The Qumran Psalter

"Charlesworth brings both a scholarly and artistic eye to the translation of one of the greatest hymnic works among Western religions. His painstaking and sensitive translation of the Thanksgiving Hymns will fascinate poets, scholars, and people of faith."

--C.D. Elledge, Gustavus Adolphus College, Saint Peter, MN



"The present translation of the Thanksgiving Hymns marks the culmination of more than five decades of work that has given meticulous attention to the reading and reconstruction of the text. Offered in beautiful English, the Hymns, one of the most theologically significant collections of compositions from the Second Temple period, can be read and 'heard' anew by an interested generation of readers. Charlesworth should be congratulated on this achievement."

--Loren Stuckenbruck, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitat Munchen, Germany



"A superb advanced translation of the Qumran Thanksgiving Hymns that includes well-informed introductions and helpful footnotes that expose clearly the piety of Covenanter Jews of Late Second Temple Judaism and reflect the best of current Qumran scholarship. This is similar to Charlesworth's earlier translation of the Odes of Solomon--masterful, moving, and rooted in the best of scholarship. Highly recommended!"

--Lee Martin McDonald, Acadia Divinity College, Acadia University, Nova Scotia, Canada



"For more than fifty years, Professor J. H. Charlesworth has studied the Thanksgiving Hymns among the Dead Sea Scrolls. Based on a new critical edition, translation, and commentary he here presents a poetic translation of the Thanksgiving Hymns and the Self-Glorification Hymn. He unites the various manuscripts to a composite text, giving the reader a much fuller text than earlier available. Some sort of a sensation is Professor Charlesworth's discovery of the handle sheet of the Thanksgiving Hymns with the title of the hymn-scroll: 'To the God of Knowledge--Blessings.'"

--Hermann Lichtenberger, University of Tubingen, Tubingen, Germany



"This literature gives a poetic voice to the heart-rendering suffering of members of the sect, along with their expressions of gratitude and adoration of God. His clarifying comments on the Self-Glorification Hymn, a lament of a rejected and despised individual who reckons himself as being elevated to the rank of divine beings, also sheds further light on the background of the New Testament. The lay reader will be highly indebted to Professor Charlesworth for this volume of hymns composed by the Qumranites."

--Shalom Paul, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel



"With this new and masterful translation of the Thanksgiving Hymns, Charlesworth enables a wide audience to enjoy one of the most difficult texts of the Qumranic corpus. Charlesworth is at present one of the leading scholars in Qumranic literature in general and the Thanksgiving Hymns in particular. The hymns printed in this collection constitute a significant bridge between the Psalter of the Hebrew Bible and the hymns of Christianity in the first centuries CE; hence they should be read by every Christian."

--Doron Mendels, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel