Hecataeus on Moses and the Origin of the Jewish People

Hecataeus of Abdera was a fourth-century BCE Greek philosopher and contemporary of Alexander the Great who wrote a historical and ethnographic account of Egypt known as The Aegyptiaka. The passage excerpted here was preserved in a quotation from the writings of first-century BCE historian Diodorus Siculus. Diodorus was, in turn, quoted in a collection by Photius, the ninth-century CE bishop of Alexandria. Hecataeus’ report contains the earliest extant Greek reference to Moses. It shows awareness of the biblical Exodus tradition and alludes specifically to the plagues of Egypt and to the departure of a people for the land of Judaea. Here, the Jews belong to a larger group of outsiders whom the Egyptians must banish due to foreign corruption of the land’s native religious traditions.

Hecataeus credits Moses with founding the Temple, Jewish legal and religious institutions, and the city of Jerusalem. Moses is depicted as personally wise and brave, yet is held responsible for establishing an antisocial and intolerant people. Hecataeus’ knowledge of the Torah and of the political and religious centrality of the high priest are of particular significance for understanding how Judean society appeared to outsiders in the early Hellenistic period. He retrojects the preeminence of the high priest onto the time of Moses, who is portrayed here as displaying the Greek virtues of wisdom and courage. While the historicity of this extended depiction of the Jews has frequently been questioned, most scholars still argue for its value, even given its Greek ideological prejudices and misconceptions about Jews common to the early Hellenistic period.