Teacher of Righteousness
Encyclopedia
The Teacher of Righteousness (in Hebrew: מורה הצדק Moreh ha-Tsedek) is a figure found in some of the Dead Sea Scrolls
at Qumran
, most prominently in the Damascus Document
. This document speaks briefly of the origins of the sect, probably Essenes
, 390 years after the Babylonian exile and after 20 years of 'groping' blindly for the way "God... raised for them a Teacher of Righteousness to guide them in the way of His heart".
The Teacher is extolled as having proper understanding of the Torah
, qualified in it's accurate instruction, and being the one through whom God would reveal to the community “the hidden things in which Israel had gone astray”.
scroll, the teachers of the sect are identified as a Kohen
s (priests) of patrilineal progeny of Tzadok (the first high priest to serve in The First Temple), leading scholars to assume the Teacher as a Kohen (preist) of Tzadokite lineage
.
and subsequently by Stegemann is that the Teacher of Righteousness served as High Priest
but was subsequently ousted by Jonathan Maccabeus. In 1 Maccabees
, no High Priest is named for the period from the death of Alcimus in 159 BCE to the claiming of the position of High Priest by Jonathan on the authority of Alexander Balas
in 152 BCE (1 Macc 10:18-20). From this it could be concluded that there was no High Priest for these years, and indeed Josephus
, drawing heavily on I Maccabees at this point in his history, comes to that conclusion (Ant. 20.237). It is improbable, however, that the office remained completely vacant for these years. Stegemann suggests that the reason that nothing is said in 1 Maccabees about a High Priest between Alcimus and Jonathan was apologetic: to conceal the fact that the Hasmoneans obtained the High Priesthood by usurping it from its rightful holder, the Teacher of Righteousness. Alvar Ellegård follows this line and argues that the Teacher of Righteousness was not only the leader of the Essenes at Qumran, but was also identical to the original Jesus
about 150 years before the time of the Gospel
s.
Critics of this theory accuse it of being too hypothetical: slotting the Teacher as High Priest into a convenient gap during which no other High Priest is recorded in the few sources we have. Not the Damascus Document, nor 1QS or 4QMMT suggest that the legitimacy of the High Priest was an issue for the split. In addition, the motivation behind the split of the sect from mainstream Judaism
appears to have been of a religious rather than political nature.
, and had been a priest, and confidant to the king. However, he became dissatisfied with the religious sects in Jerusalem, and in reaction, founded a "crisis cult". While amassing a following, the Teacher (and his followers) claimed he was the fulfillment of various Biblical prophecies, with an emphasis on those found in Isaiah
. The Teacher was eventually killed by the religious leadership in Jerusalem, and his followers hailed him as messianic figure who had been exalted to the presence of God's throne. They then anticipated that the Teacher would return to judge the wicked and lead the righteous into a golden age
, and that it would take place within the next forty years. Wise explains that dating of manuscript copies among the Dead Sea Scrolls shows that the Teacher's postmortem following drastically increased in size over several years, but that when the predicted time frame failed to live up to expectations, his following dissipated rapidly.
", which has led to several proposals for their identity: A Sadducees
(Zadokim) priest as the Teacher, possibly even the legitimate high priest, against a "wicked" Jonathan Maccabee, a significant conflict mentioned in the Books of Maccabees
. "Zadok" in Hebrew (צדוק) translates as "righteous."
as the Teacher, against a "wicked" Shammai
, a significant conflict mentioned in the Talmud
(Jerusalem Talmud Shabbat 1:4). However, most scholars date the Damascus Document and many of the Dead Sea scrolls
to the decades around the year 100 BCE
, vastly predating Hillel and Shammai.
has proposed James, brother of Jesus as the Teacher against a "Wicked Priest" (Ananus ben Ananus), and a "Spouter of Lies" which Eisenman identifies as Paul of Tarsus
. But again the accepted dating of the Damascus Document would exclude James, or any figure of early Christianity
.
suggests that the Teacher of Righteousness is John the Baptist
and the Wicked Priest
is Jesus
.. The background is that Paul of Tarsus
, when he was still persecuting the Church before his conversion, was part of a group in Damascus who held Jesus' group responsible for the killing of John the Baptist by Herod Antipas
. In this they were somewhat correct for Dr. Thiering also decodes, using her Pesher
Technique, that Salome
was not the dancer in front Herod, but rather it was her teacher Helena, the wife of Simon Magus
, who would be the Salome (disciple)
at the Crucifixion
. Simon Magus was at that time Jesus' superior and, in the eyes of the supporters of John the Baptist, they were subverting the true faith by allowing Gentiles at the Holy Table (see Last Supper
).
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
at Qumran
Qumran
Qumran is an archaeological site in the West Bank. It is located on a dry plateau about a mile inland from the northwestern shore of the Dead Sea, near the Israeli settlement and kibbutz of Kalia...
, most prominently in the Damascus Document
Damascus Document
The Damascus Document or Damascus Rule is one of the most interesting texts of the Dead Sea Scrolls because it is the only Qumran sectarian work that was known before the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls....
. This document speaks briefly of the origins of the sect, probably Essenes
Essenes
The Essenes were a Jewish sect that flourished from the 2nd century BCE to the 1st century CE which some scholars claim seceded from the Zadokite priests...
, 390 years after the Babylonian exile and after 20 years of 'groping' blindly for the way "God... raised for them a Teacher of Righteousness to guide them in the way of His heart".
The Teacher is extolled as having proper understanding of the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
, qualified in it's accurate instruction, and being the one through whom God would reveal to the community “the hidden things in which Israel had gone astray”.
Identity of the Teacher
Although the exact identity of the Teacher is unknown, based on the text of the Community RuleCommunity Rule
The Community Rule , which was previously referred to as the Manual of Discipline and in Hebrew Serekh ha-Yahad is one of the first scrolls to be discovered near khirbet Qumran, the scrolls found in the eleven caves between 1947 and 1954 are now referred to simply as the Dead Sea Scrolls...
scroll, the teachers of the sect are identified as a Kohen
Kohen
A Kohen is the Hebrew word for priest. Jewish Kohens are traditionally believed and halachically required to be of direct patrilineal descent from the Biblical Aaron....
s (priests) of patrilineal progeny of Tzadok (the first high priest to serve in The First Temple), leading scholars to assume the Teacher as a Kohen (preist) of Tzadokite lineage
The Kohanim sons of Tzadok
The Sons of Zadok are a family of priests descended from Zadok, the first high priest to in Solomon's Temple.The sons of Zadok are mentioned three times in the Hebrew Bible, as part of the Third Temple prophecies in the final chapters of the Book of Ezekiel, and are a theme in Jewish and Christian...
.
The "missing" High Priest 159-152 BCE
One theory initially advocated by Jerome Murphy-O'ConnorJerome Murphy-O'Connor
Reverend Dr Jerome Murphy-O'Connor O.P., is a Dominican priest, a leading authority on St...
and subsequently by Stegemann is that the Teacher of Righteousness served as High Priest
Kohen Gadol
The High Priest was the chief religious official of Israelite religion and of classical Judaism from the rise of the Israelite nation until the destruction of the Second Temple of Jerusalem...
but was subsequently ousted by Jonathan Maccabeus. In 1 Maccabees
1 Maccabees
The First book of Maccabees is a book written in Hebrew by a Jewish author after the restoration of an independent Jewish kingdom, about the latter part of the 2nd century BC. The original Hebrew is lost and the most important surviving version is the Greek translation contained in the Septuagint...
, no High Priest is named for the period from the death of Alcimus in 159 BCE to the claiming of the position of High Priest by Jonathan on the authority of Alexander Balas
Alexander Balas
Alexander Balas , ruler of the Greek Seleucid kingdom 150-146 BC, was a native of Smyrna of humble origin, but gave himself out to be the son of Antiochus IV Epiphanes and Laodice IV and heir to the Seleucid throne...
in 152 BCE (1 Macc 10:18-20). From this it could be concluded that there was no High Priest for these years, and indeed Josephus
Josephus
Titus Flavius Josephus , also called Joseph ben Matityahu , was a 1st-century Romano-Jewish historian and hagiographer of priestly and royal ancestry who recorded Jewish history, with special emphasis on the 1st century AD and the First Jewish–Roman War, which resulted in the Destruction of...
, drawing heavily on I Maccabees at this point in his history, comes to that conclusion (Ant. 20.237). It is improbable, however, that the office remained completely vacant for these years. Stegemann suggests that the reason that nothing is said in 1 Maccabees about a High Priest between Alcimus and Jonathan was apologetic: to conceal the fact that the Hasmoneans obtained the High Priesthood by usurping it from its rightful holder, the Teacher of Righteousness. Alvar Ellegård follows this line and argues that the Teacher of Righteousness was not only the leader of the Essenes at Qumran, but was also identical to the original Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
about 150 years before the time of the Gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
s.
Critics of this theory accuse it of being too hypothetical: slotting the Teacher as High Priest into a convenient gap during which no other High Priest is recorded in the few sources we have. Not the Damascus Document, nor 1QS or 4QMMT suggest that the legitimacy of the High Priest was an issue for the split. In addition, the motivation behind the split of the sect from mainstream Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
appears to have been of a religious rather than political nature.
A 1stC BC Messiah figure
Michael O. Wise posits that the Teacher of Righteousness was the "first messiah", a figure predating Jesus by roughly 100 years. This figure - whom Wise believes was named Judah - rose to prominence during the reign of Alexander JannaeusAlexander Jannaeus
Alexander Jannaeus was king of Judea from 103 BC to 76 BC. The son of John Hyrcanus, he inherited the throne from his brother Aristobulus I, and appears to have married his brother's widow, Shlomtzion or "Shelomit", also known as Salome Alexandra, according to the Biblical law of Yibbum...
, and had been a priest, and confidant to the king. However, he became dissatisfied with the religious sects in Jerusalem, and in reaction, founded a "crisis cult". While amassing a following, the Teacher (and his followers) claimed he was the fulfillment of various Biblical prophecies, with an emphasis on those found in Isaiah
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
. The Teacher was eventually killed by the religious leadership in Jerusalem, and his followers hailed him as messianic figure who had been exalted to the presence of God's throne. They then anticipated that the Teacher would return to judge the wicked and lead the righteous into a golden age
Golden Age
The term Golden Age comes from Greek mythology and legend and refers to the first in a sequence of four or five Ages of Man, in which the Golden Age is first, followed in sequence, by the Silver, Bronze, and Iron Ages, and then the present, a period of decline...
, and that it would take place within the next forty years. Wise explains that dating of manuscript copies among the Dead Sea Scrolls shows that the Teacher's postmortem following drastically increased in size over several years, but that when the predicted time frame failed to live up to expectations, his following dissipated rapidly.
A Sadducee priest
Other documents from the Dead Sea Scrolls portray the Teacher as involved in heavy conflict against a figure termed the "Wicked PriestWicked Priest
Wicked Priest is a sobriquet used in the Dead Sea scrolls pesharim, four times in the Habakkuk Commentary and once in the Commentary on Psalm 37 , to refer to an opponent of the "Teacher of Righteousness." The phrase is generally regarded as a pun on "High Priest" and identified with a Hasmonean...
", which has led to several proposals for their identity: A Sadducees
Sadducees
The Sadducees were a sect or group of Jews that were active in Ancient Israel during the Second Temple period, starting from the second century BC through the destruction of the Temple in 70 AD. The sect was identified by Josephus with the upper social and economic echelon of Judean society...
(Zadokim) priest as the Teacher, possibly even the legitimate high priest, against a "wicked" Jonathan Maccabee, a significant conflict mentioned in the Books of Maccabees
Maccabees
The Maccabees were a Jewish rebel army who took control of Judea, which had been a client state of the Seleucid Empire. They founded the Hasmonean dynasty, which ruled from 164 BCE to 63 BCE, reasserting the Jewish religion, expanding the boundaries of the Land of Israel and reducing the influence...
. "Zadok" in Hebrew (צדוק) translates as "righteous."
Hillel against Shammai
Rabbi Harvey Falk identifies Hillel the ElderHillel the Elder
Hillel was a famous Jewish religious leader, one of the most important figures in Jewish history. He is associated with the development of the Mishnah and the Talmud...
as the Teacher, against a "wicked" Shammai
Shammai
Shammai was a Jewish scholar of the 1st century, and an important figure in Judaism's core work of rabbinic literature, the Mishnah....
, a significant conflict mentioned in the Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
(Jerusalem Talmud Shabbat 1:4). However, most scholars date the Damascus Document and many of the Dead Sea scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
to the decades around the year 100 BCE
100 BC
Year 100 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Marius and Flaccus...
, vastly predating Hillel and Shammai.
James, brother of Jesus, against Paul
Robert EisenmanRobert Eisenman
Robert Eisenman is an American Biblical scholar, theoretical writer, historian, archaeologist, and "road" poet. He is currently Professor of Middle East Religions, Archaeology, and Islamic Law and director of the Institute for the Study of...
has proposed James, brother of Jesus as the Teacher against a "Wicked Priest" (Ananus ben Ananus), and a "Spouter of Lies" which Eisenman identifies as Paul of Tarsus
Paul of Tarsus
Paul the Apostle , also known as Saul of Tarsus, is described in the Christian New Testament as one of the most influential early Christian missionaries, with the writings ascribed to him by the church forming a considerable portion of the New Testament...
. But again the accepted dating of the Damascus Document would exclude James, or any figure of early Christianity
Early Christianity
Early Christianity is generally considered as Christianity before 325. The New Testament's Book of Acts and Epistle to the Galatians records that the first Christian community was centered in Jerusalem and its leaders included James, Peter and John....
.
Judah the Essene
Stephen Goranson suggests that Judah the Essene, mentioned by Josephus, is the Teacher.John the Baptist
Barbara ThieringBarbara Thiering
Barbara Thiering is an Australian nonfiction writer, historian, and Biblical exegete specialising in the origins of the early Christian Church. In books and journal articles, she challenges Christian orthodoxy, drawing on claimed new evidence that gives alternative answers to its supernatural...
suggests that the Teacher of Righteousness is John the Baptist
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
and the Wicked Priest
Wicked Priest
Wicked Priest is a sobriquet used in the Dead Sea scrolls pesharim, four times in the Habakkuk Commentary and once in the Commentary on Psalm 37 , to refer to an opponent of the "Teacher of Righteousness." The phrase is generally regarded as a pun on "High Priest" and identified with a Hasmonean...
is Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
.. The background is that Paul of Tarsus
Paul of Tarsus
Paul the Apostle , also known as Saul of Tarsus, is described in the Christian New Testament as one of the most influential early Christian missionaries, with the writings ascribed to him by the church forming a considerable portion of the New Testament...
, when he was still persecuting the Church before his conversion, was part of a group in Damascus who held Jesus' group responsible for the killing of John the Baptist by Herod Antipas
Herod Antipas
Herod Antipater , known by the nickname Antipas, was a 1st-century AD ruler of Galilee and Perea, who bore the title of tetrarch...
. In this they were somewhat correct for Dr. Thiering also decodes, using her Pesher
Pesher
Pesher is a Hebrew word meaning "interpretation" in the sense of "solution". It became known from one group of texts, numbering some hundreds, among the Dead Sea Scrolls....
Technique, that Salome
Salome
Salome , the Daughter of Herodias , is known from the New Testament...
was not the dancer in front Herod, but rather it was her teacher Helena, the wife of Simon Magus
Simon Magus
Simon the Sorcerer or Simon the Magician, in Latin Simon Magus, was a Samaritan magus or religious figure and a convert to Christianity, baptised by Philip the Apostle, whose later confrontation with Peter is recorded in . The sin of simony, or paying for position and influence in the church, is...
, who would be the Salome (disciple)
Salome (disciple)
Salome , sometimes venerated as Mary Salome, was a follower of Jesus who appears briefly in the canonical gospels and in more detail in apocryphal writings...
at the Crucifixion
Crucifixion
Crucifixion is an ancient method of painful execution in which the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead...
. Simon Magus was at that time Jesus' superior and, in the eyes of the supporters of John the Baptist, they were subverting the true faith by allowing Gentiles at the Holy Table (see Last Supper
Last Supper
The Last Supper is the final meal that, according to Christian belief, Jesus shared with his Twelve Apostles in Jerusalem before his crucifixion. The Last Supper provides the scriptural basis for the Eucharist, also known as "communion" or "the Lord's Supper".The First Epistle to the Corinthians is...
).