The Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls: Their Significance For Understanding the Bible, Judaism, Jesus, and Christianity

by James C. Vanderkam, Peter Flint

Overview

“A superb introduction” to the ancient manuscripts and what they can teach us, featuring recent developments in scrolls research (Publishers Weekly).

The Dead Sea Scrolls, found in caves near the Dead Sea fifteen miles east of Jerusalem from 1947 to 1956, include the oldest existing biblical manuscripts and the remarkable texts of the purist Jewish community at Qumran. The discovery of the scrolls has added dramatically to our understanding of the varieties of Judaism at the time of Jesus and the rise of Christianity, but has also prompted heated debate about the nature of these religions. As the monumental task of transcribing and translating the Dead Sea Scrolls is finally completed, people around the world are taking stock of the significance of these ancient documents. In this book, two of the world’s leading experts on the scrolls reveal the complete and fascinating story in all its detail: the amazing discovery, the intense controversies, and the significant revelations.

Drawing together all the evidence, this timely book explores:

• The discovery and dating of the scrolls
• Their relationship to the Hebrew Bible, Apocrypha, and New Testament
• Their messianic and apocalyptic messages
• The identity, nature, and theology of the Qumran community
• The nonbiblical scrolls
• Controversies surrounding the scrolls

This comprehensive, up-to-date guide is the definitive introduction to all aspects of the scrolls, including their teachings, the community that created them, the world of Judaism, the origins of Christianity, and our understanding of Jesus and the New Testament. Featuring photos of the original texts, the sites, and the scholars who deciphered them, and including illustrative passages from the scrolls, The Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls presents the most complete and accurate scholarship on the Dead Sea Scrolls available today.

Praise for The Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls

“A richly informative and insightful book. . . . Highly recommended as a clear, scholarly, and balanced presentation that helps the reader grasp both the significance of the Scrolls and their value as background material for our understanding of the Bible.” —Library Journal

“Although there are numerous books about the Dead Sea Scrolls, few are as comprehensive, well designed, and easy to read as this one. Add to all this the authority that VanderKam brings to the text (he has long been involved with scrolls research), and you have the one book you want on the topic, if you can only have one book.” —Booklist

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062243300
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	03/19/2024
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	783
Sales rank:	26,179
File size:	3 MB

About the Author

James VanderKam, John A. O'Brien Professor of Hebrew Scriptures in the Department of Theology at the University of Notre Dame, is the author of The Dead Sea Scrolls Today.

Peter Flint is co-director of the Dead Sea Scrolls Institute at Trinity Western University in British Columbia. He is the author of The Dead Sea Psalms Scrolls and the Book of Psalms and co-editor of The Dead Sea Scrolls After Fifty Years.

Editorial Reviews

A comprehensive, detailed but readable account of what the scrolls really say.

Herschel Shanks

This work provides a cap and climax to more than fifty years of research and publication of the Scrolls.

David Noel Freedman

Eminently readable and reliable...a mine of information and a very useful reference work.

John J. Collins

Comprehensive and up-to-date...an important addition to any collection on the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Choice

A comprehensive, detailed but readable account of what the scrolls really say.” — Herschel Shanks, Editor, Biblical Archaeology Review

“This work provides a cap and climax to more than fifty years of research and publication of the Scrolls.” — David Noel Freedman, Endowed Chair in Hebrew Biblical Studies, University of California San Diego, Editor-in-Chief, Anchor Bible Project

“Eminently readable and reliable...a mine of information and a very useful reference work.” — John J. Collins, Holmes Professor of Old Testament, Yale University

“A superb introduction to all of the major points...a well-illustrated guide.” — Publishers Weekly

“Comprehensive and up-to-date...an important addition to any collection on the Dead Sea Scrolls.” — Choice

From the Publisher