The Teacher of Righteousness

(Revised 9-9-2009)

Before Jesus of Nazareth was born, there were writings speaking of a Teacher of Righteousness. Those writings are known as the Dead Sea Scrolls, which were discovered between 1947 and 1956 in caves around Qumran.

Some of the scrolls may have been written a generation before Jesus’s generation, and the last ones may have been written about 70 years after his death. They were written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. And most scholars conclude they were written by members of a Jewish sect called Essenes.

The Teacher of Righteousness was an Essene, and as I’ve discussed on the page titled The Book of Wisdom, he may have been a wise Jewish Sage called Hillel the Elder. He is important, because Mary and Joseph, the mother and father of Jesus of Nazareth, were probably Essenes and very familiar with Hillel’s teachings, which is why there are many similarities between Hillel’s teachings and the actual teachings of Jesus.

I also find it very interesting that some documents from the Dead Sea Scrolls portray the Teacher of Righteousness as being in conflict with a man referred to as the "Wicked Priest," and there are different theories about who these two feuding leaders were.

One theory suggests that the Teacher of Righteousness was a High Priest of the Sadducees who was opposed by Jonathan Maccabee, as mentioned in the Books of Maccabees. Another theory suggests that Hillel the Elder was the Teacher of Righteousness, who was opposed by Shammai, as mentioned in the Jerusalem Talmud (and I agree with this theory). But yet another theory is that the Teacher of Righteousness was James the Just (a son of Joseph and Mary and a brother of Jesus), who was opposed by Paul of Tarsus, as mentioned in the Book of Acts. But, even though the conflict between James and Paul was very significant and had dire consequences (as I discussed on the page titled Christians Divided), it is not likely that Jesus's brother James was the Teacher of Righteousness referred to in some of the Dead Sea Scrolls. It is far more likely that Hillel the Elder was the Teacher of Righteousness.

Now, even though there are a number of similarities between the lives and roles of the Teacher of Righteousness and Jesus of Nazareth, and in their interpretation of the Torah and Tanach, there are also differences. For example, the Teacher of Righteousness was a teacher only. He was not proclaimed as Lord, nor was he worshiped as Lord. In fact, he, like all truly enlightened ones before him, knew that the Lord God is not a man, nor a son of man, as Moses wrote. And, as the prophet Isaiah wrote, only the Lord our God is the Holy One, and beside God there is no Savior (a fact that God’s servant Jesus knew very well, even though what we now read in the "official" Christian scriptures makes it appear that his disciples or later followers did not understand it).

The scrolls indicate that the Essenes honored the Teacher of Righteousness, and that he was persecuted and martyred by a Hasmonaean priest-king. The Hasmoneans were the ruling dynasty of the Hasmonean Kingdom of Israel, which was established by the Maccabees in 140 BC and lasted until King Herod gained power in 37 BC.

According to the scrolls, the Essenes then expected the reappearance of Teacher of Righteousness, also called "The Elect One," or "Chosen One," who would issue judgment on all nations, and especially on false and hypocritical religious leaders. That is significant, and it gives me the opportunity to make a couple of points.

First, the terminology of the "elect and chosen one" is also used in the Book of Enoch, as I discussed on the page by that title. The elect, chosen one is a son of man, also called a Mashaich or Messiah, a man fully anointed by the Holy Spirit of God. The Teacher of Righteousness was one. Jesus of Nazareth was one. There were a good number before them, and there is one now. For while many are called by God, few are chosen as genuine teachers, and only one son of man is chosen to deliver righteous judgment and true prophecy.

Secondly, the idea of "reappearance" or reincarnation is a common theme in all religious writings, including Judaic and early Christian literature. Isaiah refers to the historical Jacob by speaking of "bringing Jacob again." Elijah was expected by many Jews to return, and in the Christian Gospels Jesus is reputed to be Elijah come again. John the Baptist was thought to be "Elias come again." And even Jesus said, "Before Abraham was, I am."

All those scriptural facts are indicative of a belief in reincarnation. And even though Jesus did not actually say he would come again, but rather had to "go away and be seen no more on earth," he did say another son of man would come at the end of the age, who would first be rejected by his generation and suffer many things — unlike Jesus himself, who was accepted by multitudes in his generation and suffered only at the very end of his life. Jesus also spoke of the next son of man as the messenger for the Spirit of truth who would relay the testimony of Jesus, issue judgment, guide us to the truth, and show us things to come. That is confirmed by the fact that Jesus said he came "not to judge the world," but his "words" and "testimony" ultimately will issue judgment at the end of the age. All these facts are revealed in John 12:47-48; John 16:7-15; Revelation 19:10 and other passages, and they are explained and clarified on the page titled Prophecies Re: The One to Come.

Anyway, I believe the original Teacher of Righteousness spoken of in the scrolls was not Jesus of Nazareth. I believe that many Essenes felt that Jesus was the reappearance of the original Teacher of Righteousness, since their teachings were so similar in certain respects.

The point is that the theme of "reappearance" or return or coming of one who will set things straight is common in Judaism and original Christianity, just as it is in most other religions. And I am here to tell you that the Teacher of Righteousness has "reappeared" once again in this prodigal son of man.

This time, however, he comes like a thief in the night. But he is first stricken and afflicted, suffers many things, and is rejected by his generation. He is hidden, does not cause his voice to be heard in public as an orator, but sends his work before him in an electronic message, so it can be seen in a flash, like lightening, all over the world. And all this is in fulfillment of real prophecies.