Messianic Judaism and the Law

[Pray4Isrel]

Many times there is confusion among people about how the Levitical Law relates to Messianic Jews.  Some go to either extreme by believing that Messianic Jews do not abide in any part of the law, while others believe that the laws overrule the importance of Yeshua (Jesus).

So where do you place the Law?  What is your interpretation of the role that the Law plays as well as that of Yeshua?

I believe the law was not abolished by Yeshua but fulfilled.  Fulfilled however, does not mean that the law is done away with.  It is such a fine line. 

Mat 5:17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
Mat 5:18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
Mat 5:19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach [them], the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.

Your thoughts, please?

[Shimon]

Pray4Israel:

Personally, I don't think there is a fine line at all. The word "fulfill" means: "to bring to fullness." Yeshua came to *perform* the Torah, and bring it to its fulness. The Torah always promised that the Messiah would pay the price for our transgressions and He came to fulfill that Promise. That's what he meant by "fulfill."

The Torah was established from the very beginning, but mankind has always been disobedient to it. Yeshua came to pay for our death decree for not obeying it, not to abolish the very standard which defines sin.

The prophecies tell us that we will continue to observe the Torah in His Kingdom. In fact, the very first thing we will do in His Kingdom is celebrate the Feast of Sukkot -- that is the Marriage Feast.

Shimon

[dignitized]

Christ came to SATISFY the law. There is no longer a passover lamb in the Christian faith, because JESUS Christ is the Pascal Lamb. There is not longer Matza in the NT passover - The Eucharist is the Matza. There is no longer a need for sin offering - Christ is the once and for all time offering for sin. :) Christ has fullfilled the Law by satisfying what it required in our place.

[Charles YTK]

Hello to all,

My name is Charles. This is my first posting here. Yeshua came to fulfil the law. Yes? But in the Greek we see that this word "fulfil" has a different meaning than what we think.It means to fully establish, or to set upon a firm foundation, to bring to its full and proper meaning. In the vereses that follow this passage in Matthew, we see that Yeshua does exactly that with a teaching method well established in Judaism. He quotes the common understood law and then gives its correct meaning. For example, "You have heard it said of old that you shall not kill, however I tell you, that if you have hatred in your heart for another without cause, you have already killed the man in your heart and are guilty. You have heard it saidd of old, thou shall not commit adultery, but I say to you that if you have lust in your heart for another mans wife you have already committed adultery in your heart and are guilty of breaking the law. (my paraphrase). So we see Yeshua correctly orienting the law, taking it from an outward observance and writing it upon the heart. And this is the foundation of the new covenant, Jer. 31 " I shall write my laws upon their hearts. . . and every man shall know me."

Now concerning the Matza and the festivals of the Lord; they are all appointed to be kept by Gods children (both natural and grafted in or adopted) for all eternity, however in this day, they are done with an eye on Messaih Yeshua who is the very person who is revealed in all the feasts. They all point to Messiah and Gods Salvation. These are the same feasts and fasts that were observed by the church in Palestine and all the region until about 325 AD when Gentile influence and the church based in Rome, "Christinaized" Pagan practices and brought them into the church. These new festival, (which are the same ones practiced today) have no foundation in the commandments of God, in the word of God, or in that which was approved of by the saints of the first church.

If you would like to discuss any of these feasts in detail I would be willing to spend some time here. There are things that might be a blessing to you. For example, next month the "Christian Church" will observe the festival of Christmas, remembering the birth of Christ. However, this was introduced to the church in the 4th century when the pagan festival celebrating the "rebirth of the sun God Mithras" which was celebrated on Dec 25th, as the days once again begin to get longer. The actual birth of Christ is at the time of the feast of Sukkot, (Sept to Oct to the western calendar) and is revealved in the scriptures if you understand the context and Hebraic nature of the scriptures.

I hope that my introduction here is not too brash.

Charles YTK

[Shimon]

Welcome, Charles!

To confirm what Charles said above, I’d like to point out that there are two theories put forth as to which Hebrew word Yeshua used when he said “fulfill.”

Some scholars suggest that He used the Hebrew “kum” which means “to establish,” or “to confirm.” They make this suggestion because of how the word is used in the Tanakh, as well as in the Mishnah. In the Tanakh, “kum” is used in passages which speak of "confirming" covenants: Genesis 6:18; 9:9, 11; 17:7, 19; Exodus 6:4; Leviticus 26:9; Deuteronomy 8:18; 2 Kings 23:3; Jeremiah 34:18; Ezekiel 16:60, 62. In the Mishnah, “kum” is used to convey the meaning "to sustain" or "maintain" the teaching of a Sage, (m.Gittin 3:4); and in the Talmud it is used as "fulfilling, maintaining, carrying out, or executing" the whole Torah (b.Yoma 28b). The verb “kum” became a rabbinic favorite to describe the "doing" of Torah commandments. So if Yeshua used the word “kum” when He made His famous statement about "fulfilling" the Torah and the Prophets, then He clearly meant that He came not to set the Torah aside but to establish the Torah, to confirm it, to see that it was carried out or obeyed the way God intended. This, of course, fits with the words of verses 19–20 in which Yeshua instructs His disciples to "do" the commandments and teach others to do them as well.

The other theory that is put forth, is that the Hebrew word He used was “malei.” In 1 Kings, we read the story of an aging David and his subsequent fight for his throne. Adonijah has declared himself king behind David's back and the prophet Nathan wants Bathsheba to tell David about what has taken place. The prophet says to her:

1 Kings 1:13-14: Go at once to King David and say to him, "Have you not, my lord, O king, sworn to your maidservant, saying, 'Surely Solomon your son shall be king after me, and he shall sit on my throne'? Why then has Adonijah become king?" Behold, while you are still there speaking with the king, I will come in after you and confirm (malei) your words."

Here, the word “malei” is used in the phrase "to fulfill the words." In this context, the meaning is certain: Nathan the prophet "confirms" Bathsheba's words, meaning that he strengthens them and gives them credibility. While she is explaining the situation to King David, Nathan will arrive and confirm that what she has said is true. Since he becomes the second witness, the matter is established. In this case the word “malei” means to "confirm" or "establish" and fits very well with the context of Yeshua's statement. His point was that He came to "confirm" the words of the Torah in exactly the same way that Nathan confirmed Bathsheba's words. He came as a witness to establish the Torah's meaning and relevance. In this way He confirms the Torah rather than abolishes it.

So, in either case, the meaning behind the word seems clear: Yeshua came “to confirm” or “to establish” the Torah, not to “end” or “abolish” it.

Shimon

[Pray4Isrel]

Thanks to both of you for the in-depth look at this topic. I really gleaned a lot from you both and look forward to more on this same subject. I have noticed that, as Charles said, many take the meaning of "fulfill" to mean "done away with". This is not so. Yeshua expounded upon the law and taught it openly - He actually applied it through parables and the like. This is why many of His own rejected Him. He was not what they had pictured Messiah to be. It is important that we understand the law and it's relation to our Messiah Jesus and His teachings.
God Bless!

[Charles YTK]

Continuing,

Even if we are not sure which Hebrew/Aramaic word He might have used, we can look at the Greek which we have, and even there we see that he is confirming, or fully establishing and not bringing to a close or terminating it.

4137 pleroo { play-ro’-o}

from 4134; TDNT - 6:286,867; v

AV - fulfil 51, fill 19, be full 7, complete 2, end 2, misc 9; 90

GK - 4444 { plhrovw }

1) to make full, to fill up, i.e. to fill to the full
1a) to cause to abound, to furnish or supply liberally
1a1) I abound, I am liberally supplied
2) to render full, i.e. to complete
2a) to fill to the top: so that nothing shall be wanting to full measure, fill to the brim
2b) to consummate: a number
2b1) to make complete in every particular, to render perfect
2b2) to carry through to the end, to accomplish, carry out, (some undertaking)
2c) to carry into effect, bring to realisation, realise
2c1) of matters of duty: to perform, execute
2c2) of sayings, promises, prophecies, to bring to pass, ratify, accomplish
2c3) to fulfil, i.e. to cause God’s will (as made known in the law) to be obeyed as it should be, and God’s promises (given through the prophets) to receive fulfilment
Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon, (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.) 1995.

Blessings to you,

Charles YTK

[Pray4Isrel]

I particularly like "To render perfect" and "To cause God's will to be obeyed as it should be".
The listed definitions are powerful and shed light onto this subject. Now, if we could all share these definitions with others...

[dignitized]

It is an exercise in speculation to even suggest that Christ spoke those words in Hebrew let alone what words he would have used to speak it in that tongue since the bulk of the Jewish people at that time did not even speak the language. The common tongues in that area were Aramaic and of course Greek. Christ would NOT have used Hebrew. He would have spoken in a tongue the common Jew would grasp. Of all the NT books, Matthew alone could possibly have been penned in Aramaic rather then Greek in its original form. All other NT books were written in the Greek tongue. Why? Because the eastern Mediterranean world was the HELLENISTIC world. At this point in history, all the nations of the Middle East were Greek Hellenistic Nations. Egypt was ruled by the Ptolemies, Babylon by the Seleucids, etc. They were all Greek kingdoms until Rome imposed Her rule on the land. Even then, the Greek culture remained intact. There were rare exceptions to the universal Hellenization of the local culture. In Egypt, there was a Greek icing placed upon the Egyptian cake ;) in Persia, the same. In Anatolia, the culture was universally Greek.

Israel was not left unscathed either. The Sadducees were the hellenized class of Jewish society. More over, we must remember at this time in history the Jews are no longer centered around Jerusalem. They have been scattered all over the Greek world. There are colonies of Jews as far away as Rome. Remember at Pentecost when the Jews heard Peter speak they each herd him in their OWN language. SO the question is, what language would most every person in the East Mediterranean know at least passingly? Why the language of commerce which despite the attempts of Rome was never really replaced by Latin - Greek Koine. So universal was the language that the Ptolemean Pharaoh contracted 70 Jewish scholars to translate the Torah in to Greek for the Legendary Library at Alexandria. This translation the Septuagint was so perfect that 70 scholars working independently to translate the Torah, when their individual translations were compared they showed deviation of only a few CHARACTERS amongst them all.

This translation became the Mainstay Torah in Synagogues through out the Hellenistic world. Is it any wonder that the NT authors wrote in greek? SO a look at the Greek word is more pertinant to the discussion than any speculation about the Hebrew.

That said, all of the churches I interact with on a regular basis all see fulfill to mean completed not done away with.

[Charles YTK]

Br. Max,
Have you ever seen a Torah scroll written in Greek? No. Can't be done. Because to be a approved Torah, every word and mark must be identical. Even checked with a checksum at the end of each line, where the letters are added up in their numerical equivilant, and added to a line total. Any errors and the scroll is destroyed.

Epiphanius the early church father states that the Jews used the book (scroll) of Matthew preserved in it Hebrew, "In which it was originally written". Arqamaic was a local dialect of Hebrew and varies only in a few dozen words. You may also find it interesting that the stone ostuary box of James the brother of Yeshua was found and recently in the news because of some damage it recieved while transporting it. The inscription on it is in Hebrew and not Greek, and it says Yaacov Ben Yoseph Achi Yeshua. Which in English is "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus." The name for Jesus is given as Yod, Shin Vav Ayin= Yeshua, phonetically, which in Hebrew means Gods salvation. Additionally, all the religious artifacts which have been recovered from the very first church, over which James Himself was Elder, bear Hebrew inscriptions not Greek.

Charles YTK

[Higher Truth]

Below is a quote that was posted:

"You may also find it interesting that the stone ostuary box of James the brother of Yeshua was found and recently in the news because of some damage it recieved while transporting it. The inscription on it is in Hebrew and not Greek, and it says Yaacov Ben Yoseph Achi Yeshua. Which in English is "James, son of Joseph, brother of Jesus." The name for Jesus is given as Yod, Shin Vav Ayin= Yeshua, phonetically, which in Hebrew means Gods salvation. Additionally, all the religious artifacts which have been recovered from the very first church, over which James Himself was Elder, bear Hebrew inscriptions not Greek. "

I believe that the language that was on the ossuary was block Aramaic, which was the language of that time. Hebrew would be like a sister language. The book of Daniel, as an example is written in Hebrerw and some parts are in Aramaic. Many people have tried to say that the Messiah's Hebrew name is YAHshua. If this were correct, the inscription would have been written Yod-hey-shin-vav-ayin. There is no such name in Hebrew of Aramaic according to scholars. His Hebrew name is Yeshua.

[Higher Truth]

As far as the language that the Messiah spoke, He was the God of the universe manifested in the flesh. I would assume that He had command of ALL of the languages. We know that when He cried out during crucifiction, it was recorded as being Aramaic. We can also safely assume that He probably spoke Hebrew. There would most likely be a need to speak Greek as well as a dialect of the Roman empire. What languages were on the sign that was posted at the time of His crucifiction? This was the audience that He addressed. Scholars have argued that Paul may have spoken as many as 7 languages. Although he was a Roman citizen, he was also a Jew. This was the culture of the day.

[Shimon]

Charles:

Below is a link to an article from IsraelInsider entitled "Ossuary was genuine, inscription was faked:"

http://web.israelinsider.com/bin/en.jsp?enZone=Views&enDisplay=view&enPage=ViewsPage&enDispWhat=object&enDispWho=Article^l1569


Shimon

[Charles YTK]

There are many who have reason to have this, the only physical evidence of Messaih Yeshua, to disappear or to be discredited. It is a threat to many of the doctrines of men, which are precious to them.

Charles YTK

[Blindfaith]

I have nothing to add, because I'm not learned in the Messianic faith.  But, I just wanted to pop in here and thank you for the teachings ~ they're fascinating, and I'm looking forward to learning more!

~Peace in Christ

[Shimon]

Have you ever seen a Torah scroll written in Greek? No. Can't be done. Because to be a approved Torah, every word and mark must be identical. Even checked with a checksum at the end of each line, where the letters are added up in their numerical equivilant, and added to a line total. Any errors and the scroll is destroyed.


I'd like to add something to what Charles said above.

In the early Jewish community, it was forbidden to learn Greek writing or Greek philosophy. An interesting note regarding Rabban Gamaliel’s (Paul's instructor) students is found in the Talmud. After discussing the reasons why it was forbidden for a man to teach his son Greek, a connected question is thrust forward:

But is Greek philosophy forbidden? Behold Rab Judah declared that Samuel said in the name of Rabban Simeon b. Gamaliel, What means that which is written: Mine eye affecteth my soul, because of all the daughters of my city? There were a thousand pupils in my father’s house; five hundred studied Torah and five hundred studied Greek wisdom, and of these there remained only I here and the son of my father’s brother is Assia! It was different with the household of Rabban Gamaliel because they had close associations with the Government.

-- b.Sotah 49b

If the “household of Rabban Gamaliel” refers to the household of Gamaliel the Elder, Paul’s teacher, then we may have a clue as to how Paul seems to be so well versed in Greek philosophy. Though the argument set forth discourages the study of Greek and Greek philosophy, it was recognized that those who had close workings with the Roman government needed to be fluent in Greek, and needed to understand the world-view of the Greek culture. Paul gives every indication of being educated in the writings of the Greek philosophers.

Shimon

[Shimon]

Here is a short summary of the difference in Western thinking, and Hebraic thought:

"Torah"
------
Gnosticism: "Law"
Hebraic: "Marriage Covenant"

In our Hellenized mindset, we tend to interpret the word "Torah" as "Law." The Torah isn't "Law," it is the Marriage Covenant. Throughout scripture, Israel is constantly referred to as an "adulteress" because she was unfaithful to her Marriage Covenant. In the Book of Revelation, chapters 17 and 18 speak of "Mystery Babylon the Harlot." Who is the harlot? The same as it always was: the nation of Israel. What is the mystery? Israel doesn't realize her own identity.

"Mishpat/Mishpatim"
-----------
Gnosticism: "Judgments"
Hebraic: "Instructions in a Life-Giving Spirit"

In our Western mindset, we translate the words "mishpat" and "mishpatim" as "Judgments." But, under a Hebraic perspective, these are a Father's wise instruction to His children. It is our upbringing under a loving and caring Father. If we reject the Torah, we are saying "I don't want instructions in a Life-giving Spirit, I want something else (death)."

"Chukah/Chukim"
---------------
Gnosticism: Decrees
Hebraic: "Impressions, Image, Mark"

We translate the words "chukah" and "chukim" to mean "Decrees," while the Hebrews understood them to be an identifying mark. These are the signs which designate us as belonging to God. The blood that the Jews painted on their doorposts was a "chukah," and the Feast of Passover continues to be a "chukah" today. The Sabbath is a "chukah." The Feast of Sukkot is a "chukah" -- God even tells us that He walks among the tents.

"Mitzvah/Mitzvot"
-----------------
Gnosticism: "Commandments"
Hebraic: "Good Deeds"

Finally, we translate the words "mitzvah" and "mitzvot" as "Commandments." But to the Hebrew, these are Good Deeds. These commandments tell us how to "do good." They teach us what justice is. They teach us what it means to love one another and to love God. They teach us what is pleasing to Him, and what is not.

Christianity is like a rebel without a cause. It rebels against the Torah without even understanding what it is that it's rebelling against. Some say that the Torah is "burdensome." Is resting on the Sabbath "burdensome?" Is celebrating a Feast a "burden?" Are the kosher laws "burdensome?" Does anyone find it "burdensome" to refuse to eat rat-meat? Dog-meat? Then why is it "burdensome" to refrain from eating swine?

In the Torah, Israel was instructed to rest each seventh day. On top of that, they were given several holy days throughout the year in which they were to do no work. Even further, they were given an entire year off every seventh year, and if that isn't enough, each 49th year was a Jubilee year. How many of you would object to a full year's vacation every seven years?

And this is burdensome? Does this sound like the "yoke that no man could bear?" I don't think so....

Shimon

[Higher Truth]

David Stern is the translator of the Comple Jewish Bible. He is a Mesianic Jew, and his Bible is very popular among Messianic Jewish believers, because it restores a Jewish entity to the Gospels. He also wrote a book called "The Jewish New Testament Commentary" In this book he attempts to explain the Hebrew Idioms behind the Greek writings, from a Jewish perspective. Here are some 'excerpts' from this book:

Rev 2:9 I know your works, and the affliction, and the poverty; but you are rich. And I know the evil speaking of those saying themselves to be Jews, and they are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.

Rev 3:9 Behold, I give out of the synagogue of Satan those saying themselves to be Jews, and they are not, but they lie. Behold, I will make them come and bow down before your feet, and they shall know that I loved you.

" Yochanan (John) writes about Gentiles who call themselves Jews but aren't - on the contrary, they are a synagogue of satan, the adversary, Perhaps they, like the gentile Judaizers of the book of Galatians, adopted a smattering of Jewish practices and tried to force them on Gentile believers. They may have subjected themselves to a legalistic perversion of the Torah. They apparently organized a pseudo Messianic synagogue. Their false doctrine probably led them to wrong and immoral behavior, since false doctrine usually does. They probably drew Gentile Christians away from the truth, and thereby threatened the Messianic community. Virtually all commentators ignore the obvious and straightforward interpretation that Yochanan (John) is talking here about Gentiles who pretend to be Jews."

"Should it nevertheless be thought improbable that Gentiles would call themselves Jews, Hebrews or Israelites, consider the following modern examples. The 'British Israelites' regard the British as the Ten Lost Tribes. The Mormons not only consider themselves to be the Ten Lost Tribes but regard themselves as Jews and everyone else (real Jews included) as Gentiles. A sect of mostly American-born blacks consider themselves the true Hebrews; several thousand of them are living in Israel. All of these are outside the pale of Christianity. In addition, scattered about are well-meaning Gentile Christians whose strong identification with and love for the Jewish people has made them believe,without a shred of evidence,that they are actually Jewish themselves.In fact, some years ago a congregation was expelled from the American Lutheran Church because, along with a general drift into weirdness, its pastor and dozens of its members claimed to have heard from God that they were really Jews; many even said they knew which tribe they belonged to."

"Without exception this phenomenon of Gentiles imagining and asserting they are Jewish when they are not leads to strange patterns of doctrine and practice. Such people are not accepted by Jews as Jewish; nor, as this verse shows, are they to be accepted by Christians as Christian. Isolated and self-defensive, they can easily become prideful, neither obeying the Torah nor showing brotherly love to Yeshua's (Jesus) real followers. It is easy to see why Yeshua (Jesus) does not regard them as harmlessly neutral but pegs them as the synagogue of the adversary."

(All above writings in "quotes" from the Jewish New Testament Commentary, by David Stern)