| The following evidence is presented in support of the
early writers' claim that the Essene sect was very old.
From the Old Testament
The First Essenes
Just before Moses' death, God ordered
him to relay His message to the people "the sworn covenant
of the Lord which the Lord God makes with you, that He may
establish you as His people. For you are His people Holy to
the Lord."
Those who entered the Promised Land
with Joshua were the first Hasidim (Essenes).
There are many references to the
Hasidim in the Psalms.
Solomon addresses the people at the
dedication of the Temple as Hasidim (Essenes).
From the Scrolls
The Hasidim are referred to in the
Scrolls as members of Essenes.
The First Teacher Of Righteousness
The first paragraph of the Damascus
Document describes events leading up to the appointment of
the First Teacher of Righteousness.
The key phrase that sets these events
in time is "390 after He had given them into the hands of
Nebuchadnezzar." It is equally possible to interpret the
original Hebrew phrase as 390 years before.
If it is assumed the conquest of
Nebuchadnezzar occurred at 597 BCE, then the date referred
to above could be either 207 BCE or 987 BCE. Despite the 50
years of effort, no one has been able to find events that,
even remotely, resemble those described in the Scroll around
the year 207 BCE.
I will look for events centred around the
other possibility, 987 BCE.
From the Scroll
"And when they were unfaithful and
forsook Him, He his His face from Israel and His sanctuary
and delivered them up to the sword. But remembering the
Covenant of the forefathers, He left a remnant to Israel and
did not deliver it up to be destroyed.
From the Old Testament
"And after Joshua's death there arose
another generation who did not know the Lord--and the anger
of the Lord was kindled against Israel." God turned His back
on His people and refused to allow them "to drive out any of
the Nations that Joshua left before he died." This was the
period of the Judges, when the people mingled with other
nations and learned to do as they did and sacrificed to the
idols of Canaan, and "many time He delivered them" but they
kept returning to their sinful ways. Eventually, however, He
relented and "remembered for their sake, His covenant with
them."
From the Scroll
"In the Age of Wrath, 390 years before
He had given them into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar (987
BCE), He visited them, and He caused a plant root to spring
from Israel and Aaron (i.e. the people and the priests) to
inherit His land and to prosper on the good things of the
earth.
From the Old Testament
Under David's leadership, the people
united and drove out the occupiers of the land that God had
promised them so many years before. 987 BCE falls well
within the estimated time of David's rule.
From the Scroll
"And they perceived their iniquity and
recognized they were guilty men, yet for 20 years they were
like blind men groping for the way."
From the Old Testament
When the Philistines sacked Shilo (ca
1080 BCE), they took with them the Ark of the Covenant,
which was in the tabernacle there, as part of their booty.
After a number of stops, it came to rest at Kiriathzearim.
"A long time passed, some 20 years, "before David brought it
and its precious contents to Jerusalem and the people, once
again, had God's laws to guide them.
From the Scroll
"And God observed their deeds, that
they sought Him with a whole heart and He raised for them a
Teacher of Righteousness to guide them in the way of His
heart.
In the Commentary on the Psalm's scroll the Teacher of
Righteousness is identified as a priest.
From the Old Testament
David "left Zadoc, the priest, before
the tabernacle of the Lord to offer burnt offerings..." That
is, Zadoc was appointed head of the priesthood and was
responsible for ensuring the people behaved righteously.
The First Teacher of Righteousness was Zadoc,
appointed by David, ca 980 BCE
The Teacher of Righteousness in the
Scrolls always refers to the chief, or High Priest of the
Zadoc line. After Onias, the last of the Zadoc line was
killed by Menelaus, there is no further reference to the
Teacher of Righteousness.
From the Early Writers
Josephus says the Essenes go back "to
most ancient times," as does Pliny when he said "they go
back a thousand years," as does Philo, who said, "our
lawgiver (Moses) trained an innumerable body of his pupils
to partake of these things, called Essenes, being honoured
with the name because of their holiness."
Contra Evidence
These are arguments I have seen in support of the current
theory together with my comments.
- Qumran was built about 150 BCE, therefore the sect
was formed a few years prior
Rejoinder: I don't believe the date of construction of the one building that has been linked to the Essenes justifies the assumption it was the first one of the Sect.
- Josephus does not mention the Sect prior to ca 170
BCE, therefore it did not exist before that date.
Rejoinder: Josephus does not mention any sect prior to that date, so by that line of reasoning, there was either no religious sect or it had disappeared to be replaced by three new sects simultaneously in 170 BCE. Both of these scenarios seem highly unlikely.
- All these early writers, Philo, Josephus, and Pliny
are "unreliable in their conception of time, therefore
the age they attribute to the sect cannot be relied
upon."
Rejoinder: To dismiss the evidence of all three independent writers as unreliable, particularly with no evidence to the contrary, seems unwarranted. That Philo's sense of time was so warped he believed Moses lived
only 200 years before is unlikely to say the least. It would seem the real reason for the claim is that their evidence does not fit the current theory.
Conclusion
I again believe that, on balance, the
evidence strongly supports the claim of the early writers,
that the sect was very old, rather than that of the current
theory to the contrary. |