Texts in Conversation
In 4Q544 from the Dead Sea Scrolls, the dark angel wears multicolored clothing. The Shepherd of Hermas similarly dresses its angel of indulgence in a saffron cloak, whose expensive dye connects his appearance with the luxury and pleasure he encourages.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
4Q544 1:10-14
Visions of Amram
Dead Sea Scrolls, Biblical Retellings
10 in my vision, the vision of the dream. And behold, two were arguing over me and saying [… of his] 11 and they were holding a great dispute over me. And I asked them, “Who are you, that you thus [have power over me?” … And they said to me, “We] 12 [thus] are rulers, and rule over all the sons of Adam.” And they said to me, “Which of us do you [seek to be ruled by?” And behold, I lifted my eyes and saw,] 13 [and one] of them, his appearance was dreadful like a serpent, [and all] his clothing was many-colored, and he was dark with darkness. [His face …] 14 [And the other, I looked,] and behold … […] in his appearance, and his face was smiling, and [he was covered with clothing …]
Shepherd of Hermas 61:5-6
Early Christian
5 After he told me these things, he says to me, “Let us go into the country, and I will show you the shepherds of the sheep.” “Let us go, Sir,” I say. We came to a certain plain, and he shows me a young man, a shepherd, clothed in a light cloak of saffron color; 6 he was feeding a great number of sheep, and these sheep were well fed and very lively, and were joyful as they jumped around here and there; and the shepherd himself was also joyful over his flock; and the face of the shepherd was exceedingly glad; and he ran about among the sheep.
Date: 90-140 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Shepherd of Hermas 62:1-2
Early Christian
1 And he says to me, “Do you see this shepherd?” “I see him, Sir,” I say. “This,” he says, “is the angel of indulgence and deceit. He crushes the souls of God’s servants, and turns them away from the truth, leading them astray with evil desires, in which they perish. 2 For they forget the commandments of the living God, and walk in vain deceptions and acts of indulgence, and are destroyed by this angel—some to death, and others to corruption.”
Date: 90-140 C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
“... Indirect evidence for a negative judgment of coloured clothes is
present in the so-called Visions of Amram, found in multiple copies in
Qumran cave 4. Amram sees two angels in a vision, apparently the
angel of light and the angel of darkness, fighting over his own soul.
The text proceeds with a very damaged description of the appear-
ance and names of these two angels. The description of the colour
and dress of the angel of light has not been preserved in the Visions
of Amram, but one may assume that these were white or luminous.
The point of interest here is that the description of the angel of
darkness says that “all his clothing was coloured” [...] In this respect, there may be a con-
nection between these Visions of Amram and the sixth Similitude of
the Shepherd of Hermas, where the angel of luxury and deceit appears
as a shepherd dressed in saffron-coloured clothes [...] In the Greek world dyes made from saffron stigmas were particu-
larly associated with hetaerae. And, of course, as the most expen-
sive spice in the world it is associated with luxury. ...”
* 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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