Many have heard about the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, but beyond the discovery itself probably not much else. I want to focus today on one particular scroll that provides historical and undeniable, scientific evidence that Bible prophecy came true hundreds of years before it was written.
Allow me to introduce you to DSS-50 1QIsaa , also known as the Great Isaiah Scroll because it is was the only complete copy of the book of Isaiah found among the Dead Sea Scrolls measuring 24 feet in length. It was also among the seven original scrolls discovered in the Qumran caves in 1947.
The book of Isaiah was written by the prophet of the same name somewhere around 701 BC. There is a challenge by many scholars today that the later chapters were written by another author 150 years later, but there is also plenty of evidence that there was a single author as well. I’m not going to try to convince you one way or the other here – it’s irrelevant to the evidence I am about to share. I mention that only because I don’t want it to seem like I’m leaving anything out to be biased and mainly because even if those modern scholars were proved to be right, it does absolutely nothing to the undeniable evidence I am sharing today. I have a strong case for why those scholars would be motivated to try to make that argument, but that is for another day.
Now the dead sea scrolls have undergone extensive studying to understand when they were written and DSS-50 1QIsaa , the Great Isaiah Scroll, is no exception. Modern radio-carbon testing dates this scroll to 125 BC with the latest possibility of 103 BC. You can read the scholarly article detailing all of the analysis and testing here and the dates they set for the scroll itself on page 14. Check it out.
With the date set on the Great Isaiah Scroll containing the book of Isaiah in its entirety, let’s move on to another date.
You would be hard-pressed to find a single historian who would not argue that Jesus Christ was crucified sometime close to around 30 AD. There’s just too much historical evidence from both Non-Christian and Christian sources to move that date around by more than 15 years at the max.
Why does that matter?
It matters because of Isaiah Chapter 53, which perfectly describes Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 53 from Bible.com with linked footnotes from Biblica.com
Who has believed our message
and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot,
and like a root out of dry ground.
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,
nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind,
a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.
Like one from whom people hide their faces
he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
4 Surely he took up our pain
and bore our suffering,
yet we considered him punished by God,
stricken by him, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions,
he was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was on him,
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray,
each of us has turned to our own way;
and the Lord has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
8 By oppression[a] and judgment he was taken away.
Yet who of his generation protested?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
for the transgression of my people he was punished.[b]
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked,
and with the rich in his death,
though he had done no violence,
nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,
and though the Lord makes[c] his life an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring and prolong his days,
and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
11 After he has suffered,
he will see the light of life[d] and be satisfied[e];
by his knowledge[f] my righteous servant will justify many,
and he will bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,[g]
and he will divide the spoils with the strong,[h]
because he poured out his life unto death,
and was numbered with the transgressors.
For he bore the sin of many,
and made intercession for the transgressors.
——
Now let’s review the fact again that scientists have tested the Great Isaiah Scroll, a copy of the book of Isaiah – meaning not the original, and through that testing have dated it with 103 BC being the closest date to the Crucifixion of Christ, which occurred around 30 AD. That means the book of Isaiah chapter 53 accurately prophesied Jesus Christ and His Crucifixion as the perfect slain lamb of God for our sins before it occurred.
Try as anyone may like, there is no getting past the science that proves the Bible true, which we can all thank the Dead Sea Scrolls discovery and modern technology for.
What does that mean for you?
This is the critical question.
Scripture tells us that we are saved through faith in Christ and not of our works (Ephesians 2:8-9.) His perfect sacrifice on the cross cleanses us from our sins if we believe in Him so that we can get back into right standing with God. Jesus Christ makes it very clear that He is the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). Romans 10:9 NASB says “that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved;”.
Hear my plea: Please don’t wait!
Right now is the time to turn from your sinful ways and trust in God as your savior and lord. If you are ready to take that step, then say a prayer like this below out loud:
God, I know that you look at our hearts so please hear my words and know why I am coming to you at this time in prayer. I know that I am a sinner and I have fallen short. I know and have faith that Jesus Christ’s death on the cross was the payment necessary for my sins in order for me to be with you after this life. I am sorry and ask now for your forgiveness of my sins. I call on Your Name to save me. I need you as my savior and I ask that you would send your Holy Spirit into me to guide me in my journey of knowing you more, to help me as I turn away from my lifestyle of sin and make you the Lord of my life, and to convict me to continually try to live more like You. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
If you said that prayer and meant the words, then I am absolutely overjoyed in your decision. God knows your heart and the Scripture tells us that there is joy in heaven over your decision too (Luke 15:7). Now go and tell someone about this.
Please start reading your Bible to learn more about your decision. You can also read here for additional steps to take such as getting baptized. I can’t wait to see you in Heaven one day!