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

184 THREE SOBRIQUETS, THEIR MEANING AND FUNCTION
connected with the sobriquet. This passage is then matched with material
in Josephus or 1–2 Maccabees.
A presumption that scholars have been working under is that different
sectarian texts, especially the pesharim, disclose historic information
about the Qumran community. On the whole, this may be a plausible
presumption, but we have to give more precaution and consideration to
the specific features and functions of the sobriquets. 3 Scholars have even
expressed careful doubts about the historical basis for the pesharim. 4
This study will first elucidate some features concerning proper names
and sobriquets. Second, an analysis of the sobriquet “the Wicked Priest”
in the pesharim will be conducted. Finally, a short comparison with similar
cryptograms in the Book of Revelation will be outlined.
Here I pursue several questions: Why are these sobriquets used?
What is the function of a sobriquet? What qualities and circumstances
are attributed to the sobriquet? Which overall characteristic of the person
designated as “the Wicked Priest” is pursued in the pesharim? And
which similarities and differences are there between the sobriquets “synagogue
of Satan” and “the woman Jezebel” in Revelation, compared to
“the Wicked Priest” in the pesharim?
SOBRIQUETS IN THE PESHARIM
The most elaborate use of sobriquets is found in the pesharim. It is, in
fact, one of the features that makes this genre unique. There are also some
occurrences in other Qumran documents, as in CD and in the Hodayoth.
A few of the names below are represented either in both CD and the
pesharim, or in the Hodayoth and in the pesharim. 5 Callaway gives examples
of about twenty different sobriquets, all occurring in the pesharim: 6
3. The publications of Brownlee and Horgan move the focus of discussion away
from the historical implications; instead, they discuss the purpose and function of the
pesharim. See William H. Brownlee, The Midrash Pesher of Habakkuk (SBLMS 24;
Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1979), 35–36; and Maurya P. Horgan, Pesharim:
Qumran Interpretations of Biblical Books (CBQMS 8; Washington, DC: Catholic Biblical
Association of America, 1979), 244–59.
4. Philip R. Davies, Behind the Essenes: History and Ideology in the Dead Sea Scrolls (BJS
94; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1987), 90–91.
5. E.g., “the Righteous Teacher” in CD and the pesharim, and “the Seekers of
smooth things” in the Hodayoth and 4QpNah (4Q169).
6. Phillip R. Callaway, The History of the Qumran Community: An Investigation (JSPSup
3; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1988), 135.