Jacob Milgrom (; February 1, 1923 – June 5, 2010) was a prominent American Jewish
Bible
The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
scholar and
Conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
rabbi
A rabbi (; ) is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi—known as ''semikha''—following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of t ...
. Milgrom's major contribution to biblical research was in the field of cult and worship. Although he accepted the
documentary hypothesis
The documentary hypothesis (DH) is one of the models used by biblical scholars to explain the origins and composition of the Torah (or Pentateuch, the first five books of the Bible: Book of Genesis, Genesis, Book of Exodus, Exodus, Leviticus, Bo ...
, contrary to the classical bible critics, he traced a direct line of development from the
Priestly Code
The Priestly Code (in Hebrew ''Torat Kohanim'', תורת כהנים) is the name given, by academia,The book of Leviticus: composition and reception - Page 55 Rolf Rendtorff, Robert A. Kugler, Sarah Smith Bartel - 2003 "Research agrees that its ...
(P), to the Holiness Code (H), to the cultic innovations of Ezekiel, to the cultic writings of the Dead Sea sect and finally to Jewish law (halacha) of the Mishnah and Talmud. Best known for his comprehensive
Torah
The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...
commentaries and work on the
Dead Sea Scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls, also called the Qumran Caves Scrolls, are a set of List of Hebrew Bible manuscripts, ancient Jewish manuscripts from the Second Temple period (516 BCE – 70 CE). They were discovered over a period of ten years, between ...
, he also published extensively on the
Book of Ezekiel
The Book of Ezekiel is the third of the Nevi'im#Latter Prophets, Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) and one of the Major Prophets, major prophetic books in the Christian Bible, where it follows Book of Isaiah, Isaiah and ...
.
Biography
Jacob Milgrom was born in
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...
,
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
in 1923. He studied at
Brooklyn College
Brooklyn College is a public university in Brooklyn in New York City, United States. It is part of the City University of New York system and enrolls nearly 14,000 students on a campus in the Midwood and Flatbush sections of Brooklyn as of fall ...
and the
Jewish Theological Seminary of America
The Jewish Theological Seminary (JTS) is a Conservative Jewish education organization in New York City, New York. It is one of the academic and spiritual centers of Conservative Judaism as well as a hub for academic scholarship in Jewish studies ...
in New York City. In 1948, he married Jo Berman, also a biblical scholar. They had four children.
Academic career
Jacob Milgrom spent most of his career at the
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...
, where he headed the Department of
Near Eastern
The Near East () is a transcontinental region around the Eastern Mediterranean encompassing the historical Fertile Crescent, the Levant, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula. The term was invented in the 20th ...
Studies. He was known for his research on Biblical purity laws and on the book of Leviticus.
After retiring in 1994, Milgrom and his wife Jo immigrated to
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
. He died in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...
*''Studies in Levitical Terminology''. Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 1970. .
*''Studies in Cultic Theology and Terminology''. E.J. Brill, 1983. .
*''Pomegranates and Golden Bells: Studies in Biblical, Jewish, and Near Eastern Ritual, Law, and Literature''. Winona Lake, Ind.: Eisenbrauns, 1995. .
*''The JPS Torah Commentary: Numbers''. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1996. .
*''Leviticus 1-16''. New York: Anchor Bible, 1998. .
*''Leviticus 17–22''. New York: Anchor Bible, 2000. .
*''Leviticus 23–27''. New York: Anchor Bible, 2000. .
*''Leviticus: A Book of Ritual and Ethics''. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004. .
*''Ezekiel's Hope: A Commentary on Ezekiel 38 - 48'', with Daniel I. Block. Eugene: Cascade Books, 2012. .
Articles
*“The Biblical Diet Laws as an Ethical System.” ''Interpretation''. (July 1963).
*“The Alleged Wave–Offering in Israel and in the Ancient Near East.” ''
Israel Exploration Journal
The ''Israel Exploration Journal'' is a biannual academic journal which has been published by the Israel Exploration Society since 1950. It primarily covers research in archaeology, but also history and geography relating to Israel and the surrou ...
''. 22 (1972): 33–38.
*“Atonement in the OT,” “Atonement, Day of,” “Encroachment,” “First fruits, OT,” “First-born,” “Heave offering,” “Leviticus,” “Repentance in the OT,” “Sacrifices and Offerings, OT,” “Sanctification,” and “Wave offering.” In ''The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible''. Supp. vol., 78–83, 264–65, 336–38, 391–92, 541–45, 736–38, 763–71, 782–84, 944–46. Nashville, Tenn: Abingdon, 1976. .
*“The Temple Scroll.” '' Biblical Archaeologist''. 41 (3) (Sep. 1978): 105–120.
*“The Case of the Suspected Adulteress, Numbers 5:11–31: Redaction and Meaning.” In ''The Creation of Sacred Literature''. Edited by Richard E. Friedman, 69–75. Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 1981. .
*“The Levitic Town: An Exercise in Realistic Planning.” In ''Essays in Honour of Yigael Yadin”. Edited by
Géza Vermes
Géza Vermes, (; 22 June 1924 – 8 May 2013) was a British academic, Biblical scholar, and Judaist of Jewish–Hungarian descent—one who also served as a Roman Catholic priest in his youth—and scholar specialized in the field of the ...
and
Jacob Neusner
Jacob Neusner (July 28, 1932 – October 8, 2016) was an American academic scholar of Judaism. He was named as one of the most published authors in history, having written or edited more than 900 books.
Neusner's application of form criticism ...
. Totowa, N.J.: Allanheld, Osmun and Co., 1983. .
*“Magic, Monotheism, and the Sin of Moses.” In ''The Quest for the Kingdom of God: Studies in Honor of George E. Mendenhall''. Edited by H. B. Huffmon, F.A. Spina, A.R.W. Green, 251–265. Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns, 1983. .
*“Of Hems and Tassels: Rank, authority and holiness were expressed in antiquity by fringes on garments.” ''
Biblical Archaeology Review
''Biblical Archaeology Review'' is a magazine appearing every three months and sometimes referred to as ''BAR'' that seeks to connect the academic study of archaeology to a broad general audience seeking to understand the world of the Bible, the ...
''. 9 (3) (May/June 1983).
*“Challenge to Sun-Worship Interpretation of Temple Scroll’s Gilded Staircase.” ''Biblical Archaeology Review''. 11 (1) (Jan./Feb. 1985).
*“The Chieftain’s Gifts: Numbers, Chapter 7,” ''Hebrew Annual Review''. 9 (1985): 221–225.
*“‘You Shall Not Boil a Kid in Its Mother’s Milk’: An archaeological myth destroyed.” '' Bible Review''. 1 (3) (Fall 1985): 48–55.
*"Ethics and Ritual: The Foundations of the Biblical Dietary Laws." In ''Religion and Law: Biblical, Jewish, and Islamic Perspectives'', 159–91. Edited by E.B. Firmage. Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns, 1989. .
*“Seeing the Ethical Within the Ritual: Israel’s priests spoke in rituals, not in words. Their basic values are in the main ethical, and are ensconced in the rituals prescribed in the priestly texts of the Pentateuch.” ''Bible Review''. 8 (4) (Aug. 1992).
*“Food and Faith: The Ethical Foundations of the Biblical Diet Laws: The Bible has worked out a system of restrictions whereby humans may satiate their lust for animal flesh and not be dehumanized. These laws teach reverence for life.” ''Bible Review''. 8 (6) (Dec. 1992).
*“The Priestly ‘Picture of Dorian Gray’: Ancient Israel’s priests would be aghast at the moral pollution of the earth: the brazen slaughter of thousands, millions dying of hunger, while the free world silently changes the channel.” ''Bible Review''. 9 (2) (Apr. 1993).
*“Sweet Land and Liberty: Whether real or utopian, the laws in Leviticus seem to be a more sensitive safeguard against pauperization than we, here and now, have devised.” ''Bible Review''. 9 (4) (Aug. 1993).
*“Does the Bible Prohibit Homosexuality? The biblical prohibition is addressed only to Israel. It is incorrect to apply it on a universal scale.” ''Bible Review''. 9 (6) (Dec. 1993).
*“How Not to Read the Bible: I am not for homosexuality, but I am for homosexuals. When the Bible is distorted to make God their enemy I must speak out to set the record straight.” ''Bible Review''. 10 (2) (Apr. 1994).
*“An Amputated Bible, Peradventure? The publishing house of Simon and Schuster has come up with a radical solution to the problem of “boring” passages in the Bible: Eliminate them.” ''Bible Review''. 10 (4) (Aug. 1994).
*“Sex and Wisdom: What the Garden of Eden Story Is Saying: There is a plain, unambiguous meaning to the story: It is about sexual awareness and the creativity of which that is a part.” ''Bible Review''. 10 (6) (Dec. 1994).
*“Bible Versus Babel: Why did God tell Abraham to leave Mesopotamia, the most advanced civilization of its time, for the backwater region of Canaan?” ''Bible Review''. 11 (2) (Apr. 1995).
*“The Most Basic Law in the Bible: It is easy to ‘love’ the war-ravaged Bosnians, the AIDS-stricken Zaireans or the bereaved of Oklahoma City. But what of the strangers in our midst, the vagrants on our sidewalks?” ''Bible Review''. 11 (4) (Aug. 1994).
*“‘The Alien in Your Midst’: Every nation has its ger: the permanent resident. The Torah commands us, first, not to oppress the ger, and then to befriend and love him.” ''Bible Review''. 11 (6) (Dec. 1995).
*“Lex Talionis and the Rabbis: The Talmud reflects an uneasy rabbinic conscience toward the ancient law of talion, ‘eye for eye, tooth for tooth.’” ''Bible Review''. 12 (2) (Apr. 1996).
*“A Husband’s Pride, A Mob’s Prejudice: The public ordeal undergone by a suspected adulteress in Numbers 5 was meant not to humiliate her but to protect her.” ''Bible Review''. 12 (4) (Aug. 1996).
*“Shifting Borders: The Whole Land of Israel.” '' Moment''. (Aug. 1996): 52.
*“Albert Schweitzer: Doctor, Musician, Theologian.” ''Bible Review''. 12 (5) (Oct. 1996).
*“The Water Libation in the Festival of Booths: Nonbiblical rites, though originating in popular worship and rooted in magical practice, were ultimately assimilated into Israel’s official monotheism.” ''Bible Review''. 12 (6) (Dec. 1996).
*“Jubilee: A Rallying Cry for Today’s Oppressed: The laws of the Jubilee year offer a blueprint for bridging the gap between the have and have-not nations.” ''Bible Review''. 13 (2) (Apr. 1997).
*“The Blood Taboo: Blood should not be ingested because it contains life. Whoever does so is guilty of murder.” ''Bible Review''. 13 (4) (Aug. 1997).
*“The Vow and the ‘Popular Religious Groups’ of Ancient Israel: A Philological and Sociological Inquiry.” ''