HEBREW or GREEK?
Which language did Yahshua and his Disciples communicate?
Most agree on the basic developments of the Ketuvim Netzarim (writings of the Netzarim). Yahshua was born of Jewish lineage and he taught his disciples in his native Hebrew and Aramaic. The first disciples of Yahshua were also known as Jews, Netzari, Hebrews and Israelites. Yahshua and his people lived under Roman occupation, but their language and religious identity as Jewish people is based on Torah, the written Word of YHWH. As the oral transmission of Yahshua's teaching widened to a greater audience, the disciples wrote about their experience with Yahshua in Hebrew and Aramaic, for the benefit of others who were not firsthand witnesses to the things Yahshua said and did. But even before accounts of Yahshua's life were written, his teachings and fame was disseminated among Greeks and in the Greek language as well. Additionally, all who follow YHWH and His Mashiyach do so to the exclusion of all other religions and gods. YHWH sets His own apart, whether Greek or Jew, all who permit Torah to be written upon their hearts, become the peculiar people whom YHWH sets apart.
"You have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if you will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then you shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: And you shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy (set apart) nation..."
Sh'mot/Exodus 19:4-6
Even before man's first sin, YHWH gave a covenant for man to be joined to Him as our One and Only Elohim. Throughout the history of man, YHWH sought to protect mankind from counterfeit and substitute gods. YHWH has always demonstrated his love and loyalty to His Creation, and we have always been given the freedom to volunteer to serve Him alone, or volunteer to serve other gods. YHWH's chosen people and the Ger Toshav (non-Jewish Sojourners) are instructed in Torah, how to enter into Covenant with YHWH and be a "peculiar" people, and YHWH tells us very clearly that those who follow Him are NOT to learn the ways of the heathen.
"You shall utterly destroy all the places, wherein the nations which you shall possess served their gods, upon the high mountains, and upon the hills, and under every green tree: And you shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and you shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place."
D'varim/Deuteronomy 12:2, 3
This passage of Torah is fresh in the mind of everyone who follows YHWH as their Elohim. At least once every year these verses are read and remembered, and there are many other verses that say the same thing, so it shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that Hellenic polytheistic culture and Torah do not mix, according to YHWH and His Mashiyach.
A thousand years passed before Torah was translated into Greek
Even 1,000 years later, Jewish translators refused to Hellenize the Name of YHWH! The Jewish scribes were so highly respectful of the Name of YHWH, that they chose to insert Paleo Hebrew letters in the Greek text when they came to the Name of YHWH (see Nahal Hever texts). After a thousand years the Word of YHWH, the Aseret ha-Dibrot (Ten Sayings or Ten Commandments) were finally made available in the Greek language. Prior to this, if Greeks wanted to read the Word of YHWH, they had to learn the Hebrew language. The Greek language originated around 800 BC, it spawned out of a polytheistic culture that differentiated itself as being "modernized", caretakers of philosophy and knowledge, rather than being set apart unto YHWH and His Word. The very first of YHWH's Ten Commandments opposed the "modernization", or the rebellion in mankind that desired to steward all peoples and earth, without YHWH.
I am YHWH thy Elohim
You shall have no other gods
You shall not take the name of YHWH thy Elohim in vain
Remember the Shabbat
Sh'mot/Exodus 20:2-7
The first commandment indicates that YHWH is Elohim and there is none other. This commandment also reveals the relationship between man and YHWH, that YHWH is the Architect of all Life. The Name of YHWH cannot be transliterated into any another language, because within the spoken Name of YHWH is an aspirant identity that connects the spirit of man, his nephesh chaya, to the Spirit of YHWH. A transliteration of the Name of YHWH (ie. Jehovah) would only amount to one person's revelation or ideology, even the act of translating His name would consequently be a violation of the second commandment, "You shall have no other gods" . The second commandment is a prohibition against fractionalizing YHWH Elohim in our hearts, minds and actions. The first undoing of man, is to divide his loyalty between YHWH and another authority. Many people suppose that their own language and culture is equal to all other cultures, and yes there must be equality for things upon earth, but not in "heaven". There is nothing on earth that man can fabricate which is equal to YHWH, certainly not "culture", and especially if man's culture prides itself at contradicting YHWH Elohim.
The second commandment instructs us not to put anything before YHWH, and this can also refer to a language or a culture. There is no doubt that the Kingdom of Elohim is being taught in multitudinous languages, however the culture of the Kingdom of Elohim is the same wherever one travels on the earth, and in heaven. For a people to remake the words and values of the Kingdom of Elohim in a polytheistic culture is to re-define Torah and Mashiyach by the words and values of that culture, and make another god. Changing the revealed Name of YHWH into another language is making a "likeness" something other than the original. Whether they be real or perceived gods, names or titles in a person’s estimation is not a factor, the names Theos, Zeus, Ishtar, Lord, God, Jupiter, Mercury and names used for man's deities before they were plied to the Kingdom of Elohim.
The third commandment instructs us to NOT take the Name of YHWH in vain, this means to turn His Holy Name into a common thing, lessen it, or substitute it with a name of other deities (LORD, GAD, GOD, Jehovah). YHWH is Holy and His Name is Holy, which means that those who Fear His Name will not act presumptuously regarding His Name or His Word.
"You shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall you diminish anything from it, that you may keep the mitzvot of YHWH your Elohim which I command you." D'varim 4:2
Rabbinical tales are told of how Torah was given in 70 languages, so that all souls would have some understanding of how man was live and steward the earth. Certainly YHWH's intention is that there would be a universal acknowledgment of His Word, and that mankind would live in harmony with Himself and each other. While it might be a nice idea that Torah was given in all the known languages of Moshe's day, we know that YHWH spoke to Moshe in the Hebrew tongue, YHWH did not speak 70 languages to Moshe, nor does Torah say that the people were given the "gift of tongues". YHWH gave instruction to "not add unto the Word... neither diminish from it" so we need not speculate because we know that from the beginning of time, YHWH used the Hebrew language to reveal Himself. He raised up individuals like Noah, Avraham, Moshe, His Prophets, His Mashiyach and those whom He chooses who will keep Covenant with Him.
The revelation of YHWH comes about in one's spirit, in thoughts, speech and in the reading of His Word so there are manifold ways that one can have access to the Word of YHWH. YHWH has shown through time that He protects his Word, when Masoretic Jewish Scribes and Pharisees chose to change and distort Torah, YHWH provided ancient Hebrew manuscripts from Qumran to restore the accuracy of His Word.
When Hellenized Christianity attempted to choke hold the language, culture and values of Yahshua and His Talmidim, YHWH brought forth ancient writings of the Ketuvim Netzarim, the Kaboris Manuscript from the Hakkan Mountains in Assyria
http://www.peshitta.org/initial/peshitta.html. In every case, because change is difficult to make, many deny and argue against what is self evident truth. The Kaboris Manuscript (Kabouris Codex) has come under harsh attack by the Greek primacy religious crowd who are fearful that the authority of the Greek Scriptures may be undermined, and put themselves in a tight spot. But everyone knows that Yahshua and his disciples weren't Greeks, and didn't venerate either the language or the culture of Rome.
When the James Ossuary was discovered it embarrassed the Catholic Church, when it was confirmed that Yahshua had a blood brother and his mother Miriam didn't remain a virgin. They are still trying to put out the fires. The ossuary embarrassed a handful of Jews who wrote about Ya'akov Ha Tsadiq and Yahshua being mythical legends. Nevertheless the highly questioned patina was upheld by many archeologists from Israel and throughout the world, who testified of the inscription being original, in its entirety. Later of course the patina was clouded in controversy, and many people wished it would go away. The Ossuary was view by several Semitic Language scholars including Roth, Daniel and Lancaster at the Royal Museum in Toronto. The Aramaic patina appeared consistent, "Ya'akov bar Yosef akhui diYahshua", James son of Joseph brother of Yahshua. Most agree that a close friend or relative would have made the inscription, as was the custom, to make sure they got the right bones in the right box. But even while at the museum in Toronto I was delighted to hear the conversation between two Catholic nuns as it pertained to Yahshua. One nun was trying for the life of her to explain that Yahshua was the Name of Jesus, the other nun was horrified and unbelieving. As I listened the nuns were getting a bit exasperated with each other, finally the one nun exclaimed, how can his Name be Yahshua if his name was Jesus! I could see from their looks that they weren't interested in me preaching to them, but nevertheless they happily moved along dressed in their flowing penguin-like outfits.
YHWH commands His Word as "Kadosh" (Holy), Observant Jews entice non-Observant Jews back to Judaism by encouraging Jews to read and study in Hebrew. Aramaic is a sister language to Hebrew, it has long been used as the common language in which commentaries and discussion about Torah have been written. Hebrew has and will always be the language of formal Torah readings, and for good reason, generation after generation the verses have been cherished, revered and committed to memory for preservation and teaching to the next generation in the language in which Torah had been birthed.
The Babylonian Talmud was written in 3rd to 6th Century in the "lingua franca" of Babylon which was Aramaic, but it wasn't until 1520 AD when a Christian named Daniel Bomberg chose to translate it into English. It took a thousand years before the supply and demand curve met, and the Babylonian Talmud was translated. As with the Septuagint, the Talmud was not necessarily translated by adherents of Judaism but by and for parties seeking information, however language is very conceptually interfaced with cultural interpretation, and Hebrew is written using many idioms and poetic emphasis that are impossible to translate. If our deep desire is to learn intimate things from the Word of YHWH about the Mashiyach, then we must understand Hebrew and Aramaic terms and definitions, there is no way around it. Substitute or counterfeit words and ideas coined by the theological world are meant to serve the theological world, history has shown that the early Church founders had a Greek mindset, none had actually met Netzarim Jewish disciples of Yahshua, their information was based on hearsay.
It is very telling of "New Testament scholars" who are quick to discount the Jewish Hebraic Heritage which Mashiyach, His Talmidim and Apostle Paul lived, in favor of Greek ideas and language. There are many places in the "Greek New Testament" that scream foul, for example. Picture this, Andrew is running flat out along the Galilee shoreline, adrenaline is pumping through his body, his mind is racing, he sees his brother Peter floating out about 200 meters off the shoreline and Andrew screams out at the top of his LUNGS...
"We have found the Messias,
which is, being interpreted, the Christ."
John 1:41
EYPHKAMEN (we have found) TON (the) MECCIAN (Messiah)
O (which) ECTIN (is) MEOEPMHNEYOMENON (being after translated) XPICTOC (Christ)
Whether you are a Christian who "Loves the Lord", or a Jew who waits for Mashiyach, what would it mean to you if your brother whom you loved and trusted came barreling in shouting... "WE HAVE FOUND THE MASHIYACH!!!", but then... not knowing if you knew what he was talking about, he adds, "which is being interpreted, "the Christ"? It is beyond belief, that anyone could be so rudely ignorant to not realize that there is NO WAY this happens in the real world, in the religious worlds certainly, BUT NOT THE REAL WORLD!!! This is what is called a scribal gloss, the Greek translators realized that although this is a very BIG DEAL for Jews, most Greeks would be shrugging their shoulders and wondering what a Mashiyach is! There is no original concept of a Messiah in Greek culture, so the translator put in a gloss, a narrative so the Greeks wouldn't be sitting there with vacant looks on their faces.
Three chapters further, a Samaritan woman is at the well, (hint: she is not Greek) the Mashiyach opens her life up to her in a whole new dimension, after her once in a lifetime experience she replies,
"I know that Messias is coming,
which is called Christ:
when he is come, he will tell us all things."
John 4:25
MECCIAC (Messiah) EPXETAI (is coming)
O (the) AEROMENOC (being said) XPICTOC (anointed) OTAN (whenever) EAOH (may be coming)
Again, it's brutal to think that a Samaritan women while speaking with a Jew has to translate what Mashiyach means in order to talk about THE SUPREME most important and profound concept of both of their cultures. The Mashiyach has always been the lifeblood of Jewish hope! What does Mashiyach mean to you? Where would you go to find out about Mashiyach? To a Greek scholar or to those who Mashiyach came through? These are just two verses that contain dialogue about Mashiyach, both speakers probably loved the Romans and their Greek language as much as the Jews riding trains to Auschwitz loved the Germans.
“After this there was a feast of the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem”. John 5:1 KJV
“And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh” John 6:4 KJV
First it’s important to realize that the Moedim (YHWH’s appoint Feasts) were never called “Feasts of the Jews” by the Talmidim. They were called YHWH’s Feasts and His appointments (Leviticus 23:1-4). We know that John was himself a Jew. John would not have referred to any of the feasts in this irreverent manner. Only someone who lacked an understanding of the Moedim and the culture would have referred to them as “Feast of those Jews”. This phrase clearly shows us that the translator was not a Jew nor familiar with the culture.
Our beloved Paul the Apostle informs us in Romans 16:22 that it was "I Tertius, who wrote this epistle...", the Greek primacy crowd must think that Paul had a multiple personality disorder, bipolar or something like this. It says right in your Bible that Paul never wrote the book of Romans, he dictated it to Tertius. Those who have studied Paul from a historical perspective (ie without Christian or Jewish religious bias) tell us that Paul wasn't such an ordinary Jew. Paul was born into wealth and was sent to Jerusalem when he was 3 years old to study under the greatest Rabbinical Sage of the day. If you were a Jew hanging out with the greatest Sages in Jerusalem you would NOT be learning Greek literature, maybe someone could find an Orthodox Shul in Jerusalem, Israel that studies Greek and let me know? Apostle Paul was on target to be the next head Rabbi of Israel, that's why for Paul to serve Hellenized Jews and Gentiles is a greater miracle than Christians can imagine, something like Jonah going to tell Nineveh to repent. For Shaul to attend the most prized Yeshiva in the known world, he would have memorized Torah before his was 13. His Rabbi was Gamliel who according to the Gemara in Megilla 21a: "The Rabbis taught, from the days of Moshe until Rabban Gamliel, they only studied Torah while standing. When R. Gamliel died, a weakness came into the world and they studied Torah while seated. This is the meaning of [the Mishna at the end of Sota, which states:] "When R. Gamliel died, the honor of Torah was gone." According to Shaul's testimony in Acts 22:4 he "persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women." Shaul was a very zealous Pharisee, a "nut-basket" for TRADITION who would have been very guarded against being assimilated into Roman and Greek culture. Two thousand years later, observant Jews are still very guarded against becoming assimilated into Hellenized culture.
Any person who has suffered the infamy of living a righteous life in a Hellenized world knows what it means to live separate from a carnal Torahless world. We know how it feels like to be treated as a stranger in our own land, by our own families, even in churches and synagogues. Others may, but we cannot deny the standards YHWH has set before us to walk in. Paul was not a Hellenist, neither was he two faced to live in a way that pleased others and got himself notoriety. When it says "I Tertius, who wrote this epistle..." it means what it says, Paul's epic letter to the Romans was written by Tertius. Remember when the Romans picked Paul up and hauled him out of the Temple, after he completed the Nazirite purification along with the four other men Acts 21:26,27? Think about 4 men plus Paul, which equals FIVE men, and how having FIVE MEN purify themselves is a distinct sign of Torah Observance? Remember also how Paul addressed the P'rushim and Tz'dukim, in Hebrew but someone wrote a commentary in Acts 22:2, to inform the reader that Paul, a very widely known man throughout Israel, spoke in Hebrew and the crowd listened? Why would anyone really need to supply that bit of information? Paul asks a question of the Chief Captain of the Romans and then in Acts 21:37 the Captain asks Paul, "Can you speak Greek?" The Greek primacy spin doctors teach that the Captain was so amazed that Paul spoke such GOOD Greek? Or, it makes more sense that the Chief Captain of the Romans was simply requesting that Paul speak in Greek, so he could understand what he was saying.
Joseph ben Mattathias (nicknamed Josephus), is by far the most famous Jewish historian, intellect and writer of the 1st Century who wrote, "I have also taken a great deal of pains to obtain the learning of the Greeks, and understanding the elements of the Greek language although I have so long accustomed myself to speak our own language, that I cannot pronounce Greek with sufficient exactness: for our nation does not encourage those that learn the languages of many nations." Josephus is a champion of the Greek Christian world, he is considered to be a secret Christian by many Christian theologians, Josephus wrote in Hebrew not in Greek. Josephus says "I cannot pronounce Greek with sufficient exactness", but Christian theologians are quick to point out that he was just being "modest". If you read Josephus, he's about as in your face as any good Jew could be. Yoseph ben Mattathias was a Pharisee who leaned heavily toward the idea that the Roman armies were just too powerful for them to beat, otherwise he would have happily made war against Rome! The Roman occupation of Israel was extremely troublesome for the Jews, as much then as it is now, a common saying among Jews was "it would be better to feed your children swine than to learn the language of the Romans". Don’t forget that on several occasions Kefa (Peter) is chastised for treating Greeks as “unclean”. Peter was a Jewish patriot, and a simple Galilean fisherman. So is it reasonable to believe that he would speak or write in Greek?
It's nothing personal really, it's like what happens in any other occupation, even places like Iraq where American armies control the region, the locals are trying to beat them off but can't, the résistance from family members leaves them lying in their blood, then it was the Romans who were too "big and bad" to take down, now it's the Americans who feel they are god's gift to the world? Even if you tell them nicely that their welcome is a bit worn out, they just don't seem to get it and so it was with the Jews and the Romans in Yahshua's day. The Romans went on a rampage against the Jews and caused hundreds of blood baths, then they took tens of thousands of young Jews captive and made slaves out of them, so one should understand that there was no love lost between the majority of Jews and Romans in the Land of Israel.
HaEretz Israel is a very important piece of real estate, then as today the Jews have very little hope of emancipating themselves from the political forces against them. However the tyranny of christo-paganism that has fashioned a pagan religion out of the Jewish Mashiyach, Yahshua has a very self defeating component. Even though most Christians realize that Christianity needs a major reformation, most are unwilling to search back to Messiah's "roots" to find the foundation of the Kingdom.
The goal of ardent Greek primacy theologians,
is to establish the Greek language as the authority
so their Hellenized (anti-Torah) ideals are protected.
This subject of whether the "New Testament" has a Greek or Hebrew/Aramaic origin has been addressed by many scholars. Information is surfacing in all sorts of publications about Hebrew and Aramaic primacy, if one cares to learn. Texts such as Khabouris, Peshitta, Munsters, ShemTob, and DuTillet clearly show that it is impossible that the early followers of Yahshua were Greek thinkers. Scholars and researchers like Howard Gordon, Charles Cutler Torrey, Robert Balgarnie Young Scotts, Paul Younan, Andrew Gabriel Roth, Christopher Lancaster and hundreds of others are providing mountains of evidence and documentation to show the impossibility of a Greek primacy for the Ketuvim Netzarim (writings of the Nazarenes).
Neither can it be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that Apostle Paul wrote anything in the Greek language, it is only one theory. It's also interesting to note that it is NOT Greeks, who are the most adamant about "New Testament" Greek primacy, but it's English speakers. This dialogue would be redundant if Christianity even remotely resembled the fundamental Faith of Yahshua and His Talmidim, but it doesn't. This is why it is very important that we look deeper into the life and teachings of Yahshua from his original language.
The language of Yahshua, according to the Ketuvim Netzarim was Hebrew and Aramaic, the terms and definitions of the Kingdom were given according to the King who conveyed his thoughts, ideas and values in Hebrew and Aramaic. Each one of us most certainly receives direction by the Ruach HaKodesh (Holy Spirit) in the language of the Spirit, but we think and understand in words and definitions. Let's not forget that it was the WORD of YHWH that spoke the Universe into Existence, the Word is of supreme importance for us to connect with YHWH. The invention of new Greek terms and definitions for Hebrew words in the Ketuvim Netzarim propagated Hellenistic ideas that existed long before Yahshua came to earth. The Hellenistic pagan world tries to project its ideas upon Mashiyach and His Talmidim as a bid to usurp the authority and purity of truth.
Religious ideas birthed through Marcion and the Greek Church founders have established the "Shibboleth" of modern Christianity. To even refer to the Ketuvim Netzarim as "kainos diatheke" or the "New Testament", is a "testament" to the forces of Hellenized theology that are at war against Mashiyach Yahshua and HIS Torah. Although Marcion was considered a heretic by early "mainstream" Christians, he established dualism and dispensationalism very early in Christian history, and these are fundamental to the vast majority of Christian teaching. The Greek word diatheke does not distinguish between BRITH "covenant" and EDYOT "testimony", so the Christian words "New Testament" still has the pockmarks of Marcion. Marcion who coined the words "Old and New Testament", was also a rabid Jew hater, a heretic and a man who sought fame and power unto himself.
Epiphanius said about the Jewish Talmidim of Yahshua, "they are rather Jews and nothing else". What really perplexed the Church founders, was when they discovered that Jewish followers of Yahshua, continued to live as Jews, the church founders would have none of that, they wanted Jews to conform to Hellenistic lifestyles and values.
The concept of a "New Testament" is somewhat blurred in the Greek, if we read Jeremiah 31:31 we quickly discover that what Jeremiah called the "New Covenant" has not been entirely fulfilled yet. If we follow through to the Words of Yahshua, His Talmidim and Apostle Paul we also discover Paul practiced sacrifices in the Temple, the Disciples practiced circumcision, and the Gentile converts observed Shabbat and complied with Levitical (not Rabbinical)Kosher laws ie no blood, and not eating nothing strangled. This is the kind of "Jewish stuff" that Greek Christian founders abhorred, and is still abhorred by most Christians today as being too "Jewish", or "legalistic" and those who teach it are called "Judaisers". James who was "FULL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT" says, "trouble not them, which from among the Gentiles are turned to G-d: But that we write unto them, that they abstain from pollutions of idols, and from fornication, and from things strangled, and from blood." This preliminary directive was the undoing of James, by many “Church fathers”. Tertullian, the man who coined the word "Trinity", vetoed James and suggested that Christians should go ahead and celebrate pagan feasts in the name of Jesus.
It is Jewish custom to maintain Oral Tradition, so it is not unusual that some years would pass before Yahshua's Talmidim would get around to writing about their experiences with Yahshua. Why are there so few Hebrew and Aramaic transcripts when compared to extant Greek Manuscripts? First we have to realize that Paul was not alone is his quest to stamp out this upstart group of Netzari. There were Pharisees throughout Judea persecuting the Talmidim and burning their writings. This coupled with the Roman occupation and destruction of the temple in 70 A.D. The Roman military was ordered to burn ALL of the “religious writings” of the Jews.
What about Aramaic? We do have Aramaic “New Testament” manuscripts that have been proven to pre-date any extant Greek manuscript fragments by over 100 years. As mentioned, Assyrian Aramaic was the language of the commoner and was the dominant language of the north. The Netzari was firmly established in the northern Aramaic speaking region hundreds of years before the faith spread west. This is why Paul was headed to Damascus (Syria) to destroy Yahshua’s talmidim.
It is very likely that Greek followers of Yahshua had a greater urgency to have script in hand, than did Jewish Disciples of Yahshua, so think about this. None of the “Church forefathers” were well versed in Hebrew. Picture yourself sitting in while foreigners are talking about something, but don't have a clue what they are saying, but you have a translator sitting beside you. Whether you like it or not, you are going to hear your translator give you their own commentary, because there are words and concepts that are not supported in your own language. We must look at the Greek "New Testament" as a commentary. Before we read the Letter to the Romans it would be good to read all the Torah and the Prophets and the Writings, especially Isaiah because Paul quotes Isaiah some 29 times in his letter to the Romans.
The writings of the Talmidim of Yahshua are critically important to understand in their original context. Yahshua is YHWH come in the flesh, when He taught He manifest the wisdom of YHWH as was given unto Moshe in Torah and throughout the Prophets of YHWH. It cannot be emphasized enough how critical these writings are to our understanding of the Kingdom of Elohim, we have no better way to the TRUE Mashiyach than through His OWN WORD!
The theology of sun worship (Sun-day), Tammuz worship (Christ-mass), Ishtar (Easter) etc are all patently pagan. There would be far fewer bridges to Hellenism had Greek Christians studied Yahshua in His own language and culture rather than coining new Greek terms, definitions and methodologies that are of pagan origin. It's not just a simple matter of knowing Hebrew or Greek, it's a matter of whose authority we choose to follow. Our goal must not only be the truth, but we must also be willing to bear the infamy of truth as it pertains to Yahshua and the Kingdom of Elohim, regardless of the language we speak or the culture we've come from. We are told that the Faithful will know the Song of Moshe and the Song of the Lamb, both songs have a Jewish melody.
Abraham, Isaac, and Ya'akov were called and chosen by YHWH to make a distinction between the True Faith and Paganism. The Kingdom of Elohim and Paganism are opposites and are at war with each other, hasatan is the author of paganism. Avraham, whose name is his calling, is the father of all who seek the Kingdom of Elohim, the language of our Fathers Avraham, Yitzak and Ya'akov is Hebrew. All who seek the Mashiyach are to be joined in Spirit and Truth together with all the Israel of Elohim. We must see ourselves as being children of a common Father, from Adam to Noach to Abraham to Moshe to David to Yahshua to the Talmidim of Yahshua, to Paul the Apostle and hopefully even to the soul who first introduced us to Mashiyach Yahshua. Let's hope the values and teaching about the Kingdom of Elohim have been consistent with truth, if not, then it's time to explore the "Ancient Paths" as Jeremiah says and turn to YHWH. If we haven't much "Hebraic" exposure at least we should learn the basic distinctions between Hebraic and Hellenistic thinking. Knowing and learning Hebrew in itself is not going to lead a person out of their man-made religious system, there are countless Christian evangelists in Jerusalem who speak Hebrew for the sole purpose of finding and Hellenizing Jews into pagan Christianity. What leads us out of deception is the work of the Ruach HaKodesh in conjunction with the original Word of YHWH, if we want to know HaMashiyach we must study and meditate on the Word of YHWH to know the WILL of YHWH for our lives, just as King David did.
Unlearned Christians will argue that the “New Testament” had to be written in Greek because Hebrew was a dead language in the 1st Century. This argument flies is the face of all of the archeological evidence to the contrary. Archeologists have uncovered many 1st century coins and writings in the region - penned in Hebrew. But the final nail in the coffin for those that still spout this nonsense was the discovery of the Qumran Scrolls. The Dead Sea scrolls were discovered in 1947, in the caves of Qumran -13 miles east of Jerusalem. Almost 900 scrolls have be recovered, and all have been dated between 104 BCE to 66CE. All of the scrolls were penned in Hebrew – some even reporting on “current events”. So much for a dead language.
Did Mashiyach speak Greek to the woman of Canaan? No.
"And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, 'Have mercy on me, O Master, Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a demon'. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, 'Send her away; for she cries after us'. But he answered and said, 'I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel'. Then came she and worshipped him, saying, 'Master, help me'. But he answered and said, 'It is not meet to take the children's bread, and to cast it to dogs'. And she said, 'True, Master: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters' table'. Then Yahshua answered and said unto her, 'O woman, great is your faith: be it unto you even as you wish'. And her daughter was...
It is the glory of Elohim (God) to conceal a matter, but the honour of melekim (kings) to search it out.
