2
Concerning the messengers ascending and descending upon the ladder, a later witness adds:
3
'In the latter times an ish shall come from the Most High, seeking to join what is above with what is below.
4
'Before his coming there shall be signs and visions, and the young shall speak of things beyond their years.
5
'That which is above shall be made known below, and the earth shall rejoice because heavenly Glory has drawn near.'
6
'A royal root shall arise from your Seed. He shall oppose the power of the Evil One and become deliverance to many nations.'
7
'Images fashioned from metal and stone shall be put to shame, and the powers attributed to them shall fail.'
8
'The one who comes shall restore what has been disordered and make smooth what has been made rough.'
9
'He shall be wounded among those counted as his own, yet the wound shall not destroy the purpose appointed for him.'
10
'Many among the nations shall place hope in him, and his name shall become known widely.'
11
'Those who trust in the deliverance of El Elyon shall not finally be put to shame.'
12
The earlier reconstruction does not require this final layer in order to interpret the ladder. Its language belongs to a later Christian transmission stream and is therefore preserved here distinctly rather than silently fused into the …