Unlocked after 1 year for patrons only: The most massive and momentous manuscript discovery of modern times, the Dead Sea Scrolls blew the lid off of the long-mysterious world of messianic and apocalyptic ferment before the destruction of the Second Temple—yet it took decades of conflict and struggle to bring them to public light. We trace why the scrolls became the object of a long international struggle, what they actually say, and what they reveal about the roots of the Bible, Christianity, and modern Judaism.

Suggested further reading: Lim, “The Dead Sea Scrolls: A Very Short Introduction”; Collins, “The Dead Sea Scrolls: A Biography”; Shanks, ed., “Understanding the Dead Sea Scrolls: A Reader from the Biblical Archaeology Review”; Eisemman & Wise, “The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered”; Wise, Abegg, & Cook, eds., “The Dead Sea Scrolls: A New Translation.”

Image: Portion of the Temple Scroll

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