What do the Dead Sea Scrolls contain?
A persecuted sect of Jews, possibly the Essenes, hid the Dead Sea Scrolls in the caves near the settlement of Qumran in about A.D. 70. They contain biblical and non-biblical religious and wisdom texts that are 1000 years older than any other known copies of the Old Testament.HistoryThe Dead Sea Scrolls lay hidden in their caves for as long as 2000 years before shepherds found the first ones in 1947. Wary of possible new readings of established biblical texts, the authorities have been reluctant to allow free study of the materials.The ScrollsMost of the scrolls deteriorated seriously during their time in the caves, making some of the texts difficult to identify. Scholars believe they have collected fragments from 800 to 900 separate scrolls.Biblical ManuscriptsSome of the scrolls make up the oldest group of biblical texts ever found. They contain parts of every book of the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible except Esther. Scholars have identified multiple copies of the books of Deuteronomy,
