First,
according to Scripture, the one true Name of our ELOHIM is YHWH, not
"Jesu" - and not even his actually Hebrew Name, "Y'shua"! Y'shua is the "arm" of YHWH (Isaiah
53:1), the Son (John 20:30-31), the Word (John 1:1, 14; John 14:9), His Divine
MESSIAH! Let's look at what the Torah says:
Exodus 3: 13 And Mosheh said to Elohim, “See, when I come to the children of Yisra’ĕl and say to them, ‘The Elohim of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His Name?’ what shall I say to them?” 14 And Elohim said to Mosheh, “I am that which I am.”1 And He said, “Thus you shall say to the children of Yisra’ĕl, ‘I am has sent me to you.’ ” 15 And Elohim said further to Mosheh, “Thus you are to say to the children of Yisra’ĕl, ‘יהוה Elohim of your fathers, the Elohim of Aḇraham, the Elohim of Yitsḥaq, and the Elohim of Yaʽaqoḇ, has sent me to you. This is My Name forever, and this is My remembrance to all generations.’ (ISR)
FOOTNOTE: The Heḇrew text reads: ’eyeh ’asher ’eyeh, the word ’eyeh being derived from hayah which means to be, to exist, but the Aramaic text here in v. 14 reads: ayah ashar ayah. This is not His Name, but it is an explanation that leads up to the revelation of His Name in v. 15, namely: יהוה.
Now, check out what the New Testament reveals about the Son:
John 1: 1. In the beginning[1] was the Miltha[2]. And that Miltha was with Elohim. And Elohim was that Miltha. 2. This was with Elohim in the beginning. 3. Everything existed through His hands,[3] and without Him, not even one thing existed of the things which have existed. 4. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5. And that light shines in the darkness,[4] and the darkness did not overtake it. (AENT)
FOOTNOTES:
[1]
The phrase B’resheet aytohi hwa miltha breaks a most basic rule of Aramaic
grammar by combining a feminine noun (miltha) with two masculine verbs for “to
be” (aytohi, hwa). This is unheard of in Aramaic literature other than right
here in this passage and in 1 John. This shows YHWH has male and female
“images/spirits” even though YHWH remains a He. It may also be a midrash on
Isaiah 11:1-2, which describes the Spirit of YHWH descending on Mashiyach using
both masculine and feminine suffixes. This is not something easily translated,
let alone when it occurs within the first four words.
[2] Miltha has no direct English equivalent. It can mean ‘Word’, ‘Manifestation’, ‘Instance’ or ‘Substance’ among other things. In this context, it may best be left untranslated.
[3] Literal Aramaic reading; “through his hands” indicates the Word as a creative force, like a sculptor working under the orders of a king. See Psalm 33:6; Isaiah 44:24; 66:1, 2.
[4] Aramaic wordplay. Nohra b’nshokha menhar (light in the darkness that shines) is a deliberate mirror-reversal of menhar-nohra (menorah), which marks the conception of the light of the world at Hanukkah. This puts the birth of Mashiyach nine months from Hanukkah, during the fall feasts; many point to the first day of Feast of Tabernacles for the date of Y’shua’s birth.
John 1:14 14. And the Miltha[1] (Word) became flesh and dwelt among us and we saw His glory,[2] the glory as the Only-Begotten[3] who is from the Father who is full of grace and truth. (AENT)
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Miltha refers to the “Manifestation” of the Ruach haKodesh within Mashiyach. The physical body of Mashiyach is not the Word of YHWH, but his words and actions demonstrate the Will and Word of YHWH, which upholds observance of Torah. However, Christo-Pagans like Marcion and Constantine taught that Y’shua’s body and spirit manifest a different “word” that did away with Torah. The Word of YHWH was substituted with dispensational and replacement “theologies,” which is very popular in Christianity.
[2] Isaiah 42:8; 48:11
[3] Ekhadaya is a beautiful term used among Eastern theologians and poets; it literally means “THE ONE.”
Ephesians 2: 13. But now, by Y’shua the Mashiyach, you who before were afar off, have been brought near by the blood of the Mashiyach. 14. He is himself our peace, who has made the two (become) one, and has demolished the wall[1] which stood in the midst, and the enmity, by his flesh; 15. And in his flesh (the) enmity and regulations of commands (contained) in his commandments are abolished[2] (so) that in himself (an occurrence of the divine nature, or qnoma),[3] he might make the two into one, establishing peace. 16. And has reconciled both with Elohim in one body and has slain the enmity by his stake (of execution).
17.
And he came and proclaimed peace to you afar off, and to those near: 18.
Because by him there is access for us both, by one Spirit, to the Father. 19.
Wherefore you are not strangers nor sojourners, but you are fellow-citizens
with the Set Apart believers and of the household of Elohim. 20. And you are
built upon the foundations of the Shlichim and the prophets; and Y’shua the
Mashiyach has become the head of the corner in the edifice. 21. And in him all
the edifice is framed together and grows into a Set Apart temple in Master YHWH;
22. While you also are built in him for a habitation of Elohim through the
Spirit. (AENT)
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Aramaic for wall is syaga. Ironically, this exact term was picked up by the Talmudic rabbis in Pirkei Avot (Sayings of the Fathers) 1:1 that commanded, “make a fence around the Torah.” Y’shua specifically warned against this activity in Matthew 15, rebuking the Pharisees in the process. Later on, Y’shua said he was the “door/gate” using a synonym for syaga, known as taarea, which is a homonym “torah” and “teachers,” meaning the Pharisees. So while the Pharisees are busy erecting their fence, Y’shua is pulling it down, allowing everyone access!
[2] The grammatical structure here fully guarantees that namusa is referring to “customs” as in the traditions of the Pharisees, not Torah itself. Mashiyach abolishes the “enmity” (hatred or animosity) that has been brought against YHWH by religious tradition and false interpretations of Torah, which was a heavy burden that people could not bear. Christian theologians, however, twist this verse and teach that it was YHWH’s Torah that brought the hatred and that Mashiyach did away with Torah, which is a very reckless and evil theology. Mashiyach sent the Ruach haKodesh to write YHWH’s Torah upon the hearts of his people, not abolish it. .
[3] Qnoma can mean “core substance” or “occurrence.” Although Greek reads “self” Aramaic does not; “self” leads to assumptions of “personhood” which breeds idolatry.
We must always remember that while YHWH and Y'shua are ONE, Y'shua - as a human being with a divine qnoma/nature, sent by YHWH - never replaced YHWH as ELOHIM. YHWH Himself was never a human being! No one can look upon YHWH and live - He told Moshe this just before putting Moshe in a rock cleft to protect him (Exodus 33:19-22). Even the Seraphim in Isaiah 6 “covered their faces.”
Exodus 33:19 And He said, “I shall cause all My goodness to pass before you, and I shall proclaim the Name of יהוה before you. And I shall favour him whom I favour, and shall have compassion on him whom I have compassion.” 20 But He said, “You are unable to see My face, for no man does see Me and live.” 21 And יהוה said, “See, there is a place with Me! And you shall stand on the rock. 22 “And it shall be, while My esteem passes by, that I shall put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand while I pass by. 23 “Then I shall take away My hand and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.” (ISR)
We see something in Philippians 2:5-11 that makes us realize YHWH and Y'shua ARE "One" but we must remember that their "one-ness" is something the human mind cannot thoroughly comprehend:
Philippians 2:5 And think you so in yourselves, as Y'shua the Mashiyach also thought; 6. who, as he was in the likeness of Elohim, did not regard it sinful to be the coequal of Elohim; 7. yet disinherited himself and assumed the likeness of a servant, and was in the likeness of men and was found in fashion as a man; 8. and he humbled himself and became obedient to death, even the death of the stake. (NOTE: Remember, GOD cannot be born or die!) 9. Wherefore, also, Elohim has highly exalted him and given him a name which is more excellent than all names; 10. that at the name of Y'shua every knee should bow, of (beings) in heaven and on earth and under the earth; 11. and that every tongue should confess that Y'shua the Mashiyach is YHWH, to the glory of Elohim his Father. (AENT)
FOOTNOTE: "Name" in verse 9 is more than his literal birth name Y'shua (which was and is a common Hebrew name), and more than the perfect reputation that his name represents. Y'shua bears (reveals) the Name of YHWH, the "name above all names!" Y'shua has the Name and reputation of the Father YHWH in him (John 17:11) and the name means "YHWH is Salvation" (Matthew 1:21).
We must be very careful to make a distinction between YHWH "the Father" and Y'shua the "Son." Mankind HAS seen Y'shua because he came as a human being. However, mankind has never and will not see YHWH Himself until we are out of our earthly bodies to stand before Him to see the actual face of ELOHIM."
Revelation 22:4 And they shall see His face, and His Name shall be upon their foreheads. (ISR)
Hi Carmen, please process this verse for me..
ReplyDelete"I said to you that you shall die in your sins, for unless you shall believe that I AM THE LIVING GOD, you shall die in your sins." Aramaic Bible in Plain English of John 8:24
milo zqmilo@yahoo.com
Thank you.Milo
Hi Milo, thanks for writing. You've asked a great question. I'm afraid the "Aramaic Bible in Plain English" has added a few words that are not in the original Aramaic. The verse, from the Aramaic Peshitta and the Khabouris Codex reads "I told you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins",(using Lamsa's translation.) So you can see that whoever assembled the "Aramaic Bible in Plain English", they took liberties and changed it to "unless you shall believe that I AM THE LIVING GOD", for the verse does not say that. This sort of issue often happens due to bias and opinion.
ReplyDeleteFrom Lamsa's translation, we see that we must understand the context, for what did Yeshua mean by saying "unless you believe that I am he"? So we look at the previous verses and find that Yeshua said "23 You are from below, and I am from above; you are of this world, but I am not of this world."
In verse 24, Yehsua used the word "ena-na" ("I am" [he]). In Aramaic/Hebrew thought that word, and its meaning, conveys an eternal existence reserved only for Elohim! So the Judeans who were questioning Yeshua would have been a bit flabbergasted which explains the next verse because they ask "Who are you?"
The remainder of the chapter explains that Yeshua described himself as the "Son of man" (i.e., the one who was sent (v 26), though the Judeans could not understand). He does not say "I am the living God!" In fact, he talks of "my Father". So it would not make any sense in verse 24 for Yeshua to say "unless you shall believe that I AM THE LIVING GOD", because Yeshua was saying he was not the living God, rather, he was the "one who was sent BY the Living God".
Hi Liam... It seems to me that you just contradicted yourself, in first saying, "...Yehsua used the word "ena-na" ("I am" [he]). In Aramaic/Hebrew thought that word, and its meaning, conveys an eternal existence reserved only for Elohim!...:, and then saying, :..He does not say "I am the living God!" In fact, he talks of "my Father". So it would not make any sense in verse 24 for Yeshua to say "unless you shall believe that I AM THE LIVING GOD", because Yeshua was saying he was not the living God, rather, he was the "one who was sent BY the Living God"."
ReplyDeleteWhich is it... Did Yeshua declare that He was/is God — "ena-na"... Or did Yeshua that He was the "one who was sent BY the Living God"?
You can't have it both ways.
The answer is therefore, Yeshua was saying that He was both God... AND... sent by God... Yeshua was/is God in His divine being, and in His humanity, Yeshua is sent by God, in the context of God being a Father sending a Son.
All translations that are not literal translations will contain attempts to explain in the language being translated to, what is being said in the original text... And this is true of Lamsa's translation.
The fact is, to date there is no proof that the original manuscripts from which we get biblical translations were written in Aramaic.
Therefore, all Aramaic translations are simply an attempt at translating Greek manuscripts... This means that the existing Aramaic manuscripts would themselves be subject to the translator's attempts to explain the Greek to Aramaic... Something that can surely lead to "...bias and opinion..." entering into the translation... Even "...the original Aramaic..." translation.
When using the word "...original...", you need to be more clear regarding what is being referenced as "...original...".
Amen.
Liam passed away in 2021. Please take your grievance to Andrew Gabriel Roth at One Faith One People Ministries. Andrew was the translator of the Khabouris Codex (written in all Aramaic) who used it to produce the Aramaic English New Testament.
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