Could the Prophet Zechariah of Lk.11.51 be the person who wrote 1QH? The Prophet Zechariah of Lk.11.51 was killed between the alter (of incense?) and the sanctuary (doors?), presumably by someone who had access to the sanctuary, and who had a serious grievance against his victim. If the Zechariah of Lk.11.51 is the same as the elderly Zechariah of Lk.1, then the date of the event would be near to CE6. This is in the radiocarbon date range of 1QH and would suggest that 1QH was written before CE6, if the Zechariah of Lk.1 was the author. I believe there was an access on the right-hand side of the sanctuary for the high priest.
In a paper read at a recent conference at St. Andrews University, Dr. Harold Ellens refers to a work written by Israel Knohl. He writes that Knohl asserts, in effect, the following: The person who produced the hymns found at Qumran was promoting a notion at Qumran which ran counter to the orthodox doctrine of the community. His doctrine was unconventional and unaccepted at Qumran, causing the condition of his edition of the manuscripts of the Hymns in which they were discovered. The main manuscript of the Hymns was found in its jar, undisturbed, but had been carefully and intentionally torn into pieces, before it was carefully placed in its clay jar. This edition of the manuscripts was suppressed at Qumran, and so torn into pieces, but preserved by a devotee of the heretical author. (I think that the notion was not necessarily promoted at Qumran itself). In this anomalous document of the Qumran corpus, the author poetically expresses his distinct doctrinal position that is pro Spirit and anti-high priest. His position is that righteousness or purification comes from God, and is conferred by the Holy Spirit on those who show evidence of the indwelling Spirit by a repentant life. It is not achieved by works of 'a hand of flesh', but is totally a work of God's grace. He also refers to his enemies who wish to kill him. He must have had his own unique Covenant, Council and Community. The following quotations are from Martinez, unless they are said to be from Vermes: [1QH.3.14] You have raised an [eternal] name, [forgiving] offence, casting away all their iniquities, giving them as a legacy all the glory of Adam. (I think that the eternal name was the Holy Spirit, being the third person of a trinity of Father, Lord and Spirit). [1QH.3.26] You have spread [your] holy spirit upon your servant [1QH.5.17,18] for you have shown them what they have never s[een.] what was there from of old, and creating new things, demolishing ancient things, and [erec]ting what would exist for ever. (The Holy Spirit was there 'in the beginning', and the 'ancient things' being demolished were the keeping of the laws of Moses as a means of acheiving righteousness. God's laws were now 'engraved on the author's heart', presumably by God's Spirit). [1QH.5.22,23] Only by your goodness is man acquitted, [purified] (Vermes - 'righteous') by the abundance of [your] compa[ssion.] [1QH.6.12,13,14] But I, I know, thanks to your insight that in your kindness towards m[a]n you have enlar[ged his share with] the spirit of your holiness (Vermes - 'increa[sed his inheritance] in Thy Holy Spirit'). Thus, you make me approach your intelligence (Vermes - 'Thou hast drawn me near to understanding of Thee'), and the more I approach, the more ardently I oppose those who act wickedly and the men of guile; [1QH.7.15] Vermes: I know through the understanding which comes from Thee that righteousness is not in a hand of flesh [that] man [is not master of] his way [1QH.8.19,20] I have appeased your face by the spirit which you have placed [in me] to lavish your [kind]nesses on [your] serv[ant] for [ever,] to purify me with your holy spirit (Vermes - 'purifying me by Thy Holy Spirit'), to bring me near by your will according to the extent of your kindnesses (Vermes - 'drawing me near to Thee by Thy grace according to the abundance of Thy mercies') [1QH.10.31,32] You have freed me from the zeal of the mediators of deceit, from the congregation of the seekers of flattering things. You have freed the life of the poor person (Vermes - 'redeemed the soul of the poor one') which they thought to finish off by pouring out his blood because he was at your service. [1QH.12.17,18] For they have not chosen the path of your [heart] nor have they listened to your word. For they said of the vision of knowledge; It is not certain! and of the path of your heart: it is not that! (I believe the high priest said as much to Zechariah in Lk.1). [1QH.14.12,13] and all the peoples may know your truth and all the nations your glory. For you have brought [your truth and] your [glo]ry to all the men of your council and in the lot, together with the angels of the face, WITHOUT THERE BEING A MEDIATOR BETWEEN [YOUR HOLY ONES.] -- Vermes has: 'and among them shall be NO MEDIATOR [TO INVOKE THEE]' [1QH.23.13] you have stretched out your [h]oly [spirit] to COVER UP GUILT - Vermes has: 'Thou has shed Thy [Ho]ly [Spirit] to ATONE FOR GUILT' My thinking is that Zechariah was the author of 1QH, and was promoting a means of forgiveness or cleansing by the direct intercession of God's Spirit, bypassing the priesthood of the day. It was for this promotion, expressed in Zechariah's prayer (song), that Zechariah was killed. Zechariah's prayer (Lk.1.67-79) was probably spoken or sung in the temple before his colleagues, and gives us the motives for his murder. The priest for ever (after the order of Melchizedek) was the Holy Spirit. Zechariah's son, John the 'Baptist' (the Prophet) simply continued and developed what his father had started. In this scheme, the forerunner to the coming of the Lord, was not John, but the Holy Spirit. John's primary attack was on the hypocrisy of some of his audience, the 'seekers of smooth things', who neglected the unclean desperately poor. My 'piecing-together' of some of Lk.1 (from what is almost certainly a garbled version in which there is plenty of 'smoke' for there to be obfuscated 'fire') is as follows: Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eye-witnesses and servants of the Spirit. Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Epaphroditus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught. In the time of Coponius, Governor of Judea [1] there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Rechabites; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Rechab. Both of them were upright in the sight of God, observing all the Rechabite commandments and regulations blamelessly. But they had no children, because Elizabeth was barren; and they were both well on in years. Once when Zechariah's division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the sanctuary of the Lord and burn incense. And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled priests were praying in the court of the priests. Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied: "Praise be to the Lord, the God of Israel, because his Spirit has come to redeem his people. He has raised up his Spirit for us in the house of his servant David to remember the oath he swore to David: 'You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek' [2] - to rescue us from the hand of our enemies, and to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days. And you will be called Spirit of the Most High; for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way for him, to give his people the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God, by which the rising Spirit will come to us from heaven to shine on those living in darkness, and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the path of peace." Then, in the sanctuary, the high priest of the Lord appeared to Zechariah, at the right side of the alter of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. The high priest said to him: " Zechariah; your prayer has been overheard. How can you be sure [3] that the Spirit will forgive? I am the high priest. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to intercede for sins. You will be silent and you will not be able to speak." Immediately, his mouth was held opened by the temple guards and his tongue was cut-out by the high priest. Meanwhile, the priests of his division were waiting for Zechariah and wondering why he stayed so long at the alter of incense. When he came through the sanctuary doors, he could not speak to them. At first they thought he had seen a vision. Then they realised his tongue had been cut-out, for he kept making signs to them but remained unable to speak. Then he made signs to the priests to ask for a writing tablet. To their astonishment, he wrote the name 'Annas' [4]. When his time of life was completed, his spirit returned to God, and the assembled priests were all filled with fear [5]. [1] Coponius made governor in CE6 [Ant. 18.1.1]. [2] I presume that in the house of his servant David, the oath God swore, was to David [Ps.110.4], not to Abraham. In the garbled Luke, the oath was deleted, and Zechariah's prayer (song) was moved to give the impression that it was not delivered in the Temple, but after the birth of John. Elizabeth was five months pregnant when Zechariah was killed. In its original form, the epistle to the Hebrews develops the idea of the Spirit being the new High Priest after the order of Melchizedek (a High Priest for ever). The epistle is probably the oldest book in the New Testament. [3] An echo of 1QH.12.18. [4] Annas was made High Priest in CE6 [Ant. 18.2.1]. [5] Ant. 18.2.2 has the garbled account (described as an 'accident') of 'Samaritans' throwing 'dead men's' bodies about in the cloisters of the Temple. Subsequently, the 'Samaritans' were barred from the Temple, whereas previously, they were not excluded. For this, and because of other 'accidents', the authorities also watched the Temple more carefully than they had done before. The bodies could well have been Zechariah's and those of some colleagues. I think that the 'Samaritans' were Rechabite priests who were exercising their rights to service in the Temple. Significantly, Zechariah's service was at the alter of incense, not the alter for animal sacrifices. Geoff Hudson For private reply, e-mail to "Geoff Hudson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> ---------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe from Orion, e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: "unsubscribe Orion." Archives are on the Orion Web site, http://orion.mscc.huji.ac.il. (PLEASE REMOVE THIS TRAILOR BEFORE REPLYING TO THE MESSAGE)
