Texts in Conversation
The Dead Sea Scrolls Community Rule and Ephesians similarly describe people chosen to share divine inheritance. In Qumran, it belongs to those made pure by the spirit of truth and joined by covenant. In Ephesians, it is those who are connected to Jesus.
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2500 BCE
1000+ CE
1QS 4:21
Community Rule
Dead Sea Scrolls, Sectarian and Community Texts
20 the appointed time of the judgment that is decreed. And then God will purify by his truth all the works of a man, and he will refine for himself the frame of man, to bring to an end every spirit of iniquity from the inward parts of 21 his flesh, and to purify him with a spirit of holiness from all wicked deeds. And he will sprinkle on him a spirit of truth like waters of cleansing, from all the abominations of falsehood and from wallowing 22 in a spirit of impurity, to give the upright insight into the knowledge of the Most High, and to teach the wisdom of the sons of heaven to those whose way is perfect. For God has chosen them for an eternal covenant, 23 and all the glory of Adam is theirs. And there will be no iniquity; all the works of deceit will be put to shame. Until now the spirits of truth and of iniquity struggle in the heart of a man.
Date: 160–100 BCE (based on scholarly estimates)
Ephesians 1:3
New Testament
3 Blessed is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms in Christ. 4 For he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world that we should be holy and blameless before him in love. 5 He did this by predestining us to adoption as his legal heirs through Jesus Christ, according to the pleasure of his will— 6 to the praise of the glory of his grace that he has freely bestowed on us in his dearly loved Son. 7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our offenses, according to the riches of his grace 8 that he lavished on us in all wisdom and insight.
Date: 90–100 CE (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... In the papyri the passive here can simply mean 'to be destined, chosen'. The cognate noun is used in Colossians 1:12 where God is said to have qualified believers for a share in the lot of the holy ones in light. In the LXX it was employed in the context of division of the land by lot for inheritance (Numbers 26:55-56), for the individual Israelite's lot or portion in general (Proverbs 1:4, Wisdom 2:9, 5:5) and for Israel as God's lot or portion (Deuteronomy 9:29, 32:8-9). This notion is a frequent one in Qumran (1QS 4:26; 11:7; 1QH 3:22) ..."
Surip Stanislaus, “The Mystery of God in Ephesians 1:3-13,” LOGOS, Jurnal Filsafat-Teologi 2.1 (2003): 64–81.
* 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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