Book of Joshua (Samaritan)

rdf:langString Book of Joshua (Samaritan)

rdf:langString The Book of Joshua, sometimes called the Samaritan Chronicle, is a Samaritan chronicle so called because the greater part of it is devoted to the history of Joshua. It is extant in two divergent recensions, one in Samaritan Hebrew and the other in Arabic. Though based on the Hebrew canonical Book of Joshua, it differs greatly from the latter in both form and content and the Samaritans ascribe no canonical authority to it. The book was redacted between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries, and it contains traditions that are believed to have developed in the Byzantine and the early Islamic period. The editio princeps is a published Arabic manuscript written in the Samaritan alphabet, with a Latin translation and a long preface by (Leyden, 1848). A Samaritan Hebrew version was published in 1908 by Moses Gaster. The book is divided into fifty chapters, and contains, after the account of Joshua, a brief description of the period following Joshua, agreeing to that extent with the Book of Judges, and covering early Israelite history until Eli leaves Shechem and the sanctuary in Shiloh is established. The last six chapters discuss the Babylonian exile and Samaritan history up to Baba Rabba, including Alexander the Great, and the revolt against Hadrian. The biblical narratives discussed in the book were expanded upon by adding legends of a later date and developing the narratives themselves, while also changing certain statements to fit Samaritan perspectives on history. Alterations that emphasize the Samaritan belief in the sanctity of Mount Gerizim, the site of the Samaritan temple, appear throughout the text; for example, an expanded passage Joshua 9:27 calls Gerizim "the chosen place" and a description of the temple being built there follows the conclusion of the conquest of Canaan.