The Bible and the Dead Sea Scrolls: The ... - josephprestonkirk

SIDNIE WHITE CRAWFORD 145
as an authoritative text, although the evidence from 4Q365 fragment 23
may point in that direction.
To return to the criteria for authority, the third criterion, “Is the book
the subject of a commentary?” is not met by 4QRP. Thus, by failing
beyond a reasonable doubt to meet the second and third criteria, 4QRP
does not meet the second large requisite for scriptural status: community
acceptance. This is not to say that 4QRP never, by anyone or at any time,
was considered to have some type of scriptural status. The fact that it is
found in five similar copies would indicate some degree of interest, and
its existence testifies to the importance of and fascination with the books
of the Pentateuch in various forms in Second Temple Judaism, as exemplified
by the Qumran community. What is lacking for 4QRP, however,
is the desirable instance of absolutely certain citation; on this we base our
caution concerning its authoritative status, similar to our caution concerning
the Temple Scroll.
THE GENESIS APOCRYPHON
With the Genesis Apocryphon we move slightly outside the genre confines
established above, for the Genesis Apocryphon, unlike the three works
already discussed, was composed in Aramaic. 39 Thus, it is not only a
rewriting of the biblical narrative, but also a translation. As such, it could
not maintain the fiction that it was written by or dictated to Moses (as in
4QRP and Jubilees), much less spoken by God (as in the Temple Scroll).
Therefore, the question of authority is less important for the Genesis
Apocryphon, since it does not, as far as can be determined from the extant
columns, attempt to present itself as authoritative. However, the Genesis
Apocryphon has several important connections to the book of Jubilees as
well as other texts found at Qumran. 40 It testifies to the vast collection of
exegetical material available on the text of the Pentateuch, some of which
was incorporated into the Rewritten Bible texts.
The Genesis Apocryphon is extant in twenty-one fragmentary columns,
the best preserved of which are columns 2 and 19–22. The narrative in
column 2 begins with the story of Lamech (Gen 5:28) and ends amid the
39. The Genesis Apocryphon was found in one copy in Cave 1. Its composition probably
dates to the middle of the second century B.C.E. For the first publication, see
Nahman Avigad and Yigael Yadin, A Genesis Apocryphon (Jerusalem: Magnes, 1956).
See also Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Genesis Apocryphon of Qumran Cave I (1Q20) (3d ed.;
BibOr 18B; Rome: Biblical Institute, 2004).
40. Most notably 1 Enoch.