In the last post, I explained why I use Christ’s Hebrew name, Yeshua, rather than the Greek version of his name, Jesus.
As I wrote that entry, I was thinking that I should have clarified the name usage in a much earlier post, as there are probably plenty out there that aren’t aware of the name, Yeshua.
Anyway, it got me thinking of something else I need to clarify.
I often refer in my writings to the Hebrew Bible/JPS version, so I want to discuss it here.
A couple years ago, my husband was taking a deep look into chapter 53 of Isaiah, which is the chapter that the Christian doctrine uses to support their belief that Christ died for our sins.
We knew that God had shown us that Christ was not intended to be a blood sacrifice, but in the King James version, Isaiah 53:6 records:
But he was wounded for our transgression, he was bruised for our iniquities…
In my research I found that the word “for” can be used in Old English in place of the word “because,” and that is what King James did.
Thankfully, my husband was unsettled in his spirit and wanted to investigate further, because of the huge discrepancy in meaning between these two words.
So, he consulted the Hebrew Bible, and when he did, it revolutionized our lives.
So, let’s think this through.
If one is seeking truth and wants to know the meaning of an ancient text, doesn’t it make sense to go to the source, to the ones who have the oldest original document?
Not only that, but the ones who are experts in the language of which the text is written?
The JPS version of the Hebrew Bible has been meticulously translated into English from the oldest known manuscript, and it was done by Hebrew scholars and Rabbis.
It was a thirty-year process to compete the task, and one thing stands out.
As stated in the Forward, they kept the original wording true, and often used sidenotes to say, “we don’t know what this means.”
They used sidenotes rather than changing the wording to fit what they thought it probably meant. They wanted to remove their bias as much as possible.
Also, they state in the Forward that their motivation was to translate into English a product that is as identical as possible to the original text, so people could study and gain understanding.
Now, let’s look at the King James Old Testament which is the basis for most modern translations of the Christian Bible.
His version was translated by a group of scholars who were brought together by King James.
It took seven years, and although he brought together 49 scholars, the final draft was overseen by King James who was a scholar himself.
When comparing the Hebrew Bible to the King James version, one thing is clear.
Certain words that were chosen by King James are heavily influenced by his Protestant upbringing.
The side-by-side comparison of the Hebrew Bible to the King James Old Testament reveals the bias of King James.
Using Isaiah 53 is a great example.
Christians have quoted this scripture as the solid foundation of their faith, that Christ died for their sins. It is clearly written that way in the King James translation as mentioned above.
Now, let’s look at Isaiah 53:6 in the Hebrew Bible.
But he was wounded because of our sins, Crushed because of our iniquities…
Isaiah is prophetically writing to his people; thus, the word, “our.” He is writing to the Jewish religious leaders.
He says, it is because of our sins that he was wounded and crushed.
Isaiah was seeing a vision of the Messiah being murdered and was proclaiming that it was because of their sin that this was happening. This was written approximately 700 years before Yeshua was born, and it surely did come to pass.
They did not heed the words of Isaiah, and Christ was wounded and crushed by the religious leaders of the first century, a generation who had access to these very words written in their Hebrew Bible.
Isaiah went on to write, who could describe his abode? For he was cut off from the land of the living through the sin of my people , who deserved the punishment.
Does this sound like a word from God that is offering up Christ as a sacrifice for the sins of humanity?
No, Isaiah is confounded as to who knows Yeshua well enough behind closed doors to carry on his mission, because in chapter 42 Isaiah saw the vision of the chosen one of God to teach the true way to the nations.
Now he sees Christ being cut off from the land of the living and he is asking the question:
“How can Yeshua’s teachings continue?”
The Hebrew Bible makes it clear that the sin of the religious leaders was the reason behind the murder of Yeshua.
Unfortunately, the religious influences of King James have contributed greatly to the belief that Christ was a human sacrifice for the sins of mankind.
It is simply not true.