Paul Luckraft interviews author Steve Maltz about his latest book, ‘Shalom’.

Over the years, I have reviewed most of Steve’s books for Prophecy Today and in the past I interviewed him to find out what motivated him to go on writing. “I was born to write, that is my gift” was his reply, and it would seem that with Shalom, his 25^th book, that gift is still in full flow. But a valid question remains: why another book? And why this particular book?

Steve admits to being on a personal journey and that writing books is his way of continuing that journey. As he explains in the preface of Shalom, “every book is a personal odyssey and a time of great learning” (p9). Pressing him further on this, he added that “I always write what is on my heart and each time I finish a book I think the journey may have ended, but so far it hasn’t.”

The journey actually started when he was crossing London Bridge ten years ago and God began to show him how the Church had lost ‘the Way’ by detaching itself from its Hebraic roots. Many books later, Shalom brings that vision into greater focus.

Its theme is an exploration of what Paul in Ephesians calls the ‘One New Man’ (Eph 2:15). If the Church is ever to recover what it lost in the past and achieve God’s shalom, God’s peace, it will need to embrace the truth that Christ has broken down the barrier of hostility between Jew and Gentile and that Gentiles are Gospel heirs together with Israel: members together of one Body, sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus (Eph 3:6). Steve’s argument is that embracing this truth will bring renewal to the Church, individually and corporately.

Searching for Answers

As such, Steve isn’t just writing for his own benefit. He believes others are asking the same questions that God has put on his heart, and seeking the same answers. This was dramatically illustrated just an hour or so before meeting up with me in London.

If the Church is ever to recover God’s shalom, God’s peace, it will need to embrace the truth that Christ has broken down the barrier of hostility between Jew and Gentile.

Prior to our interview, Steve visited a major London bookshop to introduce his new book and drop off a couple of copies. While talking to the staff there one of the customers overheard him explaining the book and suddenly burst into tears! “This is just what I’ve been looking for!” she explained. And then added that she had been on a train on the Underground when God had told her to get off at that station and go to the bookshop there. She had no idea why at the time, but clearly God knew what she needed!

Just like this lady in the bookshop, readers new to Steve’s books can start with Shalom without having to read all that has gone before. Each of his books stands alone and usually contains several quotes or references to previous ones. To this end, the first part of Shalom takes us back over how the Church lost the Way, the Truth and the Life by severing ourselves from Israel and our Hebraic roots. Here, Steve explains the problems in the Church that show our need for God’s shalom, found only in Messiah Yeshua (Jesus).

After a short second part on ‘The Shalom of Salvation’, in the third part we are reminded how the key to recovering the Hebraic nature of the Christian faith is function, not form. In other words, it’s about discovering and developing our roles and callings – who we are and what we do - rather than about offices and structures; it’s about being and doing ‘church’ rather than church as an institution or set of rituals. This is a significant theme in his previous books.

After this comes Part Four, which is devoted to exploring what shalom means when it comes to the Church and the idea of the One New Man. It should be stressed that just because the title is ‘Shalom’, the book is not merely a study on this particular word. Rather, as the subtitle emphasises, here we discover ‘God’s Masterplan’ for oneness or completeness, which Steve unpacks through seven other Hebrew words (simcha, chaim, kadosh, chesed, mishpocha, limmud, berakhot). Through these we can reverse all the Greek thinking that has dominated Church life since the 2^nd Century and undo the unbiblical practices introduced by Constantine and others.

In short, Steve asks the big question: what would the Church look like if there had been no influence from Greek philosophy or Roman emperors? Through these Hebraic concepts the answer starts to emerge. The next big question is, who will be brave enough to try it the Hebraic way?!

Steve believes that others are asking the same questions that God has put on his heart, and seeking the same answers.

Joyous Conclusion

The final part of the book came as a surprise, even to Steve. “Here’s a chapter I never intended to write because it references a series of events that came after the writing of the first draft of this book” (p215). At the ‘Foundations 10’ Hebraic conference in Devon, Steve saw Hebraic church come alive, in practice – ‘it happened in Devon!’ is the joyous conclusion to the book.

Shalom is being launched this weekend at the 'Foundations 11' conference, being held at The Hayes in Swanwick. The conference is appropriately entitled ‘One New Man’ and will continue to explore the theme further through teaching and discussion.

That walk over London Bridge many years ago has certainly borne a lot of fruit. Is the journey reaching a conclusion? I doubt it. The next book, and 'Foundations 12', are already being planned!

‘Shalom’ (234 pages, paperback) is available from Saffron Planet Publishing for £10.

Paul Luckraft reviews ‘The Jewish Jesus’ by David Hoffbrand (Destiny Image, 2017).

There are now many books on the theme of the Jewishness of Jesus, but it is always interesting to come across another one and see if it provides anything extra to make it a worthwhile investment in time and money.

This relatively new book from David Hoffbrand, a Messianic Jew with a remarkable testimony, certainly does come into that category with a clear and significant contribution in the area of reconnecting Jew and Gentile in what is known as the One New Man (Eph 2:15).

Even though a lot of the content is familiar, Hoffbrand’s book comes across as fresh and incisive. He is a gifted communicator and has constructed his book neatly into three parts each with six chapters. The aim of the three sections is indicated by the subtitle: reconnecting with the truth about Jesus, Israel and the Church. It is in the third part that he provides that extra dimension on implications for the Church.

Changing Our Thinking

Part 1 focuses on Jesus himself and his Jewishness, including chapters on ‘Jesus the Man’, ‘The Ministry of Jesus’, and the Jewish disciples. The author wants us to meet Jesus as he really was, and as he (the author) now knows him. He sets about uncovering what has always been there from the start but which has been lost over the centuries.

Hoffbrand has come up with a neat way of describing what needs to happen when we turn to the Bible. We should REWIRE our brains, by which he means ‘Read Without Religion’ (take the first two letters of each word). This doesn’t mean forsaking sound doctrine, but means we must “read the Bible as if we hadn’t read it before – to remove the lens of our traditions, which causes us to skip past so many passages without seeing the details” (p14).

David Hoffbrand, a Messianic Jew with a remarkable testimony, is a gifted communicator whose writing is fresh and incisive.

Realising that Jesus was Jewish should change the way we think about Jews today and also about Israel. Part 2 tackles this issue, explaining how God has chosen Israel in the past and still loves her today. Church tradition may tell us God has finished with Israel, that he has moved on, but clearly this is not true. Hoffbrand examines the common fallacies that God has no further plans for the Jewish people and that he would rather punish them than restore them.

Practical Questions for the Church

Part 3 is where we learn about what this should all mean for the Church. The author shared with me that this part of the book was born out of his trips to the Ukraine with his friend Piers Arthur-Crow. Hoffbrand is a trustee of The David House that Piers runs and so was invited to go with him and speak to groups of Messianic rabbis and Christian pastors at their conferences. Here, Hoffbrand found that his message started to crystallise.

What had concerned him before was that while teaching on the Jewishness of Jesus was one thing, working it out in practice was quite another. How does it become real? The answer is found when Jew and Gentile come together as One New Man – a new community in Messiah.

In the first chapter in Part 3, Hoffbrand asks three key questions: What should this new community look like? How do the two people groups live together harmoniously? What principles can we learn from this process? He then seeks answers from Paul’s letter to the Romans, establishing five principles: humility, acceptance, identity, unity, service, and taking a chapter on each.

Realising that Jesus was Jewish should change the way we think about Jews today and about Israel – and it should affect the way we live, too.

Five Principles

Humility is a vital starting point. Neither Jew nor Gentile can boast about what they have. God has accepted each through what he has done in Christ, which should humble everyone and lead to mutual acceptance.

For each group to find their identity in the One New Man may be something of a mystery, but one which has now been revealed in Christ and which can be worked out, rather like a husband and wife within a marriage. Jew and Gentile remain distinct but find a unity in their common Saviour, who has broken down the middle wall of hostility that previously separated them. Now this barrier has been removed, both groups must make sure it isn’t rebuilt, whether in mind, heart or action.

The final principle which ties all these together is that of serving each other. This is more than tolerating or even understanding each other, connoting walking together and looking out for each other. Gentiles may often support Jews through various organisations and charities, but this can often still be at a distance rather than side by side. And do Messianic Jews actually find ways of loving and serving their Gentile brothers and sisters?

Worthwhile Contribution

These are all important challenges for the future as God continues to restore Hebraic roots to his Church and bring more Jewish people into a relationship with their Messiah. This book is a worthwhile contribution to this objective.

As Hoffbrand says clearly, “The Jewish people were not an accident that God would rather forget. The Gentile people are not second best or an afterthought. Together, this new community must be better, not worse, than what has come before” (p156).

‘The Jewish Jesus’ (paperback, 220 pages) is available from the author’s website for £10. Also available elsewhere online. Click here to watch the author’s testimony in an interview with Jewish Voice.

Paul Luckraft reviews ‘The Forgotten Jesus’ by Robby Gallaty (Zondervan, 2017).

The author’s main contention in writing this book is that our understanding of Jesus has been shaped by many different cultural influences and that Christians today, especially in the West, are largely ignorant of the fact that Jesus was a Jewish man living in a Jewish world and observing Jewish customs.

Gallaty aims to help us rediscover this forgotten Jesus and to be able to place what he said and did within a more meaningful context.

High Definition

For the author, entering the Jewish world of Jesus is like getting high definition television. Once you view the gospels in this way, the extra clarity and precision means you can’t go back! Nothing is more exciting than “the experience of learning to apply a Hebraic hermeneutic to the Bible” (p23).

But this is not just a matter of information and insight, valuable though that is. The book builds up towards a key question – which Jesus will you choose? Furthermore, by seeing Jesus as the disciples did, we can better appreciate (and perhaps begin to emulate) the “revolution that would eventually transcend the sprawling Roman Empire and change the world” (p202).

Easy to Read

The book is easy to read and contains nine chapters. The first three provide a foundational look at the 1^st Century world in which Jesus lived. In particular, it illustrates the difference between Western (Greek) thinking and a Middle Eastern (Hebraic) mindset, as well as connecting Jesus with prominent Old Testament figures such as Abraham, Joseph and Moses, and providing some information on the centuries between the Testaments.

In the central three chapters, Gallaty sheds light on Jesus’ upbringing and early life, and explores the connections between his ministry and what was commonly known by those who heard him teach.

The final three chapters explain the Messiahship of Jesus and how he was ultimately rejected and sentenced to death. His final days contain many intriguing elements usually lost on traditional Christian teaching but which can be illuminated by a new Hebraic perspective.

For the author, entering the Jewish world of Jesus is like getting high definition television. Once you view the gospels in this way, the extra clarity and precision means you can’t go back!

Why This Book?

There are now many books helping us understand the Jewishness of Jesus, so why buy this one? Overall Gallaty has put together a very full compilation of such treasures. He acknowledges that he has drawn on many sources and that much of what he says can be found elsewhere. However, he has packed a huge amount into a relatively short book without being too concise or patchy.

He is also aware that the Jewish Roots movement has produced much that is based upon conjecture and speculation - perhaps following the thrill of the new rather than giving it sufficient scrutiny. Gallaty asserts that we “cannot just take what we read and hear as if it is verifiably true” (p203), but need to exercise discernment.

In this Gallary is successful. Clearly he has treated his sources with caution and produced a book that can be trusted: not only to affirm what is written of elsewhere, but also to add some extra thought-provoking gems. What did Peter actually hear when the cock crowed? What were those swaddling clothes really like, and why were they readily available and appropriate? And when Jesus quoted the first line of Psalm 22, was he intending us to understand even more than just the agony of his forsakenness?

The books ends with recommended resources (books and websites), a 260-day Bible reading plan and good endnotes. It does not, however, include an index, which would have been useful for those wanting to treat the book as a resource in its own right rather than a one-time read.

Overall this is a worthwhile addition to any collection of books on the Hebraic background to Jesus and the gospels.

‘The Forgotten Jesus: How Western Christians Should Follow an Eastern Rabbi’ (224pp, paperback) is available from Amazon for £9.99. Also available on Kindle and as an audiobook. Find out more on the book’s website.

Robby Gallaty is Senior Pastor at Long Hollow Baptist Church in Hendersonville, Tennessee.

Two books on the Hebrew language.

Chaim Bentorah is a teacher of biblical Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic from the Chicago area. We review two of his books below.

Chris Foster reviews ‘Hebrew Word Study’ by Chaim Bentorah (Whitaker House, 2016)

On walking into any Christian bookshop, one will come across numerous devotional books with all sorts of slants. When I first saw the Hebrew Word Study, I was sceptical that this would be any different from or better than others. The size of it, and the cost (I bought my copy for just under £20 from Amazon), would normally be enough to put me off. But it had been recommended to me by someone who had spoken about the joys of the Hebrew language, and I was intrigued by the thought that delving into it could “reveal the heart of God”.

Indeed, Bentorah believes that “If we take the time to study the Hebrew language, we can see the true beauty of God’s word and come to know God and His heart in a much deeper way.”

So I bought the book and started reading. Within a few pages I knew that the title was justified in claiming to reveal at least a little of the heart of God - and I was engrossed.

Exploring Roots and Meanings

In each of the 90 studies, the author starts with a verse from the Bible, takes a key word or phrase, and looks at the original Hebrew word that has been translated into English. He then explores the root and various meanings of the Hebrew word, which often don’t make it through into the English translation. He looks at other passages where this word is used in the scriptures to compare and contrast. Then, finally, he revisits the passage he started with, illuminating it further using some of the meanings he has drawn out of the Hebrew.

If you are looking for a book that will take you into the riches of the scriptures without you having to learn Hebrew, this is a good place to start.

As an example, in one study (p145) we read Psalm 27:5: “For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion”. We find that the word translated ‘trouble’ (ra’) is related to the word which David used for 'shepherd' (ra’ah) in Psalm 23:1 when he wrote “The Lord is my shepherd”. How can this be? Bentorah goes on to explore this in some detail, relating it to the trouble one feels when one’s shepherds let one down.

Positive and Uplifting

In each chapter, the author draws out meanings that are positive and uplifting. The studies are not set out in any particular order, so the book could be read every day as a three-month devotional series, or more sporadically. There is a Hebrew-English and English-Hebrew index at the back, as well as a glossary of terms.

One doesn’t need to have learnt Hebrew to read this book (though it may possibly deepen one’s understanding to have a grasp of Hebrew letters). The author takes the reader through step by step, so it is not at all difficult to read. If you are looking for a book that will take you into the riches of the scriptures without you having to learn Hebrew, this is a good place to start.

‘Hebrew Word Study: Revealing the Heart of God’ (448pp, hardback) is available from Amazon for £19.34. Also on Kindle.

Paul Luckraft reviews ‘Learning God’s Love Language’ (True Potential Inc, 2018).

This book is described as a guide to personal Hebrew word study and can be seen as a companion to Bentorah’s previous Hebrew Word Study devotional.

The complexity of the Hebrew language means that each word can have a wide range of meanings; any book which can help us to navigate through this variety of renderings is to be welcomed, especially if, as the author claims, he has written for individuals “regardless of his or her educational background, cultural experience or level of spiritual maturity” (p11).

Warning: Esoteric Influence

However, a warning should be sounded here as Bentorah states his intention to take us beyond the words and into the “ancient rabbinical esoteric meanings behind each letter of the Hebrew alphabet” (p12). Indeed, the bulk of the book is dedicated to a letter-by-letter exploration in which the author stretches each Hebrew letter into the realm of the enigmatic and cryptic. These rather dubious extensions at times seem fanciful and even rather worrying.

Bentorah explains that he draws from numerous ancient Jewish sources, admitting that “Some information does come from the mystical books of the Kabbalah” (p39). He adds that he does not embrace Kabbalistic teachings and has studied them only as “a reference to develop my skills with the Aramaic and not to gain any spiritual insights” (p39), but this nevertheless may still be off-putting for some, and may rather contradict his claim to appeal to readers regardless of spiritual maturity. Certainly discernment is needed here.

Bentorah’s esoteric leanings rather contradict his claim to appeal to readers regardless of spiritual maturity – certainly discernment is needed here.

His foray into the murky numerical world of Gematria must also be read with caution. While this topic is certainly worth exploring, the author insists that “words with the same numerical value are in some way related” and could be the basis for fruitful meditation. Again, he is wanting to draw as much as he can from what he sees as a legitimate practice by the Jewish people who are the guardians of the ancient Hebrew language. He states that Gematria “has evolved over many generations of Jewish mysticism” but considers “their insights to be of great value” (p111). However, some of his examples left me floundering.

Some Valuable Information

Having said all that, there are some other sections outside of these central pages that are worthy of consideration: for instance, those on Jewish literature, the history of the Hebrew alphabet, and issues involved in translating from Semitic languages. The book provides very useful information in these areas.

The author, a Gentile who adopted a Jewish pseudonym, clearly enjoys exploring the delights and intricacies of what he calls ‘God’s love language’. Once you understand where his studies have led him then it is possible to make use of his ideas and decide how far to follow him.

‘Learning God’s Love Language: A Guide to Personal Hebrew Word Study’ (160pp, paperback) is available from Amazon for £11.54. Also on Kindle.

Clifford Denton begins a new series on living Hebraically.

Two notable things have influenced relationships between the Christian Church and Israel during the last 70 years. One is the return of Israel to their ancient Land. The second is a desire by Christians to rediscover the roots of their faith.

The latter has grown exponentially over the last two to three decades. Indeed, the former is enabling the latter to take place, with tours to Israel available to millions of Christians and interaction with Messianic Jews helping Christians to research their historic roots.

It is a special time on the prophetic calendar. Many Christians have woken up to the understanding that when the Christian Church began to move away from its association with Israel, Greek and Roman influences infiltrated the doctrines and culture of the Church to fill a theological void.

Eloquent (in human terms) though such theologies have been, and as much as they are somewhat Bible-based, much has been neglected as a result of this, leading many of us today to re-consider what the so-called ‘early Church fathers’ passed on. This is prompting a desire to break from much Christian tradition and to re-connect more firmly with the culture and community of disciples and apostles of the 1^st Century. All that they passed on from the rich heritage that preceded the sacrificial ministry of the Lord Jesus the Messiah (Yeshua HaMashiach) is now being studied afresh.

It is a special time on the prophetic calendar.

On the negative side, in some quarters there has developed an over-fascination for all things Jewish, evidenced by an over-reaction against the historic Christian Church and a move towards practices of the synagogue that are more traditional than biblical.

However, more broadly there is a wealth of good fruit being born as a result of this revival of interest in Jewish roots. The number of ministries and individuals exploring the long-lost foundations of Christianity has burgeoned, and there are some excellent resources and events now available to believers to equip them on their own personal exploration of this topic.

In the 1990s, Prophecy Today was connected to two pioneering works in this respect: one was Tishrei, a quarterly journal; the other was Pardes, a teaching ministry involving both a journal and regular teaching days.

It is time to re-group and consider the fruits of these and other pioneering works. In this short series of articles, we plan to bring fresh focus to the quest to rediscover the roots of our faith.

Hebraic or Jewish?

From the beginning of this ministry it has been difficult to choose words to convey our intent accurately.

In Tishrei we chose to say that we were ‘re-discovering the Jewish roots of the Christian faith’. This had a good ‘ring’ to it, but could be misunderstood. It seemed a good term at the time because it was the Jews to whom Yeshua came, to interpret Torah into New Covenant truth. Indeed, though much could be criticised concerning the way Torah had been interpreted by the Jews, it was nevertheless the Jews who were the custodians of the entire heritage brought by God - first to Israel and then fulfilled through Yeshua for all, Jew and Gentile. Indeed, whatever else we think of Israel and Judah, Yeshua is the King of the Jews.

On the negative side, this terminology can seem to imply that we are blinkered to all except the Jewish heritage. Indeed, if one goes out of balance one can easily fall into ‘the Galatian heresy’ that Paul warned about (Gal 3).

There is a wealth of good fruit being born as a result of this revival of interest in Jewish roots.

Pardes introduced the phrase ‘Biblical and Hebraic’. This phrase does not imply Jewish heritage but emphasises the balanced perspective of being Bible-based whilst interpreting Scripture with a Hebraic mindset.

Over the years, my view is that it is easy to go out of balance towards elements of Judaism that are more traditional than biblical. Indeed, we are at a point where a review of what we are seeking is appropriate. Let us therefore begin to consider what it is to be Hebraic. In this first article of the series we will consider the life of faith.

Going Back to the Start: Abraham

Abraham was the first Hebrew and is considered the father of the faithful (Rom 4:11-12). In that he was considered to be father of both the circumcised and the uncircumcised, here we have a major point of continuity between the Old and New Covenants, and between Jews and Christians. Paul, in Romans 4, made it clear that Abraham achieved this standing through his life of faith.

The word 'Hebrew' (eevrit) comes from the word Avar which means to cross over, pass over, or pass away. Abraham obeyed God and, with his family, left Ur, a prominent city of the ancient world that recognised many gods. Via Haran, he crossed over to the Promised Land that became the Land of Israel, the land given by God to his descendants.

The account of Abraham is from Genesis 11 to 25. It is a simple story in many ways, but touches the depths that all of us experience in seeking to walk out a life of faith. This is the beginning of our search for our Hebrew roots. Abraham moved away from one place to go to another and in so doing gave up security rooted in this life for a life of faith.

In this series we will begin to consider what it is to be Hebraic.

The Journey of Faith

Interestingly, the Hebrew word emoonah can be translated as both ‘faith’ and ‘faithfulness’, teaching us that there is no such thing as static faith – it grows and matures through our actions taken through trust in God.

God is faithful to His people and our lives, motivated by trust (faith) in God are to show faithfulness in all our actions.

Abraham’s life of faith was to be a model for all his physical descendants, the Tribes of Israel, and for all who would be added to this covenant community through faith in Yeshua. His journey of faith was through a real, ‘normal’ human life in this physical world. Yet he trusted God for all that had been promised to him, including Isaac, the son of his old age, and a land for his descendants who would be as numerous as the stars in the sky.

The physical journey was also a metaphor for the spiritual journey. The greater fulfilment of the promise of a land to dwell in was for the coming Kingdom of God – “a city which has foundations, whose maker and builder is God” (Heb 11:10).

The writer to the Hebrews understood that “faith [or faithfulness] is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen” (Heb 11:1). Hebrews 11 then describes many of the great men and women of faith (faithfulness) who, like Abraham, looked forward to the fulfilment of all God’s promises, finally and fully enabled through Yeshua.

Abraham’s model to them and us was to live a life that witnessed to the trust they had in the living God of Israel. Thus, living out a life of faith like Abraham is at the foundation of our faith, whether we are Jews or Christians.

Abraham modelled a life of trust in the living God of Israel.

Growing in Faith

There is an insightful article available in the Tishrei archives, written by Tom Hamilton. It is entitled The Greek Middle Voice. Interestingly and emphatically, Hamilton argued not from the Hebrew language but from using the Greek language of the New Testament how Abraham pleased God because of his faith.

Though the author argued through the Greek, however, it is Hebraic principles that are being studied. Argument through the Greek is necessary because the New Testament comes to us in the Greek language. Whatever Hebrew versions of at least some of the New Testament books were originally written, none are available now, and so Greek translations or originals are all we currently have. This means that there is a principle in our search for Hebraic foundations: that we must read the Greek New Testament through Hebrew principles.

Tom Hamilton highlighted the fact that Greek verbs have three forms: active, passive and middle (neither active nor passive). Here is the section of his article on Abraham’s faith:

Here, in this verse [Romans 4:20], we are told that Abraham "was strong in faith, giving glory to God."

The usual translations indicate a strength in Abraham (by use of the adjective "strong"). In the Greek, however, the verb ENDUNAMO is used, meaning to "infuse strength into something". It is found in the middle voice, and some would term it an example of a "reflexive middle". This would give it the meaning that Abraham “strengthened himself in faith", leaving Abraham playing a very "active" part in the strengthening of his faith. However, such a rendering would have been possible by the use of an Active verb together with a reflexive pronoun. So whether a reflexive middle exists could be open to debate.

We may thus reject such an "active" rendering, but neither was Abraham merely "passive" in the relationship. Relationships can never be totally passive. Abraham was certainly involved and was active in certain respects. However, his activity was always in complete harmony with his dependence upon God Himself. This, perhaps, is our key to understanding what was meant here in the use of the Middle Voice - a dependent and a needful, but not a completely passive Abraham.

How can we adequately translate this verse? Firstly, the word "faith" in the Greek is in the dative case. This has two possibilities. Was it Abraham's faith that was strengthened? Or was it the instrument used in the strengthening of Abraham? (i.e., was it "strengthened in faith", or "strengthened by faith". Faith, in Eph 2.8, is God's instrument whereby He saves us by grace). Secondly, how do we express Abraham's own role in relation to this process of strengthening? We know it was not either totally active or passive. I suggest, with our limited L2 equivalent language, the following two possibilities:-

"Abraham had himself strengthened with respect to his faith" or "Abraham had himself strengthened by faith"

(In each case, a weak and dependent Abraham).

The Hebrew language is verb-orientated, not noun-orientated. Our Western, Greek-influenced minds might consider Abraham’s faith as being a spiritual substance held within his spirit (noun), so that the possession of this substance pleased God.

If we carry this into our theology, faith becomes something to acquire and possibly strive for - we might even judge one another on our strength of possessing this faith. This is a sort of passive, even static idea of faith as an object, with God assessing and measuring how much of it we possess in our inner beings.

If this were how we are to view faith, very quickly the possession of such faith becomes an issue requiring work to acquire it.

Tom Hamilton’s article, however, points out that Abraham did not please God through a commodity he possessed, but by being willing (verb) to let God build his faith. It was Abraham who pleased God, not the faith in him. Abraham was not totally passive, nor was he actively striving; he was willing to obey God on the journey of life and thereby grow in faith.

The Hebrew language is verb-orientated, not noun-orientated. This impacts our theology.

James speaks of Abraham’s faith being active once acquired. The works that James speaks of were a result of a faithful life - not works to acquire faith. Abraham, as a consequence of his walk with God, gave living testimony of his trust in God (James 2:21-23). This is how Abraham pleased God.

Hebrew Root

Faith is the foundational issue for the covenant community. In searching out the foundations of Christianity through the continuity of covenant history, therefore, our primary call is to discover, like Abraham, how to walk with God and please God. This transcends much Christian theology and also much Jewish tradition.

The life of faith is not primarily lived through our attendance at church meetings, but in all aspects of our everyday lives. In that God builds our faith on this journey through life (if we are willing to let him), this is an ongoing experience through many years and in all sorts of ways tailored for us as individuals.

If we separate our concept of faith off from its Hebraic foundations, mistakes can creep in as they have in some branches of the Christian Church today. One mistake is in the movement that sees faith as manifesting itself in prosperity. Another is in the expectation that faith is proved by physical healing, so much so that a person is sometimes made to feel guilty and lacking faith by being ill.

Whilst, in balance, the life of faith can bring seasons of prosperity, success and health, faith often grows through the valley experiences as much as on the mountaintops of life. It is through a journey through the seasons of life that faith grows, as it did for our father Abraham. As for Abraham, so for all God’s people; God will be pleased if we trust him for that journey, which enables him to test and mature our faith in him, step by step. This is being Hebraic.

Next time: Halakhah: Walking with God.

David Bivin considers Jesus’s background in the first of a two-part study.

It is rather surprising to discover how many Christians are not aware that Jesus is Jewish. In Israel, for example, there are entire communities of people – Christian, non-Jewish people - who do not believe that Jesus is Jewish.

A friend of mine was attending an Ulpan (a Hebrew language school) in Jerusalem. At one point in a conversation with a young Christian woman from Bethlehem who was also learning Hebrew, my friend said: “Well, you know Jesus was Jewish after all,” to which the woman replied, “He wasn't Jewish.” So my friend countered, “Well, go and ask your priest and see what he says.” She did not ask her priest, but went home and asked her parents. Her father said “Yes, she's right. He was Jewish.” But her mother said “No, he wasn't Jewish,” so it turned out to be a tie!

We might be very surprised to learn how many Christians have never really grasped the fact that Jesus was Jewish, not only in Israel but in Europe, Britain and in the United States. Christians still have difficulty in believing that Jesus was Jewish. So perhaps we have to say a few words about Jesus's Jewishness, even if it means stating the obvious.

It is rather surprising to discover how many Christians are not aware that Jesus is Jewish.  

Jesus’s Family

It is not hard to find evidence in the New Testament for Jesus's Jewishness. For example, his genealogy is clearly Jewish. In the gospels of Matthew and Luke, his lineage is traced back to the patriarchs in typical Jewish fashion.

Jesus's family was also completely Jewish. Joseph, the name of his earthly, supposed father, was the second most common name of the period for Jewish men, and his mother's name, Mary, was the most popular name for Jewish women.

Inscriptions dating from the 1^st Century indicate that the name Yeshua, Jesus, was itself the fifth most common Jewish man's name after Simeon, Joseph, Judah and John.

All of his known relatives were Jewish, namely Elizabeth (a relative of Mary's), her husband Zechariah the priest, and their son John the Baptist, as well, of course, as Jesus' own brothers, James, Joseph, Simeon and Judah (Matt 13:55).

Torah-Observant Parents

The gospels document the fact that Jesus and his family were observant Jews. Jesus was circumcised on the eighth day and, as is still the Jewish custom for male children, at his circumcision ceremony he was formally given his name (Luke 2:21).

His parents also performed two other Jewish ceremonies in Jerusalem during that time. The first of them was the pidyon ha-ben (the redemption of the first born), specified in Numbers 18:15-16 - which Joseph symbolically performed on Jesus' thirty-first day, by giving five silver coins to a priest.

The name Yeshua, Jesus, was the fifth most common Jewish man's name of its day.

The second took place on the forty-first day after Jesus's birth, when Mary performed the ceremony for her purification by bringing two offerings to the temple (Lev 12:8). The offering by Mary of two birds rather than a lamb would indicate that they were not a wealthy family (Luke 2:24).

Jesus’s parents, we are told, went up to Jerusalem every year to observe the Feast of Passover (Luke 2:41). This devotion is exemplary and unusual, because most people living outside Jerusalem (as they did) made a pilgrimage to the Temple only a few times in their lives, and some only once. Making such a pilgrimage was a major expense for people who had to pay for the cost of the journey, for the stay in Jerusalem, and for the sacrifices offered in the Temple during the festival.

Although the biblical commandment of Deuteronomy 16:16 states, “Three times a year all your men must appear before the Lord your God at the place he will choose; at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks and the Feast of Tabernacles”, it was not interpreted literally by the rabbis of Jesus's time. Pilgrimage was encouraged by them but not made mandatory.

The fact that Jesus's parents went all the way to Jerusalem every year shows how obedient they were to the Torah of Moses. The evidence in the gospels indicates that Jesus was no less observant than his parents and that he went up regularly to Jerusalem for the Feasts (John 7:10, 12:12). It was while he was in Jerusalem for Passover that he was arrested.

Jesus's parents went all the way to Jerusalem every year, showing their obedience to the Torah of Moses.

Jesus the Rabbi

How did Jesus appear to the people of his time? How differently did they see him from the many other teachers (rabbis) who went around Judea and Galilee with their bands of disciples?
By the time Jesus began his public ministry he had received not only the thorough religious training typical of the average Jewish man of his day, but had probably spent years studying with one of the outstanding rabbis in the Galilee.

We cannot at this point detail that preparation, of which we know a great deal from rabbinic sources, but we know that Jesus, who did not begin his ministry until a rather mature age, appeared on the scene as a respected teacher or rabbi.

To understand the significance of the title 'rabbi', as applied to Jesus, one must first grasp the significance of a rabbi of the 1^st Century and how he functioned in that society.

The term ‘rabbi’ is derived from the Hebrew word rav which in biblical Hebrew means 'great.' Originally it was not used as a title or as a form of address. By Jesus's time, however, it was used to refer to the master of a slave or the master of a disciple, thus 'rabbi' literally meant 'my master' and was a term of respect.

It was not a formal title, but was used to address a teacher and Jesus was recognised as such by his contemporaries, as many passages in the New Testament illustrate: “Jesus answered him, ‘Simon, I have something to tell you.’ ‘Tell me, rabbi,’ he said” (Luke 7:40). And, “A lawyer asked him a question to test him: ‘Rabbi, which Is the greatest commandment in the Torah?’” (Matt 22:35-36). Also, “A rich man asked him, ‘Rabbi, what good thing must I do to inherit eternal life?’" (Luke 16:16).

We should note the diversity of those who addressed Jesus as 'rabbi': a Torah expert, a rich man, and a Pharisee. Other scriptures illustrate that the Sadducees and ordinary people were part of a broad cross-section of people in Jesus's day who saw him as a rabbi.

Many scriptures illustrate that a broad cross-section of people in Jesus's day saw him as a rabbi.

Teaching Style

From the gospel accounts, Jesus clearly appears as a typical 1^st Century rabbi. He travelled around from place to place in an itinerant ministry, depending for food and shelter upon the hospitality of the people.

He did much of his teaching outdoors, but he also taught in homes and in village synagogues. He even taught in the Temple in Jerusalem, and was accompanied by a band of disciples who followed him around as he travelled.

Perhaps the most convincing proof that Jesus was a practising rabbi was his style of teaching. He used the same methods of instruction that characterised the rabbis of his day, such as the use of parables to convey teaching. The sort of parables that Jesus used were extremely common among the rabbis of 1^st Century Israel and over 4,000 of them have survived in rabbinic literature.

It is significant, perhaps, that among the thousands of parables to be found in rabbinic literature, not one is written in Aramaic; all are in Hebrew. Even when, a few hundred years later (500 to 600 AD), the main texts are written in Aramaic, the parable is always given in Hebrew.

Jesus’s Observation of the Law

There can be no doubt that Jesus observed the written law of Moses in its entirety. The New Testament clearly states that, having been born under the law, he committed no sin (Heb 4:15). Jesus was never charged with breaking any part of the written law, although his disciples were occasionally accused of disobeying aspects of the oral law.

Only one such accusation was brought against Jesus, and this was, of course, that he broke the Sabbath by healing the sick. In fact, Sabbath healings were permitted under official rabbinic ruling, so the only way we can understand this protest is to see it as the response of a narrow-minded ruler of a local synagogue.

There can be no doubt that Jesus observed the written law of Moses in its entirety.

Perhaps at this point we need to understand that in Jesus' day the Pharisees (with whom Jesus had more in common in belief and teaching than the Sadducees) believed in two 'versions' of the law.

First, they believed in the written law (the Torah, the five books of Moses), but they also believed in a second law (called the oral law), which they said had also been given to Moses by God on Mount Sinai and handed down through the generations by word of mouth. So perhaps a more pertinent question to ask is to what extent Jesus observed the practices of the oral law.

On Baptism

There may seem, at first glance, to be a shortage of hard evidence in the New Testament concerning Jesus' religious observance. But one must remember that the New Testament was written by Jews, for Jews. The normal Jewish religious practices were so well-known to the writers and to the readers that it would have been considered superfluous, perhaps ridiculous, to explain in detail how particular commandments were carried out.

That is why, for example, we have such a dearth of information in the scriptures about the practice of Jewish baptism. This was not conducted as we Christians do it today, but as the Jews still do it.

The earliest representation of Christian baptism in the catacombs in Rome shows John the Baptist standing fully clothed on the bank extending an arm to Jesus, who is undressed, coming up out of the water. John is helping him up the bank. So the one who was baptised or 'immersed' was not dipped under the water by some officiating minister, but rather walked down into the water alone, gave his testimony and dipped himself, just as it is still done today in every Jewish mikveh (ritual immersion bath).

The person officiating was there only to give his or her stamp of kashrut (official approval), to make certain that the hair of ladies, for instance, was completely immersed.

On Using God’s Name

Another example of Jesus's obedience to Scripture is his adherence to the rabbinic prohibition against using the unutterable name of God. The original understanding of the third commandment, “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God” (Ex 20:7), was probably that one should be careful not to break one's vows when one has sworn in God's name. However, the rabbis eventually came to interpret this commandment to include using the Lord's name frivolously or lightly. To avoid the risk of employing the divine name irreverently, the rabbis ruled that one should not utter it at all.

Jesus seemingly adhered to the rabbinic prohibition against using the unutterable name of God.

The divine name, written as the yod hay vav hay (YHVH) and called the ‘tetragrammaton’, could be pronounced only in the Temple, in the daily priestly blessing, and in the confession of the high priest on the Day of Atonement. When reading or reciting Scripture, one was not to pronounce the unutterable name but rather had to substitute with Adonai (Lord). In time, this substitute name of Adonai itself came to have such a sacred aura that it was used only in Scripture reading and prayer.

When it was necessary to refer to God in everyday speech, one sought other substitutes or euphemisms such as ha-Makom (the Place); ha-Kadosh (the Holy); ha-Gavohah (the High); ha-Lashon (the Tongue); ha-Gevurah (the Power); Shamayim (Heaven); ha-Shem (the Name). Even the less distinctive Elohim (God), which could refer to the God of Israel or to false gods, was avoided in conversation.

So serious was the prohibition against pronouncing the tetragrammaton that the rabbis included among those that have no share in the world to come, “He who pronounces the divine name as it is spelled.” The avoidance of the tetragrammaton began quite early, although there was no hesitation in pronouncing the sacred name in the Old Testament period. In the time of David, everyone went around saying YHVH (however they pronounced it), but already by the 3^rd Century BC, Adonai was being substituted for the yod hay vav hay (YHVH).

Jesus frequently used euphemisms for God, and his audiences would have been shocked if he had not. The most common word for God used by Jesus was 'Heaven'. This occurs, for example, in the phrase 'Kingdom of Heaven', the term Jesus used to describe his community of disciples, or his movement.

Jesus frequently used euphemisms for God, and his audiences would have been shocked if he had not.

To those in the Temple who questioned his authority, Jesus asked: “John's baptism - was it from heaven, or from men?” (Luke 20:4). In other words, was John's baptism of God or of men? In the parable of the prodigal son, Jesus had the prodigal say to his father, “I have sinned against heaven” (Luke 15:21). As for making oaths, Jesus commanded his disciples not to swear at all, not even using substitutes for God's name such as Shamayim (Heaven).

One other euphemism for God's name used by Jesus was ha-Gevurah (the Power). When interrogated by the High Priest, Jesus was asked for an admission that he was the Messiah. His answer was a classic example of rabbinic sophistication: “From now on, the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the mighty God.” (Luke 22:69). This proclamation hints at two different Messianic passages, Daniel 7:13 and Psalm 110:1: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”

To be continued in Part II, next week.

Ever wondered what it would be like to do church ‘Hebraically’?

Book your place now and join the movement to find out!

We are delighted to bring you a roundup of Steve Maltz’s 2017 Foundations conferences, which offer fantastic teaching, worship and fellowship all geared towards helping Christians discover the Hebraic roots of the faith.

Foundations North-West: Friday 24th – Sunday 26th February 2017

Abbot Hall Hotel, Grange-Over-Sands, Cumbria

Theme: Does the church really understand Israel and the Jewish people?

Cost: £185 per person (ensuite), £165 per person (standard)

***Last-minute places still available, see below for booking information***

Foundations 8 Annual Week-Day Conference: Monday 3rd – Friday 7th April 2017

Abbot Hall Hotel, Grange-Over-Sands, Cumbria

Theme: Livin’ the Life!

Cost: £300 per person (ensuite), £260 per person (standard). Short break deals and concessions available.

***BOOK NOW and secure your place with a £60 deposit – see below for booking information***

Foundations South: Friday 11th – Sunday 13th August 2017

High Leigh Conference Centre, Hoddesdon, Herts

Theme: Controversies!

Cost: £200 per person (ensuite), £170 per person (standard)

Booking: Booking not yet open.

***CANCELLED*** Foundations South Wales: Friday 8th – Sunday 10th September 2017

Foundations North: Friday 24th – Sunday 26th November 2017

Willersley Castle Hotel, Matlock, Derbyshire

Theme: The Hebraic Jesus

Cost: £180 per person (mostly ensuite)

Booking: Booking not yet open.

Booking Information

To book your place, visit www.foundationsconferences.com, email Steve Maltz at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., or call 020 8551 1719.

Paul Luckraft reviews 'The Routledge Introductory Course in Biblical Hebrew' by Lily Kahn (2014, Routledge).

This is a good investment for the serious student of biblical Hebrew and for those wanting to get a flavour of what such study would entail.

It provides a comprehensive introduction to the language and texts of biblical Hebrew, covering all the topics usually found in a first-year university course, including the writing system, pointing rules, parsing, and strong and weak verb paradigms.

Structured Around Stories

As would be expected, the essentials of vocabulary and grammar are presented in detail throughout the 40 units. But where this course differs is that after the first two introductory units, each of the remaining units is structured round a brief story, which sets up the vocabulary and grammar points to be studied.

Each unit also contains supporting exercises to reinforce the main points, and ends with a specific biblical text, which gives the student a good sense of progress towards the main aim of being able to read the Tanakh.

This is a good investment for the serious student of biblical Hebrew - and for those just wanting to get a flavour of what such study would entail.

The stories are constructed to form a graded cycle, featuring characters and storylines similar to those found in the Hebrew Bible. After each story comes a section explaining the new grammatical points introduced, followed by a variety of exercises including gap-filling tasks, analysis of biblical words and translating English narrative passages into biblical Hebrew.

The biblical passages chosen to round off each unit are narratives rather than legal or poetic passages, and contain some of the most famous stories of the Hebrew Bible in roughly sequential order, starting with the creation story and progressing through to Esther and Daniel. These passages may be abridged (though never re-written), especially in the earlier units, in order to prevent the student being overwhelmed with too many new items at once.

Well-Organised and User-Friendly

Although designed as a one-year course, for many it will take longer - but that is not a negative point. It can be used for self-study at one's own pace or to encourage group study (maybe even just in pairs). The aim is that by the end, the student will "have been familiarised with all of the main points of Biblical Hebrew grammar, have been introduced to the most frequently appearing biblical vocabulary, and have acquired the skills necessary to read the Hebrew Bible independently as well as to progress to intermediate courses" (p.xvi).

Course units present the essentials of Hebrew vocabulary and grammar structured around Bible stories.

This is a well-organised and clearly-presented course, with a user-friendly text design in which the Hebrew script is slightly enlarged to make it stand out more easily. The book ends with an extensive grammar reference occupying 28 pages, two glossaries (Hebrew-English and English-Hebrew) and a short but useful index.

Companion Website

Another significant plus point is the free companion website, which not only makes the cost seem less steep but also provides the student with a wealth of extra learning opportunities. Here the student can find audio versions of all the stories and biblical texts, 'flashcards' to help test knowledge, a vocabulary guide listing words by parts of speech and much more.

Lily Kahn is Lecturer in Hebrew at UCL where this course has been trialled extensively. The Routledge Introductory Course in Biblical Hebrew (446 pages) is available to purchase from the publisher for £38.99.

This week, Paul Luckraft reviews three more short booklets from Christian Friends of Israel.

Patterns and Principles of Jewish Prayer (Dr Dwight Pryor, 16 pages, available from CFI for £2)

This brief booklet is adapted from a lecture given by Dr Pryor in 1993. Its aim is spiritual, namely to encourage us to pray more frequently and with greater focus, rather than academic, to provide us with interesting information.

Some time is spent discussing our Hebrew heritage and what constitutes a Hebraic perspective before Pryor settles to his main theme, asserting that "perhaps no greater treasure has been bestowed on us than the prayer life of Israel" (p4). He encourages us to see how our Christian worship can draw deeply from the ancient patterns and principles of Jewish prayer and worship in the synagogue.

Pryor goes on to examine the Siddur, the Jewish Prayer Book and common guide to prayer in the time of Jesus, which contained many beautiful prayers and blessings covering all elements of life, individual and communal. We are reminded that Jesus would have known and used these ancient prayers. Pryor suggests that the charm of the Siddur is that it "allows us to 'feel' Judaism, including the Jewish spirituality that so much a part of Jesus' world" (p8).

Finally, the principles of Jewish prayer are outlined, including that prayer is essentially an outpouring of the soul and that its main focus is the Kingdom of God. Jewish prayer was a daily duty but it had to go beyond mere ritual; it had to have a sense of devotion or direction (kavannah) which would create an intensity and undivided attention upon the One being prayed to. The use of the prayer shawl and the physical activity of repeated bowing or swaying are explained within this context.

Overall, this short account achieves its aim and may encourage those who want to know more to seek out other books on this theme.

Jesus the Rabbi, Was He Orthodox? (David Bivin, 13 pages, available from CFI for £2)

This booklet is also based on a talk, one given in Jerusalem in 1987. The title is deliberately framed as a question but it seems to be used as a vehicle to discuss more whether Jesus was observant or orthodox as a Jew, rather than just as a rabbi. In fact, information about being a rabbi is rather sparse. It is soon shown that Jesus was recognised as a rabbi by many different people but that this was often purely a courtesy title based upon the Hebrew 'rav' meaning 'great'.

As for Jesus' teaching methods, Bivin correctly asserts that "the most convincing proof that Jesus was a practising rabbi was his style of teaching" and that "he used the same method of instruction that was characteristic of the other rabbis of his day" (p4), However, further discussion is restricted to his use of parables, and only a few lines at that.

Anyone wanting more on the theme of rabbi will have to look elsewhere, but this booklet does provide interesting information on the Jewishness of Jesus, and could be a useful introduction for those yet to begin to explore the Jewish background of Christianity.

The Synagogue in the Time of Jesus (Derek White, 34 pages, available from CFI for £3)

This is an excellent study booklet full of fascinating details that every Christian would benefit from knowing. Once again, it was originally given as a talk (in 2004), but this time it was either a very long session or it was extended later when put into written form, being twice as long as similar booklets in this series, including four pages of black-and-white pictures and eight pages of endnotes and sources.

After a brief account of the development of the synagogue and its function in the time of Jesus, seven topics are covered starting with the origin of the synagogue and a discussion of where a synagogue would be built. We then learn about its nature and function, and the role of women in the 1st Century synagogue, as well as the roles of its various officers.

Then follows a lengthy section on its liturgy, which includes more on Jewish prayers (see above), and finally an intriguing brief account of 'the Christian synagogue'. For those not aware of how the early Church followed the synagogue pattern, here are important insights into how Christian worship meetings had some strong parallels with the existing Jewish liturgy.

This very thorough and well-written booklet makes an important contribution to showing how much the roots of Christianity are firmly embedded in its Hebraic heritage. Highly commended.

CFI has a large range of booklets on a variety of subjects – click here to browse their selection.

Clifford Denton's second article on the end times emphasises the importance of reading Scripture through the right lens.

The Masterpiece of the Bible

The Bible is like a tapestry. A multitude of themes trace their way through the scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation. These themes intersect and overlap so that they are both single themes and part of a whole.

The picture of the end times is one of those themes. Echoes from Genesis are in Revelation. The plagues of Egypt remind us of the woes that God will pour out on the entire earth right at the end of time. We learn about the heart and mind of God, the separation of the saved from the unsaved, judgment on sin and much more.

So, to understand the end times, we must read the entire Bible.

Greek versus Hebrew

How, then, do we approach the reading of Scripture with the end times in view? We must beware of an overly-analytical approach. Western philosophy and scientific analysis emerged from ancient Greece. This has fostered methodical, 'logical' attitudes to world issues based on human rationality, but as far as the scriptures are concerned another mindset is needed.

Western education, influenced by those Greek patterns of logic, has unfortunately trained our minds away from the biblical, Hebraic mindset through which we should approach Scripture. This has even influenced our theology, including perspectives on the end times, contributing significantly to the divisions and conflicting conclusions on the topic which exist among Christians today.

To understand the end times, we must read the entire Bible.

The Hebraic mindset is founded on faith and leads to a seeking after God through a prayerful walk. It is a mindset that encourages questions - but not questions of the philosophical kind that expect straightforward, rational answers. We must not approach God with our questions expecting to walk away with the single answer that ticks all the boxes of our theology.

Instead we find ourselves enquiring about aspects of a larger truth. Our questions are held in the background, in our spirits, and are part of an ongoing communication which results in God feeding us, edifying us and gradually revealing something richer and clearer on questions that are deeper than we first thought. Sometimes God hears one question and raises another as an answer. We find this in the biblical record of Jesus' own teaching.

A Walk of Discovery

For this walk God has provided us with Scripture, that wonderful tapestry of intertwining themes that builds into an overall picture.

The walk is both personal and corporate, so we each have a testimony that we share with others as they also share with us, as we sit prayerfully together with the scriptures open and as we share our questions.

Through Word and Picture

There are two main ways in which God communicates prophetically. One is in pictures; the other is in words. These are not independent. As we often say, 'a picture paints a thousand words'. Language gives rise to pictures in our imagination, and pictures can be described, interpreted and celebrated in words.

Nowhere are these connected forms of communication clearer than in the created universe, which God created in all its visual splendour to speak of himself. Psalm 19 expresses this profound truth: "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows his handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard" (NKJV).

There are two main ways in which God communicates prophetically: pictures and words.

While scientific enquiry has revealed much about the laws of nature and the structure of the universe, giving many people of faith further understanding through which they praise God all the more, science has never proven or disproven the existence of a God of Creation. Indeed, more and more scientists in our day have become side-lined by theories of evolution that seemingly do not require a Creator. Far better to prayerfully gaze with wonder on Creation and let God speak of himself to us in his own way, by faith unspoiled by too much logical analysis.

Communicating Heart to Heart: Illustrations from the Arts

God made mankind in his image, so we (in a limited way) are able to express ourselves through words and pictures. Though we are all human and prone to impurity, through the expressions of the various creative arts, we can begin to understand how Creator God communicates to us.

A painted masterpiece will hang in a gallery and one can look at it for hours, seeing the overall picture, while from time to time focussing on a detail that makes up the whole. If the picture were broken down into individual details the overall impression would be lost.

Poets use words to convey their thoughts in the same way that artists use paints on canvas. Many of us fall short of understanding poetry if our scientific mindset seeks to over-analyse the structure of the poem, which was often (for some of us) how we learned to approach poetry at school. We were taught to dissect it through metre, rhyme, structure, figures of speech and so on, rather than just reading it.

C Day Lewis described this error in reading poetry, where the reader "doesn't take off his critical controls and allow the poem to pass direct to his imagination".¹ Lewis was considering what makes a good poem and how it should be read. He understood that a good poet communicates from his heart through particular choices and combinations of words – that is his craft. We, the readers, are intended to trust the poet as a communicator and allow him to speak to us through the end result of his writing.

How much more so than any human artist or poet does God, the Creator of language and all visual expression, seek to communicate truths to us heart to heart. And so to the key point of this article.

How much more so than any human artist or poet does God, the Creator of language and all visual expression, seek to communicate truths to us heart to heart?

God the Creator Communicates

The Hebraic way to approach Scripture's words, pictures and visions, including the passages relating to the end times, is to simply read them in a prayerful attitude as part of our walk with God. He is less concerned that they be scientifically analysed and more concerned to reach into our hearts and minds, to plant there the message behind the words and pictures – rather like C Day Lewis explained that poetry should be read.

This will not leave us with the overall picture alone, as a general abstraction. From time to time we will find ourselves focussed on a particularly relevant detail. However, this is not so we can reconstruct scientifically what God is saying, such as many have done with various time-lines of the prophetic scriptures, only to find that they have pushed the idea too far and into disagreement with someone else's system – or indeed into conflict with factual events as they unfold.

Let us trust God, the Greatest of all Communicators, and read together what he has said of the end times. Perhaps some of us should start afresh and read the scriptures with this renewed mindset. Simply read the entire Bible and see what God says. Do it the Hebraic way.

Next time: Harmony among the prophetic scriptures.

For other articles in this series, click here.

References

1 Introduction to A New Anthology of Modern Verse 1920-1940. Methuen, 1941 p XV.