Roy B. Blizzard's Blog, page 7

Happy Holidays from Bible Scholars!

    Dear friends of BibleScholars and Dr. Roy Blizzard,

    We first of all want to wish for all of you a Happy and Joyous Holiday Season, whether it be Hanukkah or Christmas.  Secondly, we want to inform you that BibleScholars has posted some of our unique and exceptional materials on YouTube https://goo.gl/istJsm for easy access and at no cost to you.  This series includes thirteen 30 minute videos “The Quest” In Search of the Historical Jesus.  This series was produced a number of years ago with Dr. Blizzard and features some of the top scholars in the field of biblical studies, including many who are no longer with us.  Consider this as our special gift from BibleScholars to you.  Starting in the immediate future we will be posting to BibleScholars additional articles and materials and we are planning on additional interviews with Dr. Blizzard and other scholars.

As our special gift to you we want to announce that we have posted on YouTube the first video in the series “Treasures of the Jewish World”.  This video is from the Temple Mount and shows what may possibly be the future location of the Temple.  This video should be seen by everyone.  As a favor to BibleScholars and to your friends please contact everyone on your mailing list and tell them about this exceptional video. 

At this special season of the year we would like to let you know how much we have appreciated your past assistance and support for BibleScholars and for anything you might be lead to do at this special season of gift-giving.  The best address for BibleScholars and Dr. Blizzard is P.O. Box 3568, Joplin Mo, 64803. 

Please do let us know what you think of these new videos that we have posted for you on YouTube.  Again, thanks for your support and best wishes to you all!

The Bible Scholars Staff and Dr. Roy Blizzard

What About Angels?

By Dr. Roy Blizzard and Andy Garza

Our recent article entitled The Lucifer Myth quite naturally raises the question, well, what about angels? To be honest, a  discussion of angels as well as defining angels is much more difficult and complicated than our study on Lucifer. We must become aware of the historical nuances of the Hebrew language and correct our understandings of angelology. We are going to approach the subject of angels starting with the ancient Biblical world and following through to the Midrashic and Talmudic periods.

Let us first take a look at the ancient Biblical world for some background and perspective. As noted previously in our article, The Lucifer Myth , it was widely believed by ancient cultures that certain planetary bodies or stars ruled the cities. Dr. Marvin R. Wilson points out in his book, Our Father Abraham , that it was not at all unusual for the ancients to engage in cross-cultural interchange (known as syncretism) where one culture would borrow certain ideas or concepts from another although they were not necessarily in agreement with the peoples from whom they had borrowed. For example, in Psalm 68:4, David declares that it is the God of Israel who rides on the clouds as opposed to Baal as in Canaanite mythology. In Judaism, the term tzvah , or ‘host of heaven’ is most often identified with the stars and other heavenly bodies and were sometimes said to sing or shout for joy as in 1 Kings 22:19-22 and Psalm 89:5 ( Encyclopedia Judaica 1972 Edition Volume 8 page 972).

Furthermore, in Mesopotamia during the early years, figures of winged creatures are exhibited in art and many of them have religious symbolism. Winged beings, such as winged bulls were placed at the entrance of Babylonian and Assyrian temples and they appear on the incense altars from Taanach and Megiddo. Winged sphinxes, griffins, and human creatures are all represented in the art and iconography of these ancient cities. ( Encyclopedia Judaica Volume 5page 395) Whatever they were, it seems apparent that they were intercessors who brought the prayers of human beings to the gods.

A familiar term for a winged human creature would be cherub. The first angelic being to be mentioned in the Bible is a cherub (Genesis 3:24). It took the ancient Hebrew reader on a spiritual journey that they understood, but for them it meant something far different than it meant for non-Jews reading these texts several centuries later and for those of us today. “The most plausible derivation [of the etymology of the Hebrew word for cherub, keruv] is from the Akkadian karibu/kuribu ‘to pray’ or ‘to bless’, an intercessor who brings the prayers of humans to the gods. ( Encyclopedia Judaica Volume 5 page 399)

At this point, it would be natural to assume that Hebrew angelology is akin to the other surrounding pagan beliefs. But, Hebrew University Professor Yehezekel Kaufmann conjectured that Hebrew monotheism differed greatly from the other polytheistic religions, especially regarding Gods and angels, both good and evil. Kaufmann's characterization of what he calls pagan religion is "the idea that there exists a realm of being prior to the gods and above them, upon which they [the gods] depend, and whose decrees," even "they must obey" [Kaufmann, The Religion of Israel , 1972, 22] — the primordial realm. This is the meta-divine realm of supreme and ultimate power and it even transcends the deities. The gods then, are going to be limited. They are not the source of, or creators of, other beings that inhabit the unseen spiritual realm. They too are bound by, and subservient to, this primordial realm. But the Hebrew God just is, was, and will be. He did not emerge from the primordial meta-divine realm. Now since God is himself the transcendent source of all being, and since he is good, in the Yahweh monotheistic system there are no evil agents that constitute a realm that opposes God as an equal rival -- no divine evil agents. Again, in the pagan worldview, the primordial realm spawns all sorts of beings, all kinds of divinities, good and evil, that are equal in strength. They are locked in a cosmic struggle. But in the Israelite worldview, if God is the source of all being, then there cannot be a realm of supernatural beings that do battle with him such as Zoroastrianism’s Ahura Mazda and Angra Mainyu . There's no room for a divine antagonist of the one supreme God (hence no Lucifer). Here is the distinct spiritual cosmology that we must make paramount in our interpretations of this difficult topic. The Biblical language alternating between God and his “messengers” gives us the impression that there is a distinction. This is how the pagans thought; this is how we think. But historically, in the ancient Biblical period, there is no room for God and other beings existing apart from God other than mankind.

In the Bible, the angel is frequently called the malakh of God, and yet at the same time, the word is applied to human agents as well. Josephus, the Jewish historian in the first century, uses the term angelos in a twofold sense but is basically referring to messenger. The malakh Yahweh is the one sent by God with a commission. He is a friendly and helpful messenger in whom one may confide. He smites the foes of Israel, he helps Elijah, he protects Israel at the Red Sea, and guides the people. The prospering of Israel is his exclusive office. Yahweh or the malakh Yahweh is obviously one and the same person. The tradition concerning the person Yahweh is indeed present within Judaism but not completely uniform. Sometimes angels are known as or called simply kedoshim or “holy beings” and at other times, the angel is called simply a “man”. Notice in Genesis 32:24-31 that the mysterious being that wrestles with Jacob is called a man but in Hosea 12:5 he is referred to as a malakh . But after their contest is ended and the messenger strikes Jacob in the thigh, Jacob calls the name of the place of their contest “ Peniel ” (which in Hebrew means the face of God) because he says “I have seen God face to face.” Again, it is important to note that the Bible does not always clearly distinguish between God and his messenger, for example, Hagar meets an angel but later declares in Genesis 16:7,13 that it was the Lord that had spoken to her. Likewise it is God who commands the sacrifice of Isaac but in Genesis 22, Abraham is addressed by the Angel of the Lord from Heaven. In Exodus 3:2, the Angel of the Lord appears to Moses in the burning bush but throughout the rest of the story, Moses converses with God. So to with Gideon in Judges 6:11 and following: Sometimes Gideon speaks with God and sometimes with the angel of God. As a result, many scholars infer that the angel was not regarded as an independent being but simply a manifestation of the divine power and will. It is important in discussing the subject that the prophets say almost nothing about angels. It is interesting that Haggai calls himself in 1:13 the malakh Elohim, the messenger of the Lord with the message of the Lord. As we have noted previously in the Lucifer Myth, the Book of Daniel repeats much about angels such as the angel that saved the three men from the fiery furnace 3:25-28 and Daniel from the lion’s den in 6:23. Sometimes as mentioned, the angel is called man and on another occasion he is described as a man clad in linen 10:5. It’s interesting that in Daniel these beings now have proper names i.e., Gabriel 8:16 and Michael 10:13. In Daniel, there is the idea as we previously noted, that each nation has a ruling patron such as the patrons of Persia and Greece 10:13,20. It is chiefly from a closer contact with Babylonia, and her system of upper and lower spirits, that the influx of new elements into Jewish angelology can be traced.

In Genesis 24:7, “The Lord the God of heaven....he will send his angel before you”, but in the continuation of the narrative, there is not the slightest reference to an actual angel accompanying the servant; it is only related that the Lord prospered his way and the servant says “and for me the Lord has led me in the way.” It is clear from that passage, therefore, that the angel stands only for the guidance and help of the Lord. Similarly it is stated in Numbers 20:16 “and sent an angel and brought us forth out of Egypt” but before in Numbers 14:19 the Bible designates the pillar of cloud as “the angel of God”. Hence the words under discussion here mean only “I will guide you and prosper you.” In the continuation of the passage, at the end of verse 22 and also farther on, it is clear that the reference is to the actions of God himself. We should not be surprised that in ancient thought processes, the line of demarcation between the sender and the sent is often blurred. Not only between God and His angel, but also as in Exodus 23:27, God and His terror. Terror in this passage is a kind of vanguard marching in front of the host which is akin to the sending of the angel in verse 20. God continues “and I will throw into confusion by means of my terror all the people against whom you shall come and I will make your enemies turn their backs to you. They will flee before you because of my terror…and I will send the hornet before you...it too, I shall send as a spearhead before your host.” The hornet is also mentioned in Deuteronomy 7:20 and Josh 24:12 and is nothing but unreasoning dread or panic, synonymous with the word for terror. It is important to emphasize once again that the use of these euphemistic synonyms is quite typical of ancient middle eastern prose and poetry.

The key that untangles some of the textual complications of men or angels being both God or a seeming separateness from God is the Hebrew concept of agency which when not understood, can lead to gross misinterpretations. A shaliach , or sent one, is best expressed by the dictum “a person’s agent is regarded as the person himself” (Nedarim. 72b; Kiddushin 41b). In many instances, when God’s messenger was a man, it could truly have been a man (Haggai for example as mentioned above), although this is in seeming contradiction to Numbers 23:19 that expresses that God is not a man. The explanation is agency where a “sent man” or shaliach is as if he were God (legally), yet not God. The development of the concept of angels as being a distinct being apart from God was deeply influenced and very much developed during the post-exilic Hellenistic/Midrashic/Talmudic period and is not part of Hebrew or Jewish thought. One of the principal angelic beings of the Greek world was Nike who was also known as the Goddess of Victory. In her temple in Athens at the Parthenon, she is shown without wings. Elsewhere throughout the Greek world she is depicted with wings because the Greeks desired that wherever she might be, she be able to fly back home. The sculpture shown below which is located in Ashkelon, far south in Israel, depicts Nike standing on the world supported by the god, Atlas, and dates from the first century BCE/CE. Ashkelon is one of the five principal cities of the Philistines and was the city where Herod the Great was born which he restored and refurbished during his reign.

All the theological concepts that expositors have attached to such passages with reference to the function of angels, their nature, and their relation to God are completely foreign to the simple meaning of the scriptures. Umberto Cassuto in his Commentary on Exodus page 306 states: “In the biblical conception, there is no precise distinction between the Lord and His angel, and this is clearly indicated by the expression, for My name is in Him. The connotation of the words, ‘My name is, I in My glory’, and the sense is: I Myself reveal Myself to you through him, and I and he are the same.” It is important to note that any and all mythological elements that found their way into Judaism from time to time, Jewish sages, nonetheless, passed over them in silence.

It is important that we understand that the idea of angels as intermediaries between God and man as found in Christianity did not originate with the Hebrews nor is it central to Judaism. Although Catholicism has a very highly developed angelology, a belief in angels was never central to the Jewish religion. As a matter of fact, Jewish sages rejected any intermediation between man and God. In the Talmudic Age, no traces of angel worship are to be found in spite of Christianity’s claims to the contrary. (Jerusalem Talmud page 971) Jewish sages were basically of the opinion that any appeal to an intermediary only leads to idolatry. It is an interesting fact that angelology did not originate with Judaism. It was common for the various inhabitants of the Middle East even up to and including the Biblical period to describe a world inhabited by different species of beings distinct and separate from human beings. The rabbinic statement “everyday God creates a legion of angels; they sing before him and disappear” was considered by Maimonides in his Guide to the Perplexed, to describe the natural and psychic forces in individuals. The modern Jewish attitude tends to regard the traditional references and descriptions as symbolic, poetic, or representing an earlier world view. Most feel that a belief in their literalness is out of keeping with a modern approach to the world and certainly cannot be reconciled with the rationalism of today.

This is by no means an exhaustive treatment of this complex topic, but the key to prevention of confusion is to preserve the ancient understanding of God as having no beginning or end. He did not emerge from the primordial realm as the other gods, and is active in the affairs of mankind with no other worldly beings in conflict or opposition to Him, nor is He reliant on any other worldly beings to assist Him.

The Necessity of Criticism Pt. II

There came a time in the seventeenth and eighteenth century European history called the Enlightenment when “fundamental Christian beliefs” became “problematic.”  The Bible began to be interpreted in the light of different, non-Christian assumptions which include the following:

The Church has misread the Bible.  Modern enlightened readers need to free themselves from church doctrine and interpret the Bible in the light of human reason alone. 


Jesus Christ was not the divine Son of God.  He was a superior ethical guide and spiritual example.  He taught about God’s moral law, but not salvation through his death for our sins and his resurrection.  These ideas were inventions of the early church.


Miracles in the New Testament, including Jesus’ resurrection, can no longer be the basis for Christian belief, since modern reason doubts that they happened as the Bible reports.


The Bible calls for ridicule, not reverence, since much of it is offensive to the modern mind. In advancing this view writers like Voltaire, Tom Paine, and Thomas Woolston sowed seeds that helped destroy the Bible’s privileged place in Western society by encouraging skepticism toward it. 


The only legitimate way to interpret the Bible is the “historical” way.  By historical was meant that it was assumed that cardinal Christian doctrines were rationally unacceptable, that Jesus was no more than a mere mortal, that miracles should be rejected or at least radically reinterpreted – and that no other interpretation of the Bible, but this one, deserves personal acceptance and public recognition. 

            Needless to say it naturally occurred -- with such liberal logic being applied to the minds and souls of many people, by the nineteenth century, many scholars in Europe, and particularly in Germany, were arguing for an understanding of the New Testament that flatly contradicted Christian belief of all pervious centuries.  “Historical criticism” in the Enlightenment sense had been born; “it laid the foundations on which modern biblical studies still rest.” 

            By the time of the industrial revolution there seemed to be a sense of release from the thought-patterns of the past.  No longer did competent theologians seek to inject life where none exists.  Dead ideas were being acknowledged as dead; and so into the museums these lifeless forms were being reverently carried, there to be deposited as a token of respect to the intellectual struggles of former generations.

            And so it comes to pass that whereas the theological conceptions of the twentieth century are no longer those of the Dark Ages, the change may be attributed to this inescapable anthropomorphism:  Like people, like God.

            In one form or another, historical criticism is still very much with us.  Books about the New Testament that insist on a “historical” reading of the scriptures often mean “historical-critical” and assert that the Bible is to be treated like any other book.  The Bibles central claims – as many believers over many centuries have understood them – are cast in doubt.  Then new, or at least different, meanings are proposed. 

            Thus, you need to pay attention when reading the Bible, what someone else says that the Bible says, and how you study the scriptures.  While the truth will set you free, misinterpretations have only clouded the true message and enslaved millions to doctrines that are aptly described in the text as those from “demons” (1 Timothy 4:1).  It is not only good to know how to study but essential to know why you believe what you believe.  If your faith is not your own whose is it? 

 

              [1] Trattner, 119.

The Necessity of Criticism Pt. 1

Why this study?  The Necessity of Criticism

Dr. Barry Fike

The truth, indeed, is something that mankind, for some mysterious reason, instinctively dislikes. Every man who tries to tell it is unpopular, and even when, by the sheer strength of his case, he prevails, he is put down as a scoundrel.  H.L. Mencken

While God waits

For His temple to be built of love

Men bring stones.

Rabindranath Tagore

 

            John Wesley once received a note which said, “The Lord has told me to tell you that He doesn’t need your book-learning, your Greek, and your Hebrew.”
            Wesley answered “Thank you, sir. Your letter was superfluous; however, as I already knew the Lord has no need for my ‘book-learning,’ as you put it. However—although the Lord has not directed me to say so—on my own responsibility I would like to say to you that the Lord does not need your ignorance, either.”  

            Man seeks to explain the cosmos: it is his unabandonable quest in which his own mind is endlessly and persistently creative.  Each age, according to its own best lights, arrives at its favorite answer; and each answer, no matter how absurd (man alone is permitted the privilege of absurdity), is a part of that scaffolding of thought whereby he builds the cathedral of Knowledge. 

            Religion is founded upon this cathedral of learning so far as it is founded upon truth and the knowledge of truth. The Bible is a written communication from Heaven to man and must be studied in order to be understood, believed and obeyed.  To withhold from the myriads the means of reading and understanding the Book of God—the volume of human destiny—is the greatest sin of omission of duty to God and man that any community, acknowledging the Divine authority of that volume, can be guilty of.   As Oliver Wendell Holmes stated, “Truth, when not sought after, rarely comes to light.”

            Religion, in its mystical, emotional or practical expression is, to me at any rate, of little value if divorced from intellectual integrity.  I think that the reason “many believers” are so repulsive is that they don’t really have faith but a kind of false security. They operate by the slide rule, and the Church for them is not the body of Christ but the poor man’s insurance system.  It’s never hard for them to believe because actually they never think about it.   Leo Tolstoy put it this way: “The most difficult subjects can be explained to the most slow-witted man if he has not formed any idea of them already; but the simplest thing cannot be made clear to the most intelligent man if he is firmly persuaded that he knows already, without a shadow of doubt, what is laid before him.”

Unfortunately the reality is simply that it is not easy to get vast masses of men to think in advanced terms. 

            Your thoughts, opinions, beliefs, and worldviews are based on years and year of experience, reading, and rational, objective analysis.

            Right? 

            Possibly not.

            It is possible that your thoughts, opinions, beliefs and world views are based on years and years of paying attention to information that confirmed what you already believed while ignoring information that challenged your preconceived notions.

            If there’s a single lesson that life teaches us, it’s that wishing doesn’t make it so.

            To turn slowly away, step by step, from theologies which one has cherished, which were vital and are vital to friends past and present, to feel that these theologies are now but the skeletons of religion, this cannot be done without mental anguish. With all his “enlightenment” there are still times when modern man must long to hear even old Triton blow his wreathed horn or for the stately dogmatic mansion which the souls of the fathers built.  Still, as a tortoise cannot dwell in the dry shell which its father shed but must grow a shell of its own—so much we!

            The slogan ‘ecclesia semper reformanda’, “the church must always be reforming itself,” is a concise statement of this reforming agenda.  The church must always reexamine itself and ensure that its patterns of behavior and belief correspond to its God-given models in Jesus Christ and in Scripture.

            Let’s be honest—the controversies that exist in the Christian church are a source of trouble and perplexity to every thoughtful mind.  Theologians have everywhere been the enemies of analysis and new ideas, and in whatever field they have appeared—feeling, quite correctly, that, once admitted, there is no setting limits to them.  Akin to the intellectual stagnation in the old South, many theological circles have put a ban on all analysis and inquiry, a terrified truculence toward every new idea, a disposition to reject every innovation out of hand and hug to the whole of the status quo with fanatical resolution. 

            It is precisely when theologians have claimed biblical authority for their own beliefs and practices that they have been peculiarly exposed to the universal temptation…of jumping to the conclusion that the biblical writer is referring to what they would be referring to, were they speaking the words themselves.  Further discussion on any point of “accepted” theology is as needless as that on the modern day topic of  “Global warming”.  As many of its advocates have stated over and over: the debate is over.  Just accept what we say.  Further discussion is unfruitful and will show nothing more than “deniers” who don’t want to look at the “facts”.  I’ve come to believe that anytime that anyone, whether in theological circles or political ones, tells me that there is no more debate on any issue being looked at, that it’s precisely the very thing that is needed.  Sin affects the structures of the church as much as it does the personal lives of individual believers.  The Christian church, as a human institution, is as prone to all the temptations and weaknesses of fallen nature as any other institution.   However, to face that dilemma is usually the one thing that isn’t done.  Therefore, the word heretic becomes a favorite sword welded by the “church” for many years.  

            Originally, the word “heretic” had little of the sinister meaning that was later attached to it.  But it was gradually melted down into a fanatical weapon which, according to the contemporary language of orthodox theology, was used to designate any doctrine held to be “unsound, false, and eternally wrong.”  It might naturally be supposed that those who profess to follow one and the same Master, to venerate one and the same Book as the final court of appeal in matters pertaining to religion, would agree on all questions of faith and ecclesiastical order; but this is far from being the case.  Thus, who is the heretic? 

            There were expositors of the Scripture in the Church long before Christians were divided into Roman Catholics, Greek Church, and Protestants.  Which of them shall we follow?  Shall it be Origen or Chrysostom, Jerome or Augustine?  The answer that the Church of Rome, in common with all other Churches, has to give is that no interpretation of Scripture by an individual, however learned, are to be regarded as infallible; all that can be done by the authorized leaders of the Church is to indicate a certain line of faith, ecclesiastical order and practice, according to which the Bible ought to be interpreted, (emphasis mine) and by which all commentators ought to be guided and tested. 

            Many books in my library are now behind and beneath me; I read them years ago, with considerable pleasure; I have read them since with disappointment; I shall never read them again. They were good in their way once, and so were the clothes I wore when I was ten years old — but I have outgrown them. Nobody ever outgrows Scripture; the book widens and deepens with our years. The deeper you dig into Scripture, the more you find that it is a GREAT abyss of TRUTH.  It is because of this TRUTH that each individual should study to show himself approved unto God. 

            There is a need for each individual to study the Bible, or else be prepared to take someone else’s opinion. In the 1600’s Faustus Socinus, in his “Catechism of Rakow” made the following observation:  “Let each one be free to judge of his own religion, for this is the rule set forth by the New Testament and by the example of the earliest church.  Who are we, miserable people, that we would smother and extinguish in others the fire of divine spirit which God has kindled in them?  Have any of us a monopoly of the knowledge of the Holy Scriptures?”  

            I’m a strict believer in the scientific principle of believing nothing, only taking the best evidence available at the present time, interpreting it as best you can, and leaving your mind open to the fact that new evidence will appear tomorrow.  Because of this attitude there is a need for each individual to study the Bible for themselves, or else be prepared to take someone else’s opinion. In the 1600’s Faustus Socinus, in his “Catechism of Rakow” made the following observation:  “Let each one be free to judge of his own religion, for this is the rule set forth by the New Testament and by the example of the earliest church.  Who are we, miserable people, that we would smother and extinguish in others the fire of divine spirit which god has kindled in them?  Have any of us a monopoly of the knowledge of the Holy Scriptures?”  It would be well to remember that what is invisible is what God sees, and it is precisely that which the Christian must look for.

            Originally it was written in a context of ancient times in another language for other people.  It reflects customs that differ from our own, and its message may well be foreign to the understanding we bring to it.  For many reasons we need to proceed with diligence, thoroughness, caution, and rigor if we wish to glean from the Biblical text the message its authors sought to convey; otherwise, we risk imposing our views on it instead of discerning its claims on us.  The scriptures can be twisted, distorted and slanted.  When this happens they may be used to undo the very purpose of God who gave them.  When the written word is so wrested as to defeat the purpose, plan and prayer of the living word, something is indeed seriously wrong.

            It is necessary that we should have a thinking people. Boswell tells us that Goldsmith once said: “As I take my shoes from the shoemaker, and my coat from the tailor, so I take my religion from the priest.”  There are many who are like that; and yet religion is nothing unless it is a personal discovery.  As Plato had it long ago: “The unexamined life is the life not worth living,” and the unexamined religion is the religion not worth having.  It is an obligation for a thinking man to think his way to God. No one is poor except the man who is poor in knowledge.  If he has knowledge, he has all; if he has none, what has he?  As Mark Twain once said, “Just because you’re taught that something’s right and everyone believes it’s right, it don’t make it right.” 

            In Jesus’ day and time, the Rabbis believed that studying the law and uncovering ever-new layers of meanings constituted genuine piety.  The rabbis contended, therefore, that study of the Decalogue—in face of all biblical materials—might uncover the underlying rationale and purposes of Jewish law; such study represents the most vital act of the religious Jew.  As R. Tanachum b. Haniliar said, “He who hungers—makes himself hungry—for the words of the Law in this world, God will satisfy him in the world to come.” The rabbinic treatment of the Ten Commandments finds holiness in submission to rabbinic law as a system, to the rabbi as a sage, and to the entire corpus of rabbinic teaching, itself the ultimate object of study because of its status as God’s ultimate gift to humankind.

            This concept of study is not something that, contrary to popular opinion, one gets theology right and then never has to open the Bible again.  Any man who follows a profession knows that he dare not stop studying.  No doctor thinks that he has finished learning when he leaves the classrooms of his university He knows that week by week, and almost day by day, new techniques and treatments are being discovered; if he wishes to continue to be of service to those in illness and in pain, he must keep up with them.  It is so with the Christian.  The Christian life could be described as getting to know God better every day.  A friendship which does not grow closer with the years tends to vanish with the years.  And it is so with us and God.

            As Mark Twain once said, “Just because you’re taught that something’s right and everyone believes it’s right, it don’t make it right.”  Whether we like it or not -- the Bible needs interpretation by each one of us.  The Biblical text is complicated which makes textual studies so interesting.  Easy and patented answers aren’t given easily.  Sacred scriptures are notoriously complex, which means that they invite a lifetime a study. Such complexity helps us understand that people interpret the texts differently.  Part of our challenge is to understand these differences and open up dialogue that allows our similarities to influence our ability to listen and comprehend the differences that divide our fellowship. 

            It’s our business to try to change the external faults of the Church—the vulgarity, the lack of scholarship, the lack of intellectual honesty—wherever we find them and however we can.  It is a strange reflection on God that in spite of all supernatural support, revelation still lends itself to confusion and ambiguity.  Notwithstanding all that men have said and done, it has failed to furnish the world that safe and steady light it set out to guarantee.  On the contrary, it has more often led men into wild wandering in dangerous and toilsome ways.  It is for this reason that while the seeking soul may find the basic message of the Bible in a single phrase or verse, like John 3:16, maturing believers are wise to proceed to a more advanced understanding of the Bible based on extensive study, careful analysis, and logical explanation in view of the full range of relevant evidence; nevertheless, the relevant question becomes “What is relevant evidence?”  For many scholars, items like the uniqueness of Jesus Christ, the Bible’s status as the Word of God, and the real presence of God in human affairs are highly relevant to how the New Testament ought to be read; however, it is precisely at this point that a great deal of our modern study disagrees.  This brings us to another type of criticism – not just rigorous analysis, but analysis based on certain convictions quite different from many of our Christian predecessors. 

 

              [1] Thomas Woods, Jr.,  33 Questions about American History you’re not supposed to ask.  New York: Three Rivers Press, 2007. 1.

              [2] Osborne & Woodward, Handbook for Bible study.  Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1979. 13-14.

              [3] Ernet R. Trattner,  The Autobiography of God.  (Charles Scribner’s Sons: New York, 1930), p. 24. 

              [4] Alexander Campbell, “Baccalaureate Address to the Graduates of Bethany College,” Popular Lectures and Addresses. Nashville: Harbinger Book Club, n.d., 507. 

              [5] Burnett Hillman Streeter, Reality: A new correlation of science and religion.  London: MacMillan and Col, Ltd., 1926.  7.

              [6] Robert  Ellsberg ed., Flannery O’Connor Spiritual Writings.  Marynoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2012. 81. 

              [7] Ernest R.  Trattner, The Autobiography of God.  New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1930. 118.

              [8] http://www.thedailysheeple.com/you-ca..., accessed 8/12/2016. 

              [9] G.B. Foster, The Function of Religion in Man’s Struggle for Existence.  Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1909. 134.

              [10] McGrath, Alister E.  Intellectuals Don’t Need God.  (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1993) 170, 171.

              [11] W. J. Cash, The Mind of the South.  New York: Vinage Books, 1991. 98.

              [12] Cash, 98. 

              [13] McGrath, 173.

              [14] McGrath, 167.

              [15] Trattner, 135. 

              [16] Robert Baker Girdlestone, Girdlestone’s Synonyms of the Old Testament.  Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1983. 13. 

              [17] Girdlestone, 14.

              [18] Trattner, 138, 139. 

              [19] www.publicspeakingproject.org, 7-1. 

              [20] Trattner, 138, 139. 

              [21] Ellsberg, 83.

              [22] Carl Ketcherside, The Twisted Scriptures.  St. Louis, Missouri, Mission Messenger, 1977.  30. 

              [23] William Barclay, The Letters to the Galatians and Ephesians.  Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1976. 90. 

              [24] C. G. Montefiore, Rabbinic Literature and Gospel Teachings. New York: KTAV, 1970. 6.

              [25] Roger Brooks, The Spirit of the Ten Commandments.  San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1990. xi.

              [26] Montefiore, 23.

              [27] Brooks, xi.

              [28] Brooks, 91. 

              [29] Rabbi Evan Moffic.  What Every Christian Needs to Know About the Jewishness of Jesus.  Abingdon Press: Nashville, 2015.  94, 95. 

              [30] Ellsberg, 83.

              [31] Trattner, 78. 

ATTENTION BIBLE SCHOLAR FOLLOWERS CAN YOU HELP?

Bible Scholars has an immediate and urgent need because of our unplanned and very expensive move bible scholars was forced to borrow several thousand dollars. Our move is completed and we have many plans for the immediate future but we need help to pay our outstanding debts which are due in the next 30 days. Those debts now stand at about $13,000. With all our debts paid we will be able to move on with our plans for the immediate future including the reinstatement of our 501(c)(3) status plus several new articles. Also a new book with additional exciting audio, video programs, and teachings. For those contributing $250 or more we will send you an MP3 of our unique foundation of faith conference containing lectures from many famous scholars of the past and present. Please send your registration and contributions along with contact information to P.O. box 3568 Joplin Mo 64803 All of us at Bible Scholars want to extend to you a special word of thanks and our best wishes.

Dr. Barry Fike

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Barry Fike will be joining our Bible Scholars team in the coming months.  Dr. Fike (Barry) is a long time personal friend of Dr. Blizzard and has attended many of his seminars and has appeared with him on a number of occasions.  We want to welcome Barry and look forward to presenting to you any of his articles, books and other materials, some of which maybe available for purchase.

Dr. Fike's Vitae:

Education:

2017-Ph.D      Apologetics-Newburg Seminary

2003-2006      M.Ed.-Pepperdine University

2000-2002      M.Th.-Logos Christian College and Graduate School

1988-1991       University of Texas (Jewish studies)

1989-1990       Pepperdine University (archaeological studies)

1979-1980      Valdosta State University; Speech Educational Credential

1973-1977      Bachelor of Arts Degree: Speech Communication/Bible—Freed Hardeman University

Upcoming Seminar Announcement

A seminar like no other

Attention attention attention - Notice upcoming Bible Scholars Conference June 9-11 beginning Friday at 4:00pm and Sat and Sun from 9am-6pm. 

Subject: Critical Thinking as the Key to Understanding the Biblical Texts by Professor Andy Garza, Dr. Roy Blizzard and Dr. Ron Moseley.  Dr. Blizzard will be teaching on critical examination of the book of Genesis.  Dr. Moseley will be teaching on a critical examination of the book of Revelation and Jewish Escatology.

The seminar will be held in Joplin, MO in a convenient location.  People can either drive or fly America Airlines.  Those coming by air will be picked up at the Joplin airport.  The conference will be limited to 20 participants, $300 per person or $500 per couple.  This is a NEW conference you won't want to miss.

For further information, details or to make a reservation please email roy@biblescholars.org.

BibleScholars.org update and special message from Roy Blizzard

To all of our BibleScholars.org and Facebook friends:

Bible Scholars has relocated to Joplin, Missouri, from our rented property in Austin, TX (which was sold to new owners.)  Joplin is my hometown, and much of my family lives here.  We were able to find good facilities and good healthcare options, and thus it made sense to relocate to Joplin.

As you might imagine, the move of both corporate and personal property and activity due to our new Austin landlord notice placed unplanned financial pressures on Bibles Scholars and me personally.  However, article and newsletter publishing activities are planned to continue on a regular basis, and we are in communications on offering new seminars taught by a number of recognized scholars, including Dr. Ron Moseley, Dr. William McDonald, Andy Garza and Calvin Smith in the immediate future. (Check BibleScholars.org for our most recent article update, "The Cities Jesus Cursed."  Learn why and how Jesus dealt with problems in Bethsaida, Chorazim and Capernaum.)  So, keep visiting BibleScholars.org and our Facebook presence for regular articles and updates.   

Because of the additional financial pressures on Bible Scholars and me personally, we are confronted with an urgent need to eliminate outstanding debts totaling around $18,000.  I sincerely hope our previous books, articles and television programs have been an inspiration and a blessing to you and have convinced you that our appeal is sincere, credible and worthy of your support.  Your participation is dearly needed and will be deeply appreciated.  Your contribution can be made to Dr. Roy Blizzard and sent to our new address, P.O. Box 3568, Joplin, MO 64803.  If you have any questions or concerns you can reach me directly by calling 512-750-5384.  

As an expression of our gratitude, for all gifts of $250 or more, I would like to send you one of our very best offerings, the 1984 and 1990 Foundations of Faith Conferences featuring some of the top biblical scholars in the world, including both MP3 audio and pdf files, sold on our website for $99.95.  You can read about the scholars, content and conferences at this Bible Scholars link.   For anyone who did not attend or previously order these materials, I am certain you will find this information new and exciting. The creation and publication of these materials have always been a ministry for me and one which I look forward to continuing in our new location.  You have my genuine thanks and gratitude for your support over the years and for your consideration of this request.

My best regards,

 

The Cities Jesus Cursed

An interesting story in the life of Jesus is recorded for us in the Gospel of Mark relating to the three cities of Bethsaida, Korazim, and Capernaum located on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. According to the gospel of Matthew 11:20-25, the text reads:

“Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not: Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgement, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.  At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes.”

By Roy B. Blizzard

The three cities of Bethsaida, Korazim, and Capernaum were the three largest and most important along the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee in Jesus day. Bethsaida, which literally means house of fishing, seems to have been the most populated city in Galilee. The nearly 25 acre site was occupied by both Jews and non-Jews with each group maintaining its own lifestyle. John 1:44 tells us that the apostles Philip, Andrew, and Peter were from Bethsaida where Jesus was most active in his early ministry.

According to Matthew, mighty works were done in all three of these cities, however it is Mark that gives us the example of the miracle healing of the blind man in Bethsaida. Mark 8:22-25 reads:

“And he cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto him, and besought him to touch him.  And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he saw ought. And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking. After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.”

An interesting question is why would Jesus spit in the man’s eyes? Not only is that story strange, but it certainly seems unsanitary. However, we are told that for eye trouble, there is a tradition that the spittle of the first born son of a father had healing powers but not the first born son of a mother. (B.B. 126b) By using spittle in this way, Jesus is declaring himself to be the first born son of the Father, and in other words, he is declaring himself to be God.

In each of these cities, one would expect to find a synagogue such as has been found in Korazim and Capernaum but none to date has yet been found in Bethsaida. Although no synagogue has been discovered there, the city is nonetheless to be associated with the early beginnings of Jesus’ movement. After more than fifteen years of excavation, what appears to be remains of a pagan Roman temple have been discovered. Although that identification is inconclusive, it is safe to say that it is not the foundation of a synagogue due to the structure of the foundational wall because it is lacking the typical seats associated with a synagogal wall of that period.

The archaeologists who excavated the site suggested that it might have been a Roman temple and if it is indeed a Roman temple, it could have been built for the cult of Livia Julia who was the wife of Augustus and the mother of Tiberius. Compared to other Roman temples, the remains of the structure at Bethsaida are very modest compared with those that had been built elsewhere such as Samaria and Caesarea Maritima. The lack of a synagogue, in addition to a lack of repentance might go a long way in explaining why Jesus would have cursed the city.

The second city cursed by Jesus was the city of Korazim and is the only one of the three not situated on the Sea of Galilee. It is located to the north of Capernaum some two miles away. Korazim is mentioned in the Babylonian Talmud Menahot 85a and was renowned for the good wheat that was grown there. The town was divided into five different quarters that covered an area of approximately 25 acres.

The largest and most significant was the central quarter of the town and contained numerous dwelling houses along with a paved court. Almost all of the stonework used in building was black basalt which was and still is a natural mineral to the area. Adjacent to the central court and oriented somewhat west and south towards Jerusalem was the ancient synagogue. In the third and fourth centuries CE, during the time of the Mishnah and Talmud, the town spread southward but did not experience it’s first period of real growth until the end of the Talmudic period in the 5th or 6th century. During that time, many repairs and modifications were made especially to the synagogue.  Additional changes were made during the early Arab period and in the 13th - 15th centuries but by then only a small population continued to occupy the site.

The first excavations of Corazim began in the early 1900’s, then in the early 1920’s the Hebrew University and the British Mandate Government’s Department of Antiquities undertook extensive work. Further excavation and restoration activities were carried out between 1980 and 1983. For a tour of the remains and archaeological site at Korazim, be sure to visit www.biblescholars.org and go to the Israel Slide Show Gallery for a tour through Korazim as well as Capernaum.

The third city cursed by Jesus was Capernaum, which in Hebrew is called kefar nahum, which means the city of Nahum and is considered to be the traditional home of Nahum the prophet, and later was the home of Jesus as well. Capernaum was abandoned 1,000 years ago and two-thirds of the present day ruins belong to the Franciscans who purchased it from the Bedouins in 1894, while the remaining one-third belong to the Greek Orthodox patriarchate.

In 1838, the American scholar Edward Robinson visited the site and described the place as “desolate and mournful”. On his second visit, he correctly identified the remains of a synagogue and an octagonal building which was later designated as a domus ecclesia or church. The ruins of the ancient village stretch along the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee covering approximately 15 acres. Occupation on the site covers the period dating from the 5th Century BCE to the beginning of the 10th Century CE. 

However, Paleolithic flints have also been found at the site extending occupation back several thousand years before the Christian era. Saint Epiphanius relates that until the 4th Century CE, the population of Capernaum was entirely Jewish. At that time, there was a praxis or custom forbidding anyone other than Jews to live among them and this was also in effect in Tiberias, Sepphoris, and Nazareth. However, the Mishnah informs us that during the first three centuries of the Christian era, many "minim" (Jews who had converted to Christianity), lived in Capernaum.

There is an indication from some passages in the Mishnah which stress that the population of Capernaum during the first three centuries CE formed two blocks:  First, the minim (heretics), i.e. Jews that had accepted Jesus as Messiah and second, Orthodox Jews. Although it is not generally known or widely related, many Jews of the first century simply accepted Jesus as their Messiah but continued to worship in a Jewish context. They would meet in the synagogue on the Sabbath as Jews and then at sundown when the first stars appeared in the heavens, they came together as ma’aminim or believers. (The term Christian was not used until decades later.) They simply referred to themselves as minim or believers and considered themselves to be Jewish and worshipped in a Jewish context.

As a matter of fact, the ma’aminim became so numerous, that by 90 CE they outnumbered the Orthodox Jews in the synagogue so much so that they convened a special counsel at Yavneh to deal with the specific question of “What are we going to do with all of these minim?”. At the counsel, Shmuel Hakatan was selected from the Orthodox Jews to compose an additional blessing to the traditional 18 (shemoneh esray) that were recited every day. This 19th blessing, known as the berkat ha minim, was a curse against all believers and reads:

“Let there be no hope for the informers and let all the heretics be eradicated immediately and all the enemies of your people be speedily cut off: and the kingdom of iniquity speedily uproot, shatter and crush and subdue speedily in our day.” 

Actually, there are numerous different versions that are recited today that differ from one another, but basically it was hoped that the berkat ha minim blessing would be sufficient to drive the believing Jews from the synagogue. However, it failed in its purpose and by the end of the first century, many Jews considered themselves to be a part of the community of believers.

The aerial view picture below includes the synagogue remains on the left, occupation levels where people lived from before, during, and after the time of Jesus, and the domus-ecclesia (church) on the right. The following pictures are of the synagogue. Before leaving the subject, we want to recommend that you go to www.biblescholars.org and go to our Israel slide show gallery and view our presentation of Capernaum.

 

 

 

The excavations at Capernaum give us a unique look into the daily life of people from the three or four centuries before Jesus and the three or four centuries after the time of Jesus. Almost all of the events that are recorded in the first six chapters of Mark take place in Capernaum and realizing that one fact, it would do you well to reread those early chapters keeping Capernaum in mind. It is significant as well as inspirational to be able to visit the many cities along the shores of the Sea of Galilee and know that although they are in ruins today, it was here that Jesus lived and taught during a great part of his very brief ministry.

New Study Aids

The Bible Sex and You

Tithing Giving and Prosperity

Audio Book

The Mountain of the Lord

The Bible Sex and You reveals the hidden elements of sex during the biblical period by highlighting what was once permissible but later forbidden in Christianity. Marriage, sex, birth control, abortion, divorce, homosexuality, fornication, adultery and masturbation are each analyzed from antiquity in an attempt to reverse numerous 2,000 year old misinterpretations. The Bible, properly understood, could be the best sex text of modern times. (Length: 154 pages)

In Tithing Giving and Prosperity, Dr. Blizzard explains the ancient origins of tithing, giving, and prosperity from the historical and biblical perspective. He brings to light the laws and customs of tithing throughout history – through to present day.

Dr. Blizzard clears up many misperceptions: that the acquisition of material possessions equals prosperity, that one must give in order to receive, that tithing is a requirement of modern day Christianity.
His study reveals that tithing was strictly a Jewish practice; its basic purpose was as an act of charity (tzedakah) to support the poor and those in need; it was not practiced outside the land of Israel; after the destruction of the Temple, the practice of tithing ceased in Judaism, although acts of charity continued as a replacement for the sacrifices of the Temple, and more.

Citing multiple scholarly works in Hebrew, Greek, and English, Dr. Blizzard builds the case for attaining biblical prosperity – free of coercion.

Prosperity means to be safe, to be secure, to be at ease or rest; it means to have peace – to have shalom – to be whole, to be complete – a wholeness and completeness through God who lives and dwells within. Once one understands what real prosperity is, it becomes of much more value than the mere accumulation of material possessions. Real prosperity is Life! Life with God and in God. (Length: 57 pages).

In The Mountain of the Lord, Dr. Blizzard presents a historical view of the Mountain of God (the Temple Mount), the individuals associated with it, the structures that occupied the site, as well as the present condition and future implications. Perhaps no other spot on earth is considered so sacred or is surrounded by so much tradition and/or legend as Mount Moriah – the Holy Mountain, the Mountain of God, the "Mountain of the Lord."
Dr. Blizzard describes the First and Second Temples in detail – their location, construction, furnishings, and inner courts – citing biblical and historical sources throughout.

A vivid picture emerges as he explains the political, economic, and social forces that led to the rise and fall of the Temples, their destruction, and the building of the Dome of the Rock and El-Aqsa Mosque.

In conclusion, Dr. Blizzard considers these important questions: Does anything remain of the Temple? What happened after the destruction of the Temple? Where was the Holy of Holies really located?

The Mountain of the Lord paints an intriguing picture of the intertwined history of Israel, Jerusalem, and the many religions that have battled for the Temple Mount. (Length: 47 pages).