ABSTRACT
This book affords one of the most valuable disquisitions on the Temple Service as it was carried out in Second Temple times. The author has given over almost the whole of chapter 50 to an elaborate and detailed description of the high priest Simon II, surrounded by his colleagues, officiating at a rite of sacrifice. This description is set forth in language for the most part derived from the Hebrew Bible. Individual words and phrases drawn from the Scriptures are employed to create a subtle and nuanced poem of great solemnity, as ben Sira grandly concludes his work with a portrait of Simon the high priest performing his sacred duties, arrayed in the glorious vestments proper to his office. By analysing ben Sira’s poem in detail, it is possible to acquire an understanding of the inner meaning of the Temple Service as the writer perceived it.
