Texts in Conversation
The Letter of Aristeas explains the reminders Jews wore on their garments and hands as aids to remembering God and acting justly. In Matthew 23, Jesus mentions the same phylacteries and tassels, but criticizes those who enlarge them to be seen.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
Letter of Aristeas 1:159
Letter of Aristeas to Philocrates
Pseudepigrapha, Hebrew Bible Expansions
time and place so that we may continually remember the God who rules and preserves (us). For in the matter of food and drink he tells us to first of all offer part as a sacrifice and then at once enjoy our meal. Moreover, on our garments he has given us a symbol of remembrance, and in like manner he has ordered us to put the divine oracles on our gates and doors as a remembrance of God. And on our hands, too, he expressly orders the symbol to be fastened, clearly showing that we ought to perform every act in righteousness, remembering (our own creation), and above all the
Matthew 23:5
New Testament
2 “The experts in the law and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat. 3 Therefore pay attention to what they tell you and do it. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they teach. 4 They tie up heavy loads, hard to carry, and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing even to lift a finger to move them. 5 They do all their deeds to be seen by people, for they make their phylacteries wide and their tassels long. 6 They love the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues 7 and elaborate greetings in the marketplaces and to have people call them ‘Rabbi.’
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Notes and References
“... Later, the wearing of phylacteries and the posting of the commands on one’s property (Deut 6:8-9) would serve as devices for keeping the commandments in mind. [...] Rabbinic discussions of the laws governing the wearing phylacteries (e.g. Sanh. 88b; Men. 34b; Zeb. 37b; Sanh. 4b) and posting mezuzot on doorposts and gates (e.g. Men. 43b; Pes. 113b) are preceded by the evidence of Aristeas (158-59), Josephus (A.J. 4:213), and Matthew 23:5; ...”
Baron, Lori Ann Robinson
The Shema in John’s Gospel Against its Backgrounds in Second Temple Judaism
(p. 45) Duke University, 2015
* 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.
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