NazareneSpace Blog

When people speak of the “restoration of Nazarene Judaism,” many assume we are reviving something long extinct. Church history paints the Nazarenes — Torah-observant Jews who followed Yeshua as Messiah — as a small sect that vanished in the fourth century, erased by Rome and rejected by the synagogue.

But history, as written by the victors, conceals more than it reveals. When we examine the sources — the writings of the early church fathers, Jewish records, medieval chronicles, Renaissance manuscripts, and even modern testimonies — a different picture emerges. The truth is that Nazarene Judaism never died. It has always existed.

In the Beginning: Far From Rejection

The popular claim that “the Jews rejected Yeshua” is simply false. The evidence shows that the first-century Jewish response to Yeshua was the opposite: they embraced him by the tens of thousands.

The Gospel according to the Hebrews records that at the crucifixion, when Yeshua prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” many thousands of Jews standing around the execution site became believers. Medieval commentators preserved this tradition, noting that these converts correspond to the three thousand added at Pentecost (Acts 2:41) and the five thousand more shortly afterward (Acts 4:4).

The Book of Acts itself records exponential growth:

• 3,000 added (Acts 2)
• 5,000 more (Acts 4:4)
• “Multiplied” again and again (Acts 6, 9, 12)
• “Thousands more” continually added (Acts 13:45)

Even by conservative estimates, there were at least 213,000 Nazarenes by 45 CE, perhaps as many as 426,000 by 63 CE. By comparison, Philo tells us there were about 4,000 Essenes at the time. Within a generation, the Nazarenes had already become one of the largest Jewish sects.

So no — the Jews did not reject Yeshua. The majority of Jews who heard the message embraced him as Messiah, until persecution, division, and Roman oppression fractured the movement.

Rejected by Both Sides

The Nazarenes, however, were soon caught in the crossfire:

• 70 CE: They obeyed Yeshua’s warning and fled to Pella before the Temple fell, sparing their lives but earning suspicion from other Jews.
• 90 CE: The Rabbis at Yavneh formalized the Birkat haMinim, cursing the Nazarenes by name.
• 132 CE: During the Bar Kokhba revolt, they refused to follow a false messiah, and were branded traitors.
• 325 CE: At Nicaea, Constantine outlawed Torah-observance, Passover on the 14th, and Sabbath-keeping. He declared, “Let us have nothing in common with the detestable Jewish crowd.”

By the fourth century, the Nazarenes were anathematized by both synagogue and empire. Historians declared them extinct. But scattered evidence shows otherwise.

Hidden Survival Through the Ages

Far from Rome’s centers of power, Nazarene traditions endured:

• 7th Century: Bede records believers in Ireland and Scotland keeping Passover on the 14th of Nisan, resisting Rome’s Easter until the Synod of Whitby in 664.
• 9th Century: Irish scholars still cited the Gospel according to the Hebrews, Jerome’s “Nazarene Gospel.”
• 11th Century: Cardinal Humbert describes the “Nazarenes” (likely the Pasagini), Torah-keepers who believed in Messiah.
• 14th–15th Centuries: Medieval manuscripts continue to quote the Nazarene Gospel.
• 16th Century: Hebrew Matthews surface in Europe, preserved not by Christians but by Jews themselves — clear evidence of Jewish followers of Yeshua guarding their texts underground.

Even in modern times, a remnant surfaced: rabbis such as Isaac Lichtenstein in Hungary, Yehiel Tzvi Lichtenstein in Eastern Europe, and Daniel Tzion in Bulgaria, who all bore witness to Yeshua while remaining Torah-faithful Jews.

The “Jesus” Judaism Rejected

The Jewish people never rejected their Messiah. They rejected the “Jesus” of Rome — the lawless, Hellenized figure who supposedly came to abolish Torah. And they were right to do so. An anti-Torah messiah is no messiah at all.

What the Jewish people have not seen — at least not widely — is the real Yeshua: the Torah-faithful Messiah of Israel. Many Orthodox Jews (even rabbis) quietly confess him today, waiting for “the right time” to reveal their faith. As more encounter Yeshua in his original context, they recognize that the Ketuvim Netzarim (“Writings of the Nazarenes,” i.e., the New Testament) are as Jewish as the Tanakh itself.

Restoration in Our Day

In the mid-1990s, when the Internet was new, small groups in Texas, Georgia, Michigan, and Colorado each had independently been calling themselves “Nazarene Judaism.” None knew of the others, yet all were seeking the same restoration. There is every reason to believe that the same would have been true in the 1980’s or 1970’s. Pockets of Nazarene Jews always existed. There have always been Jews who were Torah observant, and believed Yeshua was the Jewish Messiah of Judaism, even if they were not networked with others.

This modern rediscovery confirmed the ancient truth: the Nazarenes never vanished — they were always here, hidden, preserving Torah and Messiah, waiting for the appointed time.

Today, through the Worldwide Nazarene Assembly of Elohim and other faithful communities, that scattered remnant is reconnecting, rebuilding, and carrying forward the work begun two thousand years ago.

Conclusion: Always a Remnant

Nazarene Judaism has always existed. It began as the fastest-growing sect of Judaism in the first century, survived curse and persecution, hid in manuscripts and remote communities, whispered through rabbis across the ages, and reemerged in our day.

• They fled to Pella and endured.
• They resisted Rome’s Easter in the Isles.
• They preserved Hebrew gospels underground.
• They multiplied in Acts, rivaling every other sect.
• They remained faithful to Torah while proclaiming Yeshua.
• They rise again today.

The Nazarenes were not destroyed — only hidden. And now, in our generation, the ancient remnant is restored.

Help Us Continue the Restoration

For nearly two millennia, the Nazarene voice was suppressed. Today, we have the privilege — and the responsibility — to restore it. Our work through NazareneSpace and the Worldwide Nazarene Assembly of Elohim depends on the faithful support of those who believe in this restoration.

If you believe this work is vital — if you want to see Nazarene Judaism grow, thrive, and reach the world — please consider standing with us.

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

Donate here

Every gift helps us preserve our heritage, publish vital research, and support communities worldwide. Together, we can ensure that the Nazarene voice is not just remembered, but heard again in power.

For centuries, Christian tradition has leaned heavily on the idea that Yeshua’s public ministry lasted three to three and a half years. In more recent years, some have pushed back, proposing a one-year or even seventy-week model. However, a careful reading of the Gospels—especially the Gospel of John—shows that both of these extremes overlook a more plausible and historically grounded answer.

This article will demonstrate that Yeshua’s ministry lasted approximately two and a half years, supported by internal Gospel sequencing, the Hebrew calendar, and sound manuscript data.

❗ The Chronology Debate

The Three-Year Theory:

• Based on the presence of three Passovers in the Gospel of John (John 2:13, 6:4, and 11:55)
• Sometimes inflated to 3½ years through theological typology (e.g., Daniel 9:27, Elijah’s drought)

The One-Year Theory:

• Based on Luke 4:19 (“acceptable year of the Lord”) and the absence of more than one Passover in the Synoptics
• Attempts to compress all Gospel events into a single spring-to-spring cycle

But both models require forcing the text to fit theology, rather than letting the text speak on its own terms.

📖 The Key Turning Point: John 6:4

“Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near.” — John 6:4

This verse is often the linchpin for dating Yeshua’s ministry. Some have questioned its authenticity in order to preserve a one-year model, but the textual evidence overwhelmingly supports its inclusion:

✅ Manuscript Support for John 6:4:

• Included in all major Greek uncials: ℵ (Sinaiticus), B (Vaticanus), A, C, D
• Present in early versions:
  • Old Syriac (SyrS and SyrC)
  • Peshitta
  • Latin Vulgate
  • Coptic
• Nestle-Aland 28 lists only “pc” (a few minor manuscripts) as omitting it—hardly significant textual weight
• Papyrus 66 and 75 both include the passage, contrary to earlier speculation

🧭 Chronological Sequence Disproves Compression

The biggest issue for the one-year model is this:

This proves John 6:4 is not the same Passover as John 13. They are separated by at least six months, confirming that John references three distinct Passovers, not two.

📚 The Three Passovers in John’s Gospel

1. First Passover – John 2:13
   Yeshua cleanses the Temple shortly after His immersion and calling of the first disciples.
2. Second Passover – John 6:4
   Occurs around the time of the feeding of the 5,000; leads into major teaching and rejection narratives.
3. Third Passover – John 11:55 – 13:1
   Yeshua’s final entry into Jerusalem, crucifixion, and resurrection.

Thus, we have:

• Two full years between the first and third Passovers
• Ministry beginning in the fall before Passover 1
• Crucifixion in the spring of Year 3, making the ministry approximately 2½ years

🧮 Constructed Timeline of Yeshua’s Ministry

✔️ This matches:

• All calendar and feast references in John
• Luke 24:21 (“today is the third day since these things were done”)
• Halachic Passover timing
• Astronomical new moon data (Nisan 14 = April 6, 30 CE = Thursday)

🔍 Why Not 3½ Years?

• John does not mention four Passovers
• No Gospel refers to a fourth spring
• The tradition of 3½ years is allegorical, not textual
• Daniel’s “half a week” and Elijah’s 3½-year drought are types, not timelines

🕯️ Why Not 1 Year?

• John 6:4, followed by Sukkot and Hanukkah, then another Passover, proves that more than one year passed
• Luke’s reference to “the acceptable year” (Luke 4:19) is theological and symbolic, not a precise chronological limit
• A one-year model fails to reconcile John 6:4 with John 13, unless the narrative is viewed as non-sequential—which contradicts the clear seasonal progression

✅ Conclusion: The 2½-Year Ministry Best Fits All Evidence

✡️ Support the Restoration of Scriptural Accuracy

If this study has helped clarify Yeshua’s ministry and the timing of His final Passover, please consider supporting our work. NazareneSpace is dedicated to restoring the original Jewish context of the Messiah’s life, teachings, and prophetic fulfillment.

👉 Donate securely here:
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Together we are recovering the foundations of the faith once delivered to the set-apart ones.

בברכת שלום ובשם המשיח,
James Scott Trimm

For nearly two millennia, believers have debated the precise timing of Yeshua’s death, burial, and resurrection. Many are familiar with the traditional “Good Friday” view. Others advocate for a Wednesday crucifixion to make room for “three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” But when we examine the Hebrew and Aramaic texts, Second Temple halacha, and astronomical data together, a clearer picture emerges—one that powerfully supports a Thursday crucifixion on April 6, 30 CE.

❗ The Problem with Traditional Timelines

1. Friday Crucifixion?

The most common Christian tradition places the crucifixion on a Friday. However, this creates a numerical conflict: from Friday afternoon to Sunday morning does not equal three days and three nights in any sense—literal or idiomatic.

2. Wednesday Crucifixion?

Some propose a Wednesday crucifixion to accommodate 72 hours, but this introduces other issues:

• It requires four days before Sunday (not three)
• It conflicts with Luke 24:21, which says “today is the third day since these things were done,” spoken on Sunday

📖 What the Scriptures Actually Say

Luke 24:21 — A Clear Chronological Marker

“Today is the third day since these things were done.”

Spoken on Sunday, this verse provides a mathematically precise window for counting backward:

No mental gymnastics are needed. Luke 24:21 makes it explicit: the crucifixion took place on Thursday.

Matthew 12:40 — The “Three Days and Three Nights” Dilemma

“For as Jonah was in the belly of the great fish three days and three nights, so shall the Son of Man be in the heart of the earth…”

This phrase, while meaningful, poses complications:

• It does not appear in Luke’s version (Luke 11:29–32)
• Some ancient Greek manuscripts note that the Jewish version of Matthew lacked this phrase: το ιουδαικον ουκ εχει τρεις η [μερας και τρεις νυκτας]
  “The Jewish version does not have ‘three days and three nights’ here”

Whether or not the phrase is original, it’s worth noting that in Semitic idiom, “three days and three nights” could still refer to parts of three days, not a literal 72-hour period. (Compare Esther 4:16–5:1.)

📚 Halachic and Linguistic Factors

What Is “Passover”?

• Nisan 14: Day of slaughtering the lambs
• Nisan 15: Begins the Feast of Unleavened Bread (an annual Sabbath)
• The Gospels often call the entire 8-day period “Passover,” creating apparent contradictions that vanish with a Hebraic understanding.

What Is “Evening”?

The Hebrew word ערב (erev) marks a transition, not a time range. Every day has two evenings—at sunset and just before nightfall. This adds complexity to interpreting “evening” events in the Gospels.

🗓️ Astronomical Evidence for 30 CE

Using Crescent-Sighting Calendar (not modern astronomical conjunctions):

• Astronomical New Moon (conjunction): March 22, 30 CE
• Likely Crescent Sighting: Evening of March 24, 30 CE
• Therefore:
  ➤ Nisan 1 = March 24 at sunset
  ➤ Nisan 14 = April 6 at sunset, beginning Wednesday night and continuing through Thursday

This timeline places:

• The Last Supper (Seder): Wednesday night (Nisan 14, sectarian reckoning)
• Crucifixion: Thursday afternoon (April 6)
• Annual Sabbath (Nisan 15): Friday, April 7
• Weekly Sabbath: Saturday, April 8
• Resurrection Discovered: Sunday, April 9 (Nisan 17)

This model matches the Gospels exactly when understood in their Second Temple Jewish context.

🛡️ Harmonizing John and the Synoptics

The Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke)

• Present the Last Supper as a Passover meal
• Use terms like “first day of Unleavened Bread,” reflecting a Pharisaic calendar

The Gospel of John

• States that the crucifixion happened on the day of preparation for Passover (John 19:14)
• Implies that the Temple authorities’ Passover occurred on Friday evening

Resolution:

Multiple calendars were in use.

• Yeshua may have followed a sectarian or Galilean calendar (e.g., Essene or Zealot), celebrating Passover a day earlier.
• The Temple calendar, possibly controlled by Sadducees, had Nisan 14 fall on Friday, hence the slaughter of lambs occurring after Yeshua’s death.

This calendar divergence explains why:

• Yeshua could keep a Passover Seder with his disciples
• Yet also die at the same hour Temple lambs were being slain the following day

✅ Summary: Why April 6, 30 CE Is the Most Plausible Date

🔚 Final Thought

Yeshua did not die in a theological vacuum. He died as Israel’s Passover lamb, within a halachic, calendrical, and liturgical framework rooted in the Torah. Recognizing the Thursday crucifixion on April 6, 30 CE, restores both the historical and Jewish integrity of the Passion narrative.

✡️ And perhaps that is the greatest sign of all:
The Lamb of God was offered at the very time appointed—
Not according to the convenience of later tradition,
But according to the rhythms of God’s moedim.

✡️ Support the Restoration of Nazarene Truth

If this teaching has blessed you or deepened your understanding of Yeshua’s final Passover and crucifixion, I invite you to partner with us in restoring the original faith of the Nazarenes. Your support helps us continue this vital work—publishing in-depth studies, translating ancient texts, and teaching the Torah-based message of the Messiah.

📖 NazareneSpace exists to reconnect believers with the Hebrew roots of their faith and the original teachings of Yeshua and his disciples. This work is made possible by readers like you.

Right now our account is pending $525 in the negative! We must raise at least that amount by the end of the day today to keep our account from plunging into the negative and starting a chain reaction of returned items and fees!

👉 You can donate securely here:
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or send donations by Paypal to donations@wnae.org

Thank you for standing with us in the restoration of all things (Acts 3:21).

בברכת שלום ובשם המשיח,
James Scott Trimm

Introduction

Many of us in the modern restored Nazarene movement know the story we’ve been told by church history: the Nazarenes — Torah-observant followers of Yeshua — disappeared from the earth by the 4th century. Rome absorbed their congregations, suppressed their writings, and replaced their festivals with foreign ones.

But history is written by the victors. And when we go back to the sources — the writings of Bede, the medieval Irish scholars, and the scattered quotations of our ancient Gospel According to the Hebrews — a different picture begins to emerge.

That picture suggests that in the remote British Isles, in Ireland and Scotland, the voice of our fathers may have echoed far longer than anyone has admitted.

The Nazarene Gospel in the Isles

Jerome, writing in the 4th century, tells us plainly:

“The Gospel which the Nazarenes and Ebionites use is the very Hebrew Gospel we have recently translated.”

Epiphanius even distinguishes between two versions — the Nazarene text (whole and unaltered) and the Ebionite text (shortened and altered).

Our own research — and the “Notes” preserved in my recently published The Gospel According to the Hebrews — document that quotations and citations of this Gospel survived even into the Middle Ages. And here is where it gets interesting:

• Medieval Irish and Scottish sources explicitly name the Evangelium secundum Hebraeos.
• Sedulius Scotus, a 9th-century scholar, cites it directly in his commentary: “…sicut in evangelio secundum Hebraeos legitur…” (“…as is read in the Gospel According to the Hebrews…”).
• Irish monastic libraries treated it as a familiar text, not a strange curiosity.

Meanwhile, across the Continent, medieval writers are largely silent about this Gospel. Why would it survive in the Isles and not elsewhere? Isolation — and perhaps a remnant who guarded it.

Passover vs. Easter: The Old Dispute

We Nazarenes know that the 14th of Nisan is not just a date — it is the appointed time to remember Yeshua’s last Passover, just as He told us: “Do this in remembrance of Me.”

Bede’s Ecclesiastical History records that in 7th-century Scotland and Ireland, there was a heated dispute between believers who kept Passover on the 14th of the month — no matter what day it fell on — and those who followed Rome’s Sunday Easter and weekly communion.

This “Quartodeciman” calculation is exactly what the earliest Nazarenes did. While Rome saw it as a “Jewish” practice to be stamped out, some in the Isles refused to let it go.

Shared Marks of Identity

When we compare what we know of the ancient Nazarenes to the medieval Celtic believers who preserved the Gospel according to the Hebrews and the 14th of Nisan, the similarities stand out:

How Could It Have Survived?

If there was indeed a remnant of our people in the Isles, how did they get there? A few possibilities:

• Trade routes – Jewish merchants carried tin from Cornwall and lead from Wales since ancient times. These routes connected the Mediterranean world with the far West long before the Roman conquest.
• Joseph of Arimathea tradition – Early British and later Celtic lore tells of Joseph of Arimathea — the very one who laid Yeshua in the tomb — as a tin merchant who traveled to the Isles. While historians debate the details, the tradition fits the known trade network, and it’s worth noting that one fragment of the Gospel According to the Hebrews preserved in Ireland contains an account of Joseph’s imprisonment and miraculous escape. If that text came west through the same channels as the trade, Joseph’s connection to the Isles may have been remembered for generations.
• Monastic networks – Early monks from the East, possibly with Jewish-Christian roots, could have brought manuscripts, including GH, into Irish scriptoria.
• Refugees from Roman control – Believers fleeing imperial pressure, especially after the suppression of Jewish and Nazarene practices in the 4th century, may have found safe haven in Ireland’s independent churches, far from the reach of Rome.

What This Means for Us

For those of us seeking to restore the faith once delivered to the saints, this isn’t just an academic curiosity. It’s a reminder that YHWH’s remnant can survive in the most unlikely places — a windswept island, a monastery library, an old calculation for Passover that refuses to bow to the “new” way.

It also calls us to action:

• Preserve our texts — just as they preserved GH when others forgot it.
• Guard the appointed times — just as they refused to abandon the 14th of Nisan.
• Hold fast to Torah and the testimony of Yeshua — no matter the pressure to conform.

Conclusion

History says we were gone by the 4th century. The evidence says otherwise. The Gospel According to the Hebrews was still being read in the Isles centuries later. The Passover was still being kept on the biblical date. The echoes of our fathers were still heard.

We may never have the smoking-gun manuscript that says “We are the Nazarenes,” but in the words of Polycrates to Rome: “We ought to obey God rather than man.” And perhaps, so did they.

Stand With Us in the Restoration

Brothers and sisters, the story we’ve just traced — of the Gospel According to the Hebrews, of the faithful who clung to the 14th of Nisan, of our heritage preserved in distant corners of the earth — is not just about the past. It’s about us, right now.

Just as those medieval believers safeguarded the words of Yeshua and the appointed times in the face of pressure, we are called to safeguard and restore the fullness of Nazarene Judaism in our generation. The work of Scripture Restoration — recovering lost texts, preserving the pure Word in its original context, and making it accessible to all — is the modern continuation of that same mission.

But restoration is not free. It takes time, research, travel, resources, and faithful hands working together. That’s why I am asking you, from the bottom of my heart:

• Pray for this work daily.
• Share these teachings with others who hunger for the truth.
• Give generously so that we can keep this mission alive and growing.

If you can step up today with a gift — whether it’s $50, $100, or even $500 or $1,000 — you will be directly helping to restore the faith once delivered to the saints and to pass it on to the next generation.

“We ought to obey God rather than men.” (Acts 5:29)
Let’s obey Him together — in our observance, in our study, and in our giving.

To donate:

• Send via PayPal to: donations@wnae.org
• Or click here: Donate Now

Thank you for standing shoulder to shoulder with me in this work. May YHWH bless you richly as you help restore the ancient paths.

The last days restoration of Nazarene Judaism would not be complete without the restoration of the lost Gospel according to the Hebrews!

The Gospel according to the Hebrews is a lost apocryphal Gospel, used by the ancient sect of the Nazarenes, which exists today only in about sixty quotations scattered throughout the writings of the ancient “Church Fathers”,

The Nazarenes

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 (1), 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)

The Gospel According to the Hebrews

The fourth Century “Church Father” Eusebius writes about the Nazarenes:

“And among them [doubted books] some have placed
the Gospel according to the Hebrews which is
the especial delight of those of the Hebrews
who have accepted Messiah.”
(Eusebius; Eccl. Hist. 3:25:5)

And as Jerome frequently mentions:

In the Gospel according to the Hebrews,
which is written in the Chaldee and Syrian language,
but in Hebrew letters, and is used by the Nazarenes
to this day…
(Jerome; Against Pelagius 3:2)

And in the Gospel according to the Hebrews,
which the Nazarenes are accustomed to read,…
(Jerome; Commentary on Ezek. 18:7)

Hugh Schonfield wrote of this Gospel:

The Gospel according to the Hebrews is a literary outlaw with a price on its head; but in spite of the scholarly hue and cry it still evades capture. Neither monastic libraries nor Egyptian rubbish heaps have so far yielded up a single leaf of this important document….
For behind Hebrews lies the unknown potentialities of the Nazarene tradition, which may confirm or contradict some of the most cherished beliefs of Orthodox Christianity. It is useless for certain theologians to designate Hebrews as “secondary” on the evidence of the present fragmentary remains preserved in quotation. …
Judged by ancient testimony alone it is indisputable that Hebrews has the best right of any Gospel to be considered a genuine apostolic production;…
Here is obviously a most valuable witness, perhaps the most valuable witness to the truth about [Yeshua] whom even a jury composed entirely of orthodox Christians could not despise, and who ought to be brought into court. But the witness is missing, and all that we have is a few reported statements of his taken long ago…
(Hugh Schonfield; According to the Hebrews; 1937; pp. 13-18)

The witness has finally arrived!

The Gospel according to the Hebrews is now published—a full reconstruction of the original Hebrew with a literal English translation on facing pages, plus detailed notes tracing the sources behind every surviving fragment. This is the original Jewish Gospel used by the original Jewish followers of Yeshua as the Messiah! This is a very important work of last days Scripture Restoration and the result of forty years of work!

Hardback: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FM3964X5

Paperback (primary): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FM3GG163

Reconstructed from ancient sources and presented bilingually for serious study and devotion.

Prophecy is being fulfilled:

But when they write down truthfully all my words in their languages, and do not change or diminish ought from my words but write them all down truthfully –all that I first testified concerning them. Then, I know another mystery, that books will be given to the righteous and the wise to become a cause of joy and uprightness and much wisdom. And to them shall the books be given, and they shall believe in them and rejoice over them, and then shall all the righteous who have learnt therefore all the paths of uprightness be recompensed.’
(1Enoch 104:10-13)

The work of restoring the books of the original Hebrew and Aramaic New Testament with literal English translations continues! The restoration of the ancient sect of Nazarene Judaism continues!

As I’ve said many times, I look on this work as co-operative—you and me, combining our resources so we can get this truth out to all who will listen. Thank you for your prayers and your faithful support; you truly make this possible.

If you’re able, a one-time gift of $500 or $1,000 right now would stabilize things so I can keep the restoration work moving without interruption.

Donate via PayPal: donations@wnae.org
Give online: https://nazarenespace.com/blog/donate/

Now is the time to step up to the plate. Thank you—from the bottom of my heart—for standing with this work.

I’m thrilled to announce that our Hebrew-and-English Reconstruction of The Gospel according to the Hebrews is complete—and the hardback is now available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FM3964X5. A Paperback edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0FM3GG163

This volume gathers the scattered ancient quotations and testimonies about this early Jewish Gospel and presents a careful reconstruction in Hebrew with a facing English translation. It’s a key milestone in restoring the earliest, Jewish voice of the Good News.

What’s next: restoring the original Hebrew and Aramaic of the Four Gospels

With this book out, I’m already deep into the next step: a restoration of the original Hebrew and Aramaic of the Four Gospels—produced in Jewish Western Aramaic and Hebrew, with a literal English translation.

Why this approach?

• The Old Syriac Gospels (Sinaitic & Curetonian) preserve a stream of the Gospel tradition that reflects Jewish Western Aramaic idiom and thought—often earlier and more Semitic than later church-standardized forms. They’re not mere “translations of Greek,” but revisions of an older, Jewish Aramaic Gospel tradition that still peeks through in wording, syntax, and idioms.
• By contrast, the Peshitta—though precious—is a later revision of that Old Syriac tradition, realigned toward the Greek Byzantine text-type and smoothed to fit post-Nicene theology and idiom. This is why it often reads “cleaner” but less Semitic.
• The larger picture that emerges is a Semitic textual history: Hebrew originals → early Jewish Western Aramaic → Old Syriac → Western-type Greek (the rough, Semitic-sounding Greek) → Alexandrian/Byzantine Greek; and the Peshitta reflects a revision toward Byzantine Greek.
• Practically, this means my restoration will collate the Old Syriac readings with early Peshitta witnesses (e.g., Codex Phillipps 1388), identifying where Semitic forms survived before later harmonization—and then render those in Jewish Western Aramaic and Hebrew with a literal English translation.
• Why not just stick to Greek? Because time and again we see that the most awkward, “un-Greek” features in early witnesses are exactly what we expect from literal renderings of Semitic originals—a signpost pointing back to the Hebrew/Aramaic substrate.

Put simply: this project aims to let the earliest Jewish voice of the Gospels speak again—in the languages in which Yeshua and His first disciples taught, with a transparent English that doesn’t hide the Semitic texture. The Old Syriac especially “opens a window into the authentic linguistic and cultural world” of the earliest Gospel strata and “preserves the voice of Jewish disciples before [later] Hellenistic” smoothing.

Why this matters

Our research continues to confirm the core thesis: the New Testament books were originally composed in Hebrew and Aramaic, and the Greek we know is, in many places, a translation or paraphrase of that Semitic base.

Recovering the Semitic shape of the Gospels clarifies difficult passages, restores idioms, and re-centers the narrative in its Jewish linguistic and cultural home. This isn’t just academic; it helps all of us hear Yeshua and His emissaries as their first hearers did.

How you can help (urgent)

We’re in a really tough spot right now. Yesterday we ended the day $100 in the negative, and as of today we are $398 pending in the negative. We have funds coming from GoFundMe, but they take a couple of days and won’t land until tomorrow or Thursday. If you can help with any part of this gap, it would be a lifeline.

As I’ve said many times, I look on this work as co-operative—you and me, combining our resources so we can get this truth out to all who will listen. Thank you for your prayers and your faithful support; you truly make this possible.

If you’re able, a one-time gift of $500 or $1,000 right now would stabilize things so I can keep the restoration work moving without interruption.

Donate via PayPal: donations@wnae.org
Give online: https://nazarenespace.com/blog/donate/

Now is the time to step up to the plate. Thank you—from the bottom of my heart—for standing with this work.

In the book of Hebrews, we read:

בהימנותא גיר מסתכלינן דאתתקנו עלמא במלתא דאלהא והלין דמתחזין הוי מן אילין דלא מתחזין
“For by faith we understand that the world (universe) was established by the Word of Elohim, and those things that are visible came into being from those things that are not visible.”
— Hebrews 11:3 (Aramaic Peshitta)

This passage underscores a profound theological truth: the universe was established by the Word of Elohim, and that which is visible came from the invisible. It brings to mind the idea that the unseen forces are more fundamental than the material world. But what could these “invisible” forces be? In the context of modern science, this invisible realm aligns remarkably well with the concept of quantum fields.

We also find a similar idea in Romans 1:20:

כסיתה גיר דאלהא מן ארמיתה דעלמא לבריתה בסוכלא מתחזין וחילה ואלהותה דלעלם
“For the hidden things of Elohim, from the foundations of the world (universe), by His creation, in His wisdom, were made visible, and His power and Godhead, which is eternal…”
— Romans 1:20 (Aramaic Peshitta)

The “foundations of the universe” which are “not visible,” from which the visible universe came into being, are the Quantum Fields. This passage, though written centuries ago, hints at an invisible reality behind the visible world, much like how quantum mechanics reveals an unseen world that governs the material universe.

What is Quantum Field Theory? (A Brief Overview for the Layman)

Quantum Field Theory (QFT) is the modern framework for understanding the universe at its most fundamental level. According to QFT, every particle is a vibration of a field that permeates all of space. Just as sound waves are vibrations in the air, particles like electrons and photons are excitations in their respective quantum fields.

Imagine a calm, invisible sea (the quantum field), where particles are like waves or ripples that appear and disappear, traveling through this sea. These quantum fields are the fundamental building blocks of everything in existence, and the behavior of these fields determines the physical properties of particles and forces.

In short, QFT replaces the concept of particles as discrete objects and instead views them as fluctuations in a continuous field. This theory is foundational to understanding modern physics and is a major part of the Standard Model of particle physics.

Wisdom from the Ancients

The Wisdom of Solomon, though ancient, presents a strikingly modern perspective on creation:

דמן רבותא דשפרה אתבריו הנא דברא אנון מתחזא גליאית
“From the greatness of beauty, it was created, behold, it visibly reveals Him.”
— Wisdom of Solomon 13:5 (Peshitta Aramaic)

This passage suggests that creation, stemming from divine beauty, is not just a physical phenomenon but reveals the Creator. The beauty and harmony of the universe, as perceived through nature, are a reflection of divine order and presence. In the context of our discussion, this could be understood as the visible manifestation of the “Logos” (Word), or the quantum fields that underlie all creation.

The Logos as a Field

The concept of the “Logos” (Greek for “Word”) has been an essential part of Christian and Jewish thought for millennia. The “Logos” is described as the Divine Word, which was instrumental in creation. In Kabbalistic thought, the Logos aligns with the concept of the “Memra” (the Aramaic word for Word) which, according to Gershom Scholem, has significant theological implications:

“The Memra – the paraphrase used in the Targumim, the Aramaic Bible translations, to refer to God’s word. The Memra is not merely a linguistic device for overcoming the problem of biblical anthropomorphisms; it has theological significance in its own right. The Memra is a world-permeating force, a reality in the world of matter or mind, the immanent aspect of Elohim, holding all things under its omnipresent sway.”
— Gershom Scholem, On the Mystical Shape of the Godhead: Basic Concepts in the Kabbalah (p. 181-182)

This “Memra” is analogous to the Logos, the Word, which is described as a pervasive, immanent force that sustains and permeates all creation. The Logos is not just a concept but an active force in the world, a reality that governs both the material and immaterial.

J. Abelson, in his work The Immanence of God in Rabbinic Literature, writes:

“The Memra has, to the minds of the Targumic authors, some real theological connotation… it connotes the manifestation on earth and among men of several aspects of Divine power, goodness, wisdom and justice. The ‘Word’ is a world-permeating force, a reality in the world of matter or mind, the immanent aspect of God holding all things under its omnipresent sway.”
— J. Abelson, The Immanence of God in Rabbinic Literature (p. 159, 1912)

This resonates deeply with the concept of quantum fields. Just as the quantum fields are pervasive and govern the behavior of particles, the Memra (or Logos) is an underlying force that shapes reality.

Phase Transitions and Coherent Phases: A Connection to the Ancient Elements

In modern physics, quantum fields undergo phase transitions — changes between different states of coherence and energy levels. These transitions are analogous to the classical states of matter, such as from liquid to gas, or from a disordered state to an ordered state (like superconductivity or superfluidity). The system moves through different phases of coherence, which can influence the properties and interactions of the particles involved.

Interestingly, the ancient concept of the four elements — earth, air, fire, and water — can be seen as analogous to these states of matter. The ancient philosophers might not have had a modern understanding of quantum fields, but they intuitively recognized that the world is made up of different “states” that interact with each other.

The Zohar, a key text in Kabbalistic tradition, teaches that the three pillars of the Godhead are analogous to three of the “elements” of the ancients:

יחוד דכל יומא. איהו יחוד למנדע ולשואה רעותא.
יחודא דא. הא אמרן בכמה דוכתי יחיד דכל מא איהו יחוד דקרא. שמע ישראל יי קדמאח. אלהינו יי. הא כלהו חד. ועד אקרי אחד.
הא תלת שמהין אינון. היך אינון חד ואף על גב דקרינן אחד. היך אינון חד. אלא בחזיונא דרוח קודשא אתיידע. ואינון בחיזו דעינא סתימא. למנדע דתלתא אלין אחד.
ודא איהו רזא דקול דאשתמע. קול איהו חד.ואיהו תלתא גוונין. אשא ורוחא ומיא. וכלהו חד ברזא דקול.
ואף הכא יי אלהינו יי אינון חד תלתא גוונין דאינון חד. ודא איהו קול דעביד בר נש ביחודא ולשוואה רעותיה בחודא דכלא מאין סוף עד סופא דכלא. בהאי קול דקא עביד בהני תלתא דאינון חד.
ודא איהו יחודא דכל יומא דאתגלי ברזא דרוח קודשא.
וכמה גוונין דיחודא אתערו וכלהו קשוט. מאן דעביד האי עביד ומן דעביד האי עביד

The [profession of] unity that every day is [a profession of] unity
is to be understood and to be perceived. We have said in many places
that this prayer is a profession of Unity that is proclaimed:

”Hear O Yisrael, YHWH“ first, [then] “Eloheynu” [and] “YHWH” they are all One and thus He is called “One”.

Behold, these are three names, how can they be one? Is it because we call them one? (literally: And also concerning the proclamation that we call them one?). How these are one can only through the vision of the Holy Sprit be known. And these are through the vision of the closed eye (or the hidden eye) To make known that these three are one.
And this is the mystery of the voice that is heard. The voice is one. And is three GAUNIN: fire and air and water. And all these are one in the mystery of the voice.

And also here “YHWH, Eloheynu, YHWH” these are One. Three GAUNIN that are One. And this is the voice of the act of a son of man in [proclaiming] the Unity.
And to which he sees by the Unity of the “All” from Eyn Sof (the Inifinite One) to the end of the “All”. Because of the voice in which it is done, in these are three that are one.

And this is the [profession] of the daily profession of Unity that is revealed in the mystery of the Holy Spirit.

And there are many GAUNIN that are a Unity, and all of them are true, what the one does, that the other does, and what that one does, the other does.
(Zohar 2:43)

In this passage, the Zohar teaches that the three pillars of the Godhead, though distinct in nature, are united in essence. They are akin to three fundamental forces or “elements” — manifesting as different aspects of the divine. This mirrors the modern understanding of quantum fields and their different phases or states, each representing a different expression of the same underlying reality.

The Zohar’s mention of the three pillars also echoes the concepts found in the Sefer Yetzirah, where three “mothers” (Aleph, Mem, and Shin) correspond to the elements of the universe: air, water, and fire.

שלש אמות אמש יסודן כף זכות וכף חובה ולשון חף מכריע ביתים
Three “mothers”: Alef; Mem and Shin
Their foundation is a pan of merit
a pan of liability
and the tongue of decree deciding between them.
— Sefer Yetzirah 3:1

שלש אמות אמש בעולם אויר מים אש שמים
Three “mothers”, Alef, Mem, Shin
in the universe are air, water, fire…
— Sefer Yetzirah 3:4a

Here, we see a direct connection between the ancient elements and the phases or states of matter. The three pillars of the Godhead can be understood as resonating in a similar manner, with the Ten Sefirot representing various facets of divine manifestation. The Sefirot, like quantum fields, undergo transitions and resonate at different frequencies or phases, shaping the fabric of reality itself.

Our Path to Resonating with the Logos

Just as quantum fields experience transitions and states of coherence, our journey as spiritual beings is to resonate with these divine “field” resonances. By aligning ourselves with the Logos, we tune our souls to the divine frequencies that permeate creation. This is the essence of spiritual work: to attune our inner beings to the cosmic rhythms of the universe and align ourselves with the Logos.

A New Course: Unlocking the Mysteries of God, the Universe, and the Inner Self

With this in mind, I am excited to announce that I will be teaching a series of classes on Kabbalah and the Zohar. These classes will explore the deep connections between quantum field theory, the ancient wisdom of the Kabbalah, and the Logos. More details will be shared soon.

In addition, my work on reconstructing the Hebrew and Aramaic origins of the New Testament continues. The lost Gospel according to the Hebrews, used by the original Jewish followers of Yeshua, is being carefully reconstructed in both Hebrew and English. We hope to have it ready for public release soon.

Your support makes this work possible. Every contribution helps us continue researching, teaching, and sharing the deep connections between the Scriptures, ancient wisdom, and the insights of modern science. If this project has inspired or enlightened you, we invite you to partner with us in bringing it to completion.

To learn more or to contribute, please visit our donation page.

For millennia, mankind has looked up into the night sky, stood in awe before the ocean, and pondered the structure of the atom—all in search of one thing: to know the mind of Elohim. The ancient prophets saw the heavens as declaring the glory of El, and modern physicists continue this same quest through equations, telescopes, and particle accelerators. The languages differ, but the longing is the same: to see beyond the veil—to rip the mask off the face of God.

Galileo once said, “Mathematics is the language with which God has written the universe.” This is no mere poetic flourish—it is a profound theological insight. If creation is a text, mathematics is its grammar, and physics its syntax. Every law of nature is a divine utterance. The speed of light, the curvature of space, the quantum fields humming in the vacuum—all these are verses in a cosmic Torah.

Werner Heisenberg, the father of quantum mechanics, famously said, “The first gulp from the glass of natural sciences will turn you into an atheist, but at the bottom of the glass God is waiting for you.” He understood what many of today’s materialists miss: that deeper inquiry into the fabric of reality does not eliminate God—it brings us face-to-face with Him.

This is the very premise of Scripture itself. The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 1:20:
“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes—His eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.”
Likewise, Wisdom of Solomon 13:4–5 proclaims:
“But if through delight in the beauty of these things they assumed them to be gods, let them know how much better than these is their Lord, for the author of beauty created them. For from the greatness and beauty of created things comes a corresponding perception of their Creator.”

In 1 Thessalonians 5:21, we are commanded to “Test all things; hold fast that which is good.”
This is not merely spiritual advice—it is the core of the scientific method. Question. Test. Refine. Truth does not fear examination.

And in Hebrews 11:3 we read:
“By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of Elohim, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.”
What a staggering statement of quantum reality: that all matter arises from invisible fields and forces. The writer of Hebrews anticipated particle physics by nearly two thousand years.

This is why I write papers on Theoretical Physics, not as a distraction from my labor in hos Word, but as a manifestation of it! This is why I seek. My work in theoretical physics is not just about equations or models—it is about unmasking the Divine. About uncovering the foundational logic—the Logos—that underlies reality itself. This is not science divorced from faith, but science as worship—as sacred inquiry.

But my work does not stop with theoretical physics.

I continue to labor, day and night, on restoring the original Hebrew and Aramaic texts of the books of the New Testament. Our most ambitious project yet—the complete reconstruction of the Gospel according to the Hebrews in both Hebrew and English—is well underway. This is the lost Gospel once quoted by Church Fathers and read by the original followers of Yeshua. Soon, it will be published for the world to read again, for the first time in nearly two millennia.

All of this—physics, Scripture, language, truth—it is one mission: to reveal the face of Elohim.

But we cannot do this alone.

Our rent was due on Friday. As of now, we still do not have it. We need your help.

If this work matters to you—please support us today.

Donations can be sent via PayPal to: donations@wnae.org
Or online at: https://nazarenespace.com/blog/donate/

Thank you for standing with us.

– James Trimm
Servant of the Word

In my ongoing reconstruction of the Gospel according to the Hebrews, I recently restored a powerful and haunting saying of Yeshua—preserved only in the Latin version of Origen’s commentary on Matthew (15:14 on 19:16ff):

23 The second of the rich men said unto him: Adon, what good thing can I do and live? He said unto him: O man, fulfil the Torah and the Prophets.
24 He answered him: I have kept them. He said unto him: Go, sell all that you own, and distribute it unto the poor, and come, follow me. But the rich man began to scratch his head, and it pleased him not.
25 And the Adon said unto him: How say you: I have kept the Torah and the Prophets? For it is written in the Torah: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” and lo, many of your brothers, sons of Avraham, are clad in filth, dying for hunger, and your house is full of many good things, and nothing at all goes out of it unto them.
26 And he turned and said unto Shim’on his talmid who was sitting by him: Shim’on, son of Yonah, it is easier for a rope to enter the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven.

Origen introduces this passage cautiously—“It is written in a certain Gospel which is called according to the Hebrews (scriptum est in evangelio quodam, quod dicitur secundum Hebraeos)”—but even he acknowledges its value, “not as authoritative, but to throw light on the question before us.”

But for those of us engaged in the restoration of the original Nazarene Gospel, this saying is far more than an illustrative anecdote—it is a missing cornerstone.

Halacha, Not Hyperbole

This version of the rich young ruler story, as preserved in the Gospel according to the Hebrews, is different from the parallel accounts in Matthew 19, Mark 10, and Luke 18. In the canonical versions, the demand to “sell all you have” seems abrupt, almost hyperbolic. But here, Yeshua grounds his demand in halacha—specifically, Leviticus 19:18: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

By invoking this commandment, Yeshua exposes the rich man’s claim of Torah observance as hollow. The Torah demands action. It demands charity. It demands solidarity with the poor. A man who lives in luxury while the children of Avraham go hungry is not fulfilling the Torah—he is breaking it.

This reconstructed passage thus restores a profoundly Jewish, halachic logic to Yeshua’s moral teaching. It is not some new Christian ethic imposed on the Torah—it is a return to the Torah’s heart. Yeshua calls out the hypocrisy of outward obedience without inward compassion. And he does so as a teacher of Torah, not as its replacement.

A Light on Gospel Origins

For scholars of Gospel origins, this passage helps confirm what the Church Fathers occasionally hinted at: that the canonical Gospels, especially Matthew, are abridgements of an earlier Hebrew Gospel. The Gospel according to the Hebrews preserves fuller sayings, more grounded in Jewish thought, and often more consistent with the halachic disputes of the time.

This isn’t just historical trivia. It’s restoration. It’s the rebuilding of the original Jewish Gospel that once circulated among the earliest followers of Yeshua—before it was redacted, softened, or Hellenized. And for those of us committed to restoring Nazarene Judaism—the original faith of the first-century followers of the Way—this work is central to our mission.

Standing in the Gap

This reconstruction project is not academic for me—it is personal. It is spiritual. It is a calling. And yet, the work cannot continue without your support.

Right now, we are in urgent need. Our rent is due tomorrow, and we do not yet have it. Our car payment is past due, putting at risk the very vehicle that allows us to function. If this work has blessed you—if you believe the restoration of the original Gospel matters—please consider standing with us right now.

Click here to donate:

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Or send donations by Paypal to donations@wmae.org

Even a small gift makes a difference. And your support doesn’t just help us stay afloat—it directly funds the continued restoration of the words of our Master Yeshua.

Together, we can uncover what was lost.

Shalom and blessings,
James Trimm
NazareneSpace.com

For many years, I’ve been immersed in one of the most thrilling and spiritually significant projects of my life: the reconstruction of the Gospel according to the Hebrews—the original Gospel used by the early Jewish believers, the Nazarenes, who walked in the footsteps of Yeshua while remaining rooted in Torah.

This Gospel is not merely legend. It is referenced by numerous Church Fathers and quoted in ancient sources in Latin, Greek, Syriac, and Hebrew. Some of its fragments have survived in marginal notes of medieval manuscripts, others embedded in patristic commentaries long overlooked by modern scholars. Slowly and meticulously, I have been gathering these remnants and comparing them with early Hebrew texts of Matthew, such as the DuTillet and Garza-Trimm manuscripts, to reconstruct what may very well be the most ancient record of Yeshua’s words and deeds.

The discoveries I’ve made are astounding. For example, I uncovered a powerful passage from this lost Gospel that sheds new light on Yeshua’s “Purification of the Temple.” According to a note preserved in a Latin manuscript, the Nazarene Gospel records that “rays went forth from His eyes by which they were terrified and fled.” When we reconstruct this into Biblical Hebrew—קַרְנַיִם יָצְאוּ מֵעֵינָיו אֲשֶׁר עֲלֵיהֶן נִמְלְטוּ בְּאֵימָה—we suddenly see Yeshua in the tradition of Moshe, whose radiant face caused the Israelites to fear to draw near (Exodus 34:29–35). This divine radiance links Yeshua to Enoch, to Moses, and to the expectation of the Messiah whose countenance bears the glory of Heaven.

Every new fragment, every restored phrase, is like a missing puzzle piece falling into place—unveiling a deeper, more Jewish, more powerful image of Yeshua than most have ever encountered.

We read in the Book of Matthew:

12 And Yeshua went into the Temple of Elohim, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the Temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves,
13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but you have made it a den of thieves.
14 And the blind and the lame came to him in the Temple; and he healed them.
15 And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the Temple, and saying, Hosanna to the Son of David; they were sore displeased,
16 And said unto him, Hear you what these say? And Yeshua said unto them, Yes; have you never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings you have perfected praise?
17 And he left them, and went out of the city into Bethany; and he lodged there.
(Matthew 21:12-17)

This is the event commonly known as the “Purification of the Temple”. The “moneychangers” would exchange unkosher coins (such as Roman coins) with graven images on them (remember Caesar was regarded as a “god”) for kosher coins for the Temple Tax. Also because of the burden of the journey to Jerusalem, people would convert shekles for darics for the journey, and back to shekles at the Temple (m.Shek. 2:1) This practice is mentioned in the Mishna:

On the fifteenth of the same month [Adar] they set up money changer’s tables in the provinces. On the twenty fifth [of Adar] they set them up in the Temple…
(m.Shekalim 1:3)

Yeshua quotes Jeremiah 7:11 in reference to the moneychangers identifying them as a “den of thieves”. This may be because they were not making fair exchanges, but it may also be because the Temple Tax was being exacted annually rather than once in a lifetime (see my Yeshua and the Temple Tax blog).

The obvious question arises, how was one man, Yeshua, able to accomplish this on his own? In his commentary to Matthew 21:12 the fourth Century “Church Father” Jerome writes (in Latin):

Igneum enim quiddam atque sidereum radiabat ex oculis eius et diuinitatis maiestas lucebat in facie.

or in English:

For a certain fiery and starry light radiated from his eyes and the majesty of the Godhead gleamed in his face.
(Jerome on Matthew 21:12)

But where did Jerome get this salacious information? The answer is to be found in a marginal note written on a manuscript of the 12th Century Aurora of Petrus Riga which reads (in Latin):

in libris euangeliorum quibus utuntur Nazareni legitur quod:
Radii prodierunt ex oculis Eius quibus territ fugabantur.

Or in English:

In the Gospel books which the Nazarenes use we read:
Rays went forth from his eyes by which they were afrightened and fled.

This refers to the Gospel according to the Hebrews, which was the original Jewish Gospel used by the Nazarenes, the original Jewish followers of Yeshua.

The following is the reconstructed Hebrew phrase:

קרניים יצאו מעיניו שעל ידם נמלטו באימה

While the English word “rays” may seem fantastic, it is a literal translation of the Latin “radii”. The literal Biblical Hebrew translation of this word would be קרניים which is the noun form of the verb קרן “to radiate” which appears in the Torah in a similar context:

29 And it came to pass, when Moshe came down from mount Sinai with the two tables of testimony in Moshe’s hand, when he came down from the mount, that Moshe knew not that the skin of his face was radiant while he talked with him.
30 And when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face radiated; and they were afraid to come near him.
31 And Moshe called to them; and Aharon and all the rulers of the congregation returned to him: and Moshe talked with them.
32 And afterward all the children of Israel came near: and he gave them in commandment all that YHWH had spoken with him in mount Sinai.
33 And till Moses had done speaking with them, he put a veil on his face.
34 But when Moses went in before YHWH to speak with him, he took the veil off, until he came out. And he came out, and spake unto the children of Israel that which he was commanded.
35 And the children of Israel saw the face of Moshe, that the skin of Moshe’s face radiated: and Moses put the veil upon his face again, until he went in to speak with him.
(Ex. 35:29-35)

[An interesting note is that the Latin Vulgate mistranslated this word “horns” (a related Hebrew word) which led Michael Angelo to sculpt Moses with “horns” and led to rumors that Jews had horns hidden under their kippah.]

Just as the children of Israel were afraid to come near Moshe because his face radiated, the moneychangers fled from Yeshua because his eyes “radiated” or “rays went forth from his eyes”. (Compare Matthew 17:2 = Luke 9:29 where Yeshua’s face also shines.)

Interestingly the Zohar says “there will never be a monumental event like this [referring to Exodus 35:29-35] until King Messiah appears!” (Zohar 3:132b)

This occasion demonstrated once again, that Yeshua was the prophet like Moshe that was prophesied to come (See my blog The Prophet Like Moses).

There is also a tradition found in the Book of Jasher as well as both 1st Enoch, that Enoch’s face may have likewise radiated:

And he [Enoch] did in this manner for many years, and he afterward concealed himself for six days, and appeared to his people one day in seven; and after that once in a month, and then once in a year, until all the kings, princes and sons of men sought for him, and desired again to see the face of Enoch, and to hear his word; but they could not, as all the sons of men were greatly afraid of Enoch, and they feared to approach him on account of the Godlike awe that was seated upon his countenance; therefore no man could look at him, fearing he might be punished and die.
(Jasher 3:20)

Blessed be You and blessed be the name of YHWH forever and ever. And my face was changed; for I could no longer behold.
(1Enoch 39:14)

Urgent Help Needed: Stand With Us Today

I hate to ask so plainly—but today we are facing a serious financial crisis.

Our bank account is currently $660 in the negative, and unless we can raise this amount by the end of the day, we are facing an avalanche of returned transactions, cascading fees, and financial damage we cannot afford. This is not just numbers on a screen—this will impact our family’s basic stability and my ability to continue this vital research and teaching.

If this work matters to you… if you believe the restoration of the Gospel according to the Hebrews is a worthy endeavor… if you have ever found light, insight, or strength through this ministry…

Please give today.

You can donate via PayPal to: donations@wnae.org
Or visit: https://nazarenespace.com/blog/donate/

Even a small gift makes a real difference. If just a few of you give $25 or $50—or whatever you can—we can dig out of this hole before the end of the day.

Toda raba for standing with us. Your support is what keeps the light shining.

—James Trimm