The Dead Sea Scrolls are known for containing what?

• A. The Dead Sea library
• B. The earliest New Testament writings
• C. A complete Bible in Aramaic
• D. The oldest copy of any Old Testament books

Answer: (D)

The main idea here is that the Dead Sea Scrolls preserve the oldest surviving copies of many Hebrew Bible texts, dating from roughly the 3rd century BCE to the 1st century CE. Because these manuscripts are so old, they reveal earlier forms of biblical books and, in some cases, give us near-complete texts that predate later copies. This is why they are known for containing the oldest copies of Old Testament books. They aren’t a complete Bible in Aramaic, nor do they contain the earliest New Testament writings, and they aren’t best described as a single “Dead Sea library”—they are a collection of biblical and other Jewish writings from the Second Temple period.