The 18th World Congress of Jewish Studies

4QVisions of Amram and the Literary Genres of Second Temple Judaism

The nature of Second Temple apocalyptic writings and whether they can be described as constituting a particular literary genre, has been an intensely debated question. This paper attempts a fresh examination, taking its point of departure from at some of the Aramaic Dead Sea texts, in particular 4QVisions of Amram, which combines a “testament” setting with elements of heavenly visions, remodeling of biblical narratives, and predictions regarding future events.