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historical perspectives: from the hasmoneans to bar kokhba in light ...

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34 HANAN ESHEL<br />

In 1981 David Flusser published an important article concern<strong>in</strong>g <strong>the</strong><br />

apocalyptic elements found <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> War Scroll. 16 Flusser argued that<br />

<strong>the</strong> author of <strong>the</strong> War Scroll was aware that <strong>the</strong> last part of <strong>the</strong> vision<br />

found <strong>in</strong> Daniel 11 and 12 had not yet taken place. In o<strong>the</strong>r words,<br />

<strong>the</strong> author of <strong>the</strong> War Scroll knew that Dan. 11:40-12:3 was an<br />

unfulfilled prophecy. 17 Thus he believed that its fulfillment would<br />

occur <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> near future. 18<br />

Compar<strong>in</strong>g Daniel and <strong>the</strong> beg<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g of <strong>the</strong> War Scroll, Flusser<br />

suggested a different reconstruction of col. 1 of 1QM. Based on <strong>the</strong>se<br />

suggestions, one may reconstruct this column as follows: 19<br />

16<br />

D. Flusser, "Apocalyptic Elements <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> War Scroll," <strong>in</strong> Jerusalem <strong>in</strong> <strong>the</strong> Second<br />

Temple Period: Abraham Schalit Memorial Volume, ed. A. Oppenheimer, U. Rappaport,<br />

and M. Stern (Jerusalem: Yad Izhak Ben Zvi, 1980), 434-52 (Hebrew).<br />

17<br />

For <strong>the</strong> latest discussion of <strong>the</strong>se verses, see A. S. van der Woude, "Prophetic<br />

Prediction, Political Prognostication, and Firm Belief: Reflections on Daniel 11:40 12:3,"<br />

<strong>in</strong> The Quest for Context and Mean<strong>in</strong>g: Studies <strong>in</strong> Biblical Intertextuality <strong>in</strong> Honor of James<br />

A. Sanders, ed. C. A. Evans and S. Talmon, Biblical Interpretation Series 28 (Leiden:<br />

Brill, 1997), 63-73.<br />

18<br />

For a recent discussion of <strong>the</strong> connection between Daniel 11 and col. 1 of <strong>the</strong><br />

War Scroll see D. O. Wen<strong>the</strong>, "The Use of <strong>the</strong> Hebrew Scriptures <strong>in</strong> 1QM," DSD<br />

5 (1998): 296-98. Wen<strong>the</strong> was not familiar with Flusser's article and he did not<br />

reach any <strong>his<strong>to</strong>rical</strong> conclusions.<br />

19<br />

In addition <strong>to</strong> Flusser's reconstructions I have added two details: (a) Yad<strong>in</strong> did<br />

not read correctly <strong>the</strong> first two letters, and , at <strong>the</strong> beg<strong>in</strong>n<strong>in</strong>g of 1QM col. 1<br />

(I would like <strong>to</strong> thank Prof. Frank Moore Cross who clarified this po<strong>in</strong>t for me)<br />

and (b) based on 4Q378 it seems that <strong>the</strong>ne<br />

<strong>in</strong> l<strong>in</strong>e 2 are part of <strong>the</strong> description of <strong>the</strong> Sons of Darkness; see H. Eshel,<br />

"The Prayer of Joseph, a Papyrus <strong>from</strong> Masada and <strong>the</strong> Samaritan Temple on<br />

APFAPIZIN," Zion 56 (1991): 126 n. 2 (Hebrew). Therefore it is difficult <strong>to</strong> accept<br />

that <strong>the</strong> author of <strong>the</strong> War Scroll thought that <strong>the</strong> sect was <strong>the</strong> true Israel; see E. P.<br />

Sanders, Paul and Palest<strong>in</strong>ian Judaism (London: SCM Press, 1977), 248-52.

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