Biblical Criticism & History Forum - earlywritings.com

Is the author doing more than being clever? Does he see these as "messianic" and see their reference as something other than King David? I guess 'messianic' is the wrong or misleading term because this has NOTHING to do with David. Is 'Mosianic' a word? It's just about Moses and his frien...

Some commentary on the non-Christian references: (1) Philochorus and Athenaeus -- to the Good Deity (here, Bacchus) (2) Plutarch -- the Good God and the Evil Daemon (Zoroastrianism), Mithras as "Mediator" (3) Pausanias -- Temple of the Good God (4) Corpus Hermeticum -- The Blessed God, the...

Be thankful that this is already an edited collection and that I gathered the translations for the few in the first two posts.

If it is of no interest, that is fine.

This contains a good discussion: https://books.google.com/books?id=qOdBzAuuFJwC&pg=PA717 Reference to the "Good Daemon" when drinking wine was, apparently, a Greek practice. Notice that the "Good Daemon" appears in the Corpus Hermeticum, there identified with the "Blesse...

And here are some more (unmatched with translations... something that would line up translations would be amazing...) Clemens Alexandrinus Theol., Stromata Book 3, chapter 5, section 43, subsection 2, line 4 μονα εἶναι καὶ τὴν τοῦ σώματος κολακείαν <μὴ> ἐπαισχύνεσθαι· οὐδὲ γὰρ συνᾴδειν ποτὲ δύναται ...

Here are a couple in Justin and Irenaeus. Justinus Martyr Apol., Apologia Chapter 14, section 2, line 3 οἱ πάλαι μὲν πορνείαις χαίροντες, νῦν δὲ σωφροσύνην μόνην ἀσπαζόμενοι· οἱ δὲ καὶ μαγικαῖς τέχναις χρώμενοι, ἀγαθῷ καὶ ἀγεννήτῳ θεῷ ἑαυτοὺς ἀνατεθεικότες· χρημάτων δὲ καὶ κτημάτων οἱ πόρους παντὸς ...

Here are some references to 'the good God'. Philochorus Hist., Fragmenta Volume-Jacobyʹ-F 3b,328,F, fragment 5a, line 4 [3rd century BC] θίδος <«καὶ θέσμιον»> φησίν <«ἐτέθη τότε προσφέρεσθαι μετὰ τὰ σιτία πᾶσιν ἀκράτου μὲν ὅσον γεῦμα καὶ δεῖγμα τῆς δυνάμεως τοῦ Ἀγαθοῦ Θεοῦ, τὸ δὲ λοιπὸν ἤδη κεκραμέν...

The reason to speculate is simply the fact that they don't say 64 years, but they do say 40 years. Good luck with that. Absence any other information 40 years is the most likely correct time period. The account is too late and too legendary to be used for such precise "correct" answers.

For those of us who like to see chapter and verse with their citations... Numbers 24:17 ("but not near") Genesis 49:10 ("the one to whom it belongs") Deuteronomy 18:15 ("like me") It certainly is interesting that the author is using gemetria (if that's a sure conclusion...

It is also intriguing that 2Clement (with its frequent use of a non-canonical gospel) also seems to echo the "Man and Church" concept of the Valentinians (cf Irenaeus Adv Haer 1): Wherefore, brethren, if we do the will of God our Father, we shall be of the first Church, which is spiritual...