Magic in the Biblical World: From the Rod of Aaron to the Ring of Solomon.

• Author: Noegel, Scott B.
• Position: Book review

Magic in the Biblical World: From the Rod of Aaron to the Ring of Solomon. Edited by TODD KLUTZ. JSOT Supplement Series, vol. 245. London: T. AND T. CLARK INTERNATIONAL, 2003. Pp. xv + 261. $59.95 (paper).

In the last few years, books on ancient magic have become a cottage industry. While a good number of them are monographs or older works that have been reprinted, the majority derive from interdisciplinary conferences, seminars, and the like. While the increase in publications represents a welcome burgeoning of interest in the topic, it also has made it impossible for authors and editors to engage the many rapid contributions that are being made in so many disciplines. This state of affairs often results, especially when publication is delayed, in a set of articles that appear disengaged from current scholarship but which must nonetheless be read against more recent advances. Such is the case with many of the essays contained in the volume under review, which derive from a "Magic in the World of the Bible" colloquium held at the Universities of Manchester and Sheffield in 1999. Space permits only a brief assessment of the entire volume, but I list below the volume's contents.

Preceding the three major sections that organize the essays is an introduction by the editor entitled "Reinterpreting 'Magic' in the World of Jewish and Christian Scripture." The three divisions then follow: part I, "'Magic' in Jewish Scripture and at Qumran," contains the following essays: Thomas Romer, "Competing Magicians in Exodus 7-9: Interpreting Magic in the Priestly Theology"; Christophe L. Nihan, "1 Samuel 28 and the Condemnation of Necromancy in Persian Yehud"; Alain Buhlman, "Qoheleth 11.1-6 and Divination"; and George J. Brooke, "Deuteronomy 18.9-14, in the Qumran Scrolls."

In part II, "'Magic' in the New Testament and Its Graeco-Roman Milieu," one finds: F. Gerald Downing, "Magic and Scepticism in and around the First Christian Century"; Daniel Marguerat, "Magic and Miracle in the Acts of the Apostles"; Andy M. Reimer, "Virtual Prison Breaks: Non-Escape Narratives and the Definition of 'Magic'"; Thierry Laus, "Paul and 'Magic'"; and Lloyd K. Pietersen, "Magic/Thaumaturgy and the Pastorals."

Appearing in part III, "'Magic' in Disreputable Books from Late Antiquity," are Philip S. Alexander, "Sefer Ha-Razim and the Problem of Black Magic in Early Judaism"; David Bain, "Melanitis in the Cyranides and Related Texts: New Evidence for the Origins and Etymology...