Sources: Josephus, War 2.8.2–13; Philo, Every Good Man is Free 75–91; Pliny the Elder, Natural History 5.17; Dead Sea Scrolls (Community Rule/1QS, Damascus Document/CD, War Scroll/1QM, Thanksgiving Hymns/1QH).

The Yahad (“Community”) or Bnei Or (“Sons of Light”) — identified by most scholars with the Essenes — were a separatist priestly movement who withdrew from Jerusalem’s corrupted Temple establishment to establish a pure covenant community, possibly at Qumran by the Dead Sea. Their theology: (1) Dualistic cosmology: humanity is divided into Sons of Light and Sons of Darkness, governed by the Prince of Light (identified with the Angel of Truth/Michael) and the Angel of Darkness (Belial) — a dualism with Zoroastrian parallels that profoundly influenced later Jewish and Christian apocalypticism; (2) Predestinarian theology: God has predestined who belongs to each lot (1QS 3:15–17) — anticipating Calvinist double predestination; (3) The Teacher of Righteousness: a founding prophetic figure who received true interpretation of the Torah; (4) Pesher interpretation: biblical prophecies are decoded as referring to the community’s own history; (5) Solar calendar: the Essenes used a 364-day solar calendar vs the Pharisees’ lunar calendar, meaning they celebrated Passover and other feasts on different days. The Scrolls transformed our understanding of Second Temple Judaism’s diversity and the context of John the Baptist and early Christianity.