4Q380–4Q381
A prayer of Manasseh, king of Judah, when the king of Assyria imprisoned him.
4Q380 — Non-Canonical Psalms A
Fragment 1, Column i
[...] those who love Zi[on ...]
[...] your steadfast love [...]
[...] your servant [...]
[...] before you [...]
Fragment 1, Column ii
[...] for he created them [...]
[...] the sanctuary [...]
[...] holy [...]
4Q381 — Non-Canonical Psalms B
Fragment 1
[...] God of gods [...]
[...] Lord [...]
Fragment 31 — Moses the Man of God
[...] the m[an of God ...]
[...] Moses [...]
[...] his cho[sen ones ...]
[...] righteo[usness ...]
Fragment 33 — A Prayer of Manasseh
A prayer of Manasseh, king of Judah,
when the king of Assyria imprisoned him.
[...] O LORD [...]
[...] I have sinned [...]
[...] before you [...]
[...] your mercies [...]
Fragment 45
[...] bless the LORD [...]
[...] the holy ones [...]
[...] your name [...]
Fragment 69
[...] my sin [...]
[...] forgiveness [...]
[...] your righteousness [...]
Fragments 76–77
[...] congregation of the ho[ly ones ...]
[...] the hum[ble ...]
[...] the p[oor ...]
[...] just[ice ...]
[...] their pray[er ...]
[...] you have heard [...]
Colophon
The Non-Canonical Psalms survive in two overlapping Qumran manuscripts: 4Q380 (Non-Canonical Psalms A) and 4Q381 (Non-Canonical Psalms B), published by Eileen Schuller in DJD XI (Clarendon, 1997). These are psalms of Israelite piety outside the canonical 150-psalm Psalter, sharing its language and forms while representing the living tradition of psalmic composition that flourished at Qumran alongside the canonical texts.
The collection is highly fragmentary throughout. Preserved fragments reveal:
4Q380 opens with petitions centered on Zion and divine steadfast love — the heartland of the Psalter’s vocabulary. The sanctuary and creation imagery in Column ii suggest a liturgical setting for communal use.
4Q381 Fragment 31 preserves a reference to “Moses the man of God” (ish ha-elohim) — the same epithet used of Moses in Deuteronomy 33:1, Joshua 14:6, and Psalm 90’s superscription, traditionally attributed to Moses. The fragment belongs to a psalm either attributed to or about Moses, continuing the Mosaic pseudepigraphy found throughout Qumran literature.
4Q381 Fragment 33 preserves one of the most striking superscriptions in the entire Qumran library: “A prayer of Manasseh, king of Judah, when the king of Assyria imprisoned him.” Second Chronicles 33:18–19 records that Manasseh prayed in captivity and that his prayer was written down — but provides no text. The canonical Prayer of Manasseh preserved in the Septuagint appendices is a later composition; this fragment may preserve an independent tradition of that same lost prayer.
Fragments 76–77 contain the most substantial extended passage — psalmic language centered on the humble congregation, the poor and lowly (aniyim, anavim), divine justice (mishpat), and prayer heard by God. The vocabulary is close to the Hodayot, the Beatitudes scroll, and the additional psalms of 11QPsalmsᵃ, reflecting a Qumran piety of the gathered poor awaiting vindication.
Lacunae are marked throughout with [...]. No conjectural restorations have been inserted into the body.
Good Works Translation — New Tianmu Anglican Church, March 2026.
Translated from Hebrew by the New Tianmu Anglican Church tulku lineage.
Reference: Eileen Schuller, DJD XI (Clarendon, 1997); García Martínez & Tigchelaar, Dead Sea Scrolls Study Edition (Brill, 1997–98).
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Source Text: תהלים לא קנוניים (4Q380–4Q381)
4Q380 — Non-Canonical Psalms A
Fragment 1, Column i
[…] אהב[י ציון …]
[…] חסד[ך …]
[…] עבד[ך …]
[…] לפניך […]
Fragment 1, Column ii
[…] כי בראם […]
[…] מקדש […]
[…] קדש […]
4Q381 — Non-Canonical Psalms B
Fragment 1
[…] אל האלים […]
[…] אדון […]
Fragment 31
[…] [א]יש האלהים […]
[…] משה […]
[…] בחיר[יו …]
[…] צד[קה …]
Fragment 33
[…] תפלת מנשה מלך יהודה […]
[…] אסרו מלך אשור […]
[…] יהוה […]
[…] חטאתי […]
[…] לפניך […]
[…] רחמ[יך …]
Fragment 45
[…] ברכו יהוה […]
[…] קדושים […]
[…] שמ[ך …]
Fragment 69
[…] חטאת[י …]
[…] סליח[ה …]
[…] צדקת[ך …]
Fragments 76–77
[…] עדת ק[דושים …]
[…] ענוי[ם …]
[…] עניי[ם …]
[…] משפ[ט …]
[…] תפלת[ם …]
[…] שמעת[ה …]
Source Colophon
Hebrew transcription based on Eileen Schuller, Non-Canonical Psalms from Qumran: A Pseudepigraphic Collection, DJD XI (Clarendon, 1997); and García Martínez & Tigchelaar, Dead Sea Scrolls Study Edition (Brill, 1997–98). Unvocalized. Lacunae preserved as in the manuscripts.
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