Fun Facts about the Dead Sea and the Dead Sea Scrolls

Not all history is as dry as desert dust. Some is sprinkled with murder, mystery and intrigue. Now, I’m not saying the story of the Dead Sea Scrolls reads like a James Bond novel, but if written correctly, it’s not far off the mark. And if you’re looking for a romp through history with a scriptural bent, you’ve simply got to tune in to the story of the Scrolls.

Sooo . . . can they be interesting?

Absolutely. But don’t trust me; read the following fun fact and decide for yourself:

FUN FACT FIVE

If not the Essenes, then who were the keepers of the scrolls? Actually, it doesn’t really matter. The Dead Sea Scrolls describe the keepers of the scrolls as the “Sons of Light.” Such metaphorical language is typical of Semitic languages, both then and now. By comparison, we find the Bible describing believers as “sons of the king” (Matt. 17:25–26) or “God’s sons” (Matt. 7:9 and Heb 12:5), God’s elect as “sons of Abraham” (Luke 19:9), and students as “sons of the Pharisees” (Matt. 12:27, Acts 23:60). Elsewhere in the Bible, we find “sons of the kingdom” (Matt. 8:12), “sons of peace” (Luke. 10:6), “sons of this world” (Luke 16:8), and “sons of thunder” (Mark 3:17). In modern Semitic language, many of us would be “Sons of the rhythm method,” or “Daughters of ‘Trust me.’” Now, I haven’t verified this with my parents, but it wouldn’t surprise me one bit if I turned out to be a son of “nothing-good-to-watch-on-TV-tonight. Gee, hon, what-shall-we-do-to-pass-the-time?” But I digress. The point is that the keepers of the scrolls were known as the Sons of Light, and most scholars presume these “Sons of Light” were Essene Jews.