Philo of Alexandria - Books and Journals

374 part two
terminology used for foreign gods, in which Philo’s use of the terms εδωλα,
επλαστεν and εί is also investigated. It is only against the background of
a Platonic world-view that the term εδωλν can have the double signification
of ‘a divine image’ and ‘phantom’. The designation of the stars as ε ασητί,
however, is conventional and does not imply veneration. On pp. 123–126 Philo’s
concept of faith is outlined: it comprises knowledge of God, trust in God, and
conversion as well. On pp. 133–138 F. Siegert’s thesis that QE 2.2 betrays the
existence of polytheistic sympathizers of the Hellenistic synagogue is contested.
Jethro, however, could be the symbol of such an exterior circle of adherents.
Further references to Philo’s doctrine of monotheism are found on pp. 174–176
and 397–401. The author observes a tendency to abstract from God’s activity
in history; in contrast to Stoicism, Philo confines the knowledge of a Creator’s
existence to the intellectual inference of philosophers. (GS)
20584.A.T.Wright,The Origin of Evil Spirits: the Reception of Genesis
6.1–4 in Early Jewish Literature, Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum
Neuen Testament 2.198 (Tübingen 2005), esp. 191–219.
The monograph is a revision of the author’s 2004 dissertation submitted to the
faculty at the University of Durham. In order to understand Philo’s place in Early
Judaism and his approach to Gen 6:1–4, Philo’s role as an exegete, his audience,
and his view of the soul, and in particular its immortality, are discussed. Philo’s
interpretation of the text offers an alternative approach to the responsibility for
human suffering to the tradition set forth in 1Enoch1–36. The Watcher tradition
describes the ‘angels of God’ as rebellious angels who entered the human realm
to fornicate with women. Philo interprets them as ‘souls’ that descend to earth
to take on a human body. For Philo, the giants are neither physical nor spiritual
entities. They are irrational vices born as a result of being drawn into the torrents
of the flesh. Despite differences, the giants of the Watcher tradition and the giants
of Gig. threaten the survival of humanity, although one is external and the other
internal to the person. Philo may have been writing a corrective to Watcher
tradition and its view that evil spirits are the cause of human sufferings. (KAF)
20585. A.T.Wright,‘SomeObservationsonPhilo’sDe Gigantibus
and Evil Spirits in Second Temple Judaism,’ Journal for the Study of
Judaism 36 (2005) 471–488.
This article is taken almost verbatim from the monograph summarized above
at 20584. (KAF)