Testaments and Apocrypha

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  • 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 Shechem
  • Apocryphon 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.
  • Aramaic Levi Document — Source TextSource text for Aramaic Levi Document
  • 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 books
  • Daniel-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 figure
  • Prayer 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.
  • Pseudo-Jubilees A — Source TextSource text: 4Q225 — Hebrew/Aramaic transcription for Pseudo-Jubilees A
  • 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 25
  • Testament Fragment (3Q7) — Source TextSource text: 3Q7 Hebrew — apparatus-confirmed readings of the Testament Fragment, Cave 3
  • Testament 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 pride
  • The 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 soul
  • Visions of Amram — Source TextSource text for Visions of Amram
  • Words 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.