Notes
CHAPTER ONE: The Birth of
Messianic Expectation
1. It is doubtful that the Jews
at first made a distinction between these two prophecies. Little did they know
that God had in mind only a limited restoration in Jer. 29. The grand
restoration spoken of in Jer. 23:5-6 and Daniel 2 and 7 was for thousands of
years later. This lesson could only be learned with the passing of time and the
revelation from Jesus Himself. It certainly was apparent to Ezra that the
limited restoration under the Persian kings, which he characterized as a
"little reviving" in their slavery (Ezra 9:8-9), was not the grand
restoration promised under King Messiah.
2. Babylonian Talmud, Baba
Barthra 4a., Soncino Edition, LTD, (London, New York).
3. (Antiq. 15:8.1.)
CHAPTER TWO: The Messiah Nobody
Expected
1. It is commonly assumed that in
the sixth century a monk named Doinysius Exiguus made an error of four years in
establishing the era from which we count our years. So 1996 is actually 2000
years since the birth of Christ.
2. Jerusalem Talmud, Taan. 64a.
3. There were four main parties
in Israel: the Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, and the nationalist party.
4. There are two lines of
prophecy concerning the Messiah prophesied in the Tanakh. The Scriptures speak
of the conquering Messiah who was to put down all worldly kingdoms and establish
world peace (Dan. 2:44; 7; Isaiah 2:1-4; 11); and they also speak of the Messiah
who was to suffer and die for the sins of the people (Psalm 22; Isaiah
52:13-53:12). Jesus claimed that He would fulfill both in their due order.
5. Joseph Klausner, Jesus of
Nazareth, trans. by Herbert Danby, (Beacon Press: Boston), 1925, p.28.
CHAPTER THREE: The Necessity of
Sacrifice
1. The concept of substitution is
not a Christian innovation as the following quote demonstrates: "The
juridical approach is put forward by Ibn Ezra (commentary to Lev. 1:1) and to
some extent by Nahmanides (commentary to Lev. 1:9). According to them, the
sinner's life is forfeited to God, but by a gracious provision he is permitted
to substitute a faultless victim. His guilt is transferred to the offering by
the symbolic act of placing his hands on the victim. When observing the pouring
out of the blood and the burning of the sacrifice, the person should acknowledge
that were it not for divine grace he should be the victim, expiating his sin
with his own blood and limbs (Nahmanides to Lev. 1:9)." Encyclopedia
Judaica, (Keter Publishing House Jerusalem LTD. Israel), p.830.
2. Imagine if you and your family
went out and acquired a one-year-old perfect lamb and kept it out in your yard
for four days. It doesn't take long to get attached to a baby lamb. They are
just as adorable as a young kitten or puppy. Then think how you might feel it
you had to go out and kill that lamb and then roast it and eat it as a family
meal? This is precisely what God commanded the children of Israel to do in the
Passover feast. They sacrificed the young lamb which prevented their first-born
son from being killed by the destroying angel whom God had dispatched to kill
all the first-born children in Egypt. When the angel saw the blood from that
lamb smeared on the doorposts of the Jewish homes, He passed over their houses.
This pictures Jesus as the Lamb of God who is our Passover (1Cor. 5:7).
CHAPTER FOUR: Anti-Missionary
Objections to Blood Sacrifice
1. Babylonian Talmud, Yoma 5a,
citing Leviticus 17:11
2. Babylonian Talmud, Zevahim 6a,
citing Leviticus 17:11
3. In all fairness, we must point
out that a minority within Judaism is looking forward to sacrifices being
offered in the third temple that is to be rebuilt by the Messiah. The Temple
Institute in Israel has prepared all the articles for the temple in
anticipation of this event.
4.Encyclopedia Judaica, (Keter
Publishing House, Jerusalem LTD, Israel), p. 605.
CHAPTER 5: The Prophecies of
Isaiah
1. The Masoretic text underlying
all modern translations of the Old Testament goes back no earlier than A.D. 900.
In 1947, The Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered containing manuscripts that
antedate the Masoretic text by a thousand years. From analyzing the Dead Sea
Scrolls, it was concluded that the Septuagint does, in some instances, preserve
more accurate renderings of the ancient Hebrew text than represented by
Masoretic text. See Merrill F. Unger, The Dead Sea Scrolls, (Zondervan
Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan).
CHAPTER SIX: The Suffering
Messiah of Isaiah 53: Part 1
1. Here the Christian translation
is given in lieu of the Jewish one for the following reasons. The Interlinear
Bible has "who has believed." (Jay P. Green, Sr., The Interlinear
Bible, Hendrickson Publishers, Peabody, Mass. 01961-3473). It is the better
translation. This is confirmed by the LXX which
reads: "Who has believed our report." "Who has" being in the
present perfect tense, leaves no room for the anti-missionary theory that these
are wicked kings speaking from the vantage point of the judgment.
CHAPTER SEVEN: The Suffering
Messiah of Isaiah 53: Part 2
1. The anti-missionary claims
that Jesus did violence to men when He cleansed the temple. A careful reading of
these passages reveals that Jesus used the whip to drive out the animals from
the temple. He commanded the men to get out. Quoting from the American Standard
Version: "And He found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and
doves, and the changers of money sitting: and he made a scourge of cords, and
cast all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the
changers' money, and overthrew their tables; and to them that sold doves he
said, 'Take these things hence; make not my Father's house a house of
merchandise' (John 2:14-16). As a righteous Rabbi in Israel, Jesus had every
right to be a vanguard of the sacred house. One will labor in vain to find an
example of Jesus physically assaulting anyone in the New Covenant.
2. One might argue that the
Servant of Isaiah's prophecy is the righteous remnant within Israel. Psalm
44:17-22 speaks of Israel suffering, though faithful to God. Psalm 44 is indeed
talking about the righteous remnant in Israel, the ones not worshiping other
gods (v. 20). Unfaithful Israel was sent into captivity for worshiping other
gods and breaking their covenant. The righteous did suffer at the hands of
Gentile oppressors as a result of Israel's national disobedience. However, the
righteous remnant within Israel could not be the Servant of Isaiah 53 for the
following reasons:
(1) Isaiah, himself part of the
righteous remnant, delineated between the remnant and the Servant when He said,
"The Lord hath made to light on him [the Servant] the iniquity of us
[Isaiah included] all "(53:6).
(2) As we have proven, the
righteous Servant saves Israel from their sins. The righteousness of mere
mortals, the righteous remnant included, cannot atone for the sins of men. The
righteous within Israel are never said to offer their souls as a sacrifice for
sin.
(3) The righteous remnant within
Israel has defended itself with the sword throughout Israel's history. (David
before he came to power; Elijah's killing the prophets of Baal with the sword,
etc.) As we have seen, the Servant of Isaiah did not violently resist His
oppressors.
CHAPTER EIGHT: The Suffering Messiah of Psalm 22
1. F. C. Cook comments:
"With regard to the Masoretic text, it must be observed that the Jews have
suppressed with the greatest care all readings which do not agree with it. De
Rossi observes (in the 'Dissertatio praeliminaris,' Tom. iv. p. 4), 'turning over
the MSS. we observe, not without wonder and indignation, that there is scarcely
a manuscript, scarcely a sheet of a manuscript, scarcely a reading differing,
however slightly, from the Masora, which a Jewish scribe has not effaced,
corrected, or changed, to bring it into accord with its directions. The
Masoretic text as edited by Jacob ben Chaiim (Venice, 1526) has been followed
both in Jewish and Christian editions without regard to ancient authorities,
MSS., quotations, or versions, which undoubtedly preserve or indicate different,
and, in many cases, preferable readings.'"
F.C. Cook, The Bible Commentary: Volume IV Job to Song of Solomon, (Baker
Book House, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49506), p.223.
2. C.I. Scofield, The New
Scofield Reference Bible (Oxford University Press, Inc., New York), p.610.
CHAPTER NINE: Daniel 9:24-27 and
the Destruction of the Temple
1. Some argue that the command to
restore the temple would by inference include the city, especially in view of
Ezra 5:3, which records the enemies of God challenging the Jews who started the
restoration by saying "Who hath commanded you to build this house, and to
finish these walls?"
2. David Cooper, Messiah: His
First Coming Scheduled (Bible Research Society 4417 Berenice Avenue, Los
Angeles, Calif.) pp. 384-85.
3. Gleason Archer as quoted by
Wayne Jackson, Daniel's Seventy Weeks, (Apologetics Press, Inc., 230 Landmark
Drive, Montgomery, Alabama 36117), p.7.
4. This data is provided to
refute Sigal's assertion that "...the claim of a 'prophetic year' is
without any scriptural foundation" (Sigal, p.122).
5. Evidence That Demands a
Verdict. p. 173
6. Perhaps it is a misnomer to
call it, as many scholars do, a "triumphal entry." "Triumphal
entry" invokes imageries of a king riding into a city after it has been
conquered militarily. Jesus' entry into Jerusalem was rejected by the nation;
however, it was "triumphal" in the sense that He fulfilled prophecy in
precise accordance to God's prophetic calendar.
7. Sigal claims that "not
for himself" is a mistranslation of the Hebrew. It should read "have
nothing." The NJPSV translates this phrase "will disappear and
vanish" appended with the footnote "meaning of the Hebrew
uncertain." Some Christian translations agree with Sigal and translate it
"have nothing." Again, no Christian conspiracy. Jesus in His lifetime
received nothing that was rightfully due Him, i.e., exaltation, acceptance, etc.
8. This prince is a different
ruler from "Mashiyach Nagid"
of verse 25. This prince was to come after "Mashiyach Nagid" was
"cut off." It refers to Titus and his Roman legions.
9. Werner Keller, The Bible As
History, (Bantam Books, Inc., 666
Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10019), p. 443.
10. The Jewish Encyclopedia, Ktav
Publishing House (N.Y. 2, N.Y.), p.278.
CHAPTER TEN: Is Cyrus the Messiah
of Daniel 9:24-27? (Considering Anti-missionary Objections)
1. There is no justification for
the Jewish translators to add "then for." The Hebrew prefix "ve"
is usually translated "and." Isaac Lesser translation: "and
during sixty and two weeks;" and The Holy Scriptures by Alexander Harkavy:
"and during threescore and two weeks." Both italicize
"during" because it's not in the Hebrew but is reflective of Jewish
tradition. They also translate the Hebrew "ve" as "and" a
coordinating conjunction thus lending objective legitimacy to Christian
translations' use of "and."
2. The fact that other Jewish
translations also omit the "the" puts to silence the idea of a
Christian translator conspiracy. See NJPSV as an example.
3. Philip Birnbaum, Encyclopedia
Of Jewish Concepts (Sanhedrin Press, Hebrew
Publishing Company, 80 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10011), p. 421.
4. Ibid,. p. 421.
5. Josephus (The Jewish War, Part
I, Pages 364-370) as cited by How to Recognize the Messiah (Good News Society,
P.O. Box 7848, Johannesburg 2000), p. 8.
6. Ibid., p. 9.
7. Ibid., p. 9.
8. Ibid., p. 9.
CHAPTER ELEVEN: The Priesthood of
Jesus (Psalm 110:4)
1. How to Recognize the Messiah,
p. 26.
2. Ibid, p.22.
3. Ibid, p.22.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: Until Messiah
Comes (Genesis 49:10)
1. F.C. Cook on Genesis, pp.
232-233.
CHAPTER FIFTHTEEN: A Prophet Like
unto Moses (Deut. 18:15)
1. How to Recognize the Messiah,
p. 18.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN: Jesus'
Resurrection from the Dead
1. Some make the quibble that the
apostles could not be credible witnesses since they were not present in the tomb
to see Jesus rise from the dead. But this objection can be dismissed by the fact
that Jesus was killed and buried in a tomb. (All agree with this fact.) The
apostles claimed to see Jesus after His death. If this is true, then by
necessary inference they could attest to the fact that God raised Jesus from the
dead.
2. As quoted by Josh McDowell in
Evidence That Demands a Verdict (HERE'S LIFE PUBLISHERS, INC., San Bernardino,
California 92402), pp. 212-213.
3. Quoted by James Kennedy in Why
I Believe (Word Books, Waco, Texas), p. 111.
4.
As quoted by Edward C. Wharton in THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST
HISTORICAL OR MYTHOLOGICAL?
5. Quoted by Kennedy in Why I
Believe (Word Books, Waco, Texas), p. 116.
6. Kennedy, p.98 quoting, The
Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 8 (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans, 1951), pp.
460-461.
7.Ralph Woodrow, Babylon Mystery
Religion (Ralph Woodrow P.O. Box 124 Riverside, California 92502), pp.139-140.
Josh McDowell explains how a
Friday crucifixion might by compatible with "three days and three
nights":
"Another way to look at 'three days and three nights' is to take
into consideration the Jewish method of reckoning time. The Jewish writers have
recorded in their commentaries on the Scriptures the principle of reckoning
time. Any part of a period was considered a full period. Any part of a day was
reckoned as a complete day. The Babylonian Talmud (Jewish commentaries) relates
that, 'The portion of a day is as the whole of it' (Mishnah, Third Tractate, 'B.
Pesachim,' p. 4a.). The Jerusalem Talmud (so
designated because it was written in Jerusalem) says, 'We have a teaching, 'A
day and a night are an Onah and the portion of an Onah is as the whole of
it.'" (Mishnah, Tractate 'J. Shabbath,' Chapter IX, Par. 3.)...The 'three
days and three nights' in reference to Christ's period in the tomb could be
calculated as follows: Christ was crucified on Friday. Any time before 6:00 p.m.
Friday would be considered 'a day and one night.' Any time after 6:00 p.m.
Friday to Saturday at 6:00 p.m. until Sunday when Christ was resurrected would
be 'one day and one night.' From the Jewish point of view, it would make 'three
days and three nights' from Friday afternoon until Sunday morning." Josh
McDowell, The Resurrection Factor (HERE'S LIFE PUBLISHERS, INC. San Bernardino,
California 92402), pp. 122-123.
8.Ibid, pp. 84-85.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: More Answers
to Anti-missionary Objections
1. William E. Biederwolf, The
Second Coming Bible Commentary (Baker Book House, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49506),
p. 198.
2. Robin Schanker: The Long Road
Home. The story of a Messianic Jew who was won back to Judaism (Jews For
Judaism), p. 7.
3. How to Recognize the Messiah,
p. 24.
4. Ibid., p. 26.
5. James D. Bales, The Biblical
Doctrine of Christ (Lambert Book House, Inc., Box 4007, Shreveport, Louisiana
71104), p. 28.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN: The Genealogy
of Jesus
1. For abridgement purposes,
Matthew omits three generations after Poram; namely, Ahaziah, Joash, and Amaziah
(1 Chron. 3:11, 12). Likewise Ezra, in detailing his own lineal descent from
Aaron, calls Azariah, who was high-priest at the dedication of the First Temple,
the son, not of Johanan his father, but of Meraioth, thus omitting 6 generations
(Ezra 7:1-5, 1 Chronicles 6:3-15). If the anti-missionary finds fault with
Matthew’s abridgment, should he not doubly criticize Ezra?
2. Jewish Encyclopedia, Vol. V,
pg. 587, column 1.
3. Perhaps this is why the
Talmud, in sharp contradiction to contemporary Judaism, states, "Jesus, who
was of royal descent" Tractate Sanhedrin, 43. Compare note on Midrash
Rabbah quoted in How to Recognize the Messiah, pg. 7.
4. This assertion is erroneous.
Luke does not list Jeconiah. The fact that both Matthew and Luke's genealogies
converge upon Salathiel and Zerubbabel can be explained thus: Salathiel marries
the daughter of Neri who had no sons. He thereby takes on the name and
genealogical listing of Neri as well. (See Numbers 27:1-8, and Ezra 2 as
explained later in this chapter.)
5.
Michael’s Brown: Answering Jewish Objections to Jesus Volume
Four (Baker Books, P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI, 49516-6287.) pp. 102.
6. "Midrash Rabbah (23):
Rabbi Tanchuma said in the name of Rabbi Samuel, Eve had respect to that Seed
which is coming from another place. And who is this? This is the Messiah, the
King," as quoted in How to Recognize the Messiah (Good News Society P.O.
Box 7848, Johannesburg 2000), p. 5.
7. Tovia Singer makes the quibble
that the New Testament nowhere states that Joseph adopted Jesus. However, this
is implicitly understood by the fact that Jesus is called the son of Joseph and
is taken in as part of the family.
CHAPTER NINETEEN: Alleged
Contradictions in the New Covenant
1. Gleason Archer, Encyclopedia
of Bible Difficulties (Zondervan
Publishing House, 1415 Lake Drive S.E., Grand Rapids, Michigan 49506), p. 334.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE: Breaking Down
the Barriers:" Christian” Anti-Semitism through the Years
1. The Junior Jewish Encyclopedia
(Shengold Publishers, Inc., 45 West 45th Street New York, N.Y.10036), p.
80.
2. Colliers Encyclopedia, p. 625
c
3. Ibid. p. 625d
4. Martin Luther, On the Jews and
Their Lies, 1543, trans. Martin H. Bertram, in Luther's Works, 47:268-72.
5. Encyclopedia Judaica, Vol. 8,
pp. 1040-4.3.
6. Aryeh Kaplan, The Real
Messiah? (National Conference of
Synagogue Youth/Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, 333 Seventh
Avenue, New York, NY 10001), pp. 1-2. Jewish Bolshevism
7.
Jewish Bolshevism, Wikipeda: The Free Encyclopedia
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO: Israel
Accepts Her Messiah!
1. I have omitted the words
"for every one" supplied by the Jewish translation that I quote. They
rightly put them in italics, for they are not in the Hebrew text, nor are they
implied by the context. The context shows that it is an individual, not numerous
ones that are bewailed e.g., "me,"
"him," and the fact that they mourn for this individual as one would
mourn over "his only son!" Every Jewish translation that I read
obscures the clarity of this passage. It obviously refers to Jesus and His being
pierced through at the hands of His Jewish contemporaries: "They shall look
on Him [Jesus] whom they pierced...Behold, He [Jesus] is coming with the clouds
[cf. Dan. 7:"13], and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him.
And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him" (John 19:37;
Rev. 1:7).
APPENDIX B: The Historical Jesus
1. Edward C. Wharton, The
Resurrection Of Jesus Christ Historical Or Mythological?,
pp. 8-9.
2. Ibid, pp. 6-7.
3. (Jewish Antiquities, XVIII, 3)
4. (Jewish Antiquities XX, 9)
5. As quoted by Bales, The
Biblical Doctrine of Christ, pg. 12.
6. Tacitus, Annals, 15;44
(115-117 A.D.) trans. by A. J. Church and W. J. Brodrib (Random House: New York,
1942), pp. 380-381.
7. Suetonius, Lives of the Twelve
Caesars, Claudius, (120 A.D.) trans. by J. Gavorse. (Random House: New York
1931), p.226.
8. D. James Kennedy, Why I
Believe (Word Books Publishing: Waco, Texas), pp. 96-97.
9. As quoted by Kennedy pp.
95-96.
APPENDIX C: "The
Trinity": Misconceptions, and the Truth
1. Joseph Henry Thayer, The New
Thayer's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Hendrickson Publishers,
Peabody, Massachusetts 01961-3473), p. 548.
2. The Holy Spirit also was
involved in the creative process (Gen. 1:2 cf. Job 26:13). He was perhaps at the
beck and call of Jesus (John 16:13). It should be noted that New Covenant
writers portray the Holy Spirit as a person. He is called a "He" (John
14:26). He holds conversations and commissioned Christian missionaries (Acts
13:2). He grieves over the sins of God's people (Isa. 63:10; Eph. 4:30). He is
subservient to both the Father and the Son. Sigal suggests that the Spirit of
God in Gen. 1:2 is a certain aspect of "God's will and action rather than
His essence" (Sigal, pp. 127-128). Are we to believe that an "aspect
of God's will" hovered over the waters and grieves over sin?
3. (Zohar to Deuteronomy 6:4).
APPENDIX D: The Talmud: Inspired
or Uninspired?
1. Encyclopedia Of Jewish
Concepts, p. 308.
2. It might be argued that the
New Testament also adds to the written Torah. However, within the written Torah,
God anticipates both the Prophet and the words He would speak which constitute
the written New Covenant law (Deut. 18:18-19; Jer.31:31-34).