성전 문서(11QT)

The Temple Scroll(11QT)

&nbsp;&nbsp;Since the Temple Scroll(= 11QT) was discovered in 1956 by Bedouins at the 11th cave, about 1 km to the north of Khirbet Qumran which is located north-west of the Dead Sea, it has attracted great attention of many scholars. This article introduces the process from the discovery of the scroll to its publication and deals with the author, date and purpose of the scroll. It also investigates linguistic traits of the scroll and sources used in it and finally analyses the whole text comparing the various regulations mentioned in the scroll with those known from the Bible and other scrolls from the Dead Sea.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;The Temple Scroll is a composition which rewrites and interprets regulations based mainly on the Pentateuch using the language of the Pentateuch. And the regulations are regarding construction of the temple and its yards, festivals and sacrifices, purification, kings, daily life of common people, etc.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;The Temple Scroll has some common features with other scrolls from Qumran as follows:<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;(1) It has the same dialectic elements of Hebrew as in 1QS, 4QM, etc. written by the community of Qumran.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;(2) It follows the solar calendar mentioned in some scrolls.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;(3) There are similar features with 11QNJ ar, CD, 4QMMT and the Book of Jubilees in respect of contents.<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;It seems, therefore, that the Temple Scroll had close relation with the Qumran community and it was composed by the time when the community was built or after it was built (in the 2nd cent. B.C.).<BR>&nbsp;&nbsp;As written in CD 6:11-12, 17-20, it is assumed that the community didn&quot;t take part in the sacrifices of the priests in Jerusalem, as they used a different calendar from that of the community. It is also probable that the people of the early period of the community, who had witnessed the temple of Jerusalem profaned by gentiles and the priesthood stolen by non-Zadokites, had an expectation of construction of a new temple. In the light of these aspects, we may say that the Temple Scroll expresses the plan of the Qumran community to recover the holy life with the temple in its center and the plan was based on the religious faith of the community. We can learn from the Temple Scroll not only a way of interpretation of the Bible in the ancient Jewish society, but also the vision of the Qumran community regarding the new temple and sacrifices in it and its understanding of the regulations to be kept by the people of God.