The Teacher of Immortality and the Teacher of Righteousness: One and the Same

 **The Teacher of Immortality and the Teacher of Righteousness: One and the Same**

In the annals of ancient wisdom and prophetic tradition, two titles stand out for their profound significance: *the Teacher of Righteousness* and *the Teacher of Immortality*. While these titles appear in different texts—the former from the Dead Sea Scrolls and the latter from the Nag Hammadi Library—they both point toward the same singular figure: a divine teacher appointed to guide the faithful in both conduct and knowledge, to separate truth from corruption, and to call a remnant out from the apostasy of the world system. Through careful comparison of these texts and their themes, it becomes evident that these two titles belong to one and the same person.

The *Teacher of Immortality* appears in the Valentinian text *The Interpretation of Knowledge*, which portrays him as one who hides himself, as if divine, and embraces and destroys his own works for the sake of truth and transformation:

> “The teacher should hide himself as if he were a god who would embrace his works and destroy them. For he also spoke with the Church and he made himself her teacher of immortality, and destroyed the arrogant teacher by teaching her to die.”

> (*The Interpretation of Knowledge*, Nag Hammadi Library)

Here, the Teacher of Immortality speaks with the Church—not as a distant power, but as one intimately connected with her transformation. He does not elevate pride but destroys the “arrogant teacher,” not by violence, but by teaching her *to die*—a spiritual death to pride, corruption, and the surfeit of the Natural World. This is not a denial of life, but the pathway to a greater life through knowledge and humility.

This teacher's school is not one of dead texts but of living teaching:

> “And this teacher made a living school, for that teacher has another school: while it teaches us about the dead writings, he, on the other hand, was causing us to remove ourselves from the surfeit of the world; we were being taught about our death through them.”

> (*The Interpretation of Knowledge*, Nag Hammadi Library)

The contrast is striking: one school clings to dead writings—interpreted mechanically, without spirit—while the Teacher of Immortality draws his students into a new kind of instruction, one that unveils the necessity of dying to the old world in order to live anew. The “dead writings” may refer to corrupted religious traditions that merely preserve rituals without knowledge, in contrast to the teacher’s life-giving doctrine.

Now consider the *Teacher of Righteousness* from the Dead Sea Scrolls:

> “\[For the wicked encompasses] the righteous (i, 4c).

> \[The wicked is the Wicked Priest, and the righteous] is the Teacher

> of Righteousness…

> \[So] justice goes forth \[perverted] (i, 4d).”

> (*Habakkuk Pesher*, Dead Sea Scrolls)

The contrast here is between the *Wicked Priest* and the *Teacher of Righteousness*. The Wicked Priest is a usurper—someone who perverts justice, surrounds the righteous, and stands as the antithesis of the true teacher. The same document provides further insight:

> “\[Behold the nations and see, marvel and be astonished; for I

> accomplish a deed in your days, but you will not believe it when]

> I told (i, 5).

> \[Interpreted, this concerns] those who were unfaithful together with

> the Liar, in that they \[did] not \[listen to the word received by] the

> Teacher of Righteousness from the mouth of God.”

> (*Habakkuk Pesher*, Dead Sea Scrolls)

The Teacher of Righteousness is shown to have received a direct revelation from God. His word was ignored by both the “Liar” and the unfaithful, mirroring the rejection of the Teacher of Immortality by the arrogant teacher. The texts converge thematically—both figures teach the necessity of death to the present system, both are rejected, and both confront a rival authority who claims legitimacy but lacks true knowledge.

But who is this *Wicked Priest*—the one who perverts the covenant, leads others into unfaithfulness, and rejects the divine teacher? The Dead Sea Scrolls provide the following insight:

> “And likewise, this saying is to be interpreted \[as concerning those who] will be unfaithful at the end of days. They, the men of violence and the breakers of the Covenant, will not believe when they hear all that \[is to happen to] the final generation from the Priest \[in whose heart] God set \[understanding] that he might interpret all the words of His servants the Prophets…”

> (*Habakkuk Pesher*, Dead Sea Scrolls)

This prophecy refers to the *final generation* and names *the Priest* who carries divine understanding and interprets the prophets. This priest is the Teacher of Righteousness, who also matches the description of the Teacher of Immortality.

The *Wicked Priest*, therefore, is not a figure from ancient times only, but one who continues into the “end of days.” This matches Paul’s *man of lawlessness*—the Antichrist—who exalts himself in the temple of God (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). Historically, Protestant interpreters have identified this “man of sin” as the Bishop of Rome, the papacy—the line of popes who claim to be Christ's vicar, wielding temporal and spiritual authority while opposing the true doctrine.

This priesthood, corrupted and exalting itself, is the other school—the one that teaches from dead writings while opposing the living school of the true Teacher.

Thus, the *Teacher of Righteousness* and the *Teacher of Immortality* are one and the same: a hidden figure sent by the Deity to speak with the Church, teach her to die to the world, and live in righteousness. He teaches not dead tradition but living knowledge. He confronts the apostasy embodied in the papal system—the Antichrist, the Wicked Priest, the man of lawlessness—who has led generations into error. But a remnant hears the true teacher’s voice and turns.

In the end, justice is restored not by force but by truth. And those who receive the living teaching are taught both to die and to live.

**The Teacher of Immortality and the Teacher of Righteousness: One and the Same**

In the writings preserved from early Christian and Jewish sectarian groups—such as the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Nag Hammadi Library—two mysterious figures emerge: the *Teacher of Righteousness* and the *Teacher of Immortality*. Though found in different texts and traditions, these two are in fact one and the same person: a divinely-appointed guide who brings true knowledge, leads the elect away from corruption, and prepares them for death and resurrection. His enemy—the *Wicked Priest* or *man of lawlessness*—has persisted through time as the Bishop of Rome, the papal Antichrist, who has profaned the covenant and perverted justice.

The *Teacher of Righteousness* is a central figure in the Dead Sea Scrolls. He is a priestly teacher who received divine revelation and rightly interpreted the words of the prophets. According to the *Habakkuk Pesher*, he was opposed by a corrupt adversary:

> "\[For the wicked encompasses] the righteous (i, 4c).

> \[The wicked is the Wicked Priest, and the righteous] is the Teacher of Righteousness...

> \[So] justice goes forth \[perverted] (i, 4d)."

This contrast of righteousness and wickedness is moral, not merely political. The Teacher of Righteousness, guided by divine understanding, speaks the word of God. His role is to make known what the prophets declared and to instruct the faithful in the true covenant. His rejection by the wicked priest and his followers mirrors the fate of all true prophets, as explained further in the scroll:

> "\[Behold the nations and see, marvel and be astonished; for I accomplish a deed in your days, but you will not believe it when] II told (i, 5).

> \[Interpreted, this concerns] those who were unfaithful together with the Liar, in that they \[did] not \[listen to the word received by] the Teacher of Righteousness from the mouth of God. And it concerns the unfaithful of the New \[Covenant] in that they have not believed in the Covenant of God \[and have profaned] His holy Name."

Here, the *Liar*, the *Wicked Priest*, and the unfaithful are all part of the same rebellion: those who suppress the truth, reject the divine teacher, and corrupt the covenant. The prophecy even extends beyond the time of the Qumran community, saying:

> “And likewise, this saying is to be interpreted \[as concerning those who] will be unfaithful at the end of days. They, the men of violence and the breakers of the Covenant, will not believe when they hear all that \[is to happen to] the final generation from the Priest \[in whose heart] God set \[understanding] that he might interpret all the words of His servants the Prophets…”

The *Teacher of Righteousness*, then, is not confined to one historical period. He is the bearer of interpretive understanding across time—especially at the end of days. He reveals the divine message when it is most needed, and he stands in opposition to the final great adversary: the Antichrist.

In the early Christian Valentinian text *The Interpretation of Knowledge*, found in the Nag Hammadi Library, a similar figure appears. He is called the *Teacher of Immortality*, and his identity, role, and mission closely parallel that of the *Teacher of Righteousness*. The text says:

> "The teacher should hide himself as if he were a god who would embrace his works and destroy them. For he also spoke with the Church and he made himself her teacher of immortality, and destroyed the arrogant teacher by teaching her to die."

This "teacher" both builds up and tears down. He hides himself as if divine, but his actions are deeply human—he teaches the Church to die, meaning to renounce the present world and the arrogance of the flesh. He does not bring worldly power or glory but death to self and the hope of resurrection. This process of dying is preparatory for true life—immortality, not of the soul, but of the body raised incorruptible.

The text continues:

> "And this teacher made a living school, for that teacher has another school: while it teaches us about the dead writings, he, on the other hand, was causing us to remove ourselves from the surfeit of the world; we were being taught about our death through them."

There are two rival schools: one obsessed with “dead writings”—legalism, tradition, and form without power. The other is a *living school*, where knowledge leads to transformation. This living school is the continuation of the true covenant. Just as the Teacher of Righteousness battled the Wicked Priest, so the Teacher of Immortality exposes and defeats the arrogant teacher who leads many astray. The same spiritual conflict is presented under different symbols and vocabulary.

The enemy—the *Wicked Priest*, the *Liar*, the *arrogant teacher*, the *man of sin*—is none other than the Antichrist, the Bishop of Rome. The line of popes has always claimed divine authority, persecuted the righteous, and corrupted the covenant. As Paul wrote:

> “Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God…” (2 Thessalonians 2:3–4).

This "man of sin" is not future; he has been active through the papal office for centuries. The Papacy is the modern continuation of the Wicked Priest, opposing the Teacher in every age. Yet, the true Teacher—the same in every generation—destroys the arrogant by teaching the elect to die and to live again.

Therefore, the *Teacher of Righteousness* and the *Teacher of Immortality* are not two, but one. He is the divinely appointed interpreter of prophecy, revealer of knowledge, guide in death and resurrection, and the sworn enemy of the Antichrist—the bishop of Rome—who has profaned the covenant and persecuted the righteous. The Teacher stands with those who believe in the covenant of God, who forsake the dead writings of the corrupt system, and who are taught to die, that they might live.