The Hebrew Bible Is The Most Accurate And Complete Historical Record Of The Era

One of the last two parts of the Dead Sea Scrolls has finally been translated, thanks to researchers at the University of Haifa in Israel.

Why are the Dead Sea Scrolls so important?

The biblical scrolls both affirm the accuracy of, and enhance the meaning of, the Hebrew Bible used by scholars. Prior to their discovery, the oldest complete Hebrew Bible was the Leningrad Codex (1008 AD), on which most scholarly editions are based. Archaeological discoveries have confirmed that the Hebrew Bible is the most accurate and complete historical record of the era. 

“Much of the Bible, in particular the historical books of the old testament, are as accurate historical documents as any that we have from antiquity and are in fact more accurate than many of the Egyptian, Mesopotamian, or Greek histories. These Biblical records can be and are used as are other ancient documents in archaeological work."

 

Dr. Eshbal Ratson and Prof. Jonathan Ben-Dov, painstakingly analyzing 60 minuscule fragments from the Dead Sea Scrolls for over a year, decoded a unique 364-day calendar once used by the enigmatic Essene Sect who inhabited the Qumran settlement in the Judean Desert.

“The reward for their hard work is fresh insight into the unique 364-day calendar used by the members of the Judean Desert sect, including the discovery for the first time of the name given by the sect to the special days marking the transitions between the four seasons,” the university said.

First discovered in a cave in Qumran in 1947, there are 900 scrolls which make up the Dead Sea Scrolls; together, the collection is considered to be the oldest copy of the Bible in known existence, thought to have been created around the 4th century B.C. The majority of the scrolls were discovered between 1947 and 1956, and have since been restored and published.

Also included in the newly discovered fragment is a part that deals with the 364-day calendar, celebrated by the ancient Judean Desert sect. The festivals that were used to celebrate the changing of seasons include the festival of New Wheat, New Wine and New Oil, related to the Jewish festival of Shavuot. According to the calendar, the wheat festival took place 50 days after the Shabbat that followed Passover. Fifty days later, the wine harvest festival came and 50 days after that was the oil harvest festival.

The scroll also said there was a special day for the changing of the seasons, known as Tekufah, which in Hebrew translates to "period."

“This term is familiar from the later Rabbinical literature and from mosaics dating to the Talmudic period, and we could have assumed that it would also be used with this meaning in the scrolls, but this is the first time it has been revealed. The lunar calendar, which Judaism follows to this day, requires a large number of human decisions. People must look at the stars and moon and report on their observations, and someone must be empowered to decide on the new month and the application of leap years. By contrast, the 364-day calendar was perfect. Because this number can be divided into four and seven, special occasions always fall on the same day."

Qumran was established during the Iron age, 7th/8th C BC, at the times of the Judean Kingdom. This fortress may have been one of King Uziah's construction projects which the Bible reports. Qumran may have been one of the desert cities listed in the Bible as part of the Judah tribe villages. The site was resettled by a break-away sect known as the Essenes who populated the caves and oasis sites along the western shore of the Dead Sea. The Qumran Sect referred to itself as the Yahad (“Together Community”) and lived a hermitic lifestyle in the desert. They preferred to live in a remote area, far from the normal life in the cities and villages of Israel. Qumran was a regional center, since most of them resided in caves and tents. It was built as a self supporting communal village, functioning as a sort of Monastery. The Essenes, one of the main three philosophical sects among the Jews, were despisers of riches, pious and varied in religious practices. After the earthquake of 31BC in the Jordan valley, during the times of King Herod the Great, the settlement was severely damaged and deserted. The Essenes returned to rebuild the site in 4BC. During the Great revolt against the Romans, John the Essene was a local hero and general in the rebel army. The residents of Qumran prepared themselves for the worst, and hid their precious treasures (the scrolls) in the caves. The Romans indeed conquered Qumran (68AD), destroyed it and dispersed the sect. Years later, Qumran was abandoned and left in ruins for 1800 years.

In 1947, Bedouins shepherds discovered the ancient scrolls in a local cave. The area was excavated and additional scrolls and fragments were discovered in 11 caves around Qumran. The scrolls were hidden in jars, and were preserved relatively well due to the dry climate of the Judean desert. A large cemetery of a thousand tombs were also found near the ruins of Qumran, adding credence to the Essene settlement.

Archaeological discoveries have confirmed that the Hebrew Bible is the most accurate and complete historical record of the era.

“Much of the Bible, in particular the historical books of the old testament, are as accurate historical documents as any that we have from antiquity and are in fact more accurate than many of the Egyptian, Mesopotamian, or Greek histories. These Biblical records can be and are used as are other ancient documents in archaeological work. For the most part, historical events described took place and the peoples cited really existed. This is not to say that names of all peoples and places mentioned can be identified today, or that every event as reported in the historical books happened exactly as stated."

BTW, not for nothing, but the Dead Sea Scrolls were written over a THOUSAND years before Muhammed was born. Puts it all into perspective, huh?