By Donald H. Harrison
SAN DIEGO, Calif — Perhaps the most familiar text in the Natural History
Museum's October-December 2007 exhibition of the Dead Sea Scrolls will be the
portion of Deuteronomy in which the Ten Commandments are found.
But, as in the first exhibition (July-September 2007), there will be a diverse
set of materials available for public viewing, including some which the Israel
Antiquities Authority says have never before been shown to the public.
These include material from Samuel, from Job, and a commentary on the Flood
story in Genesis.
The Natural History Museum provided short descriptions of the various
documents, which we will here reprint in bold face type. Using
our Stone edition of the Tanach, edited by Rabbi Nosson Scherman and published
by Mesorah Publications, Ltd., (The ArtScroll Series), we are also providing italicized
English translations (if available) of the texts that will be on display
in the second exhibit.
The Stone Edition of the Tanach does not translate the four-letter
Hebrew name of God, but instead uses the euphemism "Hashem" (the
name). In these first two articles, we shall follow suit.
1. Paleo Leviticus
11Q1-1039/1
Lev 25:28-36
The Leviticus Scroll found in Cave 11 was preserved in an impressive form on a
large sheet of parchment. The scroll is written in the ancient Hebrew script
known as paleo-Hebrew, originally used during the period of the Israelite
monarchy. Over time the paleo-Hebrew script evolved to the more
"modern" and recognizable square script still in use today. Several
Dead Sea Scrolls are written in paleo-Hebrew, especially the books from the
Torah (Exodus and Leviticus). Scholars believe that the use of this
ancient script was reserved for biblical books thought to come directly from
Moses.
The scribes prepared the parchment before they started the task of
writing. With a sharp instrument or in ink they carefully made
horizontal scorings to mark the lines, vertical scorings and columns, a method
known from rabbinic sources. The characters were suspended from the
lines. The scoring of the lines was typical for all the scrolls, but in
documents written in paleo-Hebrew, the scribes also marked the end of words
with lines or dots.
The fragment displayed here comprises the last chapters of the Book of
Leviticus, which deal with various matters such as the laws of worship,
damages, and slaves... The scroll is dated to the first half of the first
century CE
Leviticus 25:28-36
25:28. But if he does not acquire sufficient
means to repay him, then his sale shall remain in possession of its purchaser
until the Jubilee Year; in the Jubilee Year, it shall leave and return to his
ancestral heritage. 29. If a man shall sell a residence house in a walled
city, its redemption can take place until the end of the year of its sale; its
period of redemption shall be a year. 30. But if it is not redeemed
until its full year has elapsed, then the home that is in a city that has a
wall shall pass in perpetuity to the one who purchased it, for his
generations; it shall not go out in the Jubilee Year. 31. But homes in the
open towns, which have no surrounding wall, shall be considered like the
land's open field; it shall have redemptions, and shall go out in the Jubilee
Year. 32. As for the cities of the Levites, the homes in the cities of
their ancestral heritage, the Levites shall have an eternal right of
redemption. 33. And what one will buy from the Levites—a home that has been
sold or the city of it ancestral heritage—shall go out in the Jubilee year;
for the homes of the Levite cities, that is their ancestral heritage among the
Children of Israel. 34. But the fields of the open land of their cities
may not be sold; for it is an eternal heritage for them. 35. If your brother
becomes impoverished and his means falter in your proximity, you shall
strengthen him—proselyte or resident—so that he can live with you.
36. Do not take from him interest and increase; and you shall fear your
God—and let your brother live with you.
2. The Ten Commandments
4Q-41-981
Deuteronomy
This scroll is the best preserved of all the Deuteronomy manuscripts from
Qumran. It consists of four complete and two partially damaged columns.
The text is dated based on its handwriting to the early Herodian period (30-1
BCE). Column 1 contains the text of Deuteronomy 8:5-10. Columns 2-6
contain the text of the Ten Commandments and reflects both biblical versions
of this text found in Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:1-6:1
Deuteronomy 8:5-10
8:5. You should know in your heart that just as a
father will chastise his son, so Hashem, your God, chastises you. 6. You shall
observe the commandments of Hashem, your God, to go in his ways and fear him.
7. For Hashem, your God, is bringing you to a good Land: a Land with streams
of water, of springs and underground water coming forth in a valley and
mountain; 8. a Land of wheat, barley, grape, fig, and pomegranate; a Land of
oil-olives and date-honey; 9. a Land where you will eat bread without
poverty—you will lack nothing there, a Land whose stones are iron and from
whose mountains you will mine copper. 10. You will eat and you will be
satisfied, and bless Hashem, your God, for the good Land that He gave you.
Deuteronomy 5:1-6:1
5:1 Moses called all of Israel and said to them:
Hear, O Israel, the decrees and the ordinances that I speak in your ears
today; learn them, and be careful to perform them. 2. Hashem, our God, sealed
a covenant with us at Horeb. 3. Not with our forefathers did Hashem seal this
covenant, but with us—we who are here, all of us alive today. 4. Face
to face did Hashem speak with you on the mountain, from amid the fire.
5. I was standing between Hashem and you at that time, to relate the words of
Hashem to you—forfor you were afraid of the fire and you did not ascend the
mountain—saying: 6. I am Hashem, your God, Who has taken you out of the land
of Egypt, from the house of slavery. 7. You shall not recognize
the gods of others in My Presence. 8. You shall not make yourself a carved
image of any likeness of that which is in the heavens above or on earth below
or in the water beneath the earth. 9. You shall not prostrate
yourself to them nor worship them, for I am Hashem your God—a jealous God,
Who visits the sin of fathers upon children to the third and fourth
generations, for My enemies; 10. but Who shows kindness for thousands [of
generations] to those who love Me and observe My commandments. 11. You
shall not take the Name of Hashem, your God, in vain, for Hashem will not
absolve anyone who takes His Name in vain. 12. Safeguard the Sabbath day to
sanctify it, as Hashem, your God, has commanded you. 13. Six days
shall you labor and accomplish all your work 14 but the seventh day is Sabbath
to Hashem, your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son, your daughter,
your slave, your maidservant, your ox, your donkey, and your every animal, and
your convert within your gates, in order that your slave and your maidservant
may rest like you. 15. And you shall remember that you were a slave in the
land of Egypt, and Hashem, your God, has taken you out from there with a
strong hand and an outstretched arm; therefore Hashem, your God, has commanded
you to make the Sabbath day. 16. Honor your father and your
mother, as Hashem, your God, commanded you, so that your days will be
lengthened and so that it will be good for you upon the land that Hashem, your
God, gives you. 17. You shall not kill; and you shall not commit
adultery; and you shall not steal; and you shall not bear vain witness against
your fellow. 18. And you shall not covet your fellow's wife, you shall not
desire your fellow's house, his field, his slave, his maidservant, his ox, his
donkey, or anything that belongs to your fellow. 19. These words
Hashem spoke to your entire congregation on the mountain, from the midst of
the fire, the cloud, and the thick cloud—a great voice, never to be
repeated—and he inscribed them on two stone Tablets and gave them to me. 20.
It happened that when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness and
the mountain was burning in fire, that all the heads of your tribes and your
elders approached me. 21. They said, "Behold! Hashem, our God, has
shown us His glory and His goodness, and we have heard His voice from the
midst of the fire; this day we saw that Hashem will speak to a person and he
can live. 22. But now, why should we die when this great fire consumes us? If
we continue to hear the voice of Hashem, our God, any longer, we will die. 23.
For is there any human that has heard the voice of the Living God speaking
from the midst of the fire, as we have, and lived? 24. You should approach and
hear whatever Hashem, our God, will say, and you should speak to us whatever
Hashem, our God, will speak to you—then we shall hear and we shall
do." 25. Hashem heard the sound of your words when you spoke to me,
and Hashem said to me, "I heard the sound of the words of this people,
that they have spoken to you; they did well in all that they spoke." 26.
Who can assure that this heart should remain theirs, to fear Me and observe
all My commandments all the days, so that it should be good for them and for
their children forever? 27. Go say to them, 'Return to your
tents.' 28. But as for you, stand here with Me and I shall speak to you
the entire commandment, and the decrees, and the ordinances that you shall
teach them and they shall perform in the Land that I give them, to possess
it." 29. You shall be careful to act as Hashem, your God, commanded
you, you shall not stray to the right or left. 30. On the entire way that
Hashem, your God, commanded you shall you go, so tht you shall live and it
will be good for you, and you shall prolong your days in the Land that you
shall possess. 6:1. This is the commandment, and the decrees, and
the ordinances that Hashem, your God, commanded to teach you, to perform in
the Land to which you are crossing, to possess it..
3.
Samuel
4Q-51-998
4. Zepphania-Haggai
4Q-77-1113
5. Psalms
4Q-77-1113
6. Targum Job
11Q-10
Job 33:24-32; 34:6-17; 34: 24-34
The Targum Job fragments are making their first-ever appearance in San Diego.
Discovered in Cave 11 at Qumran in 1956, the Targum Job is comprised of a
number of texts dating from 150-100 BCE. Chapters 17-42 from the
biblical book of Job translated (targum) from the original Hebrew into
Aramaic, the predominant language of post-Exilic Israel. This translation
deviates quite a bit from the Hebrew version.
Job 33: 24-32
33:24 then [God] will be gracious to him and say,
'Redeem him from going down to the grave. I have found [him] atonement.' 25.
His flesh has revived from its trembling, and he will return to his days of
youthfulness. 26. He entreats God, and He accepts him; he appears before Him
in prayer, and He recompenses man for his righteousness. 27. He then goes
around to people and says, "I have sinned; I have made crooked that which
was straight; but to no avail." For [God] absolved him from passing
into the grave; so that his being might see the light. 29. Behold, God does
all these things with man two or three times, 30. to bring back his soul from
the grave, to bask in the light of the living. 31. Hearken, Job, and
listen to me; be still and I will speak. 32. If there are words, answer me;
speak, for I wish to vindicate you.
Job 34: 6-17
34:6. I claim my judgment was deceitful; my wound was grave
without guilt! 7. Who is a man like Job, who drinks scorn like water; 8. who
goes toward a company of workers of iniquity, to walk with men of wickedness;
9. and who has said, "A man has nothing to gain by pleasing God."
10. Therefore, you men with [understanding] hearts, listen to me! To do evil
is sacrilegious to God, and iniquity to the Almighty! 11. For He repays
the deeds of man, and causes man to find according to his conduct. 12. Surely
God will not act wickedly, and the Almighty will not pervert justice. 12. Who
gave Him command over the earth, and who placed the entire inhabited world
[under Him]? 14. If He were to set his heart against someone, He
would [simply] gather in his spirit and his soul to Himself; 15. all flesh
would expire together, and man would return to the dust. 16. But if [you seek[
understanding, listen to this: give ear to the sound of my words. 17.
Would [God] heal someone who despises justice? Would you declare the mighty
Righteous One to be wicked?
Job 34: 24-34
34:24. He smashes mighty men without calculation
and sets up others in their place; 25. because He knows their works, He turns
over the night and crushes them. 26. He strikes the wicked in their places, in
a place of witnesses, 27. because they turned away from following Him, and did
not contemplate all His ways, 28. causing the cry of the needy to come before
Him, and He hears the cry of the poor. 29. When He grants [a person]
serenity, who can cause [that person] turmoil? And when He hides [His] face
[from a person], who can take note of him? Upon a nation or upon an
individual—all are alike. 30. [He removes] the hypocrite from
kingship, that the people not become ensnared. 31. For can one say to God,
"I have suffered enough; I wish no more harm. 32. Besides what I
see—you teach me! If I have done wrong, I will not continue." 33.
Must [God] have your [consent] to punish, that you can reject it? [God says,]
"Will you choose and not I?" Say now whatever you know. 34. People
of [understanding] heart say this to me, and the wise man listens to me.
7.
Genesis Commentary
4Q-252-668
Commentary on Gen 7:10–8:13
The commentaries of the book
of Genesis at Qumran consist of four manuscripts. This scroll represents the
best preserved of these texts and includes excerpts from the Flood story
(Genesis 6-8) and accompanying commentary.
8.
Shirot olot ha-Shabbat—Song of the Sabbath Sacrifice
4Q-400-674
Nine fragments of this text
were discovered at Qumran and an additional fragment was discovered at Masada.
The text contains 13 songs of praise to be read on the first 13 Sabbaths of
the year. They may have been part of the communal Sabbath worship service for
the community at Qumran.
9.
papBar Kokhba
5/6 Hever (Yadin 46)
This
ancient lease agreement dates to “the second of Kislev, in the third year of
Simeon Bar Kosiba, Prince of Israel,” or roughly November of 134 CE.
Discovered in the Cave of the Letters in Nahal Hever, it in written in
Mishnaic Hebrew (later than biblical Hebrew) on papyrus and in 11 lines deals
with land in Ein-Gedi (near the Dead Sea). The land is leased to Jacob son of
Bar Kosiba by Eleazar son of Eleazar ben Hitta and Eleazar son of Samuel. The
text mentions various crops grown in the Ein-Gedi area at the time and lists
the length of the lease as “until the termination of the season of crops of
Ein-Gedi, of the vegetables and of the trees.”
10. Messianic Apocalypse
4Q-521-330
11.
Book of War
4Q-491-457
This fragment dated to the 1st
century BCE is part of a composition describing the apocalyptic war between
the forces of righteousness and the forces of evil. A complete copy of this
composition, know as “The War of the Sons of Light against the Sons of
Darkness,” was discovered in Cave 1. The text describes the final
apocalyptic war between the Sons of Light, presumably, the members of the
Qumran community and the Sons of Darkness, called kittim
(the Romans?) after which a new world order will reign. The War Rule details
how people will be recruited for the battle and battle strategy. It includes
descriptions of soldiers’ weapons and blessings to be recited during
different stages of the battle.
This fragment describes the
blowing of trumpets based on a description found in the biblical book of
Numbers 10:1–10.
Numbers 10:1-10
10:1. Hashem spoke to Moses, saying, 2. Make for
yourself two silver trumpet—make them hammered out, and they shall be yours
for the summoning of the assembly and to cause the camps to journey. 3. When
they sound a long blast with them, the entire assembly shall assemble to you,
to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. 4. If they sound a long blast with
one, the leaders shall assemble to you, the heads of Israel's thousands. 5.
When you sound short blasts, the camps resting to the east shall
journey. 6. When you sound short blasts a second time, the camps resting
to the south shall journey; short blasts shall they sound for their journeys.
7. When you gather together the congregation, you shall sound a long blast,
but not a short blast. 8. The sons of Aaron, the Kohanim, shall sound the
trumpets, and it shall be for you an eternal decree for your generation. 9.
When you go to wage war in your Land against an enemy who oppresses you, you
shall sound short blasts of the trumpets, and you shall be recalled before
Hashem, your God, and you shall be saved from your foes. 10. "On a day of
your gladness, and on your festivals, and on your new moons, you shall sound
the trumpets over your burnt-offerings and over your feast peace-offerings;
and they shall be a remembrance for you before your God; I am Hashem, your
God.
12.
Enoch
4Q-201-821
The book of Enoch belongs to
the Pseudepigrapha. It is a collection of writings related to Enoch, a figure
mentioned only once in the book of Genesis 5:21–24. Because Enoch is reported in Genesis to “walk with God,
then he was no more because God took him,” a rich literary tradition
developed about him during the Second Temple period. Enoch is reportedly a
very wise character aware of all the secrets of the universe. Many copies of
the book of Enoch, previously known only in Ge’ez (classical Ethiopic)
translations from the beginning of the 20th century, were
discovered at Qumran. The Qumran texts are written in Aramaic. This fragment
from the so-called Book of Watchers is dated to the first century BCE and
describes how the Watchers (rebellious angels) see the beautiful daughters of
humankind and desire them for wives.
