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4Q174

4QFlorilegium

About this book

Fragments 1-2 i

1 […] … enemy [… and no] son of iniquity [shall afflict him again] as at the first, and from the day when 2 [I appointed judges] over my people Israel.” This is the house that […] … [in] the last days, as it is written in the book of 3 [Moses, “The sanctuary, O Lord, that] your hands established. The LORD will reign forever and ever.” This is the house into which shall not enter 4 […] forever, nor an Ammonite, nor a Moabite, nor a bastard, nor a foreigner, nor a sojourner, forever, for my holy ones are there. 5 … […] forever; continually it will be seen over it. And strangers shall not make it desolate again, as they formerly made desolate 6 the sanctuary of Israel because of their sin. And he said to build for him a sanctuary of man, for there to be in it those who send up in smoke to him,⁠ 7 before him, works of the Torah. And as for what he said to David, “I [will give] you [rest] from all your enemies”: that he will give them rest from all 8 the sons of Belial who make them stumble, to destroy them … as they came with a plan of Belial to make the sons of 9 light stumble, and to plot wicked plots against them, to … his soul for Belial in their … error. 10 And the LORD declares to you that he will build you a house. “And I will raise up your seed after you, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom 11 forever. I will be a father to him, and he will be a son to me.” This is the branch of David, who arises with the interpreter of the Torah,⁠ who 12 […] in Zion in the last days, as it is written, “And I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen.” This is the booth of⁠ 13 David that is fallen, who will arise to save Israel. 14 Midrash of “Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the wicked.” The interpretation of the matter […] those who turn aside from the way of […] 15 as it is written in the book of Isaiah the prophet for the last days, “And it was as with a strong [hand, and he turned me aside from walking in the way of] 16 this people.” And they are the ones about whom it is written in the book of Ezekiel the prophet, that “they shall [not defile themselves any more] 17 with their idols.” They are the sons of Zadok and the men of their counsel … after them to the council of the community. 18 [“Why do] the nations [rage] and the peoples plot [emptiness? The kings of the earth] take their stand, and rulers conspire together against the LORD and against 19 [his anointed.” The] interpretation of the matter [… the] nations, and … […] the chosen ones of Israel in the last days.

Texts in conversation

Compare 4Q174 1-2 i 12 and Acts 15:16

Dead Sea Scrolls, Biblical Interpretation · New Testament

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Summary

Acts 15 uses an unusual reading of 2 Samuel 7 that links God’s promise to David with the fallen tent in Amos 9. This same interpretation appears in the Dead Sea Scroll 4Q174, which joins the texts through “raise up” to describe a future Davidic king.

Passages

4Q174 1-2 i 12

Dead Sea Scrolls, Biblical Interpretation · 4QFlorilegium
10 And the LORD declares to you that he will build you a house. “And I will raise up your seed after you, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom 11 forever. I will be a father to him, and he will be a son to me.” This is the branch of David, who arises with the interpreter of the Torah, who 12 […] in Zion in the last days, as it is written, “And I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen.” This is the booth of 13 David that is fallen, who will arise to save Israel. 14 Midrash of “Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the wicked.” The interpretation of the matter […] those who turn aside from the way of […]
160–60 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in 4Q174

Acts 15:16

New Testament
14 Simeon has explained how God first concerned himself to select from among the Gentiles a people for his name. 15 The words of the prophets agree with this, as it is written, 16 ‘After this I will return, and I will rebuild the fallen tent of David; I will rebuild its ruins and restore it, 17 so that the rest of humanity may seek the Lord, namely, all the Gentiles I have called to be my own,’ says the Lord, who makes these things 18 known from long ago.
70–90 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Acts

References

"... 4Q174 argues that the “house” that God will establish, referenced in 2 Samuel 7, does not refer (only) to Solomon’s temple but to an eternal eschatological “sanctuary” (compare Exodus 15:17) that is fulfilled and embodied within the sectarian community itself. This compositional strategy allows 4QFlorilegium to make connections across several more points of scripture. For example, further down in this same fragment, 4Q174 cites and interprets 2 Samuel 7:12 using Amos 9:11, relating the two passages via the word “raise up”. The scribe suggests that the prophesied offspring of David that God will “raise up” (2 Samuel 7:12) is, in fact, a messianic figure who will “raise up” the tabernacle of David (Amos 9:11) and “save all of Israel” (4Q174 fragment 1). This same association between these two passages is also made in Acts 15:16 ..."
Reed Carlson, “A Structure for the End of the World: 4QFlorilegium and the ‘Latter Days’ in Early Jewish Tradition,” WW 40.3 (2020): 246–254.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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4Q174 1-2 i 12 and Acts 15:16

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