09-21-2003, 03:02 PM
I hope you don't mind my emphasizing, akhi Andrew!
Andrew Gabriel Roth "Killer wordplay in Hebrews 3:1"
Apr-29-2003 at 03:52 AM (GMT3)
Andrew Gabriel Roth "Killer wordplay in Hebrews 3:1"
Apr-29-2003 at 03:52 AM (GMT3)
Quote:Shlama Akhay,
Here is an amazing proof, hot off the press. It deals with a familar concept but has a really neat new twist:
When is a priest not a priest?
This especially powerful proof, like so many others, speaks to the authentic Jewish heart of the original Messianic believers. Specifically, there are two Aramaic words for "priest" that are used in the Peshitta. The first, kahna is the direct cognate of the Hebrew word cohen and therefore designates a priest from the traditional Levitical order. The second word, kumrea, appears several times in Hebrews. Let's look at how this latter word is used:
From henceforth, all my holy brethren, called by a call from heaven, look to this Apostle and High Priest (kumrea) of our faith, Y'shua the Messiah.
Hebrews 3:1
This verse is nothing short of genius in Aramaic! Y'shua, because he was not from the tribe of Levi, is not being called cohen, but kumrea--a non-Levitical priest like Jethro--instead. Interestingly enough also, the Peshitta Tanakh consistently translates cohen/kahna into kumrea with regards to these same men, (Genesis 14:18, Exodus 2:16, 3:1 and 18:1).
This is a very important point, because it goes to the Messianic prophecies that deal with Messiah being "like a priest after Melchisedec" (Psalm 110), or a non-Aaronic figure to in effect take over interceding for Israel. Another mind-blower part of this verse however is the deliberate use of the phrase "called by a call".
Reason being, the book of Leviticus (Greek for "of the priests/Levites") is actually named Vayikra in Hebrew, after the first three words in the book, "and he called ". Furthermore, the Aramaic word Paul uses here--qarya--is derived from the exact same root. So in essence, we have one classification of priests being "called to" compare themselves to the other!
Nor is this usage a fluke, since it appears almost another two dozen times in this Epistle, and exactly the same way (4:14, 5:1, 5:5, 5:6, 6:20, 7:1, 7:11, 7:15, 7:17, 7:21, 7:23, 7:26, 7:27, 7:28, 8:1, 8:3, 8:4, 9:25, 9:6, 10:11, 10:21, 13:11). In some cases also, kumrea is in a given passage twice just to cement the point Paul is trying to make.
Furthermore, this word is utterly unique to Hebrews because of its exclusive emphasis on Messiah being the true high priest that gives eternal atonement.
By contrast, in every other book of the New Testament, we are confined solely to the word kahna/cohen, because there is it is the regular kind of priest that is being referenced.
However, perhaps the most remarkable aspect of them all is that Peshitta Hebrews actually "out Judaizes" the Tanakh itself, since the Hebrew Bible makes no distinction between Levite priests like Aaron, and righteous Gentiles like Melchisedec and Jethro. Therefore, in this instance, we clearly see that the Apostle Paul is still "zealous for the law", as he always claimed.
Shlama w'burkate
Andrew Gabriel Roth
--><img src="{SMILIES_PATH}/happy.gif" alt="