Month: October 2020

Messiah in the Lost Books of the Tanak
Part 1
The Wisdom of Solomon

Nazarene Judaism is based upon logic and the logical conclusion that Yeshua of Nazareth fulfilled over 365 Tanak prophecies. 

This is simply a matter of logic and math.  I have done the math and even if we say that there was a 50/50 chance of any given individual fulfilling any one of these prophecies by chance alone (and that is an overly conservative figure), then the odds of Yeshua fulfilling all 365 of these prophecies by chance alone would be

75,153,362,648,762,663,292,463,379,097,258,784,876,021,841,565,066,235,862,633,311,089,030,688,803,667,470,190,838,367,948,312,598,497,021,919,232 to 1 against.

That big number is 75 trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion, trillion.  Or in scientific notation 7.515336264 E+109.  This number is even larger than the number of atoms in the observable universe!

Since only about 107 billion people have ever walked the earth, this figure far, far exceeds the “statitistial proof” of a DNA test.

So the odds that Yeshua was not the Messiah are not statistically different from zero, because nowhere near enough people have ever lived for it to be possible for any one of them to have fulfilled all of these prophecies by chance alone.

These 365 Messianic prophecies included only prophecies in the Tanak as it has come down to us, but what of the books beyond the Tanak?

For example there is an amazing Messianic Prophecy found in The Wisdom of Solomon 2:12-22, a book found in the Apocrypha, which reads as follows:

12: Therefore let us trouble the Righteous One; because he is not pleasant to us, and he stands up against our doings: and he reviles us for our transgression of the Torah, and records against us the trespasses of our audacity.
13: He professes that the knowledge of Elohim is his: and he says concerning himself “I am the Son of Elohim”
14: He is a rebuker of our thoughts.
15: He is heavy upon us even to behold: because his way of life is not like others,
his ways are different.
16: We are esteemed by him as impure: he abstained from our ways like from impurity: he blesses the ways and the end of the righteous, and he boasts that Elohim is his father.
17: Let us see if his words are true: and let us test him by his departure.
18: For if the Righteous One is the Son of Elohim, he will receive him, and deliver him from the hand of those who rise up against him.
19: With despitefulness and with torment let us examine him, that we may know the concern of his humility, and be harmful to him.
20: To a shameful death let us condemn him: we shall be upon him and shall question his words.
21: These insipid things they did think, and were deceived: because their own
wickedness has blinded them.
22: And they did not know the mysteries of Elohim, neither hoped they for the reward of the pure, and they did not discern an old soul without blemish.
(Wisdom of Solomon 2:12-22 – Translated from the Peshitta Aramaic)

Lets look at this prophecy in detail. We begin with:

12: Therefore let us trouble the Righteous One; because he is not pleasant to us, and he stands up against our doings: and he reviles us for our transgression of the Torah, and records against us the trespasses of our audacity.
(Wisdom 2:12 )

These verses give a remarkable prophecy of the way Yeshua stood up against Torah transgression:

1 Then came near to Him scribes and P’rushim from Yerushalayim, saying,
2 Why do your talmidim transgress the decrees of the elders? For they clean not their hands when they eat bread.
3 But He answered them and said: And why do you transgress the commandments of Elohim–by means of your decrees?
(Matt. 15:1-3 HRV)

The Prophecy continues:

13: He professes that the knowledge of Elohim is his: and he says concerning himself “I am the Son of Elohim”
(Wisdom 2:13 )

In fact both Matthew and Yochanan (John) quote Yeshua as angering many by saying “I am the Son of Elohim/Eloah”:

41 And likewise, the Chief Cohenim reviled Him, with the scribes and elders,
42 Saying, He saved others, but Himself He cannot save. If He is the king of Yisrael, let Him now come down from this gallows, and we will believe in Him.
43 He believed in Elohim, let Him deliver Him now, if He delight [in Him]: for He said, I am the Son of Elohim.
44 And so likewise the robbers, which were crucified with Him, reproached Him.
(Mt. 27:41-44 HRV)

36 To Him whom the Father sanctified and sent to the world, do you say, You blaspheme … because I told you that I am the Son of Eloah?
37 Though I do the works of My Father, you do not believe Me.
38 But if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works: that you might know and believe that My Father is in Me, and I am in My Father.
39 And they wanted to seize Him again, but He escaped from their hands.
(Jn. 10:36-39 HRV)

The prophecy of Wisdom of Solomon continues:

14: He is a rebuker of our thoughts.
(Wisdom 1:14 )

This was also fulfilled by Yeshua as we read in Matthew:

4 And when Yeshua perceived their thoughts, He said: Why think you evil in your hearts?
(Mt. 9:4 HRV)

The Wisdom of Solomon continues:

15: He is heavy upon us even to behold: because his way of life is not like others, his ways are different.
16: We are esteemed by him as impure: he abstained from our ways like fro impurity: he blesses the ways and the end of the righteous, and he boasts that Elohim is his father.
17: Let us see if his words are true: and let us test him by his departure.
(Wisdom 2:15-17)

This actually recalls an account in the Torah concerning the life of Joseph. When his brothers cast Joseph into the pit we read:

20 Come now therefore and let us slay him, and cast him into one of the pits. And we will say, An evil beast has devoured him. And we shall see what will become of his dreams.
(Gen. 37:20 HRV)

There is great Messianic significance to this account. Joseph’s life was a type of the first coming of Messiah which parallels the Rabbinical Messiah ben Yoseph. The Suffering Messiah is called Messiah ben Yoseph because his brothers were redeemed by his suffering.

Like Joseph the Patriarch, Yeshua was betrayed by his own for a few pieces of silver (Gen. 37:28) he was cast into “the pit” (death) and raised back up so that he might redeem his brothers, Like Joseph, Yeshua’s teaching and revelation angered his brothers, who sought to put his claims to the test by casting him into the pit (of death).

The Wisdom of Solomon continues:

18: For if the Righteous One is the Son of Elohim, he will receive him, and deliver him from the hand of those who rise up against him.
(Wisdom 2:18)

This strongly parallels a Messianic prophecy found in Psalm 22:

9 (22:8) Let him commit himself unto YHWH; let Him rescue him; let Him deliver him: seeing He delights in him.
(Ps. 22:9 (8) HRV)

And both were fulfilled by Yeshua as we read in Matthew and in Yochanan (John):

43 He believed in Elohim, let Him deliver Him now, if He delight [in Him]: for He said, I am the Son of Elohim.
(Mt. 27:43 HRV)

18 And because of this, the Judeans all the more sought to kill Him; not only because He had loosed the Sabbath, but also because He had spoken about Eloah–that He was His Father, and made His nefesh equal with Eloah.
(Jn. 5:18 HRV)

The prophecy of Wisdom of Solomon continues:

19: With despitefulness and with torment let us examine him, that we may know the concern of his humility, and be harmful to him.
20: To a shameful death let us condemn him: we shall be upon him and shall question his words.
21: These insipid things they did think, and were deceived: because their own wickedness has blinded them.
22: And they did not know the mysteries of Elohim, neither hoped they for the reward of the pure, and they did not discern an old soul without blemish.
(Wisdom 2:19-22)

This was also fulfilled by Yeshua as Ya’akov wrote:

6 You have condemned and killed the just, and he did not stand against you.
(Ya’akov (James) 5:6 HRV)

The Messianic Prophecy of Wisdom of Solomon 2:12-22 fits well right along side of prophecies like Ps. 22 and Isaiah 53 as a profound prophecy of Messiah’s role as the suffering servant Messiah ben Yoseph as fulfilled by Yeshua of Nazareth.

(To Be Continued)

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As many of you know, my wife is very ill, and I spend most of my time at home as her caretaker.

I am at home and am in a position to dedicate many hours to this important work that I have been directed to do.

But I also realize that it is not the activity of James Trimm alone who is responsible to do this work, it is all of us together who are charged with the responsibility of accomplishing this work. I very much look on the efforts of this restoration work as a cooperative one with each one of you. We are all joint heirs with Messiah and should always be about our Father’s business. I am honored to be able to be partnered with truth seekers as this restoration of Scripture moves forward in fulfillment of prophecy.

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(Above, my wife in pre-op a few days ago)

Shalom chyaverim,

I got home from the hospital Thursday night (after 14 days) but the crisis is not over yet. My wife Kitty has come home under home health care. She has returned from the hospital with an anti-bionic resistant infection. Very few, very strong antibiotics affect this infection. and they are only effective intravenously not orally.

A nurse comes to our home to visit her several times a week, and she is getting I.V. antibiotics at home, which I have been trained to administer to her once a day. The antibiotics alone are costing us almost $200 a week (for two to five weeks).

I have lost count of all of the specialists of which she is currently under the care. But during the next week she will need to follow up with her primary care physician, a urologist (it has attacked her kidney), am infectious disease doctor, and a pain management specialist. All with co-pays.

It has taken me a couple of days of rest to recover, as I spent 14 days sleeping in a recliner, meaning I was awake until I was exhausted enough to sleepin in the recliner, and then slept about three hours a stretch.

This week I expect to get back to work on projects like the Scripture Research Project and the ongoing work of the restoration of Nazarene Judaism.

The bottom line is that we really need your help now more than ever.

If you have ever learned something from the research and teaching ministry of James Trimm, or if you simply wish to help us with alms giving, we need your help today. Donations sent by Paypal.com to donations@wnae.org normally reach us the same day (which will help me with dinner tonight and meals over the weekend). Or you can click here: http://www.scripturerestorationproject.com/donate/

For those who do not know, my wife Inga “Kitty” Trimm went into surgery on Friday of last week. She was sent home the same day, but within a few hours an ambulance had to be called to pick her up and take her to the Emergency Room and she was re-admitted. After a couple of days they sent her home again. By the end of the day, as the IV pain meds wore off, she was in excruciating pain and had to go back to the ER and she was readmitted again. This time they discovered a problem with her first surgery they had missed before and they had to perform a second surgery (on Wednesday). Today is Friday and she is still in a lot of pain. Of course the hospital is in a hurry to send her home, but she has been sent home too early twice already, so we are wanting to be sure that her problems really were resolved by the second surgery and that her pain can be managed at home (without IV medications). Right now she is still in a lot of pain, that could not be adequately treated at home. One thing my wife knows is pain, she lives in pain every day, but this is an unmanageable level of pain beyond what she has dealt with these last two years. It broke my heart when she later told me that when the ambulance picked her up, and she was in excruciating pain, that they gave her something real strong. She did not like te “drug trip” psychedelic effects, but she said she felt such a relief. For the first time in over two years, she was not in pain for a short time. “It was such a relief” she said.

As always, I have been by her side here at the hospital (fortunately Covid-19 restrictions recently changed to allow this). I brought my laptop (which is difficult to use here, because the room is so small there is no place for me really to use it. I also brought a handful of books to study. Rest assured that work on my various projects such as the Scripture Research Project, will continue as soon as we get back home. Meanwhile I am still able to do some research and reading.

My only place to sleep in this tiny room is a recliner. I have to be exhausted to sleep on it, and then can usually only sleep about three hours at a time.

This hospitalization is definitely hitting us hard financially. She eats free, but a guest tray for me costs a whopping $10.00 a meal! (at least the food here is good!) We are almost broke now. Also when we leave here we will have to get groceries, because we were almost out when we left home a week ago, plus we will have prescriptions to pick up, at least one of these will cost about $200!

The bottom line is that we really need your help now more than ever. I am literally watching funds to see if I will be able to order a guest tray for myself for dinner tonight (funds are that low).

If you have ever learned something from the research and teaching ministry of James Trimm, or if you simply wish to help us with alms giving, we need your help today. Donations sent by Paypal.com to donations@wnae.org normally reach us the same day (which will help me with dinner tonight and meals over the weekend). Or you can click here: http://www.scripturerestorationproject.com/donate/

THE ORIGIN OF HALLOWEEN

by Gerhard O. Marx
The Plain Truth October 1967

What about this strange festival? What have goblins, witches and ghosts to do with this feast of All Hallows Eve? And why the demoniacal masks and gaudy decorations?


EACH YEAR millions around the world observe the strangest of all festivals, Hallowe’en — All Hallows Evening. Especially so in Great Britain, Scandinavia and the United States. Every autumn, young and old alike anticipate its revels. It’s a night of frolicking fun and frivolous foolishness. All kinds of nonsense and superstitions are associated with this festival.

But Why?

On the eve of this night children dress in outrageous costumes and put on witch-like masks. Then they are turned loose to frighten or otherwise induce people into giving them food items and other gifts. Millions are familiar with the “trick-or-treat” threat associated with Hallowe’en. Buildings are desecrated, windows broken and other fooleries are resorted to.

WHY do so many keep Hallowe’en? What useful purpose does such a celebration fulfill in this “enlightened” scientific twentieth century? What purpose did it ever serve? Is it merely a harmless celebration to amuse our children? It’s about time we checked into this observance to see WHERE and WHEN it really originated and FOR WHAT PURPOSE it was established.

You may not have realized it, but the ancient pre-Christian Druids in Britain, the pagan Romans and Greeks, and even the Babylonians, among others, kept a Hallowe’en festival.

Not Christian

Yes, Hallowe’en long antedates Christianity! It was only later introduced into the professing Christian world — centuries AFTER the death of the Apostles.

Notice! “The earliest Hallowe’en celebrations [in Britain] were held by the Druids in honour of Samhain, Lord of the Dead, whose festival fell on November 1” (see Halloween Through Twenty Centuries, by Ralph Linton, p. 4). “It is clearly a RELIC OF PAGAN TIMES”! (The Book of Days, Chambers, v. 2, p. 519.)

Further, “It was a Druidical belief that on the eve of this festival Saman, lord of death, called together the wicked spirits that within the past 12 months had been condemned to inhabit the bodies of animals” (Enc. Brit., 11th ed., v. 12, pp.857-8). Read what this November celebration was like! It was a pagan belief that on one night of the year the souls of the dead return to their original homes, there to be entertained with food. If food and shelter were not provided, these spirits, it was believed, would cast spells and cause havoc towards those failing to fulfill their requests. “It was the night for the universal walking about of all sorts of spirits, airies, and ghosts, all of whom had liberty on that night” (Highland superstitions, Alexander Macgregor, p. 44). Literal sacrifices were offered on this night to the spirits of the dead, when, so the belief went, they visited their earthly haunts and their friends.

There was a reason why November was chosen for that particular event. The Celts and other Northern people considered the beginning of November as their New Year.

This was the time when the leaves were falling and a general seasonal decay was taking place everywhere. Thus it was a fitting time, so they reasoned, for the commemoration of the dead. Since the Northern nations at that time began their day in the evening, the eve leading up to November 1st was the beginning of the festival.

According to the Roman calendar it was the evening October 31 — hence, Hallowe’en — the evening of All Hallows.

Observed Everywhere

Hallowe’en, or “All Souls Eve,” was kept throughout the ancient pagan world. The observance was widespread. “There was a prevailing belief AMONG ALL NATIONS that at death the souls of good men were taken possession of by good spirits and carried to paradise; but the souls of wicked men were left to wander in the space between the earth and moon, or consigned to the unseen world. These wandering spirits were in the habit of HAUNTING THE LIVING … BUT THERE WERE MEANS BY WHICH THESE GHOSTS MIGHT BE EXORCISED” (Folklore, James Napier, p. 11).

To exorcise these ghosts, that is, to free yourself from their supposed evil sway, you would have to set out food and provide shelter for them during the night. If they were satisfied with your offerings, it was believed they would leave you in peace. If not, they were believed to cast an evil spell on you. “In Wales it was
firmly believed that on All Hallows Eve the spirit of a departed person was to be seen at midnight on every crossroad and every stile” (Folklore and Folk-Stories of Wales,, Marie Trevelyan, p. 254).

In Cambodia people used to chant: “O all you our ancestors, who are departed, deign to come and eat what we have prepared for you, and to bless your posterity and to make it happy” (Notice sur le Cambodge, Paris 1875, E. Aymonièr, p. 59).

This sort of Hallowe’en festival was strenuously observed throughout the non-Christian world. Pagans would pray to their false gods to prevent “DEMONS” and “witches” from molesting them. Notice! “The Miatecs of Mexico believed that the souls of the dead came back in the twelfth month of the year, WHICH CORRESPONDED TO OUR NOVEMBER. On this day of All Souls the houses were decked out to welcome the spirits. Jars of food and drink were set on a table in the principal room, and the family went out with the torches to meet the ghosts and invite them to enter. Then, returning to the house they knelt around the table, and with their eyes bent on the ground, prayed the souls to accept the offerings” (Adonis, Frazer, p. 244).

This, then, is the way the heathen world celebrated their Hallowe’en, their “All Souls Day”. Although some aspects of the Hallowe’en festival varied with each country, the overall pattern and purpose remained the same.

Hallowe’en “Christianized”

But how did the professing Christian world come to accept and keep such a day? Here is what you, probably, haven’t been told. In 607 A.D. the Roman Emperor Phocus defeated the Barbarians who were in control of Rome. The Pantheon in Rome, a pagan edifice which had been wrested from the barbarians, was given to pope Boniface IV. Originally, Emperor Hadrian built the Pantheon — around 100 A.D. He dedicated it to the pagan goddess Cybele and to the other Roman deities. This temple became the central place in Rome where the pagans honored and commemorated their gods. With this splendid edifice now falling into the hands of professing Christians, the question was, What should be done with it?

The pagans had dedicated it to Cybele and all their gods. But the Roman bishop now CONSECRATED IT TO THE VIRGIN MARY AND ALL THE SAINTS of both sexes (see The Mysteries of All Nations, Grant, p. 120). Thus this pagan building became “holy.” No more did the pagan Romans use this edifice to pray for their dead. It was now the professing Christians who employed the Pantheon in praying for their dead.

This re-dedication of the pagan temple to Mary and others occurred in 610 A.D. Now converted into a Christian shrine, an annual festival was instituted to commemorate the event. The day chosen was May 13.

This May 13 commemoration of the dead saints was known by the name of “All Saints Day.” It continued to be held in May for over two centuries — until 834 A.D. In that year the NAME and the DATE WERE CHANGED. Notice! “The time of celebration was altered to the FIRST OF NOVEMBER,and it was then called ALL HALLOW” — from where we get the name Hallowe’en, ALL HALLOW merely meaning ALL HOLY, and the “een” is a contraction of evening (Folklore, James Napier, p. 177).

Thus in 834 A.D. the Church in the Middle Ages began tocelebrate Hallowe’en on the FIRST OF NOVEMBER for the first time. This was the very same day the Druids in Britain, the Norsemen in Scandinavia, and the pagan Germans among others were keeping their festival of ALL SOULS EVE, in commemoration of Saman, lord of death, and his demons.

Reason for Change

Why did the church change the date to November 1st, thus coinciding with the pagans’ feast of ALL SOULS? There is a reason!

It was a general practice of the restored Roman Empire, now professing Christianity, to “convert” the pagans within the empire as quickly and on as large a scale as possible. Changing dates of festivals often made it easier to influence newly conquered peoples.

Ever since the time of Constantine — who made a state religion out of Christianity — the Roman emperors realized how essential it was to have a UNIFIED empire, in which as many as possible would be of ONE MIND. The civil and religious leaders saw how important it was for the sake of unity to ALLOW ONLY ONE RELIGION within the restored Roman domain. It became therefore a stringent state policy to force all non-Christians to accept the new state religion. Here is how the plan was carried out.

Conversion of Germans

When the German Frankish king Charlemagne invaded and conquered parts of Eastern Germany, he compelled the conquered German king, Wittekind, to be baptized and to accept Christianity. Having no choice and seeing his life was at stake, this heathen ruler who knew little or nothing about Christ — was forced into this “conversion.” And with him his entire people. This policy brought complex problems.

These pagans, who were usually baptized EN MASSE, were still pagans at heart.
Even though they became nominal Christians, they still yearned for many of their heathen practices, which they were expected to discard.

With Wittekind’s baptism, for example, a vast number of barbarians were suddenly added to the roll call of the church. Wittekind’s Germans, now professing Christians, and other conquered pagans, had a profound influence on the ecclesiastical affairs of the church in the early 800’s A. D. These barbaric and uncultured people brought with them many outright pagan practices and celebrations, Hallowe’en merely being one of many. They were fervent in clinging to their past ceremonies and observed them openly — yet supposedly converted to Christianity. What was the church to do?

Excommunicate them and thus reduce her membership? This she would not do. Was she to force them into discarding their heathen practices and adopt Italian or Roman ones? This, as she had learned in past times, was not possible.

There remained only one other way. Let the recently converted pagans keep certain of their heathen festivals, such as Hallowe’en or All Souls Day — but label it “Christian.” Of course the Germans were asked not to pray to their ancient pagan gods on this day. They must now use this day to commemorate the death of the saints.

To make it easy for them, the Roman Church even CHANGED HER DATE of All Saints Day from May 13 to November 1st to satisfy the growing numbers of Germanic adherents. The Church understood the yearnings the Germans and others had for their old ways.

Throughout history, the Christian-professing world has resorted to this action. We have the theological explanation of this given to us by Pope Innocent. He refers to a heathen festival the pagans kept in the early part of the Roman Empire and explained how the professing Christian world should treat this day: “The heathen dedicated this month [2 Feb.] to the infernal gods … In the beginning of this month the idolaters walked about the city with lighted candles, and as some of the holy fathers COULD NOT EXTIRPATE SUCH A CUSTOM, they ORDAINED that Christians should carry about candles IN HONOUR OF THE “VIRGIN MARY” (Folklore, James Napier, p. 181).

If a pagan practice or festival could not be forbidden, it was reasoned, “let it be tamed.” Thus many were persuaded to TRANSFER devotion from their former gods to the Christian God. So it was with the festival of ALL SOULS EVE. Notice this admission: “Thus, at the first promulgation of Christianity to the Gentile nations … THEY COULD NOT BE PERSUADED TO RELINQUISH many of their superstitions, which, rather than forego altogether, they chose to blend and INCORPORATE with the new faith” (Popular Antiquities of Great Britain, John Brand, p. xi).

What About Our Time?

Now come down to the twentieth century. You’ll be surprised to what extent we have inherited pagan rites and ceremonies from our forefathers, so obvious in the celebration of Hallowe’en. Note this classic example. “In many Catholic countries the belief that the DEAD RETURN on this day is so strong, that food is left on the tables and people still decorate the graves of the dead [on this day]” (Dictionary of Folklore, Funk and Wagnalls, v. 1, p. 38).

In Protestant countries many pagan superstitious beliefs and practices have become an integral part of each year’s celebration.

In many parts of Britain, BONFIRES are set alight on the eve of Hallowe’en. Of course fire has nothing to do with praying for dead saints. The original reason for the fire, however, was to frighten away witches and evil spirits on this night. Fire has always been an essential part of Hallowe’en in Great Britain.

You and Your Children

What about you and your children? What comes to your mind when thinking about Hallowe’en? The truth of the Bible? Not at all! Instead, weird and FRIGHTENING MASKS — persons PORTRAYED AS WITCHES AND DEMONS. Pumpkins and turnips hollowed out in the shape of EERIE-LOOKING faces! Lighted candles are placed inside to help bring out the more frightful side of these carvings. Dough is baked into small figurines RESEMBLING WITCHES AND SPIDER’S WEB CAKES are baked by the dozen for this occasion. Children, dressed up in the most revolting garments, are let loose on the neighbors, trying to scare the daylights out of them.

Let’s be honest. I have before me the Good Housekeeping’s Book of Entertainment, which my wife picked up from the local library. On page 168 of this much-read book, there is a section on what to do on Hallowe’en. Notice the astonishing advice given!

“Halloween decorations are quite as important as the food. When planning them, remember that if the room is to be dimly lit (preferably by candle and FIRELIGHT) the decorations must be bold to be effective. Orange, black and red, THE DEVIL’S COLOURS, are the colours associated with Halloween and THIS SCHEME SHOULD BE CARRIED OUT as far as possible … Have paper streamers and lanterns hanging from the ceiling, or, if you would like to have something less usual, you could make a giant SPIDER’S web with black and orange strings, or in narrow strips of crepe paper coming from the four corners of the room, complete with a LARGE SPIDER — one of the DEVIL’S FAVOURITE FOLLOWERS.”

Notice where the stress lies! Read further of the black magic associated with this festival. “To decorate the walls, make large silhouettes of CATS, BATS, OWLS AND WITCHES ON BROOMSTICKS … For the supper table small WITCHES WITH BROOMSTICKS can be made by using lollipops on 4-inch sticks.”

Weird lanterns, witch-balls, and witches’ cauldrons are some other objects, the book suggests, which must fit into the evening somehow. How pagan can you get?

NOWHERE does the Bible command us to observe Hallowe’en. Hallowe’en and other common festivals which people observe in the Christian-professing world have NO BIBLICAL BASIS.

They originated in paganism. The testimony of history stamps Hallowe’en as a HEATHEN festival. It’s built on a PAGAN FOUNDATION.

Your Bible warns: “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ” (I Cor. 3:11). Which is the BASIS of YOUR practice and belief?

Turn to Deuteronomy 12:29-31 and read God’s condemnation of Halloween!

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Was Columbus Jewish?
By
James Scott Trimm

Today is Columbus Day.  There has been some speculation that Columbus may have been secretly Jewish.

On March 31, 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella proclaimed that all Jews were to be expelled from Spain.

The now famous voyage was not funded by Queen Isabella alone. Two Conversos (Conversos were Jews who were forced to renounce Judaism and embrace Catholicism.): Louis de Santangel and Gabriel Sanchez advanced Columbus an interest free loan of 17,000 ducats to help pay for the voyage, Rabbi Don Isaac Abrabanel, a Jewish statesman did the same.

Columbus was originally scheduled to sail on August 2, 1492, a day that happened to coincide with Tisha B’Av, a fast commemorating the destruction of both the First and Second Temples. Columbus postponed this original departure date by one day to avoid embarking on the holiday, which would have been considered by Jews to be an unlucky day to set sail. Instead they left on August 3rd, 1492, the very day that all Jews were required by the edict to leave Spain.

On the upper left-hand corner of all but one of the thirteen letters written by Columbus to his son Diego are two handwritten Hebrew letters BEIT and HEY. This is a traditional abbreviation for the Hebrew b’ezrat Hashem (“with the Lord’s help”). For centuries it has been the custom of Torah Observant Jews to add this blessing to their letters. None of Columbus’ letters to outsiders have these letters. The only letter to Diego in which he omitted these Hebrew letters was one meant for King Ferdinand.

Update: We must raise at least $1,255 by the end of the day Tuesday (10/11/2022) or our account will plunge into the negative, causing a cascade of returned items and fees!

We need your help to continue the ongoing work, bringing the message of Messiah to the Jewish people, and bringing the message of Torah to the world. We need your help with the ongoing work of Scripture Restoration, as restore the original Hebrew of the “New Testament” books, a project which will bless all mankind, especially the Jewish people of Israel.

In these uncertain times, we need your support more than ever. The time is short, and there is much work to be done. As you might imagine, donations are low. If you can, please donate. This is no time to pull back from the great work in front of us!

As you know we have been digging ourselves out of a budget shortfall.  As I have said to you many times, I look on this work as a co-operative one with me, and all of you combining our resources together in order to get the job done of helping to teach this great truth to all in the world who will listen. Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart for your continued support, you are the ones who make it all possible by your contributions and your prayers for our work. I truly appreciate your help in every way.

If you can make a one time donation of $500 or $1,000 dollars to support this work.

Donations can be sent by Paypal to donations@wnae.org

Or click HERE to donate

And don’t forget to join the conversations at the NazareneSpace Social Network

Did Columbus Really Discover America?
By
James Scott Trimm

Today is Columbus Day… But did Columbus really discover America? Hebrews in Ancient America
By James Trimm

(Excerpts from my Book of the same name)
Contrary to popular opinion, ancient Jewish sailors circled the globe long before the landmark voyages of Columbus and Magellan.

This book includes appendices such as:

Appendix 1 Discourse on the Evidences of the American Indians being the Descendants of the Ten Lost Tribes; M.M. Noah; 1837
Appendix 2 Discourse on the Restoration of the Jews; M.M. Noah 1845
Appendix 3 A Table of Various Hebrew Scripts
Appendix 4 Report of the Archaeopetrography Investigation Of the Bat Creek Stone



Many civilizations had weird myths about the nature of the earth. Some thought it was carried on the back of an animal such as an elephant or turtle, and most thought the earth to be flat. Yet the ancient Hebrews knew better. Our prophet Isaiah wrote:

“It is He that sits above the circle of the earth…”
(Is. 40:22a).

The Hebrew word for “circle” here is KHUG (Strong’s 2329) which refers to a “circle or sphere” and is also used to describe the arched domelike shape of the sky (Prov. 8:27; Job. 22:14).

The ancient Hebrews were well aware of this spherical shape of the earth. Additionally the book of Job told them that the earth is not sitting on the back of some animal, but is suspended in the void of space by nothing:

“He stretches out the north over the empty space,
and hangs the earth over nothing.”
(Job 26:7)

When we compare Luke (17:34-36) with Matthew (24:40-41) we see that at the instant of the return of Messiah two will be lying in one bed (Luke 17:34-36) while two will be at work in one field and two will be grinding in the mill (Luke 17:34-36 and Matt. 24:40-41). In other words the ancient Hebrews were well aware that is night and day on different sides of the planet at the same instant!

The ancient Hebrews were sea faring peoples from very early times. For example when Ya’akov blessed Zebulon he said:

“Z’vulun shall dwell in the shore of the sea,
and he shall be a shore for ships,
and his flank shall be kept by Tzidon”
(Gen. 49:13)

And when the Hebrews celebrated their victory over the Cananites with a song, they sang of the victories of the Danite navy:

“Gil’ad abode beyond the Yarden;
and Dan, why does he sojourn by the ships?
Asher dwelt at the shore of the sea,
and abides by its bays.”
(Judges 5:17)

There is evidence that the tribe of Dan, as one of the Ten Lost Tribes, migrated to Europe and became the Danes. Is it a coincidence that the Danes are known as the world’s top seafarers?

Not only were the ancient Hebrews sailing the Mediterranean Sea, but it may also be demonstrated that King Solomon’s ships sailed the Atlantic and Indian Oceans as well. King Solomon had a navy of ships capable of making the voyage to Tarshish:

For the king had at sea, a navy of Tarshish, with the navy of Hiram; once every three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
(1 Kings 10:22)

Tarshish was a land rich in silver, iron, tin and lead :

Tarshish was your merchant by reason of the multitude of all kinds of riches: with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded for your wares.
(Ezek. 27:12).

Where was Tarshish? The Scripture tells us that Yahushafat king of Y’hudah and Achazyah king of Yisra’el worked together to build a fleet of ships also capable of sailing to Tarshish. They built these ships at the Red Sea port of Ezion-Geber:

35 And after this, did Yahushafat king of Y’hudah, join himself with Achazyah king of Yisra’el; the same did very wickedly,
36 And he joined him with himself to make ships to go to Tarshish, and they made the ships in Ezion-geber.
(2Chron. 20:35-36).

Tarshish could also be reached from the Medituranian port of Jaffa:

But Yonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of YHWH, and he went down to Yafo, and found a ship going to Tarshish. So he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of YHWH.
(Jonah 1:3)

This would place Tarshish somewhere in the Atlantic or Indian Oceans.

Years earlier Solomon’s navy was sailing to Tarshish as well. Solomon’s navy went on regular voyages that had them away for three years:

For the king had at sea, a navy of Tarshish, with the navy of Hiram; once every three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.
(1Kn. 10:22).

Magellan’s voyage around the world (1519-1522) lasted almost three years. Thus Solomon’s navy were gone long enough to circle the globe.

Yeshua made the statement that certain Pharisees would “compass the sea and land in order to make one proselyte” (Mt. 23:15). The Hebrew word for “compass” in the Hebrew here is SABIBOT (Strong’s 5437) meaning to circle completely around. It is the same word used in the Hebrew of Joshua (Josh. 6:3, 13, 14) to describe the children of Israel circling Jericho seven times before the walls fell. The Aramaic of Matthew has K’RAK which has the same meaning and which is the same Aramaic word the Aramaic Peshitta text of Joshua uses in these verses. Yeshua was saying that Pharisaic “missionaries” were circling the globe seeking converts all over the world.

Further evidence may be found in the apocryphal book of 2nd Esdras. Columbus quoted this book to Queen Isabella of Spain in order to obtain financial support for his voyage. The passage in question reads:

Upon the third day you did command that the waters should be gathered to one of the seven parts of the earth: six parts have you dried up, and kept them, to the intent that of these some being planted of Eloah and tilled might serve you.
(2nd Esdras 6:42)

The first believers in Yeshua were a Jewish sect known as “Nazarenes” or in Hebrew “Netzarim” (Acts 24:5). The “church father” Jerome (4th Cent.) described these Nazarenes as those “…who accept Messiah in such a way that they do not cease to observe the old Law.” (Jerome; On. Is. 8:14).

Elsewhere he writes:

Today there still exists among the Jews in all the synagogues of the East a heresy which is called that of the Minæans , and which is still condemned by the Pharisees; [its followers] are ordinarily called ‘Nazarenes’; they believe that Messiah, the son of God, was born of the Virgin Miriam, and they hold him to be the one who suffered under Pontius Pilate and ascended to heaven, and in whom we also believe.”
(Jerome; Letter 75 Jerome to Augustine)

The fourth century “church father” Epiphanius gives a more detailed description:

But these sectarians… did not call themselves Christians–but “Nazarenes,” … However they are simply complete Jews. They use not only the New Testament but the Old Testament as well, as the Jews do… They have no different ideas, but confess everything exactly as the Law proclaims it and in the Jewish fashion– except for their belief in Messiah, if you please! For they acknowledge both the resurrection of the dead and the divine creation of all things, and declare that G-d is one, and that his son is Yeshua the Messiah. They are trained to a nicety in Hebrew. For among them the entire Law, the Prophets, and the… Writings… are read in Hebrew, as they surely are by the Jews. They are different from the Jews, and different from Christians, only in the following. They disagree with Jews because they have come to faith in Messiah; but since they are still fettered by the Law–circumcision, the Sabbath, and the rest– they are not in accord with Christians…. they are nothing but Jews…. They have the Goodnews according to Matthew in its entirety in Hebrew. For it is clear that they still preserve this, in the Hebrew alphabet, as it was originally written. (Epiphanius; Panarion 29)

Yeshua had said certain Pharisees would “compass the sea and land in order to make one proselyte” (Mt. 23:15). But Yeshua complained that these Pharisaic missionaries fell short, saying “when he is made, you make him twice more the son of hell than you are” (Matt. 23:15). Certainly when Yeshua sent his own followers out saying:

19 Go you therefore, and teach all the Goyim, And immerse them in the Name of the Father, and the Son, And the Ruach HaKodesh:
20 And teach them to observe all that I have commanded you. And here am I with you, all the days, to the end of the world.
(Matt. 28:20-19 HRV)

and:

15 And He said to them: Go into the entire world, and proclaim My Good News in all of creation.
16 Whoever believes and is immersed, will live: and whoever does not believe, is condemned.
(Mark 16:15-16 HRV)

They took the phrases “all the Goyim ” and “the entire world” and “all of creation” to mean that they should “compass the sea and land” just as the Pharisees had in seeking their converts.

…Could Nazarene missionaries have brought their message of Torah and Messiah to the New World? … it seems certain that Hebrews did reach Ancient America and teach them many customs, perhaps even making many converts to Judaism from among them.

Ancient Hebrew merchants, explorers and missionaries (Pharisee and Nazarene) left several artifacts behind which have been found and which testify to the fact that ancient Hebrews came to America long before Columbus.


The Pitsfield Phylatery

In 1815 buried in a field which had once been a Mohican settlement the Pitsfield Phylactery was discovered in Pitsfield Massachusetts. The discovery was made by Joseph Merrick, Esq. who was described by the local minister as “a highly respectable character.” The strap contained parchments with Hebrew writing on it. It was taken to Professor Abiel Holmes, a scholar at Cambridge University, authenticated the scrolls as Hebrew.

The Keystone

in June of 1860 an armature archaeologist by the name of David Wyrick found a wedge shaped stone buried in twelve to fourteen inches of dirt in a pit adjacent to some Hopewell earthworks in what is now known as Newark Ohio. The most fascinating thing about this stone wedge is the fact that it had Hebrew inscriptions on each of its four sides.


The Ohio Decalogue

Several months later that same year Wyrick found another stone. This stone was found some ten miles south, underneath a Hopewell structure called “The Great Stone Stack”. This structure of stone had a base of 500 square feet and a height of 55 feet. Early settlers drew pictures of it and wrote detailed accounts of it. The stones were removed in 1831 or 1832 and used to reinforce a dam. A number of small mounds and been buried beneath the Great Stone Stack. Wyrick and five of his associates excavated one of the mounds. They found what they called a “coffin” buried in the mound, it was more like a funeral pier. They dug beneath this and found several artifacts, two of which have survived. The first of these was a stone box which contained the Decalogue Stone”. They also found a stone bowl and “two beautiful plumb bobs, but instead of being round (or oval) they are eight square”.

The Los Lunas Decalogue

In the rugged terrain of the Southwest United States, near New Mexico’s Rio Puerco River, New Los Lunas, there is a mountain known commonly is “Hidden Mountain”. Perched atop this mountain are the ruins of an ancient Anasazi city. The Anasazi were a cultural group in ancient America centered on the present-day Four Corners area of the United States, comprising southern Utah, northern Arizona, northwest New Mexico, and a lesser section of Colorado. They flourished for over 2,000 year between 1,200 BCE and to have eventually left their cliff top cities abandoned around 1,300 CE.

However this Anasazi settlement has one major difference from all other Anasazi settlements. This Anasazi settlement has a large bolder with the Ten Commandments inscribed on it in a form of the ancient Paleo-Hebrew script at the base of the mountain.


The Bat Creek Stone

Flowing through the Tennessee valley Bat Creek flows into the Little Tennessee River which flows down from the Appalachian mountains. In the 1880’s a Smithsonian Institution burial mound survey team led by John W. Emmert and overseen by Cyrus Thomas, conducted several excavations in the valley. These were actually bonafide excavations by any meaningful definition of the term, with the full credibility of the Smithsonian Institute.

When Emmert excavated one of the mounds he found nine skeletons. Immediately under the head of one skeleton were found a number of artifacts: an inscribed tablet (the Bat Creek Stone), two “copper” bracelets (which have since been determined to be brass), a small drilled fossil, a copper bead, a bone tool and two pieces of polished wood (ear spools?).

John Emmert and Cyrus Thomas both represented the stone upside down and later determined that the characters were a Cherokee inscription. It was not until 1971 1971 Dr. Gordon having turned the photograph of the artifact right side up, verified that the characters were indeed Paleo-Hebrew and not Cherokee. At this point the Bat Creek Stone gained worldwide attention.

In recent years the stone itself and the other artifacts that were found with it have been tested. These tests have verified the validity of the stone itself and dated the artifacts to as old as the first century.

I have just finished a new book on these very interesting ancient artifacts (which I have been researching since 1993) which will be published very soon. I will let you all know when the book is out.

* I stated at the top, this is not a Book of Mormon thing. By this I mean that the scripts used on all but one of these artifacts is written in a Script that dates to post-exile times. The alleged account of the Book of Mormon is supposed to involve Hebrews that supposedly came to the New World at the beginning of the Babylonian Captivity. Therefore these inscriptions could not relate to the claims of the Book of Mormon. (The following is excerpted from our cscsonline.net online History Class.  In addition to the Hebrews, there were many others who “Discovered America” before Columbus. Hui Shen – A Chinese Buddhist Monk Comes to America – In the year 499 CE the Chinese Buddhist missionary Hui Shen took a ship on a voyage 20,000 li (about 10,000 Kilometers or 6,214 miles) east of China to a land he called “Fusang” and reported his discovery to the Emporer upon his return. An account of his voyage is found in the book of Liang (7th Century). It is widely believed that Hui Shen’s land of “Fusang” was in fact the New World.
Brendan the Bold – Sometime between 512-530 C.E. an Irish monk known as Brendan the Bold is said to have crossed the Atlantic with a number of fellow pilgrims and discovered an “Island” which he called “Isle of the Blessed”. Many scholars have concluded that “the Isle of the Blessed” was in fact North America. The St Brendan Society maintains the claim that Brendan was the first European to reach North America.

Norsemen discover America about l000 C.E. The Norsemen from the Scandinavian Peninsula were the next Europeans to set foot upon the American continent. In the latter part of the tenth century (985), these hardy sea rovers, under the leadership of Eric the Red, made settlements in Greenland, and about the year 1000, Leif Ericson, the son of

Eric, is said to have come from Norway by way of Greenland and Iceland and to have landed upon the shore of North America somewhere to the south of Labrador. He and his

Companions, about thirty-five in number, named the place “Vinland” because of the abundance of wild grapes which they found. Here they spent the winter. Other settlers came, and a colony was founded, only to be abandoned later.

Prince Madoc of Whales – In the year 1171 C.E. Prince Madoc of Wales set sail from Llandrillo (Rhos-on-Sea) in the cantref of Rhos to explore the Atlantic Ocean with a small fleet of ships. Their expedition crossed the Atlantic and discovered a distant and abundant land on the other side. There about one hundred men disembarked and established a colony, while Madoc and some others returned to Wales in an attempt to recruit more settlers. After gathering ten more ships of men and women they sailed back to this New World, never to return. It is unknown what became of Madoc’s settlement.

Paul Knutson and the Kensington Stone In November 1354 Paul Knutsson was commissioned by King Magnus of Sweden and Norway to travel to Greenland and to investigate the state of affairs there, as a report had come that the people of Greenland were falling from the Christian Faith. Knutson’s expedition may have journeyed deep into North America and left behind the Kensington Runestone in what is now Minnesota. The Kensington stone has been regarded by some as a hoax, while others are convinced of its authenticity. The inscription on the stone reads:

Eight Swedes and 22 Northmen on (this?) acquisition journey from Vinland far to the west. We had a camp by two (shelters?) one day’s journey north from this stone. We were fishing one day. After we came home, found 10 men red from blood and dead. Ave Maria save from evil. (side of stone) There are 10 men by the inland sea to look after our ships fourteen days journey from this peninsula (or island). Year 1362

There is great debate as to whether Knutson’s expedition could have made it to Minnesota and left this inscription there. The authenticity of this stone has remained a matter of much controversy among scholars.

Prince Henry Sinclair and the Brothers Zeno – In 1784 Johann Reinhold Forster identified Prince Henry Sinclair (known as “Henry the Navigator”) with a certain “Prince Zichmni” described in letters written around the year 1400 by the Zeno brothers of Venice. In these letters they describe a voyage throughout the North Atlantic under the command of Zichmni, in which “Zichmni” discovered the land we now know of as North America in 1395 C.E., almost a century before Columbus’ voyage. Detractors from this theory question the authenticity of the letters, and the identification of Sinclair with “Zichmni”.

João Vaz Corte-Real – In his book Saudades de terra (1570-80), Gaspar Frutuoso gives the account of the discovery of a land across the Atlantic. Corte-Real was a Portuguese sailor and according to the account, he discovered a land called Terra Nova do Bacalhau (“New Land of the Codfish”) speculated by some to have been a part of North America in 1472, twenty years before the voyage of Columbus.

The Rediscovery of America by Columbus grew out of the Renaissance. Columbus may well have known that the “New World” was waiting to be “discovered” though he may also have believed that India, China and Japan were somewhere beyond this New World. Several maps and nautical charts predating 1492 have emerged which appear to show parts of North America on the far side of the Atlantic. The “Vineland Map” of 1440 shows a “new” and “fertile” land to west of Vinland. While once discredited, a July 22, 2009 article in the Scientific American gave evidence that this map could be authentic after all. A nautical chart not discovered until 1955, gives evidence that Portuguese captains were already in the New World by 1424[13]. Columbus’ brother Bartolomeo was a professional map maker and in fact worked in a cartography workshop in Lisbon. Some have speculated that Columbus actually used a map to get to the New World.

The rediscovery of America grew out of that remarkable revival in learning, industry, and commerce which took place in Europe in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. It will be necessary for us at this time to note more definitely the way in which this came about. We have seen that the intellectual and material life of Europe was greatly quickened near the close of the Middle Ages.

There was greater interest in learning. Commerce and manufacturing developed, and gunpowder was introduced. Printing was invented, and there was a renewed interest in geography and travel. The spirit of enterprise was in the air. One result of all this was to stimulate trade with the East.

The East was looked upon as a Country of Great Riches. For centuries the people of Europe had carried on an extensive and valuable trade with the East. India and China, or Cathay, as it was then called, were the sources from which the nations of Europe obtained gold, precious stones, silks, perfumes, spices, and other highly desirable commodities. The fact that little was known about the East made the locality still more attractive. There was fascination in its mystery. Travelers returning from India and China brought marvelous tales concerning the wealth and magnificence of those countries.

Marco Polo, an Italian who had traveled extensively in the East, wrote of the country in glowing terms in 1299, and soon after there appeared the entertaining “Voyage and Travels of Sir John Mandeville,” made up from earlier narratives of travel. These books fired the imagination of the West. They told of “silver walls and golden towers,” of precious stones and fountains of youth, and of palaces paved with plates of gold “like slabs of stone, a good two fingers thick.” “For centuries,” says Justin Winsor, “the Orient had been the dream of the philosopher and the goal of the merchant. Everything in the East was thought to be on a larger scale than in Europe, metals were more abundant, pearls were rarer, spices were richer, plants were nobler, animals were statelier.”

Access to this wonderful country was naturally a matter of great importance, and routes of trade between Europe and the East were studied with great care. In the Middle Ages there were three important routes: one leading to Genoa by way of Caspian and Black seas and Constantinople; another to Antioch by way of the Persian Gulf and the Euphrates valley ; and the third to Venice by way of the Indian Ocean, Red Sea, and Mediterranean.

These routes, dangerous and expensive at best, were being gradually cut off by the Turks as they extended their sway over Asia. Finally, in 1453, Constantinople fell into the hands of the Turks, and the route leading to Genoa, the birthplace of Columbus, was closed. It now seemed that the time was approaching when all overland communication between Europe and the East would be cut off. The great commercial and geographical problem of the fifteenth century was therefore the finding of a new trade route to the East. Some improvements had recently been made in art of navigation, and for this and other reasons an all-water route was especially desirable.

Spain and Portugal, the leading maritime nations of Europe at the time, attempted to solve this great problem by different methods. Portuguese sailors tried to reach India by sailing around Africa and thence into the Indian Ocean; while the Spaniards, guided by Columbus and acting upon the theory that the earth was a globe, attempted to reach the same place by sailing directly west. Both of these attempts should receive attention at this time.

Prince Henry, the Navigator. – The most notable efforts of the Portuguese were made under the wise and unselfish guidance of Prince Henry, the Navigator mentioned earlier. It is claimed by some that he discovered the New World in 1395, nearly a century before Columbus. A half a century before Columbus sailed on his first voyage of discovery, navigators sent by Prince Henry were cautiously creeping down the western coast of Africa in an attempt to round the continent and thus reach India. They finally succeeded after many years of patient endeavor. In 1497 Vasco da Gama sailed from Lisbon, and returned two years later laden with the jewels, silks, and fine fabrics of the East. The Portuguese had solved the problem, but not in the lifetime of their noble prince, and not until Columbus was about to sail for the third time in search of a western route to India.

Update: We must raise at least $1,255 by the end of the day Tuesday (10/11/2022) or our account will plunge into the negative, causing a cascade of returned items and fees!

We need your help to continue the ongoing work, bringing the message of Messiah to the Jewish people, and bringing the message of Torah to the world. We need your help with the ongoing work of Scripture Restoration, as restore the original Hebrew of the “New Testament” books, a project which will bless all mankind, especially the Jewish people of Israel.

In these uncertain times, we need your support more than ever. The time is short, and there is much work to be done. As you might imagine, donations are low. If you can, please donate. This is no time to pull back from the great work in front of us!

As you know we have been digging ourselves out of a budget shortfall.  As I have said to you many times, I look on this work as a co-operative one with me, and all of you combining our resources together in order to get the job done of helping to teach this great truth to all in the world who will listen. Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart for your continued support, you are the ones who make it all possible by your contributions and your prayers for our work. I truly appreciate your help in every way.

If you can make a one time donation of $500 or $1,000 dollars to support this work.

Donations can be sent by Paypal to donations@wnae.org

Or click HERE to donate

And don’t forget to join the conversations at the NazareneSpace Social Network

Birth of Yeshua at Sukkot
James Trimm

2:1-2 And it happened that in those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the Land should be enrolled. This enrollment first happened during the governorship of Quirinius in Syria. –

that all the Land should be enrolled – “all the Land” The Old Syriac Aramaic has ERA which is ambiguous in Aramaic. ERA (Strong’s #772) is the Aramaic equivalent of Hebrew ERETZ (Strong’s 776). This word can mean “world” (as in Prov. 19:4) “earth” (as in Dan. 2:35) or “land” (as in Dan. 9:15) and is often used as a euphemism for “The Land of Israel” (as in Dan. 9:6). The Greek translator mistook the word to mean “world” here causing scholars to mistakenly think that Luke was speaking of one of the three empire-wide censuses which were in 28 B.C., 8 B.C., and 14 A.D. None of these dates fits well with the time of the birth of Messiah. However we learn from the Aramaic text that Luke actually refers a much smaller local census and not one of these empire-wide censuses at all. This is supported by the fact that Luke uses the phrase “this enrollment first happened” so as to contrast this enrollment by another ordered by Quirinius in 6 C.E. which Luke mentions in his second book (Acts 5:37). That census was a local census of Judah and so it stands to reason that this census was also a local census of Judah or “Ha-Eretz” “The Land” as well.

during the governorship of Quirinius in Syria – This is the reading of the Peshitta. The Old Syriac Aramaic says “in the years of Quirinius governor of Syria” .

His full name was Publius Sulpicius Quirinius. Skeptics have made much of the fact that Quirinius is known to have become Governor of Syria in 6 C.E. (several years to late to fit the time of Yeshua’s birth). However there are two very workable solutions to this apparent problem.

The first is that Quirinius may have served as governor of Syria once before, perhaps as a military governor, prior to his installation in 6 C.E.. A Latin inscription has been found recording the career of a distinguished Roman officer who, when he became imperial legate of Syria entered upon that office ‘for the second time’ (Lat. iterum). This Roman officer could very well be Quirinius.

The second is that “the years of Quirinius” actually began before he actually became governor of Syria. Quirinius was governing in Syria as a Roman Senator in charge of being the assessor of property in Syria as well as Judea (which the Romans regarded as part of Syria). His name was also mentioned in “Res Gestae – The Deeds of Augustus by Augustus” which was found in the city of Antioch Pisidia placing him as consul as early as 12 B.C.. The Greek geographer and historian Strabo (circa 63 B.C. – circa A.D. 23), seems to indicate Quirinius may have been in Syria with a special commission for military operations between 10 and 7 B.C. Moreover the Roman historian Tacitus mentions that Quirinius was appointed by Augustus to be an advisor to his young son Caius Caesar in Armenia. Caius was sent to administer Syria in 1 C.E. with Quirininus as his advisor. So there is good evidence that “the years of Quirinius” in Syria began several years before his installation as governor in 6 C.E..

2:7 and laid him in a manger – Or a Sukkah booth.

There is evidence that Yeshua was born at Sukkot. The key to calculating the date of the birth of Messiah is Luke 1:5 where we learn that Zechariah the father of Yochanan was a priest of the course of Abijah.

The priests became to numerous to all serve at the Temple all the time, so they were divided into 24 courses (1Chron. 24). Each course served for two weeks each year, once in the former rain (first half of the year) and once in the latter rain (second half of the year). There were also three weeks in which all the priests were required to serve, these
were the three pilgrimage festivals (Dt. 16:16). 24 times 2 is 48 plus three is 51. 51 weeks is 357 days fitting nicely within the 360 day lunar year.

The course of Abijah is the eighth course (1Chron. 24:10) which serves the tenth week during the former rain portion of the year (this is because during Passover and Shavuot (Pentecost) all for the priests serve together Dt. 16:16). Zechariah had his vision while serving in the course of Abijah in the tenth week (It will become apparent that he was serving his first course not his second as the timing will show as we progress). Thus Zechariah’s vision took place during the 10th week of the year (The religious year beginning at Nisan/Abib around 14 days before Passover). We must add two additional weeks before Yochanon (John) could be conceived, due to the purity laws (Lev. 12:5; 15:19, 25). So Yochanon was concieved in the 12th week of the year. He was born about 40 weeks later during the 52nd week of the year (12 + 40 = 52) which brings us to Passover. Thus Yochanon was born at Passover, the very time that Elijah was, according to Jewish tradition, supposed to appear.

Yeshua was conceived 6 months (about 25 weeks) after Yochanon’s conception. This means Yeshua was conceived around the 37th week around Chanukah. This would mean the light of the world was conceived during the festival of lights.

Yeshua was born 40 weeks later (around week 77 that is week 25 of the following year) this brings us to the time of the fall feasts.

There are several clues that Yeshua was born at Sukkot:

1. Bethleham was “booked solid.” This would not have been due census which would have taken place over the period of a year.  Every Jew was required to come to Jerusalem for Sukkot (Dt. 16:16) this would have over run Jerusalem as well as Bethleham just five miles away.

2. Yeshua was born in a “manger” or stable. The Hebrew word for “stable” is “sukkah” (as in Gen. 33:17) so it is likely that Yeshua was born in a Sukkah/booth.

3. If Yeshua was born on the first day of Sukkot then he would have been circumcised on the “eighth great day” a festival following Sukkot. This day was the original “Simchat Torah” (Rejoicing in the Torah) which is now held the following day in Rabbinic Judaism.  So Yeshua would have entered the covenant on the day of “rejoicing
in the Torah.”

4. When the angels appeared to the shepherds they made a statement which closely echoes the ancient Sukkot liturgy “…behold, we have come to declare to you glad tidings of great joy.” (Lk. 2:10-11)

5. Sukkot is symbolic of Elohim dwelling in a “tabernacle” (body?) with us.

Donations have been low and we need your help today!!

If you can make a one time donation of $500 or $1,000 dollars to support this work, now is the time to step up to the plate, as we are in a budget shortfall.

Do not expect that the established religious denominations are going to be reformed and accomplish this paradigm shift. They are to set in their ways to be of any use to Elohim. To the contrary the established religious leaders are the single greatest deterrent to the promotion of the truth today.

We cannot do this work alone, but if we work together we can accomplish so much. So don’t forget to support this work with your contributions, tithes and offerings.

You make this work possible. Please help us bring the message of Torah and Messiah to a lost world and create Scripture study materials for believers.

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SUKKOT: Yeshua and the Festival of Lights
by
James Scott Trimm

Yeshua said:

I am the light of the world.
He who follows me will not walk in darkness,
but will find for himself the light of life.
(John 8:12 HRV)

The occasion was Sukkot (see Jn. 7:1). Sukkot was known as the “Festival of Light”. The entire city of Jerusalem was filled with light from giant 75 feet (50 cubit) tall menorahs. (m.Sukkah 5:2–4; b.Sukkah 52b).

AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE FIRST FESTIVAL DAY OF TABERNACLES THEY DESCENDED TO THE COURT OF THE WOMEN WHERE THEY HAD MADE A GREAT ENACTMENT. THERE WERE THERE GOLDEN CANDLESTICKS WITH FOUR GOLDEN BOWLS ON THE TOP OF EACH OF THEM AND FOUR LADDERS TO EACH, AND FOUR YOUTHS DRAWN FROM THE PRIESTLY STOCK IN WHOSE HANDS WERE HELD JARS OF OIL CONTAINING ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY LOG WHICH THEY POURED INTO THE BOWLS. FROM THE WORN-OUT DRAWERS AND GIRDLES OF THE PRIESTS THEY MADE WICKS AND WITH THEM THEY KINDLED THE LAMPS; AND THERE WAS NOT A COURTYARD IN JERUSALEM THAT WAS NOT ILLUMINED BY THE LIGHT OF THE PLACE OF THE WATER-DRAWING.
(m.Sukkot 5:2-3)

FOUR LADDERS etc. A Tanna taught, the height of a candlestick was fifty cubits.
(b.Sukkot 52b)

It was for this reason that Sukkot was the original festival of lights.  Channukah became a festival of lights partly because the first Channukah was a belated Sukkot celebration.

With this backdrop Yeshua makes this beautiful proclamation.

Yeshua’s statement here may be aimed as Essenes because it draws from the language of certain of the Dead Sea Scrolls which read:

…Thus will grow and understand and be glad
in the light of the world; you will not be a disowned vessel…
(The Words of Levi 4Q541; Frag. 24 line 7)

For only through the spirit pervading God’s true society
can there be atonement for a man’s ways, all of his iniquities;
thus only can he gaze upon the light of life and be joined
to His truth by His holy spirit, purified through all iniquity. …

He created humankind to rule over the world,
appointing for them two spirits in which to walk
until the time ordained for His visitation.
these are the spirits of truth and falsehood.
Upright character and fate originate with the
Habitation of Light; perverse, with the Fountain of Darkness.
The authority of the Prince of Light
extends to the governance of all righteous people;
therefore, they walk in paths of light.
Correspondingly the authority of the Angel of Darkness
embraces the governance of all wicked people,
so they walk in the paths of darkness.
(Manual of Discipline 1QS col. 3, 6-7; 17-21)

This is a reference to Isaiah 8:20-9:2:

To the Torah and to the testimony;
if they speak not according to this word,
it is because there is no light in them…

…the people who walked in darkness have
seen a great light…

For a deeper understanding of this passage in relation to Yeshua see comments to Matthew 4:14-16. For more comments on “light” see comments to Jn. 1:4

There is a spiritual battle taking place between light and darkness. Paul writes:

…what communion has light with darkness?
And what concord has Messiah with Belial…
(2Cor. 6:14b-15a)

Throughout the New Testament there are extended metaphores revolving around light and darkness. Believers are called “sons of light” (Lk. 16:8; Jn. 12:36; Eph. 5:8; 1Thes. 5:5 see comments to Jn. 12:36). The full armor of Elohim is also called the “armor of light” (Rom. 13:12). The New Testament speaks of those “who walk in darkness” (Jn. 8:12; 12:35; 1Jn. 1:6; 2:11).

But what does this idiomatic use of the terms light and darkness mean? For the answer let us turn to the Tanak:

For the commandment is a lamp;
and the Torah is light…
(Prov. 6:23)

Your word is a lamp to my feet,
and a light to my path.
(Psalm 119:105)

To the Torah and to the testimony;
if they speak not according to this word,
it is because there is no light in them.
(Isaiah 8:20)

…for a Torah shall proceed from me,
and I will make my judgment to rest
for a light of the people.
(Isaiah 51:4)

So according to the Tanak the Torah is a light for our paths. Those that walk in the Torah walk in the light. This is why the New Testament speaks of those who walk in darkness (Jn. 8:12; 12:35; 1Jn. 1:6; 2:11). These are those who do not walk by the light of Torah. Of these John writes:

And if we say that we have fellowship with him,
and walk in darkness,
we are liars and we do not walk in truth.
(1Jn. 1:6)

Notice that John equates “walking in truth” with walking in the light. As we noted previously “the Torah is truth” (Ps. 119:142) thus if “walking in the light” means “walking in truth” then both phrases refer to walking in the Torah. This takes us back to our passages from the Tanak given above. John also confirms this by writing the parallel statements:

…walking in truth.
…walk according to his commandments.
(2Jn. 1:4, 6)

As we have noted Paul also calls the armor of Elohim the “armor of light” (Rom. 13:12). According to Paul we are involved in a spiritual battle with “the rulers of the darkness of this world.” (Eph. 6:12) and thus he instructs us to put on this “armor of light” (see comments to Eph. 6:13 & Rom. 13:12)

Donations have been low, bills are due and rent will be due soon as weel. We need your help today!

We need your support more than ever. The time is short, and there is much work to be done. As you might imagine, donations are low. If you can, please donate. This is no time to pull back from the great work in front of us!

We need your help to continue the ongoing work, bringing the message of Messiah to the Jewish people, and bringing the message of Torah to the world. We need your help with the ongoing work of Scripture Restoration, as restore the original Hebrew of the “New Testament” books, a project which will bless all mankind, especially the Jewish people of Israel.

In these uncertain times, we need your support more than ever. The time is short, and there is much work to be done. As you might imagine, donations are low. If you can, please donate. This is no time to pull back from the great work in front of us!

As you know we have been digging ourselves out of a budget shortfall.  As I have said to you many times, I look on this work as a co-operative one with me, and all of you combining our resources together in order to get the job done of helping to teach this great truth to all in the world who will listen. Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart for your continued support, you are the ones who make it all possible by your contributions and your prayers for our work. I truly appreciate your help in every way.

If you can make a one time donation of $500 or $1,000 dollars to support this work.

Donations can be sent by Paypal to donations@wnae.org or by Zelle or Go Fund Me.

Click HERE to donate

And don’t forget to join the conversations at the NazareneSpace Social Network

SUKKOT: Yeshua and the Water Libation Ceremony
By
James Scott Trimm

We read in Yochanan:

And on the great day, which is the last of the feast,
Yeshua stood and cried out and said,
If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.
Whoever believes in me, as the Scriptures have said,
rivers of water of life will flow from his belly.
(Yochanan 7:37-38)

The occasion of this event is the last great day of Sukkot (Jn. 7:2) and the setting appears to be the water libation ceremony at the Temple. A priest had a flask of gold filled with water and another has a flask of gold filled with wine. There were two silver bowls perforated with holes like a narrow snout. One was wide for the water the other is narrow for the wine. The priests poured the wine and water into each of their bowls. The wine and water mixed together. The wine flowing slowly through the narrow snout and the water flowing quickly through the wider snout.
The ceremony is described in the Mishnah as follows:

How was the water libation [performed]?  A golden flagon holding three logs was filled from the Siloam.  When they arrived at the water gate, they sounded a tekiah [long blast], a teru’ah [tremulous note] and again a tekiah [logn blast] [the priest then] went up the ascent [of the altar] and turned to his left where there were two silver bowls.  Rabbi Judah said, They were of plaster [but they looked silver] because their surfaces were darkened from the wine.  They had each a hole like a slender snout, one [hole] being wide and the other narrow so that both emptied themselves together.  The one on the west was for water and the one on the east was for wine.  If one poured the flagon of water into the bowl for wine, or that of wine into that for water, he has fulfilled his obligation.  Rabbi Judah states, With one log he performed the ceremony of the water libation all eight days.  To [the Priest] who performed the libation they used to say, ‘Raise thy hand’; for on a certain occasion, a certain man poured out the water over his feet, and all the people pelted him with their etrogs.

As was its performance on weekdays, so was its performance on the Sabbath, save that on the eve of the Sabbath an unhallowed golden barrel was filled from the Siloam, and placed in a chamber.  If it was poured away or uncovred, it was refilled from the laver, for wine or water which has become uncovered is invalid for the altar.(m.Sukkah 4:9 (b.Sukkah 48a-b)

It was as this ceremony was being performed that Yeshua stood up and said:

If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink.
Whoever believes in me, as the Scriptures have said,
rivers of water of life will flow from his belly.

Similar imagery appears in the Book of Enoch (see comments to Jude 1:14-15):

And in that place I saw the fountain of righteousness
Which was inexhaustible:
And around it were many fountains of wisdom:
And all the thirsty drank of them,
And were filled with wisdom,
And their dwellings were with the righteous and holy and elect.
(1Enoch 48:1)

And elsewhere in the Mishna:

…Let your house be a gathering place for sages…
and drink in their words with gusto.
(m.Avot 1:4)

We must raise at least $220 by the end of the day today (10/15/24) to prevent our account from plunging into the negative and starting a chain reaction of returned items and fees! We need your help today!

We need your support more than ever. The time is short, and there is much work to be done. As you might imagine, donations are low. If you can, please donate. This is no time to pull back from the great work in front of us!

We need your help to continue the ongoing work, bringing the message of Messiah to the Jewish people, and bringing the message of Torah to the world. We need your help with the ongoing work of Scripture Restoration, as restore the original Hebrew of the “New Testament” books, a project which will bless all mankind, especially the Jewish people of Israel.

In these uncertain times, we need your support more than ever. The time is short, and there is much work to be done. As you might imagine, donations are low. If you can, please donate. This is no time to pull back from the great work in front of us!

As you know we have been digging ourselves out of a budget shortfall.  As I have said to you many times, I look on this work as a co-operative one with me, and all of you combining our resources together in order to get the job done of helping to teach this great truth to all in the world who will listen. Thank you so much from the bottom of my heart for your continued support, you are the ones who make it all possible by your contributions and your prayers for our work. I truly appreciate your help in every way.

If you can make a one time donation of $500 or $1,000 dollars to support this work.

Donations can be sent by Paypal to donations@wnae.org or by Zelle or Go Fund Me.


Click HERE to donate

And don’t forget to join the conversations at the NazareneSpace Social Network