Exegesis at Qumran: 4QFlorilegium in Its Jewish Context

This is a comprehensive study of 4QFlorilegium, a much neglected text from Qumran containing a variety of scriptural passages together with Qumran interpretations of them. An exact understanding of 4QFlorilegium, its manner of composition and its purpose, can only be gained through examination of early Jewish exegetical techniques, regarded by the ancient scribes as authoritative hermeneutical keys to scripture. Such techniques are here analysed and applied to the process of interpretation in the Florilegium. One result of the present study is a fresh assessment of the debate over the meaning of midrash and pesher as terms for interpretation. Some suggestions are also made about how the liturgical life of the Qumran community may have influenced the way its members interpreted scripture. This innovative study incorporates the Hebrew text of an English translation of the manuscript of 4QFlorilegium.