Rome Devours the Nations
Column 3
1and they will advance over the plain, to destroy and pillage the cities of the country. 2For this is what he has said: To take possession of dwellings not theirs. It is dreadful3and terrible; his judgment and his exaltation arise from himself (Habakkuk 1:6–7). 4Its interpretation concerns the Kittim, the fear and dread of whom are on all 5…
In the sectarian scrolls from Qumran (the Dead Sea Scrolls), the term Kittim (derived from a place-name for an Aegean island, possibly Cyprus) serves as a code word for Romans. Biblical prophecies concerning earlier conquerors of Israel such as the Babylonians or the Assyrians were decoded in the sect’s pesher (commentary) literature as referring to oppression by the Kittim, or Romans. This passage is a commentary on Habakkuk 1, originally directed against the Babylonians.
Related Guide
Real and Imagined "Others" in Ancient Jewish Literature
You may also like
Jerusalem Delivered to the Romans
Pesher Nahum to Nahum 2:12
The End of Roman Rule
War Scroll 1:1–7