The Book of Tobit (), a work of Second Temple Jewish literature, is one of the deuterocanonical books of the Bible. It dates to the 3rd or early 2nd century BCE. It emphasizes God’s testing of the faithful, his response to prayer, and his protection of the covenant people, the Israelites. The narrative follows two Israelite families: the blind Tobit in Nineveh and Sarah, abandoned in Ecbatana. Tobit’s son Tobias is sent to recover ten silver talents once deposited in Rhages in Media, and on his journey—guided by the angel Raphael—he meets Sarah. Sarah is afflicted by the demon Asmodeus, who slays her prospective husbands, but with Raphael’s help the demon is exorcised and she marries Tobias. They return together to Nineveh, where Tobit’s sight is miraculously restored.
Since the 20th century, scholarly consensus has held that Tobit was originally composed in a Semitic language.Milik, J.T. (1966). La patrie de Tobie. Revue biblique, 73(4), 522 Five Aramaic and Hebrew fragments were found among the Dead Sea Scrolls, dating to the 1st or 2nd century BCE.Cross, F.M. (1961). The development of the Jewish scripts. In G.E. Wright (Ed.), The Bible and the ancient Near East: Essays in honor of William Foxwell Albright (p.138) The book influenced the authors of the Testament of Job, the Testament of Solomon, and possibly (depending on dating) Sirach, Jubilees, and the Prayer of Azariah and Song of the Three Holy Children.Moore, C.A. (1996). Tobit: A new translation with introduction and commentary (Vol. 40A). Doubleday (p.46) It was included in both the Jewish-originated SeptuagintDines, J.M. (2004). The Septuagint. T&T Clark / Bloomsbury Publishing (pp. 18–19) and the Old Latin Bible, which preserves textual traditions of Hebrew or Jewish vorlage.Tov, E. (2012). Textual criticism of the Hebrew Bible (3rd ed., rev. & expanded). Minneapolis: Fortress Press (p.134)Kedar, B. (1988). The Latin translations. In M.J. Mulder (Ed.), Compendia rerum Iudaicarum ad Novum Testamentum: Vol. II.1. Mikra (pp. 299-338). Fortress Press. It is extant in major Christian codices such as Vaticanus, Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus, and Basiliano-Venetus. Multiple ancient recensions are preserved in Greek and Latin, along with translations into Arabic, Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopic, and Syriac.Fitzmyer, J.A. (2003). Tobit. In L.T. Stuckenbruck, P. W. van der Horst, H. Lichtenberger, D. Mendels, & J. R. Mueller (Eds.), Commentaries on Early Jewish Literature (p.3)
In the New Testament period, Tobit was cited or echoed by Jewish Christians including Matthew,Tob 12:3, 8; 4:7-11 - Matt 6:1-21Tob 4:15 - Matt 7:12DeSilva, D.A. (2002) Introducing the Apocrypha: Message, Context, and Significance, pp.81-2Daubney, Use of the Apocrpyha in the Christian Church, p.16Hagner, D.A. (1993) Matthew 1-13 - Word Biblical Commentary, pp.157-8 Luke,Tob 4:15 - Luke 6:31Donald, S. (2008) "Preface" in A Handbook on Sirach, pp.210-1Lange, J.P.; Schaff, P. & Bissell, E.C. (2008) A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures - Apocrypha, p.361Bullard, R.A. & Hatton, H.A. (2001) A Handbook on Tobit, pp.78-9 John,Tob 12:12, 15 - Rev 8:2-3Beale, G.K. (1999) The Book of Revelation - A Commentary on the Greek Text, p.454Aune, D.E. (1998) Revelation 6-16 - Word Biblical Commentary, p.509Bratcher, R.G. & Hatton H. (1993) A Handbook on the Revelation to John, p.133 and the Didache.Tob 4:15 - Did 1:2Tob 12:9 - Did 4:6 Early patristic use appears in 2 Clement,Tob 12:8 - 2 Clem 16:4 Polycarp,Tob 4:10; 12:8 - Phil 10:2 and Origen, who after visiting 3rd-century Alexandria, Rome, Caesarea, and Athens, remarked that "the churches use Tobit".Ep. Africanus, 13 Irenaeus further noted that the 2nd-century Gnostic Ophites included Tobit among the biblical prophets.Against Heresies 1.30.11
By contrast, explicit canonical rejection of Tobit by Rabbinic Judaism is recorded from the 2nd century onward. Rabbi Akiva declared "The books of Sirach and all other books written from then on do not defile the hands",Tosefta Yadayim, 2:13, as quoted in Leiman, S.Z. (1976). The canonization of Hebrew scripture: The Talmudic and Midrashic evidence (Vol. 47). Archon Books (p.109) while a contemporary Talmudic baraita insisted that "our Rabbis taught" the present twenty-four book Masoretic canon.b. Bava Batra 14b–15a, as quoted in McDonald, L.M. (2007). The Biblical Canon: Its Origin, Transmission, and Authority (3rd ed.). Baker Academic (pp.202-3) Origen, though emphasizing Christian acceptance, acknowledged that "the Jews do not use [it]",Ep. Africanus, 13 and Jerome likewise noted that the Bethlehem Jews had "excised" the book from their canon, relegating it to the non-canonical "agiografa", though still copying and reading it.Gallagher, E.L. (2015). Why did Jerome Translate Tobit and Judith? The Harvard Theological Review, 108(3), 356–375 Fifteenth-century Hebrew and Aramaic manuscripts attest to its continued transmission, as does the medieval Midrash Tanhuma, which attributes a probable Tobit allusion to 11th-century Moshe ha-Darshan.Moore, C.A. (1996). Tobit: A new translation with introduction and commentary (Vol. 40A). Doubleday (pp.48, 64, 249-52)
The book is regarded as deuterocanonical by the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Assyrian Church of the East Christians, though it is absent from the Jewish Masoretic Text. The Protestant tradition similarly deems it Apocrypha, useful for teaching and liturgy but not canonical; in the historic Protestant traditions, the Book of Tobit is located in the intertestamental section straddling the Old Testament and New Testament. Most scholars see the book as a didactic folktale or novella which inserted storytelling elements into a historical context, rather than a strictly literal narrative.
Structure and summary
The book has 14 chapters, forming three major narrative sections framed by a prologue and epilogue: Prologue (1:1–2) Situation in Nineveh and Ecbatana (1:3–3:17) Tobias's journey (4:1–12:22) Tobit's song of praise and his death (13:1–14:2) Epilogue (14:3–15)
The prologue tells the reader that this is the story of Tobit of the tribe of Naphtali, deported from Tishbe in Galilee to Nineveh by the Assyrians. Tobit himself has always kept the laws of Moses, and brought offerings to the Temple in Jerusalem before the catastrophe of the Assyrian conquest. The narrative notes his marriage to Anna, and they have a son named Tobias.
Tobit, a pious man, buries dead Israelites, but one evening, while he sleeps, sparrows partially blind him by defecating in his eyes; he later becomes fully blind after physicians place ointment in his eyes.Tobit 2:7-10 He becomes dependent on his wife, but accuses her of stealing and prays for death. Meanwhile, his relative Sarah, living in far-off Ecbatana, also prays for death, for the demon Asmodeus has killed her suitors on their wedding-nights and she is accused of having caused their deaths.
God hears their prayers and dispatches the archangel Raphael to help them. Tobit sends Tobias to recover money from a relative, and Raphael, in human disguise, offers to accompany him (along with Tobias' dog). On the way they catch a fish in the Tigris, and Raphael tells Tobias that the burnt heart and liver can drive out demons and that the gall can cure blindness. They arrive in Ecbatana and meet Sarah; and as Raphael had predicted, the fish-offal drives out the demon.
Tobias and Sarah are married, Tobias grows wealthy, and they return to Nineveh (in Assyria) where Tobit and Anna await them. The gall cures Tobit's blindness, and Raphael departs after admonishing Tobit and Tobias to bless God and declare his deeds to the people (the Israelites), to pray and fast, and to give alms. Tobit praises God, who has punished his people with exile but who will show them mercy and rebuild the Temple if they turn to him.
In the epilogue Tobit tells Tobias that Nineveh will be destroyed as an example of wickedness; likewise Israel will be rendered desolate and the Temple will be destroyed, but Israel and the Temple will be restored; therefore Tobias should leave Nineveh, and he and his children should live in righteousness.
Significance Tobit is a work with some historical references, combining prayers, ethical exhortation, humour and adventure with elements drawn from folklore, wisdom tale, travel story, romance and comedy. It offered the diaspora (the Jews in exile) guidance on how to retain Jewish identity, and its message was that God tests his people's faith, hears their prayers, and redeems the covenant community (i.e., the Jews).
Readings from the book are used in the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church. Because of the book's praise for the purity of marriage, it is often read during weddings in many rites. Doctrinally, the book is cited for its teachings on the intercession of angels, filial piety, tithing and almsgiving, and reverence for the dead."Introduction", Tobit, NAB, Libreria Editrice Vaticana Tobit is also made reference to in chapter 5 of 1 Meqabyan, a book considered canonical in the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church.
Composition and manuscripts Tobit exists in two Greek versions, one (Sinaiticus) longer than the other (Vaticanus and Alexandrinus). Aramaic and Hebrew fragments of Tobit (four Aramaic, one Hebrew – it is not clear which was the original language) found among the Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran tend to align more closely with the longer or Sinaiticus version, which has formed the basis of most English translations in recent times.
No scholarly consensus exists on the place of composition, but a Mesopotamian origin seems logical given that the story takes place in Assyria and Persia and it mentions the Persian demon "aeshma daeva", rendered "Asmodeus". However, the story contains significant errors in geographical detail (such as the distance from Ecbatana to Rhages and their topography), and arguments against and in favor of Judean or Egyptian composition also exist. The story is set in the 8th century BCE, but the book itself is thought to date from between 225 and 175 BCE. According to scholar , the presence of similar stories from Hellenistic culture influenced the composition of the book, including The Odyssey. The reference to Tobias's dog companion recalls Argos, Odysseus's dog. Raphael's accompaniment and assistance of Tobias is similar to Athena's assistance of Odysseus throughout his journey.
The Vulgate places Tobit, Judith and Esther after the historical books (after Nehemiah). Some manuscripts of the Greek version place them after the wisdom writings.Jerusalem Bible (1966), "Introduction to Tobit, Judith and Esther", p. 601
Canonical status
Those books found in the Septuagint but not the Masoretic Text are called the deuterocanon, meaning "second canon". Catholic and Orthodox Christianity include it in the Biblical canon. As Protestants came to follow the Masoretic canon, they therefore did not include Tobit in their canon, but do recognise it in the category of deuterocanonical books called the apocrypha.
The Book of Tobit is listed as a canonical book by the Council of Rome (CE 382), the Council of Hippo (CE 393), the Council of Carthage (397)B. F. Westcott, A General Survey of the History of the Canon of the New Testament (5th ed. Edinburgh, 1881), pp. 440, 541–2. and (CE 419), the Council of Florence (1442) and finally the Council of Trent (1546), and is part of the canon of the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Churches, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, and the Assyrian Church of the East. Therein it is regarded as deuterocanonical.Fitzmyer, at p. 50, 55–57
Augustine () and Pope Innocent I (CE 405) affirmed Tobit as part of the Old Testament Canon. Athanasius (CE 367) mentioned that certain other books, including the book of Tobit, while not being part of the Canon, "were appointed by the Fathers to be read".