During the time when I was producing the Dead Sea Scrolls – Image Sources page, it gave me a great opportunity to check the manuscript images again, especially as they had uploaded some better, more up-to-date images than what was previously available to the Leon Levy Dead Sea Scrolls Digital Library (LLDSSDL). I will obviously be going back again (and again, and again!), but I was very happy to see, and subsequently identify, a never-before-published fragment of 4QSama (4th Qumran Cave, Samuel Manuscript A), regarding which I will now discuss.
It’s been over a year since I last posted about things new on TWTY.
Unfortunately lots of IRL stuff got in the way of things this past year, and still ongoing (found out I had cataracts on my eyes last year: my right eye has been operated on; my left will be done at the end of April. Needless to say, not being able to see properly makes what I’ve been doing the past decade quite difficult!), but I hope this comes to its conclusion soon. 🙂
Nevertheless, I have been using as much of my spare time as possible to continue doing things, and so here we are!
Essentially, I have done so many corrections to existing things on TWTY, that unless you’ve downloaded everything in the past 4 hours, then everything you currently have is out of date – this applies to the translations, ancient manuscripts, and especially any and all Dead Sea Scrolls! I lost track of which ones got updates, so I can’t provide a list, so if there’s any you’ve been looking at recently, I’d start with re-downloading that and taking a look through. May find a few things I have corrected since. 🙂
That’s the already existing files out of the way – now for what’s going on “new stuff” wise!
There are three new DSS Manuscripts online now – X Joshua, X Judges, and F.Amos 1, all available at the usual place on the Downloads Page.
There’s also been a new section added on the downloads page – a TC Edition, with TC standing for Textual-Critical. These are the combined manuscripts of the Dead Sea Scrolls in order to form a full “Qumran Bible” of sorts, with any differences between the manuscripts noted in footnotes, with the reading of the Masoretic Hebrew, Greek Septuagint, and for the Torah, the Samaritan Pentateuch in the same variant.
Obviously I haven’t repeated the differences between the DSS and these other manuscripts in these TC Editions, as I’ve already done that in the main Dead Sea Scrolls transcriptions. I’ve been updating this new section over the past year, and have only got four books left to do (Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Psalms, and Isaiah). I hope to have these done by the end of the year, but as always, this is liable to change. 🙂
Next up is a new TWTY E-sword module, containing the Version 1 Translation of the RC/NT found here on TWTY. Well I say that, I still have yet to finish adding Luke, John, and Acts to the Module, but all the rest of the books are contained within.
If you don’t know what E-Sword is, pop on over to the E-Sword website and take a look. Along with TWTY module is the Module installer programme, to allow you to easily install TWTY E-sword module into E-Sword without much bother.
As I was going through the translations whilst creating this module, it allowed me to do some updates to the translations, which have all been added to the E-Sword module, the Website, and the PDF’s of the translations.
Download all the Version 1 PDF’s and the E-Sword module here.
Yet another update comes to you via a visitor to TWTY, who is very kindly converting the Dead Sea Scrolls files into BibleWorks database files. With their permission I am putting them up on TWTY for others to download and use with their version of BibleWorks. Currently have the Genesis Manuscripts and the Great Isaiah Scroll (1QIsaa) complete. I will post updates periodically when new files are added. Get the files (including instructions on how to import them to your BibleWorks) here.
Finally, we have a small addition to TWTY, and that is an XML version of the Dead Sea Scrolls manuscripts. XML has so many amazing uses I wouldn’t be able to list them all, but if you know what XML is, then you’ll enjoy this update. Only the one ready at the moment, but as always, I shall add others when I’ve done them. 🙂 4Q82g Habakkuk XML.
Phew! That’s it – all things updated/new have been submitted for your pleasure!
As with everything, feel at liberty to use any and all things on TWTY freely and without constraints, and ANY issues you find, don’t hesitate to contact me using either the Contact page, or by posting on the forums 🙂
Edit:
The E-Sword and BibleWorks Modules should be able to be downloaded now. Apologies for the error with that!
Just a quick update to let everyone know that Godcast: Episode 8 is now up on YouTube, as well as all the usual links on Godcast Website 🙂
There was also a “Quickie” video uploaded, with my fellow-host going through the introduction in the Bible he found in a hotel room. Give it a watch/listen as well
So, what could an atheist and a theist do that would be entertaining yet educational, and not end up being a hand-bag fight? Talk about religion, obviously!
Well, not really. Here’s an excerpt from the “about” page:
Welcome to our podcast companion website. My name is Andrew, and although I am an atheist, I understand the importance of the Bible, not only as a religious document, but as a force for cultural and political change. I have no doubt that reading the Bible will do nothing to change my views about God and religion, but remaining ignorant of its contents will gain me nothing. After deciding to take a stab at the most influential book in history, I realized that there are not many good guides that are aimed at non-believers like myself. Most Bible study material is made by Christians and for Christians, with a particular theological purpose in mind. I decided to read the Bible myself, with the aid of a long time acquaintance who has spent nearly a decade learning Hebrew and Greek so that he could do his own translations, and discover what God really had to say.
So, there you go. We currently have 5 episodes up at the moment: they’re not going to be “weekly” updates; mainly “do a show whenever we’re free” kinda things. So if you have any questions/comments/ideas/want to be on a show, let us know!