Essenes: Defenders Theological Dictionary

ESSENES
The Essenes were an apocalyptic sect of Judaism. They had a “revelation” that prompted them to eradicate evil and live righteous, holy lives for the God of Israel. Their zeal drove them to live as a community in the desert, separate from the “apostate” priestly religion of the Temple in Jerusalem. Some of their holy scriptures and other writings were found in caves at Qumran and are known today as the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Philo: Defenders Theological Dictionary

PHILO was a Jewish philosopher and theologian that lived in Alexandria, Egypt in the first century. Although he came from a Jewish priestly family, he was highly influenced by Greek Platonic thought. He thought of the Logos as a mediator of God and the creator of the physical world. Philo is well known for making use of allegorical principles in the interpretation of the Hebrew Scriptures.

Dictionary: Hermeneutics

Hermeneutics = The subdiscipline of theology concerned with the study of the general principles of proper interpretation of biblical texts.