Cleodemus Malchus (fl. 200 BCE) was a Jewish writer of whom only a few lines survive. He connects the inhabitants of Syria and North Africa with Abraham by identifying them as descendants of three sons whom Abraham had by Keturah: Apheran (the town of Aphra), Asoureim (the Assyrians), and Iaphran (Africa).[1] His work appears cited in a quote from Alexander Polyhistor referenced by Josephus in Antiquities of the Jews[2] 1.239-41.[3]
Josephus was cited by Eusebius in his Praeparatio Evangelica 9.20-2.4.[3] According to Robert Doran, "the two texts show minor variations."[3]
References
edit- ^ Cleodemus Malchus - Prior to First Century B.C., Early Jewish Writings
- ^ Feldman, Louis H. (1996). Jewish Life and Thought Among Greeks and Romans: Primary Readings. Bloomsbury. p. 229. Retrieved 25 August 2019.
- ^ a b c Robert Doran, Cleodemus Malchus (prior to First Century B.C.). A New Translation and Introduction, in James H. Charlesworth (1985), The Old Testament Pseudoepigrapha, Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company Inc., Volume 2, ISBN 0-385-18813-7 (Vol. 2), p. 883