Part 1
Half a century ago, the world awakened to the news of a startling discovery in the Middle East which, after the initial incredulity, sent speculation soaring throughout the western world. Eminent students of biblical archaeology eagerly awaited confirmation of the event which was to send some of them scurrying across the globe to Jerusalem and beyond; that centre of the universe which had known earth shaking revelations some two thousand years earlier. On both occasions shepherds were involved, a feature which must have sent the pulses of the more discerning a-racing.
It was early in the year 1947 that a shepherd boy named Muhammed adh-Dhib was searching for a stray goat in a very bleak area of the Judaean desert, where the cliffs rise sheer at the north - west end of the Dead Sea, when he came across one of the caves peculiar to that promontory; many extremely difficult of access. He threw a stone into one of them with some force, which resulted in a noise of breakage that frightened him away. However, his curiosity got the better of him and he returned later with a friend to investigate the unexpected occurrence. Inside the cave they came across a number of earthenware jars, one of which was broken. The lids of the jars appeared to be sealed with a bituminous substance, but the broken jar revealed some noxious smelling rolls of material covered with writing. They took a few of the rolls away with them and managed, with some difficulty, to dispose of several to reluctant dealers.
No great interest was aroused until the boys were introduced to the Metropolitan of the local Syrian Church who was quick to recognise the ancient Hebrew writing on the scrolls; for that is what they were. He may well have remembered the account in Jeremiah (32.14) where documents relating to the sale of a field were treated in much the same way to preserve them for posterity. The Metropolitan backed his own judgement by purchasing a few of the scrolls and made prodigious efforts to interest those whom he thought should have been receptive.
Of these, the Palestinian Department of Antiquities responded by appointing an English-speaking Dominican priest named Roland de Vaux to investigate the discovery. He was a tall, impressive, character who was to become a familiar figure in that repellent terrain; with his bushy brown beard and belted white habit. A number of accredited archaeologists were appointed to assist with the enormous task of restoration and deciphering of the scrolls which, in the aggregate, constituted a library of some size.
It included such books as the apocryphal ‘Enoch’, ‘Jubilees’, and ‘Testament of The Twelve Patriarchs’; all of which helped throw light on the religious and political climate in The Holy Land during the nascent years of The Church. One of the books, ‘The Manual of Discipline’, was not unlike the late first century ‘Didache’ of the early Church; which dealt with morals and procedures deemed necessary at that time of growth.
The question arose, who could have deposited this library within the caves, which now numbered eleven, and for what reason? Evidently, they were there for safe keeping. Pliny the Elder, a first century writer, says expressly that a Jewish sect called The Essenes, or Holy Ones, had occupied the area for some time. It was for this reason that Roland de Vaux turned his attention to some large ruined buildings adjacent to the cliffs in which the caves were situated and began excavating. Potsherds, coins and other artefacts were unearthed which dated the occupancy of the buildings from about 160 BC to 40 AD; the very period with which we are concerned. Philo Judaeus, the eclectic Jewish thinker and writer of 20 BC to 50 AD; also confirms this occupation, and Josephus, the first century Jewish historian, wrote extensively of the Essenes in his ‘Bellum Judaicum’ (2.8.2). In the meantime, the carbon dating of the linen wrappers around the scrolls established the age of the scrolls at around the dates mentioned.
The ruined buildings are known as Khirbet Qumran and overlook the ravine of Wadi Qumran which, as we have said, is a forbidding and desolate region. Surprisingly, within a short distance there lies the verdant valley of En-ge-di with its palm trees and springs. The Essenes, in addition to being monks and inhabiting the buildings of which we speak, were farmers, and the valley would have provided their livelihood. Whilst mentioning En-ge-di it is interesting to recall that David hid from Saul in one of these same caves (1 Sam.24.1-3).
Several good books have been written about the Scrolls, including what one might call informed conjecture, and it is no part of our intention to indulge in repetition except insofar as it affects the subject in hand. We are not aware that anybody has, to date, uncovered the reasons for the deposition of the Scrolls within the caves and yet, Jewish history of the period makes it all so clear.
After the initial discovery of the Scrolls people were, quite naturally, agog with excitement as to their content. It was appreciated that a tremendous amount of skill and knowledge would be required in order to piece together and translate the documents but the years slipped by without any coherent news of value. Talk of proprietary and other difficulties filtered through from time to time until the comparative silence was broken by a well known archaeologist named John Allegro who wrote to the press asking, "What are they afraid of?" Suspicions were aroused that the delays were deliberate; because of the content of some of the Scrolls. It was rumoured that £5,000 worth had been purchased for the Vatican library.
(Find Out Why! in the next issue of the magazine. Be sure to order your copy now)
Ron Cuttell
Part 2
In the first instalment, last month, we saw how some mysterious events in the Middle East were attracting world-wide attention; particularly amongst expectant believers.
Predictably, the media soon had its nose on the trail and voiced the sensational conjecture that there had been an earlier Christ before Jesus! He was referred to, not by name, but as ‘The Teacher of Righteousness’; which immediately raises one’s curiosity. This title occurred repeatedly in two of the Scrolls known as ‘The Habakkuk Commentary’ and the ‘Zadokite Fragments’. He was evidently revered by the Qumran Community as their leader but was murdered by ‘The Wicked Priest’, also unnamed. Unfortunately, there is no indication of the year in which this tragedy happened.
However, one of the Scrolls, known as ‘The Damascus Document’, tells us, according to Professor H H Rowley of Manchester University that, 390 years after Israel was defeated by Nebuchadnezzar (586BC), God visited Israel and planted a root which was to be the founding, in 196BC, of the priestly Jewish sect which has our attention and was known as ‘The Chassidim’ (‘Ch’ pronounced as a guttural ‘H’). Twenty years later, God raised up ‘The Teacher of Righteousness’ from The Chassidim; concealing his real identity. According to Krister Stendahl, in his book ‘The Scrolls and The New Testament’ the Habakkuk Commentary states (1 Qp Hab.vii,1f), ‘that he was the one who had received authority to reveal the final phase of the end, which had not been made known even to the prophet Habakkuk himself’ (Hab 2.1-3).
The publication of fragments from ‘The Damascus Document’ (Cave 4: vi, 7;vii,18) has now suggested that this teacher may be identified with the priestly Messiah to be raised in the last days. Stendahl says that in one of the community hymns (1 QH iii,9f) we may find a closer relationship between the community and a Messiah where it says, ‘For through deathly contractions she brings forth a male child, and through hellish pains there burst forth from the womb of her who is pregnant a Wonderful Counsellor with his might.’ The woman in travail appears to be thought of as the community itself, which, through tribulation, brings forth The Messiah. It should be noted that Jesus, himself, was not unconnected with the Community; and the monks of Qumran had established a name for themselves as prophets of no mean ability, as we will learn later.
There is just the possibility that ‘The Teacher of Righteousness could have been the high priest Onias whose murder was instigated by a priest named Menelaus during the reign of Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175-163BC) although Josephus does not appear to have held a very good opinion of Onias (Ant.12.4.1). There were wic ked priests in abundance in those days who had little difficulty in reconciling their priestly office with more secular misdoing. Nevertheless, that particular episode is incidental to the main thrust of our narrative which still remains to be disclosed. The reader will already have noticed that the dates mentioned are excitingly complementary.
King Antiochus IV Epiphanes (175-163BC) treated the Jews most cruelly in his efforts to Hellenise Israel, the sordid details of which are given elsewhere; and the outcome was a protracted war with the Maccabees family. The hero of these encounters was the legendary Judas Maccabaeus who, with his four brothers, and the assistance of The Chassidim, secured comparative peace for Israel. However, such was the success of this doughty family that they turned their warlike propensities against other unfriendly states. The Chassidim objected to this for the reason that their constitution was essentially pacific, and they felt that they had already relaxed their principles. Differences arose as to procedure with the result that partition of The Chassidim was agreed upon with the resultant formation of The Pharisees, Sadducees and The Essenes. Matthew Black, in his work ‘The Scrolls and Christian Origins’ agrees with us that The Chassidim were the forerunners of The Essenes.
The newly formed Essenes had to find an alternative home for themselves and this, combined with the threatened burning of Jewish theological books by Antiochus IV Epiphanes caused The Essenes to move The Community, together with its precious library, to Khirbet Qumran in 167BC.There they remained until the Roman invasion of 68-70AD; under Vespasian and Titus, when they finally deserted to Damascus. It was probably around this time that they carefully packed their valued books into the jars and sealed them; either for posterity or for future use by The Community.
Christianity owes a great deal more to The Essenes than is generally imagined, and it is imagined astonishingly little. One never hears them mentioned from the pulpit; almost as though the subject was taboo; although the two histories weave impeccably into each other. The more one thinks about it, the more remarkable it seems that the hand of God remains unrecognised. It is certain The Essenes tended the soil in which The Church germinated; for reasons that will become clearer as we proceed.
Since writing the above we were treated on Channel 4 to a quite wonderful programme by Tom Wright, Bishop of Durham, in which The Essenes and their monastery were featured.
Ron Cuttell
Part 3
It is desirable to recall at this juncture, the article that appeared in the April issue of the magazine under the title ‘Why did Jesus Die.’ It provides the reason why Isaiah prophesied (40.3), in the 6th century before Christ, "The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of The Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God." This phrase was adopted as one of the tenets of The Essene Community. John the Baptist also used a similar phrase, being a member of The Community (Mark 1.1-4). Mark makes it very clear, in verses two and four, that it was John the Baptist who called upon the people to prepare by repentance and baptism for the Advent of Jesus and the remission of sins. Mark also tells us (v.1), that this was only "The Beginning of The Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God."
On August the second 2002 it was reported in the ‘Daily Post’ of Llandudno that Professor Richard Freund of The Greenberg Centre for Judaic Studies, Connecticut, had discovered a skeleton at Qumran which was thought to be that of John the Baptist. How they came to this conclusion is not stated but presumably the skull was missing; there having been, otherwise, many burials at Qumran. John was beheaded in the fortress of Machaerus around the year 35 AD: approximately twenty-eight miles distant from Qumran. John being a valued member of the community, it is just possible that his body was collected from Machaerus by the monks; if they were the disciples mentioned by Mark (6.29); but he was certainly not the founder of the Essenes as the report states. The Essenes were founded in the second century BC; and it is just possible that Freund has found the translated remains, assuming they were identifiable, of ‘The Teacher of Righteousness’, mentioned earlier as the founder, but it remains extremely doubtful.
We should, by now, have embarked upon an exciting trail; encouraging us to inquire further into the undoubted affinity between The Essenes and The Church; noting the following points of correlation.
When The Essenes travelled they carried nothing with them because it was unnecessary to do so. Jesus also instructed the apostles (Mark 6.8-9) "Take nothing for your journey, neither stave nor scrip, neither bread nor money, neither have two coats apiece." The question must arise as to how both parties were able to maintain themselves. The ‘Manual of Discipline’ and the ‘Damascus Document’ point to the existence of a number of Essene associate members, groups or families, who lived outside the monastery. Josephus confirms (Ant.18.1.5) that there were about 4000 Essenes living throughout the cities of Judaea and it was to these that our travellers wended their way when in need.
The thinking behind this ‘second order’ was that The Essene Community itself was celibate and had, therefore, to educate eligible children from outside the monastery into their ways in order to maintain their numbers. Students were considered to be fully qualified to evangelise when they reached thirty years of age, which happens to be the age at which both Jesus and John the Baptist commenced activities (Luke 3.23). The Essenes were evidently following The Book of Numbers (4.47) which states, "From thirty years of age and upwards, even unto fifty years old, every one that entereth the service….." The Jews, when questioning Jesus’ age on one occasion exclaimed (John 8.57), "Thou art not yet fifty years old." They were, wisely, leaving themselves a margin for error. If we turn to Luke’s Gospel (1.80), it says of John’s childhood, "And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts until the day of his shewing unto Israel." A similar statement in respect of the child Jesus (Luke 2.4O) omits any reference to the deserts; which is a difference very relevant to this exercise.
The ‘Life of Flavius Josephus’ (Whiston-Section 2) tells us that Josephus himself lived for three years in the desert with an ascetic named Banus, who ate no other food than grew of itself, and bathed himself frequently with cold water. It is recorded that the name ‘Banus’ means ‘Baptist’ which, in itself, is interesting.
Josephus again informs us about The Community (Wars 2.8.3) that, "These men are despisers of riches, nor is there any one among them who has more than another for it is a law that those who come to them must let what they have be common to the whole order." If we turn to The Acts of The Apostles (2.44-45) we find that they, also, shared their belongings in the same manner "And all that believed were together and had ALL THINGS COMMON and sold their possessions and goods and parted them to all men as every man had need". Philo Judaeus (25bc - 50ad), a Jewish writer who lived even earlier than Josephus, confirms this practice.
Of a familiar ring, calculated to raise one’s temperature, are the phrases in column one of the Scroll (4Q458) that refer to ‘releasing the captives- making the blind see - raising up the downtrodden - resurrecting the dead’. If the heart-beat pauses then we should turn to Luke (4.16-21) " The Spirit of The Lord is upon me, because he hath appointed me to preach the gospel to the poor, he hath sent me to heal the broken hearted to preach deliverance to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised." When John the Baptist was in prison he sent two of his disciples to Jesus to enquire if he was ‘the one who should come?’ (Matt.11.5). Jesus sent back a typical ‘Jesus’ reply, following Isaiah (35.5.) and instantly recognised by John, "The blind receive their sight, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up and the poor have the Gospel preached unto them."
Ron Cuttell
Part 4
The ‘Manual of Discipline’, one of the Scrolls, provides that at the beginning of the common meal, the priest blesses the bread and the wine; which was also Jesus’ custom. Professor Kahn of Gottingen University, commenting upon the Essene common meal, also believes it throws light upon the origin and meaning of the Christian sacrament of The Lord’s Supper. Edmund Wilson, in his excellent book ‘The Scrolls and the Dead Sea’ feels that The Manual increases the probability that ‘The Last Supper’ derives from the Sect. There is a very slight variation to this theory, as we say in our ‘Was The Last Supper a Passover?’ There is every indication that the meal was, in origin, a ‘Kiddush’; a gathering of friends to give praise and thanks to God; although it was adapted by Jesus to initiate The New Covenant; the continuum of which, as previously mentioned, is our Eucharist. One thing is absolutely certain, it was NOT a Passover meal.
Where did John the Baptist acquire the dual practice of repentance, the basic feature of The Atonement, and baptism? It came from The Essenes, whose ‘ Damascus Document’ detailed the ritual ablution for repentant offenders to exorcise their sins; an outward sign of spiritual contrition in preparation for the Advent of The Messiah; the raison d’être of the Essene Community.
Swearing, or oaths, is avoided by the Essenes who say, "He that cannot be believed without swearing by God is already condemned." Jesus said (Matt.5.34), "But I say unto you, swear not at all, neither by Heaven for it is God’s throne." James the brother of Our Lord, is also recorded as saying (5.12) "But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by Heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath; but let your yea be your yea, and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation."
‘The Damascus Document’, speaking of members who have fallen away from the sect states (XV1), "and he shall have mercy on them as a father on his sons, and shall bring back all erring ones as a shepherd does with his flock." That has a familiar ring, has it not? Sheep were a favourite metaphor with Jesus; the tenth chapter of John is full of it. The term ‘New Covenant’ (berith hadasha) occurs frequently in Qumran literature, taking us back to Jeremiah, the Old Testament Prophet (31. 31-32). "Behold, the days come, saith The Lord, that I will make a ‘New Covenant’ with The House of Israel, and with the House of Judah. Not according to the covenant I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt which, my Covenant, they brake, although I was an husband to them, saith The Lord." The New Covenant was, as we know, ushered in by Jesus at ‘The Last Supper.’
In comparative studies of The Scrolls and The New Testament, much interest has been focussed upon the Johannine literature. Professor R K Harrison, in his ‘Archaeology of The New Testament’, sees a relationship between the linguistic expressions and thought forms in the fourth Gospel and those found in the sectarian literature such as ‘children of light – life eternal – spirit of truth – walking in the light – walking in darkness – the light of life – the works of God – that they may be one’ and numerous other expressions having the characteristics of John the Apostle. Their understanding of ‘sin’ and ‘grace’ is, he says, very near that of The New Testament and, in ‘The Rule’ there are similarities to ‘The Sermon on the Mount.’ An interesting parallel is provided to Paul’s ‘Fruits of The Spirit’ (Gal.5.22-23) in The Scroll (1 QS iv, 2) where the virtues of truth, humility, patience, compassion, understanding, wisdom, zeal and purity are expounded. This, again, would explain his remarkable grasp of those teachings, attributed by Paul to revelation but probably acquired at Qumran; as we explain later.
John the Apostle may well have been one of the 4000 Essene associate members known to be resident in Judaea. The monks, as we have mentioned earlier, removed to Damascus (68-70 AD) in order to avoid the Roman invasion under Vespasian and Titus. It was then, that John would have moved to the comparative peace of Ephesus where he, no doubt, wrote his gospel. Papias, Bishop of Hierapolis (c.60-130 AD), in his ‘The Sayings of The Lord Explained’ (5 vols), claims that he had listened to John personally, and that there were two Johns, the first of whom he equates with the writer of the gospel. Who, then, was the second John? Eusebius, (c.260-340 AD) Bishop of Caesarea and author of ‘Early Church History’, tells us that there were two tombs at Ephesus bearing the name John. The second John could have been the writer of Epistles two and three when resident there. It is possible that Paul met John the Apostle there, (Acts 18.19), and also Apollos who was a disciple of John the Baptist (vv24-26ff). This may, also, have been the source of some of Paul’s teaching.
On the subject of Creation, Qumran follows the biblical doctrine (1 QS iii, 15) ‘And everything that is, he established by his purpose, and apart from him, nothing is done.’ John says, in his prologue, "All things were made by him, and without him was not anything made that was made."
Hippolytus (170-236 AD), ecclesiastic, doctor and writer, speaking of The Essenes wrote, "Now the word of The Resurrection is firmly held amongst them, for they confess that the flesh will also rise and be immortal, as the soul is already immortal which, they now say, when separated from the body, enters a place of fragrant air and light to rest until The Judgement, and a conflagration of everything, and that the wicked will be eternally punished." This, very broadly, is also Paul’s teaching. (Vide.- The Myth about Death)
Ron Cuttell
Part 5
For want of a better explanation is it not possible that Paul spent those three mysterious and unaccountable years with The Essenes at Khirbet Qumran after his conversion? It was expected that he would return to Jerusalem to report to the apostles on his changed affiliation. He must have been desperately in need of peace and quiet after his dramatic experience and the thought of the reception which would be meted out to him by his earlier confederates in Jerusalem was an additional deterrent. The peaceful monastery must have been a very desirable alternative to Jerusalem at that time and persuaded him, instead of turning right at the crossroads for Jerusalem, to turn left for Qumran; which was geographically convenient.
The most significant resemblance between The Church and The Essenes was their practice of baptism, previously touched upon. The only variation of note would appear to be voiced by John the Baptist himself (Mark 1.8) "I indeed have baptised you with water but he (that cometh) will baptise you with The Holy Spirit". The Essenes tell of "God sprinkling the Spirit of Truth as purifying water" (1QS iv 21). They may have derived this practice from The Book of Ezekiel (36.25-27) which speaks of the Jews being returned to their own land after The Diaspora. "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean from all your filthiness…. And I will put my Spirit within you." The monks practised frequent baptism, for which purpose they had two pools, or cisterns, of water within the monastery boundary with steps down to the water for ease of access. W.H.Brownlee reminds us, in his treatise on John the Baptist, that John described some of his onlookers as a ‘brood of vipers’ (Luke 3.7) and there is a corresponding reference in one of the Qumran hymns (1 QH v.27) describing opponents of the sect as ‘sea serpents’ – ‘dust crawlers’.
There was a Community rule (1 QS vi,10) that ‘No man shall interrupt the speech of the other before his brother has finished speaking, nor shall he speak out of rank’. Does this throw light upon the uncharacteristic self-effacement of Peter (John 13.22-25) where, at The Last Supper, he suggested to John, who was sitting between himself and Jesus, that he ask The Lord who it was that should betray him? It was most unlike the Peter we believe we know. Having noted all these similarities it might seem odd that The New Testament does not mention The Essenes, although the Pharisees and Sadducees are often mentioned; but if the apostles and Jesus were closely associated with The Essenes they would have been outward looking; taking The Essenes for granted as we say. It is not suggested that Jesus was an Essene, he was unique, but that he was nurtured in an Essene household where the Essene ‘Second Order’ met together. The case with John the Apostle is, perhaps, speculative but certainly not with John the Baptist who had all the attributes that qualify him as an Essene. It is also recorded (John1.35-40) that one of John the Baptist’s disciples was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, which raises interesting probabilities.
Matthew Black, in his book ‘The Scrolls and Christian Origins’ quotes Jerome that The Essenes were a vegetarian sect, and that the Nazarenes also abstained from flesh eating. We know that Jesus was a Nazarene as also was James, The Lord’s brother, who became a leading figure of The Jerusalem Church. Dr. Robert Eisenman, Professor of Middle East Religions at California State University, said in his book ‘The Dead Sea Scrolls Uncovered’ "James seemed to have acquired some of Noah’s primordial vegetarianism when he was leader of the Jerusalem Church". Seneca, the Roman historian (4 BC – 65 AD), in his ‘Ethics of Diet’ referred to The Essenes as "the foreign cultus or superstition who abstained from the flesh of animals".
It has been claimed that the discovery of animals’ bones in the monastery cemetery disproves the claim that The Essenes were vegetarians. It has to be remembered that they were also farmers who would have been milk producers, no doubt becoming quite fond of their animals; giving them a decent burial since they did not consume them.
The Essenes were strict in their observance of The Sabbath, and did not engage in commerce; being self-supporting. Neither would they possess, or make, instruments of war. Many apocryphal books, not in the Jewish Canon, were found in their library; which was only to be expected, and might give a wrong impression. The ‘Manual of Discipline’ and ‘The Habakkuk Commentary’ date from the last quarter before Christ.
The largest quantity of scroll fragments came from Cave 4 and included a beautifully written Scroll of Ecclesiastes dating from about 150 BC. The monks wrote and spoke the Aramaic language of Our Lord; in addition to Hebrew, the language of Scripture.
Ron Cuttell (1911 – 2005)
Part 6
Herod, who ruled from 37-4 BC; thought highly of the prophetic and astrological ability of The Essenes. One of them, named Manahem, had forecast to Herod that he would one day be king; which information, so we are told, was accompanied by a pinch on the backside. Herod was very young at the time, and Manahem lived to a good old age. Herod showed his gratitude by dispensing, amongst other things, with the oath of loyalty from The Essenes (Ant.15.10.5). Josephus also records the extraordinary story (Ant.13.11.2) about Judas the Essene who foretold the assassination of Antigonus by Aristobulus. Josephus, himself, spent several years of his youth with The Essenes in which he may, or may not, have acquired some of their prophetic skills. When he headed a revolt against Rome, and was captured by Vespasian, he saved his own life by prophesying that the general would one day be Emperor of Rome and this gained many favours for him. Further study of the life of Josephus reveals that he was not without a great deal of cunning which may have come into play on that occasion.
J L Teicher of Cambridge wrote an article in 'The Journal of Jewish Studies' claiming that the Qumran sect were Ebionites; ('the poor') about whom relatively little is known. Oscar Cullman published an opinion that the remnants of The Essenes joined the Ebionites after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD. This information, which could be correct, does not materially affect anything we have said; the Ebionites having been a much later grouping and, in fact, a Judaeo-Christian movement.
The Ebionites are reputed to have used The GOSPEL to the Hebrews solely, now lost, and had no use for Paul, whom they regarded as apostate from The Law (Vide, Paul - a Character Study). Josephus does not mention them at all in his writings, for the same reason that he does not mention Jesus, being extremely sensitive about Rome, from whom he received an annuity, amongst other things. Knowledge of the Ebionites has, however, filtered through from several members of The Patristic Church, confirming they had a great deal in common with The Essenes - as did 'The Therapeutae,' mentioned elsewhere. n conclusion, it is almost as though a conspiracy of silence reigns within The Church about The Essenes, making it appear that God was inactive during the period prior to, and since, the climactic Advent of Christ, whereas the opposite is the truth. We must get into perspective our own, extremely brief, sojourn in a world which requires immediate action in order to be fulfilling, with that of The Creator who is Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, with all the time in the world at his disposal.
The 'Damascus Document', as we said earlier, reveals that God planted the 'Root' in 196 BC; which was to become the 'Branch' mentioned by Isaiah (11.1). 'There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse and a 'Branch' shall grow out of his roots;' which clearly shows that God was consistently, and progressively, working out his purpose. So it will unquestionably continue until God's people are awakened from sleep, as Paul prefers to describe that delightful intermediate state (1 Thess. 4.13-18), which we have come to know as 'Paradise' (from the Persian word 'Paradeza', meaning a walled garden of great beauty and security), mentioned by Jesus (Luke 23.43) and also by St John the Divine in his Revelation (2.7) as 'The Paradise of God'.
Ron Cuttell (1911 – 2005)