Deuteronomy 1 — Dead Sea Scrolls
4 attestation entries • 0 variants • 4QDeut family
Manuscript Overview
Summary
Deuteronomy 1 opens Moses' great valedictory address from the plains of Moab. The chapter is well attested at Qumran. 4QDeutʰ (4Q35) is the most extensive Cave 4 manuscript of Deuteronomy 1–9 and preserves substantial portions; 4QDeutᶜ, 1QDeutᵃ, and 11QDeut also attest fragments. The preserved text tracks the MT closely, with only orthographic variation (plene vs. defective spellings).
Notable Variants
No significant theological or content variants. The 4Q witnesses use plene spelling more frequently than the MT (e.g., כול for כל, רואש for ראש), reflecting Second Temple Hebrew orthographic conventions, but the consonantal text and meaning are identical.
Manuscripts
4QDeutʰ (4Q35), 4QDeutᶜ (4Q30), 1QDeutᵃ (1Q4), 11QDeut (11Q3)
Scroll Condition
Fragmentary but clear where preserved. 4QDeutʰ provides the most continuous text; readings of vv. 22–25 and 9–13 are well preserved.
These are the words that Moses spoke to all of Israel on the east side of the Jordan — in the wilderness, in the Arabah opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth, and Di-zahab.
The opening superscription is preserved in 4QDeutʰ; reads identically to the MT.
4QDeutʰ frag. 1
Then all of you approached me and said, 'Let us send men ahead of us to scout out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we should take and the cities we will encounter.'
1QDeutᵃ preserves part of the spy-mission account (vv. 22–25). Tracks MT; minor orthographic plene spelling.
1QDeutᵃ frag. 1
The plan seemed good to me, so I selected twelve men from among you, one from each tribe.
Tracks MT.
1QDeutᵃ frag. 1
They took some of the produce of the land in their hands and brought it down to us. They gave us their report and said, 'The land that the LORD our God is giving us is good.'
Tracks MT. The good-land report ("It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us") is preserved verbatim.
1QDeutᵃ frag. 1