Editor's Note: The following introduction by Shalom Hartman Institute Senior Fellow Israel Knohl provides a fascinating tease to his provocative article on the ancient text, "Hazon Gabriel" (Gabriel's Vision), which has been written about by authors Ada Yardeni and Binyamin Elitzur. Knohl's entire article from The Journal of Religion, University of Chicago – with extensive quotes in the original classic Hebrew – is available for viewing and downloading as a PDF document by clicking here.   Knohl suggests the text supports his controversial thesis that messianic activity in the ancient land of Israel predated Jesus, as discussed originally in his 2000 book, "The Messiah Before Jesus: the Suffering Servant of the Dead Sea Scrolls." The case Knohl presents in this article will resurface in greater detail in an upcoming book.   By Israel Knohl   Ada Yardeni and Binyamin Elitzur published in 2007 ("Document: A First-Century BCE Prophetic Text Written on a Stone: First Publication," Cathedra 123, in Hebrew) a fascinating text of an apocalypse transmitted by the angel Gabriel, that they suggest calling "Hazon Gabriel" (the Vision of Gabriel).   Based on its linguistic features, they date the text, written in Hebrew on stone, to the late first century BCE. This suggestion is corroborated by the paleographic evidence which points to the late first century BCE or the early first century CE.   Hazon Gabriel confirms my thesis that the belief in a slain and resurrected messiah existed prior to the messianic activity of Jesus. The publication of this text is extraordinarily important. It is a discovery that calls for a complete reassessment of all previous scholarship on the subject of messianism, Jewish and Christian alike.   Read the full article by Israel Knohl here.