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

JACOB CHERIAN 357
be only these four instances of Nmw) (i.e., in 1QH 15.21, 22; 17.31, 36) in
the extant and published sectarian writings found at Qumran—all of
them, significantly, in the Thanksgiving Hymns (Hodayot a ).
Here, the significance of paronomasia (the play on words that sound
alike) should not go unnoticed. This interpretive method is “typical of
many passages in documents composed at Qumran.” 27 Thus we must
also look at Nmw) along with the possible assonances with key words such
as Nm) 28 and hnwm)and hnm). Maintaining faithfulness to God and the
covenant was an integral part of Qumran life. Hence in 1QpHab 2.1–4
the traitors and the Man of the Lie both disbelieve the God-given
words of the Righteous Teacher and are unfaithful to the covenant of
God (l) tyrbb wnym)h )wl). On the other hand the Qumran community
saw faithfulness as a key requirement for maintaining their status
with God and the community.
In an important section of Pesher Habakkuk (1QpHab 8.1–7) we find
the interpretation of Hab 2:4b (“And the righteous man will live by his
faithfulness [wtnwm)b]”) given as follows: “(1) Its interpretation concerns
all who observe the Law in the house of Judah, whom (2) God will save
from the house of judgment on account of their tribulation and their
faithfulness (Mtnm)w) 29 (3) to the Righteous Teacher.” Thus what was
expected from the community was a certain and necessary hnwm) to the
Nmw). One can only imagine this kind of authority in the community to
be wielded by someone as important as the Righteous Teacher. I am
inclined to think that here (in 1QH a 15.19–22a) we have one of the best
Jewish uses of parental imagery to represent the role of a leader. The
Righteous Teacher, like God, serves as the nursing-father to the dxy. 30
27. Charlesworth, “Autumnal Rain,” 198. For another example of paronomasia, see
idem, “Paronomasia and Assonance in the Syriac Text of the Odes of Solomon,” in
Literary Setting, Textual Studies, Gnosticism, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Gospel of John (ed.
J. H. Charlesworth; vol. 1 of Critical Reflections on the Odes of Solomon; JSPSup 22;
Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998), 147–65.
28. The root Nm), “to be firm, secure, dependable” is very important and common
in biblical as well as the Qumran writings. The expression Nm) Nm) (“Amen, Amen”)
is found in several places; for example, in 1QS 1.20; 2.10, 18.
29. The Hebrew term could be either from hnwm) or hnm); see textual notes and
translation in The Dead Sea Scrolls: Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek Texts with English Translations,
Vol. 6B, Pesharim, Other Commentaries, and Related Documents (ed. J. H. Charlesworth
et al.; PTSDSSP 6B; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck; Louisville: Westminster John Knox,
2002), 172–75.
30. The Damascus Document, elaborating on the role of the “Inspector of the Camp,”
pictures his task as both paternal and pastoral: “He shall have pity on them like a father
on his sons, and will heal all the strays(?) like a shepherd his flock” (CD 13.9).