“Nevertheless, God’s firm foundation stands, bearing this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord must turn away from iniquity.” (2Tim 2:19)

I’ve taken these pictures during our trip to Israel some years ago. These are the caves at Qumran, in the desert near the Dead Sea. In these caves a thousand scrolls were discovered between 1946-1956. The scrolls were hidden in jars of clay, covered and sealed by the monks. These are the oldest complete scrolls of the Old Testament. They were hand written by the monks who lived there during the time of Jesus. The monks were called the Essenes, a Jewish sect of men who decided to live in the desert, to purify their body and mind from the world. They did not involve themselves with the politics of the day like the Pharisees. They refused to have slaves, choosing to serve one another. They lived in a voluntary poverty. Most of them refused to marry so that they can do God’s work. They studied the Old Testament every day and wrote down their commentaries. John the Baptist was one of them before he left the caves to baptize others in the River Jordan. Later, these monks were killed buy the Romans, but their work for God was not lost. After 2000 years, their scrolls were found! What a testimony! Praise the Lord!