c. 3rd century BCE – 1st century CE·Second Temple·Artifact

The Dead Sea Scrolls

Scripture: Isaiah; Psalms; Deuteronomy

Columns of Hebrew text on the Great Isaiah Scroll from Qumran · Photo: Ardon Bar Hama · Public domain · Source

The claim

Was the Hebrew Bible copied faithfully over the centuries, or did it change significantly?

What archaeology found

Manuscripts found from 1946/47 onward in eleven caves near , first by Bedouin shepherds. They include portions of every book of the Hebrew Bible except Esther. The Great Isaiah Scroll is about 1,000 years older than the medieval manuscripts the standard Hebrew text was based on. Many are in the Israel Museum's Shrine of the Book.

Where it was found

Loading map…

QumranView on OpenStreetMap

Sources

James VanderKam and Peter Flint, The Meaning of the Dead Sea Scrolls, HarperSanFrancisco (2002)

Verdict history

Nov 10, 2026SupportedInitial verdict.