“Razza di vipere” (Mt 3,7): un epiteto di origine qumranica?

Abstract

The links between Qumran and the New Testament have been the subject of study and debate since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls. In an attempt to find an approach through the analysis of some sayings in the Gospels, this article analyzes the epithet “brood of vipers” pronounced by both Jesus and John the Baptist (Mt 3:7; 12:34; 23:33; Lk 3:7). In conclusion, after the analysis of the recurrences of terms relating to ophidians in the Dead Sea scrolls, the epithet, although common in Second Temple Judaism, does not seem to find its background in the Qumran community.