How did the Dead Sea Scrolls survive their underwater burial?

Answer 1

A large number of scrolls were found in the caves near Qumran, close to the Dead Sea, and they cover a whole range of spiritual and secular issues. Some of the scrolls were books from the Hebrew Bible. They do show modern scholars the wording of scriptures in pre-Christian times, but of course they were written centuries earlier, then copied and kept at Qumran for spiritual purposes. Some prescribe life in the community and penalties for disobedience. Others contain semi-historical information about the founders of the Qumran community. Many of the 'scrolls' are mere scraps, and scholars have difficulty agreeing on what they represent, let alone why they were written.

Answer 2

Not only had the Hebrew scriptures changed ove time, often inadvertently by scribal error, some Christians accused the Jews of altering their scriptures in order to disadvantage the Christians. Until recently, the earliest versions ofthe Old Testament that we had were the Septuagint, a Greek translation from the seocnd century BCE, and the Masoretic Text, a Hebrew version from early in the Common Era. The Dead Sea Scrolls are valuable because they show clearly what the scriptures said, in the original Hebrew, by the middle of the first century CE. Of course, some of the scrolls were already old, so they actually attest to the wording of the Hebrew scriptures at an even earlier date. Some of the non-scriptural scrolls also provide an insight into the intrigues and conflicts that had occurred in the Jewish religious establishment over the previous two centuries.

Answer 3

The Salt around the Dead Sea Preserved them

Answer 4

The Dead Sea Scrolls were never under water. They were carefully hidden in caves in hillsides NEAR the Dead Sea. The dry air of the arid region kept many of the scrolls almost intact.