Study Notes Week 54

Torah Study Notes for Week 54 of the Torah Reading Cycle

Read
Aloud together to hear the Word (Leviticus 23:1-3; Nehemiah 8:1-4; Luke 4:16-17)

  • Torah (T): Shemot (Exodus) 4:1-31
  • Prophets (P): Isaiah 55:12 – 56:7
  • Apostolic (A): Acts 7:35-37; John 10:22
  • Additional (ADD): Jubilees 48:1-4

Torah Summary
Context and coherence (Nehemiah 8:8)

Shemot (Exodus) 4:1-31

1 Mosheh answered, “But, look, they will not believe me, nor listen to my voice; for they will say, ‘Elohim* has not appeared to you.’” 2 יהוה said to him, “What is that in your hand?” He said, “A staff.” 3 He said, “Throw it on the ground.” He threw it on the ground, and it became a serpent; and Mosheh ran away from it. 4 יהוה said to Mosheh, “Put forth your hand, and take it by the tail.” He put forth his hand, and laid hold of it, and it became a staff in his hand. 5 “That they may believe that יהוה, the Elohim of their fathers, the Elohim of Aḇraham, and* the Elohim of Yitsḥaq, and the Elohim of Yaʿaqoḇ, has appeared to you.” 6 יהוה said furthermore to him, “Now put your hand inside your cloak.” He put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out,*# look, his hand was leprous, as white as snow. 7 He said, “Put your hand inside your cloak again.” He put his hand inside his cloak again, and when he took it out of his cloak, look, it had turned again as his other flesh. 8 “It will happen, if they will neither believe you nor listen to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign. 9 It will happen, if they will not believe even these two signs, neither listen to your voice, that you shall take of the water of the river, and pour it on the dry land. The water which you take out of the river will become blood on the dry land.” (cf. Exodus 7:19) 10 Mosheh said to יהוה, “Please, Master, I am not eloquent, neither before now, nor since you have spoken to your servant; for I am heavy of speech, and of a heavy tongue.” 11 יהוה said to him, “Who made man’s mouth? Or who makes the mute, the deaf, the seeing, or the blind? Is it not I, Elohim?* 12 Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth, and teach you what you shall speak.” (cf. Matthew 10:19; Mark 13:11; Luke 12:12) 13 He said, “Oh, Master, please send someone else.” 14 The anger of יהוה was kindled against Mosheh, and he said, “What about Aharon, your brother, the Levi’i? I know that he can speak well. Also, look, he comes forth to meet you. When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. 15 You shall speak to him, and put the words in his mouth. I will be with your mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. (cf. Exodus 7:2) 16 He will be your spokesman to the people; and it will happen, that he will be to you a mouth, and you will be to him as Elohim. 17 You shall take this staff in your hand, with which you shall do the signs.” 18 Mosheh went and returned to Yitro his father-in-law, and said to him, “Please let me go and return to my brothers who are in Mitsrayemah, and see whether they are still alive.” Yitro said to Mosheh, “Go in peace.” 19 יהוה said to Mosheh in Midyan, “Go, return into Mitsrayemah; for all the men who sought your life are dead.” 20 Mosheh took his wife and his sons, and set them on a donkey, and he returned to the land of Mitsrayemah. Mosheh took Elohim’s staff in his hand. 21 יהוה said to Mosheh, “When you go back into Mitsrayemah, see that you do before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in your hand, but I will harden his heart and he will not let the people go. 22 You shall tell Pharaoh, ‘Thus says יהוה, Yisra’el is my son, my firstborn, 23 and I have said to you, “Let my son go, that he may serve me;” and you have refused to let him go. Look, I will kill your son, your firstborn. ‘” 24 It happened on the way at a lodging place, that יהוה met him and wanted to kill him. 25 Then Tsipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet; and she said, “Surely you are a bridegroom of blood to me.” 26 So he let him alone. Then she said, “You are a bridegroom of blood,” because of the circumcision. 27 יהוה said to Aharon, “Go into the wilderness to meet Mosheh.” He went, and met him on Elohim’s mountain, and kissed him. 28 Mosheh told Aharon all the words of יהוה with which he had sent him, and all the signs with which he had instructed him. 29 Mosheh and Aharon went and gathered together all the elders of the sons of Yisra’el. 30 Aharon spoke all the words which Elohim* had spoken to Mosheh, and did the signs in the sight of the people. 31 The people believed, and when they heard that Elohim* had closely inspected the sons of Yisra’el, and that he had seen their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshiped.

Apostolic Summary
Context and coherence (Nehemiah 8:8)

  1. Our portion this week is taken from John 10, during the festival of Dedication or Hanukkah, which this year begins at sundown December 14th.
  2. The passage continues a debate between Yeshua and the religious leaders as well as among the crowds. 
    1.  “The Judeans therefore came around him and said to him, ‘How long will you hold us in suspense? If you are the Messiah, tell us plainly’ (John 10:24).
      1. In some ways, it’s kind of a fair question, and probably a common one for a lot of people who don’t believe in God nowadays.
        1. “If God is real, why doesn’t He just write in the clouds? Or send me a clear sign that would remove all doubt”?
  3. Why is the truth so hard to find? Wouldn’t the world be a lot better if everything was clearer?
    1. The debate of our age was summed up by Pontius Pilate when he asked, “What is truth?” (John 18:38).
    2. Nowadays, every single one of us can probably relate to Pilate almost on a daily basis.
      1. “What is truth? How do I find it? How do I separate out genuine truth from false/partial/incomplete truth?”
  4. Today we’re going to explore these questions and discover how we can walk in the truth as Believers and help others to do the same.

Apostolic Exhortation
Counsel, comfort, and encouragement (Acts 13:14-15)

  1. By the time we reach chapter 10 of John, Yeshua is between a year and two years into His ministry, and His life has created quite a division in Israel.
    1. For those who knew the prophecies of Messiah, this was no surprise.
      1. “It is the LORD of hosts whom you should regard as holy. And He shall be your fear, And He shall be your dread. Then He shall become a sanctuary; but to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over, And a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Many will stumble over them, Then they will fall and be broken; They will even be snared and caught” (Isa. 8:13-15).
      2. “And Shimon blessed them and said to His mother Mary, ‘Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and as a sign to be opposed’” (Luk. 2:34).

KEY POINT:

Messiah’s purpose was to elevate and bring ruin, depending on how He was received.

  1. Let’s explore this dichotomy in the miracle of the man born blind from birth. 
    1. “While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world. When [Yeshua] had said this, He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and applied the clay to his eyes, and said to him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam’. (which is translated, “Sent “). So, he went away and washed and came back seeing. Therefore, the neighbors, and those who previously saw him as a beggar, were saying, ‘Is not this the one who used to sit and beg?’ Others were saying, ‘This is he,’ still others were saying, ‘No, but he is like him.’ He kept saying, ‘I am the one.’ So, they were saying to him, ‘How then were your eyes opened?’ He answered, ‘The man who is called Yeshua made clay, and anointed my eyes, and said to me, “Go to Siloam and wash”; so I went away and washed, and I received sight.’” They said to him, ‘Where is He?’ He said, ‘I do not know’” (John 9:5-12).
      1. Here we see the Light of the World in action, bringing physical light to the eyes of the blind.
      2. For our discussion about truth, consider the metaphor of a target. 
        1. At the center in the bullseye is objective reality. 
          1. In this passage, the bullseye would be the healing itself – i.e. what actually happened.
        2. Only two people knew the truth in its fullness – the beggar and Yeshua.
          1. Everyone else found themselves in a concentric ring farther and farther away from the bullseye.
    2. “They brought to the Pharisees the man who was formerly blind. Now it was a Sabbath on the day when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also were asking him again how he received his sight. And he said to them, ‘He applied clay to my eyes, and I washed, and I see.’ Therefore, some of the Pharisees were saying, ‘This man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath.’ But others were saying, ‘How can a man who is a sinner perform such signs?’ And there was a division among them” (John 9:13-16).
      1. Consider how great a miracle this is – a man that everyone knows is blind – objectively, factually – is now seeing.
        1. How could there be any debate? Isn’t this an obvious example of God sending a clear sign that would remove all doubt?
    3. “So, they said to the blind man again, ‘What do you say about Him, since He opened your eyes?’ And he said, ‘He is a prophet.’ The Jews then did not believe it of him, that he had been blind and had received sight, until they called the parents of the very one who had received his sight, and questioned them, saying, ‘Is this your son, who you say was born blind? Then how does he now see?’ His parents answered them and said, ‘We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind; but how he now sees, we do not know; or who opened his eyes, we do not know. Ask him; he is of age, he will speak for himself.’ His parents said this because they were afraid of the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone confessed Him to be Messiah, he was to be put out of the synagogue. For this reason, his parents said, ‘He is of age; ask him.’ (John 9:17-23).
      1. This passage recounts a formal, legal inquiry to discover the truth.
        1.  “A single witness shall not rise up against a man on account of any iniquity or any sin which he has committed; on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be established” (Deu. 19:15).
      2. Because very few people can experientially know the “bullseye”, scripture prescribes a method of inquiry with rules to help establish the truth.
        1. “Trust but verify.” – Ronald Reagan
    4. “So, a second time they called the man who had been blind, and said to him, ‘Give glory to God; we know that this man is a sinner.’ He then answered, ‘Whether He is a sinner, I do not know; one thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.’ So, they said to him, ‘What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes?’ He answered them, ‘I told you already and you did not listen; why do you want to hear it again? You do not want to become His disciples too, do you?’ They reviled him and said, ‘You are His disciple, but we are disciples of Moses; we know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, we do not know where He is from’” (John 9:24-29).
      1. Despite their appeal to Mose’ authority, the Pharisees are actually revealing that their minds and hearts are unwilling to receive the truth.
        1. Even with the first-hand testimony of the man, and the confirmation of his parents as the two witnesses, their conclusion is that they “do not know where he is from” – i.e. whether or not Yeshua is sent from God.
    5. “The man answered and said to them, ‘Well, here is an amazing thing, that you do not know where He is from, and yet He opened my eyes. We know that God does not hear sinners; but if anyone is God-fearing and does His will, He hears him. Since the beginning of time, it has never been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a person born blind. If this man were not from God, He could do nothing.’ They answered him, ‘You were born entirely in sins, and are you teaching us?’ So, they put him out’” (John 9:30-33).
      1. Having given his honest testimony of the facts, the beggar turns to logic to reveal the hypocrisy of the Pharisees.

KEY POINT:

A logical argument will rarely, if ever, overcome the presuppositions, biases and emotional responses of a person’s unconscious mind.

  1. “Yeshua heard that they had put him out, and finding him, He said, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’ He answered, ‘Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?’ Yeshua said to him, ‘You have both seen Him, and He is the one who is talking with you.’ And he said, ‘Lord, I believe.’ And he worshiped Him. And Yeshua said, ‘For judgment I came into this world, so that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.’ Those of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these things and said to Him, ‘We are not blind too, are we?’ Yeshua said to them, ‘If you were blind, you would have no sin; but since you say, “We see,” your sin remains’” (John 9:35-41).
    1. Yeshua’s judgment on the world is to grant sight or remove it, depending on the condition of the heart.  
  2. The miracle of the blind beggar teaches us so much about truth.
  1. First, all truth is objective. 
    1. It doesn’t hang on perspective, opinion, or what is unknown. It is clear, obvious and cannot be hidden.
    2. Messiah’s identity as the Son of God, the Messiah and Savior of humanity was established in objective truth – i.e. facts and evidence that could be verified.
      1. “Inasmuch as many have undertaken to compile an account of the things accomplished among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word, it seemed fitting for me as well, having investigated everything carefully from the beginning, to write it out for you in consecutive order, most excellent Theophilus; so that you may know the exact truth about the things you have been taught (Luk. 1:1-4).
  2. Second, any and every personal proclamation of truth is by definition subjective (i.e. “outside the bullseye”). 
    1. “If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true (#227). But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish -the very works that I do -testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me” (John 5:31, 36).
      1. G227. aléthés – “truthful; real”.
        1. Cognate: 227 alēthḗs (an adjective, derived from a- “not” and lanthánō, “unnoticed, concealed” – true, as it accords with fact (reality), i.e. attested because tested – literally, “what can’t be hidden.” 
          1. Usage: stresses undeniable reality when something is fully tested, i.e. it will ultimately be shown to be fact (authentic).

KEY POINT:

By design, if something is true it cannot be concealed or hidden.

  1. Third, God is the One who reveals all truth (e.g. light) by separating it from darkness (e.g. error).
    1. “God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness” (Gen. 1:4).
    2. “He reveals mysteries from the darkness and brings the deep darkness into light” (Job 12:22).
    3. Our first and primary calling is to come out of darkness ourselves and let the Lord restore our sight.
      1. “Then Yeshua again spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.’ I have come as Light into the world, so that no one who believes in Me will remain in darkness” (John 8:12; 12:46).
    4. While we should boldly testify of the truth, we can rest in the knowledge that God is the One who will ensure that what is true becomes known.
      1. “For nothing is hidden, except to be revealed; nor has anything been secret, but that it would come to light” (Mar. 4:22).
  2. How does this all relate to you and me?
    1. In a world searching for the truth, remember that we are all subjects and God is the object.
      1. Sub- “under” versus ob- “in front of” 
      2. The Bible contains the Words of God, which means that it is objectively true.
        1. “The sum of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous ordinances is everlasting” (Psa. 119:160).
        2. “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth” (John 17:17).
      3. However, we don’t need to quote scripture to demonstrate that the Bible is the source of all truth.
        1. If God exists, then He is transcendent to us and all things are subject to His Word.
          1. “For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him to whom we must give an account” (Heb. 4:12-13).
  3. How now shall I live?
    1. #1 — Spend the time where it is most valuable.
      1. God’s word alone is objective truth and yet we spend 2x, 5x, 10x time seeking truth elsewhere. Why?
        1. If we’re honest with ourselves, we’ll admit that we’re actually seeking something other than truth.
          1. Ask yourself (or better yet, the Lord) what it is you are really seeking.
      2. We need to accept that most of the information we access is subjective and located one or more concentric rings away from the bullseye. 
        1. Beware the “Truth Hunters” and “Conspiracy Theory Crusaders” who themselves walk in darkness without the light of God’s truth in their hearts.
          1. “Leave them alone; they are blind guides of blind people. And if a person who is blind guides another who is blind, both will fall into a pit” (Mat. 15:14).
    2. #2 — Restore God’s word to the proper perspective.
      1. The error of our age is not merely that God’s Word has been ignored and forgotten.
        1. It is also that men have placed themselves above God’s Word and made it the subject to their wisdom and critique.
        2. What is the difference between studying scripture to understand it versus to critique it?
          1. Are you a blind man seeking the truth or a seeing man seeking wisdom? 
            1. French critique (14c.), English “critic”; from Latin criticus “a judge, a censor, an estimator”;  from krinein “to separate, decide” (*krei- “to sieve,” thus “discriminate, distinguish”). 

KEY POINT:

As subjects of the King, we have no authority to judge (i.e. critique) His Word, but only to submit to it.

  1. Remember that the words of scripture are different than those in any other book.
    1. “All scripture is God-breathed, and profitable for teaching, for conviction, for setting aright, for instruction that is in righteousness” (2 Tim. 3:16).
      1. The Bible is inspired from God’s mind and the thoughts and meaning within Him.
        1. His thoughts are not our thoughts (Isa. 55:8-9), so we need His help to understand them.
      2. The purpose of scripture is to teach, convict, and show us what God thinks is right (i.e. truth).
        1. If this is not what you’re after, you might be reading the scripture with the wrong motives. 
  1. #3 – Renew your dependence on the Spirit of Truth, the one who guides into all the truth (John 16:13).
    1. Apart from Holy Spirit, we cannot know God’s mind even when we read the Bible. 
      1. “For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Messiah” (1 Cor. 2:10-11, 14-16).
    2. Deception can overtake a “Bible-believing” church that ignores or denies the work of Holy Spirit just as much as a church that overemphasizes the revelation of the Spirit apart from the written truth of scripture.
      1. To come into the light of truth, we need to establish a balance with both.

Does anyone have specific questions or need any clarification from what was said during the Summary or Exhortation?

Application & Discussion
Living the Word and following Yeshua (Acts 2:37; Romans 2:13)
Questions, input, and sharpening (Proverbs 27:17; Luke 2:46)

Romans 2:13 For it isn’t the hearers of the Torah who are righteous before Elohim, but the doers of the Torah will be justified.

James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not only hearers, deluding your own selves.

    1. What questions or comments came up during your family’s discussion of this week’s study?
    2. “What other related Scriptures did you find during your study of this week’s portion?”
    3. Have you ever experienced something from this study or something related to it?
    4. “What changes do you need to make in your life to align with what you learned during this week’s Torah Study?”
    5. Where have you been looking for truth? How has this study changed how you might do that?
    6. What role does science play in the pursuit of truth? Are scripture and science compatible?
    7. If God’s word is objective truth, how do we deal with errors in translation? 
      1. What about different interpretations of the text? Isn’t this completely subjective?

Additional Notes

Deuteronomy 32:8-12; Deuteronomy 8:43; Psalms 82:1-8; John 10:31-38 (T)

Deuteronomy 32:8 When Elyon gave to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of man, he set the bounds of the peoples according to the number of the sons of [Elohim].(DSS) 9 For the portion of YHWH is his people. Jacob is the lot of his inheritance. 10 He found him in a desert land, in the waste howling wilderness. He surrounded him. He cared for him. He kept him as the apple of his eye. 11 As an eagle that stirs up her nest, that flutters over her young, he spread abroad his wings, he took them, he bore them on his feathers. 12 YHWH alone led him. There was no foreign elohim with him…

Deuteronomy 32:8 (English Standard Version Bible) When the Most High agave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of Elohim. 9 But the LORD’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage.

Deuteronomy 32:8 (Dead Sea Scrolls) When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he separated the sons of men, he set the bounds of the peoples according to the number of the sons of Elohim. 9 For the portion of YHWH is his people. Jacob is the lot of his inheritance.

Deuteronomy 32:8 (Septuagint text as translated in the Apostolic Bible Polyglot by Charles VanderPool) When the highest divided nations into parts, as he disseminated the sons of Adam, he set the borders of nations according to the number of the angels of Elohim; 9 and his people Jacob became a portion for the LORD. Israel is a piece of measured out land of his inheritance.

Deuteronomy 32:43 According to Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS) and Septuagint (LXX)

32:43 Rejoice, [the heavens, together with him](DSS)(LXX) [and bow down to him all you elohim],(DSS) [and let all the angels of Elohim worship him];(LXX)(cf. Hebrews 1:6) rejoice ye Nations, with his people, (LXX)(cf. Romans 15:10), for he will avenge the blood of his [sons],(DSS)(LXX) and will render vengeance to his enemies, and [will recompense those who hate him];(DSS)(LXX) and [will atone](DSS) [for the land of his people].(DSS)(LXX)

Psalms 82:1 A Psalm by Asaph. Elohim presides in the assembly of elohim. He judges among elohim. 2 “How long will you judge unjustly, and show partiality to the wicked?” Selah. 3 “Judge for the helpless and the fatherless. Do righteousness to the afflicted and dispossessed. 4 Rescue the helpless and needy. Deliver them out of the hand of the wicked.” 5 They don’t know, neither do they understand. They walk back and forth in darkness. All the foundations of the earth are shaken. 6 I said, “You are elohim, all of you are sons of the Most High. 7 Nevertheless you will die like men, and fall like one of the rulers.” 8 Arise, Elohim, judge the earth, for you inherit all of the nations.

Psalms 89:5 The heavens will praise your wonders, YHWH, your faithfulness also in the assembly of the holy ones. 6 For who in the heavens can be compared to YHWH? Who among the Sons of Elohim(LXX) is like YHWH, 7 a very awesome Elohim in the council of the holy ones, to be feared above all those who are around him? 8 YHWH, Elohim of Armies, who is strong, like you? Yah, your faithfulness is around you.

John 10:31 Therefore the Judeans took up stones again to stone him. 32 Yeshua answered them, “I have shown you many good works from my Father. For which of those works do you stone me?” 33 The Judeans answered him, “We don’t stone you for a good work, but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself Elohim.” 34 Yeshua answered them, “Isn’t it written in your law, ‘I said, you are elohim?’ (cf. Psalm 82:6) 35 If he called them elohim, to whom the word of Elohim came, and the Scripture can’t be broken, 36 do you say of him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You blaspheme,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of Elohim?’ 37 If I don’t do the works of my Father, don’t believe me. 38 But if I do them, though you don’t believe me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in the Father.”

The Coming of Melchizedek 11Q13 Column 2 (P)

Col. 2 […] And concerning what Scripture says, “In [this] year of jubilee [you will return, every one of you, to your property” (Leviticus 25:13) and what is also written, “And this] is the [ma]nner of [the forgiveness]: every creditor will remit the claim that is held [against a neighbor, not exacting it of a neighbor who is a member of the community, because Elohim’s] forgiveness [has been proclaimed” (Deuteronomy 15:2): [the interpretation] is that it applies [to the L]ast Days and concerns the captives, just as [Isaiah said: “To proclaim the jubilee to the captives” (Isaiah 61:1)… just] as […] and from the inheritance of Melchizedek, f[or… Melchizedek, who will return them to what is rightfully theirs. He will proclaim to them the jubilee, thereby releasing th[em from the debt of a]ll their sins.

[He will pro]claim this decree in the fir[s]t [wee]k of the jubilee period that foll[ows nine j]ubilee periods. Then the “D[ay of Atone]ment” will follow af[ter] the [te]nth [ju]bilee period, when he will atone for all the Sons of [Light] and the peopl[e who are pre]destined to Mel[chi]zedek. Melchiz[edek]’s favor” (Isaiah 61:2, modified), [and] by his might w[i]ll judge Elohim’s holy ones and so establish a righteous ki[n]gdom, as it is written about him in the Songs of David, “A godlike being has taken his place in the council of Elohim; in the midst of the divine beings he holds judgement” (Psalms 82:1). Scripture also s[ays] about him, “Over [it] take your seat in the highest the heavens; A divine being will judge the peoples” (Psalms 7:7-8).

Concerning what Scripture s[ays, “How long will y]ou (plural: you-all) judge unjustly, and sh[ow] partiality to the wick[e]d? [S]el[ah]” (Psalms 82:2), the interpretation applies to Belial and the spirits predestined to him, becau[se all of them have rebe]lled, turn[ing] from Elohim’s precepts [and so becoming utterly wicked.] Therefore, Melchizedek will thoroughly prosecute the veng[ea]nce required by Go08 statu[te]s. [Also, he will deliver all the captives from the power of B]elial, and from the power of all [the spirits predestined to him.] Allied with him will be all the [“righteous] divine beings” (Isaiah 61:3). [The…] wh[ich…al]l the divine beings.

The vi[sitation] is the Day of [Salvation] that He has decreed [through Isai]ah the prophet [concerning all the captives,] inasmuch as Scripture sa[ys, How] beautiful upon the mountains are the fee[ t of] the messeng[er] who [an]nounces peace, who brings [good] news, [who announces salvat]ion, who [sa]ys to Zion, Your [di]vine being [reigns’” (Isaiah 52:7).] This scripture’s interpretation: “the mounta[ins” are the] prophet[s], they w[ho were sent to proclaim Elohim’s truth and to] proph[esy] to all I[srael]. The “messenger” is the [An]ointed of the spir[it], of whom Dan[iel] spoke, [“After the sixty-two weeks, an Anointed one will be cut off” (Daniel 9:26). The “messenger who brings] good news, who announ[ces salvation”] is the one of whom it is wri[tt]en, [“to proclaim the year of the LORD’S favor, the day of vengeance of our Elohim;] to comfo[rt all who mourn” (Isaiah 61:2). This scripture’s interpretation:] he is to inst[r]uct them about all the periods of history for eter[nity…and in the statutes of] [the] truth. […] […dominion] that passes from Belial and ret[urns to the Sons of Light…] […] by the judgement of Elohim, just as it is written concerning him, [“who says to Zi[on ‘Your divine being reigns’” (Isaiah 52:7). [“Zi]on” is [the congregation of all the sons of righteousness, who] uphold the covenant and turn from walking [in the way] of the people. “Your di[vi]ne being” is [Melchizedek, who will del]iv[er them from the po]wer of Belial.

Concerning what Scripture says, “Then you will have the trumpet [sounded loud; in] the [seventh m]o[nth…”] (Leviticus 25:9.)

The above excerpt is from Wise, Michael Owen, et al. The Dead Sea Scrolls: a New Translation. HarperSanFrancisco, 2005.