A story of words and music; ancient words and not so ancient music. The Dead Sea Scrolls link three lives. Johanan, once called Lazarus, lived and worked with fellow Messianic seekers before the Romans destroyed their refuge and way of life. Towards the end of his life, he returns to the wilderness caves where they stored their scrolls to reflect on his past; was it all a vain hope? In 1950, Irish priest and palaeographer, Joseph Ross, arrives in Jerusalem to work on the recently discovered scrolls. There he meets Leah and falls in love. Years later, he lives in Rome, alienated from Church and family, where he meets his grandnephew, Marc, a young priest, music lover and student of the scrolls. Marc meets Carlo, a librarian, and his lover, Luigi, a Swiss Guard and aspiring opera singer; that meeting is a revelation. Studying the ancient texts, he finds that the melody behind the words tell him more than the words themselves. His studies of the past and experiences of the present give rise to new values; he hears an alternate melody.