"The Guide and The Seducer: The Dualism of 4QVisions of 'Amram."

Abstract

<p><em>4QVisions of ᶜAmram^a-g ar</em> (4Q543-4Q549) is an Aramaic Jewish text found at Qumran, and dates to the third to second centuries BCE. This thesis explores the ways in which the text exhibits dualism. The history and origins of the text are presented, as well as a brief discussion of the theory and definitions of dualism. It is shown that <em>4QAmram</em> represents a form of Jewish dualism. There can be little doubt that <em>4QAmram</em> contains dualistic teachings, and that it is linked to the Hebrew Bible, but it has drastically altered the biblical material to design a dualism far and beyond that of the Torah sources. The text has an emphasis on ethical and cosmic battles between good and evil, expressed through the use of both the Two Paths and the Two Angels motifs. The dualism found in several other Second Temple documents is then discussed, in relation to the place which <em>4QAmram</em> may have held at Qumran. It is concluded that documents like <em>4QAmram</em> became important at Qumran because dualism was a vital part of Qumranic religious life. <em>4QAmram</em> indicates that dualism was far from unique to Qumran, and was, in fact, possibly in existence in many groups of Judaism, even in pre-Qumranic times.</p>