The Teacher of Righteousness in the End Days!

[Jon Anon]

The Teacher of righteousness in the end days:


Some Teacher of Righteousness compilation:

The Teacher of Righteousness and the End of Days

Sarah Klitenic

Introduction: Purpose and Methods

The Exhortation that begins the Damascus Document of the Dead Sea Scrolls prefaces the theology of the Qumran community. Namely, it explains how God leaves the Temple and sends the Babylonians to punish those who have polluted the Sanctuary and abandoned the Temple. However, God leaves a remnant who will one day return to the land of Israel once the people learn to correctly follow Mosaic Law. But the true mark of God’s benevolence is in the guide he sends: "And God observed their deeds, that they sought Him with a whole heart, and He raised for them a Teacher of Righteousness to guide them in the way of his heart."1 Here, God raises this Teacher from the remnant of Israel and makes him a guide for the people. For the Teacher must not only guide the remnant through the desert, but he must show it the path of Righteousness to bring about the end of days: the end of days comes with proper ordering of society and return of Israel to her rightful descendants. But who is this Teacher of Righteousness? He is a prophet with God-given ability to interpret the Law. In this paper, I will try to provide a basic description of the Teacher by looking at references to him in the Scrolls and by paying close attention to the Pesherim and Hodayot. I will then explore the nature of his apocalypticism. I hope that by progressing in this manner I will shed light on the nature of this elusive character, the Teacher of Righteousness.

References to the Teacher in the Dead Sea Scrolls

As E.P. Sanders begins his quest for the historical Jesus,2 he explains that the best place to begin is with the facts. Likewise, as we try to understand the Teacher of Righteousness (T of R), it is preferable to begin with what we know about the Teacher from the Dead Sea Scrolls themselves. Authors of the scrolls know the Teacher as Teacher, Teacher of the Community, Teacher of Righteousness,3 Interpreter, Interpreter of the Law,4 Priest,5 The Priest.6 He is never explicitly referred to as prophet, but descriptions, context, and tradition lead one to believe that the Teacher is in fact a prophet. The Damascus Document (CD), the Commentary on Micah, the Commentary on Habakkuk, and the Commentary on Psalms use the titles Teacher, Teacher of the Community, and Teacher of Righteousness. From such passages, we learn that the Teacher is the founder of the community7 and that the present generation of the community looks to him as an historical authority. In all of these references, the Teacher, Teacher of the Community, and Teacher of Righteousness is a figure divinely chosen to expound the Law and set Community members on the righteous path for the end of days.8 His words help prepare for the end:

Who have listened to the voice of the Teacher of Righteousness and have not despised the precepts of righteousness when they heard them; they shall rejoice and their hearts shall be strong, and they shall prevail over all the sons of the earth. God will forgive them and they shall see His salvation because they took refuge in His holy name. (CD XIII, 30-5)

Here, the Teacher of Righteousness is one who dispels the ‘precepts of righteousness’ which one must follow in order to reach salvation. God speaks through the Teacher so that those listening to the Teacher follow God’s words and receive His salvation. Moreover, the Teacher speaks God’s words when he interprets divine scripture; the DSS knows the Teacher as ‘Interpreter of the Law’ in documents such as The Community Rule, the Damascus Document, the Commentary on Habakkuk, and Midrash on the Last Days. The fact that the Teacher is the authority on the Law reflects his role in the community because the Law is pivotal to the Community. In the Thanksgiving Hymns, for instance, the Teacher refers to himself as having the waters of the Covenant confirmed in his heart for those who seek it, for God has ‘hidden Thy Law [within (him)].’9 In this passage, the Teacher of Righteousness not only knows the Law, but his knowledge of the Law is given to him by God. As in Numbers 12:6-8 when Moses receives the Law mouth to mouth from God, the Teacher also receives the law from the mouth of God in 1 Qp Hab II 2-3. The community respects the T of R’s legal understanding and uses his interpretations for redemption:

But all those who hold fast to these precepts and coming in accordance with the Law, who heed the voice of the Teacher and confess before God, saying, ‘Truly we have sinned... by walking counter to the precepts of the covenant’...; they shall rejoice and their hearts shall be strong. (CD 28-30)

Here, members of the CD Community that listen to the T of R and follow his teachings will rejoice in the eschaton. Lastly, the teacher is referred to explicitly as a priest in the pesher on Ps 37:23-24. These references to the Teacher in the DSS as a Teacher of Righteousness, an Interpreter of the Law, and a Priest paint the most general, most undeniable portrait of the Teacher.

Pesherim: Interpretations of the Law

The pesherim10 are interpretations of written prophetic texts that can be understood as ‘unraveling of mysteries.’11 J. Carmignac broke the pesherim into two categories: continuous, which interpret a single book section by section, and thematic, which consist of certain citations grouped around a thematic idea.12 Both of these forms of pesherim are characterized by raz, a term taken from the notion of the ancient prophets being introduced in their visions into the heavenly assembly of special knowledge.13 However, the pesherim take the idea of divine prophetic revelation a step further, because they claim to contain the mystery of things hidden even to the prophets themselves who wrote the words now interpreted. Horgan points to 1 QpHab 7:4-5 as an example of this:

and God told Habakkuk to write down that which would happen to the final generation, but He did not make known to him when time would come to an end. And as for that which He said, That he who reads may read it speedily: interpreted this concerns the Teacher of Righteousness, to whom God made known all the mysteries of the words of His servants the Prophets.

In this pesher, the Teacher understands what is to come because God allows him to unravel the mystery of Habakkuk’s prophecy; namely that within the words, God buries his plans for the founding of the community, the rise of the Teacher, and the end of days. Once God gives the Teacher prophetic understanding, the Teacher unravels the mystery in scripture and he uses that new knowledge to create rules which will regulate the Community. In this manner, the entire Community order, every rule, every hierarchical position, is governed by the Teacher’s interpretation of scripture in anticipation for the end of days.

Moreover, because the Teacher is the Interpreter of the Law, the pesherim provide additional insight into the Teacher. That is, these pesherim are the Teacher’s mode of divine revelation via interpretation of scripture. By carefully examining how the Teacher interprets scripture, one can learn even more about the figure. For instance, in the Commentary on Habakkuk:

[Behold the nations and see, marvel and be astonished; for I accomplish a deed in your days, but you will not believe it when] told. They, the men of violence and the breakers of the Covenant, will not believe when they hear all that [is to happen to] the final generation from the Priest [in whose heart] God set [understanding] that he might interpret all the words of His servants the Prophets, through whom He foretold all that would happen to his people and [His land]. (1QpHab II, 5-10)

In the passage, the Teacher is a priest who has the divine power to interpret Scripture, namely the Prophetic Books. Moreover, the Teacher prefers the Prophets because God imparted them with the knowledge of what is to come in the generation of the Teacher. The Teacher is given knowledge by God to understand these prophets so he can likewise teach the people righteousness and prevent their destruction at the end of days. This passage reveals much about the Community’s theology of prophecy. The Teacher was chosen long ago by God to prepare the remnant for the end of days; the prophets were likewise sent generations ago to prepare for this event.14 When the Teacher interprets the Law, he is more similar to the biblical Prophets in his mode of revelation than a scribe or a midrashic rabbi. Unlike the rabbis, the Teacher does not rely on the peshat or derash. His interpretations are more than mere allegories of text, but at the same time, they are not visions as the ancient prophets experienced them. Additionally, the Teacher is different from other exegetes because he does not merely apply scripture to his situation, but rather claims that scripture is written with him in mind. Based on the manner in which he interprets scripture, we can generalize that the Teacher is similar to the prophets, but also unique in his own right.

Claims of authorship

Just as one could learn about the Interpreter of the Law by reading the pesherim, one can learn about the Teacher by reading passages he supposedly wrote. Scholars believe that portions of the Hodayot (Thanksgiving Psalms) are actually written by the Teacher. Being able to identify material written by the Teacher is valuable because it tells us how the Teacher saw himself, his mission, and his relationship to the community and God. In this section of the paper, I will first discuss scholarship concerning the Teacher’s authorship of the Hodayot and then I will analyze various passages from the Thanksgiving Hymns. By examining the Hodayot, it seems that the material most filled with historical specifics and most charged with human emotion is likely to have been written by the Teacher. Additionally, scholars also claim that other scrolls were written by the Teacher. Recently, for example, the Temple Scroll (TS) has garnered attention as having been written by the Teacher. However, there are a number of reasons why TS cannot be the product of the Teacher. By first exploring why select Hodayot must have been written by the Teacher and then discussing why the Temple Scroll cannot possibly be the work of the Teacher, I hope to shed light on the Teacher and his role in the Scrolls.

The Hodayot

Among German scholars, there are three basic theories regarding authorship of the Hodayot: 1. the text is a literary unity and was written by the Teacher of Righteousness, 2. the text is not a unity and was written by anonymous authors. 3. the text is not a unity but within the Hodayot there is a core of hymns that were written by the Teacher of Righteousness.15 The first claim, although popular in the early days of Hodayot scholarship, has become less popular in recent years. It explains that the author of the entire scroll was the Teacher of Righteousness.16 Such an account, however, does not explain stylistic, linguistic, and content differences between hymns. The second theory, that the text is not a unity and is written by anonymous authors, has support from those believing that the works could have been written by the Teacher of Righteousness’ disciples.17 Moreover, the linguistic character of these hymns dictates that they could only have been written by one disciple modeling himself after the Teacher of Righteousness, rather than many disciples. The third theory is more widely recognized. It says that the text is not a unity, and that within the Hodayot there is a core of hymns written by the Teacher of Righteousness.

This third theory of German scholarship seems the most plausible because it best appreciates the stylistic features of the hymns. By examining stylistic features such as use of the first person pronoun, content, and linguistic uniformity, three German scholars derived a criteria that distinguishes hymns written by the Teacher from those written by the community at a later date. Gert Jeremias, Jurgen Becker, and Heinz-Wolfgang Kuhn18 individually note the following: that in many of the hymns, the use of ‘I’ speaks passionately about personal experiences; that these hymns often deal with individual accounts of dire need or use the motif of the mediator of revelation;19 and that these hymns are historical and specific, rather than theological and general, with regard to language. These scholars then designated such hymns as written by the Teacher of Righteousness himself; they are ‘Teacher hymns’ as opposed to Community hymns or didactic hymns. But such an explanation cries out for an example. Take the following passage:

They have banished me from my land
like a bird from its nest;
all my friends and brethren are driven far from me
and hold me for a broken vessel.

And they, teachers of lies and seers of falsehood,
have schemed against me a devilish scheme,
to exchange the Law engraved on my heart by Thee
for the smooth things (which they speak) to Thy people.
And they withhold from the thirsty the drink of Knowledge, and assuage their thirst with vinegar,
that they may gaze on their straying,
on their folly concerning feast-days,
on their fall into their snares.
(1 QH IV, 7-12)

Jeremias, Becker, and Kuhn agree that this wrathful passage must have been written by the Teacher of Righteousness. By reading this passage line by line, we can better understand the Gottingen criteria.

 

[Jon Anon]

In the above passage, the author prominently uses certain vocabulary, syntax, and content to show how he is set apart from the others both literally, by his unjust banishment, and metaphorically, by his God-given knowledge. Here, the Teacher’s use of the first person pronoun stands opposite the third person pronoun: ‘They have banished me from my land.’ By speaking in the first person, the Teacher’s account of the injustices he suffers become personal and moving. Regardless of whether we are able to accurately name that third party, there is nothing general about this verse: the Teacher clearly blames a group of people for his woes. Moreover, a few lines down, he refers to ‘they’ in more specific language: they are ‘teachers of lies and seers of falsehood.’ From this line, the reader learns more about who ‘they’ are and the reader also learns more about the identity of the Teacher. In contrast to ‘teachers of lies and seers of falsehood’, the Teacher is a teacher of truth and a seer of righteousness. The Teacher’s truth, which is ‘engraved on his heart’ by God, is emphasized by the fact that those who are able to receive knowledge do so by drinking it. The reader also learns about the concerns of the Teacher from his final charge against the teachers of lies: the author of the hymn worries about the timing of the feasts.20 For the following reasons, this passage fulfills the description of the typical Teacher hymn as set out by Jeremias, Becker, and Kuhn: 1. the Teacher uses the first person to relay his personal situation; 2. the Teacher, who is set apart because God engraved truth in his heart, is full of woe; 3. the Teacher uses specifics, such as his calendar concerns, that do not speak to the general problems of mankind. Because this hymn is so personal, so moving, and so specific, it does not seem likely that it could have been written by anyone other than the Teacher.21 Moreover, once we recognize the components of this hymn as characteristic of the Teacher, we get a better sense of his agenda and how he views himself. Based on the facts of the hymn, God grants the Teacher divine understanding of the Law for the imparting of this Law to those ‘thirsty’ for righteousness.

The Temple Scroll

Although scholars are the most confident concerning the authorship of the Hodayot, some wrongly attribute the Temple Scroll to the Teacher. They claim that the TS, like Deuteronomy, gives a description of God’s covenant with Israel. 22 There are two main claims that attempt to show that the Teacher wrote the TS: 1. Other documents in the Scrolls regard the Temple Scroll as Law and the Teacher of Righteousness as the Lawgiver. The Teacher of Righteousness can be compared to Moses as the author of the Law for a sectarian community. Hence, some suggest that the Teacher of Righteousness must be the author of the TS. 2. The Teacher is the most eminent figure in the DSS; only he is important enough to have written the Law. Both these reasons are defeated once one realizes that the Teacher is not the Lawgiver, but rather the Interpreter of the Law. Instead of creating his own law, the Teacher uses his divine power to understand biblical scripture. Furthermore, the Temple Scroll cannot be the law for the end of days because its edicts are not written for a righteous audience. The fact that the Teacher is not the author of the Temple Scroll makes it easier to understand how the Teacher does not write the Law for the end of days, but that another figure is to come.

Some wrongly claim that the Teacher is the author of TS because they misunderstand the relationship between the Teacher and the Law.23 Namely, throughout the Scrolls, the T of R is referred to as ‘the Interpreter of the Law’ and the TS is commonly referred to as the Law. However, the previous section explains that the Teacher interprets the Law, rather than writes a new Law, because of the pre-eminence of the Mosaic Law in the scrolls. Only by properly understanding the Mosaic Law can the Community help bring about the end of days. Moreover, some scholars argue that the TS is a an eschatological law. They primarily use the description of measurements for a Temple in (TS XXX-XVII) and claim that based on its size, the Temple in TS is eschatological. However, the Temple is possibly utopian rather than eschatological. Based on a comparison to the Temple in the Florilegium, it seems that the eschatological temple is one that God will create on ‘the day of creation.’24 Also, it is apparent from the nature of many laws, including laws on adultery and rape, that the TS is not meant for the end of days .25 Based on the textual evidence, the Teacher cannot be the author of the TS, the New Torah; instead, the Teacher creates guidelines for a way of living from the interpretation of the Torah. He explains the Law to help order society and prepare for the end of days. He himself is not the fulfillment of eschatological expectations.

Who is the Teacher of Righteousness?

Difficulties arise when one tries to describe the Teacher of Righteousness; however, the complexity that most affects the description deals with whether to place the figure in the past or in the future. Many point to this ambiguity in a midrash of Num 21:18 that is in the Damascus Document.26 Unlike other passages in the same document, the figure mentioned here is in the future.

The well is the Law, and those who dug it were the converts of Israel who went out of the land of Judah to sojourn in the land of Damascus....The Staff is the Interpreter of the Law of whom Isaiah said, He makes a tool for His work; and the nobles of the peoples are those who come to dig the well with the staffs with which the staff ordained that they should walk in all age of wickedness- and without them they shall find nothing- until he comes who shall teach righteousness at the end of days. (CD, VI)

Here, confusion arises because the titles ‘Interpreter of the Law’ and ‘Teacher of Righteousness’ are interchangeable.27 The Teacher must have a role in both the past and the future: he is a figure of the community’s past as its founder and writer of its law. But, the law he writes is pertinent to the eschaton, for by following this law as divinely interpreted by the Teacher, community members can bring about the endtime. This ‘dual’ nature of the Teacher, however, should not be overexaggerated. The Teacher himself is in no way a messianic figure. He will not return at the endtime, but he does anticipate the arrival of his eschatological counterpart.28 It should also be made clear in the initial stages of this inquiry what the Teacher of Righteousness is not: he is not John the Baptist, he is not Jesus Christ, and we cannot attribute a specific, personal name to him.29 But, the reader can paint a general portrait of the Teacher. Based on the way the Teacher interprets the Law in the Pesherim and the way he describes his experiences in the Hodayot, it seems that he is priest who writes divinely inspired interpretations of the Law. He is a figure in the past who prepares his community for the imminent end.

The Teacher as the Community’s Founder

The passage mentioned earlier offers several assumptions about the historical Teacher:

The well is the Law, and those who dug it were converts of Israel who went out of the land of Judah to sojourn in the land of Damascus...The Staff is the Interpreter of the Law of whom Isaiah said, He makes a tool for His work.... (CD, VI)

This offers possibilities for the identity of the Teacher by putting the Teacher in the context of his own Community. Here, it can be assumed that the founding of the Community has a great deal to do with the Law itself; the founders left Judah and went into Damascus for this "well," the Law. The metaphor of the well as the Law is powerful: the well offers essential water that cannot be found in Judah. Ironically, the water is found in the desert. Of further irony is that even though the converts themselves dig this well in Damascus, they are still not able to find the well, the Law. Only the Staff, the Interpreter of the Law, finds the water. We now have a full picture of the Teacher: the Teacher helps found a community that left Judah because the Law is not able to ‘exist’ there. The Teacher interprets the Law for the community, thus making it ‘drinkable.’ Here, the reader is offered a number of roles for the Teacher. In this section, I will build on this portrait. I will explain how the Teacher and the community see the Teacher as a priest and a prophet who experiences revelation in the mode of divine interpretation of Law.

 

[Jon Anon]

Teacher as Priest

The evidence clearly shows that the T of R is a priest: this is explicit in textual evidence and suggested contextually based on the T of R’s concerns. For instance, in the pesher on Ps 37:23-24 (4QpPs 1-10 iii 15):

The steps of the man are confirmed by the Lord and He delights in all his ways; though [he stumbles, he shall not fall, for the Lord shall support his hand] (23-4). Interpreted, this concerns the Priest, the Teacher [of Righteousness] whom God chose to stand before Him, for He established him to build for Himself the congregation of...

Here, the Teacher is a priest who establishes the Community based on the will of God: the priest is chosen by God. As a priest, the Teacher is concerned with purity and the proper ordering of the Temple. Moreover, he behaves as a priest when the reader sees him on a more personal level. This is evident throughout the Thanksgiving Hymns, many of which can be typed as introspective confessions in the style of the priest-prophet Jeremiah. It is also clear that the Teacher is a priest based on the way priests are regarded throughout the Dead Sea Scrolls. Members of the Council of the Community (the elect of Israel) are known as sons of Zadok, the Priests; the Law of Moses has been revealed to these men.30 God raises these priests and they will be called by name at the end of days.31 The priests act as God’s counsel, so that ‘the man who does not listen but acts arrogantly without obeying the priest who is posted there to minister before [God]...that man shall die.’32 Clearly, the priests are the authority in the community. It is then logical to assume that the Teacher, as the eminent authority figure who most probably wrote this passage, would also be a priest. Although this piece of information helps the reader better understand the Teacher, it begs the question: how is the Teacher different from the other priests in the community? The next section addresses just that point.

High Priest?

The question has also been raised as to whether the Teacher was the High Priest of the Temple before escaping into the desert. On this question, scholars point to historical reconstruction and passages discussing the Teacher’s struggle with the Wicked Priest . Indirect evidence here leads many to conclude that the Teacher is a High Priest and that the Scrolls are primarily concerned with restoring a legitimate priest. However, this evidence is not conclusive. Based on the text, it is more reasonable to say that the Teacher struggles with the High Priest over purity rules, rather than for a power position or restoration of a ‘legitimate’ High Priest. More likely, the T of R was at one time a prophet in the Temple who was not popular with Temple authority because of his views on contentious issues of the day; this authority most likely drove him into exile. The Teacher thus laments over the Temple because Temple authorities do not follow the purity laws as dictated by God through Moses.

By reconstructing a seven year gap in history, some attempt to show how the Teacher could have been the designated high priest until his exile. After the High Priest Alkimos dies in 159 B.C, no High Priest has been attested in literature of the period as having taken his place.33 Josephus,34 however, explains that an intersacerdotium lasted seven years until Jonathan usurped power in 152 B.C. Because a High Priest is necessary to lead Yom Kippur Services, someone must have filled the role of High Priest, at least temporarily.35 J. Murphy-O’Connor speculates that his man may have introduced unpopular reforms so that when his position is usurped by Jonathan in 152, he is driven into the desert where he goes only by the title ‘Teacher of Righteousness’ so as not to draw attention to his identity.36 Murphy-O’Connor argues that the pesherim promise a High Priest from the Davidic line because the Teacher criticizes Jonathan with being an ‘illegitimate’ priest. Scholars believing that the Teacher is the High Priest, then, wrongly argue that the major debate between the sect and Jerusalem is over the High Priesthood.

The argument explaining why the Teacher was at one point High Priest of the Temple is based on speculation after speculation; it is historically implausible and it misunderstands the Teacher’s message. A better understanding of the Teacher can be achieved through the Scrolls. For instance, 1 QpHab 11:4-8 describes how the Wicked Priest pursues the Teacher to his place of exile and then attempts to disrupt his Day of Atonement. Of note, this passage shows that the Wicked Priest and the Teacher observe different calendars. It is unlikely that the Teacher was the High Priest if he was observing his own cultic calendar, because he would not have switched calendars in Qumran and Jonathan would not have introduced a new calendar in 152 BC.37 Moreover, there is no evidence in the text even to support that the Wicked Priest is not legitimate. The Teacher, however, repeatedly shows concerns over other issues of impurity. Notably, the Teacher names three types of impurity that profane the land: fornication, riches, and profanation of the Temple. Included among those things that profane the Temple are menstrual blood, incestuous relationships, and a breach of the Mosaic Covenant.38 It seems that the legitimacy of the priesthood is not one of the contentious issues between the sect and Jerusalem. Rather, the issues in the sectarian community are purity as understood by Mosaic Law. More likely, the relationship between the T of R and the Wicked Priest is that of Temple prophet, with a large following, exiled by the High Priest because of his unpopular views. This charismatic figure blames the Wicked Priest for polluting the Temple through the priest’s inappropriate behavior. In 1 QpHab 12:1-10, the Wicked Priest plots the destruction of the poor, commits abominable deeds, and defiles the Temple. Rather than planning an insurrection or attempt to overthrow the High Priest, the T of R condemns the Wicked Priest to an eschatological punishment. In this manner, the T of R fits the model of a prophet acting outside of the court.

Teacher as Prophet

Although the Teacher does not share many of the traits that the ancient prophets hold in common, he is clearly a prophet; his visions can be understood as a correct understanding or ordering of words through divine revelation of scripture. In this sense, the Teacher sees more. On the most basic level, the Teacher is unlike the other prophets because he does not have visions that come in the form of dream-like scenes—he is not a seer with a ‘third eye.’ However, a deeper understanding of the meaning of prophecy shows that the Teacher is similar to the biblical prophets. Otto Betz compares the Teacher’s divine revelation of scripture to Daniel’s interpretation of dreams and concludes that pesher and apocalypse are quite similar.39 Moreover, Betz notes that both the Teacher and Daniel use the term raz to help describe the mystery of their interpretations. A clear parallel can be seen when Daniel interprets the writings on the wall at Belshazzar’s feast.40 Here, only Daniel is able to interpret the writings of a supernatural author. Moreover, he dissects the inscription so as to give an interpretation based on each word, similar to the Teacher’s manner of interpreting the prophets.

The Teacher is similar to the other prophets both in his manner of interpretation and the reasons behind his revelation. In the following passage, the Teacher is similar to the prophets in a number of ways:

And they, teachers of lies and seers of falsehood,
have schemed against me a devilish scheme,
to exchange the Law engraved on my hear to Thee
for the smooth things (which they speak) to Thy people.
And they withhold from the thirsty the drink of Knowledge, and assuage their thirst with vinegar...
(1 QH IV, 8-10)

Like the Staff, the Teacher is needed by those thirsty for knowledge. In this passage, we also see that the Teacher’s righteousness is not fully human; because the Law is engraved on his heart by God, his interpretation of the Law is a divine interpretation.41 God has given the Teacher the power to ‘interpret all the words of his servants the prophets’42 and then God feeds the Teacher His words by which to prophesy.43 Here, the relationship between God and the Teacher is inextricably close; like the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel, the Teacher cannot escape his righteousness, despite the distress it causes him.44 Moreover, the Teacher is similar to the other prophets in his impetus for making the interpretations. Like Amos, Ezekiel, and Daniel, the Teacher writes at a time of serious social turmoil. He attempts to solve this turmoil by urging a new world order.

The Teacher’s Role in the End of Days

When the question concerning the identity of the Teacher of Righteousness was initially asked, the following passage was used as an example:

The nobles of the peoples are those who come to dig the well with staffs with which the staff ordained that they should walk in all age of wickedness- and without them they shall find nothing- until he comes who shall teach righteousness at the end of days. (CD, VI)

The eschaton cannot take place until there is a proper ordering of Society in the World:45 namely, Jerusalem must be the religious capital of the world (Isaiah 7, 9, 11); Temple Worship must be correct; Israel must not be dominated by foreign oppressors; and society must have just ownership of land.46 Evidence throughout this paper seems to show that the Teacher of Righteousness extracts principles to regulate the Community as God aids him in interpreting scripture. Through these regulations, a proper order is established and the eschaton is realized.

But, the Teacher of Righteousness does not take part in the end of days himself. Instead, he prepares the way for the eschatological messiahs. He sets the standard for interpretation of scripture which the Priestly Messiah, who takes the Teacher’s place in interpretation of the Law, relies on at the end of days. The following passage will first help the reader understand the messianic expectation of the community:

The king is the congregation; and the bases of the statutes are the Books of the Prophets whose saying Israel despised. The star is the Interpreter of the Law who shall come to Damascus; as it is written, A star shall come forth out of Jacob and a scepter shall rise out of Israel (Num xxiv, 17). The scepter is the Prince of the whole congregation and when he comes he shall smite all the children of Seth (Num. xxiv, 17). [CD VII, 15-20]

Here, two messiahs emerge at the end of days: the Interpreter of the law, or Priest-Messiah, and the Prince of the whole congregation, the Davidic Messiah.47 These figures are also referred to throughout the DSS as the messiahs of Aaron and Israel. They are not equal counter-parts: the Priest-Messiah has precedence over the Davidic Messiah in all legal matters: ‘As they teach him so shall he judge’.48 This precedence can be seen in passages from the community rule; ‘When the table has been prepared for eating, and the new wine for drinking, the Priest shall be the first to stretch out his hand to bless the first-fruits of the bread and new wine.’49

Here, the Messiah of Aaron takes precedence because he is the eschatological high priest who teaches righteousness at the end of days.50 Although the Prince of the Congregation presides over the battle liturgy (1 QM XV, 4; XVI, 13; XVIII) and the eschatological banquet (1 QSa II, 12-21),51 the Messiah of Aaron is more important for understanding the Teacher of Righteousness because he is the one who continues the Teacher’s message. The arrival of the Messiahs Aaron and Israel marks the eschatological turning point; once they arrive, the Messiah of Aaron interprets the Law.52 His legacy in the community is the basic interpretation of the Law that functions at the end of days.

Is the Teacher an Apocalyptic Figure?

An analysis of all the literature that has ever been regarded as ‘apocalyptic’ was printed in Semeia 14 to show the extent and limits of the category ‘apocalyptic literature.’53 The following features were identified as common to apocalypses: a narrative framework that describes the revelation; the main means of revelation as visions and otherworldly visions; presence of an angel who interprets the vision; disclosure of a transcendent reality which is temporal (eschatological salvation); transcendent reality which is spatial (involves another, supernatural world).54 Based on these criteria, it would appear that the Teacher does not write apocalypses. That is, the T of R is not a visionary.55 Unlike many figures in apocalypses, he does not resort to using a pseudonym. Such a phenomenon can be explained based on the charismatic nature of the Teacher: the Teacher is able to rest on his own authority. Also, the Teacher bases his interpretations on older scripture which gives him greater authority. Rather than an apocalypse, it may be more accurate to say that the Qumran community is apocalyptic. According to John Collins in ‘The Apocalyptic Genre,’ Qumran fits the criteria for apocalypticism as the ideology of a movement: it shares the conceptual framework of the genre and endorses a world view in which supernatural revelation, the heavenly world, and eschatological judgement play essential parts.

Summary and Conclusion

Although we cannot say a great deal concerning the Teacher of Righteousness in the Dead Sea Scrolls, we are able to paint a general portrait of this Teacher. Based on references to the Teacher throughout the Scrolls, we learn that he is a priest and the interpreter of the Law. Moreover, by reading the pesherim, or interpretations of the Law, and the Hodayot actually written by the Teacher, it becomes clear that the Teacher is a prophet whose mode of revelation is divine interpretation of scripture. Within this mold, the Teacher has a role in both the Community’s past and future: he is a figure of the Community’s past as its founder, but his interpretation of the Law helps order society in anticipation for the two Messiahs and the eschaton.

 

[Jon Anon]

Qumran's two Messiahs

The Dead Sea scrolls were part of a library, a simple fact that is easy to ignore. But it means that there is not one, single messianology to be found in the texts from Qumran. Instead, we must accept that there are several theories about the Messiah. In the War scroll the Messiah is a prophet and takes no part in the war between the 'children of light' against the 'children of darkness' , although the Messiah can be identified with the 'prince of the community'. In other texts, the Messiah is a war leader. These are clearly conflicting messianologies. Several texts are considered to be written by members of the sect: the Damascus document for example, and the Messianic rule. In these texts, we may expect to find the sect's own messianology. The distinguishing characteristic is that the Qumranites expected the coming of not one, but two Messiahs. This must have been an attempt to make sense of such contradictory messianic images as we have encountered up till now.
The root of this idea may be the lines of Zechariah that we already studied above:

12 And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The Branch; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord:
13 Even he shall build the temple of the Lord; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. (notice there are 2 thrones one for Zerubbabel the king and one for Joshua the priest and counsel of peace between the king and the priest.

[Zechariah 6.12-13]​

This refers to prince Zerubbabel and the high-priest Joshua, but it is certain that it was understood in a messianic sense in the earlyHasmoneonhttp://www.livius.org/ha-hd/hasmonaeans/hasmonaeans.htm period. For example, the author of the Testaments of the twelve patriarchs expected a priestly and a kingly ruler:

My children, be obedient to Levi and to Judah. Do not exalt yourselves about these two tribes because from them will arise the Savior from God. For the Lord will raise up from Levi someone as a high-priest and from Judah someone as king. He will save all the gentiles and the tribe of Israel.

[Testament of Simeon 7.1-2]​

To me [=Judah], God has given the kingship, and to him [=Levi], the priesthood. And He has subjected the kingship to the priesthood. To me He gave earthly matters and to Levi heavenly matters. As heaven is superior to the earth, so is God's priesthood superior to the kingdom on earth.

[Testament of Judah 21.2-4a]​

The word 'Messiah' is not used, however. This step was taken by the sect at Qumran. Its members were looking forward to a 'Messiah of Israel' and a 'Messiah of David', who resemble the kingly and priestly descendants of Judah and Levi in the Testaments of the twelve patriarchs. The first text we must study is the Damascus document, which is, as so often at Qumran, a combination of texts. Its first part is a kind of theological history which proves that the sect is the true Israel and that God will reward the faithful; then follows a kind of law; and a brief penal code is added as an appendix. Our first quote does not mention the Messiah, but must without any doubt be interpreted in a messianic fashion, because it alludes to Balaams prophecy.

And the star is the seeker of the law, who came to Damascus; as it is written A star has journeyed out of Jacob and a scepter is risen out of Israel. The scepter is the Prince of the whole congregation, and at his coming he will break down all the sons of Seth.

[Damascus document 7.18-21]​

This is a very interesting text, because it not only mentions two Messiahs, but also shows that one of them is a military leader and the other a sage. Moreover, the expression 'seeker of the law' usually signifies the Teacher of righteousness (the founder of the sect); the fact that this title is now used to describe one of the Messiahs suggests that the members of the Qumran sect believed that he would one day return. We will discuss this idea. In this first quote, the word 'Messiah' is not used. But the Damascus document is sometimes more explicit.

[...] during the time of ungodliness until the appearance of the Messiahs of Aaron and Israel [...]

[Damascus document 12.23-13.1]​

This is the exact statement of the ordinances in which they walk until the Messiah of Aaron and Israel appears and expiates their iniquity.

[Damascus document 14.18-19]​

Those who heed Him are the poor of the flock; they will be saved at the time of visitation. But others will be delivered up to the sword at the coming of the Messiah of Aaron and Israel.

[Damascus document 19.9-11]​

(Similar ideas can be found in 19.33-20.1) At least one text adds a third actor in the messianic age: the prophet. He is mentioned in the Manual of discipline. This text is also interesting because it uses the plural 'Messiahs of Aaron and Israel' instead of the singular 'Messiah of Aaron and Israel' of the Damascus document: this proves that there were indeed two (or three) Messiahs.

And they shall not depart from any counsel of the law to walk in all the stubbornness of their heart, but they shall be governed by the first ordinances in which the members of the community began their instruction, until the coming of the prophet and the anointed ones of Aaron and Israel

[Manual of discipline 9.9b-11]​

Just like the kingly Messiah of Israel and the priestly Messiah of Aaron, the prophet is a messianic type, and it is possible to believe that the Qumran library also contained a messianology that assumed that there would be three Messiahs. After all, kings, priests and prophets were the only one that could be anointed . The most interesting text, however, can be found in the Messianic rule (also called Rule of the congregation). It describes the table arrangement during a sacred, messianic meal. The interesting point is the hierarchy between the two Messiahs.

This is the sitting of the men of renown called to the assembly for the council of the community when God will have begotten the Messiah among them. The Priest shall enter at the head of all the congregation of Israel, then are all the chiefs of the sons of Aaron, the priests, called to the assembly, men of renown. And they shall sit before him, each according to his rank.
Afterwards, the Messiah of Israel shall enter. The chiefs of the tribes of Israel shall sit before him, each according to his rank, according to their position in the camps and during their marches; then all the heads of family of the congregation, together with the wise men of the congregation, shall sit before them, each according to his rank.
And when they gather for the community table, or to drink wine, and arrange the community table and mix the wine to drink, let no man stretch out his hand over the first-fruits of bread and wine before the Priest. For it is he who shall bless the first-fruits of bread and wine, and shall first stretch out his hand over the bread. And afterwards, the Messiah of Israel shall stretch out his hands over the bread. And afterwards, all the congregation of the community shall bless, each according to his rank.

[1Q28a 2.11-21]​

 

[Jon Anon]

Testament of Levi
Chapter 1

Levi, the third son of Jacob and Leah. A mystic and dreamer of dreams, a prophet.

THE copy of the words of Levi, the things which he ordained unto his sons, according to all that they should do, and what things should befall them until the day of judgement.

2 He was sound in health when he called them to him; for it had been revealed to him that he should die.

3 And when they were gathered together he said to them:

4 I, Levi, was born in Haran, and I came with my father to Shechem.

5 And I was young, about twenty years of age, when, with Simeon, I wrought vengeance on Hamor for our sister Dinah.

6 And when I was feeding the flocks in Abel-Maul, the spirit of understand of the Lord came upon me, and I saw all men corrupting their way, and that unrighteousness

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had built for itself walls, and lawlessness sat upon towers.

7 And I was grieving for the race of the sons of men, and I prayed to the Lord that I might be saved.

8 Then there fell upon me a sleep, and I beheld a high mountain, and I was upon it.

9 And behold the heavens were opened, and an angel of God said to me, Levi, enter.

10 And I entered from the first heaven, and I saw there a great sea hanging.

11 And further I saw a second heaven far brighter and more brilliant, for there was a boundless light also therein,

12 And I said to the angel, Why is this so? And the angel said to me, Marvel not at this, for thou shalt see another heaven more brilliant and incomparable.

13 And when thou hast ascended thither, Thou shalt stand near the Lord, and shalt be His minister, and shalt, declare His mysteries to men, and shalt proclaim concerning Him that shall redeem Israel.

14 And by thee and Judah shall the Lord appear among men, saving every race of men.

15 And from the Lord's portion shall be thy life, and He shall be thy field and vineyard, and fruits, gold, and silver.

Testament of Levi
Chapter 3:

This shows the same thing that happens to Joshua in Zechariah:

13 And there again I saw a vision as the former, after we had spent there seventy days.

14 And I saw seven men in white raiment saying unto me: Arise, put on the robe of the priesthood, and the crown of righteousness, and the breastplate of understanding, and the garment of truth, and the late of faith, and the turban of the head, and the ephod of prophecy.

15 And they severally carried these things and put them on me, and said unto me: From henceforth become a priest of the Lord, thou and thy seed for ever.

16 And the first anointed me with holy oil, and gave to me the staff of judgement.

17 The second washed me with pure. water, and fed me with bread and wine even the most holy things, and clad me with a holy and glorious robe.

18 The third clothed me with a linen vestment like an ephod.

19 The fourth put round me a girdle like unto purple.

20 The fifth gave me a branch of rich olive.

21 The sixth placed a crown on my head.

22 The seventh placed on my head a diadem of priesthood, and filled my hands with incense, that I might serve as priest to the Lord God.

23 And they said to me: Levi, thy seed shall be divided into three offices, for a sign of the glory of the Lord who is to come.

24 And the first portion shall be great; yea, greater than it shall none be.

25 The second shall be in the priesthood.

26 And the third shall be called by a new name, because a king shall arise in Judah, and shall establish a new priesthood, after the fashion of the Gentiles.

27 And His presence is beloved, as a prophet of the Most High, of the seed of Abraham our father.


The two witness one a priest (Levi) and now lets see what the Testament of Judah says:

Testament of Judah
CHAP. IV.

Judah makes a vivid simile concerning tyranny and a dire prophecy concerning the morals of his listeners.

AND now, my children, I command you, love Levi, that ye may abide, and exalt not yourselves against him, lest ye be utterly destroyed.

2 For to me the Lord gave the kingdom, and to him the priesthood, and He set the kingdom beneath the priesthood.

3 To me He gave the things upon the earth; to him the things in the heavens.

4 As the heaven is higher than the earth, so is the priesthood of God higher than the earthly kingdom, unless it falls away through sin from the Lord and is dominated by the earthly kingdom.

5 For the angel of the Lord said unto me: The Lord chose him rather than thee, to draw near to Him, and to eat of His table and to offer Him the first-fruits of the choice things of the sons of Israel; but thou shalt be king of Jacob.

 

[Jon Anon]

Messiah ben Joseph and Messiah ben David

The purpose of these two individuals is to first messiah ben Joseph gathers the lost 10 tribes and then messiah ben David re-unites both houses of Isreal once again

Messiah ben Joseph is the suffering servant and a forerunner to and Messiah ben David (the conquering king.)
Many christians claim Jesus is both Messiah ben Joseph and Messiah ben David(first He came as Messiah ben Joseph(suffering servant) then He will return as Messiah ben David(conquering king.) Jesus wasn't from the tribe of Ephraim, which is what "ben Joseph" means and was a tribe in Northern Israel(Lost 10 tribes). Jesus was from the tribe of Judah. Jesus is the atonement for sin but the Messiah ben Joseph being talked about is one that gathers the lost 10 tribes and brings them to Jerusalem and is a warrior and is killed at the east gate in jerusalem by armilus(this never happened to Jesus)

Most people can only associate the word "messiah" with Jesus but "messiah" simply means "annointed one" A messiah is a savior or liberator of a people in the Jewish, Christian, Islamic or other religions.

In the Hebrew Bible a messiah (or mashiach) is a king or High Priest traditionally anointed with holy anointing oil and we know from Zechariah 4:14

the two witnesses of Revelation are the two "annointed ones" spoken of here in Zechariah

11 Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?

12 And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?

13 And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.

14 Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.

Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the life and no man comes to the father but by him John 14:6(there is no salvation but by Jesus Christ, only by believing by faith that Jesus died on the cross for the atonement for you sins are you saved)

This Chapter In Ezekiel shows Messiah ben David and Messiah ben Joseph(Joseph gathers and David unites the two sticks or houses of Israel back to one house)

Ezekeil 37 paraphrased:
1 God takes "son of man" to valley of dry bones

2.God tells "son of man" these dry bones are Israel

3.God tells "son of man to take "two sticks" one for Judah and one for Joseph and combine the two sticks which represent two houses of Israel that separated during the time of solomon.

4.God will gather the children of Israel from among the heathen and bring them into their own land

5.God will make them one nation in the land upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all: and they shall be no more two nations,neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all(This has to be an endtime event because the Northern kingdom, lost 10 tribes hasn't came back yet.)

6.And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes,
and do them.

7.And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers have dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, even they, and their children, and their children's children for ever: and my servant David shall be their prince for ever.(How long is forever?)

Paraphrase of what messiah ben Joseph does: Regathers the lost 10 tribes and rebuilds the temple and is killed at the east gate by armilus

Paraphrase of what messiah ben David does: resurrects messiah ben joseph, Re-unites the two houses Of Israel (Northern kingdom with the southern kingdom), and becomes the prince as mentioned in Ezekiel 37:7 This man will feed the people during the spiritual famine that will be in the land: Amos 8:11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD...just as Joseph provided physical food for the famine in Egypt this man will provide spiritual food during this spiritual famine and because he can interpret the plan he will be awarded with being 2nd in command under Jesus.

What is the purpose of Mashiach? The Mashiachis an individual who is responsible for, and who, either overtly, or covertly, spearheads a collective process of tikkun. Tikkunis perhaps the single most important concept in all of Judaism The word tikkunmeans ‘rectification’ or ‘mending.’ In the Kabbalah, tikkunalso refers to a process of ‘elevation’ and ‘transformation.’ Whereas thesecond definition implies taking something that is already complete into a more refined state, the first definition implies that something has broken, or become torn, and the immediate goal is only to return it to its original state of completion.These are the processes, or modes, of tikkun.The one who performs that act of restoration is said to be its redeemer (goel ),which is another quality and name for messiah Therefore, the Messiah is simply the one who is responsible for the restoration—the tikkun—and the redemption of creation.”

Origin and Sources of the messiah ben Joseph Tradition

Scholars and theologians have been unsuccessful in determining the origin of the Messiah ben joseph tradition. Without knowing where or from whom the tradition originated, one can only make a vain attempt to explain the ambiguities relating to the tradition. Coming to a full understanding of the MBJ tradition is difficult considering the fact that every rabbi and scholar have expressed different ideas or theories surrounding it. I have included a brief summary of the earliest known sources of the MBJ tradition which may be helpful. The Messiah ben joseph traditions are found in at least four sources: (1) The Talmud, which is a collection of rabbinical discussions pertaining to Jewish law, custom, and history. The discussions of the rabbis were kept orally for several centuries and were eventually recorded around AD 200.[3] (2) The Targumim, which are Aramaic translations of the Hebrew Bible compiled in Babylon or Israel during the Second Temple Period (537–20 BC). (3) Kabbalistic writings, which contain Jewish mystical traditions regarding the creation of the earth and other ideas concerning God and spirituality. (4) The apocryphal and pseudepigraphical writings, which are religious and extrabiblical texts resembling books of scripture. These texts were not included with the other canonical books and date from around 300 BC to AD 100.

According to the Jewish Encyclopedia, Armilus is "a king who will arise at the end of time against the Messiah ben joseph, and will be conquered by him after having brought much distress upon Israel", similar to Gog. He is spoken of in both Midrash Vayosha and Sefer Zerubbabel, in which he defeats the Messiah ben Joseph. The Messiah ben David comes and raises messiah ben joseph from the dead and the ministry of the two witnesses(messiah ben joseph, messiah ben david) shortly begins

 

[Interplanner]

are you saying something about all this? do you realize it is 1st century Judaism trying to figure out its past and destiny apart from the apostles, which God raised up to take them in a different direction?

 

[Interplanner]

do you believe the NT is the authoritative interp of the OT?

 

[Jon Anon]

I believe the Jews could not see Jesus as the Messiah because they saw the 2 witnesses messiah ben joseph and messiah ben david but didn't realize Jesus was both King and Priest through the order of melchelzedek because he had no mother and no father as it says in hebrews because he was before everything and chose to be born of Mary. Nobody can be saved without Jesus

The Christians have just the opposite problem....they can't see the two witnesses are in the volume of the book and will be used to join the two houses back together and give glory to Jesus just as Jesus gave glory to the Father

When the Jews realize after the mid trib that the anti-christ is not the one they were looking for and realize it was the 2 that are building the spiritual temple and not the physical temple....then those 2 witnesses messiah ben joseph and messiah ben david will explain how Jesus is the Messiah and then all of Israel will be joined back together as in the time of David before the split of the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom and all of Israel will be saved as it says in scripture. They won't beleive until they see messiah ben joseph gather the lost 10 tribes and is killed in battle against armilus and is raised from the dead by messiah ben david 40 days later

 

[Jon Anon]

.

 

[Manasseh_]

When the Jews realize after the mid trib that the anti-christ is not the one they were looking for and realize it was the 2 that are building the spiritual temple and not the physical temple....then those 2 witnesses messiah ben joseph and messiah ben david will explain how Jesus is the Messiah and then all of Israel will be joined back together as in the time of David before the split of the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom and all of Israel will be saved as it says in scripture. They won't beleive until they see messiah ben joseph gather the lost 10 tribes and is killed in battle against armilus and is raised from the dead by messiah ben david 40 days later

The jews won't have to realize anything after mid trib...........

Christ revealed to his apostles that Jerusalem would be surrounded by armies of nations Luke 21(gentiles) he also revealed this to John in Revelation 11..........then about 30 days later the abomination of desolation would be placed which begins the great tribulation........finally according to other biblical prophecies Christ will return and fight against those nations that came up against Jerusalem and he will be victorious and begin his rule on earth

it appears that whatever pseudepigraphal writings you're relying on directly contradict God's written word and he is the only one that can actually declare the end

you'd do well putting aside these flawed uninspired works of misinformation and believe the truth, while there's still time to do so

 

[Jon Anon]

 

[Jon Anon]

 

[wordsoflife]

What a load of flapdoodle.

 

[Jon Anon]

First notice the bible starts with:

1. Animal Sacrifice

Then notice Gods Son came to be the sacrifice:

2. Gods Son(Jesus) sacrifice
Without the shedding of blood their is no remission of sin

Animal sacrifice was to atone for breaking the law and had to be done continually

Gods Son(Jesus) sacrifice was to be our atonement once and for all to those who believe through faith.

So now we have 2 types of sacrifice Animal and God

There is one more sacrifice to come and that is a man sacrifice so you have completion 1. Animal 2. God 3. Man

Hebrews shows us that Jesus sprang from Judah and that mentions nothing of the priesthood so Jesus used the melchelzedek preisthood which is a higher priesthood and is our KING and PRIEST in Heaven:

2 things are promised to be eternal:

1.The kingship of David

2. The priesthood of the levites

which is from 2 different tribes(Judah kingship Levi priesthood).

If this priesthood and kingship was to be combined in one person Jesus would have called this priesthood that needs filled the melchelzedek priesthood but he doesn't he calls it the levitical priesthood.

Jeremiah 33:

7 For thus saith the Lord; David shall never want a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel;

18 Neither shall the priests the Levites want a man before me to offer burnt offerings, and to kindle meat offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.


When the 2 witnesses come they will fill these 2 postions kingship and priesthood and the will be the testators of the testament of the levitical priesthood and the davidic kingship

In order to be the testator of a testament you have to die thus why they both die and are risen after 3 and a half days like their father Jesus because one is representing Jesus' Priest side and the other is representing Jesus' King side

The levitical priesthood and the davidic kingship on earth is representing the higher heirarchy of Jesus in Heaven because again this is a levitical preisthood(priest office) and davidical kingship(king office) and Jesus is the melchelzedek priesthood(BOTH KING AND PRIEST)

Is the priest going to be continually sacrificing animals?
I don't think so in my opinion because you have:

1. The animal sacrifice in the beginning

2. You have GODs Son(Jesus) one time sacrifice(because Jesus was spotless) in the middle

:

3. You have the Man sacrifice in the end all shedding blood for the remission of sin. I believe also that when the two witnesses die as all testators of a testament have to do they will be seen as spotless because of what Jesus did on the cross and this will be a one time sacrifice physically by the 2 witnesses though spiritually they will always offer to God what is Gods to be offered.

These 2 witnesses after 3 and a half days will be risen and will forever one be levitical priest and the other the davidic king and JESUS KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS IS AND WILL BE MELCHELZEDEK PRIEST AND KING

Hebrews 7:
11 If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron?

12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.

13 For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar.

14 For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood.

15 And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest,

16 Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.

17 For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.(who is? Jesus is KING AND PRIEST AND ONLY JESUS THE OTHER AVAILABLE POSITION IS LEVITICAL NOT MELCHELZEDEK)

18 For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof.

19 For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God.

20 And inasmuch as not without an oath he was made priest:

21 (For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec

22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament.

23 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death:

24 But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood.

25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.

26 For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;

27 Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.

28 For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore.







Hebrews 8

King James Version (KJV)

8 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;

2 A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.

3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer.

4 For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:

5 Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.

6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.

7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.

8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:

9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.

10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:

11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.

12 For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more.

13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away.




Hebrews 9

King James Version (KJV)

9 Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary.

2 For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary.

3 And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;

4 Which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant;

5 And over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercyseat; of which we cannot now speak particularly.

6 Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God.

7 But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:

8 The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle was yet standing:

9 Which was a figure for the time then present, in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience;

10 Which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed on them until the time of reformation.

11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.

16 For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.

17 For a testament is of force after men are dead: otherwise it is of no strength at all while the testator liveth.

18 Whereupon neither the first testament was dedicated without blood.

19 For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,

20 Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you.

21 Moreover he sprinkled with blood both the tabernacle, and all the vessels of the ministry.

22 And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

23 It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these.

24 For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:

25 Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;

26 For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.

27 And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:

28 So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

 

[wordsoflife]

What a load of bunkum.

 

[TasManOfGod]

T of R ----> Holy Spirit

 

[mog144]

To all in concern of this thread... the reason why the OP seems bogus is because it's of a non-Protestant nature while those who oppose are of the Protestant view.

The truth is that the Protestant world is in for a Rude Awakening when they discover how wrong they are. On the other hand, there are many flaws even in the OP because the entire world is presently 'confused'.

The big confusion is over 'Identity' of every single soul and God, as the world is void of Law, Mercy and the Knowledge of God [Hos 4:1].

I would recommend to look here on CF for this man described in the OP. The time is at hand and this man is among us but those who are perishing will not be able to recognize or Identify Him. This man described in the OP is the Son of Man and He is rejected by the wicked spiritual Babylonians (Protestant mindset).

The description of what the man brings (Everlasting Gospel) and what he does (changes & saves the world) is quite accurate, and nobody can better tell of this man's experience than the man himself, and you have the opportunity to meet him yourselves, at your appointed time.

God bless all hearers.

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[Interplanner]

your hands are full trying to figure out the historic text. don't try to figure out the future at the same time.

 

[mog144]

T of R ----> Holy Spirit

And...

Holy Spirit = Truth of WORD that is spoken from mouth becomes Holy Spirit.
Spirit = pneu·ma
/ˈn(y)o͞omə/
Noun
(in Stoic thought) The vital spirit, soul, or creative force of a person.

The Holy Spirit is 'Voice' and is Truth that is rightly interpreted. The Holy Spirit lives on in human hosts if they have the Truth, and it is spread from mouth to ear, and is repeated among believers. The Holy Spirit dwells within the believer, it comes from the Father Who is this Spirit.

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