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Second Thoughts on the Dead Sea Scrolls
In this reader-friendly overview, one of the twentieth century's leading biblical scholars offers his insights into the importance of the Dead Sea Scrolls for biblical studies and the histories of Judaism and Christianity. He tells the story of the discovery of the scrolls and their ongoing significance.
About the Author:
F. F. Bruce (1910-1990) was Rylands Professor of Biblical Criticism and Exegesis at the University of Manchester in England
160 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1956
About the author
F.F. Bruce
250 books138 followersFrederick Fyvie Bruce FBA was a Biblical scholar who supported the historical reliability of the New Testament. His first book, The New Testament Documents: Are They Reliable? (1943), was voted by the American evangelical periodical Christianity Today in 2006 as one of the top 50 books "which had shaped evangelicals".
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 14, 2017
This is the second time I have read this slim volume, the first time being quite a few years ago when I lived in Florida long before the age of my public book reviews. In fact, I think I may have been in high school when I read this book last, and so returning to it was almost like reading it for the first time given the thousands of books I have read in the meantime. As someone who occasionally reads and writes about the Dead Sea Scrolls [1], and someone who occasionally reads books from F.F. Bruce [2], this book is the work of someone who is used to having their thoughts and reflections considered as important who is not quite as good as he is often reputed to be. Nevertheless, even if this book is a bit on the overrated side, it does possess a fair amount of charm as the author reflects on the subject matter of an earlier book that he had written that had, rather foolishly, failed to take into account the Dead Sea Scrolls at all. This is an example of a celebrated author covering over the same ground and trying to catch up with research that had left his previous thoughts behind, and the results are amusing.
The contents of this book, a revised and enlarged edition that still clocks in at barely over 150 pages--one wonders how small the original version was--consist of a variety of chapters with very functional titles. These titles include: The First Discoveries, Later Discoveries, Wadi Murabba'at and Kirbet Mird, Dating The Finds, Khirbet Qumran, The Scrolls And The Old Testament, Biblical Interpretation, The Messianic Hope, The Teacher Of Righteousness And His Enemies, The Qumran Community, Qumran and the Essenes, and Qumran and Christianity. The contents are somewhat self-explanatory, and the author uses the book as a soapbox for his ideas about the text of the Bible and making speculations as to the time period of the Teacher of Righteousness and to the significance of the book for OT and NT studies. The result is mostly, but not completely, harmless, and overall the book appears as a bit of a cash grab from someone whose earlier skepticism about the Dead Sea Scrolls and their legitimacy led him to wonder what scholars like Albright and others like him saw in the scrolls early on.
So, aside from being generally inessential but mildly amusing (if one has a scholarly turn of mind), what can be said about this book? There are some areas where the author's speculations appear particular of interest. For example, contrary to the general and erroneous view among many scholars that Daniel was written very late, the Dead Sea Scrolls demonstrate that the popularity of Daniel as a material for commentators in the Second Century BC signifies that the book was written long before, and Bruce speculates that the book of Daniel we possess may be an exemplar of a larger volume, which is entirely possible given the episodic nature of the material we possess. Although, it should be noted, that episodic nature is similar to Ezra and Nehemiah, which are perhaps a recognition of a particular genre convention among inspired writers in the early Persian period. We are all influenced by the writings of our times, after all. And this writing is certainly of its time and context as well. That does not make it entirely inessential, but it does make the book an obvious attempt by a noted scholar to jump on the Dead Sea Scrolls bandwagon, a demonstration that no scholar who took early Christianity or late Second Temple Judaism seriously could avoid reflecting on the implications of those writings.
[1] See, for example:
http://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017/...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012...
[2] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
The contents of this book, a revised and enlarged edition that still clocks in at barely over 150 pages--one wonders how small the original version was--consist of a variety of chapters with very functional titles. These titles include: The First Discoveries, Later Discoveries, Wadi Murabba'at and Kirbet Mird, Dating The Finds, Khirbet Qumran, The Scrolls And The Old Testament, Biblical Interpretation, The Messianic Hope, The Teacher Of Righteousness And His Enemies, The Qumran Community, Qumran and the Essenes, and Qumran and Christianity. The contents are somewhat self-explanatory, and the author uses the book as a soapbox for his ideas about the text of the Bible and making speculations as to the time period of the Teacher of Righteousness and to the significance of the book for OT and NT studies. The result is mostly, but not completely, harmless, and overall the book appears as a bit of a cash grab from someone whose earlier skepticism about the Dead Sea Scrolls and their legitimacy led him to wonder what scholars like Albright and others like him saw in the scrolls early on.
So, aside from being generally inessential but mildly amusing (if one has a scholarly turn of mind), what can be said about this book? There are some areas where the author's speculations appear particular of interest. For example, contrary to the general and erroneous view among many scholars that Daniel was written very late, the Dead Sea Scrolls demonstrate that the popularity of Daniel as a material for commentators in the Second Century BC signifies that the book was written long before, and Bruce speculates that the book of Daniel we possess may be an exemplar of a larger volume, which is entirely possible given the episodic nature of the material we possess. Although, it should be noted, that episodic nature is similar to Ezra and Nehemiah, which are perhaps a recognition of a particular genre convention among inspired writers in the early Persian period. We are all influenced by the writings of our times, after all. And this writing is certainly of its time and context as well. That does not make it entirely inessential, but it does make the book an obvious attempt by a noted scholar to jump on the Dead Sea Scrolls bandwagon, a demonstration that no scholar who took early Christianity or late Second Temple Judaism seriously could avoid reflecting on the implications of those writings.
[1] See, for example:
http://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017/...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2017...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2016...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2012...
[2] See, for example:
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2015...
https://edgeinducedcohesion.blog/2014...
September 1, 2011
The Ancients is one of my current favourite podcasts, and after listening to the episode on the “Copper Scroll”, I wanted to read more about the Dead Sea Scrolls and found this one on the bookshelf, picked up at some point at a second-hand bookshop. The section on the copper scroll, which is unique and intriguing in its own special way, only received a small section, perhaps because it deserves a book on its own once its mystery is resolved. But most of the book covers the broader context of scrolls and their scribes.
Of course, the discovery, or to the same extent, their preservation over 2000 years, was described to set the scene. Written not long after the discovery, Bruce describes the debates and discussion which contributed to verification of the Scrolls age and authenticity. It was good to understand some of this given the claims made about them. Then it was on to the texts themselves, firstly the scriptural aspects, then to the teaching of what has become accepted as that of the Essenes, or their Qumran segment at least. What was striking for me about this is how many of the themes that are present in the New Testament were already in the hearts and mouths of pre-first-century Jews. In its own way, I think this gives greater authenticity to the Christian movement and gospel writings, as well as providing context for what was and wasn’t being taught by Jesus and his followers.
I suspect Bruce’s book holds up despite its age, but it would take more expertise than I have to adjudicate on that. I am sure there is plenty more that can be added, however, as archaeology and cultural understanding have given more background to the Scrolls themselves. So as a short, somewhat contemporary book, this is a good introduction, although I am hoping to also find something of similar age by Allegro, one of the early researchers, on the shelf somewhere also.
Of course, the discovery, or to the same extent, their preservation over 2000 years, was described to set the scene. Written not long after the discovery, Bruce describes the debates and discussion which contributed to verification of the Scrolls age and authenticity. It was good to understand some of this given the claims made about them. Then it was on to the texts themselves, firstly the scriptural aspects, then to the teaching of what has become accepted as that of the Essenes, or their Qumran segment at least. What was striking for me about this is how many of the themes that are present in the New Testament were already in the hearts and mouths of pre-first-century Jews. In its own way, I think this gives greater authenticity to the Christian movement and gospel writings, as well as providing context for what was and wasn’t being taught by Jesus and his followers.
I suspect Bruce’s book holds up despite its age, but it would take more expertise than I have to adjudicate on that. I am sure there is plenty more that can be added, however, as archaeology and cultural understanding have given more background to the Scrolls themselves. So as a short, somewhat contemporary book, this is a good introduction, although I am hoping to also find something of similar age by Allegro, one of the early researchers, on the shelf somewhere also.
September 10, 2013
The Dead Sea Scrolls are something that truly fascinate me. There's so much speculation about the community that wrote them, so much sheer oddness when it comes to what the Essenes believed and preached. It sheds new lights about just how different the religious communities were then.
This book goes into the history of the scrolls discovery, and what was known at the time of publication about the community that wrote them. It was a fascinating read, though of course now a bit out of date. I still would recommend it to anyone interested in the scrolls, as any information is still good information in my estimation. It was by no means a dry read.
This book goes into the history of the scrolls discovery, and what was known at the time of publication about the community that wrote them. It was a fascinating read, though of course now a bit out of date. I still would recommend it to anyone interested in the scrolls, as any information is still good information in my estimation. It was by no means a dry read.
February 11, 2015
Basic overview of Dead Sea Scrolls written about 15 years after their discovery. The conclusions in this short book are still valid, though more detail is now known. Bruce is balanced and thoughtful and the book allows the reader to keep the effect of the scrolls in perspective, neither giving them too much, nor too little weight in terms of the effect, if any, on understanding the NT, John the Baptist, or Jesus.
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November 6, 2011Call Number: 220.93 BRU
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews