (will) flee f r o m t h e m . 33. I n t h a t t i m e t h e y will c l i m b u p r o c k s a n d l e a p off t h e m , s a y i n g "Fall d o w n o n u s ! " — a n d ( y e t ) t h e y (will) n o t d i e . 34. A d o u b l e a f f l i c t i o n (will) m u l t i p l y a r o u n d t h e land.

d ) 35. In t h a t t i m e t h e k i n g w i l l c o m m a n d t h a t all t h e n u r s i n g w o m e n b e seized a n d be b r o u g h t to h i m b o u n d t o s u c k l e s e r p e n t s [δράκων], t h a t their blood be sucked from their breasts to be given as poison for arrows.37

35. In t h a t t i m e t h e k i n g will c o m m a n d t h a t all t h e n u r s i n g w o m e n b e seized a n d b e b r o u g h t to h i m b o u n d t o s u c k l e s e r p e n t s [δράκων], t h a t their blood be sucked from their breasts to be given as poison for arrows.

e) 36. B e c a u s e of t h e c o n s t r a i n t [ α ν ά γ κ η ] 3 8 of w a r [ π ό λ ί ρ ο ί ] h e w i l l

36. B e c a u s e of t h e d e s p e r a t i o n [ανάγκη]

[αρπαγή],

of t h e c i t i e s [7τόλ1ϊ] 39 h e will

resentment of the poor will erupt into revolutionary violence against the rulers. The former interpretation is more likely, inasmuch as it allows a "reversal" sense to the w o e oracle. 37. Sa3:

NCGTI Λγ

ΝΚΛΟ

NCOTO

(cf.

Ach:

ο β τ ε ο γ ε

ΛΝΚΛΟ

NNC*T€).

Oscar

von

Lemm identified ΚΛΟ as a specific Egyptian poison ("Kleine koptische Studien—X: Bemerkungen zu einigen Stellen der koptischen Apokalvpsen, 4-6," Bulletin de VAcademie imperiale des Sciences de St. Petersbourg 13 [1900]: 11-28). T h e modifier to the poison could be a variation of Sahidic CATG ("fiery") or Achmimic CITE or Sahidic COT€ ("arrow"). Unfortunately, the two f o r m s of C*T* in Ach and Sa 3 are not precise variants of each other. But the virtually parallel section in the Greek Tiburtine Sibyl has δια r a φάρμακα των β(\ων (1. 196; in Alexander, Oracle of Baalbek, p. 21), implying that the final ο in Sa 3 's COTO should be e : ε ο τ ε . See Steindorff, 80 n. 4; Wintermute, 741 n. m2; and the extensive discussion in Alexander, Oracle of Baalbek. 37-40. 38. Both Pietersma (37) and Wintermute (741) translate ανάγκη with the sense of "anguish, distress"; but the author clearly imagines that the forced draft is a response to the necessities of war (see Kuhn 765, 765 n. 12). 39. This is a plausible scribal corruption of 1τό\(μος, which m a k e s more sense in the context. Rosenstiehl argues convincingly that the corruption had already occurred at the

310

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Sa twelve years a n d y o u n g e r be seized

c o m m a n d that every y o u n g boy twelve years a n d younger b e seized

a n d be taught to shoot arrows.

a n d b e t a u g h t to s h o o t a r r o w s .

f) 37. 4 0 T h e m i d w i f e of t h e l a n d

37. T h e m i d w i f e of t h e l a n d

c o m m a n d that every young boy

shall mourn in that time,

will mourn in that time,

A n d s h e w h o h a s given birth s h a l l cast h e r e y e t o h e a v e n a n d say,

A n d she w h o has given birth will c a s t h e r e y e t o h e a v e n a n d

" W h y d i d I sit u p o n t h e b i r t h s t o o l 4 1 To bear a child on t h e earth?‫״‬

‫ ״‬W h y d i d I sit u p o n t h e b i r t h s t o o l

say, To bear a child on the earth?‫״‬

38. T h e b a r r e n w o m a n a n d t h e v i r g i n shall rejoice: ‫״‬It is t h e t i m e f o r u s t o r e j o i c e , For w e h a v e n o c h i l d r e n o n t h e earth,

38. T h e b a r r e n w o m a n a n d t h e v i r g i n

But o u r c h i l d r e n a r e in t h e heavens."42

But o u r c h i l d r e n a r e in t h e h e a v e n s . ‫״‬

shall rejoice: ‫״‬It is t h e t i m e f o r u s t o r e j o i c e , For w e h a v e n o c h i l d r e n o n t h e earth,

§E. Political Signs in Brief Oracles

i n h a b i t it w i t h t h e m a g a i n .

39. A t t h a t t i m e t h r e e k i n g s will arise f r o m Persia, c a p t u r i n g [αιχμαλωτι£ί1ι1‫ ׳‬t h e J e w s w h o a r e in Egypt, to t a k e t h e m to J e r u s a l e m a n d i n h a b i t it w i t h t h e m a g a i n .

b ) 40. T h e n if y o u s h o u l d h e a r t h a t

40. T h e n if y o u s h o u l d h e a r t h a t

t h e r e is s e c u r i t y a n d s a f e t y 4 3 in J e r u -

t h e r e is s e c u r i t y a n d s a f e t y in J e r u -

a) 39. At t h a t t i m e t h r e e k i n g s will arise f r o m Persia, c a p t u r i n g [αιχμαλώτιζαν]

t h e J e w s w h o a r e in

Egypt, to t a k e t h e m to J e r u s a l e m a n d

Greek Stage, because from την ανάγκην των ττό\(μων to την ανάγκην των ττό\(ων requires a change of merely one letter ("L'Apocalvpse d'Elie," 273-74; cf. Alexander, Oracle of Baalbek, 39). 40. The verb tenses in Sa 3 change in this section f r o m first to third future. Because there are also formal devices of parallelism a n d repetition (earth vs. heaven), Wintermute has suggested that the section originated as an independent poem (742 n. P2)· 41. Lit. t i u b e ("brick"). Cf. Ex 1:16; and see Wintermute, 742 n. s2. 42. [2]ΝΜΠΗ0γε (cf. Ach: £ΝΝΠΗγε). it j s t h u s likely that the text originally read "heavens," regardless of Sa 3 's singular article. 43. n u j p j t . . . η ν τ λ ϋ ψ λ . Μ Λ are synonymous, as Wintermute notes (742 n. w2), but were obviously c o m p o u n d e d to achieve rhetorical effect. Pietersma reads π ω ρ . χ without an article—"dissension"—but then must contort the meaning to account for άσφάλαα (39). The message is obviously that w h a t is apparently peace is only a foreshadowing of greater troubles, a theme paralleled in 2:48-53. Rosenstiehl makes a cogent comparison to 1 Thes 5:3—"When they say, There is peace and security [Coptic: .xe ·f‫־‬P HNH Mii π cup*],' then s u d d e n destruction will come u p o n them"—although there is n o basis for assuming immediate textual influence ("L'Apocalypse d'Elie," 279).

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salem, tear your garments, Ο priests

salem, tear your garments, Ο priests

of t h e l a n d , b e c a u s e t h e D e s t r u c t i v e

of t h e l a n d , b e c a u s e t h e D e s t r u c t i v e

O n e will n o t b e l o n g in c o m i n g !

O n e will n o t b e l o n g in c o m i n g !

c) 41. I m m e d i a t e l y t h e L a w l e s s O n e will a p p e a r in t h e h o l y p l a c e s , a t t h a t time.

41. I m m e d i a t e l y t h e L a w l e s s O n e will a p p e a r in t h e h o l y p l a c e s , at t h a t time.

d ) 42. T h e k i n g s of P e r s i a will flee at t h a t t i m e a n d t h e y will s t a n d t o fight(?) 4 4 w i t h t h e k i n g s of t h e A s s y r i a n s ; f o u r k i n g s (will) f i g h t w i t h three.

42. T h e k i n g s of P e r s i a will flee a t t h a t t i m e a n d t h e y will s t a n d t o fight(?) 4 5 w i t h t h e k i n g s of t h e A s s y r i a n s ; f o u r k i n g s (will) f i g h t w i t h three.

e) 43. T h e y will s p e n d t h r e e y e a r s in that place, until they h a v e t a k e n t h e w e a l t h in t h a t p l a c e .

43. T h e y w i l l s p e n d t h r e e y e a r s in that place, until they h a v e taken t h e w e a l t h of t h e t e m p l e in t h a t p l a c e . 4 6

§F. Terrestrial W o e s (Nile) 44. Blood will flow f r o m Kos t o M e m p h i s : t h e river of E g y p t will become blood, so that no o n e can d r i n k f r o m it f o r t h r e e d a y s . 45. W o e to Egypt a n d to those w h o are in

44. B l o o d will flow f r o m Kos t o M e m p h i s : t h e river of E g y p t will b e c o m e blood, so that n o o n e can d r i n k f r o m it f o r t h r e e d a y s . 45. W o e t o E g y p t a n d t o t h o s e w h o a r e i n it!

Egypt! §G. T h e A d v e n t of t h e King f r o m t h e Sun a ) 46. At t h a t t i m e a k i n g will a r i s e in t h e city w h i c h is c a l l e d " T h e C i t y of

the Sun." At that time the whole l a n d will t r e m b l e . b ) 47. H e will flee u p t o M e m p h i s in t h e s i x t h y e a r of t h e k i n g s of t h e P e r s i a n s . H e will lay a n a m b u s h in M e m p h i s . H e will kill t h e A s s y r i a n

46. At t h a t t i m e a k i n g will a r i s e in t h e c i t y w h i c h is c a l l e d * T h e C i t y of t h e S u n , " a n d t h e w h o l e l a n d will tremble. 47. H e will flee u p t o M e m p h i s in t h e s i x t h y e a r . T h e k i n g s of t h e P e r -

sians will lay an ambush in Memp h i s . 4 7 T h e y will kill t h e A s s y r i a n

44. The top of this page of Sa 3 is lacunose: t h e remaining letters of t h e section in question—which s o m e w h a t resemble the remaining Ach words—are: [ ] 2ριτ. 45. Α 2 Ρ Μ λ Ρ ι τ ( = [ c e ) * £ e * ρ ε τ ο γ [ΛΜΙ^Ε]—"and they will stand to fight' (Oscar von Lemm, "Kleine koptische Studien—XXVI: Bemerkungen zu einigen Stellen der koptischen Apokalypsen, 14," Bulletin de I'academie imperiale de sciences de St. Petersbourg 21 [1904], 46); but this does not seem to match the remaining text of Sa 3 . See Wintermute, 743 n. d3. 46. It is unclear w h e t h e r this reference to a temple is original. Robbing temples is a consistent motif in ApocEl 2. 47. The Achmimic recension clearly deemphasizes the (Egyptian?) king's role in this

312

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Sa

Ach 48

k i n g s . 48. T h e P e r s i a n s will t a k e

king.

vengeance upon the land.

vengeance u p o n the land.

c) H e will c o m m a n d t h a t t h e P a g a n s a n d the Lawless O n e s b e killed. H e

A n d t h e y (will) c o m m a n d t h a t t h e Pagans a n d the Lawless O n e s be killed.

will command that the temples of the Pagans be plundered and their priests destroyed. He will command

48. T h e P e r s i a n s will t a k e

t h a t t h e s h r i n e s 4 9 of t h e s a i n t s b e rebuilt.

T h e y will c o m m a n d t h a t t h e s h r i n e s of t h e s a i n t s b e r e b u i l t .

d ) 49. H e will g i v e d o u b l e g i f t s t o t h e H o u s e of G o d . H e will s a y : " T h e n a m e of G o d is O n e ! 5 0 ‫ ״‬. The whole l a n d will h a i l t h e P e r s i a n s .

49. T h e y will g i v e d o u b l e g i f t s t o t h e H o u s e of G o d . T h e y will s a y : " T h e n a m e of G o d is O n e ! 5 0 ‫ ״‬. The whole l a n d will h a i l t h e P e r s i a n s .

§H. A Deceptive Peace

t h e land might not b e c o m e desert!‫״‬

51. A n d e v e n t h e r e m n a n t w h o d i d not die u n d e r the calamity [πληγή] will s a y *It is a K i n g of R i g h t e o u s n e s s w h o m t h e Lord h a s s e n t to us, so t h a t the land might not b e c o m e desert!‫״‬

b ) 52. H e will c o m m a n d t h a t n o r o y a l (taxes) 5 0 b e g i v e n f o r t h r e e y e a r s a n d six m o n t h s .

52. H e will c o m m a n d t h a t n o r o y a l (taxes) be given for t h r e e y e a r s a n d six m o n t h s .

c) T h e l a n d will b e f u l l of p r o s p e r i t y in g r e a t a b u n d a n c e . 53. T h e l i v i n g will g o s a y t o t h e d e a d , " A r i s e a n d r e m a i n w i t h u s in t h i s rest!"

T h e l a n d will b e f u l l of p r o s p e r i t y in g r e a t a b u n d a n c e . 53. T h e l i v i n g will g o say to t h e d e a d , "Arise a n d r e m a i n w i t h u s in t h i s rest!‫״‬

a) 51. A n d e v e n t h e r e m n a n t w h o d i d n o t d i e u n d e r t h e c a l a m i t y [7rA7/y7/j will s a y "It is a K i n g of R i g h t e o u s n e s s w h o m the Lord h a s sent to us, so that

sequence of events; and Wintermute rightly argues that this tendency would be secondary to the Sahidic recension's focus u p o n this king (743 nn. 13, n3). 48. The plural, "kings," in Sa 3 continues the narrative f r o m v. 43. The singular in Ach has a number of possible explanations: (1) to correspond with the Unrighteous Assyrian King in v. 1; (2) to imply a reference to O d e n a t h or another historical person of the late third century; (3) to represent a literary shift in focus f r o m plural dramatis personae to individual dramatis persona (such as the Lawless One), which commences with ApocEl 3. 49. I have translated as "shrines" Ν β ρ π Η γ ε the s a m e word that designates "temples." 50. Sa 3 : Ney‫־‬f‫ ־‬ΛΑλγβ ϊϊρρο. The sense has been construed in diverse ways, f r o m the absence of a king per se (Pietersma, 43) to a relaxation of royal taxes (Kuhn, 767 n. 18; Wintermute, 744 n. q3). The latter seems to be the original sense, for the Tiburtine Sibyl seems to copy the text of the Elijah Apocalypse here fairly directly: και δώσα ατί\(1αν (is oXas rat χώρας inι (τη τρία και μήνας ϊξ ("And he will grant a tax-exemption to entire countries for three years a n d six months" [11. 206-7J; ed. Alexander, Oracle of Baalbek, 21; translation, 29).

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d) 3.1. In t h e f o u r t h y e a r of t h a t k i n g t h e r e will a p p e a r s o m e o n e s a y i n g "I

3 . 1 . In t h e f o u r t h y e a r of t h a t k i n g t h e r e will a p p e a r t h e L a w l e s s O n e

a m t h e C h r i s t . " But h e is n o t — d o n o t believe him!

s a y i n g "I a m t h e C h r i s t . ‫ ״‬But h e is n o t — d o not believe him!

Interlude on Signs of the Parousia51 2. F o r [ d e ] w h e n t h e C h r i s t c o m e s h e will c o m e l i k e a c o v e y 5 2 of d o v e s , w i t h h i s c r o w n of d o v e s s u r r o u n d i n g h i m , a s h e t r a v e r s e s t h e c l o u d s 5 3 of h e a v e n w i t h t h e s i g n of t h e c r o s s going before him.

2. W h e n t h e C h r i s t c o m e s h e will c o m e like a b r o o d of d o v e s , w i t h h i s c r o w n of d o v e s s u r r o u n d i n g h i m , as h e t r a v e r s e s t h e c l o u d s of h e a v e n w i t h t h e s i g n of t h e c r o s s g o i n g before him.

3. T h e w h o l e w o r l d s e e s h i m l i k e t h e sun w h i c h shines f r o m the east to the west.

3. T h e w h o l e w o r l d w i l l s e e h i m like the sun w h i c h shines f r o m the east to the west.

4. T h i s is t h e w a y t h a t t h e C h r i s t c o m e s : w i t h all h i s a n g e l s s u r r o u n d ing him.

4. T h i s is t h e w a y h e c o m e s : w i t h all his angels s u r r o u n d i n g him.

The Signs of the Lawless One: Miracles54 5. T h e L a w l e s s O n e will a g a i n 5 5 b e g i n t o s t a n d in t h e h o l y p l a c e . 5 6

5. T h e L a w l e s s O n e w i l l a g a i n b e g i n t o s t a n d in t h e h o l y p l a c e s .

51. See discussion, pp. 231-32. 52. Sa 3 : M€£AA (cf. C r u m 208A, s.v. Ach: CAMNT (cf. C r u m 339B). See in general Wintermute, 744 n. e on t h e sense of t h e t w o words. Because of their proximity in meaning it is more likely that such a divergence arose in translating Greek νοσσιά into Coptic than in a Coptic scribe's "correction" of another Coptic word. 53. Sa 3 : [6]ΗΠ€ = Ach: KHne, following Rosenstiehl's reconstruction ("L'Apocalypse d'Elie," 274-75 n. 24); pace Pietersma, 42-43: [Κ]ΗΠ€ ("vaults" of heaven). 54. See discussion, pp. 112-17. 55. ON; the sense of repetition is unclear, as both prior references to the Lawless One's advent (2:40; 3:1) refer to this as a single event. However, because the description of his advent is broken by a parenthetical image of the parousia (3:2-4), ON might be read to mean: "Again: the Lawless O n e will begin. . . . " 56. The singular form must refer to the temple in Jerusalem, a site of eschatological events in Christian eschatology of late antiquity (see pp. 226-27). Indeed, the Latin Tiburtine Sibyl reads: tunc revelabitur manifeste Antichristus et sedebit in domo Domini lerusalem (ed. Ernst Sackur, in idem, Sibyllinische Texte und Forschungen [Halle: Max Niemeyer, 1898], 186). The plural form in Ach, used by all mss. throughout ApocEl 2, seems to refer to saint-shrines (vv. 14, 25, 48b). It would m a k e sense that the first author would have intended this more exotic location for the a p p e a r a n c e of the Lawless One, and that later scribes changed the articular prefix in light of their reverence for local shrines (and p e r h a p s unintentionally). In 4:1, however, Sa 1 alone has the singular, 'holy place,* w h e r e a s both Ach and Sa 3 h a v e "holy places."

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Sa 6. H e will s a y t o t h e s u n , ‫־־‬Fall,' a n d it will f a l l ;

6. H e will s a y t o t h e s u n , *Fall," a n d it w i l l fall;

"Darken!" and it does so, "Shine!" and it does so.

He will say, "Shine!"—it does so. He will say, "Darken!"—it does so. 7. He will say to the moon, "Become blood!"—it does so.

8. H e will a c c o m p a n y t h e m 5 7 t h r o u g h t h e sky,58

8. H e will a c c o m p a n y t h e m t h r o u g h

saying, "Walk upon the sea and the

He will walk upon the sea and the

r i v e r s as if u p o n d r y l a n d . 5 9 ‫״‬

r i v e r s a s if u p o n d r y l a n d .

9. H e will m a k e t h e l a m e w a l k , H e will m a k e t h e d e a f h e a r , H e will m a k e t h e d u m b s p e a k , H e will m a k e t h e b l i n d s e e ,

9. H e will m a k e t h e l a m e w a l k , H e will m a k e t h e d e a f h e a r , H e will m a k e t h e d u m b s p e a k , H e will m a k e t h e b l i n d s e e ,

10. L e p e r s h e will p u r i f y , T h e sick h e w i l l h e a l ,

T h e sick h e will h e a l ,

T h e d e m o n s h e will cast o u t —

T h e d e m o n s h e will cast o u t —

11. H e will m u l t i p l y h i s s i g n s a n d w o n d e r s in t h e p r e s e n c e of

11. H e will m u l t i p l y h i s s i g n s a n d w o n d e r s in t h e p r e s e n c e of

everyone.

everyone.

the sky.

10. L e p e r s h e will p u r i f y ,

57. Both Sa 3 and Ach h a v e a plural object p r o n o u n here; only Ach has identified both sun and moon as its antecedents. Therefore it is possible to conclude that the reference to the moon s o m e h o w d r o p p e d out of Sa 3 during copying. See Pietersma, 16. 58. qNABtuic ΜΝΜλγ € Β 0 λ 2^ τ π ε . Both Rosenstiehl (97) and Schrage (252) translate with the sense that he removes t h e m f r o m the sky, an image that would conform to popular images of the eschatological adversary (cf. Rv 12:4; Wilhelm Bousset, The Antichrist Legend, tr. A. H. Keane [London: Hutchinson, 1896], 175-76) but which is confused by the prepositional phrase "with them" (MNMAY). It is possible that it bears some relation to an enigmatic prophecy in ApocEl 2 that the demon-faced son "will appear beneath [EBOA 2*1 the sun and the m o o n " (2:27), for this figure bears some functional resemblances to the Lawless O n e (cf. 2:27 and 3:16-17). It is tempting to take the image of "accompanying" the sun and t h e m o o n "through the sky" as recalling the classical Egyptian tradition of the barque of Re, the sun god and a chief national deity in Egypt even in the Greco-Roman period. In this barque ride the other major gods and goddesses of Egypt, w h o all participate in warding off Apep, d e m o n of chaos and darkness. To accompany the sun (and m o o n — T h o t h ) might mean that the Lawless O n e is raised to the mythological position of passenger on the celestial barque of the gods. 59. This miracle makes little sense as a c o m m a n d from the Lawless O n e to the sun (and moon). As in other miracle lists (see above, pp. 113-16), the miracle of walking u p o n the water belongs to the same group as the healing and exorcism miracles that follow it.

T h e T e x t o f the A p o c a l y p s e o f Elijah in English

Sa 12. H e will d o t h e t h i n g s w h i c h t h e Christ did,60 except only for raising a corpse— 13. b y t h i s y o u will k n o w t h a t h e is the Lawless One: he has n o p o w e r to g i v e life! 6 1

315

Ach 12. H e will d o t h e t h i n g s w h i c h t h e Christ did, except only for raising a corpse— 13. b y t h i s y o u will k n o w t h a t h e is t h e L a w l e s s O n e : h e h a s n o p o w e r to g i v e life!

The Signs of the Lawless One: Physiognomy62 14. F o r b e h o l d , 1 will tell y o u h i s signs so that you might recognize him:

14. F o r b e h o l d , I will tell y o u h i s s i g n s so t h a t y o u m i g h t r e c o g n i z e him:

15. H e is a s m a l l pelec, t h i n - l e g g e d , tall, 6 3 w i t h a t u f t of g r e y h a i r o n h i s f o r e h e a d , w h i c h is b a l d , 6 4 w h i l e h i s

15. H e is a s m a l l pelec, t h i n - l e g g e d , tall, w i t h a t u f t of g r e y h a i r o n h i s f o r e h e a d , w h i c h is b a l d , w h i l e h i s

60. Sa 3 ; Sa 1 : *will d o * 61. Sa 3 : m n 6 0 m M H o c j e t Ν ο γ ψ γ χ Η , ‫ ־‬Sa 1 , Ach: . . . e‫־‬t" 4‫׳‬Y XH • I n the context, "life* is a clearer translation than "soul." Steindorff (91, 121), Rosenstiehl (98), Schrage (253), and Kuhn (768) all take e f as a preposition and article—"[power] over the [soul]"—whereas Pietersma (45) and Wintermute (745) read it as a verb with infinitive marker—"[power] to give." The former interpretation corresponds to a claim m a d e by Tabitha in the subsequent narrative w h e n she resurrects herself: "You h a v e no power over m y soul [ ε τ λ ψ γ Χ Η ] nor over my body [ o y j u e π λ ο ι ο μ α ] " (4:5b); but it does not m a k e sense in the context of the Lawless One's signs (where power "over" souls does not m a k e as much difference as power "to give" life). The addition of the object marker and indefinite article in Sa 3 clarifies that it is the Lawless One's inability to give life that is at issue. 62. See discussion, pp. 117-25. 63. These words have c o n f o u n d e d translators and editors; a thorough discussion of the interpretative problems can be f o u n d in Wintermute, 746 n. w. Jean-Marc Rosenstiehl's attempt to connect ΠΒΛΗΌ (Sa 3 , Ach; Sa 1 : Π6ΛΗΚ) to an Essene n a m e for Hyrcanus II ("house of Peleg": CD 20.22; 4 Q p N a h 3.9; cf. Rosenstiehl, 68-69, 98; a n d idem, "Un sobriquet essenien d a n s l'Apocalypse copte d'Elie," Semitica 15 [1965]:97-99) has not met with much agreement; but this word—presumably a n o u n — h a s not since found other interpretations. C r u m (333A) suggests the interpretation of CAAAtyeie (missing in Ach and assumed for the lacuna in Sa 3 ms. p. 13) be "tall" or even "monstrously tall" (148A), a detail that would correspond to other adversary physiognomies, such as that of the Greek Apocalypse of Daniel: "The height of his stature (will be) fifteen feet" (tr. G. T. Zervos, OTP 1:767); and even that of Sefer Eliahu: "his stature is extremely tall" (ed. EbenShmuel, Midr'shei Geulah [Jerusalem: Mosad Bialik, 1954]). See Jean-Marc Rosenstiehl, "Le portrait de Tantichrist," in Pseudepigraphes de I'ancien testament et manuscrits de la mer morte, ed. Marc Philonenko (Paris: Presses universitaires, 1967), 54. 64. On the interpretation of Ν6ΑΛΟΥΒΤ2 (Sa) and Ν0)ΑΤΜ€2ΗΛ (Ach), see von Lemm, "Kleine koptische Studien—XXVI: 16,' 229-30; Crum, 21 IB.

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eyelids reach to his ears, (and) there is a leprous spot on the front of his hands.

eyebrows reach to his ears, (and) there is a leprous spot on the front of his hands.

16. He will transform himself before you: at one time he will be an old man; but at another time he will be a young boy.

16. He will transform himself in the presence of those who see him: at one time he will be a young boy but at another time he will be an old man.

17. He will transform himself in every sign,66 but the sign of his head he will not be able to change.

17. He will transform himself in every sign, but the sign of his head he will not be able to change.

18. By this you will know that he is the Lawless One!

18. By this you will know that he is the Lawless One!

65

The Legend of Tabitha 4.1. The virgin whose name is Tabitha67 will hear that the Shameless One has made his appearance in the holy places.68

4.1. The virgin whose name is Tabitha will hear that the Shameless One has made his appearance in the holy places.

She will put on her garment of linen, 2. and hurry up to Judea, reproving him as far as Jerusalem, saying to him, "O Shameless One, Ο Lawless One, Ο you who are hostile to all the saints!‫״‬

She will put on her garment of linen, 2. and hurry after him up to Judea, reproving him as far as Jerusalem, saying, Ό Shameless One, Ο Lawless One, Ο you who are hostile to all the saints!‫״‬

65. A c h is p r e f e r r e d o n this d i v e r g e n c e ; S a 3 m a k e s little s e n s e in t h e c o n t e x t , w h i c h c o n c e r n s t h e h a i r a r r a n g e m e n t of t h e L a w l e s s O n e . Cf. W i n t e r m u t e , 746 n. z. 66. Sa 3 ; Sa 1 : "in his signs." 67. E v i d e n t l y n o t t h e T a b i t h a (Dorcas) of A c t s 9 (pace S t e i n d o r f f , 9 2 - 9 3 η. 1; W i n t e r m u t e , 746 n. 4a). R a t h e r , t h i s e s c h a t o l o g i c a l T a b i t h a is a c o m b i n a t i o n of Bithia, t h e d a u g h t e r of P h a r a o h , w h o w a s v i e w e d in early E g y p t i a n J u d a i s m a s a r i g h t e o u s G e n t i l e w h o e n t e r e d h e a v e n alive (Ex 2:5-10; 1 C h r 4:17; Exod. Rab. 1.26, 18.3; Lev. Rab. 1.3; Der. Er. Zut. 1.18) a n d w o u l d r e t u r n in t h e e s c h a t o n (cf. History of Joseph the Carpenter [Arabic] 32), a n d Ta‫־‬Bitjet, w i f e of t h e g o d H o r u s a n d s c o r p i o n g o d d e s s , by w h o s e b l o o d p o i s o n s w e r e a d j u r e d in t r a d i t i o n a l E g y p t i a n m a g i c (cf. B o r g h o u t s , nos. 97-98, 101; cf. B a u d o u i n v a n d e Walle, " L ' O s t r a c o n Ε 3209 d e s M u s e e s R o y a u x d ' A r t et d ' H i s t o i r e m e n t i o n n a n t la d e e s s e s c o r p i o n Ta-Bithet," Chronique d'Egypte 42 [1967]:1329). T h e a p p e a r a n c e of a T a b i t h i a w i t h Isiac c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s in t h e C o p t i c ritual text L o n d o n H a y 10391 ( = K r o p p , vol. 1, text Μ), II. 5 0 - 7 7 , s u g g e s t s t h a t t r a d i t i o n s of TaBitjet c o n t i n u e d w i t h i n ritual t r a d i t i o n s of t h e g o d d e s s Isis. In g e n e r a l , s e e D a v i d Τ. M. F r a n k f u r t e r , " T a b i t h a in t h e A p o c a l y p s e of E l i j a h , ‫ ׳‬ITS 41 (1990): 13-25. 68. Sa 3 ; Sa 1 : "holy places."

The T e x t of the Apocalypse of Elijah in English

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3. Then the Shameless One will be angered at the virgin. He will pursue her towards the west. He will suck her blood in the evening 4. and toss her up onto the temple, and she will become a healing69 for the people. 5. At dawn she will rise up alive and rebuke him, saying, "You Shameless One—you have no power over my spirit70 or my body, because I live in the Lord always! 6. And even my blood which you cast upon the temple has become a healing for the people!‫״‬ The Return of Elijah and Enoch 7. Then when Elijah and Enoch hear that the Shameless One has made his appearance in the holy places71 they will come down to do battle with him, saying, 8. Are you not ashamed that you are always estranged [when you associate yourself with the saints (Sa1)]? 9.72 You have become an enemy to the heavenly ones and you have acted against those on earth. 10. You are an enemy of the angels and the Thrones.73 You are always a stranger.

69. 70. 71. 72. 73.

ογ-XAi. Cf. the *healing" (βίρατηναν) of the fast in 1:21. ψυχή, translated *life' above (3:13). Again, Sa 1 maintains "place* in t h e singular. See discussion of this diatribe, pp. 130-32. Sa 3 ; Sa 1 reverses: "the Thrones and the angels.*

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11. Y o u h a v e f a l l e n f r o m h e a v e n l i k e the m o r n i n g star. You c h a n g e d ( a n d ) your74 lineage75 b e c a m e d a r k to you. 12. A r e y o u n o t i n d e e d a s h a m e d , a s you establish yourself against G o d ? — Y o u , Ο Devil! 7 6 13. T h e S h a m e l e s s O n e will h e a r a n d be angered a n d do battle with t h e m in t h e m a r k e t of t h e g r e a t city. 7 7 H e will s p e n d s e v e n d a y s f i g h t i n g w i t h

them and kill them; 14. a n d t h e y will s p e n d t h r e e a n d a h a l f d a y s d e a d in t h e m a r k e t w h i l e all t h e p e o p l e l o o k u p o n t h e m . 15. B u t o n t h e f o u r t h d a y t h e y will rise a g a i n 7 8 a n d r e p r o v e h i m , s a y i n g : Ο Shameless One,

Ό Shameless One,

Ο Lawless One, Are you not indeed a s h a m e d , you w h o d e c e i v e t h e p e o p l e of G o d f o r w h o m you have not suffered? Do y o u n o t k n o w t h a t w e live in t h e

Lord so that we may rebuke you?

Are you not indeed ashamed, you w h o d e c e i v e t h e p e o p l e of G o d f o r w h o m you have not suffered? Do y o u n o t k n o w t h a t w e live in t h e Lord?‫״‬

74. Sa 3 ; Sa 1 : "the lineage." 75. τεκφγΛΗ. Because the preceding strophe refers to the Lucifer myth (Is 14:12), it is likely that this strophe should be read as continuing the myth (cf. Rosenstiehl, 101 n. ad loc; and Κ. H. Kuhn, review of The Apocalypse of Elijah, by Albert Pietersma, Journal of Semitic Studies 27 [1982]:315). Thus the adversary's "lineage," "race," or "tribe" would be angelic. Note that the Book of the Watchers refers to the fallen angels as "lawless ones" (άνομοι; 1 En 7:6). 76. Sa 1 clearly has OYAIABO\OC; Sa 3 has a lacuna here, but the stem of some letter that could not be o y - is visible immediately before the break (cf. Pietersma, 83 [facsimile of ms. p. 15)). Although Pietersma reads this letter as n - (thus: "you are the devil; 48), it appears more likely to be a dalda, the first letter of AUBOAOC. The use of ΝΤΟΚ in the last two lines is an intensification of the primary n o u n . 77. Although commentators h a v e rightly signaled the basis of this scene in Rv 11:212 (cf. Richard Bauckham, "The Martyrdom of Enoch and Elijah: Jewish or Christian?" IBL 95, 3 [1976):457-58; idem, ' E n o c h and Elijah in t h e Coptic Apocalypse of Elijah," Studia patristica 16, 2 [1985]:72-73), where the "great city" is clearly Jerusalem, Wintermute also rightly notes that t h e term has a more general significance as "the metropolis of a detested enemy" (748 n. w). In this case, the use of αγορά, echoing the oracle in 2:31, suggests a synthesis between Rv 11:8 and a nationalistic Egyptian view of Alexandria, the "great city" of Egypt at this time and certainly the most proximate stereotype of a great urban marketplace for a third-century Egyptian writer. 78. Sa 3 : "But . . . again"; Sa 1 omits.

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16. Whenever you say, "I have overpowered them,"79 we will lay down the flesh of this body and kill you, as you are powerless to speak on that day, for we live in the Lord always, but81 you are always an enemy!

16. When the words were spoken they overpowered him, 80 saying, "We will lay down the flesh for the spirit and kill you, as you are powerless to speak on that day, for we are strong in the Lord always, but you are always an enemy of God!

17. The Shameless One will listen, infuriated, and do battle with them. 18. The whole city will surround them.

17. The Shameless One will listen; he will be angry and do battle with them. 18. The whole city will surround them.

19. On that day they will shout aloud to heaven, shining, while the whole world watches them, and the Lawless One will not overpower them.

19. On that day they will shout aloud to heaven, shining, while all the people and the whole world watch them. The Lawless One will not overpower them.

Martyrdoms 8 2 20. He will grow angry at the land and will seek to sin against the people.

20. He will grow angry at the land and will seek to sin against the people. 21. He will pursue all of the saints. They will be brought back in chains, along with the priests of the land.

22. He will command that their eyes be seared with an iron borer.

22. He will kill them. He will exterminate 83 them [ | them, that their eyes be put out with sticks of iron;

79. Following syntax suggested by W i n t e r m u t e , 748 n. c2. 80. ε γ , χ ο γ ficye.xe ΛΓΌΠΌΛΜ Λ ‫ ין‬AC! ε γ , χ ο γ MMAC. W i n t e r m u t e a l o n e h a s r e n d e r e d the sense of these lines (748 n. c2); o t h e r translators h a v e ignored t h e m as corrupt (Steindorff, 93 n. 3; Kuhn, 769 n. 22). P r e s u m a b l y the A c h m i m i c scribe received f r a g m e n t a r y w o r d s ("overpower," "saying") f r o m a Greek or Sahidic original that read more closely to w h a t is h e r e translated as Sa. In giving m e a n i n g to these f r a g m e n t s , h o w e v e r , the scribe evidently synthesized a traditional Egyptian magical image, that of "words" that themselves might "overpower." See above, p p . 129-30. 81. Sa 1 : a e ; cf. Ach: Λ 6 . I t a k e the Sahidic as a corruption of the G r e e k preserved in Ach. 82. See discussion, c h a p . 6, p p . 141-47. 83. e i p e + Greek ολ«'κω.

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Ach 23. He will remove the skin from their heads. 84

Sa

23. H e will r e m o v e t h e i r n a i l s o n e b y o n e . H e will c o m m a n d t h a t v i n e g a r with lime be s h o v e d into their nostrils.

The Heavenly R!

H e will r e m o v e t h e i r n a i l s o n e b y o n e . H e will c o m m a n d t h a t v i n e g a r w i t h l i m e b e p u t in t h e i r n o s t r i l s .

s of Martyrdom85

24. But t h o s e w h o a r e u n a b l e t o b e a r t h e t o r t u r e s of t h a t k i n g will t a k e t h e i r g o l d a n d flee t o t h e f e r r i e s ,

24. But t h o s e w h o a r e u n a b l e t o b e a r t h e t o r t u r e s of t h a t k i n g will t a k e g o l d a n d flee t o t h e f e r r i e s , t o p l a c e s

saying, "Ferry us to the desert."

in the desert.

T h e y will lie d o w n l i k e o n e a s l e e p , 25. w h i l e t h e L o r d will t a k e u p t o

T h e y will lie d o w n like o n e a s l e e p . 25. T h e L o r d will t a k e u p t o h i m s e l f

himself their spirits a n d their souls.

their spirits a n d their souls.

26. T h e i r f l e s h will b e c o m e like rock; 8 6 n o w i l d a n i m a l s will e a t t h e m u n t i l t h e last d a y of t h e g r e a t judgment.

26. T h e i r f l e s h will b e c o m e like r o c k ; n o w i l d a n i m a l s will e a t t h e m u n t i l t h e l a s t d a y of t h e g r e a t j u d g m e n t .

27. T h e y will a r i s e a n d r e c e i v e a p l a c e of rest. But t h e y will n o t i n h a b i t t h e K i n g d o m of t h e C h r i s t like t h o s e w h o h a v e e n d u r e d . 8 7

27. T h e y will a r i s e a n d find a p l a c e of r e s t . But t h e y will n o t i n h a b i t t h e K i n g d o m of t h e C h r i s t l i k e t h o s e w h o have endured.

But for those who have endured, s a y s t h e L o r d , I will a p p o i n t t h e m t o sit a t m y right h a n d .

F o r t h e L o r d s a y s , 1 will a p p o i n t t h e m t o sit a t m y r i g h t h a n d . 28.

They will receive favor over others. 28. T h e y will t r i u m p h o v e r t h e L a w l e s s O n e . T h e y will w i t n e s s t h e d e s t r u c t i o n of h e a v e n a n d e a r t h . 29. T h e y will r e c e i v e t h e t h r o n e s of g l o r y and the crowns.

T h e y will t r i u m p h o v e r t h e L a w l e s s O n e . T h e y will w i t n e s s t h e d e s t r u c t i o n of h e a v e n a n d e a r t h . 29. T h e y will r e c e i v e t h e t h r o n e s of g l o r y a n d the crowns.

84. Here Ach and Sa 1 agree against Sa 3 . 85. See discussion, pp. 147-51. 86. Sa 1 and Sa 3 h a v e NEPN A ("ham"), but this is obviously a corruption of Greek νίτρα, preserved in Ach; cf. Rosenstiehl, "L'Apocalypse d'Elie," 281; Wintermute, 749 n. r2. 87. Greek υνομίνίΐν. A hierarchical difference between those w h o flee and those w h o suffer is indicated; see discussion above, pp. 152-54.

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The Challenge of the Sixty Righteous Ones 30. In t h a t t i m e sixty r i g h t e o u s o n e s ,

30. In t h a t t i m e s i x t y

p r e p a r e d f o r t h a t h o u r , will h e a r . 31. T h e y will gird t h e m s e l v e s w i t h t h e b r e a s t p l a t e of G o d . T h e y will r u n t o Jerusalem, fighting88 with the Shameless O n e , saying:

p r e p a r e d f o r t h a t h o u r , will h e a r . 31. T h e y will g i r d t h e m s e l v e s w i t h t h e b r e a s t p l a t e of G o d . T h e y will r u n t o Jerusalem, fighting with the S h a m e less O n e , s a y i n g :

Every feat89 w h i c h the p r o p h e t s performed, you have performed, but y o u w e r e q u i t e u n a b l e to raise a corpse, b e c a u s e you lack t h e p o w e r . By t h i s w e h a v e r e c o g n i z e d t h a t y o u are the Lawless One!

Every feat w h i c h t h e p r o p h e t s performed f r o m the b e g i n n i n g you

32. T h e S h a m e l e s s O n e will h e a r a n d b e a n g e r e d a n d c o m m a n d 33. that the Righteous O n e s be b o u n d and heaped up on altars and burned.

In illo tempore:

righteous

ones,

h a v e p e r f o r m e d , (but) you were u n able to raise a corpse, because you l a c k t h e p o w e r t o g i v e l i f e . By t h i s w e h a v e recognized that you are the Lawless One! 32. H e will h e a r . H e ( w i l l ) b e a n g e r e d : H e (will) c o m m a n d that a l t a r s b e l i t , 33. t h a t t h e R i g h t e o u s Ones be bound, h e a p e d up, and burned.

T h e Evacuation of the Saints

5.1. A n d in t h a t t i m e t h e h e a r t s of m a n y will t u r n a w a y a n d w i t h d r a w

5 . 1 A n d in t h a t t i m e t h e h e a r t s of m a n y will h a r d e n a n d t h e y w i l l f l e e

from him, saying,

from him, saying, T h i s is n o t t h e C h r i s t ! T h e C h r i s t

T h i s is n o t t h e C h r i s t ! F o r t h e C h r i s t d o e s n o t kill t h e R i g h t e o u s , n o r d o e s h e p u r s u e p e o p l e of t r u t h . W i l l h e not (rather) s e e k to persuade t h e m with signs a n d wonders?90 2. In t h a t t i m e t h e C h r i s t will h a v e p i t y u p o n t h o s e w h o a r e his.

d o e s n o t kill t h e R i g h t e o u s , n o r d o e s he pursue people w h e n he will seek (them), but he p e r s u a d e s them with signs a n d wonders. 2. In t h a t t i m e t h e C h r i s t will h a v e p i t y u p o n t h o s e w h o a r e his.

88. Sa 3 , Ach: eyMicye; Sa" seems to preserve the original Greek with ε γ π ο λ β Μ ΐ . 89. The focus of discussion here, Coptic 60M, has been variously translated "feat" and "power." 90. Pietersma's reconstruction of Sa 3 here (18, 11. 19-21) does not require an interrogative sense, but the alternative translation—"he will not try to persuade them"— poses a n e n o r m o u s theological contradiction to the other recensions, a tendency not elsewhere implied in Sa 3 . Sa 1 introduces a parallel negative interrogative with the Greek μή and strengthens the sense with N £ 0 y 0 , ‫״‬all the more" (ms. p. 10, II. 29-30; in Steindorff, 134).

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H e will s e n d h i s a n g e l s f r o m h e a v e n

H e will s e n d h i s a n g e l s f r o m h e a v e n

t o t h e n u m b e r of s i x t y - f o u r t h o u -

t o t h e n u m b e r of s i x t y - f o u r t h o u -

s a n d , e a c h w i t h six w i n g s . 9 1 3. T h e i r

s a n d , e a c h w i t h six w i n g s . 3. T h e i r

s o u n d will m o v e h e a v e n a n d e a r t h as they bless a n d glorify.

s o u n d will m o v e h e a v e n a n d e a r t h as they bless a n d glorify.

4. T h o s e u p o n w h o s e f o r e h e a d is i n s c r i b e d t h e n a m e of t h e C h r i s t , u p o n w h o s e right h a n d is t h e s e a l — f r o m little t o g r e a t — t h e y will lift t h e m u p on their w i n g s a n d carry them away before the w r a t h .

4. N o w t h o s e u p o n w h o s e f o r e h e a d is i n s c r i b e d t h e n a m e of t h e C h r i s t , u p o n w h o s e r i g h t h a n d is t h e s e a l — f r o m little t o g r e a t — t h e y will lift t h e m u p on their wings a n d carry them away before his fury.

5. T h e n G a b r i e l a n d Uriel will m a k e a p i l l a r of light 9 2 a n d l e a d t h e m u n t i l t h e y b r i n g t h e m into the holy land93

5. T h e n G a b r i e l a n d U r i e l will m a k e a p i l l a r of light, l e a d i n g t h e m i n t o t h e h o l y l a n d 6. a n d g r a n t i n g t h e m t o e a t f r o m t h e t r e e of life, a n d t o w e a r white garments; and the angels w a t c h o v e r t h e m . 9 4 A n d t h e y will n o t

6. a n d g r a n t t h e m t o e a t f r o m t h e t r e e of l i f e a n d t o w e a r t h e w h i t e g a r ment; and the angels watch over

91. This image of seraphim as warrior or rescue angels is unique, as their role as guardians of the throne of God and singers of the heavenly trisagion (Isaiah 6:1-3) remained relatively circumscribed throughout apocalyptic literature (2 En 21:1; Apoc. Ab. 18; Rv 4:8); and even the mid-fourth-century Egyptian liturgy ascribed to Serapion of Thmuis maintains the seraphim's specialized function: "Beside Thee stand t h o u s a n d thousands and ten t h o u s a n d times ten t h o u s a n d s of angels, archangels, thrones, dominations, principalities, powers: by Thee stand the two most h o n o u r a b l e six-winged Seraphim, with two wings covering the Face and with Two the Feet and with two flying, and crying 'Holy'; with w h o m receive also our cry of 'Holy' as w e say, Holy, holy, holy" (tr. Gregory Dix, in idem, The Shape of the Liturgy [San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1945], 163). In the following verse (ApocEl 5:4), the author has d r a w n on the tradition of the seraphim's loud, unearthly voices (Apoc. Ab. 18:2-3; cf. Ez 1:24) to portray the cosmos as filled with the throne liturgy during this period of the last days. The immensity of the signs preceding the rescue of the righteous might be compared to 1 Thes 3:16 and Mt 24:30-31. 92. The imagery is d r a w n from Ex 13:21-22, but translators have differed in h o w to take the archangels' role here: as themselves the pillar (Wintermute; Kuhn; Pietersma), or as the creators of the pillar (Steindorff; Rosenstiehl; Schrage). These differences arise from the ambiguous Coptic e i p e . Uriel might plausibly be identified with the biblical pillar of fire (Hebrew: ‫"[ אידיאל‬light of God"]), and in Rossi Tractate 8.6 an angel Ioriel is invoked "by the cloud [6ΗΠ6] of light which is with the Father, in which he was hidden before he created anything." Gabriel is only associated with such a pillar in Rossi Tractate 15.1—"I invoke you, Gabriel, by t h e grea[t pjillar of l[ight]"—but is generally not e n d o w e d with such symbols in Coptic tradition: cf. Kropp, 3:81-83; Origen, De princip. 1.8.1 (Gabriel supervises wars). 93. Sa 3 ; Sa 1 = "the holy place [ΠΜΑ ε τ ο γ λ λ ( » ] . " The variation offers additional reason to take "holy land" as an idealized Palestine. "The holy place" was a c o m m o n e u p h e m i s m for the Jerusalem temple: Ep. Aristeas 81; 2 Macc 5:17-20; 3 Macc 1:9, 23. 94. Ach becomes extremely lacunose in this section, but Schmidt ("Der Kolophon," 321) improved immensely u p o n Steindorff s reconstruction; cf. Wintermute, 750 n. q.

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t h e m . A n d t h e y will n e i t h e r h u n g e r

t h i r s t , n o r will t h e L a w l e s s O n e h a v e

n o r thirst, n o r will t h e Lawless O n e

power over them,

have p o w e r over them.

T h e Decline of t h e E a r t h 9 5 7. T h e n , in t h a t t i m e , t h e e a r t h will t r e m b l e ; t h e s u n will g r o w d a r k . P e a c e will b e r e m o v e d f r o m u p o n the earth and under heaven [

7. T h e n , in t h a t t i m e , t h e e a r t h w i l l t r e m b l e ; t h e s u n will g r o w d a r k . P e a c e will b e r e m o v e d f r o m u p o n the earth.

] 96 T h e t r e e s w i l l

be u p r o o t e d a n d topple over. Wild b e a s t s a n d f a r m a n i m a l s will d i e in a c a t a s t r o p h e . 9 7 8. Birds w i l l fall o n t h e ground dead,

9. [The earth will parch (Sa1),] and t h e w a t e r s of t h e s e a will d r y u p . 10. T h e s i n n e r s will l a m e n t o n t h e earth, W h a t h a v e y o u d o n e to us, L a w l e s s O n e , s a y i n g "I a m t h e Christ‫ ״‬w h e n you are the L a w l e s s

9. T h e e a r t h will p a r c h , a n d t h e w a t e r s of t h e s e a w i l l d r y u p .

save yourself so that y o u m i g h t s a v e u s . Y o u p e r f o r m e d v a i n s i g n s in o u r presence until you estranged us f r o m the Christ w h o created e v e r y one. W o e to us, for w e listened to you!

10. T h e s i n n e r s will l a m e n t o n t h e e a r t h , W h a t h a v e y o u d o n e to us, L a w l e s s O n e , s a y i n g "I a m t h e C h r i s t ‫ ״‬w h e n y o u a r e t h e D e v i l ? 11. But y o u a r e p o w e r l e s s t o s a v e y o u r self s o t h a t y o u m i g h t s a v e u s . Y o u p e r f o r m e d s i g n s in o u r p r e s e n c e until you estranged us from the Christ w h o c r e a t e d us. W o e to us, f o r w e listened to you!

12. S e e , n o w w e w i l l d i e i n a f a m i n e 9 8

12. S e e , n o w w e will d i e in a f a m i n e .

One? 11. But you are powerless to

and tribulation. I n d e e d , w h e r e n o w is t h e f o o t p r i n t of a r i g h t e o u s p e r s o n t h a t w e s h o u l d w o r s h i p y o u , o r w h e r e is o u r teacher, that w e might appeal to him?

I n d e e d , w h e r e n o w is t h e f o o t p r i n t of a r i g h t e o u s p e r s o n t h a t w e s h o u l d w o r s h i p h i m , o r w h e r e is o u r teacher, t h a t w e m i g h t a p p e a l to him?

95. See discussion, p. 204. 96. O n e and a half lines are missing f r o m Sa 3 , but because Sa 1 proceeds immediately to the following lines, it is impossible to determine what is missing f r o m Sa 3 . 97. α ; τ ο ρ τ ρ , the same word translated above as "tremble,* here with indefinite article. Naphtali Lewis provides a helpful picture of the world of farm animals ( τ Β Ν 0 0 γ ε ) , as a third-century Egyptian might imagine their demise by this verse (Life in Egypt under Roman Rule [Oxford: Clarendon, 1983], 130-33). 98. Although the mss. agree in the reading o y £ e BIUCUN—*evil way"—Pierre Lacau suggested convincingly that this be restored o y 2 e BtotuNe—"famine" ("Remarques sur le manuscrit a k h m i m i q u e des apocalypses de Sophonie et d'Elie," JA 254 [1966]:191; cf. Crum, 643A; Wintermute, 751 n. e2; and Rosenstiehl, *L'Apocalypse d'Elie," 278).

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Sa 13. Now we will be destroyed in wrath, because we disobeyed God.

Ach 13. Now we will be destroyed in wrath [one leaf missing]

14. We went to the depths of the sea and we found no water. We dug in the rivers and papyrus reeds" and we found no water. 15. Then the Shameless One will weep100 in that time, saying, Woe is me, too, for my time has passed away!1011 was saying that my time would not pass away, 16. (but) my years have become months, my days have passed like dust blowing away.102 Now indeed I will perish like you! 17. Now, indeed, flee to the desert! Seize robbers and kill them!10318. Bring up the saints—104 99. The ingenious translation "papyrus reeds" from MNNJLC€ MMA£€ (V. 14b) comes from Wintermute (751 n. 12); Steindorff's translation, "sixteen cubits" (141), is followed by Pietersma (59), Kuhn (772), a n d Schrage (268). Rosenstiehl (111) justifies this reading with a quotation from Pliny, that the height of the Nile is sixteen cubits (Nat. Hist. 5.5758); but because the Nile flooded at radically inconsistent levels during the Roman period (cf. Lewis, Life in Egypt, 114-15, on the second century), it is scarcely possible that the author of the Elijah Apocalypse could h a v e k n o w n this "fact" from Pliny. 100. Sa 3 has room for a n o t h e r line of text before "in that time," but the condition of the manuscript gives no clue as to w h a t w o r d s w o u l d h a v e been there (cf. Pietersma, 58, 88). 101. Sa 3 e n d s here, a n d the scribe has completed the page with line fillers (cf. Pietersma, 88). 102. oycuTB, the d o m i n a n t verb in these laments, translated here so as to preserve the simile. 103. This c o m m a n d seems to be a n o n sequitur in the context. It should probably be read as the suddenly penitent Lawless O n e ' s attempt to rid the land of chaotic elements (other than himself)‫ ׳‬just as h e tries to reestablish fertility in the following verse. Schrage reads the opposite sense, h o w e v e r (269 n. h; cf. 268 n. g): c o o w e does not m e a n "robbers" but Herumstreichenden, p r e s u m a b l y the desert refugees of 4:24, a n d Schrage refers to Pss. Sol. 17:17-18, w h e r e desert refugees are harried by "lawless ones." Besides the improbable derivation of COONC from the verb c m e ("pass through"), this interpretation would require the preceding c o m m a n d to "flee" ( ‫ ) ז ש ח‬to be, rather, "run out" (with the intent of h u n t i n g d o w n the remaining Righteous Ones). Finally, unless this c o m m a n d is m e a n t to "flashback" to t h e e n d of ApocEl 4, it is unclear w h a t Righteous O n e s would be left on the earth after 5:6. 104. ΑΝετογλλΒ ANicoy Α£ρλ1. eiNe ezpai clearly m e a n s "bring up" (Crum, 80A). But in the Apocalypse of Elijah the saints are either in the desert (4:24-26), h e a v e n (4:28-29), or in "the holy land" (5:5). The strange reference here to an u n d e r w o r l d of

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F o r b e c a u s e of t h e m t h e e a r t h g i v e s fruit, F o r b e c a u s e of t h e m t h e s u n s h i n e s u p o n the earth, For b e c a u s e of t h e m t h e d e w f a l l s u p o n the earth! 19. T h e s i n n e r s will w e e p , s a y i n g , Y o u h a v e m a d e u s e n e m i e s of G o d . If y o u h a v e t h e p o w e r , rise a n d r u n after them!

The Last Battle 20. T h e n h e will t a k e t o h i s w i n g s of fire a n d fly a f t e r t h e s a i n t s . H e will do battle with t h e m again.105 21. T h e a n g e l s will h e a r , c o m e d o w n , a n d d o battle with him, fighting with many swords. 22. It will h a p p e n a t t h a t t i m e t h a t t h e L o r d will h e a r a n d g i v e a c o m m a n d in g r e a t w r a t h : t h a t t h e h e a v e n a n d t h e e a r t h s p e w o u t fire, 23. a n d t h e fire will o v e r c o m e t h e e a r t h ( t o a d e p t h o f ) s e v e n t y - t w o c u b i t s . It will c o n s u m e the sinners and the devils like s t r a w . 1 0 6

strajw

The Last Judgment 24. T h e r e w i l l b e a t r u e j u d g m e n t at

24

t h a t t i m e . 25. T h e m o u n t a i n s a n d t h e e a r t h will let f o r t h t h e i r v o i c e s . A t

t i m e 25. t h e m o u n t a i n s a n d t h e e a r t h will let f o r t h t h e i r v o i c e s ,

i n a t r u e j u d g m e n t . At t h a t

that time[... 1 0 7

saints may derive f r o m popular rather than received apocalyptic tradition, just as the following, parallel descriptions of saints' functions d r a w on popular traditions. 105. "Again" (ON) must refer to the Lawless One's battle with the sixty Righteous Ones, 4:30-33. 106. Notice the repeat of the simile in 1:4, here reversed: rather than the devil consuming men like fire in straw, t h e fire c o n s u m e s devils like straw. 107. Sa' ends here.

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Ach The roadways will say to each other, Have you heard today the voice of a man who walks who does not go before the judgment of the Son of God?109 108

26. The sins of each one will stand against him in the place where they were committed, whether of the day or of the night.110 27. The Righteous Ones and the [ ] will see the sinners in punishment, along with those who persecuted them and those who delivered them over to die. 28. Then the sinners [ ] will see the place of the Righteous Ones; 29. and thus there will be grace.111

108. N j o o y = Ν 2 · ο ο γ ε (cf. W i n t e r m u t e , 752 n. w2). 109. T h e a w k w a r d u s e of c i r c u m l o c u t i o n s in this q u e s t i o n h a s t h e ring of a w i s d o m saying, s u c h as t h o s e p o p u l a r in b o t h E g y p t i a n scribal t r a d i t i o n s a n d m o n a s t i c l i t e r a t u r e (as well as t h e Bible itself). It m i g h t be p a r a p h r a s e d : *Can y o u c o n c e i v e of a single h u m a n w h o w o n ' t f i n d h i m - or herself b e i n g j u d g e d in t h e afterlife?" W i s d o m s a y i n g s on t h e inevitability of j u d g m e n t a f t e r d e a t h w e r e p o p u l a r in Egypt: cf. Merikare 11. 5057, w h e r e life is similarly s y m b o l i z e d a s "striding"; a n d A b b a O r s i s i u s ' s s i m p l e a d m o n i t i o n that, h o w e v e r p u r e a m o n k is, " e v e n s o w e shall scarcely e s c a p e t h e j u d g m e n t of G o d " ( A p o p h t h e g m a t a Patrum: a l p h a b e t i c a l : O r s i s i u s 1; tr. Benedicta W a r d , in The Desert Christian: The Sayings of the Desert Fathers [ N e w York: M a c m i l l a n , 1980], 161). 110. Cf. t h e j u d g m e n t s c e n e in t h e C o p t i c Apocalypse of Paul: Ό Lord G o d A l m i g h t y , I a m t h e angel of t h i s soul, a n d I b r o u g h t u n t o t h e e its d e e d s , b o t h t h o s e b e l o n g i n g to t h e d a y a n d t h o s e b e l o n g i n g to t h e n i g h t ; j u d g e it a c c o r d i n g to its j u d g m e n t . " T h e i m a g e is s u b s e q u e n t l y e x p l a i n e d t o P a u l : " W h e n [souls] a p p e a r b e f o r e t h e t h r o n e of G o d , t h e sins of e a c h m a n , a s well a s his g o o d d e e d s , b e c o m e m a n i f e s t " (fols. 25 r , 26 r ; in E. A. Wallis Budge, tr., Miscellaneous Coptic Texts in the Dialect of Upper Egypt [ L o n d o n : British M u s e u m , 1915], 1045, 1046; [text] 558, 559). In g e n e r a l , see Budge, Miscellaneous Coptic Texts, clxii-lxiii; R. P. C a s e y , "The A p o c a l y p s e of Paul," JTS 34 (1933):10-14. A similar i m a g e m a y b e a l l u d e d to in Wisdom of Solomon: "Their l a w l e s s d e e d s will c o n v i c t t h e m t o their face" (4:20). 111. T h e i m a g e of t h e c o n d e m n e d a n d righteous in v i e w of e a c h o t h e r w a s a w i d e s p r e a d t h e m e in G r e c o - R o m a n J e w i s h literature, e p i t o m i z e d in t h e tale of L a z a r u s (Lk 16:23-26), w h i c h b e a r s i m p o r t a n t parallels t o t h e a n c i e n t E g y p t i a n s t o r y of S e t n e K h a m w a s a n d S i - O s i r e (see L i c h t h e i m , 3:25-26, 38-42; M a r t h a H i m m e l f a r b , Tours of Hell: An Apocalyptic Form in Jewish and Christian Literature [ P h i l a d e l p h i a : U n i v e r s i t y of P e n n s y l v a n i a Press, 1983], 79-81; Richard B a u c k h a m , "The Rich M a n a n d Lazarus: T h e P a r a b l e a n d t h e Parallels," NTS 37 [1991]:225-46). T h e vividly "gloating" f o r c e of t h i s i m a g e s u g g e s t s its literary f u n c t i o n m u s t b e c o n t i n u o u s b e t w e e n t h e Elijah A p o c a l y p s e

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[Sa]

In t h a t t i m e w h a t t h e R i g h t e o u s r e q u e s t will b e g i v e n t o t h e m m a n y times over.112 30. In t h a t t i m e t h e L o r d will j u d g e heaven and earth: h e will j u d g e t h e t r a n s g r e s s o r s in heaven, Grk

a n d those w h o acted thus on earth.

. . . t h e s h e p h e r d s of t h e p e o p l e :

31. H e w i l l j u d g e t h e s h e p h e r d s of

h e will a s k t h e m a b o u t t h e f l o c k of

the people: h e w i l l a s k t h e m a b o u t t h e flock of

sheep; a n d t h e y will b e h a n d e d o v e r 1 1 3

sheep; a n d t h e y will b e g i v e n t o h i m

w i t h o u t deceit.

w i t h o u t d e a d l y deceit.

Eschaton and Millennium 32. A f t e r t h e s e t h i n g s E l i j a h a n d E n o c h will c o m e d o w n . T h e y will p u t a s i d e t h e f l e s h of t h e w o r l d a n d p u t o n t h e " f l e s h " of t h e spirit

32. A f t e r t h i s E l i j a h a n d E n o c h (will) c o m e d o w n . T h e y (will) l a y a s i d e t h e f l e s h of t h i s w o r l d ( a n d ) p u t o n t h e " f l e s h " of t h e s p i r i t .

T h e y will p u r s u e t h e L a w l e s s O n e .

T h e y (will) p u r s u e t h e L a w l e s s O n e . T h e y (will) kill h i m w i t h o u t h i s b e i n g a b l e to utter a w o r d . 33. In t h a t t i m e h e will d i s s o l v e i n t h e i r p r e s e n c e a s ice d i s s o l v e s in fire. H e w i l l p e r i s h like a s e r p e n t w i t h n o b r e a t h in it. 114

and its parallels in Jewish sectarian texts (Jub 23:30; I [Parables] En 62:11; 1 [Epistle of] En 108:14-15), to experience vicariously the reversal of a present situation in which o p p o n e n t s (or persecutors) are e m p o w e r e d to the (perceived) detriment of the author and audience. 112. By its position, ΝΟΛΠ should m o d i f y "request" (ρ λ ί τ ε ι ) , as translators have customarily taken it; but sense is restored by reading it with "it will be given to them [ceNATeeq]." 113. παραδοθήσονται: Pietersma's suggested reconstruction of part of missing line (92). 114. The content and use of these two similes is strongly evocative of t h e similes in Egyptian, Greco-Egyptian, and Coptic curses and binding spells, suggesting a morethan-narrative function to this passage. See chap. 4, pp. 133-39.

APPENDIX

328

Sa

Ach 34. They will say to him, Your time has passed by! Now indeed you will perish with those who believe in you! 35. They will be thrown into the bottom of the pit and it will be closed over them. 36. In that time the Christ (will) descend from heaven—the king with all his saints. 37. He (will) burn this earth. He (will) spend one thousand years on it, 38. because the sinners ruled it (before). He will make a new heaven and a new earth. There will be no devil.. .115 in them. 39. He will rule with the saints, (and they will be) ascending and descending, along with the angels, with the Christ for a thousand years. The Apocalypse of Elijah

115. . . . ι υ γ . Rosenstiehl (116 n.) suggests Μογ ("death"): t h u s "neither devil nor death," which W i n t e r m u t e h a s corrected to "deadly devil" o n syntactical g r o u n d s (753 n. r3). Schrage a n d Kuhn h a v e dismissed the reconstruction entirely (cf. Schrage, 274 η. 1).

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2d

Index of Ancient Sources

EGYPTIAN Book of the Dead,

LITERATURE

Egyptian ' 36

Demotic Chronicle 2.12

1 7 4 - 7 6 , 1 8 2 , 1 8 5 , 214 214 n.62

Esna inscriptions 127.5-6

213 n.57

Ipuwer, Admonitions

of 171-72, 203, 204 204 n . 2 3 203 n.21 185 n.103 204 n . 2 5 206 n.31 189 n.122

2.6-7 2.10-11 3.1 4.3 6.1-2 6.6-8

P 2 ( P . R a i n e r 19 813) 16-17 30-32, 181 n.90 16-20 180 n.84 21-23 181 n.88 28-30 215 n.68 28-43 182 n . 9 5 34f 181 n . 8 7 35 182 n.92, 307 n.27 51-52 222 n.89 P 3 ( P . O x y 2332) 30f 31-34 Setne-Khamwas,

217 n . 7 3 180 n . 8 5

tale of 326 n . l 11

Papyri Lamb, Oracle of

19,176-80,185,186, 206, 217 n . 7 3 206 n.32

2.24 3.3 Merikare, 50-57

Teaching

Neferti, Prophecy

Potter, Oracle of

of

P. Berlin P.

3049

Bremner-Rhind

P.Cairo

31222

173 n.57 135-36, 1 6 7 , 1 8 4 n.99 188

326 n . l 09 of

P. 1 6 8 , 1 7 1 - 7 2 , 1 7 5 , 177, 179,184 n.99,185 n . l 03, 187 14,19,101,159,176, 177,179,180-82,185, 1 8 6 , 1 8 8 , 1 9 0 , 1 9 4 , 195, 198, 202, 2 0 5 , 2 1 0 , 2 1 3 , 222, 223, 238, 256, 257

Jumilhac

165

P. Leiden I

348, 170 n.42

P. Salt 825

136, 170 n.42

P. Tebtunis Tait 13

178 n . 7 9 , 1 8 6 n.109, 188, 215 n.68

P. Turin 137

170 n.42

357

358

Index of Ancient Texts

HEBREW BIBLE Ecclesiastes

Genesis

1:14 18-19 49:8-12

107 123 213 n.57

316 n.67 113 107 203 322 n.92 113

Numbers

10:35 10

136 n.108 293

Deuteronomy

42 107 n.10, 115 113 213 n.57

13:1-3 18:15-19 33:22 1 Samuel

14:10

107

I Kings

17:1-7 17:2 17:3 17:6 18:1 18:21 18:36-38 18:38 18 19:5-9 19:11-12 19:12-13 19 21:17

267 8, 82 71 67 82 59 63 69 64,68 61 61 61 50 19, 59, 82

2 Kings

2:11 19 1

60 217

316 n.67

Job

23:30

46 n.45

Psalms

74:9

1:2 6:1-3 6-11 11:5 13:10 14:12 14:13-14 30: Id 35:5-6 42:7 44:5 54:1 54:1b 58:3-7 59:17

9 322 n.91 41 n.30 129 n.87 116 n.38 131 n.94 230 82 n.13, 82 n.15 113,115 n.34 115 n.34 66 n.23 206 206 284 n.16 34 n.7,129 n.87

/eremiah

82, 84 11,13, 82 n.13 217 82 n.13 217 82 n.13 82 n.13 136 n.108

1:4 1:14 2:1 4:6 16:1 24:4 28 Ezekiel

1:24 2:8—3:3 6:1 12:1 13:1 14:2 26:5 32:7-8 33:1-2 34 38:15 38:22 Daniel

Chronicles

4:17

43 n.37 43 n.37 24

Isaiah

Exodus

2:5-10 4:2-11 4:8 7:14-24 13:21-22 17:1-6

3:16 8:4-5 8:4b5‫־‬a

107

2:36 7:3-4 8:10-11 8:10 8 10:3 10:13

82, 84 322 n.91 84 n.18 82 n.13 82 n.13 82 n.13 82 n.13 14,182 n.93 116 n.38 82 n.13 34 n.9 217 203 n.22 40,121 211 n.52 213 n.58 230 116 n.38 70 n.43 282 n.9 34 n.9

359 Index of Ancient Texts

12 12:4 12:5-13

197 9,40 40

Joel 2:20

217

Jonah

42

Micah 6:2

9

Zechariah 4:11-14 13:7

4 3 n.38 34 n.9

Malachi 4:5-6 4:6 4

145 n.15 76 60 n .5

EARLY JEWISH T E X T S Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha Abraham, 15:6-7 18

Apocalypse

Adam, Testament 3:1

of 123 n.68 322 n.91

of 114 n.33

Ahikar

322 n . 9 3

2 Baruch

40

1:1

84 n . l 8 282 n.9 207 282 n.9 78 n.2 78 n.2 109 n . 1 7 78 n.2 78 n.2 40 96

9:2 10:13-15 12:5 13:1 21:1-4 27:1-14 36:1 44:1 77-87 84:9

8 13 ] Enoch 1:6 7:6 14:1 37:1-5 62:11-12 83:1 89-90

40 40 197 40 46 n.45, 327 n . l 11

2 Enoch 21:1 22-23

322 n.91 96

2 Esdras

18

4 Ezra 3:1 4:1 5:1 5:4b-5 5:13 6:35 7:26-27 11-12 12:31-32 13:3 14:37-48

40, 108, 109 83 83 4-5, 13a, 109 n.16 116 n.38 282 n.9 282 n.9 109 n.16 213 n.57 213 n.57 213 n . 5 8 40

173

Aristeas. Epistle of 81

Daniel, Apocalypse

91:1-3 92:1 93-105 93:1 108:14-15

of 315 n . 6 3 226 n . l 0 9 115 n.35

Isaac, Testament 5:3,5-7 6:21

of 294 n . 4 9 75 n.58

Isaiah, Martyrdom

144, 147 116 n . 3 7

4:5 36 134,134 n.100 318 n.75 40 84 n.18 46 n.45, 327 n . l 11 40 34 n . 9

Job, Testament 17 Jubilees 23:14-32 23:30 34-38

of

of 219 n.80

200 n.15 327 n . l 11 200 n . l 5

Index of Ancient Texts

360

Judith 1:1 16:8-9

217 129 n . i

1 Maccabees 3:4 7:16-17

213 n . 5 7 9 n.3

2 Maccabees 5:17-20 6

76,144 322 n . 9 3 143 n . 5

3 Maccabees 1:9,23 7:11

144 322 n . 9 3 291 n.37

Moses, Assumption 10:4-6 Prophets,

Lives of

Sibylline I.351-59 2.6-7 2.165-69 3

Oracles

3.66 3.75-82 3.356-62 3.652-56 3.682-84 3.796-807 4, 8, 12 4.88-101 5.60-70 5.93 5.94-105 5.336 8.75-80 8.139-59 8.153-57 8.194-212 8.202-205 8.205-208 II.179 11.186-260 11.225 13.111 13.151 13.151-52 Sirach 3:27b 48:10a

Solomon,

Testament

Solomon, 3:13 4:20 5:17-20 5:18

Wisdom of 207 326 n . l 10 129 n.87 34 n.7

Twelve Patriarchs,

Levi, Testament 3:8 Zephaniah,

of 62

Testaments of 18, 48, 6 2 , 6 4 , 9 7 , 2 1 9 , 294, 295 of 35

Apocalypse

of 109 n. 1 6 , 1 1 6 n.38 60, 64

114 n . 3 3 116 n.38 115 n.35 186 116 n.39 14 n.29 14 n.29 222 n.90 203 n.22 116 n.38 218 n.76 212 n . 5 3 191 n . l 30 97-98, 218 n.77 143-54, 218 n.76 219 n.82 14 n . 2 9 218 n.76 218 n.76 14 n . 2 9 116 n.38 113 n.29 219 n.82 212 n . 5 3 215 n.65 15 n.29 1 0 , 1 9 6 , 1 9 9 , 205,216, 217, 2 2 1 , 2 2 2 229n.118

Dead Sea Scrolls 1 Q H vi.29-35 1 Q M xii, xix lQSiv.15-16 4 Q S b v.29 4Q1861

136 136 120 213 120

n.108 n.108 n.55 n.57 n.56

O t h e r Jewish Authors Philo De Spec. Leg. 2.92 243 243 3.30 De Vita Contemplativa 207 68 De Vita Mosis 1.99 203 Josephus Against Apion 1.26 Antiquities 10.209 20.168 Jewish War 1.28 2.494-98 7.438

n.7 n.7 n.34 n.22

189 n . 1 2 3 211 n.52 111 n.25 111 n.25 190 n.129 111 n . 2 5

Rabbinic T e x t s Sefer

Eliahu

Ierachmeel, 82 n . 1 3 145 n . 1 5

of 21,23,28,42,197

45, 49, 50, 57, 58, 60, 62, 64, 121, 315 n . 6 3 Chronicle

Midrash Tanhuma

of 45, 54, 56, 60 61

Index of Ancient Texts

361

EARLY CHRISTIAN TEXTS N e w Testament Matthew 4:2 9:15 10:17-18 11:5 13:57b 17:12-13 23:37 24:27 24:30-31 27:9 Mark 1:13 2:19-20 6:4b 6:15 7:32-36 7:37 8:28 9:2-10 9:4-5 9:11-13 9:13 13:5-37 13:9 13:9-13 13:14 13:21-23 13:22 13 14:63

7:22 7:33-34 16:23-26

113 n.29 285 46 n . 4 5

Acts 9

42 316 n.67

1 Corinthians 2:9

17, 4 3 n.40, 46-48, 56

2 Corinthians 11:13-15

125 n.80, 283 n . 1 3

Ephesians 6:10-17

34 n.7, 129 n . 8 7

Philippians 2:6-8 2:7 3:19

35, 303 n . l 1 124 n . 7 3 291 n.37

Colossians 1:16

36 35

1 Thessalonians 3:16

322 n.91

55 285 n.20, 293 n . 4 5 285 144 n.13 114 n.31 144 n.12 6 7 n.31 4 3 n.40 231 322 n.91 23, 37, 46 n.48

293 n.45 285 144 n.12 65 n.21 114 n.31 114 n.31 65 n.21 123 65 n.21 65 n.21 67 n.31 109 n.17 144 n. 13 197 80 n.8, 199 n . 1 3 110 104, 111 n.25, 115 8, 85, 95, 97, 98 n.50, 198, 225 n.106 100 n.55

2 2

Thessalonians

2:4 2:9-10 2 Timothy 2:25

272 n.4

Hebrews 1:4-6 2:7-9 ll:15f 11:16 11:38

35, 303 n. 11 35 38 n.22 37 268

I and 2 John

95

Luke 4:2 5:34-35 7:22 9:54 16:23-26 17:24 21:12-13 23:29

144 n . 1 3 207

John 1:21 3:17 4:44b 4:48

124 65 n.21 35 144 n.12 111 n.25

1 John 2:15-17 2:15 2:15a 2:16-17 2:18-19 4:1-6

144 n . l 2

2 Peter 3:12

285 n.20 285 114 65 n.21, 69 n.37 326 n . l 11 231

Q/Lk 4:24

109 95,104,199 n.13 227 115

96, 104 35, 8 3 n.16, 302 n. 34 83 34, 83 110, 283 n . 1 3 110

134

Index of Ancient Texts

362 Revelation

1:1

1:3 1:4 1:6 1:9-11 1:11 I-3 2:9 3:12 4:8 5:5 5:10 6:9-10 6:9 7:3 9:6 11 11:2-3 11:3-12 11:3-13 ll:3f 11:4-12 11:8 II-13 12 12:4 12:6 13:1-2 13:5 13:10 13:13-14 13 14:1 14:12-13 14:13 20-21 20-22 20:6 20:7-10 20:13-14 21 21:10-27 22:6ff 22:6-19 22:7 22:8-19 22:18 22:21

19-20, 3 7 - 4 0 , 4 2 , 44, 8 7 , 9 1 , 9 5 - 9 6 , 121, 138, 144-47,150, 197, 225, 270-71,275-76, 279, 298 39, 84 n.18 80 n.7, 85 4 101 n.56 84 85 40 n.28 20, 283 n . 1 3 37 322 n.91 213 n.57 101 n . 5 6 147 101 n.56 16, 37 27 n.79, 37,205, 205 n.26, 306 n . 2 3 8, 37 221 n.88 37, 318 n . 7 7 144 144 n.14 9 n.2 318 n.77 147 138 314 n.58 221 n.88 213 n.58 221 n.88 18, 80 n.8 115 150,199 n.13 37 146 80 n . 8 9 37 101 n.56 37,136 n.108 305 n.20 227 n . l 10 37 40 n.28 40 96 96 40 40

Post- and Extra-Canonical Christian Writings Abraham,

Testament

Apophthegmata Cassian 1 Copres 3 Daniel 8 Orsisius 1 Phocas 2 Theodora 6 Apostolic 7.32.5

of 97

patrum 293 294 n . 4 7 70 n . 4 3 70 n . 4 3 326 n.109 293 n.46 294 n.47

Constitutions 46 46 n.50

A t h a n a s i u s of A l e x a n d r i a 66, 6 7 , 7 1 , 2 1 7 , 2 8 2 , 289-90, 293-95 Festal letters 1 (329 CE), 6 10(338) 369 370 Life of Antony 3 7 9

n.51 n.44 n.132 n.132

25, 6 6 , 7 4 , 2 1 7 , 287, 289, 293 267 n. 100 66 n.26 12, 23, 24, 3 9 , 4 1 , 1 8 4 n.100 217 n.74 234 n.132

28 90 Barnabas,

295 293 234 234

Epistle of

4:10b

267 267 n. 99

Basil of C a e s a r e a Epistles 263 265

227 n.110 227 n.110

Besa Life of 10

2 5 , 7 1 , 1 9 2 , 225 69 n.41

Shenoute

Cassian, John Conferences 14.4 18.6

67 67 n.27 67 n.32

363 Index of Ancient Texts

Catalogue

of Sixty Canonical 26,42

1 Clement 17:1

Books

295 n.51 Discourse on the Eighth and (NHC VI, 6)

2 Clement 16:3

134

C l e m e n t , of A l e x a n d r i a Protrepticus 46 44 4 6 n.50 Stromateis 3.6.53 6.12 7.12

68 n.34 284 n.16, 285 n.18 284 n.16, 285 n.18

Commodian Instructions

76

Cyprian

76,143,149-50,153, 237-38, 258

Epistles 10.2.2 22.1.2 27.1 31.2 37.1.3 57.4.3 67.7-8 67.8.2

143 n.4 150 n . 2 7 153 n.36, 275 n.18 149 n.24 149 n . 2 5 153 n. 32 145 n.16 76 n.62

Cyril of J e r u s a l e m Catecheses 6.14 14.16 15.14 15.15 Daniel, Slavonic 11

on

235.26-28 235.24-28 Commentary 77.19

73-74 125 n.81 25-26, 73 n.53 116 n.40 226 n.109

Vision of 116 n.37

D i d y m u s t h e Blind Commentary

D i o n y s i u s of A l e x a n d r i a 258-59, 261, 264, 268, 270, 272-74, 277, 28687, 290, 293

on

24, 31, 4 3 - 4 4 , 4 6 - 4 7 , 55-56 Ecclesiastes 24,46 4 3 n.37 224 n.98 Zechariah, 43-44 43 n . 3 8

61.25-31 Elijah, Apocalypse

1 1:1 1:1-4 1:1-7 1:2-12 1:3 1:3-7 1:3-27 1:4 1:5-7 1:8-10 1:8-12 1:9 1:10 1:11-12 1:13 1:13-14 1:13-19 1:13-22 1:16 1:18 1:21-22 1:23-24 1:23-27 1:27-2:1 1:27-2:3 2:1 2:2-3a 2:2-5 2:3 2:5 2:6-7 2:6-16 2:6-22 2:10 2:10-11 2:11,41,48b 2:12-14 2:14b

Ninth

189 n.122 of 2 , 8 , 1 0 , 1 2 - 1 5 , 1 7 , 2 0 , 45 n.45, 9 8 , 1 0 1 - 3 , 1 1 0 , 127,161,195,198-200, 203-4,211-12,216, 218-20, 223, 228-29, 269 106,110,148 27 n.80, 34 n . 8 28, 39 29 7 226 86 86 95 n.45, 232 35 35, 4 7 n.51, 87, 99, 148 86 37 37, 150 131 80, 87, 8 9 , 9 1 , 9 7 - 9 8 7 283 86, 128, 280 87 87 282 293 n.42 8, 20, 38, 86, 98 110 90 149 88 200 42-47, 91 32, 27 n.79, 37, 93 n.38 89 200 104 10 200 99 200 48,100

364

2:15 2:15-16 2:17 2:17-18 2:17-19 2:17-28 2:19 2:20 2:21 2:24 2:24-28 2:24-38 2:26 2:27 2:28 2:29-30 2:29-38 2:31 2:32-34 2:35 2:36 2:37-38 2:39 2:39-43 2:39-50 2:40 2:41 2:42 2:42-53 2:43 2:44 2:44-45 2:44, 46-47 2:46 2:46-53 2:47 2:47-48a 2:48 2:49 2:49-50 2:51 2:51—3:1 2:52 2:52a 2:52b-53 2:53 3 3:1 3:1-4 3:2 3:2-4 3:3 3:5-18 3:5

Index of Ancient Texts

90 n.34 200 111 89 200 200 111, 132 n.96 220 90 n.34, 220 28, 40, 100 200 104 266 230 90,100 200,241 200 90 n.34, 200,204 37,200 200 28 n.82, 201 34,201 11,201,220 201 104 80,90,92,100,112,201 150,201 201,220 10 11, 27 n.80, 201 142,220 201 90 n.34 11 n.8, 201 25,194 11 n.8, 220 201 201 10 201 11 n.8, 201 201 220 201 201 104 8,13,76,99,112,126, 128 92,112,201,220 8,92,111,117 111 11 194,201,202,231 105 112,150,202,228 n.115

3:6-8a 3:6-13 3:8b-13 3:11 3:11-13 3:14-18 3:15 3:16-18 4

4:1 4:1-6 4:1-19 4:2 4:2-3 4:5 4:6 4:7 4:7-19

4:8 4:8-12 4:11 4:12 4:15-16 4:20-23 4:21 4:22-23 4:24 4:24-26 4:24-29 4:26 4:26-29 4:26b-27a, 28-29 4:27 4:27b 4:27-29 4:28 4:30 4:30-31 4:30-33 4:31 5 5:1 5:1a 5:1b 5:1-6 5:1-20 5:2a 5:2, 4, 6 5:2-6 5:2-20

112 8 112 111 52, 93,148 8 117 111,118 8, 15, 2 0 , 4 3 n.38, 126, 145,145 n.15,146, 147, 152 129, 228 n.l 15 8,26,43 n.37,95n.45, 128, 129 15, 30-33,105,142 34, 92,129 227 n . l 14 92,131, 138 n.115 100, 151,209 129, 228 n.115 9, 9 n.2, 20 n.54, 41 n.32,43, 76 n.60,106, 128,144 105 92,131 150 150 92 9,141 100 93,141, 142, 142 n.2 93, 202 225 9 93 n.37 93 93 n.37 152 93 n.37 47 n.51, 99, 148 150 93 n.38 34 9 , 1 5 , 1 2 8 , 1 2 9 n.87 52, 92, 99, 117, 129, 148 9,106,128,135,139, 148,149, 204 105 93 n.38 111,113 202 9,132 93 n.45 148 105 228

365 Index of Ancient Texts

5:6, 39 5:7a 5:7-9,12,14 5:7-9,14,18 5:7-10, 14 5:7-14 5:7-21 5:10 5:10-11 5:10-14 5:10-19 5:11 5:11b 5:15 5:15-20 5:18

37, 47 n . 5 1 , 1 5 0 9 3 n.38 204 9 105 95 n.45, 232 194 132 n.96 106 99 92 113 99 93 n.38 106 95 n.45, 9 9 , 1 5 1 n.28, 228 106 9 106 9 3 n.38 37 9 53 9 3 n.38 92 5 3 n.76 4 5 , 4 6 n.45 38 93 n.38 9 3 n.38 34 n.9 9 n.2,41 n.32,129 134 9, 76 n . 6 0 , 1 0 6 9 3 n.38, 1 3 4 , 1 3 9 n . l 17, 150, 232 95 n.45 37 132 n . 9 6 202 9 3 n.38 149 9 10

5:20 5:20-21 5:21-31 5:22 5:22-24 5:22-31 5:24-31 5:25 5:25-27 5:26 5:26-28 5:26-29 5:29b 5:30 5:31 5:32 5:32-34 5:32-35 5:33 5:33b 5:35-39 5:35 5:36 5:36a 5:36-38 5:36-39 5:37 Enoch, Apocryphon Coptic Theol. 3)

of (Pierpont 26

E p i p h a n i u s of S a l a m i s Panarion 1 1.26.5.8 284 1.33.513-14 286 n.22 Epistula

Apostolorum 13, 35

Morgan

5:9 13

114 n.33 303 n . l l

Eusebius De laudibus 6.21 Historia

38,153 Conslantini, 47 n.52 Ecclesiastica

6.5 6.34, 36 6.41.1 6.41.14-42.4 6.41-42 6.42.2 6.42.5,44.4 6.43 7.10.4 7.11.7 7.21.1 7.21.5-6 7.24.1 7.24.4 7.24.5

143 n . 7 259 n.69 259 n.67 153 n.36 143 n.6 268 n.104 152 n.30 153 n.34 261 n . 7 5 261 n . 7 7 262 n . 7 9 264 n.90 270 n . l 270 n . l , 273 n.12 272 n.4, 272 n.6, 274 n.14 273 n.9 274 n . 1 3 274 n.15 271 n.2 262 n.79

7.24.6 7.24.7-8a 7.24.9 7.24 7.32.6-13 Martyrs of 8.1,13 11.6 11.8 11

Palestine 32,66,71,88,153 153 n . 3 6 153 n.36 66 n . 2 3 249 n.30

ermas, Shepherd Similitudes 6.2-3 Visions 2.1.4-2.2.1 2.2.1 3.2.1 3.10.6-7 Hippolytus De Antichristo 6-14 6 25.2

of 34 n.9

22, 38,152, 282 282 n.10 93 n . 3 7 , 1 5 3 n.31, 282 n.10 282 n . 1 0 127,227, 237-38 213 n . 5 7 115 n . 3 5 227 n . l 11

366

Index of Ancient Texts

John ofNikiu,

In Danielem 4.51 Historia

Chronicle of 192,194,217 218 n.78

145 n . 1 6 51

monachorum 72 70 67 73 68 72

1.28,64 1.47 2.9 7 8.46

Joseph the Carpenter, n.45 n.29 n.52 n.35 n.51

History of Alexandrian

Patriarchs 209

Irenaeus Adversus 1.23.3 1.26.2

127 haereses 125 n.81 227 n . 1 1 3

Justin M a r t y r Dialogue 15

284 n . l 6

Lactantius Divine Institutes 4.18 7.17 Manichaean

Homilies,

2.14.11 ff Isaiah, Ascension

History of 26, 316 n.67

102, 109, 160, 237-38 71 n . 4 7 116 n.38 Coptic 193 205 n.28

10:23-28

and Vision of 26, 3 5 , 1 2 4 , 1 4 7 , 303 n.ll 36

N e p o s of A r s i n o e , Refutation of Allegorists 270, 272, 274

Jacob, Testament

of

Nicephorus,

James, Apocryphon

48-49 of (NHC 1,2) 153

5

Origen

36 4 6 - 4 7 , 7 1 , 7 9 - 8 0 , 267, 276, 288

Epistles 17 22.13 46.10 57 Life of Paul of 3-4

8 8 10 13 On

4 3 n.40 288 n . 2 7 295 n.50 46 n.49 Thebes 66, 67, 74 267 n . 1 0 3 267 n.101 214 n.60 6 7 n.28 67 n.30

Virginity

John, Acts of 88-89 89 John, Apocryphon

of

17,35,46-48,55-56, 149

De principiis 1.8.1 Exhortatio ad 13 23-24

153 n.34

Jeu, Books of Jerome

Stichometry of 26,42

Pachomius, 2 127

Life of

Palladius Historia

143, 293 143 n.7 68 n . 3 3 70 n.45

3 32.3 35.9 Paul, Acts of 10

124 124 n . 7 5 121 n.58

Paul, Apocalypse

3-4 3 4-6

67 67 n.27 267 n. 100

Lausiaca

79, 282, 294

124

322 n.92 martyrum 150 n.26 143 n.5

3,114,119n.50,120, 1 2 4 , 1 2 4 n.71 114 n . 3 3 of 19, 28, 29, 32, 38, 39, 9 7 , 1 2 4 , 290, 326 n . l 10 28, 301-2 19, 34 n.8, 39 230

367 Index of Ancient Texts

13-51 16, 18,21 18,21 24 Paul, Apocalypse

38 97 29 n.84 290 n.34 of (NHC V ,2) 124

Perpetua, Martyrdom

of 147,149

Peter, Acts of 20 21

124 124 n.77 124 n.76

XV.8 XVI.1-4

69 n.37 69 n.39

Pseudo-Ephraem De fine extremo 9,11

32,38,39,210,231,276 232 n. 125 97 76 n.60 97 85 97,134, 305 n.20 38 54 n.79 207 n.36

1 1-2 2 2-4,6 2-6 5 6 7-13 8 Peter, Apocalypse

of (NHC VII, 3) 124

Philip, Gospel of (NHC 11,3) 125 57.29-58.10 125 n.79 P s e u d o - A t h a n a s i u s 294 On Virginity 7 (PG 28:260) 282 n . 8 Sermon ( P i e r p o n t M o r g a n inv. 545) 231 n.123 Synopsis scripturae

Pseudo-Clement Homilies 2.17-18 9.10 Recognitions 4.16-19,32-34

293-94

Pseudo-Titus,

Epistle of 43, 45, 54-56, 60

Sedrach, Apocalypse 16:3

of

sacrae 26

116 n.40

Pseudo-Hippolytus Canons 20

Peter, Apocalypse

116

of 75 n.58

S h e n o u t e of A t r i p e Sermon on the Devil 138-39 Shenoute,

Apocalypse

Sozomen Historia 3.14

of 192,194, 184 n.100

Ecclesiastica 68 n . 3 3

Tertullian Apologia 40

153, 249 249 n . 3 3

De fuga in 11.6

persecutione 153 n . 3 5

De Ieiunio 3 6 7,9 8 16

2 8 1 , 2 9 1 - 9 2 , 294 281 n.6 292 n.40 295 n.51 292 n.39 292 n.38

Scorpiace 7

143 n.6

281 115 n.35 281 n.4 281 n.4

P s e u d o - D i o s c o r u s of A l e x a n d r i a , Panegyric of Makarios of Tkow 68 V.9 68 n.36 XIII.5 69 n.38

Thomas, 14 27 29 31 36 104 110 Tiburtine

Gospel

Sibyl

of

284-85 284-85 285 285 144 n.12 285 285 285 24, 2 5 , 1 1 9 , 208, 223, 224, 225

368

Index of Ancient Texts

G r e e k (Oracle of Baalbek) 140 26 n.78 166-67 120 n.52 173-227 224 n.99 190-98 307 n.30 191 125 n.78, 308 n.32 192 308 n . 3 3 196 309 n.37

205 206-7

223 n.96, 224 n.101 312 n.50

Latin

25, 313 n.56

Two Sorrows of the Kingdom of Heaven 51-54,57

OTHER ANCIENT AUTHORS AND TEXTS Acta

Alexandrinorum 255,262

Ammianus History 22.16.23

153 n.36

19,125n.81

Hermeticum 139

Perfect Discourse

(Asclepius 24-27) 160, 188-89, 203, 204, 238, 256 A s c l e p i u s 24 = N H C VI,8, 71.17-20 203 n.21 A s c l e p i u s 24 = N H C VI,8, 71.19-21 204 n . 2 3 A s c l e p i u s 27 = N H C VI,8, 75.28-33 205 n.28 Papyrorum 141 438 450 520

Lucian Philopseudes 34

119

189-90

Cicero On Divination 108 n.12

Corpus CPJ CPJ CPJ CPJ

102

Marcellinus

Chaeremon

Corpus 16.1-2

Hystaspes, Oracle of Libanius Orations

Judaicarum (=CPJ) 166 n.27 191 191 166 n . 2 7 , 1 8 9 - 9 0 , 1 9 1 n.132, 210, 226, 238

Magical Texts Papyri graecae III.511 IV.939 IV.1667 IV.2129 IV.2302 V.284-89 VII.795 VIII.l XII.121 XIII.1-343 XX.9 XXXIIa XXIII. 10-12 XXXVI.77-82 LXII.13-14 P. Cairo

60636

P. Heidelberg

187 n.115 257 n.59

Euripides Cyclops 334-35

291 n.37

232 1681 135

P. Heidelberg

1682 63

P. London and

Dio, C a s s i u s Historia 72.4 78.22-23

magicae 213 n.57 213 n.57 213 n.57 213 n.57 213 n.57 170 n.42 64 64 64 63 213 n.57 232 166 32 n.128 170 n.42

P.London

Leiden 130,166

Hay 10391 63 , 316 n.67

P. London Hay

10434 62

369 Index of Ancient Texts

P. Rainer 108

62

Rossi Tractate

322 n.92

Manetho

177 n. 72, 178, 189-90

Papyri, miscellaneous P. Heidelberg

1818 166

P. Michigan

130

38n.23

P. Michigan

1559

40 n.27

P.Oxy 2554

187-88

PS1 7

23

PS1 760

188

P. Stanford G93bv

187

Theadelphia

Papyri 267,277

Plutarch De 1side et 30-31,50 30-31 31

137, 166 Osiride 166 n.24 137 n.110 189 n . l 2 3

P s e u d o - Aristotle Economic a 2.33C

Pseudo-Callisthenes Alexander Romance 119, 178,212 1.8.5 212 n.56 13.3 212 n . 5 6 Seneca De constantia 18

122-23

sapientis 120 n.54

Strabo 16.743

219 n.82

Suetonius De vita Caesarum: 3

Caligula 120 n.54

Surid, Legend of

193

Tacitus Histories 2.9

120

Zosimus Historia 1.44 2.1

Procopius Anecdota

214 214 n.61

120 n . 5 3

Nova 220 n . 8 4 , 2 6 3 n.82, 263 n.84 7, 258 n.64

Index of Subjects

a p o c a l y p s e s in early E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y , 35-39, 276 a s ‫־‬Lawless One*, 3 , 8 - 9 , 1 3 , 3 5 , 5 4 , 87, a p o c a l y p t i c i s m a n d a p o c a l y p s e s , Jewish, 9 2 - 9 3 , 9 5 , 99, 103-6, 1 1 0 - 1 3 , 1 1 6 - 1 8 , 85,108-9, 123-24, 173/282 121-34, 1 3 6 - 3 9 , 1 4 1 , 1 4 7 - 5 1 , 201-2, 204, A p o p h i s , E g y p t i a n d e m o n , 135-38, 166-68, 228, 2 3 1 , 2 9 8 208,232-33 d e s c r i p t i o n s a n d p h y s i o g n o m i e s of, 49A r s i n o e , 238, 245, 270-73, 276-77, 290 50, 5 5 , 1 1 9 - 2 2 , 1 2 6 - 2 7 millennialist m o v e m e n t in, 274, 278 a f t e r l i f e , 39, 9 7 , 9 8 , 1 6 2 asceticism, 21, 5 7 , 6 5 - 7 0 , 279, 284, 286-97. A l e x a n d e r the Great, 1 7 4 - 7 5 , 1 7 8 , 2 1 1 - 1 6 See also fasting; virginity, l e g e n d s a b o u t , 14, 1 1 9 , 2 1 2 - 1 3 , 2 1 6 a n d t h e a t t a i n m e n t of p o w e r s , 70, 289 Alexander Romance, 1 7 8 , 2 1 2 in early E g y p t i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y , 295 A l e x a n d r i a , 1, 3, 16, 2 0 , 4 6 - 4 8 , 5 6 , 1 5 3 , 1 8 2 , in early S y r i a n C h r i s t i a n i t y , 287, 289, 297 203, 205, 210, 213, 215, 218, 221 in M a n i c h a e i s m , 288-89 a n d " n a t i o n a l i s m , 2 6 5,260-62,257‫־‬ in M o n t a n i s t Christianity, 291 u p r i s i n g s in, 257-62 ‫ ־‬A s s y r i a ' / ‫ ־‬A s s y r i a n s , ' 10-14, 50, 90-91, 165, A m e n o p h i s , l e g e n d a r y p h a r a o h , 178, 190, 1 7 4 , 1 7 8 , 1 8 5 , 1 8 7 , 200-202, 216-19 193,215 astrology, 187-88, 197 a m u l e t s , 62, 2 2 9 - 3 0 Aurelian, R o m a n e m p e r o r , 14, 243, 264 a d v e r s a r y , eschatological 8, 9, 35,49, 56, 76, 104-'5,110-40,146, 227, 231-32

a n a c h o r e s i s , 6 7 - 7 0 , 74, 152-53, 225, 2 6 6 69

anchorites, 67-69,71-77, 99,101, 152-53, 247, 264, 267-68, 287, 290, 294

A n c y r a , S y n o d of (314 C.E ), 281, 288 a n g e l s , 9, 35-37, 5 1 - 5 2 , 60, 69, 73, 87, 105-8, 113,123, 131,148-49, 202, 217, 232, 236, 2 7 9 A n t i c h r i s t , 3, 2 4 , 2 6 , 2 9 , 3 5 , 4 4 , 4 9 - 5 2 , 5 5 , 1 0 4 - 5 , 1 1 0 , 1 1 6 - 1 7 , 122, 127, 140, 142, 1 5 0 , 1 9 2 , 2 0 2 , 2 2 4 , 2 2 7 , 2 3 8 , 2 8 3 . See

also A d v e r s a r y , eschatological A n t o n y , Saint, 66-67,143, 267 a p o c a l y p s e , genre, a n d t h e A p o c a l y p s e of Elijah, 39-44

beasts, a p o c a l y p t i c s y m b o l s of, 68, 121,150, 152, 162,165, 204, 268 Beliar, 104 B l e m m y e s , n o m a d i c p e o p l e of u p p e r Egypt, 263-65 blood, s y m b o l i s m of, 208-10 Bocchoris, l e g e n d a r y E g y p t i a n king, 177, 179,183,185 Boukoloi, 187 b r e a s t milk, s y m b o l i s m of, 206, 208-9 C a m b y s e s , P e r s i a n king, 12, 192-93, 217-18 Caracalla, 242-43, 245-46, 248, 255, 257, 266

Index of Subjects

Chaosbeschreibung, E g y p t i a n literary f o r m , 159-95, 198-207, 210-11, 216-17, 220, 228 chora, E g y p t i a n , 74, 77, 203, 254, 257, 26268, 273, 277-78, 284,289-90, 296-97 Christ, 62, 6 5 , 7 3 , 1 0 5 , 1 1 2 , 114-17, 123-26, 153,193, 236, 285, 293 as s u n , 202, 231-33, 237 d e s c e n t o f , 35 m e t a m o r p h o s e s o f , 124 C h r i s t i a n folklore, 54, 62, 7 3 , 1 4 1 C h r i s t i a n i t y , A l e x a n d r i a n , 98, 284, 290 allegorical exegesis in, 271 C h r i s t i a n i t y , E g y p t i a n , 1, 3, 20, 31, 36-39, 48, 5 0 , 5 6 , 5 9 , 62, 65-66, 74-77, 80, 93, 96, 133, 1 3 9 , 1 5 0 , 1 5 2 , 230-31, 266, 284, 286, 292-95 asceticism of, 293, 295 g r o w t h of in chora, 277-78 literature of, 38, 97, 235, 276 m i l l e n n i a l i s m a n d a p o c a l y p t i c i s m in, 38, 266, 277 m o n a s t i c i s m in, 1, 48, 67-69, 71-72, 79, 293-96 u s e of S c r i p t u r e in, 31 -34 Christianization of p r e - e x i s t i n g J e w i s h texts, 17-18 of n a t i v e religion, 100-101, 233-36 "City by t h e Sea" ( E g y p t i a n p r o p h e t i c form u l a ) , 2 0 5 , 2 1 1 , 2 1 3 , 257 C o p t o s , 264-65 C o r a c i o n , 270-74, 276, 287 c u r s e a n d execration ritual, E g y p t i a n , 134-37,139,166 Decius, e m p e r o r , 154, 230, 258-60, 266 religious edict of, 9, 20, 93,141-42, 145, 151-52, 230, 266-67, 269-70 d e m o n s a n d d e m o n o l o g v , 52, 7 2 - 7 3 , 1 2 2 23, 164, 209, 281-82,'292-93, 297 devil, 7, 34, 52, 8 3 , 1 3 1 - 3 2 , 1 3 8 , 1 5 0 , 219, 232-33 as s e r p e n t , 138, 232-33 eschatological d e m i s e of, 138 Diocletian, 66, 142,154, 243, 248, 255, 298 p e r s e c u t i o n of C h r i s t i a n s bv, 66, 142,154, 248, 298 religious edicts of, 66,142, 289 D i o n y s i u s , B i s h o p of A l e x a n d r i a , 153-54, 271-73, 277 E g y p t i a n p r o p h e t i c literature, 2 , 1 2 , 16, 20, 91, 9 5 , 1 6 8 - 9 1 , 1 9 5 , 203, 217, 223, 237 E l e p h a n t i n e , 95,176, 252 Elijah, 8-9, 26, 3 7 , 4 3 , 4 5 , 5 0 - 5 3 , 5 6 - 5 7 , 58-

371

77,126, 128-34, 139, 141,144, 268, 29293 a s m o d e l f o r a n a c h o r e s i s a n d asceticism, 72,74 a s e s c h a t o l o g i c a l h e r o , 65, 76,106, 142, 144 as r e v e a l e r of h e a v e n l y m y s t e r i e s , 59-65, 76-77 biblical cycle of, 59, 63-65, 69, 71, 82 lore of, 59, 63-64 m a r t y r d o m o f , 76, 1 4 4 , 1 4 7 , 1 5 1 " P r o p h e c y of," 43-44, 55 p s e u d e p i g r a p h a of, 19, 26, 3 1 , 4 3 - 4 4 , 4647, 54-62, 65, 7 1 , 7 4 - 7 5 , 1 0 1 e n c r a t i s m , 206, 287-88 E n o c h , 8 - 9 , 1 5 , 26, 37, 40, 4 3 , 5 1 - 5 3 , 5 8 , 73, 76, 84, 105,126, 1 2 8 - 3 4 , 1 3 9 , 1 4 1 , 144 a p o c r y p h a l l i t e r a t u r e of, 57, 91 m a r t y r d o m of, in e n d - t i m e s , 144, 147, 151 r e t u r n of, in e n d - t i m e s , 106, 142, 144 eschatological motifs c o n f l a g r a t i o n , 106,113, 1 3 4 , 1 9 3 deceit, 106,110, 237 flood,193 j u d g m e n t , 7, 9, 29, 34, 38-39, 4 6 , 5 0 , 5 2 54, 60-61, 76, 92, 94, 9 7 , 1 0 6 , 1 4 9 , 1 5 2 , 204, 2 3 1 , 2 6 7 last battle, 92 m a r t y r d o m s , 141-45 m i l l e n n i u m , 10, 37, 8 0 , 1 0 6 , 1 1 0 , 1 1 3 , 1 2 6 , 146, 179, 202, 2 4 1 , 2 5 8 , 298 p a r o u s i a , 8-9, 80, 9 2 , 1 0 6 , 1 1 7 , 1 4 6 , 204, 223, 231-32 w o e s , 25, 91, 95-96, 98, 9 9 , 1 0 1 , 1 0 3 , 1 0 6 , 1 0 9 , 1 4 3 , 1 5 1 , 2 2 8 , 230, 298 e s c h a t o l o g y , 24, 29, 31, 37, 41, 44, 46, 54-56, 60-61, 78, 85-86, 89, 93, 97, 9 9 , 1 0 6 , 1 2 7 , 134, 1 4 4 - 4 5 , 1 4 9 , 1 8 0 , 1 8 6 , 1 9 3 , 200, 210, 224-25, 238, 2 7 1 , 2 9 1 u s e of " s i g n s ' in, 98-99, 1 0 8 - 1 2 , 1 2 6 - 2 7 exorcism, 7 3 , 1 3 2 - 3 3 , 281-82 fasting, 7-8, 20-21, 32, 86-90, 9 8 , 1 0 3 , 1 0 6 , 128, 223, 280-98 a n d h e a v e n l y visions, 282 a p o t r o p a i c a n d exorcistic e f f e c t s of, 28182, 292, 294, 297 G n o s t i c d i s c u s s i o n s of, 284, 286 in t h e G o s p e l of T h o m a s , 284-86 o p p o s i t i o n to, 280, 283-92, 295-96 Firmus, E g y p t i a n l e a d e r , 264 G e h e n n a , 45, 5 0 , 1 4 3 genre, 78-81,94-95

372

Index of Subjects 372

healing, p o w e r s of, 62, 68, 70, 74, 77, 129, 151,209, 234 heaven, 26, 35,48-49, 51-52, 63, 73, 80, 87, 97,100,131,146-50,188, 207 ascent to, 26, 35-36, 49,123,148-50 gatekeepers in, 35-36,131 Heliopolis, 222-24 hell, 19, 52-55,61,97,210 apocalyptic tours of, 43-46, 48-49, 55, 57, 97-98 Herakleopolis, 174-76 Hermetic corpus, 3, 102, 188-89 historiola (as form of ritual speech), 62-64, 131 n.94, 209, 232 Horeb, Mt. (in biblical Elijah cycle), 61-64 Horus, Egyptian royal god, 16,135, 163-65, 167, 170, 209, 250 cippi of, 165 illocutionary act, 82, 87, 92,129-34,136, 139, 198, 200 Irish Christian Apocrypha, 51-52 Isis (Egyptian goddess), 16, 164-65,180, 182, 190, 206, 209, 226 Jerusalem, as location of eschatological signs, 226-28 J e w i s h r e v o l t o f 1 1 6 - 1 7 C.E., 1 0 , 1 6 0 , 1 9 1 , 195, 2 2 6

Jews a n d Judaism, 3,11-13,17,165-66,185‫־‬ 86,189-91, 201, 216, 219-21, 226-28, 237, 255, 257, 259 John the Baptist, 65, 67,69-70, 77, 268 judgment. See eschatological motifs K h n u m (Egyptian oracular god), 176-77, 179-82' "King from the City of the Sun" (Egyptian prophetic formula), 14, 17,194,'201-2, 216, 218-19, 222-24, 229, 231, 237 kingship ideology, Egyptian, 90, 161-64, 167, 169, 174,176, 183,189,193,195, 210, 228, 237, 256 literature a n d p r o p a g a n d a of, 16-17, 88, 102,159-62,168-88, 204, 214, 237 "nationalism" and, 165,176,186, 255-57, 262-63, 268, 278 KOnigsnovelle (Egyptian genre), 172-74,177, 187, 193 Last Emperor tradition, 25, 202 literacy in Roman Egypt, 32-33, 96, 273-75, 277-78 Ma'at, Egyptian symbol (sometimes god-

dess) of cosmic order, 162-64, 167, 180, 206, 251 Macrianus (Roman emperor), 261, 264 "magic" spells a n d rituals, 62-65, 72, 74, 130, 133, 135-37,170 183, 208-9, 230-33, 249, Greco-Egvptian texts containing, 36, 64, 72,164-67, 209 Makarios of Tkdw, Saint, 68-70 Manichaeism, 193-94, 281, 287-91, 297 in Upper Egypt, 287-91 martyrs a n d m a r t y r d o m , 2, 8-9,15, 20-21, 26, 32,71,92-93, 99,126,130, 141-54, 210, 248, 266, 268, 272, 279, 298 a n d anachoresis, 152-54, 267-68 as a literary theme, 141-47 cult of, 151,233-34 in Egypt, 72, 142-43,145,151,153-54 social function of, 145-46, 151 martyrology (genre) a n d martvrological lore, 76,100, 142-43,147-149, 218, 235 Melitian schism, 152-54, 298 M e m p h i s (Egyptian priestly center), 12, 20, 166,176/178,182,188/201, 213, 215, 222,252 Michael, the Archangel, 50, 61, 65 millennialism and millennialist movements, 2-3, 20, 35,44, 76, 97-98,106, 133,140, 154, 237-38, 241-42, 247-48, 256, 262,265-69, 270-78 in third-century Egypt, 265-73, 275-79 literature of, 97-98, 237-38, 250, 276 miracles, 8, 68,111-17 lists of, 113-17,126 monasticism. See Christianity, Egyptian, monasticism in Montanism, 291-92 Moses, 4 9 , 5 8 , 6 4 , 73, 84,105,107,112-13, 124,126, 144, 149, 203, 293 "nationalism" in Roman Egypt, 250, 255-56 problems in applying category, 250-55 N e b u c h a d n e z z a r , 12,192-93, 217 N e k t a n e b o s II, Egyptian king, 174-75, 178, 182, 183,215 ' Nepos, b i s h o p of Arsinoe, 238, 270-77, 287, 290 Nero redivivus, legends of, 76,120, 218, 221 Nile, 142, 171, 184,188, 204, 210 motif of, r u n n i n g with blood, 201, 203, 220, 237 O d e n a t h , king of Palmyra, 10, 219 orality a n d oral performance, 32-33, 79-88, 92-94

Index of Subjects

as context of Apocalypse of Elijah, 80-88, 92-94 and millennialist movements, 274-76 Osiris, Egyptian god, 163-64,170 Palestine, 12, 32, 50, 58, 66, 71,114,153 Palmyra a n d Palmyrenes, 10,13-14, 16-17, 49,219-21,223, 263-64 invasion of Egypt by, 221, 264 Paul of Thebes, 67, 71* 267 Paul, the Apostle, 46-47, 73,119,150,198 perlocutionary function, 84, 86, 129, 197-98 persecution, 93, 99-100,126,139,141-46, 153-54, 230-31, 248, 255, 259, 261-62, 266-68, 279 of "saints" as an eschatological motif, 141-45 Persia a n d Persians, 10-14, 50,165,174-75, 178, 185, 192, 201,216-22, 226 Peter, Bishop of Alexandria, 153-54 Philip the Arab, Emperor, 243, 245, 258-59, 277 physiognomic features, 105, 111-12, 117-23, 126. See also adversary, eschatological, descriptions a n d physiognomies of. Potamiaena (martyr), 143 priesthood, Egyptian, 100-101,119, 130, 137,164-65,175-76,185-87,189, 195, 212,214-15, 220, 250-54 and Apocalypse of Elijah, 89-90,100-102, 233 prophetic commission formula, 59, 82, 83, 101 pseudepigraphy, 65, 75-77 Re, Egyptian solar god, 135,163, 166-68, 179-80, 182, 222, 230-32 rebellions in Egypt, as prophetic motif, 184,188 in Hellenistic period, 176, 179-80

373

in Roman period, 249-51, 254, 264, 278 resurrection, as sign, 52-53,113, 116-17 Satan, 37, 72,138, 236, 283 Scripture, use of, 31-35,48-49, 59, 82-85, 88, 96, 197, 273-76 in oral transmission, 33 S e t h - T y p h o n , Egyptian god, 135-38, 16267, 170, 178, '180, 183, 185, 189, 208, 217, 226, 232-33, 250-51,254 as ‫־‬god of foreigners", 167-68,189 S h e n o u t e of Atripe, 69-71,138-39, 143, 192, 225,235-36, 276 Sibylline Oracles, 8,14, 89,108, 193 signs, 108-11, 115,117,125-26, 150 as o m e n s in G r e c o - R o m a n world, 106-7 of last days (see also eschatology), 106, 111,142 of eschatological Adversary, 52-53, 93, 105,111-17,126-28. See also Adversary, eschatological Syria a n d Syrians, 13-14,181, 188,214, 220, 223 Tabitha (eschatological martyr), 8, 13,15, 24, 26, 44, 105,126, 128-29,131,133, 139, 141-42, 144, 147,151, 209, 224 Valerian, emperor, 141-42, 152,154, 230, 261-62, 277 religious edict of, 9,13,141-42, 145, 15152, 230, 262, 266 vaticinia

ex eventus,

17,89,142,155,159,

161, 168, 196,211,224, 226, 241 problems in the identification of, 196-200 virginity, ascetic practice of, 68, 206-7, 228 Waballath, Palmyran prince, 16, 264 Zenobia, of Palmyra, 13-14, 16, 263-64

Index of Modern Authors

A b r a h a m s , R., 79 n.3, 81 n.12, 85 n.21, 94 n.42 Acerbi, Α., 296 n.54 Achtemeier, P., 22 n.62, 80 n.7, 114 nn.3233 Aland, K 5 8 ‫״‬ n . l , 76, 76 nn.65-67, 77 Alexander, P. J., 24 n.70, 25,25 nn.72-73; 27 n.78, 38 n.22,111 n.26,115 n.36,116 n.37, 202 n.18, 208 n.38, 224 n n . 100-101; 226 n.109,309 n.37, 310 n.39 Alfoldi, Α., 15 n.29 Alfoldv, G. 250 n.35, 258 n.65 Allegro, J. M.,120 n.55 Alliot.M., 177 n.72

Baron, S. W 4 9 ‫״‬ n.63, 227 n . l 10 Barr, D. L 1 8 ‫״‬ n.45, 80 n.7, 84 n.21, 85 n.22, 87 n.26 Battista, Α., 27 n.78 Bauckham, R 9 ‫ ״‬n.2, 20 n.54, 25 n.74, 37 n . l 9 , 4 5 n.44, 50 n.64, 55 n.80, 56 n.85, 76 nn.60-61; 142 n . l , 144 n.14, 213 n.57, 318 n.77, 326 n . l 11 Baumeister, T 2 3 5 ‫״‬ n.135, 236 n.139 Baynes, M., 122 n.64 Beaux, N., 22 n.63 Bentzen, Α., 136 n.108 Bell, D 2 5 ‫״‬ n.74, 6 9 n n . 4 0 - 4 1 Bell, Η. I., 31 n . l , 154 n.37, 167 n.33,190 Amelineau, E 2 5 ‫״‬ n.74,69 n.42, 70 n.44, 122n.l29, 215 n.67, 234 n.131, 242 n.2, 243 n.7, 245 n.16, 246 n.17, 252 n.44, 255 n.52 n.64, 1 3 7 n . I l l , 225 n.103,109 Benoit, P., 257 n.59 A r a n d a , G., 3 7 n . 2 0 Ben Ze ev, M. P., 191 n.129 A r b e s m a n n , R., 280 n . l , 282 n.10, 294 n.47 Berger, P. L 2 0 0 ‫״‬ n. 15 A s s m a n n , J, 161 nn.6-7; 169n.40, 170 nn.42-43; 171 nn.45-46; 172 n.52, 183 n.97 Bergman, J., 161 n.7, 173 n.59, 182 n.94,190 Atiya, Α., 53 η.75 n.126 Aune, D 8 2 ‫״‬ n.13, 84 nn.18-19; 85 n.22, 86Bergren, Τ. Α., 96 η.46 n.25, 91 n.36, 94n.39, 1 9 8 n . l 0 Bernardin, F. B., 231 n.123 Bertrand, J.-M. 187 n.l 15 Austin, J. L 8 2 ‫״‬ n.14, 84 n.20 Betz, H, D 6 4 ‫״‬ n.19 Avi-Yonah, M 4 9 ‫״‬ n.63 Betz, O., 107 n.10 Bagatti, B 2 7 ‫״‬ n.78 Bevan, E., 10 n.5, 177 n.72, 180 n.84, 186 Bagnall, R 2 3 4 ‫״‬ n.131, 278 n.30 n.109, 214 n.61, 219 n.79 Baines,J162 ‫״‬ n.9 Bilabel, F., 63 n . 1 7 , 1 3 5 n . l 0 1 Baird, J. Α., 90 n.33 Birley, A. R 2 4 2 ‫״‬ n.3 Balogh, J., 80 n.7 Black, M 1 4 4 ‫״‬ n.14 Boak, A. E. R., 245 n.14 Bardy, G., 3 3 , 3 3 n . 3 , 3 3 n . 5 , 6 6 n.23,70 n.43 Bocher, O., 281 n.3 Barkun, M., 237 nn.140-142; 247 n.24, 253 Bodinger, M 1 2 0 ‫״‬ n.54, 218 n.76 n.47, 262 n.81, 266 n.95, 265, 272 n.5, 275 Borghouts, J. F 1 3 0 ‫ ״‬n . 9 0 , 176n.71, 177 n.72, n.17 Barnes, T. D 6 6 ‫״‬ n.26, 291 n.36 208 n.40 Barns, J. W. B 1 7 3 ‫״‬ n.56, 186 n.109, 214Borkowski, n.60 Z., 256 n.58

374

Index of Modern A u t h o r s

375

Botte, D., 72 n.50 Collins, Y 1 1 6 ‫ ״‬n . 4 0 , 1 2 0 n.54, 1 3 6 n . l 0 8 Bouriant, 21 n.57,42 n.33 Conzelmann, H 4 7 ‫״‬ n.53 Bousset, W., 10,10 nn.6-7,11, 11 nn.8-11, Coquin, R-G., 293 n.43, 293 n.45 13,13 n.21,14,21 n.57,52 n.73,104 n . l , Cox, P., 119 n.46 104 n.3,105 n.6,111 n.23,115 nn.35-36; C r a h a y , R., 281 n.2 116 nn.39-40; 121 n.59,125 n.78, 125 n.81, Crawford, M 2 4 3 ‫״‬ n.4 144 n.14,184 n.101, 223 n.95, 226 n.109, Crawley, A. E 1 3 7 ‫״‬ n.108 227 n.l 10, 314 n.58 Cross, F. M., 113n.29 Bowersock, G. W 1 6 ‫״‬ n.41,102 n.59,186 C r u m , W 2 6 ‫״‬ n.77, 27 n.78, 62 n.13, 70 n.45, 101 n.56,134 n.99, 138 n.l 16, 213 n.59, n.l 11, 220 n.85, 252, 253 n.45, 293 n.83 Bowman, A. K 1 9 1 ‫״‬ n.129, 234 n.131, 244 313 n.52, 315 nn.63-64; 323 n.98, 324 n.104 nn.10-11; 246 n.19, 247 n.25, 265 n.92, 265 Cumont, F 1 8 1 ‫״‬ n.86, 193 n.136 n.94 Cureton, VV., 66 n.23 Boylan, P., 230 n.121 Brakke, D 6 7 ‫״‬ n.26 Danielou, J., 7 2 n . 4 8 Braun, M., 174 n.62,175 n.66 Daressy, M. G., 165 n.23 Brock, S 2 8 5 ‫״‬ n.20 Daumas, F., 174 n.64, 207 n.34 Brockington, L. H., 58 n . l Davis, Ν . Z., 3 n.3 Browder, Μ. H., 288 n.26 Davis, S., 244 n.l 1,252 n.42 Brown, P., 100 n.52,142 n.3, 143 n.8, 249 D e h a n d s c h u t t e r , B., 17 n.42, 47 n.51, 55 nn.31-32; 289 n.32 n.83, 76 n.64 Browne, G., 40 n.27 De Jonge, M., 18 n.44 Budge, E. A. W 2 3 ‫״‬ n.66, 42 n.35, 61 n.10, 72 Delehaye, H., 66 n.25, 324 n.132 n.49, 75 n.58,138 n.l 12, 212 n.55, 235 Denis, A.-M., 45 n.41, 46 n.50,47 n.51 n.l 35,296 n.53,326 n . l 10 Derchain, P., 136 n.105, 162 n.9,167 n.33, Bulow-Jacobsen, Α., 252 n.43 170 n.42 Burkert, W., 233 n.l30 de Saint-Croix, G. Ε. M 2 4 8 ‫״‬ n.29, 250 n.34, Burmester, O. G. E 2 3 5 ‫״‬ n.l35 256 n.94 Burridge, K 2 4 7 ‫״‬ n.24, 248 n.28, 275 n.19, De Wit, C., 213 n.57 276 n.22 Dodds, E. R., 249 n.31, 249 n.33 Burstein, S. M 1 6 0 ‫״‬ n.2, 212 n.54 Doran, R 1 7 3 ‫״‬ n.56, 200 n.15 Buttenweiser, M., 45 n.44, 49, 49 nn.62-63; D o r e s s e J . , 161 n . 7 , 1 9 3 n . l 3 6 , 235 nn.13561 n.8,122 n.61 36; 236 n . l 3 9 Dottin, G., 52 n.71, 52 n.74,53 n.75 Cameron, R 1 5 3 ‫״‬ n.34 Doty, W.,81 n.12 Caminos, R. Α., 1 8 5 n . l 0 7 Douglas, M., 247 n.25, 248 n.26 Camplani, Α., 296 n.54 Doutreleau, L., 43 n.38 Canivet, P., 235 n.134 D o w d e n , Κ., 119 n.48 C a n n u y e r , C., 295 n.28 Draguet, R 6 6 ‫״‬ n.26 Cartlidge, D. R., 124 n.70 Drioton, E., 165 n.21, 250 n.36 Casey, R. P., 28 n.83, 290 n.34, 326 n.l 10 Dronke, U.,51 n.68 Castiglione, L 2 6 3 ‫״‬ n.85 du Bourguet, P., 138 n . l 14 Chadwick, H 3 6 ‫״‬ n.12, 68 n.34, 150 n.26 Dumville, D.,51 nn.67-68 Charles, R. H 3 4,18‫״‬ n.9,81 n.8,104Dnu.nl a, n d , F 1 9 ‫״‬ n.53,102 n.59,159 n.l, 160 114 n.14,134 n.100, 205 n.26, 221 n.88 n.2,176 n.71, 187 n.113, 188 n.120, 206 n.30, 244 n.l 1, 246 n.20, 248 n.26, 252 Charlesworth, J. H 1 3 ‫״‬ n.17,14 n.24, 18 nn.42-43; 267 n.98, 256 n.58 n.44, 38 n.22, 39 n.26,48 n.56,123 n.69 C h a t m a n , S.,81 n . l l Cohn, N 2 4 7 ‫״‬ n.25 Eben-Shmuel, Y., 49 n.62, 61 n.8,121 n.61 C o h n , R. L., 64 n.18, Eddy, S. K 1 0 2 ‫״‬ n.59, 218 n.78, 251 n.37 Collins, A. Y., 14 n.24, 29 n.84, 41 n.30,197 Enss'lin, W 2 5 8 ‫״‬ n.63 nn.5-6; 197 n.8 Evans, E. C 1 1 9 ‫״‬ n.46,120 n.54,121 n.57 Collins, J., 16 n.40,18 n.45,40 n.29,41 n.30, Evelyn-White, H. G., 70 n.45,105 n.5,278 74 n.57, 75 n.59, 79 n.4,120 n.54,173 n.56, n.29, 296 n.53 173 n.60,186 n . l 12,196 nn.2-4; 212 n.53, Eyre, C. J., 210 n.50 217 n.72, 218 n.76,219 n.80, 222 n.91, 223 Fairman, H. W 1 3 9 ‫״‬ n . l 18,165 nn.20-21 n.94

376

Index of Modern A u t h o r s 376

Faulkner, R. O., 136 n.104,167 n.32 n.73,181 n.87,184 n.98, 189 n.123, 203 Faraone, C. Α., 135 η. 101 n.20, 208 n.36, 210 n.50, 213 n.58, 214 Feltoe, C. L 2 8 6 ‫״‬ n.23 n.64, 233 n.130, 251 n.37, 255 n.51 Festugiere, A.-J., 139 n.120, 160 n.4, 236 Griggs, C. W., 154 n.37, 273 n.10, 288 n.24 n.137 G r o h m a n , A , 63 n.17,135 n.101, Fiorenza, E. S., 40 n.29 Gronewald, M 4 3 ‫״‬ n.37 Fischel, H 1 1 9 ‫״‬ n.47, 123 n.69, 1 4 4 n n . 9G-rlul ;e n w a l d , I., 120 n.55 146 n.18, 147 n.22 G u e r a u d , O., 232 nn. 127-28 Flusser, D 1 9 7 ‫״‬ n.6, 212 n.53 Guillaumont, Α., 137 n.l 11, 267 n.102 Fodor, Α., 193 nn.137-138 G u n d e l , H. G 2 3 0 ‫״‬ n.121 Fodor, S 1 9 3 ‫״‬ n.l37 G u n k e l , H.,221 n.88 Formesyn, R 1 0 7 ‫״‬nn.810‫־‬ Forsyth, N 1 0 6 ‫״‬ n.7, 283 n.13 Haas, C. J., 261 n.74 F o s s u m J . , 114 n.30. 125n.81 Hackett, J. Α., 185 η.107 Foucart, G., 72 n.49 Hallock, F. Η., 235 η. 135 Fowden, G., 90 n.34, 102 n.58, 160 n.4, 186 Halperin, D.J., 115n.35 n.l 11, 188 n.120, 230 n.121 Hamilton, VV., 119 n.46 Fowler, R 8 8 ‫״‬ n.28 Hammerschmidt, E 2 3 5 ‫״‬ n.135 Fox, R. L , 214 n.61, 248 n.27, 259 n.69, 260 Hanson, R. P. C, 7 2 n . 5 0 n.70, 266 n.96 Harris, C. W 3 3 ‫״‬ n.4, 80 n.7, 104 n.4, 273 Frankfort, H 1 6 2 ‫״‬ nn.8-9; 163 n n . l 1-14; 167 n.ll n.31 Hartman, L 4 0 ‫״‬ n.28, 79 n.3, 108 n.15, 197 Frankfurter, D 8 ‫ ״‬n.l, 26 n.77,95 n.45, 114 n.9,198 n.10, 203 n.22 n.33, 129 n.88, 151 n.28,191 n.130, 209 Hayek, M 6 3 ‫״‬ n.15 n.46, 316 n.67 Heichelheim, F. M 2 4 6 ‫״‬ n.22, 257 n.60 Fraser, P. M 1 8 2 ‫״‬ n.92, 207 n.36, 214 nn.60Hellholm, D., 41 n.31, 59 n . l , 75 n.59, 79 n.3 61; 215 nn.66-67 Hengel, 34 n.9 Frend, W. H.C., 66 n.24,145 nn.15-16; 154 Henne, H 2 6 7 ‫״‬ n.98 n.34, 259 n.69, 260 n.71, 272 n.7 Henrichs, Α., 252 n.43 Frye, N 7 9 ‫״‬ n.3 Herbert, M 5 1 ‫״‬ n.67, 52 n.71, 53 n.77 Fuks, Α., 191 nn.l27, 129-31; 226 n.108 H e r m a n n , A. 173 n.55 Herr, M. D.,61 n.9 Gage, J., 250 n.35 Hills, J., 144 n.33, 2 3 2 n . l 2 6 Gager, J., 190 n.l25, 247 n.25 Himmelfarb, M 3 6 ‫״‬ n.12, 36 n.14, 37 n.17, Gardiner, Α., 170 n.50,171,172 n.50 41 n.30, 45 nn.43-44, 55 nn.84-86; 123 Gaster, M., 118 n.43 n.69, 207 n.36, 290 n.34, 326 n.l 11 Geertz, C., 253 n.48 Hirsch, E. D., 41 n.31, 78 n.l, 79 n.3,81 n.12, Gellner, E 2 5 1 ‫״‬ nn.38-40; 252 n.41, 253 n.46 94 nn.42, 44 Ginzberg, C 3 ‫ ״‬n.3 H o b s b a w m , E. J., 187 n.l 13, 247 nn.24-25; Ginzberg, L 5 0 ‫״‬ n.64, 50 n.66, 51 n.70, 61 254 n.49, 262 n.81, 267 n.97 n.9, 74 n.55, 76n,60 Hodgson, R., 198 n . l l Gilliam, J. F 2 4 6 ‫״‬ n.20 Hooker, M. D 1 9 8 ‫״‬ n.10 Giovannini, M., 253 n.45 Horn, J.,143 n.5, Goodv, J., 3 n.3 Horsely, R., 114 n.30 Goody, J., a n d Watt, I., 3 n.3 Hughes, G. R 1 6 0 ‫״‬ n.5, 188 n . l 19, 217n.73 Goudriaan, K., 244 n.10 Hunt, A. S., 167 n.33, 2 3 2 n . l 2 7 Grabar, Α., 38, 38 n.21 Hyde, D 5 2 ‫״‬ n.74 Graf, D. E 1 7 9 ‫״‬ n.79, 185 n.104 Graham, W 2 3 ‫״‬ n.64, 80 n.7 Idel, M., 50 n.66 Grant, R. M 2 5 8 ‫״‬ n.63, 260 n.70, 287 n.24, 288 n.25, 289 n.29 Green, Η. Α., 248 n.26, 277 n.26 Greenfield, R 6 4 ‫״‬ n.20 Gregory, T., 153 n.34 Griffiths, J. G., 3 7 n . l 7 , 1 3 7 n . l l 0 , 164 n.16, 165 n.21,166 n.24,175 n.66, 176 n.69, 177

James, M. R 2 8 ‫״‬ n.63, 45 nn.42-43; 46 n.50, 49 n.61, 51 n.67, 52, 53 n.75, 54, 55 n.80, 118 n.44 Jansen, W 8 4 ‫״‬ n.21, 192 nn. 133-34; 217 n.75, 218 n.78 Jenks, G., 35 n . l l , 104 nn.1-3; 106n.7,110

Index of Modern Authors

377

n.21,115 n.35,127n.83, 140 n.122, 145 n.15, 246 n.16, 246 nn.18-20, 256n.55, 257 n.16,199 n.13, 283 n.13 n.59, 264 n.91, 273 n.l 1, 323 n.97, 324 Jeremias, J., 37 n.19 n.99 Johnson, A. C., 243 n.4, 265 nn.92-93 Lewis, VV., 74 n.55 Johnson, D. W 6 8 ‫״‬ n.36, 91 n.36 Lexa, F., 1 3 7 n . l l l , 170 n.42 Johnson, J. H 1 7 4 ‫״‬ nn.63-64; 175 nn.65-67; Lieberman, S 1 4 3 ‫״‬ n.3, 223 n.94 176 n.69, 203 n.20, 214 nn.62-63; 251 n.37 Lichtheim, M 1 6 9 ‫ ״‬n n . 3 9 - 4 0 ; 171 nn.48-49; Jones, Α. Η. M 1 5 3 ‫״‬ n.36, 255 n.51 172 nn.50-51; Jouguet, P., 242 n.l, 245 n.16, 267 n.98, 277 Lincoln, B 2 5 3 ‫״‬ n.46, 275 n.19 n.24 Lloyd, A. B 1 7 4 ‫״‬ n.62, 176 nn.69-70; 186 Judge, Ε. Α., 40 η.27 n.109, 203 n.20,218 n.78, 251 n.37 Little, L. K., 137 nn. 108-109; 139 n.l 19 Kaegi.W. E 2 3 5 ‫״‬ n. 136 Lucas, A 2 0 8 ‫״‬ n.37 Luckmann, T 2 0 0 ‫״‬ n.15 Kakosy, L., 36 n.15,140 n.121,170 n.43, 176 Luria, S., 169 n.38, 203 n.21 n.71', 177 n.72 Luthi, M 1 9 7 ‫״‬ n.7 Kampers, F 2 1 1 ‫״‬ n.51, 212 n.56 Kasher, Α., 17 n.43,191 n.130, 246 n.20 Kearns, R 1 6,16‫״‬ nn.37-39; 159 n . l , MacCoull, 220 L.S. B., 192 n. 133 n.86 MacDermot, V., 74 n.58, 100 n.52,140 Keimer, L 1 6 4 ‫״‬ n.l7, 267 n. 102 n.121,147 n.22, 235 n.135 Kelber, W 9 8 ‫״‬ n.51 MacMullen, R., 80 n.7,108 n.13, 231 n.124, Klasens, Α., 208 n.41 234 n.133, 238 n.143, 238, 249 n.31, 249 n.33, 250 n.35, 254 n.50, 258 n.65 Klausner, J., 227 n . l 10 MacNamara, M 5 1 ‫״‬ nn.67, 69; 51, 52 n.71, Knipfing,J. R 2 6 0 ‫״‬ nn.72-73 Koch, K 8 2 ‫״‬ n.13 53 n.75 Koenen, L., 19 n.52, 159 nn.1-2; 160 n.3,161 MacRae, G., 98 n.49 n.7,171 n.47,173 n.55,174 n.62,175 n.66, McCown, C. C., 19 n.52,160 n.2,161 n.7, 177 n.73, 178 n.78, 179nn.79-80; 180 168 n.36, 171 n.49,172 n . 5 2 , 1 7 4 n . 6 3 , 1 7 7 n.73,182 n.93 nn.83-86; 181 n.90, 185 n.105, 188 n . l 17, McGinn, B., 25 n.71, 49 n.59,115 n.35,121 190 nn.127, 129; 193 n.136, 205 n.28, 212 n.55, 213 n.57, 217 n.73, 251 n.37, 287 n.59, 198,199 n.12,199 n.14 n.24 McGuckin, J. Α., 284 n.16 McNeil, B 2 1 3 ‫״‬ n.57 Koester,H , 289 n.31 McVey, K 7 0 ‫״‬ n.45 Kolenkow, A. B 4 0 ‫״‬ n.29,107 n.l 1 Kosack, VV., 72 n.49, 194 n.139 Mahe, J.-P., 101 n.57, 160 n.4,161 n.7,181 Kraemer, R 2 0 7 ‫״‬ n.34 n.87,188 n.120,189 n.121,205 n.28 Maier, G., 38 n.22,272 n.8 Kramer, J., 24 n.68, 43 n.37 Maier, J., 3 7 n . l 7 Krebber, B 2 4 ‫״‬ n.68, 43 n n . 3 7 4 6,46;38‫־‬n.47 Malinowski, B 6 2 ‫״‬ n.12,133 n.98 Kreitzer, L., 218 n.76 Manteuffel, G. V., 160 n.3,190 n.127,191 Kropp, Α., 62 n . l 1,63 n.16,134 n.99,140 n.l 30 n.121 Kuhn, Κ. H 2 1 ‫״‬ n.58, 86 n.23,100 n.54, 299Maraval, P . , 2 3 4 n . l 3 1 Markus, R 2 8 8 ‫״‬ n.28 301, 305 n.19, 309 n.38, 312 n.50, 315 n.61, 318 n.75, 319 n.80, 324 n.99 Martin, Α., 66 n.25,152 n.30,154 n.37, 234 Kuhnert, E 1 3 5 ‫״‬ n.101 n.132, 268 n.105, 272 n.3,275 n.18 Maspero, G., 11 nn.12-14; 12,14, 21 n.56, Lacau, P., 22 n.59,165 n.23, 323 n.98 159 n . l , Layton, B., 124 n.73 Maspero, J., 235 n.136 LeClant, L 1 8 4 ‫״‬ n.99 Mazzucco, C 2 7 0 ‫״‬ n.l LeFort, L. Th., 234 n.132, 295 n.52 Meeks, VV., 146 n.20 von Lemm, O., 12,12 n.15,142 n.2, 208 Menaker, E., 249 n.30 n.37, 226 n.107, 309 n.37, 311 n.45, 315 Merkelbach, R 1 3 5 ‫״‬ n.101, 212 n.55 n.64, 309 n.37, 311 n.45, 315 n.64 Metzger, B 5 8 ‫״‬ n . l , 75 n.59, 76 n.67 Leslau, VV., 53 n.78 Meyers, E. M.,234 n.131 Levi, I., 62 n.10 Michailides, G., 232 n . l 2 6 Millar, F 2 5 7 ‫״‬ n.59 Lewis, N 1 0 8 ‫״‬ n.12, 243 n.7, 244 n.10, 245

378

Index of Modern Authors 378

Milne,). G 2 5 4 ‫״‬ n.50, 257 n.59, 266 n.97Polotsky, J., 193 n . l 36 Momigliano, Α., 179 n.79, 186 n.109, 217 P o m e r o r y , S., 245 n.16 n.73 Porter, P. Α., 196 n.2 Moret, Α., 165 n.23,183 n.96 Posener, G., 162 n.9, 163 nn.10-11; 163 n.3, Morenz, S., 72 n.49, 167 n.31, 229 n.117 168 n.36,169 n n . 3 6 1 7 0;37‫־‬n.43, 172 Murray, R , 206 n.33 nn.51, 54; 183 n.97,185 n.107, 267 n.98 Musurillo, Η. Α., 255 n.53, 256 n.55, 277 Potter, D 2 1 7 ‫״‬ n.71, 258 n.63, 260 n.71, 264 n.25, 280 n . l , 281 n n . 3 2 8 4;4‫־‬n.16, 293 n.88 n.41, 294 n.47 Preaux, C., 177 n.72, 252 n.43, 257 n.61, 267 n.98 Nau, F 1 1 6 ‫״‬ n.39, 122n,62 P r e u s c h e n , E.,119n.52 Nicholson, O., 71 n.47,152 n.30, 268 n.105 Prigent, P., 47, 47 nn.52, 54 Nickelsburg, G. W. E 3 6 ‫״‬ n.16, 71 n.47, 74, 144 n n . 9 1 4 6;10‫־‬nn.17,19; 276 n.21 Q u a s t e n , J., 75 n.58 Niditch, S., 173 n.56 Nikiprowetzky, V., 14 n.29 Ray, B 1 3 0 ‫ ״‬n . 9 2 Nock, A. D 1 3 9 ‫״‬ n.120, 160 n.4, 167 n.33 Ray, J. D 2 1 3 ‫״‬ n.58 Noldeke, T h 2 1 7 ‫״‬ n.71 Raven, M 1 3 5 ‫״‬ n. 103 N o r d h e i m , E. von, 48 n.58 Rea, J., 160 n . 5 , 1 8 8 n . l 17, 252 n.43 O ' C u i v . B . 52 n.74,118 n.44 Oertel, F 2 4 3 ‫״‬ n.6, 246 n.17, 246 n.21 O h m a n n , R . 82 n.14 O'Keefe, D. L 1 3 6 ‫״‬ n.107 O'Leary, De L 6 7 ‫״‬ n.25 Olmstead, A. T 9 4 ‫״‬ n.40, 223 n.94 Olrik, Α., 197 n.7 Ong, W. ]., 81 n.10, 83 n.17, 85 n.21, 94 n.39, 98 n.51 Oost, S. I., 259 nn.68-69; 260 n.71, 261 n.75, 261 n.78, 262 n.79 Orlandi, T 1 ‫ ״‬n.2 O w e n , E. C. E 2 8 0 ‫״‬ n . l , 295 n.50 P a p p a n o , A. E . , 2 1 8 n . 7 6 Parassoglou, G. M., 208 n.40, 252 n.43 Parker, R Α., 160 n.5,185 n.108,187 n . l 16 Parrott, D. M 2 3 5 ‫״‬ n.135 Parsons, P. J., 243, 244 n.8, 258 n.62, 260 n.70 Parvis,J. M. 13 n.24 Pearson, B 2 6 ‫״‬ n.77, 70 n.43, 229 n . l 17 Perkins, J., 142 n.3 Perry, M 8 1 ‫״‬ n.12,174 n.62 Peterson, E 2 2 9 ‫״‬ n . l 17 Pfister, F 2 1 2 ‫״‬ n.56 Pflaum, H.-G., 261 n.76 Philonenko, M 1 3 ‫״‬ Piankoff, Α., 325 n.135 Pietersma, Α., 18 n.46, 21 n.55, 22 nn.59-61, 63; 23 n.67, 27 n.80, 27, 28 n.81, 42 nn.33, 36; 86 n.23,100 n.54, 132 n.95, 299 n . l , 300, 300 nn.3-4; 307 n.26, 312 n.50, 313 n.53, 314 n.57, 315 n.61, 318 n.76, 321 n.90, 324 nn.99-100; 327 n . l 13 P l u m m e r , Α., 47 n.55

Rees, B. R., 34 n.6 Reik, T 2 4 9 ‫״‬ n.30 Reinhold, M 2 5 5 ‫״‬ n.52 Reitzenstein, R. 14 n.25, 160 n.2 R e m o n d o n , R., 166 n.27,191 n.130, 235 n.136 Rey-Coquais, J.-P., 264 n.87 R e y m o n d , Ε. A. E., 186 n.109, 187 n.l 14 Revillout, E 1 7 4 ‫״‬ n.63 Ricoeur, P., 196 n.2 Riddle, D. W 1 4 3 ‫״‬ n.8, 146 n . 1 7 , 1 4 7 n.21, 149 n.23,151 n.28, 248 n.29 van Rinsveld, B 1 8 9 ‫״‬ n.121 Ritner, R. K 9 1 ‫״‬ n.36, 130 n.90,135 n.103 Rivers, J., 74 n.54 Roberts, C. H., 32 n . l , 33 n.4, 34 n.6, 38 n.23, 104 n.4,160 n . 2 , 1 7 8 n.79,181 n.90,185 n.105,109 Robertson, Α., 47 n.55 Robinson, S. E 7 0 ‫״‬ n.43,114 n.33 Rosenstiehl, J - M 1 2 ‫״‬ n . 1 7 , 1 3 , 1 3 nn.18-20, 23-24; 14, 14 n.25,15 n.33,18 n.46, 22 n.58, 25 n.74, 26 n.75, 27 n.80, 28. 28 nn.81 -82; 45 n.43,49 n.59, 50 n.65, 86 n.23; 120 n.54, 122 n.63, 128n.85, 138 n.l 13, 192 n.135, 202 n.19, 216 n.70, 220 n.87, 225 n.102, 225 n.106, 283 n.14, 299300, 299 n . l , 300 n.2, 305 n.19, 306 n.22, 309 n.39, 310 n.43. 313 n.53, 314 n.58. 315 nn.61, 63; 318 n.75, 320 n.86, 323 n.98, 324 n.99, 328 n.115 Rostovtzeff, M 2 4 2 ‫״‬ n.3, 243 n.4, 245 nn.1213, 15; 246 nn.18-20; 256 n.55, 257 n.59, 264 n.91 Rousseau, P., 273 n.10 Rowland, C 4 1 ‫״‬ n.30, 59 n . l , 75 n.59

Index of Modern Authors

379

Rubin, B 1 2 3 ‫״‬ n.67 216 n.70, 283 n.14, 299, 299 n.l, 306 n.22, Rudolph, K 3 6 ‫״‬ n.12, 36 n.14, 37 n.17, 60 309 n.37, 316 n.67, 318 n.80, 321 n.90, 324 n.7,124 n.70 n.99 Rush, A C., 234 n.132 Stern, L 2 1 ‫״‬ n.57, 160 n.3,190 n.124, 191 Russell, D.S., 104 n.l, 108 n.14 n.132 Stevenson, J., 51 n.67 Sabar, Y 5 0 ‫״‬ n.64 Stone, M 3 6 ‫״‬ n.15, 43 n.39,44,44 n.40, 45 Sackur, E 2 5 ‫״‬ n.71 nn.42-43; 46 nn.48-50; 47 n.52,49 nn.59Sage, Μ. M 2 6 1 ‫״‬ nn.77-78; 266 n.96 60; 55, 55 n.81, 60 nn.3-4; 109 nn.17-18; Sauneron, S., 163 n.10,170 n.42 122 nn.62-63,131 n.93 Save-Soderbergh, T 2 3 5 ‫״‬ n.l35 Strange, S., 234 n . l 3 1 Schaeder, H., 14 n.25,160 n.2 Stroumsa, G. G 7 4 ‫״‬ n.54, 124 nn.70, 72-73; Schafer, P., 29nn.85-86 288 nn.24-25; 289 nn.30, 32 Schenkel, W., 235 n.135 Strugnell, J., 43 n.39, 44, 44 n.40,45 nn.42Schmidt, C., 18 n.46, 23 n.66, 299 n . l , 322 43; 46 nn.48-50; 47 n.52,49 nn.59-60; 55, n.94 55 n.81, 60 nn.3-4; 122 n n . 6 2 , 6 3 Scholem, G 5 0 , 5 0 ‫״‬ n.66,64 n.20 Suys, P. E., 208 n.40 Schott, S., 170 n.42 Swain, J. W 1 9 7 ‫״‬ n.6, 212 n.53 Schrage, W 1 1 ‫״‬ n.8,14,14 nn.26-28; 15,15 Talmon, Y 2 7 5 ‫״‬ n.l7 nn.29-30, 33; 16,18 n.46, 21 n.58, 128 n.85, 202 n.19, 207 n.35, 211 n.51, 219 Tambiah, S., 130 n.92, 132 n.97,136 n.106, n.83, 230, 230 n.120, 283 n.15, 299, 299 137n.l09 n.l, 299, 301, 314 n.58, 315 n.61, 324 Tait, W. J., 160 n.5,178 n.79,186 n.109,188 nn.99,103; 328 n . l 15 n.118, 215 n.68 Schubart, W 2 5 2 ‫״‬ n.43 W. W 1 8 2 ‫״‬ n.92 Schurer, E 1 2 , 1 2 ‫״‬ n,16,15, 41 n.32,Tarn, 45 n.41, Tcherikover, V., 226 n.108 48 n.56, 49 n.63, 60 n.4,119 n.47 Te Velde, H 1 3 5 ‫״‬ n.103,164 nn.16,18; 166 Schwartz, J., 13 n.20,16 n.41,174 n.61, 188 n.28,167 n.30 n.l20, 218 n.78, 220 nn.85-87; 257 nn.59Thielman, F. S., 270.1 60; 263 n.83, 264 n.86 T h o m p s o n , D.J., 176 n.70,214 n.60,252 Scott, W., 139 n.120,188 n.120 n.44 Searle, J., 82 n.14 T h o m p s o n , H., 167 n.33 Seele,K.C., 165 n.23 Thompson, L 1 4 6 ‫״‬ n.19,197,198 n.10 Seitz, O . ) . F 9 1 ‫״‬ n.35 ‫״‬ n.31 Seston, W 2 6 5 ‫״‬ n.63, 287 n.24, 289 n.32T h r u p p , S. L 2 7 8 Tilley, Μ. Α., 298 n.56 Seymour, St. J., 51 n.67,51 n.70 Seyrig, H 2 6 4 ‫״‬ nn.87-88 Tischendorff, C., 26 n.78 Shelton, J. C 1 6 0 ‫״‬ n.5,187 n . l 15 Silverstein, T 2 8 ‫״‬ n.83 Van Der Horst, P. W 1 8 9 ‫״‬ n.123 Simmel, G., 253 n.47, 283 n.12 van der Leeuw, G., 62 n.12 Simon, M 1 9 6 ‫״‬ n.4, 234 n.131 Vandier, J., 165 n.20,184 n.101 Silverman, D. P., 1 6 3 n . l l , 170 n.46 Vansina, J.,179n.7 Skeat, T. C., 245 n.15,258 n.62, 277 n.23 van U y t f a n g h e , M., 80 n.7 Smith, D 8 1 ‫״‬ n.12 Veilleux, Α., 23 n.64 Vermes, G., 114 n.30,120 nn.55-56; 121 n.57 Smith, J. Z., 160 n.2,173 n.58,174 n.60,180 Vermis, P., 173 n.57 n.86,182 n.94 Vielhauer, P., 39 n.24,39 n.26,41 n.30,86 Smith, M 3 9 ‫״‬ n.25, 58 n . l , 249 n.32 n.24 Sobhy, G., 71 n.48, 72 n.50 Sparks, H. F. D 2 1 ‫״‬ n.57, 37, 37 n.20, 48 Vivian, T 1 5 3 ‫״‬ n.35,154 n.37 von Premerstein, Α., 256 n.55 n.58, 55,55 n.82 Voobus, Α., 285 n.20 Speyer, W 5 8 ‫״‬ n.l Spiegelberg, W 1 7 4 ‫״‬ n.63 Stegemann, V., 18 n.46, 62 n.14 Waddell, H.,67n.28 Stein, Α., 16 n.41, 220 n.85, 263 n.83 Wagner, R 2 0 0 ‫״‬ n.15 Steindorff, G., 10,10 nn.4-5; 11,18 nn.46Walker, P. W. L 2 3 4 ‫ ״‬n . l 3 1 47; 21,21 n.56, 23, 23 n.65, 26, 26 n.76, van de Walle, B 3 1 6 ‫״‬ n.67

380

Index of Modern A u t h o r s 380

Walters, C. C., 207 n.36, 294 n.48 n . l 19, 283 n.14, 299 n . l , 299-301, 302 n.9, Ward, B 6 7 ‫״‬ n.29 305 n.19, 308 n.35, 309 nn.37-38; 310 Weber, M 2 4 7 ‫״‬ n.24 nn.40-41; 311 n.45, 312 nn.47, 50; 315 Wegener, E. P., 245 n.15, 258 n.62, 277 n.23 nn.61, 63, 65; 316 n.67, 319 nn.79-80; 320 Weill, R 1 6 9 ‫״‬ n.41,171 n.46, 172 n.53,177n.86, 323 n.98, 324 n.99, 326 n.108, 328 nn.73-74; 178 n.75,179nn.79-80; 190 n.115 n.124,192 n.133, 222n.92 Wisse, F 1 3 0 ‫״‬ n.91 Weinel, H 4 2 ‫״‬n.32 Wipszycka, Ε., 1 n.2, 22 n.64, 235 n.136, 275 Weiss, M 1 3 6 ‫״‬ n.108 n.16, 278 nn.28, 30 Westendorff, W 2 0 8 ‫״‬ n.39 Worrell, W . H . , 209 n.45 Westermann, C., 82 n.13 Worsley, P., 253 n.47,275 n.17 Wheelock, W. T 1 2 8 ‫״‬ n.86 Wortmann, D 2 2 9 ‫״‬ n.l 17 Wieder, N 1 1 4 ‫״‬ n.30 Wright, F. Α., 68 n.34, 80 n.5 Wiener, Α., 50 n.66 Wilken, R 2 2 7 ‫״‬ n n . l 10,112-13; 249 n.33 Young, D. W 2 3 6 ‫״‬ n. 138 Wilkinson, J., 234 n.131 Young, F. M 1 4 3 ‫״‬ n.7 Williams, D. H 2 9 1 ‫״‬ n.35 Youtie, H. C., 22 n.64,107 n.9,118 n.45,166 Williams, F 2 8 4 ‫״‬ n.17 n.29, 273 n.l 1, 275 n.18, 278 n.28 Williams, Μ. Α., 71 n.46, 289, 290 n.33 Yoyotte,J234 ‫״‬ n.131 Winkler, J., 187 n.l 15 Winston, D., 207 n.34 Zabkar, L. V., 190 n.126 Wintermute, Ο., 11 n.8, 15,15 nn.31-32, 34; Z a n d e e , J., 37 n.17,130 n.90, 208 n.40, 235 16 nn.35-36,17,18, 19 n.48, 22 n.58, 81 n.135 n.10, 83 n.16, 86 n.23, 87 n.27, 100 n.54, Zauzich, K . - T h 1 7 7 ‫״‬ n.73 117n.42, 118 n.44,128n.85, 138 n.113, Zotenberg, H 1 1 6 ‫״‬ n.40 151 n.28, 202 n.16, 212 n.19, 207 n.35, 230