the-bible-and-the-dead-sea-scrolls

24 ANOTHER STAB AT TH E WICKED PRIEST
and theological differences. The fact that 2 Maccabees 3–4 presents
Onias III in a positive light should not dissuade us from considering him
as a candidate for the Wicked Priest, since this was his reputation among
foreign nations and “the people” of Jerusalem, groups with whom the
Dead Sea Scrolls community would hardly see eye-to-eye. As for the
comment that the Wicked Priest “ruled over Israel,” 32 it is well known
that the High Priest exercised considerable authority within the Jewish
community, so to describe his activity in such terms is understandable
and does not, by necessity, imply a Hasmonean High Priest.
As it stands, however, there are still a number of unknowns (not the
least of which is the identity of the Teacher of Righteousness 33 ), and the
proposal that Onias III is the Wicked Priest raises about as many questions
as it answers (although no more than for any other candidate or
candidates). Yet, based on what we do know about the Wicked Priest,
especially that he was initially considered legitimate (i.e., Zadokite) in the
eyes of the Dead Sea Scrolls community, that he was active during the
formative years of this community (ca. 196–175 [d. ca. 171] B.C.E.), and
that he was killed by foreign agency (the Syrian governor, Andronicus),
Onias III deserves more attention than he has yet received.
32. 1QpHab 8:9.
33. Ironically, several scholars have identified Onias III as the Teacher of Righteousness;
see, for example, Harold H. Rowley, “The Teacher of Righteousness and the
Dead Sea Scrolls,” BJRL 40 (1957): 114–46. P. A. Rainbow’s suggestion that the Teacher
of Righteousness was a son of Onias III (“The Last Oniad and the Teacher of Righteousness,”
30–52), along with our conclusion that Onias III may have been the Wicked
Priest, makes for a provocative reconstruction of the dynamics of the conflict between
the Wicked Priest and the Teacher of Righteousness.