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The Habakkuk Commentary or Pesher Habakkuk, labeled 1QpHab (Cave 1, Qumran,[1] pesher, Habakkuk), was among the original seven Dead Sea Scrolls[2] discovered in 1947 and published in 1951. Due to its early discovery and rapid publication, as well as its relatively pristine preservation, 1QpHab is one of the most frequently researched and analyzed scrolls of the several hundred now known.[3]

Description of the Habakkuk Commentary

Physical

The scroll is roughly 141 centimeters (56 in) from end to end, with thirteen columns of Herodian script written on two pieces of leather, sewn together with linen thread. Most of the columns are missing their lowest lines; the first column is nearly completely lost, and there is a hole through the center of the second column. The third chapter of Habakkuk is missing entirely from the pesher,[4] but it was left out intentionally, not destroyed by aging (most of the last column of the scroll is blank, clearly showing that the text of the pesher was complete). Regardless, the scroll is still largely readable, and editors have filled the lacunae[5] with reasonable confidence.[6]

Contents

The pesher relates several contemporary individuals to the scroll, though they also are only referred to with titles instead of names. The hero or leader that the community should follow is called the Teacher of Righteousness,[7] a figure found in some other Dead Sea scrolls. The pesher argues that the Teacher has directly communed with God and received the true meaning of the scriptures.[8] The Teacher has not yet been successfully identified with any historical figure, though Robert Eisenman[9] argued its identification as James the Just[10] in his 1997 book with that title.[11] Jesus’ half-brother being called “James the Just” was not a member of the Qumran community. Robert Eisenman has proposed the Historical Jesus was actually the Nazarene James, the Teacher of Righteousness against a “Wicked Priest” (Ananus ben Ananus), and a “Spouter of Lies” which Eisenman identifies as Paul of Tarsus. Mainstream scholarship rightly rejects this fanciful theory.

Backing Up In Time

Qumran teachings pictured humans as frail creatures of dust who were utterly sinful and who could be saved only by God’s grace. Cleansing came only as one obeyed God’s ordinances and the community’s teachings as given by the Teacher of Righteousness. The anonymous Teacher of Righteousness described in the Habakkuk Commentary and other scrolls was not the founder of the sect but had been raised up by God to teach the community the way of life. He had been given special insight into God’s purposes, which would be accomplished in the end times. He was a priest who had received understanding from God to interpret the words of the prophets, but he was not the Messiah. The Teacher was opposed and persecuted by a “Wicked Priest.” Attempts to identify the Teacher of Righteousness and the Wicked Priest with specific historical figures, as some scholars have tried to do, are purely conjectural. The Teacher of Righteousness may even have had the role of the anticipated prophet. Members of the community believed in the resurrection of the dead and the immortality of the righteous. The wicked, they taught, would be punished and annihilated by fire. The righteous would enjoy God’s blessings, which they regarded as essentially “this-worldly” and material.

Comparisons have been made between the Teacher of Righteousness with Jesus Christ, but more differences than similarities exist. Qumran was an ascetic, separationist, and legalistic group. Christ’s teaching, on the other hand, struck at the religious formalism and hypocrisy of the religious leaders. Far from being separatist, Jesus sent his disciples into all the world to preach the gospel (Mk 16:15). No evidence from Qumran suggests that the sect regarded their Teacher of Righteousness as divine, as having redeemed humanity from their sins by his death, or as having been the Messiah who was also a priest “after the order of Melchizedek” (Heb 7:17). There is no indication of crucifixion, burial, resurrection, or ascension. Parallels can be made between the teachings of Christ and the Qumran teachings, but there are serious gaps and differences between the two.

After Judah Maccabee achieved his religious goal of restoring worship at the temple, he became political. Accordingly, many Jews abandoned following him. Nevertheless, he went on with his fight against the Seleucid rulers, and he made a treaty with the Roman Empire and aspired to set up an independent Jewish State. After the death of Judah in battle, his brothers Jonathan and Simon would go on to fight the struggle. The Seleucid rulers initially strongly opposed the Maccabees. It was only a matter of time, though, before the rulers compromised on political compromises, permitting the Hasmonaean brothers a measure of independence.

Although the Hasmonaeans were of priestly descent, none had ever served as the high priest. Most of the Jews felt that this position should go to the priests of the line of Zadok, as Solomon had appointed them as high priests. (1 Kings 2:35; Ezekiel 43:19) Through warfare and diplomacy, Jonathan persuaded the Seleucids to make him the high priest. After the death of Jonathan, his brother Simon accomplished even more. In September 140 B.C.E., a momentous decree was published in Jerusalem, consecrated on bronze tablets in Greek style: “King Demetrius [the Greek Seleucid ruler] confirmed him [Simon] in the high priesthood, made him one of his Friends, and paid him high honors. . . . The Jews and their priests have resolved that Simon should be their leader and high priest forever until a trustworthy prophet should arise.”—1 Maccabees 14:38-41 (historical Apocryphal book).

Simon’s role as ruler and high priest was cemented for his descendants as well by the Seleucid authority and “the Great Assembly” of the Jewish people. This observed a critical turning point. Historian Emil Schürer put it, once a political dynasty was established by the Hasmonaeans, “their central concern was no longer with the fulfillment of the Torah [Jewish Law] but with the preservation and extension of their political power.” Yet, mindful not to insult Jewish feelings, Simon chose the title “ethnarch,” or “leader of the people,” rather than “king.”—Emil Schürer, A History of the Jewish People in the Time of Jesus Christ, First Division., vol. 2 (Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1890), 402–403.

At this time, not all were happy with the Hasmonaean takeover of both religious and political control. It was at this time that the Qumran community was created. A priest of the line of Zadok, thought to be the one mentioned in the Qumran writings as “the Teacher of Righteousness,” left Jerusalem and directed a resistance group into the Judean Desert by the Dead Sea. The commentary on the book of Habakkuk denounces “the Wicked Priest who was called by the name of truth at the beginning, but when he ruled over Israel his heart became haughty.” Many scholars think that either Jonathan or Simon likely fit the sect’s characterization of the ruling “Wicked Priest.”

The Qumran Residents: Were they Essenes?

Among the Teacher’s opponents were the Wicked Priest and the Man of the Lie. The Wicked Priest[12] is portrayed as a false religious leader who was at one point trusted by the Teacher. Towards the end of the pesher, the Wicked Priest is reported to have been captured and tortured by his enemies.[13] His true identity is also unlikely to be named with certainty, though just about every contemporary Hasmonean[14] priest has at some point been suggested by scholars as the Wicked Priest. It is even argued that this was a title attributed to multiple individuals.[15] The Man of the Lie is accused by the author of attempting to discredit the Teacher, as well as the Torah.[16] His true name has likewise not yet been successfully identified with any historical figure, though Robert Eisenman argued its identification as Paul of Tarsus.[17]

Also mentioned in passing by the author is a House of Absalom, which is accused of standing idle while the Man of the Lie worked against the Teacher. Unlike the others, this name is attributed only to a couple of historical figures, the most likely candidate being a supposedly Sadducean[18] relative to Aristobulus II,[19] named Absalom.[20]

The author of the pesher reaches a similar solution to his difficult situation as the prophet Habakkuk had centuries before: perseverance through faith. He affirms that his community will not die at the hands of the wicked Judah. In turn, the power to retaliate against and judge the Kittim will be granted by God to the faithful.[21]

Comparison with the Common Hebrew Text (Masoretic Text)

What is even more significant than the commentary in the pesher is the quoted text of Habakkuk itself. The divergences between the Hebrew text of the scroll and the standard Masoretic Text[22] is startlingly minimal. The most significant differences are word order, small grammatical variations, addition or omission of conjunctions, and spelling variations, but these are small enough not to do damage to the meaning of the text.[23]

Pesher Habakkuk by Moshe J. Bernstein

The Dead Sea Habakkuk Scroll – F. F. Bruce

Habakkuk

The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible: The Oldest Known Bible Translated for the First Time into English

NOTE: Square brackets surround areas lost in the scroll due to various types of damage.

Habakkuk, the subject of one of the most extensive pesher texts (A Commentary on Habakkuk), also exists in three of the ten Minor Prophets manuscripts.

A Commentary (or Pesher) on Habakkuk exploits the original setting of the prophecy set in the early sixth century bce and the disturbing message of the coming of the Chaldeans—God’s agents of judgment on sinful Judah—to interpret the events of five hundred years later. The Chaldeans become the “Kittim,” or Romans, and the unjust of Judah are none other than the foes of the Qumran community, the Pharisees. Oddly, apart from this extensive pesher, there are no citations or allusions to Habakkuk among the scrolls.

1* [³ Why do you make me see] iniquity and loo[k upon] trouble? Destruction and violence are before me; [and there is] strife, [and] contention [rises up. ⁴ Therefore the l]aw [is ignored, and] justice ne[ver prevails; for the wicked [sur]round the ri[ghteous; therefore justice goes forth] perverted.

⁵ Look [at] the nations, and [obser]ve, and be amazed! W[ond]er! For I am wor[king] a work [in] your [day]s [which you will] n[ot believe though you] were [told.] ⁶ For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter [and impetuous nation, that m]arc[h] throu[gh] the brea[dth of the earth,] to possess dwelling-places that are not theirs. ⁷ Th[ey] are terrible and d[read]ful; their judg[m]ent [and their dignity proceed] fr[om th]emselves. ⁸ Their horses also are swifter than leopards, and are more fierce than wo[lves in the eve]ning; and their horsemen press proudly on, their [hors]emen come from af[ar;] they fly as an eagle that hastens to devour. ⁹ All of them come for violence; they set their faces forward; and they gather captives as the sand. ¹⁰ And th[e]y scoff at kings, and princes are a derision [to them; th]ey laugh at every stronghold; for they heap up rubble, and tak[e it. ¹¹ Then] shall they sweep by as a wind, and [shall] pass over, and be g[uilty, even they wh]ose [mig]ht [is their g]od.

[¹² Are y]ou [not] from everlasting, [O Lord] my God, my Holy One? [We shall not] die. O L[ord, you have ordained him for] j[udgmen]t; [and you, O Rock, have] esta[blished him] for correction. [¹³ Your] eyes [are too pure to] b[ehold evil, and you cannot look on perverseness. Why do you look on those that deal treacherously, and are si]le[nt when the wicked swallows up the man that is more righteous than he? ¹⁴ Have you made men as the fish o]f the se[a, as the creeping things, that hav]e [no] ruler [over them?]

¹⁵ He brings up [al]l of the[m with a hook,] and he catches [them in] his [n]et and gath[ers them in] his seine; therefore he re[joices] and is glad. ¹⁶ Therefore he sacrifices [to] his ne[t], and burns incense to [hi]s se[ine;] be[cause] by them [his] bread is large, [and] his f[o]od plentiful. ¹⁷ Shall he theref[ore emp]ty his sword, and keep o[n slaying] the nations continually?

2* [¹ I] will stand [upon] my [watch,] and se[t myself upon the towe]r, and will keep watch to se[e what he will say t]o me, and what [I] shall answer [concerning my reproof]. ² And [the Lord] answered me, [and said,] Write the vision, and make it plain [on tablet]s, [that he may run] that reads [it. ³ For the vision is ye]t [for the ap]pointed time, and it hastens [toward the end, and] shall not fail. Though [it] tar[ries, wait for i]t; because it will su[rely] come; [it will not delay.] ⁴ Beh[old] the proud one, his soul is not right [within him; but the rig]hteous shall liv[e] by his faith. [⁵ Yea, moreover, wine betrays] a haughty man, so that [he does] not [stay at home. He enlarges his] desir[e] as Sheol, [and he is as dea]th; he cannot be satisfied, [but gathers to him]self all nations, and collec[ts to him]self all pe[opl]es.

⁶ Shall not all these tak[e] up a taunt against him, and a moc[ki]ng riddle against him, an[d sa]y, “Woe to him that increases that which is not his!” For [ho]w long? A[nd loa]ds himself down with thick mud! ⁷ Shall your creditors not rise up sud[denl]y, and those who cause you to tremble awake? Then you shall be as booty [for] them. ⁸ Because you have plu[n]dered many nations, and all the remnant of the peoples [shall] plunder you, [because of men’s blood and the violence done to the land, to the city, and to all that dwell in it.]

[⁹ “Woe to him that gets an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of] evil!” ¹⁰ You have devised [shame to your house by cutting off many peoples, and have sinned against yourself. ¹¹ For the very stone] shall c[ry ou]t of the wall, [and the beam out of the timber shall answer it.]

[¹² “Woe to him that builds a town with blood, and establishes a city by iniquity!” ¹³ Is it not indeed from the Lord of ho]s[ts that the peoples labor fo]r [fire, and the nations weary themselves for] nothing? [¹⁴ For the earth] shall be [filled with the knowledge of the glory of] the Lord, as [the waters cover the] sea.

[¹⁵ “Woe] t[o you that giv]e [your] neig[hbor drink, to you that] ad[d your venom, and make him drunken also, tha]t [you may] lo[ok on] th[ei]r [nakedn]ess!” [¹⁶ You are] filled [with shame rather] than glory. [Dr]ink, you also, and [be as one uncircumcised;] the c[up of] the Lord]’s right hand] shall come round to you, and foul [shame shall come upon] y[ou]r glory. ¹⁷ For the violence [done to Lebanon] shall [cover] you, and the destruction [of the animals terrified] you, because of m[en]’s blood and violence done to the land, to the city, [a]nd to all that dwell in [i]t.

¹⁸ What good is the idol when [its maker has carved] it; the image, [even] the lying [ap]pearance? For the [m]aker trusts in its form, that he might [m]ake dumb idols. [¹⁹ “Wo]e to him that says to the wood, ‘Awake!’ To the dumb stone, ‘A[rise!’ ” Shall] this tea[ch? Behold,] it is overlaid with gol[d and silv]er, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.

²⁰ But the Lord is in [h]is holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.

3* ¹ A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, set to [Shigio]noth.

² O Lord, I have heard the report about you and am afraid. O Lord, revive [your] wor[k] in the midst of the years; in the midst of the years m[ake it know]n; in wrath rem[em]ber [me]rcy. ³ God [co]mes from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran. Sel[ah.] His glory [cove]red the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise. ⁴ And his brightness was as the light; [he had] ra[y]s [coming forth] from [his] hand; [and there was where] his power [was hid]den. ⁵ Before him went the pestilence, and fiery bolts went forth at [his] feet. [⁶ He s]tood, and measured the ear[th; he beheld, and made the nations tremble;] and the eternal mountains were shattered; the everlasting hills did bow; [his] goings were as of old. ⁷ I saw the te[nts] of Cushan i[n] affliction; [the curtain]s of the land of Midian did tremble. ⁸ Was the Lord displeased with the ri[v]ers? [Was] your anger against the rivers, or your wrath against the sea, that you rode upon your horses, upon your chariots of salvation? ⁹ You [indeed] awa[ke]ned your bow; staffs are ready for command. Selah. He split the earth with rivers. ¹⁰ The mountains saw you, and were afraid; the clouds poured out water; the deep uttered its voice and lifted up its hands on high. ¹¹ The sun [and moo]n stood still in their habitation, at the light of your arrows as they went, at the shining of your glittering spear. [¹² You] marched though the land in [indignati]on; [you] th[re]shed the nations [in anger.] ¹³ You went forth for the salvation of your people, [for the sa]lvation of your anointed; [you wounded] the head of the house [of the wi]cked, laying bare the foundation even to the neck. Selah. [¹⁴ You] pierced with his own staves the head of his warrior; they storm in to scatter us; their rejoicing was as to [de]vour the poor secretly. ¹⁵ You tread [the sea with your horses,] the heap of mighty [water]s.

[¹⁶ I] heard, [and] my body [tre]mbled, my lips quivered at [the voice; rottenness] ent[ers into] my [bones,] and I trem[ble] in [my] place; [be]cause I must wait quietly for [the day of trouble, for the coming up] of the people [that inva]des us.

[¹⁷ For though the] fig tr[ee shall] not [flourish, nor shall fruit be in the] vine[s, the labor of the olive shall] fail, [and the fiel]ds shall yield no food; the flock shall be cut off from [the fold, and there shall be no] herd in the stall[s: ¹⁸ Yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will exu]lt in the G[o]d of my salvation. ¹⁹ The Lord, the L[ord,] is my strength; and he makes [my] f[eet like hinds’ feet, and will make me to walk upon my high places.]

For the ch[oirmas]ter, on my strin[ged instrument]s^[24]

Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaa) AKA the Great Isaiah Scroll

Attribution: This article incorporates some text from the public domain: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, and Edward D. Andrews

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[1] Qumran (Hebrew: קומראן; Arabic: خربة قمران Khirbet Qumran) is an archaeological site in the West Bank managed by Israel’s Qumran National Park. It is located on a dry marl plateau about 1.5 km (1 mi) from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalya.

[2] The Dead Sea Scrolls (also the Qumran Caves Scrolls) are ancient Jewish and Hebrew religious manuscripts first found in 1946/47 at the Qumran Caves in what was then Mandatory Palestine, near Ein Feshkha in the West Bank, on the northern shore of the Dead Sea. Dating back to between the 3rd century BCE and the 1st century CE, the Dead Sea Scrolls are considered one of the most important finds in the history of archaeology, and have great historical, religious, and linguistic significance because they include the oldest surviving manuscripts of entire books later included in the biblical canons, along with deuterocanonical and extra-biblical manuscripts which preserve evidence of the diversity of religious thought in late Second Temple Judaism, while at the same time casting new light on the emergence of Christianity and of Rabbinic Judaism.

[3] Bernstein, Moshe J. “Pesher Habakkuk.” Encyclopedia of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2000, p.647

[4] Pesher ( (listen); Hebrew: פשר, pl. pesharim), from the Hebrew root meaning “interpretation,” is a group of interpretive commentaries on scripture.

[5] A lacuna (pl. lacunae or lacunas) is a gap in a manuscript, inscription, text, painting, or musical work.

[6] Bernstein, Moshe J. “Pesher Habakkuk.” Encyclopedia of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2000, p.647

[7] The Teacher of Righteousness (in Hebrew: מורה הצדק Moreh ha-Tzedek) is a figure found in some of the Dead Sea Scrolls at Qumran, most prominently in the Damascus Document. This document speaks briefly of the origins of the sect, probably Essenes, 390 years after the reign of Nebuchadnezzar and after 20 years of “groping” blindly for the way.

[8] Wise, Michael O., Martin G. Abegg Jr., and Edward M. Cook. The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Translation. San Francisco: Harper, 2005. pp. 83–86

[9] Robert Eisenman (born 1937) is an American biblical scholar, historian, archaeologist, and poet. He is currently professor of Middle East religions, archaeology, and Islamic law and director of the Institute for the Study of Judaeo-Christian Origins at California State University Long Beach.

[10] James the Just, or a variation of James, brother of the Lord (Latin: Iacobus from Hebrew: יעקב, Ya’akov and Greek: Ἰάκωβος, Iákōbos, can also be Anglicized as “Jacob”), was “a brother of Jesus”, according to the New Testament. He was an early leader of the Jerusalem Church of the Apostolic Age.

[11] Eisenman, Robert H, James the Just, 1997, Viking.

[12] Wicked Priest (Hebrew: הכהן הרשע; Romanized Hebrew: ha-kōhēn hā-rāš’ā) is a sobriquet used in the Dead Sea Scrolls pesharim, four[1] times in the Habakkuk Commentary (1QpHab) and once in the Commentary on Psalm 37 (4QpPsa), to refer to an opponent of the “Teacher of Righteousness.” It has been suggested[2] that the phrase is a pun on “ha-kōhēn hā-rōš”, as meaning “the High Priest”, but this is not the proper term for the High Priest. He is generally identified with a Hasmonean (Maccabean) High Priest or Priests.

[13] Wise, Michael O., Martin G. Abegg Jr., and Edward M. Cook. The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Translation. San Francisco: Harper, 2005. pp. 83–86

[14] The Hasmonean dynasty ( (audio); Hebrew: חַשְׁמוֹנָאִים‎ Ḥašmōnaʾīm) was a ruling dynasty of Judea and surrounding regions during classical antiquity, from c. 140 BCE to 37 BCE. Between c. 140 and c. 116 BCE the dynasty ruled Judea semi-autonomously from the Seleucid Empire, and from roughly 110 BCE, with the empire disintegrating, Judea gained further autonomy and expanded into the neighboring regions of Samaria, Galilee, Iturea, Perea, and Idumea. Some modern scholars regard the Hasmonean realm as an independent Israel.

[15] Bernstein, Moshe J. “Pesher Habakkuk.” Encyclopedia of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2000, p. 649

[16] Bernstein, Moshe J. “Pesher Habakkuk.” Encyclopedia of the Dead Sea Scrolls. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2000, p. 649

[17] Eisenman, Robert H, James the Brother of Jesus and the Dead Sea Scrolls, I & II, Grave Distractions Pub. (2012)

Paul (born Saul of Tarsus; c. 5 – c. 64/65 AD), commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle (although not one of the original Twelve Apostles) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. Generally regarded as one of the most important figures of the Apostolic Age, he founded several Christian communities in Asia Minor and Europe from the mid-40s to the mid-50s AD. According to the New Testament book Acts of the Apostles, Paul was a Pharisee before he became a Christian.

[18] The Sadducees (; Hebrew: צְדוּקִים, romanized: Ṣədūqīm) were a socio-religious sect of Jewish people who were active in Judea during the Second Temple period, from the second century BCE through the destruction of the Temple in 70 CE. The Sadducees are often compared to other contemporaneous sects, including the Pharisees and the Essenes. Josephus, writing at the end of the 1st century CE, associates the sect with the upper social and economic echelon of Judean society.

[19] Aristobulus II (, Ancient Greek: Ἀριστόβουλος Aristóboulos) was the Jewish High Priest and King of Judea, 66 BCE to 63 BCE, from the Hasmonean dynasty.

[20] Wise, Michael O., Martin G. Abegg Jr., and Edward M. Cook. The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Translation. San Francisco: Harper, 2005. pp. 83–86

[21] Wise, Michael O., Martin G. Abegg Jr., and Edward M. Cook. The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Translation. San Francisco: Harper, 2005. pp. 83–86

[22] The Masoretic Text (MT or 𝕸; Hebrew: נוסח המסורה, romanized: Nusakh Ham’mas’sora) is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) in Rabbinic Judaism. The Masoretic Text defines the Jewish canon and its precise letter-text, with its vocalization and accentuation known as the mas’sora.

[23] Harris, J. G., The Qumran Commentary on Habakkuk. London: A. R. Mowbray, 1966, pp. 22–30

^[24] Martin Abegg Jr., Peter Flint, and Eugene Ulrich, The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible: The Oldest Known Bible Translated for the First Time into English (New York: HarperOne, 1999), Hab.