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Unveiling Apocalyptic Literature

This multi-authored volume examines the development of apocalyptic literature within Judaism in the Second Temple period, down to current expressions of apocalypticism. The majority of the book is, however, focused on examples of apocalyptic literature from antiquity, along with exploring key themes and expressions of the apocalyptic mentality in that period. The Handbook is arranged with an introductory chapter followed by five parts covering various aspects of apocalypticism. The introductory chapter covers issues of definition and scope. Here Collins notes that, from the outset of the use of the term ‘apocalyptic’, it was not clear whether it ‘designated a literary genre or a kind of theology’ (p. 1). That remains a question that confronts those who continue to study the apocalyptic phenomenon. Moreover, as Collins helpfully sets out, the task of definition is far from resolved and remains highly contested, depending on whether the definition emphasizes ‘form and content’, is stated in ‘purely formal’ terms or reflects more of ‘a thematic definition’ (p. 5). In some ways such distinctions reflect different emphases, rather than being ultimately resolvable. The first section of the volume comprises six essays grouped under the heading ‘The Literary and Phenomonological Context’. In the opening chapter of this section, Cook examines what he calls ‘Apocalyptic Prophecy’. In essence, he traces the roots of apocalypticism in the Hebrew Bible to texts such as Ezek. 38-39, Isa. 24-27, Joel, and Zechariah. He notes that a variety of apocalyptic expressions arose during and after the exile, with probably influence from Persian or Zoroastrian sources. However, in a balanced conclusion, he simply states ‘we must reckon with a diversity or provenance and streams behind Israel’s earliest apocalyptic literature’ (p. 33). In the following chapter Hindy Najman careful explores the link and transition from prophecy to apocalypse by considering two ideas – the genre thesis and the chronological thesis. For Najman, ‘[t]he apocalyptic deployment of figures and themes from prophetic literature was part of a deliberate strategy of inheritance, intended to sustain the relevance of prophecy’ (p. 48). In chapter four, Matthew Goff explores the relationship between ‘Wisdom and Apocalyptic’ (pp. 52-68). Here he draws upon the stream of scholarship that has probed the link between sapiential and apocalyptic traditions. Here Goff notes how the interplay between wisdom and apocalyptic themes plays out in the Q material. In the remaining three chapters in this section Jassen provides an insightful study of the function of scriptural interpretation within early Jewish apocalypses (pp. 69-84). Next, Boustan and McCullough discuss the place of apocalyptic literature in relation to early Jewish mysticism (pp. 85-103). Lastly, Frances Flannery looks specifically at dream and vision accounts in early Jewish and Christian apocalypse (pp. 104-120). Flannery sees the accounts of dreams and visions as being one aspect of apocalyptic texts that added Unveiling Apocalyptic Literature 543433 EXT0010.1177/0014524614543433The Expository Times research-article2014