What is a Divine Calling?

By C.L. Bruton

This is a pursuit of TRUTH over deception while examining things such as 'Divine Calling' even the 'Great Commission'

• Language: English
• Publisher: C.L. Bruton
• Release date: Aug 23, 2019
• ISBN: 9781393747536

Book preview

What is a Divine calling?

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There is evil in all of us, and it is the mark of a man how he defies the evil within.  ~David Gemmell

This topic is the most famous of all the carousels in the whole of the evangelical theater.  The issue engenders so many questions that live in the mist.

What is a call?

What is a ‘Divine calling’?

Who’s calling?

What is God’s will?

How do I find God’s will for my life?

Am I in God’s will?

If not, when did I leave it?

If so, how do I get back in it?

Did I receive a word from God?

How do I know?

This is the longitude of those of us in the pews, one of the many spin cycles of doctrine even theology that leaves us dizzy all the while the professionals those hireling clergy enjoy diplomatic immunity from these questions they consider inconsequential within the religious theater as they were deputized by Elohim Himself.  They only lose their sea legs when they find themselves being held accountable against their will in a mob headed toward a lynching.  I have spent a lifetime in the evangelical and what seemed like an additional lifetime studying theology in preparation for this vocational commission and in all my decades I have never seen, heard, or otherwise witnessed any among the clergy wavering in their ‘calling’ even those among the most defiantly nefarious having violated the public trust of their constituents and the greater societal members at large.  They are like flies in a feed lot with a wave of the hand you can swat multiple in one swing.  Curious how the clergy, the for hire pastors of the evangelical are the purveyors of this machination.   

The least abstract and most straight forward path toward determining the boundaries of the device, ‘Divine calling’, as to whether or not it is man-made is to go directly to the source.  I say man-made because it does not occur anywhere in scripture in any Bible version.  What we are actually attempting to achieve is clearer insight into the purpose of the calling.  There is an undeniable apparent implication even accusation when YHSWH calls us to follow Him.  We can with the highest level of certainty know that if we continue on the path we were on before following ‘The Way’ we would be in a very different place a place devoid of TRUTH most inferior even unfavorable.  The single solitary reality couched in this TRUTH is that we are broken in dire need of salvation.  When YHSWH calls us to follow Him it is a testimony to this very fact. 

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28 But we know that to the ones loving Elohim all things work together for good, to those being called according to purpose; Romans 8:28HRB

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13 But going, learn what this is, I desire mercy and not sacrifice. For I did not come to call righteous ones but sinners to repentance. °  Matthew 9:13HRB

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24 Then Yahshua said to His disciples, If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and let him bear his torture stake, and let him follow Me.  Matthew 16:24HRB

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The purpose of YHWH from creation is for us to be in the Garden with Him.  His purpose is and has always been to reconcile us to Himself.  Our purpose as well as the intention of YHWH are couched His providence which overrides even our best of intentions.  It is not possible to deny the existence of purpose or significance in this life as even the most infantile question of ‘why?’ petitioned by a child confirms it.

When I was studying theology at university home for the summer working anticipating my nuptials having more than a few years of experience in construction, I managed to cut off my thumb to the first knuckle.  After leaving surgery I as would each of us asked why?  Why did this happen, it has ruined everything.  I knew in the moment that I would never be married.  I was at the time much too close to the situation to train my eyes on its reality as it would take years before I would understand that this tragedy was actually my lottery ticket.  The providence of YHWH if we trust it will trump all our best of plans those plans couched in our inquiry implied by the asking that place where hope persists, in its answer.  It is here and only here in the providence of YHWH where the calamity is the threshold to the spectacle of wonder.  It is however difficult to overcome the nearsightedness and behold the wonder while in the pain. 

I would find out some years later that this pain hardly moved the needle as I stepped reluctantly into the void of my degenerative disease.  I assure you I was incapable of fastening my mind to any degree converging on this hope as the affliction would time and time again even relieve me of my sleep.  It would take years before I could encounter gratefulness toward a thing I witnessed plundering my life.  It would be the purpose of YHWH that persisted in His providence the foundation of the inquisition of ‘why?’ that would be the threshold of hope expressed in gratefulness for a thing I was unable to refuse its delivery.  For me it is the providence of YHWH that engenders my trust in a world of deception, of chance even chaos. 

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2  I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.  Psalms 57:2ESV

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My life, our lives have purpose, have significance because YHWH wills it. 

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27 For YAHWEH of Hosts has purposed. And who shall reverse it? And His hand is stretched out. Who shall turn it back?  Isaiah 14:27HRB

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2 I know that You can do all, and no purpose is withheld from You.  Job 42:2HRB

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The sovereignty of YHWH can be observed in His providence which is evidenced in both His purpose merged in His ability to without interruption fulfill it.  This is the hope of our salvation.  We are where we are in our story by and because of the providence of Elohim.

In fact, nothing ever happens in the universe that is outside of fulfilling that decree and promise. Nothing. There isn’t a single incident, or tragedy, that will result in something other than the true interest and good of the saints (Mystery of Providence, 19). Puritan John Flavel

16 You have not chosen Me, but I chose you out and planted you, that you should go and should bear fruit, and your fruit remain, that whatever you should ask the Father in My name, He may give you.  John 15:16HRB

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This discussion circles the notion of a Divine calling something beyond our having been chosen by YHWH.  It is similar to the evangelical discussions of our decisions for YHSWH even our determination to be a follower of YHSWH having long forgotten possibly never having known that we were chosen by YHSWH not the other way round.  Our citizenship of the Kingdom was not predicated on our foreknowledge of the providence of YHWH in fat if we are honest we haven’t a clue not unlike Joseph sold into slavery.  We are incapable of identifying the target of Elohim’s providence, His purpose for our life.  We counter the providence the sovereignty of YHWH with our purpose, our ideas when we speak of His purpose in our life.  YHWH wants me to do ‘X’  YHWH wants me to go there  YHWH has call me to perform a special work  all the while we do even persist in what we perceive even believe to be right as if we have somehow quarantined the purpose of YHWH in our lives.  Were we to with any degree of veracity compare our moral efforts however righteous they may be to the sovereignty, the providence of YHWH they would be inconsequential nonessentially meaningless.  We don’t know what we don’t know about the providence of YHWH.

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31 And having taken aside the Twelve, Yahshua said to them, Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and all things will be fulfilled which have been written through the prophets to the Son of Man.  Luke 18:31HRB

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In a world of deception imitation is an entrée best served warm ~C L Bruton

A man can counterfeit love, he can counterfeit faith, he can counterfeit hope and all the other graces, but it is very difficult to counterfeit humility.  ~Dwight L. Moody

1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are from Elohim; for many false prophets have gone forth into the world†.  1John 4:1HRB

Original

Is your TRUTH 100% original?  Do you know the why behind the what of your belief?  Our world is a cesspool of deception concealing TRUTH making seeking it a clandestine operation.

The global trade in counterfeit goods is big business which is booming, and it's shifting from relatively innocuous items like shoes and handbags to things like medicine and pesticides that can carry serious health and safety implications.[i]

The world of counterfeit is a $460 billion industry worldwide.  These are actual numbers published 5 years ago by the OECD.  Who says there is no money in cheating?  A close runner up is the illicit drug industry which stands at $440 billion annually.  Hard to imagine that counterfeiting casts a shadow over the drug business.  The ICC puts the number for counterfeit revenues closer to $2 trillion.

Before we travel down the rabbit hole too far we must perform some due diligence over the issue of debate spanning more than 15 centuries that of Greek or Aramaic primacy of the New Testament.  There is a curious phenomenon around belief that most presume to be truth.  The more years an idea is king of the hill the more fortified it becomes as time equals proof eventually so much passes by that we neither examine nor believe we need to prove said truth again. 

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In the contrary falsity is an unstable state of existence based on things, or thoughts that are not proven to be true through logic and reasoning but to the contrary. A structure that is built on falsity is like a fascinating structure made from beach sand that looks real and lasting but will be destroyed when the ocean currents, currents of truth reach to it and sweeps it out of existence. Falsity disappears when truth acts on it with full force.  Dejenie A. Lakew

Truth more often than not is a function of who even how many believe or disbelieve it.  Moreover, it is only as significant as who presents it.  The illusory truth effect is more a function of exposure and less about the facts.

While repetition is the underlying agent time is the supervisory managing contingency.  It is time that engenders even breeds familiarity which has been found to trump rationality creating a mental paradox.  It is precisely the feeling of familiarity that has been exploited from the beginning.  Truth has been reframed to be examined by feelings vs. rationality or logical pursuit.  Which do you think has won out?  This is exemplified by marketers, clergy, and politicians every day leveraging to the degree of manipulating our cognitive bias.  This is the basis of fake news the rebranding of propaganda. 

One of the most destructive side effects of this deception we know as the mechanism, illusion of truth is those beguiled don’t just believe it they defend it as truth.  The most damning thing is that they are unwilling and incapable of receiving any information that in any way contradicts their belief as this is impossibility.  It is a little scary how we are capable of taking ownership of a lie believing it to be truth having become blind even deaf to TRUTH as we white knuckle our lie, guarding our sand castle.  TRUTH does not, never has, and never will belong to us, YHWH is TRUTH.  We as followers of ‘the Way’ are tasked with the seeking of TRUTH if we are to find it.  In other words TRUTH is predicated on our expending energy in an enterprise in which we might collide with or obtain TRUTH or both.  It is a self-fulfilling prophecy that our nature is to ration our energies.  We observed this in the Garden as neither Eve nor Adam performed any due diligence over the paradox with which they were presented.  All they need do was inquire of YHWH and they were done but there was that pesky little thing called desire that compromised the logic the rational pursuit of TRUTH.  It is little different for us today as the short cutters, the people of the dirt acting on feelings choosing to nullify logical reasoning.  We deceive ourselves by our own recognizance.  This is longitude of the feel good message

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A lie would have no sense unless the truth was felt dangerous. ~Alfred Adler

One timeless example of the mechanism of the illusion of truth is the Heliocentric model of the universe.  After 1,400 years embracing the endorsed Ptolemy’s geocentric system where the earth was the center around which all the other planets revolved Nicholas Copernicus successfully opposed the status quo.  There had been others who claimed that all the planets revolved around the sun but none were successful.  Lest we forget there was the flat earth theory.

In February-March 1616, the Catholic Church issued a prohibition against the Copernican theory of the earth’s motion. This led later (1633) to the Inquisition trial and condemnation of Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) as a suspected heretic, which generated a controversy that continues to our day.

On March 5, a decree was issued by the Index, the department charged with book censorship. Without mentioning Galileo, it publicly declared the earth’s motion false and contrary to Scripture. It prohibited the reading of Copernicus’s Revolutions, and banned a book published in 1615 by Paolo Antonio Foscarini; he had argued that the earth’s motion was probably true, and certainly compatible with Scripture.[ii]

We know that the opposition against TRUTH has from the beginning been relentlessly horrendous, this is an undeniable fact.  The Bible has always endured subterfuge, censorship, even attempts at annihilation.  We observe the Holy Roman Empire the Bible refers to as the beast rule the world for 12 centuries during which they held captive the entirety of scripture.  Even those like Martin Luther were never allowed to see, touch, much less read a Bible.  We know just this side of the ‘missing’ original manuscripts the Latin Vulgate makes its appearance in the late 4th century.  We know that the Holy Roman Empire the would be one world religion would during its reign censor scripture by interpretation as well as suppression by concealment from the clergy as well as the people they claimed to serve.  We know that the interpretation was formed and passed down to the foot soldiers in the clergy to deliver to the people.  We know that it would be the scribes and Pharisees along with the Roman Empire who would persecute those followers of YHSWH ultimately murdering our Savior.  We know that all the subsequent witnesses would sooner than later be quieted forever in their martyrdom.  We know that this period between the 2-3rd century constitutes the gap in the human chapter where the original manuscripts went missing.  We must ask ourselves at whose watch did they go missing, who was in charge?  Believers and witnesses alike would endure unspoken heinous persecution over the 1st century and those following until the 3rd when Constantine the Great would compromise filling the void in the religious theater by creating ‘Christianity’ the gumbo religion imbued with paganism.  This would embark the time when those followers of YHSWH would encounter a reprieve from persecution.  This reprieve came at the price of the one world religion encompassing and embracing all religions notwithstanding the world of paganism.  We only covered the highlight reel of the villainous sinister persecution encountered by believers leaving off the gruesome viciousness of those leaders like Nero.  We must if we are to move forward frame our paradigm within the global ambition to destroy TRUTH when we deliberate the primacy of the original manuscripts of the NT.  Were we to narrow our scope to such a degree to omit this from our historic lens I fear it would be criminal to the point of eroding away any significance of the death even resurrection of YHSWH.  Within our gaze we must accept the identity of the would be evil spirits whose business, whose ambition is to do the bidding of their leader the father of lies, the ruler of darkness.  Who does he employ, the authorities, the rulers of this world.  Who is it that has historically been responsible for the persecution of the Saints?  There were the Egyptians, Romans, Holy Roman Empire [marriage of politic & religion], Greeks, and Nazis the list is extensive.  Theirs is a war against TRUTH personified in YHSWH Who they crucified as well as the Word personified in YHSWH which the Holy Roman Empire altered and their favorite nephew Napoleon attempted to forever desolate from the human experience.  Finally, there only remain the witnesses who were martyred forever silencing their voice and we who follow ‘the Way’; it is left to us who remain followers of YHSWH who tread the narrow path never forgetting our enemy. 

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12 For our conflict is not with flesh and blood, but with principalities, and with those in authority, and with the possessors of this dark world, and with the evil spirits that are beneath heaven.  Ephesians 6:12HRB

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1 And He has quickened you also who were dead because of your sins and trespasses, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the will of the ruler of the authority of the air, the spirit which is active in the sons of disobedience, 3 in those very deeds in which we also were corrupted from the very beginning through the lusts of our flesh, doing the things willed of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children of wrath, even as the rest.  Ephesians 2:1-3HRB

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7 And war occurred in Heaven, Michael and his cherubs making war against the dragon. And the dragon and his cherubs made war, 8 but they did not have strength, nor yet was place found for them in Heaven.°  9 And the great dragon was cast out, the old serpent being called the devil, and, Satan; he deceiving the whole inhabitable world was cast out onto the earth, and his cherubs were cast out with him. °  10 And I heard a great voice in heaven, which said: Now is come the salvation, and the power and the kingdom of our Elohim, and the dominion of his Messiah: because the Accuser of our brethren is cast out, the one who accuses them day and night before our Elohim.†  Revelation 12:7-10HRB

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Some years back I found myself perplexed over the notion of the majority rule or consensus.  I was at the time seized by the likelihood even the prospect that YHWH might weigh in on this phenomenon.  I began my search in Genesis 1 and would continue half way through the OT combing scripture for any narrative where the consensus would present itself.  It was an overwhelming landslide against the mob rule, against the majority rule even consensus.  There was not one occasion in the whole of my search and I maintain the whole of scripture that YHWH stood in the consensus.  This while seemingly trivial on the surface is momentous paralleling even harmonizing with the words of YHSWH. 

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12 Therefore, all things, whatever you desire that men should do to you, so also you should do to them; for this is the Torah and the Prophets.  13 Go in through the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are the ones entering in through it.  14 For narrow is the gate, and constricted is the way that leads away into life, and few are the ones finding it.  Matthew 7:12-14HRB

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The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of the insane. ~Marcus Aurelius

Three weeks from now, I will be harvesting my crops. Imagine where you will be, and it will be so. Hold the line! Stay with me! If you find yourself alone, riding in the green fields with the sun on your face, do not be troubled. For you are in Elysium, and you're already dead!  ~General Maximus

Quintus: People should know when they’re conquered.

Quintus: People should know when they're conquered.

Gen. Maximus: Would you, Quintus? Would I?

If you are familiar with Gladiator the movie you will remember this early in the movie.  It is telling as it would be a self-fulfilling prophecy for Quintus as well as his Caesar.  As soon as they turned against Maximus their fate would be sealed and they would in fact be conquered only they thought themselves the conquerors.  Would you, would I?

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1 Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the wicked, and has not stood in the way of sinners, and has not sat in the seat of scorners.  2 But his delight is only in the Torah of YAHWEH, and he meditates in His Torah day and night.  3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivulets of waters, which will give its fruit in its seasons, and its leaf will not wither, and all which he does will prosper.  4 Not so are the wicked, but they are only as chaff which the wind drives about.  5 On account of this the wicked shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.  6 For YAHWEH is knowing the way of the righteous, and the way of the wicked shall perish.†  Psalms 1:1-6HRB

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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. Therefore, choose life, that you and your seed may live,†  Deuteronomy 30:19HRB

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24 Labor to enter in through the narrow gate, for I say to you that many will seek to enter in and will not have strength.  25 From the hour that the Master of the house rises and secures the door, then they will stand outside and knock on the door and begin to say, Our Master! Our Master! Open to us! And He will answer and He will say, I say to you that I do not know you from where you are.  26 Then you will begin to say, We ate and drank in Your presence, and You taught in our streets.  27 And He will say, I tell you I do not know you, from where you are. Depart from Me all workers of falsehood†! °  28 There will be weeping and gnashing of the teeth when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of Elohim, but yourselves being thrust outside†.   Luke 13:24-28HRB

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Ours is a precarious existence in which we are predisposed to seek shelter, safety from the evil we desperately desire to escape.  This natural self-defense mechanism in response to fear is precisely what the world exploits as we are partial to the herd, the truism of safety in numbers.  Scripture denounces this truism as a falsity, a lie the noose which we willingly slip around our necks.  For me when I find myself standing in a crowd of seemingly happy even celebratory people I hear the voice of Jenny echoing in my mind, RUN Forest RUN! and I am looking for the exits because nothing good will ever come from the consensus.  The mob, the majority, the consensus sold to westerners as Democracy which will save us all have been conquered and they do not as yet realize it.  Never let go of the reality our reality that ours is a world, a cesspool of deception and we do not know what we do not know making it more than a little difficult to determine just how stupid we actually are as we may well be too stupid to know we are stupid. 

What do we know?  We know that the 9 authors of the NT were Hebrew with the exception of Luke who it is assumed was a Gentile an assumption whose basis is more in tradition than Biblical evidence, yet another example of the illusionary truth effect.  Luke contributed more words to the NT than any other author.  The reality of the dialogue is that Luke was most likely a Hebrew while not conclusively however the Biblical evidence far outweighs the alternative.

We know that there are both Greek and Aramaic Manuscripts dating to the 4th & 5th centuries respectively.  Curiously, few are aware of the existence of the Peshitta, the Aramaic Manuscript.  This goes to the point that it is not possible to have or to engage in an unbiased dialogue.  It also is a clear example of the illusionary truth effect which begs the question of why?  Because one agenda has been for century’s propagated over another we must ask to what end?  This is an epoch of censorship which erodes the credibility of the promoter of primacy for the offending manuscript, the Greek NT. 

We know even acknowledged that there is a gap of 2-3 centuries between the actual writing of these original manuscripts and these manuscripts from the 4th & 5th centuries which is for the greater part unaccounted for leaving us with the undisputed reality that these manuscripts are copies of copies the chain of evidence which has long since broken.  We discussed earlier the principalities those would be eternal archenemies of TRUTH from the perspective of their agenda that of exterminating TRUTH by censorship, annihilation, interpretation, prevarication, even the illusionary truth effect.  This goes a long way to answering the question of the gap, the missing manuscripts as they were disappeared just like the eye witnesses.

We know in the 1st century that Aramaic was the sister language of Hebrew.  Hebrew was the predominate language for both religious and secular writings. 

Here is where the illusionary truth effect collides with reality, with TRUTH.  In the past 50 years archeologists have uncovered vast amounts of historical evidence numbering in the 10’s of thousands; one of the colossal digs was the Dead Sea Caves.  How is it that this issue of primacy has not entered into the theater for reevaluation to be considered with this new accumulation of insurmountable evidence?  We know this by the evidence of the Dead Sea Scrolls making it a real possibility that the original manuscripts while they do not exist today may well have been in existence at a time previous to the manuscripts we have today.  The winners always write the history without contention.  We must always look to the losers, the martyrs if we are to find our way. 

There are two primary questions regarding the original NT text:

Was the NT originally written in Greek and translated into Aramaic?

Was the NT originally written in Aramaic and translated into Greek?

Was the NT originally written in Hebrew and translated into Greek not unlike the OT into the LXX?

I am of the opinion attempting to error on the conservative that there may be a pragmatic 4th.  Is it possible that the original manuscript was a mix of all 3? 

In all fairness these questions must include the possibility that the NT was originally written in Hebrew and later translated into Aramaic then translated into Greek?  I find it difficult to defend the possibility however rare it might be that the original NT was scribed in Greek. 

The debate for primacy of Greek over Aramaic or vice versa as the original language of the NT writers continues today with the majority or consensus aligning with the Greek primacy in the western evangelical while the eastern evangelical holds to the Aramaic primacy.  What also serves the Greek primacy is the sheer volume of English translations based on the Greek NT such as the KJV, RSV, NIV, NAS to name a few.

We should always take care that the consensus democratically known as the mob rule is never allowed to drive the theological boat as YHWH will never be aboard.  We know unequivocally that YHWH has historically and will always stand against the consensus.

The following is an example of Greek primacy vs. Aramaic primacy.

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24  And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.  Matthew 19:24KJV

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Aramaic

24  And again I say to you, that it is easier for a rope to enter into the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.  Matthew 19:24

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Greek has never been the language of YHWH nor have the Greeks been His people as they are historically pagan.  We must in all fairness examine the Greek Empire, its culture, its people, even its religion and upon doing so we will arrive at a solitary conclusion.

We know that Gnosticism was a huge 1st century conflict with the disciples and 1st century followers.  We also know that the contention with followers of ‘the Way’ and Hellenistic Judaism was widespread.  We know that Gnosticism is a Greek phenomenon dating back to the time of John’s writing where he addresses the anti-christ which originated in Alexandria.  We know without any debate whatsoever that the Greeks have always been known to be pagans.  Would YHWH have given the Greeks free reign over scripture?  That would be like consigning the Hells Angels to translate the NT. 

We know that names are transliterated not translated YHWH & YHSWH are and will be forever the names of Elohim and His Son.  The Greek NT translates their names to theos which is in fact a replacement.  This is a bit of sleight of hand leveraged successfully against a western evangelical the percent of the culture which could actually grasp a 2nd or 3rd language culture is almost nonexistent. 

We also know that there was great animosity toward the Greeks by the Hebrews.  We know that the Hebrews abhorred Hellenism which would forever prevent making the argument that Hebrews learned the Greek language so that they might scribe the NT manuscripts in Greek.  We know that the NT is chock-full of Hebrew transliterations into Greek which means the original source was Hebrew thereby precluded from being Greek.  We also know that the NT is flush with Hebraisms & puns that do not translate into Greek.  The evidence for the primacy of Hebrew as the original language of the NT is overwhelming from archaeological, language, culture, and origins of some of the participants, Hebrew transliterations, textual evidence, idiom, and 1st century language.

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Paul informs the readers of the NT of its foundation, which was the OT.

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19 So, then, you are no longer strangers and family members living abroad, but you are natives of the same family of the saints and children of the family of YAHWEH†, 20 being built up on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Yahshua Messiah Himself being the cornerstone of the building, 21 in whom all the building being fitted together grows into a holy sanctuary in YAHWEH, 22 in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling place of Elohim in the Spirit.  Ephesians 2:19-22HRB

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We know a few things.  First, we know that Matthew begins his letter by providing the genealogy of YHSWH which spans the entirety of the OT establishing both the significance of the OT and its eternal affinity with the New.  This common origin, this undeniable concord of harmony between the OT & NT dictates that we must apply this affinity to our search for TRUTH if we hope to encounter it in our seeking.  The NT writers focus the entirety of their stories on the OT to point to YHSWH in the New where one explains even testifies to the other in the reveal giving way to a circular even eternal relationship.  Additionally, we can observe the theology of the OT confirmed in the NT.  YHWH the creator, the Elohim ruler of all is confirmed in the NT.  The writers speak to the fulfillment of OT messianic prophecies.  We can observe typology used in revealing those types that foreshadow persons in the NT such as a type of YHSWH.  We also know that more than 60% of the NT is in varying degrees are direct citations of the OT.  Conservatively this number is better than 30% which reveals nothing short of a convincing reliance.  This does not take into account or quantify the reality that foundationally the substratum doctrinally of the NT is premised, finds its basis in the OT.  We find the prophecies, definitions; teachings, promises, and a wealth of evidence to support our pursuit come from the OT.  We also know that Paul is said to have put the entirety of the Torah to memory which is reflected in his letters, the basis of his writings.  Having said this and in no way denying the fact that we have a Greek translation of both the OT & NT we must acknowledge that the theology presented in the NT finds its entire significance from the single solitary source of the OT Hebrew. 

Who are the witnesses of YHSWH?  Men in the form of those apostles who witnessed His resurrection are witnesses of the TRUTH.  The tasks YHWH gave YHSWH to do bear witness of Him.  YHWH Himself Who sent YHSWH bears witness of YHSWH.  Finally, there is the Word of YHWH He has written on the hearts of man as well as the scripture which testifies of YHSWH.

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38 And His Word does not dwell in you because you do not believe in Him whom He sent.  39 You search† the Scriptures, for you think in them you have everlasting life. And they are the ones witnessing concerning Me.  John 5:38-39HRB

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Listen to what Luke says about the rich man who wishes to save the very souls of the five brothers who resided in his father’s house.  Abraham told the rich man that his brothers and his father’s house have Moses and the prophets, let them hear them and goes onto say if they don’t listen to Moses and the prophets [the Old Testament] they will not listen to anyone and will surely join him in his torment.

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29 Abraham said to him, They have Moses and the Prophets, let them hear them.  Luke 16:29HRB

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We actually have archaeological evidence that supports the reality of a Semitic NT.  The language of the Jews was in fact Hebrew through the 1st century during the 2nd temple period.  This is based on evidence of parchment, a letter written in Hebrew from Shimon Ben Kosiba who lead the final revolt against the Romans.  Moreover, all the coins minted in Israel during this period contained inscriptions in Hebrew.  There are many other scrolls and literally thousands of fragments uncovered in the Dead Sea Caves 90% of which were written in Hebrew and 5% in Aramaic during this time both of Biblical and secular origins.ii   what they did not find was parchment of religious content written during this period in the Greek language.  So, instead of new evidence further strengthening the position of the primacy of the Greek NT we are encountering the exact opposite. 

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The book of Maccabees, one of the books of the Apocrypha, tells the story of the Jewish Revolt about 150 years before the time of the New Testament. The Greeks, lead by Antiochus Epiphines, conquered the land of Israel and forced the Jews to leave their national heritage and the Torah and begin following the Greek culture. Because of the Jews hatred for all things Hellenistic, including the culture and language, Judah Maccabee lead a revolt against Antiochus Epiphines, both expelling the Greeks and slaughtering those Jews that had adopted the Greek language and culture. This revolt demonstrates the Jewish hatred of the Hellistic culture and the incorrect assumption that the Jews freely adopted the Greek language during the time of the New Testament.[iii]

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Josephus was a first-century Jewish historian who recorded Jewish life and sentiment during the time of the New Testament. In his work Antiquity of the Jews he writes I have also taken a great deal of pains to obtain the learning of the Greeks, and understanding the elements of the Greek language although I have so long accustomed myself to speak our own language that I cannot pronounce Greek with sufficient exactness: for our nation does not encourage those that learn the languages of many nations. (Josephus, Ant.20.11.2)ii

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Semitic origins of the Book of Matthew

While there are many textual evidences to show that the book of Matthew was originally written in a Semitic language, probably Hebrew, Matthew 5:3 is a good example of this.

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

The Greek word for poor is ptochos and means one who is destitute, afflicted, and lacking. What this verse is literally saying is Blessed are the ones destitute/afflicted/lacking in the spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. This does not make any sense. However, if we translate the Greek word ptochos into Hebrew we have the word aniy which also means destitute, afflicted and lacking. More literally the Hebrew word aniy means bent down low such as a poor person who is destitute. But, this Hebrew word can also mean one who is humble, in the same sense of bending down low.

Now, if we translate the Hebrew back into English we have, Blessed are the humble in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. By understanding this passage from its Hebrew background, we are able to better interpret the New Testament Bible.

Another proof for an original Matthew is the overwhelming number of church fathers who had stated that the book of Matthew was originally written in Hebrew.

Papias (150-170 CE) - Matthew composed the words in the Hebrew dialect, and each translated as he was able. [A quote by Eusebius; Eccl. Hist. 3:39]

Ireneus (170 CE) - Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect. [Against Heresies 3:1]

Origen (210 CE) - The first [Gospel] is written according to Matthew, the same that was once a tax collector, but afterwards an apostle of Jesus Christ who having published it for the Jewish believers, wrote it in Hebrew. [A quote by Eusebius; Eccl. Hist. 6:25]

Eusebius (315 CE) - Matthew also, having first proclaimed the Gospel in Hebrew, when on the point of going also to the other nations, committed it to writing in his native tongue, and thus supplied the want of his presence to them by his writings. [Eccl. Hist. 3:24]

Epiphanius (370 CE) - They [The Nazarenes] have the Gospel according to Matthew quite complete in Hebrew, for this Gospel is certainly still preserved among them as it was first written, in Hebrew letters. [Panarion 29:9:4]

Jerome ( 382 CE) - Matthew, who is also Levi, and from a tax collectore came to be an Apostle first of all evangelists composed a Gospel of Christ in Judea in the Hebrew language and letters, for the benefit of those of the circumcision who had believed, who translated it into Greek is not sufficiently ascertained. Furthermore, the Hebrew itself is preserved to this day in the library at Caesarea, which the martyr Pamphilus so diligently collected. I also was allowed by the Nazarenes who use this volume in the Syrian cityof Borea to copy it. In which is to be remarked that, wherever the evangelist.... makes use of the testimonies of the Old Scripture, he does not follow the authority of the seventy translators, but that of the Hebrew. [Lives of Illustrious Men, Book 5]

Isho'dad (850 CE) - His [Matthew's] book was in existence in Caesarea of Palestine, and everyone acknowledges that he wrote it with his hands in Hebrew. [Isho'dad Commentary on the Gospels]

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Hebrew words in the Greek Texts

Contained with in the Greek text of the New Testament are many Hebrew words and phrases that have been transliterated from the Hebrew language into the Greek language. While many of these have been described as being Aramaic, there is no textual evidence to suggest that these are Aramaic rather than Hebrew, as the Aramaic and Hebrew language are very similar.

In the book of Matthew is the phrase Eli eli lama sabachthani (27:46). This is a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew אלי אלי למה שבקתני (eli eli lama shavaqtani), meaning my God my God why have you left me.

Below are additional Hebrew words found in the Greek New Testament.

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Hebrew in First Century Israel

The following is an excerpt from the Wikipedia on-line encyclopedia.

Aramaic displacing Hebrew as a spoken language

By the early half of the 20th century, modern scholars reached a nearly unanimous opinion that Aramaic became a spoken language in the land of Israel by the start of Israel's Hellenistic Period in the 4th century BCE, and thus Hebrew ceased to function as a spoken language around the same time. However, during the latter half of the 20th century, accumulating archeological evidence and especially linguistic analysis of the Dead Sea Scrolls has qualified the previous consensus. Alongside Aramaic, Hebrew also flourished as a living spoken language. Hebrew flourished until near the end of the Roman Period, when it continued on as a literary language by the Byzantine Period in the 4th century CE.

The exact roles of Aramaic and Hebrew remain hotly debated. A trilingual scenario has been proposed for the land of Israel. Hebrew functioned as the local mother tongue, Aramaic functioned as the international language with the rest of the Mideast, and eventually Greek functioned as another international language with the eastern areas of the Roman Empire. Communities of Jews (and non-Jews) are known, who immigrated to Judea from these other lands and continued to speak Aramaic or Greek.

Although the survival of Hebrew as a spoken language until the Byzantine Period is well-known among Hebrew linguists, there remains a lag in awareness among some historians who do not necessarily keep up-to-speed with linguistic research and rely on outdated scholarship. Nevertheless, the vigor of Hebrew is slowly but surely making its way through the academic literature. The Hebrew of the Dead Sea Scrolls distinguishes the Dead Sea Scroll Hebrew from the various dialects of Biblical Hebrew it evolved out of, This book presents the specific features of DSS Hebrew, emphasizing deviations from classical BH.[1] The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church that once said in 1958 in its first edition, Hebrew ceased to be a spoken language around the fourth century BC, now says in 1997 in its third edition, Hebrew continued to be used as a spoken and written language in the New Testament period.[2] An Introductory Grammar of Rabbinic Hebrew says, It is generally believed that the Dead Sea Scrolls, specifically the Copper Scroll and also the Bar Kokhba letters, have furnished clear evidence of the popular character of MH [Mishnaic Hebrew].[3] And so on. Israeli scholars now tend to take it for granted that Hebrew as a spoken language is a feature of Israel's Roman Period.

1.Elisha Qimron, The Hebrew of the Dead Sea Scrolls (1986), p. 15.

2.Hebrew in The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, edit. F.L. Cross, first edition (Oxford, 1958), 3rd edition (Oxford 1997).

3.Miguel Perez Fernandez, An Introductory Grammar of Rabbinic Hebrew (Leiden, Netherlands: Koninklijke Brill 1997).[iv]

Textual evidence in the New Testament

Throughout the Old Testament, the writers would frequently make word puns. Here is a simple example of a word pun in the Book of Genesis.

And Yahweh Elohiym formed the human (adam) of dust from the ground (adamah)... (Genesis 2:7) 

The Hebrew behind the word ground is אדמה (adamah, Strong's #127) and is related to the Hebrew word אדם (adam, Strong's #120). Here is another example.

And he said, what did you do? The voice of the blood (dam) of your brother is crying out to me from the ground (adamah).(Genesis 4:10) 

In this verse the word דם (dam, Strong's #1818) is related to the word אדמה (adamah, Strong's #127).

These word puns can be found throughout the Hebrew text of the Old Testament. They can also be found in the New Testament, but only if the Greek is translated back into Hebrew. One of these many word puns can be found in Matthew 3:9.

God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. 

The Greek word for stones in this passage is λίθων (lithon, Strong's #3037) and the word for children is τέκνα (tekna, Strong's #5043). However, when these two words are translated into Hebrew, we have אבנים (ebemiym, Strong's #68) for stones and בנים  (beniym, Strong's #1121) for sons.

God is able of these stones (ebeniym) to raise up children (beniym) unto Abraham. 

I want to tell you that if the Great Spirit had chosen anyone to be the chief of this country, it is myself.  ~Sitting Bull 

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It was pride that changed angels into devils; it is humility that makes men as angels.  ~Saint Augustine

Hypocrisy is the homage that vice pays to virtue.  ~François de La Rochefoucauld

The Inquisitors

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C.S. Lewis is spot on with his assessment of religion and its effect on those who participate.  The nefarious side of religion feeds off the insecurity of men all the while supplementing it with Gnosticism.  How else do we explain the Spanish Inquisition, the Crusades, warrior popes, religious wars, catholic extermination camps, Christian terrorism, anti-Semitism, capital punishment, slavery, and the Holy Wars that were anything but holy?  Lest we forget the insidious affront of the Jews even into our own epoch.  What did we do to our own indigenous people if it wasn’t genocide?  Most western evangelicals would contend even violently that the US is historically a Christian country even that Christianity is a fundamental element of its culture.  The reality is that Christianity has long become a persecuting religion of the sword whose membership is riddled with warmongers who have perpetrated gruesome acts of violence under the sign of the cross.  Who was the first to drop the atomic bomb ultimately perpetrating genocide on a foreign people?  How do we explain how Christianity is a religion of the sword, a religion of blood?  Is it any different than Islam, really?  Martin Luther is known to have executed even beheaded Christians he labeled heretics. 

Ultimately, we crucified YHSWH... how is it we could attempt to make our way past the two great commandments much less, thou shall not murder? 

I must admit some years after studying OT history, Greek, theology and the like at university I became a duly sworn member of the volunteer fire brigade, a fire fighter for YHWH.  This by the way is a self-appointed station within the evangelical.  I had impeccable aim with the fire hose as I doused evil with holy water as often as I felt the need.  Of course we could not hold our own modern day inquisition without the crutch of ‘good intentions’ even ‘the greater good’.  It took some time for me to come to grips with my hypocrisy but I believe that it is authored by the same arrogance to which men author their Divine calling.  I realized at some point even though my trade skills were unmatched that YHWH didn’t really need my assistance.  If I am honest YHWH never really asked me for my assistance, hence the self-appointment.  It is a curious thing to be in receipt of a Divine call from YHSWH toward our reconciliation and how we somehow manage to grow the scope even make it more about ourselves.  How do we move from the reality that we are in desperate need of being saved from ourselves to a self-authored reality that says we were meant for glory, that our purpose would propel us to the stars couched in the machination that YHWH really does need our help if He is going to have any real success dealing with mankind.  Is there a greater purpose for our life than reconciliation with YHWH, really?  How is that not enough?

How many of those who came before us whose narratives we read in scripture weren’t having anything to do with the Divine call as it is understood today?  Moses took a pass until he couldn’t.  Jonah physically ran away.  Jeremiah pushed back casting himself as a child even that YHWH had chosen the wrong person.  All the Apostles pushed back when it came down to it.  So, why is it that there is such a disproportionate amount of people who think themselves worthy to be prophets even clergy with no blowback whatsoever, all of which received a Divine calling who respond by stepping into the batter’s box and swinging away?  There are on the upwards of 1 in every 400 people who engage in vocational ministry on US soil not counting missionaries.  There were 2 in 2 million when Moses was stewarding Israel.  When YHSWH walked out His ministry there were 13.  Has YHWH managed to get in over His head these past centuries and more than ever not only needs our help but requires it at a pandemic level?  Am I attempting to suggest that YHWH does not call men to a service beyond relationship with Him?  No, but be sure that YHWH never called men to monetize the Gospel.  What I am saying is that an effective argument could be made that the clergy, the structure of the church which by definition finds its origin in the Holy Roman Empire, the beast of Revelation is the mechanism the great deceiver would employ to deceive the nations.  Let’s be clear Protestantism is a result of the first great schism, the first church split.  The notion was that it was a reformed version of its illegitimate mother the beast of Revelation, only was it?  Its great reformer Martin Luther who led the reformation was a blood thirsty persecutor of Christians.  We know that the reformation was predicated on the reality that the Holy Roman Empire or Catholic Church was the beast of Revelation.  What has happened in its wake?  There have been in the past 6-7 centuries more than 40,000 church schisms or splits and counting.  The western evangelical by all appearances is the Burger King religion of ‘have it your way’ the greatest single advocate of warmongering world over the great inquisitor.   

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8 For finding fault with them†, He said to them, "Behold, days are coming, says YAHWEH, and I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah; 9 not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day of My