The Dead Sea Scrolls and the First Christians: Essays and Translations

by Robert H. Eisenman

By a coauthor of The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered, this book goes back to Qumran on the Dead Sea for a further exploration of the relationship between the Dead Sea Scrolls & Xianity's formative years. Included in this volume are Prof. Eisenman's two ground-breaking works, Maccabees, Zadokites, Christians & Qumran & James the Just in the Habakkuk Pesher, 1st published in the mid-80s. These classics are a foundation piece of his research on the Dead Sea Scrolls & fascinating for beginners & scholars alike. These works triggered the debate over the relationship of the Dead Sea Scrolls to Xian Origins, which ultimately led to the freeing of the Scrolls in the early 1990s, a struggle in which he played a pivotal role. Also included are previously unpublished papers & essays written by Eisenman & presented at international conferences over recent years. Together they provide a thoro examination of the Dead Sea Scrolls & link them more closely with 1st century Xianity. In addition, this volume provides new translations of three key Qumran documents: The Habakkuk Pesher, The Damascus Document & The Community Rule, available previously in the sometimes inaccurate & often inconsistent renderings by consensus scholars, missing the electric brilliance of the writers of the Scrolls. For the 1st time, readers will have a chance to see the difference between these & a translation that grasps the apocalyptic mindset of the authors of the Scrolls. Eisenman presents a compelling picture of a nationalistic, xenophobic & militant Messianic Movement in Palestine that's different from the way some currently view Xianity. He also subjects the archeology, paleography & other external dating tools of Qumran research to rigorous criticism. This book challenges preconceptions & sets forth the detailed arguments necessary to connect the Righteous Teacher at Qumran to the 1st Xians, even Jesus' family itself. It also connects the ideological adversary of the teacher 'the Spouter of Lying' with Paul.

Genres: History, Religion, Nonfiction, Christianity, Historical, Biblical Studies

479 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1996

Reviews

[Timothy]

not so easy to read.

[David Sprague · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was awful. it only deserves one star because it did have a few noteworthy new things for me to learn. I read a later book by the same author on James and do not remember it being bad. The IRS tax code would be more of an entertaining read. It is the author's job to bring complex religious work down to a high school reading level so the average layman can enjoy the new discoveries. I would have been hardly better off reading the authentic text myself. He would spend pages and pages on insignificant detail leaving the reader nary a clue to the significance of anything.

I wanted the Deep Sea Scrolls to come alive for me. I wanted to know what they said and what was different from the newer text we are used to. At times he gives us some pertinent history which was interesting. It was a shame a large portion of the book was ancient Hebrew which no one below a Doctorate Degree in a specific religious specialty can read or even cares about.

No doubt this author is in the elite class in his specialty. Sadly, he appeared to be writing to other elite in his class instead of writing to the rank and file that would read this. He made very little effort to bring this down to a layman level. Even a college grad would find little to understand in this book. It felt like he did not know how.

[Richard Worden · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book assumes that the reader is well acquainted with Qumran literature. Ideas about James and the Apostle Paul are new to this reader and warrant further exploration.

[Andrew · Rating 2 out of 5]

This text is not for the faint of heart. Written at a very scholarly level, it is essentially a series of research articles Eisenmann has written over the years relating to his research on the Dead Sea Scrolls and the community at Qumran. Not for the casual reader by any stretch of the imagination.

[Robert Anton-Erik · Rating 5 out of 5]

Challenging, dense, incredible, important! Requires your full intellectual engagement, lots of supplemental study, and an open mind. Worth reading even if you end up not accepting Eisenman's theories.