Texts in Conversation
Acts 19 describes John the Baptist’s call to baptism for repentance and forgiveness, similar to practices in the Dead Sea Scrolls that connect washing with humility and renewal. Both connect this to joining a faithful community rather than ritual purity.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
1QS 3:8
Community Rule
Dead Sea Scrolls, Sectarian and Community Texts
6 God, so as not to be disciplined in the community of his counsel. For it is by the spirit of the true counsel of God that the ways of a man are atoned for, all 7 his iniquities, so that he may look on the light of life. And by the spirit of holiness, which joins him to his truth, he is purified from all 8 his iniquities, and by the spirit of uprightness and humility his sin is atoned for. And by the humbling of his soul to all the statutes of God his flesh is purified, 9 to be sprinkled with waters of cleansing and sanctified with waters of purification. Let him then set his steps to walk perfectly
Date: 160–100 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
Acts 19:4
New Testament
2 and said to them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” They replied, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.” 3 So Paul said, “Into what then were you baptized?” “Into John’s baptism,” they replied. 4 Paul said, “John baptized with a baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was to come after him, that is, in Jesus.” 5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, 6 and when Paul placed his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they began to speak in tongues and to prophesy.
Date: 70–90 CE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... With the discovery of the Scrolls, however, things began to change, and since 1948 many scholars have linked John directly or indirectly with the Qumran sect. The strong form of this claim - which this study shares - is that John started out as a member of the Qumran community. This is a controversial assertion, and it is based on circumstantial evidence, but there is a lot of that, including the following ... the water rites practiced by the Baptist and by the Qumran sect had a similar meaning, including their connection with repentance and forgiveness of sins (Mark 1:4; 1QS 3:4–12). Elsewhere in ancient Judaism, washing ceremonies were not connected with repentance and atonement but with the recovery of ritual purity ..."
Joel Marcus, John the Baptist in History and Theology (Columbia, SC: University of South Carolina, 2018), 28.
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
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