Sunday, March 22, 2026 · 天火 · tianmu.org
Testaments and Apocrypha
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Texts
Apocryphon of ElijahCave 4 Aramaic-Hebrew apocryphon re-telling the Elijah-Elisha succession from 2 Kings 2, with the sons of the prophets at Jericho recognizing the spirit of Elijah resting upon Elisha.Apocryphon of ElishaCave 4 Hebrew apocryphon of the prophet Elisha; fragments of the Elijah-Elisha succession narrative (2 Kings 2:14–16) with a lament element suggesting an expanded apocryphal version.Apocryphon of Jeremiah CQumran apocalyptic-historical text presenting God's covenant survey across seven jubilee periods, delivered in a prophetic voice — Angels of Mastema, priestly corruption, and the exile's hidden meaning.Apocryphon of JosephCave 4 Hebrew fragments — Joseph prays from exile, addressing God as Father; the patriarchal covenant invoked; an extended polemic against Ephraim's high places and the defilement of ShechemApocryphon of LeviFragmentary Aramaic text from Cave 4 describing an eschatological priestly figure who atones for all children of his generation — the most theologically contested passage in the Dead Sea Scrolls corpus.Apocryphon of Levi ACave 4 Aramaic fragments predicting a priestly figure's life through hardship and displacement — he lacks goods like a young man, leaves the house of his birth, and consecrates a sanctuary. Companion to Apocryphon of Levi (4Q541).Aramaic EnochCave 4 Aramaic fragments of 1 Enoch — oldest surviving witness to the Book of the Watchers; the descent of the Watchers, the birth of the giants, and the divine commissioning of the archangels. Extended narrative from R.H. Charles (1912, public domain).Aramaic Levi DocumentA Good Works Translation of the Aramaic Levi Document (4Q213–214) from Aramaic. A testament of Levi: wisdom address, priestly prayer, heavenly vision, sacrificial instruction, and genealogy.Birth of NoahAramaic nativity oracle from three Cave 4 manuscripts — the child Noah born luminous, set apart from all the sons of men, designated elect of God, with knowledge of three booksDaniel-SuzannaSix Cave 4 Aramaic lines invoking the Susanna tradition — a mob gathers against a house, demanding someone be brought out; a named descendant of Jonathan and Jeshua refuses, crying out to his brothers not to act wickedly.Prayer for King JonathanA Qumran Hebrew text containing a communal prayer naming Jonathan the King — widely identified as Alexander Jannaeus (103–76 BCE) — one of the few scrolls to name a contemporary historical figurePrayer of EnoshFragmentary Hebrew text from Cave 4 (4Q369) blessing a firstborn son as prince and ruler among the congregation — possibly the oldest patriarchal prayer outside the canonical Psalter.Prayer of NabonidusA Good Works Translation of the Prayer of Nabonidus (4Q242) from Aramaic. The confession of a Babylonian king healed by a Jewish exorcist.Pseudo-DanielThree fragmentary Aramaic manuscripts (4Q243–245) in which Daniel addresses Belshazzar and surveys history from Noah through the exile, with eschatological overtones.Pseudo-Jubilees AA Good Works Translation of Pseudo-Jubilees A (4Q225) from Hebrew — the Qumran retelling of the Aqedah, with Mastema as the instigator of Abraham's trial and the one who is put to shame when Abraham's faithfulness is vindicated.Testament Fragment (3Q7)A Good Works Translation of 3Q7, a Cave 3 Hebrew testament fragment — a numbered tribal list and the angel of the Presence, connected to the resurrection scene of the Testament of Judah 25Testament Fragment (3Q7) — Source TextSource text: 3Q7 Hebrew — apparatus-confirmed readings of the Testament Fragment, Cave 3Testament of JacobCave 4 Aramaic testament in the voice of Jacob; three fragments — the patriarch passes tablets inscribed with his 147 years, a vision of future priestly worship, and a land promise to his descendants.Testament of JudahTwo Cave 4 Aramaic fragments in the voices of Judah and Joseph — 4Q538 places Judah before Joseph in Egypt, an evil spirit rising; 4Q539 preserves a patriarch addressing his sons while Jacob mourns for Ishmael.Testament of NaphtaliCave 4 Hebrew first-person narrative in which Naphtali recounts his mother Bilhah's origins — her connection to Laban's household, the naming of Zilpah, and Bilhah's birth and naming.Testament of QahatAramaic priestly testament from Qumran — Qahat son of Levi charges his sons to guard the holy inheritance and keep the priestly office pure from the defilement of foreigners and prideThe Book of TobitA Good Works Translation of the Book of Tobit from Aramaic and Greek — the complete narrative of Tobit the pious exile, Sarah the afflicted bride, and Tobias their son, guided by the angel Raphael, in the Qumran long-text tradition (4Q196–4Q200).Visions of AmramAramaic apocryphon in which Amram, father of Moses, recounts a deathbed vision of two angels — the Prince of Light and Melchiresha, king of wickedness — who contend for dominion over his soulWords of MichaelCave 4 Aramaic angelological text in which Michael recounts to the angels a vision of nine mountains, Gabriel, and a divine book revealing the fate of nations; sixteen partially preserved lines.