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Psalm 106 recalls Israel’s sin at Baal Peor, where eating sacrifices to the dead was condemned as rebellion. In contrast, Tobit assumes the practice of grave offerings is acceptable, instructing that bread be placed on the graves of the righteous.
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Psalm 106:28
Hebrew Bible
26 So he made a solemn vow that he would make them die in the wilderness, 27 make their descendants die among the nations, and scatter them among foreign lands. 28 They worshiped Baal of Peor and ate sacrifices offered to the dead. 29 They made the Lord angry by their actions, and a plague broke out among them. 30 Phinehas took a stand and intervened, and the plague subsided.
Date: 6th-3rd Centuries B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Tobit 4:17
Deuterocanon
15 And what you hate, do not do to anyone. Do not drink wine to excess or let drunkenness go with you on your way. 16 Give some of your food to the hungry, and some of your clothing to the naked. Give all your surplus as alms, and do not let your eye begrudge your giving of alms. 17 Place your bread on the grave of the righteous, but give none to sinners. 18 Seek advice from every wise person and do not despise any useful counsel. 19 At all times bless the Lord God, and ask him that your ways may be made straight and that all your paths and plans may prosper. For none of the nations has understanding, but the Lord himself will give them good counsel; but if he chooses otherwise, he casts down to deepest Hades. So now, my child, remember these commandments, and do not let them be erased from your heart.
Date: 225-175 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... many translations hide the meaning of the phrase. It is clear that a grave offering is meant in the manner that Hellenistic Greeks practiced. In Greek Hellenistic burial practice on the third day after the funeral, food offerings were left at the grave, and again on the ninth day, which was commonly the end of the mourning period. Sirach 30:18 implies that this was also a Hebrew custom, 'Dainties set before one who cannot eat are like food offerings placed before a tomb.' See also Deuteronomy 26:14 and Psalm 106:28. We know that offerings of food for the dead were regularly made by the Egyptians. Given the general practices of the time, it seems clear that Tobit is referring to a custom that must have existed among the Hebrews of the time ..."
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