Beware the Evil Eye Volume 3: The Evil Eye in the Bible and the Ancient World--The Bible and Related Sources (The Bible and Related Stories)

The Evil Eye is mentioned repeatedly throughout the Old Testament Israels parabiblical writings and New Testament with a variety of terms and expressions. The Old Testament (Greek Septuagint) contains no less than fourteen text segments involving some twenty explicit references to the Evil Eye (Deut 15:9; 28:54 56; Prov 23:6; 28:22; Tob 4:7 16; Sir 14:3 6 8 9 10; 18:18; 31:13; 37:11; Wis 4:12; 4 Macc 1:26; 2:15; Ep Jer 69/70). At least three further texts are also likely implied references to an Evil Eye (1 Sam 2:29 32; 18:9) with some other texts as more distant possibilities. The Evil Eye is mentioned also in the Old Testament Pseudepigrapha the Dead Sea Scrolls and the writings of Philo and Josephus--all of which are discussed in the following pages. Evil Eye belief and practice continued in the early Jesus movement. Jesus mentions the Evil Eye on more than one occasion (Matt 6:22-23; Luke 11:33-36; Mark 7:22). Paul makes explicit and implicit mention of the Evil Eye in his letter to the Galatians (3:1; 4:12-20). Possible implicit references to the Evil Eye are also examined. Both the common and the distinctive features of biblical Evil Eye belief are identified along with its operation on multiple levels (biological/physiological psychological economic social and moral) and its serving a variety of purposes. The numerous references to the Evil Eye in Israels rabbinic writings and those of postbiblical Christianity (second-sixth centuries CE) together with the material evidence from this period are examined in volume 4. This volume on the Bible takes central place in Elliotts masterful four-volume study of the Evil Eye. With full command of the biblical material as well as the history of research Elliotts exemplary investigation shows how belief in the Evil Eye illuminates the culture and perceptions of the world shared with the Greco-Roman context. But Elliott also highlights the distinctive character of Jesuss Evil Eye sayings with focus on generosity and sharing of resources. --Halvor Moxnes Professor of New Testament Emeritus University of Oslo Elliotts richly illustrated analysis of the Evil Eye in the Bible and related texts provides background and detailed interpretation of key texts. Often obscured by sanitized translations or misrecognition Elliott finds the trope pervasive in the Bible though consistently linked to an ethics of generosity and solidarity versus envy rather than to the fear of demons as elsewhere. A fascinating and convincing read this is an essential reference work for Biblical scholars and Bible translators. --Jonathan A. Draper Fellow and Emeritus Professor of New Testament School of Religion Philosophy & Classics the University of KwaZulu-Natal; author (with Richard A. Horsley) of Whoever Hears You Hears Me: Prophets Performance and Tradition in Q Few phenomena so sharply differentiate the world of the Bible from the cultures of North America and northern Europe as belief in the Evil Eye that was prevalent everywhere. In this the third volume of his long-awaited and magisterial treatment of the subject John Elliott in a project without scholarly precedent illuminates the many Old and New Testament texts where Evil Eye belief appears. This book is destined to become a classic of biblical scholarship. --Philip Esler Portland Professor in New Testament Studies University of Gloucestershire Cheltenham Without a doubt this is the definitive work on the Evil Eye. Amazingly a topic so small in scope manages to inform us on a wide range of cultural and theological concerns while simultaneously providing an incisive commentary on the many biblical texts it illuminates. --Norman K. Gottwald author of Social Justice and the Hebrew Bible John H. Elliott is Professor of New Testament Emeritus at the University of San Francisco. He is the author of Conflict Community and Honor (2007).