Little Genesis: The Book of Jubilees

Hiteshi Chauhan
Jan 24, 2023
3 min read

The Book of Jubilees, also known as the "Little Genesis," is considered an important text in the canon of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church. It is also considered as a pseudepigraphal text (a text whose claimed authorship is unfounded) of the Second Temple period by Jews. It's a work of religious reinterpretation and expansion of the biblical narrative, particularly the book of Genesis, and it provides additional information and interpretations of the events and people described in the Bible.

The book is also of importance to scholars studying Jewish and early Christian literature, as it provides insight into the religious beliefs and practices of these communities during the Second Temple period.

Most mainstream Christian denominations do not consider the Book of Jubilees to be a part of the canon of scripture. It is an ancient Jewish book. It offers a different perspective on the events detailed in the Books of Genesis and Exodus and is thought to have been composed in the second century BCE.

From Adam and Eve's creation until Mount Sinai, where Moses received the law's revelation, the narrative traces the history of the world. It also contains more details, such as in-depth genealogies and narratives of their lives and activities, regarding the Patriarchs and the Israelites. The Jubilee year, which is a time when sins are forgiven, is also emphasized in the Book of Jubilees.

The Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of Jewish writings that were found in the 1940s in the area of the Dead Sea in Israel, contain the earliest known copies of the Book of Jubilees. These Hebrew-written copies of the text were made in the second century BCE.

As they reveal a wealth of knowledge about the beliefs and practices of the Jewish community that produced them, the Dead Sea Scrolls are regarded as one of the most significant archaeological discoveries of the 20th century.

Several factors make the Book of Jubilees from the Dead Sea Scrolls significant:

For academics researching the evolution of the text and its history, it is important since it is one of the earliest copies of the text known to exist.
It is written in Hebrew, the text's original language, making it useful for linguistic studies as well.
It offers us a look into the values and customs of the Jewish community that created it and lived during the time of the Second Temple.
It gives us a window into the evolution of early Jewish theology and thought and sheds light on the beliefs and customs of the Jewish community that produced it.
It is regarded as a key source of early Jewish apocalyptic literature as well.
Additionally, it is regarded as a source for early Jewish ideas on how God rules the world and the place of the chosen people in God's plan.

The book is regarded as a retelling of the books of Genesis and Exodus and contains details and meanings that are not present in the conventional versions of those works.

The Hebrew Bible, generally known as the Old Testament, on the other hand, was composed over a number of centuries, with the first manuscripts appearing in the 12th century BC. The Torah's books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy are among these texts, along with books of history, poetry, and prophecy.

Because it is regarded as an apocryphal work, the Book of Jubilees is not included in the canon of Jewish or Christian scripture. Jewish canon was finished.

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