Glad Tidings Glad Tidings Glad Tidings Glad Tidings Volume 17, Issue 4 July/August 2013 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits; Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases; Psalm 103:2-3
Mar 17, 2016
Glad TidingsGlad TidingsGlad TidingsGlad Tidings
Volume 17, Issue 4 July/August 2013
Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits; Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases;
Psalm 103:2-3
2
Glad Tidings Glad Tidings Glad Tidings Glad Tidings is published six times per year by
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International Ministries
458 Old Niskayuna Road,
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Office 518.785.8888
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Glad Tidings is mailed free to anyone who requests it. Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible unless otherwise noted.
Something To Consider ............... p.3
by Vince Finnegan
Seek Yahweh:
A Hebrew Gospel Of Matthew ..... p.4
by John Cortright
Healing Part 1................................ p.6
by Vince Finnegan
The Word:
More Than just The Bible ........... p.8
by Cheryl and Matthew Elton
Be Reconciled ............................. p.12
by Mary Ann Yaconis
Translating The Holy Spirit ........ p.14
by Sean Finnegan
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July/August 2013
3
Understanding Yahweh should be our lifelong desire and pursuit. A common worldview of God is He
can do anything He desires to do because He is the Almighty. Such a view, although popular, is not
consistent with Gods description of Himself in the Scriptures. Indeed, Yahweh is almighty God with a
definite biblically defined holy character to which He eternally stays unwaveringly consistent. Unlike
people, He does not change who He is based upon the influence of others, situations, or
circumstances. He made man to have self-determination (free will) which man often uses in a way that
limits Gods actions in relationship to him.
Gods calling has always been by grace and is a reciprocal arrangement in that man must respond to
the call by obedience to His commands. The calling of God is not a forcing, manipulating, or coercing,
rather a loving invitation that must be responded to by a freewill choice. The called must respond, and
God will even help us to respond the right way if we ask for His help. However, we must choose.
Deuteronomy 30:19 I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live
Throughout the Old Testament, the blessing of God flourished to those called by His grace; yet, man
still had the responsibility to answer with obedience. In our time called the administration of grace,
have things changed? Today, do we just receive the blessings of God regardless of behavior? Is it the
administration of grace because everything pertaining to God is free without any self-determination or
responsibility? Has the way God deals with humanity changed?
The four Gospels and all of the church epistles authoritatively answer these questions. God has not
changed, and the way He honors mans free will has not changed. Salvation is available to humanity by
the accomplished work of Christ and not by mans works this is grace. However, grace does not mean
we are not required to have faith and the corresponding works always connected with faith. Salvation
is a gift, but it is not forced upon people. We must accept the gift by operating our free will to have
Jesus as Lord in our lives.
The undeniable reality of Gods dealings with man is that of free will. The original design of man was to
be like God, and that included the ability to think, reason, and choose (hence free will). Too often when
people experience some type of calamity, they question God based upon the wrong view that He can
do anything He wants and therefore should have intervened. A more appropriate response rather than
judging God in difficult times would be to ask for His help and consider the possibility that our choice
may have had something to do with the problem.
God bless,
SOMETHING TO CONSIDER:
Self Determination
4
N o early Hebrew
translations of the
New Testament
are known. If such manuscripts
did exist, we would have
tremendous enlightenment
regarding the name of God in
New Testament times.
Although no such manuscripts
exist, writings of early church
fathers indicate that the Gospel
of Matthew was originally
written in Hebrew.1
Papias (130 AD)
Matthew wrote the oracles in
the Hebrew language, and
every one interpreted them as
he was able (Eusebius, Church
History, 3.39.16)
Irenaeus of Lyons (170 AD)
Matthew also issued a written
Gospel among the Hebrews in
their own dialect. (Irenaeus,
Against Heresies, 3.1.1)
Origen (200 AD)
The first was written by
Matthew, who was once a
publican, but afterwards an
apostle of Jesus Christ, and it was
prepared for the converts from
Judaism, and published in the
Hebrew language. (Eusebius,
Church History, 6.25.4)
Eusebius (315 AD)
For Matthew, who had at first
preached to the Hebrews, when
he was about to go to other
peoples, committed his Gospel
to writing in his native
tongue. (Eusebius, Church
History, 3.24)
Jerome (382 AD)
Matthew, also called Levi,
apostle and aforetimes
publican, composed a Gospel of
Christ at first published in Judea
in Hebrew for the sake of those
of the circumcision who
believed, but this was
afterwards translated into
Greek, though by what author is
uncertain. The Hebrew itself
has been preserved until the
present day in the library at
Caesarea. (Jerome, On
Illustrious Men, 3)
No copies of this Hebrew
version of Matthew exist. The
Greek language had an
enormous impact in Judea in
both Second Temple and
rabbinic times. As far as we
know, however, Hebrew
remained the primary language
of literary expression. The
Qumran scrolls demonstrate
that Hebrew was the original
language of most of the works
written in Judea between the
period of the Maccabees and
the destruction of the temple in
70 CD.2 For years, it had been
commonly believed that
Hebrew was not spoken in
Jesus day and that the
vernacular of Palestine was
Aramaic. However, since the
discovery of the Dead Sea
Scrol ls, scholars have
reconsidered this supposition as
these texts are overwhelmingly
Hebrew, not Aramaic. Many
other discoveries from Judea in
the last 50 years have also
confirmed the extensive use of
Hebrew in the land of Judea in
the early first century.
The New Testament bears
witness to this truth as well.
Some have thought the
following uses of the word
H e b r e w s h o u l d b e
understood as Aramaic.
However, there is a very good
possibility that the Scriptures
mean exactly what they say and
that the language was indeed
Hebrew.
John 20:16 Jesus said to her, "Mary!" She turned and said to Him in Hebrew, "Rabboni!" (which means, Teacher).
John 19:20 Therefore many of the Jews read this inscription, for the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin and in Greek. Acts 21:40; 22:2 When he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the stairs, motioned to the people with his hand; and when there was a great hush, he spoke to
(Continued on page 5)
Seek Yahweh: By John Cortright
A Hebrew Gospel Of Matthew
5
them in the Hebrew dialect, saying, And when they heard that he was addressing them in the Hebrew dialect, they became even more quiet; and he said, Acts 26:14 And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew dialect, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'
If this is the case, then it seems
altogether reasonable to
believe that some of the New
Testament writings, especially
those written to Jews living in
Israel, would have been written
in Hebrew. Although there are
no known early Hebrew New
Testament manuscripts, a
complete Hebrew Text of
Matthew was produced in the
fourteenth century by a Jew
named Shem-Tob. This copy of
Matthew is part of a larger
Hebrew writing known as Even
Bohan or The Touchstone.
Shem-Tob made this
translation, not to support
Christianity, but as a Jew he
wrote this as a polemic, written
to refute Christianity. The
original document contained
many polemical insertions used
by Shem-Tob as arguments to
support Judaism against the
Christian doctrine. What text
did Shem-Tob use to make this
Hebrew translation? George
Howards excellent analysis
provides strong evidence that
this translation did not come
from an existing Greek text,
but more likely was a
translation of an earlier
Hebrew manuscript.3
One particular note of interest
is in Howards appendix on
The Divine Name and Shem-
Tobs use of the Hebrew letter
h (Heth), which is a
shortened form of msh
(HaShem or The Name). The
term HaShem is one of the
common surrogates spoken by
Jews today when reading the
name of God. This use of the
Hebrew letter h appears 19
times in Shem Tobs translation
(Mt 1:22, 24; 2:13, 19; 3:3;
4:7, 10; 5:33; 15:8; 21:9, 12, 42;
22:31, 32, 37, 44; 27:9; 28:2, 9).
An examination of the majority
of these references reveals
that this is often a quote from
the Old Testament and is
clearly a reference to Yahweh.
The Greek texts use the word
kurios; the Syriac versions
use the word myra; Latin is
domino; and in English, it is
translated as Lord. However,
in three instances there is no
corresponding Greek, Syriac,
Latin, or English equivalent.
The Name simply appears in
Shem-Tobs Hebrew version.
The three references are as
follows:
Matthew 15:8 Thus h
[HaShem] said, because this
people,
Matthew 22:32 I h
[HaShem], am the God of
Abraham,
Matthew 28:9 Jesus passed
before them saying: May h
[HaShem] deliver you, then
they came near to him, bowed
down
This begs the question, Why
would Shem-Tob, a Jew of the
strictest sense, add a usage of
Hashem, representing the
sacred Name, to a text where it
did not exist in the first place?
Howard states, The conclusion
that seems inescapable is that
Shem-Tob found the Divine
Name already in his gospel
text, having received it from an
earlier generation of Jewish
tradents. He permitted the
Divine Name to remain in the
text perhaps because he was
(Continued from page 4)
(Continued on page 7)
Papias (130 AD) Matthew wrote
the oracles in the Hebrew
language, and every one
interpreted them
as he was able
6
Healing Healing Healing Healing Part 1Part 1Part 1Part 1 By Vince Finnegan
F aith is one major compo-nent for receiving healing since, according to Hebrews 11:1,
faith is the substance of things
hoped for, the evidence or con-
viction of things not seen. Jesus
teaches that even with faith as a
mustard seed, You shall say to
this mountain, 'Move from here
to there,' and it shall move; and
nothing shall be impossible to
you, Matthew 17:20. Since faith
begins with hearing the Word,
according to Romans 10:17, this
first article on healing will be de-
voted to reviewing the Scriptures
that tell us God wants to heal.
Does God want me well or
sick? To hear some talk, they
imply that Gods will is for
them to receive sickness. We
often think and say things to
comfort ourselves when we
do not understand what is
going on. We make things up
to feel better. Frequent com-
ments about sickness are
God is using this sickness
for greater profit; God has
a purpose for everything that
happens; If it is Gods will, you
will be healed. However, the
immediate relief that such popu-
lar clichs may provide is often
minuscule in comparison to the
damage caused in the end that
of doubting Gods love, purposes,
and integrity. That which was
intended to be a blessing might
end up an eternal curse.
Mans starting point was Para-
dise wherein he enjoyed per-
fectly healthy bodies and minds
intended to last forever. The be-
lievers destiny in the end is to
return to Paradise with its eter-
nal glory. Yahwehs resolve for
humankinds eternal wellbeing
has never altered even though
the circumstances have drasti-
cally changed. The understanding
of the big picture, the eternal
plan, should convince us that
Yahweh wants His people to be
healthy and blessed in every way.
Yahweh instituted a covenant
with Israel in which He promised
to take care of them as they
obeyed His commands. Consider
the following verses:
Exodus 15:26 "If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD [Yahweh] your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His command-ments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD [Yahweh], am your healer." Exodus 23:25 and 26 - "But you shall serve the LORD [Yahweh] your God, and He will bless your bread and your water;
and I will remove sickness from your midst. "There shall be no one miscarrying or barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.
In subsequent articles, we will
look at our responsibility to re-
ceive the healing that Yahweh
desires to provide, but in this arti-
cle I want to focus on the fact that
God desires to heal His people.
Deuteronomy 7:15 "The LORD will remove from you all sickness; and He will not put on you any of the harmful diseases of Egypt which you have known
Psalms 91:9-16 For you have made the LORD [Yahweh], my ref-uge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place. No evil will befall you, Nor will any plague come near your tent "Because he has loved Me, there-fore I will deliver him; I will set him securely on high, because he has known My name. He will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in
trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. "With a long life I will satisfy him... Psalms 103:2 and 3 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits; Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases; Psalms 107:20 He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions.
(Continued on page 7)
7
unsure himself about what to do
with it.4 By the 14
th century,
Jewish tradition had completely
restricted the use of the name of
God. Shem-Tob, being a fervent
Jew, would not have added the
Name to a Christian manuscript.
He would, however, have been
careful not to write the name and
instead use the common Jewish
surrogate, msh (HaShem) or in
shortened form h.
Perhaps one day, more discoveries
will be found that would provide
insight into the use of Hebrew in
New Testament writings. If that
were the case, then the name,
Yahweh, could be seen in the texts
and not the ambiguous title
Lord. When reading the words
of Jesus speaking about his Father
in the Hebrew tongue, we would
see him boldly declare Gods name
in the Shema, the Jewish
statement of faith:
Matthew 22:36-38 Rabbi, tell us which is the greatest commandment in the Torah. He said to him: Thou shalt love Yahweh your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. This is the first. (This is a rendering of George
Howards translation of Shem
Tobs Hebrew Gospel of Matthew,
replacing the Hebrew letter h
with the name of God, Yahweh,
rather than the ambiguous
surrogate Lord or the Jewish
substitute HaShem.)
(Continued from page 5)
Seek Yahweh: A Hebrew Gospel Of
Matthew Continued...
Jesus always did the will of his
Father, so everything he said and
did was as God wanted done and
said. Jesus was Gods will in
manifestation, and he often
healed many people.
Matthew 4:23 and 24 Jesus was throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness among the people. The news about Him spread throughout all Syria; and they brought to Him all who were ill, those suffering with vari-ous diseases and pains, demoniacs, epi-leptics, paralytics; and He healed them.
Matthew 9:35 - Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Luke 4:40 While the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and laying His hands on each one of them, He was healing them. Acts 10:38 ...He [Jesus] went about doing good, and healing all who were oppressed....
All those who came to Jesus and
received healing had faith that
God wanted to heal them. Only
one time did someone (a leper)
say what so many today say If
you are willing, you can heal
me. Jesus quickly and authorita-
tively responded as is recorded in
Matthew 8. He said: I am
willing; be cleansed, and imme-
diately he was healed. The Scrip-
tures convincingly communicate
the will of God to heal. We
should never utter the faith-
destroying words that are often
spoken If it be Your will.
Thinking such as this eliminates
faith in God to heal and any
responsibility on our part to take
godly action. We become fatal-
ists. In the next article, we will
revisit some of these verses and
focus on our responsibility to
receive the gift of healing.
(Continued from page 6)
1 All Church Father quotes are
translated by Ernest Cushing
Richardson. From Nicene and Post-
Nicene Fathers, Second Series, Vol.
3. Edited by Philip Schaff and Henry
Wace. (Buffalo, NY: Christian Litera-
ture Publishing Co. 1892.) Revised
and edited for New Advent by Kevin
Knight.
. Downloaded on
2/22/2013
2 Shaye J.D. Cohen, From the Mac-
cabees to the Mishna (Westminster
John Knox Press, Louisville, KY,
Copyright 2005) Page 32
3 George Howard, Hebrew Gospel
of Matthew (Mercer University
Press, Macon Georgia, Copyright
1995), Part Two, Analysis and Com-
mentary, Pg 153-234
4 Ibid., pg 231
8
The Word: More Than Just The Bible By Cheryl and Matthew Elton
I n the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. -John 1:1 Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. -Matthew 4:4 NKJV So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. -Romans 10:17 NKJV And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; -Ephesians 6:17 NKJV
These are well-known verses of
Scripture that demonstrate the
importance of the word. To most
Christians, the word simply
means the Bible. They mentally
insert Bible into all of the above
verses when they read word.
When we hear In the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was
with God, and the Word was
God, we might picture a Bible
floating in space with God. We
hear Man shall not live by bread
alone, but by every word that
proceeds from the mouth of
God, faith comes by hearing,
and hearing by the word of God,
and takethe sword of the
Spirit, which is the word of God,
and our minds again insert
Bible: We live by the Bible,
have faith by hearing the Bible,
and fight the devil with the Bible.
But is this really what these
verses mean?
In the early church, few people
had access to the Scriptures, and
even if they did, most didnt
know how to read. If faith comes
by hearing and hearing by the
Bible, it would be difficult for
most early Christians to have
faith. If man lives by every word
that comes out of the Bible, it
would likewise be challenging for
most early Christians to live out
their faith.
Is there more to the word than
just the Bible?
The New Testament was trans-
lated from Greek, and word can
take on several different mean-
ings depending on which Greek
word it was translated from. Its
worth gaining a clearer under-
standing of the Greek words
logoslogoslogoslogos, graphegraphegraphegraphe (grah-fay), and
rhemarhemarhemarhema (ray-muh).
The Architects vision The Architects vision The Architects vision The Architects vision
God, from the beginning of time,
has had a vision for the world and
for His Kingdom. This overarching
plan, reasoning, or vision is
expressed by the Greek word
lgoslgoslgoslgos (Strongs 3056). It is a
decree, mandate, or order; what
is declared, a thought, declara-
tion, aphorism, a weighty saying,
a dictum, a maxim.
Logos is used 316 times in the
New Testament. It does not refer
to the written Scriptures, but to
the eternal plan and purpose of
God, existing from the beginning
and becoming manifested to us in
the person of Jesus Christ.
John 1:1 reads: In the beginning was the logos, and the logos was with God and the logos was God. Then in John 1:14, Jesus is the logos
made flesh: And the logos became flesh and dwelt among us.
John 1 isnt saying that scrolls or
Bibles were floating around in
heaven at the beginning of time.
Rather, it means that from the
beginning God had a supreme
plan for His Messiah and His King-
dom. He had a big picture in
mind. This supreme plan that was
in Gods mind from the beginning
finally came to fruition with the
coming of His Son, Jesus Christ
(the Word became flesh), and is
continuing today.
As we explore the words graphe
and rhema, Id like to do so in the
context of an illustration in which
well see how logos, graphe, and
rhema work together. When an
architect is hired for a building pro-
ject, he must start with a clearly
defined vision (logos) of the end
result. This vision serves as the
basis for all other methods of com-
munication relating to the project.
The architect then draws up writ-
ten blueprints detailing every as-
(Continued on page 9)
9
pect of the building. These
sketches and instructions serve to
guide the contractors as they
start working.
Each step of the building process
is still incomplete in expressing
the architects vision. Only the
finished building will express his
full intentions.
Think of God as the Architect and
us as His work crew. He guides
our steps as we endeavor to work
on His building (His Kingdom). He
has a clear vision of every detail,
and He communicates His vision
to us so we can build according to
His specifications.
The Scriptures The Scriptures The Scriptures The Scriptures ---- our blueprint our blueprint our blueprint our blueprint
The word graphgraphgraphgraph (Strongs 1124)
describes this concept of the
blueprints. Used 51 times in the
New Testament, it refers to the
written word and is usually trans-
lated as scripture. Its used in
2 Timothy 3:16:
All Scripture (graphe) is given by inspi-ration of God, and is profitable for doc-trine, for reproof, for correction, for in-struction in righteousness: KJV
Most Christians have taken the
Architects blueprints the Scrip-
tures and viewed them as ex-
pressing His full plan and pur-
pose. But as anyone in construc-
tion will tell you, if the architect
were to hand the blueprints to
the builders without any further
communication at all, the plans
would be left to the builders own
interpretation. Without personal,
step-by-step communication and
supervision from the architect,
the building would never be con-
structed exactly as intended. Give
the same set of blueprints to 100
different construction companies
without any other communica-
tion, and youll likely end up with
100 slightly different buildings, as
each interprets the blueprints his
own way. The functionality and
look of the building could end up
quite different from what the
architect originally envisioned!
Unfortunately, this is exactly
what has happened to the Chris-
tian church. God, the Architect, is
building a Kingdom, and His plan
(logos) has existed from the be-
ginning of time. He revealed it to
us in the written revelation of the
Bible, the divinely inspired Scrip-
tures (graphe), which serve as the
blueprint for His Kingdom.
Yet, many Christians assume and
live as if Gods communication to
us stops there. If the Bible is the
totality of Gods Word and if God
does not communicate with us
outside of the Bible, then we are
left on our own when it comes to
interpreting it. We now have thou-
sands of different denominations
and groups, each interpreting the
Bible in slightly different ways.
It wasnt meant to be this way. At
the Last Supper, Jesus told his
disciples that he would be leaving
them, and there was more they
would need to know to continue
his work.
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will
teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. -John 14:26 NKJV However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own author-ity, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come. -John 16:13 NKJV
Jesus knew that his time had
come and he would soon face
death, resurrection, and ascension
into heaven. He knew that he
would soon leave the earth to sit
down at the right hand of God and
would no longer be physically pre-
sent to speak to his disciples in
person. Yet the things he needed
to communicate to them were
sadly incomplete at that time!
I still have many things to say to
you, but you cannot bear them
now, Jesus said in John 16:12.
Also, John tells us in John 21:25
that the Bible records only a small
fraction of Christs ministry: And
there are also many other things
that Jesus did, which if they were
written one by one, I suppose
that even the world itself could
not contain the books that would
be written.
Jesus clearly said there is much
more to the Architects vision
than he could communicate to his
disciples during his brief time
here on earth indeed, much
more than could be written down
in the Gospels! All the things Je-
sus spoke about and showed
them during his years on earth
were but a fraction of the en-
(Continued from page 8)
(Continued on page 10)
10
tirety of Gods Kingdom vision or logos. Fortunately, Jesus assures us that the Architect isnt going to leave us with only a set of blueprints. Instead, He has sent a job fore-man (the holy spirit) to guide us and instruct us, communicating to us every detail we need to carry out the work.
Gods voice for us today Gods voice for us today Gods voice for us today Gods voice for us today The instruction (revelation) we receive from the holy spirit is Gods rhrhrhrhmamamama (Strongs 4487) an-other Greek word translated word. Rhema means that which is or has been uttered by the living voice, thing spoken; word; any sound produced by the voice and having definite meaning. Rhema is the personal, relevant, conversational, relationship word. It is God in Jesus Christ in us through the holy spirit. It is the Lords voice for each of us, just as it was for Samuel. Now the boy Samuel ministered to the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation. -1 Samuel 3:1 NKJV
We read that the word of the Lord was rare in those days. This doesnt mean there was a short-age of scrolls. It means the spo-ken rhema revelation of God was unusual. In the Old Testament, it was not often that God would pour out His spirit on someone that they might prophesy or would reveal Himself in a dream or a vision. But today, in the post-Pentecost church, God has graciously poured out His holy spirit on all who believe. On the day of Pente-cost, Peter quoted what had been prophesied by the prophet Joel. And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,Your young men shall see visions,Your old men shall dream dreams. -Acts 2:17NKJV
A deeper level of meaning A deeper level of meaning A deeper level of meaning A deeper level of meaning A proper understanding of these words logos, graphe, and rhema reveals a new and deeper level of meaning on how God commu-nicates. This is not at all to dimin-ish the greatness of His written word, the Scriptures. God expects us to read and learn the Scrip-
tures to understand Him. How-ever, the Scriptures are only a portion of what He desires to communicate to us. Lets revisit the verses at the be-ginning of this article with the new understanding of word.
Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word [rhema] that proceeds from the mouth of God. -Matthew 4:4 NKJV While most Christians think this is talking about the importance of knowing the Bible, the Greek word used here is not graphe but rhema, meaning the spoken reve-lation of God. In the context of Matthew 4, Sa-tan was tempting Jesus in the wilderness to turn stones into bread. It is often assumed that Satan was tempting Jesus to sin. But nowhere in the Bible does it say it is wrong to turn stones into bread and eat them. If Jesus had done this, he would not have vio-lated any commandment written in Scripture. Christs answer to Satan, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every rhema that proceeds from the mouth of God, is essen-tially saying that the spiritual revelation of God His daily in-struction to our lives through the holy spirit is more important than physical food. God had not yet instructed Christ to eat. Al-though he was extremely hungry, Jesus remained obedient to Gods spiritual revelation. He walked in perfect fellowship with his Father
(Continued from page 9)
(Continued on page 11)
The Word: More Than Just The Bible Continued...
11
and followed the Fathers instruc-
tions every step of the way. (John
5:19 Most assuredly, I say to
you, the Son can do nothing of
Himself, but what He sees the
Father do; for whatever He does,
the Son also does in like manner.)
Jesus would have rather starved
to death than do anything out-
side of the Fathers rhema in-
structions for his life. Jesus didnt
live by bread alone or by the Bi-
ble alone (graphe, the written
word because on that basis
alone, the temptation would
have been fine!), but instead he
lived by rhema the Fathers
daily, personal instruction.
We can do the same.
Other key Other key Other key Other key rhemarhemarhemarhema verses verses verses verses
So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word [rhema] of God -Romans 10:17 NKJV
Most people think this is talking
about the Bible. Yet, word in
this verse is rhema the spoken
utterance or revelation from God.
If faith came solely by hearing the
written Scriptures, surely graphe
would have been used. God is
telling us that the way to grow
our faith is to recognize and fol-
low His personal, present voice in
our lives.
How exciting this is! We are to
have a personal, present relation-
ship with God through Jesus
Christ, walking and talking with
Him throughout the day (all rela-
tionship involves communication).
Surely this time spent in relation-
ship with Him will grow our faith,
as He gives us His daily revelation
bread to guide our way.
And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word [rhema] of God; -Ephesians 6:17 NKJV
This usage of word has been
interpreted as the Bible for too
long! Simply quoting Bible verses
will not stop the devil hes
heard it all before! What Satan
doesnt have access to, which we
do, is the rhema of God the
relevant, personal word via the
holy spirit through which the Lord
guides our steps.
Its interesting that of all the
pieces of armor mentioned in
Ephesians 6, only one is an offen-
sive weapon the sword of the
Spirit the rhema of God. His per-
sonal revelation instruction to us
will defeat the devil every time.
Knowing about God vs. Knowing about God vs. Knowing about God vs. Knowing about God vs.
knowing Godknowing Godknowing Godknowing God
A key lesson we can take away
from our study of word is that
theres an important distinction
to be made between knowing
about God and knowing God. The
Pharisees had great intellectual
knowledge about God and the
Scriptures. They memorized
every law and prided themselves
in what they believed to be their
superior understanding and han-
dling of the Scriptures.
Nevertheless, bogged down by
legalism and concerned mainly
with the outward appearance,
they lacked any real relationship
with God! Jesus saw through the
faade and said to them in Mat-
thew 23:25 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the outside of the cup and dish, but in-side they are full of extortion and self-indulgence. NKJV
We certainly dont want to be like
the Pharisees. We should desire
to know God personally and walk
with Him every day. If we want to
know our Heavenly Father, we
must begin by looking to Jesus
Christ because God is most fully
revealed in His Son. Hebrews 1:3
tells us:
Who [Jesus] being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His per-son, and upholding all things by the word [rhema] of His power. NKJV
In John 14:6 Jesus says, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. NKJV
From our brief study of rhema, its
clear that God desires a living re-
lationship filled with daily com-
munication with us. This dynamic,
active relationship with God is
made possible only through Jesus
Christ. The holy spirit has been
given so we can receive Gods
daily rhema instruction in our
lives. Jesus is calling us into a rela-
tionship with him so that through
him we will know and experience
God. As we learn to hear the
voice of the Lord by way of the
holy spirit, we learn to know God
and His will for our lives.
My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. -John 10:27 NKJV
(Continued from page 10)
12
O ne of Jesus seemingly radical teachings (recorded in Matthew chapters 5 through 7) stresses that
the law regulated outward behav-
ior, but what Jesus promoted as
more important is the condition of
the heart.
Matthew 5:21-24 You have heard that the ancients were told, YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER and Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court. But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, You good-for-nothing, shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, You fool, shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell. Therefore if you are presenting your offer-ing at the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your offering there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and present your offering.
Jesus tells us that not dealing with
anger in a godly manner could lead
to hatred which could lead to fiery
hell. Not a comforting thought.
Anger seems to be such a close
friend to so many easy to come
by, quick to act, and devastating in
its results.
There are two parts to this situation
with anger that Jesus is mentioning.
One time is when we ourselves are
the angry ones, and the other time
is when another is angry with us.
Lets first take a look at being angry
with others.
Luke 17:1 He said to His disciples, It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come!
The words for stumbling blocks
here have also been translated
offences in the King James Ver-
sion. Offences will come, but WOE
to those who cause these of-
fences! Angry outbursts startle
people. They cause the recipient of
them to feel hurt, frightened, de-
fensive, and that they need to strike
back to save themselves. Others
react by retreating and avoiding the
angry person at all costs. Anger
comes from the heart.
Proverbs 4:23 Watch over your heart with all diligence, for from it flow the springs of life.
We cultivate seeds of anger in our
hearts when we have emotional
wounds that we have not resolved.
These could be feelings of unwor-
thiness, sadness, fear, failure, not
being safe or loved, and many
more. Instead of recognizing these
emotions and allowing God to heal
our hurts, we hide them and
protect ourselves by getting angry
to push people away, make them
afraid of us, and basically to leave
us alone. It generally works because
no one wants to approach an angry
person. It just isnt pleasant at all.
The second part is someone being
offended or angry at us. Luke 17:1 is
very clear that we are not to be the
stumbling block to someone. Our
actions that cause someone to be-
come angry, whether we think we
did something wrong or not, are not
in question. We are to seek recon-
ciliation from the one offended as
quickly as possible. Now, this can be
difficult for a couple of reasons.
One is that we want the person who
hurt and offended us with anger to
know just how rotten, mean, and
nasty the outburst was and how
really very hurt we are! How dare
they!! We might even bring up the
Christian card and say something
like, If you really are a Christian,
you wouldnt have said those
things. Ouch. The heart that Jesus
is talking about with reconciliation
is one of love. Love covers a multi-
tude of sin. It is more important to
reconcile than to be right or wrong.
This is the radical part of being a
Christian. The way most people set-
tle arguments is to determine finally
who was right and who did the
wrong thing, and, brother, that one
who did wrong better grovel and
apologize a lot! Not so with the love
of God.
Another reason we find reconciling
difficult is that our pride gets in the
way. We have the thought that for
some reason, even if I am wrong, I
dont need to apologize and recon-
cile. It is up to the other person to
do the apologizing. This thinking is
contrary to what Jesus says. Still an-
other reason is that we think that
magically the fuss will be over in
time, and then we can be friends
again without any discussion or re-
pair. This thinking is far from the
truth. These offenses that are not
resolved add up and add up in our
hearts. Then we find we are very
quick to anger because of what we
have held in our hearts. I am not
(Continued on page 13)
Be Reconciled By Mary Ann Yaconis
13
generally about to think of murder-
ing someone because of a single
offense! But, if I have held this of-
fense and that offense and yet an-
other day after day after dayit
adds up to murderous rage.
Romans 14:19 So then we pursue the things which make for peace and the build-ing up of one another.
The only way to pursue peace is
humbly to reconcile. Possibly when
you try to reconcile, the other will
lash out again. There is a great possi-
bility of becoming angry all over
again at what is said. This is where
we have to rely on the precepts of
the Word in our heart and
the holy spirit so that we do
not sin. We can say to the
person only that we will
search our hearts to see if
these things are so and to
apologize for causing the
pain. If we have in fact
done these things, we ask
for forgiveness.
Matthew 5:25-26 Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way, so that your opponent may not hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the offi-cer, and you be thrown into prison. Truly I say to you, you will not come out of there until you have paid up the last cent.
Jesus stated that the one who
caused the offense is to seek out the
one offended. Many times, the one
offended is so hurt that it is difficult
to be the one to reach out and rec-
oncile. Either way, both being obedi-
ent to the Scriptures could actually
find one coming towards the other
on their way to reconcile and meet
with open arms and tears of joy.
If we have difficulty with angry out-
bursts that just seem to be so quick
to happen, we need to have God
search our hearts, and we need to
begin an inventory of stumbling
blocks that we have held in our
hearts. We need to face them and
allow healing of these wounds. If
we have caused pain for others with
our rants and rages, we need to
seek out friends and family and
apologize and/or ask for forgive-
ness. Repentance comes as we are
mindful that we are quick to blow
up and to stop ourselves as we start
to feel the anger rise. It is easier to
stop a tractor trailer at ten miles
per hour than at 60.
If we have loved ones around us
that frequently have anger towards
us, we as mature Christians do not
let it steal our peace.
Proverbs 15:1 A gentle answer turns away wrath, But a harsh word stirs up anger.
Our fleshly nature urges us to de-
fend ourselves with more angry
words. However, if there is no one
to fight with, then it is not a fight.
People have their opinions because
of what they perceive. We dont
know what the other person is
thinking. Only when things are calm
and peaceful can we discuss what is
going on to figure out, in most
cases, that nothing was wrong in
the first place. It was merely a mis-
understanding.
The basic example for reconciliation
is that we have all sinned against Yah-
weh. What leads us to repentance?
Romans 2:4 Or do you think lightly of the riches of His kindness and tolerance and patience, not knowing that the kindness of God leads you to repentance?
Yahwehs kindness reaches into our
hearts and constrains us to desire to
love and be at peace with Him and
with others. God has no bar-
riers of anger with us. He has
reconciled us. Yahweh did
not do anything wrong. We
are the ones who are to seek
forgiveness from Him. We
are to do the same with oth-
ers. We are to pursue those
whom we have offended and
those who have offended us
in a spirit of peace and hu-
mility to settle the issue. Re-
member the next time you
start to get angry and have
an outburst:
Luke 17:1 He said to His disciples, It is inevitable that stumbling blocks come, but woe to him through whom they come!
Remember that Yahweh reconciled
you to Himself even with all the
foolishness and sin you commit. This
thought constrains us not to sin with
anger. Reconcile with your brothers
and sisters in Christ and others, if
possible. What a wonderful world
this would be!
(Continued from page 12)
...Yahweh reconciled you to Himself even with
all the foolishness and sin you commit. This thought constrains us not to sin with anger.
14
T he Bible is not a book, and it was not written in English. It is actually a collection of sixty-six books,
written in three ancient lan-
guages: Hebrew, Aramaic, and
Greek. Since most of us do not
read these archaic languages, we
depend on translations of the
Bible to encounter Gods holy
Scripture. In fact, translators
have historically held incredible
power to influence millions of
Bible-readers over the ages.
Many impressive developments
have occurred in the field of tex-
tual criticism1 and lexicology
2
over the last century. Today, we
can access dozens of English
translations, Greek interlinears,
and lexical aids online for free. In
no other age have Christians had
better access to biblical tools for
personal study than today. Even
so, rather surprisingly, many Bi-
bles contain wild distortions, es-
pecially on texts related to dog-
mas long ago etched in the stone
of infallible tradition. The unin-
formed Christian walking into a
local bookstore sees dozens of
Bibles lining the shelves and picks
the one that best meets his or her
needsthe Green Bible, the Ex-
treme Teen Bible, the American
Patriots Bible, the Catholic Holy
Bible, the Archeology Study Bible,
the Life Application Study Bible,
and so on. The number of trans-
lations produced in the last sixty
years is even more impressive.
Although most of these versions
stay relatively true to the original
Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek in
most places, nearly all of them
still have significant blind spots
that subtly lean readers towards
a traditional understanding of
who God is.
In what follows I intend to expose
one of the smoking guns of text
tampering as it relates to the holy
spirit. I am interested in exposing
one of the most flagrant
(mis)translation practices found
in virtually all English Bibles: ren-
dering impersonal Greek pro-
nouns as personal in English
when referring to the holy spirit.
What I present here is neither
sectarian nor ground breaking.
Anyone who can read Greek can
verify what I am saying. To start
with, I will present a list of key
texts that reference the holy
spirit using pronouns in English
translations. Every one of these
texts is an example where one of
the very best and most literal
English versionsthe NASB
chose to use personal pronouns
to refer to the spirit. Yet, in every
case the Greek words are actually
neuter!
*See Chart on page 15
As we can see from these texts,
the Bible consistently employs
neuter (not masculine) pronouns
to refer to the holy spirit. We will
return to see how other English
Bibles translate these clear verses
in a moment. First, we need to
consider what the translation
committees themselves set for
standards.
Translator StandardsTranslator StandardsTranslator StandardsTranslator Standards
Since most people do not have
any way of testing how trustwor-
thy a Bible is, they depend on
what the translation committees
say they intended to accomplish.
Here I will quote from just a few
of the most popular Bibles in cur-
rent bookstores to show what
their translation philosophies are:
The Lockman Foundation (NASB)4
The New American Stan-
dard Bible translation team
adhered to the literal phi-
losophy of translation. This
is the most exacting and
demanding method of
translation, and requires a
word-for-word translation
that is accurate and pre-
cise, yet easily readable.
This philosophy of transla-
tion follows the word and
sentence patterns of the
original authors so that the
reader is free to under-
stand God's message as the
Holy Spirit leads.
First published in its com-
pete form in 1971, the
NASB is excellent for Bible
study because it aims at a
precise translation of the
original Hebrew, Aramaic,
and Greek. As such, it ren-
ders, where practical, the
original order of words and
phrases. In passages where
this literalness produces
unacceptable English, the
translators used modern
(Continued on page 16)
Translating the Holy Spirit By Sean Finnegan
15
John 6:63 [NA273] John 6:63 [Literal] John 6:63 [NASB]
pi pi,
the spirit is that which gives life,
the flesh does not benefit any-
thing
It is the Spirit who gives life;
the flesh profits nothing
John 7:39 [NA27] John 7:39 [Literal] John 7:39 [NASB]
pi pi pi pi
but this he spoke concerning the
spirit which those who believed on
him [were] about to receive
But this He spoke of the Spirit,
whom those who believed in
Him were to receive
Acts 5:32 [NA27] Acts 5:32 [Literal] Acts 5:32 [NASB]
pi pi .
and we are witnesses of these words
and the holy spirit which God gave
to those who obey him
And we are witnesses of these
things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those
who obey Him.
Acts 8:15-16 [NA27] Acts 8:15-16 [Literal] Acts 8:15-16 [NASB]
pi pi pi pi pi pi pipipi
who, having come down, prayed for
them so that they may receive holy
spirit; for it has not yet fallen upon
any of them
who came down and prayed for
them that they might receive the
Holy Spirit. For He had not yet
fallen upon any of them
Romans 8:16 [NA27] Romans 8:16 [Literal] Romans 8:16 [NASB]
pi pi .
the spirit itself testifies together
with our spirit that we are children
of God.
The Spirit Himself testifies with
our spirit that we are children of
God,
1 Corinthians 2:12 [NA27] 1 Corinthians 2:12 [Literal] 1 Corinthians 2:12 [NASB]
pi pi
but we did not receive the spirit of
the world but the spirit which [is]
from God
Now we have received, not the
spirit of the world, but the Spirit
who is from God
1 John 5:6 [NA27] 1 John 5:6 [Literal] 1 John 5:6 [NASB]
pi , pi .
and the spirit is that which testi-
fies, because the spirit is the truth.
It is the Spirit who testifies,
because the Spirit is the truth.
16
English idioms and indicated
the literal renderings in
marginal notes.
The Biblical Studies Foundation
(NET)5
The NET Bible is a completely
new translation of the Bible
with 60,932 translators
notes! It was completed by
more than 25 scholars ex-
perts in the original biblical
languages who worked
directly from the best cur-
rently available Hebrew, Ara-
maic, and Greek texts. Turn
the pages and see the
breadth of the translators
notes, documenting their
decisions and choices as they
worked. The translators
notes make the original lan-
guages far more accessible,
allowing you to look over the
translators shoulder at the
very process of translation.
This level of documentation
is a first for a Bible transla-
tion, making transparent the
textual basis and the ration-
ale for key renderings
(including major interpretive
options and alternative
translations). This unparal-
leled level of detail helps
connect people to the Bible
in the original languages in a
way never before possible
without years of study of
Hebrew, Aramaic, and
Greek. It unlocks the riches
of the Bibles truth from en-
tirely new perspectives.
Committee on Bible Translation
(NIV)6
the translators were united
in their commitment to the
authority and infallibility of
the Bible as Gods Word in
written formThe first con-
cern of the translators has
been the accuracy of the
translation and its fidelity to
the thought of the biblical
writers. They have weighed
the lexical and grammatical
details of the Hebrew, Ara-
maic and Greek texts.
National Council of Churches
(NRSV)7
Many of us pay scant atten-
tion to the Bible translation
we use, and yet we all want
the most accurate and read-
able translation available for
our study and devotional
use. That Bible translation is
the New Revised Standard
Version (NRSV). Widely rec-
ognized by scholars and reli-
gious authorities as the most
accurate translation, it is also
the direct successor of the
beloved King James Bible,
following in that Bibles tradi-
tion of elegant, readable
prose. As a literal translation
rather than a paraphrase, the
NRSV leaves interpretation in
the hands of the reader.
Notice how they are all committed
to accuracy of translation. None of
them indicates that their commit-
ment is first to a creed or tradition
over and above reliable transla-
tion. As a result, we should see
these versions rendering the texts
I listed above using impersonal
pronouns, since that is what the
Greek says. Lets see how they do.
Putting the Translations to the TestPutting the Translations to the TestPutting the Translations to the TestPutting the Translations to the Test
Imagine someone jumps online
and accesses the most popular
and well received translations to
investigate the meaning of Acts
5:32 and they check a bunch of
translations:
*See Chart on page 17
After seeing that eighteen of
these nineteen translations per-
sonalize the holy spirit by capital-
izing Spirit (most capitalize
Holy as well) and that seventeen
out of the nineteen use who or
whom to refer back to holy
spirit, what would someone con-
clude? Of course, he or she would
go with the majority. Besides, the
only translations that differ on this
point are the Jehovahs Witnesses
New World Translation (NWT) and
the Roman Catholics New Ameri-
can Bible (NAB)the very two
sources that evangelicals and
Protestants are trained never to
trust! In fact, the New World
Translation does not even appear
on major Bible websites and com-
puter programs, so access to it is
limited. What is so shocking is
that the Greek very clearly reads
the holy spirit whichwhichwhichwhich God gave.
There is no ambiguity or confusing
grammar to cloud the question. It
is as plain as day, and any first
year New Testament Greek stu-
dent could easily verify it.
The most frustrating aspect of this
(Continued from page 14)
(Continued on page 18)
Translating the Holy Spirit Continued...
17
Nestle Aland 27th Edition Greek Text (NA27) New Jerusalem Bible (NJB)
pi pi .
We are witnesses to this, we and the Holy Spirit whom
God has given to those who obey him.'
King James Version (KJV) New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy
Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him."
New World Translation (NWT) Contemporary English Version (CEV)
And we are witnesses of these matters, and so is the holy spirit,
which God has given to those obeying him as ruler.
We are here to tell you about all this, and so is the Holy
Spirit, who is Gods gift to everyone who obeys God.
Revised Standard Version (RSV) New Living Translation (NLT)
And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit
whom God has given to those who obey him."
We are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit,
who is given by God to those who obey him."
Amplified Bible (AB) Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)
And we are witnesses of these things, and the Holy Spirit is also,
Whom God has bestowed on those who obey Him.
We are witnesses to these things; so is the Ruach HaKo-
desh, whom God has given to those who obey him."
New American Bible (NAB) English Standard Version (ESV)
We are witnesses of these things, as is the holy Spirit that God has
given to those who obey him."
And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy
Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him."
New American Standard Bible (NASB) The Message (MSG)
"And we are witnesses of these things; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him."
And we are witnesses to these things. The Holy Spirit,
whom God gives to those who obey him, corroborates
every detail.
Todays English Version/Good News Bible (TEV) Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
We are witnesses to these thingswe and the Holy Spirit, who is
God's gift to those who obey him.
We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit
whom God has given to those who obey Him."
New International Version (NIV) New English Translation (NET)
We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom
God has given to those who obey him."
And we are witnesses of these events, and so is the Holy
Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him."
New King James Version (NKJV) Todays New International Version (TNIV)
"And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him."
We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy
Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him."
18
chicanery is that these transla-
tions mislead honest-hearted men
and women who simply want to
read and understand the Scrip-
tures. What is more, most Bible
readers implicitly trust the schol-
ars who produce translations in
the same way that most people
trust doctors or school teachers.
This is partly due to the impres-
sive verbiage we saw above in
their translation philosophies.
The NASB team adhered to the
literal philosophy of translation
and required a word-for-word
translation that is accurate and
precise, yet, they literally did not
translate the word as which.
The NET boasts that its nearly
61,000 translators notes enable
readers to look over the transla-
tors shoulder and make
transparent the textual basis and
the rationale for key renderings
(including major interpretive op-
tions and alternative transla-
tions). However, when I look at
the footnotes on Acts 5:32, I see
nothing whatsoever indicating
they flat out changed a word to
make their translation more pal-
atable. Ironically, Daniel Wallace
was one of the primary scholars
involved in the NET, and his paper
on this subject exposes this very
issue. The NIV committee stated
that they were committed to the
authority and infallibility of the
Bible as Gods Word in written
form, yet they corrected the in-
fallible Scripture in their transla-
tion to read whom instead of
which. Isnt a correction the
result of an error? But, if Scrip-
ture is infallible, why is the NIV
correcting it? Lastly, the NRSV
claims it is the most accurate and
readable translation and that it
leaves interpretation in the
hands of the reader. Yet, in this
verse (and many others like it), it
obscures the meaning of the text
and does not so much as leave a
footnote indicating their decision.
So if the Greek is clear, why do
nearly all of these translations get
it wrong? Why do all of these
translations think the simple
word (which) is really
(whom)?
Sola ScripturaSola ScripturaSola ScripturaSola Scriptura and Perspicuityand Perspicuityand Perspicuityand Perspicuity
From the time of the Protestant
reformation to today, countless
Christians have embraced the
motto sola scriptura, a Latin
phrase meaning scripture
alone. The idea is that Christians
can find whatever pertains to
faith and piety in the pages of
Scripture without depending on
external traditions or authorities.
This came up quite a bit in the
battle between the reformers
and the established Roman
Catholic Church. The Catholics
claimed tradition was necessary
for rightly interpreting Scripture,
whereas the Protestants argued
people could understand the Bi-
ble without the Church telling
them what it was supposed to
mean. To this day, the mentality
of sola scriptura dominates the
confessions and creeds of most
non-Catholic denominations.
Sola Scriptura is, I think, a very
good idea, but it can be practical
only for the one who is willing to
change his or her beliefs based on
what the Bible actually says. Still,
one will always need external help
from translations, lexicons, cul-
tural studies, etc. To be uncom-
promisingly sola scriptura would
require someone to be able to
read uncial manuscripts fluently
without the aid of Hebrew, Ara-
maic, and Greek dictionaries.
Even so, the sentiment has great
force, and it combines with an-
other idea from the Reforma-
tionperspicuity. Someone who
is perspicacious can accurately see
or grasp a matter. The idea here
is that Scripture is clear and un-
derstandable by nearly everyone.
This mentality puts an incredible
burden on Protestants to find
their doctrines in Scripture. It will
not do to say, Well, the creed
has the following or The
Church teaches that this
means. No, they must show
(Continued from page 16)
(Continued on page 19)
Translating the Holy Spirit Continued...
19
the teaching in plain Scripture.
This would all work out well
enough if denominations were
actually willing to evaluate their
long cherished creeds in the light
of Scripture, but, of course, they
are not. The whole situation is
doomed from the start, because
the Protestant Reformation did
not start from scratch and ques-
tion each belief based on Scrip-
ture. Sure, there were a few,
highly significant doctrines that
they put on the chopping block of
biblical scrutiny and successfully
eliminated, but many of their
core beliefs were never up for
discussion. For example, they
never allowed the Trinity to be
questioned, and when people did
apply sola scriptura to the
dogma, they found themselves
on the chopping block.
However, now that Catholics and
Protestants are no longer able to
execute their fellow brothers and
sisters on the charge of heresy,
they have had to find new ways
to deal with this thorny problem.
This is precisely where the need
arises for translators to monkey
with the text. The issue comes
down to pressurepressure to
make the Bible conform to the
creed so that we can say the
creed is biblical. The translators
begin with the belief that the holy
spirit is the third person of the
Trinity. As a result, they go
against their own stated transla-
tion principles to change the text
literally from which to
who/whom. Next, a reader
comes along and, on the basis of
all those personal pronouns, con-
cludes therefore that the Holy
Spirit is, of course, a person.
We begin with a creedal belief,
and we end with oneand at the
end of the day, we have proved
nothing.
We should not allow our doc-
trines to determine the text. To
do so is like a doctor who be-
lieves that cancer is the root
cause of all sickness. Someone
comes to him for examination,
and though the patients symp-
toms line up perfectly with the
common flu virus, the doctor
finds ways of convincing himself
that cancer is the true culprit.
Every test he orders comes back
negative, but still he knows in his
bones that chemotherapy is the
right treatment. When transla-
tors see that troubling (which),
they ignore the negative results
for the test of personhood and
merrily capitalize the S on spirit
and put who anyhow. This is a
smoking gun of translation bias,
and it is absolutely unacceptable.
It does the exact opposite of
what all of the translations say
they want to do it injects theol-
ogy into Scripture and limits the
readers access to what the text
really says.
How This Works in Our FavorHow This Works in Our FavorHow This Works in Our FavorHow This Works in Our Favor
The fact that nearly all modern
translations change the text so
that it supports their doctrine
about the third person of the
Trinity is actually evidence that
the Bible does not teach that the
holy spirit is a person. This whole
issue smacks of anachronism. Of
course, neither Jesus nor Paul
would say something like, God
the Spirit or the third person of
the Trinity or three persons in
one essence because this kind of
language did not yet exist! Pneu-
matology slowly evolved into full
blown Trinitarianism over centu-
ries of reflection. It was not until
a.d. 381 that some Christians offi-
cially recognized the holy spirit as
an equal person of God in the
Constantinopolitan Creed. Since
the theologians cannot find any of
this terminology in Scripture, they
tweak the translation to ensure
compliance with their beliefs.
This dastardly act needs to be ex-
posed so that doubt can be cast
on the doctrine of the person-
hood of the holy spirit. These
mistranslated pronouns are like
make-up covering a large pimple.
If we can help people see through
this deception, they just may turn
away from the stubborn decep-
tion that has held sway for so
many centuries and instead sim-
plify their piety and come to wor-
ship the true God and Father of
our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
(Continued from page 18)
7 http://www.nrsv.net/about/about-
nrsv/
6 The NIV Study Bible, (Grand Rapids:
Zondervan 1995), p. xi.
5 http://bible.org/article/preface-
net-bible
4 http://www.lockman.org/nasb/
nasbprin.php
3 The Nestle Aland 27th edition is the
standard Greek text translators use for
the New Testament (same as the
United Bible Societies fourth edition).
2 Lexicons are language dictionaries
that translators depend on to deter-
mine what English word corresponds
to the original.
1 Textual critics compare ancient
manuscripts to each other and figure
out which ones are more accurate.
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