Vermes The Dead Sea Scrolls in English

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fear, I am with you; I am your help and your strength. I am a
shield above you and a mighty safeguard round about you. Your
wealth and possessions shall multiply greatly.' But Abram said,
'My Lord God, I have great wealth and possessions but what good
shall they do to me? I shall die naked, childless shall I go
hence. A child from my household shall inherit from me. Eliezer
son ... shall inherit from me.' And He said to him, 'He shall not
be your heir, but one who shall spring [from your body shall
inherit from you].' ...
~~~~
The Blessings of Jacob
The subject of this interpretation is the blessing of Judah, i.e.
of the tribe from which David was born. The commentator emphasizes
that the royal power will belong for ever to the descendants of
David, thereby implying that all non-Davidic rulers, such as the
contemporary Hasmonean priest-kings, occupy the throne unlawfully.
The scepter shall not depart from the tribe of Judah, nor the
ruler's staff from between his feet, until he comes to whom it
belongs. And the peoples shall be in obedience to him (Gen. XLIX,
10)
Whenever Israel rules there shall [not] fail to be a descendant of
David upon the throne. For the ruler's staff is the Covenant of
kingship, [and the clans] of Israel are the feet, until the
Messiah of Righteousness comes, the Branch of David. For to him
and to his seed was granted the Covenant of kingship over his
people for everlasting generations ...
~~~~
The Words of Moses
This farewell discourse takes its inspiration from various
passages of Deuteronomy and is chiefly remarkable for the emphasis
laid on the appointment of special teachers, or interpreters, of
the Law (Levites and Priests).
[God spoke] to Moses in the [fortieth] year after [the children
of] Israel had come [out of the land of] Egypt, in the eleventh
month, on the first day of the month, saying:
'[Gather together] all the congregation and go up to [Mount Nebo]
and stand [there], you and Eleazar son of Aaron. Inter[pret to the
heads] of family of the Levites and to all the [Priests], and
proclaim to the children of Israel the words of the Law which I
proclaimed [to you] on Mount Sinai. Proclaim care[fully] into
their ears all that I [require] of them. And [call] heaven and
[earth to witness against] them; for they will not love what I
have commanded [them to do], neither [they] nor their children,
[during all] the days they shall [live upon the earth].
[For] I say that they will abandon [me, and will choose the
abominations of the nations,] their horrors [and their idols. They
will serve] false gods which shall be for them a snare and a
pitfall. [They will sin against the] holy [days], and against the
Sabbath and the Covenant, [and against the commandments] which I
command you to keep this day.
[Therefore I will smite] them with a mighty [blow] in the midst of
the land [which they] cross the Jordan [to possess]. And when all
the curses come upon them and catch up with them to destroy them
and [blot] them out, then shall they know that the truth has been
[fulfilled] with regard to them.'
Then Moses called Eleazar son of [Aaron] and Joshua [son of Nun
and said to them,] `Speak [all these words to the people ...
[Be still]
O Israel, and hear! This [day shall you become the people] of God,
your [God. You shall keep m laws] and my testimonies [and my
commandments which -I command you to [keep this] day. [And when
you] cross the [Jordan so that I may give] you great [and good
cities and houses filled with all [pleasant things, and Vines an,
olives] which [you have not planted, and] wells which you: have
not dug, [beware,] when you have eaten and are full that your
hearts be not lifted up, and that [you do not forget what I have
commanded you to do this day. For] it is this, that will bring you
life and length of [days].'
And Moses [spoke to the children] of Israel [and said to them]
'[Behold,] forty [years have passed since] the day we came out of
the land [of Egypt, and today has God], our God, [uttered these
words] from out of His mouth: [all; His [precepts and] all [His]
precepts.
'[But how shall I carry] your loads [and burdens ant disputes
alone]? When I have [established] the Covenant and commanded [the
way] in which you shall walk, [appoint wise men whose] work it
shall be to expound [to you and your children] all these words of
the Law. [Watch carefully] for your own sakes [that you keep them,
lest] the wrath [of your God] kindle and burn against you, and He
stop the heavens above from shedding rain [upon you], and [the
water beneath the earth from] giving you [harvest].'
And Moses [spoke further] to the children of Israel.
'Behold the commandments [which God has] commanded you to keep
...'
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Commentaries on Isaiah
Fragments I and IV are of particular interest. The former expounds
the celebrated Messianic passage from chapter XI; the latter
applies to the Community the prophetic Vision of the new
Jerusalem. A similar bias appears in the New Testament (Rev. 21:9-
27).
(1)
[And there shall come forth a rod from the stem of Jesse and a
Branch shall grow out of its roots. And the spirit of the Lord
shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the
spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the
fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the
Lord. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or pass sentence by [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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