november 2000 Dead Sea Scrolls hidden treasures revealed Sublime depravity • An Olympian perspective • A time to die Are you ready to develop as Do you know young Christian a Christian leader? leaders who you want to sup- 21C is a leadership development conference which will encourage young Christians in leadership, and inspire and equip them for gospel ministry. It is aimed at young lead- ers (aged 18-28) in the Presbyterian church, not only those interested in full-time Get more information or an application form at www.go.to/21c or email us at [email protected] or contact John McClean on (02) 6342 1467 PO Box 296 Cowra NSW 2794 SCHOOL OF CHRISTIAN STUDIES THEOLOGY Advanced Diploma/Diploma/Certificate IV ■ Quality evangelical theological education ■ Lecturers with broad ministry experience ■ ACT Accredited, Austudy available, Mature Age entry ■ Train for ministry or study for interest at ROBERT MENZIES COLLEGE MACQUARIE UNIVERSITY, NORTH RYDE Contact us for a Prospectus Ph: (02) 9936 6020 Fax: (02) 9936 6032 Email: [email protected] November 2000 No. 521 EDITORIAL OLYMPICS Evidence for the defence . 4 An Olympian view . 22 An event is coming that will make Sydney’s success insignificant, DEAD SEA SCROLLS reports John Woods. The dawn of Christianity . 5 The scrolls enrich our context for the early church, reports Bernard PARENTING Secombe. Scrolls and Scripture. 7 The disillusioned generation. 23 John Davies talks to Peter Hastie about the scrolls and the Bible. Ecclesiastes speaks as cogently today as ever, sugests Marion Andrews. Conspiracy theory. 9 Adrian Schepl finds little to fear in Barbara Thiering’s bizarre challenge to orthodoxy. BOOKS DEVOTION Is the New Testament History?. 24 Deeply affected . 11 Jesus and the Logic of History . 24 Jonathan Edwards on the understanding that draws us closer to God. The Doctrine of Repentance. 24 MISSIONS Genesis for Today . 24 Land of the Rising Son . 12 Robert Benn has encouraging news from Japan. LETTERS . .25 NEWS Home Front . 13 PRAYER . .26 Across Australia . 14 TOUGH QUESTIONS World News. 15 Baptised in the Spirit?. 27 CULTURE WATCH Jason Summers looks again at a vexed question. Movie Watch: High Fidelity . 17 ESSAY ART A time to die . 28 Sublime depravity. 18 On 22 November 1963 three famous men appeared before the heav- Art and the Christian: Michael Jensen explores the issues. enly throne. Peter Barnes comments. THE AUSTRALIAN PRESBYTERIAN (ABN 81 498 399 755): The national magazine of the Presbyterian Church of Australia. Acting editor-in-chief: Robert Benn. Editorial committee: Robert Benn (NSW), Stuart Bonnington (WA), Peter Hastie (NSW), Guido Kettniss (Queensland), Barney Zwartz (Victoria). Graphic Design: Sandra Joynt for A&J Moody. Advertising and subscription inquiries: Walter Bruining, PO Box 375, Kilsyth 3137; Phone: (03) 9723 9684. Subscription: $32 a year + GST; bulk (minimum of five copies to one address) $29 each + GST. Overseas: $A43. Office: PO Box 375, Kilsyth 3137. Phone: (03) 9723 9684. Fax: (03) 9723 9685. Email: [email protected] Printed: Newsprinters Pty Ltd, Melbourne Road, Shepparton 3060. Published: Monthly except January by the National Journal Committee of the Presbyterian Church of Australia; Convener Robert Benn. Opinions expressed are those of the contributor and not necessarily those of the PCA, the editor or the committee. Acceptance of advertising does not imply endorsement. Contributions: Submitted articles are welcome. The deadline is the first of the previous month. Donations are always welcome. Print Post approved 34918100384. www.presbyterian.org.au AUSTRALIAN PRESBYTERIAN • 3 EDITORIAL Evidence for the defence The Dead Sea Scrolls are a good friend to historic Christianity. n 1947, a young Bedouin shepherd, Until 1947, the oldest complete Hebrew of canonical books. This suggests that the Muhammed ed Dhib, was playing near manuscript of the Old Testament was the Essenes distinguished in their minds the top of some cliffs that surrounded text of Codex Leningradensis, dated to between canonical and non-canonical texts. the Dead Sea. He picked up a stone 1008. This text was made 1400 years after Only the canonical texts seem to have war- Iand threw it into a small hole in the cliff the last book of the Old Testament had ranted commentaries. This lends support face. There was a sharp crack: the sound of been written. This was the text used by the for the Protestant view of the canon. broken pottery. Little did he realise that he King James translators – the Textus As far as the New Testament is con- had stumbled upon a treasure trove of Receptus. It was regarded as the authorita- cerned, the Dead Sea Scrolls show that the ancient documents that had lain undis- tive Masoretic Hebrew text. apostolic proclamation of Jesus as the turbed for nearly 2000 years. He had found Obviously that manuscript was a copy divine Messiah was consistent with some of the Dead Sea Scrolls. of a copy of a copy etc. This raised a press- the messianic expectation of the period. The Dead Sea Scrolls originally ing question: Could scholars be sure that Several Qumran documents, 4Q252, belonged to a religious community called the text in Codex Leningradensis was 4Q246, and 4Q521 speak of the Messiah the Essenes, who lived at Qumran. They identical to the original text, as given by being of the line of David, having the titles were a Jewish ascetic group who lived pri- God, to the Bible writers? What assurance “Son of God” and “Son of the Most High” marily in three locations: Qumran at the could they have that the Bible text today is (as in Luke 1:32-35), as well as having enor- Dead Sea, the Essene Quarter of pure? mous powers such as raising the dead. Jerusalem (Mt Zion), and an area near After carefully comparing the Biblical Damascus. texts, the scholars were amazed to discover According to Albright, the Qumran evi- Archaeologists have established a num- that, apart from a tiny number of spelling dence supports the view that the concepts, ber of important points about the Essene variations, there were no significant differ- terminology and mindset of the Gospels community. Through the discovery of ences between the Dead Sea Scrolls and the are consistent with a Palestinian setting in coins on the sites, it appears that the com- Masoretic Text. Albright, himself a former the early first century. In other words, the munity began in the reign of John liberal scholar, declared: “The Dead Sea historical data of the New Testament are Hyrcanus (134-104BC) and carried on Scrolls prove conclusively that we must accurate and the documents are not an until about AD 70 when it was destroyed treat the consonantal text of the Hebrew invention of the church of the second cen- by the Roman army. Bible with the utmost respect and that the tury as was formerly believed by radical Archaeologists believe that when the free emending of difficult passages in which Bible critics. Roman legions advanced towards Qumran, modern critical scholars have indulged can- As Millar Burrows, a liberal biblical the inhabitants hid their precious docu- not be tolerated any longer.” scholar, admits: “If one will go through ments in the caves nearby, hoping to What does all this show? It demon- any of the historic statements of the retrieve them later. But they never did. The strates that the Jews throughout their his- Christian faith he will find nothing that community was slaughtered. There is evi- tory have been faithful in copying the has been or can be disproved by the Dead dence that some people returned to the site Biblical manuscripts with remarkably few Sea Scrolls”. later, around 130-135, but the details are errors. The text we have today faithfully Peter Hastie sketchy. represents the original autographs. As the ___________________________________ Since 1947, further discoveries of docu- Jewish historian, Josephus said: “For, ments have been made in the Dead Sea although such long ages have now passed, From the Convener region. William F Albright, the famous no one has ventured either to add, or to leader of the American School of Oriental remove, or to alter a syllable”. In art, as within the Research, wrote shortly afterwards: “What Further, the Dead Sea Scrolls also con- humans who create an absolutely incredible find! … this is the tribute to our knowledge of the canon of it, there is potential greatest manuscript discovery of modern the Old Testament. The canon represents for both great times.” the collection of books which believers beauty and vileness. recognise as inspired by God, and given to Christians, who The significance of the Dead Sea Scrolls them as Scripture. Jews and Protestants know that artists are stems from their age. Dr W F Libby of the accept the 39 books of the Old Testament fallen, can see truly art’s potential and its University of Chicago, conducted Carbon as inspired. However, Roman Catholics limits, suggests Michael Jensen. Inklings of 14 dating tests on the scrolls in 1950. This also accept the collection of books known God are present in the human arts – the is a reliable form of scientific dating when as the Apocrypha as part of the Bible. Christian has been given the eyes of faith to applied to uncontaminated material several Interestingly, every book in the Old see them. Jensen’s profound essay begins thousand years old. Testament, with the exception of Esther, on page 19. Dr Libby’s results indicated an age of has been found at Qumran. While many 1917 years for a scroll in Cave 1 with a 200 apocryphal books have been found too, it is Robert Benn, year (10%) variant, which left the date important to note that the only commen- Convener somewhere between 167BC and AD233.