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4Q417

4QInstruction

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Fragment 1 i

1 [… and] you who understand […] 2 […] … look, [and] into the wonderful mysteries [of the fearsome God you will gain insight. The beginning of …] 3 […] … in your … and look [at the mystery that is to be and the deeds of old, at what is and what will be] 4 [in what …] … forever … [… at what] 5 [is and at what will be, in what …] … in all […] deed and deed […] 6 [… day and night meditate on the mystery that] is to be, and study it always. And then you will know truth and iniquity, wisdom 7 [and folly] … deed […] in all their ways, with their visitation for all the ages of eternity, and the everlasting 8 visitation. And then you will know the difference between good and [evil according to their] deeds. For the God of knowledge is the foundation of truth, and by the mystery that is to be 9 he laid out its base and its works … [for all wisdom] and for all prudence he formed it, and the dominion of its works 10 for all … and everything, all … he laid out for their understanding, for all its works, to walk 11 in the [inclination of] their understanding. And he laid out for … […] … and in the fitness of understanding the hidden things of 12 his plan were made known, with his walking perfectly [in all] his works. Seek these things early and always, and consider [all] 13 their outcomes. And then you will know the glory of [his strength, with] his wonderful mysteries and the might of his works. And you 14 who understand, inherit your reward in the memorial of the [peace, for] it is coming. Your statute is engraved, and every visitation is decreed. 15 For it is engraved, decreed by God, against all … […] of the sons of Seth, and a book of remembrance is written before him 16 for those who keep his word. And that is the vision of Hagi for the book of remembrance. And he gave it as an inheritance to humankind, together with a people of spirit,⁠ for 17 according to the pattern of the holy ones he formed it. But no more did he give Hagi to the spirit of flesh, for it did not know the difference between⁠ 18 good and evil according to the judgment of its spirit. And you, son who understands, look at the mystery that is to be and know 19 … every living thing and its conduct, appointed over the works of […] … and … […] … […] 20 understand the difference between great and small. And in your council […] 21 […] your … in the mystery that is to be … […] 22 […] … every vision know, and in every […] 23 and be strong always. Do not touch iniquity [… for everyone who touches …] 24 it will not be held innocent. According to his inheritance in it he will be [declared wicked …] 25 insightful son, consider your mysteries, and the foundations of […] 26 are founded in you, all their … with the task of […] 27 you shall not stray after your heart and after your eyes […]

Texts in conversation

Compare 4Q417 1 i 17 and 1 Corinthians 3:1

Dead Sea Scrolls, Wisdom and Instruction · New Testament

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Summary

In 1 Corinthians, Paul says he could address the community only as people of the flesh, not as spiritual people. In the Dead Sea Scroll 4Q417, the author similarly contrasts a people of spirit with the spirit of flesh, suggesting a common tradition.

Passages

4Q417 1 i 17

Dead Sea Scrolls, Wisdom and Instruction · 4QInstruction
15 For it is engraved, decreed by God, against all … […] of the sons of Seth, and a book of remembrance is written before him 16 for those who keep his word. And that is the vision of Hagi for the book of remembrance. And he gave it as an inheritance to humankind, together with a people of spirit, for 17 according to the pattern of the holy ones he formed it. But no more did he give Hagi to the spirit of flesh, for it did not know the difference between 18 good and evil according to the judgment of its spirit. And you, son who understands, look at the mystery that is to be and know
200–150 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in 4Q417

1 Corinthians 3:1

New Testament
1 So, brothers and sisters, I could not speak to you as spiritual people, but instead as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2 I fed you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready. In fact, you are still not ready, 3 for you are still influenced by the flesh. For since there is still jealousy and dissension among you, are you not influenced by the flesh and behaving like unregenerate people? 4 For whenever someone says, “I am with Paul,” or “I am with Apollos,” are you not merely human? 5 What is Apollos, really? Or what is Paul? Servants through whom you came to believe, and each of us in the ministry the Lord gave us.
55–57 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in 1 Corinthians

References

“... Before Collins and Goff, Frey had followed up on a suggestion of Lange, and argued that some kind of negative notion of “flesh” is to be found in 4QInstruction, where the “spirit of flesh,” does not merely denote human frailty, as in the Hodayot, but an entity which is opposed to the “sons of heaven” (in 4Q416 1 10), to the elect addressees (in 4Q418 81 1–2), and to the “spiritual people” in the pericope we are now discussing. For Frey, the “fleshly spirit” denotes “sinful humanity,” as opposed to the elect or pious ones, but one may respond that in our pericope, the issue is not sin, but rather that the “fleshly spirit” suffers from ignorance. Since Frey followed Lange in assuming that the “people of spirit” were angelic, he did not really contrast “spirit” and “flesh” in our pericope. Goff combined Frey’s suggestion with Collins’ thesis of two types of humanities, by relating the two groups of the 4QInstruction pericope to Paul’s distinction between fleshly (σαρκίνοι) and spiritual (πνευματικοί) types of people, as in 1 Cor 3:1, as well as the distinction between ψυχικός and πνευματικός in 1 Cor 15:42–49. ...”
Eibert J. C. Tigchelaar, “‘Spiritual People,’ ‘Fleshly Spirit,’ and ‘Vision of Meditation’: Reflections on 4QInstruction and 1 Corinthians,” in Echoes from the Caves: Qumran and the New Testament, ed. Florentino García Martínez, STDJ 85 (Leiden: Brill, 2009), 108.

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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4Q417 1 i 17 and 1 Corinthians 3:1

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