Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered - The Preterist Archive

The Hebrew allusion 'sons of Dawn' may also obliquely refer to some kind of all-night community
vigils mentioned in the Damascus Document, a part of the backdrop to the Koran as well. This would
not be the only Qumran motif that has found its way, tantalizingly, into the latter recitation. Even Sura
89 bears the not unparallel name, 'the Dawn', and quite a few suras refer to these vigils. On the other
hand, the phrase may simply have a more esoteric or mystical sense relating to an idea of coming into
Light. In fact, the best explanation of it, as we shall also see in our discussion of the Sons of
Righteousness (Proverbs) text below, is probably as a synonym for 'sons of Light', though it should be
appreciated that esoteric Qumran expressions like these are capable of multiple levels of meaning.
In order to make our discussion of these cryptic Admonitions to the Sons of Dawn complete, we
should probably borrow an allusion from the set of admonitions that follow, that is 'the Sons of
Righteousness'. There are at least two allusions to 'sons of Righteousness' in the column of the
Community Rule referring to the Maskil mentioned above (iä.20-22), which early scholars often tried
to dismiss as scribal errors. In addition to what we have outlined above, the avalanche of images in
these columns in the Community Rule are startling; as they relate to the Maskil they are worth
recording.
The Maskil is 'to make known to and teach the sons of Light' (the sons of Dawn?) 'the Ways of Light'
and how to 'be reckoned among the Perfect', including, it would appear, 'justification', 'works' and the
like. In particular, he is to instruct them in baptismal procedures, which include being 'purified by the
Holy Spirit', 'looking upon the Living Light' (compare this with 'the Living Waters' in the Demons of
Darkness and Mystery of Existence texts below in Chapter 7), and 'walking in Perfection in all the
Ways of God, which He commanded concerning His appointed times (obviously including those of
the calendar in the preceding Chapter), and not straying either right or left, nor treading on even one
of His words' (italics ours).
One should compare this last turn of phrase to Jesus on 'not one jot or tittle of the Law' in Matt. 5:18's
Sermon on the Mount and James 2:8 on 'breaking one small point of the Law'. One should also
compare it to Paul's attack on these positions (presumably in his response to James) in his
development of Abraham's 'Righteousness', being 'sons of God' through faith, and Jesus' being 'cursed
by the Law' in Gal. 3-4, which we also set forth below in connection with the end of the Damascus
Document: 'You keep special days and months and seasons and years', which he calls 'weak and
beggarly' (Gal. 4:10-11; italics ours).
A third reference to 'the sons of the Zaddik' in another pregnant passage of the Community Rule (ix),
mentions the Maskil, 'walking in Perfection', 'the Holy Spirit', and more startlingly even than these,
that 'this is the time of the preparation of the Way in the wilderness'. This is specifically tied in
exegesis to the Maskil's 'preparation of the Way' by 'teaching the Miraculous Mysteries'. The reader
will recognize this pregnant passage from Isa. 40:1-3 as that used to describe John the Baptist's
activities in the wilderness, including most notably baptism It is clear that these 'Mysteries' and
baptismal procedures that 'the Maskil' is to teach the sons of Dawn - here delineated in cryptic script -
are to be seen as in some way part of the preparation (probably 'in the wilderness') for 'Perfection' and
whatever 'Crown of Glory' and 'eternal Light' was envisaged.