Column 5

1 And those who entered the ark “went two by two into the ark.” And about the prince it is written, 2 “He shall not multiply wives for himself.” But David had not read the sealed book of the Torah that 3 was in the ark, for it had not been opened in Israel since the day of the death of Eleazar 4 and Joshua and the elders, because they served the Ashtoreth. And it was hidden 5 and not revealed until Zadok arose. And the deeds of David were lifted up, except for the blood of Uriah, 6 and God left them to him. And they also defile the sanctuary, in that they do not 7 separate according to the Torah, and they lie with a woman who sees the blood of her discharge. And they take,⁠a 8 each one, the daughter of his brother and the daughter of his sister. But Moses said, “To 9 your mother’s sister you shall not draw near; she is your mother’s kin.” The rule about forbidden unions is written for males, 10 and women are like them. So if a brother’s daughter uncovers the nakedness of the brother of 11 her father, she is kin. And they also defiled their holy spirit, and with a tongue of 12 blasphemies they opened their mouth against the statutes of the covenant of God, saying, “They are not sure.” And an abomination 13 they speak against them. All of them are kindlers of fire and lighters of brands; webs of 14 a spider are their webs, and eggs of vipers are their eggs. Whoever comes near them 15 will not be held innocent; the more he does so, the guiltier he is, unless he was forced. For from of old 16 God visited their works, and his anger burned against their deeds, for it is not a people of understanding. 17 They are a nation lacking counsel, because there is no understanding in them. For in ancient times there arose⁠b 18 Moses and Aaron by the hand of the Prince of Lights, and Belial raised up Jannes and 19 his brother in his cunning, when Israel was saved the first time. 20 And in the age of the devastation of the land there arose those who moved the boundary, and they led Israel astray. 21 And the land became desolate, for they spoke rebellion against the commandments of God given by the hand of Moses, and also