To understand the New Testament well, it is important to study the larger world surrounding it, and one of the primary avenues for this exploration is through reading related ancient texts, a daunting task for scholars and novices alike given the sheer size of the ancient literary corpora. The ALNTS series aims to bridge this gap by introducing the key ancient texts that form the cultural, historical, and literary context for the study of the New Testament.

This volume explores two vital strands of ancient Jewish literature: (1) the Jewish apocrypha and (2) the Septuagint (the Old Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible). These text-collections reveal the rich and dynamic Jewish environments in which early devotion to Jesus Christ first emerged. Intriguing on their own, these text-collections also backlight the life of Jesus and the faith of his earliest followers, adding contours of depth to the writings of the New Testament in relation to the Jewish matrix of their time.

Contributors: Samuel L. Adams, Loveday Alexander, Philip Alexander, Joshua Alfaro, Sonja Ammann, Anna Angelini, John Barton, Katell Berthelot, Francis Borchardt, Miryam T. Brand, Alma Brodersen, Nuria Calduch-Benages, Adela Yarbro Collins, John J. Collins, Lindsey A. Davidson, David A. deSilva, Susan Docherty, Joseph R. Dodson, Michael W. Duggan, Craig A. Evans, Lisbeth S. Fried, Edmon L. Gallagher, Pieter B. Hartog, Tuukka Kauhanen, Olivia Stewart Lester, David Lincicum, William Loader, Francis M. Macatangay, Jean Maurais, Jill Middlemas, Gerbern S. Oegema, Mika S. Pajunen, Nicholas Perrin, Barbara Schmitz, Marco Settembrini, Shayna Sheinfeld, Jan A. Sigvartsen, Malka Simkovich, Gert J. Steyn, Markus Witte, and Benjamin G. Wright III.