I. The Facts

I. THE FACTS
1. Organization of the community. Philo and Josephus agree in estimating the number of the Essenes in their time at above 4000.[1933] As far as is known, they lived only in Palestine, at least there are no certain traces of their occurrence out of Palestine.[1934] According to Philo, they lived chiefly in villages, avoiding towns because of the immorality of their inhabitants.[1935] Yet he himself says, in another passage, that they also dwelt in many of the towns of Judaea,[1936] while according to Josephus they were to be found in every town (of Palestine).[1937] Hence we should be much mistaken if we were, according to Pliny’s description, to seek them only in the desert of Engedi on the Dead Sea.[1938] On the contrary, the settlement there can only have been distinguished above others on account of its numbers. For the sake of living as a community, they had special houses of the order in which they dwelt together.[1939] Their whole community was most strictly organized as a single body. At the head were presidents (ἐπιμεληταί), whom the members were bound unconditionally to obey.[1940] Whoever desired to enter the order received three badges (the naming of which will hereafter be seen): a pickaxe (ἀξινάριον), an apron (περίζωμα), and a white garment (λευκὴν ἐσθῆτα). He was not, however, immediately received into the order, but had first to undergo a probation of one year, after which he was admitted to the lustrations. Then followed a further probation of two years. And not till this was ended was he allowed to participate in the common meals, and to become a full member after first taking a fearful oath. In this oath he had to bind himself both to absolute openness towards the brethren, and to secrecy concerning the doctrines of the order to non-members.[1941] Only adults were admitted as members.[1942] But children were also received for the purpose of training in the principles of Essenism.[1943] When Josephus says that the Essenes were divided into four classes according to their time of entrance,[1944] such children are to be understood by the first class, the two stages of the novitiate by the second and third, and the members proper by the fourth. Transgressions of members of the order were decided upon by a tribunal of at least one hundred of their fellow-members.[1945] Those who had grievously transgressed were expelled from the community.[1946]
[1933] Philo, ed. Mangey, ii. 457. Joseph. Antt. xviii. 1. 5. It seems to me scarcely doubtful, that Josephus has here made use of Philo. In the detailed description given by Josephus himself, Bell. Jud. ii. 8, the following points are missing: (1) The number 4000; (2) the repudiation of animal sacrifices; (3) agriculture as the prevailing occupation; (4) repudiation of slavery. All these points are mentioned by Philo, and inserted in the later account of Josephus, Antt. xviii. 1. 5, but certainly because they are found in Philo’s account.
[1934] Whether the Christian ascetics of Rome (Romans 14-15) and Colosse (Colossians 2) were Christianized Essenes is very questionable. The occurrence of Essenes in Syria only would be evidenced, if the traditional reading ἡ Παλαιστίνη καὶ Συρία in the passage of Philo’s Quod omnis probus liber, § 12, Mang. ii. 457 (see next note), is the correct one. It is however highly probable that the reading is ἡ Παλαιστίνη Συρία. For (1) Eusebius, who also quotes the passage, reads ἡ ἐν Παλαιστίνῃ Συρίᾳ. (2) The expression ἡ Παλαιστίνη Συρία is also elsewhere used by Philo (De nobilitate, § 6. Mang. ii. 443: Θάμαρ ἦν τῶν ἀπὸ τῆς Παλαιστίνης Συρίας), and was moreover quite usual after Herodotus. See Herodot. i. 105: ἐν τῇ Παλαιστίνῃ Συρίῃ; ii. 106, the same; iii. 5, Σύρων τῶν Παλαιστίνων καλεομένων; iii. 91, Φοινίκη τε πᾶσα καὶ Συρίη ἡ Παλαιστίνη καλεομένη. Joseph. Antt. viii. 10. 3, τὴν Παλαιστίνην Συρίαν. Polemon in Euseb. Praep. evang. x. 10. 5 (ed. Gaisford), ἐν τῇ Παλαιστίνῃ καλουμένῃ Συρίᾳ. Dio Cass. xxxvii. 15, τὴν Συρίαν τὴν Παλαιστίνην. Still more material in Pape-Benseler, Wörterb. der griech. Eigennamen, s.v. Παλαιστίνη. Forbiger, Geogr. ii. 673 sq. Pauly’s Real-Enc. v. 1070. Kühn, Die städtische und bürgerl. Verfassung des röm. Reichs, ii. 183 sq. Marquardt, Römische Staatsverwaltung, vol. i. (1881), p. 420 sqq. Παλαιστίνη is here always an adjective (the Palestinian Syria). From the passages quoted it is also evident, that, in the passage of Philo cited above, the reading is not, as many insist, Παλαιστίνη Συρίας, but Συρία. See e.g. Wieseler in Herzog’s Real-Enc., 1st ed. xxi. 291 (art. “Timotheusbriefe”).
[1935] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 457: Ἔστι δὲ καὶ ἡ Παλαιστίνη [καὶ] Συρία καλοκἀγαθίας οὐκ ἄγονος, ἣν πολυανθρωποτάτου ἔθνους τῶν Ἰουδαίων οὐκ ὀλίγη μοῖρα νέμεται. Λέγονταί τινες παρʼ αὐτοῖς ὄνομα Ἐσσαῖοι κ.τ.λ. … Οὗτοι τὸ μὲν πρῶτον κωμηδὸν οἰκοῦσι, τὰς πόλεις ἐκτρεπόμενοι, διὰ τὰς τῶν πολιτευομένων χειροήθεις ἀνομίας, εἰδότες ἐκ τῶν συνόντων ὡς ἀπʼ ἀέρος φθοροποιοῦ νόσον ἐγγινομένην προσβολὴν ψυχαῖς ἀνίατον.
[1936] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 632 (= Euseb. Praep. evang. viii. 11, 1st ed. Gaisford): Οἰκοῦσι δὲ πολλὰς μὲν πόλεις τῆς Ἰουδαίας, πολλὰς δὲ κώμας, καὶ μεγάλους καὶ πολυανθρώπους ὁμίλους.
[1937] Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 4: Μία δὲ οὐκ ἔστιν αὐτῶν πόλις, ἀλλʼ ἐν ἑκάστῃ κατοικοῦσι πολλοί. There were certainly Essenes in Jerusalem also, where they frequently make an appearance in history (Antt. xiii. 11. 2, xv. 10. 5, xvii. 13. 3; Bell. Jud. ii. 20. 4), and where a gate was named after them (Bell. Jud. v. 4. 2, ἐπὶ τὴν Ἐσσηνῶν πύλην), probably because the house of their order was near it.
[1938] Hist. Nat. v. 17: Ab occidente litora Esseni fugiunt usque qua nocent, gens sola, et in toto orbe praeter ceteras mira, sine ulla femina, omini venere abdicata, sine pecunia, socia palmarum. In diem ex aequo convenarum turba renascitur large frequentantibus quos vita fessos ad mores eorum fortunae fluctibus agit. Ita per seculorum milia (incredibile dictu) gens aeterna est. In qua nemo nascitur. Tam fecunda illis aliorum vitae poenitentia est. Infra hos Engada oppidum fuit, etc. Dio Chrysostomus (1st century after Christ) also, according to the testimony of his biographer Synesius, mentioned the Essence as a community at the Dead Sea. Synesii Opp. ed. Petav. p. 39: ὅτι καὶ τοὺς Ἐσσηνοὺς ἐπαινεῖ που, πόλιν ὅλην εὐδαίμονα τὴν παρὰ τὸ νεκρὸν ὕδωρ ἐν τῇ μεσογείᾳ τῆς Παλαιστίνης κειμένην παρʼ αὐτά που τὰ Σόδομα. Probably Pliny and Dio Chrysostomus draw from a common source. Comp. Lucius, Der Essenismus, pp. 30-33.
[1939] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 632 (= Euseb. Praep. evang. viii. 11. 5, ed. Gaisford): Οἰκοῦσι δʼ ἐν ταὐτῷ, κατὰ θιάσους ἑταιρίας καὶ συσσίτια ποιούμενοι, καὶ πάνθʼ ὑπὲρ τοῦ κοινωφελοῦς πραγματευόμενοι διατελοῦσιν. Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5, says at least that at meals they εἰς ἴδιον οἴκημα συνίασιν, ἔνθα μηδενὶ τῶν ἑτεροδόξων ἐπιτέτραπται παρελθεῖν. Comp. also Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 458: Οὐδενὸς οἰκία τίς ἐστιν ἰδία, ἣν οὐχὶ πάντων εἶναι συμβέβηκε. Πρὸς γὰρ τὸ κατὰ θιάσους συνοικεῖν, ἀναπέπταται καὶ τοῖς ἑπέρωθεν ἀφικνουμένοις των ὁμοζήλων.
[1940] Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 6.
[1941] Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 7.
[1942] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 632 (= Euseb. Praep. evang. viii. 11, 3rd ed. Gaisford).
[1943] Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 2.
[1944] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 10: Διῄρηνται δὲ κατὰ χρόνον τῆς ἀσκήσεως εἰς μοίρας τέσσαρας.
[1945] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 9.
[1946] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 8.
The strongest tie by which the members were united was absolute community of goods. “The community among them is wonderful, one does not find that one possesses more than another. For it is the law, that those who enter deliver up their property to the order, so that there is nowhere to be seen, either the humiliation of poverty or the superfluity of wealth, but on the contrary one property for all as brethren, formed by the collection of the possessions of individuals.”[1947] “They neither buy nor sell among each other; but while one gives to another what he wants, he receives in return what is useful to himself, and without anything in return they receive freely whatever they want.”[1948] “The managers (ἐπιμεληταί) of the common property are chosen; and each is selected by all for administration of the possessions of the community.”[1949] “They choose fitting persons as receivers of revenues (ἀποδέκτας τῶν προσόδων) and of the produce of the earth, and priests for the preparation of bread and food.”[1950] So Josephus. And in accordance with this Philo declares “none desires to have any kind of property of his own, neither a house, nor a slave, nor an estate, nor flocks, nor anything at all that constitutes wealth. But by putting everything together without distinction, they enjoy the common use of all.”[1951] “The wages which they earn by different kinds of work, they give to a chosen manager (ταμίας). He receives them and buys what is wanted, and dispenses abundant provision and whatever else human life requires.”[1952] “Not only have they food, but also clothing in common. Thick cloaks are ready for winter, and light overalls for summer, so that each may use them at his pleasure. For what one has is regarded as the property of all; and what all have as that of each individual.”[1953] “There is but one purse for all, and common expenses, common clothes and common food in common meals. For community of dwelling, of life and of meals is nowhere so firmly established and so developed as with them. And this is intelligible. For what they receive daily as wages for their labour, they do not keep for themselves, but put it together, and thus make the profits of their work common for those who desire to make use of it. And the sick are without anxiety on account of their inability to earn, because the common purse is in readiness for the care of them, and they may with all certainty meet their expenses from abundant stores.”[1954]
[1947] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 3.
[1948] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 4.
[1949] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 3: Χειροτονητοὶ δὲ οἱ τῶν κοινῶν ἐπιμεληται, καὶ αἱρετοὶ πρὸς ἁπάντων εἰς τὰς χρείας ἕκαστοι.
[1950] Antt. xviii. 1. 5: Ἀποδέκτας δὲ τῶν προσόδων χειροτονοῦσι καὶ ὁπόσα ἡ γῆ φέροι ἄνδρας ἀγαθούς, ἱερεῖς τε διὰ ποίησιν σίτου τε καὶ βρωμάτων.
[1951] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 632 (= Euseb. Praep. evang. viii. 11. 4).
[1952] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 633 (= Euseb. Praep. evang. viii. 11. 10): Ἐκ δὴ τῶν οὕτως διαφερόντων ἕκαστι τὸν μισθὸν λαβόντες ἑνὶ διδόασι τῷ χειροτονηθέντι ταμίᾳ. Λαβὼν δʼ ἐκεῖνος αὐτίκα τἀπιτήδεια ὠνεῖται, καὶ παρέχει τροφὰς ἀφθόνους, καὶ τἄλλα ὧν ὁ ἀνθρώπινος βίος χρειώδης.
[1953] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 623 (= Euseb. Praep. evang. viii. 11, 12).
[1954] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 458 sq.: Εἶτʼ ἐστὶ ταμεῖον ἕν πάντων καὶ δαπάναι, καὶ κοιναὶ μὲν ἐσθῆτες. κοιναὶ δὲ τροφαὶ συσσίτια πεποιημένων. Τὸ γὰρ ὁμωρόφιον ἢ ὁμοδίαιτον ἢ ὁμοτράπεζον οὐκ ἄν τις εὕροι παρʼ ἑτέροις μᾶλλον ἔργῳ βεβαιούμενον. Καὶ μήποτʼ εἰκότως; Ὅσα γὰρ ἂν μεθʼ ἡμέραν ἐργασάμενοι λάβωσιν ἐπὶ μισθῷ, ταῦτʼ οὐκ ἴδια φυλάττουσιν, ἀλλʼ εἰς μέσον προτιθέντες κοινὴν τοῖς ἐθέλουσι χρῆσθαι τὴν ἀπʼ αὐτῶν παρασκευάζουσιν ὠφέλειαν. Οἵτε νοσηλεύοντες οὐχ ὅτι πορίζειν ἀδυνατοῦσιν ἀμελοῦνται, πρὸς τὰς νοσηλείας ἐκ τῶν κοινῶν ἔχοντες ἐν ἑτοίμῳ ὡς μετὰ πάσης ἀδείας ἐξ ἀφθονωτέρων ἀναλίσκειν.
As already intimated in the above quoted passages, it is self-evident, that in this strictly communistic life all the needy of the order would be cared for. If any one was sick, he was tended at the common expense. The old enjoyed a happy old age under the care of the younger, just as if they had had many and excellent children about them.[1955] Every one had the right to help the needy from the common purse, according to his discretion. Only when relatives were in question, had he to obtain the consent of the managers (ἐπίτροποι).[1956] Travelling members of the order found hospitality everywhere. Nay a special officer (κηδεμών) was appointed in every town, to care for the wants of travelling brothers.[1957]
[1955] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 633 (= Euseb. Praep. evang. viii. 11. 13)
[1956] Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 6. The managers (ἐπιμεληται, Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 3; ἀποδέκται τῶν προσόδων, Antt. xviii. 1. 5; ταλίαι, Philo, ii. 633 = Euseb. viii. 11. 10; ἐπίτροποι, Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 6) seem to have been at the same time the presidents of the order. For the latter also are called ἐπιμεληταί (Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5, 6).
[1957] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 4.
The daily labour of the Essenes was under strict regulation. It began with prayer, after which the members were dismissed to their work by the presidents. They reassembled for purifying ablutions, which were followed by the common meal. After this they again went to work, to assemble again for their evening meal.[1958] The chief employment of members of the order was agriculture.[1959] They likewise carried on, however, crafts of every kind. On the other hand, trading was forbidden as leading to covetousness, and also the making of weapons or of any kind of utensils that might injure men.[1960]
[1958] Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5.
[1959] Antt. xviii. 1. 5: τὸ πᾶν πονεῖν ἐπί γεωργίᾳ τετραμμένοι.
[1960] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 457, 633 (= Euseb. viii. 11. 8-9).
2. Ethics. Manners and Customs. The Essenes are described by both Philo and Josephus as very connoisseurs in morality. Josephus calls them Βέλτιστοι ἄνδρες τὸν τρόπον.[1961] And Philo competes with him in sounding their praise.[1962] Their life was abstemious, simple and unpretending. “They condemn sensual desires as sinful, and esteem moderation and freedom from passion as of the nature of virtue.”[1963] They only take food and drink till they have had enough;[1964] abstaining from passionate excitement, they are “just dispensers of wrath.”[1965] At their meals they are “contented with the same dish day by day, loving sufficiency and rejecting great expense as harmful to mind and body.”[1966] They do not cast away clothes and shoes until they are utterly useless.[1967] They do not collect treasures of gold and silver, nor earn them from the desire to acquire large estates, but only what is needed for the wants of life.[1968]
[1961] Antt. xviii. 1. 5.
[1962] Comp. especially what Philo says, ii. 458, concerning their instruction, with the matter of the oath, which according to Josephus each had to take on entering the community.
[1963] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 2: τὰς μὲν ἡδονὰς ὡς κακίαν ἀποστρέφονται, τὴν δὲ ἐγκράτειαν καὶ τὸ μὴ τοῖς πάθεσιν ὑποπίπτειν ἀρετὴν ὑπολαμβάνουσι.
[1964] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5, fin. The cause of rest and quietness at meals is ἡ διηνεκὴς νῆψις καὶ τὸ μετρεῖσθαι παρʼ αὐτοῖς τροφὴν καὶ ποτὸν μέχρι κόρου.
[1965] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 6: ὀργῆς ταμίαι δίκαιοι, θυμοῦ καθεκτικοί.
[1966] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 633 (= Euseb. viii. 11. 11).
[1967] Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 4.
[1968] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 457.
Beside these general features of simplicity and moderation however, we meet in their moral principles, in their usages and customs, a series of special points, which we shall here simply enumerate, reserving the explanation of them for a later occasion. (1) There is not a slave among them, but all are free, mutually working for each other.[1969] (2) “All that they say is more certain than an oath. They forbid swearing, because it is worse than perjury. For that which does not deserve belief without an appeal to God, is already condemned.”[1970] (3) They forbid anointing with oil. And if one has been anointed against his will, he wipes it off. “For they regard a rough exterior as praiseworthy.”[1971] (4) Before every meal they bathe in cold water.[1972] They do the same after performing the functions of nature.[1973] Nay even mere contact with a member of the order of a lower class requires a purifying bath.[1974] (5) They esteem it seemly to wear white raiment at all times,[1975] on which account a white garment is delivered to each member on entrance.[1976] (6) They behave with special modesty in performing natural functions. They dig with the pickaxe (σκαλίς, ἀξινάριον), which each member receives, a hole of a foot deep, cover themselves with a mantle, that they may not offend the brightness of God (ὡς μὴ τὰς αὐγὰς ὑβρίζοιεν τοῦ θεοῦ), relieve themselves into the hole, and throw in again the earth that had been dug out. They choose the most solitary place for the purpose, and bathe afterwards as the unclean are accustomed to do. On the Sabbath they entirely abstain from the act.[1977] Their modesty is also shown in other ways. In bathing they bind an apron about their loins.[1978] They also avoid spitting forwards or to the right hand.[1979] (7) They entirely condemned marriage.[1980] Josephus indeed knew of a branch of Essenes who permitted marriage.[1981] But these must at all events have formed a small minority. For Philo says expressly: Ἐσσαίων οὐδεὶς ἄγεται γυναῖκα. (8) They sent gifts of incense to the temple, but offered no animal sacrifices, because they esteemed their own sacrifices more valuable. They were on this account excluded from the temple at Jerusalem.[1982] (9) Lastly, a chief peculiarity of the Essenes was their common meals, which bore the character of sacrificial feasts. The food was prepared by priests,[1983] with the observance probably of certain rites of purification; for an Essene was not permitted to partake of any other food than this.[1984] The meals are described as follows by Josephus: “After the bath of purification they betake themselves to a dwelling of their own, entrance into which is forbidden to all of another faith. And being clean they go into the refectory as into a sanctuary. And after they have quietly taken their seats, the baker lays down the bread in order, and the cook sets before each a vessel with a single kind of food. The priest prays before the meal, and none may eat before the prayer. After the meal he prays again. At the beginning and end they honour God as the giver of food. Then they put off their garments as sacred and go back to their work till evening. Returning, they feed again in the same manner.”[1985] (10) The wide-spread opinion, that the Essenes abstained from the use of meat and wine, has no support from the older authorities, and has lately been rightly opposed by Lucius.[1986] As indirect arguments are usually adduced (a) their rejection of animal sacrifices, the reason of which was, that the Essenes regarded the slaughter of animals in general as objectionable; and (b) the refusal of the kindred sects of the Therapeutae Pythagoreans and Ebionites to partake of meat and wine. It cannot however be proved, that their repudiation of animal sacrifices proceeded from the motives mentioned, and the degree of affinity between Essenism and the above-named tendencies respectively must first be ascertained from established facts. Jerome certainly ascribes to the Essence an abstinence from flesh and wine. But his assertion can be proved to rest only upon gross carelessness in rendering the words of Josephus.[1987]
[1969] Philo, ed. Mang. ii. 457: Δοῦλός τε παρʼ αὐτοῖς οὐδὲ εἱς ἐστίν, ἀλλʼ ἐλεύθεροι πάντες, ἀνθυπουργοῦντες ἀλλήλοις. Comp. Joseph. Antt. xviii. 1. 5: οὔτε δούλων ἐπιτηδεύουσι κτῆσιν.
[1970] Bell. Jud. ii. 8, 6: πᾶν μὲν τὸ ῥηθὲν ὑπʼ αὐτῶν ἰσχυρότερον ὅρκου, τὸ δὲ ὀμνύειν περιίστανται, χεῖρόν τι τῆς ἐπιορκίας ὑπολαμβάνοντες· ἤδη γὰρ κατεγνῶσθαί φασι τὸ ἀπιστούμενον δίχα θεοῦ. Comp. Antt. xv. 10. 4 (Herod exempts the Essence from oaths). Philo, ii. 458: they teach τὸ ἀνώμοτον, τὸ ἀψευδές.
[1971] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 3: κηλῖδα δὲ ὑπολαμβάνονσι τὸ ἔλαιον, κἂν ἀλιφᾖ τις ἄκων, σμήχεται τὸ σῶμα· τὸ γὰρ αὐχμεῖν ἐν καλῷ τίθενται.
[1972] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5: ἀπολούονται τὸ σῶμα ψυχροῖς ὕδασι.
[1973] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 9, fin.
[1974] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 10, init.
[1975] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 3: τὸ γὰρ αὐχμεῖν ἐν καλῷ τίθενται, λευχειμονεῖν τε διὰ παντός.
[1976] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 7.
[1977] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 9.
[1978] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5.
[1979] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 9: τὸ πτύσαι δὲ εἰς μέσους ἢ τὸ δεξιὸν μέρος φυλάσσονται.
[1980] Philo, ii. 633-634 (= Euseb. viii. 11. 14-17). Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 2; Antt. xviii. 1. 5. Plin. Hist. Nat. v. 17.
[1981] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 13.
[1982] Philo, ii. 457: οὐ ζῶα καταθύοντες, ἀλλʼ ἱεροπρεπεῖς τὰς ἑαυτῶν διανοίας κατασκευάζειν ἀξιοῦντες. Joseph. Antt. xviii. 1. 5: εἰς δὲ τὸ ἱερὸν ἀναθήματα στέλλοντες θυσίας οὐκ ἐπιτελοῦσι διαφορότητι ἁγνειῶν ἃς νομίζοιεν, καὶ διʼ αὐτὸ εἰργόμενοι τοῦ κοινοῦ τεμενίσματος ἐφʼ αὐτῶν τὰ θυσίας ἐπιτελοῦσι.
[1983] Antt. xviii. 1. 5.
[1984] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 8.
[1985] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5. Undoubtedly we must behold in these meals the sacrifices (θυσίαι) which the Essence, according to Josephus (Antt. xviii. 1. 5), regarded as of more value than those at Jerusalem. The ἱεραὶ ἐσθῆτες were certainly linen garments. For the Essence always wore white raiment. Hence the distinctive quality of their sacred garments must have lain in their material.
[1986] Lucius, Die Therapeuten, p. 38 f. The same, Die Essenismus, p, 56 f.
[1987] Hieronymus adv. Jovinian. ii. 14 (Opp. ed, Vallarsi, ii, 343): Josephus in secunda Judaicae captivitatis historia et in octavo decimo antiquitatum libro et contra Apionem duobus voluminibus tria describit dogmata Judaeorum: Pharisaeos, Sadducaeos, Essaenos. Quorum novissimos miris effert laudibus, quod et ab uxoribus et vino et carnibus semper abstinuerint et quotidianum Jejunium verterint in naturam. The commencement of these words proves, that Jerome was not in them using Josephus at all, but Porphyry, who in his work, de abstinentia, iv. 11-13, restores the account of Josephus (comp. de abstinentia, iv, 11: Ἰώσηπος … ἐν τῷ δευτέρῳ τῆς Ἰουδαϊκῆς ἱστορίας … καὶ ἐν τῷ ὀκτωκαιδεκάτῳ τῆς ἀρχαιολογίας … καὶ ἐν τῷ δευτέρῳ τῷ πρὸς τοὺς Ἕλληνας; the last statement is a mistake, the sects not being mentioned in the books contra Apionem). But neither Josephus nor Porpbyrius tells us anything about the Essenes abstaining from flesh and wine. Porphyrius himself certainly requires throughout his work abstinence from the use of flesh. But he is accurate enough not to introduce any extraneous matter into the narrative of Josephus (hence the statement in Lucius, p. 56, is incorrect; comp. also Zeller, p. 287). It was Jerome who first undertook this completion. But as he supports his assertion solely on Josephus, it is entirely without value. For the partaking of flesh and wine by the Essenes at least two probable reasons may be adduced: (1) According to Philo, ii. 633 = Euseb. Praep. evang. viii. 11. 8, they also carried on cattle-rearing. (2) Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5 declares the peace and silence of their meals to result from the circumstance, that they partook of meat and drink (τροφὴν καὶ ποτόν) only till they had had enough, which has no meaning unless they drank wine.
3. Theology and Philosophy. The view of the world held by the Essenes was fundamentally the Jewish. When Josephus ascribes to them belief in an unalterable fate, by which human freedom was absolutely abolished,[1988] this must undoubtedly be understood only in the sense of an absolute belief in Providence.[1989] And when he says that the Essenes make everything, the Sadducees nothing dependent on fate, while the Pharisees occupy a middle position between the two, thus much may be true, that the Essenes were particularly decided in their adherence to that belief in Providence, which they held in common with the Pharisees. The Essenes are in this point only decided Pharisees, as they are also in a high esteem for the Law and the Lawgiver. “Next to God, the name of the Lawgiver is with them an object of the greatest reverence, and whoever blasphemes it is punished with death.”[1990] “Their pursuit of ethic is especially thorough, since they take for instructors the laws of their fathers, which no human soul could possibly have conceived without Divine inspiration.”[1991] In their worship, as well as in that of other Jews, the Holy Scriptures were read and explained; and Philo remarks, that they specially delighted in allegorical interpretation.[1992] They were extraordinarily strict in the celebration of the Sabbath. They did not venture on that day to move a vessel from its place, nor even to perform the functions of nature.[1993] In other respects too they showed themselves to be Jews. Though they were excluded from the temple they sent gifts of incense (ἀναθήματα) there.[1994] And they seem to have kept to the priesthood of the house of Aaron.[1995]
[1988] Joseph. Antt. xiii. 5. 9. Comp. xviii. 1-5: Ἐσσηνοῖς δʼ ἐπὶ μὲν θεῷ καταλιπεῖν φιλεῖ τὰ πάντα ὁ λόγος.
[1989] Comp. what is remarked above, p. 16, on the Pharisees.
[1990] Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 9: Σέβας δὲ μέγιστον παρʼ αὐτοῖς μετὰ τὸν θεὸν τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ νομοθέτου· κἂν βλασφημήσῃ τις εἰς τοῦτον, κολάζεται θανάτῳ.
[1991] Philo, ii. 458: Τὸ ἠθικὸν εὖ μάλα διαπονοῦσιν, ἀλείπταις χρώμενοι τοῖς πατρίοις νόμοις, οὓς ἀμήχανον ἀνθρωπίνην ἐπινοῆσαι ψυχὴν ἄνευ κατακωχῆς ἐνθέου. Comp. Joseph. Bell. Jud. ii. 8-12: βίβλοις ἱεραῖς καὶ διαφόροις ἁγνείαις καὶ προφητῶν ἀποφθέγμασιν ἐμπαιδοτριβούμενοι. Whether, on the other hand, the Holy Scriptures are intended by the συγγράμμασι τῶν παλαιῶν, Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 6, is questionable, since according to Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 7 the sect had also its special books.
[1992] Philo, ii. 458. In explanation of the passage, comp. Zeller, Theol. Jahrb. 1856, p. 426; Philosophie der Griechen, iii. 2. 293 sq.
[1993] Bell. Jud. ii. 8.9.
[1994] Antt. xviii. 1. 5.
[1995] The question here is concerning the interpretation of the passage, Antt. xviii. 1. 5: Ἀποδέκτας δὲ τῶν προσόδων χειροτονοῦσι καὶ ὁπόσα ἡ γῆ φέροι ἄνδρας ἀγαθούς, ἱερεῖς τε διὰ ποίησιν σίτου τε καὶ βρωμάτων. This is generally translated: “They choose excellent men as receivers of revenues and of what the earth produces, and (they choose just such men) as priests for the sake of the preparation of bread and food.” But it should rather be translated, “and (they choose) priests for the preparation of bread and food.” In the former case the meaning would be, that they knew of no hereditary, but only an elective priesthood; in the latter it would be stated, that they took their bakers and cooks out of the number of the priests (of the house of Aaron).
On this decidedly Jewish foundation, it is self-evident, that any real worship of the sun is out of the question. When therefore Josephus declares that “daily before the rising of the sun, they address to it old traditional prayers, supplicating it, as it were, to rise,”[1996] this cannot be meant in the sense of an adoratio, but only in that of an invocatio (observe the εἰς αὐτόν). Certainly such an invocatio is of itself striking in Jewish monotheists, as being apparently founded on the idea (so alien to Jewish consciousness), that the sun is the representative of the Divine light? That they did proceed upon the latter conception must be assumed from the motive stated by them for their caution in the performance of their needs, viz. that they might not offend the brightness of God.[1997]
[1996] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 5: Πρὶν γὰρ ἀνασχεῖν τὸν ἥλιον οὐδὲν φθέγγονται τῶν βεβήλων, πατρίους δέ τινας εἰς αὐτὸν εὐχάς, ὥσπερ ἱκετεύοντες ἀνατεῖλαι.
[1997] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 9: ὡς μὴ τὰς αὐγὰς ὑβρίζοιεν τοῦ θεοῦ. The contrary assumption is incidentally met with in the Testam. XII. Patriarch. Benjamin, c. 8: ὁ ἥλιος οὐ μιαίνεται προσέχων ἐπὶ κόπρον καὶ βόρβορον, ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον ἀμφότερα ψύχει καὶ ἀπελαύνει τὴν δυσωδίαν.
An intermingling of heterogeneous elements is here already found, and much that is peculiar and alien to traditional Judaism appears in their teaching in general, When indeed Josephus says, that whoever entered their order had to swear not to teach any of their ordinances (δόγματα) otherwise than he had himself received them,[1998] it may, by reason of the extensiveness of the notion of δόγμα, be doubtful whether special doctrines are meant thereby. At any rate however the order was in possession of special books, the careful preservation of which was made the duty of the members.[1999] And with respect to their doctrines certain peculiarities are at least known to us. They searched the writings of the ancients (it is not clear whether the books of the sect or the canonical Scriptures are meant) to discover what would profit the soul and the body, the sanatory powers of roots, and the properties of stones.[2000] They must have highly estimated their angelology. The novice had to swear carefully to preserve the names of the angels.[2001] By reason of their study of Scripture and their purifications they ensured a knowledge of the future, and Josephus asserts that they were seldom mistaken in their predictions,[2002] and gives several examples of correct prophecies by Essenes, e.g. by one Judas in the time of Aristobulus I.,[2003] one Menahem in the time of Herod,[2004] and one Simon in the time of Archelaus.[2005] Concerning their doctrine of the soul and of its immortality, Josephus expresses himself most fully. If we may trust his account, they taught that bodies are perishable, but souls immortal, and that the latter dwelt originally in the subtlest aether, but being debased by sensual pleasures united themselves with bodies as with prisons; but when they are freed from the fetters of sense they will joyfully soar on high, as if delivered from long bondage. To the good (souls) is appointed a life beyond the ocean, where they are troubled by neither rain, nor snow, nor heat, but where a gentle Zephyr is ever blowing. But to the bad (souls) is appointed a dark cold region full of unceasing torment.[2006]
[1998] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 7: μηδενὶ μὲν μεταδοῦναι τῶν δογμάτων ἑτέρως ἢ ὡς αὐτὸς μετέλαβεν.
[1999] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 7: συντηρήσειν ὁμοίως τά τε τῆς αἱρέσεως αὐτῶν βιβλία.
[2000] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 6: Σπουδάζουσι δὲ ἐκτόπως περὶ τὰ τῶν παλαιῶν συγγράμματα, μάλιστα τὰ πρὸς ὠφέλειαν ψυχῆς καὶ σώματος ἐκλέγοντες. Ἑνθεν αὐτοῖς πρὸς θεραπείαν παθῶν ῥίζαι τε ἀλεξητήριοι καὶ λίθων ἰδιότητες ἀνερευνῶνται.
[2001] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 7: συντηρήσειν … τὰ τῶν ἀγγέλων ὀνόματα.
[2002] Bell. Jud. ii. 8. 12.
[2003] Antt. xiii. 11. 2; Bell. Jud. i. 3. 5.
[2004] Antt. xv. 10. 5.
[2005] Antt. xvii. 13. 3; Bell. Jud. ii. 7. 3.
[2006] Bell. Jude. 8. 11: Καὶ γὰρ ἔρρωται παρʼ αὐτοῖς ἥδε ἡ δόξα, φθαρτὰ μὲν εἶναι τὰ σώματα καὶ τὴν ὕλην οὐ μόνιμον αὐτοῖς, τὰς δὲ ψυχὰς ἀθανάτους ἀεὶ διαμένειν, καὶ συμπλέκεσθαι μέν, ἐκ τοῦ λεπτοτάτου φοιτώσας αἰθέρος, ὥσπερ είρκταῖς τοῖς σώμασιν ἴυγγι τινι φυσικῇ κατασπωμένας, ἐπειδὰν δὲ τότε χαίρειν καὶ μετεώρους φέρεσθαι κ.τ.λ.