%0 Journal Article %1 Williamson2008 %A Williamson, H. G. M. %B NEW SERIES %D 2008 %I Oxford University Press %J The Journal of Theological Studies %K Haggai JSTOR %N 1 %P pp. 41-62 %T The Aramaic Documents in Ezra Revisited %U http://www.jstor.org/stable/23972473 %V 59 %X In recent years there has been a significant shift in scholarly opinion concerning the Aramaic documents included in the book of Ezra; whereas 25 years ago their historical authenticity was widely accepted, more recent studies have claimed that they were fabricated by the biblical author. In the present article, the reasons for this change of opinion are examined, and it is concluded that in most cases the decision about authenticity is taken on the basis of extraneous considerations relating to the composition of the book or the course of history which it purports to relate. The arguments advanced in relation to the documents themselves are the same as those which were common a century ago, and to that extent may be answered in the same way as before. In particular, insufficient attention has been paid to the fact that from a literary point of view it is the documents which determine the shape and wording of the narrative, not vice versa. It is therefore most natural to conclude that they existed already prior to the composition of the book. Only in two areas are there new data to be considered—language and the epistolary form of the documents. An examination of the salient evidence concludes that it is far from univocal and that it cannot, therefore, overthrow the conclusions reached on other grounds.

@article{Williamson2008, abstract = {In recent years there has been a significant shift in scholarly opinion concerning the Aramaic documents included in the book of Ezra; whereas 25 years ago their historical authenticity was widely accepted, more recent studies have claimed that they were fabricated by the biblical author. In the present article, the reasons for this change of opinion are examined, and it is concluded that in most cases the decision about authenticity is taken on the basis of extraneous considerations relating to the composition of the book or the course of history which it purports to relate. The arguments advanced in relation to the documents themselves are the same as those which were common a century ago, and to that extent may be answered in the same way as before. In particular, insufficient attention has been paid to the fact that from a literary point of view it is the documents which determine the shape and wording of the narrative, not vice versa. It is therefore most natural to conclude that they existed already prior to the composition of the book. Only in two areas are there new data to be considered—language and the epistolary form of the documents. An examination of the salient evidence concludes that it is far from univocal and that it cannot, therefore, overthrow the conclusions reached on other grounds.}, added-at = {2015-03-12T19:58:59.000+0100}, author = {Williamson, H. G. M.}, biburl = {https://www.bibsonomy.org/bibtex/29b2db60afec65579d79343a60f8f448f/zhamarusa}, copyright = {Copyright © 2008 Oxford University Press}, interhash = {36f2b9d1dac36789e19eca738a921cf4}, intrahash = {9b2db60afec65579d79343a60f8f448f}, issn = {00225185}, journal = {The Journal of Theological Studies}, jstor_articletype = {research-article}, jstor_formatteddate = {APRIL 2008}, keywords = {Haggai JSTOR}, language = {English}, number = 1, pages = {pp. 41-62}, publisher = {Oxford University Press}, series = {NEW SERIES}, timestamp = {2015-03-12T21:21:37.000+0100}, title = {The Aramaic Documents in Ezra Revisited}, url = {http://www.jstor.org/stable/23972473}, volume = 59, year = 2008 }