Texts in Conversation
Jubilees and the Community Rule in the Dead Sea Scrolls describe a future age where people will live in peace, free from evil, sickness, and conflict. This ideal world, where lives are lived joyfully without interference from hostile forces, reflects an early and widespread Jewish tradition of cosmic renewal.
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Jubilees 23:29
Pseudepigrapha
28 There will be no old man, nor anyone who has lived out his lifetime, because all of them will be infants and children. 29 They will complete and live their entire lifetimes peacefully and joyfully. There will be neither a satan nor any evil one who will destroy. For their entire lifetimes will be times of blessing and healing. 30 Then the Lord will heal his servants. They will rise and see great peace. He will expel his enemies. The righteous will see this, offer praise, and be very happy forever and ever. They will see all their punishments and curses on their enemies.
Date: 150-100 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
1QS 4
Community Rule
Dead Sea Scrolls
2 These are the counsels of the spirit to the sons of truth in this world. And as for the visitation of all who walk in this spirit, it will be healing, great peace in a long life, and fruitfulness, together with every everlasting blessing and eternal joy in life without end, a crown of glory and a garment of majesty in unending light. But the ways of the spirit of falsehood are these: greed, and slackness in the search for righteousness, wickedness and lies, haughtiness and pride, falseness and deceit, cruelty and abundant evil, ill-temper and much folly and brazen insolence, abominable deeds committed in a spirit of lust, and ways of lewdness in the service of uncleanness, a blaspheming tongue, blindness of eye and dullness of ear, stiffness of neck and heaviness of heart, so that man walks in all the ways of darkness and guile.
Date: 160 B.C.E. - 100 B.C.E. (based on scholarly estimates)
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Notes and References
"... For the righteous, the eschatological era is marked by everlasting peace and great joy (Jubilees 23:29-30; 1QS 4:8; 1QM 17:6-8; Testmanet of Levi 18:4-5; 2 Baruch 73:1-6; Sibyllene Oracles 3:371-80) as well as eternal abundance and plenty ... The righteous will receive rewards in heaven ... (5:12; Luke 6:23; 10:41-2; Mark 9:41; 20:28; compare also Luke 6:35; John 4:36; 1 Corinthians 3:8, 14; 9:17-18; 2 John 8; Revelation 11:18; 22:12) ... (Matthew 6:4, 6, 18). In 12:36, 16:27 and 20:8, this verb is used in the extended sense of payment or repayment, either reward or punishment, at the time of the eschaton (compare Romans 2:6; 2 Timothy 4:14; 1 Peter 4:5; Revelation 22:12) ..."
Sim, David C.
Apocalyptic Eschatology in the Gospel of Matthew
(pp. 49-50; 141) Cambridge University Press, 1996
* 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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