Texts in Conversation
In Judith 13, the death of the Assyrian leader Holofernes is planned at night, echoing the details in Exodus where Egypt experiences the death of the firstborn. Judith shapes its narrative to follow the patterns of the Exodus story.
Share:
2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Exodus 12:29
Hebrew Bible
28 and the Israelites went away and did exactly as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron. 29 It happened at midnight—the Lord attacked all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the prison, and all the firstborn of the cattle. 30 Pharaoh got up in the night, along with all his servants and all Egypt, and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was no house in which there was not someone dead.
Date: 750–400 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
Judith 13:1
Deuterocanon
1 But when the evening had come, his servants hurried to depart. Bagoas shut the tent outside, and dismissed those who waited from the presence of his lord. They went away to their beds; for they were all weary, because the feast had been long. 2 But Judith was left alone in the tent, with Holofernes lying along upon his bed; for he was drunk with wine. 3 Judith had said to her servant that she should stand outside her bedchamber, and wait for her to come out, as she did daily; for she said she would go out to her prayer. She spoke to Bagoas according to the same words.
Date: 100 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
Search:
Notes and References
"... In several ways Holofernes resembles the Pharaoh at the time of the exodus, while Judith exhibits similarities to both Moses and Miriam. The contest between Israel's God and Holofernes is comparable to the dispute between the Lord and Pharaoh in Exodus. For instance, Pharaoh's question about Israel's God, ('Who is he?', Exodus 5:2), is loosely echoed in Holofernes' defiant question, ('Who is God if not Nebuchadnezzar?', Judith 6:2). The answer to both these questions comes in the victory songs, since Judith's song of triumph (Judith 16:1-17) echoes the Song of Moses and Miriam at the Red Sea (Exodus 15:1-21). When Judith 16:2 sings: 'The Lord is a God who crushes wars', it alludes to the Greek form of Exodus 15:3: 'the Lord who crushes wars'. Moreover, after a decisive blow against the foreign oppressor has taken place at night (Exodus 12:29; Judith 13:1), the discovery produces a loud cry. Just as when the Egyptians discovered the death of the firstborn, ('A great shouting happened', Exodus 12:30), so when the Assyrians discovered the death of Holofernes, ('Their shouting and cry became very great', Judith 14:19) ..."
Jeremy Corley, “Imitation of Septuagintal Narrative and Greek Historiography in the Portrait of Holofernes,” in A Pious Seductress: Studies in the Book of Judith, ed. Géza G. Xeravits, DCLS 14 (Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co. KG, 2012), 22–54.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
Your Feedback:
Leave a Comment
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.
User Comments
,