Qumran Prayer and Religious Poetry (STUDIES ON THE TEXTS OF THE DESERT OF JUDAH)

Qumran Prayer and Religious Poetry represents the first attempt to undertake a systematic, comprehensive study of the liturgical and poetic texts which were discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls from Qumran. The collections of prayers, blessings and hymns indicate that fixed prayers were already customary within Judaism during the period of the Second Temple within sectarian circles. In the light of the prayer texts from Qumran the author conducts a systematic study of Jewish prayer beginning with its biblical traditions, through its development during the Second Temple period, and down to rabbinic prayer. By means of comparative literary analysis, the author is able to elucidate the relationship of the Qumran texts to forms and motifs found in parallel text types from various periods and circles within Judaism. This volume provides the reader with tools for a renewed study of the history of prayer in Judaism in the light of new textual evidence from the Second Temple period. Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Table of Contents 8 Preface 14 Abbreviations and Sigla 20 Introduction 24 i. Qumran Prayer and Poetry in Relation to the Bible—Background and Aim 24 ii. The Continuity of the Biblical Tradition during the Second Temple Period 28 iii. Findings of Prayer and Poetry from Qumran and their Study 31 iv. Study of the Literary Processes 47 v. The Structure of the Study 53 vi. The Editing of the Texts in the Study 54 PART I: FIXED PRAYER IN QUMRAN AND IN MAINSTREAM JUDAISM 56 I. From Occasional Prayer to Fixed Prayer 58 1. Biblical Prayer as Occasional 58 2. The Service of God as Commanded by the Torah 58 3. The Status of Prayer in the Bible 60 4. The Variety of Forms of Prayer in the Bible 62 5. Prayer During the Second Temple Period According to the Bible and the Apocrypha 63 6. Prayer During the Second Temple Period in Rabbinic Sources 64 7. Stages in the Crystallization of Fixed Prayer in Judaism 67 II. Fixed Prayer in Qumran 70 8. Introduction 70 9. The Theoretical Principle: Service of God through Prayer 70 10. Fixed Times for Prayer 72 11. Regular Praises at Their Fixed Times 75 12. The Religious Values of the Idea of Prayer at Fixed Times 82 13. Prayer at Fixed Times—Public Prayer 84 14. The Liturgy 86 15. "Orders" of Public Worship 87 16. The Text of the Prayers 89 17. Fixed Patterns 92 18. The Recitation of Blessing to God within Prayers 95 19. Subjects of Prayer 103 III. The Fixed Supplications (Teḥinnot) from Qumran 112 20. Introduction 112 21. The Structure of the Fixed Supplications 112 22. Supplications Through "Remembrances" 113 23. The Practice of Remembrance in Biblical Tehinnot 113 24. Remembrances in the Teḥinnot from Qumran—Their Contents, Approach and Rationale 115 25. The Petitions in the Fixed Supplicatory Prayers 127 26. The Practice of Remembrance in Tannaitic and Amoraitic Halakhah 134 27. Methods of Remembrance of the Sages and of Qumran 137 28. Summary 138 PART II: PRAYER OF THE CONGREGATION 140 IV. Blessings and Curses 142 29. Prayer of the Congregation—Introduction 142 30. Blessings and Curses in the Bible 142 31. Blessings and Curses in Qumran—General Introduction 145 32. Blessing Counterposed to Curse in the Covenant—A Ceremonial Symbol for Dualistic Distinction 147 33. Blessing and Curse of the "New Covenant" in an Ancient Ceremonial Formula 152 34. Blessing as Against Curse on Occasions of Dualistic Conflict 158 35. Conclusions 162 36. Blessings in Solemn Occasions 162 V. The Priestly Blessing as Textual Form in the Bible and in Qumran 168 37. Introduction 168 38. Literary Qualities of the Priestly Blessing in Numbers 6:24-26 168 39. Literary Use of the Priestly Blessing in the Bible 169 40. Homiletical Use of the Priestly Blessing in Qumran—Introduction 171 41. Stage 1: A Sectarian Priestly Blessing Patterned on the Biblical Blessing 171 42. Stage 2: Curse in the Pattern of the Sectarian Priestly Blessing 174 43. Curse With an Indirect, Associative Connection to the Priestly Blessing 176 44. Stage 3: Free Use of the Expanded Pattern in the Blessings (1QSb)—Introduction 178 45. Free Use of the Expanded Pattern of Priestly Blessing in the Blessing to Those who Fear God 179 46. Use of One of the Verbs of Blessing, and of the Homiletic Form 181 47. Stage 4: The Priestly Blessing as the Opening of Works Based upon Other Textual Forms 187 48. The Priestly Blessing as an Introduction to Solemn Blessing of the Community (11QBer 1-2; 4Q285 1) 190 49. Summary 193 VI. Songs of Praise 196 50. Introduction 196 I. Songs of Praise in the Bible 198 51. Songs of Praise: Types and Manner of Recitation 198 52. The Structural Routine of the Songs of Praise 199 53. Additional Methods in the Structure of Praise 204 54. Structure of Exaltation 204 55. Structures of Invitation 206 56. Summary 212 II. Songs of Praise in Qumran 213 57. The Purposes of the Praise 213 58. Routine Models 214 59. The Structure of the Exaltation 216 60. Structures of Invitation 218 VII. Eschatological Poetry 224 61. Hymns of the War Scroll—Their Function (Introduction) 224 62. The Ceremonial Occasions 225 63. Eschatological Songs in the Bible and in the War Scroll 228 64. The Literary Tradition—Structure 231 65. Contents—Combination of Traditional Thanksgiving and the Apocalyptic Idea 236 66. The Introductions—A Practical Model of the Blessing of Redemption 236 67. The Incorporation of Apocalyptic Elements within the Traditional Model of the Introductions 238 68. The Body of the Songs—Combination of Biblical and Apocalyptic Elements 241 69. The Giving of an Apocalyptic Character to Contents of Biblical Nature 242 70. The Biblical Model of Apocalyptic Myth in the Song to be Sung on the Day of Victory (1QM xiii) 247 71. Summary 248 VIII. Magical Poetry 250 Introduction 250 72. Magical Poetry—The Phenomenon 250 73. The Scrolls of Magic Songs from Qumran and Their Purpose 255 74. The Literary Structure of the Songs of the Maskil 261 75. The Incantations 267 76. Praises 275 77. The Power of Eschatological Praise 276 78. The Power of the Song of Praise for Those Who Recite It 283 79. The Conventional Phenomenon 286 80. Thanksgiving of the Maskil 288 81. The Formal Structure of the Thanksgivings of the Maskil 290 82. Contents of the Thanksgiving of the Maskil 291 83. Summary 294 IX. Mystical Poetry 296 84. The Angelic Song—Introduction 296 85. The Status and Literary Image of Angelic Praise 296 86. The Literary Image of the Angelic Song 299 87. The Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice and their Purpose 305 88. The Image of the Supernal Song from Qumran 319 89. Song of the Sixth Sabbath Sacrifice: The Praises of the Chief Angelic Princes and their Blessings 320 90. Song of the Seventh Sabbath Sacrifice: Praises Recited by the Multitude 330 91. The Song of the Eighth Sabbath Sacrifice: The Songs of the Secondary Princes of the Priests 333 92. Praises of the Sanctuary and the Chariot 334 PART III: THE THANKSGIVING SCROLL (1QH) AND PRAYER TEXTS (A CONFRONTATION) 342 X. The Thanksgiving Scroll (1QH) and Prayer Compositions 344 93. Introduction 344 94. Formal Characteristics 346 95. Contents: a) The Concrete Nature of the Experience 347 96. b) The Yaḥad Community and Mainstream Jewry 351 97. c) Thought, Instruction of Knowledge, and Prayer 356 98. Prosody 367 99. Meter 368 100. Richness of Metaphor vs. Simplicity of Expression 371 101. Summary 377 Appendix I: The Priestly Blessing in the Tradition of Jewish Worship 380 Appendix II: 382 1. The Use of Scriptural Passages in "Anti-Demonic Hymns" in Qumran and in Jewish Folklore 382 2. Magical-Literary Praxis in the Generations Following Qumran 386 Appendix III: The Qeduša (Trishagion) 390 Bibliography 394 Indexes 404 STUDIES ON THE TEXTS OF THE DESERT OF JUDAH 440 This book represents the first attempt to undertake a systematic, comprehensive study of the liturgical and poetic texts which were discovered among the Dead Sea Scrolls from Qumran. The collections of prayers, blessings and hymns indicate that fixed prayers were already customary within Judaism during the period of the Second Temple within sectarian circles. In the light of the prayer texts from Qumran the author conducts a systematic study of Jewish prayer beginning with its biblical traditions, through its development during the Second Temple period, and down to rabbinic prayer. By means of comparative literary analysis, the author is able to elucidate the relationship of the Qumran texts to forms and motifs found in parallel text types from various periods and circles within Judaism. This volume provides the reader with tools for a renewed study of the history of prayer in Judaism in the light of new textual evidence from the Second Temple period. Considers liturgical and poetic texts from the Qumran, examining in their light the stages of transition from Biblical prayer to an orderly, comprehensive liturgy of Divine worship through prayer. The book provides the reader with the tools for a renewed study of the history of prayer in Judaism.