Betsy Halpern-Amaru
Allusion Source Content
Date(s)
Indicated
Exod 34:25 Prohibition against leaving the
pesah offering until morning(1) at its time Num 9:13 Part of citation 14th (sacrifice)
Comments
l. Displaced from its biblical Pesah Sheni context, the cited verse is split by an
insertion that specifies two times for two activities, each of which has its
own day, i.e., date — "to bring a sacrifice on the time of its day" and "to eat
and drink before the Lord on the day of His festival."
- A variant of the biblical "at its time" (US/IBS), this Jubilees-created
term is an indicator, depending on context, for either the fourteenth or the
fifteenth. - Interpreting Exod 23:18 in the light of Exod 34:25, "My festival" is un
derstood as referring to Pesah. The phrase "festival to the Lord" also serves as
an intratextual allusion to Abraham's "festival of the Lord" in Jub 18:18.
The Times of Day for Sacrifice and Eating of the Pesah
The system of coded date-allusions also appears in Jub 49:10-12, but the pri
mary concern of these three verses is prescription of the time of day for the
two-phased celebration. Much as the three initial date-related commands
collectively interpret Exod 12:14,so these commands engage in an exegetical
treatment of the phrase "between the evenings" in Exod 12:6. In that direc
tive for the Egypt Pesah, the term "between the evenings" designates the time
when the paschal animal is to be slaughtered on the fourteenth. The phrase
also appears in Lev 23:5 and Num 9:3, but without reference to a particular
aspect of the ritual. Only in the directives for Pesah Sheni does context sug
gest that the time frame encompasses both sacrifice and eating (Num 9:11).
Alluding to Lev 23:5 and Num 9:3,^24 Jubilees adopts the understanding of
Num 9:11, but again deconstructs its context.
- The opening clause of Jub 49:10 ("The Israelites are to come and celebrate the
pesah") cites Num 9:3; Jub 49:11 ("This is what the Lord commanded you — to celebrate it
between the evenings") refers to the legislation in Lev 23:5.