Between Qumran Sectarian and Non-Sectarian Texts: The Case of Belial and Mastema

The names Belial and Mastema – both used in reference to the leader of the demonic powers – have been known since the earliest days of Qumran research, inasmuch as a copy of the Rule of the Community (1QS) was recovered from Cave 1 and was one of the first two scrolls to be published. In this scroll, Belial, as leader of the Dark Forces, occupies a central position in the dualistic system which, according to columns III-IV of the Rule, governs the world, in particular the human and angelic spheres. The Rule does not mention the name Mastema, but it does appear in the Book of Jubilees, which was already known in an Ethiopic translation before the discovery of the scrolls. Since the archangel Mastema from Jubilees has a role comparable to that of Belial in the Rule of the Community, and since many of the elements in the Book of Jubilees are identical or very close to those of the Qumran scrolls, it has been surmised that Belial and Mastema are two interchangeable names for one and the same figure. All the early studies of the Qumran scrolls make this assumption, and it is still prevalent today. However, at present, when the full body of Qumran material is available, the picture emerging is more complex. The sectarian literature as a whole favors the name Belial for the Archdemon. However, in one small group of works, Mastema appears as the preferred name for the character. This name is used in the Damascus Covenant and Jubilees, as well as in the Pseudo- Jubilees. In the Apocryphon of Jeremiah we find a similar appellation, the angels of Mastemoth. Moreover, in these four works there are two demonic figures, and Belial actually appears alongside Mastema. In one of the Pseudo-Jubilees, 4Q225, there is a clear relationship between the two, and Belial is represented as subordinate to Mastema. It is therefore of interest that the two figures are mentioned chiefly by the non-sectarian texts that rework the Hebrew Bible. In this context the character of the Damascus Document comes out, once again, as unique within the sectarian literature, in that it reworks many non-Qumranic and non-sectarian traditions.