Description
A specialist in ancient and Oriental religions and theology, Hodge summarizes what is now known about the texts some decades after they were discovered and some years after they were finally made available to scholars and the public. He says that they are no longer thought to be a homogeneous collection of works written by the Essenes, but an invaluable cross-section of religious material that reveals how rich and varied Jewish spiritual life was two millennia ago. Annotation (c) Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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While providing a comprehensive introduction to the Dead Sea Scrolls, this book also takes a fresh look at many controversial questions: Why were the scrolls written? Are they prophetic? How are they related to Christianity and Judaism? Stephen Hodge tells the amazing story of their discovery in 1947 as well as the historical drama being played out at the time they were written 2,000 years ago. Most significantly, he draws on fresh evidence on the subject of authorship and explores emerging theories. Unbiased and accessible, this book includes 8 pages of color photos and provides a riveting account of one of the most widely debated archaeological finds of the last century.
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