Qumran Covenant Ceremony Blessings and Curses

Rule of the Community 2:1–10

2nd Century BCE–1st Century CE

¹And the priests shall bless all ²the men of the lot of God who walk perfectly in all his ways, saying: “May he bless you with all ³good, and preserve you from all evil! May he lighten your heart with life-giving wisdom and grant you eternal knowledge! ⁴May he raise his merciful face toward you for everlasting peace!” And the Levites shall curse…

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About Qumran Covenant Ceremony Blessings and Curses

The Community Rule (Serekh Hayaḥad), one of the Dead Sea Scrolls from Qumran, begins with a description of the covenant ceremony though which new members enter the yaḥad (the community’s name for itself). The community’s theology is highly dualistic: the lot of God, the “sons of light,” are the members of the community; their enemies are the lot of Belial, the “sons of darkness.” The ceremony ends with the priests blessing the community and the Levites cursing their enemies. The blessing offered here expands on the biblical priestly blessing in Numbers 6:24–26. The Levitical curses are the obverse of this blessing. See also “The Rule of the Community.”

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Qumran Covenant Ceremony Blessings and Curses

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Qumran Covenant Ceremony Blessings and Curses

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