PENGUIN RELIGION

The discovery of Dead Sea Scrolls between 1947 and 1956 was an epoch-making event for the study of the Bible, early post-biblical Judaism and the beginnings of Christianity.

Written in Hebrew and Aramaic, and dating roughly from 200 B.C. to the mid first century A.D., they afford an unparalleled and revolutionary insight into Palestinian Jewish life and ideology at a very crucial period in the development of Jewish and Christian religious thought

Since its first publication in 1962, The Dead Sea Scrolls in English has established itself as the standard English translation of the non-biblical Qumran scrolls and as a handy introduction to the organization, customs, history and beliefs of the community responsible for them. This third edition contains a major updating. In particular, three new opening chapters replace the previous ones, and a considerable amount of fresh material, made available since the 1975 revision, has also been added. Above all, readers are now offered in English the Temple Scroll, the most voluminous of all the Qumran texts. Augmented and brought up to date, The Dead Sea Scrolls in English will continue to provide reliable, direct access to these fascinating documents and to act as an authoritative guide for scholars, students and educated laymen interested in ancient Judaism and nascent Christianity.