Simon the High Priest in Sirach 50, An Exegetical Study of the Significance of Simon the High Priest As Climax to the Praise of the Fathers in Ben Sira`s Concept of the History of Israel

The present exegetical study in the Hebrew and Greek versions of Sirach 50 deals with the wisdom tradition, personified in Simon the High Priest, who is called "the Just" in the rabbinical tradition. As a genuine eyewitness Ben Sira offers proof of Simons significance in the re-building of Jerusalem as climax of the Praise of the Fathers on Rosh Hashanah. His re-writing of Israels history ends with a polemic against the legality of the Samaritan temple and a direct allusion to the author's name. The volume examines three new pictures of the original Geniza-fragments found in 1896. The comparison of both versions provides an impressive picture of the development of Israels religion in the Second Temple period from 200-132 BCE.