March 18, 2023
by Rick Combs
This section concerning the Talmud is from my upcoming book, The Greatest Epic of the Ages.
The Talmud has long been designated as the literary reservoir of Rabbinic Judaism. It was officially added to the Sacred Literature of Israel during the Hellenistic Age in 250-200 BC in Jewish history. As its’ origin and importance grew through the centuries, by the time we come to the time of Jesus, the Talmud “is not to be questioned”. The claim became revered that it was given by God, simultaneously with the Law given to Moses. “It was found necessary…to supplement the written Torah (the Word of God.)”. (Ref. The Apostasy of the Christian Church by R. Dawson Barlow, pg. 23).
The Pharisees had made many ordinances among the people, according to the tradition of their fathers. None of these are written in the Law of Moses. Tradition became as important, or more so, as the written Torah. “Torah which is not based on tradition (ie: the tradition of the Talmud) is not Torah” (ref. The Book of Jewish Knowledge, pg. 44).
With the substance of Jesus’ teachings, and especially the Sermon on the Mount, it is clear that the Lord Jesus and the Pharisees were at complete polar opposites in their doctrine. They did not believe the same thing. Throughout his ministry, Jesus railed against the apostate Jew’s religion which replaced the Word of God with the thoughts, traditions, and philosophies of men.
Thus, we hear from Jesus these words, “You have heard it said by them of old” and “but I say unto you”.
The same is true today. Traditions and philosophies of men have replaced the Word of God.
All of the modern translations have serious problems. I have selected the most popular as examples; the NIV, ESV, and NLT. If you want to dig further into this subject, a very thorough resource is Bible PerVERSIONS by Lonna and Eric Neumann. Available on Amazon. Also, if you are interested in the history of the KJB and the modern translations, check out the research entitled ANTIOCH vs ALEXANDRIA by Dr.Samuel Gipp. This is available on YouTube and Daystar Publishing.
In regard to this issue, we each have to make up our own mind.
Here are some examples:
Luke 9:56 tells us why Jesus came to earth. The King James Bible says, “For the Son of man is not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them. And they went to another village”.
The NIV, ESV, NLT says, “and they went to another village”. THIS IS NOT OK. The rest of the verse has been left out.
Matthew 18:11 tells us of this same point in the King James Bible, “For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost”.
The NIV, ESV, NLT has this verse missing completely. THIS IS NOT OK.
In both examples, the NIV, ESV, and NLT leave out Jesus’ deity.
Let’s take an example from the Old Testament. Ecclesiastes 8:10 says in the King James Bible, “And so I saw the wicked buried, who had come and gone from the place of the holy, and they were forgotten in the city where they had so done: this is also vanity”.
The NIV, NLT says, “…the wicked…receive praise”. The ESV “… the wicked…were praised”.
THIS IS NOT OK. This is even worse!
We will look at one more of the over 850 examples.
One of my favorite scriptures is Colossians 1:14. The KJB says, “In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins”.
The NIV, ESV, NLT – “Through his blood” is omitted. In these versions, redemption does not come by the blood of Jesus. It is omitted. THIS IS NOT OK.
In addition, it was very enlightening to compare the 1828 Webster Dictionary with the New 2018 Edition. The Webster 1828 edition: MARRIAGE, noun [Latin mas, maris.] The act of uniting a man and woman for life; wedlock; the legal union of a man and woman for life.
The Webster 2018 edition, MARRIAGE, noun [Latin mas, maris.] a: The state of being united as spouses in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law, b: the mutual relation of married persons: wedlock, c: the institution whereby individuals are joined in a marriage.
So, back to the original premise in this article. Have the traditions and philosophies of men replaced the Word of God? I think so. We each need to make up our own mind on the matter.
Grace and peace be unto you. Amen.