Essenen gelovigen apocalyptici puriteinen etcetera

THEY
were "those
who observe the Law,
whose hands will not desert
the service of truth when the final age
is extended beyond them, because all the ages
of G d will come at the right time, as he established
for them in the mystery of his cunning" {1QpHab 7.11-14}.

"G d", then, has revealed to them the secrets of "the consummation of the era" {1QpHab 7.2},
which they may yet live to witness. Only the righteous - these being, of course, the members of the 'Q'-
community - will be spared the total annihilation. In them will the verse "The meek shall inherit the earth,
and delight themselves in abundant prosperity" {Ps 37:11} be fulfilled, a verse that concerns "the congre-gation of the poor who will tough out the period of distress & will be rescued from all the snares of Belial"
{4QpPs 2.9-11}. The end of days will isher in not only a cosmic revolution, but a social revolution, here on earth, in which "the wicked ones of Israel will be cut off and exterminated for ever" {4QpPs 3.12-13},
and "the congregation of his chosen ones ... will be chiefs and princes" {4QpPs 3.5}.

The apocalyptic doctrines did not merely console the Community,
they promised wonderful rewards to
those who steadfastly adhere
to the community
of the
poor.

It
should be noted
that the scrolls published thus far
do not emphasize the role of the messiah.

True, one of the Hodayot speaks of the birth
of "a wonderful counselor with his strength {1QH 11.10}, i.e., the messiah.

This particular hymn teaches an eschatological dualism. When the mother of the messiah becomes pregnant, there will be another who is "pregnant with a serpent" in Sheol, and when the messiah is born
"the gates of Sheol will open for all deeds of the serpent" {1QH 11:1-18}.

Most of the hymn is devoted to this eruption of evil forces.

There are also scattered references to "the messiahs
of Aharon and Israel: {1QS 9.11}; {CD 7.21, 20.1,
13.21, 14.19}; admittedly,
the current form of CD
speaks of
'hamashiach aharon weyisrael'
"THE messiah of Aharon & Israel" {and once of the messiah FROM Aharon & Israel [CD 20.1]}.
However, it is clear that the copyist "corrected" the difficult phrase "the messiah of Aharon & Israel"
by omitting the yod of mashichi. The discovery of the scrolls has demonstrated the error
of building mountains of interpretation on the omitted yod of a medival copyist;
references to the messiah and to the high priest of his time; however, so far
none of the scrolls that have been discovered give voice to doctrines
or beliefs that involve the personality of the messiah {or the two
messiahs}. It appears that the relatively marginal role
of the messianic figure within the religious system
of the scrolls is the result of the central role
played by the Qumran community itself
in the redemption
of humanity
...

Al
met al
zeer herkenbare patronen
in de geschiedenis v/d mensheid:
'n visionair heeft een visie op "bevrijding/verlossing" ~
we vertellen en beschrijven allerlei verhalen ter illustratie van "go{e}d & kwaad" ~
meestal gaat zoiets gepaard met "afzondering", "voedsel & drank/drugs", bepaalde "regels & wetten"
& "tegenstanders", die "bestreden moeten worden" met "het woord" en/of "te vuur & te zwaard"?!

Speciaal op zo'n 'centraal punt' als Israel {"Kana'an/Palestina" etc.} tussen "moeder Africa" &
"vader Asia/Europa" waar talloze eeuwen lang migratiestromen doortrokken en mensen-
groepen hun genen achterlieten & meenamen onderweg door de rest v/d wereld
& mythen, sagen, legendes & 'heilige schriften' samenstelden in omringende
landen van 'de vruchtbare halve maan' die bewaard bleven door droge lucht
en weinig neerslag op zo'n 400 beneden de zeespiegel,
heeft dat ons 'mede doen delen' in de schatten uit
het verleden 'in woord & daad', tussen ontelbare
potscherven, stenen, boekrollen, kannen &
kruiken die ons berichten van al diverse
visies, interpretaties, alternatieven,
mogelijkheden & merkwaardige
conclusies over menselijk
leven op aarde &
in onszelf
...