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The Hebrew Language
"GOD IS NOT THE AUTHOR OF CONFUSION BUT OF PEACE, AS IN ALL CHURCHES OF THE SAINTS".
(I COR 14:33)
The Ancient Hebrew Language
"The greater part of the Old Testament was written in Hebrew, usually called ancient Hebrew in order to distinguish it from Mishnaic and modern Hebrew. Mishnaic Hebrew is the Hebrew of the Christian Era, an artificially revived language in which the Jewish Rabbis wrote their scholarly works and which is now employed as the official language of the state of Israel. The term "Hebrew language," found for the first time in the prologue to the Apocryphal book Ecclesiasticus (written 132 B.C.) Is also used by the Jewish historian Joesphus in the 1st century of the Christian Era, and appears later in the rabbinical writings. The term "Hebrew tongue," used by Luke in Acts 21:40; 26:14, refers to Aramaic and not to Hebrew. Aramaic was the common language spoken in New Testament times. The Biblical term used for the language spoken by the Old Testament Israelites is the "language of Canaan" (Isa. 19:18), or "the Jews language" (2 Kings 18:26; Neh. 13:24).
Hebrew is a branch of the great family of ancient Semitic languages, which were spoken in Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine, and Arabia. It is most closely related to the languages spoken by the ancient Canaanites, Phoenicians, and Syrians, and is almost identical with those of the Moabites, Edomites, and Ammonites. The language spoken by the native of Canaan hardly differed from the Biblical Hebrew. One of the interesting characteristic which Hebrew shares with all Semitic languages is that most of its basic words contain three consonants. (It should be noted that the written Hebrew of Biblical times consisted of consonants only. Not until several centuries after Christ, when Hebrew had become a dead language, were vowels added, in an endeavor to preserve a knowledge of how the language had been spoken" Seventh Day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol. I, page 25.
According to the Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged 2129 page second edition, 1964, on page 1650 the word Semitic means: "(1.) Of, Characteristic of, or like a Semite or the Semites. (2.) Designating or of a major group of languages of southwestern Asia and northern Africa, related to the Hamitic languages, and divided into East Semitic (Akkadian), North West Semitic (Phoenician, Punic, Aramaic, Hebrew, Modern Hebrew, etc), and South West Semitic (Arabic, Ethiopic, Ambaric). The word Semite means: a. [LL. Sem: Gr. Sem; Shem], of, belonging to, or characteristic of the Semites" (page 1650).
The name Hebrew came from Eber a descendant of Shem. According to the genealogical table (Gen. 10:21) the ancestor of the Hebrews is called Eber and several peoples are his descendants. "The Hebrew language is a branch of Canaanite and Amorite, or rather Canaanite and Amorite are ancestral dialects through the merging of which the growth of biblical Hebrew may be explained. Since the language of the Arameans is called Aramaic, one might have expected the language of the Hebrews to be called Hebrew, but, instead, it is called "language [lip] of Canaan" Isa.19:18 and Judean the "language of Judah" (Neh. 13:24; Isa. 36:11). In the New Testament, "in Hebrew dialect" are used to designate both Hebrew and the locally spoken Aramaic, as is Josephus' "language of the Hebrews". "Hebrew" is used only in the later rabbinic literature, which even then often prefers to us the phrase "sacred tongue" to distinguish it from the "vulgar tongue" The Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible, Vol. 2 page 553.
"The earliest Hebrew writings so far known uses a form of the old Canaanitish alphabet of twenty-two characters, such as is used in the Phoenician and Zinjirli inscriptions. Later the Masoretes used a dot to distinguish sl from s in the "square script," derived from an Aramaic development of the early Canaanitish script. Hebrew like the majority of Semitic languages, is written from right to left" Page 554, Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible.
"Because the spread of Aramaic as the language of common intercourse, the use of Hebrew was preserved as the speech of the pious, and had itself undergone great changes. The latter form of the language became Mishnaic Hebrew, technically the language of the Mishna which was codified ca.A.D.200, but used for the language in the form it had from ca. 200 B.C. to ca. A.D. 500, and known mainly from the works of the Tannaim and the early Amoraim. It differs considerably from biblical Hebrew in vocabulary, grammar, style of diction and even in pronunciation, for the constantly occurring confusion among the consonants---can only mean that these sounds were no longer as carefully distinguished in pronunciation as they had been in the older language. The vocabulary was greatly enriched in this period by borrowing from Aramaic and from Greek and Latin. This Hebrew developed even further in the succeeding period to become rabbinical Hebrew, which for the most part was a literary medium among the people who spoke many different vernaculars" Interpreters Dictionary of the Bible, Vol. 2, page 559-560.
The Language of the New Testament
"Greek, Universal language of New Testament times. The 27 books of the New Testament are generally believed to have been composed in Greek. In the time of Christ and the apostles Greek was the universal language of the Roman Empire. It had spread through the world toward the end of the 4th century B.C. with the expansion of Alexander's empire. His successors were all Greek rulers, who supported the spread of Greek speech and culture. Thus Greek became so widely known and deeply rooted that the Romans, who built an empire in the 1st century B.C. from the Atlantic to Persia, could not suppress it. Latin gained predominance in North Africa, Spain and Italy, but played no role in the Eastern world. However, other languages besides Greek were used in different parts of the empire. Thus, for example, the Jews of Palestine spoke Aramaic, the people of Lystra, Lycaonian (Acts 14:11) and the population of the city of Rome, Latin. This multilingual situation is reflected in the trilingual inscription above the cross on Calvary, composed in (1) Aramaic (called Hebrew in the New Testament), the language of the country, (2) Greek, the universally understood language of the empire and (3) Latin, the official language of the Roman administration (John 19:20)" Seventh Day Adventist Commentary of the Bible, Vol. 5, page 103.
"A study of the New Testament reveals that the apostles wrote in the language of the people and not that of the historians, dramatists and scientists. The kind of Greek used was called he koine dialektos, or briefly, Koine, the "common one" so called because it was common to Greek -speaking people all over the Mediterranean area. Koine borrowed some words and expressions from Ionian and Doric, and developed others independently of any Greek dialect. The New Testament reveals that the common Greek language was also rich in foreign loan words from Latin. Some words entered the Koine vocabulary from the Roman civil and military administration" Seventh Day Adventist Bible Commentary, Vol 5, page 104-105. "Not all expressions and words found in the New Testament can be explained as belonging to the common Greek language. Some have a definite Hebrew or Aramaic background, other are new creations found only in the Bible" page 106.
It is interesting to see when studying into the different languages and different writers how they used the language of the day. There were differences in literary style with the New Testament and can be recognized. The authors of the New Testaments belonged to different classes of society and had various types of training and education. The differences in backgrounds are reflected in their language.
"The simplest Greek in the New Testament is that of Revelation, where as the most skilled and elegant literary style appears in Hebrews. The works of Luke are closest to Hebrews in excellence of style and the 13 letters bearing Paul's name probably rank next" page 108. Mark the gospel writer, reveals a very simple form of language. The author was concerned about the important content. He used the most foreign words. Matthew used some borrowed word, but Luke went beyond Mark and Matthew in using almost no foreign loan words. Instead of Latin words, he used appropriate Greek terms. Paul in his words showed in his letters he knew the use of an elevated form of Greek. His epistles reflect clearly his education in the university city of Tarsus.
Why This Study Into Languages?
It has been shown that several groups and individuals are looking for the exact name and pronouncement of the Name of God and Jesus Christ. Should we use the Hebrew for these names or should we use the language of our day?
We should always look to the Word of God for the answers to questions. On the Day of Pentecost and the receiving of the Holy Spirit, the apostles were able to speak in other languages.
"And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this?" (Acts 2:4-12). Each person heard in their own language. It does not say each person heard in Hebrew. Jesus Christ, the WORD, created all languages! He understands all languages!
The Apostle Paul said, "So likewise ye, except ye utter by the tongue (languages) words easy to be understood, how shall it be known what is spoken? For ye shall speak into the air" (I Cor. 14:9).
The Interlinear Bible Greek-English Edition by Jay P. Green Sr. and published by Hendrickson says, The Bible was written in simple, common Hebrew and Greek words, with no special language used when addressing God. Why now encase the Bible in a stilted language of another age, whether it be Latin or Elizabethan English. As Tyndale wrote, "That every plowboy should be able to understand the Scriptures in his own language. Otherwise why not leave it in the original languages?" Page xiii.
It is a proven fact that Jesus Christ was sent to the lost sheep of Israel. "But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matt 15:24). Because the Jews rejected Jesus the Christ as the Son of God the Father they were rejected by Him! "Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof" (Matt 21:43). This was prophesied to happen! The English Anglo/Saxon people are Israel today. It has been through the English speaking countries that the Gospel of the Kingdom of God has been preached to all the world.
Mixing languages, is syncretism, just like mixing religions is syncretism! Mixing Hebrew words and English words causes confusion. This is Babylon at work!
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