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lethargic_manYesterday's Torah reading covered the story of the Mesopotamian*or Ammonite† prophet Balaam.
Did you know (I didn't, or I'd have posted this last week!) that Balaam is the earliest Biblical character to be mentioned in an independent text?
See here for a summary; here for a reconstruction of the text, and here for pictures.
* According to Jewish tradition.
† According to the Samaritan Torah‡ and, according to Wikipedia, other sources.
‡ Which reads פְּתוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר עַל־הַנָּהָר אֶרֶץ בְּנֵי־עַמּוֹן in place of the Masoretic text's פְּתוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר עַל־הַנָּהָר אֶרֶץ בְּנֵי־עַמּוֹ.
Did you know (I didn't, or I'd have posted this last week!) that Balaam is the earliest Biblical character to be mentioned in an independent text?
See here for a summary; here for a reconstruction of the text, and here for pictures.
* According to Jewish tradition.
† According to the Samaritan Torah‡ and, according to Wikipedia, other sources.
‡ Which reads פְּתוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר עַל־הַנָּהָר אֶרֶץ בְּנֵי־עַמּוֹן in place of the Masoretic text's פְּתוֹרָה אֲשֶׁר עַל־הַנָּהָר אֶרֶץ בְּנֵי־עַמּוֹ.
