Abby Kerbel
His 1010x
Exagoge
10/6/06
The Exagoge is the story of Exodus, but in the form of a Greek tragedy. It was written by Ezekiel the Tragedian, who was Jewish writer writing in Greek. The piece can be dated to sometime after the Septuagint because based on the content of the play, Ezekiel the Tragedian had to have had extensive knowledge of the Torah in some form. In fact, when looking at the English translation of the Hebrew text of Shemot alongside the Exagoge, some of the narrative of the Exagoge seems almost word for word for what is in the biblical text. In this way we can tell that Ezekiel the Tragedian not only had familiarity with the biblical story, but an intimate knowledge of the text itself.
The story starts off with Moses, who is the main narrator throughout most of the text, recounting how the Israelites got to Egypt in the first place. This recounting of origin is a Jewish concept, as seen later in the Torah that this similar history is to be recited upon giving sacrifice in the Mishkan, and then later the Temple. Its inclusion in the Greek tragedy gives the tragedy a Jewish touch, while still maintaining the tragic narrative form. This is one piece of evidence that this tragedy was meant to bring Judaism and the Torah to the Jews through a Greek medium, rather than Greek-ifying Judaism.
Another interesting point in the beginning of the text is when Moses is recounting how the Israelites were “suffering, oppressed, ill-treated even to this very day by ruling powers and by wicked men.” (Lines 4-6) I can’t seem to figure out what suffering the Jews are facing when Ezekiel the Tragedian is writing this, because if we assume he’s writing this still during the Ptolemaic rule, the Jews were treated quite well at this time. This line makes me wonder what he’s talking about, and whether he is alluding to something we don’t know about regarding Ptolemaic rule and the Jews.
Further close reading of the text shows the use of Greek medium to transmit the story. It says that the Jews built walls and towers out of the bricks they were making. Egypt at the time of the actual Exodus, as far as I know, did not have walled cities with towers, and this seems like a more Greek concept. It’s the small details like this that make the Jewish story more Greek without compromising its Jewish identity. These little particulars are those things in the story that the Greek Jews can latch on to as identifiably Greek, and then this further draws them into the story and peaks their interest, making this very identity laden story easier for Greek Jews to handle.
While the text of the Exagoge for the most part is very close to the actual story of the Exodus, there is a hint of commentary or interpretation within the play. When Moses meets Sepphorah in the play, he asks where he has ended up, and her reply is Libya. She further goes on to explain that Aethiops also live in the land. This seems to be a way of explaining the issue many had with Moses marrying Sepphorah and also a Cushite woman. By taking the liberty to put this information in, Ezekiel the Tragedian may have tried to solve some of the contradictions of the Torah to make it easier to understand. At the same time though, a character named Chus is introduced alongside of Sepphorah. Chus looks like Cush, which would then present the idea that the Cushite woman was indeed separate from Sepphorah, and then Ezekiel would be contradicting himself. This slip up might be evidence of Ezekiel the Tragedian’s own indecision on the matter.
This play seems to be a way to bring the Septuagint to the Greek speaking Jews of the time. Just because the Jews spoke Greek, does not necessarily mean that they had access to the text of the Septuagint. The Exagoge is an example of how Judaism can still fit into Greek containers, so to speak, without compromising it. Ezekiel the Tragedian does take some poetic license with some parts but on the whole keeps true to the details of the biblical story. The ability to do this within the acculturation of Hellenistic society should be noted as example that Hellenization does not have to mean assimilation.
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Harry Dunstan
Ancient Jewish History
10/06/06
Short Paper 1
Ezekiel the Tragedian and the Exegoge
Currently, we do not possess a copy of Exegoge written by Ezekiel the Tragedian or copies of any other tragedies from the Hellenistic period. However, select passages are preserved because Eusebius quoted Alexander Polyhistor. The play, Exegoge, is basically an account of the exodus of the Jews from Egypt as described in Exodus, chapters one through fifteen. However, since Exegoge is a work of art, many of the narratives and events have been altered by the author to better suit his style and purpose; this in combination with the lack of an intact copy in its original language presents many problems.
The first problem presented is when and where the play was written. It is easier to determine when the Exegoge was written than where. Alexander Polyhistor lived in the second half of the first century BCE. The Exegoge must have been written prior to this period. The play’s biblical references are mainly from the Septuagint, suggesting that the Exegoge was written after this translation. The other piece of evidence we have to use in dating the Exegoge is from, The Letter of Aristeas, which suggested a proliferation of writing during the first half of the second century BCE. A date during the first half of the second century BCE would make sense in combination with the other two events.
The use of the Septuagint suggests that the play was written in an area where Jews were heavily influenced by Hellenistic ideas. The author was also heavily influenced by the writing styles of the early Greek tragedians such as: Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides. During the reign of Ptolemy Euregetes III Greek manuscripts from the above-mentioned authors were given to the library of Alexandria. This supports the idea that Ezekiel came from Alexandria. However, there is no concrete evidence that this is true.
I believe that the when and where are secondary in importance compared to the question of whether or not the play was performed. The existence of this book indicates that Jews had the freedom to write on topics such as religion without censorship. This play was produced in a language that not only Jews could understand. This suggests that the Jews of that time had the ability to not only keep but also actively investigate the Torah. If the play were performed, it would show that the Jews had not only the right to pursue their own religious endeavors but that they also had the finances to support the arts.
We are told by Eusebius that the play is written in Iambic Trimeter. This meter described by Aristotle in Poetics as the one most fitting for tragedy. Scholars are led to believe that it was originally written in Greek. The use of Greek supports the idea that the play could have been performed because Greek was understood by the educated populous.
Another example that supports the possibility that the play may have been performed is that it does not contain any events that would be impossible to act out on stage. The biblical narrative in a few cases is changed to support this; the plagues are not acted out; instead they are foretold by G-d to Moses when he confronts the burning bush.
We have no evidence other than the text to support whether or not the play was performed. However, its existence shows that some Jews were interested in the arts and had the financial and educational resources to pursue them. The Exegoge also shows through the use of the Septuagint, its acceptance and importance as a religious document.
Jaymie Testa
Monday, October 9, 2006
Judaizing Greek Literature
There are many unknowns about this fascinating text written by Ezekiel the Tragedian and called the Exagõgē. The problem is that there is no extant copy of the original text. The text was preserved in the work of Alexander Polyhistor. Thus, we can date the text backwards; we know it was written before Polyhistor (around the first century). We also can deduce from its references to the biblical text, that Ezekiel was using the Septuigental translation of the Bible. Where he lived is unclear but he definitely lived in a Greek speaking, somewhat Hellenized city leading many to believe that he lived in Alexandria. The Exagõgē follows many of the conventions of a Greek tragedy in the style of Aeschylus and others but sometimes he strays away from the Greek conventions. The power in the Exagõgē lies in its ability to translate an important moment in Jewish ancestral/biblical history into the vernacular, not just in language but also in style. This can be seen as the Hellenization of Jewish culture and of the Bible. I would like to suggest an alternative prospective: Ezekiel the Tragedian has taken a form from Aeschylus and Euripides and Judaized it.
An interesting place to start in this comparison is the narration. The first few chapters of Exodus that provide the basis for the Exagõgē are written in the third person omniscient like Genesis before it. This is important because the omniscient first person gives the text an authoritative quality and almost sounds like God is talking about his creation speaking in the third person. The Exagõgē is told from a variety of points of view. While historians disagree about whether this tragedy was intended to be preformed, the differing narration strongly suggests an attempt to adapt the Bible story for the stage. Following a Greek habit, the tragedy ends with a monologue from the lone survivor. Here, the solitary Egyptian soldier describes their pursuit of the Hebrews, the parting of the sea, and the smiting of the Egyptians.
This principle also comes up when the ten plagues are introduced. In the Genesis version, the third person narration accommodates God’s voice with the phrase, “The Lord said to Moses,” but it is interesting to note that only Moses (and sometime Aaron) can hear the voice of God. Ezekiel finds an interesting way of avoiding the difficult nature of portraying the plagues. Instead of the day by day account of the plagues as in Genesis, Ezekiel condenses all of the plagues into a single monologue delivered by God in a sort of prophecy. The audience of the monologue is unclear but it takes the same form as a hero who talks apparently to himself in order to explain the situation to the audience.
Another point of divergence from the traditional Greek structure is in time and place. This notion which comes from Aristotle demands that a tragedy exists within one day and in one place. This allows ease of stage performance. Ezekiel the Tragedian’s Exagõgē disregards this convention instead using the same timeframe and differing geography as the Biblical narrative.
The difficulty analyzing this text is very important to understand. This text in the form that I have it available is more than three times mediated: first by Alexander Polyhistor, second into English, and again to make the English text into Iambic Trimeter. The comparison is also flawed since Ezekiel was using a different copy of Exodus, the Septuagint as opposed to the Masoretic text. These facts make it difficult to attempt a direct comparison that would look line by line at differences in language and style. Nonetheless, despite the difficulty in comparison, the text does exhibit the qualities of a Jewish story adapted into Greek style, which can also be understood as a Greek style adapted to tell a Jewish story.
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