Habakkuk Commentary

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The Habakkuk Commentary, also called Pesher Habakkuk or 1QpHab, is one of the Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in 1947 and published in 1951. Because it was found early and kept well, it has been studied a lot.

The scroll is about 141 cm long and has thirteen columns of Herodian script on two pieces of leather sewn with linen. Many of the lowest lines are missing, column 1 is almost lost, and there is a hole in column 2. Chapter 3 of Habakkuk is missing on purpose, not because of age. The last column is mostly blank, showing the pesher was complete. Still, the scroll is mostly readable, and editors have filled in the gaps.

The pesher connects people to the scroll by using titles rather than names. The leader to follow is called the Teacher of Righteousness, a figure found in other Dead Sea Scrolls. The Teacher is said to have spoken directly with God and to have understood the true meaning of the scriptures. The Teacher’s real identity is unknown; some scholars, like Robert Eisenman, have suggested James the Just.

Two main opponents appear: the Wicked Priest and the Man of the Lie. The Wicked Priest is a false religious leader who was once trusted by the Teacher. He is described as captured and tortured by his enemies. His exact identity is uncertain, and many Hasmonean priests have been proposed as possibilities, or perhaps more than one person.

The Man of the Lie tries to discredit the Teacher and the Torah. His true name is also unclear, though Eisenman has suggested Paul the Apostle. The text also mentions a House of Absalom, accused of doing nothing while the Man of the Lie worked against the Teacher. Likely this refers to a few historical figures, probably a Sadducean Absalom related to Aristobulus II.

The author of the pesher ends with a message similar to Habakkuk’s: keep faith, and the community will not be crushed by the wicked. God will empower the faithful to judge their enemies.

The quoted Habakkuk text itself is very close to the Masoretic Text, the standard Hebrew Bible copy from around the 11th century AD. The differences are mainly word order, small grammar changes, added or missing conjunctions, and spelling tweaks—minor changes that don’t alter the meaning.