Some Examples of Ancient Biblical Interpretation

James Kugel

The literature of the Second Temple period bears witness to a developed and highly varied corpus of biblical interpretation. This is particularly the case with biblical narratives, whose wording and precise details gave rise to numerous interpretive elab orations and expansions of the biblical text. In this paper I will try to present some examples of such elaborations, focusing on traditions connected with Gen. 2:15, 9:14, 12:1, 32:28, 38:26, Exod. 1:7, and others.