--

Tobit is not part of the original Torah. It was written **long after the covenant at Sinai**, during a time of **Greek rule over Judea**, and was never included in the Paleo-Hebrew scrolls. It is a **diaspora story**, rooted in Aramaic tradition, not covenant instruction from Yhwh.

**LANGUAGE AND MANUSCRIPTS**
Tobit was originally written in **Aramaic**, not Hebrew. This is confirmed by the **Dead Sea Scrolls**, where multiple copies of Tobit were found in **Cave 4 at Qumran**. These scrolls — labeled 4Q196 through 4Q200 — date to roughly **100–50 BC**, but the story itself was composed earlier, likely between **225 and 175 BC**. The language matches Jewish Aramaic used in Babylonian exile communities.

**SETTING VS. WRITING DATE**
The story of Tobit is set during the **Assyrian exile** of Israel, roughly 722 BC. But the writing came **500 years later**, during **Greek Seleucid control**. The narrative reflects the struggles of Jewish families living under foreign governments and trying to keep Torah while in exile. It uses an older setting as a backdrop, but the actual author lived during Hellenistic times.

**NOT PART OF THE TORAH OR PROPHETS**
Tobit is not included in any **Paleo-Hebrew Torah scroll**. It does not appear in any known **early Square Script Torah** or among the writings of the Prophets. The **Masoretic Text** excluded it completely. It was preserved only by a small group of diaspora Jews and later copied in Greek for the Septuagint, where many pagan elements were added.

**KEY THEMES IN THE ARAMAIC TOBIT**
In the Aramaic version found at Qumran, the focus is on:
– A righteous man named Tobit, who buries the dead despite the law of the Assyrians
– Tobit's blindness as a test of faith
– His son Tobias, who journeys to recover family property
– A woman named Sarah, who had been widowed multiple times
– A divine messenger (Raphael), who helps them on their journey

**NO DEMONS OR MAGIC IN THE EARLY TEXT**
The Aramaic scrolls **do not mention Asmodeus** by name. The idea of a demon killing Sarah’s husbands is far less dramatic and may reflect fear or misfortune rather than supernatural evil. The **use of a fish gall to heal Tobit’s blindness** is portrayed as **folk medicine**, not sorcery. The angel Raphael never receives worship or divine status in the early form.

**GREEK CORRUPTION ADDED LATER**
The later Greek Septuagint version expanded the story, introducing:
– Named demons like **Asmodeus**
– Stronger emphasis on **magical rituals**
– Prayers and poetic additions not found in the Qumran copies
– A more dramatic role for the angel Raphael
These were likely added by Hellenistic Jews who merged Hebrew themes with Greek storytelling and superstition.

**CONCLUSION**
Tobit is not law, not prophecy, and not a covenant book. It was written during Greek rule, not Mosaic times. It is a **moral tale** from the Aramaic-speaking Jewish exile community, meant to teach trust in Yhwh and righteous behavior under foreign oppression.

✅ It has **some value as a reflection of faithful Jewish life**
❌ But it is **not from Sinai**, not Torah, not Paleo-Hebrew, and not divine instruction from Yhwh
❌ It was never in the covenant scrolls or read alongside Moses’ writings

—