That care in copying was effective in practically eliminating errors is also evidenced by the recently discovered Dead Sea Scroll “A” of Isaiah, which is dated around 100 B.C.E. This scroll is about a thousand years older than what was formerly the oldest known copy of the Bible book of Isaiah in Hebrew. And yet there are few differences between the two copies of Isaiah, causing Professor Millar Burrows to observe in his book The Dead Sea Scrolls: “It is a matter for wonder that through something like a thousand years the text underwent so little alteration.”

Are They Really So Old?

Yet someone may ask: ‘How can one be so sure those Dead Sea Scrolls and other manuscript finds are so old? Is there really evidence that they are?’

Yes, there is. Paleography, which has to do with the study of ancient scripts or writing, offers noteworthy evidence. Writing styles vary from period to period, changing with the fashion of the day, and also as a language changes over the years. Old written documents are often dated by employing this science of paleography. Consider an example.

In the Dead Sea Scroll “A” of Isaiah both the Hebrew letters waw and yohdh are similar in appearance. This was the style around the first and second centuries B.C.E., but in later periods the yohdh was noticeably smaller than the waw. This is just one example of how a study of the writing style can help in dating a manuscript.

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Hebrew lettering styles differed at various periods of manuscript making. These differences aid scholars to date manuscripts. Notice the distinctions in these two examples:

[Artwork​—Hebrew characters]

Divine Name from Isaiah Scroll “A” (c. 100 B.C.E.)

Divine Name from Manuscript Dated 895 C.E.