Complex sentence: A well-accepted theory is that the Sapiential Work was a pre-Qumranic text; in other words it was not written for an isolated sect, but it "was" directed toward a specific audience (Elgvin 1996: 129).
Split into simpler sentences: A well-accepted theory is that the Sapiential Work was a pre-Qumranic text. In other words, it was not written for an isolated sect, but it "was" directed toward a specific audience (Elgvin 1996: 129).