Welcome to The New Testament Use of the Old Testament doctoral course taught by Prof. W.E. Nunnally. "This course is designed to illuminate the history, culture, language, religion, texts and institutions of Judaism that provide the background of the events and writings of the New Testament which are critical to its understanding." Special attention is given to the Intertestamental Period, also called the second temple period. Most of the resources in this guide are open access, i.e., freely available online to the EU students, faculty, as well as the general public.
Image source: Masada, Wikimedia Commons
Bridge Between the Testaments by 
Old Testament Pseudepigrapha 2 by 
The Old Testament pseudepigrapha by 
A Companion to Biblical Interpretation in Early Judaism by
A Companion to Biblical Interpretation in Early Judaism presents eighteen commissioned articles on biblical exegesis in early Judaism, covering the period after the Hebrew Bible was written and before the beginning of rabbinic Judaism. The essays, all written by experts in the field, are arranged in seven categories: Hebrew Bible, Rewritten Bible, Qumran Literature, Apocalyptic Literature and Testaments, Wisdom Literature, Hellenistic Judaism, and Biblical Interpretation in Antiquity. Together these essays provide a systematic and comprehensive introduction to the diverse modes of scriptural interpretation practiced by a variegated and dynamic spectrum of Jewish groups in the Hellenistic and early Roman eras. Contributors: Moshe J. Bernstein George J. Brooks Edward M. Cook Peter Enns Matthias Henze Howard Jacobson James L. Kugel Robert Kugler Itamar Manoff Eva Mroczek Hindy Najman Zuleika Rodgers Martin Rösel Jacques van Ruiten Aharon Shemesh Gregory E. Sterling Sarah J. Tanzer Shani Tzoref Benjamin G. Wright III Yair Zakovitch
Jewish Writings of the Second Temple Period by
This volume describes that part of the rich literary production of ancient Judaism which was not contained in the Hebrew Bible nor in rabbinic literature. These writings originated in the Second Temple period, which proved highly creative in the midst of strong external influences and internal movements. Prime example are the Dead Sea Scrolls, documents of an extremely separatist sect. Their discovery in 1947 revolutionized our understanding of Second Temple Judaism and its literature. The scrolls appear more or less related in spirit to a group of writings trasmitted by Christianity and known as the Pseudepigrapha. Yet another group are the Apocrypha, closely related to later biblical writings and incorporated within the Greek Old Testament. Finally, the encounter with Greek culture is documented by Jewish authors writing in Greek, notably Philo and Josephus. After a historical outline which sets the stage, the chapters of this book describe and analyse these documents. Selective bibliographies for further reading conclude the chapters.
Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash by 
The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English by
Discovered on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea in the decade after the Second World War, the Dead Sea Scrolls are a historical and religious record of immense significance, altering our understanding of Jewish and early Christian history.The Complete Dead Sea Scrolls in English is translated and edited with an introduction and notes by Geza Vermes in Penguin Classics. 'He will heal the wounded and revive the dead and bring good news to the poor' The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in the Judaean desert between 1947 and 1956 was one of the greatest archaeological finds of all time. These extraordinary manuscripts appear to have been hidden in the caves at Qumran by the Essenes, a Jewish sect in existence before and during the time of Jesus. Written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek, the scrolls have transformed our understanding of the Hebrew Bible, early Judaism and the origins of Christianity. This acclaimed translation by Geza Vermes, the world's leading Dead Sea Scrolls scholar, has established itself as the classic version of these texts. This revised seventh edition contains a new foreword, amendments and a fully updated bibliography. Geza Vermes (b.1924) was born in Hungary. He studied in Budapest and Louvain. He was the first Professor of Jewish Studies at Oxford. His other books published by Penguin are The Changing Faces of Jesus and The Authentic Gospel of Jesus. 'No translation of the scrolls is either more readable or more authoritative than that of Vermes' The Times Higher Education Supplement 'Excellent, up-to-date ... will enable the general public to read the non-biblical scrolls and to judge for themselves their importance' The New York Times Book Review 'Fascinating, not least because of Geza Vermes' wonderful introduction and translation' Justin Cartwright, Daily Telegraph Books of the Year
