The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Integrity of the Masoretic Text (Q&A Response) Part 2

Part 2 of my response to a student's question about whether the Dead Sea Scrolls pose a challenge to the Masoretic text. Paywalled for reasons stated in Part 1.

This week’s Torah content is sponsored by Naomi and Rabbi Judah Dardik, with gratitude to those who teach, lead, and strengthen Klal Yisrael, and with special appreciation for Rabbi Moskowitz zt"l.

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The Dead Sea Scrolls and the Integrity of the Masoretic Text (Q&A Response) Part 2

Reminders: This was written as an email and has not been edited to my usual Substack standards. Also, it goes without saying that you should only read this after Part 1. Lastly, this post might surpass the email limit, in which case, you’ll need to read it on Substack.

Now, onto your question, which I’ll restate here for easy reference (and to refresh our memories):

How can we quote any torah book if things like the dead sea scrolls have proven that there are multiple and significant textual differences in the Masoretic text than them? Like how in yoshiyahu the dead sea scrolls version has more than 2000 actual differences not just spelling differences. Doesn't this suggest that the torah evolved over time before becoming standardized?

In this email, I’ll focus on the key points, deliberately setting aside other discussions for now, since they will likely build on what I lay out here. Also, while each point is distinct, they are intended to be read in sequence because together they constitute a single argument.