Alexandrian Hebrew Writers - Quick Facts

Hebrews had been an important part of Alexandria since its founding in 322 BCE. Under the Ptolemaic dynasty, one of the five quarters of the city was assigned to them.

They enjoyed extensive political and judicial independence, with their own council and quasi-governmental local Hebrew institutions, and quite a few merchants and moneylenders amassed considerable wealth. 

The Hebrew writers in Alexandria at that time played a key role in the development of what is known as "Hellenistic Judaism", blending Hebrew religious tradition with Greek philosophical and literary culture. It was an intellectually vibrant community that produced numerous important Hebrew works in Greek, most notably the famous Greek translation of the Bible, known as the Septuagint, which began around 250 BCE. That later became the primary scripture for Christians.

They also wrote biblical texts in Greek, which were part of the Septuagint but were eventually excluded from the Hebrew version of the Bible. They wrote the Wisdom of Solomon, philosophical work blending Stoicism, Platonism, and Jewish theology; Ecclesiasticus (originally written as Sirach in Hebrew), which focused on Hebrew law and wisdom; the historical books we call today 2, 4 and 4 Maccabees; the Pseudepigraphic books, which were written then but supposedly in the name of an ancient person or character, like the scribe Baruch, or Abraham, Solomon, etc; the apocalyptic Book of Enoch (1 Enoch); and more.
 

 In these text,s we see the use of Greek literary genres: epic, tragedy, historiography, and philosophy. And we learned on the podcast, that they also wrote Hebrew versions of Greek play comedies, which can be found in the book of 1 Samuel and the story of Samson.
 

Among the most famous Hebrew Alexandrian writers are Ezekiel the Tragedian, a Hebrew playwright; Aristeas, who wrote about the Septuagint translation and the wisdom behind Hebrew law; Philo of Alexandria, a philosopher inspired by Plato and Stoicism who tried to harmonize Greek philosophy with Hebrew theology, and whose allegorical interpretations of the Bible became wildly influential; Demetrius the Chronographer, who write a Hebrew-Hellenistic history.