(c) Images Courtesy of the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library. Photo, Shai Halevi. www.deadseascrolls.org.il

This scroll contains commentaries on biblical verses, primarily from 2 Samuel 7 and Psalms 1 and 2. The commentary focuses on restoring David’s dynasty through the coming Messiah and end-times events. Other sources like the New Testament and Rabbinic literature similarly interpret these verses as messianic—unsurprising since some quoted passages are prophecies about David’s descendant. The text portrays the Messiah as a leader who will rescue the Dead Sea Scrolls community from enemies. He works alongside the “Interpreter of the Law,” a sectarian leader mentioned in other scrolls. The community calls itself a “Temple of Man,” likely reflecting their belief that their practices adequately replace temple services. This concept aligns with their rejection of the contemporary temple, which their opponents controlled.

Frag. 1-3 col. I

Detail Translation

1 [«And] an enemy [will trouble him no mo]re, [nor will] the son of iniquity [afflict him again] as at the beginning. From the day on which

2 [ I established judges] over my people, Israel*. This (refers to) the house which [they will establish] for [him] in the last days, as is written in the book of

3 [ Moses: «A temple of the Lord] will you establish with your hands, the Lord shall reign for ever and ever*. This (refers to) the house into which shall never enter

4 […] either the Ammonite, or the Moabite, or the Bastard, or the foreigner, or the proselyte, never, because there [he will reveal] to the holy ones;

5 eternal [glory] will appear over it for ever; foreigners shall not again lay it waste as they laid waste, at the beginning,

6 the temple of Is]rael for its sins. And he commanded to build for himself a temple of man, to offer him in it,

7 before him, the works of the law. And as for what he said to David «I shall obtain for you rest from all your enemies*: (it refers to this,) that he will obtain for them rest from all

8 the sons of Belial, those who make them fall, to destr[oy them for their s]ins, when they come with the plans of Belial to make the s[ons of]

9 light fall, and to plot against them wicked plans so that they are trapped by Belial in their guilty error. Blank

10 And «the Lord declares] to you that he will build you a house. I will raise up your seed after you and establish the throne of his kingdom

11 [for ev]er. I will be a father to him and he will be a son to me.» This (refers to the) «branch of David*, who will arise with the Interpreter of the law who

12 [will rise up] in Zi[on in] the last days, as it is written: «I will raise up the hut of David which has fallen*, This (refers to) «the hut of

13 David which has fallen*, who will arise to save Israel.

14 Midrash of «Blessed the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked*. The interpretation of this sa[ying: they are those who turn] aside from the path [of the wicked,]

15 as it is written in the book of Isa-iah, the p rophet, for the last days: «And it happened that with a strong [hand he turned me aside from walking on the path of]

16 this people*. And this (refers to) those about whom it is written in the book of Ezekiel, the prophet, that «[they should] not [defile themselves any more with all]

17 their filth*. This (refers to) the sons of Zadok and to the men of his council, those who seek jus[tice] eagerly, who will come after them to the council of the com-munity.

18 [«Why do] the nations [become agitated] and the peoples plo[t] nonsense? [The kings of the earth [ag]ree [and the ru]lers conspire together against the Lord and against

19 [his anointed one*. Interpretation of the saying: [the kings of the na]tions [become agitated and conspire against] the elect of Israel in the last days.

[xxx] = restoration of missing text based on other versions of the same text or scholarly research

LORD = the Tetragrammaton, the four-letter name of God in the Hebrew Bible