The structure of Philo’s de Plantatione and its place in the allegorical commentary

[Extract] There was a time when Philo was above all known as an allegorist. He was widely admired, but also reviled for his interpretations of the Bible in terms of the history of the soul and its quest for knowledge of God.¹ In more recent times there has been a decline of interest in this part of the Philonic legacy. Modern scholars are generally more interested in what Philo can tell us about the beliefs and practices of the Judaism of his time than about the complexities of his ethical and theological interpretations of the scriptural text. It is one of the more important tasks of the Philo of Alexandria Commentary Series, I believe, to make these works more accessible to a broad circle of readers so that they can be recognised for the fascinating pieces of exegetical and philosophical literature that they are. So far a commentary has been published on only one allegorical treatise, De agricultura.² It is important that others soon follow. The present paper is based on work that Dr. Albert Geljon and I are doing in preparation for our commentary on De plantatione, the allegorical treatise which follows De agricultura in the generally accepted sequence of Philo’s treatises.