Demons, Angels, and Writing in Ancient Judaism

The culmination of nine years of research, Demons, Angels, and Writing in Ancient Judaism is a careful and innovative exploration of the representation and function of intermediate spirits in the Aramaic Jewish literature of the Hellenistic period. Rather than a diachronic examination of the origins and development of angelology and demonology in the Second Temple period, Annette Yoshiko Reed undertakes a synchronic cultural analysis of the function of transmundane powers in relation to concurrent intellectual shifts occurring within the wider Mediterranean world. Specifically, Reed seeks to situate the beginnings of Jewish angelology and demonology within contemporary cultural shifts in the textualization of knowledge. Reed concludes that there is indeed an “integral connection between the development of systematic discourses about transmundane powers and the new approaches to scribes, books, and writing that also emerge in the Jewish literature of the early Hellenistic age” (21).

After a comprehensive introduction, Reed begins her inquiry reflecting on the paucity of systematic discourse on angels and demons within ancient Israelite literature. She argues that a distinction should be made between what scribes believed about intermediate spirits and when and how they chose to write about these powers. Consequently, attention should remain focused on the textual evidence for the way in which Jewish scribes wrote about intermediate spirits in differing periods. Reed concludes that what is lacking in ancient Israelite literature is not a sense of divine multiplicity, but rather a lack of systematic discourse regarding transmundane powers and their role in the cosmos and Israelite history. Building upon this observation, Reed seeks to examine the cultural causes and implications associated with a shift toward more explicitly systematic discourses regarding angelology and demonology in the Aramaic Jewish literature of the Second Temple period.

In chapter 2, Reed argues that the beginnings of Jewish angelology and demonology should not be sought within the reductionistic realm of foreign influence or post-exilic crisis, but rather “as a part of the Hellenistic-era articulation of a newly expansive vision of Jewish knowledge and scribal expertise” (129). It is here that the book truly shines. Reed’s suggestions are innovative and compelling as she presents a conceptual framework by which to approach the Aramaic sources and their varied angelic and demonic representations. For Reed, the innovative angelical and demonological discourse found in the Aramaic Jewish literature is a conscious and purposeful vehicle. On the one hand, it reimagines various facets of the pre-Sinaitic tradition, explicitly highlighting the knowledge and function of transmundane powers. On the other hand, this knowledge is inexplicably linked with similar developments within the wider Hellenistic literary context, including archival and pedagogical interests. In the end, according to Reed, Aramaic Jewish texts emphasize a textualization of knowledge and an elevated sense of the importance of scribalism and the cultural power associated with it.

Reed then turns her attention to three specific Aramaic texts: the Astronomical Book (1 Enoch 72–82; cf. 4Q208–211 [4QEnastr^a-d]), the Book of Watchers (1 Enoch 1–36), and the book of Jubilees (including the various fragments within the Qumran corpus). Regarding the Astronomical Book, Reed suggests that more than representing an integration of Babylonian astronomy into a Jewish pedagogical setting, the book attests to a distinct intensification of Jewish literary activity within a period largely concerned with the textualization of and totalizing claims to knowledge. In this sense, the Astronomical Book not only attests to the continued vitality of Mesopotamian science in the period, but also to the elevation of the Jewish scribes as keepers and transmitters of such traditions. In much the same manner, The Book of Watchers represents a marked innovation in demonological discourse. Reed argues that the book uses the scribal practice of Listenwissenschaft (“science of lists”) to catalog knowledge regarding angelic and demonic powers. This mode of categorization “emphasizes the comprehensiveness of Jewish knowledge about all the forces of the cosmos” (246). Finally, Reed considers the Book of Jubilees, concluding that the book stands firmly within the tradition of the textualization of knowledge. Here, interest in the scribal practices of writing, reading, and transmission are applied to the transmission and preservation of eternal and cosmic truths. Consequently, the power of reading and writing become the conduit by which knowledge is conveyed and remembered.

Reed’s work in Demons, Angels, and Writing in Ancient Judaism is monumental and consequential. Not only does it serve as a model for the type of synchronic analysis she undertakes, but also stands as a testament to its fruitfulness. Eschewing reductionistic approaches to the origins of angelic and demonological interest, this monograph provides an innovative analysis of the function of transmundane powers within scribal culture in antiquity, one which adds significantly to the scholarship on the subject. It also opens a door for a deeper discussion on ancient scribalism and the power of writing in antiquity. These factors make Reed’s work here essential reading, especially for those working on Jewish literature and scribal practices in the Second Temple period.

Michael DeVries is a PhD candidate at the University of Birmingham, UK.

Michael DeVries

Date Of Review:

January 23, 2023